A
JOURNEY
THROUGH
PERSIA,
ARMENIA, AND ASIA MINOR,
TO
CONSTANTINOPLE,
IN THE YEARS 1808 AND 1809;

PREFACE.

Finding, on my arrival in England, that curiosity was quite alive to every thing connected with Persia, I was induced to publish the Memoranda which I had already made on that country; more immediately as I found that I had been fortunate enough to ascertain some facts, which had escaped the research of other travellers. In this, I allude more particularly to the sculptures and ruins of Shapour; for although my account of them is on a very reduced scale, yet I hope that I have said enough to direct the attention of abler persons than myself to the investigation of a new and curious subject.

Imperfect as my journal may be, it will, I hope, be found sufficiently comprehensive to serve as a link in the chain of information on Persia, until something more satisfactory shall be produced; and it claims no other merit than that of having been written on the very spots, and under the immediate circumstances, which I have attempted to describe. Having confined myself, with very few exceptions, to the relation of what I saw and heard, it will be found unadulterated by partiality to any particular system, and unbiassed by the writings and dissertations of other men. Written in the midst of a thousand cares, it claims every species of indulgence.

viii

The time of my absence from England comprehends a space of little more than two years.—On the 27th of Oct. 1807, I sailed from Portsmouth with Sir Harford Jones, Bart. K. C. His Majesty’s Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the Court of Persia, in H. M. S. Sapphire, Captain George Davies: after having touched at Madeira and at the Cape of Good Hope, we reached Bombay on the 26th of April, 1808: owing to some political arrangements we did not quit Bombay till the 12th September. We arrived at Bushire on the 13th October, and proceeded towards the Persian capital on the 13th December. H. M. Mission reached Teheran on the 14th February, 1809: on the 12th March the preliminary treaty was signed between Sir Harford Jones and the Persian Plenipotentiaries; and on the 7th May I quitted Teheran with Mirza Abul Hassan, the King of Persia’s Envoy Extraordinary to the Court of London, with whom I reached Smyrna on the 7th September, and embarked there on board H. M. S. Success, Captain Ayscough. Having at Malta changed the Success for H. M. S. Formidable, we finally reached Plymouth on the 25th November, 1809.

I should be wanting in gratitude, if I did not here express the obligations which I owe to my fellow traveller, Mirza Abul Hassan, the late Persian Envoy Extraordinary, for much information on subjects relating to his own country, and for all the facilities of acquiring his language, which his communicative and amiable disposition afforded me. As this personage was distinguished, during his stay in England, by attentions more marked and continued than, perhaps, were ever paid to any foreigner, I have conceived that I should not trespass too much on the patience of my readers by inserting a sketch of his life;1ix I feel at least that it will prove very acceptable to those who have shown him, as a stranger, so much friendship and hospitality.

In my narrative I have confined myself to relate our proceedings from the time we left Bombay to my arrival at Constantinople. The sea voyages, from England to India, and from Constantinople to England, are too well known to require any thing more to be written about them.

The engravings that are inserted are made from drawings which I took on the spot; they are done in a slight manner, and therefore are more intended to give general ideas, than to enter into any nicety of detail.

For the map from Bushire to Teheran I am indebted to my friend Captain James Sutherland, of the Bombay army; and for the general one of the countries, through which my route carried me, I must here return my thanks to Major Rennell, who has furnished me with this valuable document, and who has kindly assisted me in this, as well as on other occasions when I found myself deficient, with his advice and information. The map from Teheran to Amasia is the result of my own observation, corrected by the same masterly hand. It terminates at Amasia, because my journey from that place to Constantinople was performed as much by night as it was by day, and prosecuted with too great speed to permit me to observe with accuracy. Besides which, in Turkey, where the people are much more jealous and watchful of travellers than in Persia, I found that I could not make my remarks so much at my ease as I wished, although assisted by the disguise of a Persian dress. The courses and distances, noted in the journal, are only to be regarded as a kind of dead reckoning, subject to correction by the application of latitudes in certain places, and of approximated posixtions in others; and, in all, by allowances for the inflexions and inequalities of the roads.

I am indebted to Messrs. Jukes and Bruce, of the Bombay service, for the information which they furnished me whilst I was in Persia, and I have not failed to make my acknowledgments, wherever such information has been inserted.

But I must, in particular, express my gratitude to Mr. Robert Harry Inglis, for the kindness with which he offered to correct and arrange my memoranda, and prepare my journals for the press.2

I beg leave to repeat that this volume is meant merely as provisional, and that I am far from entertaining the presumption that it will class with the valuable pages of Chardin, Le Brun, Hanway, Niebuhr, or Olivier. It is to be expected, that the extensive communication that will be opened with Persia, in consequence of our late political transactions with its court, will throw the whole extent of that very interesting part of the globe under our cognizance; and that, among other subjects of inquiry, its numerous antiquities, which have as yet been but imperfectly explored, will throw new lights upon its ancient history, manners, religion, and language.

xi

INTRODUCTION.

The history of Persia from the death of Nadir Shah to the accession of the present King, comprehending a period of fifty-one years, presents little else than a catalogue of the names of tyrants and usurpers, and a succession of murders, treacheries and scenes of misery.

After the assassination of Nadir, one of the most formidable of the competitors for the vacant throne, was Mahomed Hassan Khan, the head of the Cadjar tribe, and a person of high rank among the nobles of Shah Thamas, the last king of the Seffi race.3xii Mahomed Hassan Khan had several sons: Hossein Kooli Khan, the eldest, was father to the present King of Persia, and was killed in a battle with the Turcomans: Aga Mahomed Khan, the second son, was the immediate predecessor of his nephew on the throne.

Mahomed Hassan Khan had not long assumed the crown, when he was opposed by Kerim Khan, a native of Courdistan; who, under pretence of protecting the rights of Ismael,4 a lineal descendant of the Seffi family, and then a child, secured to himself so large a share of influence and authority in the state, that he very soon supplanted virtually the pageant that he had erected; and, while he still concealed his ambition under the name of Vakeel or Regent, exercised all the real powers of the sovereign of Persia. The birth of Kerim Khan was obscure; but the habits of his early years qualified him for the times in which he lived, and the destiny to which hexiii aspired. His family, indeed, was a low branch of an obscure tribe in Courdistan, that of the Zunds, from which his dynasty has been denominated; and his profession was the single occupation of all his countrymen, robbery,5 which, when it thus becomes a national object, loses in reputation all its grossness. Here he acquired the talents and hardihood of a soldier; and was renowned for an effectual spirit of enterprise, and for great personal skill in the exercise of the sword, a qualification of much value among his people. The long revolutions of Persia called forth every talent and every passion; and the hopes of Kerim Khan were excited by the partial successes of others, and by the consciousness of his own resources. He entered the field; and eventually overcame Mahomed Hassan Khan, his principal competitor, who fled and was killed in Mazanderan. The conqueror having seized and confined the children of his rival, proceeded to quell the several inferior chiefs, who, in their turns, had aspired to the succession. His superior activity and talents finally secured the dominion: and having, in 1755, settled at Shiraz, he made that city the seat of his government. He beautified it by many public buildings, both of use and luxury; and their present state attests the solid magnificence of his taste. His memory is much lamented in Persia; as his reign, a reign of dissipation and splendor, was congenial to the character of the people. In his time prostitutes were publicly protected; their calling was classed among the professions; and the chief, or representative, of theirxiv numbers, attended by all the state and parade of the most respected of the Khans and Mirzas, used daily to stand before the Sovereign at his Durbar.

On the 13th of March, 1779, Kerim Khan died a natural death, an extraordinary occurrence in the modern history of Persia, having reigned (according to the different dates assigned to his accession, from the deaths of different competitors) from nineteen to thirty years. From the fall of Mahomed Hassan Khan the better epoch, his conqueror lived nineteen years, with almost undisputed authority.

After his death all was again in confusion; and the kingdom presented a renewal of blood and usurpation. It is scarcely necessary to state the short-lived struggles of his successors: their very names have ceased to interest us. It is sufficient therefore to add, that his sons and brothers, and other relatives, attacked each other for fourteen years after his death; till the fortunes of the whole family were finally overwhelmed in the defeat of Loolf Ali Khan, the last and greatest of these claimants; and the dominion was transferred, in the year 1794, to his conqueror, Aga Mahomed Khan, of the present royal race of Persia.

In latter years, during the war between the East India Company and Tippoo Saib, under the administration of the Marquis Wellesley, the political relations of England and Persia were renewed. An embassy, which Tippoo sent to Fatteh Ali Shah, the present King of Persia, was followed soon after by a rival mission, which the Indian government confided to the care of Mehede Ali Khan, a man ofxv Persian extraction. In the mean time, indeed, Tippoo was killed; and his death left us in possession of the Persian councils. After this Captain Malcolm, in the year 1801, was sent to solicit the alliance of Persia against Zemaun Shah, King of the Afghans. That gentleman concluded a treaty,6 by which it was stipulated that Persia should attack Khorassan and the Afghan States, and that we should contribute our assistance in the expences of the war. The King of Persia carried his arms into Khorassan, and conquered that province.

The mission of Captain Malcolm was returned by one from the King of Persia to the Indian Government. Hajee Kelil Khan was sent as the embassador, but unfortunately he was killed in a fray at Bombay, as he was attempting to quell a disturbance between his servants and some Indians. To explain this untoward event, Mr. Lovett, a gentleman in the Bengal civil service, was dispatched; but he proceeded no further with his mission than to Bushire, and delivered it over to Mr. Manesty, the East India Company’s Resident at Bussorah. Another embassy was now sent from the Persian Court; and Mahomed Nebee Khan, the Envoy appointed, luckily reached Calcutta without any accident.

Some time after, French agents were traced into Persia, and the views of France begun to be suspected. Monsieur Jouannin, an intelligent Frenchman, succeeded in getting the Persian Court to send a mission to Buonaparte. The Envoy, by name Mirza Rega, went from Persia in 1806; and concluded a treaty with France atxvi Finkinstein, in May 1807. On his return, a large embassy, confided to General Gardanne, was sent from France to Persia: this gave rise to the mission of Sir Harford Jones, who, arriving at Bombay in April 1808, found that Brigadier-General Malcolm had been previously sent by the Governor-General to Persia. General Malcolm having failed of success, Sir Harford Jones proceeded.

xvii

PLATES.

DIRECTIONS TO THE BINDER.

xviii

ERRATA.

P. 176. Twenty-two lines from the top, for twelve, read sixteen.

P. 257. Sixteen lines from the top, for four, read five.

(Transcriber's note: These have been implemented.)

1

JOURNEY THROUGH PERSIA,
&c. &c. &c.

CHAP. I.
BOMBAY TO BUSHIRE.

On the 6th of September 1808, when His Majesty’s Mission to the court of Teheran was still at Bombay, the Envoy extraordinary, Sir Harford Jones, received dispatches from the Governor-general at Calcutta, which determined him to proceed immediately to Persia. The establishment of the mission had been changed since our arrival in India; Major L. F. Smith, who left England as public Secretary, on landing at this settlement proceeded to Bengal; and the duties of Secretary of the Legation were annexed to those, which, as private secretary to the Envoy, I had originally discharged. The suite was augmented at Bombay by Mr. Thomas Henry Sheridan, and Captain James Sutherland, severally of the civil and military establishments of that presidency, by Cornet Henry Willock, of the Madras cavalry, commander of the body guard; and was subsequently joined by2 Lieutenant Blacker, of the Madras cavalry, and Mr. Campbell, surgeon to the mission. Besides three European and some Indian servants, the Envoy carried washermen and tailors, and some artificers, as carpenters, blacksmiths, and locksmiths.

On the 12th Sept. Sir Harford Jones, accompanied by Mr. Sheridan and myself, embarked on board his Majesty’s frigate Nereide, Captain Corbett; Capt. Sutherland and Mr. Willock went in the Sapphire, Capt. Davis: and the H. C. cruizer Sylph carried the Persian secretary, &c. The Governor of Bombay drew out the troops of the garrison to salute the Envoy on his embarkation: they formed a lane from the government-house to the entrance of the dock-yard; and as He passed the troops presented arms, and the music played “God save the King.” A salute of fifteen guns was fired on his quitting the shore, and was answered by another from the frigate; a ceremony which always excites a powerful feeling of respect in the minds of the natives.

In the afternoon of the 12th, the squadron left the harbour of Bombay: on the 13th, the Nereide had out-stripped the Sapphire, and had lost sight of the Sylph. The winds were variable and squally: the thermometer in the cabin stood at 82°. About ten o’clock, on the morning of the 14th. we made the land of Diu; we stood close in shore, and tacked at twelve o’clock; the Portuguese colours were flying on the fort. The thermometer was this day 80°. 15th. calms. The land of the Guzerat is extremely low. Diu Point is studded with towns and pagodas. 16th. we made but little way; tacked off and on shore, and distinguished a variety of buildings and towns on the coast. The largest place, which we marked in our progress, was Pour-bundar. The coast itself continued flat, with scarcely an inequality.

On Sunday, the 18th. Capt. Corbett read prayers to the ship’s company on the quarter-deck. The scene struck me as more simple and more impressive than any that, for a long time, I had witnessed. The cleanliness of the ship, the attention of the sailors, the beauty of the day, all conspired to heighten the solemnity of the service, and I3 felt persuaded that the prayers, offered up to God by such men and in such a manner, would be favourably accepted.

Cape Arubah.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

As the coast of Mekran, (taken largely, from the Indus to the entrance of the gulph of Persia,) along which we now sailed, is so little visited in this age, and has, indeed, been so seldom described since the days of Alexander, it may, perhaps, be acceptable to insert even the few and incomplete notices of the country which my journal affords.

On the 18th. we lost sight of the coast. On the 24th we again saw land, which in appearance was remarkable. It was a very long range of table land, the soil of which, though light coloured, was strongly marked in horizontal strata. As we approached it, we discovered several curious capes, rising in a varied succession of grotesque forms; and among them one so very singular, that we were surprised that it had not been particularly described by those who have compiled the directories for navigating these seas. By our chronometers we took this land to be Cape Moran.7 The shore gradually shallows from twelve to five fathoms, when we tacked and stood off again in the evening, expecting a land breeze to spring up, but were disappointed. The sea is here very much discoloured, the effect probably of black mud at the bottom.

25th. Sept. Cape Arubah is a long slip of table land, which on its first appearance looks like an island.8 Its soil seems to be clay, and of a colour a few shades darker than Portland stone. We did not discover, among the head-lands into which it was broken, the particular cape which might have given its name to the whole; but the highest point to the westward appeared to deserve the preference. Beyond that western extremity of the table land, the coast immediately recedes into a bay, which is terminated by a long range of extremely rugged moun4tains. In one of the recesses of the cliffs of Arubah, we fancied that we had discovered a village, and even through our glasses were still positive that we could mark its white buildings; but as we drew closer to the shore, we ascertained that the houses in appearance were in reality large clods of white soil, which had fallen from the cliffs above, and were arranged so happily, some in separate piles, and some in rows, as to give to the whole the full effect of a town. A number of small boats with white lateen sails were creeping quietly along the shore, as we passed; but we could not get close enough to them, to ascertain the people who managed them, or the nature of the goods which they carried.

On the 26th. the weather was very foggy; the thermometer was 75°. On the 27th. as the fog still increased, we came to an anchor in nine fathoms. On the 28th. as the fog cleared away, we discovered the small island of Ashtola, which is of an equal height along its whole extent, a length perhaps of about two miles, and seems to be of the same soil as the capes on the mainland. Not far from the island, we caught turtle. The continent as seen from Ashtola, appears extremely high, in long continued ranges; but the lands which more immediately border on the sea, are very low. The soundings are regular, and there is no danger, as long as the lead is going. At eight o’clock we were off Cape Posmee, a remarkable head-land.

Island of Ashtola.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

On the 1st of October, we made Cape Guadel, a piece of land of a moderate and rather equal height, which projects far into the sea, and is connected with the continent by an isthmus less than half a mile in breadth. Close under the north side of the cape, there is still a town; and on the isthmus, as we could perceive from the ship, are the remains of an old fort. In the neighbourhood are the vestiges of a town also, built with stone, and some wells.9 But the more modern village of Guadel is5 composed of mat houses, and the greater part of the inhabitants (the number of the whole is very small) are weavers, who manufacture coarse linen and carpets of ordinary colours. From Crotchey to Cape Monze the people call themselves Balouches; and from Monze to Cape Jasques, they take the name of Brodies: there is some difference in their language, perhaps in their religion also, but none in their dress or manners. The high lands about Cape Guadel are all extremely remarkable, rising in spires and turrets so correctly formed, as to give to many parts of the coast, an appearance of towns with their churches and castles.

Their rocky summits, split and rent,

Form’d turret, dome, and battlement,

Or seem’d fantastically set

With cupola or minaret,

Wild crests as pagod ever deck’d

Or mosque of eastern architect.

Lady of the Lake, Canto I. xi. p. 14.

Cape Posmee.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

One piece of land in particular, forming an entrance to the bay behind Cape Guadel, has the most striking resemblance to a long range of gothic ruin. We perceived three camels grazing on the heights of the cape, and some few signs of cultivation, which we had discovered on no other spot along the coast before.

On the 3d. we saw the town of Chubar; and plainly distinguished among other objects a walled building, which we at first took to be a fort, but which according to the Directory, is a place of burial. We saw several boats with lateen sails, of a canvas very conspicuously white, cut exactly like the sails of the boats on the coast of Italy and Sicily. The thermometer was 84°. The 5th. was very sultry, and the6 thermometer was 90°. On the 6th. a hot wind came from off the land, and warped the tables, mathematical rulers, and the furniture in the cabin, besides slackening all our rigging. This wind brought with it a thick mist of an impalpable sand, which gradually cleared away, and left us the first view of Cape Jasques.

Oct. 7th. at about one o’clock in the morning, a breeze sprung up from the southward, and in five hours we had passed the Quoins, in the Gulph of Persia, and were abreast of the island of Kishmis. We saw at the same time the high land of the Arabian shore, terminating in a lofty and marked peak; it is the land about Cape Musseldom. The entrance of the gulph may be properly marked between Cape Bombareek and Cape Musseldom. I call these places by their names, as laid down in our sea charts; because their more proper appellations would probably not be understood. Bombareek for instance, which by sailors is also called Bombay rock, is derived originally from “Moobarek, happy, fortunate.” Musseldom is still a stronger instance of the perversion of words. The genuine name of this head-land is Mama Selemeh, derived according to the story of the country from Selemeh, who was a female saint of Arabia, and lived on the spot or in its neighbourhood. The Indians, when they pass the promontory, throw cocoa nuts, fruits or flowers into the sea, to secure a propitious voyage. My informer added, that the superstition was not practised by the Persians.

On the shore of Cape Bombareek is an insulated and very singular mass of rock, in which we could perceive from the ship a large natural aperture. To me the shape of the whole mass appeared like a tankard, and the aperture formed its handle. After having rounded Cape Musseldom (which is eighteen leagues to the westward of Bombareek), we came to the five small islands generally called altogether the Quoins.

Kishmis is the largest island in the gulph; and, according to the account which I received, is capable of being made very productive: it is at present in almost total abandonment, though still nominally the property of Persia. We next passed two small and low islands, called the Great and Little Tomb.

Cape Museldom.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

7

The strong south wind, with which we were now favoured, was at this season considered extraordinary. It blew so strong that the Nereide, with every sail set, went ten and eleven knots. It is accompanied with much haze, not indeed to be compared to that which came with the hot wind from off the shore, though in the same manner it warped the furniture and slackened the rigging.

On the 8th. we passed the island of Busheab, which, in Heather’s map, is placed much too far to the eastward, and which ought to be called “Khoshaub, or pleasant water,” from the fresh spring in its territory. It is a long and low slip, but the land on the continent behind it is extremely high. We had a light sea breeze all day, that carried us off Cape Nabon, a part of the province of Farz. The thermometer stood at 93° in the cabin after dinner. On the morning of the 9th. it was reported that a fleet of five ships were seen from the mast-head. We conjectured that they might be Arab ships, bound from Muscat to Bussorah, which about this season proceed on their voyages. They carry thither annually eight thousand bales of coffee; and in return get cargoes of dates. The sea breeze of the day was extremely light, and set in at noon. In the evening the Barnhill, a remarkable piece of land, (which derived its name from its resemblance to an old and decayed thatched building, and which is situated over the town of Congoon,) bore N. and by W. of us. Here the whole coast is very high.

On the morning of the 10th. we were off the Barnhill. The five ships had thus far kept us in a state of suspense; as we imagined that they might be the fleet of the Imaum of Muscat, who possesses thirty sail of different descriptions. Some of his ships, indeed, are of a thousand tons burthen; and one of forty guns, built at Bombay, is rather a formidable vessel.10 The Imaum in person frequently parades about8 the Persian gulph with his armament. He is an independant prince, and his jurisdiction, though principally confined to Muscat, extends yet generally over the province of Oman. At present he is friendly to us, and we have a resident at his court, who seldom remains there long, for the badness of its air has rendered it the burial place of too many Englishmen.

At length we boarded the Arabs, and they proved to be, as we had originally expected, a fleet of the Imaum’s merchantmen, laden with coffee, rice, &c. bound to Bushire and Bussorah. They had been fifteen days from Muscat. One of the five was a fine vessel of six hundred tons burthen, which about four years before was purchased by the Imaum at the Isle of France, and was then called the Sterling Castle. There were also two grabs, which are ships in every respect like the others, except that they have lengthened prows instead of rounded bows. These grabs the Arabs can manage to build themselves in their own ports, as it is easy to extend the timbers of a ship, until they connect themselves into a prow; but they have not yet attained the art of forming timber fit to construct bows.

Before the sun-set of the preceding day, we had discovered through our glasses, the town of Congoon, under a peak, close in the eastern vicinity of the Barnhill. It then appeared in a wood of dates, above which rose the domes of mosques. The Sheik of Congoon is represented as a young and spirited Arab, who can raise a body of two thousand cavalry, and who is able to lead them. His town is resorted to for wood, but, as far as we could judge at a distance, the date is the only tree of the neighbourhood.

We suffered much from the heat in the night, but when the moon rose over the Barnhill, a little refreshing breeze sprang up, which gave us much relief. An Arab ship was not far from us, and I could just hear their singing on board. It brought to my recollection some of the moonlight scenes in the Archipelago; for the music of these Arabs struck me as being very similar to that which I have heard on board a Greek or9 Sclavonian ship, when the lyra accompanies the voice of some naval Apollo, and is followed by a chorus of his shipmates.

We were off Cape Verdistan this morning, and descried the Hummocks of Kenn. The shoal that runs out from Cape Verdistan, is rendered dangerous by a reef of rocks which extends itself about six or seven miles from the shore. There are good mud soundings on the shoal, and a ship may cross its extremity without danger, though it is as well to give it a good birth. We stood off in the night of the 12th. The soundings in the shoal as laid down by Mac Cluer are not all correspondent to those which we got. We were in seven fathoms for more than an hour, and he has not got such a sounding amongst his. From seven we got to half six, and then to four, when we thought it time to tack. The cause which has been assigned for our ignorance of the gulph, is the prudential reserve which has influenced our Indian governments in their transactions with the states of Persia and Arabia. To avoid suspicion and complaint, they have never professedly made surveys of the shores, though much might yet have been done indirectly, if the object had been considered of sufficient importance. Few, except merchant vessels visited the gulph; and as the charts, which they already possessed (and what is better, their own experience) served their purpose sufficiently in the line of their own navigation, there was seldom any particular demand for more correct surveys. The geographer and philosopher indeed require something more, and therefore it is still matter of regret, that we are comparatively ill-informed in countries, where we have had easy opportunities of acquiring knowledge.

13th Oct. We were becalmed all night under the Asses Ears. These are points of land, which stand a little more erect, and are more conspicuous than the other points which surround them. The whole displays a line of coast the most rugged, barren, and inhospitable that I ever saw; and constitutes, after we passed Verdistan shoal, a very bold shore. We sailed along it, keeping in eleven and twelve fathoms. In the evening we opened Hallilah peak, which is a high and remarkable10 point of land. As we crept along the coast, we marked some ruined walls embosomed among the date trees.11 At sun-set we just discovered the low land on which stands the town of Bushire. In the calms which followed during the night, we were unable to make much way, and on the morning of the 14th we were still at the same distance from Bushire, as on the preceding evening. We fired two shots at a small vessel, to bring her to, but without effect. These boats are employed mostly in carrying wood to Bushire. They find it on the coast, probably in recesses of the land, for we could scarcely see a shrub in the whole passage of the gulph.

At about half past three o’clock on the 14th October, we anchored in Bushire roads, where we found one of the Company’s cruizers, and a merchantman. Before we cast anchor, a boat came off from the shore, the captain of which, a little sharp Persian, answered Sir Harford Jones’s interrogations with much vivacity, and swore to the truth of every assertion ten times over by his head and eyes. Having learnt that the East India Company’s assistant resident, Mr. Bruce, was at Bushire, the Envoy sent a letter to desire his attendance on board immediately, and at the same time requesting that he would notify the arrival of the mission to the Sheik, Abdallah Resoul, who then governed Bushire. We could see with our glasses Mr. Bruce’s residence, which was at some distance without the town, and could observe that the letter had been safely delivered; for in a few minutes we discovered Mr. Bruce on horseback, riding full speed to the boat. In an hour he was on board.

He commenced by informing us of a report of the death of our King, which had reached Bushire from Bagdad; and which, originating from an article in a French paper, had been circulated in Persia by the French, for an obvious purpose. The Envoy delivered to Mr. Bruce,11 a paper containing all the communications which he wished to be made to the Sheik of Bushire. He then added, desiring that his object might be clearly explained, that He expected from the Sheik all the respect due to the station which he filled, and that if he did not receive those honours to which the King of England’s Mission was entitled, the Sheik should be held responsible till the wishes of the court of Persia were known. Mr. Bruce assured Sir Harford that the Sheik would make no difficulty in coming off the next day to pay his respects, and the hour of his visit was in consequence fixed at ten o’clock.

The colours of the New Factory in the country, and of the Old one in the town, were hoisted on the morning of the 15th. While we were expecting the arrival of the Sheik, we regaled ourselves with the grapes, citrons, and pomegranates, which had been sent to us from the shore. At length we espied a boat with a crimson awning, and apparently much filled with passengers. It was beating against the sea breeze, which, rather unfortunately for the party, had set in uncommonly fresh. When she came in a line with our ship, the sail was lowered, and the men took to their oars. In a short time however we observed from the frigate, that the boat got very slowly a-head, and that the strength of the crew was nearly exhausted. Captain Corbett then sent his barge to tow up the Sheik to the ship, which was done in a very masterly style; and we were delighting in the idea of the enjoyment which the Persians must have received in the close at least of such an excursion, when we were mortified at discovering the misery in every face, which the unusual voyage had too evidently produced. But the sea-sickness was forgotten as soon as they were on board the frigate. The Sheik was received with a salute of five guns; the number was esteemed a mark of particular distinction, as three are considered in Persia a sufficient allowance for a great man.

The marines were under arms; Captain Corbett with much courtesy handed him across the quarter-deck, and assisted him with some difficulty to descend from the deck to the cabin by a steep and12 narrow ladder, which, however, no attention could render convenient to a man encumbered with an immense large cloak and slip-shod slippers. At the bottom he was received by Sir Harford Jones. The ship was immediately filled by the suite of the Sheik, who, with all the curiosity and effrontery of Asiatics, spread themselves through every part. Our guest was attended on his visit by the principal men and merchants of Bushire, among whom the Envoy recognised the face of many an early friend. All the party seemed much pleased with their reception, and expressed their high admiration of the beauty, order, and cleanliness of the ship. The conversation was general, and consisted mostly in inquiries after former friends, and in reviving the recollection of the histories of old times. Sir Harford Jones had known the Sheik when he was a fine boy: there was now indeed little left to be admired; his face was inanimate, and his body bent double with excessive debauch. The whole party were generally but a rude sample of the elegance of Persians, nor indeed is the true Persian to be found at Bushire, where the blood is mostly mixed with that of Arabia.

The only man of the party, whose face interested me, and exhibited signs of intelligence, was a Turk, by name Abdulla Aga, an old friend of the Envoy’s, who had been Musselim of Bussorah, and had ruled that part of the country for many years, with great respectability and eclat. He had been driven by injustice to take refuge at Bushire; though from the known integrity of his character, and the attachment of the people of Bussorah and Bagdad to his person, many still expect that he will one day attain the Pachalick of Bagdad. After this good Mussulman, spreading his carpet near one of the twelve pounders, had said his prayers, (with a fervency, undisturbed by the busy, novel and noisy scene around him) the visit broke up.

The Sheik and Abdulla Aga, who both had suffered by their long excursion in the morning, preferred to return on shore in the Nereide’s boat with Sir Harford Jones. We had not long put off from the ship, when a salute of fifteen guns commenced for the envoy, to the great consternation of the remaining part of the Persians, who were just13 embarking in their own boat, and who unluckily found themselves under the muzzles of the guns, where they were involved in clouds of smoke, with the wads whistling close to their ears. We at length reached the landing place; an immense crowd was assembled to await our debarkation. The Sheik had collected all the soldiery of the town to escort us to his house; and in the moment of our touching the shore, the whole mob was put in motion, raising a dust so thick that I could scarce distinguish Englishman from Asiatic. To add to the denseness of the atmosphere, the boats, which were close to the beach, commenced a salute; which was immediately answered by a range of guns on the coast. The whole procession was obliged to pass in the immediate rear of these guns as they were firing, though they appeared so old and honey-combed, that I feared they must have burst before the honours were over. We proceeded in a cloud of dust, and through streets six feet wide to the Sheik’s house, and at length entered it by a door so mean and ill-looking, that it might more properly have formed the entrance to his stable. This door introduced us into a small court yard, on one side of which was an apartment where we seated ourselves on chairs placed on purpose for us. A Persian visit, when the guest is a distinguished personage, generally consists of three acts: first, the kaleoun, or water pipe, and coffee; second, a kaleoun, and sweet coffee (so called from its being a composition of rose-water and sugar); and third, a kaleoun by itself. Sweetmeats are frequently introduced as a finale. As I shall have many better opportunities of describing all the ceremonies of these occasions, it is sufficient to add at present, that we performed the three above acts, and then mounted our horses for Mr. Bruce’s house in the country.

Part of the same armed rabble, which had escorted us from the boat to the Sheik’s house, attended us to the Factory. These soldiers are the militia of the place, and serve without pay. They even find their own arms, which consist of a matchlock, a sword, and a shield that is slung behind their back. They consist of working men attached to different trades, for we discovered the dyer by the black hue of his hands, the14 tinker by the smut on his face, the tailor by the shreds that had adhered to him from his shopboard.

On our arrival at the Factory, we closed our dispatches for Europe, and then completed a day full of entertainment, by an excellent dinner.

The Nereide sailed with the dispatches on the morning; and before daylight was out of sight. The passage between Bombay and Bushire, which had been made in thirty-four days, was now retraced in twelve.

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15

CHAP. IV.
RESIDENCE OF THE MISSION AT BUSHIRE.

I. PERSIA—ADMINISTRATION OF THE GOVERNMENTS—FARSISTAN—MEKRAN—BALOUCHES—COAST OF THE GULPH—ISLANDS OF THE GULPH—PEARL FISHERY.—II. BUSHIRE: SITUATION—DESCRIPTION—TRADE—VIEW—RUINS OF RESHIRE—HALILA—BUSHIRE ROADS—WATER—WEATHER—HEALTHINESS—WOMEN OF BUSHIRE—SUPERSTITIONS.—III. ANIMALS OF THE DASHTISTAN: HORSES—DOG—WHITE FOX—WILD BEASTS—HAWKS—THE JERBOA.

I. In historical interest, Persia is perhaps superior to any Asiatic empire, because more nearly connected with the fortunes of Europe; and its natural situation shares the importance; for its boundaries (defined and fortified by lofty ranges, which are pervious only through passes of very difficult access,) are prominent and decided objects in the general geography of Asia. We had hitherto seen only the southern chain: nothing can be more strongly marked than the abrupt and forbidding surface of those mountains, which bind the shore from Cape Jasques to the deepest recesses of the gulph. The little plain of the Dashtistan, (that of Bushire) which seems to have encroached upon the sea, is yet the most extensive portion of even land, which relieves however momentarily the constant and chilling succession of high and dreary lands along the coast. But beyond these mountains are fre49quently extensive plains, confined by a second range, which likewise run parallel to the coast. This is the case behind Congoon: and in the route to Shiraz we found several successive plains, (of great absolute elevation indeed, but) thus separated from each other by alternate ranges of higher land. The plain of Merdasht, beyond Shiraz, is the Hollow Persis of ancient geography. These great inequalities of surface naturally produce a corresponding variety of climates.

The administration of the provinces of Persia is now committed to the Princes. The jurisdiction of Prince Hossein Ali Mirza, one of the King’s Sons, is very extensive: it comprises, under the general name of Farsistan, not only the original province of which Shiraz was the capital (as subsequently it became that of all Persia, and as it still is of the governments combined under the Prince) but Laristan also, to the south; and Bebehan to the north-west; which severally, as well as Farsistan, possessed before their particular Beglerbegs.

Of Farsistan, under this its present more extensive signification, the hot and desert country is called the Germesir, a generic term for a warm region, which will be recognised under the ancient appellations of Germania, Kermania, or Carmania. The termination of the Persian dominion in this direction, is an undefined tract between the Germesir and the Mekran. It was the ancient boast of Persia, that its boundaries were not a petty stream or an imaginary line, but ranges of impervious mountains or deserts as impervious. In this quarter there is little probability that the country will ever become less valuable as a frontier, by becoming more cultivated and better inhabited. The land is put to so little use, that no power would greatly care to press the extension of an authority so unprofitable. Every age has marked the unalterable barbarism of the soil and of the people. The Balouchistan, or the country of the Balouches, the most desert region of the coast begins about Minou, on the west of Cape Jasques. Their country is perhaps nearly the Mekran of geography. They once owned subjection to Persia, but they have now resumed the independance of Arabs, and live in wandering communities under the government of their own Sheiks,50 of whom two are pre-eminent. They have indeed still some little commercial connexion with Persia, and occasionally a Balouche is to be seen in Bushire selling his scanty wares, mostly the mats of their own manufacture. One of their Sheiks lives at Guadel on the coast of Mekran; but in the interior, according to the account given by a Balouche to Captain Salter, there is a very potent king, though I cannot add from the same authority, whether he is of their own extraction. They live in continual wars with each other; or let themselves out to the different small powers in the gulph as soldiers. Many of the guards of the Sheik of Bushire are Balouches; and the Seapoys also on board the Arab ships are of the same tribes.

In religion they are Mahomedans; and like all those of India, are Sunnis: but they have few means of preserving the genuineness of any profession of faith; and their ignorance has already confounded their tenets with those of a very different original. The same common barbarism has indeed blended the Affghan, the Seik, and the Balouche into one class: there may be among them some beard or whisker more or less, some animal or food which they hold unclean above all others, some indescribable difference of opinion which severs them from their neighbours, but in savageness they are all identified. Those on the coast still live almost exclusively on fish, as in the days of Nearchus; though I am told they no longer build their houses with the bones. The grampus (possibly, the whale of Arrian) is still numerous on the shores. The Envoy remembered to have seen at Bushire on a former occasion, a dog of an immense size, which a Balouche had given to Mr. Galley, the Resident at that time: the man added, that the mountains towards his country were all very high. His dog seemed to confirm the assertion, for he was defended against the cold of his native region, by a coat of thick and tufted hair.

Though the Balouches scarcely advance within the gulph, yet the native Persians do not fully occupy their own shores. The coast still retains a great proportion of Arab families. The Dashtistan, which extends from Cape Bang to the plain of Bushire, was till lately governed51 by them. The district of Dasti, also along the coast from Bushire to below Congoon, still remains under their rule: and the Arab Sheik of Congoon in the adjoining territory, possesses a kind of independance.

At Tauhree, (or Tahrie) a port just below Congoon, are extensive ruins and sculptures, with the Persepolitan character. The landmarks for the entrance of the harbour are two large white spots, on the summit of a mountain, which the people of the country affirm to have been made by the hand of man; and which, on the same traditional authority, are said to have been formerly covered with glass. The reflection thus produced by the sun’s rays, rendered the object visible to a great distance at sea, and guided the navigator in safety into the road. Some of the glass is said to remain at this day. Among the ruins of the city are two wells pierced to a great depth; and stabling for a hundred horses excavated from the solid rock: the existence of these remains, I understand, Mr. B—k of the E. I. Company’s service ascertained himself.

At Kharrack, a place still further in the progress down the Gulph, between Cape Sertes and Cape Bustion, is a town which was once in the possession of the Danes; and it is singular that the people who claim a Danish blood are still very fair complexioned, and have light red hair, which may confirm their traditional accounts of their origin. The same nation had also an establishment in a deep bay near Musseldom; and the fort exists to this day. On Cape Bustion there is a mine of copper, which was formerly worked by the Portuguese: they built also a fort there, which still exists, but the mine is no longer worked, and indeed is almost forgotten. Some years ago, Mr. Bruce, the Assistant Resident at Bushire, was a prisoner among the Arabs on this part of the coast. He was told, that immediately behind the range of mountains which lines their shore, there was a river that came from near Shiraz, and run down to Gombroon; this is, probably, the Bend-emir, which, according to other accounts, is traced indeed towards Gombroon, but there expends itself in the sands. Khoresser is the name of a small river which falls into the sea nearly under the Asses Ears; and on the banks of which is situated the town of Tangistoun. At the52 mouth of this river is a small island, formed by the sands brought down; which adapts this situation to Arrian’s account of Hieratemis. At the place marked by Dr. Vincent as Podargus there is now no torrent: but I learn from Dr. Jukes and Mr. Bruce, that at Harem, situated thirty miles inland on the declivity of the mountains to the eastward, there is a water which finds its way to the sea, and may, perhaps, accord with the position required.

The islands in the Gulph of Persia retain little of their political celebrity. Ormus (ever the most barren, its soil being composed of salt and sulphur) still displays its arched reservoirs, which afford good watering places for vessels, and which are said never to dry up. On the island of Kenn, according to the people of the country, is found, after rain, gold dust in the channels of the torrents. And Bahrein, which is now in the hands of the Wahabees, is still noted for the fresh springs which issue from the earth under the sea, and from which the Arabs contrive to water their ships by placing over the spot a vessel with a syphon attached to it. Captain Skeine, who commanded an Arab ship, told the gentleman (who communicated the circumstances to me), that he had himself drawn the water at the depth of one fathom. The same submarine springs extend along the neighbouring coast of Arabia. Kharrack, which is now the principal watering place on the north of the Gulph, and the island, where the pilots for the Bussorah river are stationed, is perhaps good for few other purposes. The Sheik indeed, though enjoying profound peace, presented memorials to the Sheik of Bushire, representing that his troops and himself were in a state of starvation. Among the duties entrusted by the Government of Shiraz to the Nasakchee Bashee, he was instructed to proceed to Kharrack, to inspect the fortifications, and to report on their capability of defence.

Pearl-Fishery.—There is, perhaps, no place in the world where those things which are esteemed riches among men, abound more than in the Persian gulph. Its bottom is studded with pearls, and its coasts with mines of precious ore. The island of Bahrein, on the Arabian shore, has been considered the most productive bank of the pearl53 oysters: but the island of Kharrack now shares the reputation. The fishery extends along the whole of the Arabian coast, and to a large proportion of the Persian side of the gulph. Verdistan, Nabon, and Busheab, on that side, are more particularly mentioned; but indeed it is a general rule, that wherever in the gulph there is a shoal, there is also the pearl oyster.

The fishery, though still in itself as prolific as ever, is not perhaps carried on with all the activity of former years; since it declined in consequence by the transfer of the English market to the banks of the coast of Ceylon. But the Persian pearl is never without a demand; though little of the produce of the fishery comes direct into Persia. The trade has now almost entirely centred at Muscat. From Muscat the greater part of the pearls are exported to Surat; and, as the agents of the Indian merchants are constantly on the spot, and as the fishers prefer the certain sale of their merchandize there to a higher but less regular price in any other market, the pearls may often be bought at a less price in India, than to an individual they would have been sold in Arabia. There are two kinds; the yellow pearl, which is sent to the Mahratta market; and the white pearl, which is circulated through Bussorah and Bagdad into Asia Minor, and thence into the heart of Europe; though, indeed, a large proportion of the whole is arrested in its progress at Constantinople to deck the Sultanas of the Seraglio. The pearl of Ceylon peels off; that of the Gulph is as firm as the rock upon which it grows; and, though it loses in colour and water 1 per cent. annually for fifty years, yet it still loses less than that of Ceylon. It ceases after fifty years to lose any thing.

About twenty years ago the fishery was farmed out by the different chiefs along the coast: thus the Sheiks of Bahrein and of El Katif, having assumed a certain portion of the Pearl Bank, obliged every speculator to pay them a certain sum for the right of fishing. At present, however, the trade which still employs a considerable number of boats is carried on entirely by individuals. There are two modes of speculation: the first, by which the adventurer charters a boat by the month54 or by the season; in this boat he sends his agent to superintend the whole, with a crew of about fifteen men, including generally five or six divers. The divers commence their work at sun-rise and finish at sun-set. The oysters, that have been brought up, are successively confided to the superintendant, and when the business of the day is done, they are opened on a piece of white linen: the agent of course keeping a very active inspection over every shell. The man who, on opening an oyster, finds a valuable pearl, immediately puts it into his mouth, by which they fancy that it gains a finer water; and, at the end of the fishery, he is entitled to a present. The whole speculation costs about one hundred and fifty piastres a month; the divers getting ten piastres; and the rest of the crew in proportion. The second and the safest mode of adventure is by an agreement between two parties, where one defrays all the expences of the boat and provisions, &c. and the other conducts the labours of the fishery. The pearl obtained undergoes a valuation, according to which it is equally divided: but the speculator is further entitled by the terms of the partnership to purchase the other half of the pearl at ten per cent. lower than the market price.

The divers seldom live to a great age. Their bodies break out in sores, and their eyes become very weak and blood-shot. They can remain under water five minutes; and their dives succeed one another very rapidly, as by delay the state of their bodies would soon prevent the renewal of the exertion. They oil the orifice of the ears, and put a horn over their nose. In general life they are restricted to a certain regimen; and to food composed of dates and other light ingredients. They can dive from ten to fifteen fathoms, and sometimes even more; and their prices increase according to the depth. The largest pearl are generally found in the deepest water, as the success on the bank of Kharrack, which lies very low, has demonstrated. From such depths, and on this bank, the most valuable pearls have been brought up; the largest indeed which Sir Harford Jones ever saw, was one that had been fished up at Kharrack in nineteen fathoms water.

It has been often contested, whether the pearl in the live oyster is as55 hard as it appears in the market; or whether it acquires its consistence by exposure. I was assured by a gentleman (who had been encamped at Congoon close to the bank; and who had often bought the oysters from the boys, as they came out of the water,) that he had opened the shell immediately, and when the fish was still alive, had found the pearl already hard and formed. He had frequently also cut the pearl in two, and ascertained it to be equally hard throughout, in layers like the coats of an onion. But Sir Harford Jones, who has had much knowledge of the fishery, informs me, that it is easy by pressing the pearl between the fingers, when first taken out of the shell, to feel that it has not yet attained its ultimate consistency. A very short exposure, however, to the air gives the hardness. The two opinions are easily reconcileable by supposing, either a misconception in language of the relative term hard, (by which one authority may mean every thing in the oyster which is not gelatinous, while the other would confine it more strictly to the full and perfect consistency of the pearl;) or by admitting that there may be an original difference in the character of the two species, the yellow and the white pearl; while the identity of the specimen, on which either observation has been formed, has not been noted.

The fish itself is fine eating; nor, indeed in this respect is there any difference between the common and the pearl oyster. The seed pearls, which are very indifferent, are arranged round the lips of the oyster, as if they were inlaid by the hand of an artist. The large pearl is nearly in the centre of the shell, and in the middle of the fish.

In Persia the pearl is employed for less noble ornaments than in Europe: there it is principally reserved to adorn the kaleoons or water pipes, the tassels for bridles, some trinkets, the inlaying of looking glasses and toys, for which indeed the inferior kinds are used; or, when devoted more immediately to their persons, it is generally strung as beads to twist about in the hand, or as a rosary for prayer.

The fishermen always augur a good season of the pearl, when there have been plentiful rains; and so accurately has experience taught them, that when corn is very cheap they increase their demands for56 fishing. The connexion is so well ascertained, (at least so fully credited, not by them only, but by the merchants,) that the prices paid to the fishermen are, in fact, always raised, when there have been great rains.

II. Bushire (or more properly Abuschahr, for the former is but the corruption of an English sailor) is now the principal Port of Persia. It stands in lat. 28°. 59. in long. 50°. 43. E. of Greenwich. It is situated on the extremity of a peninsula, which is formed by the sea on one side, and on the other by an inlet terminating in extensive swamps. At the narrowest part of this neck of land the seas, in the equinoctial spring tides, have sometimes met and rendered it an island; but this has happened once only during the ten years which preceded our visit, and the effect then continued but two or three days; and so visible is the present encroachment of the land upon the inlet, that the recurrence of such an overflow will soon be entirely impossible. Every appearance, indeed, proves, that the whole of the peninsula has been thus gained from the sea. The extreme flatness of the general surface, the soil itself, the water, and the relative position of the whole peninsula to the mountains which rise abruptly from its inland extremities, suggest the supposition of such an accumulation.

On the southern bank of the inlet is a long range of rocks, which, though now two or three miles distant, may at one time have been washed by the sea. In digging for water, the people of the peninsula have sunk wells to the depth of thirty fathoms; and before they could reach the spring they have been obliged to perforate three layers of a soft stone composed of sand and shells. Generally of the whole soil, sand is the principal ingredient.

The town itself of Bushire occupies the very point of the peninsula, and forms a triangle, of which the base on the land side is alone fortified. At unequal distances along the walls, there are twelve towers, two of which form the town-gate; they are all chequered at the top by holes, through which the inhabitants may point their musketry, and those at the gates have a variety of such contrivances. There is at the57 the door a large brass Portuguese gun, a sixty-eight pounder, on a very uncertain carriage; besides two or three in a much ruder state. It is said that on some invasion when the place was beset, this gun was fired, but the concussion was so great and unexpected, that it blew open the gates, shook down fragments of the towers, and gave the enemy an easy entrance. The materials of the town (a soft sandy stone, incrustated with shells) are drawn from the ruins of Reshire, in its neighbourhood. Most of the adjacent villages are built of the same stone, the only species indeed found in the peninsula, and which was already thus prepared for their use in the remains of Reshire. But such materials are continually decomposing; and the dust which falls from them adds to the already sandy ground-work of their streets, and, when set in motion by the wind or by a passing caravan, creates an impenetrable cloud. The streets are from six to eight feet wide, and display on each side nothing but inhospitable walls. A great man’s dwelling (there are nine in Bushire) is distinguished by a wind chimney. This is a square turret on the sides of which are perpendicular apertures, and in the interior of which are crossed divisions, which form different currents of air, and communicate some comfort to the heated apartments of the house. But the comfort is not wholly without danger; as in an earthquake some years ago the turrets were thrown down to the great damage of the surrounding buildings.

There are supposed to be in the town four hundred houses, besides several alleys of date-tree-huts on entering the gates, which may add an equal number to the whole. The number of inhabitants is disproportionably large, but it is calculated that there are ten thousand persons in the place. There are four mosques of the Sheyahs, and three of the Sunnis; and there are two Hummums and two Caravanserais; but there is no public building in Bushire which deserves any more particular description. The old English factory is a large straggling building near the sea side; the left wing is breaking down. The Bazars are exactly those of a provincial town in Turkey. The shop is a little platform, raised about two feet above the foot-path; where the Vender,58 just reserving the little space upon which he squats, displays his wares. The shops, as in Turkey, are opened in the morning and shut at night, when the trader returns to his dwelling; for the shop is but the receptacle for his goods.

On the 2d Nov. a large fleet of boats came into Bushire from the coast, laden with coarse linen for turbans, earthen pots, mats, &c. for which they carry away dates. These boats keep together for fear of the Joasmee pirates.

To the east of the town there is a small elevation, which happily destroys the equalities of the buildings, and renders it no uninteresting subject for a sketch, when enlivened by its concomitants, water and shipping. Whatever may have been the former state of the immediate neighbourhood, it is certain that there are now no longer to be found the gardens and plantations which Nearchus described, or even those which Captain Simmons delineated. Had Nearchus again described Bushire and its territory in this day, he would have said, that a few cotton bushes, here and there date trees, now and then a Konar tree, with water melons, berinjauts, and cucumbers, are the only verdant objects which, in any measure, alleviate the glare of its sandy plain.

I took a sketch of Bushire from a rising spot near a well on a public road.24 A troop of young camel-drivers, who were going merrily along, soon discovered me; and long continued to vociferate, with many other names and jokes, “Frangui, Frangui,” the common appellation in the East of every European.

The new factory is about one mile seven-eights from the town. The Resident’s guard is composed of seapoys, who, by the regulations, should be changed every five years, but they are permitted to remain till they become so lax in discipline as scarcely to deserve the name of soldiers. The guard is mustered at sun-set, when they mostly appear in their shirts and night-caps, and the sentries walk about without their muskets.

In a few days after our landing we rode to the ruins of Reshire. The59 more immediate remains occupy an inconsiderable part of the site of the old city, and indeed consist rather of the fortress than of the general mass of buildings. The place is surrounded by villages built of the materials, and (as other fragments about them still attest) upon the site also of the original town. One of these villages is called Imaum Zadé, and is exempt from taxes, because its inhabitants claim all to be descended from Mahomed.

Bushire.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

The fortress itself was built by the Portuguese, though the people around are jealous of the acknowledgment, and substitute as its founder their own Shah Abbas. On a hasty calculation it must have been a square of two hundred yards. The reservoirs for water are still to be seen; but a lad, whom we met in the enclosure, told us that he and his companions were at work in destroying the Hummums. Twenty-five years ago the Envoy saw it in many parts entire, with some of the houses still standing. It is now a heap of dirt and rubbish. The line of the fort, indeed, is traced by the ditch, which is excavated from the rock; and the gateways also are discoverable, and some little masonry remains to mark their strength. There are some flat and oblong stones on the outside of the fort, which we conceived to have been placed over Portuguese tombs. There are, however, some curious characters upon them, which Sir Harford Jones, who recollects them when they were more legible, conceives to be between the old Cufick and the Nekshi.

In another excursion we advanced to Halila, about nine miles from the town, and on the south of the peninsula of Bushire. Here, indeed, there is a projection of the land, where it is still possible for very high tides to rise above the surface. The ground is very much broken into caverns and deep chasms. Halila is a small village; it has a trifling square fort, with a tower at each angle, but without any guns. Cotton is sown more systematically in the territory immediately adjacent to Halila than in that of Bushire. Here and there over the plain are some little spots sacred to the dead, and defended by small works of stones.

The Sapphire lay about four miles off the shore, in four feet and60 a half low water, and in quarter less five at high. The ground was marl and very thick mud, so tenacious, that it was necessary every three or four days to move the anchor. The refraction was so great, that, for their daily observations at the sun’s meridian, they were obliged to allow for it more than what is noted in the nautical tables. In my visit on board, I took the following bearings from the quarter-deck. Town N. 55 E. Concorde Lodge E. Halila Peak S. 70 E. Asses Ears and Reshire Point S. 35 E. Cape Bang (the extremity of the land) N. 11 E.

The water of Bushire has a cathartic quality of most immediate effect in a stranger’s habit, but after the experience of about a month it ceases to have so violent a power.

The meteorological journal which I kept may not be useless, and I give therefore the month of November in the Appendix. On the night of the 10th of that month, a most violent storm blew from the north-west. The whole atmosphere was in a blaze of fire; the claps of thunder succeeded one another with a rapidity, which rendered them scarcely separable, and the rain poured down in torrents; but when all was over, the air possessed a freshness which was most grateful. The storms from the N. W. are very frequent in the winter; and though in no part of the world do I recollect to have seen one so tremendous as this, I am told that it was not to be compared with some which are experienced at Bushire.

In three or four days the mountains which bore N. N. E. from our dwelling were already covered with snow. This was reckoned early in the season. The people soon begun to put on their warmer clothing. Coughs and colds became very prevalent, particularly among the Indian servants, who were clad more lightly than either the Europeans or the natives.

About the 20th of November the people commence ploughing; the soil is so light that it is turned up with very little labour; the plough, therefore, is dragged mostly by one ox only, and not unfrequently even by an ass. All their agricultural implements are of the rudest con61struction. At this period, larks fly about in large numbers, and feed upon the seed just sowing. There are also great flocks of pigeons, cormorants, curlews, and hoobaras (bustards). On the 25th we saw a white swallow flitting about the house. Sparrows were not so numerous as in the beginning of the month. Flies appeared with a south wind; but were scarce when it blew from the northward. The fruits in season were melons, dates, pomegranates, apples, pears, and sweet limes; and a small and very pleasant orange was just coming in. Our vegetables were spinage, bendes, and onions, and cabbages and turnips from Bussora. Of our meat, the finest was mutton, veal was coarse, but the beef pretty good, and the fowls were admirable. There were no turkies or geese indeed; nor ducks, except some that we occasionally got from Bussora.

The climate of Bushire is healthy, if we might judge from the two or three examples of strong and active old age which came within our notice: one, my own Persian master, Mollah Hassan; another in the Resident’s family, who has trimmed pipes for two-thirds of a century, and who was a young man with mustachios and a sprouting beard, when Nadir Shah was at Shiraz. Another is an old fellow of the name of Ayecal, which, from the keenness of his love of sporting, has been familiarized by the English into Jackall.

The better sort of women are scarcely ever seen, and when they are, their faces are so completely covered that no feature can be distinguished. The poorer women, indeed, are not so confined, for they go in troops to draw water for the place. I have seen the elder ones sitting and chatting at the well, and spinning the coarse cotton of the country, while the young girls filled the skin which contains the water, and which they all carry on their backs into the town. They do not wear shoes; their dress consists of a very ample shirt, a pair of loose trowsers, and the veil which goes over all. Their appearance is most doleful; though I have still noticed a pretty face through all the filth of their attire. The colour of their clothes is originally brown, but when they become too dirty to be worn under that hue, they are sent to the dyer, who is sup62posed to clean them by superinducing a dark-blue or black tint. In almost every situation they might be considered as the attendants on a burial; but in a real case of death there are professional mourners, who are hired to see proper respect paid to the deceased, by keeping up the cries of etiquette to his memory.

Among the superstitions in Persia, that which depends on the crowing of a cock, is not the least remarkable. If the cock crows at a proper hour, they esteem it a good omen; if at an improper season, they kill him. I am told that the favourable hours are at nine, both in the morning and in the evening, at noon and at midnight.

But the lion, in the popular belief of Persia, has a discernment much more important to the interests of mankind. A fellow told me with the gravest face, that a lion of their own country would never hurt a Sheyah, (the sect of the Mahomedan religion which follows Ali, and which is established in Persia,) but would always devour a Sunni, (who recognises before Ali the three first caliphs.) On meeting a lion, you have only therefore to say, “Ya Ali,” and the beast will walk by you with great respect; but should you either from zeal or the forgetfulness of terror, exclaim “Ya Omar! Oh Omar!” he will spring upon you instantly.

III. Animals of the Dashtistan. About twenty-five years ago, in the time of Sheik Nasr, who possessed both Bushire and the island of Bahrein, and who consequently was enabled to improve the native breed of Persia, by bringing over the Nedj stallion, the Dashtistan became celebrated for a horse of strength and bottom. But the original breed of Persia, that which is now restored, is a tall, lank, ill-formed, and generally vicious animal; useful indeed for hard work, but unpleasant to ride compared with the elegant action and docility of the Arab. There is another race of the Turcoman breed, (such as are seen at Smyrna, and through all Asia Minor), a short, thick, round-necked, and strong-leg’d horse, short quartered, and inclined behind. There is also a fine breed produced by the Turcoman mare and the Nedj stallion. At two different times, large lots of horses were offered63 to us for sale: the first, by the people of the Shiraz officer, who asked immense prices, and when refused, departed in apparent ill-humour, but generally returned and took the reduced sum which was offered. In this way also we purchased a lot of forty horses, principally of the Turcoman breed, which had been destined for the Indian market, and for which an average price of three hundred and twenty piastres for each horse had been asked at Bushire, but which at the end of the month were sold to us for two hundred and fifty. The distinct and characteristic value of the horses of the country, was exemplified in a present of two, which the Envoy received from the Sheik of Bushire. One was a beautiful Arab colt, of the sweetest temper I ever knew in a horse, frisking about like a lamb, and yet so docile, that though now for the first time mounted, he seemed to have been long used to the bit, a sure proof in the estimation of the country of the excellence of his breed. The other was a Persian colt of the most stubborn and vicious nature; to the astonishment and admiration however of the Persians, the Envoy’s Yorkshire groom by mere dint of whip and spur, subdued the creature and rendered him fit to ride: a triumph which established the groom’s reputation readily, among a people peculiarly alive to the superiority of their own horsemanship. A horse more than ordinarily vicious was tamed in a singular manner by the people of the country. He was turned out loose (muzzled indeed in his mouth, where his ferociousness was most formidable) to await in an enclosure the attack of two horses, whose mouths and legs at full liberty were immediately directed against him. The success was as singular as the experiment; and the violence of the discipline which he endured, subdued the nature of the beast, and rendered him the quietest of his kind. The horses are fastened in the stables by their fore legs, and pinioned by a rope from the hind leg to stakes at about six feet distant behind, so that although the animals are well inclined to quarrel, and are only four or five feet asunder, they can scarcely in this position succeed in hurting each other: frequently however they do get loose, and then most furious battles ensue. I have64 often admired the courage and dexterity with which the Persian Jelowdars or grooms throw themselves into the thickest engagement of angry horses; and, in defiance of the kicks and bites around them, contrive to separate them.

The Resident’s stud consists of about twenty horses, mules, and asses; eight of the horses belong to the East India Company, and are principally employed in carrying choppers or couriers to Shiraz. These are obliged however to be renewed very frequently, because one such journey generally destroys the animal that performs it; so difficult are the passes of the mountains, and so unmerciful are the riders.

They have in Persia a very large and ferocious dog, called the kofla dog, from his being the watchful and faithful companion of the kofla or caravan. Each muleteer has his dog, and so correct is the animal’s knowledge of the mules that belong to his master, that he will discover those that have strayed, and will bring them back to their associates; and on the other hand, when at night the whole caravan stops, and the mules are parcelled in square lots, the guardian dog will permit no strange mule to join the party under his charge, or to encroach upon their ground. His strength and his ferocity are equal to his intelligence and watchfulness.

We chased one day a large white fox. They prey about the open country round Bushire in great numbers, for the natives do not destroy them with all the zeal of Englishmen. The wild animals of the Dashtistan are the wolf, the hyæna, the fox, the porcupine, the mangousti, the antelope, the wild boar, the jerboa, and sometimes the wild goat. The mountains of the Dashtistan have also the lion, and he has been known to descend into the plain. On the 12th December, Captain Davis, of the Sapphire, shot two cormorants out of a flock that were squatted on a tree. Partridges also have been seen to settle in the same situation. The hawks, which are used in hunting, are the cherk, the balban, and the shahein.

We set off on the 29th of November, before sun-rise, to hunt with65 hawks. The freshness, or rather the coldness of the morning, was quite revivifying. We were accompanied by an old and keen sportsman, who had long been renowned in the plains of Bushire for his expertness in training a hawk, and his perseverance in hunting the hoobara or bustard. The old Reis, the name by which he was known, was one of the most picturesque figures on horseback that I ever saw. He was rather tall, with a neck very long, and a beard very grey. His body, either through age or the long use of a favourite position on horseback, inclined forwards till it made an angle of 45° with his thighs, which run nearly parallel to the horse’s back; and his beard projected so much from his lank neck, that it completed the amusement of the profile. On his right wrist, which was covered by large gloves, his hawk was perched. The bird is always kept hood-winked, till the game be near. On our way we were joined by Hassan Khan, the Governor of Dasti, who also carried a hawk, and who was attended by about fifteen men with spears, the kaleoons, or water pipes, &c. We proceeded to Halila, where we commenced our hunt. A hoobara started almost under the foot of my horse; as the bird flew, a hawk was unhooded that he might mark the direction, and was loosed only when it settled. But the sport was unsuccessful in two or three attempts; in fact, when the hawk has had one flight, and has missed his prey, he should be fed with the blood of a pigeon, and then hood-winked, and not permitted to fly again in that day’s sport. As soon as the hawk has taken his flight, the sportsmen remain quiet till they can see that their bird has seized his prey, when they ride up and disengage them.

The Jerboa. On the 1st Dec. we caught some jerboas; and I had an opportunity of delineating and observing with some nicety all their different properties. The description of this animal has been given so minutely by Sonnini, and, with the controversy on the subject, has occupied indeed so very long a chapter of one of his volumes, that it would be superfluous to go over again the same tedious ground. As there are, however, some little exceptions in the jerboa which I saw at Bushire, I shall endeavour to point them out. In the first place, that66 gradation from the bird to the quadruped, which Sonnini traced in the hopping motion of the jerboa, did not strike me with the same degree of conviction. When unpursued the animal certainly hops, though this admission does not imply that he cannot walk without hopping. But when he is escaping from any alarm, he may almost be said to lay himself flat on the surface of the ground from the immense tension of his hind legs, and literally to run ventre à terre. Yet as every observer will feel that there are shades by which the works of creation gradually resolve into each other, and which, by a slow operation, connect the zoophyte with the animated world, and the bird with the quadruped, the jerboa may still serve as one of the first and most perceptible gradations between two kingdoms of nature; but kangaroos, a larger and nobler specimen, would illustrate the connection as correctly.

On the specific description of the animal I agree with Sonnini’s account of the Egyptian jerboas, except that, in two which I examined, I could not find the spur or the small rudiment of a fourth toe on the heel of the hinder foot; on the existence of which depends essentially the resemblance which he has discovered between the jerboa and the alagtaga of Tartary. But as the jerboa of Hasselquist, of Bruce, and of Sonnini all seem to differ from each other, and from those which I examined, in some minute circumstance, it is reasonable to conclude, less that there is any incorrectness in the descriptions, than that there is an essential variety in the animals. The jerboas in the deserts before us at Bushire, do not live in troops, as those of Egypt, according to Sonnini; each has his hole to which he retires with the utmost precipitation; nor is it possible to take him by surprise in the day, as I learn from Sir Harford Jones, who has had ample opportunities of examining the history of the jerboas; and therefore the circumstance, which Bruce mentions, of his Arabs having knocked them down with sticks, extends probably to no general inference. Nor can I think that Sonnini is correct in supposing that the animal is fond of light. Those which I kept in a cage remained huddled together under some cotton during the day, but in the night made such67 a scratching, that I was obliged to send them out of the room. Besides, one of the most common methods of catching them is by the glare of a lanthorn, which seems to deprive them of the power of moving, and subjects them quietly to the hand of the man who bears the light. There is another and an easy way of catching them, by pouring water down one of the apertures of their retreat; they immediately jump out. We hunted several with spaniels, but, although surrounded on all sides, they escaped with the greatest facility: when very closely pressed, they have a most dextrous method of springing to an amazing height over the heads of their pursuers; and, making two or three somersets in the air, they come down again in all safety on their hinder legs, many yards from the spot of their ascent. In this leap they probably use their diminutive paws. Even a greyhound stands no chance with them; for as soon as he comes near, they take to the somersets, and the dog is completely thrown out. Their flesh is reckoned very fine, as the people here who eat them assure me. As the animal is very sensible of cold, and formed so delicately and apparently so little prepared to resist frosts and snows, I cannot think, though Sonnini seems to imply it, that it is found in very northern climates. Rats and hares indeed are found in the coldest as well as in the warmest parts of the world; but nature has provided them with a clothing more appropriate to the change.

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68

CHAP. V.
BUSHIRE TO SHIRAZ.

DEPARTURE FROM BUSHIRE—ARRANGEMENTS OF THE CAMP—MEETING WITH MAHOMED NEBEE KHAN: ENTERTAINMENT—THE ISTAKBALL—DAULAKEE—MINERAL STREAMS—VEGETATION—PASSAGE OF THE COTUL—PLAIN OF KHISHT—THE GOVERNOR—CARAVANSERAI—THE MOUNTAIN ROBBERS—KAMAURIDGE—KAUZERON: HONORS PAID TO THE ENVOY—RUINS OF SHAPOUR: GENERAL VIEW; ACROPOLIS; SCULPTURES; ROMAN FIGURES; THEATRE; TRADITIONS—PASSES OF THE MOUNTAINS—FIRMAN FROM THE KING—APPROACH TO SHIRAZ—ISTAKBALLS—PRESENT FROM THE PRINCE.

The preparations for our departure, which had been suspended by different events, were now resumed with much alacrity. I felt that the cold, which we should soon encounter, might possibly kill my Indian servant, and I accordingly sent him back to Bombay. The Ferosh Bashee, or chief tent-pitcher, an officer of much utility in the progress of our journey, now brought with him to our camp a large number of adherents in subordinate capacities, who on their entrance requested the Envoy’s permission to say their prayers in the manner and time appointed by their religion. The next morning I was roused by a noise, which I at last discovered to be compounded of the trumpet of the troop69 blowing the reveille, and the voice of a Persian priest calling the faithful to prayers: lungs originally strong had been so disciplined and exercised for the purpose, that the voice was more potent than the trumpet.

Route of His Majesty’s Mission under Sir Harford Jones, Bar^t. Through PERSIA, in 1809.
By James Sutherland. Captain on the Bombay Establishment.
Published 20^th May 1911 by Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

Our Mehmandar, Mahomed Zeky Khan, arrived on the 10th; we went out to meet him, attended by the body guard in their best array, and accompanied by a host of Persians. As the preparations for our journey were now completed, the 17th Dec. 1808 was fixed for our departure. On the 16th the Ternate, Lieut. Sealy, sailed for Bombay with the Envoy’s dispatches to the Indian government; and on the next day the Sapphire, which was appointed to convey the dispatches to England, proceeded to Kharrack to take in water for the voyage.

All our arrangements were closed; and on the same morning, at a quarter past eleven o’clock, the Envoy mounted his horse to proceed from Bushire. In order to excite in the people a favourable expectation of the result of the mission, he had previously desired the astrologers to mention the time which they might deem lucky for his departure; and the hour accordingly in which we begun our journey was pronounced, by their authority, to be particularly fortunate. Sir Harford Jones’s suite consisted of Mr. Sheridan, Mr. Bruce, Captain Sutherland, Cornet Willock, Dr. Jukes, and myself. He had two Swiss servants and an English groom, an English and a Portuguese tailor, about half a dozen Indians, and a very numerous assortment of Persians.

The Sapphire saluted us as we set out; shortly after we met the Mehmandar and his cortège, and after some little exchange of civilities we all went on together. The order of the cavalcade was as follows:—The led horses, ten in number, each conducted by a well-clad jelowdar or groom; then the chief of the jelowdars with his staff of office; then the arz-beg or lord of requests; after him were six chatters or running footmen, who immediately preceded the Envoy. The Envoy himself was mounted on a choice Arab horse; at his right stirrup walked a picked tall chatter, the chief of his class. Then followed the gentlemen of70 the mission, amongst whom were disposed some moonshees. To the right and left were the pipe-trimmers, who carried all the smoking apparatus in boxes fashioned for the purpose.25 Behind the gentlemen and the moonshees came a great crowd of Persians on horseback; and, to close the whole, the body guard came along in goodly rows, and made an admirable finish to the groupe.

The baggage all loaded on mules preceded us regularly on our march, so that when we arrived at the end of our stage we always found our tents pitched.

The arrangements of our camp were as follows:—There were two state tents, one for dinner, the other for receiving company. The latter, with the Envoy’s private tent, were enclosed within walls. Around these were the tents of the gentlemen of the mission, each person having his own. There was also one appropriated to cooking, and many others of a smaller size for the servants, and the guard of cavalry.

After our dinner was over, which was generally an hour or two after sun-set, the dinner tent was taken down, loaded on the mules, and sent onwards to the next stage in readiness to receive us. About day-break in the morning, the camp begun to break up; and before our breakfast was over, for which one tent was left, all the rest of the ground was cleared, and the baggage was far on its road to the next stage. The Persians are so accustomed to this manner of life, that they pitch and unpitch a camp with the most perfect dexterity and order. Much of course depends upon the chief of the Feroshes or tent-pitchers, called the Ferosh-Bashee, who must necessarily be very active. The man who filled this department in our mission was very clever, but probably a great rogue, of which at least he displayed a presumptive proof, as he had lost an ear, the forfeit of some former misdemeanour. The office of Charwardar or Chief Muleteer, is another also that requires much activity and watchfulness, to superintend properly the loading and unloading of the mules with order and dispatch.

Persian Smoaking.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

71

We marched for about four miles in a direct bearing with Halila Peak, (which bore S. 70. E. from Mr. Bruce’s house,) and then came to the swamps, which terminate the extremity of the inlet of the sea, from the port of Bushire. Having paced over those swamps for about two miles more, we took a more easterly direction, and then marched due E. to Alichangee, the village at which we encamped. The distance is called five fursungs, but probably is not more than fourteen miles. The soil over which we passed was sandy, and here and there strata of rock. The weather was hazy, and gave the country a broken and unconnected appearance.

As we approached our encampment, we were treated with a scene of Persian splendour and etiquette, in the meeting of the Envoy with his old friend and tutor, Mahomed Nebee Khan, the Governor of Bushire. He had been informed that the Envoy intended passing the following day with him, and accordingly prepared for his reception.

About a mile from our encampment we met him; a very large portion of the military of Bushire had already greeted his arrival. His approach was first announced by a salute from all the matchlock guns of his guards, who were posted in our way to frighten our horses. The Khan then appeared himself, surrounded by an immense host, who, clearing away as soon as they came near our party, gave the two great men free access to one another. They exchanged embraces, and once again mounted their horses. We all returned together, and formed a party so thickly cemented, that the dust of the desert was raised in masses, which quite obscured the air.

Mahomed Nebee Khan and our Mehmandar escorted the Envoy to his own tent, and after a short visit, departed amid the same crowd and noise.

On Sunday the 18th, when I had performed divine service in the Envoy’s tent, we paid a visit of ceremony to Mahomed Nebee Khan. According to the fashion of the country, we proceeded on horseback, although his tent was within a stone’s throw. We were met by one of his officers, and an escort of ten men, who made their72 obeisance to the Envoy, and preceded his horse, until we arrived at the door, where the Khan himself was waiting. He received us most graciously, and after we had pulled off our boots and shoes, and Sir Harford and the Khan had gone through some little polite difficulties about their seats, we finally settled ourselves on chairs prepared for us. The Khan’s tent was very neat, and appeared to us a most desirable residence. It had a large exterior covering, and close to the extremity a wall all round; and in the interior, there was a clean little recess closely covered with carpets, and lined with the finest chintz, the borders of which were adorned with a broad fringe. Our host was a man of great notoriety both in Persia and in India; his manners were greatly in his favour, and he was dressed more like a noble than any other man whom I had yet seen in the country. His beard presented no plebeian roughness, and the dagger in his girdle glittered with precious stones. When the usual compliments had been severally paid, that silence of solemnity, which generally marks the visits of form, succeeded, till the kaleoons, or water pipes, were introduced to our relief. The coffees and sherbets followed, and the whole entertainment concluded with a course of sweetmeats, which was brought upon separate trays, each serving two guests. The only unsatisfactory part of the visit was the intended politeness of two lusty attendants, who broke some of the sweetmeats in their suspicious hands, blew the dust off the fragments with their more suspicious mouths, and then laid them before us. After a washing of hands, (in which we felt the full want of towels), and a parting kaleoon, we took our leave, and left the Envoy to a private conference with the Khan.

The trays, from which we eat, had the appearance of silver, though I understood afterwards that they were plated only. They were neatly carved in flowers and other ornaments. The articles which they contained were made of almonds, pistachio nuts, and a paste of sugar; others were like our alicampane and barley sugar, and all were very nice. The Persians are almost indescribably fond of sweetmeats, which they eat in very great quantities. The abundance indeed of fruits and sher73bets presented daily to the Envoy by the Mehmandar, proved the immense supply which the taste of the country demanded. The presents were arranged prettily in trays and boxes, and carried in great form on the heads of servants, but they were less acceptable, because for each the conductor required a present in money. By such means the great men in Persia pay their servants, who in general receive no other wages. The person, therefore, to whom such an office as that of Mehmandar is entrusted, is, of course, surrounded by hordes of adherents, who are allured by receipts so certain and valuable.

The new Governor had consulted the astrologers of Bushire to determine the most propitious time for his entrance into the town, which, by their predictions, was at three hours before sun-set on the 19th. In conformity therefore to the decision, he was now delaying his advance till the happier period should arrive. When, on a former occasion, he was departing from Bushire to embark on board the ship, which was to carry him on his mission to Calcutta, he was ordered by these astrologers (as the only means of counteracting the influence of a certain evil star) to go out of his house in a particular aspect: as unfortunately there happened to be no door in that direction, he caused a hole to be made in the wall, and thus made his exit.

In the evening we dined with Mahomed Nebee Khan. We did not go till the Khan had sent to the Envoy to say, that the entertainment was ready for his reception, a custom always observed on such occasions.26 When we arrived at his tent, the same ceremonies passed as in the morning, except that we sat upon the ground, where the inflexibility of our knees rendered the position more difficult than can be described. The Khan, who seemed to commiserate the tightness of our pantaloons, begged that we would extend our legs at their full length: fearing, however, to be rude, we chose to be uncomfortable, and to imitate their fashion as faithfully as possible; and really, with74 respect to my own feelings, I thought complaisance was never carried further. The guests besides ourselves, were our Mehmandar and the Persian Secretary. I preserved part of the conversation: in talking of the admirable skill with which the guns of the Nereide were fired in the re-capture of the Sylph, the Mehmandar said to the Secretary, “you ought to have kissed the lips of those guns, whose execution was so effectual; and walked around and around them, and in gratitude for your deliverance, to have put up prayers to Heaven for their preservation and prosperity.”

