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 T|HE 
 
 ADVENTURES OF HAJJi BABA
 
 JAMES MORIER. 
 
 From a mezzotint in the possession of Miss Morier.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF 
 
 HAJJI BABA 
 
 OF ISPAHAN 
 
 BY 
 
 JAMES MORIER 
 EDITED BY C. J. WILLS, M.D. 
 
 WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY 
 
 MAJOR-GEN. SIR FREDERIC GOLDSMID, C.B., K.C.S.I. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED 
 
 LONDON 
 
 LAWRENCE & BULLEN, LTD. 
 
 l6 HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN 
 
 I8 97
 
 Printed by BALLANTYNE, HANSON & Co. 
 At the Ballantyne Press
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE 
 
 IT may seem an impertinence to print a single note to an 
 edition of " Hajji Baba " other than the foot-notes of Morier 
 himself ; but the editor has not hesitated to add explanatory 
 notes at the end of the book, where he considers that explana- 
 tion of either text or illustrations will be of use or interest 
 to the reader. His long and intimate acquaintance with 
 Persia and the Persians must be his excuse for doing 
 what, it is trusted, will be found acceptable to the curious, 
 and to lovers of Oriental art. With regard to the illustra- 
 tions, most of them are selected from objects in the editor's 
 own possession, while he has to thank his friend, A. P. Hotz, 
 Esq., for the use of a few pieces from his collection of Persian 
 art. Several of the plates are from the national collection 
 at South Kensington. Certain illustrations were specially 
 made by Persian artists for this edition, notably " The 
 Barber's Shop," " Hajji bleeding the Banou," " Zeenab on 
 the Roof of the Doctor's House," &c. ; several others were 
 executed, but lost in transit to this country. One of these 
 native illustrations, which are all delicately painted in colours, 
 " Hajji Baba in the Bath," is especially curious. The editor 
 objected to the peculiar perspective of the small rectangular 
 mirror, but the artist declined to alter it, remarking that all 
 European drawings were incorrect, and that his system of 
 perspective (that of all Orientals) was the correct one. The 
 next morning the Persian produced an elaborate diagram to 
 prove his case. 
 
 The facsimile reproductions of James Morier's drawings 
 are given, by kind permission of Lady Morier, from his
 
 viii PREFACE 
 
 original sketch-books. Some slight idea of our author's 
 extraordinary industry and accuracy may be formed from the 
 fact that very many out of his hundreds of drawings and 
 coloured sketches of life in Persia were covered with notes as 
 to the colours and materials of the costume, &c. 
 
 Persia does not change ; as it was in Morier's time, so it 
 is in the present day. On the editor's first starting for 
 Teheran, a copy of the edition of 1835 was placed in his 
 hands by a kind friend, with the remark, " When you have 
 read this, you will know more about Persia and the Persians 
 than you would if you had lived there with your eyes open 
 for twenty years ; " and though the recipient of the book 
 has had unusual opportunities of observing Persia and the 
 Persians, he is compelled to confess that the prediction was 
 fulfilled. 
 
 With regard to the spelling of Persian words, Morier 
 simply spells them as they are pronounced in English ; and, 
 with the exceptions of i, pronounced as ee, and u, pronounced 
 as oo, he usually dispenses with the accents and translitera- 
 tions which are so puzzling to the ordinary reader ; the 
 same simple system has been generally followed in the 
 editor's notes. 
 
 In several of the more modern reprints of Morier's 
 magnum opus (" Hajji Baba "), the amusing "Introductory 
 Epistle," signed Peregrine Persic, has been partly or en- 
 tirely suppressed, while in one case that portion of it which 
 was used as the advertisement to the second edition is alone 
 printed. It has been thought fitting to print the " Introduc- 
 tory Epistle " in extenso in the present edition. 
 
 C. J. WILLS, M.D.
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 NOT the least clever and characteristic of the chapters in 
 the volume which is now presented to the public, not as a 
 mere reprint, but after the fashion of a Shakespearian revival, 
 "with new scenery, dresses, and decorations," are those re- 
 lating to Mirza Firouz, the Persian Ambassador at the Porte, 
 who entrusts the hero with the task of drawing up a sort of 
 general history of the Franks. His Majesty the Shah, 
 "having been informed that specimens of all the European 
 nations were to be seen at Constantinople, had judged it 
 expedient to despatch " the Mirza there to ascertain the truth 
 "about the French and English, and if possible to find out 
 whether all they say of themselves be true or false." At the 
 shortest of notices, the ever-ready Hajji is directed to do the 
 work required by the illustrious monarch from his representa- 
 tive, pending equipment for which his instructions are, "Go 
 sit in a corner, and make one long and deep thought upon the 
 plan of operations." 
 
 Something analogous to this is the situation of the writer 
 of the present Introduction, which his friend, Dr. Wills, has 
 asked him to contribute. He has to write an introduction to 
 a book which, from its old as well as present popularity, can 
 stand in no need of such support, least of all at the hands of 
 one whose opinion can be of little importance to the world 
 of readers ; and he is left without instructions as to the par- 
 ticular line to which his observations should be confined ; or, 
 indeed, if they should be confined to any line at all. But he 
 has accepted the task, and must fulfil it in spite of short- 
 comings ; and since he does not possess, like the hero of the
 
 x INTRODUCTION 
 
 present narrative, a friendly Katib, whose help will enable him 
 to return to his employer " full of the information " required, 
 he can only fall back upon his own memory and experiences, 
 to say a few incidental words on the Persian country and 
 people, as they have appeared to him since the days of Morier 
 and the Hajji. 
 
 It has become a common practice, in later days, to re- 
 gard contemporary Orientals as a race apart from the more 
 highly-civilised world men with whom only a certain number 
 of Europeans are considered competent to deal, from their 
 particular antecedents, experiences, and general reputation. 
 Such an estimate, while containing a small proportion of 
 truth, is frequently, from its too absolute adoption, the cause 
 of much misapprehension ; and in this country is politically 
 dangerous, because it allows superficial, second-hand know- 
 ledge to prevail on a subject in which all classes of English- 
 men statesmen as well as scholars should be fairly 
 proficient. As matters stand, we are apt to seek our experts 
 among those who have lived long in the atmosphere of 
 Asiatics, without asking in what capacity they have had to 
 do with them, or with what order of persons their experience 
 has been acquired. Now, many civilians and military men 
 may have passed the better part of their lives in India, and 
 yet be incapable of speaking authoritatively on the natives 
 in other districts of the Empire than those in which their 
 duties have actually been fulfilled. A sojourner in the 
 Northern Provinces, for instance, has no personal experience 
 of Tamils ; a Madrassi has little to say to Gurkhas and 
 Nepalis ; an employ^ in British Burma knows nothing of 
 Guzerat ; so that the native whose image is stamped upon 
 the memory of the one is by no means the same as that 
 acknowledged by the other authority. Among Persians and 
 Arabs, moreover, the travelled native often differs from his 
 home-staying brother. The soft-spoken Munshi of Iranian 
 descent, and the Bagdhadi horse-dealer met with in Bombay, 
 are not types that necessarily include the ordinary denizen 
 of a Persian city or the dweller in the Syrian desert. But
 
 INTRODUCTION xi 
 
 in seeking the judgment and assessing the estimate of 
 Europeans on non-Europeans (more especially Asiatics), 
 we must make allowance for the personal tastes and 
 idiosyncracies of our chosen oracle factors which are quite 
 apart from personal experiences. Burtons and Palgraves 
 are not common types in England. It is not every one 
 who, in comparatively early life, or with comparatively brief 
 experience, can analyse the Persian mind like Professor 
 Granville Browne, or put together a mass of invaluable 
 information on the geography and politics of Persia like the 
 Hon. George Curzon ; l nor do we habitually meet with 
 travellers who, besides the possession of more than average 
 acumen and ability, are gifted with that instinctive insight 
 into character which enables them not only to describe the 
 idiosyncracies of both foreigners and countrymen who come 
 within their range of observation, but to graft them upon 
 their own, so as to be, as Saint Paul expresses it, "all things 
 to all men." 
 
 Perhaps there is no way in which acquaintance with a 
 new country or people can be more pleasantly made than 
 by the perusal of books which interest and amuse, while at the 
 same time they impart instruction. In Morier's " Hajji Baba 
 of Ispahan," we have a model on which might well be framed 
 the popular story of regions now literally unknown to us or 
 practically unknown, because brought to our ken through the 
 medium of dull description. The causes of its attractiveness 
 are readily discerned. Instructive, entertaining, and racy, its 
 narrative is bright, if somewhat old-fashioned ; its illustrations 
 are real, living portraits, if aggravating to European moralists ; 
 its satire is a never-failing, active under-current, of which the 
 glow is imparted to the surface waters. To the hale and 
 healthy student of mankind the library shelf has never 
 supplied a greater incentive to the contemplation of out-of- 
 door everyday Orientalism than this book. 
 
 1 These two names have been selected, not simply as connected with recent 
 editions of Morier's " Hajji Baba," but as representing "up to date" experiences 
 of Persia.
 
 Xll 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 The author of " Hajji Baba " was fortunately blest with 
 that faculty which enabled him to comprehend, while con- 
 templating, both the humorous and practical side of native 
 character, as exhibited by the people among whom he was 
 thrown in the course of his diplomatic career. Endowed, 
 moreover, with an appreciation of Eastern imagery and a 
 happy readiness of expressing his thoughts in words, he was 
 
 JAMES MORIER. 
 From a pencil-sketch by his niece, the late Miss C. Morier. 
 
 enabled to put into print the results of his long and continuous 
 observation of Persia and the Persians, after the manner of 
 an autobiography a fashion much affected by romance- 
 writers of his day. His position as an accredited diplomatist, 
 while it favoured his literary tendencies, did not necessarily 
 constitute him a true critic. Notwithstanding the many 
 opportunities afforded them for study of new personalities, 
 it is not always given to the representatives of a nation to
 
 INTRODUCTION xiii 
 
 make an official career instrumental in achieving literary 
 success ; indeed, it is a question whether constant attention 
 to the requirements of diplomacy does not occasionally tend 
 to obscure the vision and narrow the judgment in arriving 
 at a true estimate of those for whose special edification we 
 are moulding our speech and actions. In the case of non- 
 European nations, the difficulties of this kind of stucty are 
 still more accentuated than with a people more nearly 
 approaching our own standard of civilisation, because we 
 almost invariably (if often unconsciously) commence pro- 
 ceedings by stepping upon a pedestal of quasi-superiority, 
 which prevents the exercise of impartial judgment in any 
 intercourse that may ensue. 
 
 It has been the privilege of the present writer to take 
 part more than once in diplomatic negotiations conducted 
 by Her Majesty's Minister at the Court of Teheran, and 
 the Persian Minister of Foreign Affairs. It has also fallen 
 to his lot to have the conduct of two missions whose main 
 object was to find a groundwork of international peace and 
 prosperity in the demarcations of the eastern frontier of the 
 Shah's dominions. The nature of his personal work on each 
 occasion is barely traceable in the pages of history, although 
 he ventures to hope that its results have been made avail- 
 able, and continue to be made available, for the solution of 
 international problems and adjustment of international dis- 
 putes, by those who have succeeded him in similar fields 
 of duty. But in fulfilment of the particular duties with 
 which he was entrusted, he gained an experience for which 
 he is bound to feel grateful. It provided him, moreover, 
 with abundant opportunity of observing native ways and 
 practices which must seem marvellous, if not impossible, 
 to an untravelled Englishman. Nothing is perhaps more 
 striking to the Western stranger than the great import- 
 ance attached by Orientals to trifles. On the other hand, 
 the difficulty of impressing upon the Eastern mind the 
 serious nature and urgency of certain public matters which 
 are heedlessly thrust aside to suit personal convenience,
 
 xiv INTRODUCTION 
 
 exhibits almost as remarkable a trait of native character. 
 With Persians there is a meaning in our next-to-nothing 
 minutia, the comprehension of which is of vital import to 
 our envoys and the cause they advocate. A chair pushed 
 an inch or two forward or backward, so as to transgress 
 the border of a particular carpet marked for its limit, may 
 provoke offence ; a cup of tea or coffee, or a tobacco pipe, 
 less than the conventional number offered to a guest, may 
 awake hostility ; there may be lurking mischief in a mis- 
 applied word of welcome or farewell, in a clumsy gesture, 
 even in a too hastily donned article of wearing apparel. 
 According to our own notions, trifles could hardly go further 
 in puerility ; but it becomes a part of common - sense 
 diplomacy to acknowledge with gravity things which are, 
 to all seeming, diametrically opposed to common-sense. 
 That civilised outsiders might succeed in enlarging and 
 instructing the minds of the younger and more advanced 
 of Persian statesmen, so far as to gain their co-operation in 
 reforming the ceremonial code which they have inherited, is 
 quite possible ; but, to be effective, the task must be com- 
 mitted to joint European action ; and this hypothesis involves 
 removal of the stumbling - block of international jealousy. 
 Unfortunately, the old state of things is that upon which 
 the study of Oriental diplomacy is based by the Palmerstons 
 and Talleyrands of our day, as heretofore ; and to encourage 
 anything like a serious endeavour to assimilate Persian ideas 
 to our own, or those of other Western nations, would be to 
 put an end to the "occupation" of many an accomplished 
 public servant, whether he represented, at the Shah's Court, 
 this our England, or a country across the British Channel. 
 Apart from these considerations, however, it would be no 
 simple matter to exorcise deeply -rooted habits, like those 
 to which we refer, from a people who observe them with 
 religious punctilio. The intelligence of even the travelled 
 Asiatic will not readily admit a thoroughness of moral 
 transformation in these things ; his acceptance of foreign 
 thought, as of outer garb, is but partial and for occasions ;
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 xv 
 
 he does not mean all he professes to acknowledge, either 
 to the detriment of his national prejudices or in approval 
 of Western argument ; his social brilliancy is intended to 
 chicane as well as to please. Allowing our convert, could 
 such be obtained, to be at heart a Sufi, or otherwise a free- 
 thinker, this condition will not annul his innate allegiance 
 to Iran. His patriotism is his prejudice, if we please to 
 call it so. That it is practically second nature there is not 
 a shadow of doubt, therefore its eradication must be a per- 
 plexing problem. Instances without number might be given 
 of the manner in which both Persian statesmen are occupied 
 in making mountains of molehills, and English diplomatists 
 are compelled to descend to the lower level of those to whom 
 they are accredited. 
 
 There are, doubtless, some of us who, from personal 
 experience, could make more than one contribution to the 
 repertoire of comedy-dramas of Oriental politics ; : but who, 
 amid the number, can claim the privilege to describe such 
 things, or commit them, when described, to the category 
 
 1 One imbroglio to which extraordinary importance was attached, and in the 
 development of which many sheets of foolscap were expended, the services of 
 volunteer copyists called into requisition, and much international diplomatic 
 discussion was engendered, arose from the question whether certain seats pro- 
 vided for the representatives of foreign powers, in the Grand Stand of the Teheran 
 race-course, were befitting the dignity of those who were invited to occupy them ; 
 or whether they ought not to be changed from the ground to the upper floor. 
 After the lapse of more than one yearly meeting, during which the complainants 
 declined, as a body, to attend the course, a seemingly honourable and amicable 
 settlement was effected, and the corps diplomatique was informed by its doyen 
 that all would be well on the next race-day. Accordingly, when the time came 
 round, heads and members of legations sallied forth ; but, on arriving near the 
 stand, an avant courier, who had been despatched to report on the situation, 
 returned with doleful countenance to inform their excellencies and suites that, 
 instead of any elevation in position having been effected, they had been merely 
 transferred from one room to another, on the same floor I Hence ensued protest, 
 confusion, and, with one remarkable exception, the indignant return of the intended 
 spectators to their respective homes. The exception was in the person of a 
 prominent Charge d'' Affaires, who happened to arrive in the midst of the storm, 
 and was instantly pounced upon and invited to the best and choicest seat, not 
 only on the upper floor, but in the immediate vicinity of the Shah himself. Here 
 he remained and contemplated the day's proceedings with, possibly, a pleasing 
 consciousness of easy diplomatic triumph. Eventually, the required amende was 
 made, peace restored, and the matter dropped.
 
 xvi INTRODUCTION 
 
 of realities? They belong strictly to the province of truth- 
 in-fiction, so skilfully resorted to in the narrative of the 
 amusing adventurer who reappears before the public in 
 the following pages, with new and appropriate surround- 
 ings. Should the happy hour arrive when European states- 
 manship is recognised in its humanitarianism rather than 
 in its diplomacy, when the rivalry of great nations finds 
 illustration in the endeavour to solve the problem of the 
 greatest happiness of the greatest number, and when the 
 code of honour between man and man is extended to the 
 practice of peoples as well as persons, then may we hope that 
 such a consensus of enlightened reprobation will be brought 
 to bear upon the more manifest vices and shortcomings of 
 Oriental states, that something worthy the name of policy 
 or polity may be substituted for the wretched phantom of 
 government which has long been suffered to stalk abroad 
 in the courts and bureaux of Constantinople and other 
 Eastern capitals. Until that time arrive, the fairest chance 
 for betterment appears to be in the schemes of companies 
 or syndicates, having their origin, it may be, in the hope 
 of lucrative results, but otherwise neither immoral nor irra- 
 tional. Among these, railways, irrigation, banks, and mines 
 may be mentioned as terms more or less indicative of the 
 line of action taken by outside speculators in the land of 
 the Lion and Sun. 
 
 At present, then, we need not say more of our duties as 
 a foreign government to help in the moral regeneration of 
 one of the most ancient of empires ; for without the support 
 and sympathy of brother diplomatists, an English envoy who 
 attempted to preach morality to the Shah's ministers, instead 
 of discussing secular things, or in any way to introduce ethics 
 in lieu of politics or generalities into official discourse espe- 
 cially as a practice would both provoke the loss of personal 
 reputation abroad, and removal from office by his superiors 
 at home. One of our political officers made the experiment 
 in a small way some few years ago, when riding in company 
 with a functionary attached to his escort. To wit :
 
 INTRODUCTION xvii 
 
 " Oppression of the poor is contrary to the teaching of 
 your own moralists. Why do you practise it when you seek to 
 supply myself and my servants with food, and my cattle with 
 grain, without making due payment to the real providers ? " 
 
 "Oh, that is the custom of our country: hospitality to 
 strangers is an imperative duty." 
 
 "Not surely in defiance of the law which enjoins protec- 
 tion of your own people." 
 
 " I did not know that my mikman (guest) was to be a 
 mtilld" 
 
 No more questions were asked, and the incident abruptly 
 closed. 
 
 This was the purport of a dialogue long since lost to 
 memory in its entirety. A mtilld, it need scarcely be said, 
 implies a teacher, whether priest or schoolmaster. 
 
 It has been suggested that the religious drama of Persia 
 might be made the means of effecting in that country a 
 national and patriotic movement, culminating in wholesale 
 social reform. But such an outcome is hardly to be ex- 
 pected from the material indicated. If Christian doctrine 
 is not to be taught, Christian principle must be maintained 
 as a basis of regeneration ; and something more than sym- 
 pathy for individuals even though expressed on behalf of 
 martyrs, in tears, and yells, and self-inflicted injuries must 
 be aimed at as the fruit of the proffered faith. The religious 
 drama of Persia, as it is called, is mainly "a recital of the 
 woes of Hasan and Husain," 1 the sons of Ali and Fatima 
 (daughter of the Prophet) ; and, while earnestly inviting 
 attention to the sufferings of these heroes of primitive 
 Islam, has little or nothing to impart in the way of prac- 
 tical instruction concerning the spectator himself. As a 
 lesson of true morality there is, throughout the whole narra- 
 tive, nothing to correspond, in directness and comprehen- 
 siveness, with the Sermon on the Mount ; nothing plain 
 and charity-breathing as the brief parable of the Prodigal Son. 
 
 1 See Sir Lewis Felly's preface to the Miracle Play of Hasan and Husain 
 (Allen, 1879). 
 
 b
 
 xviii INTRODUCTION 
 
 Some twenty years ago there was lithographed in Teheran 
 a small thick volume containing six plays and a dramatic 
 narrative, by Mfrza Path Ali, an employe 1 of the Russian 
 Government. These had been translated into Persian, from 
 the Azeri-Turki dialect, by Mfrza Jafar of Karajah Dagh. 
 Smart, farcical, and broad, without any special literary merit, 
 they supply excellent material for students of colloquial Per- 
 sian, but more than all are they to be commended for the 
 unflinching exposure of pretension and hypocrisy, oppression 
 and extortion on the part of native magnates and officials. 
 As nothing is ever heard of them in the intelligence reaching 
 us from time to time from Persia, it is presumed that, if the 
 plays were at any time performed in that country, the per- 
 formance must have been tentative, or in obscure places only ; 
 but it is more than probable that, however popular, they 
 would not be suffered to retain their place on the boards of 
 any local theatre, if indeed such an institution be shown to 
 have a habitation at all. The attack upon conventional mal- 
 administration would be too manifest, and the abuse of power 
 by individuals would be too distinctly held up to reprobation 
 to meet with encouragement from those who are practically 
 the objects of the ridicule and satire of the socially aggressive 
 dramatist. Then, again, there would be the risk of giving 
 offence to the class which professes religion or learning, 
 among whose members are many who arej literally, pro- 
 fessors only, and have no claim to sanctity or scholarship 
 in fact. If these and the state officials could be persuaded 
 to stand aside, and let the plays, as they are now published 
 or in any modified form, be acted before the lower orders 
 or less sophisticated of the people, there is no knowing 
 what good seed might be sown. The question deserves 
 the consideration of well-wishers to Persia, irrespective of 
 governments. 
 
 At present the form in which humour is most appreciated 
 by the Persian mind displays itself very much after the 
 ordinary jest-book type, and consists mainly in commonplace 
 anecdote, which should develop into witticism or plaisanterie,
 
 INTRODUCTION xix 
 
 but does not always attain a successful climax. It merits 
 remark that while in Persia, as a rule, the jests are made to 
 tell against Kazis, pandits, poets, and learned men of all sorts, 
 there are many (even ecclesiastical) dignitaries in the lands 
 of Western civilisation, who not only enjoy, but themselves 
 retail pleasant facetiae. Hence it is that in English books, 
 as well as table-talk, our so-called "Joe Miller" has become 
 practically superseded by something a ' degree more intel- 
 lectual, which has, moreover, received a warrant of respect- 
 ability in the frequent ratification of its use by learned and 
 benevolent divines. Many of the more popular Persian, as 
 well as other Eastern stories, that could be cited in illustration 
 of Oriental humour, are, in a great measure, familiar to 
 English readers. Some, indeed, have been stripped of any 
 little charm or interest originally attached to them by repeated 
 translation into European languages and utilisation in grammar 
 and school books ; some are too coarse for reproduction ; 
 some claim acceptance as coming from superior writers 
 like Sadi and Jami. None, perhaps, have a better right to 
 consideration than the Turkish tales of Khoja Nasru'd Din 
 Effendi, which are generally told in a strain of dry humour, 
 irrespective of " points " in each particular case. Though, like 
 the plays of Mirza Path 'Ali, they are of foreign origin, they 
 are precisely of a class that would commend itself to the Persian 
 who has only reached the threshold of civilised Europe. 
 
 It is Sadi who tells us of the lawyer who, after he had 
 married his plain daughter to a blind man, declined to avail 
 himself of the services of a sight-restoring foreign physician, 
 for benefit of his son-in-law, lest the latter should, on recovery, 
 divorce his wife. 
 
 It is Jami who relates the old story of the savant who, 
 when writing to a friend, was so annoyed at the conduct of 
 a visitor looking over his shoulder, that he expressed his 
 feelings on the subject in the course of his letter, adding 
 that, when the accusation involved in the writing drew forth 
 an emphatic denial from the offender's lips, this last stood 
 convicted on his own testimony.
 
 xx INTRODUCTION 
 
 But it is rather with the pen of the satirist than humorist 
 that Sadf speaks of the disappointment of the Arab who, 
 wandering in the desert without food or water, came suddenly 
 upon a sack left by some previously passing traveller, and, 
 opening it, discovered its contents to be a collection of the 
 costliest of pearls ! The moral is thus expressed : 
 
 " In a dry desert, amid shifting sand, 
 The thirsty soul heeds not of pearl or shell ; 
 How can the sapless one, bereft of strength, 
 What gold adorns him, or its value tell ? 
 
 The humour of " Hajji Baba," though quite as thorough 
 and pervading, is possibly less direct and more inferential 
 than that which has contributed so much to the reader's 
 enjoyment of Dickens, though the appreciation of it is due 
 to the same sense of the ludicrous within us. To the ordi- 
 nary English apprehension, the fun of the latter writer, dis- 
 played to its full extent in " Pickwick," and consistently 
 maintained in the many volumes which followed those unique 
 "posthumous papers," emanates from the idiosyncracies of 
 the author's fellow-countrymen ; whilst Morier's is produced 
 by the doings and utterances of a foreigner who acts and 
 talks in a way which would be impossible to an Englishman, 
 yet which is irresistibly ludicrous to the English reader by 
 its sober assumption of truth. To the ordinarily-educated 
 Persian the relish of such fictitious biography supposing it 
 to be translated or otherwise placed intelligibly before him 
 would consist in its incident and adventure, but the salt of its 
 satire would be wanting. He would see himself reflected in 
 an English mirror, and the likeness would be more striking 
 and complete than that obtained from his own dina or looking- 
 glass, to which he has been in the habit of resorting ; but 
 there is nothing in it with which he would be dissatisfied, or 
 in which he would detect a moral lesson. If satire could 
 impart to him a panacea for the sickness under which his 
 mind is suffering, it would not be that of Hajjl Baba ; for 
 pungent as it is to the European palate, it is not sufficiently 
 palpable to the western Asiatic to be appreciated at its true
 
 INTRODUCTION xxi 
 
 value. He needs something of a more self-evident, perhaps 
 coarser kind, to bring to his ken a little suspected under- 
 current of meaning, which, if realised, it would be unlikely 
 that he would ignore. Indeed, that particular quality of 
 imagination which may be said to permeate the pages of 
 the book, and which we call "humour," is in a certain sense 
 innate in the Persian, and its schooling tendency would in all 
 probability be recognised by him if only raised to the surface. 
 The popularity in this country of " Hajji Baba" cannot be 
 gauged by comparing it with other works of fiction generally ; 
 for with all its powers of attraction it is not likely to possess 
 the same number of admirers as the novel or romance in 
 which the characters are able to command recognition and 
 sympathy no less than to afford amusement. It must be 
 judged in the light of a continuous narrative of Eastern life ; 
 and thus regarded it may certainly claim to rank in the first 
 class. That it has marvellously maintained its position 
 among standard books of all sorts may be proved by the issue 
 of two new and independent editions during the past year, to 
 say nothing of the volume now presented to the British 
 public. If on its debut, at the close of the first quarter of our 
 century, its readers may not have equalled in number those 
 of the contemporaneous Waverley series, it is due to Morier's 
 memory to recall the fact that a few years after the Hajji's 
 introduction to English literary circles, Scott explains his 
 own hesitation in dealing with " Eastern themes " on the 
 ground that these "had been so successfully handled by . . . 
 acknowledged masters of their craft." There can be no mis- 
 apprehension as to the individual writers whom the illustrious 
 novelist had in mind, for he had just before recorded his im- 
 pression that " where the author of ' Anastatius,' as well as he 
 of ' Hadji Baba,' had described the manners and vices of the 
 Eastern nations, not only with fidelity but with the humour 
 of Le Sage and the ludicrous power of Fielding himself, one 
 who was a perfect stranger to the subject must necessarily 
 produce an unfavourable contrast." 
 
 ] Introduction to the "Talisman" (1832).
 
 xxii INTRODUCTION 
 
 The afore-shown coupling of two significant publications 
 of the period is in accordance also with the notion of a 
 reviewer in the Quarterly for October 1823. To the article 
 in which it finds expression and which is headed, " The 
 Adventures of Hajji Baba of Ispahan " we now revert, 
 because it supplies a fair estimate of the value at once set 
 upon a notable book by the higher criticism of the day. 
 While finding a likeness between our Persian hero and 
 Anastasius in plan and design, the writer holds them to be 
 totally distinct " in the theatre of action, in the development 
 of national characteristics, in tone of mind and colouring of 
 sentiment, in all the essentials of originality." As a novel he 
 gives the preference to Anastasius, but that is all. " As a 
 map of manners," he adds, " as the effort of a foreigner to im- 
 pregnate his style of thought and opinion, his imagination, and 
 even his diction, with the singularities of Oriental habits and 
 mind and expression in a word to clothe his ideas and lan- 
 guage in the complete costume of the East the memoirs of 
 the Greek must yield in the perfection of dramatic truth and 
 propriety to the adventures of the pure Asiatic before us." 
 The reviewer then proceeds to demonstrate how Morier has 
 imparted to his biography an air of vraisemblance, while 
 finding means to enlighten the mind of his reader on native 
 manners and customs in a way that could not be expected 
 from, and was certainly not attempted by the story-tellers of 
 the " Arabian Nights." His conclusions are thus expressed : 
 "He has shrouded the habiliments of his traveller under 
 an impenetrable Oriental disguise, and has very happily 
 contrived to connect such a description as a Persian might 
 naturally give of his adventures, with explanations of customs 
 which seem to drop from him by accident, and as it were 
 unconsciously, in the course of his story. The keeping of 
 the assumed character appears to us perfect ; the tone of the 
 narrative is exclusively Oriental, and the turn of expression 
 in the numerous dialogues so appropriate that it is rarely 
 possible to detect a thorough home-bred Anglicism in their 
 form."
 
 INTRODUCTION xxiii 
 
 As above stated, we welcome the review from which 
 quotation has been made, because it affords a fair example of 
 the reception given to " Hajji Baba" when a stranger to our 
 shores. Favourable as it is, however, the author's connais- 
 sance de cause seems to have obtained for him more credit 
 than that innate sense of humour and appreciative, good- 
 humoured satire which, excellently displayed as they were in 
 the delineation of Persian character, raised him in the esti- 
 mation of Sir Walter Scott to the literary level of Fielding 
 and Le Sage. But Scott's view was made public some time 
 after that of the contributor to the Quarterly ; and Morier's 
 reputation has been continuously on the rise, from decade to 
 decade, in still later years a state of things fairly attributable 
 to the circumstance that our acquaintance with Persia has 
 long been steadily improving by a more frequent association 
 with its people than heretofore. Whereas the appearance of 
 a Persian envoy in London, some three-quarters of a century 
 ago, was a matter of more than nine days' wonder, the 
 Shah's representatives in this country now take part in the 
 social reunions of our metropolis with a savoir faire worthy 
 the most polished of European diplomatists. Thus we in 
 England, though we chance not to come in contact with the 
 actual Hajji Baba himself, may, if we please, verify his 
 existence by reference to his travelled fellow-countrymen, 
 whose intelligence will enable them to confirm the truth of 
 Morier's description. In other words, the more we under- 
 stand of Persia and the Persians, the more keenly do we 
 recognise the truthfulness and humour of this conception of 
 the national character. The typical portrait comes to us as a 
 precious legacy from one whose records of Eastern travel and 
 research have edified, and whose Turko-Persian romances 
 have charmed many of his compatriots who have outlived a 
 quasi-bygone generation. Whilst our friend the Hajji main- 
 tains his easy eminence among everyday readers, " Ayesha, the 
 maid of Kars," and " Zohrab, the hostage," still recur to certain 
 memories as replete with veracious and striking pictures which 
 cannot readily be obliterated ; nor are the important " First
 
 xxiv INTRODUCTION 
 
 and Second Journeys " l to be disregarded because later explo- 
 rations have abounded. Apart from fiction and travellers' 
 narrations, the secrets of Asiatic diplomacy, whether laughter- 
 moving or lugubrious, must be sought for in the unsym- 
 pathetic literature of the Blue-book, where the classification 
 is practically under two heads the "confidential," and of 
 limited circulation, and the "dry," and little in request save 
 by specialists. Much that Morier had to say and do in 
 official communication with his native associates is possibly, 
 even at this late hour, extant in the archives of Downing 
 Street; for he was not only a "Secretary of Embassy," but 
 also a " Minister Plenipotentiary" at the Shah's Court during 
 his sojourn in Persia. 
 
 It is not, however, contemplated at this time to attempt 
 even an outline of the Oriental romancist's own life and 
 career. Such personal record has been quite recently pre- 
 pared and published in a form which, despite of enforced 
 conciseness, may be pronounced suitable and trustworthy. 
 It appeared about two years ago in an issue of the 
 " Dictionary of National Biography," the carefully provided 
 storehouse from which, broadly speaking, bricks may be 
 chosen to construct the fabric of English history. There 
 were, moreover,, in that particular volume biographical notices 
 of other members of the same distinguished family. One 
 of the number, the scion of a younger generation, the much- 
 lamented Sir Robert Morier, Ambassador at St. Petersburg, 
 replying to a reference made to him in the year of his death, 
 addressed a letter to the present writer, expressing the deep 
 interest which he felt in a proposed Edition de luxe of his 
 uncle's chef d'ceuvre. He had at one time himself intended 
 to write a short memojr of the author ; and it was hoped that 
 some such result might still be brought about ; but discussion 
 of the question was broken off by illness, and the fatal ter- 
 mination of that illness put a stop to all further correspond- 
 ence on the subject. It suffices, then, for our purpose to 
 indicate the sketch above referred to, as the latest of the 
 
 1 Longman, Hurst, Regs, Orme, and Brown, 1812 and 1818 respectively.
 
 INTRODUCTION xxv 
 
 short biographies of James Morier which have appeared 
 since his decease in I849; 1 recalling to mind the informa- 
 tion which it gives or confirms that he was one of four 
 brothers, sons of Isaac Morier, a gentleman of Huguenot 
 family, but naturalised British subject, and the first Consul- 
 General of the Levant Company at Constantinople ; and that 
 he and two brothers rose to high position in the diplomatic 
 service. That he was educated as were his brothers David 
 and William at Harrow, is a statement supported by family 
 tradition, though not corroborated by the school records. To 
 use the words of a local authority who kindly interested him- 
 self in the search, "it is just possible that James may have 
 been omitted by Dr. Drury in his register, but it is very un- 
 likely, considering the care with which the book is kept, and 
 that it is also a ledger of the entrance-fees paid by the boys." 
 But if little is known to us of his school-life, we may gather 
 from official records that in his diplomatic career like his 
 brothers, John Philip and David, and later still, his highly 
 esteemed nephew, Sir Robert he scored a more than average 
 success. Especially in dealing with Easterns he was an in- 
 valuable public servant. Yet no affairs of state in which he 
 assisted, no negotiations for which he was responsible in fact, 
 nothing he can have done in the professional or official world, 
 have earned for him greater repute or gratitude from his 
 fellow-men than that achieved by his admirable biography of 
 " Hajji Baba of Ispahan." Unique in its way, it is as 
 faithful as unique ; and those who have felt the true charm 
 of the book, with its Oriental background, may not be indis- 
 posed to follow its hero to England, his later experiences in 
 which country are related with " infinite jest." 
 
 Dr. Charles James Wills, to whose hands has been en- 
 trusted this new edition of " Hajji Baba," is well known for his 
 intimate acquaintance with Persian manners and customs, and 
 his powers of description. He brings to his editorial work an 
 experience of many years' residence in the country, during 
 which time he has mixed freely with all classes of Persian 
 
 1 According to the Times of the day following, he died at Brighton on the 
 1 9th March 1849, aged 66 years ; so that he must have been born circa 1783.
 
 xxvi INTRODUCTION 
 
 society. Since his return from Persia to England, his industry 
 and ability speak for themselves in his literary reminiscences 
 of an Eastern career. Books such as the " Land of the 
 Lion and Sun," " Persia as it is," and " Behind an Eastern 
 Veil," bear testimony to the vivid nature of his retrospect, 
 and the continuous and inexhaustible interest which he retains 
 in his Oriental associations. It is with unfeigned satisfac- 
 tion, then, that the present writer is enabled publicly to 
 revert to the first of the three books named, viz., the highly- 
 successful indeed now famous volume entitled, "The Land 
 of the Lion and Sun ; " and, believing in his own identity with 
 the bearer of some often-repeated initials in its earlier pages, 
 to congratulate his old compagnon de voyage on the excellent 
 use of his time in Persia, from the period of their parting in 
 1869 to the publication of his book in 1883. 
 
 Dr. Wills has placed on record that the Persian is " hos- 
 pitable and obliging," and, withal, "specially well-disposed 
 to the foreigner ; " grants him the possession of many " home 
 virtues;" admits that he is "unostentatiously generous" to 
 the poor; notices "the peculiar honesty of the Persian ser- 
 vant towards his master in respect to his goods and chattels;" 
 and supposes that "in commercial morality ... a Persian 
 merchant will compare not unfavourably with the European 
 generally, if he does not always attain the high standard 
 theoretically adopted by the Englishman." 
 
 We, who can readily endorse these opinions, forbear to 
 speak of faults or vices, especially as we are of those who 
 believe in the nation's vitality, and that she possesses the 
 germs of a brilliant regeneration. In any case, let us hope 
 that those who would foretell the absorption of this ancient 
 monarchy into the territories of a powerful neighbour, are 
 mistaken in their deductions. 
 
 Rather than dwell upon these gloomy visions in the present 
 outlook, let us turn with satisfaction to the brighter intelligence 
 reaching us, in these days, from our countrymen in Persia. 
 Letters from Teheran speak favourably and hopefully of the 
 new monarch, so long known to us as the Vali Ahd, or heir-
 
 INTRODUCTION xxvii 
 
 apparent. According to report, he is ready to be led in 
 the right way, not only by a capable and worthy minister, 
 who has already earned for himself a high reputation, but by 
 those representatives of European powers who are content to 
 cast aside the not always patriotic ways of a selfish, con- 
 ventional diplomacy, and to assist in working out the welfare 
 of the once renowned country to which they are accredited. 
 
 That the illustrations and annotations to the present 
 volume have been prepared and produced in a careful and 
 able manner will be in a certain sense self-evident. The 
 genuineness of the one and accuracy of the other in either 
 case the main merit can receive no better cachet than the 
 testimony of those who have resided or travelled in the 
 Shah's dominions, and such evidence is now tendered on 
 their behalf. Of the illustrations none can be more appro- 
 priate or welcome than those from the pencil of Morier 
 himself, who, as his volumes of travel indicate, was endowed 
 with artistic as well as literary powers. 
 
 One word, in conclusion, on the transliteration of Persian 
 names and words. This, it need scarcely be said, is a 
 question in the solution of which our leading scholars have 
 long disagreed and still continue to disagree ; and it is not 
 surprising that each, in showing cause for a separate opinion, 
 keeps faithfully to his self-imposed system. In the instance 
 of Hajji (which some would write Hadji) Baba, Dr. Wills 
 has naturally preferred adherence to the text of Morier in 
 the early editions of his book ; and it is quite intelligible 
 that he should wish to maintain the same procedure in 
 respect of his own annotations the main principle being 
 to write the Anglicised Persian as it sounds to the English 
 ear, rather than in accordance with scientific rule, and, save 
 in rare cases, to avoid having recourse to accents. If in 
 these few pages of Preface any deviation be detected from 
 the above-stated procedure, it will be evident to the reader 
 that the incidental character of an introduction annuls its 
 importance. p j Q. 
 
 5/// October 1896.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. PAGK 
 
 I. Of Hajji aba's birth and education ..... i 
 II. Hajji Baba commences his travels His encounter with the 
 
 Turcomans, and his captivity ...... 7 
 
 III. Into what hands Hajji Baba falls, and the fortune which his 
 
 razors proved to him . . . . . . .16 
 
 IV. Of his ingenuity in rescuing his master's money from the Turco- 
 
 man, and of his determination to keep it . . . .21 
 
 V. Hajji Baba becomes a robber in his own defence, and invades 
 
 his native city . . . . . .. . .26 
 
 VI. Concerning the three prisoners taken by the Turcomans, and of 
 
 the booty made in the caravanserai . . . . .34 
 
 VII. Hajji Baba evinces a feeling disposition History of the poet 
 
 Asker . . . . .,40 
 
 VIII. Hajji Baba escapes from the Turcomans the meaning of 
 
 " falling from the frying-pan into the fire" illustrated . 46 
 
 IX. Hajji Baba, in his distress, becomes a saka, or water-carrier . 53 
 
 X. He makes a soliloquy, and becomes an itinerant vendor of smoke 58 
 
 XI. History of Dervish Sefer, and of the two other dervishes . . 63 
 
 XII. Hajji Baba finds that fraud does not remain unpunished, even 
 
 in this world He makes fresh plans . . . . . 79 
 XIII. Hajji Baba leaves Meshed, is cured of his sprain, and relates a 
 
 story 87 
 
 XIV. Of the man he meets, and of the consequences of the encounter . 93 
 XV. Hajji Baba reaches Tehran, and goes to the poet's house . . 98 
 XVI. He makes plans for the future, and is involved in a quarrel . icr 
 XVII. He puts on new clothes, goes to the bath, and appears in a new 
 
 character . . . . . . . . " . . 106 
 
 XVIII. The poet returns from captivity The consequences of it for 
 
 Hajji Baba . . . . . . . .in 
 
 XIX. Hajji Baba gets into the service of the king's physician Of the 
 
 manner he was first employed by him . . . , 115 
 
 XX. He succeeds in deceiving two of the faculty, getting a pill from 
 
 one, and a piece of gold from the other . . .121 
 
 XXI. He describes the manner in which the Shah of Persia takes 
 
 medicine . . . . . .127
 
 ua CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. PAGE 
 
 XXII. Hajji Baba asks the doctor for a salary, and of the success of 
 
 his demand . . . . . . . . 133 
 
 XXIII. He becomes dissatisfied with his situation, is idle, and falls in 
 
 love 136 
 
 XXIV. He has an interview with the fair Zeenab, ivho relates how 
 
 she passes her time in the doctor's harem . . .141 
 
 XXV. The lovers meet again, and are very happy Hajji Baba sings 147 
 
 XXVI. The history of Zeenab, the Curdish slave . . . .154 
 
 XXVII. Of the preparations made by the chief physician to receive the 
 Shah as his guest, and of the great expense which threat- 
 ened him . . . . . . . . .177 
 
 XXVIII. Concerning the manner of the Shahs reception ; of the present 
 
 made him, and the conversation which ensued . . .184 
 XXIX. A description of the entertainment, which is followed by an 
 
 event destructive to Hajji Baba 's happiness . . -193 
 XXX. Hajji Baba meets with a rival in the Shah himself, and loses 
 
 the fair object of his affections . . . . 199 
 
 XXXI. His reflections on the loss of Zeenab He is suddenly called 
 
 upon to exert his skill as a doctor . . . .205 
 
 XXXII. Hajji is appointed to a situation under government Hebe- 
 comes an executioner . 210 
 
 XXXIII. He accompanies the Shah to his camp, and gets some insight 
 
 into his profession. . . . . . . .218 
 
 XXXIV. Employed in his official capacity, Hajjt Baba gives a specimen 
 
 of Persian despotism . . . . . . .227 
 
 XXXV. Fortune, which pretended to frown, in fact smiles upon Hajjt 
 Baba, and promotes him to be sub-lieutenant to the chief 
 executioner ......... 239 
 
 XXXVI. Although by trade an executioner, he shows a feeling heart 
 
 He meets with a young man and woman in distress . 243 
 
 XXXVII. The history of Yusuf, the Armenian, and his wife Mariam . 249 
 XXXVIII. Sequel of the foregoing history, and of the resolution which 
 
 Hajji Baba takes in consequence . . . . .283 
 
 XXXIX. The Armenian Yusuf proves himself worthy of Hajji Baba's 
 
 confidence ......... 287 
 
 XL. Hajji Baba gives an account of his proceedings to his superiors, 
 
 and shows himself a friend to the distressed . . .291 
 XLI. He describes an expedition against the Russians, and does ample 
 
 justice to the cowardice of his chief . , . . -301 
 XLI I. He proceeds to the king's camp, and gives a specimen of lying 
 
 on a grand scale 308
 
 CONTENTS ma 
 
 CHAP. PAGE 
 
 XLIII. He relates a horrid tale, the consequences of which plunge him 
 
 in the greatest misery , . . .' . . .311 
 XLIV. Hajji Baba meets with an old friend, who cheers him up, gives 
 
 him good advice, and secures him from danger . . .321 
 XLV. He takes refuge in a sanctuary, where his melancholy thoughts 
 
 are diverted by a curious story . . . . 33 
 
 XLVI. He becomes a saint, and associates with the most celebrated 
 
 divine in Persia ........ 360 
 
 XLVII. Hajji Baba is robbed by his friend, and left utterly destitute ; 
 
 but is released from his confinement . . . .369 
 
 XLVIII. Hajji Babi reaches Ispahan, and his paternal roof , just time 
 
 enough to close the eyes of his dying father . . .378 
 
 XLIX. He becomes heir to property which is not to be found, and his 
 
 suspicions thereon . . . . . . .-.390 
 
 L. Showing the steps he takes to discover his property, and who the 
 
 diviner, Teez Negah, was . . . . . -397 
 
 LI. Of the diviner's success in making discoveries, and of the resolu- 
 tion which Hajji Baba takes in consequence . . . 404 
 LI I. Hajji Baba quits his mother, and becomes the scribe to a cele- 
 brated man of the law . . . . , .411 
 
 LIU. The mollah Nadan gives an account of his new scheme for 
 
 raising money, and for making men happy . . .418 
 
 LIV. Hajji Baba becomes a promoter of matrimony, and of the 
 
 register he keeps . . . . . ... . . . 424 
 
 LV. Of the man Hajji Baba meets, thinking him dead ; and of the 
 
 marriage which he brings about . . . .429 
 
 LVI. Showing how the ambition of the mollah Nadan involves both 
 
 him and his disciples in ruin . . . . . . 436 
 
 LVII. Hajji Baba meets with an extraordinary adventure in the 
 bath, which miraculously saves him from the horrors of 
 despair . ....... . 44 2 
 
 LVIII. Of the consequences of the adventure, which threaten danger, but 
 
 end in apparent good fortune ...... 447 
 
 LIX. Hajji Baba does not shine in honesty The life and adventures 
 
 of the mollah Nadan 454 
 
 LX. Hajji and the mollah make plans suited to their critical situa- 
 tion, showing that no confidence can exist between rogues . 467 
 LXI. The punishment due to Hajji Baba falls upon Nadan, which 
 
 makes the former a stanch predestinarian .... 474 
 LXII. Hajji Baba hears an extraordinary sequel to his adventure 
 
 in the bath, and feels all the alarms of guilt . . . 478
 
 iva CONTENTS 
 
 CHAl 1 
 
 LXIII. He is discovered and seized, but his good stars again befriend 
 
 and set him free ........ 485 
 
 LXI V. He reaches Bagdad, meets his first master, and turns his views 
 
 to commerce ......... 489 
 
 LXV. He purchases pipe-sticks, and inspires a hopeless passion in 
 
 the breast of 'his old master 's daughter . . . -495 
 LXV I. He becomes a merchant, leaves Bagdad, and accompanies a 
 
 caravan to Constantinople ...... 499 
 
 LXVII. Hajji Baba makes a conquest of the widow of an emir, which 
 
 at first alarms, but aftenvards elates him . . .504 
 LXVIII. He obtains an interview with the fair Shekerleb, makes a settle- 
 ment upon her, and becomes her husband . . . .511 
 
 LXIX. From a vendor of pipe-sticks he becomes a rich Aga, but feels 
 
 all the inconvenience of supporting a false character , . 516 
 LXX. His desire to excite envy lays the foundation of his disgrace 
 
 He quarrels with his wife . . . . . .520 
 
 LXXI. He is discovered to be an impostor, loses his wife, and the wide 
 
 world is again before, him . . . . . .524 
 
 LXXII. An incident in the street diverts his despair He seeks conso- 
 lation in the advice of old Osman . . . . -529 
 
 LXXI 1 1. In endeavouring to gain satisfaction from his enemies he 
 
 acquires a friend Some account of Mirza Firouz . -533 
 LXXI V. He becomes useful to an ambassador, who makes him a par- 
 taker of his confidence . . . . . . -539 
 
 LXXV. Of his first essays in public life, and of the use he was of to 
 
 his employer . . . . . . . . .544 
 
 LXXVI. Hajji. Baba writes the history of Europe, and with his 
 
 ambassador returns to Persia . . . . . 552 
 
 LXXVII. The ceremony of receiving a Frank ambassador at the court of 
 
 the Shah is described . . . . . . -559 
 
 LXXVIII. Hajji is noticed by the grand vizier, and is the means of 
 
 gratifying that minister' s favourite passion . . .566 
 LXXIX. Of the manner in which he turned his influence to use, and 
 
 how he was again noticed by the vizier . . . .570 
 
 LXXX. The conclusion Misfortune seems to take leave of Hajji 
 Baba, who returns to his native city a greater man 
 than when he first left it . . . . , -575
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE, 
 
 REV. DR FUNDGRUBEN, 
 
 CHAPLAIN TO THE SWEDISH EMBASSY AT THE OTTOMAN PORTE. 
 
 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 
 traveller, who (forgive my precision) sixteen years ago was 
 frequently admitted to enjoy the pleasure of your conversa- 
 tion, and who was even honoured 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 
 employed 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 lumi- 
 nous 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 en- 
 gaged upon those grave and weighty subjects, which you 
 have treated with such vast learning, clearness, and perspi- 
 cuity in your above-mentioned treatise. In particular I have
 
 via INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 ever borne in mind a conversation, when one beautiful moon- 
 light 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 harbour of Constanti- 
 nople, we discussed subjects which had reference to the life 
 and manners of the extraordinary people its inhabitants. 
 
 Excuse me for reporting back your own words ; but as 
 the subject interested me much, I recollect well the observa- 
 tion you made, that no traveller 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 con- 
 sequence 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' Enter- 
 tainments " gives the truest picture of the Orientals, and that, 
 for the best of all reasons, because it is the work of one of 
 their own community. "But," said you, "notwithstanding 
 they have been put into an 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 had not lived some time in the East, and 
 who have not had frequent opportunities 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 re- 
 turned, bringing a large pitcher full of excellent 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 in the
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE vna 
 
 house of a Christian, many of whom disposed of it in a 
 mysterious manner to the Mohamedans ; yet that circum- 
 stance would not immediately occur to the mere European 
 reader, who, perhaps, would expect something to be forth- 
 coming in the future narrative, from what is, in fact, only a 
 trait of common life." 
 
 I then suggested, that, perhaps, if an European would 
 give a correct idea of Oriental manners, which would com- 
 prehend an account of the vicissitudes attendant upon the 
 life of an Eastern, of his feelings about his government, of 
 his conduct in domestic life, of his hopes and plans of ad- 
 vancement, of his rivalities 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 stations and ranks which compose a 
 Mussulman community, and then work them into one con- 
 nected 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 an 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 Bashi, or 
 general of artillery, the latter an attendant upon the Capitan 
 Pasha), could ever so exactly seize those nice shades and 
 distinctions of purpose, in action and manner, which a pure 
 Asiatic only could. To support your argument, you illus- 
 trated it by observing, 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
 
 viiia INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 history of his own life, beginning with 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 
 forming 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 dis- 
 gusting, because I have ever conceived them to be copies of 
 ancient originals. For, who can think the custom of eating 
 with one's fingers disgusting, 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, dining 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 custom, and a proof of 
 the authenticity of those records upon which our happiness 
 depends. Whenever I heard the exclamation so frequently 
 used in Persia, on the occasion of little miseries, " What 
 ashes are fallen on my head ! " instead of seeing anything 
 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 copperplate 
 engraving, where the whole of the subject to be represented
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE \xa 
 
 is made out, although parts of it from much use have been 
 obliterated. 
 
 If I may be allowed the expression, a picturesqueness per- 
 vades the whole being of Asiatics, which we do not find in 
 our ow r n countries, and in my eyes makes everything relating 
 to them so attractive as to create a desire to impart to others 
 the impressions made upon myself. Thus, in viewing a beau- 
 tiful landscape, the traveller, be he a draughtsman or not, 
 taut bien que mal, endeavours to make a representation of it ; 
 and thus do I apologise for venturing before the public even 
 in the character of a humble translator. 
 
 Impressed with such feelings you may conceive the fulness 
 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 necessity of sending to the Shah of Persia. Persia, that 
 imaginary seat of Oriental splendour ! 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 
 opportunities which would be afforded me of pursuing my 
 favourite 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 oestuosas, 
 
 Sive facturus per inhospitalem 
 Caucasum, vel quae loca fabulosus 
 Lambit Hydaspes." 
 
 I was in some degree like a French lady of my acquaint- 
 ance, 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 Indes, and 
 whom, to my astonishment, I found residing at the Cape of 
 Good Hope ! 
 
 I will not say that all my dreams were realised ; for, per- 
 haps, no country in the world less comes up to one's expectation
 
 xa INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 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 strong the stamp of an ancient origin as they. Even 
 in their features I thought to have distinguished a decided 
 originality of expression ; which was confirmed when I re- 
 marked that the numerous faces seen among the sculptures of 
 Persepolis, so perfect as if chiselled but yesterday, were so 
 many likenesses to modern Persians, more particularly of the 
 natives of the province of Pars. 
 
 During my long residence there, I never lost the recollec- 
 tion of our conversation on the sofa of the Swedish palace ; 
 and every time I added an anecdote or an observation illus- 
 trative of Oriental manners to my store, or a sketch to my 
 collection, I always thought of the Reverend Doctor Fund- 
 gruben, 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 patri- 
 archs 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 cele- 
 brity, 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 abound- 
 ing in original 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 done ; and that when I came to 
 publish to the world the fruits of my discoveries, I should
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 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 favourable moment for 
 traversing the cold regions of Armenia, " nee Armeniis in oris 
 stat glacies iners menses per omnes ; " and I crossed the danger- 
 ous borders of Turkey and Persia without any event occurring 
 worthy of record. But I must request your indulgent atten- 
 tion to what befell me at Tocat ; for it is to that occurrence 
 you are indebted for this letter, and the world for the accom- 
 panying volumes. 
 
 It was at the close of a fatiguing day's journey, that I and 
 my escort, consisting of two Tatars, two servants, and the 
 conductors 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 travellers' room, where, 
 having disencumbered 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 immediately 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 converse with him ; because having lived 
 so long in Persia, I felt myself, in some measure, identified
 
 xiia INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 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, 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 attended by a Frank 
 doctor, an inhabitant of Tocat, who, instead of curing, had, 
 in fact, brought him to his last gasp, that having 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 everything that regarded him, owing to 
 his having been in England, whither, in quality of secre- 
 tary, 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, undergoing the vicissi- 
 tudes which are sure to attend every Persian ; and at 
 length had been sent to Constantinople, as resident agent 
 at the Porte on the part of the Shah. 
 
 I did not hesitate an instant, tired and jaded as I was, 
 immediately 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.
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 There, on a bed spread in the middle of a small room, 
 surrounded 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 hand- 
 some 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 recognised me, and 
 the joy which he felt at the meeting broke out in a great 
 animation of his features, 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 conies and blows a 
 fresh existence into my nostrils." 
 
 After his first transports were over, I endeavoured to 
 make him explain what was the nature of his complaint, and 
 how it had hitherto been treated. I saw enough 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 assur- 
 ance 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 Frank. 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 " Mashallah ! 
 Praise be to God ! " and when, in surprise and rage, I cried
 
 xiva INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 out, " But I shall die, man ! " with the same grave face, he 
 said, " Inshallak ! Please God ! " My servants were about to 
 thrust him from the room, when they found that he knew 
 nothing of our language excepting these two words, which he 
 had only learnt to misapply. Supposing that he still might 
 know something of his profession, 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, re- 
 turned 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 bedside, and there, 
 to my great satisfaction, found that my medicine had per- 
 formed 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 honours due to the greatest sage, and they could not 
 collect words sufficiently expressive of their admiration of my 
 profound 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 
 eyebrows, dark eyes, a three days' beard, and mustachios. 
 He wore the Turkish long dress, from his shoulders down- 
 wards, yellow pabouches, shawl to his waist, and carried a 
 long cane in his hand ; but from his shoulders up he was an 
 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 apothe-
 
 xva 
 
 cary'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 
 certain that the life and adventures of such a person must 
 be highly curious and entertaining, and I cordially encour- 
 aged 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 
 consulting him. His name was Ludovico Pestello, and he 
 pretended to have studied at Padua, where he had got his 
 diploma. He had not long arrived at Constantinople, with 
 the intention of setting up for himself, when, finding that the 
 city overflowed with Esculapii, he was persuaded to accom- 
 pany a pasha of two tails to Tocat, who had recently been 
 appointed to its government, and was there now established 
 as his body physician. I suspected this story to be fabrica- 
 tion, and undertook to examine his knowledge of physic, 
 particularly in the case of my friend the Persian Mirza. The 
 galimatia which he unfolded, as we proceeded, was so ex- 
 tremely 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 servant 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 despatched from this world. 
 
 " But, caro Signor Dottore" said I, " how in the name 
 of all that is sacred, how 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
 
 xvia INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 anything, 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 coloured 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 Maskallak!" 
 
 " Bread and water ! wonderful ! " did I exclaim. 
 
 " Signor, si," said he, " I sprinkle my pills with a little 
 flour for the common people, cover them with gold leaf for 
 my higher patients, the agas and the Pasha, and they all 
 swallow them without even a wry face." 
 
 I was so highly amused by the account which this ex- 
 traordinary 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 which this letter 
 has already run, I should, perhaps, have thought it right to 
 make you partake of my entertainment by retailing his nar- 
 rative. I repaid him, as he said, over and above, by presents 
 from my medicine-chest, which he assured me would be 
 plentifully sufficient to administer 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 determined to remain at Tocat until I saw him out of 
 danger. 
 
 After three days' administration of calomel, Hajji Baba's 
 complexion was nearly 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 labouring 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
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 deliverer. 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 inquisitive- 
 ness, and eagerness after knowledge. Whenever I have 
 travelled with them, I observed they record their observa- 
 tions in books ; and when they return home, thus make their 
 fellow-countrymen acquainted with the most distant regions 
 of the globe. Will you believe me, that I, Persian as I am, 
 have followed their example ; and that during the period of 
 my residence at Constantinople, 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 vicis- 
 situde 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 accept it ? " 
 
 Conceive, my dear sir, conceive my happiness upon hear- 
 ing this upon at length getting into my possession precisely 
 the sort of work which you so long since had looked upon 
 as a desideratum 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 
 expressed my sense of the Mirza's liberality ; and as fast 
 as I refused 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 further inducement, he said, that he was going back 
 to his country, t uncertain if he enjoyed the favour of the 
 Shah ; and as he had freely expressed his sentiments, which 
 included his observations upon England, he was afraid,
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 should he be in disgrace, 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 manuscript. 
 It forms the subject of the following work ; and tell me, can 
 I dedicate it to any but him who first awakened my mind to 
 its value ? If you will do me the favour to peruse it, you will 
 find I have done my best endeavour to adapt it to the taste 
 of European readers, divesting it of the numerous repetitions, 
 and the tone of exaggeration and hyperbole which pervade 
 the compositions of the Easterns ; but still you will, no doubt, 
 discover much of that deviation from truth, and perversion 
 of chronology, which characterise them. However, of the 
 matter contained in the book, this I must say, that having 
 lived in the 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 an 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 circum- 
 -stances, 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 wicked- 
 ness 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 Mohamedan 
 rule, nor educated in Mohamedan principles ; whilst the 
 latter, in his turn, looking upon the rest of mankind as un- 
 clean infidels, will continue to hold fast to his bigoted per- 
 suasion, until some powerful interposition of Providence shall
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE x\xa 
 
 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 endeavour to interpret his feelings as 
 near to nature as possible. 
 
 I must now, 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, 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 hiero- 
 glyphic 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, and 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, 
 
 PEREGRINE PERSIC. 
 
 LONDON, ist December 1823.
 
 THE 
 
 ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 Of Hajjl Babcts 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 
 neighbourhood of his shop ; but the connection was not fortu- 
 nate, for his wife brought him no offspring, and he, in conse- 
 quence, 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 honoured by the epithet of 
 Kerbelai ; and I, to please my mother, who spoilt me, was 
 called Hajji, or the pilgrim, a name which has stuck to me 
 
 A
 
 2 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 through life, and procured for me a great deal of unmerited 
 respect ; because, in fact, that honoured title is seldom con- 
 ferred on any but those who have made the great pilgrimage 
 to the tomb of the blessed Prophet of Mecca. 
 
 My father having left his business during his absence to 
 his chief apprentice, resumed it with increased industry on his 
 return ; and the reputation of a zealous Mussulman, which he 
 had acquired by his journey, attracted the clergy, as well as 
 
 SHAVING THE HEAD. 
 (A sketch by James Morier.) 
 
 the merchants, to his shop. It being intended that I should 
 be brought up to the strap, I should perhaps have received 
 no more education than was necessary to teach me my prayers, 
 had I not been noticed by a mollah, or priest, who kept a school 
 in an adjoining mosque, whom my father (to keep up the 
 character 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 teach- 
 ing me to read and write ; and I made such progress under
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 3 
 
 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 prac- 
 tise upon the heads of muleteers and camel -drivers, who 
 indeed sometimes paid dear for my first essays. 
 
 THE POET SAADI. 
 
 (From an authentic portrait in Shiraz.) From tlie collection of Di\ Wills. 
 
 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 practised in India, Cashmere,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 5 
 
 and Turkey ; and I had an art peculiar to myself of making 
 the joints to crack, and my slaps echo. 
 
 Thanks to my master, I had learnt sufficiently of our 
 poets to enable me to enliven conversation with occasional 
 apt quotations 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 operation. 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 
 common resort of the foreign, as well as of the resident, mer- 
 chants ; they not unfrequently gave him something over and 
 above the usual price for the entertainment they found in 
 the repartees of his hopeful son. One of them, a Bagdad 
 merchant, took a 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 ; and immediately mentioned my 
 determination to my father. My father was very loth to lose 
 me, and endeavoured to persuade me not to leave a certain 
 profession for one which was likely to be attended with danger 
 and vicissitudes ; but when he found how advantageous were 
 the merchant's offers, and that it was not impossible that I 
 might become one myself in time, he gradually ceased to dis- 
 suade me from 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 aggrandisement ; she augured no
 
 6 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 good from a career begun in the service of a Sunz; 1 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 pre- 
 cious 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 pro- 
 pitiating a happy return from a journey undertaken under 
 such inauspicious circumstances. 
 
 1 It is perhaps almost needless to remind the reader that the Mussulmans are 
 divided into two inimical sects, viz. SAni and Shiah; and that the Turks are of 
 the former, and the Persians of the latter, persuasion. The Sunies hold that Omar, 
 Osman, and Abubekr, were the lawful successors of Mohammed. The Shias assert 
 that they were usurpers, and that Ali, his son-in-law, was the next in succession. 
 
 tlltmftli ' . ;tlal 
 
 A SCHOOL. 
 
 (From a basaar drawing.) From the collection of A. Hots, Esq.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Hajji Baba commences his Travels His Encounter with the 
 Turcomans, and his Captivity. 
 
 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 Con- 
 stantinople for sale. Imagine a short squat man, with a 
 
 PIPES AND SMOKING APPARATUS. 
 (Persian drawing.) 
 
 large head, prominent spongy nose, and a thick black beard, 
 and you will see my fellow-traveller. He was a good Mus- 
 sulman, 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
 
 8 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 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, ate much, and secretly drank wine, although he 
 denounced eternal perdition to those who openly indulged 
 in it. 
 
 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 kalian^ 
 (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, 
 carrying a pair of trunks, in which was 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 de- 
 posited in the very centre of the trunks. 
 
 The caravan 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 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 char- 
 acter of sanctity to the procession of which its other mem- 
 bers were happy to take advantage, considering in what high 
 estimation persons bound upon so laudable a purpose as a 
 pilgrimage are. always supposed to be held. 
 
 1 This is the Persian pipe, made upon the principle of the Indian hookah.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 9 
 
 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 pro- 
 jected 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 honoured 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 chaoiishes^ of the pilgrimage, who 
 announced our departure by loud cries and the beating of 
 their copper drums. We soon got acquainted with our 
 fellow-travellers, who were all armed ; but who, notwith- 
 standing their martial equipment, appeared to be very peace- 
 ably disposed persons. I was delighted with the novelty 
 of the scene, and could not help galloping and curveting my 
 horse, to the annoyance 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 favourite with all the com- 
 pany, 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 
 numbers. The dangerous part of the journey was to come, 
 as a tribe of Turcomans, who were at war with the King 
 
 1 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, &c.
 
 io THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 of Persia, were known to infest the road, and had lately 
 attacked and plundered a caravan, whilst at the same time 
 they had carried those who composed it into captivity. Such 
 
 POWDER FLASK (FRONT VIEW). 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 were the horrors related of the Turcomans, that many of our 
 party, and my master in particular, were fearful of proceeding 
 to Meshed ; but the account he received of the enormous 
 price of lamb-skins at Constantinople was so alluring, that, in
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA u 
 
 spite of everything, he resolved not to be frightened out of 
 his prospect of gain. 
 
 A chaoush had long been collecting pilgrims at Tehran 
 
 POWDER FLASK (BACK VIEW). 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 and its vicinity, in the expectation of the arrival of our cara- 
 van ; and as soon as we made our appearance, he informed 
 us that he was ready to join us with a numerous band, 
 a reinforcement which he assured us we ought to receive
 
 12 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 with gratitude, considering the dangers which we were about 
 
 THE CHAOOSH. 
 
 (An original sketch by James Morier.) 
 
 to encounter. He was a character well known on the road
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 13 
 
 between Tehran and Meshed, and enjoyed a great reputa- 
 tion for courage, which he had acquired for having cut off a 
 Turcoman's head whom he had once found dead on the road. 
 His appearance was most formidable, being in person tall and 
 broad-shouldered, with a swarthy sunburnt face, ornamented 
 by a few stiff hairs by way of beard at the end of a bony 
 chin. Clad in a breastplate of iron, a helmet with a chain 
 cape flapping over his shoulders, a curved sword by his side, 
 pistols in his girdle, a shield slung behind his back, and a 
 long spear in his hand, he seemed to bid defiance to danger. 
 He made such boast of his prowess, and talked of the Turco- 
 mans with such contempt, that my master determined to 
 proceed under his immediate escort. The caravan was ready 
 to depart a week after the festival of the New Year's day, 1 
 and after having performed our devotions at the great mosque 
 of the congregation on the Friday, we went to the village of 
 Shahabdul Azim, whence the whole body was to proceed the 
 next day on its journey. 
 
 We advanced by slow marches over a parched and dreary 
 country, that afforded little to relieve the eye or cheer the 
 heart. Whenever we approached a village, or met travellers 
 on the road, invocations of Allah and of the Prophet were 
 made by our conductors, in loud and shrill tones, accom- 
 panied by repeated blows with a leather thong on the drums 
 suspended to their saddle-bow. Our conversation chiefly 
 turned upon the Turcomans ; and although we were all 
 agreed that they were a desperate enemy, yet we managed 
 to console ourselves by the hope that nothing could withstand 
 our numbers and appearance, and by repeatedly exclaiming, 
 "In the name of God, whose dogs are they, that they should 
 think of attacking us ? " Every one vaunted his own courage. 
 My master above the rest, with his teeth actually chattering 
 from apprehension, boasted of what he would do, in case we 
 were attacked ; and, to hear his language, one would sup- 
 
 1 This takes place in the spring, when the sun enters Aries, and is called the 
 No Ruz, or the new day. The festival is not of Mohammedan origin, and dates 
 from very remote antiquity.
 
 i 4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 pose that he had done nothing all his life but fight with 
 and slaughter Turcomans. The chaoush, who overheard his 
 boastings, and who was jealous of being considered the only 
 man of courage of the party, said aloud, "No one can speak of 
 the Turcomans until they have seen them and none but an 
 ' eater of lions ' (at the same time pulling up his moustaches 
 towards his ears) ever came unhurt out of their clutches. 
 Saadi speaks truth when he sayeth, ' A young man, though 
 he hath strength of arm, and the force of an elephant, will kick 
 his heel ropes 1 to pieces with fear in the day of battle.' " 
 
 But Osman Aga's principal hope of security, and of faring 
 better than others in case we were attacked, was in the cir- 
 cumstance of his being a follower of Omar ; 2 and, by way of 
 proclaiming it, he wound a piece of green muslin round his 
 cap, and gave himself out as an emir, or a descendant of the 
 Prophet, to whom, as the reader may guess, he was no more 
 allied than to the mule upon which he rode. 
 
 We had proceeded in this manner for several days, when 
 the chaoush informed us, in a solemn and important manner, 
 that we were now approaching to the places where the Turco- 
 mans generally lie in wait for caravans, and directed that we 
 should all march in a compact body, and invited us to make 
 preparations for a desperate resistance in case we were attacked. 
 The first impulse of my master was to tie his gun, sword, and 
 pistols on one of his baggage-mules. He then complained of 
 an affection in the bowels, and so, abandoning all his former 
 intentions of engaging in combat, wrapped himself up in the 
 folds of his cloak, put on a face of great misery, took to count- 
 ing his beads, ever and anon repeating the prayer of Stafer- 
 allah, or " God forgive me ; " and, thus prepared, resigned 
 himself to his destiny. His greatest dependence for protec- 
 tion he seemed to have placed upon the chaoush, who, among 
 other reasons for asserting his indifference to danger, pointed 
 
 1 By heel ropes is meant those fastenings which are used to secure horses in 
 the East. 
 
 2 The Turcomans, as well as the Turks, their descendants, are of the Suni 
 persuasion : with them green is a sacred colour ; but it is not so among the 
 Shidhs.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 15 
 
 to the numerous talismans and spells that he wore bound on 
 his arms, and which, he boldly maintained, would avert the 
 arrow of a Turcoman at any time. 
 
 This double-bladed sword of a man, and one or two of the 
 boldest of the caravan, rode ahead at some distance, as an 
 advanced guard, and every now and then, by way of keeping 
 up their courage, galloped their horses, brandishing their 
 lances, and thrusting them forward into the air. 
 
 At length what we so much apprehended actually came to 
 pass. We heard some shots fired, and then our ears were 
 struck by wild and barbarous shoutings. The whole of us 
 stopped in dismay, and men and animals, as if by common 
 instinct, like a flock of small birds when they see a hawk at a 
 distance, huddled ourselves together into one compact body. 
 But when we in reality perceived a body of Turcomans coming 
 down upon us, the scene instantly changed. Some ran away ; 
 others, and among them my master, losing all their energies, 
 yielded to intense fear, and began to exclaim, " O Allah ! 
 O Imams ! O Mohammed the prophet ; we are gone ! we 
 are dying ! we are dead ! " The muleteers unloosed their 
 loads from their beasts, and drove them away. A shower of 
 arrows, which the enemy discharged as they came on, achieved 
 their conquest, and we soon became their prey. The chaoush, 
 who had outlived many a similar fray, fled in the very first 
 encounter, and we neither saw nor heard any more of him. 
 The invaders soon fell to work upon the baggage, which was 
 now spread all over the plain. 
 
 My master had rolled himself up between two bales of 
 goods to wait the event, but was discovered by a Turcoman of 
 great size, and of a most ferocious aspect, who, taking him at 
 first for part of the baggage, turned him over on his back, 
 when (as we see a woodlouse do) he opened out at full length, 
 and expressed all his fears by the most abject entreaties. He 
 tried to soften the Turcoman by invoking Omar, and cursing 
 Ali ; but nothing would do ; the barbarian was inexorable : he 
 only left him in possession of his turban, out of consideration 
 to its colour, but in other respects he completely stripped him,
 
 1 6 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 leaving him nothing but his drawers and shirt, and clothing 
 himself with my master's comfortable cloak and trousers before 
 his face. My clothes being scarcely worth the taking, I was 
 permitted to enjoy them unmolested, and I retained possession 
 of my case of razors, to my no small satisfaction. 
 
 The Turcomans, having completed their plunder, made a 
 distribution of the prisoners. We were blindfolded, and placed 
 each of us behind a horseman, and after having travelled for 
 a whole day in this manner, we rested at night in a lonely 
 dell. The next day we were permitted to see, and found 
 ourselves on roads known only to the Turcomans. 
 
 Passing through wild and unfrequented tracts of moun- 
 tainous country, we at length discovered a large plain, which 
 was so extensive that it seemed the limits of the world, and 
 was covered with the black tents and the numerous flocks 
 and herds of our enemies. 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 Into what hands Hajji Baba falls, and the fortune which his 
 razors proved to him. 
 
 THE distribution of their prisoners which had been made by 
 the Turcomans turned out so far fortunate, that Osman Aga 
 and I fell into the hands of one master, the savage robber 
 whom I have before mentioned. He was called Asian 
 Sultan? or the Lion Chief, and proved to be the captain of a 
 considerable encampment, which we reached almost imme- 
 diately after descending from the mountains into the plain. 
 His tents were situated on the borders of a deep ravine, at 
 the bottom of which flowed a stream that took its rise in a 
 chain of neighbouring hills ; and green pastures, teeming with 
 
 1 The word Sultan, which in Europe is generally used to designate the sovereign 
 of Turkey, among the Tartars, Turcomans, &c., means captain or chief and is given 
 frequently to subalterns, as well as to those of higher rank.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 17 
 
 cattle, were spread around as far as the eye could reach. Our 
 other fellow-sufferers were carried into a more distant part 
 of the country, and distributed among the different tribes of 
 Turcomans who inhabit this region. 
 
 At our appearance the whole encampment turned out to 
 look at us, and whilst our conqueror was greeted with loud 
 welcomes, we were barked at and nearly devoured by a pack 
 of large sheep-dogs, who had soon selected us out as strangers. 
 My master's green shawl had hitherto procured him some 
 degree of respect ; but the chief wife, or the Banou? as she 
 was called, was seized at first sight with a strong desire to 
 possess it ; so he was left with no other covering to his head 
 than his padded caouk, or tiara, which contained his money. 
 That, too, was longed for by another wife, who said that it 
 would just do to stuff the pack-saddle which had galled her 
 camel's back, and it was taken from his head, and thrown 
 among other lumber into a corner of the tent. He did all he 
 could to keep possession of this last remnant of his fortune, 
 but to no purpose ; in lieu of it he received an old sheep-skin 
 cap, which had belonged to some unfortunate man, who, like 
 us, had been a prisoner, and who had lately died of grief and 
 wretchedness. 
 
 My master having been installed in the possession of the 
 dead man's cap, was soon appointed to fill his situation, which 
 was that of tending the camels, when they were sent to feed 
 upon the mountains, and, as he was fat and unwieldy, there 
 was no apprehension of his running away. As for me, I was 
 not permitted to leave the tents, but was, for the present, 
 employed in shaking the leather bags which contained the 
 curds from which butter was made. 
 
 In order to celebrate the success of the expedition, an 
 entertainment was given by the chief to the whole encamp- 
 ment. A large caldron, filled with rice, was boiled, and two 
 sheep were roasted whole. The men, consisting of our chiefs 
 
 1 Banou implies a female head or chief; thus in the Arabian Nights, Pari- 
 banou, or more properly Peribanou, means the chief of the fairies. The King of 
 Persia's principal wife is styled Banou Harem, chief of the harem. 
 
 B
 
 1 8 
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 relations, who came from the surrounding tents, and most of 
 whom had been at the attack of our caravan, were assembled 
 one tent, whilst the women were collected in another. 
 
 n 
 
 After the rice and the sheep had been served up to the men, 
 
 A MAN IN A SHEEPSKIN CAP. 
 
 (An original drawing by James Morier. ) 
 
 they were carried to the women, and when they had done, 
 the shepherds' boys were served, and, after they had devoured 
 their utmost, the bones and scrapings of dishes were given to 
 us and the dogs. But, when I was waiting with great anxiety
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 19 
 
 for our morsel, having scarcely tasted food since we were 
 taken, I was secretly beckoned to by one of the women, who 
 made me screen myself behind a tent, and, setting down a 
 dish of rice, with a bit of the sheep's tail in it, which was sent, 
 she said, by the chief's wife, who pitied my misfortune, and 
 bade me be of good courage, hurried away without waiting 
 for my acknowledgments. 
 
 The day was passed by the men in smoking, and relating 
 their adventures, and by the women in singing and beating 
 the tambourine, whilst my poor master and I were left to 
 ponder over our forlorn situation. The mark of favour which 
 I had just received had set my imagination to work, and led 
 me to consider my condition as not entirely desperate. But 
 in vain I endeavoured to cheer up the spirits of my com- 
 panion ; he did not cease to bewail his hard fate. I brought 
 to his mind that constant refuge of every true Mussulman in 
 grief, "Allah kerim ! God is merciful!" His answer was, 
 " Allak kerim, Allah kerim, is all very well for you who had 
 nothing to lose ; but in the meantime I am ruined for ever." 
 His greatest concern seemed to be the having failed to secure 
 the profits which he had expected to make on his larnb-skins, 
 and he passed all his time in calculating, to the utmost farthing, 
 what had been his losses on this occasion. However, we 
 were soon to be parted. He was sent off the next day to the 
 mountains, in charge of a string of fifty camels, with terrible 
 threats from the chief that his nose and ears should pay for 
 the loss of any one of them, and that if one died, its price 
 should be added to the ransom money which he hereafter 
 expected to receive for him. As the last testimony of my 
 affection for him, I made him sit down on a camel's pack- 
 saddle, and, with some water from a neighbouring spring, 
 and a piece of soap, which, together with my razors, I had 
 saved from the wreck of our fortunes, shaved him in the face 
 of the whole camp. I very soon found that this exhibition 
 of my abilities and profession might be productive of the 
 greatest advantage to my future prospects. Every fellow who 
 had a head to scratch immediately found out that he wanted
 
 20 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 shaving, 1 and my reputation soon reached the ears of the chief, 
 who called me to him, and ordered me to operate upon him 
 without loss of time. I soon went to work upon a large head 
 that exhibited the marks of many a sword-cut, and which 
 presented as rough a surface as that of the sheep-dogs afore- 
 mentioned. He, who had been accustomed to have his hair 
 clipped, perhaps with the same instrument that sheared his 
 sheep, and who knew of no greater luxury than that of being 
 
 A HORSEMAN (CHAOUSH) CARRYING A SPEAR. 
 
 (A bazaar drawing.) From the collection of A. Hots, Esq. 
 
 mutilated by some country barber, felt himself in paradise 
 under my hand. He freely expressed his satisfaction and his 
 approbation of my services, said, on feeling his head, that I 
 had shaved him two days' march under the skin, swore that 
 he never would accept of any ransom for me, be it what it 
 might, and that I should henceforth be entitled to the appoint- 
 ment of his own body barber. I leave the gentle reader to 
 guess what were my feelings upon this occasion. Whilst I 
 
 1 All classes of Mohammedans shave the crown of the head. In Persia two 
 patches of hair are left behind each ear by way of curls- In Turkey a tuft is left 
 on the very summit of the head.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 21 
 
 stooped down and kissed the knee of this my new master, 
 with every appearance of gratitude and respect, I determined 
 to make use of the liberty which the confidence reposed in me 
 might afford, by running away on the very first favourable 
 opportunity. From being so often near the person of the 
 chief, I soon began to acquire great ascendency over him ; 
 and, although I was still watched with care, yet I could 
 already devise plans, which appeared to me to be practicable, 
 for escaping from this hateful servitude into which I was 
 thrown, and I felt in a less degree than another would have 
 done the drudgery and wretchedness of my situation. 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 Of his ingenuity in rescuing his masters money from the Turcoman, 
 and of his determination to keep it. 
 
 ONE of the first objects which I had in view for the further- 
 ance of my plan of escape was to obtain possession of the 
 money which was sewed in the padding of my former master's 
 turban. But it had been thrown into a corner of the women's 
 tent, to which I had no access, and it required much ingenuity 
 to get at it without creating suspicion. I had established my 
 reputation as a barber throughout ours and the neighbouring 
 encampments, and had become a favourite of the men ; but 
 although I had reason to believe that the Banou of my master 
 would fain become more intimately acquainted with me than 
 she hitherto had been, yet as neither she nor any of the other 
 women could employ me in my profession as a shaver, our 
 intercourse hitherto had been confined to tender glances, 
 occasional acts of kindness on her part, and of corresponding 
 marks of thankfulness and acknowledgment on mine. But 
 as they knew enough of civilised life to be aware that in 
 Persia barbers were also surgeons that besides shaving and 
 rubbing in the bath, they could bleed, draw teeth, and set a
 
 22 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 broken limb the Banou soon discovered that she wanted to 
 be bled, and sent a deputation to ask me if I could perform 
 that service for her. Looking upon this as a favourable 
 opportunity to learn some tidings of the object of my solici- 
 tude, or perhaps to gain possession of it, I immediately 
 answered that, provided I was furnished with a penknife, I 
 hoped that I could bleed as dexterously as the best of my 
 profession. The instrument was produced, and one of the 
 elders of the tribe, who pretended to a smattering of astrology, 
 announced that a conjunction of the planets favourable to 
 such an operation would take place on the following morning. 
 At that auspicious moment I was introduced into the women's 
 tent, where I found the Banou seated on a carpet on the 
 ground, waiting for me with great impatience. She was not 
 a person to excite sensations of a tender nature in a novice 
 like me ; for, in the first place, she was of an unwieldy size l 
 (so different from the slim forms that we are taught to prize 
 in Persia) that I looked upon her with disgust ; and, in the 
 next, I lived in such terror of Asian Sultan, that had I aspired 
 to her favour, it must have been in the constant dread of the 
 loss of my ears. However, I was much noticed by her, and 
 received great attentions from her companions, who, looking 
 upon me as a being of a superior order, all wanted to have 
 their pulses felt. Whilst making my preparations for bleed- 
 ing the Banou, I cast my eyes about the tent, in the hopes of 
 seeing the prize which I was anxious to possess. It struck 
 me that I might make the very operation in which I was 
 engaged subservient to my views, and demanding to feel the 
 patient's pulse once more, which I did with a look of intense 
 meditation, I observed that this was a complicated disorder- 
 that the blood must not be allowed to flow upon the ground, 
 but be collected in a vessel, that I might examine it at leisure. 
 This strange proposal of mine raised an immediate outcry 
 amongst the women ; but with the Banou a deviation from 
 the usual practice only served to confirm her opinion of my 
 
 1 The Turks differ materially from the Persians in their tastes for women, the 
 one admiring corpulency, whilst the latter show greater refinement, and esteem 
 those forms which are mostly prized in Europe.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 23 
 
 superior skill. Here, however, a new difficulty arose. The 
 scanty stock of a Turcoman could ill afford to sacrifice any 
 utensil by applying it to a service which would defile it for 
 ever. They were recapitulated one by one, and all found 
 too precious to be thrown away. I was hesitating whether 
 I might venture to go straight to my point, when the Banou 
 bethought herself of an old leather drinking-cup, which she de- 
 sired one of the women to search for in a corner of the tent. 
 
 " This will never do ; you can see, the light through it," 
 said I, holding it up towards the tent-door, and pointing to 
 the seams with the penknife, which I held in my hand, and 
 with which I cut, at the same time, half-a-dozen of the stitches. 
 
 "Where is the cap of that old Emir?" cried out the 
 -Banou. 
 
 " It is mine," said the second wife ; " I want it to stuff my 
 saddle with." 
 
 " Yours ! " returned the other in a fury. There is but one 
 God ! Am not I the Banou of this harem ? I will have it." 
 
 "You shall not," retorted the other. 
 
 Upon this an uproar ensued, which became so loud and 
 threatening, that I feared it would come to the ears of Asian 
 Sultan, who very probably would have settled the dispute by 
 taking at once the bone of contention from the contending 
 parties. But luckily the astrologer interfered, and when he 
 had assured the second wife that the blood of the Banou would 
 be upon her head if anything unfortunate happened on this 
 occasion, she consented to give up her pretensions. I accord- 
 ingly prepared to bleed my patient ; but when she saw the 
 penknife, the cap underneath to receive her blood, and the 
 anxious faces of those about her, she became frightened, and 
 refused to permit me to proceed. Fearing after all that I 
 should lose my prize, I put on a very sagacious look, felt her 
 pulse, and said that her refusal was unavailing, for that it 
 was her fate to be bled, and that she and every one knew 
 nothing could avert an event which had been decreed since the 
 beginning of the world. To this there was no reply ; and all 
 agreeing that she would commit a great sin were she to
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 25 
 
 oppose herself to the decrees of Providence, she put out her 
 bare arm, and received the stab from my penknife with appa- 
 rent fortitude. The blood was caught ; and when the operation 
 was over, I ordered that it should be conveyed to a little dis- 
 tance from the camp, and that none but myself should be 
 permitted to approach it, as much of the good or evil that 
 might accrue to the patient from bleeding depended upon 
 what happened to the blood after it had flowed from the body. 
 I waited until night, when everybody was asleep, and then 
 with great anxiety ripped up the lining, where to my joy I 
 found the fifty ducats, which I immediately concealed in 
 an adjacent spot, and then dug a hole for the cap, which I 
 also concealed. In the morning I informed the Banou that, 
 having seen some wolves prowling about the tents, I feared 
 that something unlucky might happen to her blood, and that 
 I had buried it, caouk and all. This appeared to satisfy her ; 
 and by way of recompense for the service I had rendered, 
 she sent me a dish made with her own hands, consisting of 
 a lamb roasted whole, stuffed with rice and raisins, accom- 
 panied by a bowl of sour milk with salt in it. 
 
 I must confess that when I became possessed of the fifty 
 ducats, a recollection of my poor former master, who was 
 leading a melancholy life in the mountains with the camels, 
 whilst I was living in comparative luxury, came across my 
 mind, and I half resolved to restore them to him ; but by little 
 and little I began to argue differently with myself. "Had it 
 not been for my ingenuity," said I, "the money was lost for 
 ever; who, therefore, has a better claim to it than myself? 
 If he were to get possession of it again, it could be of no use 
 to him in his new profession, and it is a hundred to one but 
 that it would be taken from him ; therefore I had best keep 
 it for the present ; besides, it was his fate to lose, and mine 
 to recover it." This settled every difficulty ; and I looked 
 upon myself as the legitimate possessor of fifty ducats, which 
 I conceived no law could take from me. Meanwhile I made 
 an attempt to convey to him half of the roasted lamb which I 
 had just received, through the means of a shepherd's boy who
 
 26 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 was going into the mountains, and who promised not to eat 
 any of it by the wayside. Although I doubted his word, yet, 
 after my deliberation about the ducats, my conscience wanted 
 some quietus. "I cannot do less," said I, "than make my 
 fellow- sufferer in adversity a partaker of my prosperity." 
 But, alas ! the boy had scarcely crossed the deep ravine that 
 bordered the encampment ere I could perceive him carrying 
 the meat to his mouth, and I made no doubt that every bone 
 was picked clean before he was out of my sight. It would 
 have been a useless undertaking to have pursued him, con- 
 sidering the distance that already separated us, so I contented 
 myself by discharging a stone and a malediction at his head, 
 neither of which reached their destination. 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 Hajji Baba becomes a robber in his own defence, and invades 
 his native city. 
 
 I HAD now been above a year in the hands of the Turcomans, 
 during which I had acquired the entire confidence of my 
 master. He consulted me upon all his own affairs, as well as 
 those of his community ; and as he considered that I might 
 now be depended upon, he determined to permit me to accom- 
 pany him in a predatory excursion into Persia a permission 
 which, in hopes of a good opportunity to escape, I had fre- 
 quently entreated of him to grant. Hitherto I had never been 
 allowed to stray beyond the encampment and its surrounding 
 pastures, and as I was totally ignorant of the roads through 
 the great salt desert which separated us from Persia, I knew 
 that it would be in vain for me to attempt flight, as many before 
 me had done, and had invariably perished or returned to their 
 masters, who treated them with more rigour than before. I 
 therefore rejoiced that I now had an opportunity of observing
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 27 
 
 the country we were about to cross, and determined with 
 myself that if I could not get away during this expedition, 
 nothing should hinder my attempting it on our return. The 
 Turcomans generally make their principal excursions in the 
 spring, when they find pasturage for their horses in the high 
 lands, and fresh corn in the plains, and because they then are 
 almost certain of meeting caravans to plunder on their march. 
 This season being now near at hand, Asian called together the 
 chiefs of his tribe, the heads of tens, and the heads of hundreds, 
 and all those who were skilled in plunder, and proposed a plan 
 to them of an incursion into the very heart of Persia. Their 
 object was to reach Ispahan itself, to enter the city in the 
 night, when all was quiet, and to sack the caravanserai, to 
 which the richest merchants were known to resort. Our guide 
 through the great salt desert was to be my master in person, 
 whose experience and local knowledge were greater than that 
 of any of his contemporaries ; and he proposed to the council 
 that as no one amongst them, except myself, knew the streets 
 and bazaars of Ispahan, I should lead the way when once we 
 had entered the city. This was opposed by several, who said 
 that it was imprudent to trust a stranger and a native of the 
 very place they intended to attack, who would be likely to run 
 off the moment he could do so with safety. At length, after 
 much discussion, it was agreed that I should be their guide 
 in Ispahan : that two men should ride close on each side of 
 me, and in case I showed the least symptom of treachery 
 in my movements, kill me on the spot. This being settled, 
 the Turcomans put their horses in training, and one was 
 appointed for my use, which had the reputation of having 
 twice borne away the flag at their races. 1 I was equipped as 
 a Turcoman, with a large sheep-skin cap on my head, a sheep- 
 skin coat, a sword, a bow and arrows, and a heavy spear, the 
 head of which was taken off or put on as the occasion might 
 require. I had a bag of corn tied behind on my horse, 
 besides ropes to tether him with when we made a halt ; and 
 
 1 The races that take place among the Turcomans and the Persians are 
 intended to try the bottom, rather than the actual speed of their horses.
 
 28 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 for my own food I carried several flaps of bread, 1 and half-a- 
 dozen of hard eggs, trusting to the chapter of accidents, and 
 to my own endurance of hunger, for further sustenance. I had 
 already made a very tolerable apprenticeship to a hard life 
 since I had first been taken, by sleeping on the ground, with 
 the first thing that I could seize for a pillow, and thus I looked 
 upon the want of a bed as no privation. My companions 
 were equally hardy ; and in point of bodily fatigue, perhaps, 
 we were a match for any nation in the world. 
 
 I took previous care to unbury the fifty ducats, which I 
 tied very carefully in my girdle ; and I promised my former 
 master, who from fretting had worn himself down to a 
 skeleton, that if ever I had an opportunity, I would do all in 
 my power to make his friends ransom him. " Ah," said he, 
 "no one will ever ransom me! As for my son, he will be 
 happy to get my property ; and as for my wife, she will be 
 happy to get another husband : so no hope is left. There is 
 only one favour I beg of you, which is, to inquire what is the 
 price of lamb-skins at Constantinople." 
 
 Here I had another struggle with my conscience on the 
 subject of the ducats. Should I restore them ? Would it 
 not be more advantageous, even to my master, that I should 
 keep them ? My ability to take advantage of this opportunity 
 to escape might depend upon my having a little money in my 
 purse and what chance had he of being relieved but through 
 my interference ? All things considered, I let them remain 
 in my girdle. 
 
 The astrologer having fixed upon a lucky hour for our 
 departure, we mounted at nightfall. Our party consisted of 
 Asian Sultan, who was appointed chief of the expedition, and 
 of twenty men, myself included. Our companions were com- 
 posed of the principal men of the different encampments in 
 our neighbourhood, and were all, more or less, accomplished 
 cavaliers. They were mounted upon excellent horses, the 
 speed and bottom of which are so justly celebrated throughout 
 
 1 The bread here alluded to is baked on small and convex iron plates, and 
 when prepared is about thethickness of brown paper.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BAB A 29 
 
 Asia ; and as we rode along in the moonlight, completely 
 armed, I was persuaded that we looked as desperate a gang 
 of ruffians as ever took the field. For my part, I felt that 
 nature had never intended me for a warrior ; and although I 
 thought that I could keep up appearances as well as most 
 men in my predicament, and indeed I believe did act my part 
 so perfectly as to make both my master and his companions 
 believe that they had got a very Rustam l in me, yet I dreaded 
 the time when I should be put to the trial. 
 
 I was surprised to observe the dexterity with which our 
 chief led us through the thick forests that clothe the mountains 
 which border the plains of Kipchak. The dangers of the 
 precipices and the steep ascents were something quite appal- 
 ling to a young traveller like me ; but my companions rode 
 over everything with the greatest unconcern, confident in the 
 sure-footedness of their horses. Having once ascended the 
 lountains, we entered upon the arid plains of Persia, and 
 here my master's knowledge of the country was again con- 
 spicuous. He knew every summit the moment it appeared, 
 with the same certainty as an experienced Frank sailor 
 recognises a distant headland at sea. But he showed his 
 sagacity most in drawing his inferences from the tracks and 
 footsteps of animals. He could tell what description of 
 travellers they belonged to, whence coming, whither going, 
 whether enemy or friend, whether laden or unladen, and what 
 their probable numbers, with the greatest precision. 
 
 We travelled with much precaution as long as we were 
 in the inhabited parts of the country, lying by during the day, 
 and making all expedition at night. Our stock of provender 
 and provisions was renewed at the last encampment of the 
 wandering tribes which we visited before we reached the 
 great salt desert, and when we entered it, we urged our 
 horses on with as much haste as we knew their strength 
 was likely to support. At length, after travelling about 120 
 
 1 Rustam is the fabulous hero of Persian history, so much celebrated in the 
 Shahnameh as a paragon of strength and courage. His duel with Asfendiar y 
 which lasted two whole days, is the theme of Persian romance.
 
 30 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 parasangs, 1 we found ourselves in the environs of Ispahan. 
 The moment for reaping the fruit of our fatigue, and for 
 trying my courage, was now at hand, and my heart quite 
 misgave me when I heard of the plan of attack which my 
 companions proposed. 
 
 Their scheme was to enter the city through one of the 
 unguarded avenues, which were well known to me, and at 
 midnight to make straight for the Royal Caravanserai, where 
 we were sure to find a great many merchants, who at this 
 season of the year collect there with ready money to make 
 their purchases. We were at once to carry off all the cash 
 we could find, then to seize and gag each a merchant if we 
 were able, and this to be done with so much despatch that 
 before the city could be alarmed, we might be on the road to 
 our encampment again. I found the plan so hazardous, and 
 so little likely to succeed, that I gave it as my opinion that 
 we ought not to attempt it ; but my master, putting on his 
 most determined look, said to me, " Hajji ! open your eyes 
 this is no child's play ! I swear by the beard of the Prophet, 
 that if you do not behave well, I'll burn your father. We 
 have succeeded before, and why should we not be as success- 
 ful now ? " He then ordered me to ride near him, and placed 
 another ruffian at my side, and both vowed, if I flinched, 
 that they would immediately run me through the body. We 
 then took the lead ; and, from my knowledge of Ispahan, I 
 easily picked my way through the ruins which surround it, 
 and then entered into the inhabited streets, which were at 
 that time of night entirely forsaken. When near the scene 
 of action, we stopped under the arches of one of the ruined 
 houses, which are so frequently to be met with even in the 
 most inhabited parts of the city, and, dismounting from our 
 horses, picketed them to the ground with pegs and heel- 
 ropes, 2 and left them under the care of two of our men. By 
 
 1 A parasang is equivalent to about three and a half geographical miles. 
 
 2 A fully-equipped horseman in the East generally carries with him an iron 
 peg, to which is affixed a rope terminated by a noose, with which he pickets his 
 horse wherever he may alight. The rope is buttoned to the fore leg, whilst the 
 peg is driven into the ground with a stone.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 31 
 
 way of precaution, we appointed a rendezvous in a lonely 
 dell about five parasangs from Ispahan, to which it was 
 determined we should retreat as circumstances might require. 
 Once on foot, we proceeded without noise in a body, avoid- 
 ing as much as we could the bazaars, where I knew that the 
 officers of the police kept watch, and by lanes reached the 
 gate of the caravanserai. Here was a place, every square 
 inch of which I knew by heart, namely, my father's shaving 
 shop. Being aware that the gate of the caravanserai would 
 be locked, 1 made the' party halt there; and, taking up a 
 stone, knocked, and called out to the door-keeper by name : 
 "Ali Mohammed," said I, "open, open; the caravan is 
 arrived." 
 
 Between asleep and awake, without showing the least 
 symptom of opening, " What caravan ? " said he. 
 
 "The caravan from Bagdad." 
 
 "From Bagdad! why, that arrived yesterday. Do you 
 laugh at my beard ? " 
 
 Seeing myself entrapped, I was obliged to have recourse 
 to my own name, and said, " Why, a caravan to be sure with 
 Hajji Baba, Kerbelai Hassan the barber's son, who went 
 away with Osman Aga, the Bagdad merchant. I bring the 
 news, and expect the present." 
 
 "What, Hajji?" said the porter; "he who used to shave 
 my head so well? His place has long been empty. You 
 are welcome." 
 
 Upon which he began to unbolt the heavy gates of the 
 entrance porch, which, as they creaked on their hinges, dis- 
 covered a little old man, in his drawers, with an iron lamp in 
 his hand, which shed enough light to show us that the place 
 was full of merchants and their effects. 
 
 One of our party immediately seized upon him, and then 
 we all rushed in and fell to work. Expert in these sort of 
 attacks, my companions knew exactly where to go for plunder, 
 and they soon took possession of all the gold and silver that 
 was to be found ; but their first object was to secure some two 
 or three of the richest merchants, whose ransom might be a
 
 32 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 further source of wealth to them. Ere the alarm had been 
 spread, they had seized upon three, who, from their sleeping 
 upon fine beds, covered with shawl quilts, and reposing upon 
 embroidered cushions, they expected would prove a good 
 
 . 
 
 
 THE DOOR-KEEPER. 
 
 (An original sketch by Morier.} 
 
 prize. These they bound hand and foot after their fashion, 
 and, forcing them away, placed them upon their best horses 
 behind riders, who immediately retreated from the scene of 
 action to the rendezvous. 
 
 From my knowledge of the caravanserai itself, and of the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 33 
 
 rooms which the richest merchants generally occupied, I knew 
 where cash was to be found, and I entered one room as softly 
 as I could (the very room which my first master had occupied), 
 and seizing upon the small box in which the merchants gene- 
 rally keep their money, I made off with it. To my joy, I 
 found it contained a heavy bag, which I thrust into my bosom, 
 and carried it about with me as well as I could, although, on 
 account of the darkness, I could not ascertain of what metal 
 it was. 
 
