';i' 'l! I] ' H '.■■ iiilijii I h /.-;■ i i m fl ! it! ft' .. i ! Ill lliil'"i III I III ■■-■I! |jl I i''l! ! I 1,1 1 ; ! ; !|i HI i , |i! II I ti; ill ii ij I [ !i HI ! If ■) MM i i /J ^- THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES GIFT OF COMMODORE BYRON MCCANDLESS XI c ' THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA, IN TURKEY, PERSIA AND RUSSIA. < » » « ► EDITED BY JAMES MORIER. PHILADELPHIA: LIPPINCOTT, GRAMBO & CO. 1855. PR 5~< ? Sou M3; I THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA. ■< ••*» — "To unite amusement with instruction is to give relish to nourishment. The man whose energies are worn out with tho daily strug- gles in life, when he sees portrayed the sterner battles of some other life, forgets the cares that press too heavily on his own heart and paralyze its strength; ho passes out of the narrow circle in which his self- hood is hourly bound; his faculties are quick- ened and refreshed in listening to sparkling wit; the finest chords within his breast are stirred by the breath of the poet's inspiration." CONTENTS. Introductory Epistle, CHAPTER I. Of Hajji Baba's Birth and Education, ii. Hajji Baba commences his Travels, .... in. Hajji Baba in Captivity, iv. Rescues his Master's Money and determines to keep it, v. Hajji Baba invades his native City, vi. The Three Prisoners and the Booty, . vii. A Feeling Disposition — History of the Poet vin. Hajji Baba Escapes from the Turcomans, ix. Hajji Baba becomes a Water-Carrier, x. A New Profession, .... xi. History of the Dervishes, xn. Fraud Punished — Fresh Plans, . xni. Becomes a Dervish — A Good Story, xiv. A Strange Encounter, xv. Hajji Baba goes to the Poet's House, xvi. Plans for the Future, xvii. Appears in a New Character, . xvin. The Poet Returns from Captivity, xix. Hajji Baba and the King's Physician, xx. His Skill as a Negotiator — Pills and Gold, xxi. How the Shah of Persia takes Medicine, xxii. The Doctor's Salary, Asker, 11 PAGE 27 30 35 37 41 47 50 54 69 f 62 . 65 75 78 83 86 89 92 95 98 102 106 110 0) 8 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXIII, XXIV. XXV. XXVI. XXVII. XXVIII. XXIX. XXX. XXXI. XXXII. XXXIII. XXXIV. XXXV. XXXVI. XXXVII. XXXVIII. XXXIX. XL. XLI. XLII. XLIII. XLIV. XLV. XLVI. XLVII. XLVIII. XLIX. L. LI. LII. LIII. LIV. LV. 1VI. Falls in Love, An Interview with the Fair Zeenab, . Interior of the Harem, .... History of Zeenab— The Doctor's Discovery, Preparations to receive the Shah, The Shah's Reception and Conversation, The Entertainment— Great Misfortune, , Last Interview with Zeenab, Reflections— Exerts his Skill as a Doctor, Hajji becomes an Executioner, . Gets some Insight into his Profession, A Specimen of Persian Despotism, Fortune Smiles— Promoted, A Young Couple in Distress, The History of Yusuf and his Wife Mariam Sequel of the foregoing History, . Hajji Baba's Confidence worthily placed, A Favorable Interview with the Serdar, A Memorable Expedition against the Russians, A Specimen of Oriental Lying, . Execution of Zeenab, An Old Friend and his Advice, . Life in a Monastery, A Divine's Opinion of Dervishes, A Friend's Rascality, Hajji Baba visits his Dying Father, . Becomes Heir to Lost Property, Shrewd Means to Discover his Property, The Magician's Success, A Persian Lawyer, A New Scheme for Raising Money, Hajji Baba becomes a Marriage Broker, Old Acquaintances— A Marriage, . A Lawyer's Ambition proves his Ruin, CONTENTS. 9 CHAPTEB lvu. An Extraordinary Adventure in the Bath, ivm. Of the consequences of the Adventure, . lix. Collecting Money, xx. A Pair of Rogues, lxi. How Hajji Baba became a Predestinarian, lxii. The Terrors of Guilt, .... lxiii. A Narrow Escape, ixrv. Arrives at Bagdad, ixv. Inspires a Hopeless Passion, lxti. Becomes a Merchant, lxvii. A New Conquest, rxvin. The Marriage of Hajji Baba, ixix. Inconvenience of supporting a False Character, lxx. A Great Mistake — Quarrels, lxxi. Discovered to be an Impostor, lxxii. Seeks Consolation in a Friend's Advice, ixxiii. Interview with the Persian Ambassador, rxxiv. State Secrets, lxxv. First Essays in Public Life, .... lxxvi. Hajji Baba writes the History of Europe, . ixxvii. Entertains a Frank Ambassador, lxxviii. Ambitious Dreams Realized, lxxix. Turns his Influence into Gold, . . lxxx. The Conclusion, PAG2 309 313 317 327 331 334 339 342 346 349 352 357 361 364 367 371 374 377 381 386 391 395 398 401 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE, TO THE REV. DR. FUNDGRUBEN, CHAPLAIN TO THE SWEDISH EMBASSY AT THE OTTOMAN POETE. Esteemed and learned Sir, You will be astonished to see yourself addressed by one, of whose existence you are perhaps ignorant, and whose name has doubtless long since been erased from your memory. But when I put you in mind of an English traveler, who (forgive my precision) sixteen years ago was frequently admitted to en- joy the pleasure of your conversation, and who was even honored with a peculiar share of your attention, perhaps then you may indulgently recollect him, and patiently submit to peruse the following volumes, to which he now takes the liberty of prefixing your name. At the time to which I allude, your precious hours were em- ployed in searching into the very depths of hieroglyphic lore, and you were then almost entirely taken up in putting together the fruits of those your researches, which have since appeared, and astonished the world in that very luminous work entitled " The Biography of celebrated Mummies." I have frequently since reflected upon the debt of gratitude which you imposed by allowing me to engross so much of your time, and that upon matters of comparatively trivial importance, when your mind must have been so much engaged upon those grave and weighty subjects, which you have treated with such vast learning, clear- ness, and