After having sat some time kaleoons were brought in, then coffee, then kaleoons, then sweet coffee (the composition already noticed of sugar and rose-water); and then kaleoons again. All this was rapidly performed, when the Khan called for dinner. On the ground before us was spread the sofra, a fine chintz cloth, which perfectly entrenched our legs, and which is used so long unchanged, that the accumulated fragments of former meals collect into a musty paste, and emit no very savory smell; but the Persians are content, for they say that changing the sofra brings ill luck. A tray was then placed before each guest; on these trays were three fine china bowls, which were filled with sherbets; two made of sweet liquors, and one of a most exquisite species of lemonade. There were besides, fruits ready cut, plates with elegant little arrangements of sweetmeats and confectionary, and smaller cups of sweet sherbet; the whole of which were placed most symetrically, and were quite inviting, even by their appearance. In the vases of sherbet were spoons made of the pear tree, with very deep bowls, and worked so delicately, that the long handle just slightly bent when it was carried to the mouth. The pillaus succeeded, three of which were placed before each two guests; one of plain rice called the chillo, one made of mutton with raisins and almonds, the other of a fowl, with rich spices and plumbs. To this were added various dishes with rich sauces, and over each a small tincture of sweet sauce. Their cooking, indeed, is mostly composed of sweets. The business of eating was a pleasure to the Persians, but it was misery to us. They comfortably advanced75 their chins close to the dishes, and commodiously scooped the rice or other victuals into their mouths, with three fingers and the thumb of their right hand; but in vain did we attempt to approach the dish: our tight-kneed breeches, and all the ligaments and buttons of our dress, forbade us; and we were forced to manage as well as we could, fragments of meat and rice falling through our fingers all around us. When we were all satisfied, dinner was carried away with the same state in which it was brought: the servant who officiated, dropping himself gracefully on one knee, as he carried away the trays, and passing them expertly over his head with both his hands, extended to the lacquey, who was ready behind to carry them off. We were treated with more kaleoons after dinner, and then departed to our beds.

On the morning of the 19th, the camp broke up at sun-rise. We took a hasty breakfast in the Envoy’s tent, but a visit from Mahomed Nebee Khan (which was preceded by a present of two horses and his own sword) kept us on the ground till nine o’clock. The Khan, with all his attendants, accompanied us about two miles. He was preparing to enter Bushire, his new government, with all splendour. From the town to the swamps were erected stages on which bullocks were to be sacrificed, and from which their heads were to be thrown under his horse’s feet, as he advanced; a ceremony indeed appropriated to Princes alone, and to them, only on particular occasions. Yet, however anxious originally for his station, and however splendid in his present appearances, he felt the full dangers of his pre-eminence, and betrayed an absence and uneasiness in his words and actions, which to us evinced all his apprehensions. He was so conscious indeed of the difficulties of his situation, that he had transmitted to the King a present of two thousand tomauns, with a memorial, beseeching to be excused from his government.

We marched at first north-westerly, till we came to the bed of a river, or rather of a mountain-torrent, in which the actual stream of water when we passed, was not above ten feet in breadth, though the channel76 itself was perhaps thirty yards. It falls into the sea in a due E. and W. direction.

At two o’clock we came to Ahmadiéh: at half past two we passed a small fort called Khosh Aub, where a large body of people were waiting our passage.27 They were all armed with pikes, matchlocks, swords and shields; and gave us two vollies as a salute. They then advanced to us, and being announced by the Arz-beg, wished us a prosperous journey. They were answered by the usual civility, “khosh amedeed, you are welcome.” As we proceeded, our party was headed by the soldiery. They were commanded by a man on horseback, all in tatters, who with his whip kept them together, and excited them with his voice where he wanted them to run. Two of the chosen of the village performed feats before us on their lean horses, and helped to increase the excessive dust, which involved us. This party kept pace with us, until we were again met by a similar host, the van of the little army who were waiting our reception at Borazjoon: these also fired their muskets.

From Khosh Aub to Borazjoon the ground appeared cultivated; and as we were approaching the latter village, we saw some of the peasants, who, after having finished their toil in the fields were walking home with their ploughs over their shoulders. I think we may fairly reckon at twenty-five miles the distance from Alichangee to Borazjoon: the Persians call it nine fursungs. The avenues to Borazjoon are through plantations of date and tamarisk trees: the village is a collection of huts, which surround a fort; and the fort, like the rest of those which I had seen, was a square, with turrets at each corner, which were cut into small chequers at the top. There are the ruins of many small forts all over the Dashtistan, which were built by some unsuccessful77 rebel, and which were left to decay as soon as he was quelled. I understand that the population of this district has been decreasing ever since the happy days of Sheik Nasr. Almost the whole of its geography present places which have names, but no inhabitants; or if there are any, they are the refuse only of former more flourishing families.

In our road to-day, we saw immense flights of the toowee, or desert partridge, and some ravens. The Mehmandar and the oldest of our moonshees amused themselves in scouring the plains, and playing at the dangerous game of the girid, in which the old scribe got a severe blow. The Persians ride with great courage, for they drive their horses at their greatest speed over any ground. They of course get frequent falls, by which they are seldom much injured; for though they generally alight on their heads, they are there saved by their immense sheep-skin caps.28

It was a quarter past eight before we mounted our horses on the morning of the 21st, and ten minutes past twelve when we arrived at Daulakee, a distance called four fursungs, and which may be computed at about twelve road miles. The site of Daulakee is marked by a break in the mountains, where the road which leads among them commences. It bore N. 30 E. when we mounted. Our road was much broken by the beds of numerous torrents, which, after the rain and melted snows, fall from the adjacent mountains. We here and there met with small encampments of the Elauts. They appear like the Turcomans, whom I have so frequently seen at Smyrna, and through the whole of Asia Minor. At the distance of two miles we were met by the Istakball, who fired their salute, and frightened the horses as before. This ceremony was repeated every day, so that a repetition of the description will not be always necessary. They were all arranged on a rising78 ground, at the foot of which ran a stream of mineral water, of a most sulphureous smell. Further on we crossed other streams of the same quality; the heat of one of which, as it gushed from under the rocks, was almost scalding. We brought home specimens of the incrustation which the spray of the bubbles left on the surrounding rocks. The bed of the stream was mostly of the colour of sulphur, although there were patches here and there of a copper hue. Still a little further on, on the left of the road, are two springs of naptha. The oil swims on the surface of the water, and the peasantry take it off with a branch of date tree, and collect it into small holes around the spring ready for their immediate use. They daub the camels all over with it in the spring, which preserves their coats, and prevents a disease in the skin, which is common to them.

The huts in the village of Daulakee, as we rode through it, appeared mostly to be covered on the tops with the entwined leaves of their date trees, while the better houses are built of mud, and terraced. The mosque was the most creditable building that met our eye in the whole place: its interior seemed neatly arranged in arches, and preserved clean with a white stucco. There was a little bath at the extremity of the town. The customary fort (for such are found in most of these villages) was situated in the middle of the huts, at the top of which many an eager Persian was perched. This place, and indeed all we had seen, presented a picture of poverty stronger than words can express. There was nothing but what mere existence required; nor to our very cursory observation did the most trifling superfluity shew itself.

The river that runs by Daulakee meanders through the plain which we had passed. All the mineral streams, which crossed our road, fall into it, and renders its waters salt and brackish. The soil itself indeed, at the roots of the mountains, is, in some places, saturated with a nitrous acid, of which, in the neighbourhood of Daulakee, the people make a pleasant beverage. In one of the recesses of the mountains, however, there is a stream of pure and delicious water. In the evening I walked to the spring, which is embosomed in date trees: it is beauti79fully clear, and rather tepid. Its short course down into the plain is marked by a wood, which more immediately flourishes under its influence, and follows its progress. In the lower country there is an extensive tract covered with date trees, and forming a mass of verdure on which the eye delights to rest after the constant glare of an arid desert. It is extraordinary how vegetation thrives in this country, wherever there is the least water. It is, indeed, a general rule, that wherever they can irrigate they can produce vegetation; and indeed with no other moisture than the dews, and the few occasional showers of the winter, the plain of Bushire (which all observers have agreed to call a barren land) produces one hundred for seven. The rude manner of cultivation here is sufficient to display the intrinsic goodness of the soil; for they just sprinkle with seed the spot marked out for the plough, then make the superficial furrows, and obtain most abundant crops.

We mounted this morning at eight o’clock, and arrived at our encampment at ten minutes before one. It is called four fursungs, but we compute it at sixteen miles. We soon entered the mountains, and followed the road through them to the Eastward. We came to the river (which in its lower course passes near Daulakee) at half past nine o’clock: we crossed it a second time about a quarter of an hour after, and at ten o’clock passed it for the third and last time, at a ruined bridge, of a structure which had once been neat. After hard rains its bed is very extensive, and its current most rapid: so that it entirely impedes the passage of travellers and caravans. At the fords where we crossed, it was a very fine stream up to the bellies of our horses. After that, we paced its banks, for the distance perhaps of half a mile, in a S. E. direction. We saw it for the last time winding on a southern course, when we had ascended an elevated peak of the Cotul range. We gained this summit at half past eleven; the road then continued through the mountains till twelve o’clock, when we came on the plain of Khisht. At ten minutes before one we reached our encampment. The extreme capriciousness of the windings of the road, rendered it80 almost an impossible task to ascertain the ultimate and exact direction of our bearing from Daulakee to Khisht. However it was evident, that we had made a great deal of Easting, with a little Northing. The mountains rose around in most fantastical forms, their strata having their highest elevation towards the South, forming a dip of perhaps forty-five degrees. The soil is mostly of a soft crumbling stone, large fragments of which seemed just balancing at the brink of the precipice above, and appearing to require only a touch to impel them into the great chasms below. The passage of the river by our numerous party, and the winding of the horsemen and loaded mules in the mountain-passes, animated the whole of the dreary scenery around into the most romantic pictures. The only verdure which cheered the sameness of the glaring yellow of the mountain, was that of a few wild almond trees.

Before we ascended to the plains of Khisht, a long string of matchlock men and horsemen (the Istakball) who came out to meet the Envoy, appeared on the brink of the precipice above us. As we ascended they fired a volley, the sound of which returned in repeated echoes through the mountains; and when we came into the midst of them, the horsemen begun their gambols; moving around us in all directions, stopping their horses, couching their long lances, throwing them, and then again galloping forwards. The footmen with their matchlocks made a charge into the plain, shouting as they advanced, as a representation perhaps of the ardour of their attack in real combat. When we approached our encampment, we were met by the Governor of Khisht himself, Zaul Khan, a man of remarkable appearance, without eyes, and with the fragment of a tongue, the rest of which he had forfeited during the troubles of Persia. He came riding on a mule conducted by a young Persian. But the most extraordinary part of his history is, that, notwithstanding his tongue is cut, he still talks intelligibly. Before, indeed, this operation was performed, he had such an impediment in his speech, that he was scarcely able to make himself understood; but the mutilation was fortunate, and his articulation81 has been improved. This the Envoy, who had known him before the punishment, avers.

The plain of Khisht seems to form a complete oval, and presented stronger marks of cultivation than any part of the Dashtistan which we had seen. The Konar bushes were thickly sprinkled by the roadside, and apparently all over the plain, besides plantations of date trees. At Konar-a-Tackta (a village four miles and a half from Khisht, and the place where we encamped,) there is a Caravanserai, which has lately been erected by one of the wives of Zaul Khan, and is really a neat and commodious building. An arched gateway introduces the traveller into a square yard, around which are rooms, and behind which are stables. There is also a small suite of rooms over the gateway. In the centre of the court is an elevated platform, the roof of a subterraneous chamber called a zeera zemeon, whither travellers retire during the great heats of the summer, and which in those heats is a very refreshing habitation. Behind the building is a tank or reservoir for rain-water, which has newly been added, and is not indeed yet finished. The whole forms an establishment most acceptable to travellers, and worthy of the Persian governments of a better age.

On the 23d we rose before the sun, and though in a region so much more elevated than the one in which we were on the preceding day, the temperature of the atmosphere seemed the same. The sky was clouded all over, and some predicted rain. One of our moonshees, who was considered an astrologer, told me that, according to his observations, “it would rain, if God pleased.” However, the day passed without rain, and the opinion of the astrologer was, at any rate, equally indisputable.

The trumpet, the signal for departure, sounded at twenty minutes before eight, and we went off with the usual clatter and parade. The course of the road bore N. E.: but when we had rode for about four miles its direction was nearly due East. In an hour after our de82parture we came to the banks of a river, which is the same that, flowing by Zeira, falls into the Daulakee river at Deerooga, and which, according to my information, takes its rise in the mountains near Shapour. Immediately on coming on its banks we began to wind through the difficult passes of the mountains, which in various parts are very dangerous. The Arab horses, who had been accustomed to the equal surface of their own sandy plains, trode the rocky sides of the mountains with fearful and uncertain steps, and one or two of the most valuable of the Envoy’s stud suffered by severe falls: the Persian horses, on the contrary, scramble over the threatening eminences, and confidently walk by the sides of the precipices with an indifference, which gives an equal consciousness of security to their riders. Our Mehmandar, by way of bravado, urged his horse over a rocky heap, which appeared almost as the feat of a madman.

There were some particular points of view in our progress, that were picturesque and grand in the extreme. The path wound so fantastically along the side of the mountain, that those who were yet at the bottom saw the whole surface intersected by the ranges of our procession; and the travellers at the upper point appeared so diminutive, that man and brute could scarcely be distinguished from each other. Just before we reached the very highest top of the mountain we came to a station of Rhadars, and to the dwelling of a derveish, which was formed in the crevice of a rock. In parts of our route we saw the Rodo-dendron, one of the strongest symptoms of the change of our climate. We reached our encampment at twenty minutes past eleven, and we found it pitched near a Caravanserai. The village of Khaumauridge is situated on a small plain, and is distant about a mile N. 20 W. from the Caravanserai. On an eminence over us was a small tower, where a rebel stood a long siege.

The mountains through which we passed were infested by a race of robbers called the Memméh Sunni. They live in the deepest recesses of their wild valleys, and commit their depredations on the unguarded83 travellers with an impunity quite characteristic of the state of the country. Although some attempts have occasionally been made to terrify them into submission, by inflicting the severest tortures on the few individuals who have chanced to be caught, yet the example has been lost on the living, and the love of independence and plunder has outweighed the terrors of barbarous punishment and ignominious death. The abrupt formation of their mountain haunts (labyrinths to those who have not long practised them,) favours this community so materially, that instances have been known of their having snatched from the very centre of a caravan, some traveller who promised less resistance than his companions, or some well loaded mule, that seemed to announce more booty than others. When Brigadier-General Malcolm went through their mountains on a former mission, the robbers bore off some of his mules which carried part of the rich presents destined for the King of Persia. So firmly are they now established in their fastnesses, that the neighbouring Khans and Governors of districts have chosen, since the evil itself was inevitable, to take a part in its advantages, and, it is said, maintain their own agents amongst the Memméh Sunni, with whom they have stipulated agreements about the fruits of their plunder. They happened to be less predatory at the time of our passage, and we proceeded through the mountains without the least molestation.

The Caravanserai close to our encampment was a solid, though rather ancient structure, and the walls, scribbled over with names or couplets, attested the passage of frequent travellers. We saw a cock blackbird, and Sir Harford fired three times on a thrush, which, notwithstanding, kept its ground, until it was taken up in the hand, and indeed permitted itself to be taken up frequently without offering to fly away.

A road is making at the sole expence of Hajee Mahomed Hassan, a merchant and inhabitant of Bushire, which will cut through the mountains from Kauzeroon to Khaumauridge, and shorten the distance two fursungs. Its direction bore E. from us at Khaumauridge.

84

On the 24th our march commenced at eight, and we arrived at Kauzeroon at half past two. We were about one hour pacing the plain of Khaumauridge, and, allowing one mile for the other extremity, (which we had passed on the preceding day) we may fairly calculate its whole length at five miles. Its opening towards Kauzeroon is through a pass called the Tengui Turkoun, between two high branches of the mountains. There is besides a road to the left, which leads over the mountain, and which the Envoy and some of the party took, because the pass is very famous for the attacks of the robbers. The road was, however, guarded at different stations by matchlock men, who had been placed there by the direction of the Prince, which was one of the numerous instances of his great attention to the mission.

Having descended once again, we came into the plains of Kauzeroon. From the eminence we perceived the river, which we had passed near Khisht, winding in a N. and S. direction behind the western hills. The city of Shapour we just discovered at the foot of a mountain, then bearing N. 50 E. Hills of very subordinate elevation run out from the great range of mountains, and leave here and there little plains which are all comprehended under the name of the plain of Kauzeroon.

We were met at Derees by a great crowd, who gambolled and saluted as usual. As we passed between the huts, the women of the village were collected on the roofs, and greeted our approach by a loud and tremendous species of song, which yet at a distance was not disagreeable. Money was thrown amongst the crowd, which added much to the confusion of the scene, and excited a most active and querulous scramble.

About two miles from Kauzeroon we were met by Mahomed Kouli Khan, the Governor of that place, who was attended by a numerous company of horsemen. Mr. Bruce, Dr. Jukes, and myself dismounted to pay him the usual compliment, and he then turned back with us to his own town. About a mile further, almost the whole male population was collected to meet us. A bottle, which contained sugar-candy, was broken under the feet of the Envoy’s horse, a ceremony85 never practised in Persia to any but to royal personages; and then about thirty wrestlers, in party-coloured breeches, (their only covering) and armed with a pair of clubs called meals, begun each to make the most curious noise, move in the most extravagant postures, and display their professional exploits all the way before our horses, until we reached our encampment. It would be difficult to describe a crowd so wild and confused. The extreme jolting, running, pushing, and scrambling almost bewildered me: while the dust, which seemed to powder the beards of the Persians, nearly suffocated us all. Probably ten thousand persons of all descriptions were assembled. Officers were dispersed among them, and with whips and sticks drove the crowd backwards or forwards, as the occasion required. Nothing could exceed the tumult and cries. Here men were tumbling one over the other in the inequalities of the ground; there horses were galloping in every direction, while their riders were performing feats with their long spears; behind was an impenetrable crowd; before us were the wrestlers dancing about to the sound of three copper drums, and twirling round their clubs. On every side was noise and confusion. This ceremony is never practised but to princes of the blood, and we considered, therefore, the honours of this day as a further proof of the reviving influence of the English name.

On Christmas day Sir Harford Jones and I visited the ruins of Shapour. We reckoned the distance at fifteen miles, in nearly a north direction from Kauzeroon. About seven miles from our encampment, we passed again through the village of Derees, which, from the extent of the ruined houses, must once have been a large town. Every house is covered with an arched roof, a mode of building which probably originated in the scarcity of timber. It is indeed common in all the places which we have seen; and the doors and porticoes are universally formed by a Saracenic arch. A miserable population, thinly interspersed among the ruins of Derees, came out to greet our passage. On the northern extremity of the town there is a place of burial, and over one of the tomb-stones there was the figure of a lion.

86

After having passed two tombs, one on the right side and one on the left of the road, we came to the bed of a torrent, over which there seems to have been built an aqueduct; for, on either side of its banks, are the remains of masonry, and the trace of its conduit is perceived on the southern bank. The extent of the ruins of Shapour to the southward is marked by a beautiful stream of water. Over the spring, from which it issues, the road is built, sustained by fragments of architecture, which are a part of the entablature of some public building, and by their dimensions must have appertained to a very considerable edifice.

Immediately after having passed this spring we came upon the ruins of Shapour.29 When standing on an eminence we computed the whole to be comprised, on a rough calculation, within a circumference of six miles. This circumference enclosed a tract of plain, and a hill on which the remains of the ancient citadel formed a conspicuous and commanding object. Whether by a mere caprice of nature, or whether by the labour of man, this hill or Acropolis is distinctly separated from the great range of mountains, forming the Eastern boundary of the plain of Kauzeroon. Between this and another imposing mass of rock runs the beautiful river of Shapour: we reckoned the space between the two rocks at thirty yards, which formed a little plain of verdure and shrubbery, intersected indeed by the stream of the river.30 The opening betwixt the two grand masses presented a landscape the most varied, the most tranquil, the most picturesque, and, at the same time, the most sublime that imagination can form. A black and stupendous rock (the strata of which were thrown into strong and wild positions, and formed an acute angle with the horizon) flanked the right of the picture: whilst another still more extraordinary rock, as richly illumined as the other was darkened, supported the left. Between both a distant range of mountains, whose roots were terminated by a plain, filled up the interstice, forming a fine aerial perspective; whilst the river and its87 rich shrubbery completed a most enlivening fore-ground. The hill, on which the remains of the citadel stand, is covered with the ruins of walls and turrets. On its eastern aspect, the nature of the fortification can be traced easily; for walls fill the chasms from rock to rock, forming altogether a place of defence admirably strong.

Shapour.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

The first object which arrested our attention, was a mutilated sculpture of two colossal figures on horseback, carved on the superfices of the rock. The figure on the right was the most injured; the only part indeed, which we could ascertain with precision, was one of the front and two of the hinder feet of a horse, standing over the statue of a man, who was extended at his full length, his face turning outwardly, and reposed upon his right hand, and his attire bearing marks of a Roman costume. A figure in the same dress was placed in an attitude of supplication at the horse’s knees, and a head in alto-relievo just appeared between the hinder feet. The equestrian figure on the left was not quite so much mutilated, the horse and parts of the drapery on the thighs being still well preserved. The dimensions of the figures are as follows: length of the foot of the figure under the horse, fifteen inches; length of the whole figure sixteen feet one inch; length of the arm five feet; chin to the summit of the head one foot two inches; length of the horse’s leg from the lower part of the shoulder to the hoof four feet four; the dress of the figures was a short petticoat, from the waist downwards just below the knees.

The next piece of sculpture (which, like the former, was carved upon the mountain of the citadel), is perfect in all its parts. It consists of three grand compartments, the central and most interesting represents a figure on horseback, whose dress announces a royal personage. His head-dress is a crown, on which is placed a globe; his hair flows in very large and massy curls over both shoulders, whilst a slight mustachio just covers his upper lip, and gives much expression to a countenance strongly indicative of pride and majesty. His body is clothed with a robe which falls in many folds to his girdle, and then extends itself over his thigh and legs as low as his ancle. A quiver hangs by88 his side; in his right hand he holds the hand of a figure behind him, which stands so as to cover the whole hind quarter of his horse, and which is dressed in the Roman tunic and helmet. A figure, habited also in the Roman costume, is on its knees before the head of the horse, with its hands extended, and with a face betraying entreaty. Under the feet of the horse is another figure extended, in the same attire and character as that of the other two Roman figures. To the right of the tablet stands a figure (behind that in a suppliant attitude) with his hands also extended, but dressed in a different manner, and, as far as we could judge, with features more Egyptian than European. In the angle between the king’s head and the horse’s is a Victory displaying the scroll of Fame. A figure (part of which is concealed by the one on its knees) completes the whole of this division. (Plate X.) The second grand compartment, which is on the right, is divided again into six sub-compartments; in each of these are carved three figures, the costumes and general physiognomies of which are all different. They appear mostly in postures of supplication; and, I should suspect, are representations of vanquished people. On the left, in the third grand compartment, are two rows of horsemen divided by one line into two smaller compartments. They all have the same characteristic dress and features as the royal figure in the centre, and certainly represent his forces. The whole of this most interesting monument is sculptured on a very hard rock, which bears the finest polish, and which we pronounced to be a coarse species of jasper. The shortness of our stay did not afford me an opportunity of delineating the detail of the many figures, which have been so faithfully pourtrayed. The artist has preserved so much distinction in the countenances and features of the different characters brought together in this groupe, that, if their respective countries could be ascertained, (and study and close investigation would probably secure the discovery) some important point of ancient history would be elucidated by an evidence as ingenious as it would be convincing. The dimensions we took are as follows: figures on foot, height five feet nine inches; figures on horseback from the89 rider’s cap to the horse’s hoofs six feet five inches: the minor tablets are four feet ten inches in length; the grand tablet eleven feet eleven inches.

Rock at Shapour.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

Having examined these, we next crossed the river to the sculptures on the opposite rock. The first is a long tablet, containing a multitude of figures. The principal person, (who is certainly the King represented in the former tablet) is placed in the very centre of the piece, alone in a small compartment, and is seated with a sword placed betwixt his legs, on the pummel of which rests his left hand. It is a most ridiculous object, with a head swelled by a singular wig to an immense circumference. On his right, on the uppermost of two long slips, are many men who seem to be a mixture of Persians and Romans; the former are conducting the latter as prisoners. Under these in the lower slip are others, who by their wigs appear to be Persians: their leader bears a human head in both hands, and extends it towards the central figure. On the left are four small compartments; the first (nearest that figure, and the highest from the ground) incloses a crowd of men whose arms are placed over one another’s shoulders. Below these are five figures, one of whom leads a horse without any more furniture than a bridle. The two other compartments are filled up with eight figures each. We considered this to represent, in general, a king seated in his room of audience surrounded by his own people, and by nations tributary to him. The length is eleven yards four inches.

On the left of this were two colossal figures on horseback, carved in an alto relievo. The one to the right had all the dress, character and features of the King above described; the other, on the left, appeared also a royal personage, but differing in dress, and in the furniture of his horse. Both had their hands extended, and held a ring, which we conceived to be emblematical of peace. The Envoy, who had seen both these remains and Nakshi Rustam, prepared me to expect a similar sculpture at the latter: and as I had not leisure to detail all the90 subjects of Shapour, I preferred to delineate those, of which no other specimen might exist, and therefore proceeded in our general examination. I must not however omit to say, that the sculpture of these two figures was exquisite; the proportions and anatomy of both horses and men were accurately preserved, so that the very veins and arteries in the horses’ legs and belly were most delicately delineated.

Walking forwards we came to a very extensive piece of sculpture, the lower parts of which were entirely destroyed. We saw, however, on the right, a row of camels’ and men’s heads intermixed; and under them a row of horses’ and men’s heads, which were demolished from the horse’s eye downwards. In front of these, at the distance of about four feet, was part of a figure on a horse, the King as before, holding a bow and four arrows in his right hand. We supposed that this might be the commencement of a hunting piece. [Plate XI.]

Our research terminated in a most perfect sculpture: the extreme interest of which only increased our regret, that the shortness of our time would not allow us to give it all the observation and study which it required. This piece contained a greater number of objects than any of the others, and a much greater diversity of characters. The surface of the rock is here divided into a variety of unequal compartments, all of which are occupied by a multitude of figures. In the middle, is a rather reduced copy of the second relievo which I have described (that of the King and the suppliant) except that, facing the King there is an additional personage with a hand extended holding a ring. In the first row, at the top on the right, are a number of slight figures with their arms folded. The second is filled with a crowd, of which some carry baskets. The third is equally covered; and in the right corner there is a man conducting a lion by a chain. In the fourth, and just opposite to the King, is a very remarkable groupe, whose loose and folded dresses denote Indians: one leads a horse, whose furniture I have drawn with some care, and behind the horse is an elephant. Under this, and close to the ground, are men in a Roman costume; amongst them is a chariot to which two horses are91 harnessed; this also I have exactly delineated.31 In five compartments on the left (corresponding with those on the right) are placed thick squadrons of Persian cavalry, all in a regular and military order, marshalled as it were in echelon. Fourteen yards was the length of the whole sculpture from point to point.

Fragments at Shapour.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

Sculpture at Shapour.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

Sculpture at Shapour.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

The path that conducted us round to these beautiful monuments, is the course of an aqueduct, which appeared to be of more modern workmanship. Bordering on the road which winds behind the hill of the citadel, are numerous canals of water, formed most artificially and closely cemented with darna. Besides these, there are very deep wells, in parts of which the channels of the aqueduct are seen to pass. After having repassed the river, we walked over the numerous mounds of stones and earth which cover the ruined buildings of Shapour, and which, if ever explored, would discover innumerable secrets of antiquity. We were conducted by the peasants who were with us, to the remains of a very fine wall, which in the symmetry of its masonry equalled any Grecian work that I have ever seen. Each stone was four feet long, twenty-seven inches thick, and cut to the finest angles. This wall formed the front to a square building, the area of which is fifty-five feet. At the top were placed sphinxes couchant, a circumstance which we ascertained from discovering accidentally two eyes and a mutilated foot at the extremity of one of the upper stones. In this wall there is a window, which is arched by the formation of its upper stone. Behind this square building, we traced most correctly the configuration of a theatre, thirty paces in length, and fourteen in breadth. The place resembled at least those called theatres which I have seen in Greece. From a comparison of their positions, we were led to suppose that the building still extant must have been connected with the other behind it, and may have formed perhaps the entrance to it. [Plate XIII.]

There are distinct mounds of earth scattered over the whole site of92 the city, to each of which there are one or more wells. These we supposed to be ruins of separate houses. The people of Kauzeroon relate that there are immense subterraneous passages at Shapour, and connect the most extraordinary stories with them. Certainly one of the least extraordinary is, that a horse and mare were lost in them, and some time after re-appeared with a foal. Our informer added that one of his own acquaintance was sent into these passages, and had advanced some way when he perceived a gigantic figure, which to his fears appeared approaching towards him. He recovered himself however so far as to venture up to it, when, instead of a living monster, he found a sculptured figure, the same as those on the exterior of the rock. As a measure of the extent of these labyrinths, they say, that it would require twenty mauns of oil, (a maun is seven pounds and a quarter) to light any one through all their intricacies.

The plants that we noticed near the river, on the site of the city, and about the surrounding plain, were the palma christi, rodo-dendron, the willow, wild fig, a plant which the Persians call shauk-a-booz, and caveer, reeds, and benak or spice plant. The plain towards Shapour is much more cultivated than towards Kauzeroon, and is intersected by a variety of small artificial channels, which receive their supplies from the river. The river itself is a stream of very fine water, but after having run for about eighteen miles, it meets with a bed of salt among the mountains, which renders its waters in its farther progress towards the sea quite salt.

After having enjoyed the pleasure of exploring these remains, we returned to Kauzeroon. This town covers a large extent of country, but its walls and skirts are almost all in ruins. There is one green spot near it, a garden planted chiefly with cypress and orange trees, and belonging to the Governor. We walked there in the evening: at the entrance is a pleasure house, from which the principal avenue and garden are seen. We drank coffee in an upper room, neatly matted and stuccoed, with painted glass windows; and after having so long roamed over barren mountains and desert plains, were much pleased to93 meet with regular paths, refreshing rivulets, and luxuriant vegetation.32 The blackbird and the thrush were flying from tree to tree, and reminded us how sensibly we had changed our climate.

We set off at eight o’clock on the morning of the 26th, and arrived at our encampment in the valley of Abdoui, at half past twelve. The road led by the walls of Kauzeroon, and through the plain, until we came to a causeway called the Poul-aub-guinee, which is reckoned two fursungs from Kauzeroon. From this spot (which is a swamp forming the termination of the lake from the southward) the road begun to wind up a high mountain called the Dockter or “Daughter.” Over this, in the most difficult parts of the ascent, a road has been made, and parapet walls built to screen the traveller from the dangers of the precipices, which in some parts form an abrupt boundary to the road. Formerly this road was singularly dangerous, and all the exertions and ingenuity of the caravan drivers and leaders of mules were necessary to conduct their animals in safety to the bottom. We were told that the driver, when his mule was about descending a very steep part of the pass, would seize it by the tail, and then with all his might hold it fast, until the animal had found a footing for his fore feet, when again he helped it in the same manner, until it was in perfect safety. We reached the summit of the Dockter at about half past ten, and from thence we marched over a better road, until we descended into the small and beautiful valley of Abdoui. It is thickly covered with oak trees, which, though of a small kind indeed, must in summer render it a verdant and refreshing spot.

Whilst we were at dinner it was announced to the Envoy, that one of his old Persian friends Mahomed Reza Khan was about to meet him on his route; that he was the bearer of good news, and would therefore demand his moodjdéhlook, the customary present. The news was the defeat of the Russians at Erivan, whose loss in killed and94 prisoners amounted, according to the Persian’s report, to six thousand men. A firman from the King was also announced to be at this time on the road for the Envoy.

Our picturesque camp, which was interspersed amongst the oaks of the valley, was in motion at a quarter before eight on the morning of the 27th. After traversing nearly the full length of the plain, perhaps four miles, we proceeded to the long and tedious rise of the Peera zun, or “Old Woman,” a mountain, the greatest height of which formed the termination of our several ascents. We were at the top at twelve o’clock, when we commenced our descent into the plain of Desht-e-arjun, at the north extremity of which is situated the village of the same name. Before we entered it, we were met by Mahomed Reza Khan, who presented his letters from the Minister at the court of Shiraz, and who received our compliments on the success of the Persian arms. About two miles before we reached our encampment, we were met by the istakball, which was like all the others, excepting that it was accompanied by an old man blowing a brass trumpet of most broken, hoarse and discordant note, and by a ragged boy on an ass, who was beating two little kettle drums. About a quarter of a mile from the village there is a burial place, with a lion on one of the tombs as at Derees, and just under the mountain are a number of willow trees, watered by a fine gushing spring.

The plain itself is swampy; but the heights which bound it are all of a hard and inhospitable rock. In the swamp are wild fowl innumerable, ducks, snipes, and divers. The spring was here most luxuriant, and rendered the plain of Desht-e-arjun one of the most delightful spots which we had seen in the country. Some of the eminences are in summer covered with vines, the seps of which were now seen just peeping out of the brown soil. We were fortunate in having passed the mountains; for we had scarcely reached our encampment, when thick clouds covered their summits, and here and there left extensive layers of snow.

On the 28th, the morning was extremely cold, when the camp broke95 up; we set off at half past eight, and arrived at our resting place at a quarter to twelve, a distance which we call ten miles. We continued all the road in the same region as the plain of Desht-e-arjun, nor do I think that any very considerable descent had brought us much below the summit of the Peera Zun. The people of the country reckon Khoné Zenioun colder than Desht-e-arjun, and indeed than any other habitable place on their side of Persia. These spots are certainly much more elevated than any other part in the line of our route. At Khoné Zenioun there is only a Caravanserai; near it a small stream runs to the Eastward; we came to its banks at half past ten o’clock, but did not cross it till close under the walls of the Caravanserai.

Whilst sitting quietly in our tents, we were hurried by the information that Kerim Khan, the bearer of the King’s letter, was within a mile of our encampment. As it was necessary to receive it with every honour, we exchanged our travelling clothes for uniforms and swords, which the Persians have learnt to esteem as the dress of ceremony among Europeans. We proceeded in all haste to the Shiraz road, with the body guard in their best clothes, with flying colours and trumpets sounding; and had advanced scarcely a quarter of a mile, when we perceived the Khan and his party descending a neighbouring hill. The Envoy, the Mehmandar, and all the gentlemen of the suite dismounted from their horses, and walked in form towards Kerim Khan, who, in the same manner, advanced towards us with an attendant behind him, bearing the King’s firman. When the greetings of welcome were interchanged, the Khan took the King’s letter from under a handkerchief, with which it was covered, and delivered it into the Envoy’s hands, saying aloud, “This is the King’s firman.” Sir Harford received it with both his hands, and having carried it respectfully to his head, placed it in his breast. We then mounted our horses, and returned to the Envoy’s tent, where all parties were seated according to their respective ranks. A long exchange of compliments then took place between the principals, “khosh amedeed” and96 “bisgar khosh amedeed,” (you are welcome, you are very welcome), were repeated again and again. This is the phrase after the “selam alek,” which is always used in Persia, and which answers to the “khosh gueldin” of the Turks. The Turks never use the “selam alek” to a Christian, or to one who is not of the faith; but the Persians are less scrupulous. Kerim Khan conveyed many flattering compliments from the King to the Envoy, and added a great number on his own part. Sir Harford called for Peer Murad Beg, his chief Moonshee, to read the firman. He arrived barefooted, and stood respectfully at the end of the tent; when the firman was put into his hands all the company stood up, and the Europeans took off their hats: Peer Murad Beg read the firman aloud, with a marked and song-like emphasis. He then delivered it to Sir Harford, and we all seated ourselves again. After this, the usual routine of smoking and coffee was performed, during which the different gentlemen in the room were presented to Kerim Khan; our Mehmandar officiated in this instance, and described all our different qualities and qualifications with a great deal of humour. Kerim Khan then departed to lodge with the Mehmandar, who, on this occasion, displayed considerable attention, though, in his general manners, he had appeared a rough blunt soldier: knowing that the Envoy (to whom in etiquette the duty devolved) was unprovided for the reception of such a guest, he requested permission himself to entertain the stranger.

29th. We departed from Khoné Zenioun this morning at half past seven; and at a quarter past eleven arrived at the Bagh Shah Cheragh, a distance of twenty miles. We travelled mostly over a country of ascents and descents, and on a better road than those of the preceding days. The same river, by the banks of which we had been encamped, accompanied us in various directions, and, winding towards the east, met us at a station of Rahdars,33 (as we were entering the97 plain of Shiraz), where we crossed it on a decayed bridge, and saw the first view of Shiraz at the end of the plain. This day was replete with attentions and honours to Sir Harford and his Mission; an istakball, composed of fifty horsemen of our Mehmandar’s tribe, met us about three miles from our encampment; they were succeeded, as we advanced, by an assemblage on foot, who threw a glass vessel filled with sweetmeats beneath the Envoy’s horse, a ceremony which we had before witnessed at Kauzeroon, and which we again understood to be an honour shared with the King and his sons alone. Then came two of the principal merchants of Shiraz, accompanied by a boy, the son of Mahomed Nebee Khan, the new Governor of Bushire. They, however, incurred the Envoy’s displeasure by not dismounting from their horses, a form always observed in Persia by those of lower rank, when they meet a superior. We were thus met by three istakballs during the course of the day, and Mahomed Zeky Khan, our Mehmandar, amused us by the singing of a young boy, one of the first professional performers of Shiraz. A number of feats were performed by many of the horsemen who overspread the plain to a great extent; some throwing the girid, and then firing their pistols and muskets on full gallop, and others throwing the lance in the air, and catching it again.

On our road the Mehmandar, who had just received the message from Shiraz, announced that one of the Prince’s own tents was pitched at Bagh Shah Cheragh for the Envoy, and that the Prince further begged his acceptance of it. The present, which was offered with so much attention and delicacy, was worthy of the hand which gave it. On our arrival we found it displayed in the full elegance of its construction. It enclosed a large square occupied by a set of walls, the exterior of which was a crimson field, with green embroidery; on their interior covering were worked cypress trees and fighting lions. The whole was supported by three lofty and elegantly painted poles. Rich carpets were spread on the ground, and the ceilings and hangings were of the finest Masulipatam chintz, with appropriate poetical mottoes painted98 in the cornices. The Feroshes (or tent-pitchers) had contrived to make a small temporary garden before the entrance, and to introduce a little stream of water to run through the few green sprouts which they had planted. Three large trays of sweetmeats were placed in the tent ready for the Envoy’s reception; upon which, when our visitors were departed, we fed heartily. During the night, a fall of snow very opportunely laid the dust for our entrance into the city, in which were to be displayed all our splendour and finery.

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CHAP. VI.
SHIRAZ.

On the morning of the 30th Dec. the day fixed for our public entry into Shiraz, all the suite appeared in full uniforms, and the Envoy in a Persian cloak or catabee made of shawl, and lined with Samoor fur; a dress permitted to the Princes alone, and on that account assumed by Sir Harford, as the best means of conveying to the senses of the multitude, the high consideration of the office which he bore. We proceeded from our encampment at ten o’clock. The troop was dressed in their richest uniform, and made a very splendid escort. Our Mehmandar marshalled the whole of the Persian horsemen so admirably,100 that none crowded upon us in our march, and they only played about as usual and animated the plain by their noise and games.

At about two miles from the city we were met by some of the chief men of the place. It was a long contested negociation, whether they also were to pay the Envoy the compliment of dismounting, nor would they have submitted to this part of the ceremony, if Kerim Khan, the bearer of the King’s letter, had not rode forwards and represented to them, that as he was sent from His Majesty to see that every respect was properly shewn to the representative of the British King, he must report their present conduct at Teheran. This hint had the desired effect; and, as their party approached, the chiefs dismounted, and I, with some other gentlemen of the Mission, dismounted also, and went forward to meet them: the Envoy formally expressed his determination to alight to nobody but the Minister. Those who had yielded the honour thus reluctantly, were Bairam Ali Khan Cadjar, the Ish Agassi, or Master of the Ceremonies of the Prince’s Household, and Hassan Khan Cadjar, both of the King’s own family; Ahmed Beg, one of the sons of Nasr Oallah Khan, the Prince’s Prime Minister; and Mirza Zain Labadeen, the Chief Secretary. We proceeded slowly across the plain; the crowd and confusion increased almost impenetrably, as we approached the city, and nothing but the strength of our Mehmandar could have forced the passage. Mounted on his powerful large horse he was in all parts, dispersing one crowd, pushing forwards another, and dealing out the most unsparing blows to those who were disinclined to obey his call. At the gate, however, notwithstanding all his exertions, the closing numbers detained our progress for above a quarter of an hour; and vollies of blows were necessary to clear the entrance.

At length it was effected: the Envoy led the column, surrounded by the Persian grandees, and followed by the gentlemen of the mission in their rank, and the troop of the body guard. We passed through many streets to the Bazar-a-Vakeel, a long and spacious building, the shops of which were all laid out with their choicest merchandize to display on101 the occasion the plenty and prosperity of the country. The bazar itself is the most splendid monument of the taste and magnificence of Kerim Khan, who administered the affairs of Persia with sovereign authority, under the name of Vakeel or Regent, and died in 1779. The centre is marked above by a rotunda, and beneath by an enclosed platform; in the middle of which was seated the Cutwal or Minister of Police. The trumpet of the troop, which was sounded all through the streets, continued with finer effect under the covered roofs of the bazar. As the Envoy passed, every one stood up; all knew at least the blows which followed any dilatoriness.

After a long procession we arrived at the house appropriated for our reception. It was neatly built of a pale yellow brick, and was very spacious, though considerably out of repair, and indeed in some parts falling into absolute ruin. We were ushered into an apartment, where a large service of sweetmeats and fruits was prepared for us. Here we sat, until we had dispatched the usual forms of a visit with the grandees who had met us, and had accompanied us thus far. The remaining part of the day was occupied in receiving other less noble visitants, and in accepting the countless presents which were sent from various parts, and which consisted for the most part of live lambs, fruits and sweetmeats. The store of sweetmeats at last became so great, that they were distributed amongst our numerous servants, troopers, and feroshes. Among those, who succeeded the original party of our guests, was an officer dispatched by the Minister Nasr Oallah Khan with the intimation, that he deferred till the next day the pleasure of visiting the Envoy, in the fear that at present he might be fatigued with his journey. But our more brilliant visitors were Yusuf Beg, a Georgian youth of pleasing manners, a favourite in the suite of the Prince; and Abdullah Khan, who was nominated to officiate as our Mehmandar, till we should meet on the road an officer appointed by the King from his capital to assume the functions in the further progress of the Mission.

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31st. Nasr Oallah Khan, accompanied by many of the greatest men of Shiraz, paid their visit of ceremony to the Envoy. The minister’s manners were plain, his features hard, and his beard peculiarly black. The usual routine of complimentary speeches and of other ceremonies occupied both parties during his stay. The Envoy, from the pressing invitation of the court, determined to hasten his departure towards Teheran; and eight days were fixed for our stay at Shiraz, though circumstances afterwards occasioned a further delay.

Shiraz has six gates: it is divided into twelve mahalehs or parishes, in which there are fifteen considerable mosques, besides many others of inferior note; eleven medressés or colleges, fourteen bazars, thirteen caravanserais, and twenty-six hummums or baths. Of the gardens round, the principal are private property.

Of all the mosques, the Mesjid Ali (built in the Khalifat of Abbas) is the most ancient, and the Mesjid No the largest. It was indeed originally the palace of Attabek Shah, who, in a dangerous illness of his son, consulted the Mollahs, and was answered, (as the only means of the recovery of his child) that he must devote to the Almighty that, which of all his worldly goods he valued most. He accordingly converted his palace into a mosque, and the Mahomedans add, that his son was in consequence restored to health. The Mesjid Juméh is likewise an ancient structure, and there are six others of an older date than the time of Kerim Khan. Of the more modern mosques of Shiraz the Mesjid Vakeel, the only one built by that Prince, is the most beautiful.

Kerim Khan begun a college, but never finished it: there were already six, one of the earliest of which (that founded by Imaum Kouli Khan) is still the most frequented. Another was added by Haushem, father of Hajee Ibrahim, the Vizier of the late King; and the Peish Namaz and Mooshtehed (Chief Priest of the city) built another.

The trades in Persia as in Turkey are carried on in separate bazars, in which their shops are extended adjacent to each other on both sides103 of the building. Before the reign of Kerim Khan, there were the bazars of the shoemakers, tinmen, crockery-ware-dealers, and poulterers, and about seven others: after his time the Bazar Saduck Khan was built; but the most extensive, as well as the most beautiful of all, was that already described, founded by Kerim Khan himself, and called the Bazar-a-Vakeel.

Of the caravanserais, the Kaisariéh Khonéh, built by Imaum Kouli Khan, and now in ruins, is the most ancient. There is another old structure, which was restored from a state of great decay, and assumed the name of its second founder Ali Khan. There are five others, of which one is called daphaugaun, or the dressers of sheep-skins for caps; another dakaukha, or dyers; another Hindoohan, where the Hindoos reside. These were all built before the accession of Kerim Khan, a date at which the splendour of Shiraz revived. He added two within the city, and one beyond the walls, and others have since been erected.

The same Prince enriched his capital with three public baths, two within and one without the town. Four have since been raised, but there were already, before his reign, nineteen similar foundations.

There are several mausolea in Shiraz; the most distinguished of those without the walls is that of Hafiz: there is also beyond the city, that of Mir Ali, son of Mirza Hamza, and grandson of the Imaum Musa.

In an evening ride we visited the environs, and, leaving the city by the Ispahan gate, crossed a bridge in very bad repair. The torrent (over which it was thrown) in the day of Chardin passed through the town; it now flows in solitude, a mournful proof of the decay of Shiraz. We came to the Mesjid Shah Mirza Hamza, a mosque erected by Kerim Khan, in a separate chamber of which are laid the remains of his son Abdul Rakeem Khan. In the front court is an old and majestic cypress. Although some parts of the fabric are in decay, it is still beautiful. Its walls are built of the fine brick employed in all the public works of its founder, and, indeed, in the best houses of104 Shiraz. Its cupola is covered with green-lacquered tiles of a semi-circular form, which, fitted in close lines, give a symmetrical appearance of ribs to its shining surface. At the foot of the cupola, in Persian characters, are verses from the Koran and invocations to the prophet. Continuing our ride from this mosque, we turned out of the fine high road, which is fifty feet broad and very even; and followed a smaller path on the right to the Hafizeea on the tomb of Hafiz, the most favourite of Persian poets. This monument also, in its present state at least, is alike the work of Kerim Khan. It is placed in the court of a pleasure house, which marks the spot frequented by the poet. The building extends across an enclosure: so that the front of it, which looks towards the city, has a small court before it, and the back has another. In the centre is an open vestibule supported by four marble columns, opening on each side into neat apartments. The tomb of Hafiz is placed in the back court, at the foot of one of the cypress trees, which he planted with his own hands. It is a parallelogram with a projecting base, and its superficies is carved in the most exquisite manner. One of the Odes of the Poet is engraved upon it, and the artist has succeeded so well, that the letters seem rather to have been formed with the finest pen than sculptured by a hard chissel. The whole is of the diaphanous marble of Tabriz, in colour a combination of light greens, with here and there veins of red and sometimes of blue. Some of the cypresses are very large, but Aga Besheer, the present chief of the Queen’s eunuchs, who happened to require timber for a building, cut down two of the most magnificent trees. This is a place of great resort for the Persians, who go there to smoke kaleoons, drink coffee, and recite verses.

After having done this, we proceeded forward, passing by the Chehel-ten or forty bodies, until we came to the Haft-ten or seven bodies, both buildings erected by Kerim Khan to the memories of pious and extraordinary men who lived there as Derveishes. The Haft-ten is a pleasure house, the front of which is an enclosed garden planted with rows of cypress and chenar trees (a species of sycamore, with a verdure like that of the plane,) and interspersed with marble fountains. In its105 principal room, which is open in front and supported by two marble columns, are some paintings, many of which represent the sanctity of the Derveishes’ lives, and the ceremonies of the self-inflicted torments of their bodies. The principal paintings are Abraham’s Sacrifice of Isaac, on the right; on the left, Moses keeping the flocks of Jethro. In the centre is the story of Sheik Chenan, a popular tale in Shiraz. Sheik Chenan, a Persian of the true faith, and a man of learning and consequence, fell in love with an Armenian lady of great beauty, who would not marry him unless he changed his religion. To this he agreed: still she would not marry him, unless he would drink wine: this scruple also he yielded. She resisted still, unless he consented to eat pork: with this also he complied. Still she was coy and refused to fulfil her engagement, unless he would be contented to drive swine before her. Even this condition he accepted: and she then told him that she would not have him at all, and laughed at him for his pains. The picture represents the coquette at her window, laughing at Sheik Chenan, as he is driving his pigs before her. The wainscoting of this room is of Tabriz marble: one of the largest slabs is nine feet in length, and five feet in breadth.

We quitted this pretty place, and taking the road to the right came to a magnificent garden, another evidence of the splendour of the age of Kerim Khan. From its founder it was called in his time Bagh-a-Vakeel, but it has since acquired the name of Bagh-e-Iehan-Nemah. An immense wall, of the neatest construction, encloses a square tract of land, which is laid out into walks, shaded by cypress and chenar trees, and watered by a variety of marble canals and small artificial cascades. Over the entrance, which is a lofty and arched passage, is built a pleasure-house. It consists of a centrical room with a small closet at each corner. The ornaments and paintings with which it is embellished, are more rich and more elegant than I can describe. The wainscot is of Tabriz marble, and inlaid with gold and ornamental flowers, birds, and domestic animals. The panels of the doors are beautiful paintings, with the richest and most brilliant varnish; and the106 ceiling and walls are all parcelled out into compartments, which display equal execution. From the window I took a sketch of the tomb of Hafiz, which lay contiguous to it on the left hand. The town of Shiraz, with all its campagna, was full before my sight; whilst the setting sun threw the softest and most beautiful tints over the fine scenery of the surrounding mountains. (See Plate XIV.) In the centre of the bagh or garden is another of the principal pleasure-houses, which they call koola-frangee or Frank’s hat, because it is built something in the shape of one. There is a basin in the middle of the principal room, where a fountain plays and refreshes the air. The paintings and ornaments are not less beautiful and are more varied, than those of the last described building. The cornices are laid out into small compartments, where the painter has exerted his genius and fancy in delineating the most fantastical little pictures. Here are hunts of lions, there the combats of elephants and dragons: in one corner are dancing bears and monkies, in another are represented the heroes and heroines of fairy tales. The whole procession and amusements of a marriage are drawn in one compartment, and next to them all the ceremonies of a circumcision. In short, if the painter’s art had been equal to his fancy, these different compositions would have excited as much admiration as they now afforded amusement. The whole soil of this garden is artificial, having been excavated from the area below, and raised into a high terrace. The garden is now falling into decay; but those who saw it in the reign of Kerim Khan delight to describe its splendour, and do not cease to give the most ravishing pictures of the beauty of all the environs of his capital.

Tomb of Hafiz.     Mesjid Shah Mirza Hamza.
Sheraz.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

Having enjoyed the present remains of the scene, we returned to the high road (on the right of which it is situated) and followed it to the Tengui-Ali-Acbar, a fortified pass in the time of the greatness of Shiraz, and long indeed before that time. Here are the remains of that gate, of which Le Brun in his travels has given a very correct drawing. From the situation in which I sketched the ruin, I fancy that I must have rested upon the very stone where Le Brun took his view: and107 there is only that difference between the two, which unfortunately exists in the real scene; that mine presents devastation, where his picture displays life and cultivation. An old Derveish now lives in a small cell close to the ruined gate, and refreshes the passing stranger with a cup of pure water. The remaining walls and turrets, which are nearly attached to the gate on the Shiraz side, still attest the artificial strength of the pass in former days; and the formation of the lands around points it out as a spot which the modern perfection of military art would render an almost impregnable hold.

The Takht-a-Cadjar is a pleasure-house about a mile and a half East of the town, erected by the present Family, and situated in an enclosed garden of about twenty acres. It is built on a rock, but is much inferior indeed both in solidity and ornament, to any of the works of Kerim Khan. From the upper window of one of its rooms, I took a view of the city, which extended itself beautifully before me. This pleasure-house is much visited by the Prince; on the left side of it he has an enclosed place in which he keeps antelopes and other game. From the quantity of water which runs through it, the garden itself must be most luxuriant in vegetation, and in summer a most delightful spot.

1st January, 1809. The first day of the new year was fixed for our visit to the Prince. On the day appointed, accordingly Sir Harford, preceded by our Mehmandar, and followed by the gentlemen of his Mission and the body guard, paraded through the town as on the day of our entry, until we reached the gate of state. The streets were filled as before, and the bazars displayed all their wealth. The first gate introduced us immediately from the bazar into the first court of the palace. The breadth and length of this court were of large and fine proportions. The high summits of its walls were crowned with arched battlements, the planes of which were worked in a species of close lattice. We proceeded through this court into another, the spacious area of which seemed to form a complete square. Its magnificent walls were covered in regular compartments with various implements of108 war arranged in distinct niches. Among them (besides spears, muskets, &c. and the small ensigns of their service) were the brass guns, called zomboorek, which are mounted on the backs of camels. Along the range stood soldiers in uniforms of scarlet cloth, an awkward imitation of the Russian military dress.

About thirty paces from the principal gate Sir Harford dismounted, and followed by us all, whilst the trumpet of the troop sounded the salute, advanced through the portico. Here the Ish Agassi, or Master of the Ceremonies, Bairam Ali Khan Cadjar, who had been seated in a small place opposite the entrance, rose at our approach to meet us. He then called for his staff of office, (a black cane with a carved pummel) and placing himself at the head of the party, led us through rather a mean passage into a spacious court, at the extremity of which appeared the Prince. He was seated in a kind of open room, the front of which was supported by two pillars elegantly gilded and painted. This is called the Dewan Khonéh, or Chamber of Audience.

In the centre of the court is an avenue of lofty trees, at the sides of which are two long canals: these numerous fountains threw up a variety of little spouts of water, to the jingle of the wheels and bells of their machinery. On all sides of the court were placed in close files a number of well dressed men armed with muskets, pistols, and swords; these were the subalterns and the better sort of the soldiery in the Prince’s guard. Amongst them were here and there intermixed officers of high rank. In the centre of the avenue, and on the borders of the canal stood in long rows, respectfully silent and in postures of humility, all the chief Officers, Khans, Governors of towns and districts.

When we entered the court, the Ish Agassi stopt and made a very low obeisance towards the Prince; and Sir Harford and his Mission made an English bow, and just took off their hats. These salutations, which were made four times in as many different places of the court, were repeated as we entered the Dewan Khonéh. The Prince in all this109 looked at us, but did not stir a muscle: we now proceeded straight forwards until Sir Harford faced the Prince, where he was then directed to sit, and we all took our stations in order. When we were seated, the Prince said in a loud voice, “Khosh Amedeed,” that is, “you are welcome;” which was repeated by Nasr Oallah Khan his Minister, who stood at about five paces from him in an attitude of respect. Sir Harford made the compliments required, when the Prince desired us to sit at our ease. We however, as in a former instance, chose to be respectful and uncomfortable, and to continue in the fashion of Persia.

The Prince then added a variety of flattering things, talked of the friendship of the two nations, said how anxious his Father was to see the Embassador, and advised him to proceed to his court without delay. We had kaleoons, then coffee, and then (a compliment not repeated to a common guest) another kaleoon. After this was over, we got up, and making an obeisance, quitted the Prince’s presence with every precaution not to turn our backs as we departed. The same number of bows, repeated in the same places as on our entrance, closed the audience.

Ali Mirza, the Prince of Shiraz, is not the least amiable of the King’s sons. After Prince Abbas Mirza, the Governor of Aderbigian, and the Heir of the crown, he is his father’s greatest favourite. In person he is an engaging youth of the most agreeable countenance and of very pleasing manners. His dress was most sumptuous; his breast was one thick coat of pearls, which was terminated downwards by a girdle of the richest stuffs. In this was placed a dagger, the head of which dazzled by the number and the brilliancy of its inlaid diamonds. His coat was rich crimson and gold brocade, with a thick fur on the upper part. Around his black cap was wound a Cashmire shawl, and by his side, in a gold platter, was a string of the finest pearls. Before him was placed his kaleoon of state, a magnificent toy, thickly inlaid with precious stones in every distinct part of its machinery. To me the Prince appeared to be under much constraint110 during the ceremony of our audience; in which he had been previously tutored by his minister: and I very easily believe, according to the stories related of him, that he exchanges with eagerness these etiquettes of rank for the less restrained enjoyments of his power. On these he lavishes his revenue; and in the costliness of a hunting equipage, the fantasies of dress, and the delicacies of the Harem are frittered away a hundred thousand tomauns a year. Young as he is, (for he is only nineteen) he has already a family of eight children. In his public government he is much beloved by his people; and although the Persians are not inclined in conversation to spare the faults of their superiors, of him I never heard an evil word. He has not indeed those sanguinary propensities, which are almost naturally imbibed in the possession of despotic power; and where others cut off ears, slit noses, and pierce eyes, he contents himself with the administration of the more lenient bastinado.

Nasr Oallah Khan is appointed by the King to remit to the court of Teheran any surplus revenue; an office probably neither easy to the Minister, nor acceptable to the Prince, whose immense and splendid establishments exact a very liberal proportion of the whole receipts of the province. In his actual service and pay the Prince has only a force of one thousand cavalry, of which two hundred (the quota furnished by the Baktiar tribe) form his body guard; but in an emergency he could sent to the war twenty thousand horsemen. His troops provide their own arms and clothing, and they receive annually in pay forty piastres, and a daily allowance of one maun (seven pounds and a quarter) of barley, two mauns of straw, and a quarter of a maun of wheat, except in spring when their horses feed on the new herbage. They have further, each in his own country, for the maintenance of their families, a certain allotment of land, which they till and sow, and of which they reap the annual fruits. When a new levy is ordered, the head of each tribe brings forward the number which the state has required of him.

4th. At about one hour before sun-set, we repaired to the house of111 the Minister, to partake of an entertainment which was given to the Envoy. We had scarcely dismounted from our horses at the Minister’s gate, when the crowd, anxious to obtain admission, rushed forward, and long impeded the passage of the suite; until our Mehmandar himself commanded respect by administering a volley of blows with a stick on the heads of the surrounding multitude. As soon as the Envoy entered the court, (which appeared from the numbers already pressed into it, to be the scene of the amusement), the Persian music struck up, and a rope dancer, whose rope stood conspicuous in the centre, begun to vault into the air.

Abdullah Khan, the Minister’s Son, conducted us into the presence of his father, where we soon ranged ourselves among a numerous company of the Nobles of the place, who were invited to meet us. Abdullah Khan, who is a man of about thirty, and a person of much consequence at Shiraz, never once seated himself in the apartment where his father sat, but, according to the Eastern customs of filial reverence, stood at the door like a menial servant, or went about superintending the entertainments of the day. As soon as we were settled, the amusements commenced; and at the same moment the rope-dancer vaulted, the dancing boys danced, the water-spouter spouted, the fire-eater devoured fire, the singers sung, the musicians played on their kamounchas, and the drummers beat lustily on their drums. This singular combination of noises, objects and attitudes, added to the cries and murmurs of the crowd around, amused, yet almost distracted us.

The rope-dancer performed some feats, which really did credit to his profession. He first walked over his rope with his balancing pole, then vaulted on high; he ascended the rope to a tree in an angle of forty-five degrees? but, as he was reaching the very extremity of the upper range of the angle, he could proceed no further, and remained in an uncertain position for the space of two minutes. He afterwards tied his hands to a rope-ladder of three large steps; and, first balancing his body by the112 middle on the main line let fall the ladder and himself, and was only brought up by the strength of his wrists thus fastened to their support. He next put on a pair of high-heeled shoes, and paraded about again; then put his feet into two saucepans, and walked backwards and forwards. After this he suspended himself by his feet from the rope; and, taking a gun, deliberately loaded and primed it, and, in that pendant position, took an aim at an egg (placed on the ground beneath him) and put his ball through it. After this he carried on his back a child, whom he contrived to suspend, with his own body besides, from the rope, and thence placed in safety on the ground. His feats were numerous (and as he was mounted on a rope much more elevated than those on which such exploits are displayed in England), they were also proportionably dangerous. A trip would have been his inevitable destruction. He was dressed in a fantastical jacket, and wore a pair of breeches of crimson satin, something like those of Europeans. The boys danced, or rather paced the ground, snapping their fingers to keep time with the music, jingling their small brass castanets, and uttering extraordinary cries. To us all this was tiresome, but to the Persians it appeared very clever. One of the boys having exerted himself in various difficult leaps, at last took two kunjurs or daggers, one in each hand; and with these, springing forwards, and placing their points in the ground, turned himself head over heels between them; and again, in a second display, turned himself over with a drawn sword in his mouth.

A negro appeared on the side of a basin of water (in which three fountains were already playing), and, by a singular faculty which he possessed of secreting liquids, managed to make himself a sort of fourth fountain, by spouting water from his mouth. We closely observed him: he drank two basins and a quarter of water, each holding about four quarts, and he was five minutes spouting them out. Next came an eater of fire: this man brought a large dish full of charcoal, which he placed deliberately before him, and then, taking up the pieces, conveyed them bit by bit successively into his mouth, and threw them113 out again when the fire was extinguished. He then took a piece, from which he continued to blow the most brilliant sparks for more than half an hour. The trick consists in putting in the mouth some cotton dipped in the oil of Naptha, on which the pieces of charcoal are laid and from which they derive the strength of their fire: now the flame of this combustible is known to be little calid. Another man put into his mouth two balls alternately, which burnt with a brilliant flame, and which also were soaked in the same fluid.

The music was of the roughest kind. The performers were seated in a row round the basin of water; the band consisted of two men, who played the kamouncha, a species of violin; four, who beat the tamborin; one, who thrummed the guitar; one, who played on the spoons; and two who sung. The loudest in the concert were the songsters, who, when they applied the whole force of their lungs, drowned every other instrument. The man with the spoons seemed to me the most ingenious and least discordant of the whole band. He placed two wooden spoons in a neat and peculiar manner betwixt the fingers of his left hand, whilst he beat them with another spoon in his right.

All this continued till the twilight had fairly expired; when there commenced a display of fire-works on a larger scale than any that I recollect to have seen in Europe. In the first place, the director of the works caused to be thrown into the fountain before us a variety of fires, which were fixed on square flat boards, and which bursting into the most splendid streams and stars of flame, seemed to put the water in one entire blaze. He then threw up some beautiful blue lights, and finished the whole by discharging immense vollies of rockets which had been fixed in stands, each of twenty rockets, in different parts of the garden and particularly on the summits of the walls. Each stand exploded at once; and at one time the greater part of all the rockets were in the air at the same moment, and produced an effect grand beyond the powers of description.

At the end of this exhibition, a band of choice musicians and songsters114 was introduced into the particular apartment where we were seated. A player on the kamouncha really drew forth notes, which might have done credit to the better instruments of the West: and the elastic manner with which he passed his bow across the strings, convinced me that he himself would have been an accomplished performer even among those of Europe, if his ear had been tutored to the harmonies and delicacies of our science. The notes of their guitar corresponded exactly to those of our instrument. Another sung some of the odes of Hafiz, accompanied by the kamouncha, and in a chorus by the tamborins.

After this concert, some parts of which were extremely noisy and some not unpleasant even to our ears, appeared from behind a curtain a dirty-looking negro, dressed as a fakeer or beggar, with an artificial hump, and with his face painted white. This character related facetious stories, threw himself into droll attitudes, and sung humorous songs. Amongst other things he was a mimic; and, when he undertook to ridicule the inhabitants of Ispahan he put our Shiraz audience into ecstacies of delight and laughter. He imitated the drawling manner of speaking, and the sort of nonchalance so characteristic of the Ispahaunees. The people of Shiraz, (who regard themselves as the prime of Persians, and their language as the most pure, and their pronunciation as the most correct), are never so well amused as when the people and the dialect of Ispahan are ridiculed. Those of Ispahan, on the other hand, boast, and with much reason, of their superior cleverness and learning, though with these advantages indeed they are said to mix roguery and low cunning. The exhibition finished by the singing of a boy, the most renowned of the vocal performers at Shiraz, and one of the Prince’s own band. His powers were great, descending from the very highest to the very lowest notes; and the tremulations of his voice, in which the great acme of his art appeared to consist, were continued so long and so violently, that his face was convulsed with pain and exertion. In order to aid the modulations, he kept a piece of paper in his hand, with which he did not cease to fan his mouth. When115 the concert was over, we collected our legs under us (which till this time we had kept extended at ease) to make room for the sofras or table-cloths, which were now spread before us. On these were first placed trays of sweet viands, light sugared cakes, and sherbet of various descriptions. After these, dishes of plain rice were put, each before two guests; then pillaus, and after them a succession and variety, which would have sufficed ten companies of our number. On a very moderate calculation there were two hundred dishes, exclusive of the sherbets. All these were served up in bowls and dishes of fine china; and in the bowls of sherbet were placed the long spoons made of pear-tree, (which I mentioned on a former occasion), and each of which contained about the measure of six common table-spoons, and with these every guest helped himself. The Persians bent themselves down to the dishes, and ate in general most heartily and indiscriminately of every thing sweet and sour, meat and fish, fruit and vegetable. They are very fond of ice, which they eat constantly, and in great quantities, a taste which becomes almost necessary to qualify the sweetmeats which they devour so profusely. The Minister Nasr Oallah Khan had a bowl of common ice constantly before him, which he kept eating when the other dishes were carried away. They are equally fond of spices, and of every other stimulant; and highly recommended one of their sherbets, a composition of sugar, cinnamon, and other strong ingredients. As the Envoy sat next to the Minister, and I next to the Envoy, we very frequently shared the marks of his peculiar attention and politeness, which consisted in large handfuls of certain favourite dishes. These he tore off by main strength, and put before us; sometimes a full grasp of lamb mixed with a sauce of prunes, pistachio-nuts, and raisins; at another time, a whole partridge disguised by a rich brown sauce; and then, with the same hand, he scooped out a bit of melon, which he gave into our palms, or a great piece of omelette thickly swimming in fat ingredients. The dishes lie promiscuously before the guests, who all eat without any particular notice of one another. The silence, indeed, with116 which the whole is transacted is one of the most agreeable circumstances of a Persian feast. There is no rattle of plates and knives and forks, no confusion of lacquies, no drinking of healths, no disturbance of carving, scarcely a word is spoken, and all are intent on the business before them. Their feasts are soon over; and, although it appears difficult to collect such an immense number of dishes, and to take them away again without much confusion and much time, yet all is so well regulated that every thing disappears as if by magic. The lacquies bring the dishes in long trays called conchas, which are discharged in order, and which are again taken up and carried away with equal facility. When the whole is cleared, and the cloths rolled up, ewers and basins are brought in, and every one washes his hand and mouth. Until the water is presented it is ridiculous enough to see the right hand of every person (which is covered with the complicated fragments of all the dishes) placed in a certain position over his left arm: there is a fashion even in this. The whole entertainment was now over, and we took our leaves and returned home. Such a fête costs a very considerable sum. Besides ourselves, all the Envoy’s numerous servants, and all the privates of his body guard were invited to it, and eat and drank in different apartments. The same dinner which had been put before us was afterwards carried to them, and I understand that, even in the common domestic life of a Persian, the profusion which is exhibited on his table surprises the European stranger; and is explained only by the necessity of feeding his numerous household, to whom all his dishes are passed, after he has satisfied his own appetite.

5th. As we were at dinner on the following day, one of the Prince’s own feroshes brought a dish composed of eggs, &c. made up into a species of omelette, with two small bowls of sherbet, and a plate of powdered spices, which he announced as a present from the Prince himself. These sort of attentions are frequent between friends in Persia, and, at the moment of dinner, it seems that the Prince, who is particularly fond of the dish, was anxious that the Envoy also should117 partake of it; though at the time of receiving it, the Envoy suspected, that it might have been the trick of some one who calculated on a more valuable largess in return.

6th. A zeeafet or entertainment was given this evening to the Envoy by Mirza Zain Labadeen, Chief Secretary and Private Minister to the Prince. This was so nearly a repetition of the former display, that any description may well be spared. One thing indeed may be remarked; as soon as the Prime Minister came into the room, he took the direction of the feast upon himself; and the master of the house, the real donor, sunk into the character of a guest. This is the case wherever the Minister goes, as he is supposed to be the master of every thing, and to preside in every place, next after the Prince his own immediate superior.

On the 7th, Jaffer Ali Khan, (the English Agent at Shiraz) Mr. Bruce and I, went by the Envoy’s order to the Minister, to propose certain measures. We were introduced into the Bagh-a-Vakeel, a garden belonging to the Prince, and situated contiguous to his palace in the town. In the centre is a pleasure house called Koola-frangee, (and built on the model of the one of the same name in the Bagh-a-Jehan Nemah, on the outside of the city gates.) Here we conferred with the Minister, and as, in quitting him, we were going out of the garden, we chanced to meet the Prince himself, who asked us the common questions of civility, and passed on. In the evening, the Prince invited the Envoy to meet him on horseback at the Maidan, and expressed a wish to see the troop of cavalry go through some of its exercises and evolutions. We accordingly proceeded, and, when we perceived the Prince, we all dismounted from our horses for a moment, and when he waved his hand, we all mounted again, and rode close up to him. His manners and appearance were most elegant and prepossessing. He was dressed most richly: his outer coat was of blue velvet, which fitted tight to his shape; on the shoulders, front pocket, and skirts, was an embroidery of pearl, occasionally (in the different terminations of a point or angle,) enlivened with a ruby, an emerald, or a topaz. Under118 this was a waistcoat of pearl; and here and there, hanging in a sort of studied negligence, were strings of fine pearl. A dagger, at the head of which blazed a large diamond, was in his girdle. The bridle of his horse was inlaid in every part of the head with precious stones; and a large silver tassel hung under the jaws. The Prince was altogether a very interesting figure.

Cornet Willock paraded his troop much to the Prince’s satisfaction, and in the interval his own men ran their horses up and down the course, firing their muskets in various dextrous ways. Unfortunately one of his cavaliers met with a very dangerous fall.

Ismael Beg, the young Georgian favourite, also shewed off his horse. He carried the Prince’s bow and arrows, which were placed on each side of him, in quivers covered with black velvet and thickly studded with pearls and precious stones. After this, the Prince ordered his Russian prisoners, thirty in number, to draw up and go through their exercise. These poor fellows, commanded by their officer (who goes by the name of Rooss Khan, or Russian Khan), went through every thing that they could do, and even formed a hollow square. To all this the Persians give the name of bazee or play. Nasr Oallah Khan, the Minister, kept at a respectful distance, whilst the rest of the nobles and chief men were stationed in a crowd much further off. The Prince remained an isolated and unsocial being, never speaking but to command, never spoken to but to feel the servitude of others.

It is always the custom for the King and Princes to order their visitors away, which they do, either by a nod of the head or a wave of the hand. We received this kind of licence to depart, and returned to town in the order in which we came out.

8th. The last and most splendid entertainment was given this evening to the Envoy by our Mehmandar, Mahomed Zeky Khan. His own house was not large enough to contain us and our numerous attendants; he received therefore the Prince’s permission to give it in that of Aga Besheer, the Queen’s head Eunuch. The apartment, into which we were introduced, was still more elegant than any which119 we had yet seen, and if it could have been transported to England, would probably have excited universal admiration, and a new taste in the interior decoration of rooms. Like almost all the public rooms or dewan khonéh of a Persian house, it was in shape a parallelogram, with a recess formed by a Saracenic arch, in the centre of the superior line of the figure. The ground of the wall was of a beautiful varnished white, and richly painted in gold in ornaments of the most neat and ingenious composition. The entablature, if it may be so called, was inlaid glass placed in angular and prismatic positions, which reflected a variety of beautiful lights and colours. The ceiling was all of the same composition. In the arched recess was a chimney piece formed in front by alternate layers of glass and painting. The whole side fronting the arch was composed of windows, the frames of which opened from the ground; and, though of clumsy workmanship compared with frames in England, yet aided by the richness of the painted glass intermixed with the gilding of the woodwork, they filled up the space splendidly and symmetrically.

This fête corresponded in all its parts with the others that I have described; except that there was a greater variety of entertainments. Besides the rope-dancer, water-spouter, dancing boys, and fire-eater, we had an exhibition of wrestlers, a combat of rams, and a sanguinary scene of a lion killing an ox. The wrestling was opened by two dwarfs, about three feet and a half in height: one with a beard descending to his girdle, with deformed arms and hands, but with strong and muscular legs. The other, with bad legs, but with regular and well shaped arms. Both had the appearance of those animals represented in mythological pictures as satyrs, or perhaps of the Asmodeus of Le Sage. The figure with the beard was the victor, and fairly tossed his antagonist into an adjoining basin of water. The professional wrestlers succeeded; the hero of whom threw and discomfited eight others, in most rapid succession. In this the combat of rams resembled that of the wrestlers: one bold and superb ram, belonging to the Prince, remained the undisputed master of the field, for although a great number of his120 kind were brought to meet him, none dared to face him after the first butt.

The scene of blood next begun. A poor solitary half-grown ox was then produced, and had not long awaited his fate, when a young lion was conducted before us by a man, who led him with a rope by the neck. For some time he seated himself by the wall regardless of the feast before him. At length, urged by the cries of his keepers, and by the sight of the ox, which was taken close to him, he made a spring and seized his victim on the back. The poor brute made some efforts to get loose, but the lion kept fast hold, until he was dragged away by his keepers. Both were again brought before us, when the ox fell under a second attack of the lion. An order was at length given to cut the throat of the ox, when the lion finished his repast by drinking heartily of his blood. A very small cub of a lion, not larger than a water-spaniel was carried out, and the vigour with which he attacked the ox, was quite amusing. He fed upon him, after he was dead, with a relish which showed how truly carniverous were his young propensities. This bloody scene was pleasing to the Persian spectators in general, although I thought that I perceived some who sympathized with us for the helplessness of the ox.

In the course of the morning the Prince’s present to the Mission was brought by Ismael Beg. It consisted of a sword and two horses to the Envoy, and to each of the gentlemen kalaats, or dresses of gold brocade, a sash, and a shawl. Our appearance, when we wore our new dresses, which had not been made on purpose for us, was probably very ridiculous. We put the rich brocade Persian vest over our English clothes, having only taken off our coats: then wound the brocade sash round our waists, and lastly, put our shawls either over our shoulders, or fastened them into our cocked hats. This, with our red cloth stockings and green high-heeled shoes, completed the adjustment, in which we appeared before the Prince. The morning of the 9th had been fixed for our parting visit; dressed in these gifts with which he had honoured us, we were introduced to the Prince in a room121 called the private audience, in the Bagh-a-Vakeel. On walking through the garden we met one of his brothers, a little fellow about six years old, and who could just totter under the weight of the brocades, furs, and shawls with which he was hugely encumbered. Several Khans and men of consequence were standing before him, in the same attitudes of respect and humility, as they did before his elder brother, and attending to all his little orders and whims, with as much obsequiousness, as they would have shewn to a full-grown sovereign. It was singular that no notice was taken of an inadvertence which we committed: the dresses which we had received were honours to which a Persian looks forward through his whole life; but as they happened to be extremely inconvenient to us, we threw them off as soon as we left the Prince’s presence. An Englishman just invested with an Order, would hardly so throw off the ribband at the gate of St. James’s. In strictness, the kalaat of Persia should be worn three days, as we afterwards learnt, when again we had received a similar distinction at Teheran, and treated it with similar disrespect.