 By the time we had nearly finished our operations the city 
 had been alarmed. Almost all the people within the caravan- 
 serai, such as servants, grooms, and mule-drivers, at the first 
 alarm had retreated to the roof; the neighbouring inhabitants 
 then came in flocks, not knowing exactly what to do : then 
 came the police magistrate and his officers, who also clambered 
 on the roof of the caravanserai, but who only increased the 
 uproar by their cries, exclaiming, "Strike! seize! kill!" with- 
 out in fact doing anything to repulse the enemy. Some few 
 shots were fired at random ; but, owing to the darkness and 
 the general confusion, we managed to steal away without any 
 serious accident. During the fray I was frequently tempted 
 to leave the desperate gang to which I belonged, and hide 
 myself in some corner until they were gone ; but I argued 
 thus with myself: If I should succeed in getting away, still 
 my dress would discover me ; and before I could explain who 
 I really was, I should certainly fall a sacrifice to the fury of 
 the populace, the effects of which more than once I had had 
 occasion to witness. My father's shop was before me ; the 
 happy days I had passed in that very caravanserai were in 
 my recollection, and I was in the act of deliberating within 
 myself what I should do, when I felt myself roughly seized 
 by the arm, and the first thing which I recognised on turn- 
 ing round was the grim face of Asian Sultan, who threatened 
 to kill me on the spot if I did not render myself worthy 
 of the confidence he had placed in me. In order to show 
 him my prowess, I fastened upon a Persian who had just 
 rushed by us, and, throwing him down, I exclaimed that,
 
 34 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 if he did not quietly submit to be taken prisoner and to 
 follow me, I would put him to death. He began to make 
 the usual lamentations, " For the sake of Imam Hosein, 
 by the soul of your father, by the beard of Omar, I con- 
 jure you to leave me ! " and immediately I recognised a voice 
 that could belong to no one but my own father. By a 
 gleam from a lantern, I discovered his well-known face. It 
 was evident that, hearing the commotion, he had left his 
 bed to secure the property in his shop, which altogether did 
 not consist of more than half-a-dozen of towels, a case of 
 razors, soap, and a carpet. The moment I recognised him, 
 I let go his beard, of which I had got a fast hold, and, owing 
 to that habit of respect which we Persians show to our parents, 
 would have kissed his hand and stood before him. But my 
 life was in danger if I appeared to flinch, so I continued to 
 struggle with him ; and in order to show myself in earnest, 
 pretending to beat him, I administered my blows to a mule's 
 pack-saddle that was close to where he lay. This while I 
 heard my father muttering to himself, " Ah, if Hajji was here, 
 he would not permit me to be served in this way ! " which had 
 such an effect upon me, that I immediately let him go, and 
 exclaimed in Turkish to the surrounding Turcomans, " He 
 won't do for us ; he's only a barber." So without more cere- 
 mony I quitted the scene of action, mounted my horse, and 
 retreated in full gallop through the city. 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 Concerning the three prisoners taken by the Turcomans, and of the 
 booty made in the caravanserai. 
 
 WHEN we had reached our place of rendezvous, we dismounted 
 from our horses, and made a halt to rest them, and to recruit 
 ourselves after the fatigues of the night. One of the party
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 35 
 
 had not forgotten to steal a lamb as we rode along, which was 
 soon put into a fit state to be roasted. It was cut up into 
 small pieces, which were stuck on a ramrod, and placed over 
 a slow fire made of what underwood we could find, mixed up 
 with the dung of the animals, and, thus heated, was devoured 
 most ravenously by us all. 
 
 Our next care was to ascertain the value of our prisoners. 
 One was a tall thin man, about fifty years of age, with a sharp 
 eye, a hollow, aguish cheek, a scanty beard, wearing a pair of 
 silken drawers, and a shawl undercoat. The other was a 
 short round man, of a middle age, with a florid face, dressed 
 in a dark vest, buttoning over his breast, and looked like an 
 officer of the law. The third was stout and hairy, of rough 
 aspect, of a strong, vigorous form, and who was bound with 
 more care than the others on account of the superior resist- 
 ance which he had made. 
 
 After we had finished our meal, and distributed the re- 
 mains of it to the prisoners, we called them before us, and 
 questioned them as to their professions and situations in life. 
 The tall thin man, upon whose rich appearance the Turco- 
 mans founded their chief hope, was first examined, and as I 
 was the only one of our party who could talk Persian, I stood 
 interpreter. 
 
 " Who and what are you ? " said Asian Sultan. 
 
 " I," said the prisoner, in a very subdued voice, " I beg 
 to state, for the good of your service, that I am nothing I 
 am a poor man." 
 
 " What's your business ? " 
 
 " I am a poet, at your service : what can I do more ? " 
 
 " A poet ! " cried one of the roughest of the Turcomans ; 
 " what is that good for ? " 
 
 " Nothing," answered Asian Sultan, in a rage ; "he won't 
 fetch ten tomauns ; l poets are always poor, and live upon 
 what they can cozen from others. Who will ransom a poet ? 
 But if you are so poor," said Asian Sultan, "how do you 
 come by those rich clothes ? " 
 
 1 A tomaun is the principal gold coin of Persia, worth about 145.
 
 36 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 "They are part of a dress of honour," returned the poet, 
 " which was lately conferred upon me by the Prince of Shiraz, 
 for having written some verses in his praise." 
 
 Upon which the clothes were taken from him, a sheep- 
 skin cloak given to him in return, and he was dismissed for 
 the present. Then came the short man. 
 
 "Who are you?" said the chief; "what is your pro- 
 fession ? " 
 
 " I am a poor cadi," answered the other. 
 
 " How came you to sleep in a fine bed, if you are poor ? " 
 said his interrogator. " You father of a dog, if you lie, we'll 
 take your head off! Confess that you are rich. All cadies 
 are rich : they live by selling themselves to the highest bidder." 
 
 " I am the cadi of Galadoun, at your service," said the 
 prisoner. " I was ordered to Ispahan by the governor to 
 settle for the rent of a village which I occupy." 
 
 " Where is the money for your rent ? " said Asian. 
 
 "I came to say," answered the cadi, "that 1 had no 
 money to give, for that the locusts had destroyed all my last 
 year's crops, and that there had been a want of water." 
 
 "Then, after all, what is this fellow worth?" said one of 
 the gang. 
 
 "He is worth a good price," replied the chief, "if he 
 happens to be a good cadi, for then the peasants may wish 
 him back again; but if not, a dinar 1 is too much for him. 
 We must keep him : perhaps he is of more value than a 
 merchant would be. But let us see how much this other 
 fellow is likely to fetch." 
 
 They then brought the rough man before them, and 
 Asian Sultan questioned him in the usual manner "What 
 are you ? " 
 
 " I am a ferash " (a carpet-spreader), said he, in a very 
 sulky manner. 
 
 "A ferash I" cried out the whole gang, "a ferash! 
 The fellow lies! How came you to sleep in a fine bed?" 
 said one. 
 
 1 The dinar is the smallest denomination of money in Persia.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 37 
 
 "It was not mine," he answered ; " it was my master's." 
 
 A COTTON-CARDER. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 "He lies ! he lies ! " they all cried out : " he is a merchant 
 -you are a merchant. Own it, or we'll put you to death."
 
 38 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 In vain he asserted that he was only a carpet-spreader; 
 nobody believed him, and he received so many blows from 
 different quarters, that at last he was obliged to roar out that 
 he was a merchant. 
 
 But I, who judged from the appearance of the man that 
 he could not be a merchant, but that he was what he owned 
 himself to be, assured my companions that they had got but 
 a sorry prize in him, and advised them to release him ; but 
 immediately I was assailed in my turn with a thousand male- 
 dictions, and was told, that if I chose to take part with my 
 countrymen, I should share their fate, and become a slave 
 again so I was obliged to keep my peace, and permit the 
 ruffians to have their own way. 
 
 Their speculation in man-stealing having proved so un- 
 fortunate, they were in no very good humour with their excur- 
 sion, and there was a great difference of opinion amongst 
 them, what should be done with such worthless prisoners. 
 Some were for keeping the cadi, and killing the poet and the 
 ferash, and others for preserving the cadi for ransom, and 
 making the ferash a slave ; but all seemed to be for killing 
 the poet. 
 
 I could not help feeling much compassion for this man, 
 who, in fact, appeared to be from his manners and general 
 deportment a man of consequence, although he had pleaded 
 poverty ; and seeing it likely to go very hard with him, I 
 said, " What folly are you about to commit ? Kill the poet ! 
 why, it will be worse than killing the goose with the golden 
 eggs. Don't you know that poets are sometimes very rich, 
 and can, if they choose, become rich at all times, for they 
 carry their wealth in their head ? Did you never hear of 
 the king who gave a famous poet a miscal 1 of gold for every 
 stanza which he composed ? Is not the same thing said of 
 the present Shah ? and who knows ? perhaps your prisoner 
 may be the king's poet himself." 
 
 "Is that the case ? " said one of the gang ; " then let him 
 
 1 Twenty-four grains make one miscal.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 39 
 
 make stanzas for us immediately, and if they don't fetch a 
 miscal each, he shall die." 
 
 "Make on! make on!" exclaimed the whole of them to 
 the poet, elated by so bright a prospect of gain ; " if you 
 don't, we'll cut your tongue out." 
 
 At length it was decided that all three should be pre- 
 served, and that as soon as they had made a division of the 
 booty, we should return to the plains of Kipchak. 
 
 Asian then called us together, and every man was obliged 
 to produce what he had stolen. Some brought bags of silver 
 and others gold. Nor did they confine themselves to money 
 only ; gold heads of pipes, a silver ewer, a sable pelisse, 
 shawls, and a variety of other things, were brought before 
 us. When it came to my turn, I produced the heaviest bag 
 of tomauns that had yet been given in, which secured to me 
 the applause of the whole company. 
 
 "Well done! well done! Hajji," said they all to me: 
 "he has become a good Turcoman : we could not have done 
 better ourselves." 
 
 My master in particular was very loud in his praises, and 
 said, " Hajji, my son, by my own soul, by the head of my 
 father, I swear that you have done bravely, and I will give 
 you one of my slaves for a wife, and you shall live with us 
 and you shall have a tent of your own, with twenty sheep, 
 and we'll have a wedding, when I will give an entertainment 
 to all the encampment." 
 
 These words sunk deep in my mind, and only strengthened 
 my resolution to escape on the very first opportunity ; but in 
 the meanwhile I was very intent upon the division of the 
 spoil which was about to be made, as I hoped to be included 
 for a considerable portion of it. To my great mortification 
 they gave me not a single dinar. In vain I exclaimed, in 
 vain I entreated ; all I could hear was, "If you say a word 
 more, we will cut your head off." So I was obliged to con- 
 sole myself with my original fifty ducats, whilst my com- 
 panions were squabbling about their shares. At length it 
 became a scene of general contention, and would have
 
 4 o THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 finished by bloodshed, if a thought had not struck one of 
 the combatants, who exclaimed, "We have got a cadi here; 
 why should we dispute ? He shall decide between us." 
 
 So immediately the poor cadi was set in the midst of 
 them, and was made to legislate upon goods, part of which 
 belonged in fact to himself, without even getting the per- 
 centage due to him as judge. 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 Hajji Baba evinces a feeling disposition History of the poet Asker. 
 
 WE made our retreat by the same road we came, but not 
 with the same expedition, on account of our prisoners. They 
 sometimes walked, and sometimes rode. 
 
 The general appearance of the poet had, from the first 
 moment, interested me in his misfortunes ; and being a 
 smatterer in learning myself, my vanity, perhaps, was flattered 
 with the idea of becoming the protector of a man of letters in 
 distress. Without appearing to show any particular partiality 
 to him, I succeeded in being appointed to keep watch over 
 him, under the plea that I would compel him to make verses ; 
 and conversing in our language, we were able to communicate 
 with each other with great freedom without the fear of being 
 understood. I explained my situation, and informed him of 
 my intentions to escape, and assured him that I would do 
 everything in my power to be useful to him. He seemed 
 delighted to meet with kind words, where he expected nothing 
 but ill-treatment ; and when I had thus acquired his con- 
 fidence, he did not scruple to talk to me freely about himself 
 and his concerns. I discovered what I had before suspected, 
 that he was a man of consequence, for he was no less a per- 
 sonage than the court poet, enjoying the title of Melek al 
 Shoherah, or the Prince of Poets. He was on his road from
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 41 
 
 Shiraz (whither he had been sent by the Shah on business) 
 to Tehran, and had that very day reached Ispahan, when he 
 had fallen into our hands. In order to beguile the tedious- 
 ness of the road through the Salt Desert, after I had related 
 my adventures, I requested him to give me an. account of 
 his, which he did in the following words : 
 
 AGA MOHAMMED SHAH, THE EUNUCH KING OF PERSIA. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 " I was born in the city of Kerman, and my name is 
 Asker. My father was for a long time governor of that city, 
 during the reign of the eunuch Aga Mohammed Shah ; and 
 although the intrigues that were set on foot against him to 
 deprive him of his government were very mischievous, still 
 such was his respectability, that his enemies never entirely
 
 42 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BAB A 
 
 prevailed against him. His eyes were frequently in danger, 
 but his adroitness preserved them ; and he had at last the 
 good fortune to die peaceably in his bed in the present Shah's 
 reign. I was permitted to possess the property which he left, 
 which amounted to about 10,000 tomauns. In my youth I 
 was remarkable for the attention which I paid to my studies, 
 and before I had arrived at the age of sixteen I was cele-. 
 brated for writing a fine hand. I knew Hafiz entirely by 
 heart, and had myself acquired such a facility in making 
 verses, that I might almost have been said to speak in 
 numbers. There was no subject that I did not attempt. I 
 wrote on the loves of Leilah and Majnoun ; l I never heard 
 the note of a nightingale, but I made it pour out its loves to 
 the rose ; and wherever I went I never failed to produce my 
 poetry and chant it out in the assembly. At this time the 
 king was waging war with Sadik Khan, a pretender to the 
 throne, and a battle was fought, in which his majesty com- 
 manded in person, and which terminated in the defeat of the 
 rebel. I immediately sang the king's praises. In describing 
 the contest I made Rustam appear standing in a cloud over 
 the field of battle ; who, seeing the king lay about him des- 
 perately, exclaims to himself, ' Lucky wight am I to be here 
 instead of below, for certainly I should never escape from his 
 blows.' I also exerted my wit, and was much extolled when 
 I said, that Sadik Khan and his troops ought not to repine 
 after all ; for although they were vanquished, yet still the 
 king, in his magnanimity, had exalted their heads to the 
 skies. In this, I alluded to a pillar of skulls which his 
 majesty had caused to be erected of the heads of the van- 
 quished. These sayings of mine were reported to the Shah, 
 and he was pleased to confer upon me the highest honour 
 which a poet can receive ; namely, causing my mouth to be 
 filled with gold coin in the presence of the whole court, at the 
 great audience. This led to my advancement ; and I was 
 
 1 The loves of these personages have been treated by various oriental writers. 
 Majnoun is looked upon as the model of a lover, and Leilah as the most beautiful 
 and perfect of her sex.
 
 43 
 
 appointed to attend at court, and to write verses on all occa- 
 sions. In order to show my zeal, I represented to the king, 
 that as in former times our great Ferdousi had written his 
 S/iak Nameh, or the History of the Kings, it behoved him, 
 who was greater than any monarch Persia ever possessed, to 
 have a poet who should celebrate his reign ; and I entreated 
 permission to write a Shahin Shah Nameh, or the History 
 of the King of Kings ; to which his majesty was most 
 graciously pleased to give his consent. One of my enemies 
 at court was the lord high treasurer, who, without any good 
 reason, wanted to impose upon me a fine of 12,000 tomauns, 
 which the king, on the plea that I was the first poet of the 
 age, would not allow. It happened one day that, in a large 
 assembly, the subject of discussion was the liberality of Mah- 
 moud Shah Ghaznevi to Ferdousi, who gave him a miscal of 
 gold for every couplet in the Shah Nameh. Anxious that 
 the king should hear what I was about to say, I exclaimed, 
 ' The liberality of his present majesty is equal to that of 
 Mahmoud Shah equal did I say? nay, greater; because 
 in the one case it was exercised towards the most celebrated 
 poet of Persia, and in my case it is exercised towards the 
 humble individual now before you.' 
 
 " All the company were anxious to hear how and when 
 such great favours had been conferred upon me. ' In the 
 first place,' said I, 'when my father died, he left a property 
 of 10,000 tomauns ; the king permitted me to inherit it ; he 
 might have taken it away there are 10,000 tomauns. Then 
 the lord high treasurer wanted to fine me 12,000 tomauns; 
 the king did not allow it there are 12,000 more. Then the 
 rest is made up of what I have subsisted upon ever since 
 I have been in the Shah's service, and so my sum is made 
 out.' And then I took to my exclamations of ' May the king 
 live for ever! may his shadow never be less! may he 
 conquer all his enemies ! ' all of which I flattered myself was 
 duly reported to his majesty ; and some days after I was 
 invested with a dress of honour, consisting of a brocade coat, 
 a shawl for the waist, and one for the head, and a brocade
 
 44 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 cloak trimmed with fur. I was also honoured with the title of 
 Prince of Poets, by virtue of a royal firman, which, according 
 to the usual custom, I wore in my cap for three successive 
 days, receiving the congratulations of my friends, and feeling 
 of greater consequence than I had ever done before. I wrote 
 a poem, which answered the double purpose of gratifying my 
 revenge for the ill-treatment I had received from the lord 
 high treasurer, and of conciliating his good graces ; for it had 
 a double meaning all through : what he in his ignorance 
 mistook for praise, was, in fact, satire ; and as he thought 
 that the high-sounding words in which it abounded (which, 
 being mostly Arabic, he did not understand), must contain 
 an eulogium, he did not in the least suspect that they were, 
 in fact, expressions containing the grossest disrespect. In 
 truth, I had so cloaked my meaning, that, without my ex- 
 planation, it would have been difficult for any one to have 
 discovered it. But it was not alone in poetry that I excelled. 
 I had a great turn for mechanics, and several of my inven- 
 tions were much admired at court. I contrived a wheel for 
 perpetual motion, which only wants one little addition to make 
 it go round for ever. I made different sorts of coloured 
 paper ; I invented a new sort of inkstand ; and was on the 
 high road to making cloth, when I was stopped by his 
 majesty, who said to me, ' Asker, stick to your poetry : 
 whenever I want cloth, my merchants bring it from Europe.' 
 And I obeyed his instructions ; for on the approaching fes- 
 tival of the New Year's day, when it is customary for each 
 of his servants to make him a present, I wrote something so 
 happy about a toothpick, which I presented in a handsome 
 case, that the principal noblerrien of the court, at the great 
 public audience of that sacred day, were ordered to kiss me 
 on the mouth for my pains. I compared his majesty's teeth 
 to pearls, and the toothpick to the pearl-diver ; his gums to 
 a coral bank, near which pearls are frequently found ; and 
 the long beard and mustachios that encircled the mouth to 
 the undulations of the ocean. I was complimented by every- 
 body present upon the fertility of my imagination : I was
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 45 
 
 assured that Ferdousi was a downright ass when compared 
 to me. By such means, I enjoyed great favour with the 
 Shah ; and his majesty being anxious to give me an oppor- 
 tunity of acquiring wealth as well as honours, appointed me 
 
 AN ANCIENT EMBROIDERY, USED AS A TRAY-COVER. 
 
 The design of these embroideries is always original, and the scheme of colour, 
 as a rule, very beautiful. 
 
 (From Southern Persia.} From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 to be the bearer of the usual annual dress of honour which he 
 sends to his son, the prince of the province of Pars. I was 
 received at Shiraz with the greatest distinctions, and presents 
 were made to me to a considerable amount ; which, in addi-
 
 46 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 tion to what I had levied from the villages on the road, made 
 a handsome sum. The event of last night has deprived me 
 of all : all has been stolen from me, and here you see me the 
 most miserable of human beings. If you do not manage to 
 help me to escape, I fear that I shall die a prisoner. Perhaps, 
 the king may be anxious to release me, but certainly he will 
 never pay one farthing for my ransom. The lord high trea- 
 surer is not my friend ; and since I told the grand vizier, that 
 with all his wisdom he did not know how to wind up a watch, 
 much less how it was made, I fear that he also will not care 
 for my loss. The money, with which I might have pur- 
 chased my ransom, the barbarians have taken ; and where to 
 procure a similar sum I know not. It is my fate to have 
 fallen into this disaster, therefore I must not repine ; but let 
 me entreat you, as you are a fellow-Mussulman as you hate 
 Omar, and love AH let me entreat you to help me in my 
 distress." l 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 Hajji Baba escapes from the Turcomans The meaning of "falling 
 from the frying-pan into the fire " illustrated. 
 
 As soon as the poet had finished his narrative, I assured him 
 that I would do everything in my power to serve him ; but I 
 recommended patience to him for the present, as I had not 
 yet devised the means of procuring my own liberty, and fore- 
 saw great difficulties in saving him at the same time. It 
 would be impossible to evade the watchfulness of our masters, 
 as long as we were in the open desert : their horses were as 
 good as mine, and they were much better acquainted with 
 
 1 In sketching the history of the poet Asker, the author has attempted to 
 record part of the life of the late Fatteh Ali Khan, poet-laureate to the Shah, a 
 most ingenious and amiable man, well known to the English who were at Tehran 
 in the years 1812 and 1813.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 47 
 
 the country than I was. To run away from them under 
 these circumstances would be madness ; therefore it was only 
 left us to watch any opportunity that might be given us of 
 escape. 
 
 We had reached the limits of the Salt Desert, and were 
 about crossing the high road that leads from Tehran to 
 Meshed, about twenty parasangs to the east of Damgan, 
 when Asian Sultan made a halt, and proposed that we should 
 remain concealed for a day in the broken ground that borders 
 the road, in the hopes that fortune might throw us in the 
 way of a passing caravan, which it was his intention that we 
 should pillage. At the very dawn of the following day, a 
 spy, who had been stationed on an adjacent hill, came in 
 great haste to report that he saw clouds of dust rising in the 
 direction of Damgan, and approaching towards us, on the 
 road leading to Meshed. 
 
 Immediately we were all upon the alert. The Turcomans 
 left their prisoners, bound hand and foot, on the spot where 
 we had rested, with the intention of returning to take them 
 up as soon as we should have rifled the caravan, and, fully 
 equipped, we sallied forth with great caution, determined on 
 blood and plunder. 
 
 Asian himself proceeded before the rest, in order to re- 
 connoitre ; and calling me to him, said, " Now, Hajji, here is 
 an opportunity for distinguishing yourself. You shall accom- 
 pany me ; and you will observe the precautions I use previous 
 to showing our whole body, which it may be necessary for you 
 to know, in order that you may be able to conduct such an 
 enterprise yourself on some future occasion. I take you with 
 me, in case I should be obliged to use an interpreter ; for 
 frequently in these caravans there is not a person who under- 
 stands our language. We will approach as near as we can, 
 perhaps have a parley with the conductor, and if we cannot 
 make terms with him, we will fall on with our whole party." 
 
 As the travellers approached, I perceived that Asian Sultan 
 became uneasy. " This is no caravan, I fear," said he, "they 
 march in too compact a body : besides, I hear no bells ; the
 
 48 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 dust is too great in one spot. I see spears ! it is an im- 
 mense cavalcade five led horses ! this is no game for us." 
 
 In fact, as they approached, it was easy to discover that it 
 was no caravan, but some great personage, the governor of a 
 province at least, who was travelling, attended by a numerous 
 escort of horsemen and servants, and with all the pomp and 
 glitter usual on such occasions. 
 
 My heart leaped within me when I saw this, for here was 
 an excellent opportunity for escape. Could I approach near 
 enough to be taken prisoner by them, without exciting any pre- 
 vious suspicion in my master, I should be safe ; and although 
 I might be ill-treated at first, still I trusted to my eloquence 
 to make my story believed. Accordingly, I said to my com- 
 panion, " Let us approach nearer ; " and, without waiting for 
 his permission, 1 excited my horse onwards. He immediately 
 followed, with an intention of stopping me ; but we had no 
 sooner cleared the small elevated ground behind which we 
 had posted ourselves, than we came in full view of the whole 
 party, and were scarcely a bow-shot from them. As soon as 
 we were discovered, some six or seven of their best horsemen 
 were detached from the rest of the body, and, at the fullest 
 speed of their horses, came towards us. We turned about 
 to fly : as much as Asian urged on his steed, so much did I 
 restrain mine ; and by this manoeuvre I was very soon over- 
 taken and seized. To be knocked off my horse, disarmed, 
 plundered of my fifty ducats, my razors, and all my other 
 effects, was but the business of a few seconds ; and although 
 I assured my new masters that I was in no intention to leave 
 them, still they persisted in tying my arms behind me, with 
 my own shawl, which they took from round my waist for 
 that purpose. Thus pinioned, and receiving blows every 
 now and then, because I did not move fast enough, I was 
 dragged before their chief, who had made a halt, surrounded 
 by his attendants. 
 
 From the sort of attentions which he received, and the low 
 inclinations of the body that were made before him, I imagined 
 that he must be a royal personage, and I was soon informed
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 49 
 
 as much, when I came near ; for several blows on the head 
 were given me, as hints to make me prostrate myself before a 
 shahzadeh, or prince. A large circle being made, he ordered 
 me to be released, and, as soon as I felt myself free, at one 
 bound I disengaged myself from those near me, and seizing 
 upon the skirt of his cloak, as he was seated on his horse, 1 
 exclaimed, " Penak be shahzadek ! protection from the prince." 
 One of the guards rushed forward to punish my audacity ; but 
 the prince would not allow the sacred custom to be infringed, 
 and promised me his protection. Ordering his servants not to 
 molest me, he, at the same time, commanded me to relate how 
 I came to be placed in the predicament in which I now stood. 
 
 Falling on my knees, and kissing the ground, I related my 
 story in as concise a manner as possible ; and, to corroborate 
 all that I had said, added, that if he would order his horse- 
 men to attack the party of Turcomans, who still were close 
 at hand, they might release the king's poet, with two other 
 Persians, who were prisoners in their hands, and they would 
 fully confirm all that I had asserted. 
 
 I had no sooner said this than the horsemen, who had 
 pursued Asian Sultan, returned, with looks of great dismay, 
 swearing by AH and by the head of the king, that an immense 
 body of Turcomans, at least 1000 strong, were marching 
 down upon us, and that the prince must prepare to fight. In 
 vain I explained to them that they were only twenty in num- 
 ber, nobody would believe me ; I was treated as a spy and 
 a liar, and every one said that if the Turcomans did attack, 
 they would put me to death on the spot. The party then pro- 
 ceeded onwards at a good pace, looking about in all directions 
 for the expected enemy, and betraying all those symptoms 
 of apprehension which the very name of Turcoman excites 
 throughout the whole of Persia. 
 
 My own horse .had been taken from me, and I was per- 
 mitted to ride upon a baggage mule, where I had time to 
 
 1 Seizing the skirt of a man in authority, or the heel-ropes of his horses in the 
 stable, are as great protection to a culprit in Persia as the precincts of a church 
 are in Roman Catholic countries. 
 
 D
 
 50 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 ponder over my wretched fate and miserable prospects. With- 
 out a farthing in my pocket, without a friend, I saw nothing 
 before me but starvation. I had not yet become a sufficiently 
 good Mussulman to receive comfort from predestination, and I 
 absolutely sobbed aloud at my own folly, for having voluntarily 
 been the cause of my present misery. That fond partiality 
 for my own countrymen, which used to predominate so power- 
 fully in my breast when I was a prisoner, entirely forsook me 
 here, and I cursed them aloud. 
 
 " You call yourselves Mussulmans ! " said I to those 
 around me : '* you have not the feelings of dogs. Dogs did 
 I say ? You are worse than Christian dogs the Turcomans 
 are men compared to you." 
 
 Then when I found that this sort of language only pro- 
 duced laughter in my auditors, I tried what entreaty would 
 do. "For the love of Imam Hosein, for the sake of the 
 Prophet, by the souls of your children, why do you treat a 
 stranger thus ? Am I not a Mussulman like yourselves ? 
 What have I done that I should be made to devour this 
 grief? I sought refuge amongst you as friends, and I am 
 thrust away as an enemy." 
 
 For all this I got no consolation, excepting from an old 
 muleteer, by name Ali Katir, who had just lighted his kalian, 
 or water-pipe, and giving it to me to smoke, said. " My son, 
 everything in this world is in the hand of God." Pointing to 
 the mule upon which he rode, he added, "If God has made 
 this animal white, can Ali Katir make it black ? It one day 
 gets a feed of corn ; on the next it browses upon a thistle. 
 Can we contend with fate ? Smoke your pipe now and be 
 happy, and be thankful that it is no worse with you. Hafiz 
 says, ' Every moment of pleasure that you enjoy, account it 
 gain who can say what will be the event of anything ? ' 
 
 This speech of the muleteer soothed me a little ; and as 
 he found that I was as well versed in Hafiz as he, and not 
 backward in permitting myself to be comforted, he treated 
 
 1 It is no uncommon circumstance in Persia to find men of the lowest estate 
 well versed in their poets. The Persians are eminently a poetical people.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 51 
 
 me with much kindness, and made me a partaker of his mess 
 during the remainder of the journey. He informed me that 
 " the prince, into whose hands I had fallen, was the Shah's 
 fifth son, who had lately been installed in the government 
 of the province of Khorassan, and was now on his road to 
 Meshed, the seat of his jurisdiction. He was escorted by a 
 greater number of attendants than ordinary, on account of 
 the alarming state of the Turcoman frontier ; and it was said 
 that he had instructions to commence very active operations 
 against that people : as many of whose heads as possible he 
 was invited to send to Tehran, to be piled up before the gate 
 of the royal palace ; and you may account yourself very for- 
 tunate," added the muleteer, "that yours was not taken off 
 your shoulders. Had you happened to be fair, with little 
 eyes, and without much hair, instead of being a dark man, as 
 you are, you certainly would have been put to death, and 
 your head have been pickled, and made to pass for that of a 
 Turcoman." 
 
 When we had reached our resting-place at night, which 
 was a lonely caravanserai half in ruins, situated on the skirts 
 of the desert, I determined to endeavour to procure admittance 
 to the prince, and to make an effort to regain my fifty ducats, 
 and my horse and arms, which I made no scruple in claiming 
 as my own, notwithstanding a certain little voice within me, 
 which told me that the man who had robbed me had almost 
 as much right to them as I had. I accordingly watched an 
 opportunity, just before the evening prayer, of presenting 
 myself to him. He was seated on a carpet that had been 
 spread on the terrace of the caravanserai, reposing himself on 
 his cushion ; and before his attendants had time to beat me 
 off, I exclaimed, " Arzi darum, I have a petition to make." 
 Upon which he ordered me to approach, and asked me what 
 I wanted. I complained of the treatment I had received 
 from his servants who had first seized me ; related how they 
 had robbed me of my fifty ducats ; and then entreated that 
 my horse and arms might be restored to me. He inquired 
 of those surrounding him who the men were that I complained
 
 52 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 of; and when their names were mentioned, he sent his chief 
 tent-pitcher to conduct them to him. As soon as they ap- 
 peared, for they were two, I recognised the aggressors, and 
 affirmed them to be such to the prince. 
 
 "Sons of dogs," said he to them, "where is the money 
 you stole from this man ? " 
 
 "We took nothing," they immediately exclaimed. 
 
 "We shall soon see that," answered he. "Call the 
 f crashes" said he to one of his officers, " and let them beat 
 the rogues on the soles of their feet till they produce the 
 fifty ducats." 
 
 They were immediately seized, and when their feet were 
 in the air, strongly tied in the noose, and after receiving a 
 few blows, they confessed that they had taken the money, 
 and produced it. It was forthwith carried to the prince, who 
 deliberately counted it over, and, putting it under the cushion 
 upon which he was reclining, released the culprits, and said 
 in a loud voice to me, "You are dismissed." I stood with 
 my mouth wide open, hoping to see the money handed over 
 to me, when his master of the ceremonies took me by the 
 shoulders and pushed me away. I exclaimed, " And my 
 money, where is it ? " 
 
 "What does he say?" said the prince; "give him the 
 shoe if he speaks again ; " when the master of the cere- 
 monies, taking off his high green slipper, struck me over the 
 mouth with the heel of it, shod with iron, saying, " Do you 
 speak to a king's son thus ? Go in peace, and keep your eyes 
 open, or you'll have your ears cut off ; " and so I was pushed 
 and dragged violently away. 
 
 I returned in utter despair to my muleteer, who appeared 
 not in the least surprised at what had happened, and said, 
 " What could you expect more ? After all, is he not a prince ? 
 When once he or any man in power gets possession of a 
 thing, do you think that they will ever restore it ? You 
 might as well expect a mule to give up a mouthful of fresh 
 grass, when once it has got it within its mouth, as a prince to 
 give up money that has once been in his hands."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 53 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 Hajjl Baba, in his distress, becomes a saka, or water-carrier. 
 
 WE reached Meshed in due time, and the prince made his 
 solemn entry amidst all the noise, parade, and confusion 
 attendant upon such ceremonies. I found myself a solitary 
 being, in a strange city, distant from my friends, and from 
 any creature to whom I might look for assistance, and without 
 even a pair of razors to comfort me. When I looked at my 
 present means, I found that they consisted of five tomauns, 
 which I had managed to secrete from the bag I had stolen 
 in the caravanserai, and which I had put between the lining 
 of my cap, of a brown woollen coat, of a sheep-skin jacket, 
 a shirt, a pair of trousers, and a heavy pair of boots. I had 
 lived upon the muleteer as long as he enjoyed the daily allow- 
 ance of provisions that he received during the time when he 
 was attached to the suite of the prince ; but now that he and 
 his mules were discharged, I could not expect that he should 
 continue to support me. I thought of again taking to my 
 profession ; but who would trust their throats to a man who 
 had the reputation of being a Turcoman spy ? Besides, 
 although I might purchase razors, yet my means were not 
 large enough to set up a shop, and I was determined not to 
 become a journeyman. 
 
 My friend, the muleteer, who knew the ways and means 
 of Meshed, recommended me strongly to become a saka, or 
 water-carrier. " You are young and strong," said he; "you 
 have a good voice, and would entice people to drink by an 
 harmonious cry. You have besides a great talent for cant 
 and palaver, and for laughing at one's beard. The number 
 of pilgrims who come to Meshed to perform their devotions 
 at the tomb of the Imam is great, and charity being one of 
 the principal instruments which they use for the salvation of 
 their souls, they give freely to those who promise them the
 
 54 
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 best reward. You must sell each draught in the name and 
 for the sake of Imam Hosein, our favourite saint. Always 
 offer it gratis : but be sure you get money in hand before you 
 pour it out ; and when your customer has drunk, say, with 
 great emphasis, ' May your draught be propitious ! May the 
 holy Imam take you under his protection ! May you never 
 
 DRINKING-CUP (ENGRAVED SILVERWORK). 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 suffer the thirst of the blessed Hosein!' and such like sort 
 of speeches, which you must chant out so loud that everybody 
 may hear you. In short, to devotees who come some hun- 
 dreds of parasangs to say their prayers, you may say anything 
 and everything, and you will be sure to be believed. I myself 
 have been a saka at Meshed, and know the trade. It has
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 55 
 
 enabled me to buy a string of mules, and to be the man 
 you see." 
 
 I followed my friend's advice. I forthwith laid out my 
 money in buying a leather sack, with a brass cock, which I 
 slung round my body, and also a bright drinking-cup. After 
 having filled my sack with water, and let it soak for some 
 
 DRINKING-CUP (ENGRAVED SILVERWORK). 
 . From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 time, in order to do away the bad smell of the leather, I 
 sallied forth, and proceeded to the tomb, where I imme- 
 diately began my operations. The cry I adopted was, 
 "Water, water! in the name of the Imam, water!" This 
 I chanted with all the force and swell of my lungs ; and 
 having practised under the tuition of the muleteer for two
 
 56 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 days before, I was assured that I acquitted, myself as well as 
 the oldest practitioners. As soon as I appeared, I imme- 
 diately drew the attention of the other sakas, who seemed to 
 question the right I had to exercise their profession. When 
 I showed myself at the reservoir to draw water, they would 
 have quarrelled with me, and one attempted to push me in ; 
 but they found I was resolute, and that my resolution was 
 backed by a set of strong and active limbs, and therefore 
 confined themselves to abusive language, of which being the 
 entire master, I soon got the lead, and completely silenced 
 them. Nature, in fact, seemed to have intended me for a 
 saka. The water which I had a moment before drawn from 
 a filthy reservoir, I extolled as having flowed from a spring 
 created by Ali in person, equal to the sacred well of Zem 
 Zem, and a branch of the river which flows through Paradise. 
 It is inconceivable how it was relished, and how considerable 
 was the money I received for giving it gratis. I was always 
 on the watch to discover when a new set of pilgrims should 
 arrive ; and before they had even alighted from their mules, 
 all dusty from the road, and all happy at having escaped the 
 Turcomans, I plied them in the name of the Prophet with a 
 refreshing draught, and made them recollect that, this being 
 the first devotional act which they performed on reaching 
 Meshed, so out of gratitude for their safe arrival, they ought 
 to reward me liberally ; and my admonitions were scarcely 
 ever disregarded. 
 
 The commemoration of the death of Hosein, which is so 
 religiously kept throughout Persia, was now close at hand, 
 and I determined to put myself into training to appear as the 
 water-carrier, who, on the last day of the festival, which is 
 held the most sacred, performs a conspicuous character in the 
 tragedy. This was to be acted in public before the prince in 
 the great open square of the city, and I expected to acquire 
 much reputation and profit from the feat of strength which I 
 should perform, which consists of carrying an immense sack 
 full of water on the back, accompanied by additional exertions. 
 I had a rival, who had fulfilled the task on the last festival ;
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 57 
 
 but as the sack I was about to carry contained infinitely more 
 water than he could support, my claim to superiority was not 
 to be disputed. However, I was advised to be on my guard, 
 for he was of a jealous character, and would not lose an 
 opportunity of doing me an injury if he could. When the 
 day arrived, the prince being seated in an upper room situated 
 over the gate of his palace, and the whole population of the 
 city assembled to witness the religious ceremonies, I appeared 
 naked to the waist, with my body streaming with blood, 
 slowly walking under the weight of my immense sack. Having 
 reached the window at which the prince was seated, I attracted 
 his notice by loud exclamations for his happiness and pros- 
 perity. He threw me down a gold coin, and expressed 
 himself pleased with my performance. In my exultation I 
 invited several boys, who were near at hand for the purpose, 
 to pile themselves upon my load, which they did, to the 
 astonishment of the crowd, who encouraged me by their cries 
 and applause. I called for another boy, when my rival, who 
 had watched his opportunity, sprung forwards and mounted 
 himself on the very top of all, hoping, no doubt, to crush me ; 
 but, exerting myself to the utmost of my strength, I carried 
 my burden clean off, amidst the animating shouts of the staring 
 multitude. But although in the heat of the exertion I felt no 
 inconvenience, yet when I was disencumbered I found that 
 my back was sprained so severely, that I was totally unfitted 
 for the trade of a water-carrier for the future. I therefore 
 sold my sack and other articles, and, with the money that I 
 had gained in water-selling, found myself well off, compared 
 to the deplorable situation in which I was on my arrival at 
 Meshed. My friend the muleteer had departed some time 
 before the festival with a caravan for Tehran, so I was de- 
 prived of his counsels. I should have demanded justice for 
 the injury done me by my rival, and might have dragged him 
 before the cadi ; but I was assured that in the Mohammedan 
 law there is no provision made for a sprain. It is written an 
 eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth ; but there is no sprain 
 for a sprain. Had I had some powerful protector, who would
 
 58 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 have prosecuted the business for me, perhaps I might have 
 got redress ; but a miserable creature like myself, unknown 
 and unfriended, I could have gained nothing, and should, 
 perhaps, have stood a chance of losing the little money I had 
 acquired. 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 He makes a soliloquy, and becomes an itinerant vendor of smoke. 
 
 I HELD a consultation with myself as to what I should do 
 next for my livelihood. Various walks in life were open to 
 me. The begging line was an excellent one in Meshed, and, 
 judging from my success as a water-carrier, I should very 
 soon have been at the head of the profession. I might also 
 have become a luti, 1 and kept a bear ; but it required some 
 apprenticeship to learn the tricks of the one, and to know 
 how to tame the other : so I gave that up. Still I might 
 have followed my own profession, and have taken a shop ; 
 but I could not bear the thoughts of settling, particularly in 
 so remote a town as Meshed. At length I followed the bent 
 of my inclination, and, as I was myself devotedly fond of 
 smoking, I determined to become an itinerant seller of smoke. 
 Accordingly, I bought pipes of various sizes, a wooden tray, 
 containing the pipe-heads, which was strapped round my 
 waist, an iron pot for fire, which I carried in my hand, a pair 
 of iron pincers, a copper jug for water, that was suspended 
 by a hook behind my back, and some long bags for my 
 tobacco. All these commodities were fastened about my 
 body, and when I was fully equipped, I might be said to look 
 like a porcupine with all its quills erect. My tobacco was 
 of various sorts Tabas, Shiraz, Susa, and Damascus. It is 
 true that I was not very scrupulous about giving it pure ; for 
 
 1 The luties are privileged buffoons, usually keeping monkeys, bears, and other 
 animals.
 
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 59 
 
 with a very small quantity of the genuine leaf I managed 
 to make a large store, with the assistance of different sorts 
 of dungs. I had a great tact in discovering amongst my 
 customers the real connoisseur, and to him I gave it almost 
 genuine. My whole profits, in fact, depended upon my dis- 
 crimination of characters. To those of the middling ranks, I 
 gave it half mixed ; to the lower sort, three-quarters ; and to 
 the lowest, almost without any tobacco at all. Whenever I 
 thought I could perceive a wry face, I immediately exerted 
 my ingenuity in favour of the excellence of my tobacco. I 
 showed specimens of the good, descanted on its superior 
 qualities, and gave the history of the very gardener who had 
 reared it, and pledged myself to point out the very spot in his 
 grounds where it grew. 
 
 I became celebrated in Meshed for the excellence of my 
 pipes. My principal customer was a dervish, who was so 
 great a connoisseur that I never dared to give him any but 
 pure tobacco ; and although I did not gain much by his custom, 
 as he was not very exact in his payments, yet his conversation 
 was so agreeable, and he recommended so many of his friends 
 to me, that I cultivated his goodwill to the utmost of my 
 power. 
 
 Dervish Sefer (for that was his name) was a man of a 
 peculiar aspect. He had a large aquiline nose, piercing black 
 eyes, a thick beard, and a great quantity of jet black hair 
 flowing over his shoulders. His conical cap was embroidered 
 all over with sentences from the Koran, and holy invocations : 
 the skin of a red deer was fastened loosely upon his back, 
 with the hairy side outwards: he bore in one hand a long steel 
 staff, which he generally carried on his shoulder, and in the 
 other a calabash, suspended by three chains, which he ex- 
 tended whenever he deigned to ask the charity of passengers. 
 In his girdle he wore large agate clasps, from which hung a 
 quantity of heavy wooden beads ; and, as he swung himself 
 along through the streets and bazaars, there was so much of 
 wildness and solicitude in all his words and actions, that he 
 did not fail to inspire a certain awe in all beholders. This, I
 
 6o 
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 afterwards learnt, was put on, in order to suit the character 
 which he had adopted ; for when he smoked my pipes, if no 
 one chanced to be present, he was the most natural and un- 
 reserved of beings. Our acquaintance soon improved into 
 intimacy, and at length he introduced me into a small circle 
 
 A WANDERING DERVISH. 
 (From a sketch by James Morier.) 
 
 of dervishes, men of his own turn and profession, with whom 
 he lived almost exclusively, and I was invited to frequent 
 their meetings. It is true that this did not suit my views in 
 the smoking line, for they amongst them consumed more of 
 my good tobacco than all the rest of my other customers put
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 61 
 
 together ; but their society was so agreeable that I could not 
 resist the temptation. 
 
 Dervish Sefer, one evening when we had smoked more 
 than usual, said to me, " Hajji Baba, you are too much of a 
 man to be a seller of smoke all your life : why do you not 
 turn dervish, like us? We hold men's beards as cheap as 
 dirt ; and although our existence is precarious, yet it is one of 
 great variety, as well as of great idleness. We look upon 
 mankind as fair game we live upon their weakness and 
 credulity ; and, from what I have seen of you, I think you 
 would do honour to our profession, and in time become as 
 celebrated as even the famous Sheikh Saadi himself." This 
 speech was applauded by the other two, who pressed my 
 entering upon their profession. I was nothing loath, but I 
 pleaded my ignorance of the necessary qualifications. 
 
 " How is it possible," said I, " that a being so ignorant and 
 unexperienced as I am can at once attain to all the learning 
 requisite for a dervish ? I know how to read and write, 'tis 
 true ; I have gone through the Koran, and have my Hafiz 
 and Saadi nearly by heart ; besides which, I have read a great 
 part of the Shah Nameh of Ferdusi, but beyond that I am 
 totally ignorant." 
 
 "Ah, my friend," said Dervish Sefer, "little do you know 
 of dervishes, and still less of human-kind. It is not great 
 learning that is required to make a dervish : assurance is the 
 first ingredient. With one-fiftieth part of the accomplish- 
 ments that you have mentioned, and with only a common 
 share of effrontery, I promise you, that you may command 
 not only the purses, but even the lives of your hearers. By 
 impudence I have been a prophet, by impudence I have 
 wrought miracles, by impudence I have restored the dying to 
 health by impudence, in short, I lead a life of great ease, 
 and am feared and respected by those who, like you, do not 
 know what dervishes are. If I chose to give myself the 
 trouble, and incur the risks which Mahomed himself did, I 
 might even now become as great a prophet as he. It would 
 be as easy for me to cut the moon in two with my finger as
 
 62 
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 it was for him, provided I once made my hearers have con- 
 fidence in me ; and impudence will do that, and more, if exerted 
 in a proper manner." 
 
 When Dervish Sefer had done talking, his companions 
 applauded what he had said ; and they related so many curious 
 anecdotes of the feats which they had performed, that I 
 
 THE POET HAFIZ. 
 (Persian drawing from the authentic portrait in Shiras.) From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 became very anxious to know more of these extraordinary 
 They promised to relate the history of their lives at 
 
 men. 
 
 our next meeting, and, in the meanwhile, recommended me 
 strongly to turn my thoughts to a line of life more dignified, 
 and fuller of enjoyment, than that of a vagabond seller of 
 adulterated smoke.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 63 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 History of Dervish Sefer, and of the two other dervishes. 
 
 WHEN we had again collected ourselves together, each with a 
 pipe in his hand, seated with our backs against the wall, in a 
 room the window of which opened into a small square planted 
 with flowers, Dervish Sefer. as the acknowledged chief of our 
 society, began his story in the following words : 
 
 " I am the son of the Luti Bashi, or head Merry- Andrew 
 of the Prince of Shiraz, by a celebrated courtesan of the name 
 of Taous, or the Peacock. With such parents, I leave you 
 to imagine the education which I received. My principal 
 associates, during my infancy, were the monkeys and bears 
 that belonged to my father and his friends ; and, perhaps, it 
 is to the numerous tricks in which they were instructed, and 
 to the facility with which they learnt them, that I am indebted 
 for the talent of mimicry that has been of so much use to me 
 through life. At fifteen I was an accomplished luti. I could 
 eat fire, spout water, and perform all sorts of sleight of hand, 
 and I should very probably have continued to prosper in this 
 profession, had not the daughter of the prince's general of 
 camel artillery become enamoured of me, as I danced on the 
 tight-rope before the court on the festival of the New Year's 
 day. A young camel-driver under his orders had a sister 
 who served in the harem of the general : he was my most 
 intimate friend, and his sister gave him the intelligence of the 
 effect my appearance had produced upon her mistress. I 
 immediately went to a mirza or scribe, who lived in a small 
 shed in a corner of the bazaar, and requested of him to write 
 a love letter for me, with as much red ink in it as possible, 
 and crossed and re-crossed with all the complication he could 
 devise. Nothing could be better than tHis composition ; for 
 at the very outset it informed my mistress that I was dead, 
 and that my death was owing to the fire of her eyes, that had
 
 64 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 made roast meat of my heart. Notwithstanding this asser- 
 tion, I ventured at the end to say that as I had never yet 
 seen her, I hoped that she would contrive to grant me an 
 interview. In the joy of my heart for the possession of such 
 a letter, in great confidence I told the scribe who my charmer 
 was, which he had no sooner heard, than, hoping to receive 
 a present for his trouble, he went forthwith and informed the 
 general himself of the fact. That the son of the Liiti Bashi 
 should dare to look up to. the daughter of Zambiirekchi Bashi 
 was a crime not to be forgiven ; and as the latter had influ- 
 ence at court, he procured an order for my instant removal 
 from Shiraz. My father did not wish to incur the prince's dis- 
 pleasure, and fearing, from my growing celebrity, that I should 
 very soon rival him in his own profession, rather urged than 
 delayed my departure. On the morningwhen I was about quit- 
 ting Shiraz, and was bidding adieu to my friends the monkeys, 
 bears, and other animals under his care, he said to me, 'Sefer, 
 my son, I should be sorry to part with you ; but with the edu- 
 cation which you have received, and the peculiar advantages 
 which you have had of living almost entirely in the society of 
 me and my beasts, it is impossible but that you will succeed 
 in life. I now endow you with what will ensure you a rapid 
 fortune. I give you my chief ape, the most accomplished of 
 his species. Make a friend of him for your own sake, and 
 love him for mine ; and I hope in time that you will reach 
 the eminence to which your father has attained.' Upon this 
 he placed the animal upon my shoulder, and thus accompanied 
 I left the paternal roof. 
 
 " I took the road to Ispahan in no very agreeable mood, 
 for I scarcely knew whether to be happy or sorry for this 
 change in my circumstances. A monkey and independence 
 were certainly delightful things ; but to leave my associates, 
 and the places that were endeared to me from my infancy, 
 and, above all, to abandon that fair unknown, whom my ima- 
 gination had pictured to me as lovely as Skireen herself, were 
 circumstances which appeared to me so distressing, that by 
 the time I had reached the hut of the dervish, at the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 65 
 
 Allah Akbar, my mind sank into a miserable fit of despond- 
 ency. I seated myself on a stone near the hut, and, with 
 my monkey by my side, I gave vent to my grief in a flood of 
 tears, exclaiming, 'Ah wahi! Ah wahiT in accents the most 
 piteous that can be imagined. 
 
 " These brought the dervish out ; and when he had heard 
 my tale, he invited me into the hut, where I found another 
 dervish, of much more commanding aspect than the former. 
 He was clad nearly in the same manner that I am now (in- 
 deed, the cap I wear was his) ; but there was a wildness about 
 his looks that was quite imposing. 
 
 "At the sight of me and my companion, he appeared 
 struck by a sudden thought. He and the other dervish 
 having talked together in private, he proposed that I should 
 accompany him to Ispahan, promised that he would be kind 
 to me, and if I behaved well, would put me into the way of 
 making my fortune. I readily agreed ; and after the dervish 
 of the hut had given us a pipe to smoke, we departed, walking 
 at a good pace, without much being said between us during 
 some time. Dervish Bideen, for that was his name, at length 
 began to question me very closely about my former life, and 
 hearing in what my accomplishments consisted, seemed to be 
 well pleased. He then descanted upon the advantages attend- 
 ing the life of a dervish, proved them to be superior to the 
 low pursuits of a luti, and at length persuaded me to embrace 
 his profession. He said, that if I would look upon him as 
 my master, he would teach me all he knew ; and that, he 
 assured me, was no small portion of knowledge, inasmuch as 
 he was esteemed the most perfect dervish in Persia. He 
 began to talk of magic and astrology, and gave me various 
 receipts for making spells and charms, to serve on every 
 occasion in life ; by the sale of which alone I should be able 
 to make my fortune. The tail of a hare, placed under the 
 pillow of a child, he assured me, produces sleep ; and its 
 blood, given to a horse, makes him fleet and long-winded. 
 The eye and the knuckle-bones of a wolf, attached to a boy's 
 person, give him courage ; and its fat, rubbed on a woman, 
 
 E
 
 66 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 will convert her husband's love into indifference : its gall, 
 used in the same manner, produces fruitfulness. But the 
 article which bore the greatest price in the seraglios was the 
 feds kef far, the dried skin of a female hyena ; which, if worn 
 about the person, conciliated the affection of all to the wearer. 
 He discoursed long upon these and such like subjects, until 
 
 A DERVISH, OR RELIGIOUS MENDICANT. 
 (From a photograph.} 
 
 he gradually excited so much interest in my heart, by thus 
 placing my fortune apparently in full view, that at length he 
 ventured to make a proposal, which he easily judged would 
 be disagreeable. 
 
 " ' Sefer,' said he to me, 'you know not the treasure you 
 possess in that ape, I do not mean as he stands now alive, 
 but dead. If he were dead, I could extract such ingredients
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 67 
 
 from him to make charms, which would sell for their weight 
 in gold in the harem of the Shah. You must know, that 
 the liver of an ape, and only of that particular species which 
 you possess, is sure to bring back the love of a desired 
 object to the person who may possess it. Then the skin of 
 its nose, if worn round the neck, is a decisive preventive 
 
 A DERVISH, OR RELIGIOUS MENDICANT. 
 
 (From a plwtograph.) 
 
 against poison ; and the ashes of the animal itself, after it has 
 been burnt over a slow fire, will, if taken internally, give all 
 the qualities of the ape, cunning, adroitness, and the powers 
 of imitation.' He then proposed that we should kill the beast. 
 " I was certainly alarmed at the proposal. I had been 
 brought up with my ape : we had hitherto gone through life 
 together in prosperity as well as in adversity ; and to lose
 
 68 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 him in this barbarous manner was more than I could bear. 
 I was about to give a flat refusal to the dervish, when I 
 observed that his countenance, which hitherto had been all 
 smiles and good-humour, had changed to downright furious- 
 ness ; and fearing that he would take by force that which 
 I could not protect, I, with all the reluctance imaginable, 
 consented to the execution of his project. We then deviated 
 from the road ; and having got into a solitary glen, we 
 gathered together some dry stubble and underwood, made 
 a fire, striking a light with a flint and steel, which my 
 companion carried about him. He took my poor ape into 
 his hands, and, without further ceremony, put it to death. 
 He then dissected it ; and having taken from it the liver, 
 and the skin off its nose, burnt it in the pile we had made ; 
 and when all was over, carefully collected the ashes, which 
 having packed in a corner of his handkerchief, we proceeded 
 on our journey. 
 
 " We reached Ispahan in due time, where I exchanged 
 such parts of my dress as belonged to the luti for the garb 
 of a dervish, and then we proceeded to Tehran. Here my 
 master's appearance produced great effect ; for no sooner was 
 it known that he was arrived, than all sorts of people flocked 
 to consult him. Mothers wanted protection for their children 
 against the evil eye ; wives a spell against the jealousy of 
 their husbands ; warriors talismans to secure them from harm 
 in battle. But the ladies of the king's seraglio were his 
 principal customers. Their most urgent demand was some 
 powerful charm to ensure the attention of the king. The 
 collection of materials for this purpose, which the Dervish 
 Bideen had made, was very great. He had the hairs of a 
 lynx, the backbone of an owl, and bear's grease in various 
 preparations. To one of the ladies, who, owing to her 
 advanced age, was more pressing than the others, he sold 
 the liver of my monkey, assuring her, that as soon as she 
 appeared, wearing it about her person, his majesty would 
 distinguish her from her rivals. To another, who complained 
 that she was never in favour, and frustrated in all her schemes
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 69 
 
 to attract notice, he administered a decoction of the monkey's 
 ashes ; and to a third, who wanted a charm to drive away 
 wrinkles, he gave an ointment, which, if properly applied, 
 and provided she did not laugh, or otherwise move the 
 muscles of her face, would effectually keep them smooth. 
 
 " I was initiated into all these mysteries, and frequently 
 was a party concerned in a fraud, whenever my master was 
 put to the necessity of doing something supernatural to sup- 
 port his credit, if by chance his spells were palpably of no 
 avail. But whatever profit arose either from these services, 
 or from the spoils of my monkey, he alone was the gainer, 
 for I never touched a ghauz l of it. 
 
 " I accompanied the Dervish Bideen into various countries, 
 where we practised our art : sometimes we were adored as 
 saints, and at others stoned for vagrants. Our journeys 
 being performed on foot, I had good opportunities to see 
 every place in detail. We travelled from Tehran to Con- 
 stantinople, and from that capital to Grand Cairo, through 
 Aleppo and Damascus. From Cairo we showed ourselves 
 at Mecca and Medina ; and taking ship at Jedda, landed at 
 Surat, in the Guzerat, whence we walked to Lahore and 
 Cashmeer. 
 
 " At this last place, the dervish, according to custom, 
 endeavoured to deceive the natives : but they were too en- 
 lightened for us, and we were obliged to steal away in 
 disgrace ; and we at length fixed ourselves at Herat, where 
 we were repaid for our former want of success by the credulity 
 of the Affghans, who were good enough to admit all that we 
 chose to tell them. But here, as the dervish was getting up 
 a plan to appear as a prophet, and when our machinery for 
 performing miracles was nearly completed, he, who had 
 promised eternal youth to thousands, at length paid the debt 
 of nature himself. He had shut himself up in a small hut, 
 situated at the top of a mountain near Herat, where we made 
 the good people believe he was living upon no other food 
 than that which the Gins and Peris brought to him ; but 
 
 1 A ghauz is a small copper coin.
 
 70 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 unfortunately he actually died of a surfeit, having ate more of 
 a roast lamb and sweetmeats than his nature could support. 
 For my own credit, I was obliged to say, that the Gins, 
 jealous of us mortals for possessing the society of so wonder- 
 ful a person, had so inflated him with celestial food, that, 
 leaving no room for his soul, it had been completely blown 
 out of his body, and carried away into the fifth heaven by 
 a strong north-east wind, which was blowing at the time. 
 This wind, which lasts for 120 days during the summer 
 months, and without which the inhabitants would almost die 
 with heat, I endeavoured to make them believe was a miracle 
 performed by the dervish in their favour, as a parting legacy 
 to them and their descendants for ever. The old men, 
 indeed, who recollected the wind ever since their youth, 
 were incredulous ; but their testimony bore but little weight, 
 compared to the influence which we had acquired. He was 
 buried with the greatest honours; and the Prince of Herat 
 himself, Eshek Mirza, lent his shoulder to bear his coffin to 
 the grave. A mausoleum was erected over it by some of 
 the most pious of the Affghans, and it has ever since been 
 a place of pilgrimage from all the country round. 
 
 " I remained at Herat for some time after the death of 
 my companion, in order to enjoy the advantages which might 
 accrue to me from being the friend and disciple of one of 
 such high reputation, and I did not repent of my resolution. 
 I disposed of my spells at great prices, and, moreover, made 
 a considerable sum by selling the combings of my deceased 
 friend's beard, and the cuttings of his nails, which I assured 
 my purchasers had been carefully preserved during the time 
 of his retirement in the mountains ; although, in fact, they 
 were chiefly collected from my own person. When I had 
 sold of these relics enough to make several respectable 
 beards, and a proportionate quantity of nails, I felt that if 
 I persisted in the traffic, notwithstanding the inordinate 
 credulity of the Affghans, I might be discovered for a cheat, 
 therefore I took my departure, and, having travelled into 
 various parts of Persia, I at length fixed myself among the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 71 
 
 Hezareh, a large tribe, living for the most part in tents, 
 and which occupy the open country between Caboul and 
 Candahar. My success among them was something quite 
 beyond my expectation, for 1 put into practice what the 
 Dervish Bideen had planned at Herat, and actually appeared 
 in the character of a prophet." 
 
 The Dervish Sefer then, laying his hand upon the 
 shoulder of the dervish who sat next to him, said, " My 
 friend, here, was my accomplice on that occasion, and he 
 will remember how ingeniously we managed to make the 
 Hezareh believe that we possessed a caldron which was 
 always full of boiled rice a miracle which even the most 
 incredulous did not fail to believe, as long as they got their 
 share of it. In short, I am the celebrated Hazret Ishan 
 himself: he of whom you have lately heard so much in 
 Khorassan ; and although my sacred character was not proof 
 against the attacks made upon it by the arms of the Shah, 
 yet, while it lasted, I collected enough from the zeal and 
 credulity of my disciples to enable me to pass the remainder 
 of my life in comfort. I have lived at Meshed for some 
 time ; and it is but a week ago that we contrived to perform 
 the miracle of giving sight to a blind girl ; so now we are 
 held in the highest veneration." 
 
 Here the Dervish Sefer ended his history, and then called 
 upon his next neighbour to give an account of himself. 
 
 This was the dervish who had been his accomplice among 
 the Hezareh, and he began as follows : 
 
 " My father was a celebrated man of the law, of the 
 city of Kom, enjoying the reputation of saying his prayers, 
 making his ablutions, and keeping his fasts more regularly 
 than any man in Persia; in short, he was the cream of 
 Shiahs, and the model of Mussulmans. He had many sons, 
 and we were brought up in the strictest practice of the 
 external parts of our religion. The rigour and severity 
 with which we were treated were combated on our part by 
 cunning and dissimulation. These qualities gradually fixed 
 themselves in our character ; and without any consideration
 
 72 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 for our circumstances, we were early branded as a nest of 
 
 A DRUGGIST'S SHOP. 
 
 (Persian drawing.) From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 hypocrites, and as the greatest cheats and liars of our birth-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 73 
 
 place. I, in particular, was so notorious, that in my own 
 defence I became a dervish, and I owe the reputation which 
 I have acquired in that calling to the following fortunate 
 circumstance : 
 
 "I had scarcely arrived at Tehran, and had taken up my 
 quarters opposite to a druggist's shop, when I was called up 
 in a great hurry by an old woman, who informed me that 
 her master, the druggist, had just been taken exceedingly ill, 
 after having ate more than usual ; that the medicine which 
 he had taken had not performed its office; and that his 
 family wished to try what a talisman would do for him : she 
 therefore invited me to write one suited to his case. As 
 I had neither paper, pens, nor ink, I insisted upon going 
 into his anderdn, or women's apartments, and writing it 
 there, to which she consented. I was introduced into a 
 small square yard, and then into a room, where I found the 
 sick man extended on his bed on the ground, surrounded by 
 as many women as the place could hold, who cried aloud, 
 and exclaimed, ' VVahi^ wahi, in the name of God he dies, 
 he dies ! ' The implements of medicine were spread about, 
 which showed that everything had been done either to kill 
 or save him. A large basin, which had contained the pre- 
 scription, was seen on the shelf; the long glass tube, that 
 instrument of torture, was in a corner ; and among other 
 furniture, the doctor himself was seen seated, unconcernedly 
 enjoying his pipe, and who, having found that human means 
 were inefficient, had had recourse to supernatural, and had 
 prescribed, as a last resource, the talisman, which it was my 
 fate to write. A new dervish excited new hopes, for I saw 
 that I produced much stir as I entered the sick room. I 
 asked for paper with an air of authority, as if I felt great 
 confidence in my own powers (although, in fact, I had never 
 written a talisman before), and a large piece was produced, 
 which seemed to have been the wrapper to some drug or 
 other. Pen and ink were also given me ; and then calling 
 up all rny gravity, I scrawled the paper over in a variety of 
 odd characters, which here and there contained the names
 
 74 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 of Allah, Mohammed, Ali, Hassan, and Hosein, and all the 
 Imams, placing them in different anagrams, and substituting 
 here and there figures instead of letters. I then handed it 
 over with great ceremony to the doctor, who, calling for 
 water and a basin, washed the whole from off the paper into 
 the basin, whilst the bystanders offered up prayers for the 
 efficacy of the precious writing. The doctor then said, ' In 
 the name of the Prophet, let the patient take this ; and if 
 fate hath decreed that he is to live, then the sacred names 
 which he will now swallow will restore him : but if not, 
 neither my skill, nor that of any other man, can ever be of 
 the least avail.' 
 
 "The draught was administered, and every eye was 
 immediately fixed upon the wretched man's face, as if a resus- 
 citation was expected to ensue. He remained for some time 
 without showing any symptom of life ; when, to the astonish- 
 ment of all, not excepting myself and the doctor, he groaned, 
 opened his eyes, raised his head on his arm, then called for a 
 basin, and at length vomited in a manner that would have 
 done credit to the prescription of Abu Avicenna himself. In 
 short, he recovered. 
 
 "In my own mind, I immediately attributed the happy 
 change to the drug which had once been wrapped in the paper, 
 and which, with the nausea of the ink, had produced the effect 
 just described ; but I took care to let the bystanders know 
 that the cure was entirely owing to the interference and to 
 the handwriting of one of my sanctity ; and that but for me 
 he would have died. 
 
 " The doctor, on the other hand, took all the merit of the 
 case to himself; for. as soon as his patient had opened his 
 eyes, he exclaimed, ' Did I not tell you so ? ' and in propor- 
 tion as the draught operated, he went on exulting thus, 
 ' There, there, see the efficacy of my prescription ! Had it 
 not been for me, you would have seen the druggist dead 
 before you.' 
 
 " I, however, would not allow him to proceed, and said, 
 ' If you are a doctor, why did you not cure your patient
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 75 
 
 without calling for me ? Keep to your blisters and to your 
 bleedings, and do not interfere with that which doth not 
 belong to you.' 
 
 " He answered, ' Mr. Dervish, I make no doubt that you 
 can write a very good talisman, and also can get a very good 
 price for it ; but every one knows who and what dervishes 
 are, and if their talismans are ever of use, it is not their 
 sanctity which makes them so.' 
 
 " 'Whose dog are you,' exclaimed I, in return, 'to talk to 
 me after this manner? I, who am a servant of the Prophet. 
 
 A DERVISH'S BEGGING-BOX (ENGRAVED BRASSWORK). 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 As for you doctors, your ignorance is proverbial : you hide it 
 by laying all to fate. If by chance your patient recovers, 
 then you take all the credit of the cure to yourselves ; should 
 he die, you say, God hath decreed thus ; what can the efforts 
 of man avail ? Go to, go to ; when you have nearly killed 
 your next patient, and then know not what more to ordain, 
 send for me again, and I will cover your impudent ignorance 
 by curing him as I have just done the druggist.' 
 
 " ' By my head, and by your death,' returned the doctor, ' I 
 am not a man to hear this from any one, much less from a 
 dog of a dervish ; ' and immediately he got up, and approached
 
 76 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 me in a threatening attitude, making use of every epithet of 
 abuse that he could think of. 
 
 " I received him with suitable expressions of contempt, and 
 we very soon came to blows : he so effectually fastened upon 
 my hair, and I upon his beard, that we plucked out whole 
 handfuls from each other : we bit and spat, and fought with 
 such fury, heedless of the sick man and the cries of the women, 
 that the uproar became very great, and, perhaps, would have 
 terminated in something serious, if one of the women had not 
 run in to us, in great agitation, assuring us that the Darogatis 
 officers (policemen) were then knocking at the door of the 
 house, and inquiring whence proceeded all the disturbance. 
 
 "This parted us ; and then I was happy to find that the 
 bystanders were in my favour, for they expressed their con- 
 tempt of the skill of the physician, whose only object was to 
 obtain money without doing his patients any good, whilst they 
 looked upon me in the light of a divine person, who in my 
 handwriting alone possessed the power of curing all manner 
 of disease. 
 
 " The doctor, seeing how ill matters were going for him, 
 stole away with the best face he could ; but before he left the 
 room, he stooped down, and collecting as many of the hairs of 
 his beard, which I had plucked from him, as he could find, to 
 which he cunningly added some of my own hair, he brandished 
 them in my face, saying, ' We shall see on whose side the 
 laugh will be when you are brought before the cadi to- 
 morrow, for beards are worth a ducat l per hair in Tehran ; 
 and I doubt, with all your talismans, whether you can buy 
 these that I hold in my hand.' 
 
 "It was evident that when his anger was cooled, out of 
 regard to his own reputation, he would not put his threat into 
 execution ; so the fear of being dragged before the justice 
 gave me no uneasiness, and I therefore only considered how 
 to make the most of the fortunate circumstance which had 
 just taken place. The report that the druggist (who was the 
 
 1 A beard is held so sacred in the East, that every hair which grows upon a 
 Mohammedan's chin is protected from molestation by a heavy fine.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 77 
 
 first in Tehran) had been brought to life, when on the 
 point of death, by a newly-arrived dervish, was soon spread 
 about, and I became the object of general concern. From 
 morning to night I was taken up in writing talismans, for 
 which I made my customers pay according to their means, 
 and in a short time I found myself the possessor- of some 
 hundreds of piastres. But, unfortunately for me, I did not 
 meet with a dying druggist and a piece of his paper every 
 day ; and feeling myself reduced to live upon the reputation 
 of this one miracle, which I perceived to my sorrow daily 
 diminished, I made a virtue of necessity, and determining 
 to make the tour of Persia, I immediately left Tehran. To 
 whichsoever city I bent my steps, I managed matters so 
 adroitly, that I made my reputation precede my arrival there. 
 The druggist had given me an attestation, under his seal, that 
 he had been restored to life by virtue of a talisman written by 
 my hand, and this I exhibited wherever I went, to corroborate 
 the truth of the reports which had been circulated in my 
 favour. I am now living upon this reputation : it supports 
 me very tolerably for the present, but whenever I find that it 
 begins to fail, I shall proceed elsewhere." The dervish here 
 ended his history. 
 
 When the third dervish came to his turn to speak, he said : 
 " My tale is but short, although story-telling is my profession. 
 I am the son of a schoolmaster, who, perceiving that I was 
 endowed with a very retentive memory, made me read and 
 repeat to him most of the histories with which our language 
 abounds ; and when he found that he had furnished my mind 
 with a sufficient assortment, he turned me out into the world 
 under the garb of a dervish, to relate them in public to such 
 audiences as my talents might gather round me. 
 
 "My first essays were anything but successful. My 
 auditors heard my stories, and then walked away without 
 leaving me any reward for my pains. Little by little I 
 acquired experience. Instead of being carried away, as I had 
 at first permitted myself to be, by the interest of the story, I 
 made a pause when the catastrophe drew near, and then,
 
 78 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 looking around me, said, ' All ye that are present, if you will 
 be liberal towards me, I will tell you what follows ; ' and I 
 seldom failed in collecting a good handful of copper coin. 
 For instance, in the story of the Prince of Khatai and the 
 Princess of Samarcand, when the Ogre Hezar Mun seizes 
 the prince, and is about to devour him ; when he is suspended 
 in" the ogre's mouth, between his upper and lower jaw ; when 
 the princess, all dishevelled and forlorn, is on her knees pray- 
 ing that he may be spared ; when the attendants couch their 
 lances, and are in dismay ; when the horses start back in 
 fright ; when the thunder rolls, and the ogre growls ; then I 
 stop, and say, ' Now, my noble hearers, open your purses, 
 and you shall hear in how miraculous a manner the Prince of 
 Khatai cut the ogre's head off!' By such arts I manage to 
 extract a subsistence from the curiosity of men ; and when 
 my stock of stories is exhausted in one place, I leave it, travel 
 to another, and there renew my labours." 
 
 A DERVISH. 
 
 (From a bazaar drawing.} From the collection of A. Hotz, Esq.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 79 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 Hajji Baba finds that fraud does not remain unpunished, even in this 
 world He makes fresh plans. 
 
 THE dervishes having finished their narratives, I thanked 
 them for the entertainment and instruction which they had 
 afforded me, and I forthwith resolved to learn as much from 
 them as possible, in order to become a dervish myself, in case 
 I should be obliged to abandon my present business. Dervish 
 Sefer instructed me in the numerous tricks which he prac- 
 tised, to impose himself upon the world as a person of great 
 sanctity ; I learned the art of writing talismans from the 
 second ; and the story-teller taught me some of the tales with 
 which his head was stored, lent me his books, and gave me 
 general rules how to lead on the curiosity of an audience, 
 until their money should insensibly be enticed from their 
 pockets. 
 
 In the meanwhile, I continued to sell my tobacco and my 
 pipes ; but owing to my intimacy with the dervishes, who 
 smoked away all my profits, I was obliged to adulterate the 
 tobacco of my other customers considerably more than usual ; 
 so that, in fact, they enjoyed little less than the fumes of dung, 
 straw, and decayed leaves. 
 
 One evening, when it was dusk, and about the time of 
 closing the bazaars, an old woman in rags, apparently bent 
 double with age, stopped me, and requested me to dress a 
 pipe for her to smoke. She was closely veiled, and scarcely 
 uttered a word beyond her want. I filled her one of my very 
 worst mixture : she put it to her mouth ; and at her spitting, 
 coughing, and exclamations, half-a-dozen stout fellows, with 
 long twigs in their hands, immediately came up, seized me, 
 and threw me on my back. The supposed old woman then 
 cast off her veil, and I beheld the Mohtesib J in person. 
 
 1 The Mohtesib is an officer who perambulates the city, and examines weights 
 and measures, and qualities of provisions.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 81 
 
 "At length, wretch of an Ispahani" said he, "I have 
 caught you you, that have so long been poisoning the 
 people of Meshed with your abominable mixtures. You 
 shall receive as many strokes on your feet as you have re- 
 ceived skakies * for your pipes. Bring the /<?/*," 2 said he to 
 his officers, "and lay on till his nails drop off." 
 
 My feet were instantly inserted into the dreaded noose, 
 and the blows fell upon them so thick, that I soon saw the 
 images of ten thousand Mohtesibs, intermixed with ten thou- 
 sand old women, dancing before my eyes, apparently enjoying 
 my torture, and laughing at my writhing and contortions. 
 I implored the mercy of my tormentor by the souls of his 
 father, mother, and grandfather by his own head by that 
 of his child and by that of his prince ; by the Prophet by 
 Ali and by all the Imams. I cursed tobacco. I renounced 
 smoking. I appealed to the feelings of the surrounding spec- 
 tators, to my friends the three dervishes, who stood there 
 stirring neither limb nor muscle for me ; in short, I bawled, 
 cried, entreated, until I entirely lost all sensation and all 
 recollection. 
 
 At length, when I came to myself, I found myself seated 
 with my head against the wall on the side of the road, sur- 
 rounded by a crowd gaping at my miserable situation. No 
 one seemed to pity me. My pipes, my jug, and everything 
 that I possessed, had been taken from me, and I was left to 
 crawl to my home as well as I was able. Luckily it was not 
 far off, and I reached it on my hands and knees, making the 
 most piteous moans imaginable. 
 
 After I had remained a day in horrid torment, with my 
 feet swelled into a misshapen mass of flesh and gore, I re- 
 ceived a visit from one of the dervishes, who ventured to 
 approach me, fearful, as he told me, of being taken up as my 
 accomplice, in case he had come sooner to my help. He had, 
 
 1 Twenty shahies make the groush, or piastre, which is worth about two 
 shillings British. 
 
 2 The /&/ is a long pole, with a noose in the middle, through which the feet 
 of him who is to be bastinadoed are passed, whilst its extremities are held up by 
 two men for the two others who strike. 
 
 F
 
 IN THE BAZAAR. A GENERAL SHOP. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 83 
 
 in his early career, undergone a similar beating himself, and, 
 therefore, knew what remedies to apply to my limbs, which, 
 in a short time, restored them to their former state. 
 
 During my confinement, I had time to reflect upon my 
 situation. I determined to leave Meshed, for I felt that I 
 had entered it at an unlucky hour. Once my back had been 
 sprained, and once I had been bastinadoed. I had managed 
 to collect a small sum of money, which I kept carefully buried 
 in a corner near my room ; and with this I intended to make 
 my way to Tehran by the very first caravan that should be 
 on its departure. I communicated my plan to the dervishes, 
 who applauded it ; and, moreover, the Dervish Sefer offered 
 to accompany me : " For," said he, "I have been warned that 
 the priesthood of Meshed are jealous of my increasing influ- 
 ence, and that they are laying a plot for my ruin ; and, as it 
 is impossible to withstand their power, I will try my fortunes 
 elsewhere." 
 
 It was agreed that I should put on the dress of a dervish ; 
 and having made my purchases, in the bazaar, of a cap, some 
 beads, and a goat's skin, which I slung across my shoulder, I 
 was ready to begin my journey at a moment's warning. 
 
 We became so impatient to depart, that we had almost 
 made up our minds to set off without any other companions, 
 and trust to our good fortune to find our road, and escape the 
 dangers of it ; but we determined to take a fall out of Saadi, 1 
 before we came to a resolution. Dervish Sefer, after making 
 the usual prayer, opened the book and read : " It is contrary 
 to reason, and to the advice of the wise, to take medicine 
 without confidence, or to travel an unknown road without 
 accompanying the caravan." This extraordinary warning 
 settled our minds, and we determined to be guided by it. 
 
 On making inquiries about the departure of caravans for 
 Tehran, I was delighted to meet my friend Ali Katir, the 
 muleteer, who had just arrived at Meshed, and was then 
 
 1 Saadi, Hafiz, and the Koran, are the three books to which the Persians 
 most willingly refer for this mode of divination. Its resemblance to that of the 
 Sortes Virgiliance must occur to every reader.
 
 . 
 
 IN THE BAZAAR. A FRUITERER'S SHOP. 
 From the collection fo Dr. Wills.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 85 
 
 making a bargain with a merchant, to convey merchandise, 
 consisting of the lambs' skins of Bokhara, to the capital. As 
 soon as he saw me, he uttered an exclamation of delight, and 
 immediately lighted his nargil, or water pipe, which he invited 
 me to smoke with him. I related all my adventures since we 
 last parted, and he gave me an account of his. Having left 
 Meshed with a caravan for Ispahan, with his mules loaded 
 partly with bars of silver, and partly with lambs' skins, and 
 having undergone great fears on account of the Turcomans, 
 he reached his destination in safety. That city was still 
 agitated with the recollections of the late attack of the cara- 
 vanserai, of which I have given an account ; and the general 
 belief was, that the invaders had made their approach in a 
 body, consisting of more than a thousand men ; that they had 
 been received with great bravery, and that one Kerbelai 
 Hassan, a barber, had, with his own hand, wounded one of 
 the chiefs so severely, that he had escaped with the greatest 
 difficulty. 
 
 I had always kept this part of my adventures secret from 
 everybody ; so I hid any emotion that might appear on my 
 face from the muleteer, by puffing out a sufficient volume of 
 smoke in his face. 
 
 From Ispahan he carried cotton stuffs, tobacco, and copper 
 ware to Yezd, where he remained some time, until a caravan 
 was collected for Meshed, when he loaded his mules with the 
 manufactures of the former city. Ali Katir agreed that 
 Dervish Sefer and I should return with him to Tehran, and 
 that whenever we were tired with walking, he would willingly 
 assist us, by permitting us to mount his mules.
 
 IN THE BAZAAR. A CHINA AND GLASS DEALER 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 87 
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 Hajji Baba leaves Meshed, is cured of his sprain, and relates a story. 
 
 WHEN I had cleared the gate which leads out of Meshed to 
 Tehran, I shook the collar of my coat, and exclaimed to 
 myself, "May Heaven send thee misfortunes!" for had I 
 been heard by any one of the pilgrims, who were now on 
 their return, it very probably would have gone ill with me. 
 My companion, Dervish Sefer, whom I knew to be of my 
 mind, entered into my feelings, and we both vented our spleen 
 against the inhabitants of that place, I for the drubbings 
 which had been inflicted upon me, he for the persecutions he 
 had undergone from the Mollahs. 
 
 " As for you, my friend," said he to me, "you are young ; 
 you have much to suffer before you gain the experience neces- 
 sary to carry you through life. Do not repine at the first 
 beating ; it will probably save you many more, and will teach 
 you another time to discover a Moktesib, although hid under 
 a woman's veil : but (taking hold of his beard) for a man of 
 my age, one who has seen so much of the world, to be obliged 
 to set out upon his travels again, is truly a great misfortune." 
 
 " But it would have been easy for you," said I, "to remain 
 at Meshed, if you had chosen it : had you been regular in 
 your prayers and ablutions, you might have bid defiance to 
 the Mollahs." 
 
 " That is true enough," said the dervish ; " but the fact is, 
 that the festival of the Ramazan is now close at hand, when I 
 should have been more closely watched than ever by them ; 
 and as I cannot and will not fast (smoking being as necessary 
 to me as air, and wine as daily bread), I have thought it 
 better to make a journey during that time, for the sake of the 
 indulgence which is permitted to travellers. I might, perhaps, 
 have deceived them, as I have frequently done before, by 
 eating and smoking in secret ; but one so notorious as I, who
 
 88 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 lives by the supposed sanctity of his character, being narrowly 
 watched, cannot take such liberties." 
 
 We arrived at Semnan without the occurrence of anything 
 remarkable, excepting, that a day or two before we reached it, 
 when I was helping my friend Ali Katir to load one of his 
 mules, I sprained my back again in its old place : the pain was 
 so great, that it became impossible for me to proceed with the 
 caravan, and I determined to remain where 1 was until I was 
 cured ; particularly, as all danger from the Turcomans having 
 passed, it was needless to make myself any longer a dependent 
 upon a caravan. Dervish Sefer, who was anxious to get to 
 the wine and pleasures of the capital, continued his journey. 
 
 I took up my abode in a tomb on the skirts of the town ; 
 and having spread my goat's skin in a corner of it, I pro- 
 claimed my arrival, according to the custom adopted by 
 travelling dervishes, blowing my horn, and making my ex- 
 clamations of Hakl Hul Allak Akbar! in a most sonorous 
 and audible manner. I had allowed my person to acquire a 
 wild and extravagant appearance, and flattered myself that I 
 did credit to the instructions which had been given me in the 
 arts of deception. 
 
 I was visited by several women, for whom I wrote talis- 
 mans, and they repaid me by small presents of fruit, milk, 
 honey, and other trifles. My back became so painful, that I 
 was obliged to inquire if no one at Semnan could afford me 
 relief. The barber and the farrier were the only two supposed 
 to possess any medical talents ; the one skilled in bleeding, 
 drawing teeth, and setting a limb ; the other, from his know- 
 ledge in the diseases of horses, being often consulted in human 
 ailments. There was also a gis sefid, or grey wig, an old 
 woman of a hag-like and decrepit appearance, who was looked 
 up to as an oracle in all cases where the knowledge of the 
 barber and farrier was of no avail, and who had besides a 
 great many nostrums and recipes for all sorts of aches. Each 
 came to me in succession : all were agreed that my disorder 
 proceeded from cold ; and as fire was the hottest thing in 
 opposition to cold that they knew of, they as unanimously
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 89 
 
 agreed that the actual cautery should immediately be applied 
 to the part ; and the farrier, on account of his dealings in 
 hot and cold iron, was appointed operator. He accordingly 
 brought a pan of charcoal, a pair of bellows, and some small 
 skewers ; and, seating himself in a corner, made his fire, and 
 heated his skewers : when they were red hot, I was placed 
 on the ground flat on my face ; and then, with great solemnity, 
 my back was seared with the burning iron, whilst all the 
 bystanders, at every touch, exclaimed, with great earnestness, 
 " Khoda she/a midehed]' God gives relief. My medical atten- 
 dants, in their united wisdom, out of compliment to the Prophet 
 and the twelve Imams, marked me in thirteen different places ; 
 and although, when I had endured half the operation, I began 
 to cry out most lustily with the pain, still I was not let off 
 until the whole was gone through. It was long before the 
 wounds which they had inflicted were cured ; and as they 
 never would heal unless I was kept in perfect quiet, I con- 
 fined myself to my cell for a considerable time ; at the end of 
 which, my sprain had entirely taken its leave, and strength 
 was restored to my whole frame. Of course, my recovery 
 was attributed to the thirteen worthies who had presided over 
 the operation, and all the town became more than ever per- 
 suaded of the efficacy of hot iron ; but I could not but think 
 that long repose had been my best doctor an opinion which 
 I took care to keep to myself; for I had no objection that the 
 world should believe that I was a proUge of so many holy 
 personages. 
 
 I now determined to pursue my journey to Tehran ; but 
 before I ventured to produce myself as a dervish upon that 
 stage, I resolved to try my talent in relating a story before a 
 Semnan audience. Accordingly, I went to a small open space 
 that is situated near the entrance of the bazaars, where most 
 of the idlers of the town flock about noon ; and making the 
 sort of exclamations usual upon such occasions, I soon col- 
 lected a crowd, who settled themselves on the ground round 
 the place which I had fixed upon for my theatre. A short 
 story, touching a barber at Bagdad (which I had heard when
 
 90 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 I was myself in that profession), luckily came into my memory ; 
 and, standing in the middle of a circle of louts, with uplifted 
 eyes and open mouths, I made my ddbut in the following 
 words : 
 
 " In the reign of the Caliph Haroun al Rashid, of happy 
 memory, lived in the city of Bagdad a celebrated barber, of 
 the name of Ali Sakal. He was so famous for a steady 
 hand, and dexterity in his profession, that he could shave a 
 head, and trim a beard and whiskers, with his eyes blind- 
 folded, without once drawing blood. There was not a man 
 of any fashion at Bagdad who did not employ him ; and such 
 a run of business had he, that at length he became proud 
 and insolent, and would scarcely ever touch a head whose 
 master was not at least a Beg or an Aga. Wood for fuel 
 was always scarce and dear at Bagdad ; and, as his shop 
 consumed a great deal, the wood-cutters brought their loads 
 to him in preference, almost sure of meeting with a ready 
 sale. It happened one day, that a poor wood-cutter, new 
 in his profession, and ignorant of the character of Ali Sakal, 
 went to his shop, and offered him for sale a load of wood, 
 which he had just brought from a considerable distance in 
 the country, on his ass. Ali immediately offered him a price, 
 making use of these words, ' For all the wood that was upon 
 the ass.' The wood-cutter agreed, unloaded his beast, and 
 asked for the money. ' You have not given me all the 
 wood yet,' said the barber ; ' I must have the pack-saddle 
 (which is chiefly made of wood) into the bargain : that was 
 our agreement.' 'How!' said the other, in great amaze- 
 ment ; ' who ever heard of such a bargain ? It is impos- 
 sible.' In short, after many words and much altercation, the 
 overbearing barber seized the pack-saddle, wood and all, 
 and sent away the poor peasant in great distress. He imme- 
 diately ran to the cadi, and stated his griefs : the cadi was 
 one of the barber's customers, and refused to hear the 
 case. The wood-cutter applied to a higher judge : he also 
 patronised Ali Sakal, and made light of the complaint. The 
 poor man then appealed to the mufti himself; who, having
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 91 
 
 pondered over the question, at length settled that it was too 
 difficult a case for him to decide, no provision being made 
 for it in the Koran ; and therefore he must put up with his 
 loss. The wood-cutter was not disheartened ; but forthwith 
 got a scribe to write a petition to the caliph himself, which 
 he duly presented on Friday, the day when he went in state 
 to the mosque. The caliph's punctuality in reading petitions 
 is well known, and it was not long before the wood-cutter 
 was called to his presence. When he had approached the 
 caliph, he kneeled and kissed the ground ; and then placing 
 his arms straight before him, his hands covered with the 
 sleeves of his cloak, and his feet close together, he awaited 
 the decision of his case. 'Friend,' said the caliph, 'the 
 barber has words on his side you have equity on yours. 
 The law must be defined by words, and agreements must be 
 made by words : the former must have its course, or it is 
 nothing ; and agreements must be kept, or there would be 
 no faith between man and man ; therefore the barber must 
 keep all his wood ; but Then calling the wood-cutter 
 
 close to him, the caliph whispered something in his ear, 
 which none but he could hear, and then sent him away quite 
 satisfied." 
 
 Here then I made a pause in my narrative, and said 
 (whilst I extended a small tin cup which I held in my hand), 
 " Now, my noble audience, if you will give me something, 
 I will tell you what the caliph said to the wood-cutter." I 
 had excited great curiosity, and there was scarcely one of 
 my hearers who did not give me a piece of money. 
 
 "Well, then," said I, "the caliph whispered to the wood- 
 cutter what he was to do, in order to get satisfaction from 
 the barber, and what that was 1 will now relate. The wood- 
 cutter having made his obeisances, returned to his ass, which 
 was tied without, took it by the halter, and proceeded to 
 his home. A few days after, he applied to the barber, as 
 if nothing had happened between them, requesting that he, 
 and a companion of his from the country, might enjoy the 
 dexterity of his hand ; and the price at which both operations
 
 92 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 were to be performed was settled. When the wood-cutter's 
 crown had been properly shorn, AH Sakal asked where his 
 companion was. 'He is just standing without here,' said 
 the other, 'and he shall come in presently.' Accordingly 
 he went out, and returned, leading his ass after him by the 
 halter. ' This is my companion,' said he, ' and you must 
 shave him.' 'Shave him!' exclaimed the barber, in the 
 
 "KANDJARS," OR CURVED DAGGERS, AND SHEATHS. 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 greatest surprise ; ' it is enough that I have consented to 
 demean myself by touching you, and do you insult me by 
 asking me to do as much to your ass ? Away with you, or 
 I'll send you both to fehanum ;* and forthwith drove them 
 out of his shop. 
 
 " The wood-cutter immediately went to the caliph, was 
 admitted to his presence, and related his case. ' 'Tis well,' 
 said the commander of the faithful : ' bring Ali Sakal and
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 93 
 
 his razors to me this instant,' he exclaimed to one of his 
 officers ; and in the course of ten minutes the barber stood 
 before him. ' Why do you refuse to shave this man's com- 
 panion ? ' said the caliph to the barber : ' was not that your 
 agreement ? ' Ali, kissing the ground, answered, ' 'Tis true, 
 O caliph, that such was our agreement ; but who ever made 
 a companion of an ass before ? or who ever before thought 
 of treating it like a true believer ? ' ' You may say right,' 
 said the caliph : ' but, at the same time, who ever thought 
 of insisting upon a pack-saddle being included in a load 
 of wood ? No, no, it is the wood-cutter's turn now. To 
 the ass immediately, or you know the consequences.' The 
 barber was then obliged to prepare a great quantity of soap, 
 to lather the beast from head to foot, and to shave him in 
 the presence of the caliph and of the whole court, whilst he 
 was jeered and mocked by the taunts and laughing of all the 
 bystanders. The poor wood-cutter was then dismissed with 
 an appropriate present of money, and all Bagdad resounded 
 with the story, and celebrated the justice of the commander 
 of the faithful." 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 Of the man he meets, and of the consequences of the encounter. 
 
 I LEFT Semnan with a light heart my sprain was cured 
 I was young and handsome twenty tomauns, my savings 
 at Meshed, clinked in my purse I had acquired some 
 experience in the world ; and I determined, as soon as I 
 reached Tehran, to quit the garb of a dervish, to dress my- 
 self well from head to foot, and to endeavour to push my 
 fortunes in some higher walk in life. 
 
 About a day's journey from Tehran, as I was walking 
 onward, chanting, with all my throat, a song on the loves 
 of Leilah and Majnoun, I was overtaken by a courier, who
 
 94 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 entered into conversation with me, and invited me to par- 
 take of some victuals which he had brought with him. The 
 heat of the day being overpowering, I willingly accepted his 
 invitation. We settled ourselves on the borders of a rivulet, 
 near a corn-field, whilst the courier took off his horse's bridle, 
 and permitted it to feed on the new wheat. He then groped 
 up, from the deep folds of his riding trowsers, a pocket- 
 handkerchief, in which were wrapped several lumps of cold 
 boiled rice, and three or four flaps of bread, which he spread 
 before us, and then added some sour curds, which he poured 
 from a small bag that hung at his saddle-bow. From the 
 same trowsers, which contained his shoes, a provision of 
 tobacco, a drinking-cup, and many other useful articles, he 
 drew half-a-dozen raw onions, which he added to the feast ; 
 and we ate with such appetite, that very soon we were 
 reduced to the melancholy dessert of sucking our fingers. 
 We washed the whole down with some water from the 
 rivulet, and only then (such had been our voracity) we 
 thought of questioning each other concerning the object of 
 our respective journeys. From my dress, he perceived me 
 to be a dervish, and my story was soon told : as for himself, 
 he was a courier belonging to the Governor of Asterabad, 
 and, to my joy and surprise, was carrying the happy intel- 
 ligence of the release of my former companion, Asker Khan, 
 the Shah's poet, from his captivity among the Turcomans. 
 I did not let the courier know how much I was interested in 
 his errand, for experience had taught me how wise it was, 
 in the affairs of life, to keep one's own counsel ; and, there- 
 fore, I pretended ignorance of even the existence of such 
 a person. 
 
 My companion informed me that the poet had managed to 
 reach Asterabad in safety, and that, being destitute of every- 
 thing, he, in the meanwhile, had been despatched to give in- 
 telligence of his situation to his family. He showed me the 
 letters with which he was entrusted, which he drew forth from 
 his breast, wrapped up in a handkerchief; and being a very 
 inquisitive fellow, though unable to read, he was happy to find
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 95 
 
 in me one who might give him some account of their contents. 
 The first which I inspected was a memorial from the poet to 
 the king of kings, in which he set forth, in language the most 
 poetic, all the miseries and tortures which he had endured 
 since he had been thrown into the hands of the Turcomans : 
 that the hunger, the thirst, and the barbarous treatment which 
 he had experienced were nothing when compared with the 
 privation of the all-gracious and refulgent presence of that 
 pearl of royalty, that gem of magnificence, the quintessence 
 of all earthly perfection, the great king of kings : that as the 
 vilest reptile that crawls is permitted to enjoy the warmth of 
 the glorious sun, so he, the meanest of the king's subjects, 
 hoped once more to bask in the sunshine of the royal coun- 
 tenance ; and finally, he humbly prayed, that his long absence 
 might not deprive him of the shadow of the throne ; that he 
 might aspire to reoccupy his former post near his majesty's 
 person, and once again be permitted to vie with the nightin- 
 gale, and sing of the charms and perfections of his lovely rose. 
 
 The next letter was addressed to the prime vizier, in which 
 that notorious minister, decrepit in person, and nefarious in 
 conduct, was called a planet among the stars, and the sheet- 
 anchor of the state, and in which the poet sues for his protec- 
 tion. There was nearly a similar one to his former enemy, 
 the lord high treasurer. I then inspected the letters addressed 
 to his family, of which one was to his wife, another to his 
 son's tutor, and a third to his steward. To his wife, he talked 
 of the interior arrangements of his anderun ; hoped that she 
 had been economical in her dress, that she had kept the 
 female slaves in good order, and desired her immediately to 
 set herself and them about making clothes for him, as he was 
 destitute of everything. 
 
 To the tutor, he enjoined great attention to his son's 
 manners ; hoped that he had been taught all the best forms 
 of cant and compliment ; that he never omitted to say his 
 prayers ; that he was by this time able to sit a horse, to per- 
 form the spear exercise, and to fire a gun on the full gallop. 
 
 To his steward, he gave some general instructions con-
 
 96 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 earning the administration of his affairs enjoined great 
 economy ; that he should daily go and stand before the prime 
 vizier ; praise him to the skies ; and make all sorts of profes- 
 sions on his part to his excellency ; that he should keep a good 
 watch upon his women and slaves ; that his wife should not 
 go too often to the bath ; that when she and her slaves went 
 abroad to take the air, he should accompany them. He hoped 
 that no intriguing old women, particularly Jewesses, had been 
 admitted into his harem ; and that the walls which surrounded 
 the women's apartments had always been kept in ^ood repair, 
 in order to prevent gadding on the house-top with the neigh- 
 bours. He ordered that his black slave, Johur, was now no 
 longer to be allowed free access into the anderun ; and if ever 
 seen to be familiar with any of the female slaves, he and they 
 were to be whipped : finally, he desired the steward to give 
 the courier a handsome reward for being the bearer of such 
 good news to his family. 
 
 I folded up the letters again : those which had been sealed 
 I again sealed, 1 and returned to the courier. He seemed to 
 reckon a great deal upon the reward that he was to get for 
 bringing the first intelligence of the poet's safety, and told me 
 that, fearing some other might get the start of him, he had 
 travelled day and night ; and added, that the horse which he 
 now bestrode, belonged to a peasant, from whom he had taken 
 it forcibly on the road, having left his own, which was knocked 
 up, to be brought on after him. 
 
 After we had conversed a little more, he seemed entirely 
 overpowered by fatigue, and fell into a profound sleep. As 
 he lay extended on the grass, I looked upon him, and I began 
 to reflect how easy it would be to forestall him. I knew the 
 whole of the poet's history in fact, I was in some measure 
 identified with it. I began to think that I had a right to the 
 first relation of it. Then as to the horse, it was as much mine 
 
 1 A Persian letter is folded up like a lady's thread paper, and fastened in the 
 middle by a slip of adhesive paper, which is moistened with the tongue, and then 
 stamped with the seal of the writer. Thus, letters are frequently opened and 
 reclosed without detection.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 97 
 
 as his ; particularly since the peasant, with his own, must now 
 be close at hand. So without more ceremony I unfolded the 
 handkerchief, which still lay in his lap, and taking out the 
 letter to the steward, I mounted the horse ; I applied the 
 stirrups l to his sides ; I galloped off, and in a very short time 
 had left the sleeper far behind me, and had made considerable 
 progress on the road to the capital. 
 
 THE BULBUL SINGING TO THE ROSE (CONVENTIONAL RENDERING). 
 Water-colour drawing from the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 As I rode along, I considered what was now my best line 
 of conduct, and in what manner I should best introduce myself 
 to the poet's family, so as to make my story good, and secure 
 for myself the reward which had been destined for the courier. 
 
 1 The stirrup, which is a sort of iron shovel, sharp at the edge, in Persia as well 
 as in Turkey, is used by way of spur.
 
 98 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 I calculated that I should have at least a good day's start of 
 him ; for when he awoke, he probably would be obliged to 
 walk some distance before he got another horse, should he 
 not regain his own, which was very doubtful ; and appearing 
 on foot as he did, it would be a hundred to one if anybody 
 would believe his story, and he, most probably, would now 
 be refused the loan of a beast to carry him on. I resolved, 
 therefore, immediately upon reaching Tehran, to sell the 
 horse and its accoutrements for what they would fetch ; I 
 would then exchange my dervish's dress for the common 
 dress of the country, and making myself up as one come from 
 off a long journey, present myself at the gate of the poet's 
 house, and there make the best story I could, which would 
 be a sufficiently easy matter, considering how well I was 
 acquainted with every circumstance relating to him. 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 Hajji Baba reaches Tehran, and goes to the poet's house. 
 
 I ENTERED Tehran early in the morning by the Shah Abdul 
 Azim gate, just as it was opened, and immediately exhibited 
 my horse for sale at the market, which is daily held there for 
 that purpose. I had proved it to be a good beast, from the 
 rate at which I had travelled since taking my hasty leave of 
 the courier ; but a horse-dealer, to whom I showed it, made 
 out so clearly that it was full of defects, that I thought myself 
 in luck if I got anything at all for it. It was chup 1 it had 
 the ableh it was old, and its teeth had been burnt ; in short, 
 it seemed to have every quality that a horse ought not to 
 have. I was therefore surprised when he offered me five 
 
 1 The Persians have a particular aversion to horses which have white legs on 
 one side, which they call chup ; and they also very much undervalue a horse that 
 has the ableh, which consists of white leprous marks on its nose, round the eyes, 
 and under the tail.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 99 
 
 tomauns for it, provided I threw him the bridle and saddle 
 in to the bargain ; and he seemed as surprised when I took 
 him at his word, and accepted of his offer. He paid me down 
 one-half of the money, and then offered me a half-starved ass 
 in payment of the remainder ; but this I refused, and he pro- 
 mised to pay me in full when we met again. 1 was too much 
 in haste to continue bargaining any longer ; so, going straight- 
 way to the bazaar, I bought a black cap, laid by my dervish's 
 
 THE HOUSE OF THE COURT POET. 
 
 (An original sketch by James Morier.) 
 
 tiara, and having equipped myself in a manner to be taken 
 for one come from off a journey, I inquired my way to the 
 house of the poet. 
 
 It was situated in a pleasant quarter of the town, sur- 
 rounded by gardens filled with poplars and pomegranate trees, 
 and in a street through which ran a stream of water, bordered 
 by beautiful chenars> But the house itself seemed, indeed, to 
 speak the absence of its master ; the gate was half closed, 
 \ 
 
 1 The chenar tree is a species of sycamore.
 
 ioo THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 there was no stir about it, and when I entered the first court 
 I could perceive but few indications of an inhabitant. This 
 looked ill for my promised reward. At length, making my 
 way to the upper room that was situated over the gate, I there 
 saw a man of about fifty years old, seated on a felt carpet 
 smoking his Kalian, whom I found to be the very person 
 I was in search of, viz., the Nazir or steward. 
 
 I immediately exclaimed, " Good news ! the khan is 
 coming." 
 