perspicuity in your above mentioned treatise. In (11) 12 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. particular I have ever borne in mind a conversation, when one beautiful moonlight night, reclining upon a sofa of the Swedish palace, and looking out of those windows which command so magnificent and extensive a view of the city and harbor of Constantinople, we discussed subjects which had reference to the life and manners of the extraordinary people, its inhabi- tants. Excuse me for reporting back your own words ; but as the subject interested me much, I recollect well the observation you made, that no traveler had ever satisfied you in his delineation of Asiatic manners; "for," said you, "in general, their mode of treating the subject is by sweeping assertions, which leave no precise image on the mind, or by disjointed and insulated facts, which for the most part are only of consequence as they relate to the individual traveller himself." We were both agreed, that of all the books which have ever been published on the subject, the Arabian Nights' Entertainments gives the truest picture of the Orientals, and that, for the best of all rea- sons, because it is the work of one of their own community. " But," said you, " notwithstanding they have been put into a European dress, weeded of their numerous repetitions, and brought as near to the level of our ideas as can be, still few would be likely to understand them thoroughly who have not lived sometime in the East, and who have not had frequent op- portunities of associating with its inhabitants. For," you added, opening a volume of that work at the same time, " to make a random observation upon the first instance which occurs, here in the history of the three Calendars, I see that Anima, after having requested the porter whom she had met to follow her with his basket, stopped at a closed door, and having rapped, a Christian with a long white beard opened it, into whose hand she put some money without saying a single word. But the Christian, who knew what she wanted, went in again, and a little while after returned, bringing a large pitcher full of ex- cellent wine." You observed, "that although we who lived in Turkey might know that wine was in most cities prohibited to be sold openly, and that if it was to be found it would be INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. 13 in the house of a Christian, many of whom disposed of it in a mysterious manner to the Mohamedans, yet that circumstance would not immediately occur to the mere European reader, who perhaps would expect something to be forthcoming in the future narrative, from what is in fact only a trait of common life." I then suggested, that perhaps if a European would give a "correct idea of oriental manners, which would comprehend an account of the vicissitudes attendant upon the life of an East- ern, of his feelings about his government, of his conduct in do- mestic life, of his hopes and plans of advancement, of his rival- ries and jealousies, in short of every thing that is connected both with the operations of the mind and those of the body, perhaps his best method would be to collect so many facts and anecdotes of actual life as would illustrate the different sta- tions and ranks which compose a Mussulman community, and then work them into one connected narrative, upon the plan of that excellent picture of European life, Gil Bias of Le Sage. To this you were pleased to object, because you deemed it almost impossible that a European, even supposing him to have rejected his own faith and adopted the Mohamedan, as in the case of Monsieur de Bonneval, who rose to high rank in the Turkish government, and of Messrs. C and B , in more modern times, (the former a Topchi Basin, or general of artillery, the latter an attendant upon the Capitan Pascha,) could ever so exactly seize those nice shades and distinction of purpose, in action and manner, which a pure Asiatic only could. To support your argument, you illustrated it by observ- ing, that neither education, time, nor talent, could ever give to a foreigner, in any given country, so complete a possession of its language as to make him pass for a native ; and that, do what he would, some defect in idiom, or even some too great precision in grammar, would detect him. But, said you, if a native Oriental could ever be brought to understand so much of the taste of Europeans, in investigations; of this nature, as to write a full and detailed history of his own life, beginning with 2 1-1 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. his earliest education, and going through to its decline, we might then stand a chance of acquiring the desired knowledge. This conversation, reverend sir, has remained treasured up in my mind ; for having lived much in Eastern countries, I never lost sight of the possibility of either falling in with a native who might have written his own adventures, or of form- ing such an intimacy with one, as might induce him faithfully to recite them, and thus afford materials for the work which my imagination had fondly conceived might be usefully put together. I have always held in respect most of the customs and habits of the Orientals, many of which, to the generality of Europeans, appear so ridiculous and disgusting, because I have ever conceived them to be copies of ancient originals. For, who can think the custom of eating with one's fingers dis- gusting, as now done in the East, when two or more put their hands into the same mess, and at the same time read that part of our sacred history which records, " He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish," &c. ? I must own, every time that, din- ing with my Eastern friends, I performed this very natural