Before we left Shiraz, the merchants were all displeased with the Envoy, for they had been accustomed in former missions to sell immense quantities of their goods at exorbitant prices; while now all their offers were refused, as most of the presents which were given by Sir Harford in our progress, were made in coin. The amount of those presents indeed was not always satisfactory to the receivers.

122

CHAP. VII.
SHIRAZ TO PERSEPOLIS.

At eleven o’clock on the morning of the 13th, the Envoy recommenced his journey towards Teheran. The Prime Minister, and the Chief Secretary, Mahomed Hassan Khan (the commander of the Karaguzloo tribe), the Prince’s Lord Chamberlain, and Mahomed Zeky Khan, our former Mehmandar, with Abdulla Khan, who had succeeded to that office pro tempore, accompanied us about the distance of a mile from Tengui Ali Acbar, and then all took their formal leave, except our late and present Mehmandars.

At the distance of a quarter of a mile beyond the gate of the pass departing from Shiraz, one of the most compact of distant views presented itself. As we saw it from an eminence, the fore-ground was formed by the two bold acclivities, (which close into the pass and are connected by the gate), and the interval in the distance is filled up by123 part of Shiraz, the campagna and the mountains in the horizon. As our tents and baggage were still considerably behind us, we stopt and drank coffee at a hut, where is a reservoir of ice constructed by the Prince on a plan which to us seemed simple and good. A deep trench of about fifty paces in length, and fifteen in breadth, is cut into the ground; other dikes are cut transversely, which, as they fill with water, are emptied into the reservoir. When this first layer of water is congealed, another draught is made from the dikes, and thus the ice is accumulated. A wall is built the whole length of the reservoir to screen the ice from the south wind which is here the hottest. We staid here about two hours, in which time Captain Sutherland ascended the highest point of the mountains to the west, and returned with the most brilliant account of the view: Shiraz and its plain were at his feet, the gardens and the whole delineation of the mountains and surrounding lands, laid out as if on a map.

After we had quitted our late Mehmandars and their company, and had been joined by their successor Mahomed Khan, we begun to wind in the hills, and rode by the banks of the little stream of Rocknabad, until we came to a station of Rahdars, which is called Kalaat Poshoon, from its being the spot where the Prince puts on the kalaats, with which the King is frequently pleased to honour him. The country through which we passed, is hilly and open; scarcely a shrub enlivens the brown mountains, which here and there are varied by the capriciousness of their stratification into forms as extravagant as they are inhospitable. The source of the Rocknabad is about twelve miles from Shiraz, into which its waters find their way, after meandering in a variety of directions in their progress towards it. There was nothing particularly interesting in the march of the day. Large flocks of pigeons now and then flew over our heads, and the road here and there was occasionally strewed with ruined castles and caravanserais, which, though they bore a name, yet being uninhabited, are no longer worthy to be marked in the topographical history of Persia. After we had received the salute of a few miserable fusileers, had heard the reci124tative verses of one or two poor Mollahs, and had trampled over two or three bottles of sugar-candy, we arrived at our encampment at Zergoon.

Zergoon, when first seen, looks a respectable place: a mud wall surrounds it; but, as it was broken down in many places, it was not difficult to observe that the greater part of the houses within were mere shells, and their inhabitants proportionably wretched. It is situated close at the foot of a range of mountains at the southern extremity of a small plain, which is of the finest soil, and towards the town not ill cultivated. We calculated our march to have been thirteen miles from our tents at the Bagh-a-Vakeel at Shiraz, and on an average our route lay North-East.

The night was interrupted by the disputes of the mule-drivers and the bustle of feroshes. We quitted Zergoon at nine o’clock, and, at the distance of about two miles, entered into the plain of the same name (confounded with that of Merdasht) of a most delightful soil and partially cultivated, which extends near fifteen miles East and West. We proceeded three miles further, and crossing the river Bend-emir, entered the real plain of Merdasht. The bridge is thrown over the river immediately behind a projecting foot of the mountains; it is called the Pool Khan, and has (besides two lesser arches, which in this season were unoccupied by water) two principal arches, and another of a second size, through which three the river runs. The Bend-emir is the ancient Araxes, and runs in a general direction from North to South: where we crossed it indeed, it was flowing from N. N. E. to S. W. It does not fall into the sea at Cape Jasques, (now at least, as has been said) though it still enters Kerman. I am told that it goes to Corbal, ten fursungs from Persepolis, a large place in the province of Kerman, where its waters are received and kept up by a very considerable dam called the Bund Emir, i. e. the Bund Emir Timoor, or the dam of Tamerlane.34 There are several Bunds at Corbal, and in the neigh125bourhood, each raised by a King. In the bolook or district of Corbal, there is a village called Sedeh Nokara Khonéh, about eight or nine fursungs distant from Persepolis; where, in the common story of Persia, Jemsheed kept his royal drums and trumpets: the noise of which, when sounded there, reached his ears at Persepolis. According to the reports, which we received from the people of the country, the whole plain of Merdasht for many miles round is covered with interesting monuments of antiquity, mostly taking their direction to the southward.

Nakshee Rustam.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

From the bridge to the extremity of the plain may be ten miles. At two miles from our encampment, near the remains of Persepolis, we turned to the left to visit the ruins and sculptures of Nakshi Rustam. Although they appeared close to us, yet the great variety of the streams (drains from the Bend-emir and another river) which have been made to irrigate the country, obliged us to make a circuitous route of at least four miles.

The tombs and sculptures at Nakshi Rustam are all contained in the space of about two hundred yards, on the surface of steep and craggy rocks, the fronts of which extend in a line from N. W. to S. E. On the N. W. they terminate abruptly, and take an Eastward turn: and this termination is marked by the shaft of a column six feet high, which stands upon the eminence, and is of the very same stone as that on which it rests; though it has not been left in its present position by the excavation of the adjacent parts, for I thrust a kunjur (a dagger) several inches between it and the surface of the foundation rock; in which therefore there is obviously a socket to receive it. The top of the rock (on which the sculptures at Nakshi Rustam are executed) is levelled into a platform about twenty feet square: on this is an elevated seat or throne; the ascent to which is by five steps, i. e. two steps and a landing place, and then three more, I think however, that I perceived the remains of another step to the landing place. The throne itself is an oblong nine feet by six, and the whole rock is a fine marble.

Nearly under this column is situated (see plate XV.) the first and126 most northern piece of sculpture. It consists of two figures on horseback, and a third on foot. Chardin’s description of this, as well as of the other monuments, is sufficiently satisfactory; and I will therefore only mention where I differ from him. He says, that the size of the horses is suited to that of their riders: now to me they seem to be by far too small in proportion; and the best proof of this is, that the riders’ feet nearly touch the ground. What he calls bridles of chains of iron did not strike us as such. The whole furniture of the horses is admirably preserved, and I have endeavoured to draw it with the most scrupulous accuracy. The bridle of the horse on the right is exactly the same as those of the horses at Shapour, with numerous knobs or buckles on the head-stall: that of the horse on the left is of another species of ornament, yet also with many straps and buckles. Both have a remarkable strap or piece of iron which reaches from the horse’s forehead all down the front part of the face, covers the lips, and is fastened behind near the opening of the cheeks. The breast-plate of the horse on the right is composed of large round plates linked together: that of the horse on the left is ornamented with lions’ heads. The man behind the figure on the left, holds (not an umbrella, as Chardin mentions, but) a fly-flap, which is common to almost all the principal figures at Persepolis. Each of these horsemen trample on a body; that under the figure on the right is more correct and well preserved, than the other to the left. A Greek inscription is engraved on the chest of the first horse, composed of seven lines, the three first of which are illegible. Then nearly close under these lines are some characters, which are extremely effaced, but which I have endeavoured to copy exactly. (See the inscriptions, plate XXIX.) They are evidently the same as those which I saw at Shapour. On the breast of the opposite horse there is also a small but very effaced inscription in the same characters.

Nakshee Rustam.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

The sculpture next to this is composed of nine figures; five on the right side, and three on the left, of a personage at full length, who stands in the centre, holding a sword before him with both hands, and bear127ing a globe on his head. The figures to the left are beckoning as it were to the others on the right. There is besides another curious figure at full length, behind the rock close to the sculpture, but still making part of the same piece.

More in the centre of the whole extent of rock, and nearly under the base of a tomb, is a very spirited piece of sculpture, representing the combat of two horsemen, who are in the very shock of the engagement. (Plate XVI.) The figure on the left (as the spectator fronts them) has an immense crown with three balls on the top of three pyramidical points. Another ball of the same sort is on his right shoulder; and another on the summit of his horse’s head. On the full stretch of his horse he presents his lance, which is seen to pass through the throat of his adversary. A quiver hangs by his side, and a sort of armour covers his middle, and the back part of his horse. A figure behind him, apparently his standard-bearer, holds a kind of ensign, which is a staff crossed at the top and ornamented with five balls. The remainder is admirably executed, and represents the other horse thrown backwards on his haunches from the shock of the first cavalier’s onset, and the spear of his rider broken. The helmet, with which the second horseman’s head is crowned, is more Grecian, than any which I saw among the ruins; and the whole, though much effaced, is executed with better proportions and effect than any of the others.

After this I was delighted and surprised to find an exact copy, though in a gigantic scale, of the subject at Shapour, with one person in a Roman dress on his knees before the horse’s head, and another whose hands are seized by the rider. Under the horse’s belly is a long Greek inscription, of which I could make out only a few characters. There are, besides, other characters similar to those at Shapour, of which the annexed is a specimen. (See plate XXIX.)

Next to this, is a sculpture containing three figures: the one in the middle has a crown and globe on his head; his right hand is extended towards a female figure on his left, and they both grasp a ring. The128 third figure, which stands behind the male one in the middle, is defaced and is apparently only an attendant.

Nearly adjoining, is a much mutilated representation of a combat between two heroes on horseback. (Plate XVII.) The first, clad in armour with a globe on his head, makes a desperate thrust with his lance (his horse being at its greatest stretch) at the other figure, whose horse is in the act of rearing, and who holds his lance, as if he were preparing to receive his antagonist. The figure with a globe on his head tramples a man under his horse’s feet.

The tombs are four in number. Captain Sutherland with some difficulty entered into the one farthest to the northward. A Persian mounted first, and then let down a shawl; by which, as by a rope, Captain Sutherland helped himself up. A platform is cut into the rock before the tomb, which he entered through a small door, and found a chamber thirty-seven feet in length, and nine and a half in height: facing him were three arched recesses, in which the bodies of the deceased had probably been deposited.

In following the abrupt turn to the East, which the rock of the sculptures takes, we come to two square fire-altars, situated on a projecting mass and placed upon one base. They are six feet in height, and one side of the square is three feet. On the summit of each is a square hole. Further on in the recess of the mountain, are twenty holes or windows of different sizes, but all of the same pattern, with an inscription over them. The characters, according to our observation, differed from all that we found in any of the various remains which we visited. Facing nearly the middle of the sculptured rocks, stands an ancient fire-temple. It is a square building, one side of which measures twenty-four feet. It is of white marble and of admirable masonry. In front there is a door; open indeed only at the top, and which appears to have been opened thus far by force, for all the lower stones are mutilated. The inside exhibited signs of fire. On each side, except that on which the door is placed, are four apertures: they seem to129 have been scarcely intended to admit light; as (at this day, at least) they are each closely fitted with a stone. A small niche is over the door. A cornice, enriched with dentils, passes around the summit; and in the lines, where the stones have been fitted, oblong perpendicular incisions are made at regular intervals. The people call it a pigeon-house. The plain is covered with the wild liquorice; and we plucked some of refreshing taste on the banks of a stream, which (about a mile from the sculptures and tombs) turns a mill on the left of our encampment. We started snipes and ducks from the Rood-Khonéh-Sewund, which runs into the plain from the northward.

Nakshee Rustam.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
> Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown,] Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

As we had still two hours of daylight before us, we rode to Persepolis, and took a cursory view of the ruins. Our first, and indeed lasting impressions were astonishment at the immensity, and admiration at the beauties of the fabric. Although there was nothing, either in the architecture of the buildings, or in the sculptures and reliefs on the rocks, which could bear a critical comparison with the delicate proportions and perfect statuary of the Greeks, yet, without trying Persepolis by a standard to which it never was amenable, we yielded at once to emotions the most lively and the most enraptured.

At the distance of about five miles is a conspicuous hill, on the top of which, and visible to the eye from Persepolis, are the remains of a fortress. This hill is now called Istakhar, and is quite distinct from Persepolis. Persepolis itself is commonly styled by the people of the country “Takht Jemsheed,” or the throne of Jemsheed: it is also called “Chehel Minar,” or the Forty Pillars. Le Brun has given a drawing of this hill of Istakhar; and the original must strike every traveller the moment he enters the plain of Merdasht, as it has all the appearance of having been much fashioned by the hand of man.

Jan. 15th. After reading prayers to our society, I hastened to the ruins. I went on this principle, that I would endeavour to draw and ascertain all that former travellers had omitted; and for that purpose I took Chardin and Le Brun in my hand, that I might complete all that I found wanting in their views and130 notices. Finding, however, that they differed from each other (and one of course therefore from the reality) in many essential points, I thought that an entire description of the ruins in their present state would answer my purpose better than a partial and unconnected account, referring only to the mistakes or omissions of others.

The most striking feature, on a first approach, is the staircase and its surrounding walls. Two grand flights, which face each other, lead to the principal platform. To the right is an immense wall of the finest masonry, and of the most massive stones: to the left are other walls equally well built, but not so imposing. On arriving at the summit of the staircase, the first objects, which present themselves directly facing the platform, are four vast portals and two columns. Two portals first, then the columns, and then two portals again. On the front of each are represented in basso-relievo figures of animals, which, for want of a better name, we have called sphinxes. The two sphinxes on the first portals face outwardly, i. e. towards the plain and the front of the building. The two others, on the second portals, face inwardly, i. e. towards the mountain. From the first (to the right, on a straight line) at the distance of fifty-four paces, is a staircase of thirty steps, the sides of which are ornamented with bas-reliefs, originally in three rows, but now partly reduced by the accumulation of earth beneath, and by mutilation above. This staircase leads to the principal compartment of the whole ruins, which may be called a small plain, thickly studded with columns, sixteen of which are now erect. Having crossed this plain, on an eminence are numerous stupendous remains of frames, both of windows and doors, formed by blocks of marble of sizes most magnificent. These frames are ranged in a square, and indicate an apartment the most royal that can be conceived. On each side of the frames are sculptured figures, and the marble still retains a polish which, in its original state, must have vied with the finest mirrors. On each corner of this room are pedestals, of an elevation much more considerable than the surrounding frames; one is formed of a single block of marble. The front of this apartment seems to have been to the S. W. for we131 saw few marks of masonry on that exposure, and observed, that the base of that side of it was richly sculptured and ornamented. This front opens upon a square platform, on which no building appears to have been raised. But on the side opposite to the room which I have just mentioned, there is the same appearance of a corresponding apartment, although nothing but the bases of some small columns and the square of its floor attest it to have been such. The interval between these two rooms (on those angles which are the furthest distant from the grand front of the building) is filled up by the base of a sculpture similar to the bases of the two rooms; excepting that the centre of it is occupied by a small flight of steps. Behind, and contiguous to these ruins, are the remains of another square room, surrounded on all its sides by frames of doors and windows. On the floor are the bases of columns: from the order in which they appeared to me to have stood, they formed six rows, each of six columns. A staircase cut into an immense mass of rock (and from its small dimensions, probably the escalier derobé of the palace) leads into the lesser and enclosed plain below. Towards the plain are also three smaller rooms, or rather one room and the bases of two closets. Every thing on this part of the building indicates rooms of rest or retirement.

In the rear of the whole of these remains, are the beds of aqueducts which are cut into the solid rock. They met us in every part of the building; and are probably therefore as extensive in their course, as they are magnificent in construction. The great aqueduct is to be discovered among a confused heap of stones, not far behind the buildings (which I have been describing) on this quarter of the palace, and almost adjoining to a ruined staircase. We descended into its bed, which in some places is cut ten feet into the rock. This bed leads East and West; to the Eastward its descent is rapid about twenty-five paces; it there narrows, so that we could only crawl through it; and again it enlarges, so that a man of common height may stand upright in it. It terminates by an abrupt rock.

132

Proceeding from this towards the mountains, (situated in the rear of the great hall of columns) stand the remains of a magnificent room. Here are still left walls, frames and porticoes, the sides of which are thickly ornamented with bas-reliefs of a variety of compositions. This hall is a perfect square. To the right of this, and further to the southward are more fragments, the walls and component parts apparently of another room. To the left of this, and therefore to the northward of the building, are the remains of a portal, on which are to be traced the features of a sphinx. Still towards the north, in a separate collection, is the ruin of a column, which, from the fragments about it, must have supported a sphinx. In a recess of the mountain to the northward, is a portico. Almost in a line with the centre of the hall of columns, on the surface of the mountain is a tomb. To the southward of that is another, in like manner on the mountain’s surface; between both (and just on that point where the ascent from the plain commences) is a reservoir of water.

These constitute the sum of the principal objects among the ruins of Persepolis, some of which I will now endeavour to describe in more detail. The grand staircase consists of a Northern and a Southern ascent, which spring from the plain at the distance of forty-six feet from each other. Each again is divided into two flights; the first, terminated by a magnificent platform, contains fifty-four steps on a base of sixty-six feet six inches, measured from the first step to a perpendicular dropt from the highest at the landing place: the second, to the extreme summit of the whole, consists of forty-eight steps on a base of forty-six feet eight inches. Each step is in breadth twenty-six feet six inches, and in height three inches and a half. So easy therefore is the ascent, that the people of the country always mount it on horseback. The platform, where the two grand divisions meet, is thirty-four feet from the ground, and in length seventy. From the front of this platform to the portals behind is likewise seventy feet.

Persepolis.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

The portals are composed of immense oblong blocks of marble;133 their length is twenty-four feet six inches, breadth five feet, and distance from one another thirteen feet. The two first are faced by sphinxes; the remaining parts of whose bodies are delineated in a basso-relievo on the interior surface of the portal. In passing through these, the next objects before the more distant portals are two columns, but (as there is a sufficient space for two others, and as the symmetry would be defective without such an arrangement) I presume that the original structure was completed by four columns. The second portals correspond in size with the former, but differ from them not only in presenting their fronts towards the mountain, but in the subject of the sculptures with which they are adorned. The animals on the two first portals are elevated on a base. From the contour of the mutilation, the heads appear to have been similar to those of horses, and their feet have hoofs; on their legs and haunches the veins and muscles are strongly marked. Their necks, chests, shoulders, and backs, are encrustated with ornaments of roses and beads.

The sphinxes on the second portals appear to have had human heads, with crowned ornaments, under which are collected massive curls, and other decorations of a head-dress, which seems to have been a favourite fashion among the ancient Persians. Their wings are worked with great art and labour, and extend from their shoulders to the very summit of the wall. The intention of the sculptor is evidently, that these figures (emblematical perhaps of power and strength) should appear to bear on their backs the mass of the portico, including not only the block immediately above each, but the covering also, which, though now lost, certainly in the original state of the palace, connected the two sides and roofed the entrance. In these, as in the first portals, the faces of the animals form the fronts, and the bulk of their bodies, (called forth to a certain extent by the basso-relievo on the sides) is supposed to constitute the substance of the walls.

Under the carcase of the first sphinx on the right, are carved, scratched, and painted the names of many travellers; and amongst others we discovered those of Le Brun, Mandelsloe, and Niebuhr.134 Niebuhr’s name is written in red chalk, and seems to have been done but yesterday.

A square reservoir of water, broken in many places, yet still appearing to have been of one single block, was in the space, between the portals and the staircase which led to the grand hall of columns. The breadth of that staircase is fifteen feet four inches. It has two corresponding flights, the front of which, though now much mutilated, was originally highly carved and ornamented with figures in bass-relief. The stones which support the terrace of the columns are all carved in the same style, and are as perfect as when Le Brun made his drawings. On comparing indeed his designs with the originals, I found that he had given to some of the figures a mutilation which does not exist; for I discovered on a close inspection many interesting details of dress, posture, and character, which are omitted in his plates. One great defect pervades this part of his collection; in order to elucidate by the human form the comparative dimensions of the buildings, he has introduced figures so small, that, measured by them as a standard, the actual size of the objects represented would be three times their real magnitude. In fact, a man who stands close to the sculptured wall touches the summit with his chin, though the figures in the drawings of Le Brun would not reach half way.

Immediately on ascending this staircase, stands a single column, but on closer observation I counted the bases (or spots at least where once bases were) of eleven more columns of two rows; forming, with the first, six in each row. They are quite distinct from the great cluster in the centre of the hall, and were therefore probably a grand entrance to it.

Passing forwards through this double range, we observed large blocks of stone, placed at symmetrical distances (to correspond with the arrangement of the columns at the entrance, and those in the centre), and forming, probably, the bases of sphinxes or other colossal figures. Having taken some pains to ascertain the real plan and the original number of the columns in the great hall, I came to the following con135clusions: I observed, in the first place, that there were two orders of columns, distinct in their capitals as well as in their height, and that, of the highest, two rows were severally placed at the E. and W. extremities of the hall.

Between these and the mass of columns of less height and a different capital is the space on either side of one row, in which, however, no trace whatever of bases exists, and through which run the channels of aqueducts. The remainder in the centre consists of six columns in front, and composes with the four exterior rows a line of ten columns; each row contains in depth six bases, forming, with the twelve at the entrance, a grand total of seventy-two. On drawing out a plan of this arrangement, I find that it is symmetrical in all its points, and in every way in which I can view it satisfies my imagination; but, on comparing it with that laid down by Niebuhr, my own conceptions have accorded so exactly with those of that great traveller on this, (as well as on the ichnography of the general remains) that the introduction of my sketch becomes unnecessary.

On one of the highest columns is the remains of the sphinx, so common in all the ornaments at Persepolis; and I could distinguish on the summit of every one a something quite unconnected with the capitals. The high columns have, strictly speaking, no capitals whatever, being each a long shaft to the very summit, on which the sphinx rests. The capitals of the lesser columns are of a complicated order, composed of many pieces. I marked three distinct species of base. The shafts are fluted in the Doric manner, but the flutes are more closely fitted together. Their circumference is sixteen feet seven inches. Some of their bases have a square plinth, the side of one of which I measured, and found it to be seven feet; the diameter of the base was five feet four inches, diameter of columns four feet two inches, distance from centre of base to the next centre twenty-eight feet. To the Eastward of one of these, and close at the foot of one of the highest columns, are the fragments of an immense figure. The head and part of the fore-legs I could easily trace; the head appeared to me more like that of a lion136 than of any other animal, and the legs confirmed this supposition; as it has claws so placed, as to indicate that the posture of the figure was couchant.

The grand collection of porticoes, walls, and other component parts of a magnificent hall, are situated behind the columns, at the distance perhaps of fifty paces, and are arranged in a square.

On the interior sides of the porticoes or door frames, are many sculptured figures, which have been drawn with accuracy by Le Brun. They represent the state and magnificence of a King, seated in a high chair with his feet resting on a footstool.

To the north of these remains, is the frame of what was once a portico, and where the outlines of a sphinx are to be traced among the rude and stupendous masses of stone. Further on, nearly on the same line and bearing, is the head of a horse, part of which is buried in the ground. It is ornamented like the remains of that which we call the sphinx on the great portals, and is certainly the horse’s head, which Le Brun drew, declaring that he could not discover the part to which it had belonged. Close to it, however, are the remains of an immense column, eight feet in diameter; the different parts of the shaft have fallen in a direct line with this head, and obviously formed with it one connected piece in the original structure, in which probably the fragment on the ground surmounted the capital, as the sphinx still crowns some of the remaining columns.

In the time of Mandelsloe, (who visited Persepolis 27th January, 1638) the number of columns erect was nineteen: in a letter indeed to Olearius, (written from Madagascar on the 12th of July, 1639, and published by his correspondent) he states, that thirty remained; but, as he does not specify their position, he might have included those lying on the ground, and at any rate he was writing a private letter, from memory, in a distant country, at the interval of a year and a half. His own authority therefore in his book is a better evidence of the fact; and as he there omits another and much more curious circumstance, which he had asserted in the same letter, the value of137 that document becomes still more suspicious. Speaking of the celebrated inscriptions at Persepolis, he says, “on voit aussi plusieurs caractères anciens mais fort bien marqués, et conservant une partie de l’or, dont ils ont été remplis.” Sir Thomas Herbert also, however, mentions that the letters at Persepolis were gilt.

Sculptures near Persepolis.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

17th. On quitting Persepolis, I left our party in order to examine a ruined building on the plains, which at a distance is generally pointed out as a demolished caravanserai. I passed the stream of the Rood Khonéh Sewund to the North, nearly where the road takes a N. E. direction, and came to a fine mass of stone, thirty-seven feet four inches square, which appears to have formed the base of some building. It is composed of two layers of marble blocks, the lower range of which extends about two feet beyond the line of the upper. The largest blocks, according to my measurement, are ten feet four inches in length, four feet four in depth, and three feet four in breadth; all still retain a moulding, and traces here and there of masonry which must have connected them with others. The whole building is filled up in the middle by a black marble, and in its N. E. angle one stone is raised higher than the rest. In the same angle, is a channel cut, as if something had been fitted into it. I took the following bearings: foot of the rocks of Nakshi Rustam, N. 10 W. two miles; foot of the mountain of Persepolis, S. two miles: our encampment S. 20 W. two miles; road to Ispahan, N. 80 E.

I was called from this spot by a Chatter sent by the Envoy to conduct me to some sculptures, which he had himself seen, (about four miles from the place on the same mountain of Persepolis,) by the side of the road to Ispahan. I found them indeed worthy of the minutest investigation, as no preceding traveller has described them with any sufficient accuracy. They are situated in a recess of the mountain, formed by projecting and picturesque rocks. The sculpture facing the road is composed of seven colossal figures and two small ones. (Plate XIX.) The two principal characters are placed in the centre; the one to the left is the same (not in position indeed, but in138 general circumstance) as that which we had so often seen represented at Shapour and Nakshi Rustam. He has the distinguishing globe on his head, and offers a ring to the opposite figure; who, seizing it with his right hand, holds a staff or club in his left. Behind the personage with the globe, are two figures, one of whom, with a young and pleasing face holds the fan, the customary ensign of dignity: and the other, with hard and marked features, and a beard, rests on the pommel of his sword with one hand, and beckons with the other. Behind the chief on the right, are two figures, which from the feminine cast of their countenances appear to be women; one wears an extraordinary cap, and the other, whose hair falls in ringlets on her shoulders, makes an expressive motion with her right hand, as if she were saying, “Be silent.” Between the two principal figures, are introduced two very diminished beings, who do not reach higher than the knees of their colossal companions. In dress they differ materially from each other, and one holds a long staff. To the left, on a fragment of the rock, is the bust of a figure, who also holds his hand in a beckoning and significant posture. The largest of these figures I reckoned to be ten feet in height; the small ones two feet eight inches. The whole of this is so much disfigured, that it is difficult to ascertain its various and singular details.

Sculptures near Persepolis.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

In the same recess, and to the left of this sculptured rock, forming an angle with it, is another monument in a much higher state of preservation; parts of it indeed have suffered so little, that they appear to be fresh at this day from the chissel. (Plate XX.) The same royal personage, so often represented with a globe on his head, and seated on horseback, here forms the principal character of the groupe. His face, indeed, has been completely destroyed by the Mahomedans, but the ornaments of his person and those of his horse, (more profusely bestowed on both, than on any of the similar figures which we had seen) are likewise more accurately preserved. They merit a particular description; because as the composition was probably designed to represent the King in his greatest state, every part139 of his dress is distinctly delineated. I assign this subject to the sculpture, because no other personage of rival dignity appears in the piece; and because the attitude of the chief announces parade and command; for he presents a full face to the spectator, and his right hand, though now much mutilated, still rests on his side to indicate his ease and his independence. Nine figures, of which the first is nine feet high, wait behind him; and, from the marks of respect in which they stand, can be attendants only on his grandeur. On each side of his head swells an immense circumference of curls; he wears an embossed necklace, which falls low on his breast, and is therefore, perhaps, rather the upper termination of his garment; but its counterpart, an ornament of the same description round the waist, is certainly a girdle. His cloak is fastened on his left breast by two massive clasps. A rich belt is carried from his right shoulder to his left hip, across an under garment, which, from the extreme delicacy of its folds, appears to be formed of a very fine cloth or muslin. The drapery of some loose trowsers, which cover his legs down to the very ancles, displays equal delicacy, and is probably, therefore, of the same texture. From the ancles a sort of bandage extends itself in flowing folds, and adds a rich finish to the whole. On the thigh there appears to hang a dagger. The horse is splendidly accoutred with chains of a circular ornament: his length, from the breast to the tail, is seven feet two inches; and on the chest is a Greek inscription, of which the letters are about an inch in height, and correspond in form with those of the latter empire.

Opposite to this sculpture, in the same recess and on the right of the first, is another, containing the same two figures on horseback, holding a ring, which we had seen at Shapour and at Nakshi Rustam. On the general merit of these remains, I may say, that they are superior to those at Nakshi Rustam, and equal to those at Shapour.

When I had sketched these monuments, and completed my observations, I hastened to join my party, who were then considerably advanced. A man who filled some station about the camp joined me.140 He asked my opinion on the probable design of these sculptures, and when I had told him my own conceptions, he assured me, that the royal personage here also was Rustam; and when I reminded him that their own traditional King, Jemsheed, might possibly be the hero, he replied in the true spirit of a system, “Jemsheed was but the slave of Rustam.” Of the figures grasping the ring, one again (according to the same theory) was Rustam, in the act of proving his strength, by wrenching it from the other’s hand.

141

CHAP. VIII.
PERSEPOLIS TO ISPAHAN.

Jan. 17. As we were quitting the environs of Persepolis, and proceeding towards Ispahan, we saw on an eminence on the left of the road (which now bore north-westerly) a single column erect, and some fragments of stones and masonry adjoining. They were situated in the centre of an extensive spot, which, from the configuration of the land around, in elevated terraces and mounds, appeared an artificial enclosure: and, as my Persian companion hinted, might be the site of a fortification or a castle. The wall, indeed, in many parts could be traced on the summit of the mounds. On arriving at the ruins, I discovered them to consist of a solitary pillar, with a double-headed sphinx for its capital, besides, strewed on the ground, a great quantity142 of shafts, bases, and capitals of the same dimensions as the upright column, and all, together with it, of the same description as those at Persepolis. Several large blocks are arranged about, as the fragments of some building. The column is fluted like the Doric, but with lines more closely connected: it is one foot eight inches in diameter at the bottom, and six inches less at the top: the height is a little above seventeen feet; and the base, including a tore next the shaft, is two feet more. The legs and bodies of the sphinxes are in two separate blocks. The largest of the adjacent blocks erect is seven feet two inches broad, and eleven feet eight inches high. Nakshi Rustam bore N. 50. W. from this place. A little further on is the ruin of a large pillar not fluted, and the fragments of a sphinx which certainly had been the capital. These remains, according to my companion’s tradition, were the site of Jemsheed’s harem.

We returned to the road which led through a dilapidated but massy gate, situated at the extremity of the projecting foot of the mountains. In the centre of the road are three stones; that in the middle is a broken column, and the two between which it stands are of a columnar form. It has, probably, been a beautiful object. The rocks to the left (a marble of the same kind as that at Nakshi Rustam) bear evident marks of having been worked and excavated. The road led us over a soil, as fine as that of the plain of Merdasht, watered by the Rood Khonéh Sewund. Having reached the extremity of that range, on the Western point of which are the sculptures of Nakshi Rustam, we turned to the left at a village called Seidoun. At the foot of an abrupt part of the mountain on the right, but still at a considerable ascent from the plain, is situated the village of Sewund. Our encampment was below, near the banks of the stream of that name. The snipes, ducks, herons, and bitterns from these quarters made an admirable addition to the luxury of our table. The march of this day was called three fursungs, which we computed at thirteen miles.

18th. We continued our journey along the banks with a North wind fresh in our faces, and crossed the river about half a mile from our143 encampment. We then turned an abrupt promontory of the high land on the right, and, for the remainder of the march, travelled nearly due East, between mountains whose brown and arid sides presented nothing to cheer or enliven the way. As we approached Kemeen (a distance of fifteen miles from Sewund) we were greeted by all the inhabitants of the village, who exhausted their whole ingenuity to do honour to the Envoy. They fired frequent vollies, created an immense dust, broke vases of sugar, beat drums, blew trumpets, and themselves made loud and shrill shrieks. In return for all this, handfuls of money were thrown among them. Among the many performers was a lad who preceded us, twirling a stick about with great agility between his fingers; in this exercise he persevered so intently, regardless of all the pressure of the animals and the crowd, that at length the nose of the Envoy’s horse received the full force of his art. The Derveish of the Hafizeea overtook us here to ask the present which had been promised to him. As he had been empowered to receive it at Shiraz, the Envoy conceived that his errand was a fraud, and dismissed him therefore, paying his expences back, with an order for the sum if it should not have been already paid.

19th. An easterly breeze, which sprung up this morning, rendered it extremely cold, and depressed the thermometer to 30°. We travelled between the bases of two abrupt chains of mountains, for about two miles against the wind; when we took a sudden direction to the North, in which we continued generally until we came to Moorgh-aub, a distance of fourteen miles, according to our reckoning. The pass through the mountains, in a military point of view, presents most admirable means of impeding the progress of an enemy. At the distance of two miles from Moorgh-aub, I turned on the left from the road, to examine some ruins which I had noticed. Proceeding over the ploughed fields, which nearly overspread the whole of this plain, I came to the bed of a river lying in a North and South direction, and on its banks a village called Meshed Omoun. There is here a fort, and a few low houses, in which females only were left, as all the men had144 gone out to greet the Envoy, by the discharge of their matchlocks. About a mile further are situated the collective ruins, called by the people of the country Mesjid Madré Suleiman, the tomb of the mother of Solomon. The first object is a pillar erect, a plain shaft without a capital ten feet five inches in circumference. Near it are three pilasters, the fronts of which are excavated in deep niches, and the sides inscribed with the following characters. (See plate XXIX.) From the pieces of masonry around, the pilasters appeared to have enclosed a hall; the interior of which was decorated with columns, but I resigned the hope of ascertaining the plan of its original form, when I saw two similar masses; one, at the distance of one hundred and fifty yards, with a corresponding inscription; and the intermediate space (and indeed the whole plain) strewed with the fragments of marbles.

Having sketched these objects, I continued my way along the plain to the West, towards two buildings; which, at a distance indeed, appeared scarcely worthy of notice, but which on a nearer inspection proved full of interest. The first is a ruined building of Mahomedan construction, which is now turned into a caravanserai. The door was once arched, and on the architrave are the remains of a fine Arabic inscription.

Tomb of Madré Suleiman.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

The other is a building of a form so extraordinary that the people of the country often call it the court of the deevis or devil. It rests upon a square base of large blocks of marble, which rise in seven layers pyramidically. It is in form a parallelogram; the lowest range of the foundation is forty-three by thirty-seven feet; and the edifice itself, which crowns the summit, diminishes to twenty-one by sixteen feet five inches. It is covered by a shelving roof built of the same massy stone as its base and sides, which are all fixed together by clamps of iron, and which on a general view correspond all with the measure of one at the base, (fourteen feet eight inches in length, five feet in depth, and three feet six inches in breadth.) I was not suffered to enter; and through a fissure in the door I could perceive nothing within but a small chamber blackened as it appeared by smoke.145 Around it, besides a great profusion of broken marbles, are the shafts of fourteen columns, once perhaps a colonnade, but now arranged in the square wall of mud which surrounds the whole remains. To the present day all the space within the enclosure is a place of burial, and is covered indeed with modern tomb-stones. On every part of the monument itself are carved inscriptions, which attest the reverence of its visitors; but there is no vestige of any of the characters of ancient Persia or even of the older Arabic. The key is kept by women, and none but females are permitted to enter. The people generally regard it as the monument of the mother of Solomon, and still connect some efficacy with the name; for they point out near the spot a certain water to which those who may have received the bite of a mad dog resort, and by which, if drank within thirty days, the evil effects of the wound are obviated. In eastern story almost every thing wonderful is attached to the Solomon of Scripture: the King however, to whose mother this tomb is said to be raised, is less incredibly, (as the Carmelites of Shiraz suggested to Mandelsloe,) Shah Soleiman, the fourteenth Caliph of the race of Ali. But though this supposition is more probable than that it is the monument of Bathsheba, it is not to my mind satisfactory, as it differs totally from all the tombs of Mahomedan saints which I have ever seen in Persia, Asia Minor, or Turkey. [Plate XXI.]

If the position of the place had corresponded with the site of Pasagardæ as well as the form of this structure accords with the description of the tomb of Cyrus near that city, I should have been tempted to assign to the present building so illustrious an origin. That tomb was raised in a grove; it was a small edifice covered with an arched roof of stone, and its entrance was so narrow that the slenderest man could scarcely pass through: it rested on a quadrangular base of a single stone, and contained the celebrated inscription, “O mortals, I am Cyrus, son of Cambyses, founder of the Persian monarchy, and Sovereign of Asia, grudge me not therefore this monument.146” That the plain around Mesjed Madré Suleiman was the site of a great city, is proved by the ruins with which it is strewed; and that this city was of the same general antiquity as Persepolis may be inferred from the existence of a similar character in the inscriptions on the remains of both, though this particular edifice does not happen to display that internal evidence of a contemporaneous date. A grove would naturally have disappeared in modern Persia; the structures correspond in size; the triangular roof of that which I visited might be called arched in an age when the true semi-circular arch was probably unknown; the door was so narrow, that, if I had been allowed to make the attempt, I could scarcely have forced myself through it; and those who kept the key affirmed that the only object within was an immense stone, which might be “the base of a single piece” described by Arrian; but as he was repeating the account of another, the difference is of little consequence, if it exists. I suspect however, as many of the buildings at Persepolis are so put together that they might once have seemed one vast block, that the present structure might also at one time have possessed a similar appearance. The eternity of his monument indeed, which Cyrus contemplated by fixing it on one enormous stone, would be equally attained by the construction of this fabric, which seems destined to survive the revolutions of ages. And in the lapse of two thousand four hundred years, the absence of an inscription on Mesjed Madré Suleiman would not be a decisive evidence against its identity with the tomb of Cyrus.

I retraced my steps towards the column and pilasters, and passing to the left of them, proceeded to a ruin, probably of one of those buildings which we call fire-temples, and corresponding at least exactly in dimensions, structure, and ornament with that at Nakshi Rustam. Its door opened to the north. On an adjacent hill to the east, at the distance of about three hundred yards, are the remains of a fort erected with the same stupendous materials, as the works on the plain. The blocks are all of white marble, and bear the finest polish. From this147 height our encampment at Moorgh-aub bore N. 55 E. Having descended again into the plain, crossed the beds of numerous Kanauts, and started several covies of partridges; I reached my tent highly contented with the unexpected gleanings of the day.

Moorgh-aub is a large village, in which there is a fort and many enclosed gardens; and near it are springs of fine water which irrigate the whole plain.

20th. Continuing our road to the N. we passed over a country of ascents and descents, which can hardly be dignified by the denomination of mountains. The different bearings of the road were N. 30 W., then N., then E., then N. E., until we quitted the hills, when the road took a northerly direction, which we kept with some trifling variations for the remainder of our stage. At about nine miles from Moorgh-aub, we arrived at a caravanserai now almost ruined, called from the village which once stood in its neighbourhood, Khonéh Kergaun. Near it a river runs to the west, and over it is a bridge of three arches. We arrived at Deibeed at four o’clock, after having travelled a distance of twenty-five miles. We were seven hours and a half on the road, and we generally calculate our rate of going at little more than three miles in the hour. The country, through which we passed, was naked and arid; the plain only was cultivated, and that partially. It is quite destitute of wood, an article which, of all our necessaries, was collected with the greatest difficulty. On the summits of the mountains, particularly on their northern aspects, were thin patches of snow, and some were scattered even near our encampment. Deibeed is only a caravanserai; close to it is an artificial mound of earth, covered with the foundations of a building, which, from the light brick of its construction, appeared to us a modern work.

The evening set in gloomily; Deibeed is considered the coldest spot in this region, and the snows in the winter have sometimes impeded the progress of travellers for forty days together. The Mehmandar looked at the sky with apprehension; and the Governor of Moorgh148-aub, (Aga Khan, an Arab of an old and respected family, who had accompanied us to the bounds of his district to provide amply for our passage) shared his forebodings. He had himself often experienced the severities of this country, and he, better than any one, knew the distresses which the detention of two or three hundred men in a spot so destitute and insulated would occasion. He had provided sustenance for ourselves and our cattle for one night only, and this he had transported with great trouble from Moorgh-aub and other villages. Indeed through the whole of our march great and early were the preparations made by the chiefs of the country for our reception. If these were the difficulties of our passage, the march of an army would not be easily conducted. The country in its present state could not complete magazines of provisions, even if it were required by its own government. It must however be always recollected, that this is the least fertile province of the kingdom.

21st. The snow did not fall, and we proceeded; we travelled nearly north during the whole of this day, and at the termination of our march (a distance of fourteen miles) entered a pass, which is more particularly dreaded as a stoppage in snows. We rested for the night at Khona Khorréh, a poor caravanserai now, but once, by the appearance of its walls, a respectable building. We had here much cause to regret the pleasant and copious streams of Moorgh-aub; for the water which supplied our camp was taken from a pond twenty feet in circumference, so impregnated by the ordure of camels that it appeared quite black. After sun-set, a fresh breeze sprung up from the S. W. It increased in the night; and at about two in the morning blew a furious gale.

Sunday the 22d. The wind continued to rage during the whole of this day, and only fell at night. Heavy clouds from the S. W. overtopped the whole of the surrounding mountains and precipitated themselves down their sides, in the manner of the clouds at the Table Mountain at the Cape, when it blows from the S. E. Many of our149 tents were blown down and much damaged. Notwithstanding the fury of the tempest we did not omit to put up our prayers and thanksgivings for all the blessings bestowed upon us; and the storm around only added, I hope, to the solemnity of our devotion. The very fine weather with which we have been blessed was certainly a theme of gratitude. We had not had even a shower since our first departure from Bushire; and the oldest inhabitants of this part of the country utter constant ejaculations of astonishment at the extreme moderation of the season, which they are pleased to attribute to the good luck of the Envoy.

Mirza Abool Hassan, a Persian of much influence at court, arrived in the course of the day from Teheran, and was the bearer of a letter from the King to the Envoy. This letter was nearly to the same effect as the first, giving details of the victory over the Russians. We went forward to meet it as before, and adopted the former ceremony of giving it a solemn reading.

23d. Although the violence of the wind had fallen in the morning, very heavy clouds still covered the summits of the mountains, and threatened a renewal of bad weather. We proceeded, however, on a fine hard road (on the bearing of N. 40 W. during the whole march) and arrived in safety at Surmek in five hours and forty minutes after our departure from Khona Khorréh. The people of the country reckon this day’s journey at six long fursungs, though to us it appeared a smaller distance. The Persian fursung is indeed so indeterminate a measure, that no calculation can be safely formed from it, and no man can give a satisfactory account of its real length. On the whole, we found that the reputed distances in the line of our march are rather over-calculated than under-rated. The road leads on the right of a plain which widens at its northern termination. The mountains on both sides of it run N. and S. taking indeed a transverse E. and W. direction at both its extremities; and beyond the first range on the west of the route is another, and a parallel chain of much greater150 elevation, which binds an intermediate plain. The peasantry are ill clothed, and look miserably. They wear in general a little skull cap, slit on each side, called Dogoosheh. Their dress is a loose coat with hanging sleeves of a very rude cloth, tied about with a coarse sash. Surmek, where we encamped for the night, is situated on the E. side of the plain, near the foot of the mountains. It now consists of a square mud fort, which contains its whole population; around it are the ruins of its original extent. Between the town and the mountains the cultivation is very luxuriant, for the fields are irrigated by kanauts from a neighbouring stream. To the northward of the fort, and two hundred yards from the road, stand the remains of a castle, which the Persians assign to the age of King Bahram, but which, in construction, resembles so nearly the later buildings of the country, that its antiquity becomes suspicious. It is nevertheless in itself a most curious work. A ditch surrounds it, and there is a wall within it, composed, like the outward parts of the fabric, of large stones cemented together by mud. The great variety of vaulted chambers and subterraneous inlets, proves that it was destined for other purposes than those of military defence only.

On the 24th we resumed our march, on a road as hard and fine as that of the preceding day, and on the same bearing; and having travelled in four hours a distance probably of twelve miles, reached our encampment at Abadéh. We noticed many square forts, which are now generally not only the protection of the district, but the residence of the cultivators. The ruins indeed, which overspread the country, contrast its former prosperity too forcibly with the present depopulation. In this region, however, the more immediate causes of its devastation have ceased; for it owed its principal sufferings to the long wars, of which it was the scene, between the Zund and Cadjar families, and which are now terminated by the fortune of the latter. On our arrival at Abadéh, we were saluted as usual by the istakball, who went through all their noise and firing. The first appearance of Abadéh announces151 a large place; but on a nearer inspection the town exhibits only a great extent of ruined walls without inhabitants. The present population is all enclosed within a square fort, the walls, indeed, of which were crowded by women, whose white veils made them conspicuous objects even at a distance. The fort itself is defended by a turret at each angle, and three in each of the intervening sides. I walked into it to look at a bath, the most respectable building in the place; for the rest consists only of miserable walls of mud or brick. Yet in the rudest wall we found a well-formed arch, which the want of timber has taught the people to construct, and the same necessity has forced the same lesson on other parts of the country.

The property and jurisdiction of Abadéh, Surmek, and Shoolgistoon, with their intervening territories, belong by purchase to one man. Yet the scarcity of water in the district must render it an unprofitable estate. Abadéh, however, is surrounded by gardens, from which some very good fruit is sent to Shiraz; but the irrigation is all carried by artificial kanauts.

25th. The clouds which, on the preceding day, had sprinkled a few flakes of snow on our tract, and had threatened a heavy fall, rolled off before day-break, and opened to us one of the most brilliant mornings in nature. The mountains were no longer concealed from our view; the snow, indeed, covered their summits, and impregnated every blast of wind with a piercing but invigorating freshness. We proceeded along the same plain, on a bearing which averaged N. 29 W. The high lands on each side, now advancing, now receding from us, continued their N. and S. direction; and, where the snow had not covered their surfaces, presented that hard and forbidding aspect which indicated the minerals below.35 The soil on the plain still was gravel lightly mixed152 with earth, producing nothing but thistles and soap-wort. Indeed, if it were a finer mould, the want of water would render it of little value even to the most skilful possessor. At the distance of three miles from a village called Baghwardar we halted; and I took a meridional observation of the sun, which gave us a latitude of thirty-one degrees twenty-five minutes. We reckoned eight miles from Abadéh to this spot, and nine more to Shoolgistoon, the termination of the day’s march. Whilst we were waiting until the sun should pass the meridian, one of our party picked up the stump of a thistle, and on examining its inside, we found two torpid wasps, which had formed their recess there, waiting the approach of spring once again to issue into life.

The little fort, mosque, and caravanserai at Shoolgistoon are seen at least six miles before they are reached. The plain to the northward of our route was bounded by a flat horizon, from which every successive mountain or building rose, as we advanced, like objects when first seen at sea.

26th. The night was boisterous, the wind blew strong from the southward and westward, and distant thunder rolled over the hills. The morning presented a dark and dismal array of clouds and snow-clad mountains all around us; and when the trumpet sounded for the Envoy’s departure, every thing announced a cold and cheerless ride. The sun made several efforts to break through the heavy atmosphere, and succeeded once or twice, only to cast faint shadows of our troops across the road as we paced along; and, when we were about four miles from our destined encampment at Yezdikhaust, the rain begun to fall. We travelled a distance of fifteen miles in five hours. The road was still carried over a gravel soil, till about two miles from Yezdikhaust, when we entered a softer ground. The mountains gradually dwindled into hills, and seemed to form a termination to this long plain by throwing themselves in lessening forms across it. They continued, like those of our latter route, barren, brown and inhospitable, without a shrub to enliven their rugged masses. On the left of the plain, all were covered with snow, while all to the right were as yet untouched.

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We could perceive the town of Yezdikhaust a long time before we reached it, and supposed, therefore, that it was situated at the foot of the eastern hills, on the same plain as that on which we were travelling. Our surprise then was, of course, excited to find ourselves on a sudden stopt by a precipice in our route. From its brow we overlooked a small plain beautifully watered by a variety of streams, and parcelled out in every direction into cultivated fields and gardens. The country which we had crossed was unbroken by the labour of the ploughman; here his industry was displayed and richly rewarded: we had seen scarcely one scanty rill; here water meandered in profusion; and though this little spot was now stripped of its verdure and chilled by the gloom of winter, the contrast between cultivation and a desert was still striking and cheering. This valley is like a large trench excavated in the plain. It is five miles long in an E. and W. direction, and about three hundred yards broad in the line where we crossed; but the breadth is unequal. At the eastern extremity on the brink of the precipice, hangs the town of Yezdikhaust. Its situation is most fantastical, and its mean and ill-defined houses appear at first sight to belong to the rocks on which they rise, and which, in varied and extravagant masses, surround the valley. The substance of the rock is soft. Beneath it is a caravanserai, an elegant building erected near two hundred years ago by a pious Queen of the Seffi race. It is still in good repair, less by the care of the present generation than by the original solidity of its structure. On the verge of the precipice is a small mosque, built by the same Queen; and around it a burial place. Yezdikhaust is the frontier town of the provinces of Fars and Irak. Before the conquest of the Affghans it was a place of some consequence, but since their devastations it has never resumed its prosperity. It was taken by assault, and the inhabitants put to the sword. To the East, over a rude drawbridge, is the entrance to the town, which, without the use of cannon, seems almost impregnable. It is there an isolated rock, connected with the others around only by this bridge.

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27th. It rained at intervals during the night with much fury. It cleared up, however, during the morning, and the sun shone bright; but it was then freezing so hard, that we were obliged to leave the tents behind us until they should have lost their stiffness in the warmth of the day. The feast of the Corban Bairam now commenced among the Mussulmans. The Persians performed the ceremonies of the day, and we again proceeded on our journey. The direction of our march averaged N. 10 W. After travelling nearly seven hours we reached its termination at Maxhood-Beggy, a distance of eighteen miles. The line of our route led us to the W. side of the plain, over a road still finer even than that on which we had journied on the preceding day. The mountains lost their regular bearing and outline, and were more varied in their projections and recesses. At about nine miles from Yezdikhaust we arrived at a caravanserai and a fort, the approaches to which were thickly spread with the vestiges of a town. The place was called Ameenabad. On the plain also, which succeeded, were scattered ruins. A North-east wind sprung up, and, passing down the snowy summits of the mountains, brought a sharpness so piercing, that, for the first time, we were incommoded by the cold, and were anxious to get to our encampment for the night.

Before our arrival, we were met by a person deputed by the Governor of Ispahan, to welcome us into his territory. Maxhood-Beggy is seen at a distance, and then looks a large place. But the appearances of its grandeur vanish on a nearer approach in ruins; some indeed are substantial walls, and the remains of bazars. Yet, instead of the dilapidated chamber of some miserable caravanserai, which alone we could have expected, we were lodged in a house of singular convenience and even elegance. It was built in fact, for her own accommodation, by the Queen at Shiraz, (the mother of the Prince Governor of Farsistan) who was accustomed every two years to take a journey to the King at Teheran, and who accordingly provided on both the winter and the summer route a similar resting place. She enjoys a great reputa155tion, and the affections of the people; for she is charitable to the poor, and ready to do justice to the oppressed.

28th. When we departed from Maxhood-Beggy, our weather was clear and serene. There was not a breath in the heavens, and the clouds had dispersed. As we approached Komeshah, the plain appeared more cultivated and better inhabited. Among the small forts and enclosed gardens of men, were interspersed small towers built for the convenience of the wild pigeons. These birds are greatly encouraged round the country, for their manure is considered essential to the fertility of the fields; the immense number of pigeon houses (in ruins, or still entire) on the plain about Komeshah, attest at least the prevalence of the belief, if not the truth of the fact. The distance to Komeshah is twelve miles on a bearing of N. 10 W. This place also was once large, and in the time of the Seffis well peopled. It still occupies a large tract of ground, and is walled all around. But since it was taken by the Affghans, and a great part of its inhabitants put to the sword; it has fallen hopelessly. After having crossed the bed of the stream, and the channels of an immense number of kanauts, we entered the town through a gate to the westward. We passed through streets and bazars, of which nothing but the bare walls were standing, and at length reached the best house in the place; but the only approach even to this was amid the stones and mud fragments of surrounding ruins. Travelling in our present mode, and carrying about a population of our own, we do not so much feel the misery with which a country so wretched, and towns so devastated, would inspire any one of us going through the same tract a solitary individual. The ruins themselves become animated on being peopled by our numerous party, who spread themselves all about in busy groups, and awake the solitude and silence of these wastes so long unbroken by the vivacity of their disputes, the confusion of their different works, and the vociferations of their rude songs. As soon as we entered Komeshah, all the place was in motion; the scanty population which it afforded, and which had been156 accumulated by that of every neighbouring village, came out to greet us, betraying indeed their own wretchedness by the poverty of their clothing, and every comfortless circumstance of their appearance. They have a manufacture of cloth in Komeshah called kaduck, a better sort of that coarse linen called kerbas, which is made in every village.

The Envoy, according to the common custom of the country, sent a present to the Governor of the place, with this difference, indeed, that it was much larger than the rank of the party entitled him to expect. It consisted of cloth, fine chintz, &c. The Governor however, when it was brought to him, indignantly snatched one piece of chintz, and told the bearer to take the rest as unworthy of his own acceptance, in the hope that the Envoy would hasten to atone for his disrespect by doubling the gift. Sir Harford, with great indifference, desired the servant to keep what he had received, and congratulated him on his good luck. In vain did the Governor entreat to have the original gift restored, in vain did the Mehmandar mediate, the Envoy was inflexible, and the Governor, to the laugh of every one, remained with his single piece.

29th. At a mile and a half from Komeshah, on the left, is the tomb of Shah Reza, and near it an extensive burying ground; over one of the tombs is the remains of a lion in stone: whatever it may mean, it is certain that it dates from the remotest antiquity, being evidently prior to the Arabian conquests, and to the establishment of the Mahomedan religion in Persia. The ruined forts, the towers for pigeons, and other signs of habitation and cultivation which are seen on the plain to the Northward of the town, prove that Komeshah has shared the prosperity of the better days of Persia. Our weather continued most delightful, nor did I indeed recollect to have ever seen an atmosphere so lucid and so soft. The mountains to the Northward, which shewed their distant summits over the ridges of the nearer hills, although crowned with snow did not seem157 to have been so overwhelmed, as those which we had passed to the Southward.

30th. Our road to Mayar was distant fourteen miles; the village is situated at the foot of the mountains bearing N. from Komeshah, a point which we ascertained by setting the high hill over that place. At Mayar is a fine caravanserai built by the mother of Shah Abbas. It is a very extensive building, consisting of one front court, on the right and left of which, under lofty arches, are rooms and stables for the convenience of travellers. The front of the principal gate is inlaid with green lacquered tiles and neat cut bricks. It opens into the large square, in the centre of which is a platform of the same shape. On the right of the exterior front, is the cistern, over the orifice of which is thrown a platform with a pillar at each corner. The general structure is of brick, except some of the better rooms, in which a fine blue stone is used. The whole is falling rapidly into decay as a caravanserai, and has now indeed been converted into one of the common forts of the country by raising mud walls around and turrets at proper intervals: a miserable contrast to the elegant and substantial workmanship of former times.

Our camp was usually quiet, but in our later progress it was disturbed by the quarrels of our own servants (who were mostly from Farsistan) and those of the Mehmandar (who were natives of Irak). The rivality and hatred, which exist between the people of the two neighbouring provinces, can be conceived by those only who have witnessed their effects. They are much greater than between Christian and Mahomedan, or Sheyah and Sunni. The two parties frequently come to blows, which would have closed the dispute to which I allude, if we had not interfered; and if the Mehmandar had not exerted his best influence and authority by administering the stick plentifully to all the offending parties.

31st. We called it twenty miles from Mayar to Ispahanek. We reached the extremity of the plains of Mayar, and then wound158 through the mountains for about two hours, till we came into the plains of Ispahan. Our road bore, on an average, North. The Envoy was unwell, and rode in the takht-e-ravan, a species of litter which is suspended by shafts on the backs of mules, one before and one behind. This conveyance, when the mules keep an even pace, is not unpleasant, but when the animals break into a trot, becomes very disagreeable. On entering the plain, we started a flock of antelopes.

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CHAP. IX.
ISPAHAN.

The great number of buildings, which stud every part of the plain of Ispahan, might lead the traveller to suppose that he was entering a district of immense population. Yet almost the whole view consists of the ruins of towns, and here and there only are spots which are enlivened by the communities of men. But whatever may be the condition of modern Persia, its former state, if the remains scattered over the whole country are sufficient evidences, must have been flourishing and highly peopled.

The village of Ispahanek is situated just at the foot of a range of hills which screen the extent of the great city from our view. It is now reduced to a small fort, in which its population is immured. The160 plain is well irrigated by dikes cut from the Zaiande-rood, a river which, in its course from the West, waters the whole country. It rises from the Baktyar mountains, passes through Ispahan, and finally expends itself in the deserts of sand to the S.E. The Persians indeed have an idle belief founded on a more idle tradition, that it resumes its waters from the sand, constitutes the river which we crossed at Daulakee, and discharges itself at last into the sea at Rohilla: a connection as they still assert, ascertained by one of their Kings, who threw a marked board into the place of the disappearance, and found it again in the stream at Daulakee. Two etymologies are assigned to the name; one from Zaiandé, spurting, breaking from the ground, (jaillir;) the other, from Zendé, lost, alluding to its failure in the sand; the termination rood in either case is, river. Like every other part of the kingdom, the country round Ispahan is almost destitute of timber; and the surface is a most arid field for the researches of a botanist. The vivid rock of the mountains is lost at the point where their roots intersect the plain below.

We estimated the distance from Ispahanek to Ispahan at two fursungs, or six miles. We proceeded over the hills in regular procession; the Envoy having taken every precaution that the Mission, with which he was charged from the Throne, should be received with the the fullest attention and respect. With this view it became his express object, that the Governor of the city, Abdullah Khan, (son of Mahomed Hussein Khan, the King’s Second Minister) should come out himself to meet him. As he had been led to understand that this was a point already settled, he was surprised to hear by a message which he received when he was on the road, that the Governor refused to accede to his wishes, unless he first received a letter to that effect from the Envoy himself. In consequence we made a temporary halt; and the Envoy wrote a note, stating, that although he thought himself entitled to such a mark of attention from the Khan as an office of friendship only, yet, as the bearer of a letter from his master the King of England, to his Persian Majesty, he could not for a moment doubt, that161 the Governor would yield to that letter, the distinction he would pay to his own Sovereign.

It will be well indeed to remark, that from the commencement of our march, Sir Harford Jones took similar precautions to ensure every honour to his Majesty’s letter. It was always placed in a takht-e-ravan or litter, which was escorted by ten Indian troopers and an officer, and was never taken out or replaced without the trumpet of the guard sounding a blast. Whenever we stopped, it was deposited in the tent of ceremony under a cloth of gold; a sentry with a drawn sword was placed over it, and no one was permitted to sit with his back to it. The correspondence of Princes is a general object of reverence in the East; and the dignity which by these observances we attached to the letter of our Sovereign, raised among the people a corresponding respect towards his representative.

At about four miles from Ispahan, we were met by an advanced part of the inhabitants. As we approached the city, the crowd increased to numbers which baffled our calculation or guess. Although the stick was administered with an unsparing hand, it was impossible to keep the road free for our passage. People of all descriptions were collected on mules, on horses, on asses; besides an immense number on foot. First came the merchants of the city, in number about three hundred, all in their separate classes. Then followed a deputation from the Armenian clergy, composed of the Bishop and chief dignitaries in their sacerdotal robes. They carried silken banners, on which was painted the Passion of our Saviour. The Bishop, a reverend old man with a white beard, presented the Evangelists bound in crimson velvet to the Envoy, and then proceeded on, with his attendant priests, chaunting their church service.

When we came into the plain, the city of Ispahan rose upon the view, and its extent was so great East and West, that my sight could not reach its bounds. The crowd now was intensely great, and at intervals quite impeded our progress. Slowly however we were approaching near towards the city, and yet the Governor had not appeared.162 The Envoy intimated, that he would receive no istakball, unless the Governor headed it. Two of the chief men of the place met us, as we arrived at the entrance of a fine spacious road, between two lofty walls. This was the beginning of the Ispahan gardens, yet the walls of the city itself were still a mile from us. We turned to the left through a narrow porch, which led us into a piece of ground, planted on one side by lofty chenar trees, and bounded on the other by the beautiful river Zaiande-rood. At the extremity of this spot was a tent. We were told, that it had been prepared by the Governor for the Envoy, and that he himself was there in waiting. The Envoy stopped his horse, and declared, that unless he was met by the Governor on horseback, he would take no notice of him, but proceed to his own tents, and march straight forward to Teheran. This produced the desired effect. The Governor came forth, and met us a few paces from his tent, and we then proceeded towards it and alighted. The place, where the tent was pitched, was called Sa-atabad; a pavilion had been built there by Shah Thamas. The tent itself rested on three poles; its sides were of open worked chintz, and its floor was strewed with carpets; on which were laid out fruits and sweetmeats in great profusion. Chairs of an old-fashion, like those in the sculptures at Persepolis, were prepared for us, and we were not put to the inconvenience of pulling off our boots. We were then served with kaleoons, and afterwards with sweetmeats.

When this ceremony was over, we proceeded along the banks of the Zaiande-rood, on the opposite side of which were rows of firs, and ancient pinasters. We saw three bridges of singular yet beautiful construction. That, over which we crossed, was composed of thirty-three lower arches, above each of which were ranged three smaller ones. There is a covered causeway for foot passengers; the surface of the bridge is paved, and is of one level throughout the whole extent. After we had crossed it, we proceeded through a gate into the Chahar Bagh, which is a very spacious piece of ground, having two rows of chenar trees in the middle, and two other rows on each side. The garden is163 divided into parterres, and copiously watered by the canals of water, which run from one side of it to the other; and which at regular intervals are collected into basons square or octagonal. This fine alley is raised at separate distances into terraces, from which the water falls in cascades. Of the chenar trees, which line the walks, most can be traced to the time of Shah Abbas, and when any have fallen, others have immediately been planted. On either side of the Chahar Bagh, are the eight gardens which the Persians call Hasht-behesht, or eight paradises. They are laid out into regular walks of the chenar tree, are richly watered, and have each a pleasure-house, of which we were conducted to occupy the best, that at least, which was certainly in more perfect repair than the others. The rest indeed are in a state of decay, and corroborate only by the remains of the beautifully painted walls and gilded pannels, those lively and luxuriant descriptions of their former splendor which travellers have given.

On the right of the Maidan, and nearly in the centre of the Chahar Bagh, is a college called Medressé Shah Sultan Hossein. Its entrance is handsome; a lofty portico enriched with fantastic-twisted pillars, and intermixed with the beautiful marble of Tabriz, leads through a pair of brazen gates, of which the extremities are silver, and the whole surface highly carved and embossed with flowers and verses from the Koran. The gates pass into an elevated semi-dome, which at once opens into the square of the college. The right side of this court is occupied by the mosque, which is still a beautiful building, covered by a cupola and faced by two minarets. But the cupola is falling into decay, the lacquered tiles, on its exterior surface, are all peeling off, and the minarets can no longer be ascended, for the stairs are all destroyed. The interior of the dome is richly spread with variegated tiles, on which are invocations to the prophet, and verses of the Koran in the fullest profusion. I ascended the dome, from which I had but a partial view of the surrounding country; and that which I did see was scarcely any thing more than a series of ruined houses and palaces. The other sides164 of the square are occupied, one, by a lofty and beautiful portico, and the remaining two by rooms for the students, twelve in each front, arranged in two stories. These apartments are little square cells, spread with carpets, and appeared to me admirably calculated for study. Indeed, the quiet and retirement of this college, the beauty and serenity of the climate, and the shrubbery and water in the courts, would have combined to constitute it in my eyes a sanctuary for learning, and a nursery for the learned, if it had been in any other country. We had some conversation with the Director of the college Medressé Jedéh, Mirza Mahomed Cossim. He is an old man, and possesses a very high literary reputation in Persia, and appeared indeed to know much more than the greater part of those whom we had seen, and to be a perfect master of the history of Persia. He was extremely inquisitive, and his questions were acute and pertinent; he was much delighted with our drawings, and with the map of our route, which we had laid down.

The palaces of the King are enclosed in a fort of lofty walls, which may have a circumference of three miles. The palace of the Chehel Sitoon, or “forty pillars,” is situated in the middle of an immense square, which is intersected by various canals, and planted in different directions by the beautiful chenar tree. In front is an extensive square basin of water, from the farthest extremity of which the palace is beautiful beyond either the power of language or the correctness of pencil to delineate. The first saloon is open towards the garden, and is supported by eighteen pillars, all inlaid with mirrors, and (as the glass is in much greater proportion than the wood) appearing indeed at a distance to be formed of glass only. Each pillar has a marble base, which is carved into the figures of four lions placed in such attitudes, that the shaft seems to rest on their four united backs. The walls, which form its termination behind, are also covered with mirrors placed in such a variety of symmetrical positions, that the mass of the structure appears to be of glass, and when new must have glittered with most magnificent165 splendour. The ceiling is painted in gold flowers, which are still fresh and brilliant. Large curtains are suspended on the outside, which are occasionally lowered to lessen the heat of the sun.

From this saloon an arched recess (in the same manner studded with glass, and embellished here and there with portraits of favourites) leads into an extensive and princely hall. Here the ceiling is arranged in a variety of domes and figures, and is painted and gilded with a taste and elegance worthy of the first and most civilized of nations. Its finely proportioned walls are embellished by six large paintings: three on one side and three on the other. In the centre of that opposite to the entrance is painted Shah Ismael, in an exploit much renowned in Persian story; when in the great battle with Soliman, Emperor of the Turks, he cuts the Janisary Aga in two before the Sultan. On the right of this, surrounded by his dancing women, musicians, and grandees, is Shah Abbas the Great, seated at a banquet, and offering a cup of wine to another King, whom he is entertaining at his side. The wine, indeed, seems to have flowed in plenty, for one of the party is stretched on the floor in the last stage of drunkenness. The painting to the left is Shah Thamas, in another banquet scene. Opposite to the battle between Shah Ismael and Sultan Soliman, is that of Nadir Shah and Sultan Mahmoud of India. On the left of this is Shah Abbas the Younger, who also is occupied with the pleasures of the table; and on the right is Shah Ismael again, in an engagement with the Usbeck Tartars. These paintings, though designed without the smallest knowledge of perspective, though the figures are in general ill-proportioned, and in attitudes awkward and unnatural, are yet enlivened by a spirit and character so truly illustrative of the manners and habits of the nations which are represented, that I should have thought them an invaluable addition to my collection, if I could have had time to have made copies of them. When it is remembered, that the artist neither could have had the advantages of academical studies, nor the opportunities of improving his taste and knowledge by the galleries of the great in Europe, or conversed with masters in the art, his works would166 be allowed to possess a very considerable share of merit, and to be strong instances of the genius of the people. The colours with which they are executed retain their original freshness; at least if they have faded they must have been such in their first state, as we have not seen in Europe. The gilding, which is every where intermixed, either to explain the richness of the dress, or the quality of the utensils, is of a brilliancy perhaps never surpassed.

They possess less questionably an excellence, to which the merit of colouring is at any rate very subordinate. They mark strongly and faithfully the manners of their subject, and combine in a series of pleasing and accurate records a variety of details, of feature, attitude, dress, dancing, musical instruments, table furniture, arms, and horse accoutrements of the country. Shah Abbas, in the painting to the right, has no beard. The fashions have altered with the times, and the present King cherishes a beard which descends lower than his girdle, and touches the ground when he sits. The notoriety of Shah Abbas in the revels of the table, and particularly his love of wine, are here displayed in characters so strong, that they cannot be mistaken: and so little did he endeavour to conceal his propensities, that he is here painted in the very act of drinking. The faces of the women are very pleasing, but their wanton looks and lascivious attitudes easily explain their professions.

The furniture of the Chehel Sitoon, which consists indeed of carpets only, is still kept there. The carpets of the time of Abbas are of a large pattern, more regular and infinitely superior in texture to those of the present day. Although the outer part of the fabric is suffered to fall to ruin, the interior is still preserved in repair, as it forms the Dewan Khonéh, or Hall of Audience to the Palace; and is, therefore, kept in readiness for the King’s reception.

Adjoining to the Chehel Sitoon is the harem; the term in Persia is applied to the establishments of the great, zenana is confined to those of the inferior people. This building was lately erected by Mahomed Hossein Khan, the second Minister, and presented by him to his167 Majesty, and therefore is a very good specimen of the style and workmanship of the present day; and in this view it merits description. It is indeed considered so perfect in its establishment, that if the King were to arrive at Ispahan without a moment’s notice, not one, the smallest domestic article, would be wanting for the convenience of his suite, and the whole palace would present all the comforts which could be found after a residence of many years. From the garden of the Chehel Sitoon an intricate passage leads under an octagonal tower into this new palace, and opens into an oblong square laid out into flower beds, straight walks and basins of water, and surrounded on all its sides by chambers for women of an inferior rank. Proceeding on the left side of this court, a door opens into a species of green-house called the Narangistoon, in which there are only young orange trees. From this there is but one step into the principal court of the building, one whole side of which is occupied by the King’s apartments or drawing-rooms. The front room is adorned by two portraits of his Majesty, on one side seated on his throne, and on the other in the act of killing a deer in a chase on horseback. There are also other pictures, of which the most remarkable are those representing Timoor or Tamerlane, Jenghiz Khan, and Jemsheed. The walls are very richly painted with bouquets of flowers, birds and other animals. The arch, which occupies the side facing the great window, is a beautiful composition of glass and painting, and was the neatest specimen of decorative art which I had then seen in Persia. The ceiling is highly ornamented; gilded flowers and bright looking glasses glisten on every side, and give great liveliness and gaiety to the whole. Behind this is another room equally well painted; the upper windows are here most artfully constructed of plaster, which is pierced into small holes in a great variety of figures and flowers resembling the open work of lace, and admitting a pleasing light. In this room also there are portraits, one of which, that of a European, is called the Shah Zadé Freng, or European Prince. He is represented in our dress of the sixteenth century, in which168 indeed all the portraits of the Europeans appear, and which is sufficiently explained by the recollection that Shah Abbas had Dutch painters in his pay. The other rooms in this department are similarly decorated and gilded; and in some hang portraits of the King, to which the natives, as they approach, all make an inclination of the head. Under the great room are summer apartments excavated in the ground, which in their season must be delightful retreats. They are all wainscoted and paved with marble slabs, and water is introduced by cascades, which fall from the ground floor, and refresh the whole range. A passage leads to the bath, which, though small, is elegant. The domes are supported by columns, taken from the Armenian churches at Julfa.

From this court, a passage leads into several others for inferior women; and then into two rooms built by Ashreff, one of the Affghan Kings. The latter are indeed much inferior to those which I have already described. They have heavy massive glasses and gildings, and coarse paintings of fruits and flowers, without any representation of the human figure. On the whole, however, we found throughout the palace much sameness, both in the arrangement of the rooms, and in the distribution of the grounds. In the love of water and running streams, a Persian taste is fully gratified at Ispahan, through which the Zaiande-rood affords for all their ornamental purposes an unceasing supply.

Mesjid Loutf Ollah & part of Maidan Shah
Ispahan.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

From the interior of the palaces we ascended the Ali Capi gate, which forms the entrance. This gate, once the scene of the magnificence of the Seffi family, the threshold of which was ever revered as sacred, is now deserted, and only now and then a solitary individual is seen to pass negligently through. The remains of that splendour, so minutely and exactly described by Chardin, are still to be traced; the fine marbles remain, and the grandeur and elevation of the dome are still undemolished. A ragged porter opened a small door to the right, by which we ascended to the pavilion where Shah Abbas was wont169 to see the games of the Maidan and the exercises of his troops. This also is sinking rapidly into decay, and retains nothing to attest the beauties which travellers describe, except the shafts of the wooden columns, some pieces of glass, and some decayed paintings. From this we ascended by a winding staircase, still further to the very summit. Here, as this is the highest building in the city, we enjoyed a most extensive view, and from this place we could form a tolerably just idea of its real extent. Houses, or ruins of houses, are spread all over the plain, and reach to the very roots of the surrounding mountains. From this point I took a panoramic view of the whole, which I completed undisturbed, as I had secured the door, and the porter at the bottom before I commenced.36 There is no difference in the colours of the buildings; they are universally of a light yellow, and, if it were not for an abundant intermixture of trees, which in spring and summer cheer and enliven the scene, the view would be monotonous. The trees are mostly the chenars; but, besides these, there are the Lombardy poplar, the willow, and an elm with very thick and rich foliage and a formal shape. The domes of the mosques are a field of green or sometimes blue-lacquered tiles, with ornaments in yellow, blue, and red: the inscriptions are in the same colours. They are crowned by golden balls and a crescent, with the horns bending outwardly.

The mountains, which bound the plain to the Eastward, are the most distant; and those to the West are most strongly marked; all are dark without any verdure. The general appearance of the soil in the town is light, and nearly of the same colour as the houses.