 " Yani ckeh? what do you mean?" said he; "which 
 khan ? where ? when ? " 
 
 When I had explained myself, and had presented the 
 letter addressed to him, he seemed to be thrown into a 
 mixed state of feigned joy and real sorrow, amazement, and 
 apprehension. 
 
 "But are you very sure," said he, "that the khan is 
 alive ? " 
 
 "Very sure," returned I ; "and before to-morrow is over 
 you will receive another courier, who will give you many more 
 particulars of his safety, and who will bring letters to the king, 
 viziers, and others." 
 
 He then began to make all sorts of incoherent exclama- 
 tions : " This is a wonderful business ! What dust has fallen 
 upon our heads ? Where shall I go ? What shall I do ? " 
 
 When he had a little recovered himself, I endeavoured to 
 persuade him to give me an explanation of his emotions on 
 this occasion, and tell me why he felt so agitated, and appa- 
 rently distressed, at what ought only to be a matter of joy. 
 All I could hear from him was, "He must be dead ; every- 
 body says he is dead ; his wife dreamt that she had lost her 
 largest tooth, the one that gave her such aching pain, and 
 therefore he is dead ; besides, the king has settled it so. He 
 cannot be alive ; he must not be alive." 
 
 "Well," said I, "if he is dead, be it so ; all I can say is, 
 that he was one of the true believers at Asterabad, not six 
 days ago ; and that he will soon prove in person, by showing 
 himself at Tehran, in the course of another week."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 101 
 
 After the Nazir had sat, and wondered, and ruminated for 
 some time, he said, "You will not be surprised at my per- 
 plexity when I tell you of the state of things here, in conse- 
 quence of the report of my master's death. In the first place, 
 the Shah has seized all his property ; his house, furniture, and 
 live stock, including his Georgian slaves, are to be given to 
 Khur Ali Mirza, one of the king's younger sons. His village 
 now belongs to the prime vizier, his place is about to be 
 bestowed upon Mirza Fuzul ; and, to crown all, his wife has 
 married his son's tutor. Say, then, whether or no I have not 
 a right to be astonished and perplexed ? " 
 
 I agreed that there was no disputing his right; " But in 
 the meanwhile," said I, "what becomes of my reward?" 
 
 " Oh, as to that," answered the Nazir, " you cannot expect 
 anything from me, for you have brought me no joyful tidings. 
 You may claim it from my master, when he comes, if you 
 choose ; but I can give you nothing." 
 
 Upon which, promising to return on some future day, I left 
 the Nazir to his own reflections, and quitted the house. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 He makes plans for the future, and is involved in a quarrel. 
 
 I DETERMINED to wait the arrival of the poet, and through his 
 interference to endeavour to get into some situation, where 
 I might gain my bread honestly, and acquire a chance of 
 advancing myself in life, without having recourse to the tricks 
 and frauds which I had hitherto practised ; for I was tired of 
 herding with the low and the vulgar, and I saw so many in- 
 stances before me of men rising in the world, and acquiring 
 both riches and honour, who had sprung from an origin quite 
 as obscure as my own, that I already anticipated my elevation, 
 and even settled in my own mind how I should act when I 
 was a prime vizier.
 
 102 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 " Who," said I to myself, " was the Shah's chief favourite, 
 Ismael Beg tellai, or the golden, but a ferash, or a tent- 
 pitcher? He is neither handsomer nor better-spoken than I ; 
 and if ever there should be an opportunity of comparing our 
 horsemanship, I think one who has been brought up amongst 
 the Turcomans would show him what riding is, in spite of 
 his reputation. Well ; and the famous lord high treasurer, 
 who nils the king's coffers with gold, and who does not 
 forget his own who and what was he ? A barber's son is 
 quite as good as a greengrocer's, and, in our respective cases, 
 a great deal better too ; for I can read and write, whereas 
 his excellency, as report says, can do neither. He eats and 
 drinks what he likes ; he puts on a new coat every day ; and, 
 after the Shah, has the choice of all the beauties of Persia ; 
 and all this without half my sense, or half my abilities ; for, 
 to hear the world talk, one must believe him to be little 
 better than a kkilr be teshdeed, i.e., a doubly-accented ass." 
 
 I continued wrapt up in these sort of meditations, seated 
 with my back against the wall of one of the crowded avenues 
 which lead to the gate of the royal palace, and had so worked 
 up my imagination by the prospect of my future greatness, 
 that, on rising to walk away, I instinctively pushed the 
 crowd from before me, as if such respect from them was due 
 to one of my lofty pretensions. Some stared at me, some 
 abused me, and others took me for a madman ; and indeed 
 when I came to myself, and looked at my tattered clothes 
 and my beggarly appearance, I could not help smiling at 
 their surprise, and at my folly ; and straightway went into 
 the cloth bazaar in the determination of fitting myself out in 
 decent apparel, as the first step towards my change of life. 
 
 Making my way through the crowd, I was stopped by a 
 violent quarrel between three men, who were abusing each 
 other with more than ordinary violence. I pushed into the 
 circle which surrounded them ; and there, to my dismay, 
 discovered the courier, whom I had deceived, seconded by 
 a peasant, attacking the horse-dealer, whom they had just 
 pulled off the horse which I had sold him.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 'That is my horse," said the peasant. 
 ' That is my saddle," said the courier. 
 " They are mine," exclaimed the horse-dealer. 
 
 103 
 
 
 THE HORSE-DEALER. 
 
 (From a sketch by Aforier.) 
 
 I immediately saw the danger in which I stood, and was 
 about to slink away, when I was perceived by the horse- 
 dealer, who seized hold of my girdle, and said, " This is the 
 man I bought the horse of." As soon as I was recognised
 
 io 4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 by the courier, immediately the whole brunt of the quarrel, 
 like a thundercloud, burst on my head, and I was almost 
 overwhelmed by its violence. Rascal, thief, cheat, were 
 epithets which were dinned into my ears without mercy. 
 
 " Where's my horse ? " cried one. 
 
 " Give me my saddle," vociferated the other. 
 
 " Return me my money," roared out a third. 
 
 " Take him to the cadi," said the crowd. 
 
 In vain I bawled, swore, and bade defiance ; in vain I 
 was all smoothness and conciliation : it was impossible for 
 the first ten minutes to gain a hearing ; every one recited 
 his griefs. The courier's rage was almost ungovernable ; 
 the peasant complained of the injustice which had been done 
 him ; and the horse-dealer called me every sort of name, for 
 having robbed him of his money. I first talked to the one, 
 then coaxed the other, and endeavoured to bully the third. 
 To the courier I said, "Why are you so angry? there is 
 your saddle safe and sound, you can ask no more." To the 
 peasant I exclaimed, " You could not say more if your beast 
 had actually been killed ; take him and walk away, and 
 return thanks to Allah that it is no worse." As for the 
 horse-dealer, I inveighed against him with all the bitterness 
 of a man who had been cheated of his property: "You 
 have a right to talk indeed of having been deceived, when 
 to this moment you know that you have only paid me one 
 half of the cost of the horse, and that you wanted to fob me 
 off with a dying ass for the other half." 
 
 I offered to return him the money ; but this he refused. 
 He insisted upon my paying him the keep of the horse 
 besides ; upon which a new quarrel ensued, in which argu- 
 ments were used on both sides which convinced neither 
 party, and consequently we immediately adjourned to the 
 daroga or police magistrate, who, we agreed, should decide 
 the question between us. 
 
 We found him at his post, at the cross streets in the 
 bazaar, surrounded by his officers, who, with their long sticks, 
 were in readiness to inflict the bastinado on the first offender.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 105 
 
 I opened the case, and stated all the circumstances of it ; 
 insisting very strongly on the evident intention to cheat me 
 which the horse-dealer had exhibited. The horse-dealer 
 answered me, and showed that as the horse did not belong 
 to him, it being stolen from another, he had no right to pay 
 for his keep. 
 
 KHOSRO SEES SHIREEN BATHING AT A STREAM (MODERN TILE-WORK 
 MADE IN ISPAHAN). 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 The question puzzled the daroga so much, that he declined 
 interfering, and was about ordering us to the tribunal of the 
 cadi, when a decrepit old man, a bystander, said. "Why do 
 you make so much difficulty about a plain question ? when 
 the horse-dealer shall have paid the hajjl the remaining half 
 of the price of the horse, then the hajji shall pay for the
 
 io6 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 keep of the beast, as long as it was in the horse-dealer's 
 possession." 
 
 Every one cried Barik A Halt I Barik Allah! Praise be 
 to God! and, whether right or wrong, they all appeared so 
 struck by the specious justice of the decision, that the daroga 
 dismissed us, and told us to depart in peace. 
 
 I did not lose a moment in repaying to the horse-dealer 
 the purchase-money of the horse, and in getting from him a 
 receipt in full : it was only after he had settled with me that 
 he began to ponder over the merits of the decision, and 
 seemed extremely puzzled to discover why, if he was entitled 
 to the horse's keep at all, he was not entitled to it, whether 
 he had paid me half or the whole of the money ? He seemed 
 to think, that he for once had been duped ; and very luckily 
 his rage was averted from me to the daroga, whom he very 
 freely accused of being a puzzle-headed fool, and one who 
 had no more pretension to law than he had to honesty. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 He puts on new clothes, goes to the bath, and appears in a 
 new character. 
 
 I NOW looked upon myself as clear of this unpleasant busi- 
 ness, which I had entirely brought on my own head, and 
 congratulated myself that I had got off at so cheap a rate. 
 I again made my way to the cloth bazaar ; and, going to 
 the first shop near the gate of it, I inquired the price of red 
 cloth, of which it was my ambition to make a baruni, or 
 cloak ; because I thought that it would transfer to me that 
 respect which I always felt for those who wore it. The 
 shopkeeper, upon looking at me from head to foot, said, " A 
 baruni, indeed ! and for whom do you want it, and who is 
 to pay for it ? "
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 107 
 
 " For myself, to be sure," answered I. 
 
 " And what does such a poor devil as you want with such 
 a coat?" said he. " Mirzas and khans only wear them, and 
 I am sure you are no such personage." 
 
 I was about to answer in great wrath, when a dalal or 
 broker went by, loaded with all sorts of second-hand clothes, 
 which he was hawking about for sale, and to him I imme- 
 diately made application, in spite of the reiterated calls of 
 the shopkeeper, who now too late repented of having driven 
 me off in so hasty a manner. We retreated to a corner in 
 the gateway of the adjacent mosque, and there the dalal, 
 putting his load down, spread his merchandise before me. 
 I was struck by a fine shot silk vest, trimmed in front with 
 gold lace and gold buttons, of which I asked the price. The 
 dalal extolled its beauty and my taste ; swore that it had 
 belonged to one of the king's favourite Georgians, who had 
 only worn it twice, and having made me try it on, walked 
 around and around me, exclaiming all the while, Mashallak, 
 Mashallah ! Praise be to God ! I was so pleased with this, 
 that I must needs have a shawl for my waist to match, and 
 he produced an old Cashmerian shawl full of holes and darns, 
 which he assured me had belonged to one of the ladies in 
 the king's harem, and which, he said, he would let me have 
 at a reasonable price. My vanity made me prefer this com- 
 modity to a new Kerman shawl, which I might have had 
 for what I was about to pay for the old worn-out Cashmere ; 
 and, adjusting it so as to hide the defects, I wound it about 
 my waist, which only wanted a dagger stuck into it to make 
 my dress complete. With this the dalal also supplied me, and 
 when I was thus equipped I could not resist expressing my 
 satisfaction to the broker, who was not backward in assuring 
 me, that there was not a handsomer nor better dressed man 
 in Tehran. 
 
 When we came to settle our accounts, the business wore 
 a more serious aspect. The dalal began by assuring me of 
 his honesty ; that he was not like other dalals, who asked a 
 hundred and then took fifty ; and that when he said a thing,
 
 io8 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 I might depend upon its veracity. He then asked me five 
 tomauns for the coat, fifteen for the shawl, and four for the 
 dagger, making altogether twenty-four tomauns. 
 
 Upon hearing this my delight subsided, for I had barely 
 twenty tomauns in my pocket ; and I was about stripping 
 myself of my finery, and returning again to my old clothes, 
 when the dalal stopped me, and said, "You may perhaps 
 think that price a little too much, but, by my head and by 
 your soul, I bought them for that tell me what you will 
 give ? " I answered that it was out of the question dealing 
 with him upon such high terms, but that if he would give them 
 to me for five tomauns I would be a purchaser. This he 
 rejected with disdain, upon which I stripped and returned him 
 his property. When he had collected his things again, and 
 apparently when all dealings between us were at an end, he 
 said, " I feel a friendship for you, and I will do for you what 
 I would not do for my brother you shall have them for ten 
 tomauns." I again refused, and we stood higgling, until we 
 agreed that I should pay him six, and one by way of a dress 
 for himself. This was no sooner said than done. 
 
 He then left me, and I packed up my bargain, with the 
 intention of first going to the bath, and there equipping 
 myself. On my road, I bought a pair of high-heeled green 
 slippers, a blue silk shirt, and a pair of crimson silk trowsers, 
 and, having tied up the whole in my handkerchief, I proceeded 
 to the bath. 
 
 No one took notice of me as I entered, for one of my 
 mean appearance could create no sensation, and I comforted 
 myself by the reflection that the case would be changed as 
 soon as I should put on my new clothes. I deposited my 
 bundle in a corner, where I also undressed, and, having 
 wrapped myself round with a towel, I entered the bath. 
 
 Here all ranks were on a level, in appearance at least, and 
 I now flattered myself that my fine form, my broad chest, and 
 narrow waist would make me an object of admiration. I 
 called to one of the daldks (bathing men) to wait upon me, 
 and to go through the different operations of rubbing with the
 
 s 
 
 < 8 
 
 I 
 X
 
 no THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 hand, and of the friction with the hair bag, and I also ordered 
 him to shave my head, to get ready the necessary materials 
 for dyeing my beard, mustachios, and curls, as well as my 
 hands and the soles of my feet, and also to prepare the depila- 
 tory ; in short, I announced my intention of undergoing a 
 complete lustration. 
 
 The dalak, as soon as he began rubbing me, expressed 
 his admiration at my broad chest by his repeated exclama- 
 tions ; and bearing in mind the influence which new clothes 
 were likely to create, I behaved like one who had been accus- 
 tomed to this sort of praise and attention. He said that I 
 could not have come at a luckier hour, for that he had just 
 operated upon a khan, who, having received a dress of honour 
 from the Shah upon the occasion of bringing the first melons 
 from Ispahan, had been sent to the bath by the astrologers 
 at this particular time, as the most fortunate for putting on a 
 new dress. 
 
 As soon as all was over, the dalak brought me some dry 
 linen, and conducted me to the spot where I had left my 
 clothes. With what pleasure I opened my bundle and in- 
 spected my finery ! It appeared that I was renovated in 
 proportion as I put on each article of dress. I had never yet 
 been clothed in silk. I tied on my trowsers with the air of a 
 man of fashion, and when I heard the rustling of my vest, 
 I turned about in exultation to see who might be looking at 
 me. My shawl was wound about me in the newest style, 
 rather falling in front, and spread out large behind, and when 
 the dagger glittered in my girdle, I conceived that nothing 
 could exceed the finish of my whole adjustment. I indented 
 the top of my cap in the true Kajari, or royal style, and placed 
 it on my head considerably on one side. When the bathing 
 man, at length, brought me the looking-glass, as a signal for 
 paying the bath, I detained him for the purpose of surveying 
 myself, arranging my curls to twist up behind the ear, and 
 pulling my mustachios up towards my eyes. I then paid him 
 handsomely, and, leaving my old clothes under his charge, I 
 made my exit with the strut of a man of consequence.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 1 1 1 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 The poet returns from captivity The consequences of it for 
 Hajjl Baba. 
 
 I TOOK my road towards the poet's house, in the hope of 
 gaining some intelligence about him. From the end of the 
 street I perceived a crowd surrounding the gate, and I was 
 soon informed that he had just arrived, and had gone through 
 the ceremony of making his entrance over the roof instead of 
 through the door ; for such is the custom when a man who 
 has been thought dead returns home alive. 
 
 I immediately pushed through the crowd, made my way 
 into the room where the poet was seated, and with every 
 demonstration of great joy congratulated him upon his safe 
 arrival. He did not recognise me ; and even when I had 
 explained who I was, he could scarcely believe that one so 
 trim and smart as I then was could be the same dirty ragged 
 ruffian whom he had known before. 
 
 The apartment was filled with all sorts of people, some 
 happy at his return, others full of disappointment. Among 
 the latter, and those who paid him the finest compliments, 
 was Mirza Fuzul, the man who had been nominated to succeed 
 him in his situation, and who did not cease exclaiming, " Your 
 place has been empty, and our eyes are enlightened," as long 
 as he remained in the room. At length, a great bustle was 
 heard, the doors were opened, and an officer from the king 
 was announced, who commanded the poet forthwith to repair 
 to the presence, which he did in the very clothes, boots, dust 
 and all, in which he had travelled. 
 
 The party then broke up, and I left the house in the 
 determination of returning the next day ; but as I was going- 
 out of the yard, I met the Nazir, with whom I had had a con- 
 versation, as before related. He did not appear to me to be
 
 ii2 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 among the happy ones. "In the name of Allah," said I, 
 " you see that my words have proved true : the khan is 
 alive !." 
 
 "True enough," answered he, with a sigh; "he is alive, 
 and may his life be a long one ! but God is great ! " and then 
 making two or three more similar exclamations, he left me, 
 apparently full of care and misery. 
 
 I passed the remainder of the day in strolling about, and 
 building castles in the air. I walked through the bazaars, 
 went to the mosques, and lounged among the idlers, who are 
 always to be found in great numbers about the gate of the 
 royal palace. Here the news of the day was the poet's 
 return, and the reception which he had met with from the 
 Shah. Some said that his majesty, upon hearing of his 
 arrival, had ordained that it could not be ; that he was dead, 
 and must be so. Others that, on the contrary, the king was 
 happy at the intelligence, and had ordered ten tomauns to be 
 given to the bearer of it. The truth, however, was this ; the 
 king had been disappointed at the poet's resurrection, because 
 it destroyed the arrangements he had made with respect to 
 his house and effects, and he was not disposed to give him 
 a good reception ; but Asker, who well knew his majesty's 
 passion for poetry, and particularly of that kind which sings 
 the royal praises, had long since foreseen the event, and had 
 provided himself with an impromptu, which he had composed 
 even when he was living an exile among the Turcomans. 
 This he repeated at the proper moment ; and thus the tide 
 of the king's favour, which was running full against him, he 
 entirely turned, and made it flow to his advantage. In short, 
 he had his mouth filled with gold for his pains, was invested 
 with a magnificent dress, and was reinstated in his situation 
 and his possessions. 
 
 I lost no time in again congratulating my adopted patron, 
 and did not miss a single morning in attending his levee. 
 Finding that he was favourably inclined towards me, I made 
 known to him my situation, and entreated him either to give 
 me a place in his household, or to recommend me as a servant
 
 ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 113 
 
 to one of his acquaintance. I had found out that the Nazir's 
 despondency at his master's return proceeded from the fear of 
 being detected in certain frauds which he had committed on 
 his property ; and, as I hoped that I might eventually suc- 
 ceed to his situation, I expressed the greatest zeal for the 
 poet's interest, and disclosed all that I knew concerning the 
 delinquency of his servant. However, I did not succeed ; for 
 whether he had a clearer insight into characters than I gave 
 him credit for, or whether the Nazir managed to prove his 
 innocence, and make me suspected, I know not ; but the fact 
 was, that he kept his place, and I continued to be an attendant 
 at the levees. 
 
 At length, one morning Asker called me to him, and said, 
 " Hajji, my friend, you know how thankful I have always 
 expressed myself for your kindness to me when we were 
 prisoners together in the hands of the Turcomans, and now 
 I will prove my gratitude. I have recommended you 
 strongly to Mirza Ahmak, the king's Hakim Bashi, or chief 
 physician, who is in want of a servant ; and I make no doubt, 
 that if you give him satisfaction, he will teach you his art, 
 and put you in the way of making your fortune. You 
 have only to present yourself before him, saying that you 
 come from me, and he will immediately assign you an 
 employment." 
 
 I had no turn for the practice of physic, and recollecting 
 the story which had been related to me by the dervish, I held 
 the profession in contempt : but my case was desperate ; 
 I had spent my last dinar, and therefore I had nothing left 
 me but to accept of the doctor's place. Accordingly, the 
 next morning I proceeded to his house, which was situated 
 in the neighbourhood of the palace ; and as I entered a dull, 
 neglected courtyard, I there found several sick persons, some 
 squatted against the wall, others supported by their friends, 
 and others again with bottles in their hands, waiting the 
 moment when the physician should leave the women's apart- 
 ments to transact business in public. I proceeded to an open 
 window, where those who were not privileged to enter the 
 
 H
 
 ii4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 room stood, and there I took my station until I should be 
 called in. Within the room were several persons who came 
 to pay their court to the doctor (for every man who is an 
 officer of the court has his levee), and from remarking them, 
 I learnt how necessary it was, in order to advance in life, 
 to make much of everything, even the dog or the cat, if 
 they came in my way, of him who can have access to the ear 
 of men in power. I made my reflections upon the miseries 
 I had already undergone, and was calculating how long it 
 
 EMBROIDERY IN SII.K WITH PIECES OF COLOURED CLOTH LAID ON. 
 
 (From the north of Persia.} From the collection of Dr. II7/A. 
 
 would take me to go through a course of cringing and flattery 
 to be entitled to the same sorts of attention myself, when I 
 perceived, by the bows of those near me, that the doctor had 
 seated himself at the window, and that the business of the 
 day had commenced. 
 
 The Hakim was an old man, with an eye sunk deep in 
 his head, high cheek-bones, and a scanty beard. He had 
 .a considerable bend in his back, and his usual attitude, when
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 115 
 
 seated, was that of a projecting chin, his head reclining back 
 between his shoulders, and his hands resting on his girdle, 
 whilst his elbows formed two triangles on each side of his 
 body. He made short snappish questions, gave little hums 
 at the answers, and seemed to be thinking of anything but 
 the subject before him. When he heard the account of the 
 ailments of those who had come to consult him, and had said 
 a few words to his little circle of parasites, he looked at me, 
 and after I had told him that I was the person of whom the 
 poet had spoken, he fixed his little sharp eyes upon me for 
 a second or two, and then desired me to wait, for that he 
 wished to speak to me in private. Accordingly, he soon 
 after got up, and went out' of the room, and I was called 
 upon to attend him in a small separate court, closely walled 
 on all sides, except on the one where was situated the 
 khelwet, or private room, in which the doctor was seated. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 Hajji Baba gets into the service of the king's physician Of the manner 
 he was first employed by him. 
 
 As soon as I appeared, the doctor invited me into the room, 
 and requested me to be seated ; which I did with all the 
 humility which it is the etiquette for an inferior to show 
 towards his superior for so great an honour. 
 
 He informed me that the poet had spoken very favourably 
 of me, and had said that I was a person to be depended 
 upon, particularly on account of my discretion and prudence ; 
 that I had seen a great deal of life ; that I was fertile in 
 expedients ; and that if any business in which circumspection 
 and secrecy were necessary was entrusted to me, I should 
 conduct it with all the ability required. I bowed repeatedly
 
 n6 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 as he spoke, and kept my hands respectfully before me, 
 covered with the border of my sleeve, whilst I took care 
 that my feet were also completely hid. He then continued, 
 and said, " I have occasion for a person of your description 
 precisely at this moment, and as I put great confidence in 
 the recommendation of my friend Asker, it is my intention 
 to make use of your good offices ; and if you succeed accord- 
 ing to my expectations, you may rest assured that it will 
 be well for you, and that I shall not remain unmindful of 
 your services." 
 
 Then requesting me to approach nearer to him, and in 
 a low and confidential tone of voice, he said, looking over 
 his shoulders as if afraid of being overheard, "Hajji, you 
 must know that an ambassador from the Franks is lately 
 arrived at this court, in whose suite there is a doctor. This 
 infidel has already acquired considerable reputation here. 
 He treats his patients in a manner quite new to us, and has 
 arrived with a chest full of medicines, of which we do not 
 even know the names. He pretends to the knowledge of a 
 great many things of which we have never yet heard in Persia. 
 He makes no distinction between hot and cold diseases, and 
 hot and cold remedies, as Galenus and Avicenna have ordained, 
 but gives mercury by way of a cooling medicine ; stabs the 
 belly with a sharp instrument for wind in the stomach ; l and, 
 what is worse than all, pretends to do away with the small- 
 pox altogether, by infusing into our nature a certain extract 
 of cow, a discovery which one of their philosophers has lately 
 made. Now this will never do, Hajji. The small-pox has 
 always been a comfortable source of revenue to me ; I cannot 
 afford to lose it, because an infidel chooses to come here and 
 treat us like cattle. We cannot allow him to take the bread 
 out of our mouths. But the reason why I particularly want 
 your help proceeds from the following cause. The grand 
 vizier was taken ill, two days ago, of a strange uneasiness, 
 after having ate more than his usual quantity of raw lettuce 
 
 1 This alludes to tapping in cases of dropsy, an operation unknown among the 
 Persians until our surgeons taught it them.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 117 
 
 and cucumber, steeped in vinegar and sugar. This came to 
 the Frank ambassador's ears, who, in fact, was present at the 
 eating of the lettuce, and he immediately sent his doctor to 
 him, with a request that he might be permitted to administer 
 relief. The grand vizier and the ambassador, it seems, had 
 not been upon good terms for some time, because the latter 
 was very urgent that some demand of a political nature might 
 be conceded to him, which the vizier, out of consideration for 
 the interests of Persia, was obliged to deny ; and, therefore, 
 thinking that this might be a good opportunity of conciliating 
 the infidel, and of coming to a compromise, he agreed to 
 accept of the doctor's services. Had I been apprised of the 
 circumstance in time, I should easily have managed to put a 
 stop to the proceeding ; but the doctor did not lose an instant 
 in administering his medicine, which, I hear, only consisted of 
 one little white and tasteless pill. From all accounts, and as 
 ill luck would have it, the effect it has produced is something 
 quite marvellous. The grand vizier has received such relief, 
 that he can talk of nothing else ; he says, ' that he felt the pill 
 drawing the damp from the very tips of his fingers,' and that 
 now he has discovered in himself such newness of strength 
 and energy, that he laughs at his old age, and even talks of 
 making up the complement of wives permitted to him by our 
 blessed Prophet. But the mischief has not stopped here ; the 
 fame of this medicine, and of the Frank doctor, has gone 
 throughout the court ; and the first thing which the king 
 talked of at the selam (the audience) this morning was of its 
 miraculous properties. He called upon the grand vizier to 
 repeat to him all that he had before said upon the subject ; 
 and as he talked of the wonders that it had produced upon 
 his person, a general murmur of applause and admiration was 
 heard throughout the assembly. His majesty then turned to 
 me, and requested me to explain the reason why such great 
 effects should proceed from so small a cause, when I was 
 obliged to answer, stooping as low as I could to hide my con- 
 fusion, and kissing the earth, ' I am your sacrifice : O King 
 of Kings, I have not yet seen the drug which the infidel
 
 n8 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 doctor has given to your majesty's servant, the grand vizier ; 
 but as soon as I have, I will inform your majesty of what it 
 consists. In the meanwhile, your humble slave beseeches the 
 Centre of the Universe to recollect that the principal agent, 
 on this occasion, must be an evil spirit, an enemy to the true 
 faith, since he is an instrument in the hands of an infidel ; of 
 one who calls our holy Prophet a cheat, and who disowns the 
 all-powerful decrees of predestination.' 
 
 " Having said this, in order to shake his growing repu- 
 tation, I retired in deep cogitation how I might get at the 
 secrets of the infidel, and particularly inquire into the nature 
 of his prescription, which has performed such miracles ; and 
 you 'are come most opportunely to my assistance. You must 
 immediately become acquainted with him, and I shall leave it 
 to your address to pick his brain and worm his knowledge 
 out of him ; but as I wish to procure a specimen of the very 
 medicine which he administered to the grand vizier, being 
 obliged to give an account of it to-morrow to the Shah, you 
 must begin your services to me by eating much of lettuce and 
 raw cucumber, and of making yourself as sick to the full as 
 his highness the vizier. You may then apply to the Frank, 
 who will, doubtless, give you a duplicate of the celebrated pill, 
 which you will deliver over to me." 
 
 " But," said I, who had rather taken fright at this extra- 
 ordinary proposal, "how shall I present myself before a man 
 whom I do not know ? Besides, such marvellous stories are 
 related of the Europeans, that I should be puzzled in what 
 manner to behave ; pray give me some instructions how 
 to act." 
 
 " Their manners and customs are totally different to ours, 
 that is true," replied Mirza Ahmak; "and you may form some 
 idea of them when I tell you that instead of shaving their 
 heads, and letting their beards grow, as we do, they do the 
 very contrary, for not a vestige of hair is to be seen on their 
 chins, and their hair is as thick on their heads as if they 
 had made a vow never to cut it off; then they sit on little 
 platforms, whilst we squat on the ground ; they take up their
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 119 
 
 food with claws made of iron, whilst we use our fingers ; they 
 are always walking about, we keep seated ; they wear tight 
 clothes, we loose ones ; they write from left to right, we from 
 right to left ; they never pray, we five times a day ; in short, 
 there is no end to what might be related of them ; but most 
 certain it is, that they are the most filthy people on the earth, 
 for they hold nothing to be unclean ; they eat all sorts of 
 animals, from a pig to a tortoise, without the least scruple, and 
 that without first cutting their throats ; they will dissect a 
 dead body without requiring any purification after it, and 
 perform all the brute functions of their nature, without ever 
 thinking it necessary to go to the hot bath, or even rubbing 
 themselves with sand after them." 
 
 "And is it true," said I, "that they are so irascible 
 that if perchance their word is doubted, and they are 
 called liars, they will fight on such an occasion till they 
 die ? " 
 
 " That is also said of them," answered the doctor ; " but 
 the case has not happened to me yet ; however, I must warn 
 you of one thing, which is, that if they happen to admire 
 anything that you possess, you must not say to them, as 
 you would to one of us, % It is a present to you, it is your 
 property,' lest they should take you at your word and 
 keep it, which you know would be inconvenient, and not 
 what you intended ; but you must endeavour as much as 
 possible to speak what you think, for that is what they 
 like " 
 
 " But then, if such is the case," said I, "do not you think 
 that the Frank doctor will find me out with a lie in my mouth : 
 pretending to be sick when I am well ; asking medicine from 
 him for myself, when I want it for another ? " 
 
 "No, no," said the Mirza ; " you are to be sick, really sick, 
 you know, and then it will be no lie. Go, Hajji, my friend," 
 said he, putting his arm round my neck, "go, eat your cucum- 
 bers immediately, and let me have the pill by this evening." 
 And then coaxing me, and preventing me from making any 
 farther objections to his unexpected request, he gently pushed
 
 120 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 me out of the room ; and I left him, scarcely knowing whether 
 to laugh or to cry at the new posture which my affairs had 
 taken. To sicken without any stipulated reward was what I 
 could not consent to do, so I retraced my steps with a deter- 
 mination of making a bargain with my patron ; but when I 
 got to the room he was no longer there, having apparently 
 retreated into his harem, and, therefore, I was obliged to 
 proceed on my errand. 
 
 PERSIAN TILE (MODERN ISPAHAN). 
 From the South Kensington Museum.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 121 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 He succeeds in deceiving two of the faculty, getting a pill from one, 
 and a piece of gold from the other. 
 
 I INQUIRED my way to the ambassador's house, and actually 
 set off with the intention of putting the doctor's wishes into 
 execution, and getting, if possible, a writhing disorder on the 
 road ; but, upon more mature reflection, I recollected that a 
 stomach-ache was not a marketable commodity which might 
 be purchased at a moment's notice ; for although lettuce and 
 cucumber might disagree with an old grand vizier, yet it was 
 a hundred to one but they would find an easy digestion in a 
 young person like me. However, I determined to obtain the 
 pill by stratagem, if I could not procure it in a more direct 
 manner. I considered that if I feigned to be ill the doctor 
 would very probably detect me, and turn me out of his house 
 for a cheat, so I preferred the easier mode of passing myself 
 off for one of the servants of the royal harem, and then making 
 out some story by which I might attain my end. I accord- 
 ingly stepped into one of the old clothes' shops in the bazaar 
 and hired a cloak for myself, such as the scribes wear ; and 
 then substituting a roll of paper in my girdle instead of a 
 dagger, I flattered myself that I might pass for something 
 more than a common servant. 
 
 I soon found out where the ambassador dwelt. Bearing in 
 mind all that Mirza Ahmak had told me, I rather approached 
 the door of the doctor's residence with fear and hesitation. I 
 found the avenues to it crowded with poor women, bearing 
 infants in their arms, who, I was told, came to receive the new- 
 fashioned preservative against the small-pox. This, it was 
 supposed, for political reasons, the Franks were anxious to 
 promote ; and as the doctor performed the operation gratis 
 he had no lack of patients, particularly of the poorer sort,
 
 A BOOK-COVER PAINTED UPON " PAPIER-MACHE " (A CONVENTIONAL 
 
 REPRESENTATION OF BIRD, FLOWERS, ETC.). 
 
 From the collection of Dr. \ \ 'ills.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 123 
 
 who could not approach a Persian doctor without a present, 
 or a good fee in their hand. 
 
 On entering I found a man seated in the middle of the 
 room, near an elevated wooden platform, upon which were 
 piled boxes, books, and a variety of instruments and utensils, 
 the uses of which were unknown to me. He was in dress 
 and appearance the most extraordinary-looking infidel I had 
 ever seen. His chin and upper lip were without the vestige 
 of a hair upon them, as like an eunuch as possible. He kept 
 his head most disrespectfully uncovered, and wore a tight 
 bandage round his neck, with other contrivances on the sides 
 of his cheeks, as if he were anxious to conceal some wound 
 or disease. His clothes were fitted so tight to his body, and 
 his outward coat in particular was cut off at such sharp angles, 
 that it was evident cloth was a scarce and dear commodity in 
 his country. The lower part of his dress was particularly 
 improper, and he kept his boots on in his room, without any 
 consideration for the carpet he was treading upon, which 
 struck me as a custom subversive of all decorum. 
 
 I found that he talked our language ; for, as soon as he 
 saw me, he asked me how I did, and then immediately 
 remarked that it was a fine day, which was so self-evident 
 a truth, that I immediately agreed to it. I then thought it 
 necessary to make him some fine speeches, and flattered him 
 to the best of my abilities, informing him of the great reputa- 
 tion he had already acquired in Persia ; that Locman l was a 
 fool compared to one of his wisdom ; and that as for his 
 contemporaries, the Persian physicians, they were not fit to 
 handle his pestle for him. To all this he said nothing. I 
 then told him that the king himself, having heard of the 
 wonderful effects of his medicine upon the person of his 
 erand vizier, had ordered his historian to insert the circum- 
 
 o 
 
 stance in the annals of the empire, as one of the most extra- 
 ordinary events of his reign, that a considerable sensation 
 
 1 Locman is the most celebrated of the Eastern sages, and is supposed by 
 some to be the same as /Esop. The title usually given to a doctor in Persia is 
 Locman al st-man, the Locman of his day.
 
 i2 4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 had been produced in his majesty's seraglio, for many of the 
 ladies had immediately been taken ill, and were longing to 
 make a trial of his skill, that the king's favourite Georgian 
 slave was, in fact, at this moment in great pain, that I had 
 been deputed by the chief eunuch, owing to a special order 
 from his majesty, to procure medicine similar to that which 
 the first minister had taken, and I concluded my speech by 
 requesting the doctor immediately to furnish me with some. 
 
 He seemed to ponder over what I had told him ; and, 
 after reflecting a short time, said that it was not his custom 
 to administer medicine to his patients without first seeing 
 them, for by so doing he would probably do more harm than 
 good ; but that if he found that the slave was in want of his 
 aid, he should be very happy to attend her. 
 
 I answered to this, that as to seeing the face of the 
 Georgian slave, that was totally out of the question, for no 
 man ever was allowed that liberty in Persia, excepting her 
 husband. In cases of extreme necessity, perhaps a doctor 
 might be permitted to feel a woman's pulse, but then it must 
 be done when a veil covers the hand. 
 
 To which the Frank replied, " In order to judge of my 
 patient's case I must not only feel the pulse, but see the 
 tongue also." 
 
 " Looking at the tongue is totally new in Persia," said I ; 
 * 'and I am sure you could never be indulged with such a 
 sight in the seraglio, without a special order from the king 
 himself; an eunuch would rather cut out his own tongue 
 first." 
 
 "Well, then," said the doctor, "recollect, that if I deliver 
 my medicine to you, I do so without taking any responsibility 
 upon myself for its effects ; for if it does not cure it may 
 perhaps kill." 
 
 When I had assured him that no harm or prejudice could 
 possibly accrue to him, he opened a large chest, which 
 appeared to be full of drugs, and taking therefrom the 
 smallest quantity of a certain white powder, he mixed it up, 
 with some bread, into the form of a pill, and putting it into
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 125 
 
 paper gave it me, with proper directions how it should be 
 administered. Seeing that he made no mystery of his know- 
 ledge, I began to question him upon the nature and pro- 
 perties of this particular medicine, and upon his practice in 
 general. He answered me without any reserve ; not like 
 our Persian doctors, who only make a parade of fine words, 
 and who adjust every ailment that comes before them to 
 what they read in their Galen, their Hippocrates, and their 
 Abou Avicenna. 
 
 When I had learned all I could, I left him with great 
 demonstration of friendship and thankfulness, and immediately 
 returned to Mirza Ahmak, who, doubtless, was waiting for 
 me with great impatience. Having divested myself of my 
 borrowed cloak and resumed my own dress, I appeared 
 before him with a face made up for the occasion, for I wished 
 to make him believe that the lettuce and cucumbers had done 
 their duty. At every word I pretended to receive a violent 
 twitch, and acted my part so true to life, that the stern and 
 inflexible nature of Mirza Ahmak himself was moved into 
 somewhat like pity for me. 
 
 "There! there!" said I, as I entered his apartment, "in 
 the name of Allah take your prize ; " and then pretending to 
 be bent double, I made the most horrid grimaces, and uttered 
 deep groans : " there ! I have followed your orders, and now 
 throw myself upon your generosity." He endeavoured to 
 take the object of his search from me, but I kept it fast ; and 
 whilst I gave him to understand that I expected prompt 
 reward, I made indications of an intention to swallow it, 
 unless he actually gave me something in hand. So fearful 
 was he of not being able to answer the king's interrogatories 
 concerning the pill, so anxious to get it into his possession, 
 that he actually pressed a gold piece upon me. No lover 
 could sue his mistress with more earnestness to grant him a 
 favour than the doctor did me for my pill. I should very 
 probably have continued the deceit a little longer, and have 
 endeavoured to extract another piece from him ; but when I 
 saw him preparing a dose of his own mixture to ease my
 
 126 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 pain, I thought it high time to finish, and pretending all of a 
 sudden to have received relief, I gave up my prize. 
 
 When once he had got possession, he looked at it with 
 intense eagerness, and turned it over and over on his palm, 
 without appearing one whit more advanced in his know- 
 ledge than before. At length, after permitting him fully to 
 exhaust his conjectures, I told him that the Frank doctor 
 had made no secret in saying that it was composed of jivch, 
 or mercury. 
 
 "Mercury, indeed!" exclaimed Mirza Ahmak, "just as if 
 I did not know that. And so, because this infidel, this dog 
 of an Isauvi, 1 chooses to poison us with mercury, I am to 
 lose my reputation, and my prescriptions (such as his father 
 never even saw in a dream) are to be turned into ridicule. 
 Whoever heard of mercury as a medicine? Mercury is cold, 
 and lettuce and cucumber are cold also. You would not 
 apply ice to dissolve ice ? The ass does not know the first 
 rudiments of his profession. No, Hajji, this will never do ; 
 we must not permit our beards to be laughed at in this 
 manner." 
 
 He continued to inveigh for a considerable time against 
 his rival ; and would, no doubt, have continued to do so 
 much longer, but he was stopped by a message from the 
 king, who ordered him to repair forthwith to his presence. 
 In the greatest trepidation he immediately put himself into 
 his court dress, exchanged his common black lamb's skin 
 cap for one wound about with a shawl, huddled on his red 
 cloth stockings, called for his horse, and, taking the pill with 
 him, went off in a great hurry, and full of the greatest appre- 
 hension at what might be the result of the audience. 
 
 1 Isauvi, a follower of Jesus.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 127 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 He describes the manner in which the Shah of Persia takes medicine. 
 
 THE doctor's visit to the king had taken place late in the 
 evening ; and, as soon as he returned from it, he called for 
 me. I found him apparently in great agitation, and full of 
 anxiety. " Hajji," said he, when I appeared, "come close to 
 me ; " and having sent every one else out of the room, he 
 said in a whisper, "This infidel doctor must be disposed of 
 somehow or other. What do you think has happened ? The 
 Shah has consulted him ; he had him in private conference 
 for an hour this morning, without my being apprised of it. 
 His majesty sent for me to tell me its result ; and I perceive 
 that the Frank has already gained great influence. It seems 
 that the king gave him the history of his complaints, of his 
 debility, of his old asthma, and of his imperfect digestion, but 
 talked in raptures of the wretch's sagacity and penetration ; 
 for merely by looking at the tongue and feeling the pulse 
 before the infidel was told what was the state of the case, he 
 asked whether his majesty did not use the hot baths very 
 frequently ; l whether, when he smoked, he did not imme- 
 diately bring on a fit of coughing ; and whether, in his food, 
 he was not particularly addicted to pickles, sweetmeats, and 
 rice swimming in butter ? The king has given him three 
 days to consider his case, to consult his books, and to gather 
 the opinions of the Frank sages on subjects so important to 
 the state of Persia, and to compose such a medicine as will 
 entirely restore and renovate his constitution. The Centre 
 of the Universe then asked my opinion, and requested me 
 to speak boldly upon the natures and properties of Franks 
 in general, and of their medicines. I did not lose this 
 
 O 
 
 opportunity of giving utterance to my sentiments ; so, after 
 
 1 This is the most approved form of speech among well-educated Persians, 
 whenever any allusion to the mysteries of the harem is intended.
 
 128 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 the usual preface to my speech, I said, " that as to their 
 natures, the Shah, in his profound wisdom, must know that 
 they were an unbelieving and an unclean race ; for that they 
 treated our Prophet as a cheat, and ate pork and drank wine 
 without any scruple ; that they were women in looks, and in 
 manners bears ; that they ought to be held in the greatest 
 suspicion, for their ultimate object (see what they had done 
 in India) was to take kingdoms, and to make shahs and 
 nabobs their humble servants. As to their medicines," I 
 exclaimed, " Heaven preserve your majesty from them! they 
 are just as treacherous in their effects as the Franks are in 
 their politics : with what we give to procure death, they 
 pretend to work their cures. Their principal ingredient is 
 mercury (and here I produced my pill) ; and they use their 
 instruments and knives so freely, that I have heard it said 
 they will cut off a man's limbs to save his life." I then drew 
 such a picture of the fatal effects likely to proceed from the 
 foreign prescription, that I made the Shah promise that he 
 would not take it without using every precaution that his 
 prudence and wisdom might suggest. To this he consented ; 
 and as soon as the Frank shall have sent in the medicine 
 which he is preparing, I shall be summoned to another 
 interview. 
 
 " Now, Hajji," added the doctor, " the Shah must not 
 touch the infidel's physic ; for if perchance it were to do 
 good, I am a lost man. Who will ever consult Mirza Ahmak 
 again? No, we must avert the occurrence of such an event, 
 even if I were obliged to take all his drugs myself." 
 
 We parted with mutual promises of doing everything in 
 our power to thwart the infidel doctor ; and three days after, 
 Mirza Ahmak was again called before the king in order to 
 inspect the promised ordonnance, and which consisted of a 
 box of pills. He, of course, created all sorts of suspicions 
 against their efficacy, threw out some dark hints about the 
 danger of receiving any drug from the agent of a foreign 
 power, and, finally, left the Shah in the determination of 
 referring the case to his ministers. The next day, at the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 129 
 
 usual public audience, when 
 the Shah was seated on his 
 throne, and surrounded by 
 his prime vizier, his lord 
 high treasurer, his minister 
 for the interior, his principal 
 secretary of state, his lord 
 chamberlain, his master of the 
 horse, his principal master of 
 the ceremonies, his doctor in 
 chief, and many other of the 
 great officers of his house- 
 hold, addressing himself to 
 his grand vizier, he stated 
 the negotiations which he 
 had entered into with the 
 foreign physician, now resi- 
 dent at his court, for the 
 restoration and the renova- 
 tion of the royal person ; 
 that at the first conference, 
 the said foreign physician, 
 after a due inspection of the 
 royal person, had reported 
 that there existed several 
 symptoms of debility. That 
 at the second, after assuring 
 the Shah that he had for 
 three whole days employed 
 himself in consulting his 
 books and records, and 
 gathering from them the 
 opinions of his own country's 
 sages on the subject, he had 
 combined the properties of 
 various drugs into one whole, 
 which, if taken interiorly, 
 
 < 
 
 *.
 
 130 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 would produce effects so wonderful, that no talisman could 
 come in competition with it. His majesty then said, that 
 he had called into his councils his hakim bashi, or head 
 physician, who, in his anxiety for the weal of the Persian 
 monarchy, had deeply pondered over the ordonnances of 
 the foreigner, and had set his face against them, owing to 
 certain doubts and apprehensions that had crept into his 
 mind, which consisted, ist, whether it were politic to deliver 
 over the internal administration of the royal person to foreign 
 regulations and ordonnances ; and 2nd, whether, in the remedy 
 prescribed, there might not exist such latent and destructive 
 effects, as w.puld endanger, undermine, and finally overthrow 
 that royal person and constitution, which it was supposed to 
 be intended to restore and renovate. 
 
 " Under these circumstances," said the Centre of the 
 Universe, raising his voice at the time, " I have thought it 
 advisable to pause before I" proceeded in this business ; and 
 have resolved to lay the case before you, in order that you 
 may, in your united wisdoms, frame such an opinion as may 
 be fitting to be placed before the king ; and in order that you 
 may go into the subject with a complete knowledge of the 
 case, I have resolved, as a preparatory act, that each of you, 
 in your own persons, shall partake of this medicine, in order 
 that both you and I may judge of its various effects. 
 
 To this most gracious speech the grand vizier and all the 
 courtiers made exclamations, " May the king live for ever ! 
 May the royal shadow never be less ! We are happy not 
 only to take physic, but to lay down our lives in your 
 majesty's service ! We are your sacrifice, your slaves ! May 
 God give the Shah health, and a victory over all his 
 enemies ! " Upon which the chief of the valets was ordered 
 to bring the foreign physician's box of pills from the harem ; 
 and delivered it to the Shah in a golden salver. His majesty 
 then ordered the hakim bashi to approach ; and, delivering 
 the box to him, ordered him to go round to all present, 
 beginning with the prime vizier, and then to every man 
 according to his rank, administering to each a pill.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 131 
 
 This being done, the whole assembly took the prescribed 
 gulp ; after which ensued a general pause, during which the 
 king looked carefully into each man's face to mark the first 
 effects of the medicine. When the wry faces had subsided, 
 the conversation took a turn upon the affairs of Europe ; 
 upon which his majesty asked a variety of questions, which 
 were answered by the different persons present in the best 
 manner they were able. 
 
 The medicine now gradually began to show its effects. 
 The lord high treasurer first, a large coarse man, who to this 
 moment had stood immovable, merely saying, "-Belli, belli" 
 Yes, yes, whenever his majesty opened his mouth to speak, 
 now appeared uneasy, for what he had swallowed had brought 
 into action a store of old complaints which were before lying 
 dormant. The eyes of all had been directed towards him, 
 which had much increased his perturbed state ; when the 
 chief secretary of state, a tall, thin, lathy man, turned deadly 
 pale, and began to stream from every pore. He was followed 
 by the minister for the interior, whose unhappy looks seemed 
 to supplicate a permission from his majesty to quit his august 
 presence. All the rest in succession were moved in various 
 ways, except the prime vizier, a little old man, famous for a 
 hard and unyielding nature, and who appeared to be laughing 
 in his sleeve at the misery which his compeers in office were 
 undergoing. 
 
 When the Shah perceived that the medicine had taken 
 effect, he dismissed the assembly, ordering Mirza Ahmak, as 
 soon as he could ascertain the history of each pill, to give 
 him an official report of the whole transaction, and then retired 
 into his harem. 
 
 The crafty old doctor had now his rival within his power ; 
 of course, he set the matter in such a light before the king, 
 that his majesty was deterred from making the experiment of 
 the foreign physician's ordonnance, and it was forthwith con- 
 signed to oblivion. When he next saw me, and after he had 
 made me acquainted with the preceding narrative, he could 
 not restrain his joy and exultation. " We have conquered,
 
 132 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 friend Hajji," would he say to me. "The infidel thought 
 that we were fools ; but we will teach him what Persians are. 
 Whose dog is he, that he should aspire to so high an honour 
 as prescribing for a king of kings? No, that is left to such 
 men as I. What do we care about his new discoveries ? As 
 our fathers did, so are we contented to do. The prescription 
 
 THE PRIMP; VIZIER, A LITTLE OLD MAN. 
 
 (From an original drawing bv James Morier.} 
 
 that cured our ancestors shall cure us ; and what Locman and 
 Abou Avicenna ordained, we may be satisfied to ordain after 
 them." He then dismissed me, to make fresh plans for 
 destroying any influence or credit that the new physician 
 might acquire, and for preserving his own consequence and 
 reputation at court.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 133 
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 Hajji Baba asks the doctor for a salary, and of the success of 
 his demand. 
 
 I HAD thus far lived with the doctor more as a friend than as 
 a servant ; for he permitted me to sit in his presence, to eat 
 with him, and even to smoke his pipe, whilst at the same time 
 I associated with his servants, ate, drank, and smoked with 
 them also ; but I found that this sort of life in nowise suited 
 my views and expectations. The only money which I had 
 received from him was the gold coin aforementioned, for which 
 I was indebted to my own ingenuity ; and, as things went, it 
 appeared that it would be the last. I was, therefore, resolved 
 to come to an explanation with him, and accordingly seized 
 the opportunity when he was elated with his success over the 
 European doctor, to open the subject of my grievances. 
 
 He had just returned from the imperial gate, after having 
 seen the Shah ; who, by his account, had been very gracious 
 to him, haying kept him standing without his shoes only two 
 hours, by the side of a stone fountain, instead of six, which he 
 generally does. " What a good king he is ! " he exclaimed ; 
 "how affable, how considerate! It is impossible to say how 
 much kindness he shows to me. He gave abuse to the 
 European doctor, all out of compliment to my abilities, and 
 said that he is not fit to hold my shoes. He then ordered 
 his favourite running footman to bring me a present of two 
 partridges, which were caught by the royal hawks." 
 
 I observed, "Yes, the king says true. Who is your 
 equal nowadays in Persia? Happy Shah! to possess such 
 a treasure. What are the Franks that they should talk of 
 medicine ? If they want learning, science, and skill, let them 
 look to Mirza Ahmak." 
 
 Upon this, with a smile of self-complacency, he took the
 
 134 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 pipe from his own mouth and gave it to me, pulled up his 
 mustaches, and stroked his beard. 
 
 " Inshallah ! may it please God," I continued to say, "that 
 I also may share in the glory of your reputation ; but I am 
 like a dog, I am nothing ; I am not even like the piece of clay 
 which was scented by the company of the rose." 
 
 " How ! " said the doctor ; " why are you out of spirits ? " 
 
 " I will leave you to judge, and relate a story," said I. 
 " Once upon a time there was a dog, who in looks and man- 
 ners was so like a wolf, that the wolves used to admit him 
 into their society. He ate, drank, and killed sheep with 
 them ; and, in short, was everything that a wolf ought to be ; 
 at the same time, he lived with his fellow-dogs like a dog, 
 and was admitted to all their parties. But, little by little, the 
 dogs perceived that he associated with wolves, and became 
 shy of him ; and it also happened that the wolves discovered 
 that he was in fact a dog, and did not like to admit him any 
 longer into their circles ; so, between both, the poor dog 
 became neglected and miserable ; and, unable to bear his un- 
 defined state any longer, he determined to make a decided 
 effort to become either a dog or a wolf. I am that dog ! " ex- 
 claimed I. "You permit me to sit and smoke with you who 
 are so much my superior ; you talk to and consult me, and I 
 am even admitted to the society of your friends : but what 
 does that benefit me ? I am still a servant, without enjoying 
 any of the advantages of one. I get nothing. I pray you, 
 therefore, to appoint me to the situation you wish me to hold 
 in your service, and to fix a salary upon me." 
 
 "A salary, indeed!" exclaimed the doctor. "I never 
 give salaries. My servants get what they can from my 
 patients, and you may do the same ; they eat the remains of 
 my dinner, and they receive a coat at the festival of the No 
 Ruz, what can they want more ? " At this moment entered 
 the Shah's running footman, bearing in his hands a silver 
 tray, upon which were placed the two partridges that his 
 majesty had presented to the doctor ; and which, in great 
 form, he gave into his hands, who, rising from his seat, carried
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 135 
 
 the tray to his head, and exclaimed, "May the king's kind- 
 ness never be less ! may his wealth increase, and may he live 
 for ever ! " 
 
 He then was called upon to make the bearer a present. 
 He sent first five piastres, 1 which the servant returned with 
 great indignation. He then sent one tomaun : this also was 
 sent back ; until at length, in despair, he sent five tomauns, 
 which, it was intimated, was the sum proper to be given. 
 This disagreeable circumstance dissipated all the pleasure 
 which such a present had produced ; and the hakim, in his 
 rage, permitted himself to use such expressions which, if re- 
 ported to the king, would have brought him into considerable 
 trouble. " A present, indeed ! " said he. " I wish such pre- 
 sents were in the other world. 'Tis thus we pay the wages 
 of the king's servants a set of rapacious rascals, without 
 either shame or conscience ! And the worst of it is, we must 
 pay them handsomely ; or else, whenever it happens that I 
 get the bastinado on the soles of my feet which come it will 
 they who perform the operation will show me no mercy. 
 Let me not forget what Saadi says, that you can no more 
 depend upon the friendship of a king than you can upon the 
 voice of a child ; because the former changes on the slightest 
 suspicion, the latter in the course of a night." 
 
 Upon this reflection, the doctor began to be alarmed at 
 what he had said at the outset of his speech ; and, with all the 
 terrors of the felek before him, he seemed quite reconciled to 
 the loss of his five tomauns. 
 
 I found that this would not be the best moment to resume 
 the subject of my expectations ; and, therefore, reserved it for 
 some future opportunity : but I had heard enough to settle in 
 my own mind, that I would leave the " Locman of the age" 
 whenever an opportunity should offer, and for the present to 
 content myself with being neither dog nor wolf. 
 
 1 A piastre is about two shillings.
 
 136 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 He becomes dissatisfied ivith his situation, is idle, and falls in love. 
 
 DISCONTENTED with my present lot, and uncertain as to my 
 future prospects, my days passed on in total idleness ; and, as 
 I had no inclination to pursue the profession of physic, which 
 many before me had done on quite as slender a foundation as 
 the one I had acquired, I cared little for those pursuits which 
 engaged Mirza Ahmak. I should very probably have left 
 him instantly, if a circumstance had not occurred, arising from 
 the very state of unprofitableness in which I lived, which 
 detained me in his house. The feelings to which it gave rise 
 so entirely absorbed every other consideration, that I became 
 their slave ; and so violent were the emotions which they 
 created, that I verily believe that Majnoun, in the height of 
 his frenzy, could not have been madder than I. After this, 
 it is needless to mention that I was in love. 
 
 The spring had passed over, and the first heats of summer, 
 which now began to make themselves felt, had driven most 
 of the inhabitants of the city to spread their beds and sleep 
 on the house-tops. As I did not like to pass my night in 
 company of the servants, the carpet-spreaders, and the cook, 
 who generally herded together in a room below, I extended 
 my bed in a corner of the terrace, which overlooked the inner 
 court of the doctor's house, in which were situated the apart- 
 ments of the women. This court was a square, into which 
 the windows of the different chambers looked, and was 
 planted in the centre with rose-bushes, jessamines, and 
 poplar trees. A square wooden platform was erected in the 
 middle, upon which mattresses were spread, where the inhabi- 
 tants reposed during the great heats. I had seen several 
 women seated in different parts of the court, but had never 
 been particularly struck by the appearance of any one of 
 them ; and indeed had I been so, perhaps I should never
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 137 
 
 have thought of looking at them again ; for as soon as I was 
 discovered, shouts of abuse were levelled at me, and I was 
 called by every odious name that they could devise. 
 
 One night, however, soon after the sun had set, as I was 
 preparing my bed, I perchance looked over a part of the wall 
 that was a little broken down, and on a slip of terrace that 
 was close under it I discovered a female, who was employed 
 in assorting and spreading out tobacco leaves. Her blue 
 veil was negligently thrown over her head ; and as she 
 stooped, the two long tresses which flowed from her fore- 
 head hung down in so tantalising a manner as nearly to 
 screen all her face, but still left so much of it visible, that 
 it created an intense desire, in me to see the remainder. 
 Everything that I saw in her announced beauty. Her hands 
 were small, and dyed with henna ; l her feet were equally 
 small ; and her whole air and form bespoke loveliness and 
 grace. I gazed upon her until I could no longer contain my 
 passion ; I made a slight noise, which immediately caused 
 her to look up ; and, before she could cover herself with her 
 veil, I had had time to see the most enchanting features that 
 the imagination can conceive, and to receive a look from eyes 
 so bewitching, that I immediately felt my heart in a blaze. 
 With apparent displeasure she covered herself ; but still I could 
 perceive that she had managed her veil with so much art, 
 that there was room for a certain dark and sparkling eye to 
 look at me, and to enjoy my agitation. As I continued to 
 gaze upon her, she at length said, though still going on with 
 her work, "Why do you look at me? It is criminal." 
 
 "For the sake of the sainted Hosein," I exclaimed, "do 
 not turn from me ; it is no crime to love : your eyes have 
 made roast meat of my heart : by the mother that bore you, 
 let me look upon your face again." 
 
 In a more subdued voice she answered me, "Why do 
 
 1 This dye is used throughout the whole of Asia, and produces a strong orange 
 or auburn colour. The Persians dye the whole of their hands as far as the wrist 
 with it, and also the soles of their feet. The Turks more commonly only tinge the 
 nails : both use it for the hair.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 139 
 
 you ask me ? You know it is a crime for a woman to let her 
 face be seen; and you are neither my father, my brother, 
 nor my husband ; I do not even know who you are. Have 
 you no shame, to talk thus to a maid ? " 
 
 At this moment she let her veil fall, as if by chance, and 
 I had time to look again upon her face, which was even more 
 beautiful than I had imagined. Her eyes were large and 
 peculiarly black, and fringed by long lashes, which, added by 
 the collyrium with which they were tinged, formed a sort of 
 
 A TYPE OF PERSIAN BEAUTY. 
 (Persian painting.) From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 ambuscade, from which she levelled her shafts. Her eye- 
 brows were finely arched, and nature had brought them 
 together just over her nose, in so strong a line, that there 
 was no need of art to join them together. Her nose was 
 aquiline, her mouth small, and full of sweet expression ; and 
 in the centre of her chin was a dimple which she kept care- 
 fully marked with a blue puncture. Nothing could equal the 
 beauty of her hair ; it was black as jet, and fell in long 
 tresses down her back. In short, I was wrapped in amazement 
 at her beauty. The sight of her explained to me many things
 
 1 4 o THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 which I had read in our poets, of cypress forms, tender fawns, 
 and sugar-eating parrots. It seemed to me that I could gaze 
 at her for ever, and not be tired ; but still I felt a great desire 
 to leap over the wall and touch her. My passion was increas- 
 ing, and I was on the point of approaching her, when I heard 
 the name of Zeenab repeated several times with great im- 
 patience, by a loud shrill voice ; upon which my fair one left 
 the terrace in haste, and I remained riveted to the place where 
 I had first seen her. I continued there for a long time, in 
 the hope that she might return, but to no purpose. I lent 
 my ear to every noise, but nothing was to be heard below 
 but the same angry voice, which, by turns, appeared to attack 
 everything and everybody, and which could belong to no one 
 but the doctor's wife ; a lady, who, as report would have it, 
 was none of the mildest of her sex, and who kept her good 
 man in great subjection. 
 
 The day had now entirely closed in, and I was about 
 retiring to my bed in despair, when the voice was heard 
 again, exclaiming, "Zeenab, where are you going to? Why 
 do you not retire to bed ? " 
 
 I distinctly heard the answer of my charmer ; but soon 
 guessed what it had been, when I saw her appear on the 
 terrace again. My heart beat violently, and I was about to 
 leap over the wall which separated us, when I was stopped 
 by seeing her taking up a basket, in which she had gathered 
 her tobacco, and make a hasty retreat ; but just as she was 
 disappearing, she said to me, in a low tone of voice, " Be here 
 to-morrow night." These words thrilled through my whole 
 frame, in a manner that I had never before felt, and I did not 
 cease to repeat them, and ponder over them, until, through 
 exhaustion, I fell into a feverish doze, and I did not awaken 
 on the following morning until the beams of the sun shone 
 bright in my face.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 141 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 He has an interview with the fair Zeenab, who relates how she passes 
 her time in the doctor's harem. 
 
 "So," said I, when I had well rubbed my eyes, "so, now I 
 am in love ? Well ! we shall see what will come of it. Who 
 and what she is we shall know to-night, so please it ; and if 
 she is anything which belongs to the doctor, may his house 
 be ruined if I do not teach him how to keep a better watch 
 over his property. As for marriage, that is out of the ques- 
 tion. Who would give a wife to me ; I who have not even 
 enough to buy myself a pair of trowsers, much less to defray 
 the expenses of a wedding ? Inshallah, please God, that will 
 take place one of these days, whenever I shall have got to- 
 gether some money ; but now I will make play with love, 
 and let the doctor pay for it." 
 
 With that intention I forthwith got up and dressed myself, 
 but it was with more care than usual. I combed my curls a 
 great deal more than ordinary ; I studied the tie of my girdle, 
 and put my cap on one side. Then having rolled up my bed, 
 and carried it into the servants' hall, I issued from home, with 
 the intention of bathing, and making my person sweet, pre- 
 paratory to my evening's assignation. I went to the bath, 
 where I passed a great part of my morning in singing, and 
 spent the remainder of the time, until the hour of meeting, in 
 rambling about the town without any precise object in view. 
 
 At length the day drew towards its close : my impatience 
 had reached its height, and I only waited for the termination 
 of the sham, or the evening's meal, to feign a headache, and 
 to retire to rest. My ill luck would have it that the doctor 
 was detained longer than usual in his attendance upon the 
 Shah ; and as the servants dined after him, and ate his leav- 
 ings, it was late before I was at liberty. When that moment 
 arrived I was in a fever of expectation ; the last glimmering of
 
 1 42 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 day tinged the western sky with a light shade of red. and the 
 moon was just rising, when I appeared on the terrace with my 
 bed under my arm. I threw it down and unfolded it in haste, 
 and then, with a beating heart, flew to the broken wall. I 
 looked over it with great precaution, but, to my utter dis- 
 appointment, I saw nothing but the tobacco spread about in 
 confused heaps, with baskets here and there, as if some work 
 had been left unfinished. I looked all around, but saw no 
 Zeenab. I coughed once or twice ; no answer. The only 
 sound which reached my ears was the voice of the doctor's 
 wife, exerting itself upon some one within the house ; although 
 its shrillness pierced even the walls, yet I could not make out 
 what was the cause of its being so excited, until of a sudden 
 it burst into the open air with increasing violence. 
 
 " You talk of work to me, you daughter of the devil ! Who 
 told you to go to the bath ? What business had you at the 
 tombs ? I suppose I am to be your slave, and you are to 
 take your pleasure. Why is not your work done ? You shall 
 neither eat, drink, nor sleep until it is done, so go to it imme- 
 diately ; and if you come away until it be finished, Wallah ! 
 Billak ! by the Prophet, I will beat you till your nails drop off." 
 Upon this I heard some pushing and scuffling, and imme- 
 diately perceived my fair one proceeding with apparent reluc- 
 tance to the spot, which not a moment before I had despaired 
 of seeing blessed with her presence. Oh, what a wonderful 
 thing is love ! thought I to myself ; how it sharpens the wits, 
 and how fertile it is in expedients ! I perceived at a glance 
 how ingeniously my charmer had contrived everything for our 
 interview, and for a continuance of it without the fear of 
 interruption. She saw, but took no notice of me until the 
 storm below had ceased ; and then, when everything had 
 relapsed into silence, she came towards me, and, as the reader 
 may well suppose, I was at her side in an instant. Ye, who 
 know what love is, may, perhaps, conceive our raptures, for 
 they are not to be expressed. 
 
 I learnt from my fair friend that she was the daughter of 
 a Curdish chief, who with his whole family, including his
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 143 
 
 flocks and herds, had been made prisoner when she was quite 
 a child ; and that, from circumstances which she promised 
 hereafter to relate to me, she had fallen into the hands of the 
 doctor, whose slave she now was. 
 
 After the first burst of the sentiments which we felt towards 
 each other had subsided, she gave way to the feelings of anger, 
 which she felt for the treatment that she had just experienced. 
 "Ah," she exclaimed, "did you hear what that woman called 
 me ? woman, without faith, without religion ! 'Tis thus she 
 always treats me ; she constantly gives me abuse ; I am 
 become less than a dog. Everybody rails at me ; no one 
 comes near me ; my liver is become water, and my soul is 
 withered up. Why should I be called a child of the devil ? 
 I am a Curd ; I am a Yezeedi. 1 'Tis true that we fear the 
 devil, and who does not ? but I am no child of his. Oh, that 
 I could meet her in our mountains, she would then see what 
 a Curdish girl can do." 
 
 I endeavoured to console her as well as I could, and per- 
 suaded her to smother her resentment until she could find a 
 good opportunity of revenging herself. She despaired at that 
 ever coming to pass, because all her actions were so strictly 
 watched, that she could scarcely go from one room to another 
 without her mistress being aware of it. The fact was, so she 
 informed me, that the doctor, who was a man of low family, 
 had, by orders of the king, married one of his majesty's slaves, 
 who, from some misconduct, had been expelled the harem. 
 She brought to the doctor no other dowry than an ill temper, 
 and a great share of pride, which always kept her in mind of 
 her former influence at court ; and she. therefore, holds her 
 present husband as cheap as the dust under her feet, and 
 keeps him in a most pitiful state of subjection. . He dares not 
 sit down before her, unless she permits him, which she very 
 seldom does ; and she is, moreover, so jealous, that there is 
 no slave in her harem who does not excite her suspicions. 
 The doctor, on the other hand, who is very ambitious, and 
 pleased with his exaltation, is also subject to the frailties of 
 
 1 The Yezeedies are a tribe of the Curds, who are said to worship the devil.
 
 i 4 4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 human nature, and is by no means insensible to the charms of 
 the fair creatures, his slaves. Zeenab herself, so she informed 
 me, is the peculiar object of his attentions, and consequently 
 that of the jealousy of his wife, who permits no look, word, or 
 sign to pass unnoticed. Much intrigue and espionage is 
 carried on in the harem ; and when the lady herself goes to 
 the bath or the mosque, as many precautions are taken about 
 the distribution of the female slaves, with respect to time, 
 place, and opportunity, as there would be in the arrangement 
 of a wedding. 
 
 Having never seen more of the interior of an anderun than 
 what I recollected as a boy in my own family, I became sur- 
 prised, and my curiosity was greatly excited in proportion as 
 the fair Zeenab proceeded in her narrative of the history of 
 her life in the doctor's house. "We are five in the harem, 
 besides our mistress," said she. " There is Shireen, the 
 Georgian slave; then Nur Jehan, 1 the Ethiopian slave girl; 
 Fatmeh, the cook ; and old Leilah, the duenna. My situation 
 is that of handmaid to the khanum? so my mistress is called. 
 I attend her pipe, I hand her her coffee, bring in the meals, go 
 with her to the bath, dress and undress her, make her clothes, 
 spread, sift, and pound tobacco, and stand before her. Shireen, 
 the Georgian, is the sandukdar, or housekeeper. She has the 
 care of the clothes of both my master and mistress, and indeed 
 of the clothes of all the house ; she superintends the expenses, 
 lays in the corn for the house, as well as all the other pro- 
 visions ; she takes charge of all the porcelain, the silver, and 
 other ware ; and, in short, has the care of whatever is either 
 precious or of consequence in the family. Nur Jehan, the 
 black slave, acts as ferask, or carpet -spreader ; she does 
 all the dirty work, spreads the carpets, sweeps the rooms, 
 sprinkles the water over the courtyard, helps the cook, carries 
 parcels and messages, and, in short, is at the call of every 
 
 1 The Persians give most magnificent names to their negro slaves. Thus NAr 
 Jehan means " light of the world." 
 
 2 Khanum is the title usually given to a Persian lady, and is equivalent to 
 madam.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 145 
 
 one. As for old Leilah, she is a sort of duenna over the 
 young slaves ; she is employed in the out-of-door service, 
 carries on any little affair that the khanum may have with 
 other harems, and is also supposed to be a spy upon the 
 actions of the doctor. Such as we are, our days are passed 
 in peevish disputes ; whilst, at the same time, some two of 
 us are usually leagued in strict friendship, to the exclusion 
 of the others. At this present moment I am at open war 
 
 SHIREEN, THE GEORGIAN SLAVE. 
 (From a sketch by James Morler.} 
 
 with the Georgian ; who, some time ago, found that her good 
 luck in life had forsaken her, and she in consequence contrived 
 to procure a talisman from a dervish. She had no sooner 
 obtained it, than on the very next day the khanum presented 
 her with a new jacket ; this so excited my jealousy, that I also 
 made interest with the dervish to supply me with a talisman 
 that should secure me a good husband. On that very same 
 evening I saw you on the terrace. Conceive my happiness. 
 
 K
 
 146 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 But this has established a rivality between myself and Shireen, 
 which has ended in hatred, and we are now mortal enemies : 
 perhaps we may as suddenly be friends again. I am now on 
 the most intimate terms with Nur Jehan, and at my persua- 
 sion she reports to the khanum every story unfavourable to 
 my rival. Some rare sweetmeats, with baklava (sweet cake), 
 made in the royal seraglio, were sent a few days ago from one 
 of the Shah's ladies, as a present to our mistress ; the rats 
 ate a great part of them, and we gave out that the Georgian 
 was the culprit, for which she received blows on the feet, which 
 Nur Jehan administered. I broke my mistress's favourite 
 drinking-cup; Shireen incurred the blame, and was obliged to 
 supply another. I know that she is plotting against me ; for 
 she is eternally closeted with Leilah, who is at present the 
 confidante of our mistress. I take care not to eat or drink 
 anything which has passed through her hands to me, for fear 
 of poison, and she returns me the same compliment. It is not 
 that our hatred amounts to poison yet, but such precautions 
 are constantly in use in all harems. We have as yet only 
 once come to blows ; she excited me to violent anger by spit- 
 ting, and saying ' Lahnet be Sheitan,' Curse be on the devil, 
 which, you know, to the Yezeedies is a gross insult, when I 
 fell upon her, calling her by every wicked name that I had 
 learnt in Persian, and fastening upon her hair, of which I 
 pulled out whole tresses by the roots. We were parted by 
 Leilah, who came in for her share of abuse, and we continued 
 railing at each other until our throats were quite dried up 
 with rage and exhaustion. Our violence has much abated 
 since this conflict, but her enmity is undiminished, for she 
 continues to show her spite against me in every manner she 
 can devise." 
 
 Zeenab continued to entertain me in this manner until the 
 first dawn of the morning, and when we heard the miiezzin * 
 call the morning prayers from the mosque, we thought it 
 prudent to retire ; but not until we had made mutual promises 
 
 1 The person is so called who invites the Mahomedans to prayers from the 
 minaret, or from the roof of the mosque.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 147 
 
 of seeing each other as often as prudence would allow. We 
 agreed, that whenever she had by her stratagems secured an 
 opportunity for meeting, she should hang her veil upon the 
 bough of a tree in the court, which could be seen from my 
 terrace ; and that if it were not there, I was to conclude that 
 our interview on that night was impossible. 
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 The lovers meet again, and are very happy -Hajji Baba sings. 
 
 ON the following evening, I ascended the terrace in the hope 
 of seeing the signal of meeting : but in vain ; no veil was 
 visible ; and I sat myself down in despair. The tobacco, 
 and all the apparatus for cleaning it, had disappeared, and 
 all was hushed below. Even the unceasing voice of the 
 doctor's wife, which I now began to look upon as the most 
 agreeable sound in nature, was wanting ; and the occasional 
 drag of a slipper, which I guessed might proceed from the 
 crawl of old Leilah, was the only sign of an inhabitant. 
 I had in succession watched the distant din of the king's 
 band, the crash of the drums, and the swell of the trumpets, 
 announcing sunset. I had listened to the various tones of 
 the muezzins, announcing the evening prayer ; as well as to 
 the small drum of the police, ordering the people to shut 
 their shops, and retire to their homes. The cry of the 
 sentinels on the watch-towers of the king's palace was heard 
 at distant intervals ; night had completely closed in upon 
 me, and still the same silence prevailed in the doctor's 
 harem. 
 
 "What can be the reason of this?" said I to myself. 
 " If they have been to the bath, they cannot have remained 
 thus late ; besides, the baths are open for the women in the 
 mornings only. Some one must be sick, or there is a
 
 148 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 marriage, or a birth, or perhaps a burial ; or the doctor may 
 have received the bastinado ; " in short, I was killing myself 
 with conjecture, when, of a sudden, a great beating at the 
 door took place ; and, as it opened, the clatter of slippers 
 was heard, attended by the mingled sounds of many female 
 voices, amongst which the well-known querulous tone of the 
 khanum was prominent. Several lanterns passed to and 
 fro, which showed me the forms of the women, amongst 
 whom, as they threw off their veils, I recognised that of my 
 Zeenab. I determined to watch, in the hope that I might 
 still be blessed with an interview ; and, in fact, it was not 
 long before she appeared. She stole to me with great pre- 
 caution, to say that circumstances would prevent our meeting 
 on this occasion, as she should not fail being missed ; but 
 that, certainly, ere long, she would contrive to secure an 
 interview. In few words, she informed me that her mistress 
 had been called upon to attend her sister (one of the ladies 
 in the Shah's seraglio), who being taken suddenly ill, had 
 expired almost immediately (it was supposed by poison 
 administered by a rival), and that she had taken all her 
 women with her, in order to increase the clamour of lamenta- 
 tion which was always made on such occasions ; that they 
 had been there since noon, rending the air with every proper 
 exclamation, until they were all hoarse ; that her mistress 
 had already torn her clothes, an etiquette which she had 
 performed however with great care, considering that she 
 wore a favourite jacket, having permitted only one or two 
 seams of it to be ripped open. As the burial would take 
 place the next day, it was necessary that they should be at 
 their post early in the morning to continue the lamentations 
 a service for which she expected to receive a black hand- 
 kerchief, and to eat sweetmeats. My fair one then left me, 
 promising that she would do her utmost to secure a meeting 
 on the following evening, and telling me not to forget the 
 signal. 
 
 On getting up the next morning, I was much surprised to 
 see it already made, and to perceive Zeenab below, beckon-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 149 
 
 ing me to go to her. I did not hesitate immediately to 
 descend from the terrace by the same flight of steps which 
 she used to ascend it, and then of a sudden I found myself 
 in the very centre of the harem. An involuntary tremor 
 seized me, when I reflected that I was in a place into which 
 no man with impunity is permitted to enter ; but, fortified by 
 the smiles and the unconstrained manner of my enchantress, 
 I proceeded. 
 
 "Come, Hajji," said she, "banish all fear: no one is 
 here but Zeenab ; and, if our luck is good, we may have the 
 whole day to ourselves." 
 
 "By what miracle," exclaimed I, "have you done this? 
 Where is the khanum ? where are the women ? and, if they 
 are not here, how shall I escape the doctor?" 
 
 " Do not fear," she repeated again. " I have barred all 
 the doors ; and, should any one come, you will have time to 
 escape before I open them : but there is no fear of that ; all 
 the women are gone to the funeral ; and as for Mirza Ahmak, 
 my mistress has taken care to dispose of him in such a 
 manner, now that I am left by myself, that he will not dare 
 to come within a parasang of his own house. You must 
 know, then," said she, "for I see you are all astonishment, 
 that our destinies are on the rise, and that it was a lucky 
 hour when we first saw each other. Everything plays into 
 our hands. My rival, the Georgian, put it into the khanum's 
 head that Leilah, who is a professed weeper at burials, 
 having learned the art in all its branches since a child, was 
 a personage absolutely necessary on the present occasion, 
 and that she ought to go in preference to me, who am a 
 Curd, and can know but little of Persian customs : all this, 
 of course, to deprive me of my black handkerchief and other 
 advantages. Accordingly, I have been left at home ; and 
 the whole party went off an hour ago to the house of the 
 deceased. I pretended to be very angry, and opposed 
 Leilah 's taking my place with apparent warmth ; but, thank 
 Heaven, here we are ; and so let us make the most of our 
 time."
 
 150 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 Upon which she went into the kitchen to prepare a tray, 
 containing a breakfast for me, whilst she left me to explore 
 that which is hidden from all bachelors, namely, the interior 
 of the harem. 
 
 I first went into the apartment of the khanum herself. 
 
 TRAY OF ENGRAVED BRASS, TWO FEET IN DIAMETER. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 It opened upon the garden by an immense sash-window, 
 composed of stained glass ; and in the corner was the accus- 
 tomed seat of the lady, marked by a thick felt carpet, folded 
 double, and a large down cushion, covered with cloth of gold, 
 with two tassels at the extremities, and veiled by a thin outer 
 covering of muslin. Near this seat was a looking-glass,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 151 
 
 prettily painted, and a box containing all sorts of curiosities ; 
 the surmd (collyrium) for the eyes, with its small instrument 
 for applying it; some Chinese rouge; a pair of armlets, 
 containing talismans ; a toil zoulfek, or an ornament to hitch 
 into the hair, and hang on the forehead ; a knife, scissors, 
 and other things. A guitar and a tambourine lay close at 
 hand. Her bed, rolled up in a distant corner, was enclosed 
 in a large wrapper of blue-and-white cloth. Several pictures, 
 without frames, were hung against the walls ; and the shelf 
 which occupied the top of the room was covered with dif- 
 ferent sorts of glasses, basins, &c. In a corner were seen 
 several bottles of Shiraz wine, one of which, just stopped 
 with a flower, appeared to have been used by the good lady 
 that very morning : most likely in order to keep up her 
 spirits during the melancholy ceremony she was about to 
 attend. 
 
 "So," said I to myself, "the Prophet is not much heeded 
 in this house. I shall know another time how to appreciate 
 a sanctified and mortified look. Our doctor, who calls him- 
 self a staunch Mussulman, I see, makes up for his large 
 potations of cold water and sherbet abroad, by his good 
 stock of wine at home." 
 
 By the time I had satisfied my curiosity here, and had 
 inspected the other rooms, which belonged to the servants, 
 Zeenab had prepared our breakfast, which she placed before 
 us in the khanum's room. We sat down next to each other, 
 and reposed upon the very cushion of which I have just 
 given the description. Nothing could be more delicious than 
 the meal which she had prepared : there was a dish of rice, 
 white as snow, and near it a plate of roast meat, cut into 
 small bits, wrapped up in a large flap of bread ; then a beauti- 
 ful Ispahan melon, in long slices ; some pears and apricots ; 
 an omelette warmed from a preceding meal ; cheese, onions, 
 and leeks ; a basin of sour curds, and two different sorts of 
 sherbet : added to this, we had some delicious sweetmeats, 
 and a basin full of new honey. 
 
 " How, in the name of your mother," exclaimed I, as I
 
 152 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 pulled up my whiskers, and surveyed the good things before 
 me, "how have you managed to collect all this so soon? 
 This is a breakfast fit for the Shah." 
 
 "Oh, as to that," she replied, "do not trouble yourself, 
 but fall to. My mistress ordered her breakfast to be prepared 
 over-night, but on second thoughts this morning she deter- 
 
 ZEENAB. 
 (A Persian picture.) From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 mined to make her meal at the house of the deceased, and 
 has left me, as you see, but little to do. Come, let us eat and 
 be merry." 
 
 Accordingly, we did honour to the breakfast, and left but 
 little for those who might come after us. After we had 
 washed our hands, we placed the wine before us, and, having 
 each broken the commandment by taking a cup, we congra-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 153 
 
 tulated ourselves upon being two of the happiest of human 
 beings. 
 
 Such was my delight, that taking up the guitar which was 
 near me, and putting aside all apprehension for the present, 
 and all care for the future, I tuned it to my voice, and sang 
 the following ode of Hafiz, which I had learnt in my youth, 
 when I used to charm my hearers in the bath : 
 
 " What bliss is like to whisp'ring love, 
 
 Or dalliance in the bowers of spring ? 
 Why then delay my bliss t' improve ? 
 Haste, haste, my love, the goblet bring. 
 
 Each hour that joy and mirth bestow 
 
 Call it treasure, count it gain ; 
 Fool is the man who seeks to know 
 
 His pleasure will it end in pain ! 
 
 The links which our existence bind 
 Hang not by one weak thread alone ; 
 
 Of man's distress why tease the mind ? 
 Sufficient 'tis, we know our own. 
 
 The double charms of love and wine 
 
 Alike from one sweet source arise : 
 Are we to blame, shall we repine, 
 
 When unconstrain'd the passions rise ? 
 
 If, innocent in heart and mind, 
 
 I sin unconscious of offence, 
 What use, O casuist, shall I find 
 
 In absolution's recompense? 
 
 Hermits the flowing spring approve, 
 
 Poets the sparkling bowl enjoy ; 
 And, till he's judged by powers above, 
 
 Hafiz will drink, and sing, and toy." 
 
 Zeenab was quite in ecstasy : she had never heard any- 
 thing so delightful in her life ; and, forgetting that both of 
 us were but wretched individuals she a slave, I the most
 
 154 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 destitute of beings we did and felt as if all that surrounded 
 us was our own, and that the wine and our love would last 
 for ever. 
 
 Having sang several more songs, and emptied several cups 
 of wine, I found that my poetry was exhausted as well as our 
 bottle. 
 
 It was still quite early, and we had much time before us. 
 "Zeenab," said I, "you have long promised to tell me the 
 history of your life, and now is a good opportunity : we are 
 not likely to be interrupted for a long while, and, as our 
 meetings at night are very uncertain, an hour cannot be 
 better filled up than by the recital of your adventures." She 
 assented to my proposal with much good humour, and began 
 as follows. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 The history of Zeenab, the Ciirdish slave. 
 
 "I AM the daughter of a chief well known in the Curdistan 
 by the name of Okous Aga. Who my mother was I do not 
 precisely know. I have heard that I am the produce of one 
 of the secret meetings at Kerrund ; 1 but as such mysterious 
 doings are hushed up among the Curds, I have never dared 
 to question anybody concerning them, and cannot, therefore, 
 ascertain whether the reports about my birth be true or not. 
 It is very certain that I never looked up to any one as my 
 mother ; but was brought up at hazard among our women, 
 and that my earliest friend was a foal, that lived as an inmate 
 with us. It was born in the very tent which my father's 
 
 1 This no doubt relates to certain mysterious and obscene customs which are 
 said to be practised among the Yezeedies, at the village of Kerrund, in the Cur- 
 distan, and peculiar to the tribe of Niisiri, commonly called Chiragh k'ush, or 
 lamp-extinguishers. Antiquarians pretend in them to trace a resemblance to the 
 abominable worship of Venus, as practised by the Babylonians, and recorded in 
 Herodotus, book i. sect, cxcix.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 155 
 wives occupied ; and its dam, of the purest Arabian blood, 
 
 OKOUS AGA. 
 (From a sketch by James Morier.} 
 
 was treated more like one of the family than a quadruped
 
 156 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 in fact, it received much more attention than any of the wives ; 
 it enjoyed the warmest place in the tent, was beautifully 
 clothed, and in all our journeys was the first object of our 
 cares. When the mare died, an universal lamentation ensued 
 throughout the encampment. The foal lived to be my father's 
 war-horse, and is to this day the pride of the Curdistan. But 
 would to Heaven that he had felt less affection for these 
 animals ! then I might still have been a free woman ; for, 
 in truth, the many vicissitudes which we have undergone 
 originated in the possession of a mare, of which you shall hear 
 more hereafter. 
 
 " You must know, that although the Curds do not allow 
 that they are subject to any power, yet our ancestors (and so 
 did my father to a certain time) grazed their flocks and 
 pitched their tents in that part of the Curdistan mountains 
 belonging to Turkey which are situated in the government 
 of the pasha of Bagdad. Whenever that chief had any war on 
 his hands, he frequently called upon our tribes to afford him 
 supplies of horsemen, who, being celebrated throughout Asia, 
 were always foremost in the battle. My father, from his 
 strength, his courage, and his horsemanship, was a great 
 favourite with the pasha, and in high request on such occa- 
 sions. He was a majestic figure on horseback ; and when 
 his countenance was shaded by the back part of his cap 
 thrown over his brow, his look inspired terror. He had killed 
 several men, and was consequently honoured with the distinc- 
 tion of bearing a tuft of hair on his spear. But it was when 
 clad in armour that he was most to be admired. I shall 
 never forget the grandeur of his appearance, when, with his 
 horse curvetting under him, I saw him in the midst of a 
 thousand cavaliers, all dressed in shining cuirasses, peacocks' 
 feathers streaming from their helmets, and their spears glitter- 
 ing in the sun, preparing themselves to join the pasha. From 
 the result of this expedition we date part of our misfortunes. 
 The Wahabi had advanced into the territory of Bagdad, 
 and even threatened that city, when the pasha thought it 
 high time to call the Curds to his assistance. He took the
 
 tfl V5 
 
 '
 
 158 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 field with a considerable number of troops, and immediately 
 marched against the enemy. In a night attack, my father 
 happened to fall in with and slay the son of the Arab sheikh 
 himself, who commanded the Wahabi ; and, having despoiled 
 him of his arms, he led away with him the mare which his 
 antagonist had mounted. He too well knew the value of such 
 a prize not immediately to take the utmost care of it ; and, 
 in order to keep his good fortune from the knowledge of the 
 Turkish chieftain, who would do everything in his power to 
 get it from him, he sent the beast to his encampment, with 
 orders that it should be carefully concealed, and lodged in the 
 tent which his harem occupied. His precautions were useless, 
 because the feat which he had performed, and the circum- 
 stances attending it, were soon known to every one ; but as 
 the pasha had a great esteem for him, and there being no 
 reason to suppose that the mare was more than an ordinary 
 one, he made no inquiries about her. However, not very 
 long after the war had ceased, the Wahabi having been driven 
 back into the desert, and the Curds having retired to their 
 mountains, we were surprised one morning by a visit from one 
 of the pasha's chief officers, viz., the Mirakhor, or master of 
 the horse, who came escorted by a handsome train often men, 
 well mounted and armed. Everybody was immediately on the 
 alert to do them honour. Their horses were taken to the 
 nearest pasture, and picketed with plenty of grass before 
 them : the horsemen were led into the men's tent with much 
 ceremony, where they were treated with coffee and pipes ; 
 and a large caldron of rice was set on the fire to make a 
 pilau. Two lambs were immediately killed, and cooked into 
 a savoury dish by the women, who also baked piles of bread 
 on the occasion. In short, we did all in our power to put 
 into practice those obligations of hospitality which are binding 
 upon the wandering tribes. 
 
 " As soon as my father was apprised of the approach of his 
 visitors, even when they were first espied at a distance, it im- 
 mediately occurred to him what might be their object, and he 
 ordered his eldest son to mount the mare without a moment's
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 159 
 
 delay, to take her into a neighbouring dell until he should hear 
 further from him. Our tents were pitched in a line, on the 
 brink of a mountain torrent ; and it was therefore easy to steal 
 away unperceived in the deep bed through which it flowed ; 
 and the high mountains in our neighbourhood, with the 
 intricacies of which we were well acquainted, afforded good 
 shelter to us in cases of disturbance. 
 
 "I recollect the whole circumstance just as if it were 
 yesterday ; for we women could peep into the place where 
 the men were assembled, and our curiosity led us to listen to 
 what they said. The mirakhor and two other Turks were 
 seated ; the others stood at the entrance of the tent, resting 
 on their arms. My father placed himself at some distance 
 on the carpet, with his hands before him, and his feet tucked 
 under him, looking very humble, but at the same time casting 
 his eyes very sharply around him. 
 
 " ' You are welcome, and you have brought happiness with 
 you,' exclaimed my father. 
 
 " ' Happily met,' answered the mirakhor ; ' it is long since 
 we have seen each other ; ' and when they had repeated these 
 and similar sorts of compliments over and over again, they 
 relapsed into silence ; their pipes, which they smoked until the 
 place was darkened with the fume, holding them in lieu of 
 conversation. 
 
 "'Our master, the pasha,' said the mirakhor, 'sends you 
 health and peace : he loves you, and says that you are one of 
 his best and oldest friends. Mashallah ! praise be to God ! 
 You are a good man ; all Curds are good ; their friends are 
 our friends, and their enemies our enemies.' 
 
 "An old Turk, who was standing the foremost of the 
 attendants, applauded this speech by a sort of low growl ; and 
 then my father, shrugging up his shoulders, and pressing his 
 hands on his knees, answered, ' I am the pasha's slave ; I am 
 your slave ; you do me much honour. // hem dillah, thanks 
 to Heaven, we eat our bread in peace under the pasha's shade, 
 and put our caps on one side without fear. God give him 
 plenty.'
 
 160 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 " After a short pause : ' The business of our coming, 
 Okous Aga,' said the mirakhor, 'is this : the Wahabi (curses 
 be on their beards !) have sent a deputation to our chief, 
 requiring from him the mare upon which the son of their 
 sheikh was mounted at the time that he was killed. Although 
 they say that his blood is on our heads, and that nothing but 
 the pasha's life, or that of his son, can ever redeem it yet 
 that subject they will for the present waive, in order to regain 
 possession of her. They say, she has the most perfect 
 pedigree of any in Arabia ; that from generation to genera- 
 tion her descent is to be traced to the mare which the Prophet 
 rode on his flight from Medina ; and, in order to regain her, 
 they offer to throw money on the board until the pasha shall 
 say stop. Now all the world knows that you are the brave 
 he who overcame and slew the sheikh's son, and that yours 
 is the spoil of the mare. My master, after consulting with 
 the nobles and the chief men of Bagdad, has determined to 
 take the offer of the Wahabi into consideration ; and since it 
 is become a business of government, has sent me to request 
 you to deliver her up into my hands. This is my errand, 
 and I have said it.' 
 
 "' Wallah I Billahl By the pasha's salt which I have 
 ate, by your soul, by the mother who bore you, by the stars 
 and the heavens, I swear that all the Wahabi say is false. 
 Where is the mare they pretend to have lost, and where the 
 miserable jade that fell to my lot ? I got a mare, 'tis true, 
 but so lean, so wretched, that I sold her to an Arab the day 
 after the battle. You may have the bridle and saddle, if you 
 please ; but as for the beast, I have her not.' 
 
 '"Allah! Allah!' exclaimed the mirakhor, 'this is a 
 business of much consequence. Okous Aga, you are an 
 upright man, and so am I. Do not laugh at our beards, and 
 send us away without caps on our heads. If we do not bring 
 back the mare, our faces will be black to all eternity, and the 
 doors of friendship between you and the pasha will be shut. 
 By my soul, tell me, where is the beast ? ' 
 
 "' Friend,' answered my father, 'what shall I say? what
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 161 
 
 can I do ? The mare is not here the Wahabi are liars 
 and I speak the truth.' Then with a softened tone, he 
 approached the mirakhor, and spoke to him for a long time 
 in a whisper, with much animation and apparent persuasion ; 
 for, at the end of their conversation, they appeared to be well 
 agreed. 
 
 "The mirakhor then said aloud, 'Well, if such is the case, 
 and the beast is not in your possession, Allah kerim, God is 
 merciful, and there is no combating against fate. We must 
 return to Bagdad.' 
 
 " My father then rose from his seat, and came into the 
 women's tent, leaving his guests to smoke their pipes and 
 drink coffee, preparatory to the meal which was making ready 
 for them. He ordered his wife, who was the depositary of 
 his money, to bring him a bag of gold, that was carefully 
 wrapped in many a piece of old cloth, and deposited in a 
 trunk, which, with his rich horse furniture, the parade pack- 
 saddle, and other things of value, were placed in a corner of 
 the tent. He took out twenty Bajoglis (ducats), which he 
 tied into the corner of a handkerchief, and thrust them into 
 his bosom ; and then, giving his orders that the victuals 
 should forthwith be served up, he returned to his guests. 
 Little was said until the hour of eating came, and the few 
 words that were uttered turned on horses, dogs, and arms. 
 The mirakhor drew from his girdle a long pistol, mounted in 
 silver, which was shown around to all the company as a real 
 English pistol. Another man exhibited his scimitar, which 
 was assured to be a black Khorassani blade of the first water ; 
 and my father produced a long straight sword, sharp on both 
 edges, which he had taken from the son of the Arab sheikh 
 whom he had slain. 
 
 " The dinner being ready, the round leathern cloth was 
 placed before the mirakhor, upon which many flaps of bread, 
 just baked, were thrown, and water was handed about for 
 washing the right hand. A mess of chorda, or soup, was 
 served up in a large wooden dish, and placed in the centre 
 of the cloth. My father then said aloud, ' Bismillah, in the
 
 1 62 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 name of God ; ' and all the party, consisting of the mirakhor, 
 his ten followers, my father, and three of his attendants, 
 settling themselves round the dish, with their right shoulders 
 advanced forwards, partook of the soup with wooden spoons. 
 A lamb roasted whole succeeded the mess, which was pulled 
 to pieces in a short time, each man getting as large a portion 
 of it for himself as he could. The feast was closed by an 
 immense dish of rice, which was dived into by the hands and 
 fingers of all present. As fast as they were satisfied, each 
 man got up and washed, saying, ' Shukur Allah, thanks to 
 God ; ' and 'Allah bereket versin, may God restore you plenty.' 
 The remains were then rolled up in the leathern cloth, and 
 taken outside the tents, where my father's shepherds soon 
 made an end of them. 
 
 " The mirakhor being anxious to sleep at a village in the 
 plain expressed a wish to depart, and his suite went to prepare 
 their horses, leaving him and my father in the tent. I, who 
 had narrowly watched the whole of the proceedings, was 
 determined to see what should take place between them, and 
 lent an ear to what they said. 
 
 " My father said, ' Indeed ten ducats is all I can give we 
 are poor where shall I find more ? ' To which the mirakhor 
 replied, ' It is impossible : you know perfectly what will happen 
 if I do not receive double that sum : the pasha, when he finds 
 that we have not brought the mare, will order me back again 
 to seize you, and will take possession of all your property. I 
 am, indeed, ordered to do that now, in case you refuse his 
 request ; but shall not touch you if you come to my terms, 
 which are twenty gold pieces. So, my friend, decide.' Upon 
 which, my father took the handkerchief from his bosom, and 
 taking out the money from it, counted twenty ducats into the 
 mirakhor's hand, who, when satisfied that they were all good, 
 untied the white muslin that was wound round his turban, 
 and placing them in the folds of it, twisted it round his head 
 again. 
 
 " ' Now,' said he to my father, ' we have ate salt together ; 
 we are friends ; and should the pasha attempt anything, I
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 163 
 
 will interfere. But you must send him a present, or other- 
 wise it will be impossible to prevent him from molesting 
 you.' 
 
 " ' Bashem ustun, upon my head be it ! ' answered 
 my father. ' I possess a famous greyhound, celebrated 
 throughout the whole of the Curdistan, which can seize 
 an antelope at full speed ; a creature the like of which the 
 Shah of Persia's father never even saw in a dream. Will 
 that do ? ' 
 
 " ' Perfectly well for one thing ; but that is not enough. 
 Consider of what consequence it is that my master should be 
 pleased with you.' 
 
 " ' I tell you what,' said he ; ' a thought has struck me ; I 
 have a daughter, more beautiful than the moon, round, large- 
 hipped, and greatly inclined to corpulency. You must say 
 to him, that although the Yezeedies are infidels in his eyes, 
 and as the dust under his feet, yet still he may perhaps 
 be anxious to possess a beauty, which even the houris of 
 Mahomed's paradise would be jealous of, and I am ready 
 to send her to him.' 
 
 "The mirakhor clapped his hands in ecstasy, and said, 
 ' Aferin I Aferin ! well said ! this is excellent ! I will make 
 the offer, and no doubt he will accept it ; and thus you will 
 have a powerful friend in his harem, who will get you out of 
 this scrape, and protect you for the future.' Upon this they 
 seemed agreed. I, who it appears was to be the victim, left 
 my watching-place to ruminate upon what was likely to be my 
 future destiny. At first I was inclined to weep, and to lament 
 over my fate ; but, after a little consideration, I exclaimed, 
 ' O my soul ! am I to be a pasha's lady ? am I to wear fine 
 clothes ? am I to be borne in a litter ? Oh, the delight of a 
 litter will be too great? How all the girls of the mountains 
 will envy me ! ' 
 
 " After some time had elapsed, looking from the tents 
 into the open country, I saw the mirakhor and his party, 
 who had not failed to take the greyhound with him, duly 
 dressed out in its gayest trappings, making their way along
 
 164 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 the side of the chain of hills which bordered our camp. 
 I then heard my father expressing his thankfulness and 
 gratitude for having so well got rid of such unwelcome 
 visitors. 
 
 "As soon as they were fairly out of sight, he despatched 
 one of his shepherd's boys to his son in the mountains, order- 
 ing him to bring back the mare ; and when the animal was 
 safely lodged in the women's tent, he called together the 
 elders of his tribe, consisting of his own and his wife's 
 relations, who were encamped in our vicinity. He ex- 
 plained to them the situation in which he was placed * 
 showing that his and their destruction was inevitable 
 should they continue any longer in the territory of the 
 pasha, who would not fail to seize this opportunity of levy- 
 ing fines and exactions, and reducing them to want and 
 beggary. They were assembled in the men's tent, to the 
 number of ten persons ; the place of honour, the corner, 
 being given to my father's uncle, the elder of the tribe, 
 an old man, whose beard, as white as snow, descended to 
 his girdle. 
 
 " ' You know,' said my father, ' that we are Yezeedies, and 
 you also know the hatred which all Mussulmans bear to us ; 
 the pasha has hitherto pretended friendship to me individually, 
 because I have fought his battles, because I am a lion in 
 the fight, and drink the blood of his enemies. But his love 
 of money is so great that nothing can satisfy it ; and rather 
 than lose this opportunity, he would see me, my father, my 
 grandfather, my great-grandfather, and all my race grilling 
 in eternal fires. We are too few to resist him, although, 
 by that great Power whom we all worship, if we had not 
 wives and children to protect, I, with a spear in my hand, 
 my sword by my side, and mounted on my mare, I would 
 not fear to encounter the whole host of his dastardly raga- 
 muffins, and I should like to see the ckerkaji^ that would 
 
 1 The cherkajis (literally wheelers about] in Oriental armies are skirmishers,, 
 who are thrown out from the main body to engage in the fight, and are generally 
 esteemed the most expert horsemen and the best soldiers.
 
