One great feast-day, two gipsies devoted their lives in order to avert the evil destiny of the pacha; and, solemnly convoking on their own heads all misfortunes which might possibly befall him, cast themselves down from the palace roof.

One arose with difficulty, stunned and suffering, the other remained on the ground with a broken leg.

Ali gave them each forty francs and an annuity of two pounds of maize daily, and considering this sufficient, took no further trouble about them.
Every year, at Ramadan, a large sum was distributed in alms among poor women without distinction of sect.

But Ali contrived to change this act of benevolence into a barbarous form of amusement.
As he possessed several palaces in Janina at a considerable distance from each other, the one at which a distribution was to take place was each day publicly announced, and when the women had waited there for an hour or two, exposed to sun, rain or cold, as the case might be, they were suddenly informed that they must go to some other palace, at the opposite end of the town.

When they got there, they usually had to wait for another hour, fortunate if they were not sent off to a third place of meeting.