operation, (although, at the same time, let it be understood that I have a great respect for knives and forks,) I could not help feeling myself to be a living illustration of an ancient cus- tom, and a proof of the authenticity of those records upon which our happiness depends. Whenever I heard the exclama- tion so frequently used in Persia, on the occasion of little miseries, " What ashes are fallen on my head !" instead of see- ing any thing ridiculous in the expression, I could not but meditate on the coincidence which so forcibly illustrated one of the commonest expressions of grief as recorded in ancient writ. It is an ingenious expression which I owe to you, sir, that the manners of the East are as it were stereotype. Although I do not conceive that they are quite so strongly marked, yet, to make my idea understood, I would say that they are like the last impressions taken from a copper-plate engraving, where the whole of the subject to be represented is made out, although parts of it from much use have been obliterated. INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. 15 If I may be allowed the expression, a picturesqueness per- vades the whole being of Asiatics, which we do not find in our own countries, and in my eyes makes every thing relating to them so attractive as to create a desire to impart to others the impressions made upon myself. Thus, in viewing a beautiful landscape, the traveller, be he a draughtsman or not, tant Men que mal, endeavours to make a representation of it : and thus do I apologize for venturing before the public even in the cha- racter of a humble translator. Impressed with such feelings you may conceive the fullness of my joy, when not very long after the conversation above mentioned, having returned to England, I was fortunate enough to be appointed to fill an official situation in the suite of an ambassador, which our government found itself under the ne- cessity of sending to the Shah of Persia. Persia, that imagi- nary seat of oriental splendor ! that land of poets and roses ! that cradle of mankind, that uncontaminated source of Eastern manners, lay before me, and I was delighted with the opportu- nities which would be afforded me of pursuing my favorite subject. I had an undefined feeling about the many countries I was about to visit, which filled my mind with vast ideas of travel " Sive per Syrtes iter astuosas, Sive facturus per inhospitalem Cancasuni, vel quee loca fabulosus Lambit Ilyclaspcs. I was in some degree like a French lady of my acquaintance, who had so general a notion of the East, that upon taking leave of her, she enjoined me to get acquainted with a friend of hers, living as she said, quelque part dans les hides, and whom, to my astonishment, I found residing at the Cape of Good Hope! I will not say that all my dreams were realized, for perhaps no country in the world less comes up to one's expectation than Persia, whether in the beauties of nature, or the riches and magnificence of its inhabitants. But in what regards manners and customs, it appears to me that no Asiatics bear so strongly 16 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. the stamp of an ancient origin as they. Even in their features I thought to have distinguished a decided originality of expres- sion, which was confirmed, when I remarked, that the numerous faces seen among the sculptures of Persepolis, so perfect as if chiseled but yesterday, were so many likenesses of modern Per- sians, more particularly of the natives of the province of Fars. During my long residence there, I never lost the recollection of our conversation on the sofa of the Swedish palace, and every time I added an anecdote or an observation illustrative of Oriental manners to my store, or a sketch to my collection, I always thought of the Reverend Doctor Fundgruben, and sighed after that imaginary manuscript which some imaginary native of the East must have written as a complete exposition of the life of his countrymen. I will not say, learned sir, that the years I passed in Persia were years of happiness : or that during that time I could so far keep up an illusion, that I was living among the patriarchs in the first ages of the world, or among those Persians whose monarchs gave laws to almost the whole of Asia ; no, I sighed for shaven chins and swallow-tailed-coats; and, to speak the truth, though addressing an antiquary of your celebrity, I felt that I would rather be one among the crowd in the Graben at Vienna, or in our own Bond Street, than at liberty to range in the ease of solitude among the ruins of the palaces of Darius. At length the day of my departure came, and I left Persia with books filled with remarks, and portfolios abounding in ori- ginal sketches. My ideas during the journey were wholly taken up with schemes for the future, and perhaps, like every other traveller, I nourished a sort of sly and secret conviction that I had seen and observed things which no one before me had ever clone, and that when I came to publish to the world the fruits of my discoveries, I should create a sensation equal at least to the discovery of a new planet. I passed at the foot of the venerable Mount Ararat, and was fortunate enough to meet with a favorable moment for traver- sing the cold regions of Armenia, " nee Armeniis in oris stat glades iners menses per omnes ;" and I crossed the dangerous INTRODUCTORY KPISTLE. 