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 165 
 
 face me. I propose, therefore, that, without a moment's 
 delay, we abandon the Turkish territory, and migrate into 
 Persia, where we shall not fail to meet with welcome and 
 protection.' 
 
 " ' Okous Aga,' said his uncle to him, whilst every one 
 seemed to listen with great respect to what he would say, 
 ' Okous Aga, you are my brother's son ; you are my child ; 
 you are the head of our tribe, and our best support and pro- 
 tection. If I were to advise you to give up the mare to the 
 pasha, you would think me unworthy of being a Curd and a 
 Yezeedi ; and even were he now to get possession of her, we 
 should not be spared ; for such is the experience I have of 
 Turkish governors, that when once they have a pretext in 
 hand for oppression, they never fail to make use of it. There- 
 fore, I am of your opinion we cannot remain here. Old as 
 I am, and accustomed as I have been from my earliest infancy 
 to graze our flocks and herds upon these mountains, to see 
 the sun rise over yonder hill and set in that distant plain, 
 much as I love these spots upon which our ancestors 
 have been bred and born, yet it shall not be said that I have 
 been the cause of the ruin of our tribe. I am, therefore, for 
 immediate departure : delay now would be dangerous. In 
 two more days we shall be visited by the pasha's troops, who 
 will take from us hostages, and then here shall we be fixed, 
 and here will ruin overwhelm us. Let us go, my children ; 
 God is great and merciful. The time may come when you 
 will be restored to your ancient seats, and when you may 
 again range from your summer pastures to your winter 
 quarters, and from your winter quarters to your pastures, 
 without fear and apprehension.' 
 
 " When he had done speaking, an old shepherd, who had 
 great experience in all that related to the seasons, and con- 
 siderable knowledge of the country between our mountains 
 and those of Persia, spoke as follows : ' If we go, we must 
 go immediately : for a day's delay might stop us. The snows 
 on the mountains are already beginning to melt, and the 
 torrents will be so swollen in another week, that we shall
 
 1 66 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 not be able to get the sheep across them. Besides, it is 
 now about three weeks to the day when the sun enters the 
 sign of the Ram, at which time our ewes will, inshallah, 
 please God, bring forth in plenty ; and they ought to have 
 performed their journey and be at rest long before that 
 time. We ought to settle beforehand in what tract of 
 country we shall fix ourselves, because the Persian wander- 
 ing tribes are very tenacious of their rights of pasturage ; 
 and should we trespass upon them, without proper autho- 
 rity from the government, our shepherds and theirs would 
 not fail to come to blows, and God only knows the conse- 
 quences.' 
 
 "'He speaks true/ exclaimed my father: then turning 
 to the shepherd, he exclaimed, ' Well said, Karabeg ; well 
 done ! you are a good servant, and you have given good 
 advice. Before we think of establishing ourselves in Persia, 
 one of us must go to Kermanshah, and ask leave of the prince 
 to appoint us to a good country ; and when once we have 
 got out of the pasha's reach, I will perform that service, and 
 return to you in time to prevent strife with the other wander- 
 ing tribes.' 
 
 " The assembly being unanimous for immediate departure, 
 my father gave his orders, that the cattle should be called in, 
 the tents broken up, and the oxen in readiness to receive their 
 loads ; that the camels should have their pack-saddles put 
 upon them, and that everything should be in readiness to 
 depart by midnight, in order that we might reach our first 
 stage about an hour after sunrise. His mare, which was 
 now become an object of the first consequence, was to be 
 mounted by my father in person, whilst his chief wife, with 
 her children, were to travel in the cajaveh or panniers, the 
 camel which was to carry them being ornamented with 
 trappings inlaid with beads, set off by red cloth trimmings, 
 and a thick profusion of tassels. 
 
 " As soon as this was known by the women, they set 
 up shouts of wailing and lamentation. The evil appeared 
 to them greater than it really was ; for they expected
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 167 
 
 nothing less than the immediate approach of the pasha's 
 troops to seize upon the tribe, and carry them all into 
 slavery. 
 
 " As for me," said Zeenab, " my misery arose from another 
 cause ; for ever since I had overheard the conversation be- 
 tween my father and the mirakhor, I could think of nothing 
 
 "THE CHARMS OF BEING A PASHA'S LADY." 
 
 (From a Persian drawing.} From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 else, than of the charms of being a pasha's lady. My dream 
 was now over, and instead of the rich dresses, the sumptuous 
 palaces, the gilded litters, and the luxury of state, which I had 
 flattered myself was to be my future lot, I had now nothing 
 before me but my old drudgeries, the loading of beasts, the 
 packing up of baggage, the churning of milk, and the making 
 of butter.
 
 1 68 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 " Our whole camp was now in motion ; and as far as the 
 eye could reach, the mountains were swarming with the flocks 
 and herds of our tribe, which were driven by the shepherds 
 towards their different encampments. The tents were taken 
 to pieces, and prepared for loading. The women, who took 
 the greatest share in the labour of departure, were seen every- 
 where actively bestirring themselves to pack up the furniture 
 and utensils. The carpets were rolled up ; the camel-trunks 
 filled ; all the materials for making butter collected, and the 
 pack-saddles of the mules, oxen, and camels, laid out for 
 immediate use. The cattle being arrived, the camels were 
 made to kneel down in a ring, and were covered with their 
 pack-saddles ; the oxen had their pads put upon them ; and 
 the mules were tied into strings of five or seven each, and 
 ornamented with their bells and thick felt coverings. The 
 sheep and goats, in the meanwhile, at the close of day, had 
 already began their march, guarded by their watch-dogs, and 
 accompanied by their shepherds, one of whom walked in front, 
 while the whole train followed. 
 
 " At midnight the whole camp had cleared the ground ; 
 and, as the day dawned, our line of march was to be seen 
 to a great distance, winding along the mountains. We kept 
 a track little followed in order not to meet any one, who 
 might give information of our movements to the pasha ; and, 
 after several days' march, we reached the frontier of Persia, 
 with much fewer accidents, and much less difficulties, than 
 might have been expected. During the journey, my father, 
 in conjunction with the principal men of his tribe, kept 
 a constant look-out in the rear, determined, should any of 
 the pasha's people approach us with an intention of imped- 
 ing our progress, they would, without hesitation, make 
 every resistance in their power. But fortune favoured us, 
 and we saw none but shepherds, belonging to Curdish 
 tribes, who occupied part of the country that we travelled 
 over. 
 
 " When we had reached a place of safety, my father rode 
 forwards to Kermanshah, the seat of government of a powerful
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 169 
 
 prince, one of the King of Persia's sons, in order to claim his 
 protection, and to receive his permission to occupy one of the 
 
 PERSIAN WOMAN OF THE LOWER CLASS, AND CHILDREN. 
 (From a drawing by James Morier.) 
 
 pasturages situated within the Persian territory. We waited 
 for his return with great anxiety, for in the meanwhile we
 
 iyo THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 were liable to an attack from both Turks and Persians ; but 
 as it is the policy of both countries to entice the wandering 
 tribes into their territory, we met with no molestation from 
 the chief of the Persian town which happened to be the 
 nearest to us. 
 
 " At length my father returned, and with him an officer 
 belonging to the prince, who assigned us a tract of country 
 about ten parasangs within the Persian frontier. Our winter 
 residence was situated in a sheltered nook of the mountains, 
 not far from a copious spring of water ; and our summer 
 quarters, about three days' journey off, were described as 
 situated in the coolest spot in the adjacent mountains, abound- 
 ing in grass and water, and distant from any chance of 
 molestation from the Turks. 
 
 "My father was well known at Kermanshah ; and when 
 his arrival and the object of his mission were known, the 
 prince expressed great pleasure, treated him with much con- 
 sideration, and dismissed him invested with a dress of honour. 
 No stipulations were made as to the terms upon which he was 
 to be received, and unlimited promises of protection were 
 held out to him. ' If the pasha,' said the prince, ' claims you 
 and your tribe as the property of his government, and sends 
 me a request that I should not admit you into mine, I will 
 burn his father, and laugh at his beard. The face of God's 
 world is open to every one, and if man is ill-treated in one 
 spot, he will take himself where better treatment is to be 
 found.' In short, we settled, and returned to our former 
 habits and occupations. 
 
 "As the prince had expected, so it happened. A very 
 short time after our arrival an officer from the pasha appeared 
 at Kermanshah, bearing a letter, making a formal demand 
 that my father, with the whole of his tribe, should be sent 
 back to his territory, and stating all the circumstances relative 
 to our flight. My father was called a thief, and accused of 
 having stolen a mare of immense value, which was described 
 as the pasha's property. The animal was demanded to be 
 instantly restored ; and in case it were not, threats were made
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 171 
 
 that immediate reprisals on Persian property should ensue. 
 The whole of these circumstances were made known to my 
 father, and he was summoned forthwith to appear before the 
 prince. 
 
 "Consternation seized us as soon as this intelligence was 
 known amongst us. It was evident that the pasha was de- 
 termined to leave nothing undone to regain possession of the 
 mare,' and to ruin my father ; nor could it be supposed that 
 a weak and poor tribe like ours was likely to withstand the 
 intrigues, bribes, and machinations of so powerful a chief; 
 besides, the possession of such a treasure would of itself 
 be a crime in the eyes of the Persians, and they would 
 certainly endeavour to get her from us, if not now, yet at 
 some more favourable opportunity. It would soon be known 
 that many of us were Yezeedies, a circumstance of itself 
 sufficient to excite the hatred and execration of every good 
 sectary of Ali, and every probability existed, even supposing 
 the mare to be out of the question, that we should be a prey 
 to every sort of persecution as soon as time enough should 
 have passed over our heads for intrigue to have worked its 
 effects. 
 
 " Before my father left us to attend the prince's summons, 
 he had given secret orders that the mare should be put into 
 some place of safety, in case he should be obliged to deny 
 that he possessed her ; but on his return he found that such 
 a precaution was unnecessary. He had been kindly received 
 by the prince, who had assured him that he was resolved not 
 to accede to the pasha's demands in any one case ; that my 
 father might enjoy the possession of his mare, and depend 
 upon protection and security as long as he remained in his 
 territory. His words were something to this purpose: 'Set 
 your mind at ease, Okous Aga. As long as you remain 
 under our shade you may lay your head on your pillow in full 
 security. What does the pasha mean by claiming you and 
 your tribe as the subjects of his government ? The gates of 
 the palace of my father, the centre of the universe and king 
 of kings, are open to every one, and as soon as the stranger
 
 172 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 has touched the skirt of his robe he is safe. You have 
 sought our protection, and we should not be Mussulmans if 
 we refused it. Go, return to your tents, be happy, and leave 
 the pasha to us.' 
 
 " This produced great rejoicings amongst us ; and my 
 father, to celebrate his success, gave a feast to the chiefs' and 
 
 A SAFFAREAN KING OF PERSIA. 
 
 (From a Persian drawing.) 
 
 elders of the tribe, where our present situation was fully dis- 
 cussed, and our plans for the future taken into consideration. 
 Every one present was elated with the success that had 
 attended our flight excepting one, and that was the old man, 
 my father's uncle. He had seen much of the Persians, 
 having served under Nadir Shah when a youth, and nothing
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 173 
 
 could induce him to put any faith in the promises and fair 
 words of the prince. 'You do not know the Persians,' said 
 he, addressing himself to the assembly. ' You have never 
 had any dealings with them, and therefore you permit your- 
 selves to be lulled into security by their flattering expressions 
 and "their winning and amiable manners. But I have lived 
 long with them, and have learned the value of what they say. 
 Their weapons are not such as you have been accustomed to 
 meet in the bold encounter, and the open attack : instead of 
 the sword and spear, theirs are treachery, deceit, falsehood ; 
 and when you are the least prepared, you find yourselves 
 caught as in a net ; ruin and desolation surround when you 
 think that you are seated on a bed of roses. Lying is their 
 great, their national vice. Do not you remark that they con- 
 firm every word by an oath ? What is the use of oaths to 
 men who speak the truth ? One man swears by your soul, 
 and by his own head, by your child, by the Prophet, by his 
 relations and ancestors ; another swears by the Kebleh? by 
 the king, and by his beard ; a third by your death, by the 
 salt he eats, by the death of Imam Hosein. Do they care 
 for any one of these things ? No, they feel all the time that 
 they lie, and then out comes the oath. Now in our case, is 
 it to be supposed that we shall be left unmolested in the quiet 
 possession of this mare, which has brought so much misfor- 
 tune already on our heads ? The Persians are more wild, if 
 possible, on the subject of horses than the Turks, and an 
 Arabian mare in their sight is of greater value than diamonds 
 and rubies. Should the Shah hear of the one we possess, he 
 will instantly send for it, and what are we to do then ? Shall 
 we continue in arms against all the world ? No, my friends. 
 You may think what you please ; but, for my part, I look 
 upon your situation as precarious, and advise you, as a gene- 
 ral rule, not to put your trust in Persians, be they who or 
 what they may.' 
 
 " The event proved to be precisely what the old man had 
 
 1 The point towards which the Mohammedans turn in prayer.
 
 174 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 predicted, and was the cause of placing me where you now 
 see me. 
 
 "One morning, about an hour before the dawn of day, we 
 heard an unusual stir among the dogs of the camp : they did 
 not cease to bark and make a most furious noise. As we 
 were accustomed to the attacks of wolves, who were kept at 
 bay by our dogs, we did not at first pay attention to the dis- 
 turbance ; but at length my father and his sons arose, and, 
 taking their guns with them, went to see what could have 
 happened. They had not proceeded twenty steps before 
 they saw a horseman, and then a second, and shortly after 
 several more ; in short, they discovered that their tents were 
 surrounded. My father immediately gave the alarm, and 
 instantly all the camp was in motion. The horsemen rushed 
 on my father, and attempted to seize him ; but he shot the 
 first dead at his feet, and with his sword wounded the second. 
 The report of the gun, and the noise of the fray, was a signal 
 to the invaders for a general attack, and in a short time our 
 camp was entered at every corner. Their principal object 
 was evidently the mare ; for the women's tent was attacked 
 first, and there they instantly seized the object of their 
 search. 
 
 "As the day dawned, we observed that our invaders 
 were Persians ; and we also soon discovered that they were 
 acting from authority. My father had unluckily killed their 
 chief, and that was a sufficient reason for our being made 
 prisoners. Conceive our situation : it was a scene of misery 
 that I shall never forget. My father was treated with 
 every indignity before our eyes ; our property was pillaged, 
 and " 
 
 Zeenab was proceeding to relate to me how she became 
 the property of Mirza Ahmak, when a loud knocking at the 
 gate of the house was heard. We both got up in great 
 alarm. My fair one entreated me to take my departure by 
 the terrace, while she went to see who it might be. By the 
 voice that was ordering the door to be opened she recognised 
 the doctor himself; and, trusting to her own ingenuity for
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 175 
 
 giving good reasons for the appearance of breakfast and good 
 cheer which he would perceive, she forthwith unbarred the 
 gate and admitted him. 
 
 From the terrace I could watch all that was going on. 
 The doctor appeared quite delighted to find Zeenab alone, 
 and made her some speeches so full of tenderness, that there 
 was no mistaking how his affections were placed. Looking 
 into the window of his wife's apartment, he perceived the 
 remains of the breakfast, and every appearance of the room 
 having been occupied. He was asking some questions 
 concerning what he saw, when in came the khanum her- 
 self, followed by her women. She entered the house so un- 
 expectedly, that she appeared before them ere they could 
 separate. I shall never forget her look and attitude at this 
 sight. 
 
 " Selam aleikum ! peace be unto ye!" said she, with 
 mock respect ; "I am your very humble servant. I hope 
 that the health of both your excellencies is good, and that you 
 have passed your time agreeably. I have arrived too soon, 
 I fear." Then the blood creeping into her face, she very 
 soon relinquished her raillery, and fell tooth and nail upon 
 the unhappy culprits. 
 
 "And breakfast too and in my room. Mashallah! 
 Mashallah ! It is understood, then, that I am become 
 less than a dog ; now that in my own house, on my own 
 carpet, on my very pillow, my slaves give up their hearts 
 to joy. La Allah il Allah ! There is but one God ! I am 
 all astonishment ! I am fallen from the heavens to the 
 ground ! " 
 
 Then, addressing herself to her husband, she said, "As 
 for you, Mirza Ahmak, look at me, and tell me, by my soul, 
 are you to be counted a man amongst men ? A doctor, too 
 the Locman of his day a sage, with that monkey's face, 
 with that goat's beard, with that humped back, to be playing 
 the lover, the swain. Curses attend such a beard ! " Then, 
 putting up her five fingers to his face, she said, " Poof! I 
 spit on such a face. Who am I, then, that you prefer an
 
 176 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BAB A 
 
 unclean slave to me? What have I done, that you should 
 treat me with such indignity ? When you had nothing but 
 your prescriptions and your medicines in the world, I came 
 and made a man of you. You are become something, thanks 
 to me ! You now stand before a king ; men bow the head 
 to you. You wear a Cashmerian shawl ; you are become 
 a person of substance. Say, then, oh, you less than man 1 
 what is the meaning of all this ? " 
 
 The doctor, during this attack upon him, was swearing 
 abundance of oaths, and making ten thousands of exclama- 
 tions, in proof of his innocence. Nothing, however, could 
 stop the volubility of his wife, or calm her rage. By this 
 time she had worked her passion up to such a pitch, that 
 oath succeeded oath, and blasphemy blasphemy, in one 
 raging, unceasing torrent. From her husband she fell on 
 Zeenab, and from Zeenab she returned again to her husband, 
 until she foamed at the mouth. She was not satisfied with 
 words alone ; but, seizing the wretched girl by one of the 
 long tresses which hung down her back, she pulled it till 
 she roared with pain ; then, with the assistance of the other 
 slaves, she was thrown into the reservoir, where they beat 
 and soused her until both parties were nearly exhausted. 
 Oh, how I burned to fly to her rescue ! My body was 
 become like glowing fire. I could have drunk the blood of 
 the unfeeling wretches. But what could I do? Had I 
 rushed into the harem, death would have been my lot ; for 
 most probably they would have impaled me on the spot : and 
 what good would that have done to Zeenab ? She would 
 have been even more cruelly treated than before, and the 
 doctor's wife would not have been the less jealous. So, 
 when the storm had subsided, I quietly stept down from my 
 hiding-place on the terrace, and walked into the open country 
 without the town, to consider upon the course which I ought 
 to pursue. To remain with the doctor was out of the ques- 
 tion ; and to expect to enjoy Zeenab's company again was 
 folly. My heart bled when I reflected what might be the 
 fate of that poor girl ; for I had heard horrid stories of the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 177 
 
 iniquities performed in harems, and there was no length to 
 which such a demon as the khanum might not go with one 
 so entirely in her power. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII 
 
 Of the preparations made by the chief physician to receive the Shah as his 
 guest, and of the great expense which threatened him. 
 
 IN my walk I had almost determined to quit the doctor's house 
 immediately, and abandon Tehran, such was the desperate 
 view I took of my situation : but my love for Zeenab over- 
 came this resolution ; and, in the hope of seeing her again, I 
 continued to drag on a miserable existence as a dependant on 
 Mirza Ahmak. He had no suspicion that I was his rival, 
 and that I had been the cause of the late confusion in his 
 harem ; but he was aware that some one must have had 
 access to it, and therefore took such precautions for the 
 future, that I found great difficulty in discovering how it 
 fared with my love, or what had been the consequences of 
 the anger of the khanum. I daily watched the door of the 
 anderun, in the hope of seeing Zeenab in the suite of her 
 mistress when she went out, but in vain : there was no 
 indication of her, and my imagination made me apprehend 
 either that she was kept in close confinement, or that she had 
 fallen a victim to the violence of her enemies in the harem. 
 My impatience had risen to the utmost, when I, one day, 
 perceived that Nur Jehan, 1 the black slave, had issued from 
 the house by herself, and was making her way to the bazaar. 
 I followed her ; and, trusting to the friendship that she 
 formerly entertained for the mistress of my heart, I ventured 
 to accost her. 
 
 1 Light of the world. The Persians are apt to give high-sounding names to 
 their slaves, and particularly to the guardians of their women. 
 
 M
 
 1 78 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 "Peace be with you, Nur Jehan!" said I; "where are 
 you going in such haste by yourself?" 
 
 "May your kindness never be less, Aga 1 Hajjf," an- 
 swered she ; " I am bound to the druggist's for our Curdish 
 slave." 
 
 " What ! Zeenab ? " exclaimed I, in great agitation. " What 
 has befallen her ? Is she sick ? " 
 
 " Ah! poor thing," replied the good negro girl, "she has 
 been sick and sorry too. You Persians are a wicked nation. 
 We who are black, and slaves, have twice the heart that you 
 have. You may talk of your hospitality, and of your kind- 
 ness to strangers ; but was there ever an animal, not to say a 
 human creature, treated in the way that this poor stranger 
 has been ? " 
 
 " What have they done to her ? For God's sake, tell me, 
 Nur Jehan ! " said I ; "by my soul, tell me ! " 
 
 Softened by my manner, and by the interest which I took 
 in what she said, she informed me, that in consequence of the 
 jealousy of her mistress, Zeenab had been confined to a small 
 back room, whence she was prohibited stirring ; that the 
 treatment which she had received had occasioned a violent 
 fever, which had brought her to the brink of the grave, but 
 that her youth and strength had enabled her to overcome it ; 
 and now that she was quite recovered, her mistress began to 
 relent, and had permitted her to use the henna and the 
 surmeh? which she was about to procure from the druggist. 
 But she was sure that this indulgence would never have been 
 granted, if the report had not been spread that it was the 
 Shah's intention to pay Mirza Ahmak a visit ; and as it is his 
 privilege to enter every man's harem at pleasure, and to 
 inspect his women unveiled, her mistress, who wanted to 
 make as great a display of slaves and attendants as possible, 
 had released Zeenab from the confinement of her room, in 
 order that she should wait upon her : but she was still 
 restricted to the walls of the secret chamber. 
 
 1 Aga is used in the sense of master. 
 
 2 The surmeh is a collyrium.
 
 , THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 179 
 I was relieved by this intelligence, and began to turn in 
 
 A HENNA-SELLER. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 my mind how I could manage to obtain an interview ; but
 
 i8o THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 such insurmountable obstacles did I foresee, that, fearful of 
 entailing fresh miseries upon her, I determined to remain 
 quiet for the present, and to follow the poet's advice "to 
 fold up the carpet of my desires, and not to prowl round and 
 round my inclination." 
 
 In the meanwhile, the day of the Shah's departure for 
 his usual summer campaign approached ; and, according 
 to custom, he passed the intermediate time in visiting the 
 noblemen of his court, and thereby reaping for himself 
 and his suite a harvest of presents, which every one 
 who is distinguished by so great an honour is obliged to 
 make. 
 
 Nur Jehan's intelligence to me was true : the king had 
 selected Mirza Ahmak as one of those to whom he intended 
 the honour of a visit ; for the doctor had the reputation of 
 being rich, and he had long been marked as prey fit for the 
 royal grasp. Accordingly he was informed of the day when 
 this new and special proof of favour would be conferred upon 
 him ; and, as a most distinguishing mark of it, he was told 
 that it should not be an ordinary visit, but that the doctor 
 should enjoy the satisfaction of entertaining his majesty : in 
 short, the king would take his sham? or dinner, at his 
 house. 
 
 The doctor, half elated with the greatness of the dis- 
 tinction, half trembling at the ruin that awaited his finances, 
 set to work to make all the necessary preparations. The 
 first thing to be settled was the value and nature of the 
 pah-endaz? This he knew would be talked of throughout 
 the country ; and this was to be the standard of the favour 
 in which he stood with his sovereign. His vanity was 
 roused on the one hand, and his avarice alarmed on the 
 other. If he exhibited too much wealth, he would remain 
 a mark for future exactions ; and if he made no display, his 
 rivals in consequence would treat him with contempt. He 
 
 1 The shdm is, in truth, the evening meal, and is served up at sunset. 
 
 2 The ceremony of the pah-endaz consists in spreading rich stuffs for the king 
 to walk upon.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 181 
 
 had not deigned to consult me for a long time, and I had 
 dwindled into a mere hanger-on ; but recollecting the suc- 
 cess which had attended my negotiation with the European 
 doctor, he called me again into his councils. 
 
 " Hajji," said he, "what is to be done in this difficult 
 case ? I have received a hint that the king expects from 
 me a considerable pah-endaz, and this from the lord high 
 treasurer himself, whose magnificence on such occasions is the 
 theme of wonder throughout the whole of Persia. Now, it is 
 impossible that I can rival him. He insisted that I ought to 
 spread broad cloth from the entrance of the street to where 
 the king alights from his horse ; that there he should tread 
 upon cloth of gold, until he reached the entrance of the 
 garden ; and from thence, the whole length of the court to 
 his seat, a carpet of Cashmerian shawls was to be extended, 
 each shawl increasing in value, until the one upon the mnsnud, 
 or carpet of state, which should be of an extraordinary price. 
 Now, you know I am not the man to make such display ; 
 I am a hakim, one of the learned : I make no profession of 
 riches. Besides, 'tis plain that the lord high treasurer only 
 says this, because he has cloth, brocades, and shawls to 
 dispose of, which he wishes me to take off his hands. No, 
 it is impossible that I can listen to his extravagant proposals. 
 What then is to be done ? " 
 
 I answered, " 'Tis true that you are a hakim, but then 
 you are the royal physician ; you hold a situation of great 
 consequence ; besides, for the sake of the lady, your wife, 
 you are bound to do something worthy of such an alliance. 
 The king will be displeased if you do not receive him in a 
 manner that will show your sense of the confidence he reposes 
 in you." 
 
 "Yes," said the mirza, "and that may all be very true, 
 friend Hajji ; still I am but a doctor, and cannot be supposed 
 to have all these shawls, brocades, and stuffs by me when- 
 ever I want them." 
 
 ' But what can you do otherwise ? " replied I ; " you
 
 1 82 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 would not strew the road with jalap, and spread his majesty's 
 seat with a blister plaster?" 
 
 "No," said he; "but we might strew flowers, which, you 
 know, are cheap ; and perhaps we might sacrifice an ox, and 
 break plenty of bottles full of sweetmeats under his horse's 
 feet. 1 Would not that answer ? " 
 
 "It is impossible," exclaimed I; "if you act thus, the 
 Shah and your enemies will devise means to strip you as 
 naked as my hand. Perhaps there is no necessity to do all 
 the lord high treasurer advises ; but you might spread chintz 
 in the street, velvet at the alighting spot, brocade in the 
 courtyard, and shawls in the room ; that will not be very 
 expensive." 
 
 "You do not say ill," said the doctor ; " I might perhaps 
 manage that. We have chintz in the house, which was 
 intended for the women's trowsers ; that will probably do. 
 A patient gave me a piece of Ispahan velvet the other day ; 
 I can sell my last dress of honour for some brocade ; and 
 two or three of my wife's shawls will suffice for the room. 
 By the blessing of Ali, that is settled." 
 
 "Ah! but the harem!" exclaimed I; "the Shah must 
 go there. You know it brings good luck to be looked at by 
 the king, and your women must appear well dressed on the 
 occasion." 
 
 "Oh! as for that," said the doctor, "they can borrow; 
 they can borrow anything they like from their friends- 
 jewels, trowsers, jackets, shawls they can get whatever 
 they want." 
 
 Not so, said my lady the khanum. As soon as this 
 arrangement was mentioned to her she protested against it ; 
 she called her husband a low-born, niggardly carle ; one unfit 
 for the honour of possessing her for a wife ; and insisted 
 upon his conducting himself on this occasion in a manner 
 worthy of the high distinction that was about to be conferred 
 
 1 This is an ancient Persian custom, and is supposed to secure good fortune, 
 sweetness, and consequently sugar, being an emblem of felicity.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 183 
 
 upon him. It was in vain to contend against her ; and 
 therefore the preparations were made upon a scale far exceed- 
 ing what the doctor had intended ; and every individual of 
 his house appeared to be actuated by only one feeling, that 
 of making him refund all that money which he so long and 
 so unpitifully had extorted from others. 
 
 
 A LION. 
 
 (From a Persian painting.}
 
 i8 4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII 
 
 Concerning the manner of the Shah's reception ; of the present made 
 him, and the conversation which ensued. 
 
 ON the morning of the day upon which this great event 
 was to happen (a day which had been duly settled as auspi- 
 cious by the astrologers), the note of preparation was heard 
 throughout the whole of Mirza Ahmak's dwelling. The 
 king's tent-pitchers had taken possession of the saloon of 
 audience in which he was to hold his court, where they 
 spread fresh carpets and prepared the royal musnud? cover- 
 ing it with a magnificent shawl. They threw water over 
 the courtyard, set the fountains playing, and fitted on a new 
 curtain to the front of the building. The king's gardeners 
 also came and decked the premises with flowers. On the 
 surface of the pool of water, immediately facing the spot 
 where his majesty was to be seated, they spread rose leaves 
 in curious devices. Around the marble basin they placed 
 rows of oranges, and a general appearance of freshness and 
 cheerfulness was given to the whole scene. 
 
 Then the cooks, a numerous and most despotic band, 
 arrived with such accompaniments of pots, pans, braziers, 
 and boilers, that the doctor, out of all patience, inquired of 
 the head of the kitchen, " what this meant ; whether it was 
 intended that he should feed all the city, as well as the king." 
 
 " Not quite all," was his answer; "but perhaps you will 
 recollect the words ,of Saadi : 
 
 ' If from the peasant's tree, the king an apple craves, 
 Down with it root and branch, exclaim his ready slaves ; 
 And should he, in dainty mood, one single egg require, 
 Lo ! thousand spitted birds revolve before the fire.' " 
 
 1 The viusnud, in Eastern acceptation, is, in fact, the throne ; but on occasions 
 such as the one here described the mode of making a musnud is to double up a 
 thick carpet, by which means there is only room for one person to be seated 
 upon it.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 185 
 
 They took possession of the kitchen, which did not 
 contain one quarter of the space required for their operations, 
 and consequently it was necessary to erect temporary fire- 
 places in the adjoining court, where the braziers were placed, 
 and in which was boiled the rice that is distributed on such 
 occasions to all present. Besides the cooks, a body of con- 
 fectioners established themselves in one of the apartments, 
 where the sweetmeats, the sherbets, the ices, and the fruits 
 were prepared ; and they called for so many ingredients, 
 that the doctor had nearly expired when the list was pre- 
 sented to him. In addition to all these, arrived the king's 
 band of singers and musicians, and the Luti Bashi (jester 
 in chief), accompanied by twenty lutis, each with a drum 
 hanging over his shoulder. 
 
 The time appointed for the visit was after the evening's 
 prayer, which is made at sunset. At that hour, when the 
 heat of the day had partly subsided, and the inhabitants of 
 Tehran were about to enjoy the cool of the evening, the 
 Shah left his palace, and proceeded to the doctor's house. 
 The streets had been swept and watered ; and as the royal 
 cortege approached, flowers were strewn on the path. Mirza 
 Ahmak himself had proceeded to the royal presence to 
 announce that all was ready, and walked close to the king's 
 stirrup during the cavalcade. 
 
 The procession was opened by the heralds, who, with the 
 distinguishing club of office in their hands, and ornament on 
 the head, proclaimed the king's approach, and marshalled 
 every one on the road. The tops of the walls were occupied 
 by women in their white veils, and in the better houses they 
 were seen to be peeping through the holes made in the 
 screens which surround their terraces. Then followed a 
 great body of tent-pitchers and carpet-spreaders, with long 
 slender sticks in their hands, keeping the road clear from 
 intruders. After this, walked a crowd of well-dressed officers 
 of the stable, bearing rich embroidered saddle housings over 
 their shoulders ; then servants in the gayest attire, with gold 
 pipes in their hands, the king's shoe-bearer, the king's ewer
 
 i86 THE 'ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 and basin bearer, the carrier of his cloak, the comptroller of 
 the opium-box, and a number of other domestics. As this 
 
 A MUSICIAN PLAYING ON THE KAMOUNCHA. 
 (From a sketch by J antes Morier.) 
 
 was only a private procession, his majesty was preceded by 
 no led horses, which usually form so splendid a part of his 
 grand displays. To these succeeded a train of running foot-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 187 
 
 men, two and two, fantastically dressed, some with gold coins 
 embroidered on their black velvet coats, others dressed in 
 brocades, and others in silks : they immediately preceded the 
 Shah in person, who was attended by the chief of the running 
 footmen, a man of considerable consequence, known by the 
 enamelled handled whip stuck in his girdle. The king rode 
 a quiet ambling horse, richly caparisoned ; but his own dress 
 was plain, and only distinguished by the beauty of the shawls 
 and other materials of which it was composed. After him, 
 at an interval of fifty paces, followed three of the king's sons, 
 then the noble of nobles, the great master of the ceremonies, 
 the master of the horse, the court poet, and many others, all 
 attended by their servants ; and at length when the whole 
 party were collected together, who were to partake of Mirza 
 Ahmak's substance, five hundred would probably be called 
 a moderate number. 
 
 The king alighted at the gate, the entrance being too 
 narrow to ride through ; and proceeded up the centre walk 
 of the court to the seat prepared for him in the great saloon. 
 Every one, except the princes, stood without, and the doctor 
 himself did the duties of a menial. 
 
 After his majesty had been seated some little time, the 
 master of ceremonies, accompanied by the master of the 
 house, walking barefooted, appeared near the reservoir, the 
 latter holding up breast-high a silver salver, in which were 
 spread one hundred tomauns of new coinage. The master 
 of ceremonies then exclaimed, in a loud voice, "The meanest 
 of your majesty's slaves makes a humble representation 
 to the Centre of the Universe, the King of Kings, the 
 Shadow of God upon earth, that Mirza Ahmak, the king's 
 chief physician, dares to approach the sacred dust of your 
 majesty's feet, and to bring by way of an offering one 
 hundred gold tomauns." 
 
 To which the king answered, " You are welcome, Mirza 
 Ahmak. Praise be to God, you are a good servant. The 
 Shah has a particular share of condescension for you ; your 
 face is whitened, your consequence has increased. Go, give
 
 1 88 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 praises to God, that the king has come to your house, and 
 has accepted your present." 
 
 Upon which the doctor knelt down and kissed the ground. 
 
 Then his majesty, turning to his noble of nobles, ex- 
 claimed, "By the head of the Shah, Mirza Ahmak is a good 
 man. There is no one like him now in Persia he is wiser 
 by far than Locman more learned than Galen." 
 
 "Yes, yes," answered the noble of nobles: "Locman, 
 indeed ! whose dog was he, or Galen ? This also comes 
 from the happy star of the king of kings. Such a king 
 Persia before never saw, and such a doctor for such a king 1 
 Men may praise the doctors of Europe and of India, but 
 where is science to be found, if it be not in Persia ? 
 Who shall dare to claim a superiority, as long as the land 
 of Persia is enlightened by the presence of its Shah without 
 compare ? " 
 
 "That's all true," said the king. " Persia is the country 
 which, from the beginning of the world to the present day, 
 has always been famous for the genius of its inhabitants, and 
 the wisdom and splendour of its monarchs. From Kaiumars, 
 the first king of the world, to me who am the present Shah, 
 what list is so perfect, so glorious? India also had her 
 sovereigns, Arabia her caliphs, Turkey her Khon Khors (lit. 
 blood-drinkers), Tartary her khans, and China her emperors ; 
 but as for the Franks, who come into my dominions from 
 God knows where, to buy and sell, and to bring me tribute 
 of presents, they, poor infidels ! have a parcel of kings, of 
 whose countries, even the names have not reached our ears." 
 
 "Belli, belli, yes, yes!" said the nobleman, "I am your 
 sacrifice. Except the English and the French nations, which 
 by all accounts are something in the world, all the others are 
 but little better than nothing. As for the Muscovites, they 
 are not Europeans they are less than the dogs of Europe." 
 
 "Ha, ha, ha! you say true," answered the king, laugh- 
 ing. "They had their Khurshid Colah? their 'Head of 
 Glory,' as they called her, who for a woman was a wonder- 
 
 1 Catherine II. is so styled by the Persians.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 189 
 
 ful person, 'tis true and we all know that when a woman 
 meddles with anything, pena be khoda, it is then time to put 
 one's trust in God ; but after her they had a Paul, who was 
 a pure madman ; who, to give you an instance of what his 
 folly was, wanted to march an army to India, just as if the 
 Kizzil Hashes x would ever have allowed it. A Russian puts 
 on a hat, a tight coat, and tight breeches, shaves his beard, 
 and then calls himself an European. You might just as well 
 tie the wings of a goose to your back and call yourself an 
 angel." 
 
 " Wonderful, wonderful ! " exclaimed the head of the nobles; 
 "the Shah-in-Shah speaks like an angel. Show us a king in 
 Europe that would speak like him." 
 
 " Yes, yes," was chorused by all the bystanders. 
 
 " May he live a thousand years ! " said one. 
 
 " May his shadow never be less ! " said another. 
 
 " But it is of their women," continued the king, "of whom 
 we hear the most extraordinary accounts. In the first place, 
 they have no anderfin 2 in their houses ; men and women all 
 live together ; then the women never wear veils they show 
 their faces to whoever chooses to look at them, like those of 
 our wandering tribes. Tell me, Mirza Ahmak, you that are 
 a doctor and a philosopher, by what extraordinary arrange- 
 ment of Providence does it happen, that we Mussulmans 
 should be the only people on earth who can depend upon our 
 wives, and who can keep them in subjection. You," said his 
 majesty, smiling ironically, "you, I hear, are blessed above 
 all men in an obedient and dutiful wife." 
 
 " Possessed of the kindness and protection of the king of 
 kings," answered the doctor, " I am blessed with everything 
 that can make life happy. I, my wife, my family, are your 
 humble slaves, and everything we have your property. If 
 your slave possesses any merit, it is none of his ; it all ema- 
 nates from the asylum of the world : even my failings become 
 
 1 Kizzil Bash, or Red Head, is a sort of nickname given from old times to 
 the Persians. 
 
 - The inner, or women's apartment.
 
 190 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 virtues when the king commands me. ' But what lamp can 
 shine in the face of the sun, or what minaret can be called 
 high at the foot of the mountain of Alwend ? ' With respect 
 to what your majesty has been pleased to say concerning 
 women, it appears to the meanest of your slaves that there 
 must be a great affinity between beasts and Europeans, and 
 which accounts for the inferiority of the latter to Mussulmans. 
 Male and female beasts herd promiscuously together ; so do 
 the Europeans. The female beasts do not hide their faces ; 
 neither do the Europeans. They wash not, nor do they pray 
 five times a day ; neither do the Europeans. They live in 
 friendship with swine ; so do the Europeans ; for, instead of 
 exterminating the unclean beasts, as we do, I hear that every 
 house in Europe has an apartment fitted up for its hog. 
 Then as for their women, indeed ! What dog, seeing its 
 female in the streets, does not go and make himself agree- 
 able ? so, doubtless, does the European. Wife, in those 
 unclean countries, must be a word without a meaning, since 
 every man's wife is every man's property." 
 
 "Well said, doctor," exclaimed the king ; "'tis plain, then, 
 that all are beasts but us. Our holy Prophet (upon whom 
 be blessing and peace !) has told us as much. The infidel 
 will never cease roasting, whilst the true believer will be 
 eternally seated next to his houri in the seventh heaven ! 
 But we hear, doctor, that your paradise has begun here on 
 earth, and that you have got your houris already. Ah ! how 
 is that ? " 
 
 Upon which Mirza Ahmak made a low prostration, and 
 said, " Whatever the monarch permits his slave to possess 
 is the monarch's. The hour will be fortunate, and Mirza 
 Ahmak's head will reach the skies, when the propitious step 
 of the king of kings shall pass the threshold of his unworthy 
 ander&n." 
 
 " We shall see with our own eyes," rejoined the king ; "a 
 look from the king brings good luck. Go, give notice to 
 your harem that the Shah will visit it ; and if there be any 
 one sick, any one whose desires are unaccomplished, any
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 191 
 
 maiden who sighs for her lover, or any wife who wishes to 
 get rid of her husband, let them come forward, let them look 
 at the king, and good fortune will attend them." 
 
 Upon this the poet, who had hitherto remained silent, his 
 mind apparently absorbed in thought, exclaimed, "What- 
 ever the king hath ordained is only an additional proof of 
 his beneficence and condescension ;" and then, in very good 
 verse, he sung, 
 
 " The firmament possesses but one sun, and the land of 
 Irak but one king. 
 
 " Life, light, joy, and prosperity, attend them both wher- 
 ever they appear. 
 
 " The doctor may boast of his medicine ; but what medi- 
 cine is equal to a glance from the king's eye ? 
 
 "What is spikenard? what mumiai? what pakser? 1 
 compared even to the twinkle of a royal eyelash ! 
 
 "Oh! Mirza Ahmak, happiest of men, and most blessed 
 of doctors ! 
 
 " NOW T , indeed, you possess within your walls an antidote 
 to every disorder, a specific against every evil. 
 
 " Shut up your Galen, burn your Hippocrates, and put 
 Avicenna in a corner ; the father of them all is here in 
 person. 
 
 " Who will take cassia when an eye is to be had, or will 
 writhe under a blister when a look will relieve him ? 
 
 " Oh ! Mirza Ahmak, happiest of men, and most blessed 
 of doctors ! " 
 
 Every one present had kept the strictest silence when this 
 was repeating, when the king exclaimed, " Afertn, this is 
 well ; you are indeed a poet, and worthy of our reign. Who 
 was Ferdousi when compared to you? As for Mahmoud, 
 the Ghaznevi, hdk bud (he was dirt). Go to him," said he to 
 the noble of nobles, "go, kiss him on the mouth, and, when 
 that is done, fill it with sugar-candy. Every pleasure should 
 attend such a mouth, from whence such good things proceed." 
 
 1 Mumiai and pahzer are antidotes in which the Persians have great faith. 
 Ourbe zoar is evidently a corruption of pahzer.
 
 1 92 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 Upon which the noble of nobles, who was endowed with 
 a large and bushy beard, approached the poet, and inflicted a 
 kiss upon his mouth, which also was protected by an appro- 
 
 A COURTIER. 
 
 (From a sketch by James Morier. ) 
 
 priate quantity of hair ; and then, from a plate of sugar-candy, 
 which was handed to him, he took as many lumps as would 
 quite fill his jaws, and inserted them therein with his fingers 
 with all due form.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 193 
 
 Though evidently distressed with his felicity, the poet did 
 his utmost to appear at the summit of all happiness, and 
 grinned with such rare contortions, that involuntary tears 
 flowed from his eyes as fast as the sugar-candy distilled 
 through his lips. 
 
 The king then dismissed his courtiers and attendants, and 
 preparations were made for serving up the royal dinner. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 A description of the entertainment, which is followed by an event 
 destructive to Hajji Babas happiness. 
 
 THE only persons, besides servants, admitted into the saloon 
 where the Shah dined, were the three princes, his sons, who 
 had accompanied him ; and they stood at the farthest end, 
 with their backs against the wall, attired in dresses of cere- 
 mony, with swords by their sides. Mirza Ahmak remained 
 in attendance without. A cloth, of the finest Cashmerian 
 shawl fringed with gold, was then spread on the carpet before 
 the king by the chief of the valets, and a gold ewer and 
 basin were presented for washing hands. The dinner was 
 then brought in trays, which, as a precaution against poison, 
 had been sealed with the signet of the head steward before 
 they left the kitchen, and were broken open by him again in 
 the presence of the Shah. Here were displayed all the refine- 
 ments of cookery. Rice, in various shapes, smoked upon the 
 board ; first, the chilau, as white as snow ; then the pilau, 
 with a piece of boiled lamb smothered in the rice ; then 
 another pilau, with a baked fowl in it ; a fourth, coloured 
 with saffron, mixed up with dried peas ; and, at length, the 
 king of Persian dishes, the narinj pillau, made with slips 
 of orange-peel, spices of all sorts, almonds, and sugar ; 
 salmon and herring, from the Caspian Sea, were seen among 
 
 N
 
 194 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 the dishes, and trout from the river Zengi, near Erivan ; then, 
 in china basins and bowls of different sizes, were the ragouts, 
 which consisted of hash made of a fowl boiled to rags, stewed 
 up with rice, sweet herbs, and onions ; a stew, in which was 
 
 ANCIENT EWER OF ENGRAVED BRASSWORK. 
 
 The central subject is the execution pole, or Dar, at Ispahan, which twenty years ago 
 was still standing. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 a lamb's marrow-bone, with some loose flesh about it, and 
 boiled in its own juice ; small gourds, crammed with force- 
 meat, and done in butter ; a fowl stewed to rags, with a 
 brown sauce of prunes ; a large omelette, about two inches
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 195 
 
 thick ; a cup full of the essence of meat, mixed up with rags 
 of lamb, almonds, prunes, and tamarinds, which was poured 
 upon the top of the chilau ; a plate of poached eggs, fried in 
 sugar and butter ; a dish of badenjdns, slit in the middle and 
 boiled in grease ; a stew of venison, and a great variety of 
 other messes too numerous to mention. After these came 
 the roasts. A lamb was served up hot from the spit, the tail 
 of which, like marrow, was curled up over its back. Par- 
 tridges, and, what is looked upon as the rarest delicacy in 
 Persia, two capk ciereh, partridges of the valley, were pro- 
 cured on the occasion. Pheasants from Mazanderan were 
 there also, as well as some of the choicest bits of the wild 
 ass and antelope. The display and the abundance of deli- 
 cacies surprised every one ; and they were piled up in such 
 profusion around the king, that he seemed almost to form 
 a part of the heap. I do not mention the innumerable little 
 accessories of preserves, pickles, cheese, butter, onions, celery, 
 salt, pepper, sweets, and sours, which were to be found in 
 different parts of the tray, for that would be tedious ; but 
 the sherbets were worthy of notice, from their peculiar deli- 
 cacy : these were contained in immense bowls of the most 
 costly china, and drank by the help of spoons of the most 
 exquisite workmanship, made of the pear tree. They con- 
 sisted of the common lemonade, made with superior art ; of 
 the sekenjebin, or vinegar, sugar, and water, so mixed that 
 the sour and the sweet were as equally balanced as the 
 blessings and miseries of life ; the sherbet of sugar and 
 water, with rose-water to give it a perfume, and sweet 
 seeds to increase its flavour ; and that made of the pome- 
 granate ; all highly cooled by lumps of floating ice. 
 
 The king, then, doubling himself down with his head 
 reclining towards his food, buried his hand in the pilaus and 
 other dishes before him, and ate in silence, whilst the princes 
 and the servants-in-waiting, in attitudes of respect, remained 
 immovable. When he had finished he got up, and walked 
 into an adjoining room, where he washed his hands, drank 
 his coffee, and smoked his kalian or water-pipe.
 
 196 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 In the course of his eating he ordered one of the pilaus, 
 of which he had partaken, to be carried to Mirza Ahmak, his 
 host, by a servant-in-waiting. As this is considered a mark 
 of peculiar honour, the mirza was obliged to give a present 
 in money to the bearer. A similar distinction was conferred 
 upon the poet for his impromptu, and he also made a suit- 
 able present. His majesty also sent one of the messes, of 
 which he had freely partaken, to the doctor's wife, who 
 liberally rewarded the bearer. And in this manner he con- 
 trived to reward two persons, the one who received the 
 present, and the other who bore it. 
 
 The princes then sat down, and when they had eaten their 
 
 A SHERBET-SPOON, CARVED IN PEARWOOD. ABADEH WORK. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 fill they rose, and the dishes were served up in another room, 
 where the noble of nobles, the court poet, the master of the 
 horse, and all the officers of state and courtiers who had 
 attended his majesty, were seated, and who continued the 
 feast which the king and his sons had begun. After this, the 
 dinner was taken in succession to the different servants, until 
 the dishes were cleared by the tent-pitchers and scullions. 
 
 In the meanwhile the Shah had been introduced into the 
 harem by the doctor in person ; and as immediate death 
 would have been inflicted upon any one who might have 
 been caught peeping, I waited in the greatest suspense until 
 I could learn what might have taken place there ; but what
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 197 
 
 was my horror, what my consternation, on hearing (as soon 
 as the king had returned to the great saloon) that the doctor 
 had made a present of his Curdish slave to his majesty! 
 At this intelligence I grew sick with apprehension ; and, 
 although there was every reason to rejoice at her leaving 
 her present situation, yet there were consequences which I 
 anticipated, consequences which might even ultimately affect 
 her life, at the very thought of which my blood ran cold. 
 We had been too much enamoured to listen to the dictates 
 of prudence, and now the future opened a prospect to me, 
 the background of which was darkened by images the most 
 horrible that the imagination can conceive. 
 
 "I will endeavour," thought I, "to gain some certain 
 intelligence of what has happened ; perhaps in the confusion 
 I may chance to get a sight of Zeenab herself." I lost no 
 time, therefore, in resorting to our old place of meeting on 
 the terrace. Much noise and clatter were heard below 
 amongst the women, a large number having come as visitors, 
 in addition to those who composed the doctor's harem ; 
 but I could perceive no one amongst them that looked at 
 all like her I sought ; indeed, the night had closed in, and I 
 despaired of making any sign which might be recognised ; 
 but, trusting to the sympathies of love, I thought it certain 
 that she would hit upon precisely the same plan which I had 
 devised to see her. Part of the terrace where our first inter- 
 view had taken place was situated near the street, and upon 
 this the women of the harem were accustomed to take their 
 station whenever anything remarkable was to be seen abroad. 
 Here I hoped Zeenab would not fail to come at the moment 
 of the Shah's departure, which was now close at hand. The 
 clatter of the horses, the shouts of men, the passing to and fro 
 of lanterns, all announced the close of the scene ; and, to my 
 delight, I heard a corresponding shuffling of women's slippers, 
 and voices making for the steps of the terrace. I had 
 placed myself behind the wall, so as to be seen by those only 
 who had a knowledge of the premises, and I flattered myself 
 that Zeenab, by a natural impulse, would turn her eyes
 
 198 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 towards me. I was not mistaken. She was among the 
 women who had ascended the terrace, and she recognised 
 me. That was all I wanted, and I left it to her ingenuity 
 to devise a mode of conversing with me. 
 
 The cry of Gitchin ! Begone ! made by the heralds when- 
 ever the king rises to depart, was now heard, and every one 
 arranged himself in the procession. With the exception of 
 the numerous lanterns, which, by their size, announced the 
 dignity of the different personages whose steps they lighted, 
 the ceremony of the king's return to his palace was the 
 same as on his leaving it, and with his majesty departed all 
 that had a moment before given life and animation to the 
 place. 
 
 The women, satisfied that nothing more was to be seen, 
 also left the terrace. Their conversation, during the time of 
 their stay, had consisted almost entirely of disputes of who 
 had been most seen and admired by the Shah ; and, as 
 they were descending, I overheard great expressions of envy 
 and jealousy at the good fortune which, in their eyes, had 
 fallen to the share of Zeenab. 
 
 " I can't conceive," said one, "what the Shah could have 
 seen so attractive in her. After all, she has no beauty. Did 
 you ever see so large a mouth ? She has no salt 1 in her 
 complexion." 
 
 " She is crooked," said another. 
 
 "As for her waist," said a third, "'tis like that of an 
 elephant ; and then her feet a camel has smaller." 
 
 "And then," said a fourth, "she is a Yezeedi. She must 
 have got a charm from the Shaitan himself, to make herself 
 remarked." 
 
 "That is the truth," they all exclaimed. "Yes, that's it ; 
 she and the devil are in partnership to make the king eat 
 dirt." Upon this they all seemed satisfied, and I heard no 
 more of them. 
 
 But one woman still remained behind on the terrace, 
 
 1 This is a Persian idiom, and is intended to denote the fascinations of a 
 brunette.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 199 
 
 apparently engrossed with what was passing on in the street ; 
 she immediately rose when the others had left it, and came 
 towards me. It was Zeenab. 
 
 A SHERBET-BOWL. 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX 
 
 Hajji Bab a meets with a rival in the Shah himself } and loses the fair 
 object of his affections. 
 
 THE wall behind which I had taken post was not long a 
 barrier between us, and I had scarcely made known to her 
 the unhappy state of my mind, before she apprised me of the 
 danger that we incurred in such an interview. She soon gave 
 me to understand that this must be our last meeting ; for, as 
 she now belonged to the royal harem, death would be our fate 
 if we were found together. I was anxious to hear in what 
 manner the king had gained possession of her, and what was 
 to be her future destiny ; but sobs stifled everything I had to 
 say. She, on the other hand, did not appear to take our 
 separation quite so much to heart ; for, whether dazzled by
 
 200 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 the prospect of her future destinies, or subdued by the miseries 
 she had already endured on my account, certainly I did not 
 meet that return to my affection which I had so warmly 
 anticipated. 
 
 She informed me that when the Shah entered the anderun, 
 he was received by a band of female singers, who went before, 
 singing his praises, to the accompaniment of tambourines ; 
 and, as soon as he had seated himself in the open saloon, the 
 khanum was permitted to enjoy the privilege of kissing his 
 knee. A pah-endaz, composed of embroidered silks, had 
 been spread for him, which, as soon as the royal footsteps 
 had passed over, was snapped up by the eunuchs, who shared 
 it as their perquisite. The king's female master of the cere- 
 monies was in attendance, and she made an offering of the 
 khanum's present, which was laid out on a silver tray, and 
 consisted of six arac gtrs^ or skull-caps, embroidered by that 
 lady's own hands ; six sinek gtrs, or breast covers, made of 
 padded shawl, worn in cold weather over the shirt ; two pair 
 of trowsers of Cashmerian shawl ; three silk shirts, and six 
 pair of stockings, knitted by the women of the doctor's house. 
 His majesty having accepted this, with many encomiums on 
 the khanum's industry and skill, the women were marshalled 
 in two lines on each side of him ; "and I," said Zeenab, "in 
 order that every mortification possible might be heaped upon 
 me, was placed the last in the row, even below Nur Jehan, 
 the black slave. You ought to have seen the pains which all 
 of us, even old Leilah, took to attract the Shah's attention : 
 some were bashful, others stole wicked looks, and glanced 
 sideways ; others, again, were bold, and kept their eyes fixed 
 on the king's face. Having inspected each in turn, he paused, 
 and keeping his eyes riveted upon me, turned to the doctor, 
 and said, ' What sort of thing is this ? She is no indifferent 
 commodity. By the king's /zAz, 1 the animal is fine! doctor, 
 mashallah ! you have a good taste, the moon face, the stag 
 eye, the cypress waist, everything is here.' 
 
 1 Thejt&a is an upright ornament worn in front of the crown, and is an insignia 
 of royalty.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 2OI 
 
 " Upon which the doctor, making the lowest obeisance, 
 said, ' May I be your sacrifice, notwithstanding the slave is 
 totally unworthy of notice ; yet, since I and everything that 
 belongs to me is the property of the king of kings, may I 
 
 THE SHAH OF PERSIA WEARING THE JIKA (IN HIS HAT). 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 venture to place her as aA offering at the foot of your majesty's 
 throne ? ' 
 
 " ' Caboull I accept her,' said the Shah; and then calling 
 the chief eunuch to him, he ordered that I should be educated 
 for a b.iziger (dancer or singer), that all my clothes, &c., should
 
 202 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 be made suited to my future profession, and that I should be 
 ready accomplished to appear before him upon his return 
 from his summer campaign." 
 
 A " BAZIGER " (A DANCER). 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 " Oh ! I shall never forget," exclaimed Zeenab, "the looks 
 of the doctor's wife when this conversation was passing ; she 
 turned towards the Shah in great humility, acquiescing in all
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 203 
 
 that was said, and then cast glances upon me, which spoke 
 the thousand angry passions by which her breast was agitated. 
 As for the Georgian, she looked daggers and arsenic, whilst 
 Nur Jehan's good-humoured face was lightened up with 
 every expression of happiness at my good fortune. I, in the 
 meanwhile, prostrated myself to the ground before the king, 
 who still kept surveying me with a kind aspect. 
 
 " As soon as his majesty was gone, you ought to have 
 seen the immediate change which took place in the khanum's 
 conduct towards me. I was no longer ' a child of the devil/ 
 ' a maiden accursed ' ; but it was ' my love, my soul, light of 
 my eyes, my child.' I, who had never smoked before her, 
 was now invited to partake of her own pipe ; and whether I 
 would or not, she thrust bits of sweetmeat into my mouth 
 with her own fingers. As for the Georgian, she could not 
 stand the sight, but withdrew to another place, to digest her 
 envy as she might. I received the congratulations of the 
 other women, who did not cease repeating a long list of 
 delights that were preparing for me. Love, wine, music, 
 jewels, fine clothes, bathing, and standing before the king, 
 were to be my future occupations. Some talked to me of 
 the best spells to secure love, and to destroy the influence 
 of rivals ; others gave me the best advice how to get presents 
 of finery; and many again began to teach me the forms of 
 speech and compliment which I must use in case the Shah 
 spoke to me. In short, poor Zeenab, the most miserable and 
 neglected of human beings, all of a sudden found herself the 
 object of universal attention and admiration." 
 
 Zeenab here finished talking, and the joy which she 
 seemed to feel for the change which was about to take 
 place in her situation was so natural, that I could not find 
 in my heart to destroy it by communicating to her my fore- 
 bodings of the danger which awaited her. She little knew 
 the horrible penalty she would incur, in case, when called 
 upon to attend the Shah, she should be found unworthy of 
 his attentions ; for it was upon record, under such circum- 
 stances, that death, a horrid, cruel death, had been inflicted,
 
 204 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 and that without appeal to any tribunal upon earth. I there- 
 fore seemed to partake her happiness ; and although we felt 
 we must be separated, yet we were consoled with the hope 
 
 ..t~* f r -- .- 
 
 A "BAZIGER" (A SINGER). 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 that opportunities of mutual intelligence would not be wanting. 
 She told me that one of the king's eunuchs was to call on 
 the following morning, to conduct her to the seraglio, and,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 205 
 
 when bathed and newly dressed, she was to be delivered 
 over to the department of the bazigers, when her education 
 was immediately to commence. 
 
 Hearing her name repeatedly called, she was afraid of 
 risking herself longer with me, and after ten thousands and 
 thousands protestations of mutual love, we parted, perhaps to 
 meet no more. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI 
 
 His reflections on the loss of Zeenab He is suddenly called upon 
 to exert his skill as a doctor. 
 
 As soon as she was gone I sat down on the same spot where 
 we had been standing, and gave myself up to thought. " So," 
 said I to myself, " so, this is being two kernels in one almond? 
 Well, if such be the world, then what I have been taken up 
 with for these two last months is only a dream. I thought 
 myself a Majnoun, and she a Leilah, and as long as the sun 
 and moon endured we should go on loving, and getting thin, 
 and burning like charcoal, and making kabob^ of our hearts. 
 But 'tis clear that my beard has been laughed at. The Shah 
 came, looked, said two words, and all was over. Hajjt was 
 forgotten in an instant, and Zeenab took upon herself the airs 
 of royalty." 
 
 I passed a feverish night, and rose early in the morning 
 full of new projects. In order to reflect more at my ease, I 
 determined to take a walk without the city walls, but just as 
 I had stepped from the house, I met Zeenab mounted on a 
 horse, finely caparisoned, conducted by one of the royal 
 eunuchs, and escorted by servants making way for her to 
 pass. I expected, that at the sight of me she would have 
 lifted up the flap of her veil ; but no, she did not even move 
 from her perpendicular on the saddle, and I walked on, more 
 
 1 Roast meat.
 
 206 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 determined than ever to drive her from my recollection. But 
 somehow or other, instead of taking my path to the gate of 
 the city, I followed her, and was led on imperceptibly towards 
 the king's palace. 
 
 Entering the great square, which is situated immediately 
 before the principal gate, I found it filled with cavalry, pass- 
 ing muster, or the som, as it is called, before the Shah in 
 person, who was seated in the upper room over the porch. I 
 lost Zeenab and her conductor in the crowd, who were per- 
 mitted to pass, whilst I was kept back by the guards. The 
 current of my thoughts was soon arrested by the scene carry- 
 ing on before me. The troops now under examination con- 
 sisted of a body of cavalry under the command of Namerd 
 Khan, the chief executioner, who was present, dressed in 
 cloth of gold, with the enamelled ornament on his head glit- 
 tering in the sun, and mounted upon a superb charger. The 
 review was quite new to me ; and as I gazed upon the horses 
 and the horsemen, the spears and the muskets, the days 
 which I had passed among the Turcomans came again to my 
 mind, and I longed once more to be engaged in active life. 
 The troops to be reviewed were stationed on one side of the 
 square. The secretary at war with his six scribes were 
 placed in the middle, taken up with their different registers : 
 two criers were also present, the one who, with a loud voice, 
 called out the name of the soldier, and the other answering 
 hazi*' (present) as soon as he had passed muster. Whenever 
 a name was called, a cavalier, completely equipped, dashed 
 from the condensed body, and crossed the square at the full 
 speed of his horse, making a low obeisance as he passed 
 the Shah ; and this ceremony was performed by each man 
 until the whole were reviewed. Many and various was the 
 appearance of the horsemen. Some came forwards in fine 
 style, looking like Rustams, whilst others, who had perhaps 
 borrowed a beast for the -occasion, went hobbling through as 
 if the day of battle had already taken place. I recognised 
 many of my acquaintance as they galloped by, and was ad- 
 miring the animated manner of a young man, who had urged
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 207 
 
 his horse forwards, when, by some fatal accident, the beast 
 fell just as they were about passing the high pole which is 
 erected in the middle of the course, and its rider was thrown 
 with great violence against the foot of it. He was immedi- 
 ately taken up and carried through the crowd. Some one, 
 recognising me to belong to the Shah's physician, invited me 
 to take charge of him, and, without the least apprehension 
 from my ignorance, I did not hesitate to put on the airs of a 
 
 A PERSIAN HORSEMAN COMPLETELY EQUIPPED. 
 {From a sketch by Janus Morier.} 
 
 doctor. I found the unfortunate man stretched on the ground, 
 apparently without life. Those who surrounded him had 
 already prescribed largely. One was pouring water down 
 his throat, "in the name of the blessed Hosein ; " another 
 was smoking a pipe up his nose, in order to awaken him ; 
 and a third was kneading his body and limbs, to promote 
 circulation. As soon as I appeared, these different operations 
 were suspended, and, room being made, I felt his pulse with 
 great solemnity, and as the surrounding uplifted faces seemed
 
 208 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 to solicit a decision, I declared, with emphasis, that he had 
 been struck by fate, and that life and death were now wrest- 
 ling with each other who should have him. Thus (according 
 to the practice of my master) having prepared my hearers for 
 the worst, I ordered, as a preliminary to other remedies, that 
 the patient should be well shaken, in order to discover if life 
 was in him or no. No prescription was ever better adminis- 
 tered, for the crowd almost shook him to dislocation. This 
 had no effect. I was about prescribing again, when a cry 
 was heard in the crowd, Rah bedeh, Give way : Ser hisab, 
 Heads, heads ! and the Frank doctor (of whose skill I have 
 before given some account) made his appearance, having been 
 sent by his ambassador, who had witnessed the catastrophe. 
 Without having seen the patient, he cried out, " Take blood 
 instantly ! you must not lose a moment." 
 
 I, who now felt myself called upon to assert the dignity of 
 the Persian faculty, and give proofs of my superior wisdom, 
 said, " Take blood ! what doctrine is this ? Do not you know 
 that death is cold, and that blood is hot, and that the first 
 principle of the art is to apply warm remedies to cold diseases ? 
 Pocrat, 1 who is the father of all doctors, has thus ordained ; 
 and surely you cannot say that he eats his own soil. If you 
 take blood from that body, it dies ; and go tell the world that 
 I say so." 
 
 " As for that," said the Frank, who had now examined it, 
 " we may save ourselves any further trouble : it is dead already, 
 and hot and cold are now all one." Upon this he took his 
 leave, and left me and my Pocrat with our noses in the air. 
 
 " Then death," said I, " has had the best of it ; the wisdom 
 of man is unavailing, when opposed to the decrees of God. 
 We doctors can no more contend with destiny, than the waters 
 of an aqueduct can overcome those of a river." 
 
 A Mollah, who was present, ordered his feet to be turned 
 towards the Kebleh, his two great toes to be tied together, 
 a handkerchief wrapped under his chin, and fastened over 
 his head, and then all the bystanders after him repeated aloud 
 
 1 So Hippocrates is called in Persia.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 209 
 
 the profession of the true faith. By this time some of his 
 relatives had gathered round him, and had begun the usual 
 lamentations, when the bier was brought, and the dead body 
 conveyed to his family. 
 
 Upon inquiry, I found that the deceased had been a 
 nasakchi, i.e., one of the officers attached to the chief exe- 
 cutioner, who has one hundred and fifty such under his 
 
 THE COMBAT BETWEEN RUSTAM (THE PERSIAN HERCULES) AND ISFENDIYAR. 
 
 RUSTAM LODGES THE DOUBLE-HEADED ARROW IN HIS ENEMY S EYES. 
 
 From a picture in the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 command, and whose duties consist in preceding the Shah 
 in his marches, dispersing crowds, maintaining order, taking 
 charge of state prisoners, and, in short, acting as police 
 officers throughout the country. It immediately struck me, 
 how agreeable and how convenient it would be to step into 
 the dead man's shoes, and how much better my temper and 
 disposition were suited to filling such an office than mixing 
 drugs and visiting the sick. In turning over in my mind 
 
 o
 
 210 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 the possibility of acquiring this situation, I recollected that 
 the chief executioner was a great friend of Mirza Ahmak, 
 and under considerable obligations to him ; for, but a few 
 days since, he had persuaded the doctor to swear to the 
 Shah, that wine, which is strictly prohibited at court, was 
 absolutely necessary for his health, and that in consequence 
 he had received a dispensation from the head of the law to 
 drink it, a privilege in which he indulged to the greatest 
 excess. I therefore determined to interest the mirza in my 
 favour, and, if possible, to turn the waters of bitterness, which 
 the fountain of fate had been pouring into the cup of the 
 deceased, into streams of sweet sherbet for myself. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 Hajji is appointed to a situation under government He becomes 
 an executioner. 
 
 I WATCHED an opportunity before the doctor set out the next 
 morning for the Der-Khoneh^ to speak upon my future plans, 
 and to request him to lose no time in asking for me the 
 place of the deceased nasakchi from the chief executioner. 
 I urged the necessity of acting immediately ; for as the Shah 
 would leave the capital for his camp at Sultanieh, in the 
 course of a few days, and as the doctor would be called upon 
 to accompany him, it was plain, if he did not in some manner 
 provide for me, I should be left upon his hands. 
 
 The doctor, who was still calculating the expenses of his 
 entertainment to the Shah, and had resolved upon adopting 
 a system of more rigid economy in his household, was not 
 sorry to lose a hungry hanger-on, and without hesitation he 
 promised to assist me. It was agreed between us, that he 
 
 1 The gate of the palace, where public business is transacted.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 211 
 
 would forthwith call upon the chief executioner, and appointed 
 me to meet him at court, after the morning's selam (levee) 
 was over. As soon, therefore, as the mid-day prayer had 
 been announced from the mosque, I went to the palace, 
 and took my station without the room which is appropriated 
 for the use of the head executioner, and which is situated 
 with its large window immediately facing the principal gate. 
 Several persons were collected there. He himself was taken 
 up with saying his prayers in a corner, and apparently com- 
 pletely abstracted from a conversation that was carrying on 
 between my friend the poet-laureate and the under-master of 
 ceremonies. 
 
 The latter was describing to the former the death of the 
 unfortunate nasakchi, and was mixing a considerable portion 
 of the marvellous in his narrative, when the chief executioner, 
 from the middle of his devotions, cried out, " Een derough est" 
 " That's a lie have patience, and I will tell you how it 
 was," and then went on with his holy invocations. As soon 
 as they were over, and almost before he had finished his 
 last prostration, he began his story, relating the fact with 
 infinitely more exaggeration than the master of the cere- 
 monies had done, and finishing by a round assertion, that 
 the Frank had bled the poor man to death, after the Persian 
 doctor had brought him to life only by shaking him. 
 
 During the chief executioner's narration, Mirza Ahmak 
 entered the room, and far from denying what was asserted 
 of the two doctors, he confirmed it the more by new and 
 stronger circumstances, and then finished by pointing to me, 
 and said, " This is he who would have saved the nasakchi's 
 life, if he had not been prevented." Upon this, the eyes of 
 all present were turned upon me, and I was called upon to 
 relate the whole circumstance as it had happened ; which I 
 did, making my version coincide as nearly as possible with 
 what had been already related ; but giving all the merit of 
 the science which I had displayed to the tuition of the chief 
 physician. Mirza Ahmak, elated by my praise, was full of 
 zeal to serve me, and he then introduced me to the chief
 
 212 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 executioner as a man fit and willing to undertake the office 
 of the deceased nasakchi. 
 
 " How ! " said the head of the nasakchis, " a doctor become 
 an executioner ! how can that be ? " 
 
 " There is no harm in that," said the poet (looking at the 
 doctor through the corner of his eye) "they are both in the 
 same line the one does his business with more certainty 
 than the other, that's true ; but, after all, it signifies little 
 whether a man dies gradually by a pill, or at once by a 
 stroke of the cimeter." 
 
 "As for that," retorted Mirza Ahmak, "to judge of 
 others by you, poets are in the same line too, for they 
 murder men's reputations ; and everybody will agree with 
 me, that that is a worse sort of killing than the doctor's (as 
 you were pleased to say), or the nasakchi's." 
 
 "That's all very well," exclaimed the chief executioner ; 
 "you may kill in any manner you choose, provided you leave 
 me the soldier's manner. Give me good hard fighting let 
 me have my thrust with the lance, and my cut with the sabre, 
 and I want nothing more let me snuff up the smell of gun- 
 powder, and I leave the scent of the rose to you, Mr. Poet- 
 give me but the roar of cannon, and I shall never envy you 
 the song of the nightingale. We all have our weaknesses 
 these are mine." 
 
 " Yes," said the master of the ceremonies, addressing 
 himself to the whole assembly, "everybody knows your 
 several merits. The Shah particularly (who, by-the-bye, 
 has studied the art of killing as well as any of you) is fre- 
 quently expressing his delight, that of all the monarchs which 
 Persia ever had he is the best served ; and with that feeling 
 he talks of carrying his arms into the very heart of Georgia. 
 If the Russians once hear that you are going amongst them," 
 addressing himself to the chief executioner, "they may begin 
 to make their accounts clear in this world, and prepare for 
 the next." 
 
 "What are the Russians? " said the executioner, with half 
 a shrug and half a shiver ; "they are dust they are nothing
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 213 
 
 the possession of Georgia by the Russians is to Persia what 
 a flea which has got into my shirt is to me : it teases me now 
 and then ; but if I gave myself the least trouble, I would hunt 
 
 THE CHIEF EXECUTIONER. 
 
 (From a drawing by James Morier.) 
 
 it out in a minute. The Russians are nothing." Then, as it 
 he were anxious to waive the subject, he turned to me, and 
 said, "Well, I agree to take you into the service, provided 
 you are as fond of the smell of powder as I am. A nasakchi
 
 2i 4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 must have the strength of a Rustam, the heart of a lion, and 
 the activity of a tiger." Then looking at me from head to 
 foot, he seemed pleased with my appearance, and forthwith 
 ordered me to go to his naib, or lieutenant, who would equip 
 me for my office, and give me instructions respecting the 
 duties which I should have to perform. 
 
 I found the naib in the midst of preparations for the 
 departure of the Shah, giving his orders, and receiving the 
 reports of those under his command. As soon as he was 
 informed that I was the man appointed to succeed the 
 deceased officer, he put me in possession of his horse and 
 its accoutrements, gave me strict injunctions to take the 
 greatest care of it, and informed me that I could not be 
 provided with another, unless I brought back its tail and 
 the mark peculiar to the royal horses, which is burnt on its 
 flank. My stipend was fixed at thirty tomauns per annum, 
 with food for myself and horse. I found myself in dress and 
 arms, except a small hatchet, which indicated my office, and 
 which was provided by the government. 
 
 But before I proceed further, it is necessary that I make 
 my reader acquainted with the person and character of 
 Namerd Khan, 1 my new master. He was a tall, square- 
 shouldered, bony man, about forty-five years of age young 
 enough to be still called a khub juan (a fine youth). The 
 features of his face were cast in a deep mould, and shaded 
 by black and thick eyebrows, as well as by a jet-black beard 
 and mustachios. His hand was particularly large and mus- 
 cular ; and from the black hairs that curled out from the 
 crevices of his shirt, it was evident that his fur was of the 
 thickest quality. Altogether he was of a figure commanding, 
 but coarse, and looked his office greatly to the advantage of 
 the peace of the city, for the very sight of him was sufficient 
 to awe the evil-minded. He was the most celebrated khosh 
 guzerdn (sensualist) in Tehran. He drank wine without com- 
 
 1 Perhaps the description of this personage will bring to the recollection of 
 those who were in Persia in the years 1813 and 1814 the character of the nasakchi 
 bashi of that day.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 215 
 
 punction, and freely cursed the mollahs, who promised him a 
 seat in the regions below for holding the injunctions of the 
 Prophet so cheap. His house was the seat of revelry ; the 
 noise of singing and tambours was heard there from night 
 till morning. He kept men dancers and women dancers ; 
 and was the protector of every luti, 1 however impudent and 
 obscene he might be. But with all this, he did not in the 
 least relax in the severities of his office ; and one might 
 frequently hear, amid the sounds of revelry, the cries and 
 groans of some unfortunate wretch who was writhing under 
 the torture of the bastinado on his feet. He was an excel- 
 lent horseman, and very dexterous at the spear exercise ; 
 and although there was everything in his appearance to make 
 one believe that he was a soldier and a man of prowess, yet 
 in fact he was a most arrant coward. He endeavoured to 
 conceal this defect of his nature by boasting and big words ; 
 and succeeded in persuading those who did not know his real 
 character, that he was among the modern Persians, what Sam 
 and Afrasiab 2 were among the ancient. 
 
 His lieutenant, a man of stern aspect, was an active and 
 intelligent officer : he understood the management of his 
 chief, whom he flattered into a belief, that besides the Shah 
 and himself no one was worthy to be called a man in Persia. 
 I soon discovered that his prevailing passion was avarice ; 
 for when he found that I was to be installed in my office 
 without making him a present, there was no end to the diffi- 
 culties which he threw in my way. However, by dint of 
 making use of that tongue which nature had given me, and 
 persuading him, in his turn, that he was the cream of lieute- 
 nants, and the very best of materials for the future executioner 
 in chief, he relaxed in his dislike, and even flattered me so 
 much as to say, that, by the blessing of Allah, the benign and 
 the merciful, he believed that I should not fail to become in 
 time an ornament to the profession. 
 
 1 Liiti here is used in the sense oipolisson. 
 
 2 Celebrated heroes in the Shahnameh, a book which is believed, by the present 
 Persians, to contain their ancient history.
 
 216 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 I still kept my lodging at the doctor's house until the 
 period of the Shah's departure, and filled up my time in pre- 
 paring for the journey. The very circumstance of being a 
 nasakchi gave me consequence in the bazaar, and I found 
 no difficulty in procuring everything I wanted upon credit. 
 During my stay with the doctor, I had managed to set myself 
 up with a small capital of necessaries, which I had procured 
 either in presents from patients, or by happy contrivances of 
 my own. As for instance, I wanted a bed, a quilt, and a 
 pillow ; a poor man happening to die under our charge, I 
 assured his relations, whom I knew to be the most bigoted 
 of Mussulmans, that his death could be no fault of ours, for 
 no one could doubt the skill with which he had been treated, 
 but that the bed upon which he lay must be unfortunate ; for, 
 in the first place, the quilt was of silk, 1 and, in the next, the 
 foot of the bed had not been turned towards the Kebleh, 2 as 
 it ought to have been : this was enough for the family to dis- 
 card the bed, and it became mine. 
 
 A looking-glass was necessary to my toilet : a mirza, sick 
 of the jaundice, looked at himself in one which he possessed, 
 and was horror-struck at his colour. I assured him that it 
 only proceeded from a defect in the glass, for that in fact he 
 was as fresh as a rose. He threw it away, and I took it home 
 with me. 
 
 No one was stricter than Mirza Ahmak himself in all the 
 exteriors of religion, and scrupulous to a fault about things 
 forbidden as unclean. I was in want of a pair of yakhdans, or 
 trunks, and a pair belonging to the doctor, which were lying 
 idle in an unfrequented room, were frequently the objects of 
 my contemplation. How shall I manage to become master of 
 these ? thought I : had I but half the invention of Dervish 
 Sefer, I should already have been packing up my things in 
 them. A thought struck me : one of the many curs which 
 range wild throughout Tehran had just pupped under a ruined 
 archway close to our house. Unseen, I contrived to lodge the 
 
 1 Strict Mussulmans hold silk unclean. 
 
 2 In the direction of Mecca.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 217 
 
 whole litter within one of the trunks, and to make a deposit of 
 old bones in the other. When they came to be moved, pre- 
 paratory to the doctor's journey (for he always accompanied 
 the Shah), the puppies and their mother set up such a con- 
 fusion of yells, that the servant who had disturbed them ran 
 
 CIRCULAR RICE-DISH. 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 breathless with the information to the doctor, who, followed 
 by his household, including myself, proceeded to the spot. 
 As soon as the state of the case had been ascertained, many 
 were struck by the singularity of the circumstance, as an omen 
 portending no good to the doctor's house. One said, " This
 
 218 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 comes of marrying the khanum ; she will give him a houseful 
 of haram zadehs" 1 Another said, " The puppies are yet 
 blind : God grant that we and the doctor may not become so 
 likewise ! " The doctor himself was only vexed by the loss of 
 his trunks ; he pronounced them to be nejes (unclean) from 
 that moment, and ordered them, puppies, bitch and all, imme- 
 diately to be expelled. I was not long in appropriating them ; 
 and very soon assumed all the consequence of a man possess- 
 ing trunks, which also implied things worthy to be put into 
 them. Little by little I scraped together a sufficient quantity 
 of effects to be able to talk big about my baggage ; and when 
 preparations for our departure were making, I held myself 
 entitled to the privilege of squabbling with the king's mule- 
 drivers concerning the necessity of a mule for carrying it. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
 He accompanies the Shah to his camp, and gets some insight into his 
 
 profession. 
 
 AT length the day of departure for Sultanieh was fixed by the 
 astrologers. The Shah left his palace just half-an-hour before 
 sunrise, on the 2ist Rebbi* el evel, and travelled without draw- 
 ing bridle, until he reached his palace of Sulimanieh, which is 
 situated on the banks of the Caraj, at a distance of nine para- 
 sangs from Tehran. The different corps composing the army 
 to be collected at Sultanieh were ordered to meet there at a 
 given time, whilst the Shah's escort was to consist only of his 
 bodyguard, his camel artillery, and a heavy squadron of cavalry. 
 The great officers of the court, with the viziers, and those em- 
 ployed in the public offices, departed at about the same time, 
 and thus the city was bereft, almost in one day, of nearly two- 
 
 1 Illegitimate born. 
 
 2 The third month in the Arabic calendar.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 219 
 
 thirds of its population. Everything and everybody were in 
 motion ; and a stranger would have thought that all the 
 inhabitants, like bees hiving, by one common consent had 
 
 A "BAZIGER" (A DANCER). 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 broken up housekeeping, and were about to settle in some 
 other place. Strings of mules and camels, laden with beds, 
 carpets, cooking utensils, tents, horse furniture, and provisions
 
 220 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 of all sorts, were seen making their way through each avenue, 
 raising an impenetrable dust, whilst their conductors mingled 
 their cries with the various toned bells which decked their 
 beasts. 
 
 On the morning of departure, I was stationed at the 
 Casbin gate to keep order, and to prevent any impediment to 
 the Shah's passage. The peasants bringing provisions to the 
 city, who are in waiting every day previously to opening the 
 gates, were ordered to take another direction. The road was 
 watered by all the sakas of the town, and every precaution 
 taken to make the royal exit as propitious as possible. In 
 particular, no old woman was permitted to be seen, lest the 
 Shah might cast a look upon her, and thus get a stroke of the 
 evil eye. 
 
 I found within myself an energy and a vigour in driving 
 the people about, that I never thought appertained to my 
 character ; for I recollected well, when one of the mob, how 
 entirely I abominated every man in office. I made use of my 
 stick so freely upon the heads and backs of the crowd, that 
 my brother executioners quite stared, and wondered what 
 demon they had got amongst them. I was anxious to estab- 
 lish a reputation for courage, which I expected would in time 
 promote me to a higher situation. 
 
 At length the procession began to move forwards. A 
 detachment of camel artillery had proceeded on the evening 
 before to receive the Shah when he should alight at Suli- 
 manieh ; and now was heard the salute which announced his 
 leaving the palace at Tehran. All was hushed into anxiety 
 and expectation. The chief executioner himself, mounted 
 upon a superb charger, galloped through the streets in haste ; 
 and horsemen were seen running to and fro, all intent upon 
 the one object of preparing the road. First came the heralds, 
 then the led horses, magnificently caparisoned in jewellery, 
 shawls, and cloth of gold ; after them the running footmen ; 
 then the Shah in person ; the princes succeeded, followed by 
 the viziers ; and last of all an immense body of cavalry. 
 
 When it is mentioned that every man of any consequence
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 221 
 
 was accompanied by his train of attendants, most of whom 
 had also their trains ; and when the sum total of mirzas, of 
 servants, of pipe-bearers, of cooks and scullions, of carpet- 
 spreaders, of running footmen, of grooms and horses, of 
 mule -drivers and camel -drivers, and of ten thousand other 
 camp followers is reckoned up, the imagination may perhaps 
 conceive what was the crowd which passed before me in suc- 
 cession, as I stood at the Casbin gate. When the Shah 
 approached, his long beard floating to his girdle, with all the 
 terrors of despotism concentrated in his person, I could not 
 help feeling an odd sort of sensation about my neck ; and I 
 made my lowest prostration to that power, which by a single 
 nod might have ordered my head to take leave of my shoul- 
 ders, even before I could make an objection. 
 
 The whole procession having cleared the city gates, I 
 lingered behind to smoke with the guards who are there 
 stationed ; and at that time the women of one of the viziers 
 who were permitted to accompany him to camp passing by, 
 brought Zeenab once again to my recollection. I sighed 
 profoundly, when I reflected on the probable miserable fate 
 which awaited her. She had been sent (so I heard from 
 Nur Jehan the day before our departure) to a small summer- 
 house belonging to the Shah, situated at the foot of the high 
 mountains which surround Tehran, where with many other 
 of the bazigers, she was to receive her education of dancing, 
 music, and tumbling. The Shah had ordered that she was 
 to be mistress of these accomplishments previously to his 
 return in the autumn ; when she would be honoured by the 
 permission of exhibiting before him. As I rode away, I 
 could not help turning my head towards the spot where she 
 was now confined, and which I could just discern a speck at 
 the foot of the mountain. Perhaps at any other time I should 
 have left every duty to endeavour to obtain a glimpse of her ; 
 but I was called up to head the procession again, and to be 
 in readiness at Sulimanieh when the king should alight from 
 his horse. 
 
 The day's march, and the attendance at my post being at
 
 222 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 an end, I proceeded to the quarters of the chief executioner, 
 
 A "BAZIGER" (A DANCER). 
 
 from the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 where I found a small tent prepared for me and five other
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 223 
 
 nasakchis, who were destined to be my companions for the 
 remainder of the journey. I had already made their acquaint- 
 ance in the city ; but now we were brought into closer con- 
 tact, for our tent was not more than six ghez l long and four 
 broad, and we were thus thrown almost one upon the other. 
 I, as the junior, fared of course the worst ; but I determined 
 to put the best face possible upon any present inconveni- 
 ences, anticipating many future advantages, which a certain 
 confidence in my own pretty self whispered to me I should 
 not fail to secure. 
 
 In addition to the chief executioner's naib, there was also 
 a sub-lieutenant, who must have a place in my narrative, 
 because, in fact, it was through him that I ultimately became 
 noticed by the higher powers. His name was Shir Ali, in 
 rank a Beg, and a Shirazi by birth. Although natives of the 
 two rival cities of Persia, yet without any particular previous 
 cause, and by combination of those nothings which give rise 
 to most friendships, we became inseparable companions. He 
 had given me a piece of water-melon one hot day when I ' 
 was thirsty ; I had lighted his pipe for him on another 
 occasion ; he had bled me with his penknife when I had 
 overloaded my stomach with too much rice ; and I had cured 
 his horse of the colic by administering an injection of tobacco- 
 water ; in short, one thing led on to another, until a very 
 close intimacy was established between us. He was three 
 years older than I, tall, handsome, broad-shouldered, narrow- 
 waisted, with the prettiest oval beard possible, just long 
 enough to fringe round his chin, and with two large curls 
 twisting beautifully behind his ear, like a vine curling over 
 the garden wall. 
 
 He had been long enough in the service to acquire all the 
 tricks of his profession ; for when we came to converse upon 
 the subject, it was surprising what a vast field for the exercise 
 of genius he threw open to my view. 
 
 He said, " Do not suppose that the salary which the 
 Shah gives his servants is a matter of much consideration 
 
 1 A ghez is not quite a yard.
 
 224 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 with them : no, the value of their places depends upon the 
 range of extortion which circumstances may afford, and upon 
 their ingenuity in taking advantage of it. As, for instance, 
 take our chief: his salary is 1000 tomauns per annum, which 
 may or may not be regularly paid ; that signifies little to him. 
 He spends at least five or six times that sum ; and how is 
 he to get it, if it flows not from the contributions of those 
 who come under his cognisance ? A khan has incurred the 
 Shah's displeasure ; he is to be beaten and fined ; the chief 
 executioner beats and mulcts in the inverse proportion of the 
 present which the sufferer makes him. A rebel's eyes are to 
 be put out ; it depends upon what he receives, whether the 
 punishment is done rudely with a dagger, or neatly with a 
 penknife. He is sent on an expedition at the head of an 
 army : wherever he goes presents are sent him from the 
 towns and villages on his road to induce him not to quarter 
 his troops upon them ; and he uses his discretion, according 
 to the value of what he receives, in choosing his halting 
 'stations. Most of those in high offices, even the viziers, 
 make him annual gifts, in case the day of the Shah's dis- 
 pleasure should come, and then they would hope to be dealt 
 with gently by him. In short, wherever a stick is to be 
 brandished, wherever punishment is to be inflicted, there the 
 chief executioner levies his dues ; and they descend in a 
 gradual measure from him to the lowest of his officers. 
 Before I was a naib, and when I was called upon to lay the 
 bastinado on some wretched culprit, many is the time that 
 my compassion has been moved by a direct appeal to my 
 purse ; and then, instead of beating the sufferer's feet, I struck 
 the felek upon which they rested. It was but last year that 
 the principal secretary of state incurred the wrath of the 
 Shah. He was ordered to receive the bastinado, and, by 
 way of distinction, a small carpet was spread for him to lie 
 upon : I and another were the operators, whilst two more 
 held the felek. When we were taking the shawl and cap 
 from his head, his girdle and outer coat (which became our 
 lawful perquisites), he whispered to us, low enough not to be
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 225 
 
 heard by the Shah (for this was all done in his presence), 
 ' By the mothers that bore you, do not beat me much ! I'll 
 give you each ten tomauns if you will not strike me.' His 
 
 A "BAZIGER" (A POSTURE- DANCER OR TUMBLER). 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 heels were tripped up, his feet placed in the noose, whilst his 
 back reposed on the carpet ; and then we set to work. For 
 our own sakes, we were obliged to start fair, and we laid on 
 until he roared sufficiently ; and then, having ably made him
 
 226 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 increase his offer until he had bid up to any price we wished, 
 we gradually ceased beating his feet, and only broke our sticks 
 over the felek. Much ingenuity was displayed on both sides, 
 in order that the Shah might not discover that there was any 
 understanding between us. His bidding was interwoven with 
 his groans, something after this manner : ' Ahi aman ! aman ! 
 
 ALEXANDER THE GREAT, HAVING CONQUERED THE WORLD, MARCHES THROUGH 
 THE REGIONS OF ETERNAL NIGHT, PRECEDED BY HIS LANTERN-BEARERS, 
 RUNNING- FOOTMEN, LED-HORSES, AND CRESSET-BEARERS. 
 
 The Imams Hosein and Hassan, with veiled faces, are seated at a spring from which 
 protrudes the hand of Mahommed the prophet. The Ahwak tree with its speaking heads is 
 seen in the background. 
 
 From a picture in the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 For pity's sake, by the soul of the Prophet ! twelve tomauns. 
 By the love of your fathers and mothers ! fifteen tomauns. 
 By the king's head ! twenty tomauns. By all the Imams ! 
 by all the prophets ! thirty, forty, fifty, sixty, hundred, thou- 
 sand, anything you want.' When it was over, we soon 
 found that his generosity had diminished quite as rapidly as
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 227 
 
 it had before increased, and we were satisfied to receive what 
 he first offered to us, which he was obliged to give, fearing if 
 a similar misfortune again overtook him, we should then show 
 him no mercy." 
 
 Shir Ali, holding this sort of language, gave me such an 
 insight into the advantages of my situation, that I could dream 
 of nothing but bastinadoing, and getting money. I went 
 about all day flourishing a stick over my head, practising 
 upon any object that had the least resemblance to human feet, 
 and to such perfection did I bring my hand, that I verily 
 believe I could have hit each toe separately, had I been so 
 ordered. The first impulse of my nature was not cruelty, 
 that I knew : I was neither fierce nor brave, that I also knew : 
 I therefore marvelled greatly how of a sudden I had become 
 such an unsainted lion. 1 The fact is, the example of others 
 always had the strongest influence over my mind and actions ; 
 and I now lived in such an atmosphere of violence and cruelty, 
 I heard of nothing but slitting noses, cutting off ears, putting 
 out eyes, blowing up in mortars, chopping men in two, and 
 baking them in ovens, that, in truth, I am persuaded, with a 
 proper example before me, I could almost have impaled my 
 own father. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 Employed in his official capacity, Hajji Baba gives a specimen of 
 Persian despotism. 
 
 THE Shah moves slowly towards Sultanieh, and at length, 
 after fourteen days' march, when a fortunate hour had been 
 selected for his arrival, he took possession of the summer 
 palace, which has of late days been erected there for his 
 
 1 Shir bipira. lion without a saint, is a favourite Persian epithet, when applied 
 to a desperado, a fellow without compassion.
 
 228 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 residence. Situated on a hill, not far from the remains of 
 the ancient city, it commands a view of the whole plain, which 
 now, to an immense extent, was covered with the white tents 
 of the camp. It was a magnificent sight, and I felt all the 
 importance of the nasakchi rising in my breast, as I con- 
 trasted my present situation with my wretched and forlorn 
 condition when an inmate in the tents of the Turcomans. 
 " In short, I am somebody now," said I to myself; "formerly 
 I was one of the beaten, now I am one of the beaters. I 
 should just do for an example of the active and passive parti- 
 ciple, with which my old master, the mollah at Ispahan, used 
 to puzzle me, when endeavouring to instil a little Arabic into 
 my mind. Please Heaven that my good dispositions towards 
 my fellow-creatures may soon have an opportunity of being 
 displayed." 
 
 Scarcely had I made these reflections, when Shir AH 
 came up to me, and said, " Our fortune has taken a flight 
 upwards : you are to accompany me, and Inshallah ! please 
 Allah ! we shall make clean work of it. You must know that 
 the provisions for the king's camp are supplied, in great 
 measure, by the surrounding villages. It seems that the 
 village of Kadj Sawar, situated between this and Hamadan, 
 has not sent its quota, upon a pretext that one of the princes, 
 with his suite, not long ago, on a hunting excursion, had 
 there settled himself for several days, and eaten the inhabi- 
 tants out of house and home. I am ordered to proceed 
 thither, to investigate the business, and to conduct the ked 
 khoda (the head man), with the elders of the village, before 
 our chief. Since you are my friend, I have received per- 
 mission to take you with me, although the other nasakchis 
 complain that they have lost their turn. You must be ready 
 to join me after the evening prayer, for I intend to be there 
 to-morrow morning." 
 
 I was overjoyed to find myself so soon brought into 
 action ; and, although I did not know precisely the plan of 
 operations which Shir AH would adopt, yet I had wit enough 
 to perceive that a great field was open to the ingenuity of
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 229 
 
 fellows like us, who are always guided by the state of the 
 weather. 1 "Our star will be an evil one, indeed," said I, "if 
 that destructive prince has left us nothing to glean. Some 
 poet once said, ' No melon is so bad but hath its rind, and 
 although a tyrant may pluck out a beard by the roots, yet 
 still the chin is left upon which it grew.' " With these thoughts 
 in my head I went to my horse, which, with the other nasak- 
 chis' horses, was picketed near our tents, and prepared him 
 for the journey. Casting off his head and heel ropes, I could 
 not help comparing him to myself. " Now," said I, "beast! 
 you are free to kick and plunge, and do what mischief you 
 can ; " and so, thought I, is the Persian when absolved from 
 the fear of his master. 
 
 Shir Ali and I quitted the camp at sunset, accompanied 
 by a lad, seated on the top of a loaded mule, that carried our 
 beds ; and the coverings, ropes, &c., for our horses. Since I 
 had become a soldier, I also had attached the title of Beg to 
 my name ; and, to add to my importance in this expedition, I 
 borrowed a silver chain for my horse's head, and a handsome 
 silver-mounted pistol for my girdle, from one of my comrades, 
 and promised to bring him a soghdt, or present, in case the 
 harvest proved abundant. 
 
 We travelled all night, and, having slept for two hours at 
 a village on the road, reached Kadj Sawar just as the women 
 were driving the cattle from their stables, and the men smok- 
 ing their pipes, previously to going to their work in the field. 
 As soon as we were perceived making for the village, it was 
 evident that a great stir was produced. The women ceased 
 from their cries, and hid their faces, and the men arose from 
 their seats. I wish my reader could have seen the air and 
 countenance which Shir Ali Beg put on as we approached. 
 He swelled himself out at least into the size of the chief 
 executioner himself, and, with a tone of authority which 
 sufficiently indicated who and what he was, inquired for the 
 chief of the village. A plain man, with a grey beard, humble 
 
 1 The expression is u haiua been" which answers to our "time-servers," but 
 which literally signifies what has been given in the text.
 
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 s^f I 
 
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 (J ?? s 
 
 II = 3 
 
 K c rt !S i 
 
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 5-^-5 
 10 -o r- -= 
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 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 231 
 
 mien, and still humbler clothing, stepped forward, and said, 
 "Peace be with you, Aga ! I am he; I am your servant. 
 May your footsteps be fortunate, and your shadow never be 
 less ! " And then saying, " Bismillah ! in the name of God ! " 
 we were helped off our horses with all due respect. One 
 held the horse's head, another the stirrup, whilst a third put 
 his hand under the arm-pit, and thus we alighted, giving 
 ourselves as much weight as we could, and making up our 
 backs like men of consequence. A small carpet was spread 
 at the door of the ked khoda's house, to which we had been 
 conducted, followed by almost all the male population of the 
 village ; and there we seated ourselves until a room within 
 was prepared. The ked khoda himself pulled off our boots, 
 and otherwise performed all the acts of politeness and atten- 
 tion which are shown to guests on their arrival. Shir Ali 
 having received this with the dignity of one who thought it 
 his due, and having let off several long whiffs from his pipe, 
 said, with great emphasis, to our host, " You, that are the 
 ked khoda of Kadj Sawar, know that I am come on the part 
 of the Shah, on the part of the Shah, again I say, that I 
 am come to know why this village has not sent its quota of 
 provisions for the use of the royal camp at Sultanieh, accord- 
 ing to the order issued in the firman two months ago, signified 
 to you by the governor of Hamadan ? Give me an answer, 
 and make your face white if you can." 
 
 The ked khoda answered, "Yes, by my eyes! what I 
 have said before I will say now. All these men present 
 (pointing to his fellow-villagers) know it to be the truth ; 
 and if I lie, may I become stone blind ! Arz mi kunum, I 
 beg leave to state, O nasakchi ! that you, by the blessing of 
 God, you, in fine, are a man, you are a wise, a clever, and 
 a sharp-sighted man, you are also a Mussulman, and you 
 fear God. I shall not say more than the truth nor less : I 
 shall explain what has happened, and then leave you to 
 decide." 
 
 " Well, well, say on," said Shir Ali ; " I am the king's ser- 
 vant : whatever the Shah will decide, that you must look to."
 
 232 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 " You are the master," replied the ked khoda ; " but pray 
 give ear to my tale. About three months ago, when the 
 wheat was nearly a gez high, and lambs were bleating all 
 over the country, a servant belonging to the Prince Kharab 
 Culi Mirza announced to us, that his master would take up 
 his quarters in the village the next day, in order to hunt in 
 the surrounding country, which abounds in antelopes, wild 
 asses, partridges, bustards, and game of all descriptions. He 
 ordered the best houses to be in readiness for him and his 
 suite, turned out their inhabitants, and made demands for 
 provisions of all sorts. As soon as this intelligence was 
 known, alarm was spread throughout the village, and seeing 
 that nothing was to be done with the prince's servant, either 
 by bribe or persuasion, to evade the disaster, we deter- 
 mined to abandon our houses and take to the mountains 
 until the evil day had gone by. Had you seen the state of 
 these poor peasants, when forced to abandon everything they 
 had in the world, your heart would have turned upside down, 
 and your liver would have become water." 
 
 "What do you mean?" exclaimed Shir AH : "the Shah's 
 villages are left desolate, and I am to pity the fugitives ? 
 No, they would have all been put to death had the Shah 
 known it." 
 
 "For pity's sake," continued the old villager, "hear the 
 end of my story, and allow yourself to be softened. We 
 loaded our cattle at nightfall with everything we could carry 
 away, and took to the mountains, where we settled in a dell 
 close to a stream of running water. There only remained 
 behind three sick old women and the village cats." 
 
 " Do you hear that, Hajji," said my companion, address- 
 ing himself to me : "they carried away everything valuable, 
 and left the bare walls, and their old women to the prince. 
 Well," said he to the ked khoda, " proceed." 
 
 " We sent spies from time to time," continued the old 
 man, "to bring intelligence of what was doing, and took up 
 our abode among the rocks and cliffs of the mountains. 
 About noon the next day the party appeared, and when they
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 233 
 
 discovered that we had fled, their rage and disappointment 
 were great. The servants of the prince went from house to 
 house, and drove in the doors with violence. The only 
 object which at all restrained them was one of the old women, 
 
 v 
 
 $FJ*Vj 
 
 ^uf 
 
 
 "ONE OF THE OLD WOMEN." 
 
 (from a sketch by James Morier.} 
 
 who having acquired sufficient strength to rise from her bed, 
 attacked them with such reproaches, that none was bold 
 enough to face her. The prince sent for provisions from 
 a neighbouring town, and took up his abode in my house. 
 Wherever they found corn, they seized upon it ; they burnt
 
 234 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 our implements of husbandry for firewood, and, when they 
 were expended had recourse to doors and windows, and even 
 to the beams and rafters of our houses. Their horses were 
 picketed in the new wheat, and they even cut down a great 
 extent of it to carry away. In short, we are entirely ruined : 
 we have neither money, clothes, cattle, houses, nor provisions ; 
 and, except in God and you," addressing himself to Shir Ali 
 and me, "we have no other refuge." 
 
