ABSTRACT
Ada Reis presented many jewels of great value and rich merchandises to the Pasha. He then, with his permission, purchased a country-house, provided with baths, gardens, and every possible earthly delight. In this retreat he placed his treasures, his harem, and his infant, under the charge of Aura and Zoe, once his favourite wives. For himself, he sought, in the indulgence of his passions, for one moment’s forgetfulness and tranquillity; he possessed every thing he most desired; and he said to himself continually, ‘who in the wide world is greater, or ought to be happier, than I am? Who can boast of firmer nerves, higher spirits, fairer expectations, or / more admiring followers? Does not my child smile upon me, like a little cherub of light? Who has greater power and wealth than I have? What eastern queen can boast of richer jewels than I shall bestow upon Fiormonda; and for steeds and slaves, has the Pasha finer or more numerous than myself; yet in the midst of my success and my splendor I am miserable, and wherefore?’
