Page 297 - Travels in Arabia (Vol 2)_Neat

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278 COAST OF ARABIA. [CH.

Mohammed ’All, as a means of defraying
I the expenses of his war in Arabia, monopo­

lized the whole corn-trade also, and disposed
of the grain required for the consumption of
Hejaz at his own price. The revenue de­
rived from this was enormous, but it was
'
collected (notwithstanding the disapprobation
of the Porte, under whose especial protection
-
the holy cities are considered as being placed)
with too much facility, and its amount was

found to be too considerable to be readily
relinquished. All the grain now arriving at
Jiddah and Yembo’ is shipped on account of
the Pasha, and no one is allowed, under any
circumstances, to purchase the smallest quan­
tity until it lands at those ports, when the
% surplus not required for public purposes is
%
disposed of to merchants who afterwards re­
tail it.
Materials for ship-building are supplied
a either from India, or by the way of the Nile
1 :: from the Mediterranean. Boats are built at
I Jiddah and Suez, whither they import timber.

Some few are launched at Kosair, and others
I;
at Hode'idah. These boats are solely con­
structed for commercial purposes, and piracy

I