All the cannon, which in Chardin’s day were enclosed in a balustrade before the palace, are removed, and there is not left a vestige even of the balustrade itself. The Maidan Shah, the great public170 place, no longer presents the busy scene which it must have displayed in the better times of this kingdom. Of all the trees which surrounded it, there is not one standing. The canals, of which the stones remain, are void of water; the houses, which surrounded the Maidan, are no longer inhabited; and the very doors are all blocked up, so that there is now only a dead row of arches to be seen all round. The great market, which once spread the whole area with tents, is now confined to one corner near the Nokara Khanéh. All the rest is quite empty; scarcely a person is seen to pass along. I saw no traces of the pavilion of the clock, which in the time of Chardin so much amused the people by the mechanism of its puppets. The Mesjid Shah or Royal Mosque is still a noble building, if I might judge from its outside; although the lacquered tiles on the dome are in many places falling off. We did not go further than the iron chain, which is thrown across the entrance of its great gate leading into the Maidan. The Mesjid of Louft Ollah is exteriorly in good repair. The great bazar is entered under the Nokara Khanéh by a handsome gate, the paintings on which still exist, but the large clock (of which however the place is still seen) is no longer in existence; nor is there any trace of that also, that was once on the very summit. The other side of the gate opens into the fine bazars (formerly called the Kaiseree) now the Bazar Shah.

There are no modern bazars, except one built by Hajee Mahomed Hossein Khan, the second Minister. He has also made a new Chahar Bagh, in that part of the city towards the bridge, called Pool Hajoo. The bazars, as I had occasion to observe at Shiraz, are all laid out on nearly the same plan as those of Constantinople; generally the different trades in separate bazars. They are on the whole more lively than those of Turkey; being painted and adorned in many places, (particularly under the domes in the centre), with portraits of the heroes of the country, or with combats, or with figures of beasts, and other subjects. In these bazars the confluence of people is certainly great, and if the crowds here were a fair mea171surement of the general population of the city, the whole numbers of Ispahan would swell rapidly; but as every one in the course of the day has some business in this spot, the rest of the city is comparatively deserted; and as the traders also themselves have here their shops only and return to their homes at night, the mixed multitudes which throng the bazars, again scattered over all the quarters of the town, become a very inadequate proportion for its extent. The women, indeed, except the very lower class, generally remain at home, and during the day form, with their children, all the population of some parts of the city. The N. and E. divisions are the best inhabited. In Chardin’s time the numbers were estimated by those who reckoned largely one million and one hundred thousand souls; but even by the more moderate were fixed at six hundred thousand. Considering, however, the state of ruin in which, perhaps, half of Ispahan is at present, we cannot place its actual population at more than four hundred thousand souls, a calculation which is supported by the accounts of the houses or families, of which there are eighty thousand. This information was subsequently communicated to me by Hajee Mahomed Hossein Khan, second Minister to the King, a native also of the city, and long its Governor, whose opportunities therefore of ascertaining the fact were unquestionable. Much, nevertheless, must be allowed for the exaggeration natural to a Persian.

The kabob shops (or eating-houses on the plan of those in Turkey) seemed to be also equally clean and well arranged. From one of these a complete dinner, with every necessary convenience of dishes, sherbets, &c. may be procured at a short notice, and at a moderate expence. The most frequent shops appeared to be those of sweetmeats, which (in a consumption almost incredible) form the chief ingredients of Persian food, and are here arranged for sale very neatly in large China vases, clean glass vessels, and bright brass platters. The people excel in the composition; and import their sugar172 from India, and their sugar-candy from China. Large quantities of sugar come from Cairo also, through Suez.

The Beglerbeg, or Governor, gave the Envoy and his suite an entertainment which, in one particular only, was more splendid than those at Shiraz. The great court and all the avenues were here illuminated by a vast number of small lamps, which threw an immense blaze of light all over the place. A China drum which the Beglerbeg had been keeping for many years till a fit opportunity for the display should occur, was now brought forwards. It was suspended on high in the middle of the court. The fire was applied to it, but it emitted thick vapour with little explosions at intervals; and though a meschal or great torch was at length tried, it only increased the smoke and stench, and proved too clearly, that the whole was a Chinese fraud, not unfrequently practised on the purchasers of their drums; a little gunpowder was placed at the ends indeed, but the centre was stuffed with old rags. The other fire-works also were generally miserable, in comparison with those at Shiraz. The dinner, (instead of being served in the usual manner on the ground) was placed on tables framed for the occasion, and was piled up in enormous heaps. The Beglerbeg had the further attention to provide us with plates, spoons, knives, and forks, which were all in like manner made for the day’s entertainment. The spoons were of silver, and that for the Envoy was of gold.

The report, which we had received on the road, that it was the intention of the government to detain the Envoy at Ispahan, did not prove without foundation. The Beglerbeg said, “that the Embassador was to stay at Ispahan to see the country at his leisure, and visit all the fine buildings of the city.” However, at a private conference which Sir Harford had with him at the Goush Khonéh, all this was changed, so that the Beglerbeg was then more anxious even than ourselves, that we should proceed to the capital with every possible expedition. He now urged on the Envoy, promising all his173 assistance to enable him to reach Teheran, before the commencement of the mourning of the Moharrem; engaging his own mules to convey us from Ispahan, and ordering two relays of one hundred and fifty each at Kashan and at Kom. This anxiety was again seconded by a courier, who had arrived in two days from Teheran, and had brought the answers to the letters which we had dispatched from Khonéh Korréh.

174

CHAP. X.
ISPAHAN TO TEHERAN.

On the 7th of February, accordingly we left Ispahan; our first day’s march, from Goush Khonéh to Gez, was a distance of ten miles only. On the right of the road is a village called Sayin, which, as we were told, produces the best melons in the country. The soil, over which we travelled, was soft and crumbling, and strongly impregnated with salt, and in parts rendered muddy and swampy by the streams which intersect it. The weather was lowering on all sides, with a breeze from the Westward; which here and there in little whirlwinds carried the sand high up into the air in columns, resembling water-spouts at sea. The whole plain is covered with ruins, from which only now and then a few miserable peasants crept out to gape at our passing troops. The dikes, cut from the banks of the Zaiande-rood, irrigate the whole of the plain, and produce a greater appearance of cultivation than175 hitherto we had generally seen. The caravanserai at Gez, though falling into decay, is still handsome, and is built of the same materials, and on nearly the same grand scale, as that which we had occupied at Mayar. This likewise is the work of the Seffis. Similar caravanserais were constructed at every stage on the road to Bagdad; nothing, indeed, can equal the truly royal establishments which Shah Abbas the Great maintained throughout his dominions for the accommodation of strangers.

8th February. The bearing from Gez to Mourchekourd is N. W. and the distance by our computation is eighteen miles, which we travelled in six hours. At about seven miles, we came to a ruined caravanserai, built of the same materials and in the same neat manner as that at Gez. Nearly facing it is a well, to which we descended by a path, excavated from the surface on an angle of forty-five degrees, and about fifty yards in length. We saw small fish swimming about in this well, which appeared to us to be a spring of fine and limpid water. After having travelled about six miles further, we came to a very handsome caravanserai. We had discovered it immediately on ascending the summit of a range of hills, over which the road carried us. It is situated on the right of the road, and, with its bath and reservoirs on the left, was built by the mother of Shah Abbas. The structure has suffered less, than any other which we have seen, by the injuries of time and man. It is built of brick on a foundation of the same fine blue stone, which we had so much admired at Mayar. The front is ornamented with an open brick-work, and with neat Mosaic. The portico is crowned by a superb dome, and leads into the square court; the sides of which contain the rooms for travellers. Behind are vaulted stables with much accommodation. The hummum is useless through decay; but the reservoir is still in good repair.

From this we proceeded five miles to Mourchekourd, and passed over a part of the plain, on which Nadir Shah gained his decisive victory over Ashreff, the Affghan Chief. The mountains to the Northward were covered with snow, and still presented a winter to us,176 although the weather on the plain was delightfully serene and mild. The soil is hard, in some places argillaceous. The whole country, which we had passed in the day’s march, was poor and depopulated, though the ruins in different parts of the plain, speak that it was once enlivened and enriched by men. As we approached Mourchekourd we found indeed cultivation, and the kanauts which produce it.

9th. From Mourchekourd a caravanserai which we were to pass, bore by our compass N. 15 W. a distance of twelve miles. The road was good, on an arid plain, bounded by inconsiderable mountains. The caravanserai itself was another of those structures, which in the latter part of our route we had so often admired. From this point we continued for eight miles over rising and falling ground to a second caravanserai called Aga Kemal, but pronounced short without the g, Aakemal. Around we saw a little cultivation and a few poplars; all the rest is desert. On the left, bearing West, is the small territory of Joshoogun, containing the three villages of Bendai, Khosroabad, and Vazvoon, which we descried at the distance of about four miles, situated under a red hill at the extremity of the plain. From Aga Kemal we ascended mountains entirely covered with snow, which, from its appearance indeed, may remain there throughout the whole year. The distance to Kohrood was still sixteen miles, which we travelled by sun-set, having set off at five in the morning. By the bearings of elevated hills we arranged our whole march to the direction N. 10 W.

As we descended into the valley of Kohrood, which from the depth of the snow was a work of some trouble, we noticed a pretty little bubbling stream, which, winding through the vale, watered a succession of cultivated spots and plantations of apple, pear, poplar, and walnut trees. The town is built on the side of a mountain. We passed the night in the caravanserai, where our accommodations were indifferent, and our rest, of which we were in great want, was broken by the incessant noise and wrangling of our Persian attendants.177 Several of our horses had been left on the road from excessive fatigue.

The valley of Kohrood extends in a North-Eastern direction; it is abundantly watered and wooded beautifully, and every species of fruit tree thrives there. The fields are disposed in terraces, and each separate plat of cultivated ground is intersected by small ridges raised to facilitate irrigation. We had hitherto passed through a country, to which so much wood and so much cultivation afforded a very delightful contrast. The Persians, indeed, admit, that there are few Kohroods in the kingdom, and that in summer its verdure is incomparable. Our route led through another village in the same valley. Close to the road is the tomb of one of the inferior saints of Persia, with a pyramidical roof covered with green-lacquered tiles. As we passed near it, a little boy, surrounded by a set of his companions, entreated our compassion by invoking the name of the holy man in the neighbouring grave. When we had quitted the trees and cultivated grounds, we continued to wind in the valley which had then narrowed to a close and sometimes difficult pass. This pass, on a bearing of N. 30 E. is in length about six miles, and is terminated on the left of the road by a caravanserai called Gueberabad. Before we reached it, we skirted a small artificial lake called the Bund Kohrood, the waters of which are supplied by the river of Kohrood, and the melting of the snows of the adjacent mountains, and are confined on the N. extremity by a strong wall built across the chasm of the valley. A stream, however, oozes out from the base, which finally expends itself in the plain about Kashan. Gueberabad is at present a ruined village; in former days it was peopled, as its name imports, by the Guebres.

The caravanserai is one of the good buildings of the age of the Seffis, and by an inscription on the front appears to have been erected by Meer Sakee, one of the generals of Shah Abbas. Here first we discovered the plain of Kashan, bounded by the distant range of mountains, of which Demawend formed the most conspicuous and the178 highest point. It rises in a very symmetrical cone abruptly from a long and unbroken range. It is covered with eternal snows, but its height is more easily deduced from the distance to which it is visible. In a direct line from the caravanserai of Gueberabad, that distance could not have been less than one hundred and fifty miles; and the Persians declare that it can be seen even at Ispahan from the minaret of the Mesjid Shah, which is at least two hundred and forty miles distant. We descended rapidly into the plain towards Kashan: here we were met by a large istakball, which accompanied us to the Northern side of the city with all the noises of Persian rejoicings.37

From Kashan we continued along the immense plain; the mountains, which bind it on the North, just appeared in the lightest blue tints on the edge of the horizon. From Kashan to our encampment at Nusserabad, we saw on the skirts E. and W. of the plain several villages, and with them cultivation. On the left of the road were Cosac, Key, Ser, Badgoon, Rouand, Corabad: on the right, Aroun, Britgoli, Nouchabad, and Ali Abad. We reckoned the total length of the day’s journey at thirty miles (on a bearing of N. 20 W.) viz. eight to Gueberabad, thirteen to Kashan, and nine to Nusserabad. In former days the people of Nusserabad were noted for their idleness and propensity to voluptuousness, so that a fine gentleman is still called a Mirza of Nusserabad.

On the morning of the 11th we quitted our tents two hours before sun-rise, as we had a march of forty miles before us to Koom; the Persians call the distance fifteen fursungs. We continued our route179 along the plain in the same course as on the preceding day. On our left were mountains, and on our right was the plain bounded only by the horizon, and constituting indeed the commencement of the great Salt Desert of Persia, which, according to the people of the country, extends even to the confines of Usbeck Tartary. The principal part of that over which we passed was a soil strongly impregnated with salt, which, after rain or snow, renders the roads difficult and dangerous. The weather was favourable during our passage, and we crossed without any inconvenience (except that of a heavy mud) a part of the plain dreaded by caravans and travellers in winter journies. We traversed the plain for ten miles, and then turned N. 30 W. among the mountains. As we proceeded, we observed their strata disposed in singular directions, and forming very varied angles with the horizon. Nature, in some places, amid the stupendous masses of rock which surrounded us, seemed to have finished her operations by small conical mounds, increasing by regular gradations as they approached the mother mountain. Every thing looked as if it were newly created, and only wanted the art and industry of man to rub off its first rude surface.

At about eleven miles from Nusserabad stands a caravanserai called Sin Sin, erected by the present King. It is a strong but vulgar building, when compared with the elegant structures of the reign of Shah Abbas. The rude stones and plaster with which it is constructed, are covered with a coat of white wash, which, at a distance indeed gives it a magnificent appearance. Near this were the ruins of a village. Still further, on the right of the road, are more ruins, which, according to my informer, were those of a town called Dehnar. A second caravanserai of the same materials as that of Sin Sin, is situated at the distance of seven miles. Next is Passangoor, which is merely another caravanserai in the plain, and distant twelve miles; at three miles distant further is Langarood, which is remarkable for some old pinasters standing about it, and a garden of some extent. From Langarood to Koom is ten miles more. We reached Koom very late and180 had to pass through its extensive ruins when it was quite dark. The Envoy, who rode in the takht-e-ravan, was in some danger in passing over a bridge, for one of the mules slipping threw him nearly into the stream.

Koom is esteemed a holy city; it encloses the tombs of many saints, and among others that of the sister of Imaum Reza. The present King made a vow before he ascended the throne, that if he should ever succeed to the crown he would enrich the city of Koom by buildings, and exempts its inhabitants from paying tribute. He has fulfilled his vow, and has built a large medressé or college near the tomb of the sister of Imaum Reza, and gives great encouragement to the learned people who resort to it. He covered the cupola of the tomb itself with gold plates (instead of the lacquered tiles which he removed), and he is said to spend one hundred thousand tomauns annually, in the embellishments of these monuments. The riches of this tomb are said to be immense, and they are augmented every year by some new donation in jewelry and precious stones from the King’s wives, and the great men of the court. The tomb of Imaum Reza himself is in the city of Mesched.

12th. The morning presented to us a dark and threatening atmosphere, and a country covered with snow. It had fallen in the night to a depth of six inches. We however proceeded on to Pool Dallauk, a distance of twelve miles; leaving our heavy baggage behind, as the Envoy was particularly anxious to reach the capital, before the commencement of the mourning of Moharrem. North of Koom there is a small river called the Khour-e-Shootur. The plain was much soaked with the melted snow; we reached the caravanserai at Pool Dallauk at an early hour, intending to depart again at ten o’clock at night. This place derives its name from a barber who repaired the bridge, originally built by Shah Abbas over the river, which runs E. and W. before the caravanserai. The water of this stream, and indeed all the rivulets here, derive a saltness from the soil through which they pass.

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After having refreshed our cattle and ourselves, we made preparations to depart at ten o’clock. The night was very dark, and our Mehmandar (who had not shewn an inclination to second our desires of proceeding with all dispatch) now opposed every difficulty which he could devise: he expatiated on the danger of undertaking the journey by night, and talked of certain passes on the road, where travellers had been lost and never more heard of. He was in fact an old man, unaccustomed to the activity of our proceedings. Yet he was not the only one, who was disappointed and surprised at the celerity of our movements.

The chiefs of the tent-pitchers and of the muleteers, who had attended former missions, had passed months on the road, and thus secured a profit on the pay of their people and their mules, which the shortness of our engagement greatly reduced. Our journies were compared with the celebrated marches of their late King Aga Mahomed Khan, who waged so many wars with Lootf Ali Khan; but those, who considered it incompatible with the dignity of a great man to move fast, said that we were rather choppers (couriers) than Embassadors. Yet the greatest distance that we ever travelled in one day was forty miles, and we employed thirty-five days in a journey of about six hundred and fifty miles, at an average perhaps of nineteen miles a day.

When we were unmoved by his forebodings, our Mehmandar endeavoured to sooth us into compliance to his wishes, by sending us a variety of savoury dishes for our dinner, which however only renewed our spirits, and increased our eagerness to proceed. We accordingly mounted our horses. The troop had already advanced with much of our baggage. The Envoy (preceded by two people, who by courtesy were called guides, and followed by the Mehmandar and the gentlemen of the suite) had not travelled half a mile from the caravanserai, when his conductors declared that they had lost the road. After long and fruitless exertion, bewildered more and more by those who had undertaken our direction, we resolved to return to the caravanserai, and to182 take a fresh departure. Even this became impracticable, for the town was not to be found. The Mehmandar then, seemingly in great trouble, went forward himself to seek the place, and after much delay returned to us, bringing along with him a poor wretch, whose hands he had tied behind his back, and to whom he occasionally administered blows. This was our new conductor, but he was so much frightened, that he could not proceed, until the Envoy pledged himself, that he should meet with no harm; but on the contrary should receive a reward of fifteen tomauns, if he led us in safety to Kinar-a-gird. We again advanced, and were again unsuccessful; our new guide was more perverse or more stupid than his predecessors, and we were once more obliged to return in the hope of regaining the caravanserai. In search of this place we roamed about four long and melancholy hours, hearing the cries of wanderers, as we supposed like ourselves, in all parts of the plain. Unfortunately we had then no compass with us, nor was there a star to be seen that might direct us. At length however we espied a light, which happily proceeded from the walls of our caravanserai, and guided us again to it.

We departed again the next morning, and discovered to our surprise that the road, which to us had been rendered so intricate, led straight to the opening of the mountains through which we were to pass. It was impossible therefore to wander from it except purposely, and the Mehmandar at length acknowledged that he had himself contrived the delay, and the mortification of the preceding night. The Envoy refused to speak to him, threatened a complaint to the King, and terrified him so effectually, that with every oath common to a Persian, he cursed himself as “an old fool, and a stupid senseless wretch.” The Envoy at length relented, and assured him that he had nothing to fear. At the distance of six miles from Pool Dallauk, we entered the swamp of Kaveer, which (to its termination at the caravanserai called Haooz Sultan) we crossed in three hours, a length of ten miles. It is part of the great desert which reaches into Khorassan, the soil of which is composed of a mixture (at least equal)183 of salt and earth. Though the road therefore, over which we travelled, is as good as those in any other direction across the swamp, it is frequently after rains impassable: as the horses, which in our passage were up to the fetlock, are up to their bellies in less favourable weather.

At Haooz Sultan we were met by an Officer with a letter from the King, expressing his thanks for the information communicated to him by the Envoy, of the defeats which “the common enemy” had received in Spain, and inviting him to arrive at his capital without delay. We proceeded, and came to the Mulluk-al-Moat, a kind of pass leading through an extent of broken country, which, forming a labyrinth of little hills and intricate nooks, has not unfrequently been a real cause of difficulty to travellers, and to a certain degree embarrassed us till we reached Kinar-a-gird. In the dells were a variety of streams which were nearly salt. The land itself bears evident marks of the action of fire. The soap-wort is the most common shrub all over the face of the country, but no use is made of it. About two fursungs from Kinar-a-gird we crossed a large salt stream, running from W. to E. and just before it we were greeted by an istakball. Our march on this day was forty miles. We passed the night in a large caravanserai built by the present King at Kinar-a-gird; where the Mehmandar, regardless of his late disgrace, again behaved ill, for his servants were suffered to intrude on the space which had been reserved for us.

From Kinar-a-gird to Teheran is six fursungs, which we called sixteen miles. We continued along the plain for two miles, crossing numerous channels of water which are carried from the stream by Kinar-a-gird. We then wound among some small hills for four miles, when the plain of Teheran opened upon us, bounded from E. to W. by a lofty range of mountains. Clouds generally rest on their summits, and the snow at this time covered their very roots. On the West and high above them is the peak of Demawend.

Teheran, as we descended gradually into the plain, bore N. 25 E. of us. On the right are the ruins of the ancient city of Rey, scattered in184 great profusion at the foot of the nearer mountains. The soil of the plain is salt, and of course very soft, intersected by a great number of dikes, which being well replenished with water had rendered the road extremely difficult. As we approached Teheran, we were met by frequent istakballs, in the principal of which was Norooz Khan, one of the King’s relations, and Master of the Ceremonies. The mob increased greatly as we came to the town walls. At the gate, through which we passed, were posted files of soldiers of the new corps, dressed something like Russians and disciplined after the European manner. We passed through small streets of miserable buildings, and saw nothing that indicated royalty. At length we dismounted at the house of Hajee Mahomed Hossein Khan, the second Minister, where we were treated with chairs and tables, which had been provided by our host. Though it had been his own residence, and though he had just removed from it to make room for the Embassy, we found it a mansion far less respectable than any that we had seen either at Shiraz or Ispahan. All the riches are collected on the throne, and all around is poverty, either real or affected.

The reception of His Majesty’s Mission, from our entrance into Persia to our arrival in the capital, was marked with the most ready attention, and the highest honours from all classes; and our journey was now closed at Teheran by particular and gratifying distinctions.

Mountain of Demawend
Tæhran.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

185

CHAP. XI.
TEHERAN.

It had been decided on the day of our arrival, that the first visit was to be paid by the owner of the house in which we lodged, Hajee Mahomed Hossein Khan, Ameen-ed-Doulah, or Lord Treasurer: but on the next day the Minister seemed to make some hesitation in according the compliment, and said that he rather expected it from the Envoy. Sir Harford Jones, however, immediately obviated the difficulty by representing that even among the most uncivilized nations the host pays the first attentions to his guest. When this explanation was satisfactorily received the Minister came, and with him the King’s Chief Poet, and some other officers of state.

We went through the common routine of compliments and presenta186tions. When the poet was introduced to the Envoy, the conversation turned on poetry and the works of the bard himself. He was extolled above the skies; all exclaimed that in this age he had not an equal on earth, and some declared that he was superior even to Ferdousi, the Homer of their country. To all this the author listened with very complacent credulity, and at length recited some of his admired effusions. His genius, however, is paid by something more substantial than praise; for he is a great favourite at court, and, according to my Persian informers, receives from the King a gold tomaun for every couplet; and once indeed secured the remission of a large debt due to the King by writing a poem in his praise. Yet the people, from whom the supplies of this munificence are drawn, groan whenever they hear that the poet’s muse has been productive. Having exhausted the topics of the weather, and the relative temperature and air of Teheran, Ispahan, and Shiraz, our host took his leave, telling us that the house was our own, a common compliment of the East. In the evening the Envoy went to a conference with him, and settled some points of importance in the negociation. The ceremonial of the Envoy’s presentation to the King on the following day was then arranged; and it was agreed that the audience should be exactly the same as that given to Embassadors at Constantinople.

On the morrow accordingly we made every preparation of form for our introduction; and each appeared in green slippers with high heels, and red cloth stockings, the court dress always worn before the King of Persia. Early in the morning we received a message desiring us to be in readiness. At about twelve o’clock we proceeded to the palace. The presents for the King were laid out on a piece of white satin over a gold dish. It consisted of His Britannic Majesty’s picture set round with diamonds; a diamond of sixty-one carats valued at twenty thousand pounds; a small box, on the lid of which Windsor Castle was carved in ivory; a box made from the oak of the Victory, with the battle of Trafalgar in ivory; and a small blood-stone Mosaic187 box for opium. The Kings letter (which was mounted in a highly ornamented blue morocco box, and covered with a case of white satin, and an elegant net) was also laid on a piece of white satin. The Envoy carried the letter, and I the presents. When we went forwards to place them in the takht-e-ravan (the litter), and again, when the procession advanced, the trumpet sounded “God save the King.”

The order of the procession was as follows:

Officers of the King of Persia,
Led horses belonging to the Envoy,
Native officers of cavalry, swords drawn,
The trumpeter,
Four troopers,
The takht-e-ravan,
Guard of native cavalry, swords drawn,
Persian officers of the Envoy’s household, in scarlet and gold, dismounted,
The Envoy,
The Secretary and Gentlemen of the Mission,
Guard of native cavalry under Cornet Willock, with drawn swords,
colours displayed,
Servants, &c.

The procession proceeded through miserable streets, which were crowded by the curious, until we came to the large Maidan, at the entrance of which were chained a lion and a bear. It then turned to the right, and, crossing over a bridge, entered into the Ark or fortified Palace of the King, the building which contains every part of the royal household. Here the Envoy, as a mark of respect to the King of Persia, ordered the guard to sheath swords. There were troops on both sides, and cannon in several parts, and when we reached the first court, two very thick lines of soldiers were ranged to form an avenue for us. They were disciplined and dressed something after our manner,188 and went through their exercise as we passed. About thirty paces from the Imperial gate the takht-e-ravan stopped: we then dismounted, and the Envoy and I advancing uncovered to it, took out the King’s letter and the dish of presents. We proceeded through dark passages, until we came to a small room, where were seated Norooz Khan (a relation of the royal family, and Ish Agassi, or Master of the Ceremonies) and Mahomed Hussein Khan Mervee, a favourite of the King, and a deputy Lord Chamberlain, with other noblemen, who were waiting to entertain us. Our presentation was to take place in the Khalvet Khonéh, or private Hall of Audience, for it was then the Ashooreh of the month of Moharrem, a time of mourning, when all matters of ceremony or of business are suspended at court: the King of Persia therefore paid a signal respect to his Britannic Majesty, in fixing the audience of his Envoy so immediately after his arrival, and more particularly at a season when public affairs are so generally intermitted.

After we had sat here about half an hour, smoked, and drank coffee, the Master of the Ceremonies informed us that the King was ready, and we proceeded again. We entered the great court of the Dewan Khonéh, (the Hall of Public Audience) on all sides of which stood officers of the household, and in the centre walk were files of the new-raised troops, disciplined after the European manner, who went through the platoon as we passed, while the little Persian drummers beat their drums. The line presented arms to the Envoy, and the officers saluted. In the middle of the Dewan Khonéh was the famous throne built at Yezd of the marble of the place, on which the King sits in public, but to which we did not approach sufficiently near for any accurate observation. We ascended two steps on the left, and then passed under arched ways into another spacious court filled in the same manner; but the men were mostly sitting down, and did not rise as we approached. We crossed the centre of this court, and came to a small and mean door, which led us through a dark and189 intricate passage. When we were arrived at the end of it we found a door still more wretched, and worse indeed than that of any English stable. Here Norooz Khan paused, and marshaled us in order: the Envoy, first, with the King’s letter; I followed next with the presents, and then at the distance of a few paces the rest of the gentlemen. The door was opened, and we were ushered into a court laid out in canals and playing fountains, and at intervals lined by men richly dressed, who were all the grandees of the kingdom. At the extremity of a room, open in front by large windows, was the King in person. When we were opposite to him, the Master of the Ceremonies stopped, and we all made low bows; we approached most slowly again, and at another angle stopped and bowed again. Then we were taken immediately fronting the King, where again we bowed most profoundly. Our Conductor then said aloud,

“Most mighty Monarch, Director of the World,

Sir Harford Jones, Baronet, Embassador from your Majesty’s Brother, the King of England, having brought a letter and some presents, requests to approach the dust of your Majesty’s feet: (Hag paee mobarek bashed, literally,) that the dust of your feet may be fortunate.”

The King from the room said in a loud voice, “Khosh Amedeed, you are welcome.” We then took off our slippers, and went into the royal presence. When we were entered, the Envoy walked up towards the throne with the letter; Mirza Sheffeea, the Prime Minister, met him half way, and taking it from him, carried it up and placed it before the King: he then came back and received the presents from my hands, and laid them in the same place. The Envoy then commenced a written speech to the King in English, which at first startled his Majesty, but seemed to please him much, as soon as Jaffer Ali Khan, the English Resident at Shiraz, came forward and read it in Persian. The original was as follows:

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“May it please your Majesty,

“The King my Master, willing to renew and strengthen those ties of friendship and alliance which subsisted between the Kings of Persia and of England, has deputed me to the foot of your Majesty’s throne, with the expression of these His Royal wishes and intentions.

“To have been charged with such a commission, I shall always consider as the most distinguished and honourable event of my life; and, when I thus deliver to your Majesty the letter of my most gracious and Royal Master, I feel confident in being honoured with your Majesty’s protection and favour.

“May the Great Disposer of all events grant your Majesty an increase of honour and prosperity, and may the friendship and interests of England and Persia henceforward become inseparable.”

The King then answered in return, that the states had been long allied, and he hoped that the friendship would increase daily; this the Prime Minister explained. The King then said, “How does the King of England, my Brother? Damaughist chauk est? How is his health?” He then asked, if this were the son of the former King, with whose subjects he had had communications, and when he was told that the same King was still reigning, he exclaimed, “the French have told lies in that also!” (For they had spread the report that the King of England was dead.) The Envoy was then conducted to a gilt and painted chair placed for him, an honour never paid before to any Mission. I stood on his right; Jaffer Ali Khan on his left; Mirza Sheffeea, the Prime Minister, next to me; Hajee Mahomed Hossein Khan, the Ameen-ed-Doulah, and Mirza Reza Kooli, another of the Ministers, succeeded; and the Master of the Ceremonies closed the line. The other gentlemen stood in a row behind. The King informed the Envoy that the choice which his Brother the King of England had made of him as a Minister in Persia, was agreeable and acceptable to him; he then inquired191 about the Envoy’s journey, and asked some very familiar and affable questions. The gentlemen of the Mission were then separately introduced by their names and situations; the King said “Khosh Amedeed,” and we made very low bows. We returned with nearly the same ceremonies as we entered the palace, except that in the outer court, the Envoy was further honoured with a salute from three pieces of cannon.

The King is about forty-five years of age; He is a man of pleasing manners and an agreeable countenance, with an aquiline nose, large eyes and very arched eye-brows. His face is obscured by an immense beard and mustachios, which are kept very black; and it is only when he talks and smiles that his mouth is discovered. His voice has once been fine, and is still harmonious; though now hollow, and obviously that of a man who has led a free life. He appeared much pleased at finding that the Envoy could talk to him in Persian, as he did indeed after the first introductory speech; and when he was told that Sir Harford read and studied much, he asked many questions on literary subjects, for he professes to be a protector of learning and of learned men. He was seated on a species of throne, called the takht-e-taoos, or the throne of the peacock, which is raised three feet from the ground, and appears an oblong square of eight feet broad and twelve long. We could see the bust only of his Majesty, as the rest of his body was hidden by an elevated railing, the upper work of the throne, at the corners of which were placed several ornaments of vases and toys. The back is much raised; on each side are two square pillars, on which are perched birds, probably intended for peacocks, studded with precious stones of every description, and holding each a ruby in their beaks. The highest part of the throne is composed of an oval ornament of jewelry, from which emanate a great number of diamond rays. Unfortunately, we were so far distant from the throne, and so little favoured by the light, that we could not discover much of its general materials. We were told, however, that it is covered with gold plates, enriched by that fine enamel work so common in the orna192mental furniture of Persia. It is said to have cost one hundred thousand tomauns.

We saw the whole court to disadvantage during our first visit: it was then the days of mourning, and the King himself did not at that time wear his magnificent and celebrated ornaments of precious stones. He appeared in a catebee of a very dark ground, embroidered with large gold flowers, and trimmed with a dark fur over the shoulders, down the breast and on the sleeves. On his head he wore a species of cylindrical crown covered with pearl and precious stones, and surmounted by a light feather of diamonds. He rested on a pillow embossed on every part with pearl, and terminated at each extremity by a thick tassel of pearl. On the left of the throne was a basin of water in which small fountains played; and on its borders were placed vases set with precious stones. On the right, stood six of the King’s sons richly dressed: they were of different sizes and ages; the eldest of them (brother by the same mother to the Prince of Shiraz) was the Viceroy of Teheran, and possessed much authority in the state. On the left behind the basin stood five pages, most elegantly dressed in velvets and silks: one held a crown similar to that which the King wore on his head; the second held a splendid sword; the third a shield and a mace of gold and pearls; the fourth a bow and arrows set with jewels; and the fifth a crachoir similarly ornamented. When the audience was finished, the King desired one of his Ministers to inquire from Jaffer Ali Khan (the English Agent) what the foreigners said of him, and whether they praised and admired his appearance.

The room in which we were introduced to the King was painted and gilded in every part. On the left from the window is a large painting of a combat between the Persians and Russians, in which the King appears at full length on a white horse, and makes the most conspicuous figure in the whole composition. The Persians of course are victorious, and are very busily employed in killing the Russians, who seem to be falling a sufficiently easy prey: at a farther end of the193 scene is the Russian army drawn up in a hollow square, and firing their cannon and muskets without doing much apparent execution. Facing this great picture, is another of equal dimensions, which represents the Shah in the chase, having just pierced a deer with a javelin. In other parts are portraits of women, probably the King’s favourites, who are dancing according to the fashion of the country.

On the 19th, the Envoy visited Mirza Sheffeea, the Prime Minister. He is an old man, of mild and easy manners, who displayed more knowledge of general politics than any other person whom we met in Persia. This was our first impression, and his subsequent management of the negociation convinced us of its accuracy. He was sufficiently acquainted with all the different courts of Europe, and knew perfectly the name of every Minister employed either within the state or on foreign service; and was deeply versed in the particular interests of Persia. He had acquired something of geography, when the French Embassador and suite were his guests; the Persians in general, however, live in the profoundest ignorance of every other country.

In the Ministers assembly we met Mirza Reza, who had been sent Embassador to Buonaparte, and who entertained us with an account of Frangistoun, [Europe.] He expatiated with seeming ecstasy on every thing which he had seen; and Mirza Sheffeea, who probably had often heard his stories, said to Sir Harford Jones, “I can believe many of the things which he has related to us, but one circumstance staggers me; he gives an account of an ass, which he saw at Vienna, with stripes on its back; that I shall not believe, unless you confirm it.” When Sir Harford told him that it was very true; that there were many such animals at the Cape of Good Hope, he was satisfied. The traveller proceeded to describe every part of the Continent: when he talked of the beauties of Vienna, and particularly when he mentioned that the streets were lighted up at night with globe lamps, one of the company (whose face during the different relations had exhibited signs of much astonishment, and sometimes doubt) stopped him,194 and said, “I can believe any thing else but that they light the streets with globe lamps: you can never make me believe that. Pray who will pay for them?”

Mirza Sheffeea entertained us with a breakfast more elegant than any of the similar meals to which we had been invited. Just before we were rising to depart, the Minister, after having talked much on the hopes which he cherished, that the friendship of the two nations would long subsist, pulled a diamond ring from off his own finger, and placed it on the Envoy’s, saying, “And that I may not be thought to be insincere in my professions, let me beg of you to accept this as a pledge of my friendship for you; and I intreat you to wear it for my sake.” This gift, unlike the generosity of Persian presents, was really handsome; it was a beautiful stone, perfect in all its parts.

On the 23d we were invited by the Jemidars (Indian officers) of the Envoy’s guard, to see that part of the ceremony of the Moharrem which was appropriated to the day. We ascended an elevated platform, surrounded by a great crowd of Persians and Indians, and seated ourselves on Nummuds prepared for us. On one side was a small ornamented temple, in which was represented the tomb of the Imaum; and all around it were the Indians who had changed their regimentals for a variety of fantastical habits, after the fashion of their own country. As every Indian can turn fakir, the greater part had assumed that character to perform the ceremonial of this feast. Many of them arose, and made long speeches (for every man has this liberty) on the death of the Imaum, though they intermixed much extraneous matter. After this a Persian Mollah, a young man of a brisk and animated appearance ascended a temporary pulpit, and commenced a species of chaunted sermon proper for the day. At the end of every period, he was answered in chorus by the multitude: and when he was nearly at the end, and had reached the most pathetic part of his harangue, he gave the signal for the people to beat their breasts, which they did accordingly with much seeming sincerity, keeping time to his195 chanting. When the Mollah had finished, a high and cumbrous pole was brought into the scene. It was ornamented with different coloured silks and feathers, and on the summit were fixed two curious weapons made of tin, and intended to represent the swords of Ali. This heavy machine was handled by a man who, having made his obeisance to it (by first bowing his head, then kissing it) took it up with both his hands, and then amidst increasing applauses balanced it on his girdle, on his breast, and on his teeth. Next, on a small temporary stage, appeared several figures, who acted that part of the tragedy of the history of the Imaum appointed for the day. It consisted of the death of the two children of his sister Fatme, who, at the close of the performance were killed by Ameer, one of the officers of Yezid. The actors each held in their hands their speeches written on paper, which they read with great action and vociferation, and excited much interest in their audience, so that many sobbed and wept aloud; and when the ceremonial required the beating of breasts, many performed that part with a species of ferocious zeal, which seemed to be jealous of louder intonations from any breast than their own. In a part of the scene were then introduced water-carriers, who were emblematical of the thirst of the Imaum at his dying moments. They bore on their backs bullocks’ skins filled with water, no inconsiderable weight; but in addition, they each received five well-grown boys, and under the united burthen walked round a circle ten feet in diameter, three times consecutively.

On the following night the Envoy and I visited the Ameen-ed-Doulah Hajee Mohamed Hossein Khan. At his house, Mirza Sheffeea, Hajee Mohamed Hussein Khan Mervee, Fath Ali Khan the poet, and other great men were assembled. The commemoration of the death of Hossein was performing in his court-yard; and when the Mollah begun to read that part of the ceremonial appointed for the day, the windows of the room, in which we were seated, were thrown open, and we all changed our positions, and sat with our faces towards the Mollah. His preaching lasted about an196 hour, and was followed by the representation of that part of the history of Hossein’s death, which succeeded the scene performed on the preceding evening. First came Hossein’s horse, with his turban on the saddle. Then, in a row on chairs, were seated Yezid, with three others; one of whom, dressed in the European habit, represented an European Embassador, (Elchee Firing.) Zain Labedeen, Hossein’s brother, chained, and with a triangular wooden collar round his neck, appeared as a captive before Yezid, and was followed by his sister and children. Yezid’s executioner treated them with much barbarity, repelling the women when they implored his protection; and using the captives with great insult, at the instigation of Yezid. When Zain Labedeen, by Yezid’s firman, was brought to be beheaded, the Elchee Firing implored his pardon, which instead of appeasing the tyrant, only produced an order for putting the Elchee himself to death. All this scene produced great lamentation among the spectators, who seemed to vie with each other in the excess of their weeping, and in the display of all the signs of grief. The Prime Minister cried incessantly; the Ameen-ed-Dowlah covered his face with both his hands, and groaned aloud; Mahomed Hussein Khan Mervee made at intervals very vociferous complaints. In some I could perceive real tears stealing down their cheeks, but in most I suspect that the grief was as much a piece of acting as the tragedy which excited it. The King himself always cries at the ceremony; his servants therefore are obliged to imitate him. When the mob passed the window, at which we were seated, they again beat their breasts most furiously.

25th. This day was the last of the Moharrem, when all those, who had performed the ceremonies peculiar to this season, appeared before the King. He was seated in a more elevated chamber, which looked towards the Maidan. A tent had been pitched for the Envoy, who was invited to attend, but he was too unwell to venture out. The representation of the day happened, indeed, to be incomplete. A strange circumstance had occurred at a village near Teheran, which197 so much frightened the man appointed to personify Hossein before his Majesty, that in fear of the same fate he absconded. His alarm was natural, for at this village the man who performed the part of the executioner chose to act to the letter, what was only intended as a very bloodless representation; and when Hossein was brought before him to be beheaded, he cut off the poor actor’s head. For this the King fined him one hundred tomauns. His Majesty was pleased to take much notice of the Indians, whose ceremonial seemed to affect him much more than the others. Some keep the Moharrem three days later.

198

CHAP. XII.
TEHERAN.

The details of the subsequent progress of the negociation were daily minuted in my journal; but they involve so many personal considerations that they could not be fairly published, even if I had not acquired the information by confidential and official opportunities. I sacrifice,199 therefore, but with deep regret the power of doing that justice to the merits of the British Envoy which the simple narrative, without one comment, would have afforded. I must content myself with adding, that Sir Harford Jones succeeded in his great object; and concluded a treaty with Persia (where the French influence had already baffled and driven away one English agent) by which the French, in their turns, were expelled, and our influence was restored; at a time when, instead of co-operation, he experienced only counteraction from the British Government of India, and encountered all the rivalry of the active and able emissaries of France.

On another motive I regret the omission of these notes. They would have characterized, I believe with fidelity, the habits and modes of thinking of a Persian statesman, and added an amusing document to the annals of diplomacy. The conferences of the Plenipotentiaries were carried on at times with the warmest contentions, at other times interrupted by the loudest laughter on the most indifferent subject. One night the parties had sat so long, and had talked so much without producing conviction on either side, that the Plenipotentiaries by a sort of un-official compact, fell asleep. The Prime Minister and the Ameen-ed-Dowlah snored aloud in one place, and the Envoy and I stretched ourselves along in another. Though on the very first night of the discussions, the parties had separated with a full conviction that every thing was settled; and though the Prime Minister himself, laying his hand on the Envoy’s shoulder, had said to him, “You have already completed what the King of England himself in person could not have done;” yet the very next conference, they came forwards with pretensions alike new and extravagant. At the close of that meeting however, the Chief Secretary was appointed to bring the Treaty written fair to the Envoy on the following morning. Instead of this, the Prime Minister sent a large citron, and inquired after the Envoy’s health. On another occasion, the Persian Plenipotentiaries swore that every thing should be as the Envoy200 wished, and instantly wrote out a corresponding form of Treaty, to which (rather than start a difficulty about indifferent words) he assented. They were then so anxious that he should immediately attend them to the King’s Summer Palace to sign, that they would not give him time to translate it into English: he however refused to sign a Persian treaty, till the English copy was ready. They so little expected this refusal, that they had already, by the King’s desire, sent thirty mule-loads of fruits, sherbets, and sweetmeats to celebrate the event at the new palace; and were of course displeased and disappointed. At another time, in the middle of a very serious conversation, the Prime Minister stopped short, and asked the Envoy very coolly to tell him the history of the world from the creation. This was intended as a joke upon one of the Secretaries, who was then writing the annals of the reign of the present King. On another occasion, in which the same Minister was deeply and personally interested, and in which he invoked every thing sacred to attest his veracity, and convince the Envoy, (now, “by the head of the King;” then, “by Mecca;” then, “by the salt of Fath Ali Shah”) he turned to me in a pause of his discourse, and asked if I were married, and begun some absurd story.

These circumstances, however characteristic of the people, may appear trifling in themselves, or at least indicative of minds, over which an European Negociator might easily attain an ascendancy. It is necessary therefore to premise, that the real difficulties of our situation were never diminished by any deficiency of address and diplomatic finesse in the Persian Plenipotentiaries. Every fresh dispatch which the French received from Europe, while it contributed to raise the spirits and activity of our rivals themselves, enabled the Persians also to assume a higher tone of decision between our contending interests, while the only communications from his own countrymen which Sir Harford Jones received in Persia, were those which would have baffled the hopes and discouraged the201 enterprize of almost any other man. In the alternation of the dispositions of the court of Persia, he retained the same firm and unbending policy, and when the influence of the French appeared to be regaining all its preponderance, he made no one concession which he had not offered in more favourable circumstances, and finally succeeded in concluding a treaty almost on his own original terms, while the French were signing every demand which the Persians made.

As a more detailed specimen however of the conduct of the negociation, I can reserve a portion of the concluding scene.

At length a night was fixed in which the Treaties were to be signed. The Envoy and I repaired to the house of the Ameen-ed-Doulah, where we found him and his Nazir or Superintendant, the Prime Minister, the Chief Secretary, and the Persian Agent for English affairs at Shiraz. The conversation after a short time fixed on learned subjects. The Persians are extremely fond of history and geography, though in general they are profoundly ignorant of both. The Prime Minister went through in a breath the whole history of Russia. We then entered on matters of chronology, which introduced a discussion on the relative antiquity of particular remains, as Persepolis and Nakshi Rustam. The Chief Secretary, who seemed to have read much Persian history, knew that part which related to Shapour, and mentioned that he had carried his arms into Syria, and had taken prisoner a Roman Emperor. Yet the subject of the sculptures at Nakshi Rustam had still escaped their observation; and they had still, according to the popular belief, substituted Rustam for Shapour, as the hero of those representations. To this conversation, supper succeeded; as usual it was short.

The Treaties were then brought in, and read and approved. The date was still wanting. Sir Harford Jones desired them to insert the usual form, commencing, “In witness whereof,” &c. This however the Persians could not understand, and objected strenuously to the word “witnesses,” who were never introduced except into a court of202 justice. At length the Envoy produced the precedent of treaties signed at Constantinople, where the form is invariably used. They acquiesced immediately: but another difficulty succeeded, “Should the year of our Lord precede the Hejera?” The Secretary proposed that in our copy of the Treaty, our era should stand first, and that the order should be reversed in that which they were to keep. At last the Minister, who suspected that the Secretary was inclined to create difficulties, finished every argument by declaring that “as Jesus Christ lived before Mahomed, there could be no doubt but that his tarikh should stand first.” The Secretary, who is esteemed one of the first composers, and one of the best penmen in Persia, resisted the plainness of the language, which Sir Harford dictated for the insertion of the date, and produced something so unlike a diplomatic style, and so full of figurative expressions, that it was rejected totally on our parts. Mirza Sheffeea then took up the pen, and drew up a simpler formulary, which, with a few emendations, was admitted. The Secretary was then desired to copy it into the Treaty; but he seemed indignant to find that a date was only to be plain matter of fact, and begged hard to make it a little finer. Mirza Sheffeea however desired him to write as he had written, and this was at length accomplished with great difficulty. Then came the business of signing. The Prime Minister, Mirza Sheffeea, first took up the pen, and put down his own name and that of his brother Plenipotentiary, who was unable to sign himself. After signing, came sealing. The Secretary applied the seals, Mirza Sheffeea crying out to him, Bezun, Bezun, or, “strike, strike,” as if he had been striking a bargain in the bazar. In the act of signing and sealing the parties made frequent exclamations, such as, “God grant the friendship between the two states may be binding!” “May this prove a fortunate day.” “Let us hope that nothing may ever break this bond.” To all which every one present emphatically and repeatedly resounded “Inch Allah! God grant it!”

203

It had been agreed, that we should severally exchange the Treaties which each had written. When all was over, the Envoy took up our copy, and desired the Mirza to take up the other, that a formal exchange might be made. At this moment circumstances arose which closed the conference abruptly. The nature of those circumstances called forth all the dignified firmness of the Envoy, which in their future intercourse produced the most striking courtesy and attention from the Persian Ministers. The business was subsequently renewed on the evening of the 15th, and in that meeting the Treaties were finally exchanged.

On the 18th, the Envoy received a letter from an officer of high distinction at Tabriz. It is singular in itself, but it may have a new interest in the translation, which was made for me by a Persian (Jaffer Ali Khan), and which is given in his own unaltered words:

“May you, the high in station, exalted in dignity, clothed with splendor, the great magnificent in rank, distinguished for friendly disposition, cream of the nobles of the Christian faith, and the select among the great of the worshippers of the Messiah. May your honour increase, and may you be always in safety from the evil world, and always under the protection of God Almighty. And may He grant you all the happiness belonging to this world and the next, and (may you) be ever merry by the blessing of God. I write you as follows:—1st. I don’t know what complaint I am to make of my bad fortune, that, notwithstanding the great desire I had to see you, the Creator of the Universe had brought you to this country at a time when I am not present there. 2d. I don’t know what excuse to make to you, that while you are there, owing to my being engaged to the Russian affairs, I can’t prove myself useful to you in order to please myself. 3d. I have no remedy, as there are no fine articles at Aderbigian that I may send you, in order to prove of my regard to you; but the state of England and Russians are enemies to one another, therefore I employ my nights and days to do injury to the Russians, which is the only content I have at present. I hope that,204 in the course of a short time, I may be able to send you some Russian heads as rarities, and as a fine present from me to you, and I hope to be able to meet with some opportunity to repair to the King’s Court, where I may be happy to see you, and I will have a verbal conversation with you.”

A chatter, belonging to one of the gentlemen of our party, having stolen some money, the silver head of a kaleoon and other ornaments, was ordered to receive the bastinado on the soles of his feet. He was first thrown on his back, and his feet inserted through a cord, which fastened them to a long pole, and then exposed horizontally. Four stout feroshes then bastinadoed his feet until he confessed that another fellow had been his accomplice, who was also punished in the same manner. If the criminals had been delivered up to the King’s Nasakchee Bashee, they would have lost their lives; for the King never pardons theft, and orders a convicted thief to be executed instantly. The mode is as follows: two young trees are by main strength brought together at their summits, and there fastened with cords together. The culprit is then brought out, and his legs are tied with ropes, which are again carried up and fixed to the top of the trees. The cords that force the trees together are then cut; and, in the elasticity and power of this spring, the body of the thief is torn asunder, and left thus to hang divided on each separate tree. The inflexibility of the King in this point has given to the roads a security, which, in former times, was little known.

The King sent by one of his feroshes a present of two mountain goats to the Envoy. The man was offered one hundred piastres for bringing them, which he rejected as an inadequate reward; former Missions indeed had taught him to expect more profusion.

The 20th of March was the eve of the Norooz; and as a part of the ceremony of the season, the Ameen-ed-Doulah sent the Envoy a present. It consisted of two plates of money, one of silver coins, and the other of gold; several trays of sweetmeats, one of which was decked out in flowers and gilded ornaments like a temple; and two wax candles, which were accompanied by flowers exquisitely imitated in wax.205 The whole present amounted, by our computation, to six hundred and fifty piastres, for which, according to the return which we made, we paid most dearly. The wretched traffic of presents places the Persian character in a very unfavourable light. The meannesses and obligations to which they will submit for the sake of a present, and their jealousies and anxieties about its amount, are at least very ridiculous. The presents which the King distributes on the Nooroz are costly; to each of the chief men and officers of his court he sends a kalaat, (a dress of honour, consisting of a complete suit of brocade with a shawl); and he sometimes gives a horse and its caparisons. The kalaats indeed are furnished in specified contributions, by particular cities, (Yezd, Shiraz, and Ispahan,) and by the Ameen-ed-Doulah; and each kalaat is the means of paying the servant who may bear it; as the present, which he invariably receives as a perquisite in return is deducted from his wages. The number of the kalaats is reckoned at nine hundred; and their value, on an average of three hundred piastres, will amount to two hundred and seventy thousand. Besides this, the King distributes handfuls of money at his public Dewan to those who attract his favour. A large vase of gold and silver coins mixed stands at his elbow; in this he puts his hand, and taking out as much as he can grasp, pours it into the two extended palms of the man who is lucky enough to engage his notice.

On the 21st, the weather, which had been unfavourable, cleared up, and a fine morning was enlivened by three discharges of artillery in honour of the Norooz.

This festival is one of those which have remained in opposition to Mahomedanism, and was one of the first kept sacred in Persia in the ages of the worship of fire. Richardson says, “that their chief festivals were those about the equinoxes; the next were those of water at Midsummer, and of fire at the Winter solstice. The first was the Norooz, which commenced with their year in March, and lasted six days, during which all ranks seem to have participated in one gene206ral joy. The rich sent presents to the poor: all were dressed in their holiday clothes, and all kept open house: and religious processions, music, dancing, a species of theatrical exhibition, rustic sports, and other pastimes presented a continued round of varied amusement. Even the dead and the ideal things were not forgotten; rich viands being placed on the tops of houses and high towers, on the flavour of which the Peris and spirits of their departed heroes and friends were supposed to feast.”38 To this day the festival of the Norooz retains many of these ceremonies, though it has changed its character since the rise of Mahomedanism in Persia, and ceases to be connected with the religion of the country. It commences when the sun just enters Aries, and lasts three days; it begins the spring of nature, though it no longer commences the civil year of the Persians, who, like all other Mahomedans, have adopted the lunar calculation. It is still the most solemn of the Persian festivals, as it was in the day of Chardin. Mr. Bruce informed me of a singular fact, that it was not observed at all on the coast of the Persian Gulph. At Teheran, however, we saw it celebrated with great festivity. It differs from the Norooz of ancient Persia in the diminution of its duration; and in the absence of all religious observance: there are no processions and still less any offerings of viands to the dead. But all on meeting in the morning embrace and say, “Ayd mobarek; happy festival!” as in England we wish our friends a merry Christmas. The rich still send presents to the poor, all are still dressed in their holiday clothes, and sports of every kind are preserved in the season.

22d. We visited the Ameen-ed-Doulah. He was seated in his dewan khonéh, dressed in the kalaat which he had received from the King. His mujlis or assembly was crowded by Khans of the neighbouring districts, who had repaired to the city to pay their compliments to their207 superior on the Norooz. These, indeed, were far from conforming to the custom of displaying their holiday clothes, and whether through policy or through want, bore on their dress all the marks of poverty and misery.

On the 24th, the Envoy was invited to an entertainment, which the King gave. We proceeded to the palace, and having gone through the great gate, leading into the Ark, or more immediate residence of the King, we dismounted at the gate which opens into the Maidan and the first great court of the palace. Opposite to this gate is another; in an open room at the summit of which, the King was seated. We walked across the court, and were led through many passages, and ascended many intricate flights of steps, until we reached the roof of the buildings on the right of the Shah. Over this roof, which in many places was of difficult access, we scrambled, until we came to a little tent prepared for us, which was pitched on the summit of a door-way, close to the King’s room.

The court, in which the different exhibitions were to take place, appeared to us to be near two hundred feet square. On each side of the great gate were sixteen arched compartments, each of which opened into a small room. In the centre was a high pole, with a truck at the top, and small projections for the convenience of ascending it. This pole is for the purpose of horse exercises, and shooting at the mark. Close under the room in which the Shah was seated, was a basin of water, on the other side of which were erected the poles and ropes of a rope-dancer. In a circle round these, were fire-works placed in various forms and quantities. Four figures of paper and linen dressed like Europeans were erected on high, and surrounded with fire-works. At a distance were elephants of paper, stuck all over with rockets; on all the walls were rockets; and, in short, fire-works were placed in every direction. Opposite to the Shah in two lines were the new raised troops, with drummers standing in a row at the furthermost extremity. In the centre of these was the Nasakchee Bashee, who appeared as the director of the entertainment. He had208 a stick in his hand, and wore on his head a gika, a distinguishing ornament borne by particular people only, to whom the King grants the liberty.

The first ceremony was the introduction of the presents from the different provinces. That from Prince Hossein Ali Mirza, Governor of Shiraz, came first. The Master of the Ceremonies walked up, having with him the conductor of the present, and an attendant, who, when the name and titles of the donor had been proclaimed, read aloud from a paper the list of the articles. The present from Prince Hossein Ali Mirza, consisted of a very long train of large trays placed on men’s heads, on which were shawls, stuffs of all sorts, pearls, &c.; then many trays filled with sugar, and sweetmeats; after that many mules laden with fruit, &c. &c. &c. The next present was from Mahomed Ali Khan, Prince of Hamadan, the eldest born of the King’s sons, but who had been deprived by his father of the succession, because the Georgian slave who bore him was of an extraction less noble than that of the mothers of the younger Princes. His present accorded with the character which is assigned to him; it consisted of pistols and spears, a string of one hundred camels, and as many mules. After this came the present from the Prince of Yezd, another of the King’s sons, which consisted of shawls and the silken stuffs, the manufacture of his own town. Then followed that of the Prince of Mesched; and last of all, and the most valuable, was that from Hajee Mohamed Hossein Khan, Ameen-ed-Doulah. It consisted of fifty mules, each covered with a fine Cashmire shawl, and each carrying a load of one thousand tomauns.

The other offerings had been lodged in the Sandeck Khona, (literally, Trunk Office). This was conveyed in a different direction to the Treasury. Each present, like the first, contained a portion of sugar and sweetmeats. When all the train had passed in procession, one by one before the King, the amusements commenced.

First came the rope-dancer: a boy about twelve years old, ascended the rope, and paced it backwards and forwards. The same rope was209 continued to the roof of the room in which the King was seated, making first an angle of forty degrees, and then, in a second flight, an angle of fifty degrees, with its horizontal extension. The boy balancing himself with his pole, walked up the first steadily, and with very little more difficulty ascended the second, while the music below animated him in his progress. He then, with the same steadiness descended, walking backwards, and safely reached the horizontal rope. After this a man in a kind of petticoat began a dance of the most extravagant attitudes. A large elephant which had been in waiting amid the crowd, was next brought forward, was made to give a shriek, and then to kneel down, paying as it were his selaam to the King. A company of wrestlers succeeded; and every one, who threw his antagonist on his back, ran before the King and received a tomaun. When ten such feats had been successively performed, a man led in a bear, with which in his turn he wrestled. But the bear always had the advantage; and when his antagonist attempted to throw him into the basin of water, the bear got so much out of humour, that if he had not been deprived of his teeth, he would probably have demolished the unlucky assailant. Then rams were brought into the arena, and in several couples fought for some time with much obstinacy. A poor ox was next introduced, and after him a young lion. The scene, which we had witnessed at Shiraz, was here repeated. The ox was scarcely suffered to walk, before the lion was let loose upon him; twice was the lion dragged off, and twice permitted to return to the charge, which he always made in the rear, and of which the success was secure and easy. A less bloody display succeeded; a bear was brought forwards by a company of looties or mountebanks, and danced for some time to the rude noise and music of its leaders. Then came a man who, on his bare head balanced, among other things, two high vases full of water, which another was to break with his cane.

To all these different performers, the King threw different sums, as he was severally pleased with their tricks and feats. At sun-set his Majesty retired to say his Namaz, (prayers) when his Nokara Khanah,210 that is his trumpets and drums, played as usual. At this moment the Envoy retired, happy to escape the noise and smoke of the fire-works, which were to close the entertainment.

25th. The King held the races, at which also the Envoy was desired to be present. From the Casvin gate, at which we left the city, we proceeded about half a mile to a fine even part of the country, where a tent was pitched for the King. All his new raised troops were arranged on the right and in front of it. On the left, facing the tent, we stood in a line, near the Ministers, Mirza Sheffeea, and the Ameen-ed-Doulah. Directly opposite his Majesty were eight of his sons, richly dressed in velvet and gold-brocade coats, all glittering with gold and jewels. One of these carried by his side his father’s bow and his quiver thickly set with precious stones. The Master of the Ceremonies, in the field, was a young Persian who carried an ornamented and gilded spear. One or two of the Princes were mounted on white horses, the legs, belly, and lower parts of the buttock of which were dyed a rich orange colour, terminated at the top by little flowers. The Persians much admire this species of disfigurement, nor in the East is their taste singular. At about fifty paces distance from the Princes, stood the King’s band of music with a troop of looties and their monkies. The state elephants were on the ground, on the largest of which the King, seated in a very elegant howdar, rode forth from the city.

When he alighted he was saluted by a discharge of zombooreks; the salute indeed is always fired when the King alights from his horse or mounts. In one of the courts of the palace at Shiraz we had previously noticed this artillery. The zomboorek is a small gun mounted on the back of a camel. The conductor from his seat behind guides the animal by a long bridle, and loads and fires the little cannon without difficulty. He wears a coat of orange-coloured cloth, and a cap with a brass front; and his camel carries a triangular green and red flag. Of these there were one hundred on the field; and when their salute was fired they retreated in a body behind the King’s tent, where the211 camels were made to kneel down. Collectively they make a fine military appearance. This species of armament is common to many Asiatic states, yet the effect at best is very trifling. The Persians, however, place great confidence in their execution; and Mirza Sheffeea, in speaking of them to the Envoy, said, “These are what the Russians dread.”

No exhibition could be more miserable than the races, the immediate object of our excursion. They are intended to try rather the bottom than the speed of the horses. The prize is what the King may be pleased to give to the first jockies. On this occasion there were two sets, that came severally from a distance of twelve and twenty-one miles; each consisted of about twelve ill-looking horses, mounted by boys of ten or twelve years old, who were wretchedly dressed in a shirt and pair of breeches, boots and cap. In each race the King’s horses won, of course. Horses are trained in this manner for a reason sufficiently obvious, in a country where the fortunes of the state and of every individual are exposed to such sudden changes. Every one likes to be prepared with some mode of escape, in case of pursuit; now horses thus inured to running will continue on the gallop for a day together, whilst a high conditioned and well-fed animal would drop at the end of ten miles. For this reason the King always keeps himself well supplied with a stud of this description, as a resource in the event of an accident. When, on the death of his uncle, Aga Mahomed Khan, He was summoned (by Hajee Ibrahim, the Minister of the late King) to assume as the heir the sovereignty, he thus travelled from Shiraz to Teheran, a distance of five hundred miles in six days.

In the interval of the race, the King sent the Master of the Ceremonies to desire the Envoy and his suite to come before him. We dismounted from our horses, and proceeded with the Prime Minister and the Ameen-ed-Doulah, before the King’s presence, making low bows as we advanced. When we were about twenty steps from his Majesty we stopped and made our final low bow. The King was seated on a high212 chair under a canopy, the sides of which were formed of gold cloth, and of looking glasses. The chair itself was beautifully embroidered with enamelled flowers and other ornaments; on one of the arms was a pot of flowers, and on the other a vase of rose-water. On one side was spread a velvet and gold cloth carpet with the pearl pillow. The King was in his riding dress, a close coat of purple velvet embroidered in pearl, the sheep-skin cap, and a pair of Bulgar boots. As he was placed in a good light, we had an excellent view of him. His manners are perfectly easy and unconstrained, with much dignity and affability. He first inquired after the Envoy’s health, of whose good qualities the two Ministers then entered into an immense eulogium, praising him in terms the most extravagant. Then the names of all the party were mentioned to the King, and each was asked how he did. All the conversation was complimentary; and when the comparison was made between us and the French, the King said, “they were haivans, beasts, wild men, savages. These are gentlemen.”

After the whole was over we returned to our horses. The King then mounted, and the salute was fired from the zombooreks. His infantry first marched off the ground; they were dressed differently in black or in crimson-velvet jackets, in loose breeches of crimson or yellow silk, black sheep-skin caps and light boots. The King passed us at a distance on horseback, and we made our bows. He was preceded by a body of chatters, who are dressed with fantastical caps on their heads, and lively coloured clothes. No other person was near him, nor indeed is any other permitted. The King of Persia is an insulated being, alone in his court. How different is the state of the Sultan at Constantinople, who is almost concealed by the crowds of his attendants. The Princes followed, and then the mob. After this we repaired to a tent, where the Ameen-ed-Doulah had prepared a Persian breakfast for us.

On the 26th, the negotiating parties met to discuss a point reserved in the Treaty. The conference terminated without any decision: and213 in this state of uncertainty the question remained for three days, when we were told that it had been decided to our satisfaction; and that I was to see the King on the 30th, and to depart for England as soon after as possible.

On the 30th, accordingly the Envoy and I breakfasted with the Minister, in the expectation of our introduction to the King. His Majesty, however, had gone to ride to Shem-Iroun (“the Candle of Persia,”) a village under the mountain, celebrated for the beauty of the situation and the salubrity of its air. We remained with the Minister all the morning. The Ameen-ed-Doulah was there; his spirits were depressed by the intelligence which he had received from Ispahan, (the government of his son) that the melting of the snow and rain had so swoln the Zaiande-rood, that it had overflowed and injured the country to the amount of three lacks of piastres. It had destroyed, besides many houses and buildings, a large bund or dam, nearly opposite to the Chahar Bagh No. The bund was the work of Abbas, and had cost about twenty times the labour of that at Kohrood. The whole damage was reckoned at thirty lacks of piastres. Kanauts were filled up, and large tracts of rich and productive land were rendered useless for the year. At Ispahan, the water filled the under arches of the fine bridge of Aliverdy Khan, that goes into the great Chahar Bagh. This inundation extended over many districts. An express announced that the river at Pool Dallauk was over the bridge: and that the country was in many places so inundated as to be only passable with much danger and difficulty. The great salt swamp was particularly deep.

The 13th of the month Sefer is looked upon as most unlucky among the Persians; they do not keep in the house on this day, but rather walk out into the fields, in order that nothing may disturb their humours, for a quarrel with any one on this day will entail misfortune through the remainder of the year.

On the 31st we went to the King. At this audience He was seated in a room in a square court called the Gulistan, a name derived from the roses, with which (intermixed with cypress and chenar trees) it was214 planted. We were introduced into it by the two Ministers, through a door small and mean, like those in other parts of the palace, and which are obviously adapted for more easy defence in the event of any sudden alarm. In the centre of the garden is a Koola-frangee, built by Aga Mahomed Khan. The garden itself was arranged in squares, with some miserable palings. Peacocks and hens, great favourites in Persia, were every where walking about. After having paraded through the garden in various directions, (for this also is a part of the ceremonial) we finally approached the presence. We took off our slippers at some distance, and walking on the bare stones, stepped up a difficult staircase into a small and elegant room, in which his Majesty was seated. At the foot of the staircase was a row of eunuchs; and at the top several officers. At our entrance the King desired us to be seated, but we excused ourselves and stood. His Majesty’s throne was that on which he had appeared at our first audience. The Envoy had complained to the Minister, that on that occasion we had no favourable opportunity of seeing the King; and his Majesty had probably been informed of the disappointment, and had condescended in consequence to gratify our curiosity by transfering his throne to a more favourable position, and displaying himself upon it in all the magnificence of his state. He was dressed in a light coat of scarlet and gold cloth; on his shoulders were large layers of pearl and precious stones. On each of his arms were three rows of jewels called the bazebunds; these are his finest jewels, one of which (the Dereea Nore) is one of the largest in the world. Though set in a clumsy manner, they had a rich and royal effect. Round his waist he wore a band about four inches broad of pearl, connected in the middle by a clasp, the centre of which was an emerald of an immense size. In this band he wore a brilliant dagger; from it also dangled a tassel of pearl, which he continually kept in his hand as a plaything. His kaleoon is a beautiful toy: it stood in the left corner of the throne, and was one blaze of precious stones.

On the right of his throne stood four pages, one holding his crown,215 another his shield and mace, a third his bow and arrows, and a fourth his sword. All these are beautiful, particularly his crown: it is in every part thickly inlaid with pearl, emeralds, rubies and diamonds; on the summit is a gika of precious stones, on the sides of which are plumes of herons’ feathers.

His Majesty talked with much familiarity; and asked us, what news from the Yenzee Duneea, that is, the new world, as they call America. He inquired, “What sort of a place is it? How do you get at it? Is it under ground, or how?” He then talked of our government; and appeared aware that the Kings of England could do little without the intervention of their parliament. In the explanations which followed this subject, his Persian Majesty was visibly astonished that any limitation could be placed to Royal authority. The conversation turned; and the King talked of Buonaparte, and launched out in general terms against the French. After the introduction of some other topics, His Majesty dismissed us by a nod of his head, desiring that a kalaat might be given to me, and that a Mehmandar might be appointed to attend me on my journey.

On the 4th April his Persian Majesty sent me my kalaat or dress of honour: it consisted of a kaba or brocade coat that covered me all over; a small outer coat trimmed with fur over the shoulders and down the back, called the coordee; a brocade sash; and (what I believe is considered a great distinction) a sword. The King was pleased to ask what I should like best to receive as a mark of his Royal regard, and when it was left to his Majesty’s decision, He sent me a sword which he had worn himself. His own name was upon it, by which all his Majesty’s swords are known. All these things were contained in a piece of white linen (the sword lying on the top), and were brought in some state by an officer of the royal household. When they were put into my hands, I carried them respectfully to my head, and then retired and put on the different articles. When I came out again full dressed, every body congratulated me by a “moobarek bashed,” (“good luck attend you.”) I continued in this garb for the remainder of the day, although, according216 to Persian etiquette, I ought to have worn it for the three days following the investiture.

In the evening we went to the Prime Minister’s, and were shewn the Treaty with France, signed and ratified at Finkenstein, by Buonaparte, in May 1807. It was written on vellum, in a beautiful French hand, and inserted in a cover of black velvet, curiously and elegantly wrought with a spread eagle at each corner, and the initial N in the centre, in a wreath of gold embroidery. The Great Seal was pendant from it, inserted in a plain gold box. The treaty was countersigned by Talleyrand; and by Maret, the Plenipotentiary appointed to treat with Mirza Reza, the Persian Plenipotentiary. I copied this document (consisting of fourteen articles) in the room, and as we went away, the Minister sent the Envoy the Commercial Treaty, which contained twenty-eight articles.

The 6th was observed as a holiday among the Persians, as the commemoration of that, when Hossein’s head, which had been severed from his body by Yezid at Kerbelai, was buried, after an interval of forty days.

The affairs of Persia are conducted with a publicity which would ill accord with the diplomacy of Europe. As that stipulation, which was the surest evidence of the permanent dispositions of the Court, remained unfulfilled; the Envoy on the 9th of April dispatched, by Jaffer Ali Khan and myself, an official note on the subject to the Ministers, which he desired them to lay before the King. We carried it to the Der a Khonéh Shah, or gate of the King’s palace, where there are offices for the Ministers and Secretaries to transact the business of the state; and where they assemble every day to be ready whenever the King may call them. Here we seated ourselves in the public room among all the officers of the court, waiting for Mirza Sheffeea, and the Ameen-ed-Doulah, who were then before the King. In a back room were men counting money; in that, in which we sat, were the Chief Secretary, Mirza Reza, and Ismael Beg Damgaunee, (the King’s favourite, and commander of the body-guard) and several217 others all occupied in writing, talking, or smoking. When the Ministers arrived, I delivered the public letter accompanied by a private note from the Envoy. Mirza Sheffeea then unfolded the official note. There were perhaps twenty people in the court near the window where the Mirza sat, who looked over the paper, and knew its contents as soon and as well as the Minister himself; and all my expostulations could not procure their removal. When the Minister had read it, he told us he would lay it before the King, and then desired us to retire to another room, where we might eat, drink, and put ourselves at our ease, until the King should send for us.

We went to a room in another part of the palace, and sat there full five hours, during which time we had a visit from a son of the Ameen-ed-Doulah, a young man who has the great post of Comptroller of the Household to the King. His business is to provide for the King’s kitchen, to see every thing before it goes to the King, and to superintend every part of the eating and drinking concerns of the establishment. Whilst we were seated with him, four round trays of lettuces, in the centre of which was a gold vase of vinegar and syrup, Were brought before him. He inspected them, tasted the syrup, and approved them fit for his Majesty’s eating. After that, two young Georgian slaves were brought in for sale, for one of whom the master asked one hundred and fifty tomauns. The five hours, which we passed here, were long and melancholy: the only amusements which were provided to cheer us, were a dish of lettuces, the chief carver, and some specimens of writing: on the latter indeed every one in the company, except myself, could comment at full length. The Persians are great admirers of fine writing, or, more strictly, of penmanship, to excel in which requires, according to their estimate, a practice of twenty years.

At length we were summoned before the King. Preceded by the two Ministers, we passed through the same dirty door, into the same garden in which we had been at the last audience: we made as many218 bows as before, and took off our slippers at the same place; but water had been thrown on the ground, and this last ceremony was therefore very disagreeably contrasted with our former introduction; for instead of the fine gold-wrought carpet in the King’s room, we were now reduced to stand on a wet brick pavement by the side of a basin of water. His Majesty having first inquired after the Envoy’s health, and made some preliminary compliments, reverted to the official note which had been communicated to him that morning by his Ministers. After a short explanation, the King proceeded; and seating himself erect on his throne, in a convenient talking position, talked without intermission for a considerable time with much animation and action. We then returned to the room which we had first entered in the morning.

The Prime Minister sat down close to the window to return an answer to the Envoy’s official communication. Several servants, who were at the window, read this note, word by word as it was written; so that the original and the answer were equally well known to the public. The Mirza repeated to us his letter, and then sending the attendants away, desired to have some conversation with us. The discussion was unsatisfactory, and we returned.

In these circumstances the decision of the Envoy’s character secured the object of his mission. The point was gained, and it was settled accordingly that he should see the King on the morrow. On the morrow accordingly, Mr. Bruce and I, dressed in our kalaats, attended him to the King.

His Majesty was seated in the Koola built by Aga Mahomed Khan, in the Gulistan. He was on a chair, and dressed in a shawl coat. He was very gracious, told the Envoy that he had determined upon our alliance, promised that the French should be dismissed, and hoped that after the decision which he had thus made, His Brother of England would not dissent.

The room was covered on all its sides with looking-glass; of this also,219 the dome which surmounted the whole, was composed. A handsome chandelier was suspended from the centre, and three fountains of water played beneath it.

On the 15th Mr. Bruce was sent to Bushire to proceed to India. The French, in consequence of the Envoy’s successful representations, were preparing to leave Teheran immediately. Their Embassador, General Gardanne, wanted to go to Russia through Georgia; but the court of Persia justly fearing in such a quarter the influence of that resentment, (which, since the signing of our Preliminary Treaty the French had not scrupled to express) refused the permission; and the King ordered his son, the Prince Governor of Aderbigian, to give the French mission an escort of one hundred men, by the way of Arz-roum, and on no account to permit any deviation from that route.

We went before the King; His Majesty’s conversation was quite enlivening. He swore that it was by Him that Buonaparte was made the man that he is, and that in the course of the next year he would be destroyed. We received His Majesty’s letter to the King of England. It was richly gilt and ornamented with flowers. The seal was on a separate piece of paper, and placed at the foot of the letter; according to an old Persian etiquette, when the King addresses an equal: when He writes to an inferior, the seal is affixed to the top. In composition, Persian critics pronounced this letter perfect; the Chief Secretary had been employed in it several days; and that to the Minister for Foreign Affairs was intended to be equally fine, and indeed to comprehend all the politics of the world within its pages.

Under these circumstances, on the night of the 23d, a letter arrived from the Governor-General in India, of which it might be improper to disclose the contents, further than to remark, that they placed His Majesty’s Envoy Extraordinary in a situation of peculiar embarrassment, from which nothing but the most friendly disposition in the Persian court could have relieved him. It is due to the King of Persia himself to add, that He condescended to treat Sir Harford Jones on this occasion with the most gratifying evidences of his protection220 and individual favour: and His Ministers united in displaying the greatest personal kindness towards us. Throughout the whole management of a new and very delicate situation, their proceedings were so plain, so upright, and so cheering; so eager to shew respect and confidence to the Envoy, that we regarded them with the liveliest gratitude; and felt relieved by finding among strangers all the heart and principle of countrymen and brothers.