 Upon this Shir Ali Beg jumped up from his seat, took 
 the old man vigorously by the beard, and said, " Are not you 
 ashamed, old man, with these grey hairs, to utter such lies ? 
 But a moment ago you told us that you had carried into the 
 mountains all that was most valuable, and now pretend that 
 you are ruined. This can never be ! We have not travelled 
 all this way to eat your dirt. If you think that we have 
 brought our beards to market to be laughed at, you are 
 mistaken. You don't yet know Shir Ali : we are men who 
 sleep with one eye open and the other shut ; no fox steals 
 from his hole without our knowledge : if you think yourself 
 a cat, we are the fathers of cats. Your beard must be a 
 great deal longer, you must have seen much more country, 
 before you can expect to take us in." 
 
 " No, God forgive me ! " said the ked khoda, " if I have 
 thought to deceive you. Who am I, that should dare to 
 think so ? We are the Shah's rayats (peasantry) ; whatever 
 we have is his ; but we have been stripped, we have been 
 skinned ; go, see with your own eyes look at our fields look 
 into our store-rooms we have neither corn abroad nor corn 
 at home. 
 
 "Well," said Shir Ali, "skinned or unskinned, with corn 
 or without it, we have only one course to pursue, and one 
 word to say, the Shah's orders must be executed. Either 
 you deliver in kind or in money your prescribed quota of 
 provisions, or you and your elders must proceed with us to 
 Sultanieh, where you will be consigned over to the proper 
 authorities." 
 
 After these words, much whispering and consultation
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 235 
 
 took place between the ked khoda and the village elders, 
 who, having huddled themselves into a corner, left us 
 wrapped up in our own dignity, smoking our pipes, with 
 apparently the greatest indifference. 
 
 At length the result of their conference was made known, 
 and they changed their order of attack ; for the chief of the 
 village now undertook to soften me, and another old man 
 Shir Ali Beg. The former approached me with every mani- 
 festation of great friendship, and began, as usual, by flattery. 
 According to him, I was the most perfect of God's creatures. 
 He then swore that I had excited feelings of love both in his 
 breast and in that of all the villagers, and that I alone was the 
 person to extricate them from their difficulties. As long as 
 this lasted I merely kept a steady countenance, and made 
 play with my pipe ; but when he had a little more entered 
 into particulars, and talked of what we were likely to get, I 
 must own that I became considerably more interested. He 
 said that they had consulted upon what was to be done, and 
 were unanimous, that to send what they had not was impos- 
 sible, and therefore out of the question ; but perhaps if some- 
 thing could be offered to us to protect their interests, they 
 were ready to satisfy us on that head. 
 
 "All this is very well," said I, "but I am not the only 
 person to be considered. We here are only two, but recollect 
 that our chief must be also satisfied, and if you do not begin 
 by him, your labour and expense will be in vain : and I can 
 tell you, if you grease his palm, you must measure your roghun 
 (grease) by the maun, 1 and not by the miscal." 
 
 "Whatever we possess," said the ked khoda, "we will 
 give ; but of late taxation has been so heavy, that, excepting 
 our wives and children, we have in fact nothing to offer." 
 
 " I tell you what, friend," said I, "unless you have money, 
 ready downright cash, to give, any other offer is Useless : with 
 money in your hand, you may buy the Shah's crown from his 
 head ; but without it I can only promise you a harvest of 
 bastinadoes." 
 
 1 A maun is seven pounds and a half; a miscal, twenty-four grains.
 
 236 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 "Ah!" said the ked khoda, "money, money! where are 
 we to procure money ? Our women, when they get a piece, 
 bore a hole through it, and hang it about their necks by way 
 of ornament ; and if we, after a life of hard toil, can scrape up 
 some fifty tomauns, we bury them in the earth, and they give 
 us more anxiety than if we possessed the mountain of light." 1 
 Then approaching to put his mouth to my ear, he whispered, 
 with great earnestness, "You are a Mussulman, in fine, and 
 no ass. You do not conceive that we will go into the lion's 
 mouth if it can be avoided ; tell me (pointing to my com- 
 panion) how much will he be contented with ? Can I offer 
 him five tomauns and a pair of crimson shalwars (trowsers)?" 
 
 "What do I know," said I, "what will satisfy him ? All 
 I can say is, that he possesses not a grain of commiseration : 
 make the tomauns ten, and the trowsers a coat, and I will 
 endeavour to make him accept them." 
 
 "Oh ! that is too much," said the old man : "our whole 
 village is not worth that sum. Satisfy him with the five and 
 the trowsers, and our gratitude will be shown by a present 
 for yourself that will astonish you." 
 
 Upon this our conference broke off, and I was as anxious 
 to hear what had taken up my companion, as he was impatient 
 to learn the result of my whisperings with the ked khoda. 
 Comparing notes, we found that both the old villagers had 
 been endeavouring to ascertain what might be our respective 
 prices. I assured Shir Ali, that I had given him out for the 
 veriest crucible in Persia, saying, that he could digest more 
 gold than an ostrich could iron, and was withal so proud, 
 that he rejected units as totally unworthy of notice, and never 
 took less than tens. 
 
 "Well said," answered Shir Ali; "and I told my old 
 negotiator, that unless you were handsomely paid, you were 
 equal to any violence, notwithstanding your silence and quiet 
 looks." 
 
 At length, after some delay, the whole party came forward 
 
 1 The Shah's great diamond, which he wears in one of his armlets, is called the 
 koh niir, or the mountain of light.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 237 
 
 again, headed by the ked khoda, who, bringing an ostensible 
 present of apples, pears, a pot of honey, and some new cheese, 
 begged my companion to accept it, in terms usually made on 
 such occasions. When it had been spread before us, in an 
 undertone of voice the ked khoda made his offer of five 
 tomauns and the trowsers, and talked of his misery and that 
 of his village in a manner which would have melted any 
 breast but that of Shir Ali. 
 
 We agreed at once to reject the present, and ordered it 
 to be taken from before us. This produced considerable 
 dismay among the poor people, and they walked off with 
 their trays of fruit, &c., on their heads, with slow and 
 sorrowful steps. 
 
 In about half- an -hour they appeared again, the ked 
 khoda having previously ascertained, that if he came with 
 the ten tomauns and a coat the present would be accepted. 
 When we had eaten thereof, Shir Ali Beg having pocketed 
 his gold and secured his coat, I began to look for that 
 something for myself which was to astonish me ; nothing, 
 however, was produced, notwithstanding certain significant 
 winks and blinks with which the ked khoda ever and anon 
 kept me in play. 
 
 " Where is it ? " said I to him at last, quite out of patience. 
 " What is it ? how much ? " 
 
 "It is coming," said he ; "have a little patience ; it is not 
 yet quite prepared." 
 
 At length, after some waiting, with great parade, the pair 
 of trowsers, which had been rejected by Shir Ali, were placed 
 before me on a tray, and offered for my acceptance, accom- 
 panied by a profusion of fine words. 
 
 "What news is this?" exclaimed I : "do you know, ye 
 men without shame ? " addressing myself to those who stood 
 before me, "that I am an executioner, one who can burn 
 your fathers, and can give you more grief to devour than you 
 have ever yet experienced ? What mean ye by bringing me 
 this pair of frouzy shalwars ? That which has passed through 
 many generations of your ignoble ancestors, do ye now
 
 2 3 8 
 
 pretend to put off upon me ? Fools, indeed, you must be to 
 suppose that I will espouse your interests, and set forth your 
 grievances, merely for the sake of this dirty rag ! Away 
 with it, or you will see what a nasakchi can do ! " 
 
 Upon this they were about complying with my orders, 
 when Shir Ali Beg stopped them, and said, " Let me look at 
 
 TRAY OF ENGRAVED BRASS, TWO FEET IN DIAMETER. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 the trowsers. Ah ! " said he, holding them up at the same 
 time between his eyes and the sun, and examining them with 
 all the care of an old clothes' broker, "they will do; they 
 have no defect : be it so, they are my property, and many 
 thanks for them. May your family prosper." 
 
 Every one looked astonished ; no one dared make an
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 239 
 
 objection ; and thus I, who had been anticipating such great 
 advantages, lost even the miserable perquisite which I might 
 have had, and only gained sufficient experience to know 
 another time how to deal with my countrymen, and, more- 
 over, how to trust one who called himself my friend. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV 
 
 Fortune, which pretended to frown, in fact smiles upon Hajji Baba, and 
 promotes him to be sub-lieutenant to the chief executioner. 
 
 Two fat lambs, which were tied on our baggage mule, were 
 the only present we brought with us for our chief. As soon 
 as we reached the camp, we immediately presented ourselves 
 to the naib, who forthwith carried us before the executioner, 
 who was seated in his tent, in conversation with one or two 
 of his friends. 
 
 "Well," said he to Shir Ali, "what have you done? 
 Have you brought the corn, or the ked khoda, which ? " 
 
 " I beg leave to state for your service," said Shir Ali, 
 "neither. The ked khoda and the elders of Kadj Sawar 
 have sent two lambs to be laid at your feet ; and they have 
 convinced us with our own eyes, that, excepting them, not a 
 thing have they left, not even their own souls, so entirely and 
 completely have they been pillaged : on the contrary, if food 
 be not sent to them, they will eat up one another." 
 
 " Do you say so, indeed ! " exclaimed the khan. "If they 
 have lambs, they must also have sheep. By what account do 
 you reckon ? " 
 
 "That's true," said Shir Ali, "and everything that you 
 say is equally so ; but we were talking of corn, and not of 
 sheep." 
 
 " But why did not you follow your orders, and bring the 
 ked khoda and the elders ? " said our chief. "If I had been
 
 2 4 o THE ADVENT VRES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 there, the rogues, I would have roasted them alive. I would 
 have tied them with the camel tie, 1 until they confessed 
 that they had something. Tell me, why did you not bring 
 them?" 
 
 "We wished much to bring them," said Shir Ali, looking 
 at me to help him out. " Yes, we had bound them all to- 
 gether, and we wanted very much to bring them : we also 
 beat and abused them. Hajji Baba knows it all ; for Hajji 
 Baba told them, if they had not money to give, they would 
 certainly meet with no mercy. Mercy was a thing totally 
 out of our way ; for if they knew anything, they must be 
 aware that our khan, our lord and master, the nasakchi bashi, 
 was a man of such invincible courage, of a resolution so great, 
 and of bowels so immovable, that if once they got within his 
 grasp, it was all over with them. Yes, we told them all that, 
 and they almost sunk into the earth." 
 
 "What does he say, Hajji Baba?" said the khan, turning 
 round to me, " I have not quite understood why these men 
 were not brought to me." 
 
 I answered in great humility, " Indeed, O khan, I also do 
 not understand. Shir Ali Beg, who is your deputy-lieutenant, 
 had the whole business in his hands. I went in his service ; 
 I am nobody." 
 
 Upon this the khan got into a violent rage, and branded 
 us by every odious name of contempt and reproach that he 
 could think of. "It is plain," said he to his friends, "that 
 these villains have been playing tricks. Tell me," said he to 
 Shir Ali, " by my soul ! by the king's salt ! tell me, how much 
 have you got for yourself? And you, Aga Hajji," addressing 
 himself to me, "you, who have scarcely been a month in 
 service, how much have you secured ? " 
 
 In vain we both protested our innocence ; in vain we 
 swore that there was nothing to gain ; nobody would believe 
 us ; and the scene ended by our being driven out of the tent 
 
 1 The camel tie is made by fastening the lower and upper limb of one of the 
 forelegs together, which is done to prevent an unruly animal from straying from 
 the pasture ground.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 241 
 
 in custody of the naib, who was ordered to confine us until 
 the chiefs of the village should have been actually brought to 
 the camp, and confronted with us. 
 
 When Shir Ali and I were left to ourselves, he imme- 
 diately endeavoured to make me a partaker of the spoil, 
 and offered to give me up half of it. 
 
 " Not so, my friend," said I ; "it is now too late. If you 
 have drank and enjoyed the forbidden wine, and have got a 
 headache by it, it is no reason that you should endeavour to 
 make me sick too. I have had a lesson, in which you have 
 acted as master, which will satisfy me for this time." 
 
 He then endeavoured to make me promise to stand by 
 him, when we should be confronted with the ked khoda, and to 
 swear through thick and thin to everything that he intended 
 to advance ; but I was too much alive to the consequences 
 to make any such promise. He said, that if once he were 
 brought to the felek to receive the bastinado, he knew that 
 he could not survive it ; for so universal a terrorist had he 
 been when operating upon the feet of others, that now he 
 felt he should be treated without the least mercy ; and he 
 therefore swore upon the Koran, that he would undergo 
 every misery rather than be tied to the stake. 
 
 When the time came for being called up again before our 
 chief, Shir Ali was nowhere to be found. He had absconded ; 
 and, when I was interrogated, all that I could say amounted 
 to this, that I knew he dreaded the idea of being bastinadoed, 
 and that I supposed he had made off to escape it. 
 
 As soon as I appeared before my judge, the men of Kadj 
 Sawar, who were already standing before him, declared, one 
 and all, that I had neither exacted nor received anything from 
 them ; but, on the contrary, that I had urged them to make a 
 considerable present to the khan. They poured out the whole 
 of their complaints against Shir Ali, who, they declared, had 
 put the finishing stroke to their misery, and had even torn off 
 the new skin that had begun to cover their old wounds. 
 
 All this was slowly working for my advantage, and paving 
 the road to my promotion. The story had got abroad, and 
 
 Q
 
 242 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 was in every one's mouth. I was looked upon as a paragon 
 of moderation. 
 
 "This comes from having been a doctor," says one: 
 "wisdom is better than riches." 
 
 " He knows the doctrine of consequences," says another : 
 "his feet will never be where his head should be." 
 
 In short, I had acquired the reputation of being a clever 
 and a cautious fellow, merely owing to events playing for- 
 tunately into my hands; and I lost nothing from being looked 
 upon as a man whose taleh (luck) was good, and one whose 
 star was fortunate. 
 
 The result of this part of my history was, that I was 
 installed in the situation of the fugitive, and became the 
 sub-lieutenant to the chief executioner of Persia, a character, 
 whatever my readers may think of it, of no small consequence, 
 as they will hereafter discover. 
 
 PASTILLE-BURNER OF PIERCED AND ENGRAVED BRASSWORK. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 243 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI 
 
 Although by trade an executioner, he shows a feeling heart He meets 
 with a young man and woman in distress. 
 
 THE Shah was at this time engaged in a war with the Mos- 
 covites, who had established themselves in Georgia, and were 
 threatening the frontier provinces of Persia, situated between 
 the rivers Kur and Arras. The governor of Erivan, known 
 by the title of serdar or general, and one of the Shah's most 
 favourite officers, had long ago opened the campaign by 
 desultory attacks upon the advanced posts of the enemy, and 
 by laying waste the villages and country in the track they 
 were likely to keep in advancing towards Persia. An army, 
 under the command of the heir-apparent and governor of 
 the great province of Aderbijan, had also been collected 
 near Tabriz ; and it was intended that he should im- 
 mediately proceed to the seat of war, in order, if possible, 
 to drive the enemy back to Teflis, and, according to the 
 language of the court, carry its arms even to the walls of 
 Moscow. 
 
 Intelligence was daily expected at the royal camp of 
 Sultanieh, from the serdar, concerning an attack which he 
 had announced it his intention to make upon the Russian 
 post of Gavmishlu ; and orders were issued for giving a suit- 
 able reception to the heads of the enemy, which it is always 
 the etiquette to send upon announcing a victory, for such, no 
 doubt, was expected to be the result of the attack. A chapper, 
 or courier, was at length seen riding towards the camp in 
 great haste. He was the conductor of five horse-loads of 
 heads, 'tis true, and they were heaped up with great pomp 
 and parade before the principal entrance of the royal tents : 
 but it became evident that something had taken place which 
 required a reinforcement ; for on the very next morning our
 
 244 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 chief, Namerd Khan, was appointed to the command of a 
 body of 10,000 cavalry, which were ordered to march im- 
 mediately to the banks of the Arras. 
 
 The min bashies, the heads of thousands ; the yuz bashies, 
 the heads of hundreds ; the on baskies, the heads of tens ; 
 and all the officers commanding the troops, were seen hurry- 
 ing over the camp in various directions, attending upon their 
 khans, and receiving their orders. The tent of Namerd 
 Khan was filled with the chiefs of the expedition, to whom he 
 distributed his directions, giving them the order of march, 
 and allotting to each division its station in halting at the 
 villages on the route. My duty was to precede the troops by 
 a day, accompanied by a detachment of nasakchis, to make 
 arrangements for billeting the men in the villages. This was 
 a duty requiring activity and exertion ; but at the same time 
 accompanied by great advantages, which, had I chosen to 
 avail myself of, might have increased the weight of my purse. 
 However, the recent example of Shir Ali Beg was too strong 
 before my eyes not to repress any desire I might have of 
 levying contributions, so I determined for the present to keep 
 my hands pure, and to quench the flame of covetousness by 
 the waters of prudence. 
 
 I set off with my detachment, and reached Erivan several 
 days before the troops could arrive. We here found the 
 serdar, who, after his attack upon Gavmishlu, had retreated, 
 to wait the reinforcement of the cavalry under our chief. 
 The army under the prince royal had proceeded to another 
 part of the frontier, with the intention of attacking the 
 fortress of Ganja, of which the enemy had recently acquired 
 possession ; and, unable to spare any of his troops, the 
 serdar had solicited assistance from the Shah. 
 
 As soon as Namerd Khan and the serdar had met and 
 consulted, it was determined that spies should immediately 
 be sent forwards in order to ascertain the position and the 
 movements of the Russians ; and I was fixed upon to head 
 a detachment of twenty men on the part of the chief execu- 
 tioner, whilst a similar number was sent by the serdar, who
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 245 
 
 at the same time were to be our guides through such parts 
 of the country as were unknown to me. 
 
 We assembled at the close of day, and began our march 
 just as the muezzins called the evening prayer. Proceeding 
 at once to the village of Ashtarek, we passed Etchmiazin, 
 the seat of the Armenian patriarch, on our left. It was 
 scarcely dawn of day when we reached the bridge of Ash- 
 tarek, still obscured by the deepest shade, owing to the very 1 
 high and rocky banks of the river, forming, as it were, two 
 abrupt walls on either side. The village itself, situated on 
 the brink of these banks, was just sufficiently lighted up to 
 be distinguished from the rocks among which it was built ; 
 whilst the ruins of a large structure, of heavy architecture, 
 rose conspicuous on the darkest side, and gave a character 
 of solemnity and grandeur to the whole scenery. This, rny 
 companions informed me, was the remains of one of the many 
 Armenian churches' so frequently seen in this part of Persia. 
 The river dashed along through its dark bed, and we could 
 perceive the foam of its waters as we began to cross the 
 bridge. The rattle of our horses' hoofs over its pavement 
 had alarmed the village dogs, whose bark we could just 
 distinguish ; the shrill crow of a cock was also heard, and 
 most of our eyes were directed towards the houses, when 
 one of our men, stopping his horse, exclaimed, " Ya, Ali ! (oh, 
 AH !) what is that ? " pointing with his hand to the church : 
 " do not you see, there, something white ? " 
 
 "Yes, yes," said another, "I see it: it's a gJwl ! without 
 doubt it's a ghol ! This is the true hour ; it is in search of a 
 corpse. I daresay it is devouring one now." 
 
 I also could see that something was there, but it was im- 
 possible to make it out. 
 
 We halted upon the bridge, looking up with all our eyes, 
 every one being satisfied that it was a supernatural being. 
 One called upon Ali, another upon Hosein, and a third 
 invoked the Prophet and the twelve Imams. None seemed 
 nclined to approach it, but every one suggested some new 
 mode of exorcism. " Untie the string of your trowsers,"
 
 246 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 said an old Iraki, " that's the way we treat our ghols, in the 
 desert near Ispahan, and they depart instantly." 
 
 " What good will that do ? " answered a delikhan (a hare- 
 brained youth) ; "I'd rather keep the beast out than let 
 it in." 
 
 In short, what with joking, and what with serious talk, the 
 morning broke sufficiently to convince us that the apparition 
 must have been an illusion of our senses, for nothing now 
 was to be seen. However, having passed the bridge, the 
 said delikhan, shivering in his stirrups, and anxious to gallop 
 his horse, exclaimed, "I'll go and find the ghol," drove his 
 horse up a steep bank, and made towards the ruined church. 
 We saw him return very speedily, with intelligence, that 
 what we had taken for a ghol, was a woman whose white 
 veil had attracted our notice ; and that she, with a man, were 
 apparently hiding themselves among the deep shades of the 
 broken walls. 
 
 Full of anxiety for whatever might throw a light upon the 
 object of my duty, I lost no time in proceeding to the ruin, 
 in order to ascertain why these people hid themselves so 
 mysteriously ; and, ordering five men to follow me, I made 
 the rest halt near the bridge. 
 
 We saw no one until, turning the sharp angle of a wall, 
 we found seated under an arch the objects of our search. A 
 woman, apparently sick, was extended on the ground, whilst 
 a man, leaning over, supported her head in an attitude of 
 the greatest solicitude. Enough of daylight now shone upon 
 them, to discover that they were both young. The woman's 
 face, partially hid by her veil, notwithstanding its deadly 
 paleness, was surprisingly beautiful ;.and the youth was the 
 finest specimen of strength, activity, and manliness that I had 
 ever seen. He was dressed in the costume of Georgia ; a 
 long knife hung over his thigh, and a gun rested against the 
 wall. Her veil, which was of the purest white, was here 
 and there stained with blood, and torn in several places. 
 Although I had been living amongst men inured to scenes of 
 misery, utter strangers to feelings of pity or commiseration,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 247 
 
 yet in this instance I and my companions could not fail being 
 much interested at what we saw, and paused with a sort of 
 respect for the grief of these apparently unfriended strangers, 
 before we ventured to break the silence of our meeting. 
 
 "What are you doing here?" said I. "If you are 
 strangers, and travellers, why do you not go into the 
 village ? " 
 
 "If you have the feelings of a man," said the youth, 
 "give me help, for the love of God ! Should you be sent to 
 seize us by the serdar, still help me to save this poor crea- 
 ture, who is dying. I have no resistance to offer ; but pray 
 save her." 
 
 "Who are you?" said I. "The serdar has given us no 
 orders concerning you. Where do you come from ? Whither 
 going ? " 
 
 " Our story is long and melancholy," said the young man ; 
 " if you will help me to convey this poor suffering girl where 
 she may be taken care of, I will relate everything that has 
 happened to us. She may recover with good and kind 
 usage : she is wounded, but I trust not mortally, and with 
 quiet may recover. Thanks to Heaven, you are not one of 
 the serdar's officers ! I entreat you to befriend me, and my 
 lamentable tale may perhaps induce you to take us under 
 your protection." 
 
 This appeal to my feelings was unnecessary : the counte- 
 nance and appearance of the youth had excited great interest 
 in my breast, and I immediately lent myself to his wishes, 
 telling him that we would, without delay, convey his sick 
 friend to the village, and then, having heard his story, settle 
 what to do for him. 
 
 She had to this moment said nothing, but gathered her 
 veil round her with great precaution, now and then uttering 
 low groans, which indicated pain, and venting the apparent 
 misery of her mind by suppressed sighs. I ordered one of 
 my followers to dismount from his horse : we placed her 
 upon it, and immediately proceeded to the village, where, 
 having inspected the interior of several houses, I pitched
 
 248 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 upon that which afforded the best accommodation, and whose 
 owner appeared obliging and humane ; there we deposited 
 her, giving directions that she should be nursed with the 
 greatest care. An old woman of the village, who had the 
 reputation of skill in curing wounds and bruises, was sent for, 
 and she undertook her cure. I learnt from the youth that 
 he and his companion were Armenians ; and as the inhabitants 
 of Ashtarek were of the same persuasion, they very soon 
 understood each other, and the poor sufferer felt that she 
 could not have fallen into better hands. 
 
 ANCIENT EMBROIDERY, USED AS A TRAY-COVER (i.e., A COVER TO 
 A TRAY ON WHICH IS PLACED A PRESENT). 
 
 {Original design worked by a Baktiari woman in the south of Persia.} 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 249 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII 
 The history of Yusuf, the Armenian, and his wife Mariam. 
 
 IT was my intention to have proceeded to the heights of 
 Aberan, where we should have found a cool region and good 
 pasturage for our horses, before halting for the day; but 
 hearing that the wandering tribes, whom we had expected 
 to find encamped in a certain spot, and upon whose tents 
 and provisions I had reckoned, were removed far into the 
 mountains, fearful of the war which had just broken out, 
 I determined to halt at Ashtarek until the heat of the day 
 should have subsided. Accordingly, my men were quartered 
 in different parts of the village : some settled themselves 
 under the arches of the bridge, picketing their horses among 
 the long grass ; one or two took possession of a mill, situated 
 in the bed of the river, whose wheel was turned by water, 
 made to flow in an elevated channel for the purpose ; and 
 I spread my carpet in an open room, built upon a shelf, on 
 the highest part of the rocky bank, from whence I had a 
 view of the whole scene, and also could discern any object 
 that might be coming towards us from the Russian frontier. 
 
 Feeling refreshed by two hours' sound sleep, upon awak- 
 ing I sent for the Armenian youth ; and whilst the good 
 people of the village served us a light breakfast, of which 
 we were both much in need, I requested him to relate his 
 adventures, and particularly what had brought him into the 
 situation in which he had been discovered. Refreshed with 
 rest and food, the morning sun enlightening the spot we 
 occupied, the manly features of the youth exhibited all their 
 beauty ; and, as he spoke, their animation and earnestness 
 helped wonderfully to convince me that all he said was the 
 truth. He spoke as follows : 
 
 " I am an Armenian by birth, and a Christian ; my name 
 is Yusuf. My father is chief of the village of Gavmishlu,
 
 250 
 
 inhabited entirely by Armenians, situated not far from the 
 beautiful river of Pembaki, and about six agatch from this 
 place. In the middle of a verdant country, full of the richest 
 pasturage, and enjoying a climate celebrated for coolness and 
 serenity, we are a healthy and a hardy race ; and, notwith- 
 standing the numerous exactions of our governors, were 
 happy in our poverty. We live so far within the mountains, 
 that we are more distant from the tyranny usually exercised 
 upon those who abide nearer great towns, the residences of 
 governors ; and, secluded from the world, our habits are 
 simple, and our modes of life patriarchal. I had an uncle, 
 my father's brother, a deacon, and an attendant upon the 
 head of our church, the patriarch at Etchmiazin ; and another 
 uncle, by my mother's side, was the priest of our village : 
 therefore my family being well in the church, determined 
 that I should follow the sacred profession. My father him- 
 self, who subsisted by tilling the ground, and by his own 
 labour had cleared away a considerable tract near the village, 
 having two sons besides me, expected to receive sufficient 
 help from them in the field, and therefore agreed to spare 
 me for the church. Accordingly, when about ten years 
 old, I went to Etchmiazin to be educated, where I learned 
 to read, write, and perform the church service. I derived 
 great pleasure from instruction, and read every book that 
 came in my way. A very extensive library of Armenian 
 books exists at the convent, of which I managed now and 
 then to get a few ; and although mostly on religious sub- 
 jects, yet it happened that I once got a history of Armenia, 
 which riveted all my attention ; for I learnt by it that we 
 once were a nation, having kings, who made themselves 
 respected in the world. Reflecting upon our degraded state 
 at the present day, and considering who were our governors, 
 I became full of energy to shake off the yoke, and these 
 feelings turned my thoughts from the sacred profession to 
 which I was destined. About this time war broke out 
 between Persia and Russia, and our village lying in the 
 track of the armies marching to the frontiers, I felt that
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 251 
 
 my family would require every protection possible, and that 
 I should be more usefully employed with them than in a 
 cloister. Accordingly, but a short time before taking priest's 
 orders, I left my friends at Etchmiazin, and returned to my 
 father's house. I was welcomed by every one. Already 
 had they felt the horrors of war ; for marauding parties of 
 both Persians and Russians (both equally to be feared) 
 had made their appearance, and molested the peaceable and 
 inoffensive inhabitants of ours and the neighbouring villages. 
 This frontier warfare, in its general results, was of no great 
 utility to either of the powers at war, yet to those who 
 inhabited the seat of it its consequences were dreadful. 
 We were continually harassed either by the fears of the 
 invading enemy, or by the exactions and molestations of 
 the troops of our own government. Our harvests were 
 destroyed, our cattle dispersed, and ourselves in constant 
 danger of being carried away prisoners. Anxious to pre- 
 serve our property, and our only resource to keep us from 
 starvation, we continued to till our fields, but went to work 
 with swords by our sides, and guns ready loaded slung at 
 our backs ; and when a stranger appeared, whoever he might 
 be, we immediately assembled and made a show of defence. 
 By this means, for several years, we managed, with great 
 difficulty and perseverance, to get in our harvest, and, by 
 the blessing of Providence, had enough to subsist upon. 
 But here I must begin some of those particulars which 
 relate to my individual history. 
 
 " About two years ago, when securing our harvest, I had 
 gone out long before the dawn to reap the corn of one of our 
 most distant fields, armed and prepared as usual. I perceived 
 a Persian horseman, bearing a female behind him, and making 
 great speed through a glen that wound nearly at the foot of a 
 more elevated spot upon which I was standing. The female 
 evidently had been placed there against her will, for as soon 
 as she perceived me she uttered loud shrieks, and extended 
 her arms. I immediately flew down the craggy side of the 
 mountain, and reached the lowermost part of the glen time
 
 252 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 enough to intercept the horseman's road. I called out to 
 him to stop, and seconded my words by drawing my sword, 
 and putting myself in an attitude to seize his bridle as he 
 passed. Embarrassed by the burden behind him, he was 
 unable either to use his sword or the gun slung at his 
 back, so he excited his horse to an increased speed, hoping 
 thus to ride over me ; but I stood my ground, and as I 
 made a cut with my sabre, the horse bounded from the 
 road with so sudden a start, that the frightened woman 
 lost her hold and fell off. The horseman, free of his en- 
 cumbrance, would now have used his gun, but, seeing mine 
 already aimed at him, he thought it most prudent to continue 
 his road, and I saw nothing more of him. 
 
 " I ran to the assistance of the fallen woman, whom, by 
 her dress, I discovered to be an Armenian. She was stunned 
 and severely bruised : her outward veil had already dis- 
 engaged itself; and in order to give her air, I immediately 
 pulled away the under veil which hides the lower part of 
 the face (common to the Armenians), and, to my extreme 
 surprise, beheld the most beautiful features that imagination 
 can conceive. The lovely creature whom I supported in my 
 arms was about fifteen years of age. Oh ! I shall never 
 forget the thrill of love, delight, and apprehension, which I 
 felt at gazing upon her. I hung over her with all the intense- 
 ness of a first passion ; a feeling arose in my heart which was 
 new to me, and, forgetting everything but the object im- 
 mediately before me, I verily believe that I should have been 
 for ever riveted to that spot, had she not opened her eyes, 
 and began to show signs of life. The first words she spoke 
 went to my very soul ; but when she discovered where she 
 was, and in the hands of an utter stranger, she began to cry 
 and bewail herself in a manner that quite alarmed me. Little 
 by little, however, she became more composed ; and when 
 she found that I was one of her own nation and religion, 
 that I was, moreover, her deliverer, she began to look upon 
 me with different feelings : my vanity made me hope that, 
 perhaps, she was not displeased at the interest she had
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 253 
 
 awakened in me. One thing, however, she did not cease to 
 
 ARMENIAN WOMAN, SHOWING THE INNER AND OUTER VEIL. 
 (From a Persian drawing.} From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 deplore, and to upbraid me with, I had withdrawn her
 
 254 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 veil ; there was no forgiveness for me : that indulgence 
 which even a husband scarcely ever enjoys, that distinguishing 
 emblem of chastity and honour, so sacred in the eyes of an 
 Armenian woman, every sense of decency had been dis- 
 regarded by me, and I stood before her in the criminal 
 character of one who had seen all her face. In vain I re- 
 presented, that had I not relieved her mouth and nose from 
 the pressure of the lower band, she must have been suffocated; 
 that her fall having deprived her of all sensation, had she not 
 inhaled the fresh air, death would have been the consequence. 
 Nothing would convince her that she was not a lost woman. 
 However, the following argument had more effect upon her 
 than any other ; no one but myself was witness to her dis- 
 honour (if such she must call it) ; and I swore so fervently by 
 the Holy Cross, and by St. Gregorio, that it should remain a 
 profound secret in my heart as long as I had one to keep it 
 in, that she permitted herself at length to be comforted. I 
 then requested her to give me an account of her late adven- 
 ture, and to tell me from whom it had been my good fortune 
 to liberate her. 
 
 " ' As for the man,' said she, 'all I know of him is, that he 
 is a Persian. I never saw him before, and know of no object 
 that he could have had in carrying me off, excepting to sell 
 me for a slave. A few days ago a skirmish took place 
 between a detachment of Persian cavalry and Georgians. 
 The latter were driven back, and the Persians made some 
 prisoners, whom they carried away in great triumph to Erivan. 
 Our village had been occupied by the Persian troops some 
 days before this affray, and I suppose then my ravisher laid 
 his plan to carry me off, and make me pass for a Georgian 
 prisoner. I had just got up in the morning, and had gone to 
 the village-well with my pitcher to bring home water, when 
 he darted from behind a broken wall, showed his knife, 
 threatening to kill me if I did not follow him without noise, 
 and made me mount behind him on his horse. We galloped 
 away just as some other of the village maidens were proceed- 
 ing to the well, and my only hope of being saved was from the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 255 
 
 alarm which I knew they would instantly spread. We were 
 out of sight in a few minutes, for we rode furiously over hill 
 and dale, and cut across parts of the country unfrequented by 
 
 A BOTTLE "FAIENCE." 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 travellers. At length, seeing you on the brow of the hill, I 
 took courage, and gave vent to my cries, notwithstanding the 
 threats of the Persian. You know the rest.' 
 
 " She had scarcely finished speaking when we discovered
 
 256 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 several persons, one on horseback, the rest on foot, making 
 towards us in great haste, and as they approached and were 
 recognised by my fair one, it was delightful to watch her 
 emotions. 
 
 "'Oh! there is my father,' exclaimed she, 'and my 
 brothers ! there is O vanes, and Agoop, and Aratoon ! and my 
 uncle too ! ' 
 
 " As they came up she embraced them all with transports 
 of delight. I was in agonies of apprehension lest some youth 
 should appear, who might have excited other feelings in her 
 heart ; but no, none but relations were there. They explained 
 to her that the alarm of her seizure had been spread through- 
 out the village by her young friends ; that luckily they had 
 not yet gone to the fields, and the family horse was at home, 
 upon which her father was instantly mounted. They had 
 traced the fresh footsteps of her ravisher's horse as long as he 
 kept the road, had marked the place where he turned from it, 
 had seen them again in several places, had tracked him through 
 a cornfield that led up a steep slope, and at length, from a 
 high summit, Ovanes had seen them descending a glen, which 
 must have been very near the spot where they had now 
 found her. 
 
 " She said all this was true, and again thanked God and St. 
 Gregory for her escape ; and, after some hesitation, in a most 
 embarrassed manner, pointed me out as her deliverer. The 
 attention of the whole party was then directed to me. ' Whose 
 son are you ? ' said the old man, her father. 
 
 " ' I am the son of Coja Petros,' said I, 'the chief of the 
 village of Gavmishlu.' 
 
 " ' Ah ! he is my friend and neighbour,' answered he ; ' but 
 I do not know you ; perhaps you are the son who was 
 educating at the Three Churches for a priest, and who came 
 to the help of your family ? ' 
 
 " I answered in the affirmative, and then he said, ' You are 
 welcome. May your house prosper ! You have saved our 
 daughter, and we owe you eternal gratitude. You must come 
 with us and be our guest. If ever it were necessary to kill a
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 257 
 
 lamb, to eat and be merry, it is now. We, and all our families, 
 will carry you upon our heads ; we will kiss your feet, and 
 smooth your brow, for having saved our Mariam, and pre- 
 served her from dragging out her existence the slave of the 
 Mussulman.' 
 
 " I then received the congratulations and kind speeches 
 of her brothers and uncle, who all invited me to their village 
 in so pressing a manner, that, unable to resist, and propelled 
 by my anxiety to see Mariam, I accepted their offer, and we 
 forthwith proceeded in a body. 
 
 " As we were winding down the side of one of the moun- 
 tains, Mariam's village, for such I shall call it, was pointed out 
 to me, situated among trees, snugly seated in a warm nook, 
 protected from every wind but the east, which here coming 
 from the Kulzum, or the Caspian Sea, is delightfully cool and 
 serene. Beyond was the Pembaki river, winding its way 
 through a beautiful valley, diversified by rich vegetation ; and 
 at a greater distance we could just discern the church of Kara 
 Klisseh, or the Black Monastery, the first station of the 
 Russians on this part of their frontier, and situated on a dark 
 and precipitous rock, rising conspicuous among the verdure 
 of the surrounding scenery. 
 
 "When near the village we discovered that all its inhabi- 
 tants, particularly the women and children, had been watching 
 our steps down the slope, anxious to know whether Mariam 
 had been retaken ; and when they saw her safe, there was no 
 end to their expressions of joy. The story of her flight and 
 of her rescue was soon told, and carried from one mouth to 
 another with such rapidity and with such additional circum- 
 stances, that at length it came out that she had been carried 
 away by a giant, who had an iron head, claws and feet of steel, 
 and scales on his back, mounted upon a beast that tore up the 
 ground at every bound, and made noises in its rapid course 
 over the hills like the discharges of artillery. They added to 
 this, that of a sudden an angel, in the shape of a ploughboy, 
 descended from the top of a high mountain in a cloud, and as 
 he wielded a sword of fire in his hand, it frightened the horse,
 
 258 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 threw Mariam to the ground, and reduced the giant and his 
 steed to ashes : for when she recovered from her fright, they 
 were no longer to be seen. I was pointed out as the illustrious 
 ploughboy, and immediately the attention of the whole village 
 was turned towards me ; but, unfortunately, when about receiv- 
 ing nearly divine honours, a youth, whom I had frequently 
 met tending cattle in the mountains, recognised me, and said, 
 4 He is no angel he is Yusuf, the son of Coja Petros, of 
 Gavmishlu ; ' and thus I was reduced to my mortality once 
 more. However, I was treated with the greatest distinction 
 by everybody, and Mariam 's relations could not sufficiently 
 testify their gratitude for the service I had rendered. But, 
 all this time, love was making deep inroads in my heart. I 
 no longer saw Mariam unveiled, that happy moment of my 
 life had gone by ; but it had put the seal to my future fate. 
 ' No,' said I to myself, 'nothing shall separate me from that 
 beautiful maid ; our destinies forthwith are one ; Heaven has 
 miraculously brought us together, and nothing but the decrees 
 of Providence shall disunite us, even though to gain her I 
 should be obliged to adopt the violence of the Persian, and 
 carry her away by force.' We met now and then, Mariam 
 and I ; and although our words were few, yet our eyes said 
 much, and I knew that my passion was returned. Oh, how 
 I longed to have met and engaged another, ay, twenty more 
 Persians, to prove my love ! but I recollected that I was no- 
 thing but a poor Armenian, belonging to a degraded and 
 despised nation, and that the greatest feat which I could ever 
 expect to perform would be to keep the wolf from my father's 
 flocks, or to drive the marauder from our fields. 
 
 " I remained the whole of that eventful day at Geuklu 
 (the name of the village), where the promised lamb was killed, 
 and a large caldron of rice boiled. I returned on the fol- 
 lowing day to my parents, who had been alarmed at my 
 absence, and who listened to the history of my adventures 
 with all the earnestness and interest that I could wish. 
 
 " I was so entirely absorbed by my love, that I could 
 think of nothing else ; therefore I determined to inform them
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 259 
 
 of the situation of my affections. ' I am of an age now,' said 
 I to them, ' to think and act for myself. Thanks to God, and 
 to you, I have strong arms, and can work for my bread ; I 
 wish to marry, and Providence has prepared the way for me.' 
 
 " I then requested them forthwith to demand Mariam 
 from her parents, in order that I might make her my wife ; 
 and finished by kissing my father's hand, and embracing my 
 mother. 
 
 "They said in answer, 'that marriage was a serious 
 consideration in these difficult times, and that the family was 
 now too poor to incur the expense of a wedding. It was 
 necessary to buy clothes, a ring, candles, sweetmeats, a 
 crimson veil, bed and bed-covering, to pay the singers and 
 musicians, and to make a feast ; and where was money to be 
 found to meet all this ? ' 
 
 " I said, ' 'Tis true that money is wanted, and that no 
 marriage can take place without it, both for the honour of 
 our family, and for the purpose of showing my love to my 
 intended. But I can borrow ; I have friends both at Erivan 
 and at the Three Churches ; and I think I could borrow 
 enough from the one and the other to pay the expenses of 
 my wedding ; and as for repayment, I will work so laboriously 
 and live so frugally, that little by little I shall pay off my 
 debt. Besides, I can become the servant of a merchant, who 
 would give me a share in his adventures ; and one journey 
 to Constantinople or to Astrachan would yield me enough 
 profit to repay every one with interest.' 
 
 "In short, I said so much, that at length they were 
 persuaded to make the necessary overtures to the parents of 
 Mariam ; and it was fixed, that in the course of a few days 
 my father, my uncle the priest, and one of the elders of the 
 village, should proceed to Geuklu, and ask her in marriage 
 for me. In the meanwhile, I myself had been there almost 
 every day, upon one pretext or another, and I had had 
 several opportunities of informing her of my intentions, in 
 order that she and her family might not be taken unawares. 
 
 " My father and his colleagues were very well received
 
 260 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 by the parents of my intended. Having talked over the 
 matter, and seizing this opportunity of drinking some more 
 than usual glasses of arrack, they agreed that we should be 
 united as soon as the marriage articles should have been 
 agreed upon, and the forms of the ndm zed (the ceremony 
 of betrothing) should have been gone through. 
 
 " Three days after this, my mother, accompanied by two 
 old women of our village, by my uncle the priest, and me, 
 proceeded to Geuklu for the purposes of the nam zed, and 
 settling the terms of the marriage. They were received 
 with more ceremony than my father and his colleagues had 
 been, and the women of the other party having met ours, 
 negotiations were opened. 
 
 " My mother offered, on my part, that I should give of 
 clothes to my bride two full suits, consisting of two shifts, 
 one of crimson silk, the other of blue cotton ; two pair of 
 trowsers, one of silk, the other of striped cotton ; two judders, 
 or robes, fitting tight to the body, of chintz ; two veils, one 
 of white cotton, the other of chequered blue ; two pair of 
 slippers, one of green shagreen skin and high heels, the 
 other of brown leather, with flat bone heels and shod with 
 iron : and I was also to add a printed muslin handkerchief, 
 and a set of bandages and kerchiefs for the head. She, 
 moreover, offered fifty piastres in silver coin for minor 
 expenses ; and a chain for the neck, from which there should 
 be suspended one gold tomaun of Persia. 
 
 "After some little consultation among the friends of my 
 wife, this was agreed upon ; but one of the old women, who 
 had been a servant in a Persian family, started a demand 
 which gave rise to some discussion ; it was, that I ought to 
 give something for sheer baha, or milk money, as is the 
 custom throughout Persia. Our party said this was not usual 
 among the Armenians ; the adverse party contended it was ; 
 in short, words were running high, when I requested my 
 mother not to make any difficulty, but to offer ten piastres 
 more ; which being agreed upon, the whole was amicably 
 adjusted to the satisfaction of both parties.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 261 
 
 ' This had taken place among the women alone. I was 
 then called in with my uncle to go through the ceremony, 
 and strict injunctions were made me not to laugh, nor even to 
 smile, while it lasted ; for ill luck would attend the marriage 
 if anything so indecorous took place at the first interview. 
 
 MOTHER. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 " I found my mother seated on the ground flanked by her 
 two old women, opposite to my bride's mother, supported by 
 hers. Mariam entered at the same moment, and my mother 
 then presented her with a ring (a brass one, alas !) from me,
 
 262 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 which she put on her finger, and then wine was administered 
 to the priest ; of which, when he had taken a copious draught, 
 it was announced that we were betrothed man and wife, and 
 we received the congratulations of all those around us. I was 
 delighted, although prohibited from communicating with my 
 intended, but went about kissing everybody ; and so many 
 benedictions were showered upon us, that perhaps no couple 
 ever was so much blessed, by good wishes at least, as we 
 were. 
 
 " My mother and her party having returned to our village, 
 I proceeded to make the preparations for my wedding with 
 a light heart, regardless of any event which might intervene 
 to destroy it. When we came to discuss the money it was 
 likely to cost, and the means of obtaining it, I was agreeably 
 surprised to see my father walk into the room where the 
 family was assembled, with a bag in his hand. ' Here,' 
 said he, ' here is money. After all, the ked khoda ot 
 Gavmishlu can provide for his son as well as the best in 
 the country. Here, Yusuf,' said he to me, 'take these ten 
 tomauns, my son, and lay them out in the purchase of your 
 wife's clothes.' 
 
 " Upon which I knelt down, kissed his hand, and craved 
 his blessing. 
 
 " My uncle, the priest, warmed by this generosity, said, 
 ' And here, nephew, the Church is poor, indeed, and its 
 ministers poorer, but here take these twenty silver abassis, 
 and expend them in tapers for your wedding.' Others of 
 those seated in the assembly also gave me something ; by 
 which means, without being reduced to the necessity of borrow- 
 ing, I found my purse sufficiently well supplied to enable me 
 to make my purchases at once. I expressed my thanks to 
 my benefactors ; and never before having had so much money 
 in my possession, I scarcely knew what countenance to keep. 
 However, my impatience knew no bounds ; I was anxious to 
 be already on my road to Erivan, where the clothes were to 
 be bought ; for there was no place nearer than that city in 
 which a bazaar was to be found. But as I was ignorant of
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 263 
 
 the arts of buying, and particularly ill versed in women's 
 
 A SLIPPER-SELLER'S SHOP. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. \ \ 'ills. 
 
 dresses, it was decided that my mother should accompany me
 
 264 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 mounted on our ass, whilst I followed on foot. She had an 
 Armenian friend at Erivan, who would take us in for a night 
 or two ; and as for sleeping on the road, we could take up 
 our abode in the tents of the wandering tribes, whose duties 
 bind them to hospitality towards the stranger. 
 
 "We departed, she on the ass, I with my sword by my 
 side, and my gun on my shoulder ; and followed by half the 
 village, invoking good luck for us. 
 
 " Having reached the heights of Aberan, we discovered 
 an immense camp of white tents ; one of which, belonging to 
 the chief, was of a magnificent size. A horseman whom we 
 met informed us that the serdar of Erivan was encamped 
 there with a considerable body of cavalry ; and it was sup- 
 posed posted there to watch the motions of the Russians and 
 Georgians, who, it was expected, were likely soon to move 
 their forces forwards to the attack of Persia. 
 
 " This intelligence gave us considerable alarm. My 
 mother was for returning home,, and for putting off the 
 wedding. Too much in love to hearken to such a proposal, 
 I urged her to travel more expeditiously, that we might be 
 back the sooner. We proceeded so far on the first day, that 
 I could see the smoke of Erivan in the distance. We passed 
 the night under a projecting rock, with the majestic mountain 
 of Ararat in full view ; and did not fail to cross ourselves 
 when we first came in view of it, and of recommending our- 
 selves to St. Gregorio, when we composed ourselves to sleep. 
 The wandering tribes had gone too far out of our track for 
 our purpose, therefore we did not think of seeking their 
 protection ; but, refreshed with our night's rest, we resumed 
 our journey early in the morning, and reached Erivan in 
 safety. 
 
 " My mother was received by her friend with kindness, 
 and the day after our arrival, they went to the bazaar to make 
 purchases of the wedding clothes, whilst I roamed about, 
 gaping at everything, and listening to the speeches of those 
 who were gathered together on the market-place. Various 
 were the rumours concerning the operations of the serdar
 
 265 
 
 against the enemy. It was evident that some movement 
 was likely soon to take place, and an attack of an extra- 
 ordinary nature to be made ; for the people at the arsenal 
 and powder- works had been more than usually employed 
 in making ready certain instruments l of destruction, before 
 unknown in Persia, and set on foot by Russian deserters 
 themselves. I was so entirely taken up by my own affairs, 
 and by the happiness in store for me, that this sort of intel- 
 ligence passed by me totally unheeded. It just struck me, 
 that we might endeavour to secure the protection of the 
 serdar, through our chief at the Three Churches, in case 
 our village and its territory became the theatre of war ; but 
 when I reflected upon the length of time it would take to 
 make such a deviation from our road, I abandoned the idea, 
 and, in my impatience, trusted to my own sword and musket 
 as sufficient protection against all invaders. 
 
 " My mother and I returned to our village by the same 
 road we came, but not with quite so much speed ; for the ass 
 was laden with our purchases, and, in addition to my arms, 
 I also carried a considerable share of the burden. The 
 serdar's camp was still in the same place, and we passed on 
 without hindrance, or any occurrence worth relating, until we 
 reached the high ground that overlooks Gavmishlu. 
 
 " The sight of a tent first struck my mother, and she 
 stopped. 
 
 " ' What is that, Yusuf ? ' she cried out to me ; ' see, there 
 is a tent.' 
 
 "I, who had no thoughts in my head but those that con- 
 cerned my wedding, answered, ' Yes, I see ; perhaps they are 
 making preparations for an entertainment for us.' 
 
 "'My husband's beard with your entertainment!' ex- 
 claimed she : ' what are become of your wits ? Either Rus- 
 sians or Persians are there, as sure as I am a Christian ; and 
 in either case it is bad for us.' 
 
 " We pushed on towards our dwelling with the greatest 
 anxiety ; and as we approached it, found that my mother 
 
 1 It is supposed that the instruments here alluded to were hand-grenades.
 
 266 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 had judged right. The village had been just occupied by a 
 small detachment of Russian infantry, composed of fifty men, 
 commanded by a penjah bas/ii, or a head of fifty, who, it 
 seems, formed the advance posts of an army quartered at a 
 day's distance from us. Every house in the village had been 
 obliged to lodge a certain number of men ; and ours, as the 
 best, and belonging to the chief, was taken up by the captain. 
 
 " You may conceive our consternation on finding this 
 state of things ; and, in particular, how wretched I was from 
 the apprehension that my wedding must be put off to an 
 indefinite time, when perhaps ruin would have overwhelmed 
 us, and left us naked and destitute fugitives. Oh ! the idea 
 was too overwhelming, and I hastened to give vent to my 
 feelings to my friends at Geuklu, who perhaps might afford 
 me some consolation. Their village being considerably out 
 of the track of the invaders, no troops had yet made their 
 appearance amongst them ; but when they heard what was 
 passing on our side of the country, they immediately became 
 partakers of all our fears. I saw Mariam, dear child of 
 nature ! The customs of our country did not permit us to 
 converse openly ; but love is fertile in expedients, and we 
 managed to pour out eternal vows of constancy, and to swear 
 upon the holy cross of our faith, that, happen what might, we 
 would ever be united. 
 
 " These interviews happened frequently, and I became 
 almost mad with rage and disappointment that we could not 
 marry. It was evident that some terrible catastrophe must 
 take place soon the armies might meet from day to day, 
 and then what would become of the rejoicings of our 
 wedding-day ! To undertake the performance of a cere- 
 mony of such importance, under these circumstances, would 
 only be mocking Providence, and preparing for ourselves a 
 futurity of misfortune. However, I was too much in love, 
 and too impatient, not to have married under any circum- 
 stances, therefore I only endured what I could not well 
 resist. 
 
 " However, a fortnight had elapsed since our return, and
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 267 
 
 nothing had happened. We were upon excellent terms with 
 our guests the Russians ; and as they were quiet and inoffen- 
 
 ANCIENT EWER OF ENGRAVED BRASS FITTED UPON A BROKEN 
 VASE OF "FAIENCE." 
 
 The value of pottery was once very great in Persia, and broken pieces were thus utilised. 
 The upper portion of the ewer contains a receptacle for ice, the lower part is intended to hold 
 rose-water, which is introduced through a trap in the handle, and thus cooled, it is poured over the 
 hands before and after meals. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 sive, infinitely more so than Persians would have been under 
 similar circumstances, we became very intimate. They were
 
 268 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 Christians as well as we ; they made the sign of the cross ; 
 prayed at our church ; ate pork and drank wine ; all circum- 
 stances producing great sympathy of feeling, and strengthen- 
 ing the bonds of friendship between us. Their captain was 
 a young man of great worth, and of such unpresuming 
 manners that he gave universal satisfaction. He kept the 
 strictest discipline among his troops, and was himself the 
 soberest of mankind. He was anxious to gain information 
 concerning our manners and customs, and encouraged us 
 to converse with him upon everything that interested our 
 family. This brought on a full exposition of our situation 
 in regard to my wedding, to which he listened with a degree 
 of interest so great, as to make him my friend for life. 
 
 "He said, ' But why should it not take place now ? There 
 is nothing to hinder it : we are here to protect you, and what- 
 ever we can give or lend, I promise that I will procure. The 
 Persians do not show the least sign of moving, and our army 
 must wait for reinforcements from Teflis before it can advance 
 farther ; therefore you will have all the necessary time to per- 
 form your ceremonies in quiet and happiness, and perhaps 
 with more splendour than if we had not been here.' 
 
 "He, moreover, promised to make a present to the bride 
 of some Georgian gold lace, and to lend me his horse, a fine 
 Karadaghi, which I might mount on the occasion. He said 
 so much, that he at length persuaded mine and my bride's 
 relations not to defer the ceremony, and a day was fixed. 
 Had any other man pressed the business so much, and 
 appeared so personally interested in it, I should probably 
 have been suspicious of the purity of his intentions, and 
 certain feelings of jealousy might have arisen ; but the 
 captain was so ugly, so hideously ugly, so opposite to what 
 passes for beauty amongst us, that I could have no fear 
 concerning Mariam on his account ; for if she could notice 
 him, she could with the same facility become enamoured of 
 an ape. His face was composed of a white leprous skin, 
 with a head covered by hair, or rather quills, thrown about 
 in a variety of stiff lines, of the colour of straw ; his eyes
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 269 
 
 were round holes scooped deep in their sockets, and situated 
 behind small hillocks of cheek-bones ; his nose was marked 
 by a little bit of flesh, under which were pierced two holes as 
 if with an awl, and his chin, as lucid as glass, did not show 
 the smallest appearance of hair. A little down grew upon 
 his upper lip, which for length and prominence quite outdid 
 its fellow ; and this indication of a man was as carefully kept 
 greased and blacked as a pair of immense boots in which his 
 legs were always cased. 
 
 "'No,' said I to myself, ' Mariam would sooner love her 
 Persian giant than this creature ; and when she comes to 
 compare him to her intended (looking over myself at the 
 same time with some complacency), I flatter myself that I 
 may lay my jealous fears aside.' 
 
 " And thus it was settled that I should wed. The evening 
 before the wedding-day, the clothes and other articles, placed 
 in trays borne upon men's heads, and preceded by singers and 
 musicians (of which some are to be found in every village), 
 were sent to my bride. My band consisted of a man who 
 played on the zourna, or hautbois, a performer on the tam- 
 bourine, and two who sang. As a mark of additional 
 splendour, our Russian friends lent us a drum, the beating 
 of which by one of our shepherd-boys produced great effect 
 all over the country. I followed my present a few hours 
 after, for the purpose of receiving the one which my bride, 
 according to custom, was to make me ; consisting of a pair 
 of brass-mounted pistols, made in the Caucasus, which had 
 belonged to a great-uncle of hers, who had been a soldier 
 in the troops of the Wall of Georgia, before the Russians 
 had got possession of that country. 
 
 "On the following day, the day of my long-expected 
 happiness, I and all my family arose betimes in the morning. 
 The weather was serene but sultry ; there had been a tendency 
 to storm for several days before, and heavy clouds stood in 
 threatening attitudes with their white heads in the horizon. 
 But nature was beautiful and refreshed by a shower that had 
 fallen in the night. My friend, the captain, lent me his horse,
 
 270 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 which I caparisoned and ornamented as well as I could on the 
 occasion. I myself put on a new suit of clothes from head 
 to foot ; and with the addition of many silver-studded belts, 
 cartouch- boxes, daggers, and other appendages fastened 
 
 A "P!-SUZ" OR RECEPTACLE FOR THE BURNING OF TALLOW WITH A WICK 
 A PRIMITIVE LAMP IN COMMON USE IN PERSIA (ANCIENT ENGRAVED 
 
 BRASS WORK). 
 
 From the collection of 'Dr. Wills. 
 
 about me, and which had been lent me by a Georgian in 
 the service of the Russians, I was told, and I believe it, that 
 I made a very handsome appearance. Accompanied by my 
 male relations, the Russian captain, and as many of his men
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 271 
 
 as could be spared in order to create a crowd, we proceeded 
 to Geuklu, and approaching it, marshalled ourselves in pro- 
 cession, preceded by music, songs, and shouts. We alighted 
 at my bride's house, where we partook of refreshments, and 
 received the congratulations of all the village ; and then, 
 when everything was prepared for our return to Gavmishlu, 
 where my uncle was to perform the ceremony, we mounted 
 again. My bride, covered by a crimson veil from head to 
 foot, which flowed over a flat platter placed on her crown, 
 was mounted on her father's steed, led on either side by 
 her brothers. It is the custom for the bridegroom to hold 
 a sash or girdle by his right hand, which is held at the other 
 end by the bride, on their way to the church, and this we 
 did. All our friends, our relations, all the youth of the 
 villages, some on foot, some on asses, others on horses, 
 accompanied the procession, making shouts, and manifesting 
 their joy by all sorts of games and jokes during the whole 
 course of the march. When at length we had reached a 
 small rising ground overlooking my village, the procession 
 stopped, and every one who had a part to act in the cere- 
 mony received a taper, which was forthwith lighted. The 
 procession then moved on with slow and measured steps, 
 headed by my uncle, who, assisted by my other uncle from 
 the Three Churches, sang psalms as they walked forwards, 
 amidst all the noise of the surrounding lookers-on. The 
 Russian captain had had the attention to dress his men up 
 on the occasion, and they marched to the church with us, 
 adding much to the dignity of the scene. 
 
 " We at length alighted at the door of the church, and, still 
 holding each end of the girdle, my bride and I walked to the 
 foot of the altar, which, notwithstanding our humble condition, 
 had been ornamented with more than ordinary brilliancy by 
 flowers, ribands, and looking-glasses. My forehead was then 
 placed against Mariam's in a sort of butting attitude, and the 
 Bible opened and laid upon our heads, whilst her hand was 
 given into mine. The priest then asked, if we agreed to take 
 each other for husband and wife ; and after we had made an
 
 272 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BAB A 
 
 inclination of our heads as marking our consent, and a suitable 
 proportion of prayers had been read and chanted, the cere- 
 mony was at an end, and notified to all the world by the shouts 
 of the multitude, and by the redoubled sounds of our drums, 
 flutes, and tambours. 
 
 " Daylight by this time had entirely disappeared, and the 
 weather, which had threatened a storm, now became very 
 lowering. The sky was darkened, rain fell, and distant 
 thunders were heard. This circumstance put an end to the 
 entertainment given by my father earlier than it otherwise 
 would have done ; and when our guests had retired, the hour 
 at length arrived which was to make me the happiest of men. 
 
 " Oh ! shall I stop here to recollect all the horrors of that 
 night, or shall I pass on, and not distress you by relating 
 them ? You must conceive my bride lovely as the morning 
 star, innocent as an angel, and attached to me by the purest 
 love ; and you may imagine what I felt at that moment, I 
 who had looked upon our union as impossible, and had 
 thought of my awaiting happiness as a bright spot in my 
 existence, to which I expected never to attain. 
 
 " But in order to give a right impression of the scene which 
 I am about to describe, you must know that the villages in 
 Georgia, and in our part of Armenia, are built partly under- 
 ground, and thus a stranger finds himself walking on the 
 roof of a house when he thinks that he is on plain ground, the 
 greatest part of them being lighted by apertures at the top. 
 Such was the house in which my family lived, and in which 
 my wedding was celebrated. My nuptial chamber had one 
 of these apertures, which had been closed on the occasion, 
 and was situated with its door leading at once into the 
 open air. 
 
 "It is the custom among the Armenians for the bride- 
 groom to retire first. H is shoes and stockings are then taken 
 off by his wife ; and, before she resigns her veil, has the task 
 of extinguishing the light. The storm had just broke, 
 thunders were rolling over our heads, the lightning flashed, 
 torrents of rain were pouring down with fearful noise,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 273 
 
 there seemed to be a general commotion of the elements, 
 when my Mariam, unveiling herself, extinguished the lamp. 
 She had scarcely laid herself down, when we heard an unusual 
 violent noise at the aperture in the ceiling : sounds of men's 
 
 AN ARMENIAN WOMAN (SHOWING THE "UNDER" VEIL). 
 (From a sketch bv James Morier.) 
 
 voices were mingled with the crash of the thunder ; trampling 
 of horses was also distinctly heard ; and presently we were 
 alarmed by a heavy noise of something having fallen in our 
 room and near our bed, accompanied by a glare and a smell 
 of sulphur.
 
 274 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 " ''Tis a thunderbolt, by all that is sacred ! Oh, Heaven 
 protect us ! ' cried I. ' Fly, my soul, my wife, escape ! ' 
 
 " She had just time to snatch up her veil, and to get 
 without the door, when an explosion took place in the very 
 room, so awful, so tremendous, that I immediately thought 
 myself transported to the regions of the damned. I fell 
 senseless, amidst the wreck of falling stones, plaster, and 
 furniture. All I can recollect is, that an immense blaze of 
 light was succeeded by an overpowering sulphureous smell, 
 then a dead silence. 
 
 " I lay there for some time, unconscious of what was pass- 
 ing ; but by degrees came to myself, and when I found that 
 I could move my limbs, and that nothing about my person 
 was materially hurt, I began to consider how I had got there. 
 As for my wedding, that appeared to me a dream : all I heard 
 about me now was the firing of muskets, loud and frequent 
 explosions, cries and shouts of men, of men wounded and 
 in pain, of men attacking and putting others to death, the 
 tramplings of horses, the clashing of arms. 'What in the 
 name of Heaven can all this be?' said I. I still thought 
 myself transported into another planet, when the shriek of a 
 woman struck my ear. ' It is Mariam ! It is she, by all 
 that is sacred ! Where, where shall I seek her ? ' I was 
 roused : I disencumbered myself of the weight of rubbish that 
 had fallen upon me, and, once upon my legs again, I sallied 
 forth in search of her. The scene which presented itself was 
 more terrible than language can express ; for the first object 
 which struck my sight was a Persian rushing by me, with a 
 drawn sword in one hand, and a human head, dripping with 
 blood, in another. The blackness of the night was lighted up 
 at rapid intervals by vivid flashes of lightning, which, quick 
 as the eye could glance, now discovered the hideous tragedy 
 that was then acting, and now threw it again into darkness, 
 leaving the imagination to fill up the rest. By one flash, 
 I saw Persians, with uplifted swords, attacking defenceless 
 Russians, rushing from their beds : by another, the poor 
 villagers were discovered flying from their smoking cottages
 
 275 
 
 in utter dismay. Then an immense explosion took place, 
 which shook everything around. 1 The village cattle, loosened 
 from their confinements, ran about in wild confusion, and 
 mixed themselves with the horrors of the night : in short, my 
 words fall short of any description that could be made of this 
 awful scene of devastation ; and I must bless the mercy of 
 that almighty hand which had spared me in the destruction 
 that surrounded me. 
 
 " I knew not where to turn myself to seek for my wife. 
 I had heard her shrieks ; and the shivering of despair came 
 over me, when I thought it might have been her death- 
 groans which had struck my ears. I threw myself into the 
 midst of the carnage, and, armed with a firebrand, snatched 
 from my burning nuptial chamber, I made my way through 
 the combatants, more like a maniac at the height of his 
 frenzy, than a bridegroom on his wedding-night. Getting 
 into the skirts of the village again, I thought I heard the 
 shrieks of my beloved. I ran towards the direction, and a 
 flash of lightning, that glanced over the adjoining hill, 
 showed me two horsemen making off with a woman, whose 
 white veil was conspicuously seen, mounted behind one of 
 them. Heedless of everything but my wife, I followed them 
 with the swiftness of a mountain goat ; but as the storm 
 subsided, the lightning flashed no more, and I was left in 
 utter darkness at the top of the hill, not knowing which path 
 to take, and whether to proceed or not. I was almost 
 naked. I had been severely bruised. My feet, otherwise 
 accustomed to the naked ground, had become quite lacerated 
 by the pursuit I had undertaken ; and altogether, I was so 
 worn with grief, so broken-hearted, that I laid myself down 
 on the wet earth in a state of desperation that was succeeded 
 by a torpor of all my senses. Here I lay until the first rays 
 of the morning glared in my eyes, and brought me gradually 
 to a sense of my situation. 
 
 1 Hassan Khan Serdar, the governor of Erivan, was said to have attacked 
 Armenian villages in the manner here described, by throwing grenades into the 
 houses from the orifice at the top.
 
 276 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 "'What has happened ?' said I. 'Where am I? How 
 came I here? Either the demons and wicked angels of 
 another world have been at work this night, or else I am 
 most grossly abused. To see that glorious orb rising in that 
 clear unclouded sky ; to mark the soothing serenity of nature, 
 the morning freshness, the song of the birds, the lowing of 
 yon cattle, and the quiet and seclusion of my yonder paternal 
 village, I ought to suppose that the images of horror, of 
 indescribable horror, now floating in my mind, must be those 
 of a diseased imagination. Is it possible that in this secluded 
 spot, under this lovely sky, in the midst of these bounteous 
 gifts of nature, I could have seen man murdering his fellow- 
 creature, the blazing cottage, the mangled corse, the bleeding 
 head, and, O cruel, O killing thought ! that I should have 
 been bereft of my dear, my innocent wife ? ' and then, then 
 only, was I restored to a full possession of every occurrence 
 that had taken place ; and tears which before had refused to 
 flow now came to my assistance, and relieved my burning 
 temples and my almost suffocating bosom. I got up, and 
 walked slowly to the village. All was hushed into quiet ; a 
 slight smoke was here and there to be seen ; stray cattle were 
 grazing on the outskirts ; strangers on horseback seemed to 
 be busily employed in preparations of some kind or other, 
 and the wretched peasantry were seen huddled together in 
 groups scarcely awake from the suddenness of the destruction 
 which had visited them, and uncertain of the fate which 
 might still be in reserve. As for me, the loss which I had 
 already sustained made me expect every other attendant 
 misfortune. I had made my mind up to find my relations dead, 
 to see the total ruin of our house, and to know that I was 
 a solitary outcast on the face of the world, without a wife, 
 without a home, without parents, without a friend. But no ; 
 imagination had worked up the picture too highly ; for one 
 of the first persons I met on entering the village was my 
 poor mother, who, when she saw me, recollecting all the 
 trouble she had been at to secure my happiness, fell on my 
 neck, and shed a torrent of tears. When her first grief had
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 277 
 
 subsided, she told me that my father had suffered much from 
 bruises, and from a blow received on the head : but that the 
 rest of the family were well ; that our house had been con- 
 siderably injured, many of our things pillaged, and that my 
 nuptial room, in particular, had been almost totally destroyed. 
 She informed me that the good Russian captain had been 
 the first to fall a sacrifice to the attack of the Persians ; for 
 almost immediately after the explosion in my room he had 
 rushed out to see what had happened, when two Persians 
 seized him, one of whom at once decapitated him : this was 
 the head that I saw brandished before me, when first I sallied 
 forth. She then took me to a place of shelter, and put on 
 me what clothes could be found. 
 
 " The Persians, having completed their deeds of horror, 
 had retired from the scene of action, leaving to our unfor- 
 tunate villagers the melancholy task of burying the dead 
 bodies of thirty wretched Russians, who had fallen victims 
 to their treacherous attack, and whose heads they had carried 
 off with them as trophies. 
 
 " After I had visited my father, and left my home in as 
 comfortable a situation as I could, under the existing circum- 
 stances, I determined instantly to set out in pursuit of my 
 wife. It was evident that she had been carried away by 
 some of those who had attacked our village, and that she 
 must have been taken to Erivan, as the nearest market for 
 slaves, for such was no doubt the purpose for which she had 
 been seized. My sword, pistols, and gun, which had formed 
 part of the ornamental furniture of my bridal chamber, were 
 found buried in its ruins ; and with these for my protection, 
 and with some pieces of silver in my purse, I bid adieu to 
 Gavmishlu, making a vow never to return until I had found 
 my Mariam. 
 
 " I travelled with hurried steps, taking the shortest cuts 
 over the mountains to Erivan ; and as I crossed a branch 
 of the high road I met two horsemen, well mounted and 
 equipped, who stopped me, and asked whither I was going, 
 and upon what errand.
 
 278 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 " I did not hesitate to tell them my wretched tale, hoping 
 they might give me some hint which might throw light 
 upon the fate of my wife. This they did, indeed, but in a 
 manner so cruel, that their words awakened the most horrid 
 suspicions, and almost to a certainty convinced me that my 
 poor innocent, my hitherto unspotted, though wedded wife, 
 had fallen into the power of a most licentious tyrant. 
 
 " ' Is it possible,' said I, when they had related to me 
 the horrid expedients to which their chief, the serdar (for it 
 was to two of his bodyguard that I was talking), had re- 
 course, for the accomplishment of his wickedness, ' is it 
 possible that selfishness can be carried to such an extreme, 
 that vice can have reached to such a pitch in the heart of 
 man ? Women, by you Mussulmans, I know, are treated as 
 mere accessaries to pleasure ; but, after all, they are God's 
 creatures, not made for the serdar alone, as he seems to 
 think, but given to us to be our help, our comfort, and our 
 companions through life.' 
 
 " My hearers only laughed at my sentiments, and taunt- 
 ingly assured me, that, if I was seeking one who had got 
 into the serdar's harem, my labour would be in vain, and that 
 I might just take the trouble to return whence I came. 
 
 " Little heeding what they said, I hastened my steps, 
 without knowing why or wherefore, but impelled by a sort 
 of feeling, that it could not be in the wisdom of the Almighty 
 to heap such a load of misfortune upon a wretched sinner 
 like me, without at length giving some counterbalancing 
 reward, or some consolation which it is ever in His power 
 to bestow. 
 
 " I was now near the camp at Aberan, where I knew 
 the serdar in person was settled, and, hoping to hear some 
 favourable intelligence, I made towards it. It was greatly 
 agitated by the arrival of the detachment of Persians who 
 had attacked our village, and were giving proofs of the 
 success of their enterprise by exhibiting the Russian heads 
 which they had brought away, and which were laid in several 
 heaps before the tent of the chief. One might have supposed
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 279 
 
 that a great and signal victory had been achieved, such were the 
 rejoicings and boastings that took place at the sight. The 
 horrid objects were forthwith salted, and sent off in great parade 
 and ceremony to the Shah of Persia, who never will believe 
 that a victory is gained until he sees these palpable proofs 
 of it. How r ever, in the midst of all this joy, a courier was 
 seen arriving in great haste from the Russian frontier, whose 
 intelligence produced a change of scene. He announced 
 that the Russian army, having heard of the late attack upon 
 their outpost at Gavmishlti, was now in full march against 
 the serdar, and coming on so rapidly that he must expect 
 to be attacked even before night-close. The scene that 
 ensued defies all description. The whole camp was ordered 
 to be struck, and an immediate retreat was commanded. 
 Tents falling, mules loading, men screaming ; horses, camels, 
 men, cannon, all were in motion at one time ; and before two 
 hours had elapsed, the whole had disappeared, and the army 
 was on its march for Erivan. 
 
 " I had in the meanwhile received no account of my lost 
 Mariam ; and it was plain, that, if in the power of the serdar, 
 she was within the walls of his seraglio at Erivan. Thither, 
 then, I bent my steps, hoping that in this great confusion 
 something might turn up for my advantage. 
 
 " Upon my arrival there, I posted myself at the bridge 
 over the Zengui, from whence I had a full survey of that 
 part of the serdar's palace which contains his women ; and as 
 the troops were crossing it at the same time in constant 
 succession, I was unnoticed, and passed for one of the camp- 
 followers. The building is situated upon the brink of a 
 precipice of dark rock, at the foot of which flows the Zengui, 
 a clear and rapid stream, foaming through a rocky bed, the 
 stony projections of which form white eddies, and increase 
 the rush of its waters. A bridge of three arches is here 
 thrown over it, and forms part of the high road .leading to 
 Georgia and Turkey. The principal saloon of the palace, in 
 a corner of which the serdar is usually seated, opens with 
 a large casement on the river, and overlooks the rugged
 
 280 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 scenery. At some distance on the same surface of building 
 are the windows of the women's apartments, distinguished 
 by their lattices, and by other contrivances of jealousy. 
 However, I observed they were not so well secured, but 
 that objects passing and repassing the bridge might well be 
 seen from them ; and I imagined that if Mariam was a 
 prisoner there, she might perchance make me out as I stood 
 below. ' But if she did, what then ? ' said I to myself in 
 despair ; ' seeing me there would only add to her torture, 
 and to my desperation.' To escape from such a height 
 appeared impossible, for a fall would be instant death ; and 
 excepting a willow tree, which grew out of the rock immedi- 
 ately under one of the windows, there was nothing to break 
 the descent. However, having remained in one spot so 
 long in meditation, I feared to be observed, and left my post 
 for the present, determining to return to it at the close of 
 day, and indeed at every hour when I could appear without 
 suspicion. 
 
 " I had been watching the windows of the seraglio in this 
 manner for more than a fortnight, and had not ceased to 
 parade up and down the bridge at least three times every 
 day, when one evening, as the day was about to close, I saw 
 the lattice of the window over the willow tree open, and a 
 female looking out of it. I watched her with breathless 
 suspense. She appeared to recognise me. I extended my 
 hand; she stretched forth hers. ' It is she!' said I ; 'yes, 
 it must be she ! it is my Mariam ! ' Upon which, without a 
 moment's hesitation, without thinking of the consequences, I 
 plunged into the river, and having waded through it, stood 
 at the foot of the precipice immediately under my beloved 
 wife. She stretched her arms several times towards me, as 
 if she would have thrown herself out. I almost screamed 
 with apprehension ; and yet the hope of pressing her to my 
 heart made me half regret that she had not done so. We 
 stood there looking wistfully at each other, fearing to speak, 
 yet longing to do so. At length she shut the lattice suddenly, 
 and left me in an attitude and in all the horrors of suspense.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 281 
 
 I kept my post for some time without seeing anything more 
 of her, when again suddenly the lattice opened, and she 
 appeared, but with looks that spoke intense agitation. I 
 scarcely could tell what was about to happen, but waited in 
 dreadful anxiety, until I saw her lean forward, retreat, lean 
 forward again then more and more, until, by a sudden 
 effort,. I beheld her fair form in the air, falling down the 
 giddy height. 1 My legs refused to perform their office, my 
 eyes were obscured by a swimming, and I should have 
 probably sunk under the intenseness of my feelings, when I 
 saw her half suspended, half falling, from a branch of the 
 willow tree. I bounded up, and in an instant had mounted 
 the tree, and had clasped her senseless in my arms. I 
 seemed to be impelled by new vigour and strength ; to reach 
 the ground, to recross the river, to fly with my precious 
 burden from the inhabited outskirts into the open country, 
 appeared but the business of a second. I was perfectly 
 drunk with the thousand feelings which agitated me ; and 
 although I acted like one bereft of his senses, yet everything 
 I did was precisely that which I ought to have done. Nature 
 guided me : the animal acting only from instinct would have 
 done like me. I had saved that which was most precious to 
 me in this world. 
 
 " When I had worn out my first efforts of strength, and 
 had felt that my hitherto senseless burden showed some 
 symptoms of life, I stopped, and placed her quietly on the 
 ground behind some broken walls. She was terribly bruised, 
 although no bone had been broken. The branches of the 
 tree, upon which she had alighted, had wounded her deeply 
 in several places, and the blood had flowed very copiously. 
 But she was alive ; she breathed ; she opened her eyes, and 
 at length pronounced my name. I was almost crazy with 
 joy, and embraced her with a fervour that amounted to 
 madness. When she had reposed herself a little, I snatched 
 her up again, and proceeded onwards with all the haste 
 imaginable, in the determination to strike at once into the 
 
 1 This is a circumstance which is said to have really happened.
 
 282 
 
 mountains ; but recollecting that I had the river of Ashtarek 
 to cross, and that with her in my arms it would be impossible 
 to do so except by the bridge, I at once directed my steps 
 thither. 
 
 "We were reposing at the foot of the bridge, when I 
 heard the footsteps of your horses. Although nearly ex- 
 hausted with my previous exertions, I still had strength 
 enough left to clamber up the bank, and take refuge in the 
 ruined church, where you first discovered us ; and there I 
 watched your motions with the greatest anxiety, concluding 
 that you were a party sent in pursuit of us by the serdar. 
 Need I say after this, that if you will protect us, and permit 
 us to seek our home, you will receive the overflowing grati- 
 tude of two thankful hearts, and the blessings of many now 
 wretched people, who by our return will be made supremely 
 happy ? Whoever you are, upon whatever errand you may 
 be sent, you cannot have lost the feelings of a man. God 
 will repay your kindness a thousand times ; and although we 
 are not of your faith and nation, still we have prayers to put 
 up at the throne of grace, which must be received when they 
 are employed in so good a cause." 
 
 A WOMAN'S SLIPPER, EMBROIDERED IN GOLD AND SILVER WIRE. 
 
 From the South Kensington ^
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 283 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII 
 
 Sequel of the foregoing history, and of the resolution which Hajji Baba 
 takes in consequence. 
 
 THE Armenian youth here finished his narrative, and left me 
 in astonishment and admiration at all he had related. With 
 my permission he then quitted me to visit his wife, and 
 promised to return immediately with the report of her present 
 state, and how she felt after her repose. 
 
 "He surely cannot have been inventing lies to my face 
 all this time," said I, when left to myself; "for a bleeding 
 woman is here in evidence to corroborate what he has 
 advanced ; but then, should I permit him to proceed, and the 
 serdar was to hear that I had done so, what would become of 
 me ? I should certainly lose my place, and perhaps my ears. 
 No ; compassion does not suit me ; for if it did, I ought not 
 to remain a nasakchi. I will stick to what the sage Locman, 
 I believe, once said on this occasion, which runs something 
 to this purpose : ' If you are a tiger, be one altogether ; for 
 then the other beasts will know what to trust to : but if you 
 wear a tiger's skin, and long ears are discovered to be con- 
 cealed therein, they will then treat you even worse than if 
 you walked about in your own true character, an undis- 
 guised ass.' ' 
 
 I kept turning over in my mind whether I should release 
 him or not ; and was fluctuating in great perplexity between 
 the ass and the tiger, when Yusuf returned. He told me 
 that his Mariam was considerably refreshed by repose ; but, 
 weak from loss of blood, and stiff by the violence of the 
 contusions which she had received (in particular, one upon 
 her leg, which was of consequence), it would be impossible 
 for her to move for several days; "except, indeed, we were 
 pursued by the serdar,-' added he, "when I believe nothing
 
 284 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 but force could hinder us from proceeding." He said that 
 not until now had she found strength enough to relate her 
 own adventures from the time she had left him at GavmishlCi. 
 It appears, that the instant she had darted from the 
 nuptial chamber, only covered by her veil, she had been 
 seized by a Persian, who, discovering by the glare of the 
 lightning that she was young and handsome, ran off with her 
 to some distance, and there detained her, until, with the 
 assistance of another, she was mounted on a horse and taken 
 forcibly away ; that these two men carried her straight to the 
 camp at Aberan, and offered her for sale to the serdar ; who 
 having agreed to take her, ordered her to be conducted to his 
 seraglio at Erivan, and there put into service ; that the horrid 
 plight in which she stood, when exhibited to the serdar, her 
 disfigured looks, and her weak and drooping state, made her 
 hope that she would remain unnoticed and neglected ; par- 
 ticularly when she heard what was his character, and to 
 what extent he carried his cruelties on the unfortunate victims 
 of his selfishness. Mariam, alluding to herself, then said, 
 " Hoping, by always talking of myself as a married woman, 
 that I should meet with more respect in the house of a 
 Mussulman, than if I were otherwise, I never lost an oppor- 
 tunity of putting my husband's name forward ; and this 
 succeeded, for little or no notice was taken of me, and I was 
 confounded with the other slaves, and performed the different 
 tasks of servitude which were set me. But, unfortunately, I 
 did not long keep my own counsel : I confided my story to a 
 Persian woman, who pretended to be my friend ; hoping by 
 that means to soften her heart so much as to induce her to 
 help me in regaining my freedom. But she proved treach- 
 erous ; she made a merit of relating it to the serdar, who 
 immediately forced me to confirm her words with my own 
 lips, and then the extent of my imprudence became manifest. 
 He announced his intention to avail himself of my situation, 
 and ordered me to prepare for receiving him. Conceive, 
 then, what were the horrors of my position. I turned over 
 in my mind every means of escape ; but all avenues to it were
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 285 
 
 shut. I had never before thought of looking over the pre- 
 cipice upon which the windows of our prison opened ; but 
 now I seriously thought of precipitating myself, rather than 
 submit to the tyrant. But a few hours after I had had the 
 blessing to discover you on the bridge, I had been ordered to 
 hold myself in readiness to receive him ; and it was then that 
 I had positively determined in my own mind to throw myself 
 headlong out, either once more to be joined to you, or to die 
 in the attempt. When I shut the lattices in haste, several 
 women had just come into the room to conduct me to the 
 hot-bath previously to being dressed ; and when I had made 
 some excuse for delaying it, and had sent them out of the 
 room, it was then that I opened the lattice a second time, and 
 put my resolution into practice." 
 
 Yiisuf having finished the recital of his and his wife's 
 adventures, was very anxious to know what part I would take, 
 and earnestly entreated me to befriend him by my advice and 
 assistance. 
 
 The morning was far spent. My men were already 
 mounted, and ready to proceed on our reconnoitring expe- 
 dition, and my horse was waiting for me, when a thought 
 struck me, which would settle every difficulty with regard to 
 the young Armenian and his wife. 
 
 I called him to me and said, " After what you have related, 
 it will be impossible to leave you at liberty. You have, by 
 your own account, run off with a woman from the serdar's 
 seraglio, a crime which you, perhaps, do not know, in a 
 Mussulman country, is punished with death, so sacred is the 
 harem held in our estimation. If I were to act right, I ought 
 not to lose a moment in sending you both back to Erivan ; 
 but that I will not do, provided you agree to join us in our 
 present expedition, and to serve us as guide in those parts of 
 the country with which you are best acquainted." I then 
 explained to him the nature of my office, and what was the 
 object of the expedition. 
 
 " If you are zealous in our cause," said I, "you will then 
 have performed a service which will entitle you to reward,
 
 286 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 and thus enable me to speak in your favour to the serdar and 
 to my chief, and, Inshallah ! please God, to procure your 
 release. In the meanwhile, your wife may remain here, in 
 all safety, in the hands of the good folks of this village ; and 
 by the time we return, she will, I hope, have been restored 
 to health." 
 
 The youth, upon hearing this language, took my hand and 
 kissed it, agreed to everything I had said, and, having girt 
 on his arms, he was ready to attend us. I permitted him to 
 go to his wife, to give her an account of this arrangement, 
 and to console her, with proper assurances that they would 
 soon be restored to each other. He again thanked me ; 
 and, with the agility of an antelope, had already gained 
 the summit of the first hill before we had even begun to 
 ascend it. 
 
 CAMELS FIGHTING. 
 
 (From a Persian painting.)
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 287 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX 
 
 The Armenian Yusuf proves himself worthy of Hajji Baba's 
 confidence. 
 
 WE proceeded towards the Georgian frontier, shaping our 
 track over unfrequented parts of the mountains, in which we 
 were very materially assisted by Yusuf, who appeared to be 
 acquainted with every landmark, and who knew the directions 
 of places with a precision that quite surprised us. He did 
 not seem anxious to visit his own village ; and, in fact, he 
 assured me, that, had he even permission so to do, he could 
 not, because he felt himself bound by the oath which he had 
 taken upon last quitting it, not to return, except accompanied 
 by his wife. 
 
 The intelligence which had been brought to the serdar of 
 the advance of the Muscovites proved false ; for we found 
 them posted on the banks of the Pembaki river, occupy- 
 ing the village of Hamamlu, and fortifying themselves in 
 Karaklisseh. We were not far from the former place ; and, 
 as we approached it, I became anxious to acquire some precise 
 intelligence concerning the numbers and the dispositions of 
 the enemy. A thought struck me, as I pondered over the 
 fate of my Armenian protege " I will either save this youth, 
 or lose him," thought I ; "and never was there a better 
 opportunity than the present. He shall go to Hamamlu : if 
 he brings me the intelligence we want, nothing can prevent 
 me from procuring both his pardon and his wife for him if 
 he proves a traitor, I get rid of him, and demand a reward 
 from the serdar, for restoring his fugitive slave." 
 
 I called him to me, and proposed the undertaking. 
 Quicker than thought, he seized all the different bearings of 
 the question, and without hesitation accepted of my proposal. 
 He girt himself afresh, he tucked the skirts of his coat into
 
 288 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 his girdle, putting his cap on one side, and slinging his long 
 gun at his back, he darted down the mountain's side, and we 
 very soon lost him amid the sloping woods. 
 
 " Ruft ke ruft. He is gone and doubly gone," said the 
 young delikhan ; " we shall never see him again." 
 
 "And why should he not return?" said I. "Have we 
 not got a hostage ? Armenian though he is, he will not leave 
 his wife." 
 
 "Yes," said the youth, "he is an Armenian; but he is 
 also an Isauvi (a Christian). The Russians, too, are Isauvis ; 
 and we all know, that when these infidels get together, they 
 will rather die than return to the sons of Islam. No ; were 
 he the chaste Joseph himself, and his wife Zuleikha in person, 
 I will bet this horse," pointing to the beast under him, "that 
 we see him no more." 
 
 " Do not coin false words, my little gentleman," said a 
 sturdy old cavalier, whose sunburnt face was harrowed by a 
 thousand wrinkles, and shaded by a shaggy beard, mustachios, 
 and eyebrows ; " why, without any use do you eat dirt ? 
 The horse is the Shah's, not yours ; and do you pretend to 
 make the bahs (bets) upon it ? " 
 
 "The Shah's property is mine, and mine is my own," 
 retorted the youth. 
 
 I and my party kept up this sort of desultory talk for a 
 little while before we thought of settling ourselves, when, 
 seeing a spot where there was much grass, we made for it, 
 and dismounted from our horses. We dispersed ourselves 
 here and there, each making a temporary establishment of 
 horse-cloths and cloaks spread upon the ground ; whilst 
 our steeds, picketed among the grass, fed at pleasure. I 
 announced my intention of passing the night here in case 
 Yusuf did not appear before its close ; and preparatory to 
 this, two of our best marauders set off in quest of a sheep, 
 fowls, or anything they could get for our evening's meal. 
 After an hour's absence, they returned with a sheep which 
 they had seized from a flock grazing in the neighbourhood 
 of the river. It was soon killed, and preparations were made
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 289 
 
 for roasting it. Two stakes with hooks at the top were cut 
 
 
 . - - - 
 
 A LEATHERN BUCKET-MAKER. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 from the forest and stuck into the ground ; then a long stick
 
 290 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 was passed through the animal in lieu of a spit, and placed 
 on the hooks. A fire having been lighted, one of our men 
 was stationed near it to turn the animal at intervals ; and it 
 was not long before it was ready for eating. By way of 
 variety, some of the prime bits, with the fat of the tail, 
 were cut off, spitted upon a ramrod, and thus roasted. 
 The sheep was served up on its stake, and our party fell 
 upon it with an intense appetite, whilst, by way of distinc- 
 tion, the ramrod was handed over to me for my share. 
 
 By this time the day had entirely closed in, and Yusuf 
 had not appeared. We then composed ourselves to sleep, 
 leaving one or two to keep watch and to attend upon the 
 horses. About an hour after midnight, when the moon was 
 about going down, a distant shout was heard presently a 
 second, more distinctly and nearer to us. We were im- 
 mediately upon the alert, and the shouts being repeated, 
 we could no longer doubt but that the Armenian was at 
 hand. We then shouted in return, and not very long after 
 we saw him appear. He was almost exhausted with fatigue, 
 but still strong enough to be able to relate his adventures 
 since he had left us. 
 
 He informed me, that, having reached Hamamlu, he was 
 recognised by some of the Russian soldiers who had escaped 
 the attack of the Persians upon his village, and who imme- 
 diately introduced him into the fort and treated him very 
 kindly. He was taken before the commanding officer, who 
 questioned him narrowly upon the object of his visit ; but 
 the ready pretext which he advanced, of seeking his wife, 
 answered every difficulty ; besides which, the ruin of his 
 village, the destruction of his family property, and the ac- 
 quaintances which he had on the spot, furnished him with so 
 much matter of conversation, that no suspicion of his designs 
 could be entertained. He was then permitted to walk about 
 the fort ; and by asking his questions with prudence, and 
 making his own observations, was enabled to furnish me 
 with the information I required on the strength and position 
 of the enemy, with some very good conjectures on the nature
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 291 
 
 and probability of their future operations. He then managed 
 to slip away unperceived before the gates of the place were 
 closed, and regained the mountains without the smallest 
 impediment. 
 
 Having permitted Yusuf to refresh himself with food and 
 rest, and being now perfectly satisfied that his story was true, 
 and that all confidence might be placed in his integrity, I 
 ordered my party to hold themselves in readiness to return 
 to Erivan. He was permitted to ride behind either of the 
 horsemen when tired with walking ; and in this manner, 
 taking the shortest cuts over the mountains, we regained the 
 village of Ashtarek. Whilst we stopped here to refresh 
 ourselves and horses, and to gain intelligence of the move- 
 ments of the serdar and the chief executioner, I permitted 
 the youth to visit his wife. He returned beaming with joy, 
 for he had found her almost cured of her bruises, and full of 
 thanks for the kindness and hospitality with which she had 
 been treated. 
 
 The serdar and the chief executioner had moved from 
 Erivan, and were now encamped close to the residence of 
 the Armenian Patriarch ; and thither we bent our steps, 
 accompanied by Yusuf. 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 Hajji Baba gives an account of his proceedings to his superiors, and 
 shows himself a friend to the distressed, 
 
 THE monastery of Etchmiazin, so called in the Armenian 
 tongue, or Utch Klisseh, or the Three Churches, by the 
 Turks and Persians, is situated in a large and well-cultivated 
 plain, watered by the Araxes, and several smaller streams. 
 It stands at the foot of the high mountain of Agri Dagh, 
 which the Christians, and in particular the Armenians, hold
 
 292 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 in great veneration, because (so Yusuf informed me) upon its 
 conspicuous snow-capped summit the ark of Noah rested. 
 The monastery and church, celebrated throughout Asia for 
 the riches which they contain, are enclosed within high walls, 
 and secured by strong and massive gates. It is here that the 
 head of the Armenian Church constantly resides, together 
 with a large retinue of bishops, priests, and deacons, who 
 form the stock which provides clergy for most of the 
 Armenian churches in Asia. The title by which he is known 
 in Persia is khalifeh or caliph, a designation which, compris- 
 ing the head of the civil as well as the religious government, 
 the Mussulmans used formerly to bestow on the sovereigns 
 who held their sway at Bagdad and elsewhere. By the 
 Christians he is generally known by the name of patriarch, 
 and his church is an object of pilgrimage for the Armenians, 
 who flock there at particular seasons in great numbers from 
 different parts of the world. 
 
 Hither we bent our steps. We discovered the united 
 camps of the serdar and the chief executioner, spreading their 
 white tents in an irregular figure all round the monastery ; 
 and before we had reached its walls, we heard that the two 
 chiefs had taken up their abode within it, and were the guests 
 of the caliph. 
 
 "We'll burn the fathers of these giaours " (infidels), said 
 the young delikhan, as he rode up to me in great joy at 
 this intelligence, "and will make up for the fatigues we have 
 undergone, by drinking abundantly of their wine." 
 
 "Are you a Mussulman," said I, "and talk of drinking 
 wine ? You yourself will become a giaour." 
 
 "Oh, as for that," answered he, "the serdar drinks wine 
 like any Christian, and I do not see why I should not." 
 
 As we approached the monastery, I called Yusuf to me, 
 and told him to be in readiness whenever he should be 
 called for, and be prepared to confirm any oath that I might 
 think it necessary to take for his interests. He was par- 
 ticularly enjoined, when he came to talk of the services he 
 had rendered, to deviate from the truth as much as he chose,
 
 THE KHALIFA. 
 
 An Armenian bishop as he stood to be sketched in the monastery of Etch Mizzin (?), the seat 
 of the Patriarch in Persia, situated at the foot of Mount Ararat. He is called Episcopus in 
 Armenia. His outward coat is dark blue, the inner purple, and the hood black. (November 
 1815.) 
 
 (An original sketch and note by James Morier.)
 
 294 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 to set forth every sort of danger he had or had not incurred, 
 and in particular to score up an account of sums expended, 
 all for the use and advantage of the serdar and of the Shah's 
 government. "I hope at that rate," said I to him, "your 
 accounts may be balanced, by having your wife restored to 
 you ; for which, after considerable difficulty, you may agree 
 to give a receipt in full of all demands." 
 
 Thus agreed, we passed through the heavy archway 
 which leads into the first court of the monastery. This we 
 found encumbered by the equipages and servants of the 
 serdar and the chief executioner. Here and there were 
 strings of horses picketed by ropes and pegs, with their 
 grooms established in different corners among their saddles 
 and horse furniture ; and a corner was taken up by a set ot 
 mules, distinguished by the eternal jingle of their bells, and 
 the no less eternal wranglings of their drivers. 
 
 In the second yard were the horses of the chief servants, 
 who themselves inhabited small rooms that surrounded two 
 sides of the court. 
 
 We alighted at the first court, and I immediately inquired 
 for the quarters of my master, the chief executioner. It was 
 noon, and I was informed he was then with the serdar, 
 before whom, in all the boots, dust, and dirt of my travelling 
 dress, I was immediately conducted. 
 
 They seemed to have entirely taken possession of the 
 Armenian sanctuary, and to have dispossessed the caliph of 
 his place and authority ; for they had taken up their abode in 
 his very rooms, whilst the poor priests were skulking about 
 with humble and downcast looks, as if fearful and ashamed of 
 being the lawful inhabitants of their own possessions. The 
 favourite horses of both the Persian chiefs were picketed close 
 to the very walls of the church, more care being taken of 
 their comforts than of the convenience of the Armenians. 
 
 My reader is already acquainted with the person and 
 character of the chief executioner ; and, before I proceed 
 further, I must also make him acquainted with the serdar. A 
 man of a more sinister aspect was never seen. His eyes,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 295 
 
 which, in the common expression of his countenance, were 
 like opaque bits of glass, glared terribly whenever he became 
 animated, and almost started out of their old shrivelled 
 sockets ; and when this happened, it was always remarked 
 that a corresponding smile broke out upon his mouth, which 
 made the Shah's poet say, that Hassan Khan's face was like 
 Agri Dagh, the mountain near which he lived. When clouded 
 at the top and the sun shone in the plain, a storm was sure 
 to ensue. Time had worn two deep wrinkles down his 
 cheeks, which were not hid by a scanty beard, notwith- 
 standing all the pains he took to make it thick ; and the 
 same enemy having despoiled him of all his teeth save one, 
 which projected from his mouth, had produced deep cavities 
 that made the shaggy hairs, thinly spread over them, look 
 like burnt stubble on the slopes of a valley. Altogether, it 
 was difficult to say whether the goat or the tiger was most 
 predominant ; but this is most certain, that never was the 
 human form so nearly allied to that of the brute as in this 
 instance. His character corresponded to his looks ; for no 
 law, human or divine, ever stood in the way of his sensuality ; 
 and when his passions were roused, he put no bounds to his 
 violence and cruelty. But with all this, he had several 
 qualities which attached his followers to him. He was 
 liberal and enterprising ; he had much quickness and pene- 
 tration, and acted so politically towards the Shah and his 
 government, that he was always treated with the greatest 
 confidence and consideration. He lived in princely magni- 
 ficence ; was remarkable for his hospitality, and making no 
 mystery of his irregularity as a Mussulman ; was frank and 
 open in his demeanour, affable to his inferiors, and the very 
 best companion to those who shared in his debaucheries. 
 No bolder drinker of wine existed in Persia, except, perhaps, 
 his present companion, the executioner, who, as long as he 
 could indulge without incurring the Shah's displeasure, had 
 ratified an eternal treaty of alliance between his mouth and 
 every skin of wine that came within his reach. 
 
 It was before these two worshipful personages that I was
 
 296 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 introduced, followed by two or three of my principal atten- 
 dants. I stood at the end of the apartment until I was 
 spoken to. 
 
 " You are welcome," said the chief executioner. " Hajji, 
 by my soul, tell me how many Russians have you killed ? 
 Have you brought a head let me see ? " 
 
 Here the serdar took him up, and said, "What have you 
 done ? What Russians are on the frontier ? and when shall 
 we get at them ? " 
 
 To all of which I answered, after making the usual 
 prefatory speech, "Yes, Agas, I have done all that was in 
 my power to do. It was a lucky hour when we set off, for 
 everything that you wish to know I can explain ; and it is 
 evident that the destinies of the serdar and of my master are 
 much on the rise, since so insignificant a slave as I can be of 
 use to them." 
 
 " Good luck is no bad thing, that's true," said the serdar ; 
 "but we trust a great deal to our swords, too," rolling his 
 eyes about at the same time, and smiling in the face of the 
 chief executioner. 
 
 "Yes, yes," said his companion, "swords and gunpowder, 
 spears and pistols those are our astrologers. It will always 
 be a fortunate hour that will bring me within slice of an 
 infidel's neck. As for me, I am a kizzel bash (a red head), 
 and pretend to nothing else. A good horse, a sharp sword, 
 a spear in my hand, and a large maidan (an open space) 
 before me, with plenty of Muscovites in it : that is all I 
 want." 
 
 "And what do you say to good wine, too?" said the 
 serdar. " I think that is as good a thing as any you have 
 mentioned. We'll have the caliph in, and make him give 
 Hajji a cup of his best. But tell us first," addressing 
 himself to me, "what have you seen and done? where are 
 the Russians posted ? how many of them are there ? have 
 they any guns ? who commands them ? where are their 
 Cossacks ? have you heard anything of the Georgians ? 
 where is the Russian commander-in-chief? what are the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 297 
 
 Lesgi about ? where is the renegade Ismael Khan? Come, 
 tell us all ; and you, mirza," addressing himself to his scribe, 
 "write down all he says." 
 
 Upon this I drew myself up, and, putting on a face of 
 wisdom, I made the following speech : 
 
 "By the soul of the serdar! by the salt of the chief 
 executioner! the Muscovites are nothing. In comparison to 
 the Persians they are mere dogs. I, who have seen with 
 my own eyes, can tell you, that one Persian with a spear 
 in his hand would kill ten of those miserable beardless 
 creatures." 
 
 "Ah, you male lion!" exclaimed my master, apparently 
 delighted with what I said, " I always knew that you 
 would be something. Leave an Ispahani alone : he will 
 always show his good sense." 
 
 " There are but few Muscovites on the frontier. Five, 
 six, seven, or eight hundred perhaps a thousand or two 
 thousand but certainly not more than three. They have 
 some ten, twenty, or thirty guns ; and as for the Cossacks, 
 putch and, they are nothing. It is very inconvenient that 
 they are to be found everywhere when least wanted, with 
 those thick spears of theirs, which look more like the goad of 
 an ox than a warlike weapon, and they kill, 'tis true ; but 
 then, they are mounted upon yabous (jades), which can never 
 come up to our horses, worth thirty, forty, fifty tomauns 
 each, and which are out of sight before they can even get 
 theirs into a gallop." 
 