17 borders of Turkey aud Persia without any event occurring wor- thy of record. But I must request your indulgent attention to what befel me at Tocat, for it is to that occurrence you are in- debted for this letter, and the world for the accompanying volumes. It was at the close of a fatiguing day's journey, that I and my escort, consisting of two Tartars, two servants, and the con- ductors of our baggage and post-horses, entered the city of Tocat. Our approach was as usual announced by the howls of the Surujees, who more than usually exerted their lungs in my service, because they felt that these sounds, the harbingers of rest and entertainment, could but be agreeable to weary and jaded travellers like ourselves. The moon was shining bright, as our cavalcade clattered over the long paved road leading to the city, and lighted up, in awful grandeur, the turret-topped peaks which rear their heads on the crest of the surrounding abrupt crags. On entering the post-house, I was immediately conducted into the traveler's room, where having disencum- bered myself of my cloak, arms, and heavy boots, and putting myself at ease in my slippers and loose dress, I quietly enjoyed the cup of strong coffee and the chibouk, which were immedi- ately handed to me, and after that my dish of rice, my tough fowl, and my basin of sour curds. I was preparing to take my night's rest on the sofas of the post-house, where my bed had been spread, when a stranger unceremoniously walked into the room, and stood before me. I remarked that he was a Persian, and, by his dress, a servant. At any other moment I should have been happy to see and con- verse with him, because having lived so long in Persia, I felt myself in some measure identified with its natives, and now in a country where both nations were treated with the same degree of contempt, my fellow-feeling for them became infinitely stronger. I discovered that he had a tale of misery to unfold, from the very doleful face that he was pleased to make on the occasion, and I was not mistaken. It was this — that his master, one Mirza Hajji Baba, now on his return from Constantinople, 18 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. where he had been employed on the Shah's business, had fallen seriously ill, and that he had been obliged to stop at Tocat, — that he had taken up his abode at the caravanserai, where he had already spent a week, during which time he had been at- tended by a Frank doctor, an inhabitant of Tocat, who, instead of curing, had in fact brought him to his last gasp, — that hav- ing heard of my arrival from Persia, he had brightened up, and requested, without loss of time, that I would call upon him, for he was sure the presence of one coming from his own country would alone restore him to health. In short, his servant, as is usual on such occasions, finished his speech by saying, that with the exception of God and myself, he had nothing left to depend upon in this life. I immediately recollected who Mirza Hajji Baba was ; for although I had lost sight of him for several years, yet once on a time I had seen much of him, and had taken great interest in every thing that regarded him, owing to his having been in England, whither, in quality of secretary, he accompanied the first ambassador which Persia had sent in modern times. He had since been employed in various ways in the government, sometimes in high and sometimes in lower situations, undergo- ing the vicissitudes which are sure to attend every Persian, and at length had been sent to Constantinople, as a resident agent at the Porte on the part of the Shah. I did not hesitate an instant, tired and jaded as I was, im- mediately to accompany his servant ; and in the same garb in which I was, only throwing a cloak over my shoulders, I walked in all haste to the caravanserai. There, on a bed spread in the middle of a small room, sur- rounded by several of his. servants, I found the sick Mirza, looking more like a corpse than a living body. When I had first known him he was a remarkably handsome man, with a fine aquiline nose, oval face, an expressive countenance, and a well-made person. He had now passed the meridian of life, but his features were still fine, and his eye full of fire. As soon as he saw he recognized me, and the joy which he felt at the meeting broke out in a great animation of his features, INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. 19 and in the thousand exclamations so common to a Persian's lips. " See," said he, " what a fortunate destiny mine is, that at a moment when I thought the angel of death was about to seize me for his own, the angel of life comes and blows a fresh existence into my nostrils !" After his first transports were over, I endeavored to make him explain what was the nature of his complaint, and how it had hitherto been treated. I saw plainly, by his saffron hue, that bile was the occasion of his disorder, and as I had had great experience in treating it during my stay in Persia, I did not hesitate to cheer up his hopes by an assurance of being able to relieve him. " What can I say ?" said he. " I thought at first that I had been struck with the plague. My head ached intensely, my eyes became dim, I had a pain in my side, and a nauseous taste in my mouth, and expected to die on the third day ; but no, the symptoms still continue, and I am alive. As soon as I arrived here, I inquired for a physician, and was told there were two practitioners in the town, a Jew and a Prank. Of course I chose the latter, but, 'tis plain, that my evil star had a great deal to say in the choice I made. I have not yet been able to discover to what tribe among the Franks he belongs — certainly he is not an Englishman. But a more extraordinary ass never existed in this world, be his nation what it may. I began by telling him that I was very, very ill. All he said in answer, with a grave face, was, ' MashaUah ! Praise be to God 1' and when, in surprise and rage, I cried out, ' but I shall die, man !' with the same grave face, he said, ' InskaUdh! Please God !' My servants were about to thrust him out of the room, when they found that he knew