THE MAMLÛK PROWESS-ANECDOTES. 253 they fled, it was because they saw the impracticability of carrying their point, and not from any thing in the shape of panic. In all their engagements with the French, they made a most vigorous resistance, and dealt some most tremendous blows; it is even said of them that they handled the sabre with such exquisite skill, and that the steel of their Damascus blades was so highly tempered, that in some of their charges, they were actually known to cut through the bayonet. This appears incredible; but when it is recollected to what perfection the art has been brought, and with what wonderful dexterity the executioner in the East, will, at a blow, sever the head from the body, before even his unfortunate victim is aware that the hand is on the hilt, we can easily imagine such a thing. In the latter case, strength is not so much required as skill and habit; it is done by a peculiar manner of drawing the hand backwards, at the same time that the blow is inflicted, and with such precision is it aimed, that the sign is no sooner given than the fatal sentence is passed.* Osman Effendi, the Scotch Mamlûk, as he * Sir Walter Scott, with his usual accuracy, alludes to this subject in his description of the interview which took place between Saladin and Richard Cœur de Lion, in Palestine. They were assembled in the Soldan's "splendid pavilion, where was every thing that royal luxury could devise." was Richard's two-handed sword that chiefly attracted the attention of the We read that "it Saracen, a broad, straight blade, the seemingly unwieldy length of which extended well nigh from the shoulder to the heel of the wearer.' "Had I not," said Saladin, "seen this brand flaming in the front of battle, like that of Azrael, I had scarce believed that human arm could wield it. Might I request to see the Melech Ric strike one blow with it in peace, and in pure trial of strength?" The king assented; and at a single blow, fairly severed the steel handle of a solid steel mace into two parts, which fell at the Soldan's feet, to his infinite astonishment! "Something, I would fain attempt," said he, "in return;" for although he was inferior in strength to Richard, he did not forget that each land "hath its own exercises." He accordingly took from the floor a cushion of silk and down, and placed it upright on one end. He then un→ sheathed his scimitar, a curved and narrow blade, which glittered not like the 254 OSMAN EFFENDI-DAMASCUS STEEL. has been called, (a Highlander who was second drogueman to the British Consular Agent at Cairo, and of whom I shall soon have occasion to speak,) assured me that with a fine Damascus blade which he knew he could trust, he once effectually shattered a sabre of ordinary manufacture, not by striking, but by simply warding off a blow aimed by another person, and that he would undertake to do the same again under similar circumstances. An English traveller, who thought he had bought a real Damascus blade, having paid a great price for it, and being rather proud of his bargain, felt not a little annoyed when Osman asserted, in rather plain terms, that it was only a piece of iron, and had been made at Stamboul.* The traveller was anxious to put the quality of his weapon to the test, and agreed, at Osman's request, to strike his sabre a smart blow, as he might expect to do in battle; and he was the more stimulated to redeem the credit of his new purchase, when Osman, with a smile, repeatedly warned him of the consequences. "I am certain I shall break it," said he; "but since you will have it swords of the Franks, but was, on the contrary, of a dull blue colour, marked with ten millions of meandering lines, which showed how anxiously the metal had been welded by the armourer. Wielding this weapon, apparently so inefficient when compared to that of Richard's, the Soldan stood resting his weight upon his left foot, which was slightly advanced: he balanced himself a little as if to steady his aim, then stepping at once forward, drew the scimitar across the cushion, applying the edge so dexterously, and with so little apparent effort, that the cushion seemed rather to fall asunder than to be divided by violence. He afterwards divided a veil or shawl which had been simply laid double upon the blade, "equally displaying the extreme temper and sharpness of the weapon, and the exquisite dexterity of him who used it."-See the Talisman, vol. ii. p. 305-8. This picture, so far from being overdrawn, is a faithful illustration of what may be witnessed in the present day. In the same volume, we also see with what ease Saladin strikes off the head of the Templar, at a single blow ;-a no greater feat than is performed continually in Turkey and in Persia, by the 66 Nasakchi," or public executioner. * i. e. Constantinople, and is a perversion of "is τýv modiv.” THE BATTLE OF THE PYRAMIDS. 