 " Why do you waste your breath upon the Cossacks and 
 their horses ? " said the chief executioner : " you might as well 
 talk of monkeys mounted upon bears. Who commands the 
 infidels ? " 
 
 " They call him the deli may or, or the mad major ; and the 
 reason why he is called so is, because he never will run away. 
 Stories without number are related of him. Among others, 
 that he has got the pocket Koran of his excellency the serdar 
 in his possession, which he shows to every one as a great 
 trophy."
 
 298 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 " Ay, that's true," exclaimed the serdar. " These bankrupt 
 dogs surprised me last year, when encamped not five para- 
 sangs hence, and I had only time to save myself in my shirt 
 and trowsers, on the back of an unsaddled horse. Of course, 
 they pillaged my tent, and, among other things, stole my 
 Koran. But I'll be even with them. I have shown them 
 what I can do at Gavmishlu, and we still have much more to 
 perform upon their fathers' graves. How many guns did you 
 say they had ? " 
 
 " Four or five, or six," said I. 
 
 " I wrote down twenty or thirty just now," remarked the 
 mirza, who was writing at the edge of the carpet, " which of 
 the two is right ? " 
 
 " Why do you tell us lies ? " exclaimed the serdar, his eyes 
 becoming more animated as he spoke. "If we find that any 
 part of what you say be false, by the head of Ali ! you will 
 soon discover that our beards are not to be laughed at with 
 impunity." 
 
 "In truth, then," said I, "this intelligence is not of my 
 own acquiring. The greatness of the serdar's and my aga's 
 good fortune consists in my having fallen upon a means 
 of getting the most perfect information through a young 
 Armenian, who risked his life for us, upon my making him a 
 promise of recompense in the name of the serdar." 
 
 " A recompense in my name ! " exclaimed the serdar : 
 "who is this Armenian? and what Armenian was ever 
 worthy of a recompense ? " 
 
 Upon this I related the whole of Yusuf s history, from the 
 beginning to the end. In pleading his cause in this public 
 manner, I hoped that the serdar would feel it impossible to 
 resist the justice of the demand which I made upon him, and 
 that my young protege would at once be released from his 
 fears and apprehensions of the chief's resentment, and restored 
 to the undisputed possession of his wife. 
 
 When I had done speaking, nothing was said, but here 
 and there Allah! Allah! il Allah! (there is but one God!) 
 in suppressed exclamations from the lips of the Mohamme-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 299 
 
 dans present ; whilst the serdar, having rolled his eyes about, 
 and twitched his mouth into various odd shapes, at length 
 mumbled out, "The Armenian has performed wonders;" 
 and then called aloud to his servants to bring his kalian 
 or pipe. 
 
 Having smoked two or three long whiffs, he said, " Where 
 is this Armenian ? Order the caliph also to come before us." 
 
 Upon which Yusuf was ushered in, with the shoves and 
 thrusts by which a poor man of his nation is generally intro- 
 duced before a Persian grandee ; and he stood in face of the 
 assembly as fine a specimen of manly beauty as was ever 
 seen, evidently creating much sensation upon all present by 
 the intrepidity of his appearance. The serdar, in particular, 
 fixed his eyes upon him with looks of approbation ; and, 
 turning round to the executioner-in-chief, made signs, well 
 known among Persians, of his great admiration. 
 
 The caliph, a heavy, coarse man, of a rosy and jovial 
 appearance, dressed in the black hood peculiar to the 
 Armenian clergy, appeared soon after, followed by two or 
 three of his priests. Having stood for a short time before 
 the serdar and his companion, he was invited to sit, which 
 he did, not without going through all the ceremonial of com- 
 plimentary phrases, and covering the feet and hands in a 
 manner usual on such occasions. 
 
 The serdar then, addressing himself to the caliph, said, 
 "It is plain that we Mussulmans are become less than dogs 
 in the land of Iran. The Armenians now break into our 
 harems, steal our wives and slaves from before our faces, and 
 invite men to defile our fathers' graves. What news is this, 
 O caliph ? Is this Allah's work or yours ? " 
 
 The caliph, attacked in this unexpected manner, looked 
 very much alarmed, and the dew broke out upon his ample 
 and porous forehead. Experience had taught him that these 
 sorts of attacks were generally the forerunners of some heavy 
 fine, and he already put himself in a posture of defence to 
 resist it. 
 
 "What language is this?" said he in answer. "We,
 
 300 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 whose dogs are we, who should dare even to think upon 
 the evil of which your highness speaks ? We are the Shah's 
 subjects ; you are our protector, and the Armenians sit in 
 peace under your shade. What manner of man is this who 
 has brought these ashes upon our heads ? " 
 
 "That is he," answered the serdar, pointing to Yusuf. 
 " Say, fellow, have you stolen my slave or not ? " 
 
 " If I am guilty," said the youth, "of having taken aught 
 from any man, save my own, here am I, ready to answer for 
 myself with my life. She who threw herself out of your 
 windows into my arms was my wife before she was your 
 slave. We are both the Shah's rayats, and it is best known 
 to yourself if you can enslave them or no. We are Armenians, 
 'tis true, but we have the feelings of men. It is well known 
 to all Persia, that our illustrious Shah has never forced the 
 harem of even the meanest of his subjects ; and, secure in 
 that feeling, how could I ever suppose, most noble serdar, 
 that we should not receive the same protection under your 
 government ? You were certainly deceived when told that 
 she was a Georgian prisoner ; and had you known that she 
 was the wife of one of your peasantry, you never would have 
 made her your property." 
 
 The caliph, frightened at the language of the youth, 
 stopped him, by loud and angry exclamation ; but the serdar, 
 apparently struck by language so unusual to his ears, instead 
 of appearing angry, on the contrary looked delighted (if the 
 looks of such a countenance could ever express delight) ; and, 
 staring with astonished eyes upon the youth, seemed to forget 
 even the reason of his having been brought before him. Of 
 a sudden, as if dispelling his former indignation, he stopped 
 all further discussion, by saying to him, " Enough, enough ; 
 go take your wife, and say no more ; and, since you have 
 rendered us a service at Hamamlu, you shall remain my 
 servant, and wait upon my person. Go, my head valet will 
 instruct you in your duties ; and when attired in clothes 
 suited to your situation, you will return again to our pre- 
 sence. Go, and recollect that my condescension towards
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 301 
 
 you depends upon your future conduct." Upon this Yusuf, 
 in the fulness of his heart, ran up to him with great apparent 
 gratitude, fell upon his knees, and kissed the hem of his 
 garment, not knowing what to say, or what countenance to 
 keep upon such unlooked-for good fortune. 
 
 Every one present seemed astonished ; the chief execu- 
 tioner gave a shrug, and indulged in a deep yawn ; the 
 caliph, as if he had been disencumbered of a heavy weight, 
 stretched his limbs, and the huge drops that were before 
 glittering on his brow now disappeared, and his face again 
 expanded into good humour. All congratulated the serdar 
 upon his humanity and benevolence, and compared him to 
 the celebrated Noushirwan. Barikallah and Mashallah was 
 repeated and echoed from mouth to mouth, and the story 
 of his magnanimity was spread abroad, and formed the 
 talk of the whole camp. I will not pretend to explain what 
 were the serdar's real sentiments ; but those who well knew 
 the man were agreed, that he could be actuated by no 
 generous motive. 
 
 CHAPTER XLI 
 
 He describes an expedition against the Russians, and does ample justice 
 to the cowardice of his chief. 
 
 MY chief and the serdar having acquired all the information 
 which Yiisuf and I could give them upon the force and posi- 
 tion of the Muscovites, it was determined that an attack 
 should immediately be made, and the army was ordered to 
 march upon Hamamlu. 
 
 Everything was soon in motion ; the artillery began its 
 tedious and difficult march through the mountains ; the in- 
 fantry made their way in the best manner they could, and the 
 cavalry were seen in unconnected groups all over the plain. 
 I must not omit to say, that before the march began I received
 
 302 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 a visit from the Armenian. He was no longer, in appearance, 
 the rude mountaineer with his rough sheep's skin cap, his short 
 Georgian tunic, his sandalled feet, his long knife hung over 
 his knee, and his gun slung obliquely across his body ; but 
 he was now attired in a long vest of crimson velvet, trimmed 
 with gold lace and gold buttons ; a beautiful Cashmerian shawl 
 was tied gracefully round his waist ; his small cap, of Bokhara 
 lamb's skin, was duly indented at the top, and the two long 
 curls behind his ears were combed out with all proper care. 
 He had now more the appearance of a woman than a man, 
 so much were his fine limbs hid by his robes ; and as he 
 approached me, he could not help blushing and looking awk- 
 ward at the metamorphosis. He thanked me with expres- 
 sions that indicated much gratitude, and assured me, that so 
 far from having expected this result to his interview with the 
 serdar, he had, in fact, made up his mind to the loss of both 
 his wife and life, and therefore had spoken with the boldness 
 of one determined to die. " But," said he, "notwithstanding 
 this great change in my fortunes, this new existence of mine 
 will never do. I cannot endure the degradation of being a 
 mere idle appendage to the state of the serdar ; and be not 
 angry if, ere long, I decline the honour of his service. I will 
 submit to everything as long as my wife is not in a place 
 of safety ; but when once I have secured that, then adieu. 
 Better live a swineherd in the Georgian mountains, naked 
 and houseless, than in all these silks and velvets, a despised 
 hanger-on, be it even in the most luxurious court of Persia." 
 
 I could not help applauding such sentiments, although I 
 should have been happy had he made any one else his con- 
 fidant, conscious that if he did run away I should in some 
 measure be made answerable for him. 
 
 In the meanwhile the army proceeded on its march. As 
 we passed Ashtarek, Yusuf got permission to take possession 
 of Mariam, who, now transformed into the wife of one who 
 had the reputation of being in the good graces of the serdar, 
 travelled with great respectability and consideration on horse- 
 back, and formed one among the numerous camp-followers
 
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 304 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 that are always attached to a Persian army. The camp was 
 pitched between Gavmishlu and Aberan, where all that was 
 not necessary for the expedition was ordered to remain until 
 its return. It was settled that the serdar and the chief 
 executioner, each accompanied by their own men, with two 
 pieces of artillery, should form the expedition, and towards 
 the close of the evening it set off. 
 
 As we approached the scene of action, the serdar became 
 impatient of delay, and, like every Persian who despises the 
 utility of infantry, expressed his wish to push on with the 
 cavalry. I will not say as much for the impatience of my 
 chief. He continued his boastings to the last, 'tis true, and 
 endeavoured to make every one believe that he had only to 
 appear, and the enemy would instantly be seized with a panic ; 
 but at length he ceded to the serdar's wishes of bringing on 
 the rear-guard, whilst the latter pushed on to Hamamlu with 
 the main body of the cavalry. I, of course, remained behind, 
 to act under the orders of my chief. The serdar intended to 
 reach Hamamlu before break of day in order to surprise the 
 gates, and deviated from the road to ford the Pembaki river. 
 We continued our march straight for that place, and were to 
 appear as the day dawned, to give a retreat to the serdar, in 
 case he should be beaten back. 
 
 The morning had just broke when we reached the banks 
 of the river. The chief executioner was surrounded by a 
 body of about five hundred cavalry, and the infantry was 
 coming up as well as it could. We were about fording the 
 river, when of a sudden we were accosted by a voice on the 
 other side, which, shouting out two or three strange words 
 in a language unknown to us, explained their meaning by a 
 musket shot. This stopped our career, and called the atten- 
 tion of our chief, who came up looking paler than death. 
 
 "What's the news?" exclaimed he, in a voice far below 
 its usual pitch : " what are we doing ? where are we going ? 
 Hajji Baba," accosting me, "was it you that fired?" 
 
 " No," said I, catching rather more of his apprehension 
 than was convenient ; " no, I did not fire. Perhaps there are
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 305 
 
 ghols here among the Muscovites, as well as at Ashtarek 
 among the Armenians." 
 
 In another minute more barbarous cries were heard, and 
 another shot was fired, and by this time day had sufficiently 
 advanced to show two men, on the other bank, whom we dis- 
 covered to be Russian soldiers. As soon as our chief saw the 
 extent of the danger, and the foe opposed to us, his counten- 
 ance cleared up, and he instantly put on the face of the 
 greatest resolution and vigour. " Go, seize, strike, kill ! " he 
 exclaimed, almost in one breath, to those around him : "Go, 
 bring me the heads of yonder two fellows." 
 
 Immediately several men dashed into the river, with drawn 
 swords, whilst the two soldiers withdrew to a small rising 
 ground, and, placing themselves in a convenient position, 
 began a regular, though alternate, discharge of their muskets 
 upon their assailants, with a steadiness that surprised us. 
 They killed two men, which caused the remainder to retreat 
 back to our commander, and no one else seemed at all anxious 
 to follow their example. In vain he swore, entreated, pushed, 
 and offered money for their heads : not one of his men would 
 advance. At length, he said, with a most magnanimous 
 shout, " I myself will go: here, make way! will nobody follow 
 me ? " Then, stopping, and addressing himself to me, he said, 
 " Hajji ! my soul, my friend, won't you go and cut those 
 men's heads off? I'll give you everything you can ask." 
 Then putting his hand round my neck, he said, "Go, go; I 
 am sure you can cut their heads off." 
 
 We were parleying in this manner, when a shot from one 
 of the Russians hit the chief executioner's stirrup, which 
 awoke his fears to such a degree, that he immediately fell to 
 uttering the most violent oaths. Calling away his troops, and 
 retreating himself at a quick pace, he exclaimed, " Curses be 
 on their beards ! Curse their fathers, mothers, their ancestry, 
 and posterity ! Whoever fought after this fashion ? Killing, 
 killing, as if we were so many hogs. See, see, what animals 
 they are ! They will not run away, do all you can to them. 
 They are worse than brutes : brutes have feeling, they 
 
 u
 
 3 o6 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 have none. O Allah, Allah, if there was no dying in the 
 case, how the Persians would fight ! " 
 
 By this time we had proceeded some distance, and then 
 halted. Our chief, expecting to find the Russians back to 
 back under every bush, did not know what course to pursue, 
 when the decision was soon made for us by the appearance of 
 the serdar, who, followed by his cavalry, was seen retreating 
 in all haste from before the enemy. It was evident that his 
 enterprise had entirely failed, and nothing was left for the 
 whole army but to return whence it came. 
 
 I will not attempt to draw a picture of the miserable 
 aspect of the serdar' s troops : they all looked harassed and 
 worn down by fatigue, and seemed so little disposed to rally, 
 that one and all, as if by tacit consent, proceeded straight on 
 their course homewards without once looking back. But as 
 much as they were depressed in spirits, in the same degree 
 were raised those of our commander. He so talked of his 
 prowess, of the wound he had received, and of his intended 
 feats, that at length, seizing a spear, he put his horse at the 
 full gallop, and overtaking his own cook, who was making the 
 best of his way to his pots and pans, darted it at him, in the 
 exuberance of his valour, and actually pierced him in the 
 back through his shawl girdle. 
 
 Thus ended an expedition which the serdar expected 
 would have given him a great harvest of glory and of 
 Muscovites' heads ; and which, the chief executioner flattered 
 himself, would afford him exultation and boasting for the 
 remainder of his life. But notwithstanding its total failure, 
 still he had ingenuity enough to discover matter for self- 
 congratulation. 
 
 Surrounded by a circle of his adherents, amongst whom I 
 was one, he was in the midst of a peal of boasting, when a 
 message came from the serdar, requesting that Hajjt Baba 
 might be sent to him. I returned with the messenger, and 
 the first words which the serdar said, upon my appearing be- 
 fore him, were, "Where is Yusuf? Where is his wife?" 
 
 It immediately occurred to me that they had escaped ; and
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 307 
 
 putting on one of my most innocent looks, I denied having 
 the least knowledge of their movements. 
 
 The serdar then began to roll his eyeballs about, and to 
 twist up his mouth into various shapes. Passion burst from 
 him in the grossest and most violent expressions : he vowed 
 vengeance upon him, his race, his village, and upon every- 
 thing and everybody in the least connected with him ; and 
 whilst he expressed a total disbelief of all my protestations of 
 ignorance, he gave me to understand, that if I was found to 
 have been in the smallest degree an accessary to his escape, 
 he would use all his influence to sweep my vile person from 
 the face of the earth. 
 
 I afterwards heard that he had sent a party of men to 
 Gavmishlu, to seize and bring before him Yusuf s parents and 
 kindred, with everything that belonged to them ; to take 
 possession of their property, and to burn and destroy what- 
 ever they could not bring away : but the sagacious and active 
 youth had foreseen this, and had taken his measures with 
 such prudence and promptitude, that he had completely 
 baffled the tyrant. He, his wife, his wife's relations, his own 
 parents and family, with all their effects (leaving only their 
 tilled ground behind them), had concerted one common plan 
 of migration into the Russian territory. It had fully suc- 
 ceeded, as I afterwards heard, for they were received with 
 great kindness, both by the government and by their own 
 sect ; lands were allotted, and every help afforded them for 
 the re-establishment of their losses.
 
 308 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 CHAPTER XLII 
 
 He proceeds to the king's camp, and gives a specimen of lying 
 on a grand scale. 
 
 I RETURNED to my chief full of apprehension at the threat 
 which I had received ; and knowing how very tenacious all 
 our great men are of power over their own servants, I did not 
 fail immediately to inform him of the language which the 
 serdar had entertained me with. He became furious, and I 
 had only to fan the flame which I had raised in order to 
 create a quarrel between them ; but, having more fears about 
 the serdar's power of hurting me than I had confidence in the 
 ability of the chief executioner to protect me, I thought it 
 best for all parties that I should retire from the scene, and 
 craved my master's permission to return to Tehran. Pleased 
 with an opportunity of showing the serdar that nobody but 
 himself could control his servants, he at once assented to my 
 proposal ; and forthwith began to give me instructions con- 
 cerning what I should say to the grand vizier touching the 
 late expedition, and particularly in what light I was to place 
 his own individual prowess. 
 
 "You yourself were there, Hajji," said he to me, "and 
 therefore can describe the whole action as well as I could, 
 We cannot precisely say that we gained a victory, because, 
 alas ! we have no heads to show ; but we also were not 
 defeated. The serdar, ass that he is, instead of waiting for 
 the artillery, and availing himself of the infantry, attacks a 
 walled town with his cavalry only, and is very much surprised 
 that the garrison shut their gates and fire at him from the 
 ramparts : of course he can achieve nothing, and retires in 
 disgrace. Had I been your leader, things would have gone 
 otherwise ; and as it was, I was the only man who came 
 hand to hand with the enemy. I was wounded in a desperate
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 309 
 
 manner ; and had it not been for the river between us, not a 
 man of them would have been left to tell the tale. You will 
 say all this, and as much more as you please ; " and then, 
 giving me a packet of letters to the grand vizier, and to the 
 different men in office, and an arizeh (a memorial) to the 
 Shah, he ordered me to depart. 
 
 I found the Shah still encamped at Sultanieh, although 
 the autumn was now far advanced, and the season for 
 returning to Tehran near at hand. I presented myself at 
 the grand vizier's levee, with several other couriers from 
 different parts of the empire, and delivered my despatches. 
 When he had inspected mine, he called me to him, and said 
 aloud, "You are welcome! You also were at Hamamlu? 
 The infidels did not dare to face the Kizzil bashes, eh ? The 
 Persian horseman, and the Persian sword, after all, nobody 
 can face. Your khan, I see, has been wounded ; he is, 
 indeed, one of the Shah's best servants. Well it was no 
 worse. You must have had hot work on each bank of the 
 river." 
 
 To all of this, and much more, I said, " Yes, yes," and 
 " No, no," as fast as the necessity of the remark required ; 
 and I enjoyed the satisfaction of being looked upon as a man 
 just come out of a battle. The vizier then called to one of 
 his mirzas or secretaries, " Here," said he, "you must make 
 out a fatteh nameh (a proclamation of victory), which must 
 immediately be sent into the different provinces, particularly 
 to Khorassan, in order to overawe the rebel khans there ; 
 and let the account be suited to the dignity and character of 
 our victorious monarch. We are in want of a victory just 
 at present ; but, recollect, a good, substantial, and bloody 
 victory." 
 
 "How many strong were the enemy?" inquired the 
 mirza, looking towards me. 
 
 " Bisyar, bisyar, many, many," answered I, hesitating and 
 embarrassed how many it would be agreeable that I should 
 say. 
 
 " Put down fifty thousand," said the vizier coolly.
 
 310 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 " How many killed ?" said the mirza, looking first at the 
 vizier, then at me. 
 
 " Write ten to fifteen thousand killed," answered the 
 minister. " Remember these letters have to travel a great 
 distance. It is beneath the dignity of the Shah to kill less 
 than his thousands and tens of thousands. Would you have 
 him less than Rustam, and weaker than Afrasiab ? No, our 
 kings must be drinkers of blood, and slayers of men, to be 
 held in estimation by their subjects and surrounding nations. 
 Well, have you written ? " said the grand vizier. 
 
 "Yes, at your highness's service," answered the mirza: 
 " I have written (reading from his paper) that the infidel 
 dogs of Muscovites (whom may Allah in his mercy impale 
 on stakes of living fires !) dared to appear in arms to the 
 number of fifty thousand, flanked and supported by a 
 hundred mouths spouting fire and brimstone ; but that, as 
 soon as the all-victorious armies of the Shah appeared, ten 
 to fifteen thousand of them gave up their souls ; whilst 
 prisoners poured in in such vast numbers, that the prices 
 of slaves have diminished one hundred per cent, in all the 
 slave markets of Asia." 
 
 " Barikallah ! Well done ! " said the grand vizier. " You 
 have written well. If the thing be not exactly so, yet, by 
 the good luck of the Shah, it will, and therefore it amounts 
 to the same thing. Truth is an excellent thing when it suits 
 one's purpose, but very inconvenient when otherwise." 
 
 " Yes," said the mirza, as he looked up from his knee, upon 
 which he rested his hand to write his letter, and quoting a 
 well-known passage in Saadi, " Falsehood mixed with good 
 intentions is preferable to truth tending to excite strife." 
 
 The vizier then called for his shoes, rose from his seat, 
 mounted the horse that was waiting for him at the door of 
 his tent, and proceeded to the audience of the Shah, to give 
 an account of the different despatches that he had just 
 received. I followed him, and mixed in with his large 
 retinue of servants, until he turned round to me, and said, 
 " You are dismissed ; go and take your rest."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 311 
 
 CHAPTER XLIII 
 
 He relates a horrid tale, the consequences of which plunge him in the 
 
 greatest misery. 
 
 IN a few days after the camp was struck, and the Shah 
 returned to his winter quarters at Tehran in the same pomp 
 and parade with which he had left it. I had resumed my 
 post as sub-lieutenant to the chief executioner, and was 
 busily engaged in disposing of the men under my command, 
 that the best order might be preserved during the march, 
 when I was commanded to send off a messenger to Tehran, 
 with orders that the bazigers, the dancers and singers, should 
 be in readiness to receive the Shah on his arrival at Suli- 
 manieh. This place, as I have said before, is a palace situ- 
 ated on the banks of the Caraj, about nine parasangs from 
 the capital. 
 
 On receiving this order my long-forgotten Zeenab came 
 again to my recollection ; and all my tender feelings, which, 
 owing to my active life, had hitherto lain dormant, were 
 now revived. Seven months were elapsed since we had first 
 become acquainted ; and although during that time I had 
 lived with men of a nature sufficiently barbarous to destroy 
 every good feeling, yet there was something so terrible in 
 what I imagined must now be her situation, and I felt myself 
 so much the cause of it, that my heart smote me every time 
 that the subject came across my mind. " We shall soon see," 
 thought I, "if my fears be well founded. In a few days 
 more we reach Sulimanieh, and then her fate will be decided." 
 
 On the day of our arrival I headed the procession, to see 
 that every proper arrangement had been made within the 
 palace ; and as I approached the walls of the harem, within 
 which the bazigers had already taken their station, I heard 
 the sounds of their voices and of their musical instruments.
 
 312 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 What would I not have given to have spoken to Zeenab, or 
 even to have observed her at a distance ! But I knew that it 
 would not be prudent to ask many questions concerning her, 
 as suspicions, dangerous both to her and me, might arise, and 
 probably involve us in immediate ruin. Indeed, had I been 
 inclined to give myself much stir on the subject, it would have 
 been to no purpose ; for very shortly after I heard the salute 
 fired from the Zamburek camels, which indicated that the 
 Shah had alighted from his horse. 
 
 A "BAZIGER," WITH A TAMBOURINE, RESTING. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 After he had smoked one pipe in his hall of state, and had 
 dismissed the courtiers who attended him, he retired to the 
 harem. 
 
 Upon his entrance there I heard the songs of the women, 
 accompanied by tambourines, guitars, and little drums, 
 rending the air as they walked in procession before him. 
 Well did I listen with all my ears to discover Zeenab's voice ; 
 but every endeavour was baffled, and I remained in a dis-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BAB A 313 
 
 agreeable state of vibration betwixt hope and fear, until a 
 hasty order was issued for my old master, Mirza Ahmak, the 
 king's physician, to appear immediately before the Shah. 
 Combinations of the mind in all matters of deep interest 
 are formed as quick as thought, and act like the foretellings 
 of prophecy. When I heard that the hakim was sent for, 
 a cold thrill ran through my veins, and I said to myself, 
 " Zeenab is lost for ever ! " 
 
 He came, was soon dismissed, and seeing me at the door 
 of the harem, took me on one side, and said, " Hajji, the 
 Shah is much enraged. You remember the Curdish slave, 
 which I presented to him at the festival of the No ruz. She 
 has not appeared among the dancing-women, and pretends to 
 be ill. He loves her, and had set his heart upon seeing her. 
 He has called me to account for her conduct, as if I could 
 control the caprice of this daughter of the devil ; and says, 
 that if he does not find her in full health and beauty when he 
 reaches the ark (the palace), which will be on the next best 
 fortunate hour, he will pluck my beard out by the roots. 
 Curse the unlucky moment which made her my slave ; and 
 still more the hour when I first invited the Shah into my 
 house." 
 
 Upon this he left me, to set off immediately for Tehran, 
 whilst I retired to my tent, to ruminate over the horrid fate 
 that awaited this unfortunate girl. I endeavoured to rally my 
 spirits by the hope that perhaps she was actually ill, and that 
 it had been impossible for her to appear before the king ; and 
 then I consoled myself with the idea, that if my fears were 
 well founded, the doctor's heart might be softened, and he 
 might screen her from the Shah's observation, by giving 
 some evasive reason for her non-appearance. Then, after all, 
 as if braving my feelings, I repeated to myself the lines of 
 one of our poets, who, like me, had lost his mistress. 
 
 " ' Is there but one pair of stag eyes, or one cypress waist, 
 or one full moon face in the world, that I should so mourn 
 over the loss of my cruel one ? 
 
 " ' Why should I burn, why should I cut myself, and
 
 3H THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 sigh out my griefs under the windows of the deaf-eared 
 charmer ? 
 
 " ' No, let me love where love is cheap ; for I am a miser 
 of my feelings.' ' 
 
 Thus I endeavoured to make light of the subject, and to 
 show myself a true Mussulman by my contempt for woman- 
 kind. But still, turn where I would, go where I would, the 
 image of Zeenab, a torn and mangled corpse, was ever before 
 my eyes, and haunted my imagination at all seasons and at 
 all hours. 
 
 At length the fortunate hour for the Shah's entry was 
 announced, and he entered Tehran amidst the whole of its 
 population, who had been turned out to greet his arrival. 
 My most pressing want was to see the hakim, as if by 
 chance, in order that no suspicion might fall upon me, in 
 case poor Zeenab was found guilty. On the very evening 
 of our arrival, my wishes (alas! how fatally!) were accom- 
 plished. As I was taken up in giving some orders to a 
 nasakchi, I saw him come out of the Shah's private apart- 
 ment, looking full of care, with one hand stuck in his girdle, 
 the other in his side, his back more bent than usual, and 
 with his eyes fixed on the ground. I placed myself in his 
 way, and gave him the salutation of peace, which caused 
 him to look up. 
 
 When he had recognised me, he stopped, saying, "You 
 are the very man I was seeking. Come hither ; " and he 
 took me on one side. " Here is a strange story afloat,'' 
 said he: "this Curd has brought all sorts of ashes on my 
 head. Wallah! by Heaven! the Shah has run clean mad. 
 He talks of making a general massacre of all that is male, 
 within and without his harem, beginning with his viziers, 
 and finishing by the eunuchs. He swears by his own head, 
 that he will make me the first example if I do not find out 
 the culprit." 
 
 "What culprit? who? what?" said I: "what has hap- 
 pened ? " 
 
 "Why, Zeenab," answered he, "Zeenab."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 315 
 
 "Oh! I understand," said I. "Ay! she you used to love 
 so much." 
 
 " I ?" answered the hakim, as if afraid of being himself 
 suspected, "I? Astaferallahl Heaven forbid! Do not say 
 so, for pity's sake, Hajji ; for if such a suspicion were once 
 hinted, the Shah would put his threat into immediate execu- 
 tion. Where did you ever hear that I loved Zeenab ? " 
 
 " Many things were reported concerning you at that time," 
 said I, "and all were astonished that a man of your wisdom, 
 
 A "BAZIGER" RESTING. 
 
 From an oil-painting in tke South Kensington Museum. 
 
 the Locman of his time, the Galenus of Persia, should have 
 embarked in so frail and dangerous a commodity as a Curdish 
 maid, one of the undoubted progeny of the devil himself, 
 whose footsteps could not be otherwise than notoriously un- 
 fortunate ; who, of herself, was enough to bring ill luck to 
 a whole empire, much more to a single family like yours." 
 
 "You say true, Hajji," said Mirza Ahmak, as he shook 
 his head from side to side, and struck his left hand on the 
 pit of his stomach. "Ah! marvellous fool was I ever to
 
 3i 6 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 have been caught by her black eyes ! in fact, they were not 
 eyes, they were spells : the devil himself looked out of 
 them, not she ; and if he is not in her now, may I be called 
 Gorumsak all the rest of my days. But, after all, what shall 
 I do?" 
 
 "What can I say?" answered I. "What will the Shah 
 do with her ? " 
 
 " Let her go to Jehanum," answered the doctor ; " let her 
 go to her father's mansion, and a good journey to her. I 
 am only thinking of my own skin." 
 
 Upon this, looking up tenderly at me, he said, " Ah, 
 Hajji ! you know how much I have always loved you : I 
 took you into my house when you were houseless I placed 
 you in a good situation, and you have risen in your profes- 
 sion all through me allow that there is, or that there ought 
 to be such a thing in the world as gratitude you have now 
 an opportunity of exercising it : " then pausing for a while, 
 and playing with the tip of my beard, he said, " Have you 
 guessed what I wished to say ? " 
 
 "No," said I, "it has not yet reached my understanding." 
 
 "Well, then," said he, "in two words, own that you are 
 the culprit. A great loss of consideration would accrue to 
 me, but none to you ; you are young, and can bear such a 
 story to be told of you." 
 
 "Loss of consideration, indeed!" exclaimed I, "what is 
 that when the loss of life will ensue ? Are you mad, O 
 hakim, or do you think me so ? Why should I die ? why 
 do you wish to have my blood upon your head ? All I can 
 say, if I am questioned on the subject, is, that I do not 
 think you guilty because you were ever too much in fear 
 of the khanum, your wife ; but I will never say that I am 
 guilty." 
 
 Whilst in the middle of our conversation, one of the 
 Shah's eunuchs came up to me, and said that his chief had 
 been ordered to see that the sub-lieutenant to the chief 
 executioner, with five men, were in waiting at the foot of 
 the high tower at the entrance of the harem, at the hour
 
 of midnight ; and that they were to bring a taboot, or hand- 
 bier, with them, to bear away a corpse for interment. 
 
 All I could say in answer was, "Be cheshm!" (By my 
 eyes !) ; and lucky was it for me that he quitted me immedi- 
 ately, that Mirza Ahmak had also left me, and that it was 
 dusk, or else the fear and anguish which overwhelmed me 
 upon hearing this message must have betrayed me. A 
 cold sweat broke out all over my body, my eyes swam, my 
 knees knocked under me, and I should perhaps have fallen 
 into a swoon, if the counter fear of being seen in such a 
 state, in the very centre of the palace, had not roused me. 
 
 "What," said I to myself, "is it not enough that I have 
 been the cause of her death ; must I be her executioner too ? 
 must I be the grave-digger to my own child ? must I be the 
 ill-fated he who is to stretch her cold limbs in the grave, 
 and send my own life's blood back again to its mother earth ? 
 Why am I called upon to do this, oh cruel, most cruel 
 destiny ? Cannot I fly from the horrid scene ? Cannot I 
 rather run a dagger into my heart ? But no, 'tis plain my 
 fate is ordained, sealed, fixed ! and in vain I struggle, I 
 must fulfil the task appointed for me ! O world, world ! 
 what art thou, and how much more wouldst thou be known, 
 if each man was to lift up the veil that hideth his own 
 actions, and show himself as he really is ! " 
 
 With these feelings, oppressed as if the mountain of 
 Demawend and all its sulphurs were on my heart, I went 
 about my work doggedly, collecting the several men who 
 were to be my colleagues in this bloody tragedy ; who, heed- 
 less and unconcerned at an event of no unfrequent occurrence, 
 were indifferent whether they were to be the bearers of a 
 murdered corpse, or themselves the instruments of murder. 
 
 The night was dark and lowering, and well suited to the 
 horrid scene about to be acted. The sun, unusual in these 
 climates, had set, surrounded by clouds of the colour of 
 blood ; and, as the night advanced, they rolled on in unceas- 
 ing thunders over the summits of the adjacent range of 
 Albors. At sudden intervals the moon was seen through the
 
 3 i8 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BAB A 
 
 dense vapour, which covered her again as suddenly, and 
 restored the night to its darkness and solemnity. I was 
 seated lonely in the guard-room of the palace, when I heard 
 the cries of the sentinels on the watch-towers, announcing 
 midnight, and the voices of the muezzins from the mosques, 
 the wild notes of whose chant floating on the wind ran 
 through my veins with the chilling creep of death, and 
 announced to me that the hour of murder was at hand. They 
 were the harbingers of death to the helpless woman. I 
 started up, I could not bear to hear them more, I rushed 
 on in desperate haste ; and as I came to the appointed spot, 
 I found my five companions already arrived, sitting uncon- 
 cerned on and about the coffin that was to carry my Zeenab 
 to her eternal mansion. The only word which I had power 
 to say to them was, "Skoud?" (Is it done?) to which they 
 answered, "Me skoud" (It is not done). To which ensued 
 an awful silence. I had hoped that all was over, and that I 
 should have been spared every other horror, excepting that 
 of conducting the melancholy procession to the place of 
 burial ; but no, the deed was still to be done, and I could 
 not retreat. 
 
 On the confines of the apartments allotted to the women 
 in the Shah's palace stands a high octagonal tower, some 
 thirty gez in height, seen conspicuous from all parts of the 
 city, at the summit of which is a chamber, in which he 
 frequently reposes and takes the air. It is surrounded by 
 unappropriated ground, and the principal gate of the harem 
 is close to its base. On the top of all is a terrace (a spot, 
 ah ! never by me to be forgotten !), and it was to this that 
 our whole attention was now riveted. I had scarcely arrived, 
 when, looking up, we saw three figures, two men and a 
 female, whose forms were lighted up by an occasional gleam 
 of moonshine, that shone in a wild and uncertain manner 
 upon them. They seemed to drag their victim between 
 them with much violence, whilst she was seen in attitudes 
 of supplication, on her knees, with her hands extended, and 
 in all the agony of the deepest desperation. When they
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 319 
 
 were at the brink of the tower her shrieks were audible, but 
 so wild, so varied by the blasts of wind that blew round the 
 building, that they appeared to me like the sounds of laughing 
 madness. 
 
 We all kept a dead and breathless silence : even my five 
 ruffians seemed moved I was transfixed like a lump of life- 
 less clay ; and if I am asked what my sensations were at the 
 time, I should be at a loss to describe them, I was totally 
 inanimate, and still I knew what was going on. At length, 
 one loud, shrill, and searching scream of the bitterest woe 
 was heard, which was suddenly lost in an interval of the most 
 frightful silence. A heavy fall, which immediately succeeded, 
 told us that all was over. I was then roused, and with my head 
 confused, half crazed and half conscious, I immediately rushed 
 to the spot, where my Zeenab and her burden lay struggling, 
 a mangled and mutilated corpse. She still breathed, but the 
 convulsions of death were upon her, and her lips moved as if 
 she would speak, although the blood was fast flowing from 
 her mouth. I could not catch a word, although she uttered 
 sounds that seemed like words. I thought she said, " My 
 child ! my child ! " but perhaps it was an illusion of my brain. 
 I hung over her in the deepest despair ; and having lost all 
 sense of prudence and of self-preservation, I acted so much 
 up to my own feelings, that if the men around me had had 
 the smallest suspicion of my real situation, nothing could 
 have saved me from destruction. I even carried my frenzy 
 so far as to steep my handkerchief in her blood, saying to 
 myself, " This, at least, shall never part from me ! " I came 
 to myself, however, upon hearing the shrill and demon-like 
 voice of one of her murderers from the tower's height, crying 
 out, ' Is she dead?' 'Ay, as a stone,' answered one of my 
 ruffians. 'Carry her away, then,' said the voice. 'To hell 
 yourself,' in a suppressed tone, said another ruffian ; upon 
 which my men lifted the dead body into the taboot, placed it 
 upon their shoulders, and walked off with it to the burial- 
 ground without the city, where they found a grave ready dug 
 to receive it. I walked mechanically after them, absorbed in
 
 320 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 most melancholy thoughts ; and when we had arrived at the 
 burial-place, I sat myself down on a gravestone, scarcely 
 conscious of what was going on. I watched the operations 
 of the nasakchies with a sort of unmeaning stare ; saw them 
 place the dead body in the earth ; then shovel the mould 
 over it ; then place two stones, one at the feet and the other 
 at the head. When they had finished, they came up to me, 
 and said ' that all was done ' : to which I answered, " Ga 
 home ; 1 will follow." They left me seated on the grave, 
 and returned to the town. 
 
 The night continued dark, and distant thunders still 
 echoed through the mountains. No other sound was heard 
 save now and then the infant-like cries of the jackal, that 
 now in packs, and then by two or three at the time, kept 
 prowling round the mansions of the dead. 
 
 The longer I remained near the grave the less I felt 
 inclined to return to my home, and to my horrid employ- 
 ment of executioner. I loathed my existence, and longed to 
 be so secluded from the world, and from all dealings with 
 those of high authority in it, that the only scheme which I 
 could relish was that of becoming a real dervish, and passing 
 the rest of my days in penitence and privations. Besides, 
 the fear of having disclosed, both by my words and actions, 
 how much I was involved in the fate of the deceased, came 
 across my mind, and added to my repugnance of returning. 
 
 Day by this time began to dawn, and impelled, both by 
 a sense of my danger, and by my desire to quit a place which 
 had become odious to me, I determined to proceed on foot 
 to Kinaragird, the first stage to Ispahan, and then take 
 advantage of the first caravan that should be going to that 
 city. 
 
 " I will go and seek consolation in retirement, and in the 
 bosom of my family," said I to myself; " I will see what is 
 become of my parents perhaps I may reach the paternal 
 roof in time to receive my father's dying blessing, and by my 
 presence give him, in his old age, the happiness of seeing his 
 long-lost son restored to him. How shall I be able to go
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 321 
 
 through my duties, with this misfortune about my neck ? I 
 have lived long enough in vice, and it is time that I should 
 make the tobeh, or renounce my wicked ways." 
 
 In short, this horrid event produced such an effect upon 
 my mind, that had I continued in the sentiments it inspired 
 me with through life, I might well have aspired to be placed 
 at the head of our most holy dervishes. 
 
 BAZIGERS" PLAYING ON THE LUTE. TAMBOURINE, AND 
 OR HAND-DRUM (ENAMEL ON COPPER). 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 TUMBAK," 
 
 CHAPTER XLIV 
 
 Hajji Baba meets with an old friend, who cheers him tip, gives him good 
 advice, and secures him from danger. 
 
 PULLING out the handkerchief from my breast, still wet with 
 the blood of the unfortunate Zeenab, I contemplated it with 
 feelings of the most bitter anguish ; then spreading it before 
 me on her grave, I went through a ceremony to which I had
 
 322 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 long been unaccustomed I said my prayers. Refreshed by 
 this act, and strengthened in my resolutions of leaving 
 Tehran, I tore myself away, and stept valiantly onwards 
 towards Ispahan. 
 
 Having reached Kinaragird, without seeing the trace of 
 a caravan, and feeling myself sufficiently strong to proceed 
 on my journey, I pushed on for the caravanserai of the 
 sultan's reservoir, where I intended to halt for the night. 
 
 As I came in sight of the building, at some distance in 
 the desert, I saw a man putting himself into strange atti- 
 tudes, playing antics by himself, and apparently addressing 
 himself to something on the ground. I approached him, 
 and found that he was talking with great animation to his 
 cap, which was thrown some yards before him. Going still 
 nearer to him, I discovered a face that was familiar to me. 
 
 "Who can it be ?" said I to myself: "it must be one of 
 my old friends the dervishes of Meshed." 
 
 In fact, it proved to be the Kessehgou, the story-teller, 
 who was practising a new story by himself, making his cap 
 act audience. As soon as he saw, he recognised me, and 
 came up to embrace me with seeming rapture. 
 
 " Ahi, Hajji," said he, "peace be with you! Where 
 have you been these many years ? Your place has long 
 been empty. My eyes are refreshed by the sight of you." 
 Then he repeated himself in the same strain several times 
 over, until we at length got upon more rational subjects. 
 
 He related his adventures since we had last met ; which 
 consisted in the detail of long and painful journeys, and of 
 the various methods which his ingenuity had suggested to 
 him of gaining his bread. He was now on his return from 
 Constantinople, from whence he had walked, and had it in 
 contemplation to make his way in the same manner to Delhi, 
 after having passed a summer at Ispahan, whither he was 
 now proceeding. 
 
 Although little inclined to talk, in the melancholy mood 
 in which my mind had been plunged, still I could not refrain 
 in some measure from catching the exuberance of spirits
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 323 
 
 with which my companion seemed to overflow, and I also 
 gave him an account of myself since the day I left Meshed 
 with Dervish Sefer, when I had just recovered from the 
 bastinado on the soles of my feet. 
 
 As I proceeded in my narrative, showing him how, step 
 by step, I had advanced in station and dignity, it was amus- 
 ing to see with what increased reverence he treated me. At 
 length, when I came to my promotion to the rank of sub- 
 lieutenant to the chief executioner, I verily believe that he 
 would have prostrated himself before me, with such extreme 
 respect had experience taught him to treat gentlemen of that 
 profession. But when he heard the sequel of my story ; how 
 for a woman I had abandoned my high situation and all the 
 prospects of advancement which it held out to me ; I per- 
 ceived the low estimation to which I fell in his opinion. He 
 exclaimed that I was not worthy of the kaladt (the dress of 
 distinction), which fortune had cut out, fashioned, and invested 
 me with. " So, because the Shah thinks it fitting to destroy 
 a faithless slave," said he, "in whose guilt you have at most 
 only half the share, you think it necessary to abandon the 
 excellent station in life to which you had reached, and to 
 begin again the drudgery of an existence lower and more un- 
 certain than even the one which I enjoy. Well" (making a 
 pause), "there is no accounting for the different roads which 
 men take in their search after happiness : some keep the high- 
 road ; some take short cuts ; others strike out new paths for 
 themselves ; and others again permit themselves to be led on 
 without asking the road : but I never yet heard of one, but 
 yourself, who, having every road and every path thrown open 
 to him, preferred losing his way, with the risk of never again 
 finding it." And then he finished by quoting a reflection of 
 the poet Ferdusi, applicable to the uncertainty of a soldier's 
 life, by way of consoling me for the vicissitudes of mine, 
 saying, "Gaftip&sht her zeen, gahi zeen ber pusht" (sometimes 
 a saddle bears the weight of his back, and sometimes his back 
 the weight of a saddle). 
 
 Whilst we were conversing, a caravan appeared on the
 
 3 2 4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 road from Ispahan, and making straight for the caravanserai, 
 took up its abode there for the night. 
 
 " Come," said the dervish, who was a merry sociable 
 fellow, " come, forget your sorrows for the present : we will 
 pass an agreeable evening, notwithstanding we are in the 
 midst of this dreary and thirsty desert. Let us get together 
 the travellers, the merchants, and the mule-drivers who 
 compose the caravan, and after we have well supped and 
 smoked, I will relate to you a story that has recently 
 happened at Stamboul, and which I am sure cannot yet have 
 been imported into Persia." 
 
 Most willingly did I accede to his proposal ; for I was 
 happy to drive melancholy from my thoughts at any rate, and 
 we strolled into the building together. 
 
 Here we found men from different parts of Persia, unload- 
 ing their beasts and putting their effects in order, settling- 
 themselves in the different open rooms which look upon the 
 square of the caravanserai. A dervish, and a story-teller too, 
 was a great acquisition, after the fatigue and dulness of a 
 journey across the Salt Desert ; and when we had made a 
 hearty meal, he collected them on the square platform in the 
 middle of the court, making them sit round, whilst he took 
 his station in the midst. He then related his promised story. 
 
 I endeavoured to pay every attention to it ; but I found 
 that my mind so constantly strayed from the narrative to the 
 scenes I had lately witnessed, that it became impossible for 
 me to retain what he said. I remarked, however, that he 
 interested his audience in the highest degree ; for when 
 plunged in one of my deepest reveries, I was frequently 
 roused by the laughter and applause which the dervish excited. 
 I promised myself on some future occasion to make him relate 
 it over again, and in the meanwhile continued to give myself 
 up wholly to my feelings. Much did I envy the apparent 
 light-heartedness that pervaded my companions, and which at 
 intervals made the vaulted rooms of the building resound 
 with shouts of merriment. I longed for the time when I 
 should again be like them, and enjoy the blessings of exist-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 325 
 
 ence without care ; but grief, like every other passion, must 
 have its course, and as the spring which gushes with violence 
 from the rock by degrees dwindles into a rivulet, so it must 
 be let to pass off gradually until it becomes a 
 moderate feeling, and at length is lost in the ^ 
 
 vortex of the world. 
 
 Day had closed by the time that the 
 dervish had finished his story. The blue 
 vault of heaven was completely furnished 
 with bright twinkling stars, which seemed 
 to have acquired a fresh brilliancy after the 
 storms of the preceding night ; and the moon 
 was preparing to add her soft lustre to the 
 scene, when a horseman, fully equipped, 
 entered the porch that leads into the cara- 
 vanserai. 
 
 The principal persons of the caravan had 
 still kept their station on the platform, quietly 
 smoking their pipes and discussing the merits 
 of the tale they had just heard ; the servants 
 had dispersed to spread their masters' beds ; 
 and the muleteers had retired for the night 
 to nestle in among their mules and their 
 baggage : I, destitute of everything, had 
 made up my mind to pass my night on the 
 bare ground with a stone for my pillow ; but 
 when I looked at the horseman, as he 
 emerged from the darkness of the porch 
 into the light, my ideas took another turn. 
 
 I recognised in him one of the nasakchies, 
 who under my orders had witnessed the 
 death of the wretched Zeenab ; and I very 
 soon guessed what the object of his journey 
 might be, when I heard him ask if the 
 caravan was coming from, or going to, Tehran ; and whether 
 they had seen a person, whom, by the description he gave, 
 I instantly recognised to be myself. 
 
 A KALIAN OR 
 WATERPIPE. 
 
 From the South Ken- 
 sington Museum.
 
 326 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 My friend, the dervish, immediately divined how the 
 matter stood ; and, deeply versed in every stratagem of deceit, 
 without hesitation took upon himself to answer for the whole 
 company. 
 
 He said, that all were going to the capital, with the 
 exception of himself and his friend, who, both dervishes, 
 were just arrived from Constantinople ; but that he had met 
 one answering to the person he had described, one who 
 seemed oppressed with care, and worn with grief, wandering 
 about in a sort of chance manner through the wilds of the 
 desert. He added many more particulars which corre- 
 sponded so entirely to my appearance and history, that the 
 horseman could not doubt for a moment but that this was 
 the person he was in search of, and rode off in great haste 
 according to the directions of the dervish, who, as may be 
 imagined, purposely led him wrong. 
 
 When he had been gone some time, the dervish took me 
 on one side, and said, "If you want to secure yourself from 
 this man, you must instantly depart ; for when he finds his 
 search fruitless, and is tired of wandering about the desert, 
 he will certainly return here, and then what can hinder your 
 being discovered ? " 
 
 " I will do anything rather than be discovered by him," 
 said I : "he is evidently sent to seize me. I can expect no 
 mercy from such a ruffian, particularly as I have not enough 
 money to offer him, for I know his price. Where can I go ? " 
 
 The dervish reflected a while, and said, " You must go 
 to Kom : you will reach it before morning ; and as soon as 
 you arrive there, lose not a moment in getting within the 
 precincts of the sanctuary of the tomb of Fatimeh. You 
 will then, and not till then, be safe, even from the Shah's 
 power. Should you be caught without its walls, there is 
 no hope for you. You will be seized ; and then may Allah 
 take you into his holy keeping ! " 
 
 "But when I am there," said I, "what shall I do? how 
 shall I live?" 
 
 " Leave that to me," said the dervish ; "I shall soon
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 327 
 
 overtake you, and as I know the place and many of the 
 people in it, Inshallah, please God, you will not fare so ill 
 as you may imagine. I myself was once obliged to do the 
 same thing, for having been the means of procuring poison 
 for one of the Shah's women, who used it to destroy a rival. 
 Orders were sent to seize me, and I managed to reach the 
 bust (the refuge seat) at Shah Abdul Azim just five minutes 
 before the executioner who was to have apprehended me. 
 I never fared better in my life ; for I did nothing : I was 
 supported by the charity of those who came to say their 
 prayers at the shrine of the saint ; and the women, who 
 constantly travelled thus far to pray and take their pleasure, 
 always contrived to comfort me in my confinement. The 
 only evil you have to fear is an order from the Shah, that 
 no one on pain of death shall give you food : if so, you will 
 be starved into a surrender, and then the Prophet be your 
 protector ! But your case is not one of sufficient consequence 
 to make you fear this. The Shah cannot care so much for 
 one slave, when he has a hundred others to fill her place. 
 After all, men do not die so easily as we Persians imagine. 
 Recollect what the sheikh says, ' Clouds and wind, the moon, 
 the sun, the firmament (and he might have added dervishes), 
 all are busied, that thou, O man, mayest obtain thy bread ; 
 only eat it not in neglect.' " 
 
 "I am not the man," said I, "who will forget your 
 kindness. Perhaps my fortune may again be on the rise, 
 and then I will put my beard into your hand. You know 
 Hajji Baba of old, and that he is not one of those who 
 1 exposes his virtues on the palm of his hand, and hides 
 his vices under his armpit.' What I was at Meshed, the 
 same I am now : the seller of adulterated smoke, and the 
 deputy-lieutenant to the chief executioner, are one and the 
 same." 
 
 "Well, then, go," said the 'dervish, as he embraced me, 
 " and God be with you ! Take care of the ghols and gins 
 as you cross the Salt Desert ; and again, I repeat, may 
 Allah, peace, and safety attend you ! "
 
 328 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 As the day broke I could distinguish the gilt cupola of 
 the tomb, at a considerable distance before me ; and this 
 beacon of my security inspired me with fresh vigour in my 
 solitary march over the dreary waste. I had scarcely reached 
 the outskirts of the town of Kom, before I perceived the 
 horseman at some distance behind, making the best of his 
 way in search of me ; and therefore I looked neither right 
 nor left until the massive chain that hangs across the prin- 
 cipal gateway of the sanctuary was placed between myself 
 and my pursuer. I then exclaimed, " Ilkamefillah ! " Praises 
 to Allah ! O Mahomed ! O Ali ! and kissing the threshold of 
 the tomb, I said my prayers with all the fervency of one 
 who having escaped a tempest has got safe into port. 
 
 I had scarcely time to look about me before I perceived 
 the nasakchi coming towards me. He accosted me with a 
 cold salutation of peace, and then said, "that he had a royal 
 order to conduct me into the Shah's presence wherever I 
 might be found." 
 
 I told him, that, with all reverence for his firman, it was 
 my intention to avail myself of the acknowledged privilege of 
 every true believer, to seek refuge at the shrine of the saint, 
 and that, of course, he could not violate it by dragging me 
 from it. " Besides, this is the favourite saint of the king of 
 kings," said I, "and he respects this shrine more than any 
 other." 
 
 "What shall I do then, Hajji?" said he. "You know 
 this is not written in the order. If I go back without 
 you, perhaps the Shah may cut off my ears instead of 
 yours." 
 
 "Inshallakl please God," said I. 
 
 "Please God, do you say?" said he in a fury: "am I 
 come all this way that men should call me ass ? I am not 
 a man if I do not make you return with me." And forthwith 
 we began to wrangle to such' a degree, that several of the 
 priests, attached to the endowment, came from their rooms 
 to inquire into the cause of the disturbance. 
 
 " Here is one," exclaimed I, " who presumes to violate
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 329 
 
 the sanctuary. I have taken refuge in it, and he talks of 
 forcing me away ! You, that are men of God," addressing 
 myself to the mollahs, "speak, and say whether you will 
 allow this ? " 
 
 They all took my part. " This is unheard of," said they, 
 "in Persia. If you dare to take one from the bust, you will 
 not only have the vengeance of the saint on your head, but 
 the whole corps of the Ullemah will be upon you ; and be 
 you protected by the king of kings, or the king of demons, 
 nothing can screen you from their fury." 
 
 The nasakchi remained quite uncertain what to do ; and 
 at length, softening his tone, he endeavoured to make a virtue 
 of necessity, and began to negotiate with me upon what he 
 might get, if he went away without further molesting me. 
 
 I did not deny the right he had of being paid for his 
 trouble, for it is precisely what I should have expected myself 
 had I been in his place ; but I made him recollect how little I 
 was able to requite him ; for he knew as well as I all the 
 circumstances of my flight, and that I had brought nothing 
 away with me from Tehran. 
 
 He suggested that I might give him what effects I had 
 left behind me ; to which I did not in the least agree, but 
 recommended him to go whence he came, and to leave the 
 afflicted to their miseries. 
 
 The fact is, as I afterwards found out, the rogue had 
 already taken possession of my property, which consisted of 
 clothes, trunks, bedding, horse-furniture, pipes, &c., having 
 himself been the cause of denouncing me to the Shah. He 
 had watched the effect which the murderous death of the 
 unhappy Curd had produced upon me, and immediately had 
 laid his plan for my destruction, and for stepping into my 
 situation. 
 
 Finding that he could not exert the power which had 
 been vested in him, and that his firman was so much waste 
 paper, as long as I continued to hold fast to my refuge-place, 
 he thought it best to return to Tehran ; but in so doing, he 
 delivered his powers into the hands of the governor of the
 
 330 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjf BABA 
 
 town, with strict injunctions to keep watch over my actions, 
 and in case I stirred from the sanctuary, to seize and send 
 me a prisoner to the seat of government. 
 
 BOWS, ARROWS, QUIVER, AND BULL-HEADED MACE. 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 CHAPTER XLV 
 
 He takes refuge in a sanctuary, where his melancholy thoughts are 
 diverted by a curious story. 
 
 I HAD scarcely got rid of the nasakchi, when I heard the voice 
 of my friend the dervish, who was announcing his arrival in 
 the holy city, by all the different invocations of the Almighty 
 and his attributes, which are frequently made by true believers. 
 
 Very soon after, I was delighted to see him coming towards 
 me, and to hear him express his satisfaction that I had reached 
 my resting-place before my pursuer had had time to come up 
 with me. 
 
 He proposed to keep me company for a short time, and 
 we took possession of one of the cells situated in the square 
 court forming part of the buildings in the centre of which 
 the tomb is placed. I had by good luck brought away my 
 ready money, consisting of twenty tomauns in gold, besides
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 33 1 
 
 some silver ; and we expended some of this in articles of 
 the first necessity, such as a mat to cover the bare floor of 
 our room, and an earthen jug for our water. 
 
 But before we had got any further in our domestic arrange- 
 ments, the dervish accosted me in the following manner : 
 
 " I must be informed of one thing before we proceed. Do 
 
 A DERVISH WITH CARVED CALABASH HOLDING OUT AN ALMOND, 
 
 AND SILENTLY DEMANDING ALMS. 
 
 (From a photograph by Dr. Wills.) 
 
 you ever say your prayers ? do you keep your fasts ? do you 
 make your ablutions regularly ? or, do you continue to live in 
 that fit state for eternal perdition, which we were wont to do 
 at Meshed?" 
 
 " Why do you speak thus to me ? " said I. " What can it 
 be to you whether I pray or not ? "
 
 332 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 " It is not much to me," answered the dervish, "but it is 
 a great deal to yourself. This Kom is a place that, except- 
 ing on the subject of religion, and settling who are worthy 
 of salvation, and who to be damned, no one opens his lips. 
 Every man you meet is either a descendant of the Prophet 
 or a man of the law. All wear long and mortified faces, and 
 seem to look upon that man as an appointed subject for the 
 eternal fires, who happens to have a rosy cheek and a laugh- 
 ing eye. Therefore, as soon as I approach the place, I always 
 change the atmosphere of my countenance from fair to haze, 
 and from haze to downright clouds and darkness, according 
 as circumstances may require. My knees, which scarcely 
 ever touch the praying carpet, now perform their functions 
 five good times per day ; and I, who in any other place never 
 consult any Kebleh l but that of my own pleasure and inclina- 
 tions, now know the direction of the true one, as well as I 
 know the way to my mouth." 
 
 " All this is very well," said I ; " but what may be the use 
 of it? I am a Mussulman, 'tis true, but to such a pitch as 
 this no, never." 
 
 "The use!" answered the dervish. ''The use is this; 
 that it will save you from being starved or stoned to death. 
 These priests will hearken to no medium, either you are 
 a true believer, or you are not. If they were to have the 
 least suspicion that you doubted any of the articles of the 
 faith, that you did not look upon the Koran as a living 
 miracle, and did not read it with becoming reverence, whether 
 you understand or not, they would soon show you what 
 power they possess. And if they were to suppose you to be a 
 Sufi (a free-thinker), by the death of your father and mother, 
 they would tear you into little pieces, and then feel contented 
 that they had got on another post on the high-road to para- 
 dise. Perhaps, friend Hajji, you do not know that this is 
 the residence of the celebrated Mirza Abdul Cossim, the first 
 mushtehed (divine) of Persia ; a man who, if he were to 
 give himself sufficient stir, would make the people believe 
 
 1 i.e. Mecca, to which all Mahomedans turn in their prayers.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 333 
 
 any doctrine that he might choose to promulgate. Such is 
 his influence, that many believe he could even subvert the 
 authority of the Shah himself, and make his subjects look 
 upon his firmans as worthless, as so much waste paper. But 
 the truth is, he is a good man ; and, except stoning his Sufi, 
 and holding us wandering dervishes as the dirt under his 
 feet, I know of no fault in him." 
 
 Having heard him out, I agreed that, however I might 
 deplore the want of habit in my religious duties, yet, situated 
 as I was, it was necessary that I should acquire them, in 
 order to be held in proper estimation by the great authori- 
 ties, under whose eye I was immediately placed ; and forth- 
 with I set about saying my prayers and making my ablutions, 
 as if my very existence depended upon my regularity. Indeed, 
 what I had formerly looked upon as irksome ceremony now 
 became an agreeable pastime, and helped greatly to soften 
 the tedium of my melancholy life. I never omitted to rise 
 at the first call ; to make my ablutions at the cistern, using 
 all the forms of the strictest shiah, and then to pray in the 
 most conspicuous spot I could find. The intonations of my 
 Allah /to akbar were to be heard in each corner of the tomb, 
 and I hoped they came to the ear of every inhabitant of it. 
 No face wore a more mortified appearance than mine: even 
 the dervish, who was the best mimic possible, could not beat 
 me in the downcast eye, the hypocritical ejaculation, the 
 affected taciturnity of the sour, proud, and bigoted man of 
 the law. 
 
 It became known that I was a refugee at the sanctu- 
 ary ; and I very soon discovered the advantages which the 
 dervish had promised me, from taking upon me the airs of 
 the place, and assuming the character of a rigid Mussulman. 
 He spread abroad the history of my misfortune, of course 
 much to my advantage, giving me out for one who was suf- 
 fering for the sins of another, and asserting that the doctor 
 ought, in fact, to have been the sufferer. 
 
 I became acquainted with the principal personages of 
 the town, who were agreed that they had never known a
 
 334 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 better model of a true believer than I ; and had I not been 
 confined to the walls of the sanctuary, it was in contem- 
 plation to have made me &peisk namaz (a leader of the prayers) 
 at their religious meetings in the mosque. I found that the 
 profound taciturnity which I had adopted was the best help 
 towards the establishment of a high reputation for wisdom ; 
 and that, by the help of my beads, which I kept constantly 
 counting, a mumble of my lips, and occasional groans and 
 pious exclamations, the road to the highest consideration was 
 open to me. 
 
 My dervish and I lived almost free of expense, so plenti- 
 fully were we supplied with food. The women, in particular, 
 did not lose an opportunity of bringing me presents of fruit, 
 honey, bread, and other necessaries, for which I repaid them 
 with kind thanks, and now and then with a talisman, written 
 with my own hand. 
 
 But although our life was one of ease, yet it was so dull, 
 and so void of incident, that even the spirits of my companion 
 began to sink under it. In order to fill up some of the long 
 hours of listlessness which oppressed us, I encouraged him to 
 recite all his stories, one by one, not forgetting the one which 
 he had related with so much effect in the caravanserai of the 
 sultan's reservoir, and we found this a very agreeable mode 
 of closing the day. 
 
 I feel, O reader, that you also may partake of that same 
 dulness which oppressed me ; and I think it but fair that I 
 should endeavour to dissipate it, in the same manner as mine 
 was by the dervish, therefore I will repeat the story which 
 he related to me ; and, whether it amuses you or not, yet 
 perhaps you will be glad to know how the mind of a poor 
 prisoner, in the sanctuary at Kom, was diverted from its 
 miseries.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 335 
 
 STORY OF THE BAKED HEAD. 
 
 " The present Khon-khor l of Roum is a stanch Mussul- 
 man, and a rigid upholder of the true faith. Upon his 
 coming to the throne, he announced his intention of doing 
 away with many customs common to the infidels, which had 
 crept into the administration of the state during the reign of 
 his predecessor ; and he thought it his duty to endeavour 
 to restore things to their primitive simplicity, and to adopt 
 a mode of government purely Turkish. Accordingly he 
 resumed a custom which had almost got into disuse, that of 
 going about the city in tebdil, or disguise ; and he Was so 
 careful about the disguises which he adopted, and the people 
 whom he admitted into his secrets on these occasions, that 
 he took all sorts of precautions, and invented all sorts of 
 schemes of secrecy, in whatever related to his dresses, and 
 the characters in which he chose to appear. 
 
 "It is not long ago that considerable discontent prevailed 
 throughout Turkey, and rebellion threatened to break out in 
 Constantinople itself. He was then very anxious to ascer- 
 tain the temper of the public mind ; and, in his usual wary 
 manner, determined to get a suit made that would make him 
 undiscoverable by even his own immediate attendants. 
 
 "He usually sent for different tailors at different times, 
 and in different places. On this occasion, he ordered his 
 favourite slave, the white eunuch Mansouri, to bring him one 
 of no repute, with all the requisite secrecy, at midnight, in 
 order that he might receive instructions about a dress. 
 
 " The slave in great humility made his bash ustum (on 
 my head be it), and went his way to execute the command.' 
 
 " Close to the gate of the Bezesten, or cloth-market, he 
 saw an old man in a stall, so narrow, that he could scarce 
 turn himself about in it, who was taken up in patching 
 an old cloak. He was almost bent double with constant 
 
 1 Khon-khor literally " blood-drinker ; " so the Sultan of Roum, or Turkey, is 
 styled in Persia.
 
 336 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 labour at his shop-board ; and his eyes seemed not to have 
 
 A TAILOR (IRONING). 
 
 From the collection of Dr. II 'ills. 
 
 benefited by his application, for a pair of glasses were
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 337 
 
 mounted on his nose. 'This is precisely the man I want,' 
 said the slave to himself: ' I am sure he can be of no repute.' 
 So intent was he upon his work, that he did not heed 
 the salutation of ' Peace be with you, friend ! ' with which 
 Mansouri accosted him ; and when he did look up, and saw 
 the well-dressed personage whom he thought had spoken, he 
 continued his work without making the usual reply ; for he 
 could not suppose that the salutation was meant for such a 
 poor devil as he. 
 
 " However, finding that he was the object of the eunuch's 
 attention, he doffed the spectacles, threw away his work, and 
 was about getting on his legs, when he was stopped, and 
 requested not to disturb himself. 
 
 " ' What is your name ? ' said Mansouri. 
 
 " ' Abdallah,' said the tailor, ' at your service ; but I am 
 generally called Babadul by my friends, and the world at 
 large.' 
 
 " ' You are a tailor, are not you ? ' continued the slave. 
 
 " ' Yes,' said the other, ' I am a tailor, as well as the 
 muezzin at the little mosque in the fish-market. What more 
 can I do ? ' 
 
 " ' Well, Babadul,' said Mansouri, ' have you a mind for 
 a job, a good job ? ' 
 
 " ' Am I a fool,' answered the old man, ' that I should 
 dislike it ? Say what it is.' 
 
 " ' Softly, my friend,' remarked the eunuch ; ' we must go 
 on slow and sure. Will you suffer yourself to be led blind- 
 folded at midnight wherever I choose to take you, for a job ? ' 
 
 "'That's another question,' said Babadul; 'times are 
 critical, heads fly in abundance, and a poor tailor's may go 
 as well as a vizier's or a capitan pacha's. But pay me well, 
 and I believe I would make a suit of clothes for Eblis, the 
 foul fiend, himself.' 
 
 " ' Well, then, you agree to my proposal ? ' said the eunuch, 
 who at the same time put two pieces of gold in his hand. 
 
 " ' Yes, most surely,' said Babadul, ' I agree. Tell me 
 what I am to do, and you may depend upon me.' 
 
 Y
 
 338 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 " Accordingly they settled between them that the eunuch 
 was to come to the stall at midnight, and lead him away 
 blindfolded. 
 
 " Babadul, being left alone, continued his work, wonder- 
 ing what could be the job upon which he was to be so 
 mysteriously employed ; and, anxious to make his wife a 
 partaker of the news of his good luck, he shut up his stall 
 earlier than usual, and went to his house, that was situated 
 not far from the little mosque in the fish-market, of which 
 he was the muezzin. 
 
 " Old Dilferib, his wife, was almost as much bent double as 
 her husband ; and in consequence of the two gold pieces, and 
 in contemplation of more which they expected to receive, 
 they treated themselves to a dish of smoking kabobs, a salad, 
 dried grapes, and sweetmeats, after which they consoled 
 themselves with some of the hottest and most bitter coffee 
 which the old woman could make. 
 
 " True to his appointment, Babadul was at his stall at 
 midnight, where he was as punctually met by Mansouri. 
 Without any words, the former permitted himself to be blind- 
 folded, whilst the latter led him away by the hand, making 
 many and devious turns, until they reached the imperial 
 seraglio ; there, stopping only to open the private iron gate, 
 Mansouri introduced the tailor into the very heart of the 
 sultan's private apartments. The bandage over his eyes was 
 taken off in a dark chamber, lighted up only by a small lamp, 
 which stood on the shelf surrounding the top of the room, 
 but which was splendidly furnished by sofas of the richest 
 brocade, and by carpets of the most costly manufacture. 
 Here Babadul was commanded to sit, until Mansouri returned 
 with a bundle, wrapped in a large shawl handkerchief : this 
 being opened, a sort of dervish's dress was displayed to the 
 tailor, and he was requested to look at it, to consider how 
 long he would be making such a one, and then to return it 
 again, duly folded up, to its shawl covering. In the mean- 
 while, Mansouri told him to stay there until he should return 
 to take him away again, and then left him.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 339 
 
 " Babadul, having turned the dress over and over again, 
 calculated each stitch, and come to its proper conclusions, 
 packed it up in the handkerchief as he had been com- 
 manded ; but no sooner had he done this, than a man of lofty 
 demeanour and appearance, whose look made the poor 
 tailor shrink within himself, came into the room, took up 
 the bundle, and walked away with it, without uttering a 
 single word. 
 
 " A few minutes after, as Babadul was pondering over 
 the strangeness of his situation, and just recovering from the 
 effects of this apparition, a door opened in another part of 
 the apartment, and a mysterious figure, richly dressed, came 
 in, bearing a bundle, equally covered with a shawl, about the 
 size of that which had just been taken away ; and making 
 the lowest prostrations before the tailor, in great apparent 
 trepidation, approached him, placed it at his feet, kissed the 
 ground, and retreated without saying a word, or even 
 looking up. 
 
 "'Well,' said Babadul to himself, 'this may be some- 
 thing very fine, and I may be some very great personage, 
 for aught I know ; but this is very certain, that I had rather 
 be patching my old cloak in the stall than doing this job, 
 however grand and lucrative it may be. Who knows what 
 I may have been brought here for ? These comings in and 
 goings out of strange-looking people, apparently without 
 tongues in their heads, do not argue well. I wish they 
 would give me fewer bows and a greater supply of words, 
 from which I might learn what I am to get by all this. I 
 have heard of poor women having been sewn up in sacks 
 and thrown into the sea. Who knows ? perhaps I am 
 destined to be the tailor on such an occasion.' 
 
 " He had scarcely got thus far in his soliloquy, when the 
 slave Mansouri re-entered the room, and told him, without 
 more words, to take up the bundle ; which having done, his 
 eyes were again blindfolded, and he was led to the spot from 
 whence he came. Babadul, true to his agreement, asked no 
 questions, but agreed with the slave that in three days the
 
 340 
 
 dress should be ready for delivery at his stall, for which he 
 was to receive ten more pieces of gold. 
 
 " Having got rid of his companion he proceeded with 
 all haste to his house, where he knew his wife would be 
 impatiently waiting his return ; and as he walked onwards 
 he congratulated himself that at length he had succeeded in 
 getting indeed a job worth the having, and that his fate had 
 finally turned up something good for his old age. It was 
 about two o'clock in the morning when he reached the door 
 of his house. He was received by his wife with expressions 
 of great impatience at his long absence ; but when he held 
 up the bundle to her face, as she held up the lamp to his, 
 and when he said, ' Mujdeh, give me a reward for good 
 news : see, I have got my work, and a handsome reward 
 we shall get when it is finished,' she was all smiles and 
 good-humour. 
 
 " ' Leave it there till we get up, and let us go to bed 
 now,' said the tailor. 
 
 " ' No, no,' said the wife ; ' I must look at what you have 
 got before I retire, or I shall not be able to sleep ; ' upon 
 which, whilst he held up the lamp, she opened the bundle. 
 Guess, guess at the astonishment of the tailor and his wife, 
 when, instead of seeing a suit of clothes, they discovered, 
 wrapped in a napkin, in its most horrid and ghastly state, a 
 human head ! 
 
 "It fell from the old woman's hands, and rolled away 
 some paces, whilst the horror-struck couple first hid their 
 faces with their hands, and then looked at each other with 
 countenances which nothing can describe. 
 
 "'Work!' cried the wife, 'work, indeed! pretty work 
 you have made of it ! Was it necessary to go so far, and 
 to take such precautions, to bring this misfortune on our 
 heads ? Did you bring home this dead man's head to make 
 a suit of clothes of? ' 
 
 " ' Anna senna ! Baba senna ! Curses be on his mother ! 
 Perdition seize his father ! ' exclaimed the poor tailor, ' for 
 bringing me into this dilemma. My heart misgave me as
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 341 
 
 that dog of an eunuch talked of blindfoldings and silence to 
 me : I thought, as true as I am a Turk, that the job could 
 not consist only in making a suit of clothes ; and sure enough 
 this dog's son has tacked a head to it. Allah ! Allah ! what 
 am I to do now ? I know not the way to his home, or else I 
 would take it back to him immediately, and throw it in his 
 face. We shall have the bostangi bashi and a hundred 
 other bashis here in a minute, and we shall be made to pay 
 the price of blood ; or, who knows, be hung, or drowned, or 
 impaled ! What shall we do, eh, Dilferib, my soul, say ? ' 
 
 " ' Do ! ' said his wife ; 'get rid of the head, to be sure : 
 we have no more right to have it palmed upon us than any- 
 body else.' 
 
 " ' But the day will soon dawn,' said the tailor, 'and then 
 it will be too late. Let us be doing something at once.' 
 
 (i ' A thought has struck me,' said the old woman. ' Our 
 neighbour, the baker, Hassan, heats his oven at this hour, 
 and begins soon after to bake his bread for his morning's 
 customers. He frequently has different sorts of things to 
 bake from the neighbouring houses, which are placed near 
 the oven's mouth overnight : suppose I put this head into 
 one of our earthen pots and send it to be baked ; nobody 
 will find it out until it is done, and then we need not send 
 for it, so it will remain on the baker's hands.' 
 
 " Babadul admired his wife's sagacity, and forthwith she 
 put her plan into execution. When the head had been placed 
 in a baking-pan, she watched a moment when nobody was 
 at hand, and set it on the ground, in the same row with 
 the other articles that were to be inserted in Hassan's oven. 
 The old couple then double-barred the door of their house, 
 and retired to rest, comforting themselves with the acquisi- 
 tion of the fine shawl and napkin in which the head had 
 been wrapped. 
 
 " The baker Hassan and his son Mahmud were heating 
 their oven, inserting therein thorns, chips, and old rubbish, 
 at a great rate, when their attention was arrested by the 
 extraordinary whinings and barking of a dog, that was a
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 343 
 
 constant customer at the oven for stray bits of bread, and 
 much befriended by Hassan and his son, who were noted 
 for being conscientious Mussulmans. 
 
 " ' Look, Mahmud,' said the father to the son ; ' see 
 what is the matter with the dog : something extraordinary 
 is in the wind.' 
 
 " The son did what his father bade him ; and seeing no 
 reason for the dog's noises, said, ' Bir chey yok, There is 
 nothing,' and drove him away. 
 
 " But the howlings not ceasing, Hassan went himself, and 
 found the dog most extremely intent upon smelling and 
 pointing at the tailor's pipkin. He jumped upon Hassan, 
 then at the pot, then upon Hassan again, until the baker 
 no longer doubted that the beast took great interest in its 
 contents. He therefore gently drew off the lid, when, need 
 I mention his horror and surprise at seeing a human head 
 staring him in the face ? 
 
 " ' Allah ! Allah ! ' cried the baker ; but being a man of 
 strong nerves, instead of letting it fall, as most people would 
 have done, he quietly put on the lid again, and called his son 
 to him. 
 
 "'Mahmud,' said he, 'this is a bad world, and there are 
 bad men in it. Some wicked infidel has sent a man's head 
 to bake ; but, thanks to our good fortune, and to the dog, our 
 oven has been saved from pollution, and we can go on 
 making our bread with clean hands and clear consciences. 
 
 o 
 
 But since the devil is at work, let others have a visit from 
 him as well as ourselves. If it be known that we have had 
 a dead man's head to bake, who will ever employ us again ? 
 We must starve, we must shut up our oven ; we shall get 
 the reputation of mixing up our dough with human grease, 
 and if perchance a hair is found, it will immediately be said 
 that it came from the dead man's beard.' 
 
 " Mahmud, a youth of about twenty, who partook of his 
 father's insensibility and coolness, and who, moreover, had 
 a great deal of dry humour and ready wit, looked upon the 
 incident in the light of a good joke, and broke out into a
 
 344 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 hearty laugh when he saw the ugly picture which the grin- 
 ning head made, set in its earthen" frame. 
 
 " ' Let us pop it into the shop of Kior Ali, the barber 
 opposite,' said the youth : ' he is just beginning to open it ; 
 and as he has but one eye, we shall be better able to do so 
 without being seen. Do, father,' said Mahmud, ' let me : 
 nobody shall discover me ; and let it be done before there 
 is more daylight.' 
 
 " The father consented ; and Mahmud, catching the 
 moment when the barber had walked to the corner of the 
 street to perform certain ablutions, stepped into his shop, 
 and placed the head on a sort of takcheh, or bracket on 
 the wall, arranged some shaving towels about it, as if it had 
 been a customer ready seated to be shaved, and, with a 
 boy's mischief in his heart, stepped back to his oven again, 
 to watch the effects which this new sort of customer would 
 have upon the blind barber. 
 
 " Kior Ali hobbled into his shop, which was but ill lighted 
 by a glimmering of daylight that hardly pierced through the 
 oil-papered windows, and, looking about him, saw this figure, 
 as he supposed, seated against the wall ready to be operated 
 upon. 
 
 "'Ha! peace be unto you!' said he to it: 'you are 
 rather early this morning ; I did not see you at first. My 
 water is not yet hot. Oh ! I see you want your head shaved ; 
 but why do you take off your fese (skull-cap) so soon ? you 
 will catch cold.' Then he paused. 'No answer,' said the 
 barber to himself. ' I suppose he is dumb, and deaf too, 
 perhaps. Well, I am half blind, so we are nearly upon 
 equal terms : however, if I were even to lose my other 
 eye,' addressing himself to the head, ' I daresay, my old 
 uncle, I could shave you for all that ; for my razor would 
 glide as naturally over your head as a draught of good wine 
 does over my throat.' 
 
 "He went methodically about his preparations ; he took 
 down his tin basin from a peg, prepared his soap, then 
 stropped his razor on the long bit of leather that was
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 345 
 
 fastened to his girdle. Having made his lather, he walked 
 up to the supposed customer, holding the basin in his left 
 hand, whilst his right was extended to sprinkle the first 
 preparation of water on the sconce. No sooner had he 
 placed his hand on the cold head, than he withdrew it, as 
 if he had been burnt. ' Eh ! why, what's the matter with 
 you, friend ? ' said the barber ; ' you are as cold as a piece 
 of ice.' But when .he attempted a second time to lather it, 
 down it came with a terrible bounce from the shelf to the 
 floor, and made the poor shaver jump quite across his shop 
 with the fright. 
 
 " ' Aman ! aman ! O mercy ! mercy ! ' cried Kior Ali, as 
 he thrust himself into the furthermost corner without daring 
 to move. ' Take my shop, my razors, my towels, take all 
 I have ; but don't touch my life ! If you are the Shaitan, 
 speak ; but excuse my shaving you ! ' 
 
 " But when he found that all was hushed after the catas- 
 trophe, and that nothing was to be feared, he approached 
 the head, and taking it up by the lock of hair at the top, 
 he looked at it in amazement. ' A head, by all the Imams! ' 
 said he, accosting it ; ' and how did you get here ? Do you 
 want to disgrace me, you filthy piece of flesh ? but you shall 
 not ! Although Kior Ali has lost one eye, yet his other is a 
 sharp one, and knows what it is about. I would give you to 
 the baker Hassan there, if his rogue of a son, who is now 
 looking this way, was not even sharper than this self-same 
 eye ; but now I think of it, I will take you where you can 
 do no harm. The Giaour Yanaki, the Greek kabobchi^ 
 (roast-meat man), shall have you, and shall cut you up into 
 mince-meat for his infidel customers.' Upon this, Kiop Ali, 
 drawing in one hand, in which he carried the head, through 
 the slit on the sides of his beniche, or cloak, and taking up 
 his pipe in the other, walked down two streets to the shop 
 of the aforesaid Greek. 
 
 1 The kabob shops at Constantinople are eating-houses, where, at a moment's 
 notice, a dish of roast meat, and small bits of meat done on skewers, are served 
 up to whoever asks for them.
 
 346 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 "He frequented it in preference to that of a Mussulman, 
 because he could here drink wine with impunity. From long 
 practice he knew precisely where the provision of fresh meat 
 was kept ; and, as he entered the shop, casting his eye fur- 
 tively round, he threw the head in a dark corner, behind one 
 of the large sides of a sheep that was to be used for the 
 kabobs of the day. No one saw him perform this feat ; for 
 the morning was still sufficiently obscure to screen him. He 
 lighted his pipe at Yanaki's charcoal fire, and, as a pretext 
 for his visit, ordered a dish of meat to be sent to him for 
 breakfast ; a treat to which he thought himself fully entitled 
 after his morning's adventure. 
 
 " Yanaki, meanwhile, having cleaned his platters, put his 
 skewers in order, lit his fires, made his sherbets, and swept 
 out his shop, went to the larder for some meat for the shaver's 
 breakfast. Yanaki was a true Greek : cunning, cautious, 
 deceitful ; cringing to his superiors, tyrannical towards his 
 inferiors ; detesting with a mortal hatred his proud masters, 
 the Osmanlies, yet fawning, flattering, and abject whenever 
 any of them, however low in life, deigned to take notice of 
 him. Turning over his stock, he looked about for some 
 old bits that might serve the present purpose, muttering to 
 himself that any carrion was good enough for a Turk's 
 stomach. He surveyed his half sheep from top to bottom ; 
 felt it, and said, 'No, this will keep;' but as he turned up 
 its fat tail, the eye of the dead man's head caught his eye, 
 and made him start, and step back some paces. 'As ye 
 love your eyes,' exclaimed he, 'who is there?' Receiving 
 no answer, he looked again and again ; then nearer, then, 
 thrusting his hand among sheeps' heads and trotters, old 
 remnants of meat, and the like, he pulled out the head 
 the horrid head which he held extended at arm's length, 
 as if he were afraid that it would do him mischief. 'Ana- 
 themas attend your beard ! ' exclaimed Yanaki, as soon as 
 he discovered, by the tuft of hair on the top, that it had 
 belonged to a Mussulman. ' Och ! if I had but every one 
 of your heads in this manner, ye cursed race of Omar ! I
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 347 
 
 would make kabobs of them, and every cur in Constantin- 
 ople should get fat for nothing. May ye all come to this 
 end ! May the vultures feed on your carcasses ! and may 
 
 ANCIENT KALIAN (OR WATERPIPE) BOWL IN PORCELAIN TIME OF 
 
 ABBAS THE GREAT. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 every Greek have the good fortune which has befallen me 
 this day, of having one of your worthless skulls for his 
 football!' Upon which, in his rage, he threw it. down and
 
 348 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BAB A 
 
 kicked it from him ; but, recollecting himself, he said, ' But 
 after all, what shall I do with it? If it is seen here, I am 
 lost for ever : nobody will believe but what I have killed 
 a Turk.' 
 
 "All of a sudden he cried out, in a sort of malicious 
 ecstasy, ''Tis well I remembered, the Jew! the Jew! a 
 properer place for such a head was never thought or heard 
 of; and there you shall go, thou vile remnant of a 
 Mahomedan ! ' 
 
 " Upon which he seized it, and, hiding it under his coat, 
 ran with it down the street to where the dead body of a 
 Jew lay extended, with its head placed immediately between 
 its legs. 
 
 "In Turkey, you must know," said the dervish, "when a 
 Mahomedan is beheaded, his head is placed under his arm, 
 by way of an honourable distinction from the Christian or 
 Jew, who, when a similar misfortune befalls them, have theirs 
 inserted between their legs, as close to the seat of dishonour 
 as possible. 
 
 "It was in that situation, then, that Yanaki placed the 
 Turk's head, putting it as near, cheek by jowl, with the 
 Jew's, as the hurry of the case would allow. He had been 
 able to effect this without being seen, because the day was 
 still but little advanced, and no one stirring ; and he returned 
 to his shop, full of exultation at having been able to discharge 
 his feelings of hatred against his oppressors, by placing one 
 of their heads on the spot in nature which, according to his 
 estimation, was the most teeming with opprobrium. 
 
 " The unfortunate sufferer on this occasion had been 
 accused of stealing and putting to death a Mahomedan 
 child (a ceremony in their religion which they have been 
 known to practise both in Turkey and Persia), and which 
 created such an extraordinary tumult among the mob of 
 Constantinople, that, in order to appease it, he had been 
 decapitated. His execution had taken place purposely before 
 the door of a wealthy Greek, and the body was ordered to 
 remain there three days before it was permitted to be carried
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 349 
 
 away for interment. The expectation that the Greek would 
 be induced to pay down a handsome sum, in order that this 
 nuisance might be removed from his door, and save him 
 from the ill-luck which such an object is generally supposed 
 to bring, made the officer intrusted with the execution prefer 
 this spot to every other. But, careless of the consequences, 
 the Greek shut up the windows of his house, determined to 
 deprive his oppressors of their expected perquisite ; and so 
 the dead Jew remained exposed his full time. Few except- 
 ing those of the true faith ventured to approach the spot, 
 fearful that the Mahomedan authorities would, in their wan- 
 ton propensities to heap insults upon the Giaours, oblige some 
 one of them to carry the carcass to the place of burial ; and 
 thus the horrid and disgusting object was left abandoned to 
 itself, and this had given an opportunity to the kabobchi, 
 Yanaki, to dispose of the head in the manner above related, 
 unseen and unmolested. But when, as the day advanced, 
 and as the stir of the streets became more active, this 
 additional head was discovered, the crowd, which gathered 
 about it, became immense. It was immediately rumoured 
 that a miracle had been performed ; for a dead Jew was to 
 be seen with two heads. The extraordinary intelligence flew 
 from mouth to mouth, until the whole city was in an uproar, 
 and all were running to see the miracle. The Sanhedrim 
 immediately pronounced that something extraordinary was 
 about to happen to their persecuted race. Rabbins were 
 to be seen running to and fro, and their whole community 
 was now poured around the dead body, in expectation that 
 he would perhaps arise, put on his heads, and deliver them 
 from the gripe of their oppressors. 
 
 " But as ill-luck would have it for them, a Janissary, who 
 had mixed in the crowd, and had taken a close survey of the 
 supernumerary head, exclaimed, in a mixture of doubt and 
 amazement, ' Allah, Allah, il Allah ! these are no infidels' 
 heads. One is the head of our lord and master, the Aga 
 of the Janissaries.' Upon which, seeing more of his com- 
 panions, he called them to him, and making known his
 
 te 
 
 < s 
 w g
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 351 
 
 discovery, they became violent with rage, and set off to 
 communicate the intelligence to their Orta. 
 
 " The news spread like wildfire throughout the whole of 
 the corps of the Janissaries, and a most alarming tumult was 
 immediately excited ; for it seems that it was unknown in the 
 capital that their chief, to whom they were devotedly attached, 
 and one of their own selection, had been put to death. 
 
 "'What!' said they, 'is it not enough to deal thus 
 treacherously with us, and deprive us of a chief to whom we 
 are attached ; but we must be treated with the greatest con- 
 tempt that it is possible for men to receive ? What ! the 
 head of our most noble Aga of the Janissaries to be placed 
 upon the most ignoble part of a Jew ! what are we come to ? 
 We alone are not insulted ; the whole of Islam is insulted, 
 degraded, debased. No : this is unheard-of insolence, a stain 
 never to be wiped off", without the extermination of the whole 
 race. And what dog has done this deed ? How did the head 
 get there ? Is it that dog of a Vizier's work, or have the Reis 
 Effendi and those traitors of Frank ambassadors been at work ? 
 Wallah, Billah, Tallah ! by the holy Caaba, by the beard 
 of Osman, and by the sword of Omar, we will be revenged ! ' ' 
 
 We must leave the tumult to rage for a short time ; we 
 must request the reader to imagine a scene, in which Jews 
 are flying in all directions, hiding themselves with great pre- 
 caution against enraged Turks, who, with expressions like 
 those just mentioned in their mouths, are to be seen walking 
 about in groups, armed to their teeth with pistols and cimeters, 
 and vowing vengeance upon everything which came in their 
 way. He must imagine a city of narrow streets and low 
 houses, thronged with a numerous population, in dresses the 
 most various in shape and the most lively in colours, all 
 anxious, all talking, all agog as if something extraordinary 
 was to happen ; in the midst of whom I will leave him, to take 
 a look into the interior of the sultan's seraglio, and to inquire 
 in what his eminency himself had been engaged since we last 
 noticed him. 
 
 " On the very same night of the tailor's attendance, the
 
 352 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 sultan had given a secret order for taking off the head of the 
 Aga of the Janissaries (the fomenter of all the disturbances 
 which had lately taken place among his corps, and con- 
 sequently their idol) ; and so anxious was he about its execu- 
 tion, that he had ordered it to be brought to him the moment 
 it was off. The man intrusted with the execution, upon 
 entering the room where he had been directed to bring the 
 head, seeing some one seated, naturally took him for the 
 sultan, and, without daring to look up, he immediately placed 
 the burden at his feet, with the prostrations which we have 
 already described as having been performed before the tailor. 
 The sultan, who not a minute before had taken away the 
 bundle containing the dervish's dress, had done so in the 
 intention of deceiving his slave Mansouri himself; so anxious 
 was he of being unknown in his new disguise even to him ; 
 and intended to have substituted another in its stead ; but not 
 calculating either upon the reception of the head, or upon 
 Mansouri's immediate return to the tailor, he was himself 
 completely puzzled how to act when he found the tailor was 
 gone, led off by his slave. To have sent after them would 
 have disconcerted his schemes, and therefore he felt himself 
 obliged to wait Mansouri's return, before he could get an 
 explanation of what had happened ; for he knew that they 
 would not have gone away without the dress, and that dress 
 he had then in his possession. In the meanwhile, anxious 
 and impatient to know what had become of the expected 
 head, he sent for the officer who was intrusted with the exe- 
 cution ; and the astonishment of both may be imagined when 
 an explanation took place. 
 
 " ' By my beard,' exclaimed the sultan, having thought 
 awhile within himself; 'by my beard, the tailor must have 
 got the head ! ' 
 
 " His impatience for Mansouri's return then became ex- 
 treme. In vain he fretted, fumed, and cried, ' Allah ! Allah ! ' 
 It did not make the slave return a minute the sooner, who, 
 good man, would have gone quietly to rest had he not been 
 called upon to appear before the sultan.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 353 
 
 " As soon as he was within hearing, he called out, ' Ahi ! 
 Mansouri, run immediately to the tailor he has got the head 
 of the Aga of the Janissaries instead of the dervish's dress- 
 run, fetch it without loss of time, or something unfortunate 
 will happen ! ' He then explained how this untoward event 
 had occurred. Mansouri now, in his turn, felt himself greatly 
 embarrassed ; for he only knew the road to the tailor's stall, 
 but was totally unacquainted with his dwelling-house. How- 
 ever, rather than excite his master's anxiety in a higher degree, 
 he set off in quest of the tailor, and went straight to his stall, 
 in the hopes of hearing from the neighbours where his house 
 was. It was too early in the day for the opening of the 
 Bezestan, and except a coffee-house that had just prepared for 
 the reception of customers, where he applied and could gain 
 no intelligence, he found himself completely at a standstill. 
 By the greatest good luck, he recollected Babadul had told 
 him that he was the muezzin to the little mosque in the fish- 
 market, arid thither he immediately bent his steps. The 
 azan, or morning invitation to prayers, was now chanting 
 forth from all the minarets, and he expected that he might 
 catch the purloiner of his head in the very act of inviting 
 the faithful to prayers. 
 
 " As he approached the spot, he heard an old, broken, and 
 tremulous voice, which he imagined might be Babadul's, 
 breaking the stillness of the morning by all the energy of his 
 lungs ; and he was not mistaken, for as he stood under the 
 minaret, he perceived the old man walking round the gallery 
 which encircles it, with his hand applied to the back of his ear, 
 and with his mouth wide open, pouring out his whole throat 
 in the execution of his office. As soon as the tailor saw 
 Mansouri making signs to him, the profession of faith stuck 
 in his throat ; and between the fright of being brought to 
 account for the head, and the words which he had to pro- 
 nounce, it is said that he made so strange a jumble, that some 
 of the stricter Mussulmans, his neighbours, who were paying 
 attention to the call, professed themselves quite scandalised 
 at his performance. He descended with all haste, and locking
 
 354 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 the door after him which leads up the winding staircase, 
 he met Mansouri in the street. He did not wait to be ques- 
 tioned respecting the fate of the horrid object, but at once 
 attacked the slave concerning the trick, as he called it, which 
 had been put upon him. 
 
 " ' Are you a man,' said he, ' to treat a poor emir like me 
 in the manner you have done, as if my house was a charnel- 
 house ? I suppose you will ask me the price of blood 
 next ! ' 
 
 " ' Friend,' said Mansouri, 'what are you talking about? 
 do not you see that it has been a mistake ? ' 
 
 " 'A mistake, indeed!' cried the tailor, 'a mistake done 
 on purpose to bring a poor man into trouble. One man 
 laughs at my stupid beard, and makes me believe that I am 
 to make a suit of clothes for him another takes away the 
 pattern and a third substitutes a dead man's head for it. 
 Allah ! Allah ! I have got into the hands of a pretty nest of 
 rogues, a set of ill-begotten knaves ! ' 
 
 " Upon which Mansouri placed his hand upon the tailor's 
 mouth, and said, ' Say no more, say no more ; you are 
 getting deeper into the dirt. Do you know whom you are 
 abusing ? ' 
 
 "'I know not, nor care not,' answered Babadul ; 'all I 
 know is, that whoever gives me a dead man's head for a suit 
 of clothes can only be an infidel dog.' 
 
 " ' Do you call God's vicegerent upon earth, you old demi- 
 stitching, demi-praying fool, an infidel dog ? ' exclaimed Man- 
 souri in a rage, which entirely made him forget the precaution 
 he had hitherto maintained concerning his employer. ' Are 
 your vile lips to defile the name of him who is the Alem 
 penah, the refuge of the world ? What dirt are you eating ? 
 what ashes are you heaping on your head ? Come, no more 
 words ; tell me where the dead man's head is, or I will take 
 yours off in his stead.' 
 
 " Upon hearing this, the tailor stood with his mouth wide 
 open, as if the doors of his understanding had just been 
 unlocked.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 355 
 
 " ' A man, aman, Mercy, mercy, O aga ! ' cried Babadul to 
 Mansouri, ' I was ignorant of what I was saying. Who would 
 have thought it ? Ass, fool, dolt, that I am, not to have 
 known better. Bismillah ! in the name of the Prophet, pray 
 come to my house ; your steps will be fortunate, and your 
 slave's head will touch the stars.' 
 
 " ' I am in a hurry, a great hurry,' said Mansouri. ' Where 
 is the head, the head of the Aga of the Janissaries ? ' 
 
 " W r hen the tailor heard whose head it had been, and 
 recollected what he and his wife had done with it, his knees 
 knocked under him with fear, and he began to exude from 
 every pore. 
 
 " 'Where is it, indeed?' said he. 'Oh! what has come 
 upon us ! Oh ! what cursed kismet (fate) is this ? ' 
 
 "'Where is it?' exclaimed the slave, again and again, 
 ' where is it ? speak quick ! ' 
 
 " The poor tailor was completely puzzled what to say, and 
 kept floundering from one answer to another until he was 
 quite entangled as in a net. 
 
 " ' Have you burnt it ? ' 
 
 "'No.' 
 
 " ' Have you thrown it away ? ' 
 
 " 'No.' 
 
 " ' Then in the name of the Prophet what have you done 
 with it ? Have you eaten it ? ' 
 
 " 'No.' 
 
 " ' Is it lying in your house ? ' 
 
 "'No.' ' 
 
 " ' Is it hiding at any other person's house ? ' 
 
 " ' No.' 
 
 " Then at last, quite out of patience, the slave Mansouri 
 took Babadul by his beard, and. shaking his head for him, 
 exclaimed with a roar, ' Then tell me, you old dotard ! what 
 is it doing ? ' 
 
 " ' It is baking,' answered the tailor, half choked : ' I 
 have said it.' 
 
 "'Baking! did you say?' exclaimed the slave, in the
 
 356 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 greatest amazement ; ' what did you bake it for ? Are you 
 going to eat it ? ' 
 
 " ' True, I said : what would you have more ? ' answered 
 Babadul, ' it is now baking.' And then he gave a full account 
 of what he and his wife had done in the sad dilemma in which 
 they had been placed. 
 
 " ' Show me the way to the baker's,' said Mansouri ; ' at 
 least, we will get it in its singed state, if we can get it in no 
 other. Who ever thought of baking the head of the Aga of 
 the Janissaries ? Allah il Allah ! ' 
 
 " They then proceeded to the baker Hassan's, who was 
 now about taking his bread from his oven. As soon as he 
 .became acquainted with their errand, he did not hesitate in 
 telling all the circumstances attending the transmission of 
 the head from the pipkin to the barber's bracket ; happy to 
 have had an opportunity of exculpating himself of what 
 might possibly have been brought up against him as a 
 crime. 
 
 " The three (Mansouri, the tailor, and the baker) then 
 proceeded to the barber's, and inquired from him what he 
 had done with the head of his earliest customer. 
 
 " Kior Ali, after some hesitation, made great assurances 
 that he looked upon this horrid object as a donation from 
 Eblis himself, and consequently that he had thought himself 
 justified in transferring it over to the Giaour Yanaki, who, 
 he made no doubt, had already made his brother infidels 
 partake of it in the shape of kabobs. Full of wonder and 
 amazement, invoking the Prophet at each step, and uncertain 
 as to the result of such unheard-of adventures, they then 
 added the barber to their party, and proceeded to Yanaki's 
 cook-shop. 
 
 " The Greek, confounded at seeing so many of the true 
 believers enter his house, had a sort of feeling that their 
 business was not of roast meat, but that they were in search 
 of meat of a less savoury nature. As soon as the question 
 had been put to him concerning the head, he stoutly denied 
 having seen it, or knowing anything at all concerning it.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 357 
 
 " The barber showed the spot where he had placed it, 
 and swore it upon the Koran. 
 
 " Mansouri had undertaken the investigation of the point 
 
 A SELLER OF PILAU AND SOUP. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 in question, when they discovered symptoms of the extra- 
 ordinary agitation that prevailed in the city in consequence of 
 the discovery which had been made of the double-headed
 
 358 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 Jew, and of the subsequent discovery that had produced such 
 great sensation among the whole corps of Janissaries. 
 
 " Mansouri, followed by the tailor, the baker, and the 
 barber, then proceeded to the spot where the dead Israelite 
 was prostrate ; and there, to their astonishment, they each 
 recognised their morning visitor the head so long sought 
 after. 
 
 " Yanaki the Greek, in the meanwhile, conscious of what 
 was likely to befall him, without loss of time gathered what 
 money he had ready at hand, and fled the city. 
 
 " ' Where is the Greek ? ' said Mansouri, turning round 
 to look for him in the supposition that he had joined his 
 party : ' we must all go before the sultan.' 
 
 " ' I daresay he is run off,' said the barber. ' 1 am not so 
 blind but I can see that he it is who gifted the Jew with his 
 additional head.' 
 
 " Mansouri now would have carried off the head ; but, 
 surrounded as it was by a band of enraged and armed soldiers, 
 who vowed vengeance upon him who had deprived them of 
 their chief, he thought it most prudent to withdraw. Lead- 
 ing with him his three witnesses, he at once proceeded to 
 the presence of his master. 
 
 " When Mansouri had informed the sultan of all that had 
 happened, where he had found the head of the Aga of the 
 Janissaries, how it had got there, and of the tumult it had 
 raised, the reader may better imagine than I can describe the 
 state of the monarch's mind. To tell the story with all its 
 particulars, he felt would be derogatory to his dignity, for it 
 was sure to cover him with ridicule ; but at the same time, 
 to let the matter rest as it now stood was impossible, because 
 the tumult would increase until there would be no means of 
 quelling it, and the affair might terminate by depriving him 
 of his crown, together with his life. 
 