nothing of our language ex- cepting these two words, which he had only learnt to misapply. Supposing that he still might know something of his profes- sion, I agreed to take his medicine ; but I might have saved myself the trouble, for I have been daily getting worse." Here the Mirza stopped to take breath. I did not permit him to exert himself further, but, without loss of time, returned 20 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. to the post-house, applied to my medicine-chest, and prepared a dose of calomel, which was administered that evening with all due solemnity. ' I then retired to rest. The next morning I repaired to his bed-side, and there to my great satisfaction, found that my medicine had performed wonders. The patient's eyes were opened, the head-ache had in great measure ceased, and he was, in short, a different person. I was received by him and his servants with all the honors due to the greatest sage, and they could not collect words sufficiently expressive of their admiration of my pro- found skill. As they were pouring forth their thanks, and gratitude, looking up I saw a strange figure in the room, whose person I must take the liberty to describe, so highly ludicrous and extravagant did it appear. He was of the middle size, rather inclined to be corpulent, with thick black eye-brows, dark eyes, a three days' beard, and moustaches. He wore the Turkish long dress, from his shoulders downwards — yellow pabouches, shawl to his waist, and carried a long cane in his hand ; but from his shoulders up he was a European — a neckcloth, his hair dressed in the aile de pigeon fashion, a thick tail clubbed, and over all an old-fashioned, three-cornered laced hat. This redoubtable personage made me a bow, and at the same time accosted me in Italian. I was not long in discovering that he was my rival, the doctor, and that he was precisely what, from the description of the Mirza, I expected him to be, viz., an itinerant quack, who perhaps might once have mixed medicines in some apothecary's shop in Italy or Constantinople, and who had now set up for himself, in this remote corner of Asia, where he might physic and kill at his pleasure. I did not shrink from his acquaintance, because I was cer- tain that the life and adventures of such a person must be highly curious and entertaining, and I cordially encouraged him in his advances, hoping thus to acquire his confidence. He very soon informed me who he was, and what were his pursuits, and did not seem to take the least umbrage at my having prescribed for his patient without previously consult- INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. 21 ing him. His name was Ludovico Pestello, and he pretended to have studied at Padua, where he had got his diploma. lie had not long arrived at Constantinople, with the intention of setting up for himself, where, finding that the city overflowed with Esculapii, he was persuaded to accompany a Pasha of two tails to Tocat, who had recently been appointed to its govern- ment, and was there now established as his body physician. I suspected this story to be a fabrication, and undertook to ex- amine his knowledge of physic, particularly in the case of my friend the Persian Mirza. The galimatia which he unfolded, as we proceeded, was so extremely ridiculous, and he puzzled himself so entirely by his answers to the plain questions which I put, that at length, not being able to proceed, he joined, with the best good nature possible, in the horse laugh, from which I could not refrain. I made him candidly confess that he knew nothing of medicine, more than having been ser- vant to a doctor of some eminence at Padua, where he had picked up a smattering; and that, as all his patients were heretics and abominable Mussulmans, he never could feel any remorse for those which during his practice he had dispatched from this world. " But, caro Signor Dottore," said I, " how in the name of all that is sacred, have you managed hitherto not to have had your bones broken ? Turks are dangerous tools to play with." "Oh," said he, in great unconcern, "the Turks believe any- thing, and I take care never to give them medicine that can do harm." " But you must have drugs, and you must apply them," said I, " where are they ?" " I have different colored liquids," said he, " and as long as there is bread and water to be had, I am never at a loss for a pill. I perform all my cures with them, accompanied by the words Inshallah and Mashallah /" " Bread and water ! wonderful !" did I exclaim. " Signor, «*," said he, " I sprinkle my pills with a little flour for the common people, cover them with gold leaf for my higher 22 , INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. patients, the Agas and the Pacha, and they all swallow them without even a wry face." I was so highly amused by the account which this extraor- dinary fellow gave of himself, of the life he led, and of the odd adventures which he had met with, that I invited him to dine ; and were it not for the length to which this letter has already run, I should perhaps have thought it right to make you partake of my entertainment by retailing his narrative. I repaid him, as he said, over and above, by presents from my medicine-chest, which he assured me would be plentifully sufficient to adminis- ter relief to the whole of Asia Minor. I could not think of leaving the poor Persian in such hands ; and feeling that I might be the means of saving his life, I de- termined to remain at Tocat until I saw him out of danger. After three days' administration of calomel, Hajji Baba's complexion was much restored to its original hue, and as he might now be said to be free from danger, and in a fair way of recovery, I proposed proceeding on my journey. The poor