The French Embassador was already dismissed; and in a few days the King sent an order to the remainder of the legation to quit Teheran immediately. The people were then as inveterate against the French as they had before been disposed to court them. When Messrs. Jouannin and Nerciat prepared to obey this order, and were leaving the city, the mule-drivers (hired by the King for the conveyance of their baggage, and sent forwards in the usual form) stopped at the gate, and cutting the lading from their beasts, threw every thing upon the ground, and ran off. One of the Frenchmen struck a mule-driver in the breast with his dagger.

On the 29th Mirza Abul Hassan, brother-in-law to the Ameen-ed-Doulah, and nephew to the late Prime Minister Hajee Ibrahim, was appointed as Envoy Extraordinary from the King of Persia to accompany me to England. The particulars of his history, which, I learned on good authority, may afford some lights on the internal administration of his country, and will at least be acceptable to those who were interested by his appearance at the Court of London.

Mirza Abul Hassan was born at Shiraz in the year of the Hejera 1190, or 1776 of the Christian Æra. He was the second son of Mirza Mahomed Ali, a man famous in Persia as an accomplished scholar, and who was one of the Chief Secretaries and Mirzas of the celebrated Nadir Shah. His father’s services had nearly been requited by an ignominious and cruel death, when the hand of Providence interposed for his safety, to strike with more severity the head of his atrocious master. Nadir Shah, in one of those paroxysms of cruelty so common to him during the latter years of his life, ordered that Mirza221 Mahomed Ali should be burnt alive, together with two Hindoos, who also had incurred his displeasure. The unfortunate Mirza, on hearing his sentence, remonstrated with the tyrant, entreating him that he might at least be permitted to die alone; and that his last moments might not be polluted by the society of men, who were of a different faith from his own, and on whom he had been taught to look with a religious abhorrence. To this the Shah consented, remitting his death until the next morning, whilst the Hindoos suffered in that same hour. That very night Nadir Shah was assassinated in his tent, and Mirza Mahomed Ali was saved.

The family of Mirza Abul Hassan rose to its greatest power during the reign of Aga Mohamed Shah, predecessor to the present King. The Mirza’s father died in the service of Kerim Khan; his uncle Hajee Ibrahim Khan (uncle by his mother’s side) attained the post of Prime Vizier, whilst himself and the other branches of his family enjoyed the greatest share in the administration of the affairs of the state. It was somewhat before the death of Aga Mohamed Shah, that Hajee Ibrahim bestowed his daughter in marriage on his nephew, after a long and singular courtship. A sister of his wife’s is married to Mahomed Taki Mirza, one of the King’s sons; and a second to the Ameen-ed-Doulah, the second Vizier.

The family, however, was not always prosperous; after some time the King ordered Hajee Ibrahim to be put to death, his relations to be seized, his wives to be sold, and his property to be confiscated. His nephews of course partook of the disaster: one was deprived of his sight, and remains to this day at Shiraz; the youngest, then twenty years of age, died under the bastinado; and the second, Mirza Abul Hassan, who was then the Governor of Shooster, was dragged to the capital as a prisoner. The circumstances of his seizure and escape from death are better described in his own words. He told me, “I was asleep when the King’s officers entered into my room: they seized me, stripped me of my clothes, and, tying my hands behind my back, dragged me to Koom, where the King then was; treating me222 during the march with all the rigour and intemperance that generally befals a man in disgrace. The moment I reached Koom, the King pronounced the order for my execution: I was already on my knees, my neck was made bare, and the executioner had unsheathed his sword to sever my head from my body, when the hand of the Almighty interposed, and a messenger in great haste announced my reprieve. I was indebted for my life to a man who had known me from my boyhood, and who had long cherished me as his son. This worthy man, by name Mirza Reza Kouli, the moment he heard the sentence of death passed upon me, threw himself at the feet of the King, and, pleading my youth and inoffensiveness, entreated that I might be pardoned. The King yielded to his entreaties; my pardon was announced; and I still live to praise the Almighty for his great goodness and commiseration towards me.”

After his providential escape Mirza Abul Hassan, (fearing that the King might repent of his lenity towards him) fled from his country, although he had received his Majesty’s order to go to Shiraz, and to remain there: he left Persia with the determination of never more returning, until the disgraces of his family had been obliterated, and until the wrath of the King against him had entirely subsided. He fled first to Shooster, the city in which he had so recently been all-powerful; and there he experienced the hospitality for which the Arabs are so justly renowned. As his administration had been lenient and temperate he found a host of friends ready to relieve him; and on quitting Shooster, miserable and destitute of even the common necessaries of life, the inhabitants came to him in a crowd and forced seven thousand piastres upon him. From Shooster he went to Bussora, he then crossed through the heart of Arabia, frequently obliged to proceed on foot, for want of an animal to carry him, until he reached Mecca. On this journey he visited Deriyéh, the capital of Abdul Assiz, the then chief of the Wahabees. From Mecca he went to Medina; and having performed all the devotions of a pilgrim he returned to Bussora. At Bussora he learnt that the King was still inveterate against his family; and, finding an223 English ship on the point of sailing for India, he embarked on board of her, and shortly after reached Calcutta, at the time when the Marquis Wellesley was Governor-General of India. From Calcutta he went to Moorshedabad, then to Hyderabad, Poonah, and Bombay; having remained altogether about two years and a half in India. At Bombay he received a firman from the King to return to Persia; by which he was assured of the King’s forgiveness, and of his having been received into favour. He obeyed the firman, and ever since has enjoyed the royal protection. He has not, indeed, occupied any specific post under government, but has been the Homme d’Affaires to his brother-in-law the Ameen-ed-Doulah, second Vizier and Lord Treasurer, by which means he has been continually in active and useful life, until he was nominated the King of Persia’s Envoy Extraordinary to the Court of England.

224

CHAP. XIII.
TEHERAN.

Teheran, the present capital of Persia, is situated, as I ascertained by a meridional observation, in lat. 35°. 40´. It is in circumference between four and a half and five miles, if we might judge from the length of our ride round the walls, which indeed occupied an hour and a half: but from this we must deduct something for the deviations necessary from the intervention of the gardens, and the slaughter-houses. There are six gates, inlaid with coloured bricks and with figures of tigers and other beasts in rude mosaic: their entrance is lofty and domed;225 and they are certainly better than those that we had then seen in any of the fortified places of Persia. To the N. W. are separate towers. We saw two pieces of artillery, one apparently a mortar, the other a long gun. The ditch in some parts had fallen in, and was there supported by brick work.

The town itself is about the size of Shiraz; but it has not so many public edifices: and, as it is built of bricks baked in the sun, the whole has a mud-like appearance. Of the mosques, the principal is the Mesjid Shah, a structure not yet finished. There are six others, small and insignificant; and three or four medressés or colleges. There are said to be one hundred and fifty caravanserais, and one hundred and fifty hummums or baths. There are two maidans; one in the town, the other within the ark, a square fortified palace, which contains all the establishments of the King, is surrounded by a wall and ditch, and is entered by two gates.

The Harem is most numerous, and contains a female establishment as extensive as the public household. All the officers of the King’s court are there represented by females. There are women feroshes, and there is a woman ferosh bashee; women chatters, and a woman chatter bashee; there is a woman arz beggee, and a woman ish agassi; in short, there is a female duplicate for every male officer; and the King’s service in the interior of the harem is carried on with the same etiquette and regularity, as the exterior economy of his state. The women of the harem, who are educated to administer to the pleasures of the King by singing and dancing, are instructed by the best masters that the country can supply. An Armenian at Shiraz was unfortunately renowned for performing excellently on the kamouncha. The fame of his skill reached the Kings ears, and he was immediately ordered up to court on the charge of being the best kamouncha player in his Majesty’s dominions. The poor man, who had a wife and family and commercial concerns at Shiraz, was during our stay detained at Teheran expressly to teach the King’s women the art of playing on the kamouncha.

226

The King’s family consists of sixty-five sons. As they make no account of females, it is not known how many daughters he may have; although he is said to have an equal number of both sexes. It sometimes happens, that many of his women are delivered on the same night, and (if we might give credit to a Persian) one of these happy coincidences occurred during our abode in the capital, when in one night six of his women were brought to bed, four of sons and two of daughters. The Ameen-ed-Doulah had one, indeed, of the babes at his house; and a present was sent for it from Ispahan, composed of four mules laden with all sorts of rich clothes.

The Tahkt-a-Cadjar is a pleasure-house built by the present King, about two miles to the N. E. of Teheran. At a distance it presents a grand elevation, apparently of several stories; but these, on a nearer view, are the fronts of successive terraces. The entrance is through an indifferent gate, at the top of which is a summer-house. It leads into a spacious enclosure: in the middle is the principal walk, bounded on each side by some young cypress and poplar trees, and intersected at right angles in the centre by a stone channel, which conducts a stream at several intervals to small cascades. The building which stands on the first terrace is in form octagonal, crowned by a small flat roofed elevation. It is open by arches on all its sides, and its raised ceiling is supported by pillars. Its interior is arranged in a variety of water-channels, and through the centre passes the principal stream, which runs through the whole building and grounds. This little pleasure-house, though built of coarse materials and but rudely furnished, is erected on an excellent model, and is admirably calculated for the heats of the summer. Under it are subterraneous chambers. Proceeding further on another terrace is a grand pleasure-house, constructed on a less perfect principle than that of the first, though still sufficiently adapted for a summer retreat. Through this also water is introduced from a terrace above. Before this place is a very extensive square of water, in which, as we were told, there were fish; we saw none, but the water itself is most luxuriously clear and refreshing. From this227 we ascended up two terraces much more elevated than the first; on these there were only small reservoirs, from which the water was continually falling into the basins on the successive descents, at the height perhaps of twenty feet between each terrace.

Takht-a-Cadjar.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

At length we entered the main body of the building, which, like all other Persian houses, consists of a large square court lined on all sides with rooms of various dimensions and uses. The choicest apartment of the whole is a small one, placed in the very summit of the building, where every species of native workmanship in painting, glazing, and Mosaic, has been collected. We found here portraits of women, Europeans as well as Persians. The glass is beautifully painted, and the doors are prettily worked and inlaid with poetical quotations carved in ivory. From this there is a delightful view of the town and country. In the other rooms below, there are several pictures of the King and his favourites; one of the subjects is singular, as it represents His Majesty in the costume of a sick man.

The whole of this place is of brick, except the exterior wall, which is mud, flanked however by brick turrets. It is much inferior in workmanship to any of the brick buildings either of Kerim Khan, or of the Seffis. The soil on which it is erected is indeed ill-adapted to the purpose, as it is salt; and the salt oozes out through the walls, and materially undermines their solidity.

The King is building another summer residence, half a mile from the town, called the Negaristan. One house is finished, consisting however of only an arched room, in which are various channels for water and playing fountains. In the garden we found water cresses, of the eatableness of which the Persians appeared totally ignorant.

The climate of Teheran is variable, in consequence of its situation at the foot of high mountains, which on the other side are backed by such a sea as the Caspian. For the earlier part of our stay it was moderate; till the 10th of March the thermometer, which was suspended near an open window in a room unexposed to the sun, was228 at 51° Fahrenheit. On the 10th, throughout the whole day, there was much snow; indeed on the following morning, when the thermometer was at 47°, the heat of the sun produced a partial thaw, which was succeeded by a frost so sharp, that before the close of the day, an officer of the suite, who weighed fourteen stone, was able to walk and slide upon a square reservoir before the Dewan Khonéh, even though the surface had been already broken at one corner. The fall of snow was a seasonable supply of moisture to the country, which had long been without any. On the new moon of March (the 15th of the month) the rain begun, and for some days continued regularly, clearing up about four or five hours before sun-set, and gathering again at night. From the height of the walls which surrounded us, and the want of weathercocks or chimnies, I could collect but imperfectly the quarter of the wind; but, as far as I could judge, it was generally from the S. E. There is a wind sometimes rushing from the Albores on the N. of the bleakness of which the natives speak with dread. From the 23d March (the first quarter of the moon) we had the true ethereal mildness of spring, with light breezes from the westward in the evening. Vegetation was making rapid advances: the rose-trees in the court of our house were already green, and the chenars had just begun to bud. The snow on the Albores was diminishing fast; and the weather generally, which sometimes lowered and then brightened up, was that of an English spring. The thermometer was about 61° to 64°, but in the middle of the day it reached 75°, and the heat in the close streets of the town was very sensible. In the first week of April the mornings were beautiful; but about noon a hot wind set in from the S. E. which increased towards the evening, and died away at night. About the second week the weather became cooler. Every thing was in high foliage, and all our horses were at grass. The heat was then becoming great: on the 19th the thermometer was at 82° in the shade, and at night we had thunder and lightning with a thick haze over the Albores. On the 21st the temperature, which in the interval229 had been at 86°, sunk to 67°. On the night of the 20th there had been a storm; and on the dawn of day we discovered that the Albores, which before had lost their snow, were again covered. These transitions are common to situations like that of Teheran. The rain refreshed the air, and gave strength to the grass, which in the more immediate neighbourhood of the town requires much moisture to enable it to pierce the hardness of the soil. From this time the days continued cool, with rain and frequent storms; and the evenings became almost piercing; but the showers gave a new force to vegetation.

Teheran is considered an unwholesome situation. The town is low and built on a salt, moist soil. In the summer the heats are said to be so insufferable, that all those who are able (all perhaps except a few old women) quit the town and live in tents nearer the foot of the Albores, where it is comparatively cool. We had several illnesses in our family, which we attributed to the water. The symptoms were an obstinate constipation with great gripings, a disorder very common in the place. Our head Persian writer was long laid up with a fever, which brought him to the point of death. He was bled copiously six times in six days. These people put no faith in our medicines, and therefore he would not allow the Physician of the Mission to visit him. At length however he was persuaded by a “fall” which he took in Hafiz, and which pointed out, that he should “trust in the stranger.” The superstitious faith with which the Persians observe these falls is inconceivable: the oracle consists in taking the book of Hafiz, wherever it may chance to open, and reading the passage on which the eyes first happen to alight. That, by which the attention is thus attracted, is the prediction. Before they open the book, they make certain invocations to God. Dr. Jukes accordingly prescribed; but his patient I believe disregarded his advice; and we were despairing about him, when we were told that the King’s physician had been with him, and had given him a water-melon to eat, and that the sick man was now recovering. The theory of Persian medicine is somewhat that of230 Galen: they attribute all sickness to one of two causes, heat or cold. If the patient is supposed to suffer from much heat, they bleed him beyond measure; if from cold, they give him cathartics in the same proportion.

In the belief of Persia there is another and a simpler remedy for malady. Nor perhaps is the credulity confined to Persia: there is I suspect a more general superstition, that to relieve disease or accident, the patient has only to deposit a rag on certain bushes, and from the same spot to take another which has been previously left from the same motive by a former sufferer.

In the time of the Seffis there was also another superstition in Persia, which perhaps is not wholly extinct at this day. Every one who has read Chardin, will remember the history of the coronation of Shah Suleyman, who, because his original name was considered unlucky, was renamed and recrowned.

The fruits which were in season at Teheran in the month of March, and which were served to us every day at dinner, were pomegranates, apples, pears, melons, limes, and oranges. The pomegranates came from Mazanderan, and were really here a luscious fruit, much superior to any that I have seen in Turkey. They were generally twelve inches in circumference. The vegetables were carrots, turnips, spinach and beet-root. Hives are kept all over the country, and we had at Teheran the finest honey that I ever ate, though that of Shiraz is reckoned better, and that of Kauzeroon (which the bees cull from the orange-groves) is considered as still superior. Our mutton was excellent, and very cheap; for a sheep costs two piastres only. The beef was sometimes good; but as their meat is not deemed desirable in Persia, oxen are not kept or fattened for the purposes of the table. We eat a hare which had been caught by a man in the plain, and which we afterwards coursed with our greyhounds. The Persians regard this flesh as unclean in opposition to the Turks, who eat it without scruple.

In April we got delicious herrings from the Caspian, which appears the proper sea for them. They are much larger than those which we231 have on the English coasts, and are called by the Persians the shah mahee, “king of fishes.” In the end of that month we received a fresh salmon of twenty-five pounds from the same sea also, as a present from the Ameen-ed-Doulah. The Persians call it kizzel or golden: it was to the palate as good as any English salmon, though with some of us it did not agree quite so well.

From the account which the Prime Minister gave us of a stone which is burnt in Mazanderan, there must be coals of the finest kind in that province. Among the products of Persia are gum tragacanth, assafœtida, yellow berries, henna (coarser than that of Egypt,) madder roots, which grow wild upon the mountains, and are brought down for sale by the Eelauts or wandering tribes; the Hindoos only export it as returns. Indigo is cultivated for the dying of linen and of beards, and grows about Shooster Desfoul, near Kherat, and in the Laristan. It is not so fine as the indigo from India, which indeed is a great article of the import trade of Persia. They use the leaf only for their beards. There is no cochineal. Cotton is produced enough for the interior consumption of the country. The best manufacture which they make is a cotton cloth, called the kaduck; of this there is an exportation to Turkey. The finest is manufactured at Ispahan. The great and richest produce is the silk of Ghilan and Mazanderan. The manufacturing towns of Persia are Yezd, silken stuffs, stuffs of silk and cotton; Kashan, silks and copper ware; Koom, earthenware; Resht, silks, coarse woollen cloths of which the tekmis are made; Shiraz, swords, fire-arms, and glass-ware; Ispahan, brocades, cotton clothes; Kermanshah, arms; Kerman, shawls.

4th of May. The most beautiful part of the plain about Teheran is that to the S. E. The verdure, when I left the country, was most luxuriant; and the whole animated by peasantry and their cattle. Yet though the spring was thus far advanced, the mountain Demawend (whenever the clouds, which almost always concealed it, rolled away) appeared more than ever covered with snow. The direct distance to it232 from Teheran is about forty miles; to the base of the first mountain is reckoned fourteen miles. We had seen it when it was at least one hundred and fifty miles from us; and were told indeed, as I have remarked before, that it might be seen from the top of the minaret of the Mesjid Shah, at Ispahan, a distance of two hundred and forty miles. It is visible from Resht, and generally along all the south of the Caspian sea; and it is therefore very credible that that sea, which is not more than forty miles from the base, may be seen from the summit, of Demawend. But, according to some accounts, no one ever gained the top; according to others, there is a horse-road through the whole ascent. I was told at Tabriz, by a man of Mazanderan, that he himself knew several who had reached the summit; and, indeed, that Derveishes, led by the information of their books, resorted thither from India to cull a certain plant convertible into gold, and tinging with a golden hue the teeth of the sheep that feed upon the mountain. At the foot of the Albores are many villages and pleasure-houses, and much cultivation; all the rest of the country in that direction is a blank with scarcely a shrub.

On the east side of the plain of Teheran there is an elevated road of a fine bottom running N. and S. which seems to have been connected with the city of Rey. On the 4th of March we visited the ruins of Rey. They are situated about five miles in a south direction from Teheran, and extend as far as the eye can reach over the plain, E. and W. To the E. at the foot of a projecting range, which branches from the Albores, are the remains of the citadel; consisting of walls and turrets, built of mud bricks, which in most places are distinguished with difficulty from mounds of earth. The mass of the height, on which it is erected, seems rather of earth than of rock. Near the foot of the citadel stands a tower, which by our hasty calculation may be about fifty feet in height. It is built of a very fine species of brick, cemented by mortar. Its exterior is arranged in twenty-four triangular compartments, the base of each being about five feet, giving a233 circumference of one hundred and twenty feet. On the summit, between two rows of ornaments in brick, is an inscription in the Cuffick character; the letters of which are formed by small inlaid bricks. The interior was so full of straw and other rubbish, that we could not explore it; the door is to the eastward. The style of building resembles much that of the Seffis; with this difference, that the bricks are put together with a greater portion of mortar, and are of a rather darker colour. About three miles to the Southward on an insulated hill are other buildings, and a turret of the same style as the one just described; and between both is a round tower of stone, with a Cuffick inscription in brick-work. In this turret we observed through a window, that there was a winding staircase in the wall, but we could not find the entrance to it.

Still further on, on the brow of a hill close under the mountain, is a building, partly of ancient and partly of modern construction; this is the tomb of one of the wives of Imaum Hossein. It is composed of two courts and two inner rooms; three old women officiate here over the remains of their female saint. There is much running water all around; part issues from a spring, which gushes out from under a rock. The mountains are arid, with surfaces indicating much mineral below.

Rey is the Rhages of Tobit, and is the city where Alexander rested five days in his pursuit after Darius; after he had made a march of eleven days from Ecbatana or Hamadan. Arrian calls this city one day’s journey from the Caspian Streights.

Rey was reduced by Hubbe, the general of Jenghiz Khan; and from its scattered population arose the town of Teheran. Near the ruins is still a village called Shah Abdul Azeem, with a Zeeauret or place of worship.

Of ancient Persia I learned little. Currimabad is, perhaps, the Corbiana of geography. Near Shiraz is a Bolouk of eighteen villages, called Fasa, from its chief place, which itself is about five or six234 menzils or thirty-five fursungs from Shiraz, and about nineteen from Persepolis. From Fasa to Firouzabad is four menzils; perhaps twenty fursungs. The ruins at both, and indeed in the line between them are great.

A native of Fasa, whom I questioned on the subject, told me that the remains at his city were considered more wonderful than any thing at Persepolis, except the columns. There are great stones with Persepolitan inscriptions. There is a large mound of earth, which, according to the people of his country, was transported by Turks from Turkish territory. The thaubet or government of this place is the most lucrative and respectable about the region.

Jaffier Ali, Resident for the English nation at Shiraz, informed me that the number of the Guebres (worshippers of fire) decrease annually in Persia. They are so reviled and distressed by the government that either they become converts to Mahomedanism, or emigrate to their brethren in India. Their Atech-gau, or chief fire-temple, a large excavation in the ground, in which the sacred element was preserved, was at Firouzabad, seventeen fursungs South East of Shiraz. The orifice is now closed; and the fire indeed, according to a Mahomedan doctor, was extinguished on the day of the birth of his prophet. The remains at Firouzabad attest the former importance of that city. Yezd is now the great seat of the Guebres and of their religion; but they are more poor and more contemned in Persia, than the most miserable of the Jews in Turkey. The works of Zoroaster were collected by his disciple Jamaz, into a book thence called the Jamaz Namah, which is now most scarce.

II. The only hereditary title in Persia is Mirza or Meerza. The derivation of which word is from Emir (Ameer a nobleman) and Zadé a son, &c. This species of nobility is traced very far, and is not creative. The title descends to all the sons of the family, without exception. In the Royal family it is placed after the name instead of before it, thus, Abbas Mirza and Hossein Ali Mirza. Mirza is a235 civil title, and Khan is a military one. The title of Khan is creative, but not hereditary: the sons of Khans are called Aga or Esquire, which is a Tartar title, and more common to Turkey than to Persia. The creation of Khan is attended with few ceremonies, and those very simple. The King sends a kalaat or dress of honour to the person so created, and on his investiture the King gives him a firman announcing to all persons that the bearer of it is forthwith a Khan; and this firman is worn three days on the top of the turban. Any person who derides this patent or who refuses to call the bearer of it by his title, is liable to the penalty of death.

The title of Mirza does not hinder the possessor from receiving that of Khan also; and then the name runs, for example, thus, Mirza Hossein Ali Khan.

The different ranks of civil governors are—1st. The Beglerbeg, who generally resides in the large cities, and controuls the province around: 2d. The Hakim; and 3d. the Thaubet, who severally govern a city or a town: 4th. The Kelounter, who, besides the real governor, resides in every city, town and village, and superintends the collection of the tribute: 5th. The Ket Khoda, who is the chief of a village: 6th. The Pak-kar, who is servant or Hommes d’Affaires to the Ket Khoda, and who transacts the business with the Rayat or peasant. The Pak-kar accounts with the Ket Khoda, and he again with the Kelounter.

The Kelounter is a man of consequence wherever he presides; he is an officer of the crown, and once a-year appears before the Royal presence, an honour which is not permitted to the Ket Khoda. He also receives wages from the King’s treasury, which the Ket Khoda does not. The Kelounter is the medium through which the wishes and wants of the people are made known to the King: he is their chief and representative on all occasions, and brings forward the complaints of the Rayats, whenever they feel oppressed. He also knows the riches of every Rayat, and his means of rendering the annual tribute: he therefore regulates the quota that every man must pay; and if his seal be not affixed to the documents which the Rayat brings forward in the236 time of the levy, the assessment is not valid, and the sum cannot be received.

The three principal branches of the tribute which the people pay are 1st. Maleeat; 2d. Sader; and 3d. Peish-Kesh.

The Maleeat is the hereditary original right of the crown, and consists in produce and money. The King gets in kind one-fifth of the produce of the land, i. e. of wheat, barley, silk, tobacco, indigo, &c. and articles of that description: and one-fifth in money of all the vegetables, fruit, and lesser produce of the earth, which the proprietor may sell. Though the proportion be paid in kind, yet it is assessed, not by the actual levy of every fifth sheaf, &c. but by an indirect criterion of produce, deduced from the number of oxen kept by the landholder; and this part of the revenue is collected accordingly by a corresponding rate imposed upon the growth of the land. Thus the possessor of twelve oxen is supposed to possess also an extent of land, the cultivation of which may require that number, and is therefore assessed to pay a quantity of corn proportioned to the assumed amount of his gross receipt.

The King collects one-fifth also in money of all the vegetables, fruits, and lesser produce of the earth, which the proprietor may sell. Formerly these tributes, either in kind or in money, were only one-tenth: but their amount has been doubled by the present King.

The inhabitants of towns pay according to an assessment imposed on the place, and founded on the number of houses which it may contain, and not according to their individual means. And this levy on any particular town is but a part only of that charged on the district which contains it; thus Ispahan, which for instance has Koom and Kashan within its administration, is required to furnish a specified sum, of which it pays part, and divides the rest among the secondrate towns, which again subdivide their own proportions among the villages around; and collect, each in their gradations, the appointed amount of the tribute, and transfer the whole to the Royal treasury. The government requires that the collector of any given district should237 supply a stated sum, but it permits him likewise to add, as his own profit, whatever he can further exact. Most of these offices are bought and sold. By the amount therefore of the purchase is regulated the rate of oppression. The scale descends; every minor agent is expected to accomplish an appointed task; but is left to choose his own means, and to have no other controul but his own conscience. This is the practice, whatever may be the theory of the administration of the revenue.

The Sader is an arbitrary tax, and is the most grievous to the Rayat. It admits every species of extortion, and renders the situation of the peasant extremely precarious. This impost is levied on particular occasions, such as the passage of any great man through the country, the local expences of a district, or on other opportunities which are continually recurring; so that the Rayat is never certain of a respite. It is assessed in the same manner upon the number of oxen which he may keep. Thus, if sheep are wanted, he who keeps one ox is obliged to give a sheep, and so on with every other demand which may be made.

The Peish-Kesh. This is called indeed a voluntary gift, but it must be offered every year at the festival of the Norooz; and like the regular taxes, is required in the same proportion, according to the means of the people.

By these taxations the condition of the cultivators is rendered more particularly wretched. On the contrary, the merchants are less oppressed than any class in Persia. The shop-keeper indeed (dukiandar) pays tribute; but the proper merchant, (sodager) a distinct order, pays nothing at all to the state, except the duties of the customs, which are comparatively very small, being about one-tenth on the imports; and as they are not affected by any other imposition, they are the most wealthy part of the community.

Landed property in Persia is hereditary, and is known by the name of waky. But on the delinquency of its proprietor, it may be seized by the King, and is then called Zapté Shah. It remains annexed to238 the crown, until the family are again restored, when the estate, according to the pleasure of the Sovereign, may be returned. The King, while he retains such property, generally allows a portion of its produce to the relatives of the former owner, and this allowance is called Moustemeree. Besides the Zapté Shah there are the Halissé or crown lands, that from time immemorial have belonged to the Kings of Persia. They are cultivated by tenants, who defray all the expences, cattle, implements of agriculture, &c. and divide the net profits with the King.

At the death of Kerim Khan, the Royal treasury was nearly empty; but at the death of the late King Aga Mahomed Khan, it is said to have contained fifteen crore of tomauns. Since the times of Kerim Khan the value of bullion has increased greatly; the miscal of gold was then five piastres, it is now eight and a half; that of silver was three hundred dinars, it is now five hundred; and every year the price increases in some small degree. Provisions and labour have of course corresponded in proportion. There is no prohibition against the melting, or the exportation of the precious metals. Every one may convert his own bullion into any use. If he wishes to have his gold coined, he can send it to the mint to be struck into any piece of money; paying the value of a pea’s weight of gold for every tomaun. The right of coinage is secured to particular towns by firmans from the King. Most of the gold is clipped, as every Jew pares a little off. The shopkeepers also contrive to rub the coin on a black stone to try the purity of the metal; by this operation small particles remain on the stone, which are extracted with care, and reserved till a sufficient quantity for a coin be collected. Most of the silver in circulation comes originally from a very fine silver mine in Bokhara. There is another also in Aderbigian, and another near Shiraz, the latter of which is neglected, as the expences have been found to exceed the produce. The King’s treasure is reported, probably with much truth, to be immense. The Persians indeed affirm, that all the money, which is received into the Royal coffers, remains there and never again gets into239 circulation. In a country so poor as Persia, in which there are so few people of any capital, the absorption of a million or a much smaller sum would be immediately felt. If therefore all the sums, which are annually poured into the King’s treasure, had remained a dead stock in his hands, there would not now have been a single piece of gold in Persia. There is no corresponding influx of bullion. Persia exports yearly three hundred and fifty thousand tomauns in specie to India; to meet this drain there is indeed an inadequate supply from their trade with Russia, which purchases with gold all the silk of Ghilan; and again with Turkey, which pays in gold for all the shawls and the little silk which it exports from Persia. Yet it is possible that the King may reserve two-thirds of his receipts; and expend the remainder only, perhaps half a crore of tomauns. This supposition derives some probability, as well from the increase in the value of bullion as from the accounts of the treasures of Aga Mahomed; and further from the common belief of Persia, that a large proportion of the regular expences of the royal establishment are defrayed by the Ameen-ed-Doulah, from sources connected with his office and power. Thus he pays the household, and clothes the servants; he supplies a part of the kalaats at the Norooz; he furnishes the maintenance of the King’s children, and clothes for the new-born infants, and necessaries for the mother. In Persia, when a woman is five months in her pregnancy, she provides clothes for her expected offspring: in this situation the King’s wives send to the Ameen-ed-Doulah a list of all the articles which they may want; and which, frequently at a large cost, he is obliged to produce on the spot. For this purpose he keeps in his house a magazine stored with every description of dress for every age. Every year he is obliged to build new rooms in the King’s Seraglio for the women whom his Majesty may chance to add to his numbers; and for each of these rooms he provides a silver manzal or fire-pan, a lamp and two candlesticks of silver, basins, ewers, dishes, plates, &c. and all of silver. To answer these immense demands, the range of his exactions may well be believed to be unbounded.

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The aggregate of the population of Persia is divided into tribes, part of which live in fixed habitations, and others (the larger proportion indeed, and all the Arabs) live in tents. These tribes never emigrate from their own districts, but all have their winter and summer regions; in the former pitching their tents in the plain, in the latter on the summits and declivities of their mountains. To these districts they adhere strictly, as the line of demarcation for the pasturage of their flocks has been observed from ages the most remote. Each has its records, and can trace its genealogy to the first generation. The most considerable and renowned are the Baktiar, that spread themselves over the province of Irauk; the Failee, that live about the mountains of Shooster or Susa, and extend their frontiers to those of the Baktiars; the Affshars, that live near the lake of Shahee; the Lacs, that are near Casvin.

All the tribes pay tribute. When the King calls upon them for purposes of war, all (excepting the Arabs and the Failee tribe) are obliged to send a proportion of men, who are always ready at his summons.

The names of every one of such men, the names of their fathers, and other particulars of their family, are all registered in the Defter Khona at the seat of government; and at the feast of the Norooz, they attend the King to inquire whether their services for that year are required: if required, they wait the encampment of his Majesty; if not, they are permitted to return, but in either case they receive a stated pay. This is one of the oldest customs in Persia, recorded in their histories from time immemorial. Each tribe has its chief, who is always a Khan, and one of their own race. He generally remains with his people, and has a Vakeel at the capital, who attends daily at the Der-a-Khonéh, and transacts all the business of his principal. He would be the Baron of feudal times, if he were not liable to lose his post at the will of the King. Mr. Bruce informed me that there still exists in Persia an ancient custom, in cases of emergency, of requiring from every mill (the wheel of which is turned by water) a man and horse armed and accou241tred for the field; and of these they reckon one hundred thousand. The reason assigned for the King’s never requiring the attendance of the Failees on his military expeditions is, that in time of old (some say the reign of the famous King Caioum) the Failees fled and lost the battle; and incurred upon themselves and their posterity this interdiction of military service for ever. The people of Ispahan and of Kashan, who either urged or joined the flight of the Failees, were included in the same prohibition; and to this day bear the epithet of arrant cowards, more happy perhaps to live a quiet life at home, than to attempt to regain the reputation of brave men by fighting abroad.

The supplies which are sent receive pay from the King, as well as arms and horses; and when in actual service are fed at the King’s expence. When he no longer wants them they are dismissed to their own homes. The tribes compose the whole military force of the kingdom, except the King’s body-guards, who are never disbanded, and form the standing army of the country. Each Prince Governor of the provinces has also his body-guard, which, in like manner, is never disbanded.

The provinces of Aderbigian, Khorassan, Fars, Kerman, part of Irauk towards Irauk Arabi, are all governed by the King’s sons. The Prince of Aderbigian, it is said, can raise from his different tribes fifty thousand horse and foot, over which the King has no direct controul; but which, in case of war, He can call into action by requiring the attendance of his son with all his forces.

In the same manner the Prince Governor of Khorassan can raise from his tribes twenty thousand horse and foot. The Prince of Fars has likewise a similar command; but his troops have never been summoned to assist the King in his wars, as they are always left for the protection of the Southern parts of Persia. The province of Mazanderan sends twenty thousand horse and foot to the King. As the Qujars or Cadjars, the King’s own tribe, are resident in this province, He looks upon this force as his particular safeguard. This tribe is considered the most242 ancient and honoured in Persia: they reckon among themselves four Kings—Fath Ali Shah, who was killed by Shah Thamas; Hassan Khan, who was killed by Kerim Khan; Aga Mahomed; and the present King, his nephew and successor. Of this tribe there are two races; the first is the Yokaree Bash, of which the King’s family and that of the mother of the Heir apparent are both sprung; the second is the Asheea Bash. The nobility of the King’s progeny varies much according to that of the mothers.

The two great tribes are the Baktiari and the Failee. They consist of one hundred thousand families each, which, at five persons in a family, makes two totals of five hundred thousand souls. The Baktiars, of all the tribes, send the most troops to the King’s service. The King’s body-guard consists of twelve thousand men, half of whom are disciplined in the European manner, and are called Jan-baz, in contra-distinction to those raised and disciplined by the Princes, (and particularly Abbas Mirza, Governor of Aderbigian,) who are called Ser-baz. “Jan-baz” means one who plays away his soul; “Ser-baz” means one who plays away his head only.

The Twelve thousand who form the King’s body-guard are taken indiscriminately from the tribes, or from the population of the cities, but principally from Mazanderan and the tribes connected with the King’s own race. They have their families and homes at Teheran, and in the neighbouring villages, and are ready at every call. They are divided into bodies of three thousand men and do duty by turns in the King’s palace, called the Ark. They are called Kechekchees or Guards, and every such body has a Ser Kechekchee, or Head of the Guard, who always attends when his corps is on duty; and on the relief of the guard a Mirza belonging to the corps reads over every man’s name, and in case of non-attendance the defaulter receives punishment. These Ser Kechekchees are men of so much family and distinction, that one of the King’s own sons enjoys the dignity. The Kechekchees are distributed in all parts of the palace, and are always seen on guard on the243 the towers of the Ark. Their watch-word is “hazir, or ready,” which they continually pass from one to the other. They are a distinct body from the Kechekchees of the city, who are solely attached to the police office, and do the duty of our watchmen, with this difference, that they have a right to ascend the tops of the houses in their midnight rounds.

Besides this body-guard of twelve thousand, the King has three thousand Goulams or slaves, who are horsemen and always attend him when he makes an excursion. All these people, both horse and foot, are paid, fed, clothed, armed and mounted at the King’s expence. Goulam (slave) is here figuratively used to express their devotion to the King’s service; for they are not in reality entered into a state of servitude by actual purchase: on the contrary, they are particularly honoured by the King, and his own favourite Ismael Beg is their commander. This chief is one of those who still exercise the noose with great skill; it is called kummund, and there are some instances of its being still used in their engagements.

DRESS.

The dress of the Persians is much changed since the time of Chardin. It never possessed the dignity and solidity of the Turkish dress, and much less now than ever. So materially indeed have their fashions altered, that in comparing with the modes of the present day, the pictures and descriptions in Chardin and Le Brun, we can recognize no longer the same people. It is extraordinary that an Asiatic nation, so much charmed by show and brilliancy, (as the Persians have always been supposed to be), should have adopted for their apparel the dark and sombre colours, which are now universal among all ranks. In the reign of the Zund Family indeed, light colours were much in vogue; but the present Race, perhaps from a spirit of opposition, cherish dark ones. A Persian therefore looks a most melancholy personage, and resembles much some of the Armenian Priests and Holy Men, whom I have seen in Turkey. Browns, dark olives,244 bottle greens, and dark blues, are the colours mostly worn. Red they dislike; and it is singular that this is a hue, which fashion seems to have discarded even in the countries far beyond the Northern and Eastern confines of Persia; for the merchants of Bokhara, who come down annually to Bushire to buy cloths, totally disregard scarlets, and for that colour will not give any thing like the price, which they will pay for others.

Although the climate requires full as much clothing as that of Turkey, I did not find in my stay among them, that the Persians clothed themselves by any means so warmly as the Turks. As the cold increases, the Turk increases the number of his pelisses, till in the progress of the winter I have frequently seen a small and puny man expand into a very robust and athletic figure: but the Persian’s wardrobe does not thus extend over him as the season advances.

The following is a general catalogue of the articles of their dress:—1. The zeer jumah: a pair of very wide trowsers, either of red silk or blue cotton, reaching below the ancle, and fastened by a string which passes through the top, and is tied before. 2. The peera hawn: a shirt generally of silk, which, going over the trowsers, reaches a few inches below the hips, and is fastened by two buttons over the top of the right shoulder. It goes close round the lower part of the neck, where it is sometimes ornamented by a ribband or thin cord of silk. The opening of the shirt extends to the bottom of the ribs. 3. The alcalock: a tight vest, made of chintz, and quilted with cotton, which ties at the side, and reaches as low as the thin part of the calf of the leg. It has sleeves extending to the wrist, but open from the elbow. 4. The caba: which is a long vest descending to the ancle, but fitting tight to the body as far only as the hips: it then buttons at the side. The sleeves go over those of the alcalock, and from the elbow are closed by buttons only, that they may be opened thus far for the purpose of ablution, when the namaz or prayer is said. There is another species of caba, called the bagalee, which crosses over the breast, and fastens all down the side by a range of buttons to the hip.245 This is generally made of cloth, or of shawl or cotton quilted, and, as the warmer, is most used in winter. 5. The outer coat is always made of cloth, and is worn or thrown off according to the heat of the weather. Of this dress, there are many sorts:—the tekmeh; which has sleeves open from the elbow, but which are yet so fashioned as to admit occasionally the lower part also of the arm. These sleeves are generally permitted to hang behind. The coat itself is quite round, buttons before, and drops like a petticoat over the shawl that goes round the waist. The oymeh, which is like the tekmeh, except that from the hips downwards, it is open at the sides. The baroonee, which is a loose and ample robe with proportionally ample arms, generally made of cloth and faced with velvet, and thrown negligently over the shoulders. 6. Over the caba, comes the shâl kemer, which is the bandage round the waist. This is made either of Cashmirian shawl, or of the common shawl of Kerman, or of English chintz, or of flowered muslin. The proper size is about eight yards long, and one broad. To this is fastened (by a string neatly tied around it) a kunjur, or dagger, ornamented according to the wealth of the possessor, from an enameled pummel set in precious stones, to a common handle of bone and wood. 7. Besides the outer clothes, which I have just mentioned, they have also coats trimmed with fur. Such is the catebee, which is an uncommonly rich dress, covering the whole of the body, with fur over the back and shoulders, fur at the cuffs, and fur inside. It is made of cloth of gold and brocades, with large ornaments of gold lace in front, and forms altogether the most dignified among the habits that I remarked in Persia. 8. They have also a short jacket, called the coordee, which fits close to the body, but with loose flaps as low as the commencement of the swell of the thigh. 9. The warmest of their dresses is a sheep-skin with the fur inside, and the leather part outside. It is called, from its sudorific qualities, the hummum or bath, but it is more generally named the pooshtee or skin. It is an ugly and unpleasant article. The better246 sheep-skins come from Bokhara, and are covered with the finest wool certainly that I ever saw.

The head-dress of every Persian from the King to his lowest subject, is composed of one substance, and consists of a black cap about one foot and a half high. These caps are all jet black, and are all made of skins of the same animals. The finest are taken from the lamb, in the first moments of its birth; and they decrease in value down to the skin of the full-grown sheep, which the common Rayat wears. The lamb-skins are also used to line coats, and make very comfortable pelisses. The only distinction in the head-dress of Persia, is that of a shawl wrapped round the black cap; and this distinction is confined to the King, to the Princes his sons, and to some of the nobility and great officers of state. Cashmire shawls have been discouraged of late, in order to promote the domestic manufacture of brocade shawls.

Like the Turks, and indeed generally like other Asiatics, the Persians are very careful in preserving warmth in the feet. In winter they wear a thick woollen sock; and in the air or in a journey, they bind their feet and legs with a long bandage of cloth, which they increase with the advance of the cold. They have three different sorts of shoes, and two sorts of boots. 1. A green slipper, with a heel about an inch and a half high, with a painted piece of bone at the top. These are worn by the higher classes, and by all before the King. 2. A flat slipper, either of red or yellow leather, with a little iron shoe under the heel, and with a piece of bone over that shoe, on which, as in the first instance, the heel rests. 3. A stout shoe (with a flat sole, turning up at the toe) which covers the whole foot, and is made either of leather, or of thick-quilted cotton. It is worn by the peasants, and by the chatters, or walking footmen.

The boots are, 1. a very large pair with high heels, turned up at the toe, made generally of Russia leather, and covering the leg. 2. A smaller and tighter kind, buttoning at the side, and reaching only to the calf of the leg. When the Persians ride, they put on a loose247 trowser of cloth, called shalwar, into which they insert the skirts of the alkalock, as well as the silken trowsers; so that the whole looks like an inflated bladder. The shalwar is very useful in carrying light baggage, as handkerchiefs, small books, &c. &c. not unfrequently a slight meal.

The Persians shave all the head except a tuft of hair just on the crown, and two locks behind the ears: but they suffer their beards to grow, and to a much larger size than the Turks, and to spread more about the ears and temples. They almost universally dye them black, by an operation not very pleasant, and necessary to be repeated generally once a fortnight. It is always performed in the hot-bath, where the hair being well saturated takes the colour better. A thick paste of Khenna is first made, which is largely plastered over the beard, and which after remaining an hour is all completely washed off, and leaves the hair of a very strong orange colour, bordering upon that of brick-dust. After this, as thick a paste is made of the leaf of the indigo, (which previously has been pounded to a fine powder), and of this also a deep layer is put upon the beard; but this second process, to be taken well, requires two full hours. During all this operation, the patient lies quietly flat upon his back; whilst the dye (more particularly the indigo, which is a great astringent) contracts the features of his face in a very mournful manner, and causes all the lower part of the visage to smart and burn. When the indigo is at last washed off, the beard is of a very dark bottle green, and becomes a jet black only when it has met the air for twenty-four hours. Some, indeed, are content with the Khenna, or orange colour; others, more fastidious, prefer a beard quite blue. The people of Bokhara are famous for their blue beards. It is inconceivable how careful the Persians are of this ornament: all the young men sigh for it, and grease their chins to hasten the growth of the hairs; because, until they have there a respectable covering, they are supposed not fit to enjoy any place of trust.

Another singular custom is that of dying the hands and feet: this is done by the abovementioned Khenna, which is generally put over248 every part of the hands and nails as far as the wrist, and on the soles of the feet, the toes, and nails.

From the comparative shortness of my stay in Persia, I cannot presume to delineate the national character. I shall therefore spare the reader any general observations which can be rendered of decisive authority only by the experience of years, and an intimate acquaintance with the literature and amusements, as well as with the administration of a country. The simple incidents of my journal, as they occur, may perhaps afford to every reader better materials for the illustration of the manners and society and government of Persia, than any systematic conclusions which I might have been able to extract from the same scenes and subjects.

ROUTE
From Teheran, the Northern Capital of Persia, To Amasia, in the Road to Constantinople, in 1809.
By James Morier.
With Additional Particulars by Major Rennell.

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CHAP. XIV.
TEHERAN TO TABRIZ.

The 7th of May 1809, which (as being the festival of Omar-Coushen, or the killing of Omar) was considered a very lucky day, was at length fixed for our departure. Mirza Abul Hassan (the Persian Envoy Extraordinary) and I sent on our baggage in the morning to Imaum Reza, about three miles from the city, and followed ourselves at five o’clock in the evening. I was accompanied by my best of friends, Sir Harford Jones and the rest of his suite, and we had our parting dinner in a tent which he had pitched there for the purpose.

The spot at which we stopped was the tomb of a son of Imaum Reza, frequented as a place of devotion. It is a square building, covered with a cupola, and enclosed in a square by a wall; beyond which, in a row on each side, are some young trees and shrubs and flowers. The250 country all around was in a high state of verdure. I went to the top of the gate of the tomb, from which I took the following bearings: Teheran N. 70 E.; Demawend N. 50 E.; extremity of the Albores (at the foot of which leads the road to Casvin) N. 70 W.; Rey S. 45 E.

8th. After having conversed with Sir Harford on matters of business, I slept till three in the morning, and then set off. Sir Harford accompanied us for some time, but quitted us at half an hour after sun-rise.

The plain of Teheran is covered with villages: I could count twenty to the right and to the left. The road followed, as far as Karatch, the bearing of N. 70 W. which I had taken on the preceding day. At about ten miles from the Imaum Reza, we came to a dike cut from the river at Karatch, from which our water-carriers were used to bring drinking-water for our party at Teheran. At about six miles from Imaum Reza is a village called Geldisi, distant three miles on the left: another at the foot of the Albores called Kend; further on the left is Ali-shah-abad, a larger place, with many trees around; then Sherar; then high on the hills to the right a pretty village called Boragoun. As we approached we saw the bed of the river called Aub Karatch, running about S. W. which I am told takes its source in the Albores, and runs towards Kinar-à-Gird. The bed is large, but it was then only partially filled. We crossed at the winding of the road over a brick bridge of two arches of different sizes: near it are some ruins of other brick buildings, apparently of the same age. In this spot is an inlet of the mountains, which seems to form a pretty plain, and in which I remarked some hamlets.

The tomb of the son of Imaum Hassan renders Karatch a pleasing object at a distance. The dome is shaded by the rich foliage of two fine ehenar trees, and a stream cut from the river runs near the walls. The Persian Envoy informed me that this village, and those on the plain, belong to his brother-in-law the Ameen-ed-Doulah, and were formerly the property of his uncle the late Prime Minister. The Mirza himself251 took up his lodgings in the tomb; my Mehmandar put us in the house of a peasant, which was clean though small; the people here burn cakes of cow-dung for their common fuel. In a little enclosure behind the house was a vine. The sun-set N. 70 W.

9th. We departed from Karatch at one o’clock in the morning, and, as well as I could ascertain our bearing by the stars, continued our route in the direction of the preceding day. Two fursungs from Karatch, in a plain of immense extent, is Kemelabad. We were told that the road to our stage through the plain was swampy; we therefore chose another to the right, which (after a ride of four hours and a half, and a distance perhaps of sixteen miles) brought us, about sun-rise, to a delightful village called Koran.

On the breaking of the morning we had discovered an immense plain, so thickly strewed with villages, that no one could repeat to me all their names. The whole, in number about one hundred, compose the bolouk or district of Souj-bolouk, and are mostly under the Ameen-ed-Doulah.

At Koran we saw the Hakim or Governor, as he was setting out on an expedition to collect the tribute from the peasantry. The village and the surrounding territory are delightfully watered by a river, which, issuing from between an Eastern and a Western chain of mountains, flows through a very steep channel, (in a N. and S. direction, after meandering some time from E. to W.) A great number of dikes, are cut from it, and extend the fertility beyond the course of the river, through the whole plain; which, particularly near the villages, is admirably cultivated.

From Koran we returned to the line, and met the road at a point where stood a caravanserai and a tomb, both in ruins, and a clump of trees. We were four hours in reaching Gauzir-seng, our Menzil, a total distance from Karatch of twenty-eight miles.

In the plain through which we passed, we saw at a distance about five tumuli. They are such as are seen on the plains of Troy, and here252 also are called Tapé. We may account for them by the battles between the Persians and Turks, who buried their dead under similar mounds. There are numbers all over the plain: the people of the country say, that borges or towers were built on these mounds; and our host at Gauzir-seng told us that a large tapé called Murad-tapé, or the Hill of Charity near the village, received its name from a man who had made it his residence. His story (if it be worth telling) continued however, that a stranger, who had asked charity in vain even on this hill, found at the door the master’s horse, and rode off with it, exclaiming, “this is your charity.”

At Gauzir-seng, we were lodged in one of the towers that flank the walls of the village. It was open on all sides by windows; we could thus enjoy the Westerly breeze, which allayed the great heat of the day. We were very well treated by the Ket Khoda of the village, who seemed to me a well-bred and well-meaning man. We had good moss, (curdled milk, the same as the yaourt, in Turkey) and a sort of drink made of moss and water, of which the common people all drink very plentifully at this season.

10th. We left Gauzir-seng at midnight, and came to Kish-lauk, bearing West of our last station, on a distance of about fifteen miles.

The Prince of Aderbigian has a pleasure-house here, which is extolled by Persians as a wonder and a paradise. I could discover the extent of the grounds, and the house, which is built on one of the artificial tapés or mounds.

A most beautiful morning opened the day to us; the twilight commenced at four o’clock, and the sun rose at five. The mountains, still bearing East and West, declined in their height to the Westward, terminating towards the plain by small hills. After passing Kish-lauk we came on a common, on which large herds of cattle were feeding. To the left of the road were many villages spread all over a plain, the extent of which was concealed by a haze: the whole district is divided into many bolouks, and is under the jurisdiction of Casvin. The prin253cipal villages on the left are Hossein-abad, Hassan-abad, Shahinerlou, Shahin-tape. Some on the right, are Angouri mahalé, and compose part of a bolouk called Kou-payéh, belonging to Mirza Reza Kouli, who was Embassador to France, and signed the treaty of Finkenstein.

At about seven miles from Casvin, we turned from the road at a small mud-walled village, to eat something ourselves, and to give our horses some grass. On entering a room, the master talked Turkish to me, and said that he had seen me before at Constantinople. In fact I recognised him as one of those whom I had seen at Constantinople, with the Persian Embassy to France. He talked to me with much pleasure of Frangistoon or Europe: and this man, who boasts of having sat in the same room, and of having been taken by the hand by Buonaparte himself, now lives in misery and solitude in an unknown village. It is not uninteresting to know the extreme attention which Buonaparte paid to his Persian guests. He lodged the Embassador and his suite in an house adjacent to his own at Finkenstein, and every day used to walk in amongst them, take them by the hand, and use every little art to conciliate their affections.

We reached Casvin at half past twelve. The day was hot and suffocating, and there was an appearance of storm in the Westward. For about two miles before we entered the gates, we passed by fields and gardens, mostly producing vines, which, as I am told, yield the best grape in Persia. This place labours under great inconvenience from the want of water; indeed, through the whole extent of the immense plain, that we traversed during the day, there was not one natural stream; but many kanauts were making, and wherever there is irrigation, there is fertility, and the cultivation is rich. Upon the whole therefore, our route from Teheran displayed a country of much more promising appearance, than (if we had trusted only to the experience of our own journey from Bushire to the capital) we might have expected in Persia. The brother of the Minister of Sheik Ali Khan, one of the King’s sons, and Governor of the city, came out to meet us as an istakball,254 and accompanied us to an house, which had been once a good one, but was then abandoned and in ruins. Our Mehmandar had great difficulty to procure the refreshment that was due to us; but when at length it arrived, there was a supply of cooks, pots, and provisions, which would have satisfied an army. Casvin is almost one mass of ruins. A Zibzileh (an earthquake), within no distant period, threw down the buildings which were in the Tottie, and made cracks in almost every wall. A large mosque, built by the Abbasses, has been rent in many places in its thick walls, and totally ruined.

11th. The storm of thunder and rain which we had foreboded, fell in the evening of the preceding day, and refreshed the air which had been sultry, and gave us a most delightful morning.

We left Casvin just as the morning broke at about four o’clock; and proceeded in a direction of S. 40 W. to Siah Dehan, a village in the plain of Casvin, a distance of twenty miles, called six fursungs, which we performed in five hours. The road over this part of the plain was the most beautiful and the most level of any that I had seen in Persia. It was fine hard gravel; and the plain on each side of it was in high verdure, one grass plat on which many thousands of cavalry might manœuvre admirably.

The villages continued as numerous as those that we had before remarked in our last day’s route. They were neatly entrenched in square walls with towers at each angle. The wind which blew from the Northward refreshed the air, and made it even cold: this, which is here the prevailing wind, is called the Baad Gagazgoon, as it blows from a little district of that name, composed of ten or fifteen small villages, situated on the N. hills. At four miles from Siah Dehan we stopped at a village on the side of the road called Keck. The inhabitants looked at us over the walls, and did not seem willing to come out to us; at last a little boy ventured forth: I questioned him about his own village and those around, but he seemed shy in giving answers; and when he saw me take out my pocket-book to write down the memoranda, he asked me with a very suspicious face, “What are you writing there?” and then255 ran off as fast as he could. In a little time after we heard his companions cry out, “they are Roos,” (or Russians), a report which, of course, he had spread abroad in his village, to the fear of all the inhabitants.

The name of the villages, according to his intelligence, were, Kenish, distant two fursungs, N. 10 W.; Akchegan, one fursung and a half, N. 60 W.; Ash-hasar, N. 40 W.; and Alangaya, two fursungs, N. 30 W. All this plain is under the jurisdiction of Casvin; I should think it about thirty miles in breadth, but a haze over the country might deceive me. The mountains to the right are here diminished to hills; and, joining the Southern mountains on a bearing of S. 40 W. terminate the plain of Casvin. On the plain we saw the houpe, partridges, and two deer, with many flocks of sheep. Siah Dehan has about five hundred houses. The inhabitants complain of a great scarcity of water; and, though their village is surrounded by gardens, they expect altogether but miserable crops. They told us, with much warmth, of the injustice with which another village had appropriated the water of Siah Dehan to their own use, by turning the course of the Kanauts. We were lodged in the best house that the place could afford, and had a barber to wait on us. This custom of making the barber the Homme d’Affaires is common to the villages around.

12th. We went from Siah Dehan to Nouri, a place situated at the end of the plain of Casvin, and the first in the Bolouk of Hamzé. The distance is called six fursungs, but from the time (seven hours) that we were on our horses, I should reckon it at twenty-five miles. As we set off at midnight I did not distinguish much on either side, till the break of day, when I discovered several very pretty villages, on the hills and near the side of the road to the left. The plain had here narrowed to a breadth of about three miles: the hills to the right were quite diminutive, and those to the left were decreasing in their height. The bearing of Nouri from Siah Dehan may be about W.; this is a guess, for at night I could only judge by the position of the stars, and in the day my256 compass would not traverse. We stopped at a village called Courvé, to feed our horses on the new barley which was in some places breast-high. A peasant told us that two neighbouring villages to the Eastward were called Ziabet and Parsin; they are situated on the banks of a small stream, which meanders through the plain from W. to E. There are many other villages, the names of which I did not learn, all surrounded by cultivation, and forming green and picturesque objects. The whole country, indeed, was one carpet of verdure; and on the breaking of the morning the freshness of the odour was beyond any thing grateful. We had several severe showers; the storm gathering over the Western hills, and falling down in great torrents. This rain, so providential for the poor Rayats, seemed to spread universal joy amongst them.

13th. We proceeded this morning just as the sun rose, and were four hours on the road, to Sihin Caléh, on a bearing of N. 45 W. and a distance called four fursungs, and by my calculation about fourteen miles. At about three miles on the left of the road, amid very picturesque scenery, is the small village of Sherafabad. From this at the distance of a mile, (in a situation equally picturesque, and surrounded for a considerable distance by trees and cultivation) is the large place of Abhar. About three miles further on, still on the same side of the road, lies Khorremderré, in the bosom of trees and gardens.

We stopped on its skirts to feed our cattle, and to breakfast. We seated ourselves under the shade of some cherry trees, and by the side of one of the running streams of fine pure water, which abound in the neighbourhood. We met a caravan on a pilgrimage to the tomb of Imaum Reza, at Mesched; the Chaoush or conductor of which, (a man on horseback carrying a green triangular flag) complained to us that the people at Khorremderré had stolen his cloak. We sent a man with him into the town, and after some difficulty, procured the recovery of the garb to its right owner.

Tomb of Sultan Mohamed Khadabende
Sultaniéh.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

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The next village was Heeah, still on the left; and then Sihin Caléh, to which (at the distance of about a mile) we turned off from the road on a bearing of W. All these villages are in the Mahalé of Hamzé. Grass is extremely plentiful all over this country; and, from all that I can see, the passage of a large body of men would not be impeded by the want of provisions. On these plains the King’s horses graze annually: and here every summer his troops are collected. Magazines for their supplies are formed at Sultaniéh. A strong wind from the Westward blew from two hours before sun-rise to two hours before sun-set, and brought clouds with it; in the morning it was unpleasantly cold. On the rising ground to the Southward of Sihin Caléh, are some ancient tomb-stones, some of which are carved in a curious manner; among other things, there was a lion in stone—a certain sign of antiquity. The Arabic character also appeared to me very old.

14th. From Sihin Caléh we went to Sultaniéh, a distance called five fursungs; we were five hours on the road, and, as we walked a good pace, I should place the whole at sixteen miles. Of these twelve are on a bearing of N. 40 W. to a pass (called Teng Ali Acbar) through a small rising of the plain; and the remainder to Sultaniéh, N. 80 W. On the height of the pass are the ruins of buildings, which are said to be those of the gate. From this pass Sultaniéh is immediately seen; it lies near the Southern hills, and spreads itself N. and S. over the plain to a considerable extent, containing the present village among the ruins of the ancient city. I went to a tapé on the South, before we entered the place, and took a general view of the whole.

The principal object among the remains of the ancient town is an immense structure, which is called the tomb of Sultan Mohamed Khodabendeh, and is said to be six hundred years old. A cupola rests on an octagonal base, on each angle of which arose a minaret; one only of which is now entire. At each angle also was a staircase, and in each of the sides was a door; and, as there is one wing which pro258jects from the base, the whole probably, in its original plan, was similarly surrounded by additional buildings. The principal gate fronted the East: it is now in part remaining, but in a short time will be entirely demolished; as during our visit there were many workmen employed in pulling it down, to use the materials in some of the King’s pleasure-houses. The whole structure is of a fine brick admirably put together. The cupola and minarets were covered with a green-lacquered tile, most of which is now pealed off. The great architrave was of Moresque work of a dark-blue-lacquered tile. The arches of the gates were all enriched with curious ornaments in plaster. The interior is still admirable, though it is now converted into a magazine of straw. Nothing however intersects the beautiful symmetry of the dome. The interior diameter is thirty-five paces, and on a rough calculation, the height of the dome must be about one hundred feet. In the centre of the floor among the straw is a pillar of white marble, probably belonging to the tomb of the King, which is said indeed to be immediately in that position below the surface. The people told me that there were many fine marbles under the straw; and I saw (without being able to find any descent to them) several arches under ground, which perhaps, support the whole floor. Over each gate is a gallery, which extends along the base of the dome, and leads into smaller galleries within, and into others also on the exterior of the building. These are beautifully adorned with the neatest work that I had ever seen; all the cornices of the doors, the segments of the arches and the various niches are covered with Arabic sentences; which in some places are surmounted in a smaller character by Cufic inscriptions, all either painted in fresco, or raised in plaster. The whole structure looks more like a mosque than a tomb, compared at least with those at Constantinople; but of any description, and in any place, I do not recollect a building which could have surpassed this in its original state. I ascended to the top of one of the shattered minarets, and took the following bearings; road to Hamadan S. 50 W.; Teng Ali Acbar, S. 70. E.

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This monument appears to stand in the Ark or citadel of the ancient Sultaniéh. Its area is a square (a side of which, on a rough calculation, might be three hundred yards) and is marked out by a ditch still full of water. Part also of the ancient wall is yet standing, and bears N. 40 E. from the tomb; it is about fifty feet high: the exterior surface is fine, and the stones, which however are soft and crumbling, are well fitted together. At the angle of the ditch, there is the segment of a round tower still remaining; on one of the stones of which is an Arabic inscription, stating that it was built by Sultan Mahomed Khodabendeh; and there is likewise a small rude sculpture of a combat between two horsemen. At the summit of the wall also, there appears to be some representation of lions or sphinxes’ heads. Mirza Abul Hassan told me that he remembered, when twenty years ago the greater part of this wall was standing. The Persians, to illustrate the original splendour of the city, say, that when the army of Jenghiz Khan took and plundered Sultaniéh, they found in it six hundred thousand golden cradles.

Here are the remains of several mosques without the enclosure of the ditch, one of which seems to have been a fine edifice; they are all built of the same materials as the tomb. Few monuments in Persia can hope to survive many ages; for the Kings, who succeed the founders, are anxious only to be founders themselves, and instead of taking a pride to preserve the works of their predecessors, as records of the genius or greatness of their monarchy, they take pains only to destroy them, that they may build new structures with the materials, and attach their own names also to great buildings; never considering how short-lived, by their own example, will be their reputation after their decease. The principle extends to private life, and to a certain degree accounts for the numbers of ruined houses which swell the circumference of Persian cities. Every son is unwilling to repair and inhabit the house of his father, and is eager to impose his own name on some new work. The present King has undertaken to found at Sultaniéh a new city, which is to be called Sultanabad. The inhabitants are to be260 supplied from the neighbouring villages, and from the population of Aderbigian. The Ark or citadel is already built: it is situated close to the King’s pleasure-houses, N. 50 W. from the tomb. The King and all his troops encamp about June in the plains for many miles around.

There are an immense number of a peculiar species of rats in the plain, which dig themselves holes in the ground. Our people caught several: they have the squeaking of a musk rat, and sit on their hind legs; I caught one and took a drawing of it; it was big with young, and had four teats on each side; in colour it was an ugly dun, and in length measured fifteen inches from the head to the tail: it had five claws on both fore and hind feet, and long nails at the end. Its head was flat with a black nose, large black eyes, and an orifice for the ear without any skin to cover it; its tail was bushy, and spreading at the end.39

15th. On quitting Sultaniéh we stopped at the King’s pleasure-house, which is built on the tapé or hillock, about three quarters of a mile from the present village. It consists of four divisions, all enclosed within walls, and raised with materials from the demolished structures of the ancient city. The first contained a suit of apartments for women; the second was a polyangular building, as yet unfurnished (crowned at the top by a small dome) surrounded by a railing, and called like so many others, Koola-frangee. This, as we are told, was built after a drawing given to the King by one of the Gentlemen of the French Embassy. From this we went through a long arched and gloomy passage to the King’s Khalwet or private room. Here there is a picture of his Majesty killing a stag in the chase, and a portrait of each of his principal sons, painted in fresco on the walls. From this we went to the fourth, which is the Dewan Khonéh, and opens upon the whole of261 the plain. Here the King sits in state; and, on a terraced platform below stand his sons and nobles: the whole is on a small and trifling scale, and displays no great ingenuity in the builder or wealth in the possessor.

We proceeded to Zengan: the distance is called six fursungs, and we performed it in six hours; but from the quick pace at which our horses walked, I may reckon it at twenty-four miles. Till the last four miles our route bore N. 30 W.; we then turned to N. 80 W.

The mountains on the left diminished very much, and were green to their summits. They terminated at a bearing of W. and behind them commenced another chain, which, when the immense clouds on their summits occasionally rolled off, appeared very high.

The plain ground over which we had travelled from Casvin, now became hilly and broken; and in some places the soil, which before had been universally hard, was soft; and the road, from the rain which had fallen, was rendered swampy and muddy. In the course of the day indeed we had much rain, though only in showers; and in the morning there was a rainbow. All this part of the country is well watered by a variety of small streams, but by no one of any note. We saw the plough at work in many parts of the country on a fine rich soil. The plough here is a rude instrument indeed; it is a large piece of wood making an angle with another, which being sharpened at the end, and frequently tipt with iron, forms the plough-share. It is drawn by two oxen or sometimes by one, and sometimes only by an ass. About six miles before we reached Zengan, on the left of the road there is a well-built village with walls and towers all around, and a small Ark in the centre, called Dehsis. The vegetation all over the country is extremely rich, and certainly the most luxuriant which we had seen.

Zengan is a large town, and is the capital of the Mahalé of Hamzé, which contains one hundred villages. The whole district, by the gift of the King, is the property and government of Ferrajoula Khan, the Nasakchee Bashee. The Mahalé pays no revenue, but it furnishes the King five thousand horsemen complete, who are paid, fed, and262 clothed from its own produce. On entering the town there is an immense enclosed garden full of every species of trees.

16th. From Zengan we went to Armaghanéh, and were six hours on the road; on a general bearing of N. I call this also twenty-four miles, as we walked a good pace. On the left, in a valley, I saw several villages; the two principal of which are Koushek and Barri. Others are also situated on the declivity of the hills; the road all the way is full of ascents and descents; and at about five miles from Zengan we came to a valley, perhaps a bend and a continuation of that which we had already noticed. At the bottom flowed from E. to W. a stream of beautiful water, which came from the mountains to the N. E. of our route, and which was formed indeed principally by the melting of their snows and the rains. In its vicinity was much cultivated ground; and the peasants had raised its waters in many places to carry the fertility still further into the fields. At the interval of about six miles there is a similar valley and a similar stream, the waters of which equally assist the cultivation of the country, and redeem it from the waste of the intermediate tract. We saw many tents of Elauts of the tribe Choisevend, whose cattle were grazing in the line between the two streams. They were represented to me as very warlike and brave, on which account the King enrolled many of them in his Goolams and troops; and I was told, that they had been the principal heroes in the war with the Russians. Their tribe consists of six thousand families. Their chief is at Teheran, and is a Khan of much consequence. They live always in tents, changing their situation with the seasons, and are very rich in camels. After having crossed the second stream we rested, and fed our horses on the new barley, which was there about a knee high. As we proceeded we met a caravan of pilgrims, from Derbend on the Caspian, going to the Zeeauret of Mesched. Not one could speak a word of Persian; indeed Turkish, from this point and henceforward, is the vernacular language spoken by the people of the villages; and it is rather rare to find any one of the inhabitants who can talk Persian fluently. These pilgrims wore a white band about their sheep-skin caps as a mark263 of their holy destination; and preceded by a Chaoush bearing a green flag, joined all in loud cries as he excited them.

About four miles before we reached our stage we came to a third stream, which run with great velocity through different artificial channels, and the borders of which were richly cultivated with rice and barley. On the right, just before Armaghanéh, is a little village called Houlouléh.

The whole region from Zengan is intersected at almost regular distances by vallies; in one of which lies Armaghanéh, so concealed by its situation, that it is scarcely seen till it is entered. To the Westward appears a long range of mountains; but the hills which we had passed in the day’s march, though sometimes of rock and flint, were generally green to their very summits; and the soil was mostly rich earth, which, in some places, was spread with the hues of a thousand flowers. Throughout the whole tract, indeed, every thing was in life and spring. The animals felt the influence of the season; and our horses in passing the herds around were scarcely manageable. One threw his rider; and after having given him a bite on the shoulder, attacked his fellows, and fought with some fury. The singing of the larks in the morning, and the whole tribes that swept along the air, gave a zest to the freshness of the dawn that was beyond description. The whole creation seemed to give praise to its great Creator.

Armaghanéh also is included in the Bolouk of Hamzé. In the town there is a square fort. In the room, into which we were introduced, there were several European inscriptions, mostly in Russian, but one in Latin, written I suspect by a Frenchman’s pencil, and worthy therefore to be transcribed, as displaying the spirit and temper with which they left the country:

“VENIMUS, VIDIMUS, ET MALEDIXIMUS PERSIDI;
“REGIQUE, AULÆQ; MAGNATIBUSQ; POPULOQ;—
“SCRIBEBANT IDIBUS APRILIS, 1809 * * *.”

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M. Jouannin and his companion indeed, by all the accounts which I received in following the line of their route, had no greater reason to be satisfied with their accommodations on the road, than with the mode of their leaving Teheran. We were told at Sultaniéh, that no one there would furnish them with mules to transport their baggage, and they were obliged to be content with asses.

The night was so cold at Armaghanéh that we had a fire, and our people wore their sheep-skins. Armaghanéh indeed, and our next stage, Auk-kend, are very high.

17th. We quitted Armaghanéh at four o’clock (an hour before sun-rise, and enjoyed the freshness, not to say cold) of the twilight, and the beauty of the breaking morning. We were seven hours on the road to Auk-kend, which I shall reckon a distance of twenty-eight miles, on a general bearing of N. 15 W. Our road was over a succession of hills, the vallies of which were mostly cultivated. The whole surface indeed was generally green, and displayed an appearance of more prosperity than any part which we had seen on the other side of Teheran. The soil, though in many places broken by rocks and slate, was fine, and watered by many small streams. At about twelve miles from Armaghanéh on the left of the road, is the village of Dasht-Bolagh, situated nearly between two conical hills; on the tops of which are collections of rocks, appearing at a distance like the ruins of towers.

After this we reached an eminence, from which an immense range of high mountains covered with snow, extended itself before us. The highest peaks bore on a general line of North; and, from all that I could learn, are not far distant from Resht. The general chain approaches the shores of the Caspian; but on all geographical subjects it is difficult to trust the class of persons, from whom alone on the spot the information can be obtained. They very generally exaggerate, and are at any rate very ignorant.

The whole region (between these mountains and those to the S. and W. indeed on every side) is undulatory, without a single clump of trees to enliven the sameness of the prospect; if therefore I had seen265 this part of the country in winter, I might perhaps have felt it still more inhospitable than any that we had crossed in the South. But now cultivation was seen in patches; here the corn was green, there lands were just under the ploughman’s hands.

As we were eating our breakfast we were overtaken by a man from Teheran, who was carrying to the Prince of Tabriz the intelligence that (after a siege of twelve successive years) the King’s troops had taken the strong place of Tourchiz, on the confines of Khorassan and Usbec Tartary, together with Mustapha Ali Khan Arab, the Governor, his troops, and the treasures that it contained. It is six days journey, as far as I could learn, South from Mesched, and is a fortress on the summit of a mountain, rendered strong by its natural situation. It gives its name to a very warlike tribe in Khorassan, of which the Governor, Mustapha Ali Khan Arab, was the chief. A great part of the treasures of Nadir Shah is said to have been preserved unbroken in Toorchiz, which would thus further swell the King’s collection of jewels and gold. I asked a Persian what the King would do with the Governor? he said, “Kill him to be sure;” and when I suggested, that it might be better to retain in his own service a man so bold and determined, he answered, “No: such sort of things may be very well with you; but the Persians are not so; the better you treat them, the worse they will treat you. The King, if he were not to kill him, would never be sure of him, for he would certainly rebel against him.”

On approaching Auk-kend, one of our attendants, who had dismounted for the purpose of letting his horse walk easily up the hill, by some chance suffered him to escape: all attempts to catch him were vain, until a chatter or walking footman, belonging to Mirza Abul Hassan, seized him by the bridle, when the horse retired some steps, and then open-mouthed made a bound at the chatter, caught him by the neck, and placing one of his fore-knees upon him, kept him thus with his head on the ground, until he was beat off. He was then seized by his master, to whom he meditated the same fate, and whom266 in fact he threw down most violently with his fore feet, though the final and furious gripe was prevented.

Auk-kend is now the frontier place in Aderbigian; the original boundary was the river Kizzil Ozan, but it has been thus extended through the King’s favour to his son Abbas Mirza, the Governor of the province. Auk-kend indeed is in the district of Khalcal, which, though certainly under the jurisdiction of the Prince, is immediately administered by two Khans, and contains two hundred villages, extending between Resht and Ardebil. Formerly it was a very flourishing region; but the war with Russia, in which it has been obliged to supply troops, and at its own expence pay, feed, and clothe them, has much impoverished it, and, as the Persians say, “Kharrab Shoud, it is ruined.”

18th. We proceeded from Auk-kend, at twenty minutes before five, and arrived at Miaunéh at one o’clock. We stopped on the road to feed our horses, which detained us one hour and an half, so that we had six hours and forty minutes riding, which, at three miles and a quarter in the hour, gives a total of twenty-two miles: I reckon thus little to the hour, because the whole of our march was over mountainous country. Our road was much to the Westward. The mountain Coflan Kou, which rose above us, bore S. 80 W. but, as we went somewhat more to the W. I shall place the general bearing at W.

The whole country here (and particularly that to the W. and N.) seems to have been just formed by a great convulsion of nature; there are lands of every soil, of every colour, and of every form. At the distance of six miles from Auk-kend we came to a small village called Kultepé; we should have stopped here to have fed our horses, but there was nothing but wheat-corn growing around the place; from this our suite always abstained most religiously, though they never scrupled to enter any barley field that might border on the road, and turning their cattle into the very middle without their bridles suffered them to eat their fill unlimited, nor was there any one that dared oppose267 such an inroad, which is indeed the privilege of every officer of government. I was quite vexed one day (when a poor man came and intreated the Persians to take their horses out of his field, for that its produce was his sole subsistence) to see the inhumanity with which they treated him; and, after having administered a few blows to his shoulders, compelled him to hold their horses as they were eating his own property before his face.

Bridge over the Kizzil Ozzan.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

At about half past nine o’clock, and about fifteen miles from Auk-kend, we came to the banks of the Kizzil Ozan. The stream runs from West to East, in a bed of about two hundred yards in breadth, which was then in a great measure dry. It rises in the mountains of Gerustan, about five days journey from Miaunéh, and flows into the Caspian near Resht. We crossed it on a bridge, which appeared a very ancient structure, and is now falling fast to decay.