255 so,―stand forth: it is far better that it should betray you now, than in the face of an enemy:"-and he deliberately drew forth his scimitar. The traveller produced his, and aimed a terrific blow at the Mamlûk, as though he would indeed have felled him to the earth; but Osman, slipping a little to one side, and drawing his arm gently inwards, with, at the same time, a slight rotation of the wrist, received the full force of his antagonist's weapon, which fell to pieces at his feet; and instantly raising his own, held it over the head of his opponent, which, had he been so disposed, he could have severed from his body in less time than his tongue could have called for mercy. A similar instance of "a strong arm and a keen blade," is stated to have occurred a short time since, at the mess of a cavalry regiment in England. Lieut. C-, of the - Dragoons, undertook for a wager to cut through the middle of a thick iron poker with his sword, in a given number of strokes, and actually did so on the fourth stroke. The temper of the blade was evidently of first-rate excellence; for the edge was not in the slightest degree turned, or otherwise injured. The facts then which I have adduced, are sufficient, I think, to satisfy our minds concerning the truth of the assertion that the Mamlûks actually did cut through the French bayonets." What has been pompously styled by our continental neighbours, "the Battle of the Pyramids," comprises a series of skirmishes between disciplined troops and the Mamluks, who were altogether unaccustomed to "the square," and other regular modes of fighting adopted by the former, and of course suffered most severely; but the action so called, extended to the whole district between Rahmanieh and Cairo. That the French bayonets 256 PROCEEDINGS OF THE FRENCH ARMY. and deliberate steady firing should ultimately prevail over men accustomed to depend on their horses and sabres, with reference rather to personal valour than scientific manoeuvring, is no wonder to say nothing of the inexperience of those who commanded the "Crescent," when brought in collision with such men as Buonaparte, Kleber, Menou, Belliard, and others; to wit, Monge, Berthollet, Andréossy, Junot the paymaster, and Bourrienne, secretary to Napoleon, who though not in the military service, nevertheless, according to General Berthier, assisted Perrée in the unequal and dangerous engagement which preceded the battle of the Pyramids, and in which it is alleged, the Turkish flotilla was burnt, though not until upwards of 1500 guns had been fired.* * The battle alluded to was fought on the 14th of July: it began at eleven in the morning and lasted until half-past twelve. At the same time, Napoleon attacked a corps of about 4000 Mamlûks, near the village of Chebreisse, defeated them, and forced them to retire on Cairo. He had been warned of the condition of Perrée, by the cannonade which he had heard all the morning, and by the explosion of a Turkish gun-boat, and hastened to his assistance; -"otherwise," said he, "not a single Mamlûk had escaped me." Nevertheless, Perrée and the army did not meet until the 23rd of July. He first came in sight of the Pyramids on the 22d, and was told that he was then ten leagues from D'gizeh. He had heard the cannonade of Napoleon, which seemed augmented as the north wind diminished. This raised his suspicion of what was doing by the army; but the first real intimation he received of a serious engagement, and the defeat of the Mamlûks, the most formidable of all their enemies, was that heaps of their bodies were hurried down with the stream to the sea. As his party advanced, they found the villages which had previously taken part against them, now deserted: the firing from the banks gradually ceased, which intimated with tolerable certainty, that the inhabitants of the district knew of the ill success of their countrymen. We are told that until the arrival of the French at D'gizeh, they suffered great privations, living for eleven days on melons and water, and exposed at intervals, to the firing of the Fellahs and Bedoueen Arabs. The swell of the Nile was only beginning on the 23rd of July, when they reached D'gizeh. The march of the French army to Cairo, was attended by an uninterrupted succession of combats and victories. They had won the battles of Rahmanieh, Cherbriesse, and the Pyramids. The Mamluks were defeated, and their chief, Murad Bey, was obliged to fly into Upper Egypt. On the twentieth day of the campaign, after the battle of Em |