man could not find words for the expression of his gratitude, and I saw that he was laboring hard to discover a present worthy of my acceptance. At length, just before taking my leave, he desired his servants to leave us alone, and spoke to me in the following words : " You have saved my life ; you are my old friend and my de- liverer. What can I do to show my gratitude ? Of worldly goods I have but few ; it is long since I have received any salary from my government, and the little money I have here will barely suffice to take me to my own country. Besides, I know the English — they are above such considerations — it would be in vain to offer them a pecuniary reward. But I have that by me which, perhaps, may have some "value in your eyes— I can assure you that it has in mine. Ever since I have known your nation, I have remarked their inquisitiveness and eagerness after knowledge. Whenever I have traveled with them, I observed they record their observations in books ; and when they return home, thus make their fellow-countrymen ac- quainted with the most distant regions of the globe. Will you INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. 23 believe me, that I, Persian as I am, have followed their ex- ample, and that during the period of my residence at Constan- tinople I have passed my time in writing a detailed history of my life, which, although that of a very obscure and ordinary individual, is still so full of vicissitudes and adventure, that I think it would not fail to create an interest if published in Europe ? I offer it to you ; and in so doing, I assure you that I wish to show you the confidence I place in your generosity, for I never would have offered it to any one else. Will you ac- cept it ?" Conceive, my dear sir, conceive my happiness upon hearing this — upon at length getting into my possession precisely the sort of work which you so long since had looked upon as a de- sideratum in the history of mankind, and which I had utterly despaired of ever seeing in reality. My eyes, I am sure, glistened with pleasure when I ex- pressed my sense of the Mirza's liberality ; and as fast as I re- fused his offer, (for I thought it but generous to do so upon the terms he proposed,) the more he pressed it upon me. As a farther inducement, he said, that he was going back to his country, uncertain if he enjoyed the favor of the Shah ; and as he had freely expressed his sentiments, which included his .observations upon England, he was afraid, should he be in dis- grace, and his work be found upon him, that it might lead to his destruction. Unable to withstand these entreaties, I at length acceded to his request, and became the possessor of the mauuscript. It forms the subject of the following work ; and tell me, can I dedicate to any but him who first awakened my mind to its value ? If you will do me the favor to peruse it, you will find I have done my best endeavor to adapt it to the taste of European readers, divesting it of the numerous repetitions, and the tone of exaggeration and hyperbole which pervade tho compositions of the Easterns ; but still you will no doubt dis- cover much of that deviation from truth and perversion of chronology which characterize them. However, of the matter contained in the book, this I must say, that having lived in tho 24 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. country myself during the time to which it refers, I find that most of the incidents are grounded upon fact, which, although not adhered to with that scrupulous regard to truth which we might expect from a European writer, yet are sufficient to give an insight into manners. Many of them will no doubt appear improbable to those who have never visited the scenes upon which they were acted ; and it is natural it should be so, because, from the nature of circumstances, such events could only occur in Eastern countries. A distinct line must ever be drawn between " the nations who wear the hat and those who wear the beard;" and they must ever hold each other's stories as improbable, until a more general intercourse of common life takes place between them. What is moral and virtuous with the one, is wickedness with the other — that which the Christian reviles as abominable, is by the Mohamedan held sacred. Although the contrast between their respective manners may be very amusing, still it is most certain that the former will ever feel devoutly grateful that he is neither subject to Mohomedan rule, nor educated in Moha- medan principles ; whilst the latter, looking upon the rest of mankind as unclean infidels, will continue to hold fast to his bigoted persuasion, until some powerful interposition of Provi- dence shall dispel the moral and intellectual darkness, which, at present, overhangs so large a portion of the Asiatic world. Fearing to increase the size of the work, I have refrained adding the numerous notes which my long residence in Persia would have enabled me to do, and have only occasionally made explanations necessary to understand the narrative. In the same fear, I have not ventured to take Hajji out of his own country. His remarks upon England during his residence there, and during his travels, may perhaps be thought worthy of future notice ; and should they be called for, I will do my best endeavor to interpret his feelings as near to nature as pos- sible. I must how, dear sir, take my leave, expressing my regret at your absence from Constantinople on my return from Persia ; for had I then been fortunate enough to meet you, no doubt, INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE. 25 from the valuable hints which you would have afforded me, the work now presented to you would have been in every way more worthy of your acceptance. But you were far better engaged ; you were seeking another Oasis in the wilds of the desert, (that emblem of yourself in hieroglyphic lore,) to which, so I was informed, you expected to have been guided by information gained in the inside wrappers of one of your most interesting Mummies. May your footsteps have been fortunate, aud may I live to have the pleasure of assuring you by word of mouth how truly I am, esteemed and learned sir, Your very devoted and obliged humble servant, P P . 