It has three principal arches, the one to the W. is modern compared with the other part of the structure, having been restored by Aga Mahomed Khan; as a small inscription on the new buttress intimates. The original bridge is attributed to Shah Abbas; but, from its structure, which does not resemble that of the Seffis, and from an inscription in the Cufick character (which is worked in brick all around the principal arch) and another in a square on one of the old buttresses, I should suspect that it is much more ancient, and must be referred indeed to the earliest ages of Mahomedanism. When on the borders of the stream I was too distant to see the characters distinctly enough to copy them.

We commenced the ascent of the Coflan Kou immediately on quitting the river, and were just one hour in gaining its greatest height, and half an hour in descending into the plain on the opposite side. The chain of mountains, of which this forms a part, is the proper boundary of Aderbigian. Near the bridge on the right, in ascending the mountain, there is a singular rock which has been fortified with walls and turrets, probably coeval with the bridge. This also, however, appears to have been restored in some parts by a modern hand, as in front there is a268 structure of fresh brick, which does not correspond with the turrets of the main building. All is now in ruins: indeed it could have been of value as a military hold, only in times when artillery was not used, as it is commanded by every hill around. I took a sketch of it from the ascent of the mountains. The old bridge below adds a very picturesque object to the surrounding heights and the scenery of the stream. On the ascent of the mountain, (over that part which in winter must be of more difficult passage,) there are the remains of a causeway, attributed in like manner, to a Shah Abbas, and extending for several miles.

In descending to the plain on the Western side of the Coflan Kou, we saw another river called Rood Khonéh Miaunéh, which also flows from West to East, having combined before we crossed it, three several streams (the Ceransou, the Sheher Cheyee, and the Aye Dogmoush,) and about one fursung to the Eastward, carrying their united waters into the Kizzil Ozan. The sources, according to my informer, an old mountaineer at Miaunéh, were about two day’s journey from his town; in a direction, by the pointing of his hand, of N. 70 W. among the mountains of Sahat Dun. We passed the river over a bridge of twenty-one arches, in appearance indeed as old as that just described, but in style of structure resembling so much the bridge of Aliverdy Khan at Ispahan, a work of the age of the Seffis, that it may be ascribed to a Prince of the same race with much less improbability, than that over the Kizzil Ozan can be attributed to Shah Abbas. If there are not immediate repairs, the whole in a few years will fall into the water.

It was extremely hot in the recess of the mountains, with a light haze from the Westward. The sun set N. 73 W. Miaunéh, where we passed the night, was once a large town, and its broken walls and gates are still to be seen. It is now, indeed, a poor miserable village, yet is the chief place of a tribe called Chedaughee, who are reputed to be very ferocious. The master of the house, where we lodged, was gone to Tabriz; and his son, a boy of fourteen, officiated in his place with a propriety and dexterity which were quite amusing. He asked the269 Mehmandar for his firman, very gravely sat down and read it, then with a fine flow of compliments said, that every thing that he had was freely at our command; and that we must make his kitchen ours, and that, in short, he was our slave. In these countries the manners and faculties ripen long before those of Northern climates. An English boy in the same predicament would have run and hid himself in the stable.

We were, however, rather annoyed by a great big fellow, a Ferosh of Prince Abbas Mirza, who pretended to much power in the place. In the firman which the Mehmandar carried from the King, one of the articles with which the village was required to provide him was the sum of three tomauns. These he was wont to receive as his own perquisite; and this is one of the various modes by which the King pays his servants without the necessity of applying to his own treasures. But to this, in this instance, the Ferosh objected, swearing that there was no money in Miaunéh, and that none could be raised. The Mehmandar, on his side, talked of nothing but the King’s Royal command, which must be obeyed before all things: to this again the Ferosh objected, and said that he would abide by nothing but an order from his own immediate superior, the Ferosh Bashee of Prince Abbas Mirza. The Mirza was at length obliged to interfere: the Ferosh, in fact, had been paid by the peasantry to guard them from the extortion of strangers, and like a faithful servant he was endeavouring to do all that he could in their favour. To complete the business however, the Mehmandar, on our arrival at the close of the day’s journey, missed a pair of new green slippers, which loss he naturally charged to the dishonesty of his antagonist the Ferosh.

Since there have been such great interests pending in the North of Persia with the Russians, the Government has established Chopper Khonéh, or post-houses, from Tabriz to Teheran, to facilitate the transmission of news, so that a courier may traverse the distance easily in three days. A Ferosh has been placed by the Prince Governor of Aderbigian, in each of the villages within his territory, (in which these270 establishments are formed) to see that every department be carried on with dispatch and regularity. Twenty to twenty-five horses (purchased by the Prince, and kept at his own expence) are always ready at each of these houses, and the whole institution is supported from his own purse. But beyond the bounds of his province, this public service is defrayed by the Rayat on the line of road.

19th. We were six hours and a half on the road, a distance of twenty-one miles, from Miaunéh to Turkomen Cheyee. The road is one succession of high hills, generally with a small stream in the vallies below, flowing from the mountains of Bisgoush, which extend almost to Tabriz on the N. W. and to near Resht in the territory of Khalcal, on the N. E. and the snows of which seemed then to be rapidly melting, and (by the discolouration of the water) to have formed these streams. On setting out from Miaunéh, we rode by the banks, and frequently crossed one of these streams, which was up to the bellies of the horses and very rapid. I frequently set the bearing of our road from the top of the hills, which was N. 70 W. and (though varying now to the W. then to the E.) may be fixed generally at that point. The whole is very easy of access, nor indeed did I see any part on this side of Teheran, where an army would meet with impediment, except on the Coflan Kou, and there only in a few passes: and from the present appearance of the country, magazines might be formed every where.

The weather during the last two days was extremely sultry, and we suffered greatly from the heat. The tract indeed, over which we were passing, is called by the Persians Germesir, or the hot, from the notoriety of its temperature. The corn at Miaunéh was accordingly much more advanced than in any previous part of the country.

There is a small village to the S. of Turkomen Cheyee, called Carayeh, situated on the back of the hill. The valley of Turkomen Cheyee is one carpet of green, richly cultivated in every part. About noon the clouds gathered; and as we were feeding our horses, a shower of rain, with thunder, surprised and refreshed us after our hot ride.

271

On the 20th, we went to Tekmé-dash, twenty-one miles, on a bearing of N. 40 W. over the same sort of country as that which we had crossed on the preceding day; but the ground was much saturated by the late rain, and, as the soil was soft, our road was rendered very disagreeable. At about six miles from Turkomen Cheyee we came to a valley richly cultivated; and about two miles on the right, was the village of Uzumchee. We saw some other villages, situated at a distance from the road, on the heights of the mountain. We passed two ruined caravanserais. The last was about three miles from Tekmé-dash; and, by an inscription on the gate, was built by a servant of Shah Abbas. Not a tree appears over all the country, but there is generally much cultivation. A little after sun-rise we saw some high mountains bearing about N. W. Soon after our arrival a smiling lad came in with a paper in his hand, and presented it to the Mirza. It was a petition from himself and his school fellows, to beg a holiday for them from their master; an address which they never fail to make to any man of consequence, who may happen to pass through their village. The children here are taught Persian in the schools; the Turkish being the native tongue of the country. There was a very strong wind from the West, which, as the people told us, had blown for five or six days; and, though it fell as the sun went down, the cold during the night was very severe.

21st. The six hours and a half which we spent on the road to Saidabad to-day, were very pleasant, as we had covered weather with a fine fresh breeze from the W. We went twenty-five miles in the direction of N. 40 W. on a good road, which had been hardened by the late wind. At about five miles from Tekmé-dash, on the left, is the village of Bini Kieu; and a little further, (on a rising ground through which the road passes,) are a collection of large stones, apparently the remains of a building, with a few large oblong blocks curiously carved, which certainly belonged to it. They resembled, indeed, rather the tomb-stones which I had remarked272 before; but they had no characters upon them. At about five miles before we came to Saidabad we entered a pass in the mountain, on the right of which, as we left the plain, we noticed a piece of water with much wild fowl upon it. After having ascended and again descended the pass, (from the summit of which we had a view of the mountain of Tabriz), we came to a caravanserai situated amid very picturesque scenery just at the bottom. The right wing, and many other parts of this edifice, were falling into ruin. It contains a square area of two hundred and sixty paces of an admirable and solid construction; the work of the Seffis, strongly contrasted with the comparatively miserable buildings of the present day in Persia. The fine arches of the domes attest the excellence of art in the age of its erection. The interior arrangements are very good: on each side of the square are rooms, each with a fire-place, and in the centre of the whole is a large square compartment, divided into a variety of chambers of all descriptions, with recesses for horses. All this is built of a fine brick, with a strong foundation, and occasional reliefs of stone. At the foot of the whole building, at close intervals, are stones cut for the convenience of tying up cattle. At this spot we were overtaken by a storm of thunder and hail, and driven to seek refuge in the caravanserai; where the gloom of the old building, enlivened by the grotesque figures of our party, reminded me of those scenes of romance which modern writers have so frequently laboured to describe.

We turned off from the high road to the left, and at about two miles and a half from the caravanserai reached Saidabad. We found in it a mud fort, and houses with roofs arched but extremely low. Our servants were introduced into a chamber, a part of which was already occupied by a family of young asses; the rest was all their own. In all parts of the village were small pyramids of cow-dung, the different collections of the poor inhabitants for their winter fuel. The walls of their houses were likewise covered with great cakes of the same materials, which were then drying as additions to their273 stock. The common children collect this; and I have frequently seen two little creatures contending for it with the highest anxiety and animation.

There is so great a scarcity of wood over the whole country through which we have passed, that the poor are necessarily reduced to these extremities for the supply of their wants. In general they are miserably clad; the children have scarcely any thing to cover them but a shirt of coarse linen, which hardly reaches their middle; and the women wear nothing but a shirt, a pair of drawers, a jacket, and a veil, which covers their head and serves them on all occasions. Even in these poor villages the females are inconceivably shy. I happened to be standing near the place where the people were loading our baggage, when a poor woman seemed anxious to come forth from the neighbouring house, but durst not whilst a man was near. She kept peeping at intervals through the door for nearly half an hour, and drew in her head precipitately, although muffled, whenever a man’s face was turned towards her. When I have told the Persians that in Europe a husband has but one wife, and that in company we pay more civility to any female than to the greatest man, they have remained astonished, wondering that creatures (as women in their eyes appear), born only for their pleasure and convenience, should at all partake of any of those attentions which they deem to be due to Themselves exclusively.

As we were seated in our miserable dwelling, the village music attended us, composed of a singer, and players on the tambourine and on two kamounchas. To the great mortification of these poor people we dispensed with their noise, which, if it had begun, would not readily have ended.

22d. From Saidabad to Tabriz is a distance of about fourteen miles, on a direction of N. 50 W. There are said to be two volcanoes in the neighbourhood. Having travelled ten miles, we stopped to breakfast at a charming spot, near a beautiful stream of water, crossing us from S. W. to N. E. and surrounded by more wood than altogether we had seen all over the latter part of our journey.274 They are principally poplar (almost the only tree indeed which we had remarked in our route) and many are felled for building. Within two miles of Tabriz there is a village on a hillock, called Condorood; and immediately on the skirts of this spot is another, called Basmidge: on leaving which we saw great numbers of those square and oblong stones, so often mentioned in my Journal. As among them there are modern tombs, the original intent of the more ancient stones is certainly the same.

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CHAP. XV.
TABRIZ.

The road across the plain towards Tabriz is very fine; and on each side of it we saw numerous ploughs. Four oxen were employed to each; for the soil is here hard, and turned with more difficulty. The implement itself, however, appeared more ponderous than any that we had seen before. About three miles from Tabriz the road is intersected by hills of a sandy and stony soil. Here we were met by an officer276 deputed from the Prince to greet our arrival. He was accompanied by ten or fifteen men, and preceded by a led horse. As soon as our party perceived their approach, it was ridiculous enough to see how every one put on any the smallest piece of finery that he possessed, in order to strike the others with respect. The Mirza alighted from his mule and mounted a horse; and when we met, all the flattery and compliments were repeated with the same sincerity as before on our road to Teheran. They talked of themselves and their government with singular complacency, and of the Russians with the utmost contempt. The officer who came to meet us said, “they fear us like dogs; we have every thing better than they have; they will never dare to shew their faces again.”

Tabriz first appears between the angle of the bases of two hills, and then opens to the view by degrees. In the season in which we saw it, it formed a pretty object; as the constant monotony of the mud-walls and mud-brick houses was hid by the rich foliage of the trees, which are interspersed throughout the city. Close to the walls, near the Teheran gate, is the complete ruin of a mosque, but still sufficiently preserved to shew how fine a structure it must once have been. It was built about six hundred years ago, by Shah Shem Ghuzan, (the successor of Shah Mahomed Khodabendeh, whose tomb has been described at Sultaniéh,) but it has been destroyed by an earthquake within thirty years. The inhabitants extol the fruitfulness of the territory, and the salubrity of the air of Tabriz. Its very name, according to the Persian etymology, indicates the excellence of its situation, for it is composed of Tab a fever, and riz fled.40 They277 complain, however, (though as of their only inconvenience) of frequent and violent earthquakes, which they attribute to the volcanoes in the district, which throw out smoke but no flame. The smoke is so mephitical, that it kills immediately a dog or fowl placed over it. The volcanoes are particularly to the East, in mountains of a red and copper-like appearance, announcing much mineral matter. The climate of Tabriz is subject also to much thunder, lightning, and rain.

Tabriz is no more the magnificent city described by Chardin: all its large buildings have been destroyed by earthquakes. I rode round the walls, and estimated the circumference at three miles. Three of the gates are ornamented with pillars, inlaid with green-lacquered bricks, and look very respectable; the other five are very small and mean. The walls are very weak, and here and there renewed with mud-bricks baked in the sun. The whole town is surrounded by gardens, which the Persians call Meewa-khonéh, or fruit-houses. One of these, to the West, belonging to Hajee Khan Mahomed, is very extensive, and planted entirely with fruit-trees, excepting one row of poplars; the only other wood indeed which I saw at Tabriz, and that of which all the timber-work of their houses is constructed. There are thousands therefore planted on the borders of every stream about the city. The abundance of fruit in the season was already evident, by the state of the gardens, and particularly of the apricot trees. In the spaces between the lines, were mounds of earths in rows, on which vines were extended on an angle of about 60°, and irrigated by water introduced through channels formed by the bases of the mounds.

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To the N. W. of the city is a very extensive burial place; over the whole of which are strewed black blocks of stone or granite, carved in the manner which I have frequently described, and mostly without an inscription, though some bore the Arabic character. To the S. W. of the town are some more of these ancient tombs, one of which is of the red stone, evidently cut from the adjacent mountains; the others are of a black marble, which takes a fine polish, but which is now no longer used, nor could I learn even the situation of the quarries. One of the stones measured eight feet and a half in length, and two feet and a half in breadth; and covered probably some very distinguished hero: near it is a small mosque.

The transparent or rather diaphanous substance, with beautiful veins, (which is called the marble of Tabriz, and which I have described in some of the public buildings at Shiraz and Ispahan) is not procured near the city or taken from a quarry, but is said to be rather a petrifaction found in large quantities, and in immense blocks, on the borders of the lake Shahee, near the town of Meraughéh. It takes the finest polish, and is employed in baths, in the wainscoting of rooms, in tomb-stones, and in every other purpose where ornamental marble is necessary.

There are twelve public baths, some of which are handsome; and there is a bazar, which extends the length of the city, but it is mean and dirty. Tabriz has no mosques of any particular merit: on entering indeed there is the large ruin already mentioned; and to the S. W. of the city (enclosed in the Ark or fort of Ali Shah, which contains the barracks and magazines) are the remains of another, now converted into a look-out house. This is a conspicuous, but very unseemly object, and to me seemed of little use, and from its height to be the most exposed either to the shock of an earthquake, or to an attack from a battery. The danger of earthquakes has taught the inhabitants of Tabriz to build their houses generally as low as possible; and to employ more wood than brick and plaster, in their construc279tion. For the same reason the bazars have only wooden roofs, and are not arched as those in the better cities of Persia. Yet I am told that in earthquakes, the domed buildings (particularly the Hummum Khan, the largest in Tabriz) have invariably stood; where others, the strongest walls, have been rent asunder.

Tabriz had declined to an insignificant place, when about four years ago the present Prince, Abbas Mirza, the Heir Apparent of the crown, was appointed to the government of Aderbigian, and made it his capital. When we visited his city, he had resided there four years, and had guarded the frontiers of Persia against the Russians. During that time he had repaired and beautified the walls, had made a new Maidan, and erected some new buildings. Indeed, before, there was no place fit for his habitation; and all the great men attached to his court have since been obliged to build houses for their own accommodation.

The Prince is said by the Persians to possess every quality, that can grace a mortal; and (as there are many circumstances in his character, which his countrymen would never think of inventing) I am inclined to believe them. They were related to me by the Hakim or Governor of the city, at whose house I lodged during my residence at Tabriz. Some time ago, three of the Prince’s children died; his Vizir appeared before him with a mournful face; the Prince observed him, and inquired the reason: the Vizir hesitated, “Speak,” said the Prince, “is there any public disaster? have the Russians been successful? have they taken any more country from us?” “No,” answered the Minister, “it is not that; your children are sick:” “What of that?” asked the Prince; “But very sick indeed,” continued the Vizir: “Perhaps then they are dead,” interrupted the Father. His Minister confessed the truth. “Dead!” said the Prince, “why should I grieve? the state has lost nothing by them; had I lost three of my good servants, had three useful officers died, then indeed I should have grieved: but my children were babes, and God knows280 whether, if they had grown up to man’s estate, they would have proved good servants to their country.”

The Prince is remarkable also for the plainness of his dress; he never wears any thing more than a coat of common Kerbas (a strong cotton cloth) and a plain shawl round his waist. Whenever he sees any officers of his court in fine laced or brocade clothes, he asks them, “What is the use of all this finery. Instead of this gold and tinsel, why not buy yourself a good horse, a good sword, a good gun; this frippery belongs to women, not to one, who calls himself a man and a soldier.” He inspects himself all the detail of his troops, their arms, horses, and accoutrements, adopting those that appear to him fit for use, and rejecting those that are below his standard. The Governor of the city, who related these traits to me, had in his house at the time two hundred muskets, which the Prince refused out of two thousand, that had been sent to him from Teheran, having himself examined every single gun, and tried every lock. He is said also to be extremely liberal to his troops, and to give all his money among them.

When I asked the Governor, if Messrs. Jouannin and Nerciat, of the French Embassy, (who had arrived a few days before us, and whom I overtook at Tabriz) had as yet departed, he replied that they were gone. When he came back to me in the evening, he told me that they were not. He added, that on appearing before the Prince in the morning, he had related my question and his own answer; on which the Prince exclaimed, “You told him that they were gone! How could you tell him such a falsehood; I will not allow any of my servants to speak an untruth—Go and tell him that they are not gone.” It appeared that the Governor had been really mistaken in his first report.

The Governor talked also of his Prince’s horsemanship, and skill in the chase, which were unequalled. He told me that at full gallop the Prince could shoot a deer with a single ball, or with the arrow from his bow, hit a bird on the wing. He combines indeed the three great281 qualities of the ancient Persians, which Xenophon enumerates, riding, shooting with the bow, and speaking truth. His countrymen however are, in general, less severe in their estimate of the requisites of a great character, and are content to omit the last trait of excellence; but they never praise any one without placing in the foremost of his virtues his horsemanship; in which alone perhaps they possess any national pride. I once in fact was in some danger of a serious dispute, by hazarding a doubt, that the Turks rode better than the Persians. It is quite ridiculous to hear them boast of their own feats on horseback, and despise the cavalry of every other nation. They always said, “Perhaps your infantry may surpass ours; but our horsemen are the first in the world; nothing can stand before their activity and impetuosity.” In fact, they have courage—one of the first qualities of a horseman; they ride without the least apprehension over any country, climb the most dangerous steeps over rock and shrub; and keep their way in defiance of every obstacle of ground. They have also a firm seat, and that on a saddle which, among an hundred different sorts, would be called the least commodious. But that is all; they understand nothing of a fine hand, nor indeed with their bridles can they learn; for they use only a strong snaffle, fastened to the rein by an immense ring on each side, which they place indifferently in the strongest or weakest mouths: nor do they know how to spare their horses and save them unnecessary fatigue; for their pace is either a gallop on the full stretch, or a walk. As a nation, as fit stuff for soldiers, I know of no better materials. The Persian possesses the true qualities of the soldier; active, inured to labour, careless of life, admiring bravery, and indeed (as the chief object of their ambition) aspiring to the appellation of resheed or courageous.

The greater part of the Prince’s horse were sent out at this season into different districts, where grass is the most plentiful; and there were said to be only three thousand men in garrison at Tabriz. The amount of the general force under the government of the282 Prince, according to the information of his Prime Minister, is as follows:—

The troops under these descriptions are composed principally of men furnished in different quotas in lieu of rent by the villages, but paid, clothed, and fed by the Prince. But besides this number actually enrolled, each man has also a substitute, who is similarly instructed in the use of arms, ready to supply his place if he should be cut off in battle, or prevented by any other accident.

Mirza Bozurk, first Minister to the Prince, appeared to me by far the most superior man whom I saw in Persia. I brought a present to him from the Envoy, which, however, he advised me to offer to the Prince in my own name, as it was not the custom in their country to pay a visit empty-handed to a person of rank. I resisted this, because, in the first place, I saw no necessity for the visit at any rate, as I was merely a passenger through the province, and had no business at the court. I mention this trait of liberality, because it is so singular in his nation. He talked much of the state of improvement in which the Prince’s administration had brought the province of Aderbigian; never speaking of his own counsels or co-operation, to which so much is due, but always referring the whole merit to the talents of his Prince. He said, that within one year they had brought their artillery to a state of perfection which might rival that of their enemies the Russians; that their infantry had now learned the perfect use of arms; and that, by the acknowledgment of the Russians themselves, the Persian soldiers were now a match for them. He added, that no pains had been spared283 to acquire a knowledge of military tactics, and the theory of fortification, which they had gleaned from French and Russian books, translated by the Prince’s order into Persian. The Minister said, that the Prince was the only person in Persia who had a complete set of charts, besides drawings of every instrument and weapon used by Europeans in war. He told me that they had discovered in Aderbigian mines of iron and brass, which, entirely by their own ingenuity, they made productive; but that they still laboured under the greatest inconvenience from the want of proper artists and miners, and could not therefore derive the full profit which they might otherwise expect, or as yet reduce the price of their produce. According to the Minister, better guns are now cast at Tabriz than at Ispahan; and they had invented also a small kind of artillery, which was sufficiently light to be carried by mules keeping pace with the march of their cavalry over mountains and difficult passes.

When I offered to procure from England any books and other necessaries to facilitate their operations and give new light to those subjects upon which they were imperfectly informed; the Minister replied, that nothing in the world could afford greater satisfaction to the Prince and himself; but he added, “there is only one thing which England will keep from our knowledge, as she has done from every other nation, the art of building ships.” I assured him that England would furnish Persia not with instructions only, but with masters, as she had done for Turkey and Russia. He answered, “all this may be very true; but there is still an art which she possesses in matters of navigation which she will never disclose to any nation. If it be not so, how is it possible,” he continued, “that her ships should be so superior to all others, and that none have ever yet been able to defeat her in any combat at sea.” I answered, that her superiority consisted not in the ships, but, by the blessing of God, in the men that were in them; that, in fact, in building ships we were equalled, if not exceeded, by the French; and that the superiority could not rest in the vessels, since a considerable proportion of our navy consisted of prizes284 taken in battle. The Minister, however, was unconvinced, and continued to believe that there was some secret in our naval architecture on which our success depended. At our parting visit the Minister added, that the Prince was anxious to have some insight into the history of England, and desired me to bring with me on my return some book on the subject. He wished me also to procure for him histories of France and Russia, in order to compare them with those which he had already got; for, said he, “the English being known ever to tell the truth, and the French and Russians to be less scrupulous, the Prince will not be satisfied with what he has learnt, until He hears it confirmed by an English pen.”

During our residence at his capital, the Prince received intelligence of the discovery of a lead mine in the territory of Khalcal, fourteen fursungs from Tabriz, in the direction in which they had found mines of saltpetre and copper. As a specimen, a large piece of ore, almost pure and free from earth, was produced. At Bakouba there is a mine of sulphur. The district of Khalcal alone furnishes to the revenue of Aderbigian fifty thousand tomauns; the whole of that revenue was stated to me at seven hundred thousand; but whatever may be the correctness of this account which I received from a Persian, the province is certainly the choicest part of Persia that we saw.

The population of Tabriz is to all appearance much exaggerated; I was told indeed that it contained fifty thousand houses, and two hundred and fifty thousand persons. There are about two hundred Armenian families, who live in a Mahalé or parish by themselves. Tabriz manufactures a great number of silk stuffs, which are much used.

During our stay at Tabriz the Prince spent a day in the garden of Hajee Khan Mahomed. Whenever he wishes to shew any mark of attention, he sends to let the person know that he will be his guest on such a day. This sort of visit, however, generally costs the entertainer a large sum (in this instance two thousand tomauns) as the Prince is followed by his whole household. When he alights from his horse,285 shawls and gold stuffs are strewed on the ground, over which he walks: a part of the ceremony which is called the Pai-endaz.

28th. I dined with Mirza Hassan, son of the first Minister, Mirza Bozurk. There were a number of young and pleasant men, who would have enlivened any company; but they seemed to vie with each other in the marvellous. As a specimen; a Derveish had told one, that he was in his room when a shock of an earthquake threw him on the floor, where he lay for a long time in a trance; and on recovering, found himself, to his great surprise, extended in the court-yard, close under his apartment: a second shock having projected him senseless out of the window. Of slight-of-hand they recounted the most wonderful feats; and to all this, they swear by each other’s heads, eyes, sons, and fathers. The surest prognostic, indeed, of a falsehood is the number of emphatic oaths by which it is preceded. The Persians are called, with sufficient propriety, the Frenchmen of the East; they are indeed a talkative, complimentary, and insincere people, yet in manners agreeable and enlivening.

A description of the etiquettes of the court, or even of private life, in Persia, would be a work of endless and trifling minutiæ. They are such however, and so well recognised, and so easily observed and imitated by every class from their youth, and indeed (in the government under which they live) so strongly mark the gradations of rank, that no person, even of the meanest condition, is ignorant of his proper situation, and of the several etiquettes attached to it. In the education of a young man of family, the principal feature is the course of instruction which he receives in the forms and phrases of society. For that purpose, from the earliest age of the pupil, masters attend who teach the modes of salutation, and the appropriate compliments to superiors and inferiors. They also instruct him, where to sit on entering a Mujlis (or assembly); of whom he has the right of precedence, &c. and greater importance is assigned to this knowledge than almost to any thing else. Nothing marks this more strongly than the forms which gradually ascend in a regular scale from the peasant to the King.286 The first Minister appears under the same discipline of humiliation before his Majesty, as the Rayat, before the Ket Khoda of his village; and it is somewhat ridiculous to see that man, who sat in state in his Dewan, surrounded by a numerous circle of obsequious attendants, performing the next moment, in his turn, all the offices of one of those attendants before the King. In Persia, and I believe generally over the East, a son never sits down in the presence of his father. Thus the King’s sons always stand before him, and are regarded only as the first of his servants. Prince Abbas Mirza, who is Governor of Aderbigian, and Heir Apparent of the crown, when he repairs to the court of his father, appears there like any one of the other sons, with the single advantage of taking the precedence of the rest.

The King is never approached by his subjects without frequent inclinations of the body; and when the person introduced to his presence has reached a certain distance, he waits until the King orders him to proceed; upon which he leaves his shoes, and walks forwards with a respectful step to a second spot, until His Majesty again directs him to advance. No one ever sits before the King except relations of Kings, Poets, learned and Holy Men, and Embassadors: His Ministers and Officers of State are never admitted to the privilege. The place of honour is on the left. When an inferior visits a superior, he sits at a distance, and not on the same musnud. He places himself on the Nummud (the long carpet that skirts the room); nor even there, till he is desired: and, in approaching his superior, he is very careful to cover himself with his outer-coat, and to sit down directly on his heels, so that his feet are completely hidden. When a servant comes before his master, he makes an inclination of his body; and, when he goes away, he walks backwards until he reaches the door, where he makes another inclination.

There is as much etiquette in smoking as in sitting. No inferior calls for his kaleoon, until the superior has given the lead. No one can smoke before the King; and only particular persons before the Princes.

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I had some conversation with a native of Mazanderan, who extolled the virtues of his countrymen, and complained of the ill-conduct of their rulers, in equal proportion. He himself had been despoiled of his property, and reduced almost to beggary; but, as he added, many from his province had gone to India, and by their abilities on a more favourable ground, had realized fortunes.

He told me that there were two entrances into Mazanderan; one, by the Pile Rud-bar, the road through which leads off the bridge over which we crossed the Kizzil Ozan; and the other, by the way of Resht on the borders of the sea. The Jungle, or wild woodland, is so impenetrable, that, according to his illustration, an arrow discharged from a bow cannot force it, but strikes on the exterior reeds. The Pile Rud-bar is perhaps the ancient Fauces Hyrcaniæ; and the accounts of Olearius, and other modern travellers, as well as the intelligence that I received, confirm the original tremendous descriptions. I had been told at Teheran, that men are stationed at different intervals to give notice to travellers of the approach of others in an opposite direction; for in the narrowest part two mules cannot pass, nor can they turn back. I was further told at Tabriz, that the great causeway built by Shah Abbas, is falling into total decay; and in some places is so much ruined, that though mules and horses may still travel upon it, camels can no longer be used. The avenues therefore to Mazanderan might be successfully guarded by twenty expert fusileers, against any force that could be brought. The people indeed had frequently petitioned their government to repair the causeway; but it has been the policy of the court to leave it in its present state, that in case of any necessity the King might retire there in safety, and defend himself in the inaccessible fastnesses which the condition of the province thus opposes to an enemy.

The vessels which navigate the Caspian, are (according to the same authority) very rude and ill-built, being planks put together without any caulking to their seams; the people are therefore obliged incessantly to bail the water off in buckets; for they have not learnt the288 use of pumps, a knowledge indeed to which alone he attributed the superiority of the Russian vessels.

He told me that the people of Ghilan have a language of their own, distinct from both the Persian and the Turkish, and bearing indeed no affinity to either; although, on questioning him further on the subject, I found that they had no books written in that language, and that it was merely a Patois, or corrupted Persian, which the common people spoke.

In continuing our conversation, he mentioned that near the town of Ashreff, on the West of Asterabad, is a tribe of people called Goudar, in number about one hundred houses, or five hundred souls, who inhabit the wild country in the neighbourhood. If my Mazanderan informer may be credited, they are of no religion; and in the intercourse of the sexes, appears to descend low into savage life. A man feeling an inclination for a woman, asks her mother’s leave to carry her out into the woods, where he passes two or three days with her; and then either lives with her himself, or returns her to her mother. Their principal food is the flesh of the wild hog, of which there are vast numbers in the district. These hogs are killed by the children of the tribe, who are exercised almost from the time that they can walk, in the bow and the matchlock, and are described, in consequence, as never erring shots.

From him too I received an account of their more celebrated neighbours the Turcomans, the confines of whose territory are close to Asterabad. They are Sunnis, and in consequence execrated by the Persians, who call them Giaours or Infidels. They live in tribes or eels, being subject to no particular master. Each tribe has, indeed, a nominal chief chosen by themselves, but possessing no further authority among them than that of settling differences, and arranging their civil economy. As a people, they have no fixed habitations; but carry about the tents in which they live, and which the Persians call Kara Khader, black tents. Their general characteristics are those common to all wandering nations; great hospitality within their own boundaries, and289 universal depredation abroad. The Turcomans make incursions into Persia; frequently crossing the wide intervening desert of sand, and surprising and carrying away from the centre of towns and villages men, women, and children. They, even now, extend their inroads as far as Koom, Kashan, Langarood, Nusserabad; and the ruined villages about Koom were destroyed by them. These Raids, which are called Chappow, are performed on horseback by parties of twenty or thirty with incredible speed and activity. Their horses (renowned over the East for swiftness and hardiness) support them admirably in these expeditions, as like their riders they undergo immense fatigue with a very small portion of food. They are, therefore, bought by the neighbouring nations at vast prices; which, (with the sale among other tribes of their captives, and of their camels, sheep, &c.) supply the chief source of the Turcoman’s wealth, and accumulate immense sums in ready money. The captives lead a wretched life: if young, they are sent into the interior to tend the cattle; but when they grow old and unfit for service, they are killed by their masters; who comfort their consciences by placing the skin of the deceased at the threshold of their door, in the belief that he approaches Paradise in proportion as his skin gets pierced with holes and worn out. On the other hand, their hospitality, the theme of so many pens, is not exaggerated. A stranger, laden with gold and precious stones, who claims protection at the tent of a Turcoman is sure to find it. He remains there as long as he pleases, his person and his property are in perfect safety, and, when he is desirous to depart, he is escorted by one of the tribe, which alone is a sufficient protection to him through the whole of their own district, and through every other kindred people. Caravans thus travel from Asterabad to Astrachan without molestation, and in the full security of the property which they convey. Turcomania is said to be extremely populous, but wholly uncultivated. The people feel290 not the want of corn, and are content therefore to live upon the flesh of horses, camels, and sheep, and on the milk of mares and camels. They excavate a large hole in the ground, in which they make a fire; and, placing the meat in the embers, cover it up until it be baked. To the Northward of Turcomania are the Kamchauks, who inhabit a desert, and are reported to be most ferocious and warlike, and hitherto unconquered. All these inhabit the Eastern borders of the Caspian Sea, called by the Persians Dereea-Kulzum.41 The Persians are at present at peace with the Turcomans, although they are still equally liable to be surprised by their Chappow parties. In the time even of Shah Abbas these depredations were carried to an inconceivable extent. Aga Mahomed Khan, the late King, made several attempts against them without any profit; and particularly indeed against the Kamchauks, where he met with a defeat. In former times the Turcomans used to make their attacks on the coasts of Ghilan and Mazanderan in boats. Now they are not so depredatory; because the country is more inaccessible, and the people, according to my informer, are more dextrous in their matchlock guns and bows; so much, indeed, are they improved, that, in the true Persian style, he added, “Twenty men of Mazanderan will beat one thousand Turcomans.”

We recommenced our journey on the 1st of June; and on that day waited upon Mirza Bozurk to pay our respects to him on leaving Tabriz. He told us that we were now departing at a most lucky hour,291 for that this had been the morning fixed some time ago by the astrologers as the most fortunate for the Prince to leave his capital, preparatory to his usual summer campaign. He informed us, among other news, (that had just reached him from Constantinople) that the Turks had defeated the Russians, and had taken so many prisoners that they were selling them in the bazars at Constantinople.

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CHAP. XVI.
TABRIZ TO ARZ-ROUM.

The mode of travelling in Persia is easy and commodious. In winter they generally begin their journey at sun-rise. The baggage proceeds, and then the master. He breakfasts either before he sets off, or in a more pleasant spot on the road, (regarding in each case the advantage of a stream of running water as the motive of preference;) and thus he allows time for his luggage to reach the stage before him, and his people to prepare every thing for his reception, spread his carpets, and get the necessary articles for cooking his dinner. On his293 arrival he eats his choshtá, or intermediate meal, and then sleeps. At sun-set he takes another repast (his noshtá); and his servants then pack up every thing ready for his departure the next morning. He proceeds by easy stages, generally from five to six leagues a-day, which, as he always rides his own horses, is a good day’s journey at the common rate of travelling. If he has a Mehmandar with him, he is fed and lodged and travels entirely at the public expence. When the Mehmandar arrives at the village, he produces his firman, (in which the kind and quantity of the articles to be provided are specified;) and demands a correspondent supply from the inhabitants.

1st June, 1809. We left the Khoi gate of Tabriz at seven o’clock, and in six hours and a half reached Ali Shah, a distance called by the people of the country six fursungs, and which I reckoned at twenty-four miles. From the top of our lodging at Ali Shah, I could see the mountain near which Tabriz is situated, I can therefore place exactly the bearing of our route, at N. 75 W. We kept to the Eastward of the plain in consequence of the difficulties along the road through the centre, which was then in many places overflowed.

Near Tabriz on the left, are some gardens and houses, called Hucknavar; then the village of Mayan. To the Eastward of the city itself, is a conspicuous hill called the Bahalil Tapé, which abounds in every kind of game. Having travelled three miles from Tabriz on a bearing nearly N. we came to a bridge of nine large and three small arches, thrown over the river Agi, which, flowing from E. to W. falls at length into the lake of Shahee. The river rises near Ardebil; and is fordable by mules where we crossed it, though we preferred the bridge, which happened indeed to be in better repair than those between Teheran and Tabriz. At about four miles from the city, we passed a village called Alwar; and three miles further another of the same name, each surrounded with a cultivated territory, intersected by a thousand dikes and kanauts. The greatest part of the plain is of a soil strongly impregnated with salt; and as in every other district of294 the same quality, we witnessed the curious effects of the vapour, (called Ser Aub) which overspread the plain. About four miles before we reached Ali Shah, we crossed a bridge of four arches, over a pool of standing salt water. The industry of agriculture was visible, and the crops of barley and corn were luxuriant and promising.

The plain of Tabriz extends far to the W. and S.; the mountains which border it on those directions being just designed in very light tints in the horizon. To the Northward and Eastward it is bounded by hard-featured lands of an inferior elevation, indicating on their surfaces the minerals below. There are several pretty villages situated to the North, on the declivity of the mountain about three or four miles from Ali Shah, and which, together with it and others to the W. are in the Mahalé or district of Ghunéh.

The lake of Shahee is about seven fursungs from Ali Shah, and the middle of the long mountain (which extends into the centre of the lake, and which now appeared isolated on the horizon of the plain) bore S. 50 W. of our station.

In my progress to Constantinople, I traversed a country in its conformation most picturesque, and in its productions most luxuriant. No traveller in any season, or in any direction, could have passed these scenes without admiration; but I saw them in all the richness of spring, contrasted with a winter in Persia; and after the leafless and barren region which I had passed, I enjoyed doubly the wild prodigality of vegetation, which in the early part of the year is displayed through Asia Minor. The impression therefore of delight which I experienced, was strongest at the first point of contrast; and the first verdure and foliage which I saw near Tabriz, appeared to me to constitute the very perfection of landscape.

2d June. If a writer of romance would describe beautiful scenery, he might select our departure from Ali Shah. We began our journey by a most charming moonlight; and the sky was delightfully serene. Just as the sun was rising we reached an orchard, (full of every species295 of fruit, particularly almonds, and) skirting the town of Shebester; which, embosomed in trees of every hue, was situated on the declivity of the mountains on our right.

Shebester is a large town, surrounded by several villages, and by more wood and cultivation, than any spot I had yet seen in Persia. Hitherto indeed the want of trees, either as a shade to the road, or as a relief to the inequalities of the heights, had been constant and uniform. We admired therefore doubly the beauties of our present course. Streams of running water were meandering in every direction amid the numerous willows, poplars, almonds, and other trees, which bordered our road: and at intervals the artificial dikes were opened to admit water into the beds of rice. The greater part of the country was covered with verdure, for the new corn was already well advanced both in maturity and plenty. Peasantry enlivened the fields by the labours of the spade or the plough.

After quitting Shebester we came in full view of the delightful lake of Shahee. It derives its name from the surrounding Mahalé, which may contain twenty villages. I was told that its waters are as salt as the sea, and that the sand over which they flow, produces the salt used at Tabriz. It extended itself N. W. and S. E. before us, and its Western extremities were terminated by a stupendous chain of mountains, whose snowy summits, softened by the haze, contrasted admirably with the light azure of the lake. As we proceeded, the long mountain (which I mentioned in the route of yesterday, extending itself and forming a peninsula in the lake) appeared to have no connection whatever with the surrounding lands; and, by a stranger to the real topography, would have been pronounced an island. Its termination (to the south as seen from our road) was in the form of a sugar-loaf.

Near Shebester we passed the village of Misholéh, and, lower down in the plain, those of Arsaléh and Halee, on the left of the road. Others indeed are seen at every turn, situated at small intervals on either side alternately, all in the Mahalé of Ghunéh. Among them are Besh-kefelout, on the left; Khomyéh, prettily surrounded with296 verdure, on the right; Shinwar, on the left again; Kuzec-dunar, on the right, three fursungs before we reached our stage at Tasouj; and on the left, about two miles from the borders of the lake, Alibanglou, the first place in the Bolouk of Aeenzaub. In this line we stopt and fed our cattle and ourselves; while a refreshing breeze from the Westward just curled up the waters of the lake, and waved the corn fields which extended themselves on all sides of us.

Our bread and moss was shared by a stranger who was going to Oroumi, a large town, distant thirty fursungs from Tabriz; and situated, by the pointing of his hand, S. 50 W. from us, on the left or West side of the lake, which the road continues to skirt through its whole course. On the East of the lake is Saouk Bolag, the site of the ancient city of Sheherivan. The country, through which we passed in the day, was interesting and picturesque; in every turn of the view enriched by the lake and its surrounding capes and mountains.

From all that I could learn in this region, (and I inquired of many who had travelled repeatedly over this part of Aderbigian), there appeared to exist no other lake than this of Shahee. And I have as regularly made direct inquiries about the situation of the city of Van and its lake, without obtaining any thing like a satisfactory answer. On the contrary, the very existence of such a place, and such a lake, was always denied; I mention this, when the position of Van has been clearly ascertained, to shew how general was the ignorance of the people on every subject which was not immediately within their own circumscribed district. Nor was I more successful in my inquiries on the real extent of the lake before them: every one said that it was very large, and that it reached further, than from its appearance we might suppose.

At about five miles from Tasouj, there is a village on the left called Rahdar Khoné; and then a station of Rahdars, or custom-house officers. As we passed it, one of them, a man of a much more respectable appearance than any of the class whom we had seen on other occasions, told us that a driver with seven loaded mules had gone forwards, and297 refused to pay the duties, alleging that his beasts were carrying part of our baggage; and were therefore in the King’s service, and as such exempt from the impost. In fact, however, my Charwardar (or conductor of the mules or caravan) had added to my charge this number, above those that were necessary for my purposes; and, having already received a part of their hire from me, was now employing them still more to his own profit, by conveying upon them, duty-free, in my name, the goods of some Tabriz merchants. On discovering the fraud, I resigned him into the hands of the officer, with full liberty to exact his dues; a licence, under which he begun immediately to cudgel the shoulders of the defaulter. The duties here are high, being five reals on each load.

Some miles before we reached Tasouj, the lake begins to make an elliptical termination, and the road to turn off on a more Northern angle. We were eight hours in travelling the whole distance from Ali Shah, which we reckoned at thirty-two miles, on a bearing of N. 60 W. Tasouj, from the great extent of the ruined walls about it, appears once to have been a large place, but it is now reduced, by earthquakes, to the denomination of a village. There are remains of domed bazars and mosques, spread in every part of the place.

June 3. The distance from Tasouj to Khoi is called eight fursungs; we were however nine hours on the road, and calculated the journey at thirty-six miles. The general direction was N. 30 W. Our course for the first ten miles, to the foot of the range, (which encloses the plain and lake of Shahee) bore nearly West; when we suddenly turned to the North through the mountains; and, for ten miles more, wound among them through some very narrow defiles, and by some sharp ascents and descents, till we reached on the opposite side the plain of Khoi. Towards the lake the mountains are mostly of an argillaceous soil, but change into fine earth as they approach the plain of Khoi. In this direction they are green to their very summits, and their intervening vallies are covered with the finest pastures.

We had left Tasouj by moonlight: we could not therefore discover298 with any accuracy the nature of the country, which we traversed in the first part of our route; though we discerned indistinctly groves of trees, and heard the falling cascade in the recesses of the vallies. The first view of the plain of Khoi, from the summit of the pass in the mountains, is sublime. The city and its more immediate territory are seen on the N. but separated from the rest of the plain by a border of green hills, which seem to divide the expanse into two parts. At the distance of two fursungs from Khoi, we passed on the right the village of Disajiz, surrounded by fields of wheat and barley. On the left of the plain are some more villages; and one curious mound of red soil, crowned by a hillock of salt, besides several other white mounds, which are described as entirely of the same substance. We passed the small range of hills, and came all at once upon the more circumscribed plain of Khoi, which is opened by a seven-arched bridge, bordered on each side by rocks, and forming with the fine stream below a complete picture. The river is called the Otour, and flows from W. to E. falling into the Arras or Araxes, about twelve fursungs further to the Eastward.

The plain of Khoi (in breadth from N. to S. five miles, and in length ten) was the richest tract that we had seen. It was covered with corn, broken only here and there by the foliage of enclosed gardens. Of these gardens we ventured to enter one, which was renowned all over the country for its beauty and fruitfulness. It stands on the left of the road about two miles from the walls of Khoi, and was made by Hossein Khan, Governor of the city in the time of Aga Mohamed Khan; but it has now become the property of the government. It consists of a fine alley of chenar trees, which leads up to a pleasure-house, now falling into decay, built on the elevation of six terraces, from each of which falls a beautiful cascade, conducted by kanauts from the neighbouring mountains. On the right and left is a wood of fruit trees of every sort and description, with a fine crop of grass at their roots. From the pleasure-house is seen, through the alleys of chenars, the whole territory of Khoi, one of the most lively299 landscapes that we found in Persia. The chenar is really a delightful tree; its bole is of a fine white and smooth bark, and its foliage, which grows in a tuft at the summit, is of a bright green. Those in the garden had not attained their full growth. Their trunks are every where carved with the invocation of “Ya Ali;” proceeding probably from the ecstacies of those, who visit this little Persian paradise.

Khoi is surrounded with a wall, and with towers of a different construction to any which we had remarked in other fortified towns of Persia. They are triangular in front, with a species of connecting work behind them. There are four gates, which are of stone, and very superior to most of those that I had noticed elsewhere. Within the walls are twenty mosques and six baths. There are said to be ten thousand houses, and a population of fifty thousand persons, of which the larger proportion are Armenians. The Mussulmans live in a parish or Mahalé of their own. The territory is so extremely fertile, that Khoi, with the surrounding villages, pays annually to the public treasure the sum of one hundred thousand tomauns. Khoi is much warmer, from its local situation, than Tabriz. Roses here were in full flower, whereas a little opening bud was reckoned a rarity at Tabriz; and probably in twenty days from the date of our visit, the plain lost its verdure, and assumed the beautiful gilding of a ripe corn-field.

Six fursungs South from Khoi is an equally large and populous town called Salmas; where, as I afterwards learnt at Arz-roum, are “sculptured rocks and many ruins.” My informer added, that one of the subjects represented two men, of whom one, looking over his left shoulder, pointed with his hand to a spot which the people of the neighbourhood affirm to contain a hidden treasure, though they admit that the deposit has escaped all research.

4th of June, 1809. The Prince had ordered four men to attend us into the Turkish territories; and as they did not reach us at Khoi, we should probably have awaited their arrival there, if I had not resisted such an arrangement, declaring that it would be better to advance one300 mile, than in our circumstances to remain idle for one single day. Accordingly, notwithstanding the pressing invitation of Nejef Kooli Khan, the Governor, to stay the day with him, we departed for Péréh, a village two fursungs from Khoi, which I call six miles, and in a bearing of N. 60 W. The morning was one of the loveliest in Spring, lightly covered with clouds, with a softness in the air which seemed to soothe every varied work of nature into tacit enjoyment of the bounty and munificence of their Almighty Creator. I shall ever recollect with thankfulness the delightful sensations which I experienced in passing the beautiful plain of Khoi; where every innocent sense received its gratification, and ripened into thoughts teeming with love and gratitude to their divine Maker.

Every thing was rich and beautiful: the mountains were green to their very summits; and their inequalites were here and there enriched by beds of wild flowers of the most lively and luxuriant hues. Scarcely two miles from Khoi is a very large collection of houses and gardens, which is a Mahalé or parish of the town, and is well inhabited. A stream from the mountains runs through it; and on the skirts to the N. are two pillars of brick, which are described either as the tomb or the cenotaph of a famous poet and learned Mollah of Tabriz, called Shemsé. Péréh is a pretty village, situated on the declivity of the hills, which gradually form the bases of the adjoining mountains; on the summit of one of these hills is an old square fort, now in ruins: and in its neighbourhood are two other villages called Pesé and Zaidé. There are walnut-trees, willows, poplars, elms, and fruit-trees of every description in the highest perfection, with a great profusion of grass.

On this as well as on the other side of Tabriz, the peasants convey their loads on the backs of oxen, on which indeed they frequently ride themselves. At Péréh I saw the first wheeled-carriage (excepting gun-carriages) that I had noticed in Persia. It was exactly similar to the Turkish Araba. Besides their plough, which I have already described, the Persians have the large rake, which serves as a harrow, and is fast301ened to a pole and drawn like a plough by yoked oxen: they have another implement of agriculture, which is certainly capable of much improvement. It is a pole fixt transversely on another to which the oxen are yoked; on each of these is a small wooden cylinder about half a foot long: and these insignificant things are dragged as a roller over the ground.

June the 5th. We went from Péréh to Zauviéh in six hours and a half, on a bearing of N. 50 W. which may be twenty-four miles. During the whole of the preceding evening it had rained, accompanied by thunder and lightning. Our ride, therefore, was rendered muddy. From Péréh we entered some mountains of easy access; which, about ten miles before we reached Zauviéh, opened into a plain surrounded like a basin by mountains, on all sides gradually inclining to the centre. On entering the plain, high on the right on the declivity of the mountain, is the village of Selawan; and on the left a small village called Khoré; and on the turn of the road towards it, are two stone lions among some rude and ancient tomb-stones. The greater part of the population of the plain is composed of Armenians. To the West are very high mountains, the tops of which were covered with snow, and their roots, when we passed by, were nearly concealed by the heavy clouds that rested upon them.

The snow was melting, and frequently streams were pouring from the mountains. Yet the difference of the temperature of the air here, and that which we had experienced within a few days, was very sensible; and before sun-rise it was piercingly cold. The plain was cultivated in all parts. The whole of the soil, over which we passed, was of the finest brown mould; so that, excepting some summits of the mountains, the country was one universal carpet of verdure.

We met a large party of the Elauts or wandering tribes, composed mostly of women and children, who were travelling to a fresh encampment. One of the women, who had the care of two children, had dismounted; and the extreme agility with which she got on her horse302 again, without any other aid than her own hands and feet, shewed how much she was accustomed to this sort of life.

We sent forwards our Mehmandar to desire that tents might be pitched for us, because we had been advised to avoid the village on account of the plague, which sometimes visits these parts. Accordingly we found four tents pitched for us, two of horse-hair, (the real Kara Khader of the Eels), and two white tents, rude enough indeed, but so delightfully situated in the plain, surrounded by corn fields, that we quite revelled in the exchange.

We had not long taken possession of our humble encampment, when a storm of thunder, lightning and hail overwhelmed us, in a manner which completely destroyed all the comfort of our interior arrangements. Hail-stones fell in numbers which entirely filled every corner of our tent, and so large, that measuring one I found it to be an inch in diameter, and so strongly congealed that they lay on the ground undiminished in size, until the sun once more broke out and dissolved them. The hills near us received a new covering of snow, shewing their summits as the storm rolled away, in sublime grandeur. The peasants told us, that this weather was very common to them. Although this was but an ungracious beginning to a pastoral life, yet I must own that to me it still had so many delights compared with the confinement of houses, that with all the present disadvantages I would willingly prefer it to a residence in the towns of Persia. Among its enjoyments is that of its freedom from vermin, from which (particularly fleas) we had hitherto suffered so much; not that the people are singularly dirty, but the creatures are the usual productions of the place and season. A Persian who was conversing with us in our tent, on seeing my servant beating a coat with a cane to clean it of the vermin which it had collected at the former stage, very gravely asked, “Pray what crime has that coat committed, that makes the Frangee beat it so?”

June the 6th. The quantity of rain that had fallen during the course of the day had completely saturated the greatest part of our303 clothes and baggage, and materially increased the weight of the lading of our mules. Thanks to God, it did not rain in the night; and we slept soundly till about an hour before the break of day, when we quitted our black tents for the village of Cara-ainéh. The distance, on a bearing of N. 20 W. is called five fursungs; but though we were nearly six hours on the road, I shall not reckon it at more than eighteen miles, because we were delayed in our progress by the mud, which the rain and hail had created. We took a turn to the Eastward from our encampment, and came to a village called Iekaftee, on the borders of a mountain torrent swoln and rendered so rapid by the late storms, that two or three of our mules had nearly been carried away by its violence. On the right of the road (at the distance of five miles from our last station) is a spring dammed up, except at an aperture in one of its corners, through which a small quantity of water is permitted to ooze out, called in Turkish, Ak-bolagh, or “white spring:” and three miles further, and distant from the road two miles, on the left, is a collection of a few wretched hovels called Kurkendéh, surrounded by cultivated fields. About this spot the road was formerly so infested with the Curdistan robbers, that it was never passed without danger: but since Prince Abbas Mirza has had the government of Aderbigian in his hands, he has so completely expelled the freebooters from their haunts, that no district is now so safe. We traversed a pass formed by the gradual meeting of the roots of the mountains, and then entered an oval plain, extending, on a rough calculation, in length eight miles from N. to S, and three in breadth. The village of Cara-ainéh, our Menzil, is here immediately seen, and is easily marked by a square fort, which, rising from the midst of its miserable huts, appears a palace in comparison. This village is the chief of a Mahalé of the same name, composed of about twenty-one villages, the principal of which are Hiderlou, Nabekandi, Gelish Acha, Sedel, Zaiveh, and Ak-dezeh. From Cara-ainéh there is a road to Van, a distance of fifty miles, on a bearing of S. W.

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We had now reached the dregs of Persia. Beyond Khoi and Péréh both the habitations and the people bore an appearance of misery, indicative of a neglected country. This deterioration is probably inseparable from the borders of two states, which are ill-defined as to territory and actual property. None but the Ket Khoda had a decent coat, and all the rest were in tatters and beggary.

The Thaubet of Cara-ainéh had been appointed to his government only the day before our arrival, an excuse which he alleged for his inability to satisfy us in several of our inquiries. His appearance, indeed, bespoke the truth of his apology; for he was dressed from head to foot in new clothes, new cap, new coat, new slippers; doubtless to impress his peasantry with a sense of his superiority. We had rain all the day, and almost incessant thunder and lightning. The tract over which we passed, though generally of admirable soil, was for the greater part waste. We saw, however, immense flocks, some perhaps of one thousand sheep, grazing in the fat pastures on the declivities and in the recesses of the mountains; and large herds also of mares with their foals. These were the property of the Elauts: the mares belonging to the King are kept in Mazanderan, which is said to afford the finest pasture of his dominions. Their foals are thence distributed to the troops as they may be wanted. The Guardian or Controller of these Royal herds is an officer of considerable consequence, and is selected always from men of rank and importance in the state. He is called Elkhee-chee or Master of the Mares, and resides at Asterabad, where he holds his office, registering every foal as it falls. He has subordinate agents, entrusted severally with the charge of twenty mares, and with the choice of their pastures, besides the inferior grooms who tend the animals daily. The foals are not backed until they have completed their third year.

7th. The morning was darkened by clouds which covered the whole sky; the thickest resting on the tops of the mountains, and extending themselves in some parts nearly to the bases. We quitted305 our wretched habitation at Cara-ainéh, to pace a miserable road; the bottom of which, always wet and deep, was rendered still more impracticable by a shower of rain that overtook us, soon after we had quitted the village. Almost at the extremity of the plain is a swamp; on the surface of the waters of which were innumerable flocks of ducks and other wild-fowl. We noticed two cranes stepping away before us at a great pace, and hiding their legs from us by letting fall their tails. The soil was rich almost beyond calculation, and afforded the finest pastures. We crossed the village of Ak-dezeh, and then leaving the plain, wound through the vallies which were formed by the Western mountains. The whole country was watered by numerous torrents; on the borders of one we spread as our breakfast, the scanty remains of our yesterday’s meal; which, in such a spot however, would have been a real treat to the lovers of romance. The scene indeed, alone, consoled us for our bad fare at Cara-ainéh. A stupendous mass of rock rose perpendicularly over our heads; and at our feet foamed and roared the torrent, while the whole view was enriched by the verdure of the distant landscape, and enlivened by the chirping of innumerable birds. About twelve miles from Cara-ainéh are several hills; the declivities of which are strewed with large masses of black rock, evidently from their weight and their calcined appearance, full of metal. The whole seems to be volcanic matter.

After quitting these hills we came into the plain, at the extremity of which is situated Agajik, a miserable Armenian village, about the same size as our former stage. We were six hours and a half in travelling the distance, twenty-two miles, on a bearing of N. 20 W. In the centre of the plain a caravan, from Oroumi, was grazing its mules: the driver of it told us, that he had been eight days on the journey, at the rate of four agatch a day, making a total of about one hundred miles. Here the distances are measured by the agatch, which corresponds exactly to the sahat or hour. The village consisted of huts, surrounding an old square fort on a hill. Our lodging was a covered building, in the roof of which were two small holes to admit306 light; and in the interior of which a square of twenty feet was parted off by a wall three feet high, for the residence of the master, while the remainder was reserved for his cattle. The costume of the people was changing fast; and the black sheep-skin cap of Persia was scarcely seen.

The day was overspread with clouds till near sun-set, when it cleared away a little to the Northward, and shewed us the sublime and venerable mountain of Ararat. It bore N. 10 E. of our station, and presented a stupendous mass to our view. The Persians told me that it was eight hours distance from us; and added many a story of its wonders. Such as—that no one, who attempted to ascend it, ever returned; and that one hundred men who had been sent from Arz-roum by the Pacha, to effect the undertaking, all died. The Armenian priest assured me, with a very grave face, that the ark was still there. There is a smaller mountain on the same range, bearing N. 30 E. which is called by the Turks, Cochuk Agri-dagh, as the larger Ararat is called Agri-dagh. Ararat is the Macis of the Armenians. The sources of the Euphrates are twelve hours from Agajik, in a direction of N. 50 W. by the peasant’s pointing. The Armenians told me that they had a Zeeauret, or place of devotion, at the sources called Wes Kionk.

8th. We left Agajik with five men, who, according to the custom, accompanied us out of their frontier into the Turkish territory. At about two miles and a half from Agajik is another Armenian village, called Kilsé, from the ruins of a church (Ecclesia), which forms a conspicuous object among its mean huts, being well-built with a fine white stone, with arched doors and windows. Even in its ruins, however, the present poor inhabitants still contrive to keep up a place of worship within the interior.

About three miles and a half N. 30 W. from Agajik, are the boundaries of the Persian and Turkish territories marked by a ruined tower, situated in the centre of a valley.

Mount Ararat.
Drawn by James Morier Esq^r.
Published by Mess^rs. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, Paternoster Row, May 1, 1811.

As we were feeding our horses, the person whom we had sent to Bayazid (to intimate our approach to the locum-tenens of Ibrahim307 Pacha, who was himself on an excursion against the Courds) returned, and told us that the Acting-governor would not receive us into the city, nor give us a passage near it; alleging as a reason, that his master the Pacha had left strict orders, that during his absence no strangers, and particularly no Persians, should be admitted. This unexpected news staggered us at first, but at length we determined to send one of the Mirza’s own men to exert the influence of his master’s station in our favour. We proceeded, following our messenger: the road took a turn to N. 30 E. and shewed us once again in a much larger exposure than before the stupendous Ararat. It is indeed a sublime and almost terrific object. It rises from an immense variety of lands; and is covered with snow, and almost always surrounded with clouds.

We stopt at a small Armenian village called Kerdek, (on the left of the road, one fursung from Bayazid,) to await the return of our second messenger. We did not tarry long, when he appeared, though only to confirm the report of his predecessor. The Turks would not suffer him even alone to enter the city; for as soon as he approached, they fired a musket or two, to convince him that their resistance would not be confined to threats; and when he endeavoured to come to a parley, they answered him only with ill language and abuse. We determined therefore immediately upon taking a circuit to avoid Bayazid, and seeking Ibrahim Pacha himself, from whom we expected a handsome reception; as the Persians represented him to me as a vassal of their Prince Abbas Mirza, fearing Him rather than his own sovereign. Our road to day averaged N. 10 W. a distance of ten miles; the same bearing indeed may be extended to Bayazid, on a further distance of four miles. Bayazid, as I learned in its neighbourhood, is situated close at the foot of Mount Ararat: it is peopled principally by Armenians. On a hill about it, is a castle, which by its defenders is said to be strong; they are very jealous however of the curiosity of a Persian.

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9th. Three men, whom we anxiously expected from Prince Abbas Mirza to accompany us to Constantinople, joined us on the evening of the 8th; and so far therefore our delay at this miserable village was convenient. We gave them just time to feed their horses; and then, about an hour before sun-set, resumed our march to take up our quarters for the night on the bank of a little running stream; the rich pastures, through which the waters flowed, refreshed our cattle, but we ourselves were obliged to pass the night in the open field with a heavy dew falling, yet, thank God, with a fine clear sky. During the course of the night a Turk arrived from Bayazid to say, that he was sent by the Kiayah to be our Mehmandar to the presence of his master; adding, indeed, that the Vice-Governor regretted the misunderstanding on which he had acted, for he had been told that we were followed by a large body of horsemen. On further questioning the Turk we found, that the wife of Ibrahim Pacha (hearing that there was an Elchee, an Embassador, without the town, and that admittance had been refused to him) made loud remonstrances to the Kiayah on the impropriety of his conduct, and interceded so far in our behalf that he sent us these excuses. Though we were ill satisfied with the conduct of this person, we thought it better not to reject the attendance of the officer whom he had deputed to escort us, as we were among a wild and unmanageable people.

We travelled an hour and a half, in one of the clearest and most beautiful mornings that the heavens ever produced; and passing on our left the two villages of Dizzéh and Kizzil Dizzéh, we came to an opening of a small plain covered with the black tents and cattle of the Elauts. Here also we had a view of Mount Ararat; the clouds no longer rested on its summit, but circled round it below. We went to the largest tent in the plain, and there enjoyed an opportunity of learning that the hospitality of these people is not exaggerated. As soon as it was announced at the tent that strangers were coming, every thing was in motion: some carried our horses to the best pastures, others309 spread carpets for us, one was dispatched to the flock to bring a fat lamb, the women immediately made preparation for cooking, and we had not sat long before two large dishes of stewed lamb, with several basins of yaourt, were placed before us. The senior of the tribe, an old man (by his own account indeed more than eighty-five years of age) dressed in his best clothes, came out to us, and welcomed us to his tent with such kindness, yet with such respect, that his sincerity could not be mistaken. He was still full of activity and fire, although he had lost all his teeth, and his beard was as white as the snow on the venerable mountain near his tent. The simplicity of his manners and the interesting scenery around reminded me, in the strongest colours of the life of the patriarchs: and more immediately of Him whose history is inseparable from the mountains of Ararat. Nothing indeed could accord better with the spot than the figure of our ancient host. His people were a part of the tribe of Jelalee, and their principal seat was Erivan; but they ranged through the country:

We quitted our hospitable friends, (who appeared to be almost more grateful for our visit than we for their kindness), and passed along the plain. Mount Ararat bore N. 40 E. and extended itself completely to our view. Its N. W. ascent is not so rapid as its S. E. and I should conceive that in this quarter it might be possible to ascend it. In six hours and a half, after leaving our last encampment, we reached Diadin. It is a large village with a fort and towers; under which, in a deep channel of perpendicular rock, runs the eastern Euphrates, there a shallow stream about twenty feet in breadth. It rises about four agatch310 or twelve miles from Diadin, on a bearing of S. 50 W. by the direction of a man’s hand; and in the country is called the Frat; the name assumed at Arz-roum, by the Western stream.

At Diadin we were not permitted to go near their miserable castle. The houses of the place are built of mud and stones, and the rooms are calculated to lodge the animals as well as the family. A small compartment only is reserved for the master; and in general the rest of the space is left for his cattle. We did not, indeed, enter their habitations, for every door was shut against us; and when, by great management, we had secured shelter for ourselves, our people, and our cattle, we found equal difficulty in procuring food. Abdulla Pacha, a rebel Courd, with whom Ibrahim Pacha was at open war, had in fact carried away all the flocks, and destroyed all the crops of this village. We could not therefore expect an easy supply of corn for our horses; but after much intreaty a little was produced, for which indeed we paid an amazing price. A piece of barley bread was delivered to each man; and the masters, by a very marked favour, were supplied with a mess of eggs and a basin of yaourt.

The houses for the Conaks or reception of strangers, here as in all other places in Turkey were regularly defined; but when the Mirza and I were entering that appropriated to ourselves, we were received at the door by a woman, who, with her face totally uncovered, boldly bad defiance to the Conak-chee, and (with the most threatening looks, and with all the volubility of her sex,) swore that nobody should enter her dwelling. However, by a little negociation we pacified our hostess, and were at length admitted into her stable, where we spread our carpets and composed ourselves to sleep. The women here barely cover their faces; and, as we afterwards learnt, are notorious for depravity: they appear very healthy. The men are as wild as savages, and seem to be under no law. Independently of their own immediate distresses, one of the reasons for their inhospitality to Persians is very natural; several Embassadors had been sent to Constantinople, and since that311 time every traveller, who had two or three attendants, assumed the same dignity. The discovery of the fraud has necessarily roused the caution of the Turks.

10th. We were nine hours on the road to Youngali, called nine agatch, and which I calculated at thirty-two miles on a bearing of N. 65 W. The Euphrates accompanied us all the way through a country of grass, but of little cultivation. Four miles after leaving Diadin we passed the village of Jugan, about a mile and a half on our left: then four miles further, still on the left and on the other bank of the Euphrates, Utch Klissé. Here a high and snow-covered mountain called Kussé Dagh appears in view; and (extending to the S. and W.) the range of Ala-Dagh. In the village is an Armenian Church, a very respectable looking building, much resembling an European structure. It has two wings with a shelving roof, and is covered by a small dome built of stone, apparently not in much decay.

At the termination of that branch of the mountain near which Utch Klissé stands, there is a stone bridge thrown over the Euphrates. We continued by the bank of the river, which winds from E. to W. creating verdure on each side as it flows. We passed through a village now in ruins called Alakou; and on the slope of the hill (three miles on the left of the road) that of Comoulja; another called Belasou, is close on the banks of the river; and, about eight miles further, having passed the miserable huts at Cadi Kieu, we reached after a very sultry ride, our Conak at Youngali. All these villages are in the Mahalé of Alashgerd.

When we had been about an hour on our road, I missed a small carpet from my baggage, and sent back therefore my servant to reclaim it from our host at Diadin. From the looks which he cast at our goods, I had frequently suspected his honesty, but I might have spared my suspicions and my trouble; for I received nothing but oaths. Near to Utch Klissé, we met the battering train of Ibrahim Pacha, which consisted of two field pieces, returning from the siege of Turpa Caléh, the castle of Timur Beg, who had revolted from his authority.312 We learned that after a siege of five months, in which the Pacha had fired his guns one hundred and fifty times at the town and castle, he had succeeded in killing one fowl and one dog.

Ibrahim Pacha, who was at another village three miles from Youngali, sent his Haznadar or treasurer to escort us to our lodging. The misery here was even greater than that of the preceding day. No corn for our horses, nor even grass without hard blows. The whole of the country was in a state of absolute devastation from the incursions of the Courds; and our course presented nothing but difficulties, for Ibrahim Pacha was at war with all the country round. He professed indeed to respect the firman of Abbas Mirza, and when we sent him that with which we had been furnished, he immediately carried it to his head, saying that he was the Princes servant in all things; and that there was nothing which he would not willingly do to serve him. We never fared worse, however, than at this village. The people that surrounded us bore the looks of savages, and their general behaviour corresponded with their appearance.

To the South of Youngali, as I was told at the place, lies Van; and to the S. W. the large Mahalé of Kensus.

11th. We left Youngali, dissatisfied with our host: the Persians indeed were miserable with the scanty hospitality which they received at his village. When we were left by the two officers, who escorted us to their master’s frontier, we were advised not to go near Turpa Caléh, as we should undoubtedly be molested. Yet the situation, in which this war of the rival chiefs had placed us, was so difficult, that we incurred equal hazard either in passing the castle of Timur Beg, without offering our respects, or in venturing near it after coming from the domains of his enemy. We determined therefore to state our story simply, and throw ourselves on his hospitality. We crossed a most beautiful plain covered with villages, and watered by numerous streams. We forded three considerable torrents, which poured from the N. mountains, and, swoln by the melting snows, threw themselves into the Euphrates, which was flowing at the Southern extremity of the313 plain from E. to W. Three miles from Youngali we came to Cara-Klissé, a large village peopled by Courds and Armenians; and then made a circuit to the N. to avoid a swampy road in the centre of the plain. We passed through several villages, the inhabitants of which seeing the numbers of our company mistook us for one of the fighting parties, and crowded on the tops of their houses at our approach. Of these places, the principal were named Datté Tapé, Kesick, and Arnat.

Turpa Caléh is situated N. 60 W. from Youngali, on a distance of about fifteen miles or four hours. It is a larger place than any that we had seen since Khoi. The town is scattered on the slope of a conical hill, on the top of which is a castle. This the Turks deem impregnable, and with justice, if the failure of the late siege be a criterion, though the fort seems in every part accessible to cannon. The high mountain of Kussé Dagh overlooks the town and attracts continual clouds over it. We proceeded warily; and, about a mile before we reached the place, halted and sent forwards a man to reconnoitre the appearance and dispositions of the people, and to report on the expediency of our advance. He returned with the intelligence that we had nothing to fear; and we directed our course therefore to the Conac or dwelling of the Kiayah, the chief officer of Timur Beg. Here we dismounted, and were introduced immediately into a dark room, where twenty torpid Turks were indulging themselves in the quiet delights of smoking. The Kiayah sat in the corner, but rose when the Mirza entered; and, having said the usual “Khosh gueldin” (you are welcome,) closed his lips and left his guest to display the compliments and insinuative flattery so natural to his nation. The loquaciousness and vivacity of the Persian formed an inimitable contrast with the dull and heavy laconism of the Turk.

When we had smoked and drunk coffee, a man came to inform us that Timur Beg was ready to receive us. The Mirza and I immediately proceeded, leaving the rest of our party with the Kiayah. We ascended to the castle by a steep and difficult path, and entered it by314 a large iron door. We were introduced into a spacious room at the summit. The Chief (attended by all his principal warriors gravely seated around) occupied a window commanding an extensive view of the country over which we had travelled, and more particularly the district of his rival, the Pacha. When we also were seated, and the usual compliments had passed, the Mirza begun a prepared speech unfolding our condition, announcing that we threw ourselves at his mercy, asking the rights of hospitality from him, and intermixing throughout some very severe invective against his enemy the Pacha. The mode succeeded: and Timur Beg instantly replied, that we had nothing to fear; that under his protection we were safe; that our necessities should be supplied, and that his officers should receive orders to treat us with distinction and kindness at a neighbouring village; for he hoped, as the only favour that he required of us, that we would not sojourn in his castle for that night.

When these preliminaries were settled, I had time to observe that there was much to admire in our host. He was about forty years of age, with a singularly open and manly countenance, and with manners the most graceful and dignified. He related his own history and his differences with Ibrahim Pacha in language so simple, yet so expressive, that we acquired a deep interest in his fate; particularly, when he expatiated on the Pacha’s tyranny and inordinate rapaciousness, and on the misery in which his exactions had involved all the peasantry of the district. During the course however of his conversation with the Mirza, I remarked one of his observations which was very characteristic of a semi-barbarous society. He inquired who I was? and being informed that I was of the Sect of Isau (Jesus), or, in other words, a Christian, he continued (with a look of pity, having observed that I had refused a pipe), “These fellows, I hear, have neither pipes nor tobacco in their country: haivan dar, they are beasts:” as if to say, assuming that we did not possess the knowledge or the means of their favourite enjoyment, “how far inferior to us must those be who cannot smoke.”

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Our host kept strictly to his word: we were sent forwards four miles further to the promised village of Molah Suleiman, escorted by two of his officers; and supplied with all that the place could afford, a sheep, fowls, and rice for ourselves, and corn for our horses.

12th. We passed over a mountainous tract of country from Molah Suleiman to Deli-baba, a distance which we travelled in ten hours, and which I reckoned at thirty-five miles, on a bearing of N. 30 W. as well as the intricacies of the turns would permit me to observe. Before we entered the mountains, (when we had travelled about three miles, and just above the little village of Zadiéh,) I had the parting view of Mount Ararat, which bore from us N. 80 E. We were told that the road was much infested by the Courds, particularly at a pass in the mountains called Gerdina, and we placed ourselves therefore in a posture of defence. But we traversed the whole extent without seeing a human being, till we reached Dahar, a village of Courds in the mountains twenty miles from Molah Suleiman. We then proceeded winding in a variety of directions, with a scorching sun over our heads, to the entrance of a pass which, through two stupendous rocks, leads into the plain of Deli-baba. This pass might be made an admirable military position, and in its present state is a most picturesque object. A stream from the mountains runs through it: on the left is a rock three hundred feet perpendicular, and on the other side is another of less height, but pierced with three holes, as if it were by the hand of man.

On entering the plain we saw numbers of peasants with their arabahs or carts. They told us they had fled from their village in the fear of Abdulla Aga, who, from his station near Erivan, makes predatory excursions all over the country. They added that Deli-baba was totally depopulated; however we did not believe them, and proceeded. We found indeed a very bad reception, for the inhabitants mistook us for enemies, collected together at our approach, refused us admittance, and fired several muskets at us. At length the chief of the village came out to meet us, and we agreed to establish ourselves at a distance,316 feed our cattle, and depart. The fear of Abdulla Aga created such a distrust, that we were avoided by every one whom we met; and even when any permitted us to approach, all our assurances were insufficient to inspire them with confidence. Although we offered great prices for the necessaries of our supply, the people would hardly sell a single article; and the few pieces of bread and eggs which formed our meal at Deli-baba were not procured without the greatest difficulty.

Although the country is in a terrible state of disturbance, caravans travel freely on the road. We met a large one which had been eight days from Arz-roum. Our mule-driver happened to kill a serpent; he cut it immediately in two pieces, and threw the parts on different sides, saying, “It is a lucky sign, our enemies will not overcome us.”

The soil over which we passed was admirably rich, and the most delightful spring reigned on the tops of the mountains, where we culled nosegays of a thousand hues; yet the snow lay in several places, and covered the fetlocks of our horses, while close to it rose every flower.