 "He remained in a state of indecision for some time, 
 twisting up the ends of his mustachios, and muttering ' Allah ! 
 Allah ! ' in low ejaculations, until at length he ordered the 
 prime vizier and the mufti to his presence.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 359 
 
 " Alarmed by the abruptness of the summons, these two 
 great dignitaries arrived at the imperial gate in no enviable 
 state of mind ; but when the sultan had informed them of the 
 tumult then raging in the capital, they resumed their usual 
 tranquillity. 
 
 " After some deliberation it was resolved, that the tailor, 
 the baker, the barber, and the kabobchi should appear before 
 the tribunal of the mufti, accused of having entered into a 
 conspiracy against the Aga of the Janissaries, and stealing 
 his head, for the purposes of baking, shaving, and roasting it, 
 and that they should be condemned to pay the price of his 
 blood ; but as the kabobchi had been the immediate cause of 
 the tumult by treating the head with such gross and unheard- 
 of insult, and as he was a Greek and an infidel, it was further 
 resolved that the mufti should issue a fetwah, authorising his 
 head to be cut off, and placed on the same odious spot where 
 he had exposed that of the Aga of the Janissaries. 
 
 "It was then agreed between the sultan and his grand 
 vizier, that, in order to appease the Janissaries, a new aga 
 should be appointed who was agreeable to them, and that 
 the deceased should be buried with becoming distinction. 
 All this (except killing the Greek, who had fled) was done, 
 and tranquillity again restored to the city. But it must 
 further be added, to the honour of the sultan, that he not 
 only paid every expense which the tailor, the baker, and the 
 barber were condemned to incur, but also gave them each a 
 handsome reward for the difficulties into which they had so 
 unfortunately been thrown." 
 
 I have much curtailed the story, particularly where Man- 
 souri proceeds to relate to the sultan the fate of the head, 
 because had I given it with all the details the dervish did it 
 would have been over long. Indeed I have confined myself 
 as much as possible to the outline ; for, to have swelled the 
 narrative with the innumerable digressions of my companion, 
 a whole volume would not have contained it. The art of a 
 story-teller (and it is that which marks a man of genius) is to
 
 360 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 make his tale interminable, and still to interest his audience. 
 So the dervish assured me ; and added, that with the 
 materials of the one which I have now attempted to repeat 
 he would bind himself to keep talking for a whole moon, 
 and still have something to say. 
 
 ENAMEL ON GOLD (SHIRAZ). 
 From the collection of Dr. VVilh. 
 
 CHAPTER XLVI 
 
 He becomes a saw/, and associates with the most celebrated 
 divine in Persia. 
 
 AT length Mirza Abdul Cossim himself, having heard much 
 of my sanctity, took an opportunity, when visiting the shrine 
 of the saint, to send for me. This was an event which I 
 contemplated with apprehension ; for how could I possibly 
 conceal my ignorance from one who would certainly put 
 my pretensions of knowledge to the test ? an ignorance 
 so profound, that I could scarcely give an account of what 
 were the first principles of the Mahomedan faith.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 361 
 
 I therefore began to take myself to task upon what I 
 did know. Let me see, said I, I know ist, That all those 
 who do not believe in Mahomet, and in Ali his lieutenant, 
 are infidels and heretics, and are worthy of death. 
 
 2ndly, I also know that all men will go to Jehanum (hell), 
 excepting the true believers ; and I further believe that it is 
 right to curse Omar. I am certain that all the Turks will go 
 to Jehanum, that all Christians and Jews are nejis (unclean), 
 and will go to Jehanum, that it is not lawful to drink wine 
 or eat pork, that it is necessary to say prayers five times - 
 a day, and to make the ablution before each prayer, causing 
 the water to run from the elbow to the fingers, not contrari- 
 wise, like the heretical Turks. 
 
 I was proceeding to sum up the stock of my religious 
 knowledge, when the dervish came into the room ; and I 
 made no scruple of relating to him my distress and its 
 cause. 
 
 " Have you lived so long in the world," said he, "and not 
 yet discovered that nothing is to be accomplished without 
 impudence ? The stories which Dervish Sefer, his com- 
 panion, and I related to you at Meshed, have they made 
 so little impression upon you?" 
 
 "The effect of those stories upon my mind," said I, 
 "produced such a bastinado upon the soles of my feet, by 
 way of a moral, that I request you to be well assured I 
 shall never forget you nor them as long as I live : the felek 
 is a great help to the memory. And now, according to your 
 own account, instead of the bastinado, I am likely to get 
 stoned, should I be found wanting ; a ceremony which, if 
 it be the same to you, I had rather dispense with. Say 
 then, O dervish, what shall I do ? " 
 
 " You are not that Hajji Baba which I always took you 
 to be," said the dervish, "if you have not the ingenuity to 
 deceive the mushtehed. Keep to your silence, and your 
 sighs, and your shrugs, and your downcast looks, and who 
 is there that will discover you to be an ass? No, even I 
 could not."
 
 362 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 " Well," said I, " be it so : Allah kerim ! God is great ! 
 but it is being in very ill-luck to be invited to an entertain- 
 ment to eat one's own filth." 
 
 Upon which I set forward with my most mortified and 
 downcast looks to visit the mushtehed ; and, thanks to my 
 misfortunes, I truly believe that no man in the whole city 
 could boast of so doleful a cast of countenance as I could. 
 However, as I slowly paced the ground, I recollected one 
 of the tales recited by our great moralist Saadi, in his 
 chapter upon the Morals of Dervishes, which applied so 
 perfectly to my own case, that I own it cheered me greatly, 
 and gave me a degree of courage to encounter the scrutiny 
 of the mushtehed, which otherwise I never could have 
 acquired. It is as follows : 
 
 " A devout personage was once asked what he thought 
 of the character of a certain holy man, of whom others had 
 spoken with slight and disrespect. He answered, ' In his 
 exterior I can perceive no fault, and of what is concealed 
 within him I am ignorant. He who weareth an exterior 
 of religion, doubt not his goodness and piety, if you are 
 ignorant of the recesses of his heart. What hath the mok- 
 tesib to do with the inside of the house ? ' ' 
 
 I then recollected some sentences from the same chapter, 
 which would apply admirably in case I were called upon to 
 show my learning and humility at the same time ; for I 
 promised to say to the holy man, should he offer me an 
 opportunity, " Do unto me that which is worthy of thee ; 
 treat me not according to my desert. Whether you slay 
 or whether you pardon, my head and face are on thy 
 threshold. It is not for a servant to direct ; whatsoever 
 thou commandest I shall perform." 
 
 The mushtehed had just finished his midday prayer, and 
 was completing the last act of it by turning his head first over 
 the right shoulder, then over the left, when I entered the 
 open apartment where he was seated. It was lined with 
 his disciples, on each side and at the top, all of whom looked 
 upon him with the reverence and respect due to a master.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 363 
 
 Here he held his lectures. A mollah, with whom I was 
 acquainted, mentioned who I was, and forthwith I was 
 invited to take my place on the carpet, which I did, after 
 having with great humility kissed the hem of the holy man's 
 
 A BOOK-COVER, PAINTED ON " PAPIER-MACHE." 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 cloak. " You are welcome," said he : " we have heard a great 
 deal concerning you, Hajji, and, inshallah, your steps will be 
 fortunate. Sit up higher ! " 
 
 I made all sorts of remonstrances against sitting higher
 
 364 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 up in the room (for I had taken the lowest place) ; and when 
 I had crept up to the spot to which he had pointed with his 
 ringer, I carefully nestled my feet closely under me, covering 
 both them and my hands with my coat. 
 
 "We have heard," said he, "that you are a chosen slave 
 of the Most High ; one whose words and whose acts are the 
 same ; not wearing a beard of two colours, like those who are 
 Mussulmans in outward appearance, but who are kafirs in 
 their hearts." 
 
 " May your propitious condescension never be less ! " said 
 I : " your servant is the most abject of the least of those who 
 rub their forehead on the threshold of the gate of Almighty 
 splendour." 
 
 Here ensued a pause and dead silence, when we each 
 appeared absorbed in deep meditation. The mushtehed then 
 breaking the silence, said to me : 
 
 "Is it true, O Hajji ! that your tallek, your destiny, has 
 turned its face upon you, and that you have come hither to 
 seek refuge ? We and the world have long bid adieu to each 
 other ; so my questions are not to satisfy curiosity, but to 
 inform me whether I can be of use to you. Our holy 
 Prophet (upon whom be blessings and peace) sayeth, ' Let 
 our faithful followers help each other : those who see, let 
 them lead the blind ; those who prosper, let them help 
 those who are in adversity.'' 
 
 Upon this I took courage, spoke my sentences from 
 Saadi, as already recited, and told my tale in such a modi- 
 fied manner, that my auditors, I verily believe, began to look 
 upon me as very little short of a martyr. 
 
 " If it is so," said the mushtehed, " perhaps the day is not 
 far off, when I may be the instrument, in the hands of God, 
 to see justice done you. The Shah is to visit the tomb 
 before this month has expired, and as he looks upon me 
 with the eyes of approbation, be assured that I will not be 
 deficient in endeavouring to procure your release." 
 
 "What can such a sinner as I say to one of your high 
 sanctity ? I will pray for you ; the dust of your path shall
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 365 
 
 be collyrium for my eyes. Whatever you will do for me 
 will be the effect of your goodness." 
 
 " It is plain that you are one of us," said the mushtehed, 
 apparently well satisfied at the almost divine honours which I 
 paid him. "True Mussulmans always recognise each other 
 in the same manner, as I have heard to be the case among a 
 sect of the Franks, called Faranooski? who by a word, a look, 
 or a touch, will discover one another even among thousands." 
 
 " Allah ho akbarl God is great;" and " La Alia il Allah! 
 there is but one God!" was echoed by the company in admira- 
 tion of the mushtehed's knowledge ; and then he continued 
 to address me thus : 
 
 " There is an ajem with you, who calls himself a dervish. 
 Is he an acquaintance of yours ? He says that he and you 
 are hem dum, of one breath. Is it so ?" 
 
 " CJie arz bekunum? what supplication can I make?" 
 said I, not knowing precisely whether to acknowledge my 
 friend or not. 
 
 " Yes, he is a fakir, a poor man, to whom I have given a 
 path near me. He has done me some little service, and I am 
 mindful of him." 
 
 "You must be mindful of yourself," said an old mollah, 
 who sat next to me. " Whatever is thief, whatever is knave, 
 you will be sure to find it among these ajems." 
 
 "Yes," said the mushtehed, as he rested both his hands 
 upon his girdle, whilst his disciples (who knew this to be his 
 favourite attitude when about to make a speech) settled their 
 faces into looks of attention "yes, these, and all who call 
 themselves dervishes, be they the followers of Nur AH 
 Shahi, be they Zahabias, be they Nakshbendies, or be they 
 of that accursed race of Uweisies ; all are kafirs or heretics- 
 all are worthy of death. The one promulgate, that the fast- 
 ings of the Ramazan, our ablutions, the forms and number of 
 our daily prayers, are all unnecessary to salvation ; and that 
 the heart is the test of piety, and not the ceremonies of the 
 body. The other acknowledge the Koran, 'tis true ; but they 
 
 1 So the Persians call Freemasons, about whom they are very inquisitive.
 
 366 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 reject everything else : the sayings of the prophet, opinions 
 of saints, &c., are odious to them ; and they show their reli- 
 gious zeal by shouting out the blessed name of Allah, until 
 they foam at the mouth, like so many roaring lions ; and this 
 they are pleased to call religion. Another set pretend to 
 superior piety, by disfiguring the outward man, making vows, 
 and performing acts of penance, that partake more of the 
 tricks of mountebanks than of the servants of the Almighty. 
 The fourth, the most heretical of all, would make us believe 
 that they live in eternal communion with supernatural powers; 
 and whilst they put on a patched and threadbare garment, 
 affect to despise the goods of this world, and keep themselves 
 warm by metaphysical meditations, which neither they nor 
 any one else understand. No distinction of clean or unclean 
 (may they enjoy the eternal grills!) stands in their way; 
 lawful and unlawful is all one to them ; they eat and drink 
 whatever they choose, and even the Giaours, the infidels, 
 are undefiled in their sight. And these call themselves 
 Sufies ; these are your wise men ; these are your lights of 
 the world ! Curses on their beard ! " To which all the 
 company answered " Ameeit" or amen. "Curses on their 
 fathers and mothers ! Curses on their children ! Curses 
 on their relations ! Curses on Sheikh Attar ! * Curses on 
 Jelaledin Rumi ! " After each curse the whole assembly 
 echoed "Ameen!" 
 
 When he had concluded, all the company, whilst they 
 expressed their admiration at his doctrine, looked at me 
 to see if I was not struck with amazement. I was not back- 
 ward in making the necessary exclamations, and acted my 
 part so true to the life, that the impression in my favour was 
 universal. . 
 
 The mushtehed, warmed by his own words, continued 
 to harangue against the Sufies with such vehemence, that 
 I believe, had there been one at hand, they would have 
 risen in a body and put him to death. I hugged myself in 
 the success which had accompanied my attempt to appear 
 
 1 Sheikh Attar andjeld/edin Rilmi are the two great doctors of the Sufies.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 367 
 
 a good Mussulman, and now began to think that I was one 
 in right earnest. 
 
 " If what I do," said I, " constitutes a religious man, and 
 is to acquire me the world's consideration, nothing is more 
 easy. Why then should I toil through life, a slave to some 
 tyrant, exposed to every vicissitude, uncertain of my exist- 
 ence beyond the present moment, and a prey to a thousand 
 and one evils ? " 
 
 I left the mushtehed, and returned to my cell determined 
 to persevere in my pious dispositions. When I met my 
 companion again, I told him all that had happened, and 
 everything that had been said about him and dervishes in 
 general ; and advised him, considering the temper in which 
 I had left the assembly, to make the best of his way out 
 of a place in which every man's mind and hand were turned 
 against him. "If they catch you, they stone you, friend!" 
 said I ; "upon that make your mind easy." 
 
 "May the stones alight on their own heads!" exclaimed 
 the dervish : "a set of bloodthirsty heathens ! What sort of 
 religion can theirs be which makes them seek the life of an 
 inoffensive man ? I come here, having no one thing to do 
 with either Suni or Shiah, Sufi or Mahomedan : on the 
 contrary, out of compliment to them, I go through all the 
 mummery of five washings and five prayings per day, and 
 still that will not satisfy them ; however, I will be even with 
 them. I will go : I will leave their vile hypocritical town ; 
 and neither will I wash nor pray until necessity obliges me 
 to pass through it again." 
 
 I must own that I was not sorry when I heard the der- 
 vish make this resolution. I saw him with pleasure gird 
 on his broad leathern belt, from which was suspended great 
 bunches of beads, and stick his long spoon in it. I helped to 
 fasten his deer-skin to his back ; and when he had taken up 
 the iron weapon, which he carried on his shoulder, in one 
 hand, whilst his other bore his calabash suspended with 
 three chains, we bade each other adieu with great apparent 
 cordiality.
 
 368 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 Leaving me to the full possession of my cell, he sallied 
 
 A "KENDIL," AN ORNAMENT PLACED IN MOSQUES, TOMBS, AND 
 SHRINES (PIERCED AND REPOUSSE BRASSWORK). 
 
 From )he South Kensington Museum. 
 
 forth with-all the lightness and gaiety of heart of one who 
 had : the world at his command, instead of the world before
 
 him, with nothing but his two feet and his ingenuity to carry 
 him through it. 
 
 " May the mercy of Allah be poured over you," said I, 
 as I saw the last of him, " you merry rogue ! and mayest 
 thou never want a pair of shoes to your feet, nor a pleasant 
 story to your tongue, with both of which thou mayest go 
 through life with more pleasure both to thyself and others 
 than the rich man, who is the slave of a thousand wants, a 
 dependent upon his dependents for the commonest neces- 
 saries of his existence. 
 
 CHAPTER XLVII 
 
 Hajjl Baba is robbed by his friend, and left utterly destitute ; but 
 is released from his confinement. 
 
 MY mind now dwelt upon the promise which the mushtehed 
 had made of procuring my pardon and release from the Shah, 
 when he came to visit the sanctuary at Kom ; and it occurred 
 to me that, to secure the favour of so powerful an advocate, 
 I ought to make him a present, without which nothing is 
 ever accomplished in Persia. But of what it was to be 
 composed was the next consideration. The money left in 
 my purse was all that I had to subsist upon until I should 
 acquire a new livelihood ; and, little as it was, I had kept 
 it safely buried in an unfrequented corner near my cell. 
 
 I fixed upon a praying-carpet, as the best present for one 
 who is always upon his knees, and had laid my plan for 
 getting some brought to me from the bazaar to look at. 
 
 " Every time the good man prays," said I, "he will think 
 of me ; and as one is apt to make good resolutions in such 
 moments, perhaps he will be put in mind of his promises to 
 endeavour to release me." 
 
 I forthwith resorted to my secret corner for my purse, in 
 
 2 A
 
 370 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 the determination of sacrificing one of my remaining tomauns 
 to this purpose. But here let me stop, and let me request 
 the reader to recollect himself, and reflect upon his feelings 
 after the most severe disappointment which it may have 
 been his lot to sustain, and let me tell him, that it was 
 nothing to my grief, to my rage, to my exasperation, when 
 I found that my purse was gone. 
 
 My soul came into my mouth ; and without a moment's 
 hesitation I exclaimed, "O thou bankrupt dog! thou un- 
 sainted dervish ! You have brought me safe into harbour, 
 'tis true ; but you have left me without an anchor. May 
 your life be a bitter one, and may your daily bread be the 
 bread of grief! And so, after all, Hajji Baba has become 
 a beggar ! " 
 
 I then took to making the most sorrowful meanings and 
 lamentations ; for the fear of starvation now stared me in 
 the face, notwithstanding the charity of the people of Kom ; 
 and as despair is a malady which increases the more the 
 mind dwells upon its misfortune, I seemed to take delight 
 in reverting to all the horrors which I had lately witnessed 
 in the death of Zeenab ; then I dwelt upon my confine- 
 ment, then upon my loss, and at length wound myself up 
 to look upon my situation as so desperate, that if I had 
 had poison by me, I should certainly have swallowed it. 
 
 At this moment passed by my cell the old mollah, who, 
 during my visit to the mushtehed, had warned me against 
 putting too much confidence in the dervish. I told him of 
 my misfortune, and raised such doleful waitings that his heart 
 was touched. 
 
 "You spoke but too well, O mollah!" said I, "when you 
 warned me against the dervish. My money is gone, and I 
 am left behind. I am a stranger ; and he who called himself 
 my friend has proved my bitterest enemy ! Curses on such 
 a friend ! Oh ! whither shall I turn for assistance ? " 
 
 "Do not grieve, my son," said the mollah; "we know 
 that there is a God, and if it be His will to try you with 
 misfortune, why do you repine? Your money is gone,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 371 
 
 gone it is, and gone let it be ; but your skin is left, and 
 what do you want more ? A skin is no bad thing, after all ! " 
 
 "What words are these?" said I : "I know that a skin 
 is no bad thing ; but will it get back my money from the 
 dervish ? " 
 
 I then requested the old man to state my misfortune to 
 the mushtehed, and, moreover, my impossibility of showing 
 him that respect by a present, which was due to him, and 
 which it had been my intention to make. 
 
 He left me with promises of setting my case in its proper 
 light before the holy man ; and to my great joy, on the very 
 same day the news of the approaching arrival of the Shah was 
 brought to Kom by the chief of the tent-pitchers, who came 
 to make the necessary preparations for his accommodation. 
 
 The large open saloon in the sanctuary in which the 
 king prays was spread with fine carpets, the court was 
 swept and watered, the fountain in the centre of the reser- 
 voir was made to play, and the avenues to the tomb were 
 put into order. A deputation, consisting of all the priests, 
 was collected, to go before him, and meet him on his entry ; 
 and nothing of ceremony was omitted which was due to 
 the honour and dignity of the Shadow of the Almighty 
 upon earth. 
 
 I now became exceedingly anxious about my future 
 fate ; for it was long since I had heard from Tehran, and 
 I was ignorant of the measure of the Shah's resentment 
 against me. Looking upon the dark side of things, my 
 imagination led me to think that nothing short of my head 
 would satisfy him ; but then, cheering myself with a more 
 pleasing prospect, I endeavoured to believe that I was too 
 insignificant a personage that my death should be of any 
 consequence, and built all my hopes upon the intercession 
 of the mushtehed. 
 
 The chief tent-pitcher had formerly been my friend, and 
 among his assistants I recognised many of my acquaintance. 
 I soon made myself known to them ; and they did not, for 
 a wonder, draw back from recognising me, although one
 
 372 
 
 of our greatest sages hath said, "that a man in adversity 
 is shunned like a piece of base money, which nobody will 
 take ; and which, if perchance it has been received, is passed 
 off to another as soon as possible." 
 
 The newcomers gave me all the intelligence of what had 
 happened at court since I had left it ; and although I pro- 
 fessed to have renounced the world, and to have become a 
 
 A FINE PERSIAN CARPET. 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 recluse, a sitter in a corner, as it is called, yet still I found 
 that I had an ear for what was passing in it. They informed 
 me that the chief executioner had returned from his cam- 
 paign against the Russians, and had brought the Shah a 
 present of two Georgian slaves, a male and a female, besides 
 other rarities, in order the better to persuade him of his 
 great feats and generalship. The present had been accepted, 

 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 373 
 
 and his face was to be whitened by a dress of honour, pro- 
 vided he made the tobeh, oath of penance, restraining himself 
 from the use of wine for the future. I also learnt, notwith- 
 standing it was known how deeply I was implicated in 
 Zeenab's guilt, that my former master, the hakim, had still 
 been obliged to make a large present to the Shah, besides 
 having had half his beard pulled out by the roots, for the 
 loss which his majesty had incurred by her death, and for 
 his disappointment at not finding her ready to dance and sing 
 before him on his return from Sultanieh. The king's wrath 
 for the loss of the Curdish slave had in a great measure sub- 
 sided, owing to the chief executioner's gift of the Georgian 
 one, who was described as being the finest person of the 
 sort who had been exhibited at the slave-market since the 
 days of the celebrated Taous, or Peacock ; and was, in 
 short, the pearl of the shell of beauty, the marrow of the 
 spine of perfection. She had a face like the full moon, 
 eyes of the circumference of the chief tent-pitcher's fore- 
 finger and thumb, a waist that he could span, and a form 
 tall and majestic as the full-grown cypress. And they 
 moreover assured me, that the Shah's anger against me 
 would very easily cede to a present of a few tomauns. 
 
 Here again my anathemas against the dervish broke 
 forth; "and but for him," said I, "I might have appeared 
 not empty-handed." However I was delighted to hear that 
 my case was not so desperate as I had imagined : and, 
 seated on the carpet of hope, smoking the pipe of expecta- 
 tion, I determined to await my fate with that comfortable 
 feeling of predestination which has been so wisely dis- 
 pensed by the holy Prophet for the peace and quiet of all 
 true believers. 
 
 The King of Kings arrived the next day, and alighted 
 at his tents, which were pitched without the town. I will 
 not waste the reader's time in describing all the ceremonies 
 of his reception, which, by his desire, were curtailed as 
 much as possible, inasmuch as his object in visiting the 
 tomb of Fatimeh was not to reap worldly distinctions, but
 
 374 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 to humble himself before God and men, in the hope of 
 obtaining better and higher reward. 
 
 A PEACOCK, OF ENGRAVED AND PIERCED BRASSWORK, USED AS AN ORNAMI.XT, 
 BUT GENERALLY MANUFACTURED (IN ISPAHAN) AS A SHAM ANTIQUITY 
 FOR THE EUROPEAN MARKET. 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 His policy has always been to keep in good odour with 
 the priesthood of his country ; for he knew- that their influ-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 375 
 
 ence, which is considerable over the minds of the people, 
 was the only bar between him and unlimited power. He 
 therefore courted Mirza Abdul Cossim, the mushtehed of 
 Kom, by paying him a visit on foot, and by permitting 
 him to be seated before him, an honour seldom conferred 
 on one of the laity. He also went about the town on foot, 
 during the whole time of his stay there, giving largely to the 
 poor, and particularly consecrating rich and valuable gifts 
 at the shrine of the saint. The king himself, and all those 
 who composed his train, thought it proper to suit their 
 looks to the fashion of the place ; and I was delighted to 
 find that I was not singular in my woe-smitten face and 
 my mortified gait. I recollected to have heard, when I 
 was about the court, that the Shah, in point of fact, was a 
 Sufi at heart, although very rigid in the outward practices 
 of religion ; and it was refreshing to me to perceive, among 
 the great officers in his train, one of the secretaries of state, 
 a notorious sinner of that persuasion, who was now obliged 
 to fold up his principles in the napkin of oblivion, and clothe 
 himself in the garments of the true faith. 
 
 On the morning of the Shah's visit to the tomb for the 
 purpose of saying his prayers, I was on the alert, in the 
 hopes of being remarked by the mushtehed, who would 
 thus be reminded of his promises to me. 
 
 About an hour before the prayer of mid-day, the Shah, 
 on foot, escorted by an immense concourse of attendants, 
 priests, and of the people, entered the precincts of the sanc- 
 tuary. He was dressed in a dark suit, the sombre colours 
 of which were adapted to the solemn looks of his face, and 
 he held in his hand a long enamelled stick, curiously inlaid 
 at the pommel. He had put by all ornament, wearing none 
 of his customary jewellery, not even his dagger, which on 
 other occasions he is never without. The only article of 
 great value was his rosary, composed of large pearls (the 
 produce of his fishery at Bahrein), of the most beautiful 
 water and symmetry, and this he kept constantly in his 
 hand.
 
 376 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BAB A 
 
 The mushtehed walked two or three steps behind him on 
 the left hand, respectfully answered the interrogatories which 
 the king was pleased to make, and lent a profound attention 
 to all his observations. 
 
 When the procession came near me (for it passed close 
 to my cell), I seized an opportunity, when no officer was 
 at hand, to run forward, throw myself on my knees, make 
 the prostration with my face to the ground, and exclaim, 
 " Refuge in the king of kings, the asylum of the world ! In 
 the name of the blessed Fatimeh, mercy ! " 
 
 "Who is this?" exclaimed the king to the mushtehed. 
 " Is he one of yours ? " 
 
 " He has taken the bust (the sanctuary)," answered the 
 mirza, "and he claims the accustomed pardon of the Shadow 
 of the Almighty to all unfortunate refugees whenever he visits 
 the tomb. He and we all are your sacrifice ; and whatever 
 the Shah ordains, so let it be." 
 
 " But who and what are you ? " said the Shah to me ; 
 " why have you taken refuge here ? " 
 
 " May I be your sacrifice ! " said I. " Your slave was the 
 sub-deputy executioner to the centre of the universe, Hajji 
 Baba by name ; and my enemies have made me appear 
 criminal in the eyes of the Shah, whilst I am innocent." 
 
 " Yafteh im, we have understood," rejoined the king, after 
 a minute's pause. " So you are that Hajji Baba? M-iibarek, 
 much good may it do you. Whether it was one dog or 
 another that did the deed, whether the hakim or sub-deputy, 
 it comes to the same thing, the end of it has been that the 
 king's goods have burnt. That is plain enough, is it not, 
 Mirza Abdul Cossim ? " said he, addressing himself to the 
 mushtehed. 
 
 " Yes, by the sacred head of the king," answered the holy 
 man ; " generally in all such cases between man and woman, 
 they, and they alone, can speak to the truth." 
 
 " But what does our holy religion say in such cases ? " 
 observed the king: "the Shah has lost a slave there is a 
 price of blood for the meanest of human beings even a
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 377 
 
 Frank or a Muscovite have their price, and why should we 
 expend our goods gratis, for the amusement of either our 
 chief physician or our sub-deputy executioner ? " 
 
 " There is a price upon each of God's creatures, and blood 
 must not be spilt without its fine ; but there is also an injunc- 
 tion of forgiveness and lenity towards one's fellow-creatures," 
 said the mushtehed, "which our holy prophet (upon whom be 
 eternal blessings !) has more particularly addressed to those 
 invested with authority, and which, O king, cannot be better 
 applied than in this instance. Let the Shah forgive this 
 unfortunate sinner, and he will reap greater reward in heaven 
 than if he had killed twenty Muscovites, or impaled the father 
 of all Europeans, or even if he had stoned a Sufi." 
 
 "Be it so," said the Shah ; and, turning to me, he said 
 with a loud voice, " Murakkas, you are dismissed ; and re- 
 collect it is owing to the intercession of this man of God," 
 putting his hand at the same time upon the shoulder of the 
 mushtehed, " that you are free, and that you are permitted to 
 enjoy the light of the sun. Bero ! Go ! open your eyes, and 
 never again stand before our presence." 
 
 THE ROYAL ARMS OF PERSIA, THE LION AND SUN 
 (CONVENTIONAL RENDERING). 
 
 (A bazaar picture.} From the collection of A. Hots, Esq.
 
 378 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 CHAPTER XLVIII 
 
 Hajji Baba reaches Ispahan, and his paternal roof, just time enough to 
 close the eyes of his dying father. 
 
 I DID not require to be twice ordered to depart ; and, without 
 once looking behind me, I left Kom and its priests, and bent 
 my steps towards Ispahan and my family. I had a few reals 
 in my pocket, with which I could buy food on the road ; and, 
 as for resting-places, the country was well supplied with cara- 
 vanserais, in which I could always find a corner to lay my 
 head. Young as I was, I began to be disgusted with the 
 world ; and perhaps had I remained long enough at Kom, 
 and in the mood in which I had reached it, I might have 
 devoted the rest of my life to following the lectures of Mirza 
 Abdul Cossim, and acquired worldly consideration by my 
 taciturnity, by my austerity, and strict adherence to Maho- 
 medan discipline. But fate had woven another destiny for 
 me. The maidan (the race-course) of life was still open to 
 me, and the courser of my existence had not yet exhausted 
 half of the bounds and curvets with which he was wont to 
 keep me in constant exercise. I felt that I deserved much of 
 the misfortunes with which I had been afflicted, owing to my 
 total neglect of my parents. 
 
 " I have been a wicked son," said I. " When I was a 
 man in authority, and was puffed up with pride at my own 
 importance, I then forgot the poor barber at Ispahan ; and it 
 is only now, when adversity spreads my path, that I recollect 
 the authors of my being." A saying of my schoolmaster, 
 which he frequently quoted with great emphasis in Arabic, 
 came to my mind. " An old friend," used he to say, " is not 
 to be bought, even if you had the treasures of Hatem to offer 
 for one. Remember then, O youth, that thy first, and there- 
 fore thy oldest friends, are thy father and thy mother."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 379 
 
 " They shall still find that they have a son," said I, feeling 
 a great rush of tenderness flow into my heart, as I repeated the 
 words ; "and, please God, if I reach my home, they shall no 
 longer have to reproach me with want of proper respect." A 
 still soft voice, however, whispered to me that I should be 
 too late ; and I remembered the prognostics of my mind, 
 when, filled with grief for the loss of Zeenab, I left Tehran 
 full of virtuous intentions and resolutions. 
 
 When I could first distinguish the peak in the mountain 
 of the Colak Cazi, which marks the situation of Ispahan, 
 my heart bounded within me ; and at every step I anxiously 
 considered in what state I should find my family. Would 
 my old schoolmaster be alive ? Should I find our neighbour 
 the baqual (or chandler), at whose shop I used to spend in 
 sweetmeats all the copper money that I could purloin from 
 my father, when I shaved for him, would he be still in 
 existence ? And my old friend the capiji, the doorkeeper 
 of the caravanserai, he whom I frightened so much at the 
 attack of the Turcomans, is the door of his life still open, 
 or has it been closed upon him for ever ? 
 
 In this manner did I muse by the wayside, until the tops 
 of the minarets of Ispahan actually came in view ; when, 
 enraptured with the sight, and full of gratitude for having 
 been preserved thus far in my pilgrimage, I stopt and said 
 my prayers ; and then taking up one stone, which I placed 
 upon another as a memorial, I made the following vow : 
 "O Ali, if thou wilt grant to thy humblest and most abject 
 of slaves the pleasure of reaching my home in safety, I will, 
 on my arrival, kill a sheep, and make a pilau for my friends 
 and family." 
 
 Traversing the outskirts of the city with a beating heart, 
 every spot was restored to my memory, and I threaded my 
 way through the long vaulted bazaars and intricate streets 
 without missing a single turn, until I found myself standing 
 opposite both my father's shop and the well-known gate of 
 the caravanserai. 
 
 The door of the former was closed, and nothing was
 
 380 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 stirring around it that indicated business. I paused a long- 
 time before I ventured to proceed, for I looked upon this 
 first aspect of things as portentous of evil ; but, recollecting 
 myself, I remembered that it was the Sheb-i- fumah, the 
 Friday eve, and that probably my father, in his old age, 
 had grown to be too scrupulous a Mussulman to work 
 during those hours which true believers ought to keep 
 holy. 
 
 However, the caravanserai was open, and presented the 
 same scene to my eyes which it had done ever since I had 
 known it. Bales of goods heaped up in lots, intermixed 
 with mules, camels, and their drivers. Groups of men in 
 various costumes, some seated, some in close conversation, 
 others gazing carelessly about, and others again coming and 
 going in haste, with faces full of care and calculation. I 
 looked about for the friend of my boyhood the capiji, and 
 almost began to fear that he too had closed his door, when I 
 perceived his well-known figure crawling quietly along with 
 his earthen water-pipe, seeking his bit of charcoal wherewith 
 to light it. 
 
 His head had sunk considerably between his shoulders, 
 and reclined more upon his breast since last I had seen him ; 
 and the additional bend in his knees showed that the passing 
 years had kept a steady reckoning with him. 
 
 " It is old AH Mohamed," said I, as I stepped up towards 
 him. " I should know that crooked nose of his from a thou- 
 sand, so often have I clipped the whisker that grows under it." 
 
 When I accosted him with the usual salutation of peace, 
 he kept on trimming his pipe, without even looking up, so 
 much accustomed was he to be spoken to by strangers ; but 
 when I said, "Do not you recognise me, Ali Mohamed?" 
 he turned up his old bloodshot eye at me, and pronounced, 
 " Friend ! a caravanserai is a picture of the world ; men come 
 in and go out of it, and no account is taken of them. How 
 am I, then, to know you? Ali Mohamed is grown old, and 
 his memory is gone by." 
 
 " But you will surely recollect Hajji Baba little Hajji,
 
 who used to shave your head, and trim your beard and 
 mustachios ! " 
 
 "There is but one God!" exclaimed the doorkeeper in 
 great amazement. "Are you indeed Hajji? Ah! my son, 
 your place has long been empty are you come at last? 
 Well, then, praise be to Allah, that old Kerbelai Hassan will 
 have his eyes closed by his only child ere he dies." 
 
 "How!" said I, "tell me where is my father? Why is 
 the shop shut ? What do you say about death ? " 
 
 " Yes, Hajji, the old barber has shaved his last Lose 
 not a moment in going to his house, and you may stand a 
 chance to be in time to receive his blessing ere he leaves 
 this world. Please God, I shall soon follow him, for all is 
 vanity. I have opened and shut the gates of this caravan- 
 serai for fifty years, and find that all pleasure is departed 
 from me. My keys retain their polish, whilst I wear out 
 with rust." 
 
 I did not stop to hear the end of the old man's speech, but 
 immediately made all speed to my father's house. 
 
 As I approached the well-remembered spot, I saw two 
 mollahs loitering near the low and narrow entrance. 
 
 "Ha!" thought I, "ye are birds of ill-omen; wherever 
 the work of death is going on, there ye are sure to be." 
 
 Entering, without accosting them, I walked at once into 
 the principal room, which I found completely filled with 
 people, surrounding an old man, who was stretched out 
 upon a bed spread upon the floor, and whom I recognised 
 to be my father. 
 
 No one knew me, and as it is a common custom for 
 strangers who have nothing to do with the dying to walk 
 in unasked, I was not noticed. On one side sat the doctor, 
 and on the other an old man, who was kneeling near the 
 bed-head, and in him I recognised my former schoolmaster. 
 He was administering comfort to his dying friend, and his 
 words were something to this purpose : " Do not be down- 
 cast : please God, you still have many days to spend on earth. 
 You may still live to see your son ; Hajji Baba may yet be
 
 382 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 near at hand. But yet it is a proper and a fortunate act to 
 make your will, and to appoint your heir. If such be your 
 wish, appoint any one here present your heir." 
 
 "Ah," sighed out my father, " Hajji has abandoned us 
 I shall never see him more he has become too much of a 
 personage to think of his poor parents he is not worthy 
 that I should make him my heir." These words produced 
 an immediate effect ! I could no longer restrain my desire 
 to make myself known, and I exclaimed, "Hajji is here! 
 Hajji is come to receive your blessing I am your son 
 do not reject him ! " 
 
 Upon which I knelt down by the bedside, and taking up 
 the dying man's hand, I kissed it, and added loud sobs and 
 lamentations to demonstrate my filial affection. 
 
 The sensation which I produced upon all present was very 
 great. I saw looks of disappointment in some, of incredulity 
 in others, and of astonishment in all. 
 
 My father's eyes, that were almost closed, brightened up 
 for one short interval as he endeavoured to make out my 
 features, and clasping his trembling hands together, ex- 
 claimed, " II hem dillahl Praise be to God, I have seen my 
 son, I have got an heir ! " Then addressing me, he said, 
 " Have you done well, O my son, to leave me for so many 
 years ? Why did you not come before ? " 
 
 He would have gone on, but the exertion and the agitation 
 produced by such an event were too much for his strength, 
 and he sunk down inanimate on his pillow. 
 
 " Stop," said my old schoolmaster, who had at once re- 
 cognised me " stop, Hajji ; say no more : let him recover 
 himself; he has still his will to make." 
 
 "Yes," said a youngish man, who had eyed me with looks 
 of great hostility, "yes, we have also still to see whether this 
 is Hajji Baba, or not." I afterwards found he was son to a 
 brother of my father's first wife, and had expected to inherit 
 the greatest part of the property ; and when I inquired who 
 were the other members of the assembly, I found that they 
 were all relations of that stamp, who had flocked together in
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 383 
 
 the hope of getting a share of the spoil, of which I had now 
 deprived them. 
 
 They all seemed to doubt whether I was myself,' and 
 
 A BAKKAL, OR CHANDLER'S. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 perhaps would have unanimously set me down for an im- 
 postor, if the schoolmaster had not been present : and from 
 his testimony there was no appeal.
 
 384 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 However, all doubts as to my identity were immediately 
 hushed when my mother appeared, who, having heard of my 
 arrival, could no longer keep to the limits of her anderun, but 
 rushed into the assembly with extended arms and a flowing 
 veil, exclaiming, " Where, where is he ? where is my son ? 
 Hajji, my soul, where art thou ? " 
 
 As soon as I had made myself known, she threw herself 
 upon my neck, weeping aloud, making use of every expres- 
 sion of tenderness which her imagination could devise, and 
 looking at me from head to foot with an eagerness of stare, 
 and an impetuosity of expression, that none but a mother can 
 command. 
 
 In order to rouse my father from the lethargy into which 
 he had apparently fallen, the doctor proposed administering a 
 cordial, which, having prepared, he endeavoured to pour down 
 his throat : during the exertion of raising the body, the dying 
 man sneezed once, which every one present knew was an 
 omen so bad, that no man in his senses would dare venture 
 to give the medicine until two full hours had expired : there- 
 fore it remained in the cup. 
 
 After having waited the expiration of the two hours, the 
 medicine was again attempted to be administered, when, to 
 the horror of all present, and to the disappointment of those 
 who expected that he should make his will, he was found to 
 be stone dead. 
 
 "In the name of Allah, arise," said the old mollah to him; 
 "we are now writing your will." He endeavoured to raise 
 my father's head, but to no purpose : life had entirely fled. 
 
 Cotton steeped in water was then squeezed into his 
 mouth, his feet were carefully placed towards the kebleh, 
 and as soon as it was ascertained that no further hope was 
 left, the priest at his bed-head began to read the Koran 
 in a loud and sing-song emphasis. A handkerchief was 
 then placed under his chin, fastened over his head, and 
 his two great toes were also tied together. All the com- 
 pany then pronounced the Kelemeh Schehddet (the profession 
 of faith), a ceremony which was supposed to send him out
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 385 
 
 of this world a pure and well-authenticated Mussulman ; 
 and during this interval a cup of water was placed upon 
 his head. 
 
 All these preliminaries having been duly performed, the 
 whole company, composed of what were supposed to be his 
 friends and relations, gathered close round the corpse, and 
 uttered loud and doleful cries. This was a signal to the 
 two mollahs (whom I before mentioned), who had mounted 
 on the house-top, and they then began to chant out in a 
 sonorous cadence portions of the Koran, or verses used on 
 such occasions, and which are intended as a public notifica- 
 tion of the death of a true believer. 
 
 The noise of wailing and lamentation now became general, 
 for it soon was communicated to the women, who, collected 
 in a separate apartment, gave vent to their grief after the 
 most approved forms. My father, from his gentleness and 
 obliging disposition, had been a great favourite with all 
 ranks of people, and my mother, who herself was a pro- 
 fessional mourner, and a principal performer at burials, 
 being well acquainted with others of her trade, had managed 
 to collect such a band around her on this occasion, that no 
 khan, it was said, ever had so much mourning performed 
 for him on his death-day as my father. 
 
 As for me, whose feelings had previously been set to 
 the pitch-pipe of misfortune, I became a real and genuine 
 mourner ; and the recollection of all the actions of my life, in 
 which my total neglect of my parents made so conspicuous a 
 figure, caused me to look upon myself in no enviable light. 
 
 I was seated quietly in a corner, adding my sincere sobs 
 to the artificial ones of the rest of the whole company, when 
 a priest came up to me, and said, that of course it was neces- 
 sary for me to tear my clothes, as I could not prove myself 
 to be a good son without so doing, and that, if I permitted 
 him, he would perform that operation for me without spoiling 
 my "coat. 
 
 I let him do what he required, and he accordingly ripped 
 open the seam of the breast flap, which then hung down
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 387 
 
 some three or four inches. He also told me that it was the 
 custom to keep the head uncovered, and the feet naked, at 
 least until all the ceremonies of burial had been performed. 
 
 To this I freely consented, and had the satisfaction after- 
 wards to learn that I was held up as the pattern of a good 
 mourner. 
 
 My mother's grief was outrageous ; her hair was con- 
 cealed, and she enveloped her head in a black shawl, making 
 exclamations expressive of her anguish, calling upon the 
 name of her husband. 
 
 By this time the neighbours, the passers-by, the known 
 or unknown to the family, flocked round the house for the 
 purpose of either reading the Koran or hearing it read, which 
 is also esteemed a meritorious act on that occasion. Among 
 these, many came in the character of comforters, who, by 
 their knowledge in the forms of speech best adapted to give 
 consolation, are looked upon as great acquisitions in the 
 event of a mourning. 
 
 My old schoolmaster, an eminent comforter, took me in 
 hand ; and, seating himself by my side, addressed me in the 
 following words : 
 
 " Yes, at length, your father is dead. So be it. What 
 harm is done ? Is not death the end of all things ! He was 
 born, he got a son, he ran his course, and died. Who can 
 do more ? You now take his place in the world ; you are 
 the rising blade that with millions of others promise a good 
 harvest, whilst he is the full ripened ear of corn that has 
 been cut down and gathered into the granary. Ought you 
 to repine at what is a subject for joy ? Instead of shaving 
 men's heads, he is now seated between two houris, drinking 
 milk and eating honey. Ought you to weep at that ? No ; 
 rather weep that you are not there also. But why weep at 
 all ? Consider the many motives for which, on the contrary, 
 you have to rejoice. He might have been an unbeliever 
 but he was a true Mussulman. He might have been a Turk 
 but he was a Persian. He might have been a Suni but 
 he was a Shiah. He might have been an unclean Christian
 
 388 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 he was a lawful son of Islam. He might have died 
 accursed like a Jew he has resigned his breath with the 
 profession of the true faith in his mouth. All these are sub- 
 jects of joy ! " 
 
 After this manner did he go on ; and, having expended 
 all he had to say, left me, to join his voice in the general 
 wailing. 
 
 Those unclean men, the mtirdeshfir, or washers of the 
 dead, were then called in, who brought with them the bier, 
 in which the corpse was to be carried to the grave. I was 
 consulted whether they should make an imareh of it, which is 
 a sort of canopy, adorned with black flags, shawls, and other 
 stuffs a ceremony practised only in the burials of great 
 personages ; but I referred the decision to my friend the 
 schoolmaster, who immediately said that, considering my 
 worthy father to have been a sort of public character, he 
 should certainly be for giving him such a distinction. This 
 was accordingly done ; and the corpse having been brought 
 out by the distant relations and laid therein, it was carried to 
 the place of ablution, where it was delivered over to the 
 washers, who immediately went to work. The body was 
 first washed with clear cold water, then rubbed over with 
 lime, salt, and camphor, placed in the winding-sheet, again 
 consigned to the bier, and at length conveyed to the place of 
 burial. 
 
 The many who offered themselves to carry the body was 
 a proof how much my father must have been beloved. Even 
 strangers, feeling that it was a praiseworthy action to carry a 
 good Mussulman to the grave, pressed forward to lend their 
 shoulder to the burden, and by the time it had reached its 
 last resting-place, the crowd was considerable. 
 
 I had followed at a small distance, escorted by those who 
 called themselves friends and relations ; and after a mollah 
 had said a prayer, accompanied by the voices of all present, I 
 was invited, as the nearest relative, to place the body in the 
 earth, which having done, the ligatures of the winding-sheet 
 were untied, and another prayer, called the talkhi, was pro-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 389 
 
 nounced. The twelve Imams, in rotation, were then in- 
 voked ; and the talkhi being again read, the grave was 
 covered in. After this, the Fatheh (the first chapter of the 
 Koran) was repeated by all present, and the grave having 
 been sprinkled over with water, the whole assembly dis- 
 persed, to meet again at the house of the deceased. A priest 
 remained at the head of the grave, praying. 
 
 I was now called upon to act a part. I had become the 
 principal personage in the tragedy, and an involuntary thought 
 stole into my mind. 
 
 "Ah," said I, "the vow which I made upon first seeing 
 the city must now be performed, whether I will or no. I 
 must spend boldly, or I shall be esteemed an unnatural 
 son ; " therefore, when I returned to the house, I blindly 
 ordered everything to be done in a handsome manner. 
 
 Two rooms were prepared, the one for the men, the other 
 for the women. According to the received custom, I, as chief 
 mourner, gave an entertainment to all those who had attended 
 at the funeral ; and here my sheep and my pilau were not 
 forgotten. I also hired three mollahs, two of whom were 
 appointed to read the Koran in the men's apartment, and 
 the other remained near the tomb, for the same purpose, 
 inhabiting a small tent, which was pitched for his use. The 
 length of the mourning, which lasts, according to the means 
 of the family, three, five, seven days, or even a month, I 
 fixed at five days, during which each of the relations gave 
 an entertainment. At the end of that period, some of the 
 elders, both men and women, went round to the mourners, 
 and sewed up their rent garments, and on that day I was 
 again invited to give an entertainment, when separate sheets 
 of the Koran were distributed throughout the whole as- 
 sembly, and read by each individual, until the whole of the 
 sacred volume had been completely gone through. 
 
 After this my mother, with several of her relations and 
 female friends, proceeded in a body to my father's tomb, 
 taking with them sweetmeats, and bread baked for the 
 purpose, which they distributed to the poor, having par-
 
 390 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 taken thereof themselves. They then returned, weeping and 
 bewailing. 
 
 Two or three days having elapsed, my mother's friends 
 led her to the bath, where they took off her mourning, put 
 on her a clean dress, and dyed her hands and feet with the 
 khenah. 
 
 This completed the whole of the ceremonies ; and, much 
 to my delight, I was now left to myself, to regulate my 
 father's affairs, and to settle plans for my own future conduct. 
 
 AN ENAMEL ON GOLD. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 CHAPTER XLIX - 
 
 He becomes heir to property which is not to be found, and his 
 suspicions thereon. 
 
 MY father having died without a will, I was, of course, 
 proclaimed his sole heir without any opposition, and con- 
 sequently, all those who had aspired to be sharers of his 
 property, balked by my unexpected appearance, immediately 
 withdrew to vent their disappointment in abusing me. They 
 represented me as a wretch, devoid of all respect for my 
 parents, as one without religion, an adventurer in the world, 
 and the companion of lutis and wandering dervishes.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 391 
 
 As I had no intention of remaining at Ispahan, I treated 
 their endeavours to hurt me with contempt ; and consoled 
 myself by giving them a full return of all their scurrility, 
 by expressions which neither they nor their fathers had 
 ever heard ; expressions which I had picked up from 
 amongst the illustrious characters with whom I had passed 
 the first years of my youth. 
 
 When we were left to ourselves, my mother and I, after 
 having bewailed in sufficiently pathetic language, she the 
 death of a husband, I the loss of a father, the following 
 conversation took place : 
 
 " Now tell me, O my mother for there can be no secrets 
 between us tell me what was the state of Kerbelai Hassan's 
 concerns. He loved you, and confided in you, and you must 
 therefore be better acquainted with them than any one else." 
 
 " What do I know of them, my son ? " said she, in great 
 haste, and seeming confusion. 
 
 I stopt her, to continue my speech. " You know that, 
 according to the law, his heir is bound to pay his debts : 
 they must be ascertained. Then, the expenses of the funeral 
 are to be defrayed ; they will be considerable ; and at present 
 I am as destitute of means as on the day you gave me birth. 
 To meet all this, money is necessary, or else both mine and 
 my father's name will be disgraced among men, and my 
 enemies will not fail to overcome me. He must have 
 been reputed wealthy, or else his death-bed would never 
 have been surrounded by that host of blood-suckers and 
 time-servers which have been driven away by my presence. 
 You, my mother, must tell me where he was accustomed 
 to deposit his ready cash, who were, or who are likely 
 to be, his debtors ; and what might be his possessions, 
 besides those which are apparent." 
 
 "Oh, Allah!" exclaimed she, "what words are these? 
 Your father was a poor, good man, who had neither money 
 nor possessions. Money, indeed ! We had dry bread to 
 eat, and that was all ! Now and then, after the arrival of a 
 great caravan, when heads to be shaved were plentiful, and
 
 392 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 his business brisk, we indulged in our dish of rice, and our 
 skewer of kabob, but otherwise we lived like beggars. A bit 
 of bread, a morsel of cheese, an onion, a basin of sour curds 
 that was our daily fare ; and, under these circumstances, 
 can you ask me for money, ready money too ? There is this 
 house, which you see and know ; then his shop, with its 
 furniture ; and when I have said that, I have nearly said all. 
 You are just arrived in time, my son, to step into your 
 father's shoes, and take up his business ; and Inshallah, 
 please God, may your hand be fortunate ! may it never cease 
 wagging, from one year's end to the other ! " 
 
 " This is very strange ! " exclaimed I, in my turn. " Fifty 
 years, and more, hard and unceasing toil ! and nothing to 
 show for it ! This is incredible ! We must call in the 
 diviners." 
 
 " The diviners ! " said my mother, in some agitation ; " of 
 what use can they be ? They are only called in when a thief 
 is to be discovered. You will not proclaim your mother a 
 thief, Hajji, will you? Go, make inquiries of your friend, 
 and your father's friend, the akhon}- He is acquainted with 
 the whole of the concerns, and I am sure he will repeat what 
 I have said." 
 
 "You do not speak amiss, mother," said I. " The akhon 
 probably does know what were my father's last wishes, for he 
 appeared to be the principal director in his dying moments ; 
 and he may tell me, if money there was left, where it is to be 
 found." 
 
 Accordingly I went straightway to seek the old man, 
 whom I found seated precisely in the very same corner of the 
 little parish mosque, surrounded by his scholars, in which 
 some twenty years before I myself had received his instruc- 
 tions. As soon as he saw me he dismissed his scholars, 
 saying that my footsteps were fortunate, and that others, as 
 well as himself, should partake of the pleasure which I was 
 sure to dispense wherever I went. 
 
 " Ahi, akhon," said I, "do not laugh at my beard. My 
 
 1 A mollah who is a schoolmaster is also styled akhon.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 393 
 
 good fortune has entirely forsaken me ; and even now, when 
 I had hoped that my destiny, in depriving me of my father, 
 had made up the loss by giving me wealth, I am likely 
 to be disappointed, and to turn out a greater beggar than 
 ever." 
 
 "Allah kerim, God is merciful," said the schoolmaster; 
 
 A BOYS' SCHOOL. 
 
 A woman in out-door dress is in the background. The master, as a Seyyud, or descendant 
 of the Prophet, wears a dark green turban. 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 and lifting up his eyes to heaven, whilst he placed his hands 
 on his knees, with their palms uppermost, he exclaimed, " Oh, 
 Allah, whatever is, Thou art it." Then addressing himself to 
 me, he said, "Yes, my son, such is the world, and such will 
 it ever be, as long as man shuts not up his heart from all 
 human desires. Want nothing, seek nothing, and nothing 
 will seek you."
 
 394 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 " How long have you been a Sufi," said I, "that you talk 
 after this manner? I can speak on that subject also, since 
 my evil star led me to Kom, but now I am engrossed with 
 other matters." I then informed him of the object of my 
 visit, and requested him to tell me what he knew of my 
 father's concerns. 
 
 Upon this question he coughed, and, making up a face of 
 great wisdom, went through a long string of oaths and profes- 
 sions, and finished by repeating what I had heard from my 
 mother ; namely, that he believed my father to have died 
 possessed of no (nagd) ready cash (for that, after all, was the 
 immediate object of my search) ; and what his other property 
 was, he reminded me that I knew as well as himself. 
 
 I remained mute for some time with disappointment, and 
 then expressed my surprise in strong terms. My father, I 
 was aware, was too good a Mussulman to have lent out his 
 money upon interest, for I recollected a circumstance, when I 
 was quite a youth, which proved it. Osman Aga, my first 
 master, wanting to borrow a sum from him, for which he 
 offered an enormous interest, my father put his conscience 
 into the hands of a rigid mollah, who told him that the pre- 
 cepts of the Koran entirely forbade it. Whether since that 
 time he had relaxed his principles, I could not say ; but I 
 was assured that he always set his face against the unlawful 
 practice of taking interest, and that he died, as he had lived, 
 a perfect model of a true believer. 
 
 I left the mosque in no very agreeable mood, and took 
 my way to the spot where I had made my first appearance in 
 life, namely, my father's shop, turning over in my mind as I 
 went what steps I should take to secure a future livelihood. 
 To remain at Ispahan was out of the question the place and 
 the inhabitants were odious to me ; therefore, it was only 
 left me to dispose of everything that was now my own, and 
 to return to the capital, which, after all, I knew to be the best 
 market for an adventurer like myself. However, I could not 
 relinquish the thought that my father had died possessed of 
 some ready money, and suspicions would haunt my mind, in
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 395 
 
 spite of me, that foul play was going on somewhere or other. 
 I was at a loss to whom to address myself, unknown as I was 
 in the city, and I was thinking of making my case known to 
 the cadi, when, approaching the gate of the caravanserai, I 
 was accosted by the old capiji. "Peace be unto you, 
 Aga ! " said he; "may you live many years, and may your 
 abundance increase ! My eyes are enlightened by seeing 
 you." 
 
 " Are your spirits so well wound up, Ali Mohamed," said 
 I in return, "that you choose to treat me thus? As for the 
 abundance you talk of, 'tis abundance of grief, for I have 
 none other that I know of. Och !" said I, sighing, "my liver 
 has become water, and my soul has withered up." 
 
 "What news is this?" said the old man. " Y'our father 
 (peace be unto him !) is just dead you are his heir you are 
 young, and, Mashallah I you are handsome your wit is not 
 deficient : what do you want more ? " 
 
 " I am his heir, 'tis true ; but what of that : what ad- 
 vantage can accrue to me, when I only get an old mud- 
 built house, with some worn-out carpets, some pots and 
 pans and decayed furniture, and yonder shop with a brass 
 basin and a dozen of razors ? Let me spit upon such an 
 inheritance." 
 
 "But where is your money, your ready cash, Hajji? 
 Your father (God be with him !) had the reputation of being 
 as great a niggard of his money as he was liberal of his soap. 
 Everybody knows that he amassed much, and never passed a 
 day without adding to his store." 
 
 "That may be true," said I ; "but what advantage will 
 that be to me, since I cannot find where it was deposited? 
 My mother says that he had none the akhon repeats the 
 same I am no conjurer to discover the truth. I had it in 
 my mind to go to the cadi." 
 
 "To the cadi!" said Ali Mohamed. "Heaven forbid! 
 Go not to him you might as well knock at the gate of this 
 caravanserai, when I am absent, as try to get justice from 
 him, without a heavy fee. No, he sells it by the miscal, at a
 
 396 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 heavy price, and very light weight does he give after all. 
 He does not turn over one leaf of the Koran until his fingers 
 have been well plated with gold, and if those who have appro- 
 priated your father's sacks are to be your opponents, do not 
 you think that they will drain them into the cadi's lap, rather 
 than he should pronounce in your favour?" 
 
 A HAWK UPON HIS PERCH. 
 From the collection of A. Hotz, Esq. 
 
 "What, then, is to be done?" said I. "Perhaps the 
 diviners might give me some help." 
 
 "There will be no harm in that," answered the door- 
 keeper. " I have known them make great discoveries during 
 my service in this caravanserai. Merchants have frequently
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 397 
 
 lost their money, and found it again through their means. 
 It was only in the attack of the Turcomans, when much prop- 
 erty was stolen, that they were completely at their wits' end. 
 Ah ! that was a strange event. It brought much misery on 
 my head ; for some were wicked enough to say that I was 
 their accomplice, and, what is more extraordinary, that you 
 were amongst them, Hajji ! for it was on account of your 
 name, which the dog's son made use of to induce me to open 
 the gate, that the whole mischief was produced." 
 
 Lucky was it for me that old AH Mohamed was very dull 
 of sight, or else he would have remarked strange alterations 
 in my features when he made these observations. However, 
 our conference ended by his promising to send me the most 
 expert diviner of Ispahan; "a man," said he, "who would 
 entice a piece of gold out of the earth, if buried twenty 
 gez deep, or even if it was hid in the celebrated well * of 
 Kashan." 
 
 CHAPTER L 
 
 Showing the steps he takes to discover his property, and who the diviner t 
 
 Teez Negahj was. 
 
 THE next morning, soon after the first prayers, a little man 
 came into my room, whom I soon discovered to be the diviner. 
 He was a humpback, with an immense head, with eyes so 
 wonderfully brilliant, and a countenance so intelligent, that I 
 felt he could look through and through me at one glance. He 
 wore a dervish's cap, from under which flowed a profusion of 
 jet-black hair, which, added to a thick bush of a beard, gave 
 an imposing expression to his features. His eyes, which by 
 a quick action of his eyelid (whether real or affected, I know 
 
 1 It is a popular belief that near the city of Kashan there exists a well, of 
 fabulous depth, at the bottom of which are found enchanted groves and gardens.
 
 398 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 not) twinkled like stars, made the monster, who was not taller 
 than a good bludgeon, look like a little demon. 
 
 He began by questioning me very narrowly ; made me 
 relate every circumstance of my life particularly since my 
 return to Ispahan inquired who were my father's greatest 
 apparent friends and associates, and what my own suspicions 
 led me to conclude. In short, he searched into every par- 
 ticular, with the same scrutiny that a doctor would in tracing 
 and unravelling an intricate disorder. 
 
 When he had well pondered over everything that I had 
 unfolded, he then required to be shown the premises which 
 my father principally inhabited. My mother having gone 
 that morning to the bath, I was enabled, unknown to her, to 
 take him into her apartments, where he requested me to leave 
 him to himself, in order that he might obtain a knowledge of 
 the localities necessary to the discoveries which he hoped to 
 make. He remained there a full quarter of an hour, and 
 when he came out requested me to collect those who were in 
 my father's intimacy, and in the habit of much frequenting 
 the house, and that he would return, they being assembled, 
 and begin his operations. 
 
 Without saying a word to my mother about the diviner, 
 I requested her to invite her most intimate friends for the 
 following morning, it being my intention to give them a 
 breakfast ; and I myself begged the attendance of the akhon, 
 the capiji, my. father's nephew by his first wife, and a brother 
 of my mother, with others who had free entrance into the 
 house. 
 
 They came punctually ; and when they had partaken of 
 such fare as I could place before them, they were informed of 
 the predicament in which I stood, and that I had requested 
 their attendance to be witnesses to the endeavours of the 
 diviner to discover where my father was wont to keep his 
 money, of the existence of which, somewhere or other, nobody 
 who knew him could doubt. I looked into each man's face 
 as I made this speech, hoping to remark some expression 
 which might throw a light upon my suspicions, but everybody
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 399 
 
 seemed ready to help my investigation, and maintained the 
 most unequivocal innocence of countenance. 
 
 At length the dervish, Teez Negah (for that was the name 
 of the conjurer), was introduced, accompanied by an attendant 
 who carried something wrapped up in a handkerchief. Having 
 ordered the women in the anderun to keep themselves veiled, 
 because they would probably soon be visited by men, I 
 requested the dervish to begin his operations. 
 
 He first looked at every one present with great earnest- 
 ness, but more particularly fixed his basilisk eyes upon the 
 akhon, who evidently could not stand the scrutiny, but 
 exclaimed "Allah il Allak!" -there is but one God- 
 stroked down his face and beard, and blew first over one 
 shoulder and then over the other, by way of keeping off" the 
 evil spirit. Some merriment was raised at his expense ; 
 but he did not appear to be in a humour to meet any one's 
 jokes. 
 
 After this, the dervish called to his attendant, who from 
 the handkerchief drew forth a brass cup of a plain surface, 
 but written all over with quotations from the Koran, having 
 reference to the crime of stealing, and defrauding the orphan 
 of his lawful property. He was a man of few words, and 
 simply saying, " In the name of Allah, the All-wise, and 
 All-seeing," he placed the cup on the floor, treating it with 
 much reverence, both in touch and in manner. 
 
 He then said to the lookers-on, " Inshallah> it will lead us 
 at once to the spot where the money of the deceased Kerbelai 
 Hassan (may God show him mercy!) is, or was deposited." 
 
 We all looked at each other, some with expressions of 
 incredulity, others with unfeigned belief, when he bent him- 
 self towards the cup, and with little shoves and pats of his 
 hand he impelled it forwards, exclaiming all the time, " See, 
 see, the road it takes. Nothing can stop it. It will go, in 
 spite of me. Maskallak, Mashallah ! " 
 
 We followed him. until he reached the door of the harem, 
 where we knocked for admittance. After some negotiation 
 it was opened, and there we found a crowd of women (many
 
 400 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 of whom had only loosely thrown on their veils) waiting with 
 much impatience to witness the feats which this wonderful 
 cup was to perform. 
 
 A METAL EWER. 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 "Make way," skid the diviner to the women who stood 
 in his path, as he took his direction towards a corner of the 
 court, upon which the windows of the room opened " Make 
 way ; nothing can stop my guide."
 
 A woman, whom I recognised to be my mother, stopt his 
 progress several times, until he was obliged to admonish her 
 with some bitterness, to keep clear of him. 
 
 "Do not you see," said he, "we are on the Lord's 
 business ? Justice will be done in spite of the wickedness 
 of man." 
 
 At length he reached a distant corner, where it was plain 
 that the earth had been recently disturbed, and there he 
 stopped. 
 
 " Bismillah^ in the name of Allah," said he, "let all 
 present stand around me, and mark what I do." He dug 
 into the ground with his dagger, clawed the soil away with 
 his hands, and discovered a place in which were the remains 
 of an earthen vessel, and the marks near it of there having 
 been another. 
 
 " Here," said he, "here the money was, but is no more." 
 Then taking up his cup, he appeared to caress it, and make 
 much of it, calling it his little uncle and his little soul. 
 
 Every one stared. All cried out, " Ajaib ! " wonderful ! and 
 the little humpback was looked upon as a supernatural being. 
 
 The capiji, who was accustomed to such discoveries, was 
 the only one who. had the readiness to say, "But where is 
 the thief? You have shown us where the game lay, but we 
 want you to catch it for us : the thief and the money, or the 
 money without the thief that is what we want." 
 
 " Softly, my friend," said the dervish to the capiji, "don't 
 jump so soon from the crime to the criminal. We have a 
 medicine for every disorder, although it may take some time 
 to work." 
 
 He then cast his eyes upon the company present, twinkling 
 them all the while in quick flashes, and said, " I am sure 
 every one here will be happy to be clear of suspicion, and 
 will agree to what I shall propose. The operation is simple, 
 and soon over." 
 
 " Elbetteh" certainly ; " Belli" yes ; " Een che harf est f " 
 what word is this ? was heard to issue from every mouth, 
 and I requested the dervish to proceed. 
 
 2 c
 
 402 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 He called again to his servant, who produced a small 
 bag, whilst he again took the cup under his charge. 
 
 "This bag," said the diviner, "contains some old rice. 
 1 will put a small handful of it into each person's mouth, 
 which they will forthwith chew. Let those who cannot 
 break it beware, for Eblis is near at hand." 
 
 Upon this, placing us in a row, he filled each person's 
 mouth with rice, and all immediately began to masticate. 
 Being the complainant, of course I was exempt from the 
 ordeal ; and my mother, who chose to make common cause 
 with me, also stood out of the ranks. The quick-sighted 
 dervish would not allow of this, but made her undergo the 
 trial with the rest, saying, "The property we seek is not 
 yours, but your son's. Had he been your husband, it would 
 be another thing." She agreed to his request, though with 
 bad grace, and then all the jaws were set to wagging, some 
 looking upon it as a good joke, others thinking it a hard 
 trial to the nerves. As fast as each person had ground his 
 mouthful, he called to the dervish, and showed the contents 
 of his mouth. 
 
 All had now proved their innocence excepting the akhon 
 and my mother. The former, whose face exhibited the 
 picture of an affected cheerfulness with great nervous ap- 
 prehension, kept mumbling his rice, and turning it over 
 between his jaws, until he cried out in a querulous tone, 
 "Why do you give me this stuff to chew? I am old, and 
 have no teeth : it is impossible for me to reduce the grain ; " 
 and then he spat it out. My mother, too, complained of her 
 want of power to break the hard rice, and did the same 
 thing. A silence ensued, which made us all look with 
 more attention than usual upon them, and it was only 
 broken by a time-server of my mother, an old woman, who 
 cried out, "What child's play is this? Who has ever heard 
 of a son treating his mother with this disrespect, and his old 
 schoolmaster, too ? Shame, shame ! let us go he is prob- 
 ably the thief himself." 
 
 Upon this the dervish said, " Are we fools and asses, to
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 403 
 
 be dealt with in this manner ? either there was money in 
 that corner, or there was not either there are thieves in 
 the world, or there are not. This man and this woman," 
 pointing to the akhon and my mother, "have not done 
 that which all the rest have done. Perhaps, they say the 
 
 A RICE-DISH. 
 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 truth, they are old, and cannot break the hard grain. 
 Nobody says that they stole the money they themselves 
 know that best," said he, looking at them through and 
 through; "but the famous diviner, Hezarfun, he who was 
 truly called the bosom friend to the Great Bear, and the 
 confidant of the planet Saturn, he who could tell all that
 
 4 o 4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 a man has ever thought, thinks, or will think, he hath 
 said that the trial by rice among cowards was the best of 
 all tests of a man's honesty. Now, my friends, from all I 
 have remarked, none of you are slayers of lions, and fear 
 is easily produced among you. However, if you doubt my 
 skill in this instance, I will propose a still easier trial, 
 one which commits nobody, which works like a charm upon 
 the mind, and makes the thief come forward of his own 
 accord, to ease his conscience and purse of its ill-gotten 
 wealth, at one and the same time. I propose the Hak 
 reezi, or the heaping up earth. Here in this corner I will 
 make a mound, and will pray so fervently this very night, 
 that, by the blessing of Allah, the Hajji," pointing to me, 
 "will find his money buried in it to-morrow at this hour. 
 Whoever is curious, let them be present, and if something 
 be not discovered, I will give him a miscal of hair from 
 my beard." 
 
 He then set to work, and heaped up earth in a corner, 
 whilst the lookers-on loitered about, discussing what they 
 had just seen ; some examining me and the dervish as children 
 of the evil spirit, whilst others again began to think as much 
 of my mother and the schoolmaster. The company then 
 dispersed, most of them promising to return the following 
 morning, at the appointed time, to witness the search into 
 the heap of earth. 
 
 CHAPTER LI 
 
 Of the diviner's success in making discoveries, and of the resolution 
 which Hajji Baba takes in consequence. 
 
 I MUST own that I began now to look upon the restoration 
 of my property as hopeless. The diviner's skill had cer- 
 tainly discovered that money had been buried in my 
 father's house, and he had succeeded in raising ugly suspi-
 
 405 
 
 cions in my mind against two persons whom I felt it to be 
 a. sin to suspect ; but I doubted whether he could do more. 
 
 However, he appeared again on the following morning, 
 accompanied by the capiji, and by several of those who 
 had been present at the former scene. The akhon, how- 
 ever, did not appear, and my mother was also absent, 
 upon pretext of being obliged to visit a sick friend. We 
 proceeded in a body to the mound, and the dervish having 
 made a holy invocation, he approached it with a sort of 
 mysterious respect. 
 
 " Now we shall see," said he, "whether the Gins and the 
 Peris have been at work this night ; " and, exclaiming, 
 "Bistnilfahl" he dug into the earth with his dagger. 
 
 Having thrown off some of the soil, a large stone ap- 
 peared, and having disengaged that, to the astonishment of 
 all, and to my extreme delight, a canvas bag, well filled, 
 was discovered. 
 
 "Oh, my soul! oh, my heart!" exclaimed the humpback, 
 as he seized upon the bag, " you see that the dervish Teez 
 Negah is not a man to lose a hair of his beard. There, 
 there," said he, putting it into my hand, "there is your 
 property : go, and give thanks that you have fallen into my 
 hands, and do not forget my hak sai, or my commission." 
 
 Everybody crowded round me, whilst I broke open the 
 wax that was affixed to the mouth of the bag, upon which 
 I recognised the impression of my father's seal ; and eager- 
 ness was marked on all their faces as I untied the twine 
 with which it was fastened. My countenance dropped wo- 
 fully when I found that it only contained silver, for I had 
 made up my mind to see gold. Five hundred reals x was 
 the sum of which I became the possessor ; out of which 
 I counted fifty, and presented them to the ingenious dis- 
 coverer of them. "There," said I, "may your house 
 prosper! If I were rich I would give you more: and 
 although this is evidently but a small part of what my 
 father (God be with him !) must have accumulated, still, 
 
 1 A real is about two shillings eight reals one tomaun.
 
 4 o6 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 again I say, may your house prosper, and many sincere 
 thanks to you." 
 
 The dervish was satisfied with my treatment of him, and 
 took his leave, and I was soon after left by the rest of the 
 company the capiji alone remaining. "Famous business 
 we have made of it this morning," said he. " Did I not 
 say that these diviners performed wonders ? " 
 
 "Yes," said I, "yes, it is wonderful, for I never thought 
 his operations would have come to anything." 
 
 Impelled by a spirit of cupidity, now that I had seen 
 money glistening before me, I began to complain that I 
 had received so little, and again expressed to AH Mohamed 
 my wish of bringing the case before the cadi; "for," said 
 I, " if I am entitled to these five hundred reals, I am en- 
 titled to all my father left ; and you will acknowledge that 
 this must be but a very small part of his savings." 
 
 "Friend," said he, "listen to the words of an old man. 
 Keep what you have got, and be content. In going before 
 the cadi, the first thing you will have to do will be to give 
 of your certain, to get at that most cursed of all property, 
 the uncertain. Be assured that, after having drained you 
 of your four hundred and fifty reals, and having got five 
 hundred from your opponents, you will have the satisfaction 
 to hear him tell you both to ' go in peace, and do not trouble 
 the city with your disputes.' Have not you lived long 
 enough in the world to have learnt this common saying 
 ' Every one's teeth are blunted by acids, except the cadi's, 
 which are by sweets ' ? 
 
 " The cadi who takes five cucumbers as a bribe will 
 admit any evidence for ten beds of melons." 
 
 After some deliberation, I determined to take the advice 
 of the capiji ; for it was plain that, if I intended to prosecute 
 any one, it could only be my mother and the akhon ; and to 
 do that, I should raise such a host of enemies, and give rise 
 to -such unheard-of scandal, that perhaps I should only get 
 stoned by the populace for my pains. 
 
 " I will dispose of everything I have at Ispahan," said
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 407 
 
 I to my adviser ; "and, having done that, will leave it, never 
 to return, unless under better circumstances. It shall never 
 see me more," exclaimed I, in a vapouring fit, "unless I 
 come as one having authority." 
 
 Little did I think, when I made this vain speech, how 
 diligently my good stars were at work to realise what it had 
 expressed. 
 
 The capiji applauded my intention ; the more so, as he 
 took some little interest that my resolutions should be put 
 into practice ; for he had a son, a barber, whom he wished 
 to set up in business ; and what could be more desirable, 
 in every respect, than to see him installed in the shop in 
 which my poor father had flourished so successfully, close 
 to his post at the caravanserai ? 
 
 He made proposals that I should dispose of the shop and 
 all its furniture to him, which I agreed to do, upon the evalua- 
 tion of some well-known brother of the strap, and thus I was 
 relieved of one of my remaining cares. 
 
 As for my father's house and furniture, notwithstanding 
 my feelings at the recent conduct of my mother, I deter- 
 mined, by way of acquiring a good name (of which I was 
 very much in want), to leave her in full possession of them, 
 reserving to myself the temesouts or deeds, which constituted 
 me its lawful owner. 
 
 All being settled and agreed upon, I immediately pro- 
 ceeded to work. I received five hundred piastres from the 
 capiji for my shop ; for he also had been a great accumulator 
 of his savings, and everybody allowed that money was never 
 laid out to better advantage, since the shop was sure to enjoy 
 a great run of business, owing to its excellent situation. I 
 therefore became worth in all about one hundred and ten 
 tomauns in gold, a coin into which I changed my silver, 
 for the greater facility which it gave me of carrying it 
 about my person. Part of this I laid out in clothes, and 
 part in the purchase of a mule, with its necessary furniture. I 
 gave the preference to a mule, because, after mature delibera- 
 tion, I had determined to abandon the character of a sahib
 
 4 o8 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjf BAB A 
 
 shemshir, or a man of the sword, in which, for the most part, 
 I had hitherto appeared in life, and adopt that of a sahib 
 calem, or a man of the pen, for which, after my misfortunes, 
 and the trial which I had in some measure made of it at 
 Kom, I now felt a great predilection. 
 
 "It will not suit me, now, to be bestriding a horse," said 
 I to myself, "armed, as I used to be, at all points, with sword 
 by my side, pistols in my girdle, and a carbine at my back. 
 I will neither deeply indent my cap, and place it on one side, 
 as before, with my long curls dangling behind my ears, but 
 wind a shawl round it, which will give me a new character ; 
 and, moreover, clip the curls, which will inform the world 
 that I have renounced it and its vanities. Instead of pistols, 
 I will stick a roll of papers in my girdle ; and, in lieu of a 
 cartouche-box, sling a Koran across my person. Besides, 
 I will neither walk on the tips of my toes, nor twist about 
 my body, nor screw up my waist, nor throw my shoulders 
 forward, nor swing my hands to and fro before me, nor, in 
 short, take upon myself any of the airs of a kasheng, of a 
 beau, in which I indulged when sub-deputy to the chief- exe- 
 cutioner. No ; I will, for the future, walk with my back 
 bent, my head slouching, my eyes looking on the ground, 
 my hands stuck either in front of my girdle, or hanging per- 
 pendicular down my sides, and my feet shall drag one after 
 the other, without the smallest indication of a strut. Look- 
 ing one's character is all in all ; for if, perchance, I happen 
 to say a foolish thing, it will be counted as wisdom, when 
 it comes from a mortified-looking face, and a head bound 
 round with a mollah's shawl, particularly when it is accom- 
 panied with a deep sigh, and an exclamation of Allah ho 
 Akbar ! or, Allah, Allah il Allah! and if, perchance, I 
 am brought face to face with a man of real learning, and 
 am called upon to sustain my character, I have only to look 
 wise, shut my lips, and strictly keep my own counsel. 
 Besides, I can read, and with the practice that I intend to 
 adopt, it will not be long before I shall be able to write 
 a good hand ; that alone, by enabling me to make a
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 409 
 
 copy of the Koran, will entitle me to the respect of the 
 world." 
 
 With reflections such as these I passed my time until it 
 was necessary to decide whither I should bend, my steps. 
 Everything told me that I ought to make the most of the 
 
 A YOUTH OF THE MIDDLE CLASS. 
 (From a Persian drawing.) From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 good impression which I had left behind me, on the minds 
 of the mushtehed of Kom and his disciples, for he was the 
 most likely person to help me in my new career : he might 
 recommend me to some mollah of his acquaintance, who 
 would take me as his scribe or his attendant, and teach me
 
 4 io THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 the way that I should go. Besides, I left him so abruptly 
 when through his means I had been released from my con- 
 finement in the sanctuary, that I felt I had a debt of gratitude 
 still to pay. " I will take him a present," said I ; "he shall 
 not say that I am unmindful of his goodness." Accordingly 
 
 A POWDER-FLASK. 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 I turned over in my thoughts what I ought to present, when 
 I again determined upon a praying-carpet, which I forthwith 
 purchased ; reflecting, at the same time, that it would make 
 a comfortable seat, when duly folded, on the top of my 
 mule's pad. 
 
 I had now nearly finished all that I had to do, previous to
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 411 
 
 my departure. I was equipped ready for my journey, and I 
 flattered myself that my outward appearance was that of a 
 rigid mollah. I did not take upon myself the title of one, 
 but rather left that to circumstances ; but, in the meanwhile, 
 the epithet of Hajji, which had been given to me as a pet 
 name when I was a child, now came very opportunely to 
 my assistance, to aid me to sustain my new character. 
 
 One duty I still had to accomplish, and that was to pay 
 the expenses of my father's funeral. I do own that, cheated 
 as I had been of my lawful patrimony, I felt it hard that such 
 an expense should fall upon me ; and several times had 
 planned a departure from Ispahan unknown to anybody, in 
 order that the burthen might fall upon the akhon and my 
 mother, to whom I had intended the honour of payment ; but 
 my better feelings got the mastery, and reflecting that by 
 acting thus I should render myself fully entitled to the odious 
 epithet of peder sukkttk l (one whose father is burnt), I went 
 round to each of the attendants, namely, mollahs, mourners, 
 and washers of the dead, and paid them their dues. 
 
 CHAPTER LII 
 
 Hajji Baba quits his mother, and becomes the scribe to a celebrated 
 
 man of the law. 
 
 I TOOK leave of my mother without much regret, and she did 
 not increase the tenderness of our parting by any great ex- 
 pression of sorrow. She had her plans, I had mine ; and, 
 considering how we stood circumstanced, the less we ran in 
 each other's way the better. 
 
 I mounted my mule at break of day, and, ere the sun had 
 passed its meridian, was already considerably advanced on 
 
 1 Peder sukhtdh is the most common term of abuse in a Persian's mouth. It 
 implies " one whose father is burning in eternal fires."
 
 4 i2 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 my road to Kom. I loitered but little on my journey, not- 
 withstanding the pleasures which a halt at Kashan might 
 have afforded me, and on the ninth day I once again saw the 
 gilded cupola of the tomb of Fatimeh. 
 
 Alighting at a small caravanserai in the town, I saw 
 my mule well provided, and then, with my present to the 
 mushtehed under my arm, I proceeded to his house. His 
 door was open to every one, for he made no parade of 
 servants to keep the stranger in awe, as may be seen at the 
 houses of the great in Persia ; and, leaving my carpet at the 
 door with my shoes, I entered the room, in one corner of 
 which I found the good man seated. 
 
 He immediately recognised me, and, giving me a welcome 
 reception, he desired me to seat myself, which I did, with all 
 proper respect, at the very edge of the felt carpet. 
 
 He asked me to relate the history of my adventures since 
 I left Kom, for he professed himself interested in my fate ; 
 and, having made him all the necessary acknowledgments for 
 procuring my release from the sanctuary, I related all that 
 had befallen me. I also told him what a calling I felt within 
 me to devote myself to a holy life, and entreated his help to 
 procure me some situation in which I might show my zeal 
 for the interests of the true faith. 
 
 He reflected for a moment, and said, "that very morn- 
 ing he had received a letter from one of the principal men of 
 the law of Tehran, the mollah Nadan, who was much in want 
 of one who would act as half scribe and half servant ; one, in 
 short, who might be of good materials for a future mollah, 
 and whom he would instruct in all that was necessary in that 
 vocation." 
 
 My heart leaped within me when I heard this, for it was 
 precisely the place that my imagination had created. ' ' Leave 
 it to me," thought I, "to become a whole mollah, when once 
 I have been made half a one." 
 
 Without hesitation I entreated the mushtehed to continue 
 his good offices in my behalf, which he promised to do ; and 
 forthwith addressed a small note, with his own hand, to the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 mollah Nadan. This he sealed, and, having duly fashioned 
 it in its proper shape with his scissors, rolled it up and de- 
 livered it to me, saying, " Proceed to Tehran immediately ; 
 no doubt you will find the place vacant, and the mollah willing 
 to appoint you to fill it." 
 
 I was so happy that I kissed the good man's hand and 
 the hem of his garment, making him thousands of acknow- 
 ledgments for his goodness. 
 
 " I have one more favour to ask of my master," said I, 
 " which is, that he will deign to accept a small peish-kesh, 
 a present from his humble slave ; it is a praying-carpet, 
 and, should he honour him so far as to use it, he hopes 
 that now and then he will not forget the donor in his 
 prayers." 
 
 " May your house prosper, Hajji," said he very graciously,. 
 " and I am thankful to you for remembering me, not that 
 there was the least occasion for this present. Be a good 
 Mussulman, wage war against the infidels, and stone the 
 Sufis, that is the only return I ask ; and be assured that, by 
 so doing, you will always find a place in my memory." 
 
 I then presented my gift, with which he seemed much 
 pleased ; and, having received my dismissal, I returned to- 
 my caravanserai, in the determination of pursuing my road to 
 the capital as fast as I could. I did not even give myself time 
 to call upon my other friends at Kom, or even to take a look 
 at my former unhappy cell in the sanctuary ; but, saddling 
 my mule, I pushed on to the caravanserai of the Pul-i-dalldk 
 that very night. 
 
 I reached Tehran in the evening, and, in order not to see 
 the spot in which the unfortunate Zeenab was buried, I made 
 a deviation from my straight road, and entered by the Kasvin 
 gate. I was happy to remark that I was not recognised by 
 the guards, who, when I was in office, were accustomed to 
 show themselves on the alert at my approach. But indeed 
 it was not surprising that the active, bustling, imperious 
 nasakchi should not be known under the garb of the would- 
 be humble and insignificant priest; so for the present I felt
 
 4 i4 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 secure in my disguise, and I boldly took my way through 
 the bazaars and the most public places of the city, where 
 formerly nothing but my face was to be seen ; and happy 
 was I to find that no one recollected me. I inquired my 
 way to the house of the mollah Nadan, which was speedily 
 pointed out, for he was a well-known character ; but, on 
 second thoughts, I deemed it more prudent and convenient 
 to put up at a small caravanserai, situated near the house 
 of my new master, than to present myself, late in the day 
 as it then was, to him, upon whom it was my interest, by 
 my looks and appearance, to produce the best possible 
 impression. 
 
 Having taken good care of my mule, I slept soundly after 
 the fatigues of the journey ; and the next morning I repaired 
 to the bath, where, having given a fresh tinge to my beard, 
 and plentifully used the henna to my hands and feet, I 
 flattered myself that in appearance I was precisely the sort 
 of person likely to meet with success. 
 
 The mollah's house was situated between the royal 
 mosque and the quarters of the camel-artillerymen, and near 
 to the entrance of the bazaar, which, leading by the gate of 
 the said mosque, opens at its other extremity immediately 
 on the ditch of the Shah's palace. It had a mean front ; 
 although, having once passed through the gate, the small 
 courtyard which immediately succeeded was clean, and well 
 watered ; and the room which looked into it, though only 
 whitewashed, had a set of carpets, which did not indicate 
 wealth, but still spoke the absence of poverty. 
 
 In this room was seated a wan and sickly-looking priest, 
 whom I took to be the master of the house ; but I was mis- 
 taken he was in his anderun, and I was told that he would 
 shortly make his appearance. 
 
 In order to make known my pretensions to being some- 
 thing more than a servant, I sat down, and entered into con- 
 versation with the priest, who, from what I could pick from 
 him, was a dependent upon the mollah. He, in his turn, 
 endeavoured to discover what my business could be ; but he
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 415 
 
 did not so well succeed, although the strange and mysterious 
 
 L 
 
 i 
 
 ^ - ^-^-^s^ >* 
 
 -OS 
 ^ \->s^ 
 
 ^^^* ^ A ^ 
 
 A DRUG-SELLER. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 questions which he put drew forth my astonishment.
 
 4 i 6 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjf BABA 
 
 " You are evidently newly arrived in Tehran ? " said he. 
 " Yes, at your service," said I. 
 
 " You intend probably to make some stay?" added he. 
 " That is not quite certain," said I. 
 
 Then, after a pause, he said, "It is dull living alone, even 
 for a week, and Tehran is a city full of enjoyment. If there 
 
 is any service that I can perform, I will do it upon my eyes 
 
 i ., )> 
 be it. 
 
 " May your kindness never be less ! My business is with 
 the mollah Nadan." 
 
 " There is no difference between him and me," said he. 
 " I can facilitate any business you may have ; and, praise be to 
 Allah, you will be served to your heart's content. We have 
 at our disposal of all sorts and all prices." 
 
 " I am not a merchant," said I. 
 
 " There is no necessity to be a merchant," said he ; 
 "it is enough that you are a man and a stranger. You will 
 find, be it for a year, a month, a week, a day, or even an 
 hour, that you will pass your time agreeably ; upon my head 
 be it." 
 
 I became more and more puzzled at his meaning, and 
 was on the point of asking him to enlighten my under- 
 standing, when the mollah Nadan, in person, entered the 
 room. 
 
 He was a tall handsome man, about forty years of age r 
 with a jet-black beard, glossy with fresh dye, and with fine 
 brilliant eyes, painted with the powder of antimony. He 
 wore on his head an immense turban of white muslin, whilst 
 a hirkeh, or Arab cloak, with broad stripes of white and 
 brown alternately, was thrown over his shoulders. Although 
 his athletic person was better suited to the profession of 
 arms than to that of the law, yet his countenance had none 
 of the frankness of the soldier, but, on the contrary, bespoke 
 cunning and design, while at the same time it announced 
 good-humour. 
 
 I got up at his approach, and immediately presented my 
 note from the mushtehed, whilst I did not venture again to
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 417 
 
 sit. Having unrolled it, he looked at me and then at it, as if 
 to divine what could be my business ; but as soon as he had 
 deciphered the seal, his face expanded into a bright smile, 
 and he requested me to be seated. 
 
 "You are welcome," said he; and then he asked me a 
 series of questions concerning the health of the holy man, 
 
 THE BULBUL AND THE ROSE (CONVENTIONAL RENDERING). 
 
 ( Water-colour drawing. ) From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 which I freely answered, as if intimately acquainted with him. 
 He read the note with great attention, but said not a word 
 of its contents. He then began to make apologies for not 
 having a kalian (a pipe) to offer me, "for," said he, "I am 
 not a smoker of tobacco. We, who rigidly uphold the true 
 faith, reject all such luxuries, and mortify our senses. Our 
 Holy Prophet (upon whom be blessings and peace!) has for- 
 
 2 D
 
 4 i 8 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 bidden to his followers whatever intoxicates ; and although 
 tobacco be almost universally used throughout Persia as well 
 as Turkey, yet it is known sometimes to obscure the under- 
 standing, and therefore I abstain from it." 
 
 He continued to talk about himself, his fasts, his penance, 
 and his self-mortification, until I began to think that I should 
 pass my time but so-so in his house, nor enjoy the delights 
 the priest had just before promised me ; but when I com- 
 pared his healthy -and rubicund face, his portly and well-fed 
 body, to the regimen which he professed to keep, I consoled 
 myself by the hope that he allowed great latitude in his inter- 
 pretation of the law ; and perhaps that I should find, like the 
 house which he inhabited, which had its public and private 
 apartments, that his own exterior was fitted up for the pur- 
 poses of the world, whilst his interior was devoted to himself 
 and his enjoyments. 
 
 CHAPTER LIII 
 
 The mollah Naddn gives an account of his new scheme for raising 
 money, and for making men happy. 
 
 WHEN left to ourselves (for the priest soon after quitted the 
 room), mollah Nadan, taking the mushtehed's note from his 
 breast, said that he should be happy to receive me in his 
 service upon so good a recommendation ; and having ques- 
 tioned me upon my qualifications, 1 gave such answers that 
 he expressed himself satisfied. 
 
 ' I have long been seeking a person of your character," 
 said he, "but hitherto without success. He who has just left 
 us has assisted me in my several duties ; but he is too much 
 of a napaJz (an intriguer) for my purpose. I want one who 
 will look upon my interests as his own, who will eat his bit of 
 bread with me and be satisfied, without taking a larger share 
 than his due."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 419 
 
 In answer to this, I informed the mollah that although I 
 had already seen much of the world, yet he would find in me 
 a faithful servant, and one ready to imbibe his principles ; for 
 
 The Khannm, or Laiiy. 
 
 The Shah. 
 
 The Lateefeh, or Courtezan. 
 
 PERSIAN PLAYING CARDS. 
 From the collection of A. Holz, Esq. 
 
 (as I had already explained to the mushtehed) my mind was 
 made up to leading a new life, and endeavouring, under his 
 direction, to become the mirror of a true Mussulman.
 
 420 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 " In that," said the mollah, "esteem yourself as the most 
 fortunate of men ; for I am looked up to as the pattern of the 
 followers of the blessed Mahomed. In short, I may be called 
 a living Koran. None pray more regularly than I. No one 
 goes to the bath more scrupulously, nor abstains more rigidly 
 from everything that is counted unclean. You will find 
 neither silk in my dress nor gold on my fingers. My ablu- 
 tions are esteemed the most complete of any man's in the 
 capital, and the mode of my abstersion the most in use. I 
 neither smoke nor drink wine before men ; neither do I play 
 at chess, at gengifeh (cards), or any game which, as the law 
 ordains, abstracts the mind from holy meditation. I am 
 esteemed the model of fasters ; and during the Ramazan give 
 no quarter to the many hungry fellows who come to me under 
 various pretexts, to beg a remission of the strictness of the 
 law. ' No,' do I say to them, 'die rather than eat, or drink, 
 or smoke. Do like me, who, rather than abate one tittle of 
 the sacred ordinance, would manage to exist from Jumah to 
 Jumah (Friday) without polluting my lips with unlawful food.' " 
 
 Although I did not applaud his tenacity about fasting, yet 
 I did not fail to approve all he said, and threw in my exclama- 
 tions so well in time, that I perceived he became almost as 
 much pleased with me as he appeared to be with himself. 
 
 " From the same devotedness to religion," continued he, 
 " I have ever abstained from taking to myself a wife, and in 
 that respect I may be looked upon as exceeding even the per- 
 fection of our Holy Prophet ; who (blessings attend his beard !) 
 had wives and women slaves, more even than Suleiman ibn 
 Daofid himself. But although I do not myself marry, yet I 
 assist others in doing so ; and it is that particular branch of 
 my duty in which I intend more especially to employ you." 
 
 "By my eyes," said I, "you must command me; for 
 hitherto I am ignorant as the Turk in the fields." 
 
 "You must know then," said he, "that, to the scandal 
 of religion, to the destruction of the law, the commerce of 
 cowlies, or courtesans, had acquired such ascendency in this 
 city, that wives began to be esteemed as useless. Men's
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 421 
 
 houses were ruined, and the ordinances of the Prophet 
 disregarded. The Shah, who is a pious prince, and respects 
 the Ulemah, and who holds the ceremony of marriage 
 sacred, complained to the head of the law, the mollah bashi, 
 of this subversion of all morality in his capital, and, with a 
 reprimand for his remissness, ordered him to provide a 
 remedy for the evil. The mollah bashi (between you and 
 me, be it said) is in every degree an ass, one who knows as 
 much about religion and its duties, as of Frangistan and its 
 kings. But I I, who am the mollah Nadan, I suggested 
 a scheme in which the convenience of the public and the 
 ordinances of the law are so well combined, that both may 
 be suited without hindrance to either. You know it is lawful 
 among us to marry for as long or as short a time as may be 
 convenient ; and, in that case, the woman is called mutt. 
 
 " 'Why then,' said I to the chief priest, ' why not have a 
 sufficient number of such like wives in store, for those who 
 know not where to seek for a companion ? The thing is 
 easy to be done, and Nadan the man to do it.' 
 
 " The mollah bashi, who, though the cream of blockheads 
 in all other cases, is very quick-sighted when his interest is 
 concerned, caught at my idea, for he foresaw a great harvest 
 of gain for himself. He consequently acquired possession of 
 several small houses of little value, in which he has installed 
 a certain number of women, who, through his interference, 
 are married, in the character and with the privileges of 
 muties, to whoever is ambitious of such a marriage ; and as 
 both parties on such occasion pay him a fee, he has thus 
 very considerably increased his revenues. So eagerly do 
 the people marry, that he has several mollahs at work, wholly 
 engaged in reading the marriage ceremony. He has entirely 
 excluded me from any share in his profits, I who first sug- 
 gested the plan ; and therefore I am determined to undertake 
 the business myself, and thus add to the public convenience. 
 But we must be secret ; for if the mollah bashi was to hear 
 of my scheme, he would interpose his authority, overthrow 
 it, and perhaps have me expelled the city."
 
 422 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 During this exposure of the mollah's plans, I began to 
 look at him from head to foot, and to question within myself 
 whether this in fact could be the celebrated pillar of the law, 
 of whom the mushtehed, good man ! had spoken in such 
 high terms. However, I was too new in holy life to permit 
 any scruples against the fitness of such schemes to come 
 across my mind ; so I continued to applaud all that Nadan 
 had said, and he continued as follows : 
 
 " I have already three women in readiness, established in 
 a small house in the neighbourhood, and it is my intention 
 to employ you in the search of husbands for them. You will 
 frequent the caravanserais, watching the arrival of merchants 
 and other strangers, to whom you will propose marriage, 
 upon easier terms than the chief priest can offer, and accord- 
 ing to the riches of the bridegroom you will exact a pro- 
 portionate fee. I shall not give you any wages, because you 
 will have opportunities of acquiring such knowledge from 
 me, that in time you may become a mollah yourself, and 
 show the road to all true believers in the practices of their 
 duty. You will find everything provided for you in my 
 house ; and, now and then, opportunities will offer for putting 
 something honestly into your pocket. Whenever my friends 
 come to see me, and when they take their sham (dinner) 
 with me, you will appear as my servant ; on other occasions 
 you may sit before me, and act as my scribe." 
 
 The mollah here finished speaking, in the expectation of 
 hearing what I should say in answer ; but I was so bewildered 
 by this vast field of action that he had opened to my view, 
 that it took me some minutes to recollect myself. I, who 
 had expected to lead the life of a recluse, to sit in a corner 
 all the day long, reading my Koran, or mumbling prayers 
 to frequent lectures in the medressehs (schools) and homilies 
 in the mosques, I, in short, who in my master expected to 
 have found a despiser of this world's goods, and full of no 
 other care than that of preparing for the next, of a sudden 
 was called upon to engage more deeply in the business of 
 life than before, and to follow the footsteps of a man who
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 423 
 
 seemed to exist for no other purpose than to amass wealth 
 and acquire consideration. " However, I can but try," 
 thought I. My circumstances were too desperate to admit 
 of much hesitation ; and, after all, to be the pupil of one 
 of the most celebrated men in the capital, was a situation 
 not to be despised ; and so I accepted of the mollah's offer. 
 
 He then told me that we should soon have some further 
 conversation, which, for the present he was obliged to defer, 
 because he was called upon to attend the chief of the law ; 
 but, before he went, he mentioned that, as he abstained 
 from worldly pomp, he kept no servants but such as were 
 absolutely necessary. His establishment consisted of a cook, 
 and a servant who acted in the triple capacity of head-ser- 
 vant, valet, and groom ; and his stud, for the present, was 
 composed of one ass. " After considerable trouble," said 
 he, " I have managed to procure a white one, which, you 
 know, is an animal that confers consideration on its rider ; 
 but, as my business and my dignity increase, I intend to 
 promote myself to a mule." I did not lose this opportunity 
 of informing him that I had a very good one to dispose of; 
 and, after some negotiation, it was decided that he should 
 keep both mule and ass ; he, as the dignitary, riding on the 
 former, whilst I should be carried about on the humbler beast. 
 
 BIRDS AND FLOWERS AND FILBERTS (CONVENTIONAL RENDERING). 
 From the South Kensington Museum.
 
 424 
 
 CHAPTER LIV 
 
 Hajji Baba becomes a promoter of matrimony, and of the register 
 
 he keeps. 
 
 PREPARATORY to the full comprehension of the duties of my 
 office, the mollah Nadan requested me to introduce myself 
 to the muties, and gain from them sufficient information to 
 enable me to make a register, in which I should insert 
 their ages, appearance, and beauty, tempers, and general 
 qualifications as wives. This I should carry about me, in 
 order to be able to exhibit it to any stranger who might 
 fall in my way. 
 
 I first went to the bazaar, and furnished myself with a 
 priest's cloak, with a coat that buttons across the breast, 
 and a long piece of white muslin, which I twisted round 
 my head. Thus accoutred, in full dress of my new character, 
 I proceeded to the women's house, and found a ready admis- 
 sion, -for they had been apprised of my intended visit. 
 
 I found them all three seated in a mean and wretched 
 apartment, smoking. Their veils were loosely thrown over 
 their heads, which, upon my appearance, by a habit common 
 to all our women, they drew tight over their faces, merely 
 keeping one eye free. 
 
 " Peace be unto you, khanums ! " said I (for I knew how 
 an appearance of great respect conciliates), " I am come, 
 on the part of the mollah Nadan, to make you a tender of 
 my humble services ; and, perhaps, as you know the object 
 of my visit, you will not object to lay your veils on one side." 
 
 "May you abide in peace," said they, "mollah!" and 
 then gave me to understand, by many flattering speeches, 
 that I was welcome, and that they hoped my presence would 
 bring them good luck. 
 
 Two of them immediately unveiled, and discovered faces
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 425 
 
 which had long bade adieu to their lilies and roses ; and 
 upon which, notwithstanding the help of the surmeh round 
 the eyelids, the blue stars on the forehead and chin, and the 
 rouge on the cheeks, I could, in broad characters, make out 
 a long catalogue of wrinkles. The third lady carefully con- 
 tinued to keep herself veiled. 
 
 I did not hesitate to make an exclamation of surprise, as 
 soon as the two charmers had opened their battery of smiles 
 upon me. "Praises to Allah! MaskaUah!" said I, "this 
 is a sight worthy of Ferhad himself. Do not look too 
 intensely upon me, for fear that I consume. What eyes ! 
 what noses! what lips! Have pity upon me, and cease 
 looking. But why," said I, "does this khanum "-(point- 
 ing to the unveiled one) "why does she hold me so long 
 in suspense ? Perhaps she thinks me unworthy of contem- 
 plating her charms ; and she thinks right, for I am only a 
 poor mollah, whilst doubtless even the sun, in all its majesty, 
 is not entitled to such high privilege." 
 