3 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA, IN TURKEY, PERSIA AND RUSSIA. CHAPTER I. OF HAJJI BABA'S BIRTH AND EDUCATION. My father, Kerbelai Hassan, was one of the most celebrated barbers of Ispahan. He was married, when only seventeen years of age, to the daughter of a chandler, who lived in the neighborhood of his shop ; but the connection was not fortu- nate, for his wife gave him no offspring, and he, in consequence, neglected her. His dexterity in the use of the razor had gained for him, together with no little renown, such great custom, particularly among the merchants, that after twenty years' industry, he found he could afford to add a second wife to his harem ; and succeeded in obtaining the daughter of a rich money changer, whose head he had shaved, during that period, with so much success, that he made no difficulty in granting his daughter to my father. In order to get rid, for a while, of the importunities and jealousy of his first wife, and also to acquire the good opinion of his father-in-law, (who, although noted for clipping money, and passing it for lawful, affected to be a saint,) he undertook a pilgrimage to the tomb of Hosein, at Kerbelah. He took his new wife with him, and she was delivered of me on the road. Before the journey took place he was generally known, simply as " Hassan the barber ;" but ever after, he was honored by the epithet of Kerbelai ; and (27) 28 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA. I, to please my mother, who spoiled me, was called Hajji, or the pilgrim, a name which stuck to me through life, and pro- cured for me a great deal of unmerited respect ; because, in fact, that honored title is seldom conferred on any but those who have made the great pilgrimage to the tomb of the blessed Prophet at Mecca. My father having left his business during his absence to his chief apprentice, resumed it with increased industry on his re- turn ; and the reputation he had acquired by his pious journey of being a zealous Mussulman, attracted the clergy, as well as the merchants, to his shop. It being/ intended that I should be brought up to the strap, I should perhaps have not received more of an education than was necessary to teach me my prayers, had I not been noticed by a mollah, who kept a school in an adjoining mosque, whom my father (to keep up the cha- racter he had acquired of being a good man) used to shave once a week, as he was wont to explain, purely for the love of God. The holy man repaid the service by teaching me to read and write ; and I made such progress under his care, that in two years I could decipher the Koran, and began to write a legible hand. When not in school I attended the shop, where I learnt the rudiments of my profession, and when there was a press of customers, was permitted to practice upon the heads of mule- teers and camel-drivers, who indeed sometimes paid dear for my first essays. By the time I was sixteen it would be difficult to say whether I was most accomplished as a barber or a scholar. Besides shaving the head, cleaning the ears, and trimming the beard, I became famous for my skill in the offices of the bath. No one understood better than I the different modes of rubbing or shampooing, as practiced in India, Cashmere, and Turkey ; and I had an art peculiar to myself of making the joints to crack, and my slaps resound. Thanks to my master, I had learnt sufficiently of our poets to enable me to enliven conversation with occasional apt quota- tions from Saadi, Hafiz, &c. ; this accomplishment, added to a good voice, made me considered as an agreeable companion by all those whose crowns or limbs were submitted to my opera- tion. In short, it may, without vanity, be asserted that Hajji Baba was quite the fashion among the men of taste and pleasure. My father's shop being situated near the Royal Caravan- serai, the largest and most frequented in the city, was the re- sort of most of the foreign, as well as of the resident merchants ; they not unfrequently gave him something over and above the OF HAJJI BABA's BIRTH AND EDUCATION. 29 usual price, for the entertainment they found in the repartees of his hopeful son. One of them, a Bagdad merchant, took great fancy to me, and always insisted that I should attend upon him, in preference even to my more experienced father. He made me converse with him in Turkish, of which I had acquired a slight knowledge, and so excited my curiosity by describing the beauties of the different cities which he had visited, that I soon felt a strong desire to travel. He was then in want of some one to keep his accounts, and as I associated the two qualifications of barber and scribe, he made me such advantageous offers, to enter into his service, that I agreed to follow him j and immediately mentioned my determination to my father. My father was very loth to lose me, and en- deavored to persuade me not to leave a certain profession for one which was likely to be attended with danger and vicissi- tudes ; but when he found how advantageous were the mer- chant's offers, and that it was not impossible that I might be- come one myself in time, he gradually ceased to dissuade my going ; and at length gave me his blessing, accompanied by a new case of razors. My mother's regret for the loss of my society, and her fears for