13th. We quitted the village of Deli-baba early in the morning, having passed a night full of anxiety and watchfulness in the open fields; as we were told that we were not safe, and might probably be attacked, though nothing, thank God, disturbed us. We proceeded on a bearing of West to Amra Kieu, a village prettily situated at the utmost extremity of a plain, and surrounded by some trees, (in our later course a very scarce object) the willow and the plane. We crossed a beautiful country cultivated in most parts, and considering the extreme misery of the inhabitants themselves, looking very prosperous. The spring was here in its first burst, and the corn was scarcely a span high: the fields were no longer watered by dikes as in Persia, for the nature of the seasons and of the country render unnecessary any artificial means of irrigation. The hills to the Northward of the plain, through which we passed, rise in a gentle acclivity, and to our view displayed habitations and culture; but as we met no person on the317 road, I could not learn the names of the villages in various parts. At two hours, (seven miles,) from Deli-baba, and about a mile from the road, is Batman Kieu, situated in the bosom of a valley delightfully watered and cultivated. The houses of Amra Kieu, our resting place, are built with the fir tree, and their roofs are formed by rafters of wood, geometrically placed, which are afterwards covered with earth, and constitute a strong dome. This is a better construction than any that we had lately observed. Small two-wheeled carts, to which oxen are yoked, are used here by the peasantry. The sheep are very fine, with large tails and good wool.

14th. We went from Amra Kieu, due West towards Alwar, ten miles. Three miles after quitting Amra Kieu, we came to the banks of the Araxes; which enters the plain from the mountains near Yaghan, a large village situated about three miles from the road. The stream flows here from N. 65 E. to S. 30 W. It takes its rise in the Mahalé of Khunus; and where it issues from the ground is called Bin Gieul, or a thousand springs. In its course it closely follows the mountains which we had left at the extremity of the plain. Little irrigation is drawn from it through the neighbouring territory. We crossed it over a very well-built stone bridge of seven arches; by the measurement of which the river was about one hundred and sixty paces in breadth. Just at this point a stream flows into it from the Westward, taking its course close to Hassan Caléh. Immediately on passing the bridge we came to a village called Kupré Kieu, and then continued on a fine road, and through a delightful plain strewed with villages, distant in general two or three miles from each other. The principal of these are Arsunjéh, on the left, and Gumec and Miagen, on the right of the road. All the plain was well cultivated; and the peasants were here sowing their corn. We passed by Hassan Caléh, a large town situated around a hill; on the summit is an old fortification, the curious walls of which are chequered with the embrasures of former times. We crossed the stream by the town, over a bridge of two arches. Close to the318 bridge is a bath built over a spring, the heat of which is almost that of scalding water: yet when we looked in, several men were up to their chins in it. The basin is about thirty feet in diameter, and is enclosed by an old structure. Several other springs of the same temperature adjoin it.

We had procured a man from the Governor (Cazi) of Hassan Caléh, to conduct us to Alwar, but the Aga of that place positively refused to admit us or to lodge us, and added in direct terms that he did not care for Cazi, Pacha, or any one else, and that we might go any where we chose; if at least we did not disturb Him. After vollies of abuse on both sides, we were content as before to take up our quarters in the open fields, under the shade of a tree, that luckily was situated near the village, and saved us from an ardent sun. Here we saw geese for the first time.

Whilst seated under the tree, vowing vengeance on the Aga of Alwar, (having dispatched a man to the Governor of Arz-roum to state our case), we were visited by a respectable, yet sly-looking Turk, who came quietly and settled himself on our carpet. He begun by telling us that he was a yoljee (a traveller) like ourselves; and inquired what made us so angry. We broke out into every species of invective against the Aga of the village, who had obliged us to remain like our horses and mules, under a tree, refusing us the most common offices of hospitality; and added, that we had in consequence sent a messenger to the Governor of Arz-roum to complain of the affront, hoping at the same time that the inhospitable Aga would either lose his head, or at least get a severe bastinado. We had some suspicion that the personage to whom we were talking was the very Aga himself, and were therefore less scrupulous in our abuse. This suspicion proved true: our visitor begun by taking the Aga’s part, saying that the country was in a great state of alarm, and that the people feared to receive into their towns so many strangers, and particularly Persians, and319 finished in his own person by intreating us not to write to the Governor of Arz-roum. He went away accordingly in some fright, and allowed us to get provisions from his village, a permission which he had not granted before.

We spent the night, however, in the open air, and in the fear of rain: much, indeed, was falling on all sides of us with thunder and lightning.

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CHAP. XVII.
ARZ-ROUM TO AMASIA.

1809, June 15th. We arrived at Arz-roum, after riding fifteen miles on a bearing of W. over a chalky road. The city presents itself in a very picturesque manner; its old minarets and decayed turrets, rising abruptly to the view. Our baggage was carried to the Custom-house, notwithstanding all our remonstrances and claims of privilege. The321 caution of the Turks, though in this instance unnecessary, was not unjustifiable, for a former Persian Embassador had concealed merchants in his suite, who, under his name, passed large quantities of fine goods.

Arz-roum is built on a rising ground: on the highest part is the castle, surrounded by a double wall of stone, which is chequered at the top by embrasures, and strengthened here and there by projections in the fashion of bastions, with openings fit for the reception of cannon. It has four gates, which are covered with plates of iron. The whole is well-built, and to me does not appear the work of Mussulmans. A ditch runs by it to the S. W.; near it is a tannery; and further on is a row of blacksmiths’ forges, which seemed in good employ. In this direction (N. E. of the town) is the Custom-house, a spacious building. The Pacha’s residence has a large gate opening into a court-yard. The houses are in general built of stone, with rafters of wood, and terraced. Grass grows on their tops, and sheep and calves feed there; so that, when seen from an eminence, the roofs of the houses can hardly be distinguished from the plain at their foundation. I walked through most of the bazars; few are domed, the rest are terraced, like the dwellings, but affording a common road for foot-passengers, who ascend by a public flight of steps. Wherever a street intervenes, a bridge is thrown over, and the line continues uninterrupted. The shops in the bazars are well stocked, and the place exhibits an appearance of much industry. The streets are mostly paved; but, as in Turkey, in that manner which is more calculated to break the passenger’s neck than to ease his feet. There are sixteen baths, and one hundred mosques; several of the latter are creditable buildings, the domes of which are covered with lead, and ornamented with gilt balls and crescents.

This is the present state of Arz-roum; its remains prove that it must have been still more considerable. Every thing attests the antiquity of the place; the inhabitants indeed date the foundation from the322 time of Noah, and very zealously swear, that some of their present structures were contemporary with the Patriarch: with less hazard of truth, or rather with much appearance of probability, they aver that others were the work of the Giaours, or Infidels. One in particular is attributed to the latter origin; it consists of an arched gateway, curiously worked all in strong stone, situated N. W. in the castle, and close to a decayed minaret of ancient structure. Yet many of the older fabrics appear by the true Moresque arch, to be certainly of Saracenic origin; and many of the remains of mosques resemble those buildings in Persia, with curious bricks, and lacquered tiles, which were raised in the first ages of Mahomedanism. In all those at Arz-roum, I observed a round tower, with a very shelving roof, covered all over with bricks. There are still erect several minarets, obviously works of the early Mussulmans. Near the Eastern gate of the castle are two of brick and tile, and a gate (with a Saracenic arch and a Cufic inscription) and many strong stone buildings around, the remains of the fine portico of a mosque. To the East of the town is an old tower of brick, the highest building in Arz-roum, which is used as a look-out-house, and serves as the tower of the Janizaries at Constantinople, or that of Galata. There is a clock at the summit, which strikes the hours with sufficient regularity.

In Arz-roum there are from four to five thousand families of the Armenian, and about one hundred of the Greek persuasion: the former have two churches, the latter one. There are perhaps one thousand Persians who live in a Caravanserai, and manage by caravans the trade of their own country. Trebisond is the port on the Black Sea, to which the commerce of Constantinople is conveyed. The Turkish inhabitants of Arz-roum are fifty thousand families. This amount of the population I give from the authority of a well-informed Armenian; but as all such details in a country so ill-regulated are exceedingly suspicious, I have already taken the liberty to deduct more than one-third from the number of Turkish families in the original esti323mate. But the reduced statement still leaves in Arz-roum, at the rate of five persons in a family, a total of two hundred and fifty thousand persons, besides Armenians.

The climate of Arz-roum is very changeable, and must in winter be piercingly cold. It rained throughout the whole of the 19th, but the clouds dispersed on the morrow, and discovered the adjacent hills overspread with snow. The high lands which arise from the plain around, attract constant thunder-storms; the elevation, indeed, of the whole region from the base of the sea is itself very considerable, and is sufficient to account for the cold.

On the 17th we visited the Governor. He treated us with the usual civilities of the occasion in Turkey, pipes, coffees, sweetmeats and sherbet, for which we paid dearly by the numerous backshishes or vails that are given in such circumstances. Emin Aga, who then filled the station and was Musselim of the town, was also Gumruckchee or Collector of the Customs, an office which in Persia is confined to very inferior persons, and which therefore drew upon the Commandant of Arz-roum, who unluckily bore it, the laughter and contempt of the Persians. Yet when he invited us all to dinner, they were not the less anxious to make their best appearance before him. Throughout the day, the Persian Envoy was occupied with the arrangement of his clothes; he consulted every one of his servants on the suit which might become him best, and at length fixed on a fine gold-brocade coat.

On the 20th we went accordingly to the entertainment. After smoking and drinking coffee, the Aga called for dinner. Water for the preliminary ablution was first brought, when I observed that the Turks washed both their hands, and the Persians the right only. The servants who brought the basin and ewer were attended by two others: one who spread a towel on the knees, and another who was ready to take it away, and replace it by a second for the hands. After this an octagonal stool two feet and a half high was placed in a corner of the sopha, on which was put a large round pewter tray carved all over in324 various fashions. On this were placed piles of bread all around, onions, endive, and basins of yaourt, milk, and plates of cheese, with two wooden spoons at intervals for the guests. When all was ready our host said, “booyouroun,” or “you are served,” and we approached the table. When seated each guest was attended by a page, who threw a large napkin with gold-embroidered borders over each shoulder, and arranged another on our knees; an apparatus not unlike that of the preliminary service of shaving. A small cloth was placed in the centre of the tray, on which stood the dish. First, in a glass vase, came a species of sweet soup which was not unpalatable; then a lamb roasted, stuffed with rice and almonds; then stewed pears, then a stew of mutton, then sweet jelly; in short, there was a succession of at least one hundred dishes, consisting generally of an intermediate sweet article between the meats, besides pastry to each. The master of the entertainment said, “Booyouroun,” when it was brought in, and “Calder,” or “take away,” when we had eat two or three mouthfuls, and scarce any other words but these two were heard during the whole feast. Servants attended behind each guest, with a vase of lemonade or sherbet. The dishes were not, in general, badly cooked, although much coarser than those of Persia. The whole was closed by an immense pillau. The principal dishes were the yakné, which resembles our Irish stew; the dolmah, meat balls enclosed in vine leaves; the kabob, which is roast meat; the chorbah, or soup; the baklavah, a cake of honey, paste, and other sweet ingredients; the lokmah, a light paste puff; and the pillau, which is nothing but rice intermixed now and then with plums, almonds, and always well peppered and spiced. When all was over we washed our hands with soap and hot water, smoked, drank coffee, and went away, and were dunned as usual for backshishes on departing.

A strange character joined us at Arz-roum; he was a native of Bosnia, and took the opportunity of our escort to reach Constantinople. He seemed to fear the wild inhabitants of the country through which we325 had to pass, and wore accordingly a coat of mail under his clothes, and a burnished helmet on his head, and was armed with two heavy rifle guns, a pair of pistols, a long kunjur, and a sword, besides a variety of powder flasks, &c. which, altogether, made him weigh thirty stone.

On the 21st we left Arz-roum, and proceeded across the plain to Ilija, a distance of five miles only, on a bearing of N. 80 West. The plain is covered with villages: I counted thirty on one part, and the cultivation is proportioned to the population. The season was advancing: in some places the corn was a foot from the ground, and there was besides much fine pasture.

Close to the village we crossed a bridge over a nice stream, there called the Kara Sou, which flows in this quarter from E. to W. and according to the information which I procured on this spot, finally flows into the Euphrates. On comparing, however, my authorities and my observations, I suspect that it is itself larger than its confluent stream, and deserves therefore to be considered as the primary river. Its sources are in the mountains at Suzdan, about nine miles from Arz-roum; and it meets another river at Serchembéh. The sources of the Tigris are said to be at a village called Nehel, near Gever, a place ten fursungs from Oroumi.

At Ilija are warm springs, two of which are enclosed within walls, for the separate use of men and women. Large parties had collected from Arz-roum to bathe here, and had pitched their tents among the rocks to pass the night. During the night an alarm was given in the village, that a number of Delhis (who have been called the “Enfans perdus” of the Turkish army,) had taken up their quarters among us, and that every one must in consequence look to his own property. Perhaps there were not two hundred of these desperadoes, yet they had given more trouble to the Government of Arz-roum than an army of ten thousand men could excite in any European country. They commit with impunity every act of cruelty and extortion; no one dares to reprimand or to punish them; and a few days before our rencounter with them, they326 chose to be dissatisfied with the conduct of the Governor of Arz-roum, and informed him that they intended to desert. To pacify them, therefore, he was obliged to send them loads of victuals. We passed the night, however, without disturbance, and fared well indeed, by the kindness of the Armenians of the village. From this place Southward to Bin Gieul,42 the sources of the Araxes is five sahat (hours) Turkish. The villages nearest our road were Gez, Belour, Arouni.

22d. Our route to Purtun bore W. on a distance of twenty miles. From Ilija to the right and left, the country was still as on the preceding day, studded with villages, and still richly cultivated. But it is almost destitute of timber; a few bushes and small trees only are sprinkled here and there over the hills; and the great number of Arabahs which we met loaded with wood had been all brought from a distance. About six miles on the right is the village of Alaga, and on the left Arranli. Having proceeded five miles from our last stage we stopped at Jennis, a very pretty spot, where the Armenians brought us a breakfast of eggs, fritters, yaourt (curdled milk), and kymack (clouted cream). On leaving Jennis, the village Nardiran lies at the declivity of the hill. We quitted here the road to the right, which would have carried us to Ak Caléh, the regular Menzil Khonéh, and took a bye-path, because a pass in the mountains along the direct line was possessed by a party of Courdistan freebooters. We reached Purtun about four miles S. from Ak Caléh, and sent thither for the horses (fifteen in number,) which were necessary to convey us forwards. Our resting place was a small village in the bosom of the mountains, near a pretty stream which fell in a cascade (almost under the roots of three picturesque trees in the middle of the water), and turned a mill below. At about twelve o’clock the clouds arose from the S. E. and brought thunder, hail, and rain; a circumstance which I had remarked almost every day at the same hour327 since our arrival at Arz-roum. The weather then cleared up towards the close of the evening, and a fine morning with an almost cloudless sky opened the following day.

On the 23d, we left Purtun; and retraced the route of the preceding day for two miles and a half, when we took a general Westerly direction for twenty-four miles. Our road was carried through a long chain of mountains, in a line of easy access, though the surface was rendered difficult by the mud which the rains had made. The whole soil was an admirably rich earth, producing the greatest luxuriance of grass, wild herbs, and flowers. Here and there the country begun to be wooded; and to be intersected by a great profusion of streams; and in one particular view (about two miles from our stage) displayed the most romantic scenery with fine wild precipices washed by the waters below, and shaded by shrubs and pine trees. The neighbouring district however, in consequence of the depredations of the Delhis, and the recent incursions of the Courds, was entirely unpeopled; and we learnt that the village of Mama Khatoun, at which we intended to take up our quarters for the night, was in the same manner deserted.

From the eminence above we enjoyed a beautiful prospect; a river, swoln by the rains and melted snows, poured from the mountains on the S. E. and meandered at the foot of two stupendous rocks; and the large buildings from which the place derived its name, were below us. They are close to the village, and consist of a caravanserai, a mosque, a bath, and a tomb, all constructed with a fine white free stone, and finished in a manner worthy of the best ages. The caravanserai, in the usual shape of such buildings, is a hollow square, with a gate to the East. Round the court are built small rooms, all arched in the most solid and magnificent style. There are also two vaulted chambers, each fifty yards long by forty broad, for the accommodation of the cattle of travellers. In the middle of the square is an arched chamber, erected probably as a cool retreat in summer. Though many parts of the building are falling into ruin, the caravanserai may328 be considered generally in very good preservation. The mosque is situated to the right. It is entered by a small court yard, from which a vaulted Peristyle leads under the dome, into the principal chamber, where is a stone pulpit. Though the dome is covered with weeds, and though of the single minaret the upper part has fallen, the main structure is still entire; and its fine materials, and its admirable masonry, are very strikingly and advantageously opposed to the more modern works of the country. Close to the caravanserai is the bath, and on the other side the remains of a building; the use of which I could not ascertain. Nearly facing the caravanserai, is a kind of small round temple, probably a tomb, enclosed by a circular wall, which is entered by a gate way of Saracenic architecture. On the exterior of the arch is an inscription in Cufic. The small building inside is covered by a shelving roof, of the same construction as many of the buildings at Arz-roum. The interior is arched, and carved in a variety of ornaments, and under it is a subterraneous chamber. The court is full of fragments, which may perhaps suggest the supposition, that the whole was originally covered. Around are many tomb-stones, inscribed with Cufic characters.

The popular story of the erection of those different buildings is as follows: a wealthy Turk fell in love with an Armenian woman of this village, but as she doubted the extent of his affections, she required as a proof before she yielded her consent to marry him, that he should build a caravanserai, mosque, &c. at the place of her birth. The Turk immediately accepted the conditions; and, proving that his love was equal to his wealth, raised these structures, and called them by her name, Mama Khatoun. The people add, that a treasure is concealed in a part of the caravanserai; which, according to an inscription, is destined for the reconstruction of the whole, after the decay of the present buildings. In one of the corners of the caravanserai we luckily found a stray calf, of which we took possession, and of which the Persians, in disregard of their scruples and distaste of ox-flesh, eat with great appetite.

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At noon we had the usual thunder storm. The surface of the mountain is hard, and apparently contains much mineral matter. A very elevated chain covered with snow extends before the village; the highest part bearing W. and taking a N. direction. The Kara Sou is no longer known by that name at Mama Khatoun, though by the description of the country, we recognized it under that of Frat. The water at this place has no distinct designation, but is called simply, the river of Mama Khatoun.

On the 24th we proceeded to Kara Colagh, a distance called twelve hours, which we performed in ten, and which in road measure may be reckoned at thirty-two miles. We travelled for eight hours on a bearing of W. and for the remainder of the stage turned to the N. When we had advanced about six miles and a half, we came to the river, which in its earlier progress we had passed as the Kara Sou, but which here, as we suspected at Mama Khatoun, was known as the Frat, and was said to flow finally near Maaden Kebban, into that which rises at Diadin. We crossed it over a very good bridge of eight arches, constructed altogether of the same materials, and in the same style as the buildings at Mama Khatoun. At the distance scarcely of a stone’s throw is the confluence of the Frat, and that river which flows near Mama Khatoun; their united waters form a considerable stream, following the direction N. to S. 40 W. Near the bridge is the village of Manastour. We traced upwards to the N. for two hours, the river which I conceive to be the original parent of the Euphrates, enjoying at every turn new and beautiful pictures of cultivation, and woodland.

At the distance of about twenty miles we came to a large but completely deserted village, called Moss. Its inhabitants had fled the day before to their mountains, from the depredation of the Courds. Near it are very ancient tombs, some placed evidently over the bodies of Christians, for among the ornaments on some of the stones is carved the cross. One has an Armenian inscription. Here and there are collections of very large stones, rudely piled one over the other. On330 the other side of the stream is Pekesidge, a town with a castle on a conical hill. This is on the high road leading from Ak Caléh to Constantinople, through Shoghoun Deréh, the pass occupied by the Courds. After this is the village of Ak Doghan, and then that of Kismisore, but both deserted. The cultivation is however very plentiful. In our line to the W. we crossed a branch of the river, where the water was up to the horses’ bellies.

Kara Colagh is a large village, and the Menzil Khonéh is here. The surrounding mountains still bear an appearance of mineral. The clouds gathered at the usual hour, but in a much smaller quantity than on the preceding days. There was round the road a great profusion of wild herbs, and amongst others asparagus.

25th. On the next morning we had a great dispute at the Menzil Khonéh. The master peremptorily required that we should pay for the horses with which he furnished us. In vain did the Mirza persist that he was an Elchee, an Embassador; our host swore that he cared neither for the Shah of Persia, nor for his own Sultan, and that he must have our money before we should take his beasts. We agreed at last to give twenty-five piastres for the hire of twenty horses.

Our road first took a N. direction among uncultivated mountains, where I am told that the snow is frequently so deep in winter as to impede the passage of travellers. It then varied W. and N. and N. and W. frequently; but on a general bearing, I think that we averaged N. 60 W. to Chiflik, a distance called twelve hours, and which we performed exactly in that time, on a reckoning of forty miles. In winding through the mountains, we came to parts beautifully wooded with fir, pines, and walnut-trees; and forming, particularly on a long descent, the most picturesque forest scenery that can be imagined. At the summit of the mountains we had a continual rain for two hours, accompanied with thunder. When we reached the close of the descent, we discovered on our left hand the village of Sadac, situated about two miles from the road on the declivity of the hills, with a surrounding territory admirably fertile in corn, and well watered. From this place331 to Chiflik is fifteen miles: the road leading through one of the most beautiful and happy looking vallies that I ever saw. A stream, swoln when we saw it by the rains, runs through it, and on each side spreads a more abundant vegetation.

On quitting the valley we came on the plain in which Chiflik lies, so well cultivated that it quite transported me into some of the best parts of England. The peasants were ploughing the ground, while immense flocks of sheep, goats, and oxen were spread over the whole country. The fields were parted off by hedges and ditches; the road was well defined; and pretty villages rose here and there, intermixed with the most luxuriant verdure. Spring was here in its bloom, and the whole plain was a little Eden.

At about six hours from Kara Colagh, the road leads N. to the district of Bybourg or Baibort, whilst our road led us W.

The village of Chiflik is interspersed with poplars and willows; the out-houses for cattle were built of rafters laid horizontally, and covered with a roof of earth. A Musselim resides here under the government of Arz-roum.

26th. From Chiflik we went to Caraja, distant twenty miles (six hours) on a bearing of W. We continued through the plain, which we had entered on the preceding day; and found it to its close as beautiful as in its commencement. The stream which we had admired in the valley of Sadac, issues into the plain and follows the road. We crossed it over a wooden bridge. It supplies the inhabitants of the neighbourhood plentifully with fish, of which indeed we had a specimen in some excellent trout, served up to us for breakfast.

We passed the village of Ger, and on the Eastward of the plain we saw the village of Kizziljay. The whole country around was enlivened by people employed in the works of agriculture. On entering the hills we found their declivities on all sides beautifully wooded with firs, pine, oak bushes, and a variety of thorns, with every shrub common to a Northern climate. All the mountains which we had passed were of easy access, and of no difficult ascent or descent. About twelve miles332 from Chiflik there is in ruins, a small circular building of stone, which is probably a Turkish tomb.

We rested for the night at Caraja, though the proper Menzil Khonéh is three hours distance, at a place called Sheyran, which gives name to a district, or Mahalé, containing this and between thirty and forty other villages. Our horses were collected from the individual villagers; for the regular establishments were broken up about a month before our arrival, by the disturbances in the country. From Caraja to Gumuck Khonéh (a large town) is twelve hours, and thence to Trebisond ten hours, on a general bearing throughout the whole distance of N. Arsinghan is a considerable town, twenty-four hours S. from Caraja. The corn fields in all this region are fenced off with rails, made of the trunks of pine trees; and here and there the boundaries of each man’s territory are marked by large stones; a greater evidence of property, and consequently of prosperity, than we had seen any where. On our road to-day we saw a great number of juniper bushes with very fine berries upon them.

In our passage through the woods we met three Tatars going in great haste to Arz-roum, bearing to Emin Aga the news of his having been created a Pacha. They told us that they had then been seven days from Constantinople. Their errand is called carrying the Mudjdéh, which is merely a verbal notification of the appointment, and which very frequently proves false; for the Tatar who is the bearer of it generally gets it from the Capi Kiayah or Hommes d’Affaires of the great man in the province, and then takes the chance of the news proving false afterwards. As soon as the Tatar arrives, he is carried immediately into the presence of the person whose new dignity he announces, and simply informs him of his promotion. If the news which he brings prove correct, he receives perhaps one thousand piastres, and the succeeding Tatars (for there are frequently twenty who set off on similar expeditions) get sums in proportion to their early or tardy arrival. The person indeed who on these occasions secures the highest prize, is generally he who brings the pelisse of333 office, which is the common mode of investiture in Turkey. On the present occasion we were told by the Tatars that the pelisse was actually on the road.

The Aga or Governor of Caraja was a Turk of a very fierce appearance, but of a behaviour more agreeable than his looks. He accommodated us with the upper part of his own house, an open room looking over a beautiful plain, and in the evening treated us with a dinner. The greatest and best ingredient of the entertainment was a large lamb roasted whole; round this were seated twelve persons, mostly the farmers of the place, among whom however I could distinguish the Imaum, or parish priest, and the Hodja or schoolmaster. All these gentlemen arrived with very good appetites to the feast; for no sooner were they seated and the lamb placed before them, than every one had his right hand in the dish at once, tearing off as large pieces from the animal, as his strength and dexterity would admit. This species of attack did not finish, until there remained nothing but the bare bones of the lamb; when every man very deliberately retired to smoke his pipe in a corner of the sofa, and to drink a cup of coffee, that was then handed round to each of the guests. Although such a meal may be repugnant to the delicacy of those, who have been accustomed to a civilized mode of eating, yet there was a species of wild and generous hospitality in the manners of these people, that I could not help admiring; and a few ingredients of which would add extremely to the delights of a modern table.

27th. We proceeded from Caraja, and halted at the distance of twenty miles, on a bearing of N. 60 W. Our station was on the banks of a stream in a beautiful valley, and we reached it through a country, which (almost above that of the preceding march) was finely wooded, and in the intervals among the mountains richly cultivated. Among the forests the pines were of an uncommon size. Whilst we were eating our dinner under a tree, a heavy storm of thunder and lightning and rain, from the Westward, came over us. In this situation we were joined by a Persian who was coming post from Constan334tinople. He was of the suite of Asker Khan, the Persian Embassador at Paris, and unburthened himself of a volume of news to us. He soon convinced me that he had gained some knowledge in France by saying, “Les dames de Paris sont bien jolies.” The storm continued with little intermission till near midnight. Some sought shelter among the rocks; others covered themselves with carpets, horse cloths, or any thing which they could seize for the purpose, whilst others, and I among the rest, sought refuge in a neighbouring water-mill, half in ruins, where we made a large fire and defended ourselves as well as we could from the pelting of the storm. I passed the night in the trough of the mill.

28th. We again continued our route on a general bearing of W. to Carahissar, a distance called eight hours, but which we performed even in ten hours with difficulty, from the extreme debility of our cattle. The road measurement may be thirty miles. The whole country, through which we passed, presented the luxuries of a garden, with the grandeur of a forest. Flowers of all hues embellished the slopes of the rich pasturage, and embalmed the air with their aromatic odours. I never saw spring so luxuriant, so exuberant, as it was in these regions. At the bottom of every valley invariably runs a stream, the progress of which is marked by the trees and by the fertility which borders it, and which accompanies it in all its windings. The soil is of a fine red earth; and when occasionally turned up by the plough, breaks the monotony of the universal verdure that now covers the country, and contrasts admirably with the splendid brilliancy of its tints. The corn on the summit of the mountain was about a foot high, but in the valley was much more advanced. The great cultivation consists in barley, besides many fields of rye, the latter indeed in many places grows wild, and indiscriminately with other plants. Wheat does not appear to be one of the necessaries of the inhabitants, for almost all the bread which we ate was made of barley. Great numbers of pear-trees border the road, with pines of a form most picturesque, and presented often in the most striking views. The335 pencils of an hundred artists would not accomplish in as many years the task of delineating all the landscapes which this country affords. The inhabitants are as well adapted for the painter as their country, and would add a new interest to the charms of the picture.

On reaching the eminence of Carahissar a splendid panorama opens. The various masses that erect themselves in an infinity of curious forms suggest forcibly the wild convulsion of nature which had thrown them in their present disorder. To the North is a large mass of mountain of a rude outline, and a tint which indicates the mineral below: this joins a stupendous chain of rock which, taking a turn to the Westward, is terminated by the great isolated height of Carahissar. On the extreme summit of this is the castle, a small fort rendered tenable by its position. There are houses also on the top to which a ziz-zag road leads. The remainder of the surface is also inlaid with walls, which, as seen from below, appear more ancient than the main building. The town of Carahissar is spread about on the declivity. At the distance of about two miles from the place, and at the bottom of the valley, formed by the steeps of the great mountains, flows a torrent from the N. E.: the waters of which foam through a bed of rocks and loose stones, and spread through the cultivation around Carahissar. We passed on a bridge of one arch: the bases of the arch are of stone built on two projecting rocks, and the superstructure is of wood. Immediately after passing the bridge is a fountain, and near it a garden, from which we got some of the finest cherries that I ever eat. From this spot the rock of Carahissar was singularly striking.

Proceeding further, we entered the great tract of cultivation and gardens, more immediately surrounding the town, and certainly constituting one of the finest spots which I can recollect in Turkey, or indeed in any other country. Plane trees, poplars, fruit trees of every denomination in the thickest profusion, intermixed with corn fields, and enlivened by the murmuring of a thousand streams, formed the fore-ground of the view. We came to a second torrent which flows through the gardens with great precipitation and noise, and adds its waters to the first.336 The heat was that of summer; the corn had lost its green tints, and was ripening into yellow. Such was the difference of our elevation since the preceding day: our descent to Carahissar indeed had been gradual for nearly four hours.

The houses are terraced, and are built of all materials, mud, bricks, stone, and wood. There is a custom-house: the town is administered by a Musselim under the jurisdiction of Arz-roum. The place has two mosques, and two baths: one of the former is a good structure with a dome covered with lead. In the vicinity are many villages: among others to the South, are Gezliché, Yaiché, Sayit and Soucher.

Scarcely a fortnight before our arrival the town and the adjacent country had been in a state of great disturbance; a party of Janizaries inimical to Jussuf Pacha (now (1809) the Grand Vizir, who had lately governed the district) set fire to a large house which he had built at Carahissar, and the whole, with an immense property which it contained, was totally consumed.

We were delayed some time, at the moment of our departure, by a fierce dispute that arose between the Persians and the Turk and his family at whose house we had lodged. One of the Persian servants had lost his shalwars or riding breeches, and, in his anxiety to find them, taxed the Turk with having stolen them. The Turk retorted with warmth; and the contention was already going on at a high rate, when the Embassador arrived, brandishing the breeches in the air, and joining in the attack on the Turk. It seems that the Embassador, who had before suspected the integrity of our host, immediately on hearing the affray, searched in the suspicious parts of our chamber, and in a bye-corner found (wrapped up in a slip of hay) the unlucky object of dispute. The confusion of the Turk, who, by his dress and exterior possessions, was passing for a man of respectability in the town, may be better imagined than described.

We at length left Carahissar, and travelled eighteen miles W. on a mountainous and stony road. About three miles from our last station we saw the road to Diarbekir and Bagdad, bearing S. 25 W. We con337tinued our own course to the W. and came to the banks of a large stream called (like the earlier part of the Euphrates) the Kara Sou, and flowing from E. to W. in a channel between two chains of rocks. In its subsequent progress, like the Euphrates also, it assumes a new name; and at Niksar is called the Kelki Irmak43. I am told that it takes its rise near the mines, fifteen days journey from the point where we saw it, and that it finally falls into the Black Sea. We encamped on the banks, having followed the windings of the river through the mountains, on a bad road, now and then rendered dangerous by narrow and steep passes. Our halt was on the extremity of the range, with a village to our right; on the eminence on the opposite side of the water, appeared a ruin of which no one could give me any better account, than that it was a church built by the Giaours or infidels. I could observe a portico with a Roman arch; and, not being able to cross the stream and take a nearer view, I was obliged to be contented with this scanty information. About noon a strong wind arose from the S. W. bringing together an immense collection of thick clouds; which at the close of the evening fell in heavy torrents of rain. Here again we were exposed to the storm for the night, without any other shelter than that which the foliage of two trees, and the partial covering of a shelving rock might yield.

1st. July. We proceeded W. again about eighteen miles, and as on the preceding day, stopped by the banks of the river, which continued to wind at the foot of two ranges of mountains. On the right chain was the line of our route, in parts singularly dangerous: in one pass the soil crumbled under our feet as we advanced, and fell a horrid depth into the precipice over the river below. Nor indeed, if a little more rain had fallen, would the road have been practicable at any hazard. About eight miles from Kuley Hissar (on the left of our course, and on the other side of the river) is a small structure built338 over a hot spring. In the little plains and vallies that now and then intervened we met with much vegetation. The acacia was in great plenty; with plants of every hue. At the end of the stage we saw the castle of Kuley Hissar, situated on the pinnacle of a very high part of the mountains. We ascended a very steep and intricate road, and from the summit saw in the deep valley extended at our feet, the beautiful village of Kuley Hissar. It consists of houses unconnected with one another, and scattered in a wood of every description, (particularly of fruit-trees;) the refreshing tints of which were admirably contrasted with the arid surfaces of the surrounding heights. A little art would render the scene perfect. Streams of running water murmured in every part of this plantation; and an exhilarating breeze kept up a delightful temperature in the air. The situation however, girded close by high land on every side, was in itself much warmer than Carahissar, or any part of our preceding route. Here indeed we found the season for cherries expired; and we got only the vishna (sour cherry) and the white mulberry. The corn was generally approaching to a state fit for the sickle: and in some warmer exposures had already been cut.

The fort at the summit was some years ago destroyed by Jussuf Pacha, (the present Grand Vizier, 1809) who found that the inhabitants of the neighbouring region were inclined to be turbulent and independent; a disposition which, I understand, is so little subdued, that they are now rebuilding their strong hold. To the port of Janik on the Black Sea, the distance from Kuley Hissar is not more than twelve hours.

2d. July. We were obliged to hire our horses from this stage forwards at four piastres each. The master of the Menzil Khonéh assigned as a reason, that this village paid more than others to the Miri, and was consequently relieved from the burthen of any stated establishment, and was not required to furnish travellers at the common rate. Notwithstanding therefore all our assertions that we were on the business339 of government; notwithstanding our boyouroultee or public orders, (and others more immediately from the Musselim of Carahissar, in whose jurisdiction the place is) we were obliged to comply. Yet the horses for which we had paid so largely and unusually were too bad to carry us further than twelve miles; we were obliged therefore to unload the baggage, and rest them on a fine pasturage in an open part of the mountains. Our course had been N. 50 W. During our ride we traversed forests of pine trees, (intermixed with hazels, oak-bushes, and a variety of other plants) here and there forming most beautiful pictures. In some places the wood had been burnt down; and the countrymen were ploughing the land between the old trunks, where probably they would sow rye. The people here cut their trees about five feet from the ground, burning them a little, and then applying the hatchet.

3d. We had not however long taken possession of our station, and our cattle had not long indulged on the fat pasture that extended itself around, before a party of armed Turks, some on horseback and some on foot, came to us and desired us to withdraw our horses from the grass, for it was the property of their village. This startled the Persians, who swore that the grass was common property, for that it was the gift of God, and that their horses had as much right to feed upon it as any other: the Turks, however, soon made them understand, that the usages of their several countries differed in this respect: one of them at the same time remarking, “You might as truly say, that corn, goats, cows, and sheep are common property, for they are all, as well as grass, the gifts of God.” The peasants here indeed take much pains with their grass, which they cut and dry into hay, and store up for the winter: whereas in Persia, grass is unappropriated; and even barley is open to the King’s people; for we used to turn our horses into the barley fields, where, in the King’s name and right, they devoured all around, while the poor cultivator did not dare to say a word to us. We were no longer in Persia, and therefore obeyed the summons; and departed an hour after sun-set to seek a fresh pasturage.

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We rode for five hours through thick woods of pine trees beautifully enlightened by the moon, which rose an hour after we had mounted. We again stopped, and in a charming valley fed our cattle till morning dawned; when we proceeded, and in four hours reached the village of Isker Sou. From the general direction of our road, we averaged probably about N. 70 W. on a distance which might be twenty-seven miles. Three hours before we reached Isker Sou is the large village of Kizzil Javeran, high on the mountain on the left; and afterwards on both sides a number of villages, the small wooden houses of which are scattered unconnectedly in various directions on the declivities and summits of the hills. The people build their houses entirely of wood, laying trunks of the pine trees horizontally one over another, and fitting their extremities at the angles by notches and holes. About five miles from Isker Sou, on the left of the road, is a rock completely insulated among green fields. The substance is a hard grey granite, in which is excavated, certainly with great labour, a chamber nine feet square, with a seat and two recesses. On the left of the inside on entering is a figure, which, from its resemblance to a Cross, induced me to suppose that the spot, in which it appeared, had been the retreat of some of the primitive Christians.

Our Bosnian Quixote had been missing since the preceding evening; and we felt a general apprehension that he had fallen a prey to the Turks, who warned us from their pasture. He was late in preparing to follow us, was encumbered with two horses, and with trappings so numerous, that notwithstanding his warlike appearance he would have presented an easy conquest to any attack; above all, he was known to carry much gold. But his life was in fact uninjured, and he rejoined us in a subsequent part of our route. The poor creature was now and then wont to sing some of his patriotic songs, which are of a peculiarly doleful and melancholy harmony; and every time he begun his lay it happened that rain fell soon after. I unluckily told the Persians, who were too credulous and superstitious not to believe me, that the singing of the people of Bosnia invariably draws down rain: so that the poor341 fellow’s strains, whenever he attempted to renew them, were afterwards stopped by the joint force of all his comrades.

The people of Isker Sou informed me, that for six months of the year the snow lies on the ground. The night indeed which we passed in their village was so sensibly cold that all our warmest clothes were brought into use, before we could get ourselves tolerably comfortable. In a general view of our route, I should think that we had been rising for some time. The country was in a state of internal warfare, which however did not interfere with the passage of strangers. In the village there was then from Janik one of Jusuff Pacha’s Tuffenchee Bashees, or captains, who with fifty followers was feeding at the expence of the peasantry. Chappan Oglu was the principal object of terror in the neighbourhood; his troops had lately fired the Bazar of Niksar, which is under the jurisdiction of Haznadar Oglu, Governor of Janik.

4th. of July. From Isker Sou we went to Niksar. We were seven hours on the road on a bearing of West, which, from the unequal surface of the country, may be reckoned at twenty-one miles. About one mile and a half from Isker Sou we came to a wooden bridge over a small stream, which is the termination of the Government of Arz-roum; when therefore a Pacha is appointed, the ceremony of sacrificing is performed at this spot. After this we passed several villages on all sides, but totally abandoned by their inhabitants, who had taken refuge in the different countries against the depredations of the Delhis, and the occasional visits of the soldiers of Chappan Oglu. There is a village immediately at the pass (where we entered the mountains); and here commenced a series of mountain scenery, of the wildest and most romantic character. No description is adequate to paint the brilliancy and luxuriance of vegetation, and the picturesque forms of this region; and few imaginations are sufficiently fertile to supply the idea of a spring in these mountains. Trees of every denomination grow here in the wildest profusion, whilst their roots are embalmed by the odour of342 myriads of flowers. The oak here is but an indifferent tree; but there are walnut and plane-trees, pines and firs of a fine growth. Yet lovely as the spring was here, the cold on the mountains is said to be intense in winter; and even where we crossed the highest part of the range we were enveloped some time in clouds, which came from the North, and which now and then broke in frequent and sharp showers.

The descent to Niksar continues for three hours, and in some places is rapid. The road winds through the thickest shrubbery, and at its extremity is a collection of lofty plane-trees, which form a fine shade to recruit the traveller after the tedious length of the hills. About an hour before we reached Niksar we discovered the town, situated in a valley, and, in the back-ground, a plain watered by the Kelki Irmak, the stream which we had followed under another name near Carahissar, and which empties itself into the river of Amasia, and thus is carried into the Black Sea. The approaches to Niksar exceeded, if possible, in beauty and rich vegetation those to Carahissar. The corn here again was quite ripe, and we got cherries and mulberries.

Niksar44 is a long town crowned by a ruined fort of considerable extent; the walls and towers appear works of the Saracenic age, and at a distance still constitute a picturesque object; though they might now afford but a sorry and impotent defence. A stream from the hills rushes through the valley, and turns the wheels of many mills for cutting the pines into planks. The houses here are no longer terraced; their roofs are mostly of wood, shelving and covered with tiles.

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5th. From Niksar to Tocat is nine hours, on a bearing of S. 60 W. a distance which I place at thirty miles. On quitting the town the road continues through a variety of fine landscapes, and then comes to the banks of the Kelki Irmak, which here flows from S. to N. After much delay, and an ineffectual attempt to ford, we passed this river in a boat, which could receive at once only a few of our party, and a small portion of our equipage, and which was still more unequal to the numbers of the peasantry crowding into it, anxious to cross the water, with hoes, sickles and spades to their daily labour on the opposite side.

We then traversed a very rich country, the yellow appearance of which announced the approach of harvest. In the plain were large plantations of rice. We now entered the pass between the mountains which leads to Tocat, and which here bore W. from Niksar. On the right is a small village; the pass then narrows into a road delightfully shaded by a wild profusion of trees, whilst a continual rushing of water over a number of small cascades, refreshes the air, and gives a new charm to the scenery around. At the extremity of this pass are one or two villages; and the road afterwards quits the shade of the trees, and crosses a more open country.

Three hours before we reached Tocat, we came to the bed of a river, flowing in the direction of our road, and enlivening a rich country of corn, which was then all ripe. On the right of the road, about four miles before the end of our journey, is a rock with excavated chambers45; one of which has an ornamented front. Soon after we had a view of the great town of Tocat, situated in the hollow of two mountains, in its first appearance considerably diminished below its real size. As we approached, we crossed the river over a large and solid bridge of five arches; and then came to a paved344 road, shaded here and there by the foliage of immense walnut-trees. The surrounding territory is very rich in corn, besides a number of enclosures abounding in fruit-trees of every description. We eat here, as at Carahissar, the largest and finest cherries that I ever saw.

The Musselim of this place is appointed at Constantinople. The person, who at the time of our arrival filled the office, took no part in the quarrels of the chiefs, who were fighting all around him; and seemed indeed to care little about his own government. When it was announced to him that an Elchee from Persia was about visiting his town on the way to the presence of his sovereign, and required his good offices; he said, that the Elchee if he chose might take up his lodgings in a caravanserai; that he should have as many horses as he might want to convey him away; but as for the rest, he himself could do nothing more for us. We had hitherto experienced, in general, more hospitality, but we now accordingly took up our quarters in a caravanserai on the Maidan, and very conveniently lodged ourselves and cattle.

6th. Tocat is situated on the declivity of three hills, whose bases join. To the Westward it is overlooked by the ruins of a fort, so completely dilapidated, that its remains are scattered unconnectedly over the surface of the rock on which they stand. To the north is a large open spot or Maidan; on one side of which is an excellent caravanserai called the Vaivoda-Khan, and on the other, a very good and well-built mosque. In the centre of the town there is another mosque of equal beauty. The town is said to contain about twenty thousand houses, or one hundred thousand inhabitants. The bazars here are very numerous, and every thing common to Turkey and its wants seemed to be here in plenty. The Armenian merchants complained to us indeed of the great dearth of trade, and particularly of that part of it which is connected with the mines. Those mines, which are at Kebban, eight days journey from Tocat, and nearer to Malatia than to any other great town, produce, (besides silver which345 is sent to Constantinople,) between one hundred and one hundred and fifty thousand okes of copper annually, which comes unwrought to Tocat, and is there made up in cakes. The works indeed connected with copper, and which occupy about three hundred shops, are the only particular manufactures, for which the town is noted. From these the copper wares are dispersed through all parts of Turkey.

In the evening of the 7th we continued our journey. We left the city on the same road by which we had entered; and, crossing the bridge, traversed a plain about five miles broad and fifteen long, where the harvest was fully ripe, over one of the richest corn countries that can be imagined. The distance of our stage to Turkhal was about twenty-five miles, on a general bearing of W. This large village comes abruptly to the view, and is remarkable principally as being built about a high rock, which stands isolated from the surrounding mountains, and on the extreme summit of which is the ruin of a fort. The village itself extends round the rock to the Westward. The Tozzan Irmak that flows from Tocat, passes close to the place from S. to N. At Turkhal, though we were housed in a caravanserai (there called khan), our expences were defrayed by the Cazi of the place. He had been informed of the treatment which we had received from the Musselim of Tocat, and told us that he would spend his hundred purses rather than we should experience a similar reception from his hands. Finding ourselves however uncomfortably situated in the caravanserai, (where, besides our baggage and servants, were our horses) we sought refuge in the garden of a hospitable Turk, who permitted us to spread our carpets on a raised platform under a tree, and helped us without limit to the mulberries and apricots which grew around. But we had not sat there long, before we were surprised by a heavy shower of rain and hail, which obliged us once more to retire to our heated caravanserai. There are very large water wheels here, which are used for irrigating the gardens and fields of the place, and which are turned by the346 fine river that runs through the village. Close to the mosque is a large corn mill, which also is worked by two large wheels.

We proceeded from Turkhal in the evening, and travelled for the distance of six hours. On passing through two masses of rock, which in the obscurity of the night were extremely grand, we espied a strong light, illuminating a hut and two or three lofty pine-trees. This was one of the guard-houses, called durand, which are stationed at the interval of about four hours, and are common to the territory of Chappan Oglu. They are at once places of security and rest. There is generally a party of eight or ten men kept in them to watch over the safety of the roads. This one, which we were approaching, was peculiarly picturesque. The Tatars, the Mirza, and I, dismounted from our horses; whilst we permitted the rest of our caravan to proceed. We entered an enclosure of stone-walls, built at the foot of a high pine-tree. In one corner blazed an immense fire. An old Turk, who received us, immediately spread goat’s-skins for our seats; whilst a young man prepared to give us coffee. He first placed the water to boil on the outer-embers of the fire, and then begun to pound the coffee in a wooden vase, which he continued with much activity to a sort of musical stroke, until the whole was beat into an impalpable powder. He then put the pounded coffee into the water, and boiled it up three or four times; when he poured it into his coffee cup, kept neatly bright, on a circular platter. We then resumed our march, and in six hours from Turkhal made a halt at a large caravanserai where we slept in the open air until the morning. The caravanserai was an extensive building, of strong materials and in good repair. Besides ourselves there were many peasants with their carts drawn by buffaloes, who were waiting the dawn of day to proceed on their journey. Our route led over a mountainous country, till we descended towards Amasia, through a narrow pass bordered on each side by rocks of a surprising size. The opening was not seen, until we were close upon it, when it formed a beautiful and curious picture. The347 approaches to Amasia from this side are very striking. On the right is a long chain of heights, which appear in many places to have been worked by the hand of man. Close to the road, and at the foot of these mountains, is a deep channel cut into the rock, which extends at least two miles, and is traced up to the river. It is unquestionably the bed of an aqueduct, and has been the work of immense labour, for the masses, through which in some places it is carried, are of a prodigious thickness.

On the left in the valley below, are detached houses, embosomed in gardens and orchards. These are planted with fruit-trees of every kind, and when we passed, were in full perfection. In this direction the city of Amasia is hardly seen until almost its very entrance. The approach is extremely grand; and every step prepares the stranger for a view which his imagination has already pictured as sublime; and which realizes every expectation.

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CHAP. XVIII.
AMASIA TO CONSTANTINOPLE.

Amasia is situated in the recess of an amphitheatre of strong featured lands, which arise almost abruptly from the banks of a beautiful stream, the Tozzan Irmak, that winds majestically at their roots. The houses are built on either side, on the gradations of the declivities; and the town extends itself all around. On the North, situated in the highest and most conspicuous part of the mountains, is the castle, which appeared to me much in ruins; and on the same portion of land, just upwards from the boundaries of the town, are five very conspicuous monuments cut into the rock. I crossed the river over a stone bridge, and ascended the mountain in which they were excavated, escorted and349 guided by a young Turk. We passed by the ruins of a fort built upon a projecting part of the range, and came to three excavated chambers. The first has a triangular ornamented front. The others have platforms before them, and a vestibule cut into the rock behind. We then proceeded on towards the left, and arrived at the two largest excavations. A path of about three feet in breadth, cut deep within the front of the mass into the appearance of a covered gallery, and guarded by a parapet wall of solid rock, leads along the side of the mountain. One of these monuments is a mass of hard granite twelve paces square, severed completely from the mountain by an interval (about four feet broad) all around and above it, and excavated into a chamber. The other contiguous and last monument has no passage behind or around. These chambers are said to have been the retreats of St. Chrysostom;46 but I could discover no inscription upon them, which might throw any light upon the subject. In the castle above indeed, my young conductor told me there were not only inscriptions but sculptures; but my time would not permit me to ascend, and I had now only a momentary leisure to enjoy the beauty of the view; where was the town arranged all about me, the river winding at my feet and struggling under numerous water wheels, and the whole scenery enriched by the last rays of the setting sun. The minarets of many mosques, (of which one near the river is a very fine building,) break the sameness of the flat-tiled roofs.

The inhabitants of Amasia are distinguished for their urbanity and attention to strangers; and their women particularly are celebrated as the fairest and most engaging of Asia Minor. Of this I had but a single and chance opportunity to form a judgment: in riding through the streets, I saw an unveiled female who was joking at the door of her house with a black slave girl, and who was more beautiful than any whom I had long seen; nor as I passed did she shrink from my ob350servation, for our curiosity was equal. We had a lodging assigned to us in the dwelling of an opulent Turk, close on the banks of the river. He had three brothers who lived in three houses contiguous to his own, and who severally came to pay their respects to us. They were all fairer than any Turks or Asiatics whom I had ever seen. Their manners were peculiarly mild and agreeable, and they treated us with the greatest civility. They spoke in raptures of their own city, although none of them had ever seen any other place.

I was anxious to reach Constantinople as soon as possible, and resolved therefore to leave the Persian Envoy to follow at his leisure, and to proceed myself with increased expedition. Taking fresh horses then, I set off from Amasia at the close of the night. There is an ascent of two hours towards Marcivan; and then, as far as I could judge in the dark, the road leads through one uniform plain. The total distance from Amasia is reckoned twelve miles, which we had travelled two hours before the sun rose. [11th.] Marcivan abounds with walnut-trees, and is surrounded by corn fields, which, as we were leaving the place at break of day, were animated by the reapers.

Four hours from Marcivan, on the left of the road is the large village of Haji Kieu, where the great caravan roads from Smyrna, Angora, &c. meet. Shortly after we came to a house where travellers usually stop; but the inhabitants had now fled to the mountains, in consequence of the passage of the Delhis; and we found only one old man, who brought us some yaourt and cold pillau, and some bread that had been concealed. Then again proceeding, we struck into a steep mountain pass, at the foot of which led a torrent strewed with immense fragments of rocks, that (by an earthquake, or by the washing away of the soil beneath them) had been dislodged from the heights around: and vast masses, which seemed to threaten our destruction as we passed, were still sustained only by large poles or trunks of trees.

After this pass we entered into a rich but limited plain, thickly studded with trees of every kind, and abounding in corn. At its extremity we stopped at a delicious grove of immense walnut-trees beau351tifully watered. In this charming spot was encamped a bayrack or company of soldiers going from Marcivan on their road towards Constantinople. The passage of this species of troops is not dreaded by the country, as they are composed of respectable men, who go to the war through a spirit of religion.

From an eminence on the road we first discovered the rock of Osmanjik, forming a striking point amid the green and lively scenery of the plain. On this aspect no part of the town of Osmanjik appears, except a few houses on the skirts of the rock. The bridge, indeed, which leads out of the place is a conspicuous object in the view. On a nearer approach, that which at a distance appeared an immense black mass is found to be broken into several detached heights, all of the same species of stone, and all originally connected by the art of man into one impregnable fortress. The walls and turrets, which still cover the various surfaces, appear the remains of Saracenic work. Osmanjik in its present state is only a large village; the distance from Marcivan is reckoned a march of fourteen hours. The plain around is cultivated principally with corn and vines; it is thickly wooded and well watered by the Kizzil Irmak, the ancient Halys, in its course to the W. The river is a deep yellow bordering on the colour of sand, and very much troubled. We crossed it over a well-built bridge of fourteen arches, the materials of which (still white and fresh) attest that it was a structure of the best times of the Government. Four arches on the left are dry, the earth having encroached upon the bed so substantially, that houses and gardens exist now where the water once flowed.

The passage of the Delhis through this place was marked with peculiar acts of hostility. The inhabitants, who found themselves outraged by their insolence, actually came to blows with them; and, when at length the troops departed, for several days kept closed the wooden gate on their bridge, until the soldiers were completely out of their neighbourhood.

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We departed from Osmanjik about an hour before sun-set, and paced the banks of the Halys as far as our next stage Haji Hamza, called eight hours from Osmanjik. The scenery of the river appears to partake of every quality which can make landscape admirable. Very fine lands rise above it; along which, still following the stream in all its windings, the road is carried, presenting to the travellers at every reach new and striking pictures. Here and there we came to fine collections of walnut-trees; and then crossed large plantations of rice, which, for the facility of irrigation, were situated immediately on the borders of the water. At about two hours from Osmanjik we turned to the left, and ascended a very steep part of the mountains, on a broad paved road, which, as far as the dusk of the evening permitted me to observe, seemed good. On reaching the extreme eminence, I perceived that we were on the brink of an immense precipice, under which the river was winding; and that we were enclosed on all sides by stupendous heights. The obscurity and stillness of the night gave a solemnity to the scene which I cannot describe. We continued along this precipice, viewing the same grandeur of scenery for some time, but in perfect security: for we were travelling on a road of a smooth and easy surface, and guarded on the side of the danger by a parapet wall. My Janizary told me that the road was cut into the vivid rock by the Genoese. He was probably right in the materials, as in the present age nothing but rock would have been in so good order: perhaps he was right also in the founders, to whom he ascribed the original work; but the darkness prevented my forming any judgment of the correctness of his information.

We came to Haji Hamza in the dead of the night. The post-house is on the banks of the river. There are few other habitations, except indeed the fort. We had scarcely taken the rest of an hour, when we were again on our horses, on the road to Tosia, called a distance of twelve hours. We came to Tosia about four hours after sun-rise, after having met several caravans, the mules of which were the finest that I353 had seen in the country. In fact, the mules of Turkey, and particularly in this part of it, are much larger and finer limbed than any of the sort in Persia. So that the Mirza, when we were travelling together, was on the point of buying several as a present for the King, declaring that His Majesty had none of equal beauty.

Tosia is a large town situated among beautiful environs on the slope of a hill, and presents itself in its whole extent intermixed with several handsome mosques. The post-house is just on the skirts of the town.

We proceeded from Tosia to Coja Hissar, distant eight hours. On leaving Tosia we entered on an amphitheatre of land, rising in gentle acclivities all around, cultivated more richly than I can describe. The bed of the valley was one layer of corn fields, fenced off by hedges of evergreens and fine trees. We then came to large plantations of rice, and extensive tracts of vineyards. The road was beautifully shaded on both sides, until we came to a station of guards of the mountains, where we entered their waste district, and quitted the cultivation. We reached Coja Hissar about three hours before sun-set. I went into the coffee-house attached to the post-house; and after having eat some soup and meat-balls,47 I laid myself down to sleep. We had heard that two thousand of the Delhis were encamped in the neighbourhood, about two hours distant from the place; and accordingly determined to pass them in the night. Little sleep is necessary to the body: when I was awakened by my Janizary, just at the dusk of the evening, I thought that it was the grey of the morning, and that I had slept through the night; and I upbraided him therefore with laziness, for not having proceeded as we had agreed the night before. I felt as refreshed with the three hours rest, as if I had slept undisturbed through a whole night, although I had taken no sleep since I had left Amasia, except what had been forced upon me when on my horse. Though sleep will354 certainly overcome us in defiance of all our efforts, a few minutes suffice; and when the strongest paroxysm is over, refresh indeed as much as hours in bed. We are seldom aware how little food and how little sleep are necessary for health and strength.

When we left Coja Hissar the weather portended a storm. Dark clouds were gathering over the mountains; and as the night closed, we now and then only got a glimpse of a star. This proved very favourable to us, for we had not rode long before we discovered the numerous fires of the Delhis that illuminated the whole of the country to a considerable distance. They were encamped on the opposite side of the river to that on which our road lay, so that guarded by the water and by the darkness, we passed them without being challenged by a single one.

On the 13th, about one o’clock in the morning, we reached Carajol, a distance of eight hours; and departed again to Carajalar, distant four hours. It is remarkable that the country from Carajol is entirely destitute of trees; losing, as it were by magic, all that variety of foliage which characterizes the preceding region. We were detained at Carajalar, from the morning till the evening, by a deficiency of horses. Although we gave five piastres for the hire of each, yet it was not till we had witnessed a scene of strife and contention amongst the villagers, in which there was some blood shed, that we were supplied. The post-house had been broken up for some time past; and the burthen, in consequence fell upon the people, who, in their several turns, furnished the travellers with horses at the rate of five piastres each; though on every emergency there was a similar difficulty to enforce the regular levy in succession. As I was waiting for my horses, a deputation from this village returned, which had been sent to the Chief of the Delhis for the purpose of offering him a certain sum of money, in case he did not remain there with his troops longer than one night. The object was attained, though I could not learn the amount of the stipulated payment. In this manner the Bey commanding the Delhis enriches himself during his march.

355

At length, after having collected my horses from various quarters, I departed for Geredéh, distant sixteen hours. At six hours from Carajalar is a large town called Cherkes, situated in a plain, environed by some pretty groupes of trees. It is surrounded by a wall, and on entering one of the gates, I casually observed on the outside a Greek inscription in good character, carved on a stone which formed the lowermost part of the arch. On quitting the place I noticed on the road side, at several intervals, shafts of small columns terminated on either side by a plinth and tores, and apparently erected as monuments in places of burial; for all around were spread other blocks of stone, more obviously designed to cover graves. As the night closed we deviated from the road to avoid Hamanlee, the town and fortress of a man (Hajee Ahmet Oglu,) who, being a rebel to the Porte, is always in arms; and whose parties (patroling the hills in watch for his safety) infest the whole country, and sometimes have not spared travellers. Instead, therefore, of ascending the mountain, we turned to the left through a valley. There was every appearance of a storm as the night fell; and our apprehensions were soon realized. We were overtaken in the open country by one of the severest tempests of rain, thunder, and lightning, that I ever witnessed. Our horses refused to proceed, and turned their backs instinctively to the storm. The whole country was lighted by the flashes, which, ceasing at intervals, left us in impenetrable darkness. I can bear witness in this instance to the excellence of English broad cloth, a cloak of which preserved me from the heaviest torrents of rain, whilst my Janizary, who had a Turkish cloak made of a species of felt, was drenched from head to foot. After the storm had expended itself, we proceeded, till we reached the skirts of a village, where we fed our horses, and slept for an hour on the wet grass. 14th. The morning broke with unusual splendour, and introduced a most romantic country to us. We had now ascended to a region, the elevation of which was marked very sensibly by the increase of the cold, and by the tardiness of vegetation in comparison to that of the plains below. The peasantry were here ploughing the ground; and some delightful356 patches of cultivation were interspersed amongst the ranges of pines and other forest trees, that covered the summits and enlivened the declivity of the mountains.

Geredéh is a large town; at the entrance is a very extensive tannery. The shops and coffee-houses of the bazars seemed also well peopled by a great number of well-looking Turks, sitting down and enjoying themselves with their pipes. We had been taught to apprehend here also a second detention for horses, from the great number of Tatars who had been passing. One of them indeed had just preceded us; and had left us a part of his meal of fried eggs and soup. The Tatars look upon themselves as great personages on the road; and expect proportionate attention at the post-houses, which, as I observed, was scarcely ever denied to them. The Tatar who accompanied me was so tenacious of this consequence of his class, that he always took the best things for himself, and treated me as his inferior. Whenever he arrived, a soft seat and a cushion were spread for him, and, as he lighted his pipe, a dish of coffee was prepared for him; whilst to me he transferred an indifferent seat and the second dish. The fact is, indeed, that my appearance bespoke very little of the master; and I could hardly wonder therefore that the Tatar was treated with all the respect which I might have expected as due to myself. My black skin cap was become very dusty; my silk trowsers were all torn; my Persian boots were soaked with rain and twisted under the heel; whilst my coat and great coat were all in dirt and in rags. As I did not wish to travel in my own character, knowing how extravagantly Frangees (and Englishmen in particular) are made to pay, I was well content to pass for a Persian: and the little notice that was thus taken of one looking so miserable, gave me liberty to walk about and make my observations at my ease. Of all this contrast of our appearance however, my Tatar profited; travelling as a gentleman at my expence, whilst I as easily passed for his attendant.

Plate XXIX.
Published by Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, May 1^st, 1811.

From Geredéh to Boli is twelve hours. On quitting Geredéh we crossed one of the most beautiful regions that I had ever seen. It was357 a continual garden of vineyards and corn-fields, shaded by walnut and oak trees, growing here to a greater size than any that I had hitherto found in the country. At very frequent intervals, on each side of the road, were large collections of blocks of stone, of different shapes, squares, oblongs, and pillars of five or six feet high: several with Greek inscriptions upon them. That these spots were ancient places of burial is more certain, because there are now mixed among them many modern tomb-stones. There are two inscriptions near the durand or guard-house: one, on a column on the left of the road; and one, inserted in a wall on the right. I did not care for the chance of decyphering them to stop the rapid progress of our journey, (for we now went generally on a full gallop;) but on coming up to a very conspicuous pillar on the side of the road near a fountain, I could not neglect the opportunity of copying it, (see plate XXIX.) while our horses were drinking. It was terminated by a cross, which was an evidence that the monument had some connection with the primitive Christians. I wished much to have taken the other inscriptions; as, in general, they seemed legible; but I found that any notice of Greek was incompatible with the character of a Persian, and might have excited a suspicion of my disguise. As we approached Boli, the beauty of the country and the richness of cultivation increased. The plain, in which the town is situated, is quite a garden; and was then displaying all the lively green of the height of spring, except where the ripened corn broke in upon the general verdure. The quantity of rain, that had so lately fallen, had left this brilliant freshness on nature; but, even without this extraordinary supply, there is never any dearth of water. Boli, on the side by which we approached it, is not seen until we enter its very streets, as it is situated behind a hill. It is a large place surrounded by an open palisade, which indeed is its only defence. From the appearance of the streets and bazars the place is well peopled. As we galloped into the town in the true haste and style of couriers with our surujees (or conductors), making a kind of hideous noise to announce our approach, a company of Turkish358 soldiers, with colours flying (and preceded by a man beating a sort of little kettle drum tied to his middle) entered at a very slow and admirably-contrasted pace.

We departed from Boli in the evening; and, having quitted its delightful plain, begun to wind among mountains, and entered the large forest to which Boli gives its name. Through the whole there is a fine causeway made by some pious Mussulman48, which is a sufficient guide to the traveller if he will only follow it through all its windings. The Tatars prefer the side to the road itself; though the path which they thus make for themselves may be full of water and mud. We chose the same, even when it was dark; for of the two evils, the fatigue of wading is less to the horses and mules, than that of scrambling and stumbling over the pavement.

Having rode six hours through the forest we reached a small wooden hut, the station of the guards of the mountains. Here we determined to wait till morning, as my Tatar told me that the forest grew so much thicker as we advanced, that in so dark a night it became dangerous to proceed. We unloaded therefore our baggage, and seated ourselves among a party of a dozen Turks, the chief of whom, a merry fellow, did the honours of his hut very agreeably. He was seated in the corner, and his men were strewed around him on the floor. Pistols, swords and muskets, and every implement of a soldier, were hung along the walls. Whilst the oldest of the party made some coffee for us, the youngest took down a rude guitar from a peg, and broke the stillness of the night by a song, to which he applied the whole force of his lungs, and which did not ill express the wild life of himself and his companions. I attempted to compose myself to sleep in a corner, but the heat of an immense wood-fire had given so much animation and impertinence to the fleas and vermin of the hut, that I was obliged to359 take refuge in an open shed on the outside, where I slept very soundly till the morning.

15th. As the morning broke, we proceeded on our journey, and penetrated the deeps of the forest. The road, in some of its windings through the rich woodland, presented some of the most fanciful and picturesque landscapes that the imagination of a painter could wish. I remarked some of the finest specimens of ash, elm, plane, poplar, larch and beech; with, now and then, some oaks larger than any that I had ever seen in Asia. This forest, which extends over a vast tract of country49, supplies an unceasing source of timber to the arsenals of Constantinople. Their mode of felling the tree is susceptible of much improvement; for they first burn it towards the root, (by which they injure the finest part of the wood) and then apply the axe. In our progress we overtook immense spars which were dragged by buffaloes, and by slow journies are thus brought to Constantinople. Each end is supported on a light carriage of two wheels; but it requires all the prodigious strength of the buffaloe (and no other animal is equal to the attempt) to be able to cope with the difficulties which the extreme badness of the roads in the rainy season presents. We heard the howling of wolves all around us; and their great numbers are sometimes fatal to those travellers, who risk themselves at night through the wilds of the forest.

Khandak, our next stage, twelve miles from Boli, is famed for the ferocity and wild freedom of its inhabitants. It is a village situated in the very heart of the forest, and its first appearance presents all the beauty that an intermixture of wood, water, cultivation, and buildings can combine. The low houses, with their shelving roofs nicely tiled, at the foot of lofty trees, (with partial openings here and there, where murmured a stream of pure water); still more enlivened by the most360 picturesque looking men and women, really formed a landscape which a Claude, a Hobbima, or a Ruysdael would have envied. We soon discovered however the temper of the inhabitants: all the men and even boys of ten years old, wore a brace of pistols, and a large knife in their girdles; and displayed countenances more expressive of savage hardihood than I recollect to have ever seen. This horde of desperadoes is extremely obnoxious to the Porte; but, entrenched in their woods, they bid defiance to firmans or Capidgi Bashees. Within these few years (and the fresh appearance of the houses attests the fact) an officer from Constantinople was sent with a large body of men to surprise the inhabitants, and either to destroy them or take them prisoners; but they had notice of the design, and fled into the fastnesses of the woods, leaving their homes as the prey of the invaders, who immediately burnt them to the ground, destroying all the poor creatures that happened to fall into their way. No sooner however had the troops of the Porte quitted the territory than the natives returned, cleared away the smoking rubbish, and rebuilt their houses, as if nothing had happened.

16th. We were here obliged to pay five piastres a horse to proceed to Sabanja, distant twelve hours. As we departed from Khandak, the road begun gradually to open, and presented to us extensive tracts of cultivation. We came to a long causeway of wood, formed indeed only of trees thrown across and so completely out of repair, that we passed it in many places at the hazard of our lives. At its termination (several hours from Khandak) there is a wooden bridge of considerable extent, but a part of it had fallen; and we were obliged therefore to ford the river over which it is built, and which was broad but not deep or rapid, although much rain had lately fallen. We followed a cart dragged by buffaloes across the stream, and got in safety over it. After the passage of the river we reached the borders of the beautiful lake of Sabanja, surrounded on all sides by the most enchanting scenery; its distant mountains and waters dying away in the softest tints on the361 horizon. We traversed its shores for nearly three hours, passing lands the fine projections and woods of which reflected in the water below the most beautiful pictures.

Sabanja is a place situated in a very thick wood, and notorious equally for the impudence and the independance of its inhabitants. We were not long detained at the post-house; and departed for Ismid, hoping to reach it before the close of night, as the road was reported unsafe after a certain hour. Although it was too dark to analyse the beauties of the plain towards Ismid, yet the general outline of the country was sufficiently discernible to impress me with an idea of its beauty and magnificence: and something also I gained by the solemn and dubious light of evening, as it softened and harmonized the whole landscape.

It was, however, entirely dark when we crossed the long causeway that leads into Ismid. The plain was here and there illumined by the fires of the caravans that had encamped for the night. We put up at the coffee-house adjacent to the post, and early in the morning departed for Gevisa, distant nine hours. Ismid is a large town most delightfully situated on the declivity of the mountain bordering on the branch of the sea, that forms its deep and beautiful gulph. In my rapid progress I could just ascertain that the place contained some well-built houses, and some in situations that must have commanded fine and extensive views of all its scenery. The water is so girt around with high mountains that it appears a great lake; but the imagination is soon undeceived by remarking the large boats which navigate it, and which I soon recognized to be those of Constantinople and the Bosphorus. My anxiety to reach the end of my journey was now increased; and I stopped not to examine the antiquities of Ismid.50

At about four hours from Ismid, having in many parts of the road paced the shores of the sea, we reached a small village situated on the362 very borders of it. Here were passage-boats to Constantinople, and many persons were going. I preferred, however, the surer route, and continued with my post-horses to Gevisa, ascending a steep road near an old and ruined fortification.

Gevisa is a small town with a good mosque and neat minarets nicely white-washed. The country around it was little cultivated and less wooded, so that it excited in me no other interest than that which its vicinity to the capital might give. Yet, in any other circumstances than those of my eagerness to reach Constantinople, I should not have overlooked the delight of searching for the tomb of Hannibal. I now however, made every haste to get to Scutari before dark, but I did not succeed, and was obliged to pass the night in a coffee-house on the borders of the Bosphorus.

The next morning, the 18th July 1809, I crossed from Scutari, and took up my abode in Pera, having completed the journey from Teheran in two months and ten days, in which time I had not once slept out of my clothes.

363

CHAP. XIX.
CONCLUSION.

In a short time after my arrival, the Persian Envoy and his suite rejoined me at Constantinople. The splendour of the scenery, and the great novelty of every object about that city, did not seem to strike them with the surprise that I had expected. Few people are more sensible than they are to any thing, that is new and extraordinary; and few more curious and inquisitive. I could therefore only attribute their apparent indifference to the downright jealousy which they entertain of the Turks. Often when (struck with the beauties of the very fine tracts of country which we were passing) I have attempted to make them join in my feelings of admiration, they merely yielded a364 cool assent; always endeavouring to lessen my ardour by saying, “what is the use of such country, if it be without order?” And they considered almost as a gross national insult any comparison between the arid unshaded mountains of Persia, and the splendid foliage and rich vegetation of the Turkish dominions. As, however, they were very keenly alive to the beauties of nature, and enjoyed much the shade of trees and the refreshing sound of running water; and as such spots recurred constantly during the course of our journey, they could not restrain their expressions of delight, though they always added at the same time, “What a pity this charming country is in the hands of these people! If we had it, (and God grant we shall) what a paradise it would be.”

I frequently visited the Mirza Abul Hassan at Scutari. The windows of his apartment had a fine view of the great extent of Constantinople, the Seraglio point, the shipping in the harbour, the palaces of Dolma Baghehe, and part of the Sultan’s fleet, (consisting of two three-deckers and five seventy-fours, at their anchorage) and all the activity spread over the Bosphorus by the numerous vessels of all descriptions rowing about in every direction, altogether forming the most beautiful picture that an imagination the most fertile could picture to itself; and contrasted in the strongest manner with the misery, dulness, and sterility of Teheran and its surrounding scenery. Whenever I called his attention to it, he seemed to shrink from the observation; and if I talked of the Turkish fleet, he said, “who can look at any ships, after he has seen English ships?” Indeed, he was so little disposed to compliment the Turks, that when the Caimakan, being desirous to inspire him with a grand idea of the naval force of the Sultan, sent a Turkish officer to conduct him near the fleet, the Persian replied, “I have seen English ships much finer than any thing that you can show me.”

Yet in cases where no national jealousy intervened, whenever hospitality and kindness were shewn the Persian, I must do him the365 justice to add, that he never omitted to make the strongest acknowledgments of them; and, I believe, the fullest returns in his power. The most trifling attention never appeared, from the general conversation and temper of him or his people, to be thrown away upon them. The Envoy always spoke in raptures of the kindnesses which he had received in India, mentioning the names of his friends every time with an increased delight, and apparently with an unfeigned sincerity.

During the Mirza’s residence at Constantinople, he was invited by Mr. Adair to an entertainment, given on the occasion, and consisting of a dinner under tents at the Buyukderé meadow, and a ball and supper at night, in a house borrowed for the purpose. The Mirza did not seem at all astonished at the introduction of ladies into the society of men, as he had already witnessed our customs in the English settlements in India: but his attendants, who had just left the very innermost parts of Persia, by one common consent collected themselves together in a corner, and eyed every thing with the most anxious astonishment and attention. Their natural loquacity seemed to have quite forsaken them, and they sat with their mouths wide open, and eyes full-staring, and uttered not a single word.

When the hour of dancing arrived, the Mirza entered the ball-room, escorted by all his servants. There his people were more than ever in amaze, particularly when the whole assembly was in motion. Of all the dances the Waltz excited the most wonder and perhaps apprehension, for one of them quietly asked my servant in Turkish, “Pray does any thing ensue after all this?”

In the national character of the Persian, the most striking difference from that of the Turk is perhaps the facility with which he adopts foreign manners and customs. I remarked two instances during our stay at Constantinople: the first occurred one morning when I went to visit the Mirza, where one of his servants took off his cap and saluted me by a bow in our fashion: again, at a ball, several of366 his attendants took off their caps and sat bald-headed, from the supposition that it was disrespectful in European company to keep the head covered, whilst they saw every one uncovered. There were many other accommodations to our usages which would never have been yielded by a Turk; such as eating with knives and forks, sitting at table, drinking wine, &c. The Mirza himself told me that when he was in Calcutta, he wore leather-breeches and boots. I am sure then that if the Persians had possessed as much communication with Europeans, as the Turks have had, they would at this day not only have adopted many of our customs, but, with their natural quickness, would have rivalled us in our own arts and sciences. Unlike the Turks, they never scruple to acknowledge our superiority, always however reserving to themselves the second place after the English in the list of nations: whereas the Turk, too proud, too obstinate, and too ignorant to confess his own inferiority, spurns at the introduction of any improvement with equal disdain from any nation.

The great changes that are now making in the military system in Persia, particularly by the Prince Royal in Aderbigian, will in a very short time so much influence the general character and disposition of the people, that they will scarcely be recognizable. Ever since their late wars with Russia, and their political connections with Europe, the effect produced has been most striking: and a person of excellent authority, who was in Persia during the time of Kerim Khan, affirmed, in my hearing, that the nation could scarcely be considered the same.

From Constantinople we went to Smyrna, where we remained till we quitted Turkey. On the 7th September 1809, the Mirza and his servants went on board the Success, Captain Ayscough, to proceed to England. The people of Smyrna gathered in crowds to see him. The yards were manned; and he was honoured with a salute of fifteen guns, which (as soon at least as it was over) gave him no little satisfaction.