my safety, derived no alleviation from the prospect of my expected future aggrandizement ; she augured no good from a career begun in the service of a Suni ;* but still, as a mark of her maternal affection, she gave me a bag of broken biscuit, accompanied by a small tin case of a precious unguent, which, she told me, would cure all fractures, and internal complaints. She further directed me to leave the house with my face towards the door, by way of propitiating a happy return from a journey undertaken under such inauspicious circumstances. * It is needless to remind the reader, that the Mussulmans are divided into two religious and inimical sects; viz. Suni and Shiah. ; and that the Turks are of the former, and the Persians of the latter persuasion. The Sanies hold, that Omar, Osman, and Abubekr, were the lawful successors of Mohamed. The Shiah* assert, that they were usurpers, and that Ali, his son-in-law, was the next in succession. 3* CHAPTER II. t. HAJJI BABA COMMENCES HIS TRAVELS. Osman Aga, my master, was now on a journey to Meshed, the object of which was to purchase the lamb skins of Bokhara, which he afterwards purposed to convey to Constantinople for sale. Imagine a short squat man, with a large head, prominent spongy nose, and a thick, black beard, and you will see my fellow traveler. He was a good Mussulman, very strict in his devotions, and never failed to pull off his stockings, even in the coldest morning, to wash his feet, in order that his ablutions might be perfect ; and, withal, he was a great hater of the sect of Ali, a feeling he strictly kept to himself, as long as he was in Persia. His prevailing passion was love of gain, and he never went to sleep without having ascertained that his money was deposited in a place of safety. He was, however, devoted to his own ease ; smoked constantly, eat much, and secretly drank wine, although he denounced eternal perdition to those who indulged in it openly. The caravan was appointed to collect in the spring, and we made preparations for our departure. My master bought a strong, ambling mule for his own riding ; whilst I was pro- vided with a horse, which, besides myself, bore the pipe, (for he adopted the Persian style of smoking,) the fire-pan and leather bottle, the charcoal, and also my own wardrobe. A black slave, who cooked for us, spread the carpets, loaded and unloaded the beasts, bestrode another mule, upon which were piled the bedding, carpets, and kitchen utensils. A third, car- rying a pair of trunks, in which were my master's wardrobe, and every other necessary, completed our equipment. The day before our departure, the prudent Osman had taken the precaution to sew into the cotton wadding of his heavy turban fifty ducats, a circumstance known only to him and me, and these were to serve in case of accidents ; for the remainder of his cash, with which he intended to make his purchases, was sewn up in small white leather bags and deposited in the very -centre of the trunks. The cai'avan, being ready to depart, consisted of about five hundred mules and horses, and two hundred camels, most of which were laden with merchandise for the north of Persia, and (30) HAJJI BABA COMMENCES HIS TRAVELS. 31 escorted by about one hundred and fifty men, composed of merchants, their servants, and the conductors of the caravan. Besides these, a small body of pilgrims bound to the tomb of Imam Reza, at Meshed, joined the caravan, and gave a charac- ter of sanctity to the procession of which the other members of it were happy to take advantage, considering in what high estimation persons bound upon so laudable purpose as a pil- grimage are always supposed to be held. Every man on these occasions is armed, and my master, who always turned his head away whenever a gun was fired, and became pale at the sight of a drawn sword, now appeared with a long carbine slung obliquely across his back, and a crooked sword by his side, whilst a pair of huge pistols projected from his girdle ; the rest of his surface was almost made up of the apparatus of cartouch-boxes, powder-flasks, ramrods, &c. I also was armed cap-a-pie, only in addition to what my master carried, I was honored by wielding a huge spear. The black slave had a sword with only half a blade, and a gun without a lock. We started at break of day from the northern suburb of Ispahan, led by the chaoushes* of the pilgrimage, who an- nounced our departure by loud cries and the beating of their copper drums. We soon got acquainted with our fellow tra- vellers, who were all armed ; but who, notwithstanding their martial equipment, appeared to be very peaceably disposed persons. I was delighted with the novelty of the scene, and could not help galloping and curvetting my horse to the an- noyance of my master, who, in a somewhat crabbed tone, bid me keep in mind that the beast would not last the journey if I wore it out by unseasonable feats of horsemanship. I soon became a favorite with all the company, many of whom I shaved after the day's march was over. As for my master, it is not too much to say that I was a great source of comfort to him, for after the fatigue of sitting his mule was at an end, I practised many of the arts which I had acquired at the bath to do away the stiffness of his limbs, by kneading his body all over, and rubbing him with my hands. We proceeded without impediment to Tehran, where we sojourned ten days to rest our mules and to increase our num- bers. The dangerous part of the journey was to come, as a tribe of Turcomans, who were at war with the King of Persia, * Officers whose duties are to find quarters for the pilgrims, establish the prices of provisions, make arrangements for their supply, regulate the hours of march, settle disputes, and announce the time of prayer,