367

He soon accommodated himself to the manner of a ship, sleeping in a cot, and eating with a knife and fork. He did not miss a single opportunity of informing himself on every thing which he saw on board; and whatever he learned, he carefully noted in a book. His attendants seldom complained, except sometimes of the badness of the water, the hardness of the biscuit, and the want of fruit. I was struck with their natural ignorance of relative distance: they had been ever accustomed to calculate distance by menzils or day’s journies; and they were surprised to find it impossible to continue such reckoning. A world of water seemed to them incomprehensible; and one of them gravely said to me—“This is quite extraordinary: this country of your’s is nothing but water!”

The Persians were particularly astonished, that women and little boys went to sea. The Mirza seeing some women on board the Success, exclaimed, “Is it possible! if I were to tell our women in Persia that there were women in ships, they would never believe me. To go from one town to another is considered a great undertaking taking amongst them; but here your women go from one end of the world to the other, and think nothing of it. If it were even known in my family that I was now in a ship and on the great seas, there would be nothing but wailings and lamentations from morning to night.”

Among the many things which struck the Persians as extraordinary on board the ship, was the business of signals. They looked very much inclined to believe, that I was telling them untruths, when I said, that at two fursungs distance they might ask any questions from another ship, and receive an immediate answer: and that when we should reach England, our arrival would be known in London in ten minutes, and every necessary order returned before we could get out of the ship. All these things the Mirza carefully noted down in his book, ever exclaiming, “God grant that all such things may take place in my country too!”

368

When we arrived at Malta we were not permitted to land on account of the quarantine; a very mortifying prohibition to the Persians, who had no greater wish than to set foot once again on shore. I could make the Envoy indeed comprehend the nature of quarantine laws; but his people were not so tractable, and frequently suggested their fears to him, that he might not be allowed to land even in England. He spoke seriously to me:—“It is well that I have already seen your countrymen, and know many of their regulations; for, if any other Persian had been in my place he would have required instantly to return back to his own country.” They were much delighted with the exterior of Malta; and particularly with the quantity of shipping in the port. On the left of the harbour, there is a very fine building begun by Buonaparte, intended as a hospital. They seemed mightily astonished that so superb a building should be the habitation of the sick.

Those, indeed, who have been accustomed to live under an arbitrary government, and to see acts of despotism committed every day, look with contempt, rather than with admiration, upon the establishments of a free and liberal government; and ridicule objects by which the promoter apparently and directly gains nothing.

We talked of female dress. I asked the Envoy what effect the visit of an European woman dressed in her own way would produce in Persia. He replied, that “if the King were to see her, He would probably order all his Harem to adopt the costume, and that every other man would follow his example, and enforce a fashion, which is not only so much more beautiful, but so much less expensive than their own. Their women are clothed in brocade and gold cloth, which is soon spoilt; or at least which is always cast off, whenever they hear that a new cargo arrives from Russia.”

I asked him if he had seen any handsome women in Constantinople: he replied, that he had seen none so beautiful as those of Persia.369 “They were fair indeed, but they wanted that carnation on their cheeks, which is called the numuck or salt of beauty; and which is the second requisite of female perfection. The first is large black eyes with brows very much arched.” A tame antelope was then playing about the cabin close to me, when the Mirza said, “Do your poets ever use the simile so constantly applied by ours, ‘eyes like the stag?’ The frequency of that image will prove the value which we attach to the object.”

I desired him to tell me the principal occupations of the women in the Harem. He complied: “They sew, embroider, and spin: they make their own clothes; and my wife even used to make mine: besides that, they superintend all the domestic concerns of the house; they keep an account of the daily expences; distribute provisions to the servants; pay their wages; settle all disputes between them; manage the concerns of the stable; see that the horses have their corn; and, in short, have the care of all the disbursements of the house. The King’s mother had more business than can be described. She had the controul of all her son’s Harem, which might consist altogether of more than a thousand women: and you may well conceive the trouble which they could give.” When I suggested the difficulty of a woman transacting so many occupations, without seeing any other man than her husband, and asked how she could settle any business but that of the Harem itself? and how she could succeed even in that without seeing the men servants? He replied, that “in the households of Persia there is always an officer called a Nazir, with whom the wife daily arranges all that relates to the male part of the establishment, to whom she pays the wages of the others; and who is accountable to her.” As a necessary preparation for the duties which thus devolve upon them, the women of Persia learn to read and write: as children they are sent to school with the boys, and when too old to be permitted to go unveiled, their education is finished at home by female Mollahs, who attend them370 for the purpose. They do not, however, like European women, learn music and dancing: these arts are taught to slaves only, who practise them for the amusement of their owners: and the wives never sing or dance, except perhaps at the wedding of a brother or sister.

The King has this right over all the women of his realm, that they must appear unveiled before him.

371

THE ARAB PIRATES.

[p. 44.]

The Arabs in every age, have been alike distinguished for a spirit of commerce and of plunder: and were early and great navigators, both as merchants and as pirates. In the time of Mahomed there existed a predatory tribe, whose chief is described in the Koran, according to Ebn Haukal,51 as “the King, who forcibly seized every sound ship.” This empire is said to have been founded prior to the time of Moses; and if the continuance of the same occupations on the spot be a proof of the identity of the people, it may be traced to the Arabs of the present day.

The Portuguese power was often violated by these pirates:52 and in the same age the English interests in the East were so much endangered by them, that one of the Agents in Persia (who had all indeed successively made representations on the necessity of sending an armed force to destroy them) declared, that “they were likely to become as great plagues in India, as the Algerines were in Europe.”53 Some of these ships had from thirty to fifty guns:[D] and one of their fleets, consisting of five ships, carried between them one thousand five hundred men.54372 Within the last few years, their attacks have been almost indiscriminate; nor had they learnt to respect even the English colours, as the instance in the text, and the subsequent capture of the Minerva, Captain Hopgood, proved too well. The British government however, knowing the intimate connection of these pirates on the coast with the Wahabee,55 proceeded in the suppression of the evil with cautious judgment; and when, by the extension of these outrages to themselves, they were driven to vindicate the honour of their flag, and to extirpate their enemies, they regarded all the ports, which had not actually included the British within their depredations, as still neutral; and endeavoured to confine their warfare to reprisals, for specific acts of violence, rather than to commit themselves generally against the Wahabees, by extending the attack to those of that alliance who, amid all their piracies, had yet not violated the commerce of England.

We might indeed thus separate the Joassmee tribe from the Wahabee, for we had already, in a formal treaty, recognised them as an independant power; though perhaps for all other purposes, they might be considered as identified. The strength however of the Joassmees alone was very considerable. The ports in their possession contained, ac373cording to a well-authenticated calculation, in the middle of the year 1809, sixty-three large vessels, and eight hundred and ten of smaller sizes; together manned by near nineteen thousand men. This force was increasing; the pirates, in a fleet of fifty-five ships, of various sizes, containing altogether five thousand men, had, after a fight of two days, taken the Minerva, and murdered almost all the crew: in the next month a fleet of seventy sail of vessels, (navigated severally by numbers rising from eighty to one hundred and fifty and two hundred men) were cruizing about the Gulph and threatening Bushire: and the chief of Ras al Khyma (the Roselkeim56 of the text, p. 44,) whose harbour was almost the exclusive resort of the larger vessels, had dared to demand a tribute from the British government, that their ships might navigate the Persian Gulph in safety. Our forbearance was now exhausted, and an expedition was sent from Bombay, under Captain Wainwright, and Lieutenant-Colonel Smith, of His Majesty’s sea and land forces, to attack the pirates in their ports. The first object was Ras al Khyma. The armament, after a short siege, carried the place by storm, destroyed all the naval equipments, and sparing the smaller vessels, burnt the fifty large ships which the harbour contained. They proceeded to the ports of the Arab pirates on the Persian coast, and completed the destruction of all their means of annoyance. They then attacked Shinass, one of their harbours on the Indian ocean. The defence of this place was most heroical; and was conducted indeed for the Joasmees, as was subsequently learnt, by a favourite and confidential general of Saood Ibn Abdool Uzzeer, the chief of the Wahabees. When on the third day of the siege, the few survivors were called upon to surrender, they replied, that they preferred death to submission; and when the towers were falling round374 them, they returned upon their assailants the hand-grenades and fireballs before they could burst. Twice Lieutenant-Colonel Smith ceased firing, to endeavour to spare the unavailing effusion of their blood; till at length, when they were assured of being protected from the fury of the troops of our ally the Imaum of Muscat, which had co-operated with us, they surrendered to the English.

The expedition then scoured all the coast a second time, to destroy any fragments of that pirate power, against which it was directed; and extirpated in every quarter all the means of annoyance which the Joassmees possessed. There was indeed another force of another tribe, which might eventually grow up into a formidable enemy; but this was distinctly under the protection of the Wahabee, who had invested its chief with the title of Sheik al Behr, or “Lord of the Sea;” and till it marked its hostility to us by joining in the attacks upon our commerce, it was judged expedient not to confound it in one indiscriminate warfare; but rather to open a communication with this particular chief, and through him to the Wahabee himself, advising the one to prohibit the piracies of his dependants, and requiring the other to respect the flag of England. In answer the Wahabee observed, “The cause of the hostilities carrying on between me and the members of the faith, is their having turned away from the Book of the Creator, and refused to submit to their own prophet Mahomed. It is not therefore those of another sect, against whom I wage war, nor do I interfere in their hostile operations, nor assist them against any one; whilst under the power of the Almighty, I have risen superior to all my enemies.” * * * “Under these circumstances, I have deemed it necessary to advise you that I shall not approach your shores, and have interdicted the followers of the Mahomedan faith and their vessels, from offering any molestation to your vessels: any of your merchants therefore, who may appear in, or wish to come to my ports, will be in security; and any person on my part who may repair to you, ought in like manner to be in safety.” * * * “Be not therefore elated with the conflagration of a few vessels, for375 they are of no estimation in my opinion, in that of their owners, or of their country. In truth then war is bitter; and a fool only engages in it, as a poet has said.”

The want of timber has always been felt so much by the people of the two Gulphs, and of the Western coast of the Indian ocean, that a check on their supplies from the Malabar coast, which Brigadier-General Malcolm very seasonably suggested, will probably keep down the future growth of the pirate power. The fleet of the Soldan of Egypt, which was destined to relieve Diu, was formed of Dalmatian timber, transported overland to the arsenals of Suez;57 and even some of the houses at Siraff, on the Gulph of Persia,58 were formed of European wood. In the seventeenth century, the Arabs of Muscat, who subsequently formed connections on the Malabar coast to procure timber, obtained permission from the King of Pegu to build ships in the ports of his country.59 If therefore the importation of foreign wood were cut off, the Arabs could hardly, without extreme difficulty, maintain a naval force.

SHAPOUR.

[p. 86.]

The city of Shapour derived its name from the monarch who founded it,60 Sapor, the son of Artaxerxes, and the second Prince of the Sassanian family. In his reign it was probably one of the capitals of Persia; and for some ages continued to be the chief city of that district of Persis Proper, which was connected with his name,376 the Koureh Shapour of Ebn Haukal.61 The great province in which it was included, had been particularly favoured by Cyrus, and his dynasty: it was their native seat, and contained their palaces, their treasures and their tombs. When their empire was overthrown, this portion was still administered by a race of native princes,62 who, after an interval of five hundred years, revived their pretensions to the throne of Cyrus,63 and re-established in their ancient seats, the religion and the empire of the Caianian Kings. The Princes of the house of Sassan, who thus came forth from it as from the cradle of their strength, regarded it as the original and favourite appanage of their crown; and marked their peculiar connection with it by imposing their names on its four districts,64 a division which, amid all the revolutions of their dominions, is even yet recognized.65 Here, therefore, the revival of the worship of fire, the great object of their dynasty, was established more generally and more permanently, than in other parts of their monarchy; for in the tenth century, when the Mahomedans had been three hundred years in possession of Persia, “no town or district of Fars was without a fire-temple;”66 and the division of Shapour in particular, contained two at least of the four temples which Ebn Haukal has particularised in the province.67

In this district accordingly, which was connected with the house of377 Cyrus and of Sassan by so many ties, and in Susiana, which was alike the favourite of both dynasties, we may expect to find the most splendid remains of their greatness. Both provinces have been explored very imperfectly, as travellers have been confined to the regular road; and no European has enjoyed those opportunities of observation and enquiry, which a residence in the country alone can give. Persepolis itself might probably have been unknown, if it had not been passed in the line from Shiraz to Ispahan; but the ruins of Pasagardæ,68 of Darabgherd,69 and of Jawr,70 in Fars; as well as those of Susa, of Ahwaz, and of Shooster, in Khuzistan, are almost unknown. The whole of the plain of Merdasht, the hollow Persis of the ancients, as well as the part more immediately surrounding Persepolis, contained, as Chardin believed, a continued succession of ruins; “Je southaiterois que quelque habile curieux allât passer un eté a Persepolis, à la decouverte de toutes les ruines de cette fameuse ville. Les gens du pays assurent que ces ruines s’etendent a plus de dix lieues à la ronde.”71

Shapour itself is an instance of the very limited knowledge of Persia which we possess, beyond the immediate line of a common route. It is situated only a very few miles from the road, yet it has been passed by every traveller from Tavernier and Thevenot, down to Scott Waring, without a suspicion of its present existence. It certainly retained a share at least, of its political importance after the fall of the house of Sassan. It contained a mosque as well as a fire-temple, in the time of Eban Haukal;72 and probably like other great cities378 of the East, suffered less from the first violence of the Arabian invasion, than from the successive wars of native dynasties, and from the gradual decay to which the declining population and exhausted wealth of the empire consigned all the works of their former greatness. Still Shapour appears to have survived these causes of desolation, and to have deserved a place among the cities of Asia, at the end of the sixteenth century, for it occurs in a table of latitudes and longitudes in the Ayeen Acbaree.73 From that time nothing more is known of it: its position indeed is marked in a map of the year 1672;74 and its name, on the authority of Oriental geographers, is repeated by D’Anville as the capital of the district. But no European traveller had described its actual state, or alluded to its history; and the first account of those sculptures, which yet render it an object of interest, was conveyed to us in a short note, added by Sir Harford Jones from his own observations, to the second edition of Dr. Vincent’s Nearchus, p. 391.

The Eastern monarchs have often commemorated the great exploits of their reigns by the foundations of cities. Cyrus is thus said to have built Pasagardæ, to celebrate his overthrow of the Median empire; and Artaxerxes, on the spot where he had defeated Artabanus, the last King of the Parthians, raised the city of Jawr.75 Succeeding princes of his house, as Baharam76 and Shapour D’Hulactaf,77 severally raised Kermanshah and Casvin, to immortalize particular acts of their history. It is probable therefore that Shapour the first, who is described by the Orientals as the founder of great cities,78 and acknowledged by all to have built Shapour, imposed379 his own name upon that which he destined to record the most brilliant of his successes: and that the city of Shapour accordingly, was the memorial of the defeat, captivity, and servitude of the Emperor Valerian.

The architect of such a work would naturally select his ornaments from the subject in which his plan originated; and the sculptures at Shapour might therefore be supposed to contain some prominent allusions to the Roman war. The triumphs of that war are almost unremembered in the history or the traditions of the Orientals; and the only records of the victories of Sapor, which are left in Persia, are the sculptures on the rocks of Shapour and Nakshi Rustam: and though, like every other work, of which nothing is known, they are referred by the modern Persians to the fabulous exploits of Rustam the Hercules of their country, the internal evidence of their design is sufficient to appropriate them to their real and historical objects.

That in fact the triumphs of the house of Sassan, are represented both at Shapour and at Nakshi Rustam, can hardly be contested. That in one of the sculptures, the royal figure on horseback is Sapor himself, and that the Roman suppliant before him is the Emperor Valerian, is probable almost from the first view of the delineations; is strengthened by the history of the spot where they are found; and is confirmed by the identity of the principal figure here, with one bearing an inscription in the name of Sapor,79 at Nakshi Rustam.

Such a subject would naturally be suggested to the artists of Sapor, and while the Roman chariot and standard among the fragments, and the Roman dress of the suppliant alike mark in the sculpture the humiliation of Valerian, the Sassanian costume of the Prince on380 horseback, the double diadem, and the very expression of his face, (which is that of the medals ascribed to Sapor by De Sacy,80) concur in the designation, and supply the figure of the conqueror.

It may appear scarcely necessary to have added one line of explanation, as the internal evidence of the sculpture itself may seem to fix its history. But De Sacy81 has considered all the subjects at Nakshi Rustam, and consequently their duplicates at Shapour, as representing one subject only, the conquest of the Parthians by Artaxerxes: and on this theory he has regarded the suppliant as Artabanus, the last King of the Parthians, and the victor as Artaxerxes. It is due to such a man as De Sacy, to differ from him with hesitation, and to state the grounds of difference fully. The engravings of Chardin, Le Brun, and Niebuhr, which alone were before De Sacy, are so entirely unworthy of the originals, that the conclusion to which he was led was almost unavoidable; but if he, who has done so much with imperfect materials, had enjoyed the opportunity of examining the full and characteristic distinctions preserved in Mr. Morier’s Sketches, he would have separated the subjects of the sculptures, into those which commemorate the Parthian victories of Artaxerxes, and those which were similarly destined to immortalise the Roman triumphs of Sapor.

The Plate, No. X. may be assumed then to represent Sapor in the act of receiving the submission of Valerian; and that marked No. XIX. to display him in his triumphal splendour. The fragments, No. XII. contain some of his Roman spoils; and the head to which381 the text alludes, page 89, in describing the hall of audience of a great King, is possibly that of Chosroes, King of Armenia,82 who was murdered by Sapor, after an unavailing war of thirty years; and whose fall therefore may be commemorated as an object of importance in the series of the exploits of Sapor.

The Plates No. XV.83 and No. XIX. though probably from the works of the same sculptor as the last, record the events of an earlier date; and delineate in different views the contest for the crown of Persia, which was waged between the last of the Parthian monarchs and Artaxerxes, the founder of the house of Sassan. Of this history, as it is connected with the sculptures at Shapour and Nakshi Rustam, it is sufficient to observe that, according to an inscription on the spot, explained and confirmed by De Sacy,84 Artaxerxes was the son of Babec, the Satrap, or perhaps the hereditary Prince of Persis Proper, under the empire of the Arsaces.—Artaxerxes was the grandson of Sassan;85 from whom, rather than from himself, his dynasty, like that of the Seljukians from the grandfather of their founder,86 has been denominated. Others on the contrary, as the Lubb al Tarikh in De Sacy,87 and the authorities on which Sir Wm. Jones relied,88 assume Sassan a shepherd, to be his father by the daughter of Babec: and others again expand the whole genealogy into romance.89 Vaillant90 lavishes on Artaxerxes and his birth, all the bitterness of reproach; “infimæ sortis vir, sordidissimo loco natus, sceleratus, injustissimus.” So regularly however has382 this reproach followed success, that half the Eastern conquerors, as the Bouide sultans, the house of Togrul Shah, Genghiz, Timur, the Othman race, &c. have in their turns been represented as springing from the lowest origin; and a story, almost the same indeed as that attached to the birth of Cyrus, has been recorded of Artaxerxes, and forms a new point of resemblance in their history.91

That, however, the father of Sapor was not a man of very obscure descent, may be inferred from the silence of Moses of Chorona, who in the ninth or tenth century appears as the partizan of the Arsacides; as well as from the positive assertion in the inscription92 at Nakshi Rustam, that he was the son of a king; an assertion which might have been safely made in his name in a distant age, but which would hardly have been hazarded by himself in a public and triumphal record, if its fallacy had been familiar to all his contemporaries.

He assumed also in his own name, and that of his father, the divinity which had been attached to their Kings by the ancient Persians, and which was continued by the Parthian monarchs. The royalty however claimed by Artaxerxes in the inscription, was certainly limited to his own native Persis, which in fact was always included in the dominions of the Parthian Kings; though the immediate rule may have been resigned to a descendant of the Caianian family. The provinces of the monarchy were administered by eighteen Satraps, to whom the Parthian Kings, like the Moguls, had gradually resigned almost all the power of the empire; and who, to justify in their nominal superior, the title of the King of Kings, severally assumed the regal dignity themselves: as in the polity of modern Persia, according to Niebuhr,93 inferior officers are called Khans and Sultans, titles of383 Majesty in other countries, to exalt the predominant power of their universal ruler, the Padishah Buzurk.

Artaxerxes, like many other founders of Eastern dynasties Genghiz,94 Timur,95 Nadir Shah,96 might ground his rebellion on the plausible pretext of the ingratitude of his sovereign; but while he supplanted the Arsacides in the empire, he recognised their superior interest in the affections of the people; and assumed their epoch, their language, and their name;97 that his subjects might regard themselves rather as transferred to a different heir, than as subjugated to a new and unconnected race of conquerors. He accordingly styles himself Arsaces, in the coin preserved by Vaillant, and destined probably for the Western and Mesopotamian provinces: and Sapor continued the designation, though in the coins circulated in the Eastern Persia, which De Sacy98 has decyphered, both Princes confirm to the corresponding genius of the country, relinquish the Greek and restore the native language, revive the symbols of the worship of fire, and connect themselves there also with the original prejudices of the people.

Possibly the title thus adopted by the first Princes of the Sassanides, was retained even to the middle of the fourth century; for Ammianus Marcellinus describes the family on the throne of Persia as Arsacides;99 an assertion which Gibbon seems to contradict as very careless and inaccurate, but which may perhaps be reconciled with the truth of history, by supposing, that even when the ancient line of the Parthian Kings had ceased to reign for more than one hundred years, the house of Sassan retained their title of384 Arsaces, which still favoured the national pride of a great part of their people, and which was connected so long and so gloriously with the general history of the empire.

All the details of these sculptures confirm their history, but it is scarcely necessary to do more than allude to them. The lion held by a chain in one of the scenes at Shapour, may be emblematical of a conquered nation; or perhaps the literal historical representation of a real auxiliary in the warfare of the Parthians:100

Brissonius however adds to this quotation the question, “Sed quis veritatem à poeta ut ab historico exigit?”101 Notwithstanding however the incredulity thus implied, and the ridicule of Lucian, who describes the Parthians as using dragons for the same purpose;102 it is possible that this sculpture may be admitted as evidence of the fact.

The dress of the royal characters may be similarly illustrated; the turreted tiara of Artabanus, is perhaps the πλημα πιυργωτον described by Strabo103; the tiara of Artaxerxes, which extends over the cheeks, is thus mentioned by Juvenal,104 and thus represented in the medals of Vaillant and De Sacy. The exuberant hair of Sapor is likewise an historical fact: it was indeed the costume of the house of Arsaces as well as of Sapor. This might be learnt from their coins, but it is more familiar from the allusion of Vespasian, when he385 replied that the comet was not ominous to him, but regarded rather the King of the Persians, “cui capillus effusior.”105

The diadem of Persia was distinct from the tiara, and was itself “quod omnibus notum non est,” said Brissonius, p. 68, “nihil aliud quam candida fascia, qua Regum frons precingebatur.” This he proves from Lucian; but more decisively by the story of Favorinus, who, when Pompey bound his leg up with a fillet, said, “it mattered not on which part of the body he bore the diadem.” Many of the royal customs of ancient Persia are still observed in Abyssinia, as Bruce has collected them; and the fillet is still worn as the diadem. The ring then to which the text alludes, and which is described as such by Niebuhr,106 is certainly as De Sacy observed,107 the diadem of the disputed empire. In the coins of the Arsacides, this diadem,108 with flowing redimicula, recurs frequently as presented to the sovereign by the genius of a city,109 a Pallas,110 or a Victoriola;111 and in the Greek coins which the two first Princes of the Sassanides struck for their Mesopotamian provinces, the same diadem is offered to them.112 It is probable therefore that the object extended over Sapor, by the figure in the air, is the same wreath or diadem, which in his coins he is receiving; a Grecian image, which was perhaps adopted by the Parthian monarchs from the Seleucidæ, whom they succeeded, and descended through the Arsacidæ to Artaxerxes and his son.

This image is therefore not sufficient to assign the work to Grecian hands: the classical merit however of the whole sculptures renders it386 probable that they were executed by European artists, whom Sapor may have taken in the train of Valerian, or those whom in his invasion of Asia Minor, he may have carried off into the heart of his own empire. Possibly by a refinement of cruelty he may have consigned the erection of this memorial of their warfare, to his captive Valerian; for a tradition at Shooster attributes to that monarch the superintendance of Sapor’s other works at that city, and the construction of the edifice there, which was destined for his own prison.

Gibbon,113 as Milner has observed,114 is perhaps the only author who ever doubted the nature of the treatment which Valerian experienced from Sapor. Less prejudiced minds might have drawn from the fact, that these cruelties are noticed in a speech of the Emperor Galerius, to the Persian Embassadors,115 the better inference, that almost in the very days of their execution, the perpetration of these indignities was known to all the Roman world; and those who recollect the opportunities of knowing the Christian character which Valerian enjoyed, and the disgraces which crowded round him, when against that knowledge he persecuted the Christians, may admit the providential interposition of the Almighty in thus vindicating his own cause on the oppressor, and in reversing a light and a prosperity so abused.

Sapor is said to have placed his foot on the neck of Valerian when he mounted his horse, and after a long captivity to have flayed him alive. This treatment, however it may differ from the conduct which a European conqueror might display to his captive, is not sufficient to discredit the story; and might be paralleled, in ignominy at least, by many instances in the East. Genghiz Khan threw387 the victuals from his table even to a woman, a captive queen, the proudest monarch whom he had conquered.116 The Carmathian Prince who advanced against Bagdad, tied the Lieutenant of the Caliph Moctadi with his dogs:117 and the iron cage of Timour, (which is doubted, only because Timour does not himself record it) is a familiar illustration; of which the idea was not confined to that instance, for Badur, King of Cambay, prepared a cage to convey one of the Portuguese heroes to the Great Turk.118 But there is a nearer precedent: the Persian monarchs have the unrivalled honour of alone taking two Roman Emperors; and Alp Arslan, who enjoyed the fortune of Sapor, remembered perhaps his treatment of his prisoner; and though in his subsequent conduct he resembles our own Black Prince, and forms a striking contrast to the sequel of Sapor’s conduct, yet, when his captive first appeared before him, he is said to have planted his foot on the neck of the Emperor.119

The dynasty of the Sassanides, though the commencement of the historical age of Persia;120 and as such comparatively less obscure in Oriental writers, than the preceding period,121 is yet, as D’Herbelot remarked,122 involved in great difficulties. The darkness of the intermediate age from the death of Alexander to the accession of the house of Arsaces, and through the greatness of the Parthian empire, is confined principally to the East; and from the hereditary connection of the Seleucidæ, and their successors with the Greeks of Asia, is388 relieved by the Western authorities, whose testimonies have been collected with so much research by Vaillant, and confirmed by the medals of the Arsacidæ. But this light is lost in the middle of the third century; nor perhaps could a more difficult portion of ancient history be selected than the succeeding dynasty, a period nevertheless probably the most brilliant, in the foreign relations of Persia, of any since the extinction of the sovereignty of Darius, and at the same time the most fortunate in the internal prosperity and resources of the empire. The task was suggested to Vaillant,123 who had so ably executed the Parthian annals, but he resigned it to the adviser, and it was left undone.

The deficiencies of European materials are not supplied by Oriental authorities. The value of the Mahomedan accounts of ancient Persia, may be estimated by their omission of the success of Sapor, the most splendid in the whole period of which they treat. Gibbon124 has already remarked from D’Herbelot, that the modern Persians know nothing of the capture of a Roman Emperor; and it may be added, that though it appears from Mr. Morier, p. 201, that a Persian of the present day was acquainted with the event, yet neither Mirkhond,125 nor Khondemir,126 nor the Tarikh published by Sir Wm. Ouseley, allude to it. Whatever then may be the deficiencies or even the contradictions of the Greek historians in writing on the affairs of Persia, they are still probably the best authorities on which we can rely. The contemporary classics possess no one disadvantage, which is not shared by the later Mahomedans; they are alike writing on the history of a people, whom the Greeks hated as enemies, and whom the Mussulmans despised as infidels, and whose language was probably389 equally unknown to both; but to the Greek authors these defects were in a certain degree qualified by their comparative nearness to the events which they recorded; while the Mussulmans, in treating of the history before the time of Mahomed, were writing the annals of a conquered and contemned race, in an age when its language, polity, and religion were alike forgotten. It is therefore astonishing that De Sacy should have selected Mirkhond, an author of this class, to accompany his own able memoirs on the antiquities of Persia. Whatever may be the relative superiority of Mirkhond to other Oriental annalists, the value of his authority is in itself very low, and is sufficiently depreciated by the internal evidence of his own work. He begins his account of the Sassanian kings by saying that the Messiah was born in the reign of Ardeshir or Artaxerxes, the first Prince of that house, whose reign which did not commence till the two hundred and twenty-sixth year after Christ.127 He continues, that Ardeshir received a message from the Messiah, and secretly professed his religion. Independently of the gross fabulousness of the chronology, the story itself is totally abhorrent to every other evidence, by which it is clear that Ardeshir, so far from professing or favouring a foreign religion, regarded the revival of the native worship as the glory of his reign; and combined in one re-establishment the religion and the empire of ancient Persia.128

The idle tale of the birth of his son Sapor,129 is another proof of the manner in which the imagination of an Eastern historian has supplied the defects of his materials; if indeed it be not derived from the story of Astyages in Herodotus. Without discussing the probability of the fact or the accuracy of the chronology, it is impossible to390 conceive that an author could learn so much without knowing more; and that at the interval of one thousand two hundred years he could have ascertained the most private history of an Eastern Prince, when he is ignorant of his public exploits; or that he could have given a genuine account of Sapor from his birth to his death, when he never once alludes to the Romans, or notices, however transiently, the most celebrated event in the life of his hero, and in the history of his country.

SECOND VISIT TO SHAPOUR,

APRIL, 1811.

“We proceeded over the plain to the Southward and Westward, to see what a peasant called the Kaleh or Castle, and the Mesjed or Mosque, which are large conspicuous buildings seen from almost all parts of the plain. These we found to be Mohammedan structures, excepting part of an ancient wall or buttress, and a column, with a square fallen capital, that are to be seen in the former, and of the same age as the edifices at Shapour. In the square of this ruined castle we found some little black tents of the wandering tribes; from the good folks of which we got some dong or butter-milk, of which they drink large quantities at this season. We surprised them by asking them if they had any Poul Kadeim or ancient money; to which they answered, very ingenuously, that they had neither new nor old. The fact is, that old coins are more frequently found amongst these sort of people than amongst any other; for if they find any, the favourite wife generally has them suspended with her other trinkets, in a necklace around her neck. When old coins or money out391 of use fall into the hands of town’s people, traders, shopkeepers, or such like, they generally melt it down immediately, and get it recoined. In all our researches for old coins, we have been unsuccessful, and it has only been by the greatest chance that we have now and then got a Sassanian or an Arsacian medal. A man brought what he called a collection of old coins to the Embassador: they consisted of a Reaal of the age of Shah Abbas, a Cuffic piece of money, a gold coin of the worst time of the middle ages, and an English halfpenny.”

[Pg 392]

[Pg 393]

NOTES.

Chatters, p. 37.—The Shotters of Fryer; the Shatirs of Hanway. Chardin gives a long and curious account of a display, which he calls “la fête du Chater, on valet du pied au Roi.” Voyages, tom. ii. 46, edit. 1711. The King’s Chaters dressed richly but differently, (car en Perse on ne sait ce que c’est de Livrée,) were the masters of the feast. Those who are superior in their profession can dance well; an occupation indeed which, in the East, is considered so little suitable to persons of a higher rank and character, that a Persian who was in Paris in the minority of Louis XIV. and saw the young King dancing, exclaimed, “c’est un excellent Chater.” The prize of the exploit recorded by Chardin, was the honour of being admitted the chief of the Chaters of the royal household; and the effort was, between the rising and the setting of the sun, to take up twelve arrows singly from a tower at the distance of a league and a half (French), and return with each to the place of starting: in this manner the Chater run thirty-six leagues in fourteen hours. Nevertheless, says Chardin, this was not equal to a feat still remembered, in which the twelve arrows were taken up in twelve hours. Tavernier was present at the greater performance to which Chardin alludes. See his voyages, tom. i. p. 438-40.

Geography of Persia, p. 48.—Olivier (tom. v. c. vii.) describes Persia as a great table-land, supported on every side by high mountains. The space thus enclosed is a depressed level, as the courses of the rivers prove; which, according to a former remark of of D’Anville, never penetrate through the mountains to the sea, but stagnate or evaporate in deserts of sand. (Vincent’s Nearchus.) Still its absolute elevation is very great: at Shiraz, in 29° 36´, there is much snow in January and February, though it is half a degree more to the south than Cairo; and Ispahan is too cold for the orange tree, though it grows well at Mossul, four degrees more to the north, and twice as far from the sea: and in Mazanderan, which is in a much higher latitude, but on a level considerably below the table land of Persia, the sugar cane, which will not grow at Shiraz, comes to maturity394 four months sooner than in the West Indies, Olivier, tom. v. p. 218, 233. On the capability of Persia to supply Russia with sugar and cotton, see Olivier, p. 336.

Grampus, possibly the whale of Arrian, p. 50.]—The whales in the Indian ocean have been celebrated from the time of Pliny; and Sir Harford Jones, in a note to Vincent’s Nearchus, mentions them high up in the Persian Gulph: it is probable therefore that the bones, of which the houses on the coast were constructed, were those of real whales.

Kharrack, p. 52.—The island of Kharrack at one time excited considerable interest; when it was seized and fortified by the Baron Kniphausen. The motives of his enterprise are very unimportant, although it may be added, that the heroical character in which he appears in Ives, as the founder of a new settlement, is somewhat reduced in the “Free Merchants’ Letters,” of Joseph Price, p. 172. It is sufficient that even in its first days this colony was dependant on a neighbouring island (Corgo), and the main land of Persia for its provisions. Niebuhr indeed relates the singular and fatal stratagem connected with this supply. The Sheik of Bushire, who furnished these necessaries to Kharrack, was at war with the Sheik of Bunder-righ, and as the Dutch were alike involved in the hostilities, the communications between the island and Bushire were often carried on by night. The Sheik of Bushire profited by this circumstance; and putting poultry into two armed ships, sent them against two galvettes, laid up under the walls of the citadel: “A l’approche de l’isle on secuoit les cages pour faire crier les poules, et la sentinelle Hollandoise entandant ces cris de la volaille crut que c’etoit les vaisseaux d’Abu schähr (Bushire), and qu’il etoit inutile d’eveiller les autres matelots.” Descr. del Arabia, p. 280. This success was soon followed up, and the Dutch were expelled from the island. Ives recommended to our government the possession of Kharrack. Voyage, p. 226: but independently of the precariousness of its supplies, Niebuhr mentions the mortality among the Europeans there, though he adds indeed, that they died “moins pas l’air mal sain de l’isle, que pas leur maniere de vivre,” p. 281. It was an early object of the French government. By a treaty signed at Paris, and negociated by M. Pyrault at Bassora, Kerim Khan, the Regent of Persia, engaged to cede Kharrack; but, the suppression of the French East India Company intervened, and the object was neglected. It was again surrendered by the treaty of 1808, and in the intermediate time, when he was himself sent by the Directory as a secret agent, Olivier observes, that the Persian government would have repeated the cession. His conclusion is remarkable; the object would have been advantageous to us, says he, “si nous avions voulu serieusement nous etablir en Egypte; si de la nous avions voulu porter nos vues de commerce sur le golfe Persique, sur Bassora, sur Bagdad; si nous avions voulu reprendre un commerce actif avec l’Inde; si nous avions voulu ouvrir des communications entre l’isle de France, Mascate, and Bassora.” Tom. v. p. 157.

Ormuz, p. 52.]—When Olivier, was in Persia, the Imaum of Muscat was negotiating395 with the Persian government the cession of Ormuz to him. Tom. v. p. 157. That island as well as Gombroon, is now in his possession; though he accounts for the customs to the King of Persia.

Pearls, p. 55.]—A belief in the influence of the rain on the formation of pearls, which Niebuhr mentions as prevalent among the Arabs in his own days, (Descr. de l’Arabie) and among their ancestors in the time of Benjamin of Tudela, six hundred years ago, may be traced up clearly to the time of Pliny, if not much earlier. (Lib. ix. c. xxxv. see c. li. and the note from Aristotle.) The Apologue of Sadi is a beautiful illustration of the Eastern opinion. Bruce says, “it is observed that pearls are always the most beautiful in those places of the sea, where a quantity of fresh water falls. Thus in the Red Sea,” &c. (vol. v. p. 226, app.) and it may be added, though the facts prove little without knowing the relative positions, that Bahrein, one of the most fertile pearl banks in the world, is likewise celebrated for the most extensive submarine springs of fresh water. See on those springs, Ives’s Voyage. Niebuhr, p. 286. See also Teixeira, in Mod. Univ. Hist. vi. 80. Hole in his curious illustration of Sindbad, regards these springs as the origin of “the river of fresh water that issued from the sea.” Sixth Voyage.

Horses, &c. p. 63.]—The custom of tying horses by the leg in the stable, is traced in Persia even to the time of Xenophon. Anab. lib. iii. c. 245. At the introduction of the Russian Embassador to Shah Hussein, the horses of the King of Persia were displayed in state as the procession passed: “they were all tied to a rope fixed to the ground at the extremities by a stake of gold, near which lay a mallet of the same metal for driving it. According to the custom of Persia the hind feet also were fastened to a rope, to prevent kicking.” Bell, vol. i. p. 100.

Elauts, p. 77.]—The wandering tribes have in every age constituted a considerable portion of the population of the Persian and Turkish Empires. In Asia Minor they are called Turcomans; in Assyria and Armenia, Curds; in Irak and Fars, Elauts; the Vloches of Herbert, p. 129, (by some considered the Eluths or Oigurs.) Their general character is the same; and they have continued to follow the same hereditary occupations with unbroken regularity. Ebn Haukal estimates the numbers included in their zems or tribes in Fars alone at five hundred thousand families, p. 83.

Lion on the tomb, at Derees, p. 85; see also, p. 94, &c.]—On the meaning of such an emblem, see Niebuhr’s Doubt in his chapter on Shiraz, tom. ii.

Bazar-a-Vakeel, p. 100.]—Scott Waring reckons the length of this great work of Kerim Khan, at half a mile! Franklin, at a quarter of a mile, p. 58; and a later authority at between seven and eight hundred yards.

396

P. 104.]—The Story of Cheik Chenan, may remind the reader of the Lay of Aristote.

The Bend-emir, p. 124.]—The Prince, from whose dyke thrown across it, the Bend-emir is asserted to have taken its name, is sometimes said to be Emir Azad a Dowlah, one of the Buiya Sultans; and as the river occurs in the route of Barbaro, 1472, within seventy years after the reign of Timur, as the “Bindamyr,” it is probable that it acquired that name from the earlier Prince. On the word Bund, see a note in Vincent’s Periplus, p. 157; and Moor’s Female Infanticide, p. 110, &c.

Persepolis, p. 129.]—The first account of Chehel Minar, that was brought to Europe after the revival of learning, occurs in the travels of Josaphat Barbaro, Embassador from the State of Venice to the Prince whom he calls Assambei, (who may be recognised indeed as the “Usan Cassanes,” “of some called Asymbeius,” in Knolles, p.409;) but who is better known as the Uzun Hassan or Cassan of D’Herbelot. The rarity of the volume in which these travels are contained may justify the insertion of an extract, Aldus, 1543. Josaphat Barbaro does not suspect that he is describing the Persepolis of the Classics; and labours therefore to find in the sculptures at Chehil Minar, something which may rather accord with the Hebrew origin assigned to it by one of the traditions of the country. In the bridge leading over the Bend-emir he had already discovered a work of Solomon; and he proceeds to point out, among the representations on the rocks, the figure of Solomon himself. Again, instead of Rustam, the Hercules of Persia, or rather instead of the real heroes, Artaxerxes and Sapor, whom that name has supplanted at Persepolis, Josaphat Barbaro perceives in a colossal image on horseback, the figure of Samson. The being in the air, which some have conceived to be the soul of a departed monarch, and which recurs in the engravings of the tombs by Le Brun and Chardin, is thus described: “Sopra di tutte e una figura simile a quelle nostre che noi figuriamo Dio padre in uno tondo; laqual ha uno tondo per mano, e sotto laqual sono altre figure piccole,” fol. 51. 6. He continues; among the lesser figures there is one, who has on his head a Pope’s mitre, “una mitria di Papa;” and has his hands extended, apparently as if he would give his benediction to those beneath him, who are looking up to him in fixed expectation of the said blessing. Near Samson are several other figures dressed in the French mode, “alla Francese,” and having long hair. M.I. The description is curious, and characteristic of the age; but even in the seventeenth century, Tavernier in the same manner fancied that he saw in the Sassanian sculptures at Kermanshah, priests, surplices, and censers, tom. i. 316. This indeed was almost the earliest account that had been given of the spot; and therefore, this error is more excusable. But now, when so much has been written on the subject, (whether the sculptures be the works of Semiramis or of the Sassanian Kings?) and more particularly when De Sacy has definitively proved by the inscriptions, that the figures are connected with the history of the latter Princes of the house of Sassan; we may be surprised that M. de Gardanne397 should have overlooked their design; and instead of recognising an object that had been illustrated by his countryman with so much learning, should pass it in his journal with the single remark: “Plus loin sur un rocher élevé, on voit une croix et les douze Apôtres sculptés.” p. 83.

Every nation has some proverbial expression of number, and “forty” seems popular in the East. Thus the palace of Ispahan is the Chehil Sitoon; and another built in imitation of it, at Moorshedabad, is called by the same name. Seir Mutagherin, i. 301. Chehil minar therefore signifies an indefinite number of pillars, whether more or less than forty; but even with all the allowance, which this expression may require, it is probable that in the time of Sadi, six hundred years ago, the pillars standing at Persepolis amounted really to forty. Chardin, tom. iii. 138. The remains at Persepolis are designated by another still more comprehensive form, “Hazar Sitoon,” the one thousand columns. De Sacy, p. 1. If the fragment engraved in the Archœologia, from the original transmitted by Richard Strachey, Esq. to his father, be really of the size of that original, as the notice affirms, and if it formed part of the series of sculptures, we may thence learn the average proportions of the subjects at Persepolis. Archœol. xiv. app. 282. But Le Brun sent over an entire figure from the reliefs; see the close of his work.

Ispahan, p. 159.]—Ispahan had been for ages one of the greatest cities of the East, and was possibly the Aspa and Aspadana of the ancients. In 1472 it contained one hundred and fifty thousand souls; a number which, according to Barbaro, was but the sixth of its former population. It had declined in political importance till Shah Abbas transferred thither the seat of Empire from Casvin. It rose rapidly to a second greatness: in extent it almost covered the plain. It was itself twenty-four miles in circumference, and according to Chardin, “a dix lieues à la ronde, on comptait quinze cents villages.” Tom. iii. 83. Chardin thought its population equal to that of London, and fixed it at six hundred thousand souls. Tavernier, almost at the same time, comparing it with Paris, says, it has but one-tenth of the population. (See on the relative population of Paris, London, and Rhages, Sir Wm. Petty’s Essay.) Tavernier is clearly wrong, and certainly much more inaccurate than the other extreme of one million and one hundred thousand, stated by the European merchants in Ispahan. Yet there is an error probably in both the larger estimates. The number of houses in Chardin’s estimate is a fixed standard, thirty-eight thousand: at fifteen in a house, the amount would not equal the population which he assigns as the lowest number; and it would require more than twenty-eight in a house, to justify the larger calculation. Olivier indeed remarks on another occasion, tom. v. 163, that “on doint compter en Perse au moins 7 ou 8 Persans par maisons;” but though this is much higher than the average of Europe, and much higher than Mr. Morier has calculated throughout his travels, (with the single exception of Bushire), it will not give much above half the estimate of Chardin. It may perhaps be observed that the numbers in Ispahan during the Affghan siege, and which are variously stated from seven hundred thousand to a million, will confirm the general accuracy of the former statement; but it should be recollected, that the amount on that398 occasion was swelled by the fugitives from the whole country. Olivier reckoned the inhabitants of Ispahan in his days at fifty thousand; its habitable circumference was reduced to a diameter of two miles; and he was riding for half an hour through the ruins which surrounded it. Tom. v. 175, 179. Gardanne hears that the ruins extend for a march of more than four hours, p. 70. A later statement indeed gives the present population at two hundred and fifty thousand. But even in the decay in which Olivier found it, it retained sufficient evidences of original greatness to excite the liveliest sensations: “Tout ce que nous vimes, tout ce qu’on nous dit, tout ce que nous supposâmes nous en donna la plus grande ideé: tout nous persuada qu’elle fut sous les Sophis une des plus belles, des plus riches, des plus peuplées de l’Asie.” P. 180.

Shah Abbas drinking wine, p. 165.]—Gibbon says, that “in every age the wines of Shiraz have triumphed over the laws of Mahomed.” In fact however, the use of spirituous liquors in general has depended, in Persia as in Turkey and other Mahomedan countries, less on the precepts of the Koran, than on the will and character of the reigning Prince. Pietro della Valle gives a curious account of the alternations in the use of inebriating liquors, which the difference in the individual habits of the Sovereign produced in his day in the court of Persia: and Tournefort remarks the same effect in Georgia; “of all nations the greatest wine drinkers.” Tom. ii. lettre vi. Eastern monarchs indeed, in this as in other points, have considered themselves unfettered by the prohibitions of the Koran: “Kings are subject to no law;”—“Whatever they do, they commit no sin,” were the maxims by which Shah Hussein, the last of the Seffis, was seduced into drunkenness. (Mod. Univ. Hist. vi. p. 22.) The exclusive prerogatives of an absolute Prince were, however, best exemplified in Hindostan. Jehangeer, as we learn from his own commentaries, was accustomed to drink of the strongest spirits, a quantity equal in weight to ten seers a day; while (as Peter the Great, and the rising Peter of the South Seas, Tamahama, in Turnbull’s Voyage, have done since) he issued as a standing regulation of his government, an order for the prohibition of spirituous liquors, and every thing else of an intoxicating nature, throughout the whole kingdom, “notwithstanding that I had myself,” he adds, “from the age of eighteen to thirty-eight, been constantly addicted to them.” Extracts by James Anderson, from the Toozuké Jehangeer, Asiat. Miscell. vol. ii. p. 77. To evade the prohibition of wine, the Orientals have had recourse to compositions infinitely more inebriating: these are “the mixed wine,” “the strong drink mingled of the Scriptures;” see Lowth’s Isaiah, p. 12-13, p. 231, &c. See a Chapter of Kæmpfer, fasc. iii. obs. 15. The liquor thus substituted in Persia is the Cocnos of Della Valle. Abbas the First, when he drank wine, drank it as in the text, publicly: for a purpose, as a contemporary traveller observes, like that of Agathocles in Diodorus of discovering the real character of his guests. Della Valle, tom. ii. 341. See the entertainment in Herbert, p. 171: “Most friendly Abbas puld our Ambassador downe, seated him close to his side, smiling to see he could not sett (after the Asiatique sort) crosse-legd, and calling for a bowl of wine, dronke his Master’s health, at which the Ambassador uncoverd his head; and to complement beyond all399 expectation the Potshaugh,” (the Padishah) “puld of his turbant; by discovering his bald head, symbolising his affection; and after an houres merriment departed.” This object of Abbas was again similarly attempted by Shah Suleyman. Mod. Univ. Hist. vol. vi. 16. Shah Seffi in a caprice chose to prohibit tobacco, and executed two foreign merchants for disobeying the order, as Sultan Murad did in Turkey for the same offence. Rycaut, p. 59; see p. 43, against wine. Shah Seffi himself drank to excess; but having in a fit of intoxication killed one of his wives, he published a mandate through all his dominions, that no one should drink wine; and that the Governors should stave all the casks and spill the liquor wherever it was found. Mod. Univ. Hist. vol. v. p. 471-2, p. 475. Shah Hussein, vol. vi. 21, prohibited wine by his first act, though he afterwards was tempted to indulge in it; but when Bell was in Persia, the King was still sober and devout, and drank no wine, which in consequence was not used by his court. Bell, i. 107, see p. 116. Nadir Shah and Kerim Khan permitted the use of wine: but Aga Mahomed, “cruel, feroce au dela de toute expression, faisait ouvrir le ventre à ceux de ces sujets Musulmans qui etaient accusés de boire du vin.” Olivier, tom. v. p. 136.

Mourtchekourd, p. 176.]—The difficulty of ascertaining a fact in the ancient history of Persia, may be estimated by the contradictions in a very modern period, in an event of extreme importance, and in the relations of contemporary authors. The battle of Mourtchekourd, which decided the fate of Persia, was fought, according to Jones’s Life of Nadir, on the 13th November, 1728. Otter, who accompanied an Embassy to Nadir, says November, 1730. Gardanne, the French Consul, who was at Ispahan at the time, says November, 1729. See Olivier, vol. v. p. 375.

P. 186.]—Of the King of Persia’s own poems, see a specimen in Scott Waring. See also Gardanne, p. 76.

Lion and Bear, p. 187.]—In Bell’s time, there were two lions at the court of Persia, who couched to the Embassador as he passed, p. 100-1. When the Greek Embassador was presented to the Caliph Moctader, A. D. 917, “one hundred lions were brought out, with a keeper to each lion.” Gibbon, 4to. v. p. 420.

Introduction, p. 128.]—Bell’s description is striking, “at our entry into the hall, we were stopped about three minutes at the first fountain, in order to raise the greater respect; the pipes were contrived to play so high, that the water fell into the basin like thick rain. Nothing could be distinguished for some time; and the Schach himself appeared as in a fog. While we moved forward, every thing was as still as death.” vol. i. p. 103.

Zein Labadeen, p. 176.]—The Zain Labadeen, called in the text the brother of Hossein, is probably Ali, his youngest son, called afterwards Zein Alab’beddin, “the ornament of the religious.” Mod. Univ. Hist. vol. ii. p. 101. Franklin, p. 180.

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Punishment of Theft, p. 204.]—This was a punishment inflicted by the Emperor Aurelian. Gibbon, i. p. 355.

P. 217.]—Gardanne complains in the same manner of the publicity of Persian diplomacy. “Les Gardes, les Secretaires, les curieux sont presens. Nous avons souvent demande de les faire eloigner, mais les Ministres gardent toujours du monde. On ne peut pas rester seul avec eux.” Journal, p. 54.

Teheran, p. 224.]—It is interesting to trace the progress of a capital. At about the same distance from Rhages, (at which the present city of Teheran may be placed from the remains of Rey) appears the town of Tahora, in the Theodosian tables: a sufficient presumption that Teheran itself had an original and independant existence, and did not rise only from the ruins of the greater metropolis. Its continuance as a contemporary city cannot now be traced distinctly; it may indeed have borne a different name in Eastern geography, as it is the Teheran or Cherijar of Tavernier. It re-appears however under its present name in the journey of the Castilian Embassadors to Timur, at a period when the greatness of Rey was still very considerable. At the end of two centuries, Pietro della Valle re-visited it. He calls it the city of planes; tom. ii. 390: the soil is probably particularly adopted to the tree; for Olivier mentions one in the neighbourhood that measured round an excrescence at the root, seventy feet; tom. v. p. 102. About the same time with Della Valle, Herbert described it fully. It is the Tyroan of his travels. Tavernier notices it more perhaps from the materials of others than from his own observation, tom. i. 313: and Chardin speaks of it only as “petite ville.” Tom. ii. p. 120. Its name occurs with scarcely a line of comment, in a route given by Hanway, vol. i.; and though it was a place of some interest in the reign of Nadir, its actual state cannot be collected with any certainty till the accession of the present dynasty. It had long indeed been the capital of a province; and its name had been frequently connected with objects of importance in the history of the last two centuries; yet it owes its more immediate pre-eminence to the events of the last few years. It had been so much destroyed by the Affghans, (when after the battle of Salmanabad they invested it, in the hope of seizing Shah Thamas, who had retired thither) that Aga Mahomed, the late King, may be considered as almost its second founder. Its nearness to his own tribe and province; the facilities of raising instantaneously from the wandering tribes around it a large force of cavalry; and its central situation between the general resources of his empire and the more exposed frontiers, combined to justify his choice of Teheran as the capital of Persia. It has risen rapidly. In 1797 Olivier describes it as little more than two miles in circumference, and of the whole area the palace occupied more than one-fourth. Tom. v. p. 89. In 1809, it is stated to be between four and a half and five miles round the walls. The population, according to Olivier, even with all the encouragement which Aga Mahomed afforded to settlers, and including his own household of three thousand persons, amounted in 1797 to only fifteen thousand persons. Gardanne describes it, ten years afterwards, as having more than fifty thousand inhabitants during the winter; though he notices401 the almost total desertion of the city during the heats of summer. Journal, &c. p. 55. In one of Mr. Morier’s routes in the Appendix, Teheran is represented as containing twelve thousand houses, a better estimate of its size than the number of inhabitants.

Ark, p. 225.]—Ark is obviously, Arx.

Impress, p. 225.]—This impress was by no means peculiar to Persia. Many instances might be given from our own history down to the reign of Elizabeth: but it is sufficient to refer to those connected with the subject in the text. Henry VI. pressed minstrels “in solatium regis;” almost the very act of the King of Persia. Edward VI. thus supplied his choir, (Barrington on the Statutes, p. 337); and in the reign of Elizabeth, under one of the commissions to take up all singing children for the use of the Queen’s chapel, Tusser, the author of the Five Hundred Points of Good Husbandry, was impressed. See Lysons’s Environs of London, vol i. p. 92.

Female Officers, p. 225.]—Seradj ed Dowlah had a female guard of Calmucks, Tartars, Georgians, Negroes and Abyssinians. (Seir Mutagherin, vol. i. p. 146.) Nassureddeen peopled a city entirely with women; all the officers being of that sex. He is said to have had fifteen thousand women. (Gladwin, Hist. of Indostan, vol. i. p. 114.) It is very possible that some such caprice of an Oriental despot may have given rise to the cities of men and women on different sides of the Ganges, of which we read in Palladius, p. 9; and St. Ambrose, p. 54: at the end of Byshe’s “Palladius de Gentibus Indiæ,” and not very improbable that it may have produced the tradition so common in the early travellers, of the islands of men and women, and perhaps the whole fable of the Amazons. See of the islands the Arabian travellers of Renaudot, Marco Polo, lib. iii. Fra Mauro in Vincent’s Periplus, p. 671. See a curious note on the word Hamazen, “all women,” in Moor’s Infanticide, p. 82.

Fall in Hafiz, p. 229.]—It is scarcely necessary to refer to more ancient divination; but the resemblance between the Persian trial and that of the Sortes Virgilianæ must occur to every reader. The Mahomedans have another oracle in the Koran, which they consult in the same manner: and the Jews had similar recourse to the Scriptures of the Old Testament. Sale’s Koran. Prelim. Dissert. § iii. p. 69. The authority of Virgil (and indeed, though less currently, of Homer also,) remained in full force to the middle at least of the seventeenth century, as in the first instance the appeal of Charles I. and Lord Falkland sufficiently proves: Johnson’s Life of Cowley, p. 13. Even the Bible was thus opened for divination. Ars Magica, 1638, p. iii.

402

Rags on Bushes, p. 230.]—This superstition was noticed in Persia by one of the earliest travellers, Josaphat Barbaro, 1474, fol. 45, and was explained by him on the principle that (such was the scarcity of wood in the country) even a bush was a miracle. M. I.

Change of Names, p. 230.]—The renaming of Shah Seffi, who then became Shah Soleyman, is related fully by Chardin and Tavernier; and in its ceremonies is not perhaps easily paralleled; but in its essential circumstance, a change of name from a belief in the unluckiness of the first, it may be supported by an example in our own history: when John of Scotland took the name of Robert III. (see Henry’s History, vol. viii. 372, from Fordun;) because the Prince, who had borne the former appellation, had been unfortunate in the annals of the country. In the family of Catherine de Medicis; Edward-Alexander became Henry III.: Hercules became Charles IX. &c. See a note in the Life of Cary, Earl of Monmouth, p. 39. The Jews thus changed their names.

Herrings, p. 231.]—The herrings of the Caspian are described by P. H. Bruce. Memoirs, p. 261. Tooke speaks of “a fish resembling a herring.” Catherine, II. vol. ii. p. 56.

Coals, p. 231.]—Marco Polo speaks of a combustible stone found in China; which is obviously coal. Ebn Haukal mentions in Ferghaneh, “a stone that takes fire and burns,” p. 250; compare however, p. 272, which seems to imply a more distinct knowledge of coal.

Demawend, p. 231.]—The distance to which according to the text, it is visible is paralleled by that at which Sir Wm. Jones observed the Chumalury mountains from Bhaugalpore. This distance is stated by him at two hundred and forty-four miles: but he adds, that the object might be seen much further. (Note in Lord Teignmouth’s Life of Sir Wm. Jones, p. 253.) Another account gives the first distance from Bhaugalpore at two hundred and fifty miles. P. H. Bruce, (Memoirs, 282) saw Ararat from Derbend at a distance of at least two hundred and ten geographical miles, equal to more than two hundred and forty British measure, in a straight line by the compasses on Major Rennell’s map. Ebn Haukal mentions that Demawend may be seen fifty farsang round, (perhaps one hundred and seventy-five miles.) He adds, “I have not heard that any man ever ascended to its summit;” p. 172. Herbert indeed relates his ascent (Travels), but Olivier can describe only an ineffectual endeavour. Tom. v. p. 125, &c. The difficulties which he encountered, seem to rival those of Tournefort in the attempt to scale Ararat. Tom., ii. 357, &c. The fable of a plant which tinges the teeth of sheep with gold, is not confined to Demawend: it is attached to their favourite mountains by different nations, and may thus be traced to Mount Lebanon; to Mount Elewnd, &c. and the plant, which is convertible into gold, is found, if an alchemist may be believed, in403 the mountains of Yemen: it was supposed indeed by the Arabs, to constitute the real object of Niebuhr’s Voyage. Description de l’Arabie, p. 123. A mountain so vast, and of a form so peculiar, was naturally connected with the traditionary mythology of the country: and accordingly Demawend was believed to cover with all its weight Zohak, the usurper in the earliest dynasty of their empire. See Champion’s Ferdusí.

Rey, p. 232.]—The ruins of Rey have never been described by any European traveller: if a brief and nameless notice of them by Tavernier, tom. i. 313, (who had no suspicion of their history, and perhaps never saw them,) can be considered an exception. From the Oriental authorities indeed he was enabled to compile a table of latitudes and longitudes; and to insert Rey as 35° 35´ lat. 70° 20´. long. Tom. i. p. 404. But even the position of the ruins appears imperfectly known to Chardin; and they were sought in vain by one of the latest and most intelligent of his successors, Olivier, who looked for them considerably too much to the south. See tom. v. p. 160-1. Gardanne, who was at Teheran, allots to Rey only three lines; nor indeed does he state distinctly that he was writing from his own observation. Yet his account, however imperfect in itself, is striking in its close. “A l’est de Teheran, ruines de Rey, ancienne Rhages, et patrie de Haroun el Rachid. Les Persans disent que Rey avoit trois millions d’habitans. Le mot Revolution explique toutes les Calamités.” P. 72.

The history of Rhages requires no illustration in the days of its greatness; and that greatness, with more than the fortune of other cities, has twice revolved. Its second rise under the Mahomedans, has indeed been less traced than its first origin, though it was the birth place of Haroun el Reschid, and one of the favourite seats of his magnificence. It was then one of the capitals of the Buiya Sultans; see De Sacy, Memoires, &c. p. 145, 147, &c. And was taken by Mahmud, of Ghizni, when he destroyed their dynasty. Mod. Univ. Hist. iii. 195. It was subsequently one of the two great cities of the empire of the Seljukians; and as such demanded by the Emperor Romanus, who in the decline of the Roman power, imitated all the insolence of its greatness. With the Parthians and the Persians, his predecessors had indeed often used this tone of presumption, and as often failed in the wars of which it was the prelude. Thus Crassus, when he was marching to his own destruction, told the Parthian Embassadors that he would give his answer at their capital: Julian, in the midst of his own unhappy expedition, replied to the overtures of Sapor, that he would himself visit the Persian court; and thus Romanus, with an insolence unparalleled and intolerable, required from Alp Arslan, before he would listen to any terms, the surrender of Rey, one of his capitals. The sequel of each event is too familiar to be noticed. Rey still remained one of the greatest and most flourishing cities of the East; Ispahan, Nishapour, and Bagdad, alone rivalling it. Ebn Haukal, in the tenth century, describes it fully; but in his day, though the commercial and civil greatness of the city was at its height, its defences had declined; and the wall around the suburbs was falling to decay; p. 176, p. 157, p. 172. Nevertheless it survived more revolutions; it was a very considerable city when it was taken by Genghiz Khan, Petit de la Croix, p. 277: and still, two centuries afterwards, it was one of the seats of the govern404ment of Shah Rokh, the son of Timur. Mod. Univ. Hist. v. 394. From his death, which happened there A.D. 1146, it ceases to maintain a conspicuous place in the history of Persia; and is now venerable only in the remains of its ancient grandeur.

Taxation by hides, p. 236.]—This measure of taxation was not uncommon; it is sufficient to add, that it still seems to regulate the collection in other parts of the East: for in some extracts from Mahomed Saduck’s Journey to Cabul, it is said that “Herat extends from the city of Ferah to Khaf and Backhury. Twelve lacks; supposed to be the net produce of as much land as twelve thousand pair of bullocks can plough, all expended in civil and military establishments.”

The noose, p. 243.]—The noose was Rustam’s ancient implement of war.

Lamb Skins, p. 246.]—The most valuable lamb-skins are perhaps taken prematurely from the ewe killed for the purpose. The fabulous supplies of the Barometz (“the vegetable lamb” of Darwin, Loves, canto i. 282) were perhaps invented by the Tartars to conceal from their European traders the cruelty of the practice. Bell denies the existence of the Barometz, vol. i. 43, which however is well established, though its properties may be doubted. P. H. Bruce, in his Memoirs, p. 336, asserts the fact that the ewes are killed before parturition for the sake of the lambs; the skins of which are then in their greatest beauty, with the hair lying “in short smooth pretty curls.” The trade is very profitable to the Nagayan Tartars, who sell the best for ten shillings. Chardin mentions some in his day at fifteen franks. The wool even of those whose lives are spared for a fortnight, lies in waves, and resembles a piece of damask, the lamb having been guarded from its birth by linen sewed round it. Tooke’s Nations of Russia, vol. ii. 136, 267.

Shalwars, p. 247.]—“When they go a hunting, they wear Shalwars, or long trowsers which reach up to the arm pits, into which they cram all their clothes; and a Kerguisian in this dress may be taken at a distance for a monstrous pair of breeches on horseback.” Tooke’s Russia, ii. 280.

Mountains between Teheran and Tabriz, Chap. XIV.]—The mountains seen in this direction were in the middle ages the seats of the Dilemites; the subjects of Hassan, Sheik al Jebal, Hassan “the chief or the old man of the mountains,” whose power is familiar to every reader, and from whose name the word assassin has been derived, with an evil import, in half the modern languages of Europe. The constant recurrence of the tale of his enchanted palace in the old travellers, Marco Polo, Haithon, &c. is sufficient evidence of some general foundation in truth. Holakou, the son of Genghiz Khan, routed out the Hassanites.

Tourchiz, p. 265.]—This place occurs in the route of Forster, who mentions Mesched, as said to be one hundred miles north-west of Turshish. Vol. ii. p. 154. It was held at405 that time by Abedullah, an independant Persian chief, p. 165; but Forster, who spent above a fortnight in the town, does not allude to any wealth deposited there. In Mahomed Saduck’s journey, the capital of the district of Turshiz and Co Surkh, is called Sultania, which is probably the Sultanabad of Forster, another name for the old town of Turshiz. P. 165.

Miaunéh, p. 268.]—At this spot died the celebrated traveller Thevenot. See the note of his death, tom. v. Gardanne says, “Ses Papiers et ses livres furent, dit on, enlevés et gardés par le Cadi.” P. 41.

Number of oxen to a plough, p. 275.]—It is curious to trace in Tournefort the encrease in the number of cattle thus employed, as he advances into Georgia: near Arz-roum, they will yoke three or four pair to one plough, p. 213; near Cars, ten or twelve, p. 216. Still farther on, in Georgia itself, fourteen or fifteen pair, p. 224. Vol. ii. of the translation.

Prince Royal of Persia, p. 279.]—The character of Abbas Mirza, Prince of Tabriz, is so striking in Oriental history, that every support, which can be given to the accuracy of the description, is important. Gardanne confirms some of the more remarkable traits in the text: “Il veut relever sa nation, et il a l’ambition de la gloire militaire. S’il perd un General on un Guerrier, il dechire ses habits et donne les marqués de la plus vive douleur. Il a perda dernièrement des enfans, et n’a temoigné aucun chagrin. Pour expliquer cette indifference, il faut connaître les mœurs. Nous demandons à un grand Seigneur le nombre de ses enfans. Il répond naïvement qu’il n’en sait rien, se tourne du côté de son Secrétaire et le lui demande; celui ci répond: dix-sept.” p. 36. The following anecdote is connected with the French character; it occurs in the account of an entertainment given to the French Mission by the Prince’s Minister. “Après le repas, les danseurs font des tours de force. Le Vizir nous dit: mon maitre n’aime pas les danseurs, il les a tous chassès de Tauris. J’ai appellé ceux-cé des villages voisins, ayant appris de l’Ambassadeur de Perse, que ce divertessement était agréable a votre nation.” P. 37. See others, p. 38-9.

Ships on the Caspian, p. 287.]—Every reader of Hanway will recollect the extreme importance which Nadir attached to the formation of a fleet in the Caspian, where the famous John Elton was induced to become his Admiral. The dock-yards in the Persian Gulph must import all their timber from India; but the southern shore of the Caspian contains on the spot the amplest supplies. The turbulent character of the Arabs of the Gulph, induced Nadir Shah to meditate their removal from their own country; and their nautical skill and experience suggested to him the idea of transplanting them profitably into the provinces along the Caspian, and replacing them in their ancient seats by the people whom they thus dispossessed. But all his projects were overwhelmed in the confusion which followed his death; and the only naval power, (with the exception of a406 few small vessels against the Turcomans), which Persia had ever formed in the Caspian, was thus annihilated. Nadir Shah collected a fleet in the Gulph also; and made Bushire the port of Shiraz. Niebuhr, tom. ii. p. 75. Here he had assembled from twenty-two to twenty-five ships, built for him at Bombay and Surat, &c.; but these were all neglected and dispersed at his death.

Language of Ghilan, p. 288.]—Ghilan, the country of the ancient Gelæ, was, according to Ebn Haukal, p. 174, the level tract along the Caspian, of that province, which in its mountainous parts was called Dilem. Now Dilem was with Media Inferior, Mazanderan, and the countries between the Caspian and the Tigris, one of the original seats of the Pehlavie. Heeren. Act. Soc. Gotting. tom. xiii. Dilem was also a retreat of that language. In the breaking up of a great empire, the institutions of the conquered race always linger in the extremities. The Caucasus, the country of Derbend, Segestan, and Kerman, thus sheltered the ancient language and religion of Persia: and thus the mountains of Dilem retained till the tenth century, the worship of fire; and perhaps, therefore, the Pehlavie, with which that worship had been connected. Ebn Haukal observes of Taberistan, the adjoining tract, “they have a peculiar dialect, neither Arabick nor Persian: and in many parts of Deilman their language is not understood.” In a country separated by these circumstances, and by its local situation from the rest of Persia, it is not improbable that there may still exist some traces of a distinct language: and as to the imperfections incident to the want of written memorials, Sir Wm. Jones, in his Discourse on the Arabs, has prepared us to think that Dr. Johnson’s reasoning is too general.

The Cookery of the Turcomans, p. 290.]—Their cookery is something like that of the Arabs described by Capper. There is a full account of the two hordes, the Eastern and Western Turcomans, in a note by the French editor of the Genealogical History of the Tatars, p. 535-8. See also Tooke, ii. 93. Their wealth in money in every age has been very great; because, like the Arabs, and every other pastoral people on the confines of great civilized empires, they sell the necessaries of life, and will not buy the luxuries. La Roque, p. 157, remarks accordingly, that in the time of Pliny, the riches both of the Romans and of the Parthians were melted down among the Arabs. Harmer’s Observations, vol. i. p. 122. Chardin in his MSS. notes in Harmer, says, that they are like Abraham, “very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.”

Chap. XVI.]—The country from Tabriz and Arz-roum may almost be considered as new ground in European description. Gardanne is the only other traveller who has traced this route, (Journal, &c. p. 21-35); but the information which he collected in his passage is so limited, that he appears to know nothing of the Lake of Shahee; or rather in travelling along its shores, he confounds it with that of Van, which is at least one hundred miles from the spot where he places it; p. 35. The country between Arz-roum and Tocat is described by Tournefort, tom. ii. and by Tavernier, tom. i. p. 12-19: and as one of the great roads from Bagdad, &c. falls in at Tocat, the further progress to Con407stantinople is continued on Mr. Morier’s line, by Tavernier, i. 1-12. Otter ii. 330-357. Howell, p. 102-132. Jackson, p. 203-236. Aboo Taleb, ii. 256-264. Gardanne, p. 114-119; see also p. 1-13.

Khoi, p. 299.]—The singularity of the walls of Khoi, is noticed by Gardanne, with a more singular illustration: “Qu-oye est entouré de murailles et de tours, et ressemble exactement aux gravures de Jerico que l’on voit dans les Bibles.” P. 34.

Ararat, p. 306.]—The height of Ararat can best be understood by considering the distance at which it may be seen. Chardin mentions that it is visible at Marant: tom. i. p. 253; Bruce, that he saw it at Derbend, Memoirs, p. 282; Struys, whom Olivier well characterises as “Romanesque,” describes his ascent to visit a sick hermit at the top, p. 208, &c.; but Tournefort, one of the first of travellers, has stated so fully the difficulties of his own attempt, that probably they have never yet been overcome. The mountain is divided into three regions of different breadths; the first, composed of a short and slippery grass or sand “aussi facheux que les Syrtes d’Afrique,” is occupied by shepherds; the second, by tygers and crows; the remainder, which is half the mountain “est couverte de neige depuis que l’arch y arreta, et ces neiges sont cachées la moitié de l’année sous les nuages fort epais. Les tygres que nous apperçumes ne laissérent pas de nous faire peur,” p. 358. It was impossible to go forwards and penetrate to the third region; and not easy to go back: at length, utterly exhausted, they reached the bottom, “nous rendîmes graces au Seigneur d’en être revenus, car peut-être que nous serions perdus ou que nous serions morts de faim sur cette Montagne,” p. 371. If these were the sensations with which Tournefort regarded his enterprise, the common belief of the country may well be admitted, that no one ever yet ascended the Ararat of the Armenians.

P. 317.]—Hassan Cala is the ancient Theodosiopolis. D’Anville, Geogr. Anc. vol. ii. p. 100.

Arz-roum, p. 320.]—This city has been more generally written, Erz-roum, as Chardin, &c.; but from the definition assigned to it by Tournefort, tom. ii. p. 257, 276, and adopted by D’Anville, Geogr. Anc. tom. ii. 99; that of the Arza of Rum, (the Asia Minor occupied by the Roman Empire) the present reading is established. The plain, in which it is built, is included by Tournefort, p. 325, in that district, which he regards as the site of the terrestrial paradise. Yet the cold of a region so elevated as that which contains the springs of the Euphrates and the Araxes must be extreme: nor can the beauty of the spot be at all assisted by forest scenery; Mr. Morier has observed the scarcity of wood, and Tournefort says, that there is no fuel but pine wood, and that is brought two or three days journey, p. 259. Arz-roum was an early Christian bishoprick, in its civil history it was alternately subject to the Empire of Constantinople and that of Persia. In the eleventh century it stood a siege of six days, when the assailants, expecting that it would be relieved, sacrificed their hopes of booty, and set fire to the place, con408suming in it so many, that, with the destruction in the six previous days, swelled the total loss of lives to one hundred and forty thousand. In the thirteenth century it appears as the Argyron of Marco Polo. The city contained in Tournefort’s time (1700) eighteen thousand Turks, six thousand Armenians, and four hundred Greeks. The Jesuits reckoned eight thousand Armenians, and one hundred families of the Greeks. The present population is estimated by Gardanne at one hundred and thirty thousand, p. 21. In the former commerce of Asia Minor it was, “le passage et le reposoir de toutes les marchandises des Indes.” Tournefort describes the influence of the French; and seems pleased that the Turks pay more regard to the recommendations of the King of France, than to those of the Mufti of Rome.

Mama Khatoun, p. 327.]—A spot near Mama Khatoun is suggested by Tournefort as the scene of the great battle between Mithridates and Pompey.

P. 356.]—Geredéh is the Carus of the Romans. R.

Canal from the Lake Sabanja, p. 360.]—The ancient Kings of Bithynia had left unfinished a canal from the Nicomedian Lake, the modern Sabanja. The younger Pliny, when Governor of the province, recommended the undertaking to Trajan. Plin. Epist. x. 46. Trajan, in reply, desires him to take care that the lake be not exhausted by letting its waters into the sea. Ep. 51. Pliny, Epist. 69, suggests sufficient in answer to prove that this danger might be obviated; though his project, however practicable or profitable, was never realized. Trajan’s Letter, 70. At the end of sixteen centuries it was revived by the Grand Vizir, Kuprigli. It was destined to communicate with other rivers, and to open a water carriage into the centre of those immense forests, which in every age have supplied the arsenals of Constantinople. But the project was sacrificed to a timely bribe offered by those who had monopolized the conveyance of the timber by land; and Kuprigli, at the eve of the accomplishment, was deprived of the glory of completing that which Pliny and Trajan had projected in vain.

409

APPENDIX.

APPENDIX, No. I.
MONEY IN PERSIA.

(THOSE IN ITALICS HAVE ONLY A NOMINAL EXISTENCE. ACCOUNTS ARE KEPT IN DINARS AND PIASTRES.)

410

APPENDIX, No. II.—1.
ROUTES IN PERSIA.

ITINERARY FROM BUSHIRE TO SHIRAZ,134

WITH THE POPULATION AND TRIBUTE.

411

APPENDIX, No. II.—2.
ITINERARY FROM KOOM TO SULTANIEH.138

412

APPENDIX, No. II.—3.
ITINERARY FROM SULTANIEH TO BAGDAD, FROM DR. JUKES’S JOURNAL.