 " Why do you make this naz (coyness) ? " said her com- 
 panions to her; "you know he must be able to give an 
 account of us, or else the curse of single life will be our 
 fate, and we shall remain the scorn and reproach of woman- 
 kind." 
 
 "Be it so," said the third woman; "the cat must come 
 from under the blanket ; " and, in a sort of pet, she drew 
 off her veil, and, to my great astonishment, exhibited to 
 my view the well-known features of the wife of the Shah's 
 physician, my former master. 
 
 "By all that is most sacred! by the beard of the blessed 
 Prophet ! " said I, "how is this? Are the Gins at work, that 
 they should have brought this about ? " 
 
 "Yes, Hajji," said she, very composedly ; "fate is a won- 
 derful thing. But you, you who killed my husband, how came 
 you to be a mollah ? " 
 
 "Is your husband dead, then," said I, "that you talk 
 to me thus ? Why do you throw words away in this un- 
 guarded manner ? W r hat have I to do with your husband's
 
 426 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 death? He was once my master, and I grieve for his loss. 
 But you might as well say that I killed the martyr Hosein 
 (blessings on his memory!) as that I killed the hakim. Tell 
 me what has happened ; for I am walking round and round 
 in the labyrinth of ignorance." 
 
 " Why do you pretend ignorance," said she with her 
 usual scream, "when you must know that it was on your 
 account that the Shah sent Zeenab out of this world that 
 her death led to the doctor having his beard plucked that 
 having his beard plucked brought on his disgrace and 
 his disgrace death ? Therefore you are the cause of all 
 the mischief." 
 
 " What ashes are you heaping upon my head, O 
 khanum?" said I, with great vehemence; "why am I to 
 be told that I am the death of a man, when I was a hun- 
 dred parasangs off at the time? You might as well say, 
 if your husband had died of a surfeit, that the labourer who 
 had planted the rice was the cause of his death." 
 
 We continued to argue for some time, when the other 
 women, fearing that their interests would be neglected, inter- 
 posed, and put me in mind that we had business to transact ; 
 for they were anxious that their charms should no longer lie 
 barren and neglected. The khanum, too, who only talked 
 for talking's sake, and who, to my knowledge, had cherished 
 a more than common hatred for her husband, seemed anxious 
 that I should forget her former more flourishing situation, and 
 requested me to proceed to business. 
 
 Still, to carry on the farce of respect, I began first with 
 the doctor's widow, and requested to know some of the 
 particulars of her history ; in order, when I came to describe 
 her to some impatient bridegroom, I might be able to do 
 so in the best manner for her interests. 
 
 "You know as well as I," said she, "that I once enjoyed 
 the favour of that rose in the paradise of sweets, the King 
 of Kings ; that I was the first beauty in his harem, and 
 the terror of all my rivals. But who can withstand the 
 decrees of destiny ? A new woman arrived, who was pro-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 427 
 
 vided with a more powerful spell than I could possess for 
 securing the Shah's love, and she destroyed my power. She 
 feared my charms so much, that she would not rest until I 
 was expelled ; and then, for my misfortune, the Shah made 
 a present of me to his chief physician. Oh, I shall never 
 forget the pangs of my mind, when I was transferred from 
 the glories and delights of the royal palace to the arms of 
 the doctor, and to a residence among physic and gallipots ! 
 1 will not repeat all the history of Zeenab. When the 
 hakim died, I endeavoured to revive the Shah's good feel- 
 ings towards me ; but the avenues to his ear were closed ; 
 and from one stage of misery to another, I, who once could 
 lead the vicegerent of Allah by the beard, am reduced to seek 
 a husband in the highway." 
 
 Upon this she began to cry and bemoan her cruel destiny; 
 but I in some measure pacified her, by the assurance that I 
 would do all in my power to procure for her a suitable mate. 
 
 "You see," said she, "that I am still handsome, and that 
 the career of my youth is yet to run. Look at my eyes : 
 have they lost their brightness ? Admire my eyebrows. 
 Where will you meet with a pair which are so completely 
 thrown into one ? Then see my waist, it is not a span 
 round." 
 
 She went on in full enumeration of her most minute 
 perfections, upon which I gazed with all my eyes, as she 
 desired : but, instead of youth and beauty, I could make 
 nothing better of her than an old fat and bloated hag, upon 
 whom I longed to revenge myself, for her former ill-treat- 
 ment of the unfortunate Zeenab. 
 
 The other two ladies then gave me a sketch of their 
 lives. One was the widow of a silversmith, who had been 
 blown from a mortar for purloining some gold, which he 
 had received to make a pair of candlesticks for the king ; 
 and the other had turned muti in her own defence, having 
 been abandoned by her husband, who had fled from the 
 wrath of the Shah, and sought refuge among the Russians. 
 
 They also endeavoured to persuade me that they were
 
 428 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 young and handsome, to which I agreed with as good a grace 
 as I was able ; and, having made the necessary notes in my 
 register, I promised to exert myself to the best for their 
 advantage. "Recollect," said one, "that I am only eighteen." 
 "Don't forget," said another, "that I am still a child." 
 
 PERSIAN LADY WITH EYEBROWS PAINTED, AND TATTOO MARKS ON 
 
 CHIN AND FOREHEAD. 
 From a photograph by Dr. Wills. 
 
 " Always keep in mind my two eyebrows that look like 
 one," roared out the hakim's widow. 
 
 " Upon my eyes be it," exclaimed I, as I left the room ; 
 and then I consoled myself for the sight of such a trio of 
 frights, by giving vent to a peal of anathemas and laughter.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 429 
 
 CHAPTER LV 
 
 Of the man Hajji Baba meets, thinking him dead; and of the 
 marriage which he brings about. 
 
 HAVING accomplished this part of my business, I strolled to 
 one of the most frequented caravanserais in the city, to see 
 whether, perchance, some circumstance might not turn up to 
 advance my master's views. As I approached it, I found all 
 the avenues blocked up with mules and camels heavily laden, 
 intermixed with travellers, some of whom wearing a white 
 band, the distinguishing mark of the pilgrims who have 
 visited the tomb of I man Reza, at Meshed, informed me 
 that the caravan came from the province of Khorassan. 
 I waited to see it gradually unravel from the maze of the 
 narrow streets, and, after a due allowance of wrangling and 
 abuse between the mule and camel drivers, I saw it take up 
 its abode in the square of the building. 
 
 "Perhaps," said I, "my good stars may throw some of 
 my former acquaintance at Meshed into my way ; " and I 
 looked at each traveller with great earnestness. It was 
 true that many years had now elapsed since my memorable 
 bastinado, and that time would have made great changes in 
 the appearances of men ; but still, I, who knew each face 
 by heart, and had studied its expression as it inhaled my 
 smoke, hoped that my recollection would not fail me. 
 
 I had despaired of making a discovery, and was about to 
 walk away, when a certain nose, a certain round back, and 
 a certain projecting paunch, met my eye and arrested my 
 attention. 
 
 "These forms are familiar to me," said I; "they are 
 connected with some of my early ideas ; and assuredly are 
 the property of one who is something more than a common 
 acquaintance." My first master, Osman Aga, came into my
 
 430 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 mind ; but all idea of him I immediately banished, because 
 it was more than certain that he had long since fallen a 
 victim to the horrors of his captivity among the Turcomans. 
 Still I looked at him, and at every glance I felt convinced 
 it was either him, his brother, or his ghost. I approached 
 to where he was seated, in the hope of hearing him speak ; 
 but he seemed to be torpid (which was another characteristic 
 in favour of my suspicion), and I had waited some time in 
 vain, when, to my surprise, I heard him, in a voice well 
 known to my ears, inquire of a merchant who was passing, 
 " In God's name, what may be the price of lambs' skins at 
 Constantinople ? " 
 
 "Oh, for once," said I, "I cannot be mistaken! You 
 can be no one but Osman," and I immediately made myself 
 known to him. 
 
 He was as slow to believe that I was Hajji Baba who 
 accosted him, as I had been to make him out Osman Aga. 
 
 After our expressions of mutual astonishment had some- 
 what subsided, we began to survey each other. I discussed 
 the greyness of his beard, and he complimented me upon 
 the beauty and blackness of mine. He talked with great 
 serenity of the lapse of time, and of the nothingness of this 
 world, from which I perceived that his belief in predestination 
 had rather increased than diminished by his misfortunes, and 
 which alone could account for the equanimity with which he 
 had borne them. In his usual concise manner, he related 
 what had befallen him since we last met. He said that, 
 after the first feelings of misery at his captivity had gone by, 
 his time passed more agreeably than he had expected ; for he 
 had nothing to do but to sit with the camels, whose nature, 
 being of the same calm and philosophic cast as his own, 
 suited his quiet and sedentary habits. His food was in- 
 different, but then he had excellent water ; and the only 
 privation which he seemed to regret was tobacco, a want 
 which long previous habit rendered infinitely painful. Years 
 had run on in this manner, and he had made up his mind to 
 pass the remainder of his life with the camels, when his
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 431 
 
 destiny took another turn, and he once more had the cheer- 
 ing hope of being restored to liberty. One, who gave 
 himself out for a prophet, appeared among the Turcomans. 
 According to the custom of such personages, he established 
 his influence by pretending to work two or three miracles, 
 and which were received as such by that credulous people. 
 His word became a law. The most celebrated and experi- 
 enced marauders freely laid their spoils at his feet, and 
 willingly listed under his banner, in whatever enterprise he 
 chose to propose. Osman Aga presented himself before him, 
 asserted his privileges of a Suni, and, moreover of being an 
 emir, and at length succeeded in making the impostor procure 
 his liberty without ransom, which he did, in order to advance 
 the glory of the true faith. Once free, he lost no time in 
 proceeding to Meshed, where to his great good fortune, he 
 met merchants from Bagdad, one of whom, being nearly con- 
 nected to him by marriage, advanced him a small sum of 
 money to trade with. He received encouraging accounts of 
 the state of the Turkish markets for the produce of Bokhara, 
 and thither he proceeded to make his purchases on the spot. 
 Owing to his long residence among the Turcomans, he had 
 acquired much useful knowledge concerning their manners 
 and customs particularly on the subject of buying and 
 selling and this enabled him to trade, with much success, 
 between Bokhara and Persia, until he had gained a sufficient 
 sum to enable his return to his country with advantage. He 
 was now on the road to Constantinople, with several mules 
 laden with the merchandise of Bokhara, Samarcand, and the 
 east of Persia ; and having disposed of it there, it was then 
 his intention to return to his native city, Bagdad. He ex- 
 pressed, however, his intention to remain at Tehran until the 
 spring caravan should assemble, in order to enjoy some of 
 the pleasures of an imperial residence, after having lived so 
 long among savages, as he called the Turcomans, and he 
 inquired from me how he might most agreeably pass his 
 time. 
 
 My fair charges immediately came into my mind ; and
 
 432 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 recollecting of old that he was a great advocate for the 
 marriage state, I proposed a wife to him without loss of 
 time. 
 
 Certainly, thought I, nothing was ever more strongly 
 pronounced than the doctrine of predestination has been in 
 this instance. Here, one of my masters arrives from regions 
 beyond the rising of the sun, to espouse the widow of another 
 of my masters, who dies just at the very nick of time to pro- 
 duce the meeting, which I, who come from the countries of 
 the south, step in to promote. 
 
 The hakim's widow was the fattest of the three, and 
 therefore I made no scruple in proposing her to Osman, who 
 at once acceded to my offer. Softening down the little 
 asperities of her temper, making much of her two eyebrows 
 in one, and giving a general description of her person, suited 
 to the Ottoman taste, I succeeded in giving a very favourable 
 opinion to the bridegroom of his intended. 
 
 I then proceeded to inform the mollah Nadan of my 
 success, who appeared to listen with delight to the adven- 
 tures of this couple, which I related to him with scrupulous 
 detail. He directed me how to proceed, and informed me, 
 in order to make the marriage lawful, that a vakeel, or trustee, 
 must appear on the part of the woman, and another on that 
 of the man. That the woman's vakeel, having beforehand 
 agreed upon the terms of the marriage, proceeded to ask 
 the following question of the man's vakeel, in the Arabic 
 tongue. 
 
 " Have you agreed to give your soul to me upon such 
 and such conditions?" to which the other answers, " I have 
 agreed ; " and then the parties are held to be lawfully joined 
 together. Nadan himself proposed to officiate on the part of 
 the hakim's widow, and I on the part of Osman ; and it was 
 left to my ingenuity to obtain as large a fee as possible for 
 ourselves, on this happy occasion. 
 
 I forthwith communicated the joyful tidings to the 
 khanum, as I still called her, who did not fail to excite the 
 envy of her other companions, for she immediately laid her
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 433 
 
 success to her superior beauty, and to that never-failing 
 object of her care, her two eyebrows in one. She was, as 
 the reader may be allowed to suppose, in great anxiety at 
 her appearance ; for she dreaded not being corpulent enough 
 for her Turk, and, from what I could judge, rather doubted 
 the brilliancy of her eye, from the great quantity of black 
 paint which she had daubed on her eyelids. 
 
 I left her to return to Osman Aga, who, good man, was 
 also arming himself for conquest ; and he seemed to think 
 that, owing to his long residence among camels, he might 
 have imbibed so much of their natures as to have become a 
 fit subject for the perfumes of musk and ambergris. Accord- 
 ingly, he went to the bath ; his grey beard was dyed a glossy 
 black ; his hands received a golden tinge ; and his mustachios 
 were invited to curl upwards towards the corners of his eyes, 
 instead of downwards into his mouth, as they usually had 
 done. 
 
 He then arrayed himself in his best, and followed me to 
 the house of the mollah Nadan, where, owing to this change 
 in his appearance, he very well passed off for a man at least 
 ten years younger than he was in reality. 
 
 As soon as the parties came in sight of each other, an 
 unconcerned bystander would have been amused with their 
 first glances he, the bridegroom, endeavouring to discover 
 what he was about to espouse she, the bride, making play 
 with her veil in such an artful manner as to induce his belief 
 that it concealed celestial charms. But I was too deeply 
 interested in the game to make it matter of amusement. 
 Besides, more than once, a certain fifty ducats that had 
 formerly belonged to Osman, and which I had appropriated 
 to my own use, came into my mind, and made me fear that 
 it also might have a place in his : "and if," said I, " he gets 
 displeased and angry, who knows what ashes may not fall 
 upon my head !" 
 
 However, they were married ; and I believe most truly 
 that he did not succeed in getting one glimpse of his in- 
 tended until I had pronounced the awful words, " I agree ; " 
 
 2 E
 
 A PERSIAN WEDDING. 
 /><? /Ac collection of A. Hots, Esq.
 
 435 
 
 when in his impatience he partly pulled her veil on one 
 side, and I need not say that he was far from fainting with 
 delight. 
 
 A SIX-WICKED LAMP IN GLAZED POTTERY, TURQUOISE AND BLACK, USED 
 
 AT A VILLAGE WEDDING-FEAST.' 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 As soon as he was well satisfied that his charmer was not 
 ;a Zuleikha, he called me to him, and said, " Hajji, I thought
 
 436 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 that youth, at least, she would have possessed ; but she is 
 more wrinkled than any camel. How is this? " 
 
 I got out of the scrape as well as I was able, by assuring 
 him that she had once been the flower of the royal harern, 
 and reminded him that nothing had so much to do with 
 marriage as destiny. 
 
 "Ah! that destiny," said he, "is an answer for every- 
 thing ; but be its effects what it may, it can no more make 
 an old hag a young woman, than it can make one and one 
 three." 
 
 Sorely did I fear that he would return his bargain upon 
 our hands ; but when he found that it was impossible to 
 expect anything better in a muti, a class of females who 
 generally were the refuse of womankind, old widows, and 
 deserted wives ; and who, rather than live under the oppro- 
 brium that single life entails in our Mahomedan countries, 
 would put up with anything that came under the denomi- 
 nation of husband, he agreed to take her to his home. I 
 expected, like a hungry hawk, who, the instant he is un- 
 hooded, pounces upon his prey, that Osman, as soon as 
 he had got a sight of his charmer, would have carried her 
 off with impatience ; but I was disappointed. He walked 
 leisurely on to his room in the caravanserai, and told 
 her that she might follow him whenever it suited her 
 convenience. 
 
 CHAPTER LVI 
 
 Showing how the ambition of the mollah Naddn involves both him 
 and his disciples in ruin. 
 
 UPON a closer acquaintance with my master, the mollah 
 Nadan, I found that, besides his being the most covetous 
 of men, he was also the most ambitious ; and that his great 
 and principal object was to become the chief priest of
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 437 
 
 Tehran. To that he turned all his thoughts, and left 
 nothing untried which might bring him into notice, either 
 as a zealous practiser of the ordinances of his religion, or 
 a persecutor of those who might be its enemies. He was 
 the leader in prayer at the principal mosque ; he lectured 
 at the royal medresseh, or college ; and, whenever he could, 
 he encouraged litigants to appeal to him for the settlement 
 of their disputes. On every occasion, particularly at the 
 festival of the No Rouz, when the whole corps of mollahs 
 are drawn up in array before the king to pray for his pros- 
 perity, he always managed to make himself conspicuous by 
 the over-abundance of adulation which he exhibited, and 
 by making his sonorous voice predominate over that of 
 others. 
 
 By such means, he had acquired considerable celebrity 
 among the people, although those who knew him better 
 held him in no great estimation. An opportunity soon 
 occurred which abundantly proved this, and which, as I 
 will now narrate, gave an entire new turn to my fortunes. 
 
 The winter had passed over our heads, and spring was 
 .already far advanced, when reports reached the capital, that 
 in the southern provinces of the kingdom, particularly in 
 Lar and Pars, there had been such a total want of rain, 
 that serious apprehensions of a famine were entertained. 
 As the year rolled on, the same apprehensions prevailed in 
 the more northern provinces ; and a drought, such as before 
 was never known, gave rise to the most dismal forebodings. 
 The Shah ordered prayers to be put up at all the mosques 
 in the city for rain, and the mollah bashi was very active 
 in enforcing the order. 
 
 My master Nadan had here too good an opportunity o f 
 manifesting his religious zeal, and of making himself con- 
 spicuous by his exertions, not to take advantage of it; and he 
 lost not a moment in giving himself all the stir in his power. 
 Conscious of the influence he had obtained over the populace 
 he went a step further than his rival the chief priest, and 
 invited an immense crowd of the lower orders to follow him
 
 438 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 to a large open space without the city, where he took the 
 lead in prayer. 
 
 The drought still continuing, the Shah ordered all ranks 
 of people to attend him, and join in the supplications which 
 he had first commenced. He accounted this so great a 
 triumph, that his zeal now knew no bounds. He caused 
 all sects, Christians, Jews, and Guebres, as well as Mussul- 
 mans, to put up their prayers : still the heavens were in- 
 exorable ; no rain came, the despair increased, and Nadan 
 redoubled his zeal. 
 
 At length, one morning when the weather was more than 
 usually sultry, he addressed a mob which he had purposely 
 gathered round his house, . in words something to this 
 purpose : 
 
 "Is there nothing more to-be done, O men of Tehran! 
 to avert this misfortune which awaits the land of Irak. 'Tis 
 plain that the heavens have declared against us, and that 
 this city contains some whose vices and crimes must bring 
 the Almighty vengeance upon us. Who can they be but 
 the kafirs, the infidels, those transgressors of our law, those 
 wretches who defile the purity of our walls by openly 
 drinking wine, that liquor forbidden by the holy Prophet 
 (upon whom be blessing and peace!), and by making our 
 streets the scene of their vices ? Let us go ; follow me 
 to where these odious wine-bibbers live; let us break their 
 jars, and at least destroy one of the causes of the displeasure 
 of Allah against us." 
 
 Upon this a general stir ensued ; and fanaticism, such 
 as I never thought could be excited in the breasts of men, 
 broke out in the most angry expressions, which were only 
 the forerunners of the violence that soon after ensued. 
 Nadan, putting himself at the head of the crowd, har- 
 anguing as he pressed onwards, and followed by me who 
 had become as outrageous a fanatic as the rest led us to 
 the Armenian quarter of the city. 
 
 The peaceable Christians, seeing this body of enraged 
 Mahomedans making for their houses, knew not what to
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 439 
 
 do. Some barricaded their doors, others fled, and others 
 again stood transfixed, like men impaled. But they did 
 not long- remain in doubt of our intentions ; for first they 
 were assailed with volleys of stones, and then with such 
 shouts of execration and abuse, that they expected nothing 
 less than a general massacre to ensue. 
 
 The mollah entered the houses of the principal Armenians, 
 followed by the most violent of the mob, and began an active 
 search for wine. He made no distinction between the 
 women's apartments and the public ones, but broke open 
 every door ; and when at length he had found the jars in 
 which the liquor was contained, I leave the reader to imagine 
 what was the havoc which ensued. They were broken into 
 a thousand pieces ; the wine flowed in every direction ; and 
 the poor owners could do nothing but look on and wring 
 their hands. 
 
 By the time that this ceremony had been performed in 
 every house, the fury of the mob had risen to the utmost, 
 and from the houses they proceeded to the church, which 
 being forced open, they demolished everything within 
 books, crucifixes, ornaments, furniture nothing was spared; 
 and as there would not be wanting abundance of rogues 
 on such occasions, it was soon discovered that whatever 
 valuables the despoiled had possessed were carried away. 
 
 The ruin was now complete ; and nothing more was 
 left to the fury of the mob but the unfortunate sufferers 
 themselves, who perhaps would next have been attacked, 
 had not a king's ferash appeared, accompanied by one of 
 the principal Armenians, and their presence produced an 
 almost instantaneous return to reason. 
 
 Apprehensive of the consequences j of their conduct, all 
 Nadan's followers made a precipitate retreat, leaving that 
 revered personage and myself to face the king's officer. I 
 presume our feelings will not be much envied when we heard 
 him inform us, that the King of Kings demanded our imme- 
 diate presence. The mollah looked at me, and I at him ; and, 
 perhaps, two bearded men never looked more like raw fools
 
 440 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 than we did at that moment. He endeavoured to temporise, 
 and requested our conductor to accompany him to his house, 
 in order that he might put on his red cloth stockings. 
 
 "There will be no occasion for red cloth stockings," said 
 the ferash drily. 
 
 This produced a universal tremor in the mollah, and I 
 must own that it communicated itself to me in no agreeable 
 manner. " But what have I done, in the name of the Pro- 
 phet?" exclaimed he: "the enemies of our faith must be 
 overthrown. Is it not so? " said he to the ferash. 
 
 " You will see," returned the impenetrable man of blows. 
 
 We at length reached the palace, and at the entrance 
 found the grand vizier, seated with the mollah bashi, in the 
 chief executioner's apartment. 
 
 As we stood at the window, the grand vizier said to the 
 mollah Nadan, "In the name of AH, what is this that we 
 hear? Have your wits forsaken you? Do you forget that 
 there is a king in Tehran ? " 
 
 Then the mollah bashi exclaimed, "And who am I, that 
 you should presume to take the lead against the infidels ? " 
 
 "Conduct them before the king," exclaimed the execu- 
 tioner, as he arose and took his staff of office in hand. " Do 
 not keep the Centre of the Universe waiting." 
 
 More dead than alive, we were paraded through the 
 avenues of the palace, and then stepped through the small 
 low door, which introduced us into the enclosed garden, 
 where we found the king seated in an upper room. 
 
 As we approached, I perceived the august monarch twist- 
 ing his mustachios, which is always esteemed a sign of wrath. 
 I cast a glance at Nadan, and I saw him streaming from 
 every pore. We took our shoes off, as soon as we had come 
 within sight of him, and advanced to the brink of the marble 
 basin of water. The party who stood before the king con- 
 sisted of the mollah bashi, the chief executioner, the Arme- 
 nian, Nadan, and myself. 
 
 The chief executioner then placed his staff of office on 
 the ground, and, making a low prostration, said, with all the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 441 
 
 prefatory form of words usual in addressing the Shah, 
 "This is the mollah Nadan, and this his servant," pointing 
 to me. 
 
 "Say, mollah," said the king, addressing himself to my 
 master in a very composed tone of voice, "how long is it 
 since you have undertaken to ruin my subjects ? Who gave 
 you the power? Have you become a prophet? or do you 
 perhaps condescend to make yourself the king ? Say, fellow, 
 what dirt is this that you have been eating ? " 
 
 The culprit, who on every other occasion never wanted 
 words, here lost all power of utterance. He stammered out 
 a few incoherent sentences about infidels, wine, and the want 
 of rain, and then remained immovable. 
 
 "What does he say?" said the king to the mollah bashi. 
 <l I have not learnt from whom he claims his authority." 
 
 "May I be your sacrifice," said the chief priest; "he 
 says that he acted for the benefit of your majesty's subjects 
 who wanted rain, which they could not get so long as the 
 infidels drank wine in Tehran." 
 
 "So you destroy part of my subjects to benefit the 
 remainder ! By the king's beard," said the king to Nadan, 
 "tell me, do I stand for nothing in my own capital? Are 
 a parcel of poor dogs of infidels to be ruined under my 
 nose, without my being asked a question whether it be my 
 will or not that they should be so ? Speak, man ; what dream 
 have you been dreaming? Your brain has dried up." Then 
 raising his voice, he said, " After all, we are something in 
 our dominions, and the kafirs, though such they be, shall 
 know it. Here, ferashes (calling his officers to him), here, 
 tear this wretch's turban from his head and his cloak from 
 his back ; pluck the beard from his chin ; tie his hands 
 behind him, place him on an ass with his face to the tail, 
 parade him through the streets, and then thrust him neck 
 and shoulders out of the city, and let his hopeful disciple 
 (pointing to me) accompany him." 
 
 Happy was I not to have been recognised for the lover of 
 the unfortunate Zeenab. My fate was paradise compared with
 
 442 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BAB A 
 
 that of my master ; for never was order more completely 
 executed than that which had passed the Shah's lips. 
 
 Nadan's beard was ripped from his chin with as much 
 ease by the ferashes as if they were plucking a fowl ; and 
 then, with abundance of blows to hasten our steps, they 
 seized upon the first ass which they met, and mounted the 
 priest, the once proud and ambitious priest, upon it, and 
 paced him slowly through the streets. I walked mourn- 
 fully behind, having had my mollah's shawl torn from my 
 head, and my hirkeh (cloak) from my back. 
 
 When we had reached one of the gates, Nadan was 
 dismounted, and, with scarcely a rag to our backs, we were 
 turned out into the open country ; and it is worthy of remark, 
 that no sooner had we left the city than rain began to 
 pour in torrents, as if the heavens had been waiting to 
 witness the disgrace of two of Persia's greatest rogues, and 
 to give the mollah Nadan the lie in favour of the poor, injured, 
 and ruined Armenians. 
 
 CHAPTER LVII 
 
 Hajji Baba meets with an extraordinary adventure in the bath, which 
 miraculously saves him from the horrors of despair. 
 
 " So," said I to my companion, as soon as we were left to 
 ourselves, "so I am indebted to you for this piece of happi- 
 ness. If I had thought that this adventure was to have been 
 the result of the mushtehed's recommendation, you would 
 never have seen Hajji Baba in this trim. What could it 
 signify to you whether rain fell or no, or whether the 
 Armenians got drunk or remained sober? This is what 
 we have got by your officiousness." 
 
 The mollah was in too pitiable a condition for me to 
 continue upbraiding him any longer. We walked in silence
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 443 
 
 by the side of each other, in the saddest manner possible, 
 until we reached the first village on our road. Here we 
 made a halt, in order to deliberate upon what we should 
 do. My unfortunate companion was expelled the city, there- 
 fore it was impossible for him to show himself in it until the 
 storm had blown over ; but as we were both very anxious 
 to know what had become of our respective properties 
 he of his house and effects, I of my clothes, my money, 
 and mule, it was determined that I should return and 
 gain the necessary intelligence. 
 
 I entered Tehran in the evening, and, making myself as 
 little recognisable as possible, I slunk through the streets 
 to the mollah's house. At the first glimpse I discovered 
 that we were entirely ruined ; for it was in possession of a 
 swarm of harpies, who made free property of everything that 
 fell under their hands. One of the first persons whom I met 
 coming from it was the very ferash who had been sent by 
 the Shah to conduct us to his presence ; and he was mounted 
 on my mule, with a bundle in his lap before him, doubtless 
 containing my wardrobe, or that of the mollah. 
 
 So borne down was I by this sight, and so fearful of 
 being discovered, that I hurried away from the spot ; and 
 scarcely knowing whither I was bending my steps, I strolled 
 into a bath, situated not far from the house of our enemy 
 the chief priest. 
 
 I went in, undressed myself, and, it being almost dark, 
 I was scarcely perceived by the bathing attendants. Going 
 from the first heated room into the hottest of all, I there took 
 my station in a dark recess, unseen by any one, and gave 
 free course to my thoughts. I considered to what I could 
 now possibly turn my hands for a livelihood ; for fortune 
 seemed to have abandoned me for ever, and it appeared that 
 I was marked out for the stricken deer, as the choice game 
 of misfortune. 
 
 " I no sooner fall in love," said' I, musing, "than the king 
 himself becomes my rival, slays my mistress, and degrades 
 me from my employment. I am the lawful heir to a man of
 
 444 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 undoubted wealth ; he lives just long enough to acknowledge 
 me ; and, although everybody tells me that I ought to be 
 rich, yet I have the mortification to see myself cheated before 
 my face, and I turn out a greater beggar than ever. The 
 most devout and powerful man of the law in Persia takes a 
 fancy to me, and secures to me what I expect will be a happy 
 retreat for life ; my master, in an evil hour, prays for the 
 blessings of heaven to be poured upon us, instead of which 
 we are visited with its vengeance, driven as exiles from the 
 city, and lose all our property." Never did man count up 
 such a sum of miseries as I did when seated in the corner 
 of the bath. The world seemed for ever gone from me, and 
 I wished for nothing better than to die in the very spot in 
 which I had nestled myself. 
 
 The bath had now been almost entirely abandoned by 
 the bathers, when of a sudden a stir ensued, and I perceived 
 a man walk in with a certain degree of parade, whom, through 
 the glimmering of light that was still left, I recognised to be 
 the mollah bashi in person. Neither he nor his attendants 
 perceived me ; and as. soon as he was left to himself (for 
 so he thought), he immediately got into the reservoir of 
 hot water, or the hasneh (the treasury), as it is called in the 
 baths of Persia. 
 
 Here I heard him for some time splashing about and 
 puffing with all his might ; a sort of playfulness which struck 
 me as remarkable for so grave and sedate a character ; and 
 then a most unusual floundering, attended with a gurgling of 
 the throat, struck my ear. I conceived that he might be 
 practising some extraordinary bodily exercise, and curiosity 
 impelled me to rise gently from my corner, and, with all the 
 precaution possible, to steal softly on the tips of my toes to 
 the aperture of the reservoir, and look in. 
 
 To my horror, I perceived the head of the law at his last 
 gasp, apparently without a struggle left in him. It was 
 evident that he had been seized with a fit, and had been 
 drowned before he could call for help. 
 
 All the terrible consequences of this unfortunate event
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 445 
 
 stared me full in the face. " What can now hinder me," said 
 I, "from being taken up as his murderer? Everybody knew 
 how ill-disposed against him was my master, the mollah 
 Nadan, and I shall be called the vile instrument of his 
 enmity." 
 
 Whilst making these reflections, standing upon the step 
 that leads into the reservoir, the mollah bashi's servant, 
 followed by a bathing attendant, came in with the warm 
 linen that is used on leaving the bath ; and, seeing a man 
 apparently coming out of the water, naturally took me for 
 the deceased, and without any words proceeded to rub me 
 down and to put on the bathing linen. This gave me time 
 for thought ; and, as I foresaw an adventure that might 
 perhaps lead me safely out of the scrape into which my 
 destiny had thrown me, I let it take its course, and at once 
 resolved to personate the chief priest. 
 
 A dim lamp, suspended from on high, was the only light 
 that shone in the large vault of the dressing-room ; and as 
 I happened to be about the size and stature of the deceased, 
 his servants, who were without suspicion, very naturally took 
 me for their master. I had known and seen a great deal of 
 him during my stay with the mollah Nadan, and therefore 
 was sufficiently acquainted -with the manners of the man to 
 be able to copy him for the short time it would take to be 
 attended upon by his servants until we reached his house. 
 The most difficult part of the imposture would be, when 
 I should enter the women's apartments ; for I was quite 
 unacquainted with the locality there, and totally ignorant of 
 the sort of footing he was upon with the inmates of his 
 anderun. Indeed, I once heard that he was a perfect tyrant 
 over the fairer part of the creation ; and, as much gossip was 
 carried on at my master's, it came to my recollection, that it 
 had been said he waged a continual war with his lawful wife, 
 for certain causes of jealousy which his conduct was said to 
 promote. He was a man of few words, and when he spoke 
 generally expressed himself in short broken sentences ; and 
 as he affected to use words of Arabic origin on all occasions,
 
 446 
 
 more guttural sounds obtruded themselves upon the ear than 
 are generally heard from those who talk pure Persian. 
 
 I did not permit myself to open my lips during the whole 
 time that I was dressing. I kept my face in shade as much 
 as possible ; and when the water-pipe was offered to me, I 
 smoked it in the manner that I had seen the chief priest do ; 
 that is, taking two or three long whiffs, and then disgorging 
 a seemingly interminable stream of smoke. 
 
 One of the servants appeared to be struck by something 
 unusual, as I pronounced my Khoda hafiz ! to the owner of 
 the bath upon leaving it ; but all suspicion was at an end 
 when they felt the weight which I gave myself, as they 
 helped me to mount the horse that was in waiting. 
 
 I deliberately dismounted at the gate of the house of the 
 deceased ; and although I bungled about the passages, yet, 
 following the man who seemed to act as the confidential 
 servant, I came to the little door which leads into the 
 anderun. I permitted him to do what he no doubt was daily 
 accustomed to do ; and just as he had opened the door, and I 
 had advanced two or three paces, he shouted out, " Cheragh 
 biar, bring lights," and then retired. 
 
 A clatter of slippers and women's voices was then imme- 
 diately heard, and two young slaves came running towards 
 me with tapers in their hands, apparently striving who should 
 first reach me. 
 
 The largest apartment of the building was lighted up, and 
 I could perceive in it more women than one. That I took 
 to be the residence of the principal personage, the now 
 widow of the deceased ; and I dreaded lest the slaves should 
 conduct me thither. But, aided by my good stars, I must 
 have fallen upon a most propitious moment, when the mollah 
 bashi and his wife had quarrelled ; an event which seemed to 
 be understood by my conductors, who, seeing me unwilling 
 to proceed to the lighted apartment, drew me on to a door 
 which led into a small inner court, where I found a khelwet, 
 or retiring room, into which they introduced me. 
 
 How to get rid of them was my next care ; for as they
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 447 
 
 had walked before me, they could not have got a sight 
 of my face, and had they entered the room with me, 
 perhaps they would have made a discovery fatal to my 
 safety. I took the light from the hand of one, and dis- 
 missed the other with a sign of the head. Had I been 
 the same inconsiderate youth as at the time of my ac- 
 quaintance with Zeenab, perhaps I should have committed 
 some act of imprudence that might have led to my discovery ; 
 but now I eyed the two young slaves with apprehension 
 and even with terror ; and certainly one of the most agree- 
 able moments of my existence was, when I saw them turn 
 their backs upon me and leave me to my own meditations. 
 The change in my fortune, which had taken place during 
 the last hour, was so unexpected, that I felt like one treading 
 between heaven and earth ; and my first impulse, upon 
 finding myself in safety, after having got over the most 
 difficult part of the imposture, was at one moment to exult 
 and be joyful, and at another to shiver with apprehension 
 lest my good fortune might abandon me. 
 
 CHAPTER LVIII 
 
 Of the consequences of the adventure, which threaten danger, but 
 end in apparent good fortune. 
 
 I CAREFULLY fastened the inside of my door as soon as I 
 was left to myself, and put my candle in so remote a corner 
 of the room, that, if any one was curious to look through 
 the painted glass window, they could never discover that I 
 was not the mollah bashi. 
 
 Having done this, it then struck me that something more 
 might be elicited from this adventure than I had at first 
 imagined. " Let me inspect the good man's pockets," said 
 I, "and the roll of paper in his girdle; perhaps they may
 
 448 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 contain the history of my future plans." In his right-hand 
 pocket were two notes, a rosary, and his seals. In the left 
 his inkstand, a small looking-glass, and a comb. His 
 watch was kept in the breast of his coat, and in another 
 small pocket, nearly under his armpit, was his purse. 
 
 The purse first came under inspection, and there I found 
 five tomauns in gold and two pieces of silver. The watch 
 was gold and of English manufacture. His inkstand, beauti- 
 fully painted, was also valuable, and contained a penknife, 
 scissors, and pens. All these and the other trinkets I duly 
 looked upon as my own (for I was determined to play the 
 whole game), and I replaced them in their proper places on 
 my person. The notes then came under inspection. One 
 was to this purpose, without a seal : 
 
 "O friend; my intimate! my brother! ("Oh," said I, 
 "this is from an equal"). You know the affection that the 
 friend who addresses you entertains for that bright star of the 
 age, the shadow of our blessed Prophet, and his only wish is, 
 that their intimacy should daily increase and strengthen. He 
 sends him six choice Ispahan melons, such as are not to be 
 found every day, and requests him, as he values his beard, 
 to give him an unlimited permission to drink wine ; for the 
 doctors assure him if he does not take it in abundance, he 
 will not have long to be the scourge and extirpator of the 
 enemies of the true faith." 
 
 " This can only be from the chief executioner," said I 
 immediately. " Who else in Persia could express in such 
 few words his own character, namely, flatterer, drunkard, and 
 braggart ? I will make something of this ; but let me look at 
 the other note." I opened it, and read as follows : 
 
 "O my lord and master, 
 
 " The humble inferior who presumes to address the prop 
 of the true faith, the terror of infidels, and the refuge of the 
 sinner, begs leave to lay before him, that after having en- 
 countered a thousand difficulties, he has at length succeeded 
 in getting from the peasantry of his villages one hundred 
 tomauns in ready money, besides the fifty kherwars, or ass-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 449 
 
 loads of grain : that the man, Hossein Ali, could or would 
 not pay anything, although he had bastinadoed him twice, 
 and he had in consequence taken possession of his two cows : 
 that he would go on beating and exerting himself to the best 
 of his abilities ; and if some one was sent for the money which 
 he had now in hand, he would deliver it over upon receiving 
 a proper order." 
 
 The note then finished with the usual form of words from 
 an inferior to his master, and was sealed with a small seal, 
 upon which was impressed, Abdul Kerim, the name of the 
 writer. 
 
 " Ah," said I, " may my lucky stars still protect me, and I 
 will discover who this Abdul Kerim is, and where the village 
 from whence he writes, and then the hundred tomauns 
 become mine." However, I let that matter rest for the 
 moment, to think of the good account to which I might turn 
 the note from the chief executioner. After due reflection, I 
 wrote as follows : 
 
 " O my friend ! my soul ! 
 
 " The note of that friend without compare has been 
 received, and its contents understood. When the sacred 
 standard of Islam runs the risk of losing that lion of lions, that 
 double-bladed sword, that tower of strength, when he may be 
 saved and preserved, who can doubt what is to be done ? 
 Drink, O friend, drink wine, and copiously top ; and let the 
 enemies of all true believers tremble. May thy house 
 prosper, for the melons ; but add one more favour to the 
 many already conferred ; lend thy friend a horse, duly capari- 
 soned, for he has pressing business on hand, and he will 
 return it safe and sound, as soon as the star of his destiny 
 shall direct him home again." 
 
 This I impressed with the seal of the deceased, and deter- 
 mined to present it myself very early in the morning. 
 
 To the other note I wrote the following answer : 
 
 "To the well-beloved Abdul Kerim. 
 
 "We have received your note, and have understood its 
 contents. This will be delivered to you by our confidential 
 
 2 F
 
 450 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 Hajji Baba Beg, to whom you will deliver whatever money 
 you have in hand for us. On other subjects, you will hear 
 from us soon ; but in the meanwhile go on with the bastinado, 
 and we pray Allah to take you into his holy keeping." 
 
 Having duly accomplished this, I waited for a proper hour 
 to make my escape from a place where I was in momentary 
 danger of a discovery, which perhaps might bring me to an 
 ignominious end. It was past midnight, and I was preparing 
 to issue in great secrecy from my room, when the door was 
 gently pressed, as if some one wanted admittance. My fright 
 may better be imagined than described. I expected to see, 
 at least, the daroga (police magistrate) and all his officers 
 rush in and seize me ; and I waited in agony for the result 
 of the intrusion, when I heard the sound of a female voice 
 whispering words which my agitation prevented my under- 
 standing. Whatever might have been the object of the visit, 
 I had but one answer to give, and that was a loud and heavy 
 snore, which sufficiently proclaimed that the occupant of the 
 apartment was in no humour to be disturbed. 
 
 I waited for some time until I thought that everything 
 was hushed throughout the mansion, then made my way 
 quietly to the principal entrance, which having easily opened, 
 I fled as if pursued. I watched the best opportunities to steal 
 along the streets without meeting the police, and without 
 being discovered by the sentinels on duty. The day at 
 length dawned, and the bazaars, little by little, began to open. 
 Dressed as I was in the mollah bashi's clothes, my first care 
 was to make such alterations in them that they should not 
 hold me up to suspicion, and this I did for a trifling expense 
 at an old clothes shop, although, at the same time, I took 
 care not to part with any of the valuable articles which had 
 fallen into my possession. 
 
 I then proceeded to the house of the chief executioner, 
 where I presented my note to a servant, an utter stranger to 
 me, saying, that the mollah bashi requested an immediate 
 answer, as he was about going from the city on important 
 business.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 451 
 To my delight, I was informed that the great personage 
 
 GREENGROCER S SHOP. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 was in his anderun, and that he must for the present delay
 
 452 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 sending a written answer ; but that in the meanwhile he had 
 ordered one of his horses to be delivered to me. 
 
 Oh, how I eyed the beast as I saw him led out of the 
 stable, with the gold-pommelled and velvet-seated saddle, 
 with the gold chain dangling over his head, and the bridle 
 inlaid with enamelled knobs ! I almost dreaded to think that 
 all this was about to become my property, and that such luck 
 could not last long. So strong was this apprehension, that I 
 was about asking for trappings less gaudy and more service- 
 able ; but again, I thought that any delay might be my ruin ; 
 so, without mincing the matter, I mounted him, and in a very 
 short time had passed the gates of the city, and was far 
 advanced into the country. 
 
 I rode on, without stopping or once looking behind, until 
 I had got among some of the broken ground produced by the 
 large and undefined bed of the river Caraj, and there I made 
 a halt. I recollected to have heard that the village of the 
 mollah bashi lay somewhere in the direction of Hamadan, 
 and consequently I directed my course thither. But, to say 
 the truth, when pausing to breathe, I was so alarmed at the 
 extraordinary turn which my fortunes had taken, that, like 
 one dizzy on the brink of a precipice, invaded by a sort of 
 impulse to precipitate himself, it was with some difficulty that 
 I could persuade myself not to return, and deliver up my 
 person to justice. "I am," said I, "nothing more nor less 
 than a thief, and, if caught, should duly be blown from the 
 mouth of a mortar. But then, on the other hand, who made 
 me so ? Surely, if takdeer (destiny) will work such wonder- 
 ful effects, it can be no fault of mine. I sought not the death 
 of the mollah bashi ; but if he chooses to come and breathe 
 his last in my lap, and if, whether I will or no, I am to be 
 taken for him, then it is plain that fate has made me his 
 vakeel, his representative ; and whatever I do so long as I 
 remain in that character is lawful then his clothes are my 
 clothes, his hundred tomauns are my hundred tomauns, and 
 whatever I have written in his name is lawfully written." 
 
 Revived by these conclusions, I again mounted, and pro-
 
 453 
 
 ceeded to the nearest village, to inquire where the property 
 of the chief priest was situated, and if a person of the name 
 of Abdul Kerim was known in the neighbourhood. As if 
 the dice were determined to keep turning up in my favour, I 
 found that the very next village, about one parasang distant, 
 was the one in question, and Abdul Kerim a priest of that 
 name, who superintended the interests and collected the re- 
 venues of his deceased master. "Ho," said I, "a priest! I 
 must change the tone of the letter, and insert his proper 
 titles." I immediately sat down on the ground, taking the 
 inkstand from my pocket, and cutting off a slip of paper 
 from the roll in my girdle, I framed my note anew, and then 
 proceeded on my errand, determined, if I obtained possession 
 of the hundred tomauns, to take the shortest road to the 
 nearest Persian frontier. 
 
 ' 
 
 A BRASS BOTTLE. 
 From the South Kensington Museum.
 
 454 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 CHAPTER LIX 
 
 Hajji Baba does not shine in honesty The life and adventures 
 of the mollah Naddn. 
 
 I PUT on an air of consequence suited to the fine horse 
 which I bestrode as soon as I reached Seidabad (for that 
 was the name of the village), and rode through its gates 
 with such a look of authority, that the peasants who saw me 
 did not fail to make very low inclinations of the head. 
 
 " Where is Abdul Kerim ? " said I, as I dismounted, and 
 gave my horse to one of the bystanders. 
 
 In a moment every one was in motion to find him, and 
 he very soon appeared. 
 
 "I am come," said I (after the usual salutations), "on 
 the part of the chief priest, upon certain business well 
 known to you ; " and straight I delivered him my note. 
 
 Abdul Kerim had a piercing eye, which did not at all 
 suit me, particularly as he kept conning me over through 
 a corner of it ; but I was relieved, as soon as he had read 
 the note, to hear him say Be chesm! "By my eyes! the 
 money is ready. But you must refresh yourself. In the 
 name of God, come in." 
 
 I pretended great hurry, not at all liking to remain under 
 the fire of his sharp eyes ; but, by way of not exciting sus- 
 picion, I consented to eat some fruit and sour milk. 
 
 "I do not remember to have seen you at the chief 
 priest's," said he to me, as I was opening wide my mouth 
 to swallow a piece of melon ; " and yet I am acquainted 
 with every one of his servants perfectly." 
 
 "No," said I, half choked at the question, "no, I do not 
 belong to him. I am an attendant upon the chief executioner, 
 with whom the mollah bashi, I believe, has some money 
 transactions.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 455 
 
 This seemed to settle every difficulty which I saw had 
 been rising in the mind of my entertainer ; and thus the 
 fine horse, the gold-pommelled saddle, and the brilliant 
 bridle were at once accounted for. 
 
 Having received the one hundred tomauns, I safely 
 deposited them in my breast ; and then, apparently taking 
 the road back to the city, I left the village with a heart 
 much lighter than I had brought. But as soon as I was 
 fairly out of sight, I turned my horse's bridle in the con- 
 trary direction, and, clapping the stirrups into his flanks, 
 galloped on without stopping, until the foam fairly ran down 
 his sides. 
 
 I determined to proceed direct to Kermanshah, there sell 
 horse, saddle, and bridle, and then make my way to Bagdad, 
 where I should be safe from all danger of molestation. 
 
 Having proceeded some five parasangs on my road, I 
 saw a strange figure walking before me at a good pace, 
 singing with all his throat. He was lightly dressed, having 
 only a skullcap on his head, his face bound round with a 
 piece of linen, a pair of slippers on his feet, and nothing 
 to indicate that he was a wayfaring man. As I drew near 
 I thought that I had seen his form before : he was tall 
 and well-shaped, with broad shoulders, and a narrow waist. 
 I should immediately have taken him for the mollah Nadan 
 but for his singing ; for it never struck me as possible that 
 one of his grave character and manners could ever lower 
 himself by so ignoble an act. But little by little, I saw so 
 much of him, although he had not yet discovered me, that 
 I could not be mistaken : it was the mollah himself. 
 
 I stopped my horse to deliberate whether I should notice, 
 or make myself known to him. To pass him would be the 
 height of cruelty ; but to recognise him would of necessity 
 burden me with an inconvenient companion. But then, 
 should he discern who I was, and find that I had shunned 
 him, he would very probably denounce me as a thief on 
 the very first occasion ; and if I escaped him now, I should 
 have the fear ever after of knowing him to be my enemy.
 
 456 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 We were both approaching a village where we must pas's 
 the night, therefore there was no retreating on my part ; for 
 it was necessary to see that proper care was taken of my 
 horse, considering the long journey it had to travel, and to 
 push him on farther was impossible. 
 
 I took a middle line. Should he recognise me, I would 
 speak to him ; if not, I would pass him unheeded. I urged 
 my horse on, and as I approached, he turned round and 
 surveyed me from head to foot, but apparently without 
 making me out. 
 
 "O aga, for pity's sake," exclaimed he, "have compas- 
 sion on an unfortunate man, who has no other refuge in this 
 world than God and you ! " 
 
 I could not resist such an appeal to my feelings, and, 
 keeping silence for some little while by way of hearing what 
 more he would say, I at length burst into an immoderate fit 
 of laughter. My laughter seemed to be as much out of 
 season as his singing ; for he was extremely puzzled what 
 to make of me : but when I began to speak, all doubts were 
 removed, and he ran up to me with a sort of joy and ecstasy 
 that bordered upon madness. 
 
 " Ay, Hajji, my soul, my uncle, light of my eyes," said 
 he, as he kissed my knee. " From what heaven have you 
 dropped? What means this finery, this horse, this gold, 
 these trappings ? Do you deal with the Gins and the 
 Dives, or has Fortune fallen in love, and adopted you its 
 heir?" 
 
 I continued laughing, so amused was I at these sallies ; 
 and he went on, saying, " How comes it that you have so 
 soon turned your mule into this fine horse ? And my pro- 
 perty, what is become of it? Have you not even saved 
 my ass, for I am sorely tired of going on foot? Tell me, 
 tell me all : by the beard of the Prophet, tell me all." 
 
 I soon found that, had I refused to give him a full account 
 of my adventures, he would suspect me of having got posses- 
 sion of his property, and turned it into the finery which had 
 just drawn forth his admiration ; so I promised faithfully to
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 457 
 
 relate everything, but I entreated him at the same time to 
 
 A COPPERSMITH. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 prepare a large quantity of credulity, for what I had to say
 
 was so marvellous, that he would very probably conceive it 
 was my intention to impose upon him. 
 
 We then proceeded to the village, where we took up our 
 quarters at the mehman kkaneh, or strangers' house, a con- 
 venience generally to be found in every hamlet throughout 
 Persia, and there established ourselves for the night. 
 
 A person of my appearance could not long remain un- 
 noticed ; and I was duly waited upon by the ked khoda, who 
 supplied us with a good supper ; and, during the time required 
 for its preparation, I related my adventures to my companion. 
 
 Their singularity was in no manner thrown away upon 
 him ; and he seemed to die away with delight, when he 
 found that all my present prosperity was at the cost of his 
 old enemy the mollah bashi. As we sat communicating to 
 each other in the full confidence of our hearts (for the 
 miserable are ever greatly relieved by talking of them- 
 selves), I discovered that never before had I acquired an 
 insight into the real character of my associate. 
 
 "There must have been an assumed importance in you," 
 said I to him, " as long as I was in your service ; for how 
 could one really proud be so amiable as you appear now ? " 
 
 "Ah, Hajji ! " said he, "adversity is a great alterative. 
 My life has been one eternal up and down. I have often 
 compared it to those whirligigs set up by louts in our market- 
 places on the No Rouz, which keep one dangling between 
 heaven and earth. Unfortunately, I am one of those who 
 have never adopted the maxim of ' Spread not your carpet 
 in a wet place."' 
 
 "Tell me," I said, "the history of your adventures. We 
 cannot better pass our time ; and I hope that you know me 
 well enough now not to refuse me your confidence." 
 
 " You will hear nothing in my history but what is common 
 to many Persians, who one day are princes and the next 
 beggars ; but since you are curious to know, I will relate it 
 with pleasure ; " and he began in the following words : 
 
 " I am a native of Hamadan. My father was a mollah 
 of such eminence, that he was ambitious of becoming the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 459 
 
 mushtehed of Persia ; but his controversies upon particular 
 points of faith unfortunately carried him so far, that a party 
 was created against him, which deprived him of the elevation 
 he sought. His most prominent quality was the hatred he 
 bore to the Osmanlies, and to Sunis in general. One of our 
 ancestors is said to have first introduced into Persia a more 
 universal hatred against them than ever before existed, by a 
 simple innovation in the education of the Shiah children, by 
 which means their very first ideas were trained to be inimical 
 to the race of Omar. I mean," said the mollah, " that which 
 you no doubt very well remember: when a little boy in school- 
 time is pressed upon certain occasions to ask his master's leave 
 to retire, the form of words in which he is enjoined to make 
 his request is ' Lahnet beh Omar I' Curse be upon Omar! I 
 daresay you have through life, as I have, never omitted to 
 unite the name of Omar with everything that is unclean, and 
 at least once a day to repeat the curse which you were taught 
 at school." 
 
 I fully assented to this, and then he proceeded with his 
 story. 
 
 " My father's hatred for the sectaries of Omar extended 
 itself to all sorts of infidels. Jews, Christians, fire-worship- 
 pers, and worshippers of images, all came within the scope 
 of his execration ; and what at first he had practised from 
 motives of ambition, at length became the ruling principle 
 of his nature. His family, and I among the number, were 
 brought up in his tenets, and imbibed all his violent pre- 
 judices ; and so much did we hang together by them, that 
 we formed as it were a distinct sect, the terror of infidels, 
 and the most zealous upholders of the Shiah faith. 
 
 "After this you will not be surprised at the part I lately 
 took in the destruction of the Armenian wine-jars at Tehran. 
 But this is not the only scrape my zeal has led me into. 
 Very early in life, when still a student at Hamadan, I was 
 involved in a terrible disturbance, of which I was the principal 
 promoter. 
 
 "An ambassador from the pasha of Bagdad, with his
 
 460 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 suite, was quietly taking his road through our city, having 
 sojourned there two or three days, on his way to the Court 
 of the Shah, when, burning to put into practice my father's 
 lessons, I collected a band of young fanatics like myself, and 
 making them an appropriate address, I so excited their 
 passions, that we resolved to perform some feat worthy of 
 our principles. We determined to attack our Turkish guests, 
 inform them of the curses we denounced against Omar, and 
 invite them to become adherents to the doctrine of AH. 
 Heedless, and, perhaps, ignorant of what is due to the 
 character of elchi, or ambassador, we only saw in Suleiman 
 Effendi an enemy to the Shiahs, and one calling himself a 
 Suni. One day, as he was setting forth from his house to 
 visit the governor of Hamadan, we gathered ourselves into 
 a body, and greeted him by loud cries of " Curses be upon 
 Omar ! " This enraged his domestics, who retorted the 
 insult by blows. Showers of stones ensued from our party, 
 and this led to a general fray, in which the pasha's repre- 
 sentative had his turban knocked from his head, his beard 
 spit upon, and his clothes nearly torn from his back. 
 
 " Such an outrage, of course, could not be overlooked. 
 The ambassador was furious ; he threatened to send off 
 couriers to the Shah, and was even on the point of return- 
 ing to his own master, when the governor, frightened at the 
 consequences if his wrath was not appeased, promised that 
 he should have all satisfaction, and that the ringleaders of 
 the disturbance should immediately be delivered up to him. 
 
 " Trusting to my father's consequence in the city, and full 
 of vapouring pride at what he had achieved, I at first made 
 light of the vows of vengeance which the Turks breathed 
 against us ; but the governor, who only contemplated the 
 loss of his place if the news of this event reached Tehran ; 
 and caring little whether Ali was the true successor to the 
 Prophet, or whether Osman, Omar, and Abubekr were 
 usurpers or not, he at once ordered me to be seized, as 
 well as two others of my companions, and forthwith we 
 were placed at the disposal of the enraged Osmanlies.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 461 
 
 " I shall never forget the contending emotions of my mind, 
 when brought face to face before these objects of my hatred. 
 I did not at all relish the sound beating which they had it in 
 contemplation to inflict upon me ; and, at the same time, I 
 groaned under the necessity of keeping to myself that stream 
 of abuse which was ready to flow against them upon the 
 smallest provocation. 
 
 ' They seemed, however, quite ready to return all our 
 hatred with interest, and did not lose this opportunity of 
 letting us know its full extent. They were not generous 
 enough to let us off, but ordered the administration of the 
 bastinado with a degree of religious zest that I thought could 
 never have existed in any breast except my own. To be 
 short, our feet were beat into a jelly, and our only consola- 
 tion, during the operation, was the opportunity afforded us of 
 giving vent to our pent-up rage. The Turk, however, was 
 revenged, and we were set free. 
 
 " This adventure cooled my zeal for many years ; although, 
 in the pursuit of the distinctions which my father sought, I 
 continued to addict myself to controversy. When about 
 twenty-five years old, and my beard had acquired a respect- 
 able consistency, I went to Ispahan, in order to improve 
 myself by associating with our celebrated doctors, and to 
 make my own abilities known by the part which I might 
 take- in their disputations. I succeeded to the utmost of my 
 wishes, and acquired considerable reputation. I only wanted 
 an opportunity of distinguishing myself, and that was soon 
 afforded me by the following circumstance. 
 
 . "In the time of our famous Shah Seffi, who was himself 
 half a heretic, the Franks (a sect of the Christians) had con- 
 siderable establishments at Ispahan for the purposes of com- 
 merce, and were much patronised and encouraged by him. 
 He allowed them free exercise of their religion, permitted 
 them to build churches, to import priests, and, to the scandal 
 of the true faith, even allowed them the use of bells to call 
 them to prayer. These Franks have a supreme head of their 
 church, a sort of caliph, whom they call Papa, part of
 
 462 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 whose duty, like that of our own blessed Prophet, is to pro- 
 pagate his religion throughout the world. Under different 
 pretexts, convents of his dervishes were established, some in 
 Ispahan itself, and some in Julfa among the Armenians. 
 Most of these have been abandoned, and the buildings fallen 
 into decay ; but one whose object more particularly was the 
 propagation of the Christian faith still existed, and to its 
 destruction my endeavours and those of some of our most 
 zealous mollahs were directed, notwithstanding the opposite 
 views of the government, who are anxious to encourage the 
 Christians to settle in Persia, owing to the riches which they 
 introduce by their trade. 
 
 " This convent was served by two dervishes, one of whom 
 was in himself a calamity ! one who understood the world, 
 a man of deep design, and of a wit so sharp, that the Shaitan 
 in person was not fit to be his father. He was tall, thin, and 
 strong. His eyes were like live charcoal, and his voice like a 
 high wind. He never lost an opportunity of entering into 
 argument with our most learned men upon points of religion, 
 and would boldly assert, with the heart of a lion, that our holy 
 Prophet, "the chief of created beings, the sealed intercessor, 
 Mohammed Mustapha" (upon whom be eternal blessings!) 
 was a cheat and an impostor. In short, he embarked in the 
 sea of controversy, as if he had Noah for a pilot ; and, not 
 content with words, he even wrote a book, in which he pre- 
 tended to prove the truth of his mad assertions. This book 
 was unfortunately attempted to be answered by one of our 
 divines, who did not recollect that it is folly to play with fire, 
 unless there be plenty of water at hand to extinguish it. His 
 book said anything but what it ought, and tended more to 
 throw ridicule upon Islamism than to uphold its glory and 
 perfection. Ispahan was full of this subject when I arrived 
 there ; and, being anxious to bring myself forwards, I pro- 
 posed that an invitation should be made to the Frank dervish 
 to meet the mollahs of the city in person, on an appointed day, 
 in the Medresseh Jedeed, when they would argue every point 
 of their respective faiths, and when they would either make
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 463 
 
 the dervish turn Mahomedan, by producing conviction in 
 his mind, or they would become Christians, if his arguments 
 prevailed. To this he immediately assented ; but we deter- 
 mined beforehand, amongst ourselves, that such a thorn in 
 the side of our Ulemah should no longer exist in Persia, and 
 that the overwhelming truth of our belief should not be left to 
 the chances of vain words and uplifted voices, but show itself 
 in the zeal and numbers of its adherents. Accordingly, every 
 turbaned head, and every beard that wagged, was secretly 
 invited to appear on the appointed day ; and never was 
 attendance more complete, never did the children of Islam 
 make such a show of their irresistible force, as they did on 
 that memorable occasion. 
 
 " The medresseh was already filled ; for, besides the 
 mollahs, a great crowd, all anxious to witness the triumph 
 of the true faith, had taken possession of the courts. Head 
 over head and turban over turban were piled upon each 
 other, in thick ^array, along the walls and in the utmost 
 corners of the hall, when the Frank dervish, alone, un- 
 supported, and unfriended, appeared before us. He looked 
 around in dismay, and appeared appalled by our numbers. 
 Two or three of the principal mollahs, who were to carry on 
 the controversy, were seated in front of their body, and I 
 was close at hand. We had prepared questions, which were 
 to be proposed to him, and according to the answers he 
 gave, so were we to act. He appeared to be provided with 
 no other weapon of defence save his tongue ; and he sat 
 down opposite to us, evidently much alarmed at the hostility 
 which he remarked on the countenances of all present. 
 
 "Without giving him any time for reflection, we imme- 
 diately began : 
 
 " ' Do you believe,' said one, 'that the God in heaven 
 put himself into a human form?' 'Do you,' said another, 
 'acknowledge that God is composed of three persons, and 
 still is only one?' 'Are you convinced,' said a third, 'that 
 what you call the Holy Ghost came down from heaven in 
 the body of a dove ? '
 
 464 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjt BABA 
 
 " These questions were put so quickly, that he knew not 
 which way to turn, until, collecting within himself all the 
 powers of his voice, he exclaimed, ' If your intention is to 
 kill me, be it so ; but what good will that do your argument ? 
 If your intention be to argue, attacking me in this manner 
 by numbers and personal violence will prove that you can 
 only oppose passion to argument ; and show the world, that 
 by me you have been overcome.' 
 
 " Seeing that we were likely to fare ill, and observing 
 that his words were producing an effect in his favour, I was 
 the first to exclaim to the surrounding mob, and to the 
 assembly present: 'O Mussulmans! Mussulmans! come to 
 our help, our religion is attacked, the infidel is trying to 
 subvert our faith, vengeance ! help ! ' 
 
 "These words produced an immediate effect, and a 
 thousand voices were lifted up against him. ' Seize him ! ' 
 said some ; ' Kill him ! ' said others. The mob was agitated 
 to and fro, like the waves of the sea ; when the dervish, 
 seeing himself in danger, made an attempt to escape, which 
 was seconded by one of the mollahs, whose compassion was 
 moved towards him. He threw his own cloak over the infidel's 
 shoulders, and just as violent hands were about to be laid 
 upon him, he pushed vigorously through the crowd, and 
 succeeded in reaching the house of an Armenian in safety. 
 
 "We, the mollahs, being disappointed of our prey, pro- 
 ceeded in a body to the house of the governor of the city, 
 followed by an immense crowd of the people. A great 
 fermentation had been excited, and we promoted it all in 
 our power. 
 
 " The governor himself was a strict and pious Mussul- 
 man, and we expected that he would without hesitation join in 
 the cry we had raised. We accused the Frank dervish of 
 preaching false doctrine, with a view to subvert our religion. 
 
 " ' This fellow,' said we, 'calls our Prophet cheat, and 
 talks abomination. We demand that he be delivered over 
 to us.' 
 
 "The governor was perplexed how to act; for he knew
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 465 
 
 how dangerous it was to interfere in matters in which the 
 subjects of Europe were concerned ; and he was far from 
 seconding our disposition to violence. 
 
 "'Why invite the dervish to an argument,' said he, 'if 
 you will not hear what he has to say? If you have no 
 arguments to oppose to his, violence only makes your cause 
 worse, and you do more harm than good to our religion. 
 But if, on the other hand, your arguments are better than 
 his, and he can bring no answer to them, then indeed he is 
 a kafir, an infidel ; and according to our law is worthy of 
 death.' 
 
 " Finding ourselves balked again, we departed breath- 
 ing vengeance ; and I verily believe, had we met the dervish 
 at that moment, he would have been torn into a thousand 
 pieces. He was so well aware of this, that we soon after 
 heard that he had left the city in secret ; and so far our en- 
 deavours were successful, for it was long before he ventured 
 again to show himself. 
 
 " I had put myself so much forward on this occasion, and 
 had shown my zeal in so many different ways, that I had 
 become a prominent character. But hitherto I had got 
 nothing by it. The capital I felt, after all. was the place 
 where I ought to endeavour to gain some permanent and 
 lucrative situation ; and to that I turned my views. To gain 
 this end, I took myself to Kom, with a view of ingratiating 
 myself with the mushtehed, whose recommendation I knew 
 would do me more good than ten years of prayer and fasting. 
 I succeeded perfectly ; for with the character I had acquired 
 of being the scourge of infidels, I was received by him with 
 great favour, and he was delighted to acknowledge me for 
 one of his most diligent disciples. I soon took up his cause 
 against the Sufies with all the ardour that he could wish ; and 
 it was not long before I ventured to solicit his recommendation 
 to the body of the Ulemah at Tehran, and to the principal 
 men in office at court. He professed to be sorry to part 
 with me, but acceded to my request ; and I was soon after 
 counted one of the holy fraternity at the seat of empire. 
 
 2 G
 
 4 66 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 " I confess to you, although I enjoy as good an opinion 
 of myself as most men, that I was much less successful in 
 making my way at court than I had expected. My com- 
 petitors for advancement were numerous, and more versed in 
 the ways of the world than I. Like them, I was obliged to 
 begin by paying a most assiduous attention to men in office. 
 Having once gained the privilege of being seated in the 
 mejlis (assembly) of the head of the law, who was in fact my 
 chief, I little by little became noticed by the grand vizier, the 
 
 A PEN-CASE PARTLY OPENED, SHOWING THE INK-HOLDER (THE INFLUENCE 
 OF EUROPEAN ART IS EASILY DISTINGUISHED). 
 
 A PEN-CASE, "FUTTEH ALI SHAH HUNTING THE BOAR" (THE KING is 
 
 SMOKING HIS KALIAN, WHICH IS HELD BY AN ATTENDANT). 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 lord high treasurer, the secretary of state, the chief execu- 
 tioner, and others. I was constantly to be seen at their up- 
 risings, and at their evening meetings ; but, after all, I was 
 nothing but a poor mollah, and I longed for some oppor- 
 tunity of distinguishing myself from the common herd. The 
 prime vizier first noticed me, owing to my once having 
 succeeded in making him shed tears, at the commemoration 
 of the death of the blessed Hossein, which he held at his 
 house, and where I preached and chanted the service in a 
 manner that drew forth his approbation, and that of all the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 467 
 
 assembly. Since then I have made great progress, parti- 
 cularly in the eyes of the people, whose good opinion I look 
 upon as the first of acquisitions to an ambitious man. 
 
 " But yuj have had an opportunity of judging how little 
 their assistance is to be depended upon, when opposed to the 
 will of an absolute king. Trusting too much to my influence 
 over them, I have lost myself; and I am now what you see, 
 a miserable wanderer, returning to my native city as penniless 
 as when I first left it." 
 
 CHAPTER LX 
 
 Hajji and the mollah make plans suited to their critical situation, 
 showing that no confidence can exist between rogues. 
 
 THE mollah Nadan having finished his narrative, I endea- 
 voured to persuade him that the same destiny which had 
 presided over his success in life, and afterwards over his mis- 
 fortunes, would no doubt serve him again, and restore him to 
 his lost situation: "For," said I, "we both of us have seen 
 enough of life in Persia to have ascertained its extreme 
 instability. When events depend upon the will of one man, 
 he may with as much consistency order you back from exile, 
 as he did the plucking your beard and the thrusting you forth 
 from the city. There is a reaction in misfortune which 
 frequently produces increased prosperity. Thus when the 
 smith sprinkles water upon his burning charcoal, it is extin- 
 guished for a moment, and smoke takes the place of flame ; 
 but again, at the slightest blast of his bellows, the fire breaks 
 out with redoubled brilliancy." 
 
 " That is precisely the thought with which I was consol- 
 ing myself," said my companion, "and which set me singing, 
 when you overtook me on the road. The Shah most pro- 
 bably thought it necessary to make an exhibition of justice,
 
 468 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 by way of ingratiating himself with the Christian merchants ; 
 but the day will come when he will feel the necessity of 
 making friends of the upholders of the Mahomedan religion, 
 and then the good opinion of such a man as I, who am be- 
 loved by the people, will be of consequence to him. I had 
 some thoughts, I confess, of relinquishing priestcraft, and 
 becoming a merchant ; but, all things considered, I shall 
 continue to follow my original destiny. I have now an 
 opportunity of setting up for a martyr, and that, now I re- 
 collect it, is worth more than the loss of my worldly goods, 
 my house, my furniture, my white ass, and even my m Cities." 
 
 " Then what do you propose doing ? " said I. " Will you 
 accompany me to Bagdad, or will you wait the tide of events 
 in Persia ? " 
 
 "My plan," said he, "is to proceed to my native place, 
 Hamadan, where my father, who is still alive, enjoys con- 
 siderable reputation : through his means I will set negotia- 
 tions on foot for my readmission to the capital, and ultimately 
 for my restoration to the situations of which I have been 
 deprived. But you, what road do you intend to pursue ? 
 When, Inshallah, please God, I am restored, I shall require 
 your talents to make my muti establishment prosper. You 
 had better remain at Hamadan with me, and follow my 
 fortunes." 
 
 "Ah, my friend," said I, "with all my present apparent 
 prosperity, I am more of an exile than you. Events have 
 played wickedly into my lap, and here am I (God knows how 
 unwillingly) an avowed thief. I could not do otherwise than 
 follow my destiny, which has clothed me with the garments 
 of the chief priest, enriched me with his money, and mounted 
 me upon the finely-caparisoned steed of the executioner in 
 chief. That same destiny compels me to fly my country : 
 I cannot remain in it to run the chance of being discovered 
 and cut into quarters, to grace the gates of the city. No, 
 before many days are expired, I hope to have reached the 
 Turkish frontier, and then only shall I call myself in safety." 
 
 Upon this I made him an offer of part of my acquired
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 469 
 
 spoils, by which I hoped to secure his secrecy, and happy 
 was I to find him nothing loth. He accepted often tomauns 
 (leaving me ninety- five in hand), which he said would be 
 enough for present purposes, and which he promised to repay 
 whenever his fortunes should be re-established. But upon 
 taking them from me, he again urged me to proceed with 
 him to Hamadan. He represented in the strongest colours 
 the danger I ran of being seized before I could escape from 
 the Shah's territories, and even when I should have quitted 
 them ; " For," said he, "the moment the death of the mollah 
 bashi is known, and as soon as the chief executioner shall 
 have discovered the loss of his horse, he will not fail to 
 despatch officers throughout the country in search of you, 
 and you are too conspicuous a character not to be easily 
 traced. It will be much better for you to take refuge with 
 me, who will not fail to avert any inquiries, until the event 
 has blown over, when you will be at liberty to follow your 
 plans in safety. My father owns a village at some distance 
 from Hamadan, where you can live unsuspected; and as for 
 your horse and trappings, we may dispose of them in such 
 a manner that they cannot lead to your discovery. Hama- 
 dan is not very far distant. If you depart hence at midnight, 
 we shall reach it early to-morrow ; and this we can easily do 
 by making your horse carry us both. Consider that the 
 journey is long to the Turkish frontier ; and should the 
 beast fail you, what is to hinder your being taken ? " 
 
 His words gave a new turn to my thoughts, and I saw 
 that he spoke the language of reason. Totally ignorant 
 of this part of Persia, and feeling how necessary it was for 
 my safety not only to be acquainted with the high-roads, 
 but also with the unfrequented paths, I looked upon a rapid 
 flight to the frontier as an undertaking not so easily per- 
 formed as imagined. If the mollah was inclined to betray 
 me, he would as easily do so whether I fled or whether I 
 adopted his plan ; and of the two, it appeared to me a 
 safer line of conduct to confide in than to distrust him : 
 and accordingly I agreed to accompany him.
 
 470 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 Refreshed both by food and rest, we departed at mid- 
 night, and made great progress on the road to Hamadan 
 ere the sun rose. Having reached a rising ground which 
 gave us a view of the city, we made a halt, in order to 
 decide upon our present operations. Nadan pointed with 
 his hand to a village about a parasang distant, and said, 
 " That is the village in which you must take up your quar- 
 ters, until the story of the mollah bashi's extraordinary death 
 be blown over ; but you cannot present yourself in this mag- 
 nificent garb, and mounted on this fine horse, without creating 
 suspicion. I propose that we exchange dresses, and that 
 you surrender the horse up to me. By this means you will 
 appear in the character of a dependent of my father at his 
 village, and I shall keep up the respectability of mine, by 
 returning to the paternal roof properly equipped. This 
 arrangement will advance our mutual as well as our com- 
 bined interests. You will be safe from suspicion, and I 
 shall not look the pauper that I do now. The history of 
 my disgrace will no doubt soon reach the ears of my 
 family, and perhaps lower them in the eyes of the world ; 
 but in this country, where so much depends upon the effect 
 of outward show, as soon as it is known that I returned to 
 them mounted on a horse with an enamelled bridle, a gold- 
 pommelled saddle, and with a Cashmerian shawl round my 
 waist, they as well as I will be restored to our proper places 
 again. After I have enjoyed the advantage of these things for 
 a few days, it will be very easy to sell them under some plau- 
 sible pretext, and then you shall duly receive their amount." 
 
 I was rather startled by this proposal, for certainly my 
 companion had not inspired me with sufficient confidence 
 to encourage me trusting him with so much property with- 
 out any other security than his word. But I felt the truth 
 of all he said. It was impossible for me to keep my in- 
 cognito at the village for ten days or a fortnight, dressed 
 as I was, and the possessor of a fine horse, without creating 
 suspicion. I was now, 'tis true, completely in the power of 
 the mollah ; but by his proposed arrangement he would have
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 471 
 
 become such an accomplice in my guilt, that he could never 
 
 A SELLER OF "MIRRORS AND PEN-CASES. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 denounce me without at the same time involving himself.
 
 472 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 "But," said I, "suppose a nasakchi discovers the horse, 
 what becomes of us then ? You will be seized as well as I." 
 
 " God is great," answered the mollah ; "no one can have 
 travelled as fast as we, and before any officer can arrive at 
 Hamadan I shall have reached my father's house, and pro- 
 duced all the sensation I require in the city. It will be easy 
 after that to secrete both the horse and his trappings. I 
 take all the risk upon myself." 
 
 Nothing more after this was to be said on my part. We 
 immediately stripped, and made an exchange of clothes. He 
 got from me the deceased mollah bashi's under garment, his 
 caba, or coat, his Cashmerian girdle, and his outward cloak, 
 made of a dark green broadcloth ; and I, in return, received 
 his old clothes, which had been torn on his person the day he 
 had been thrust out of Tehran. I gave him my black cap, 
 round which he wound the chief priest's head-shawl, which 
 I had still preserved ; and, in return, he delivered over to 
 me his skullcap. I preserved the mollah bashi's purse, the 
 remaining money, the watch and seals ; whilst I permitted 
 him the use of the inkstand, the rosary, the pocket looking- 
 glass, and the comb. He then stuck the roll of paper in 
 his girdle ; and when completely made up and mounted, he 
 looked so much like the deceased chief priest himself, that I 
 quite started at the resemblance. 
 
 We parted with great apparent affection : he promised 
 that I should hear from him immediately, and in the mean- 
 while gave me every necessary information concerning his 
 father's village, leaving it to my own ingenuity to make out 
 as plausible a story for myself as I might be able. 
 
 He then rode away, leaving me with no very agreeable 
 feelings, on finding myself alone in the world, uncertain of 
 the future, and suspicious of my present fate. 
 
 I made the best of my road to the village ; but was ex- 
 tremely puzzled in what character to introduce myself to the 
 inhabitants. In fact, I looked like one dropped from the 
 skies ; for what could be possibly said for a man of good 
 appearance, without a shawl to his waist, or an outer coat
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 473 
 
 to his back, with a pair of slippers to his feet, and a skullcap 
 on his head ? After much hesitation, I determined to call 
 myself a merchant, who had been robbed and plundered by 
 the Curds, and then sham a sickness, which might be a pre- 
 text for remaining in the village until I could hear from 
 the mollah, who would no doubt furnish me with intelligence 
 which might enable me to determine how long I ought to 
 remain in my hiding-place. 
 
 In this I succeeded perfectly. The good people of the 
 village, whom Heaven for my good luck had endowed with 
 a considerable share of dulness, believed my story, and took 
 me in. The only inconvenience which I had to endure was 
 the necessity of swallowing the prescriptions of an old 
 woman, the doctor of the community, who was called to 
 show her skill upon me. 
 
 AN EARRING, GOLD AND ENAMEL. 
 (From the north of Persia.} From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 474 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 CHAPTER LXI 
 
 The punishment due to Hajjl Baba falls upon Naddn, which makes the 
 former a staunch predestinarian. 
 
 I HAD passed ten long and tedious days in my hiding-place, 
 without the smallest tidings from the mollah Nadan. I was 
 suspicious that his star was still glancing obliquely at him, 
 and that matters had not gone quite so well as he had 
 expected. Little communication existed between the city 
 and the village ; and I began to despair of ever again hear- 
 ing of my horse, my rich trappings and clothes, when, one 
 evening, a peasant, who had gone to the market-place of 
 Hamadan for the purpose of hiring himself as a labourer in 
 the fields, and who had returned disappointed, by his dis- 
 course threw some light upon my apprehension. 
 
 He said, that a great stir had been excited by the arrival 
 of a nasakchi, who had seized the son of their aga (the owner 
 of the village), taken away his horse, and carried him off 
 prisoner to the capital, under the accusation of being the 
 murderer of the mollah bashi of Tehran. 
 
 I leave the gentle reader to judge of my feelings upon 
 hearing this intelligence. I soon became satisfied of the 
 reason of the mollah's silence ; and although I felt myself 
 secure for the present, yet I was far from certain how long 
 I might remain so. I immediately declared that I was 
 perfectly restored to health, and, taking a hasty leave of my 
 hospitable villagers, made the best of my way to Hamadan, 
 in order to ascertain the truth of the peasant's intelligence. 
 
 Nadan's father was well known in the city, and I found 
 no difficulty in discovering where he lived. I abstained 
 from entering his house, and making any direct inquiries 
 concerning the fate of my friend ; but I stopped at the shop 
 of a barber in the neighbourhood, both because I wanted his
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 475 
 
 assistance in giving a decent appearance to my head and 
 face, and because I knew that he would be the most likely 
 person to inform me of the real state of the case. 
 
 I found him as talkative and as officious as I could wish. 
 When I had asked him the news of the day, and had pleaded 
 my ignorance of the recent occurrence that had filled every- 
 body with astonishment, he stepped back two paces, and 
 exclaimed, "Whence do you come, that the iniquities of that 
 dog the mollah Nadan are unknown to you ? He was not 
 satisfied with killing the chief priest, but he must needs dress 
 himself in his very clothes ; and, not content with that, he 
 also has stolen one of the chief executioner's best horses and 
 furniture. Wondrous dirt has he been eating ! " 
 
 I entreated my informant to relate all the particulars of a 
 story of which I pretended to be totally ignorant ; and, with- 
 out waiting for a second request, he spoke as follows : 
 
 " About ten days ago this Nadan arrived at the gate of 
 his father's house, mounted on a superb horse, caparisoned 
 in a style more fitting a khan and a man of the sword than 
 a poor servant of God. He was dressed in shawls of the 
 finest quality, and looked indeed like the high priest himself. 
 His appearance in this fashion of dress and equipage created 
 an extraordinary sensation ; because a very short time before 
 it was reported that he had incurred the Shah's displeasure, 
 and had been turned out of Tehran in the most ignominious 
 manner. He gave himself all sorts of airs upon alighting : 
 and, when questioned concerning his expulsion from the 
 capital, he appeared to make very light of it, and said that 
 he had been made to understand, in a secret manner, that 
 his disgrace was only temporary ; and that, by way of soften- 
 ing it, he had been presented with the horse which he then 
 rode. 
 
 "This tale was believed by every one, and he was 
 received at his father's house with great honours ; but most 
 unfortunately, the next day, when about mounting his horse 
 to show himself in the city, a nasakchi passed the gate of the 
 house, having just arrived from Tehran. He stopped and
 
 476 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 looked at the animal very earnestly ; inspected the bridle, 
 and gold-pommelled saddle, and then cried out, ' La Allah 
 il Allah! there is but one God!' He inquired of the 
 bystanders to whom the horse belonged, and was informed 
 that it was the property of the mollah Nadan. 
 
 " ' The mollah Nadan ! ' exclaimed he in a great rage ; 
 ' whose dog is he ? That horse is the property of my master, 
 the chief executioner ; and whoever says it is not is a liar, 
 whoever he may be, mollah or no mollah ! ' 
 
 " At this interval appeared the delinquent himself, who, 
 upon seeing what was going on, endeavoured to hide himself 
 from the observation of the nasakchi ; for it so happened that 
 he was one of the officers who had paraded him through the 
 capital on the day of his disgrace. 
 
 " Wearing the garments and turbaned cap of the deceased 
 chief priest, the dangers of his situation immediately stared 
 him in the face ; and he would have decamped on the spot, 
 had he not been recognised by the nasakchi, who, as soon as 
 he saw him, cried out, ' Seize him, take his soul, that is he 
 the very man. Well done, my happy stars ! By the head of 
 Ali, by the beard of the Prophet, that is the bankrupt rogue 
 who killed the chief priest and stole my master's horse.' 
 
 " By this time the nasakchi had dismounted, and, with 
 the assistance of his own attendant, and of the bystanders 
 (who soon discovered that he was acting under authority), 
 he secured the mollah, who, in his defence, made oath upon 
 oath that he was neither thief nor murderer, and that he was 
 ready to swear his innocence upon the Koran." 
 
 The barber related very faithfully the whole conversation 
 which took place between Nadan and the nasakchi, the re- 
 sult of which was, that the latter took the former with him 
 to Tehran, notwithstanding all the interest made in his favour 
 by the mollah's father and friends. 
 
 Never was breast torn by so many contending feelings as 
 mine, upon hearing the fate that had befallen my companion, 
 as related to me by the barber. In the first place, I bemoaned 
 the loss of my horse and his rich trappings, and of my fine
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 477 
 
 shawl dresses ; but in the next, I enjoyed a feeling of security 
 when I considered, that if poor Nadan should happen to lose 
 his head, no account would ever be asked from me of my late 
 iniquities. I still could not help looking upon myself as one 
 
 A CRIMINAL, WITH A STRING THROUGH HIS NOSE, LED THROUGH 
 THE BAZAAR BY THE EXECUTIONER. 
 
 From the collection of A. Holz, Esq. 
 
 under the protection of a good star, whilst the mollah, I con- 
 cluded, was inevitably doomed to be unfortunate : else why 
 should we have exchanged clothes, and he taken my horse 
 from me, at a time when I was in no way inclined to accede 
 to his proposals ? But, notwithstanding there was every like-
 
 478 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 lihood that he would suffer the punishment clue to me, still, 
 for the present, I could not feel myself secure so long as I 
 remained in Persia, and therefore determined to proceed upon 
 my original intention, and quit it without further delay. I 
 consoled myself for the loss of the horse and clothes, by the 
 possession of the remaining ninety-five tomauns, which would 
 be sufficient for my present wants ; and then those powerful 
 words, Kkoda buzurg est ! God is great, stood me in lieu (as 
 they do many a poor wretch besides) of a provision for the 
 future, and of protection against all the unforeseen misfortunes 
 preparing for us by the hand of fate. 
 
 CHAPTER LXII 
 
 Hajji Baba hears an extraordinary sequel to his adventure in the bath, 
 and feels all the alarms of guilt. 
 
 HAVING equipped myself as a merchant, for I had long since 
 determined to abandon the character of a priest, considering 
 how ill I had succeeded in it, I sought out the conductor of a 
 caravan, which was on its road to Kermanshah, and bargained 
 with him for the hire of a mule. He had a spare one, that 
 had run unloaded from Tehran, and which he let me have for 
 a trifle ; and as I had no baggage but what I carried on my 
 back, my beast and I agreed very well together. 
 
 We reached our destination on the seventh day, and here 
 I was obliged to look out for a fresh conveyance. I was 
 informed that none was likely to offer under a month, because, 
 owing to the Curdish robbers, who infested the frontier, no 
 caravan ventured on the road unless its numbers were con- 
 siderable, and it would take some time to collect them ; but I 
 was told that a caravan of pilgrims and dead bodies had set 
 off for Kerbelah only the day before, and that, with a little
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 479 
 
 exertion, I might easily overtake them before they had reached 
 the dangerous passes. 
 
 Constantly apprehensive of being discovered and detained, 
 I did not hesitate upon the course to adopt, and forthwith set 
 off on foot. My money was safely deposited in my girdle ; 
 and, without any other baggage than a good staff in my hand, 
 I left Kermanshah, and proceeded on my road. 
 
 On the evening of the third day, when nearly exhausted 
 with fatigue, my eyes were cheered by the sight of fires at a 
 distance, the smoke of which curled up over the brow of a 
 hill ; and, approaching them, I discovered cattle spread over 
 the plain grazing, and thus was not mistaken in supposing 
 that the caravan was nigh at hand. As I advanced towards 
 the baggage, which was piled up in a hollow square, and 
 where I knew that I should find the conductor, I observed a 
 small white tent, pitched at some little distance, which in- 
 dicated that pilgrims of consequence were of the party ; and, 
 moreover, that women were amongst them, for a takhtera- 
 van (a litter), and a kejawek (panniers), were seen near the 
 tent. 
 
 I gave myself out for a pilgrim, and found the conductor 
 very ready to furnish me with a mule for my conveyance. 
 I was anxious to pass unnoticed, considering the predicament 
 in which I stood ; but still the conscious dignity which the 
 ninety-five pieces of gold in my girdle gave me made it 
 difficult for me to restrain that vanity of display so common 
 to all my countrymen. 
 
 Among the baggage, at a small distance from the square, 
 in which I was seated, were several long and narrow packages 
 sewn up in thick felts, which were spread in pairs upon the 
 ground, apparently having been unloaded there from the 
 backs of camels. I inquired what they might be, for the 
 sight of them was new to me, and was informed that they 
 contained dead bodies bound to Kerbelah. 
 
 " It is evident you are a stranger," said the conductor, who 
 appeared to be as loquacious and mother-witted as those of 
 his profession generally are, "or, otherwise you would have
 
 480 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 been better informed. We were carrying rare things to 
 Kerbelah ! " 
 
 "Yes," said I, "I am a stranger; I come from afar, and 
 am like one descended from the mountains. In God's name, 
 what are you carrying to Kerbelah ? " 
 
 " What!" answered he, "have you heard nothing of the 
 extraordinary death of the mollah bashi of Tehran ; how he 
 died in the bath ; and how his ghost was seen on horseback, 
 and then in his harem ; and how it afterwards ran off with 
 one of the chief executioner's best horses ? Where have 
 you been living all this while ? " added he, shaking both 
 his hands before him as he spoke, and shrugging up his 
 shoulders. 
 
 Alarmed at what he had said, I pretended ignorance ; and 
 requested him to satisfy my curiosity concerning the story in 
 question, which he did in a manner that, but for my being 
 so deeply implicated in it, would have afforded me much 
 amusement. 
 
 "You must know, then," said the muleteer, "that what 
 I am about to relate is true, because I was on the spot in 
 person, at the time it happened. 
 
 " The chief priest having gone to the bath at the close of 
 day, just after the evening prayer, returned to his house 
 surrounded by his servants, and retired to bed for the night 
 in the khelwet of his women's apartments. 
 
 "You need not be told that most of the public baths in 
 Persia are open to the women the first thing in the morning, 
 to a certain hour in the day, and are then appropriated to the 
 men. The wife of the mollah bashi, attended by her servants 
 and slaves, the morning after her husband had bathed, at the 
 earliest sound of the cow horn, proceeded to the same bath, 
 and she and her suite were the first party who entered it on 
 that day. Out of respect to their mistress, none of her 
 attendants ventured to get into the reservoir of hot water 
 before her. The cupola of the bath was but very dimly 
 lighted by the dawn ; and the chief priest's wife was almost 
 in utter darkness when she entered the water. Guess at her
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 481 
 
 horror, when scarcely having proceeded two steps, her ex- 
 tended hand fell upon a large mass of floating flesh. 
 
 "Her first impulse was to utter an amazing shriek ; her 
 second to tumble headlong out as if she had been pursued, 
 and straight to faint away. 
 
 " The consternation which she produced amongst her 
 women may easily be conceived. One after the other, with 
 the lamp in their hand, they looked in, shrieked, and then ran 
 back, not one among them having yet discovered what was 
 the object of their terror. 
 
 " At length the old duenna, taking courage, looked boldly 
 into the reservoir, and to her surprise she there found a dead 
 man. More screams and cries ensued, which having brought 
 the chief priest's wife to her senses, caused her to join the 
 inspecting party. Little could be recognised of a floating 
 corpse inflated with water, presenting various odd surfaces to 
 the eye, and giving but little clue to discovery. At length 
 the head and face appeared to view ; and, as soon as the old 
 duenna had applied her lamp to it, one and all cried out, ' O 
 Ali ! it is the mollah bashi ; it is the mollah bashi ! ' 
 
 "The wife again fell into a trance ; the slaves made their 
 cries ; in short, there was that stir amongst them, that one 
 would have thought they had heard the ' blast of consterna- 
 tion from the trumpets of the resurrection.' 
 
 " But amidst all the wailing, which by this time had 
 attracted every woman in the building, one of the slaves 
 cried out, ' But it cannot be our aga, for I saw him return 
 from the bath, I made his bed, and I am sure he was soon 
 after asleep. It is impossible that he can be in bed and 
 asleep, and in the bath, drowned, at one and the same time. 
 It must be somebody else.' 
 
 " This observation threw them all into greater consterna- 
 tion than ever, because they immediately felt that what the slave 
 had seen must have been her master's ghost. 'See,' said 
 the wife, who had again come to life, pointing to the face 
 of the corpse, ' I am sure this was my husband ; there is the 
 scratch I gave him but yesterday.' 'And there,' said one 
 
 2 H
 
 482 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 of her servants, ' that is the place in his beard from which 
 you plucked a handful of hairs.' 
 
 " These tender recollections threw the poor widow into a 
 violent flood of tears, which were only stopped by her slaves 
 assuring her that the mollah bashi was still alive : 'How else 
 could he have taken the lamp from my hand ? ' said the slave 
 ' how could he have shut the door ? how dismissed me ? 
 how snored ? ' So persuaded was she of the truth of what 
 she said, that she forthwith dressed herself, and volunteered 
 to go to her master's bedroom, where no doubt she would find 
 him asleep. 
 
 " ' But if he is there,' said one of the women, 'then what 
 can this be ? ' (pointing to the corpse). 
 
 " ' Why, this must be his ghost,' said another ; ' for surely 
 no man can possess two bodies, one in which he lives, and 
 the other by way of a change.' 
 
 "'No,' said a third in a waggish tone, 'that would be 
 quite new. He might then make the same use of them 
 as he would of a town and country house.' 
 
 " All this time (many additional bathers having poured in), 
 whilst those who were indifferent were speculating after this 
 fashion, the chief priest's women were uttering loud and 
 piercing shrieks, particularly when the slave returned, and 
 informed them that no mollah bashi had she found, and that 
 he had left no trace behind except the print of his body in 
 the bed. 
 
 " The story had now got abroad ; the bath was surrounded 
 by a crowd, who pressed to gain admittance ; and ere the 
 women had had time to dress themselves, the place was full 
 of men. Such a scene of confusion as then ensued had never 
 before been witnessed in a public bath at Tehran. What 
 with the wailing and lamentations of the women of the chief 
 priest, what with the noise and cries of those who inveighed 
 against the intrusion of the men the clamour was excessive. 
 
 " At length the friends and relations of the deceased 
 appeared, and, with them, the washers of the dead, who 
 immediately bore the corpse to the place of ablution, where
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 483 
 
 it was embalmed, and prepared to perform its journey to 
 Kerbelah, for thither it was judged expedient to send it for 
 burial. 
 
 "His widow at once avowed her intention of accom- 
 panying the body ; and my mules," added my informant, 
 " were hired on the occasion. The tent you see yonder is 
 occupied by her and her slaves; and there," pointing to the 
 packages, " lies the carcass of her husband. The accom- 
 panying dead bodies are the remains of those who, both at 
 Tehran and on our road hither, died about the time that this 
 event took place, and are now sent to Kerbelah to be buried 
 in the suite and under the protection of one who, at the day 
 of resurrection, it is hoped, may lend them a helping hand 
 into paradise." 
 
 Here the conductor stopped, whilst I, who had been struck 
 by the latter part of his speech, became almost mute for fear. 
 I felt that, having endeavoured to escape danger, I had fallen 
 into its very mouth. Were I to be recognised by the chief 
 priest's servants, some of whom I had known intimately, their 
 knowledge of my person would lead to my discovery. 
 
 " But what happened after the corpse was carried out of 
 the bath ? " said I, anxious to know whether the clothes which 
 I had left in one of its corners had been noticed. 
 
 " By the head of AH ! " said the man, " I do not very well 
 recollect. This I know, that many stories were in circulation; 
 and every person had a different one. Some said that the 
 chief priest, after being drowned, was seen in his anderun and 
 went to bed. Others that he appeared the next morning at 
 the chief executioner's, and rode away with one of his best 
 horses. The chief executioner himself shows a note of his, 
 sealed with his seal, giving him permission to drink wine. In 
 short, so many and so contradictory were the reports, that no 
 one knew what to believe. All were puzzled to find out how 
 he managed to get alive out of the bath (for that is attested by 
 his servants, and by the master of the bath), and still remain 
 in the reservoir. Difficulties continued to increase as fast as 
 people argued, until a discovery took place which threw a
 
 484 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 marvellous light upon the subject. Some clothes were found 
 in a dark corner of the bath. They were torn and in bad 
 case ; but without much difficulty they were known to have 
 belonged to one Hajji Baba, a drivelling priest, and an 
 attendant upon that famous breeder of disturbance, the mollah 
 Nadan, the open and avowed enemy of the head of the law. 
 Then everybody exclaimed, ' Hajji Baba is the murderer! 
 
 EMBROIDERY WORKED UPON CLOTH, WITH COLOURED SILKS AND 
 STRIPS OF COLOURED CLOTH. 
 
 (From the north of Persia.) From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 without doubt he is the murderer of the holy man ; he must 
 pay the price of blood ! ' and all the city was in full search for 
 Hajji Baba. Many said that Nadan was the culprit ; in short, 
 messengers have been sent all over the country, to seize them 
 both, and carry them dead or alive to Tehran. I only wish 
 that my fate may be sufficiently on the ascent, to throw either 
 of them into my hands ; such a prize would be worth my 
 whole mule-hire to Kerbelah."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 485 
 
 I leave every one to guess my feelings upon hearing this 
 language ; I who was never famous for facing difficulties with 
 courage, and who would always rather as a preliminary to 
 safety make use of the swiftness of my heels, in preference 
 to adopting any other measure. But here, to retreat was 
 more dangerous than to proceed ; for in a very short time 
 I should be in the territory of another government ; until 
 when, I promised faithfully to wrap myself up in the folds 
 of my own counsel ; and to continue my road with all the 
 wariness of one who is surrounded by imminent danger. 
 
 CHAPTER LXIII 
 
 lie is discovered and seized, but his good stars again befriend 
 and set him free. 
 
 THE caravan pursued its march early the next morning, and 
 I took my station among the muleteers and the hangers-on 
 (many of whom are always at hand), in order to screen my- 
 self from notice. The litter with the chief priest's widow 
 and her attendants preceded the line of march, the camels 
 with the bodies followed, and the remainder of the caravan, 
 consisting principally of loaded mules, spread itself in a long 
 straggling line over the road. 
 
 I envied every fellow who had a more ruffian-like face, 
 or a more ragged coat than my own ; so fearful was I of 
 being thought good-looking enough to be noticed. More 
 particularly I dreaded the approach of the widow's servants, 
 for although I was dying to know if any of them were of my 
 acquaintance, yet I carefully turned my head on one side, 
 as soon as there was the smallest likelihood of their looking 
 towards me. 
 
 The first day's march had passed over in safety ; and I 
 laid my head on a projecting part of the baggage, where I
 
 486 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 slept sound through the night. I was equally fortunate on 
 the second day, and with so much confidence did this success 
 inspire me, that I began to be ambitious of associating with 
 something better than a common mule-driver. 
 
 I had opened a conversation with one, who I was informed 
 was an Armenian bishop ; and had already made him under- 
 stand how thankful he ought to be for being thus noticed 
 by a true believer, when one of the much-dreaded attendants 
 rode by us, and in him I recognised the man who had endea- 
 voured to palm off a miiti upon me, upon my first introduction 
 to the mollah Nadan. My heart leapt into my mouth at the 
 sight of him. The chief priest's ghost, had it appeared, could 
 not have frightened me more. I turned my head quickly on 
 one side, but he passed on without heeding me ; so for this 
 time I was let off only with the fright ; but I resolved to 
 return to my humble station again, and forthwith left the 
 bishop to his own meditations. 
 
 On the following day we were to pass through the defiles 
 infested by the Curdish banditti, when every one would be 
 too much taken up with his own safety to think of me. Once 
 having passed them, we -should no longer be in the Persian 
 territory, and I might then claim protection of the Turks, in 
 case I were discovered and seized. 
 
 On that eventful day, a day well remembered in the 
 annals of my adventurous life, the caravan wore a military 
 appearance. All those who possessed anything in the form 
 of a weapon brought it forth and made a display. The 
 whole scene put me in mind of a similar one which I have 
 recorded, in the first pages of my history, when, in company 
 with Osman Aga, we encountered an attack from the Turco- 
 mans. The same symptoms of fear showed themselves on 
 this occasion as on that ; and I am honest enough to own 
 that time had not strengthened my nerves, nor given me 
 any right to the title of lion-eater. 
 
 The whole caravan marched in compact order, marshalled 
 by a chaoush and by the conductor, who, with the servants of 
 the chief priest's wife, formed a sort of vanguard to the main
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 487 
 
 body. I, who had my own safety to consult for more reasons 
 than one, huddled myself among the crowd, and enjoyed the 
 idea that I was encumbered with no other property than the 
 money in my girdle. 
 
 We were proceeding in silence ; nothing was heard save 
 the bells of the caravan, and I was deep in thought in 
 what manner I might dispose of my ninety-five tomauns, 
 on our arrival at Bagdad ; when, turning up my eyes, I 
 perceived the conductor and a well-equipped Persian riding 
 towards me. 
 
 The conductor pointed with his hand to me, and said to 
 his companions, "Hem een est, this is even he!" 
 
 " By the beard of AH ! " thought I, "my good fortune has 
 turned its back upon me." 
 
 I looked at the conductor's companion, whom I instantly 
 discovered to be the very Abdul Kerim from whom I had 
 extracted the one hundred tomauns, at the village of Seida- 
 bad, by means of the letter which I had written in the name 
 of the deceased chief priest. 
 
 I was about giving myself up for lost, when the conductor 
 relieved me a little, by saying, "You are the last man who 
 joined our caravan : perhaps you can tell us upon what part 
 of the frontier Kelb Ali Khan, the robber, is said to be 
 present." 
 
 I answered him in a great state of perturbation ; but kept 
 my eyes fixed upon Abdul all the while, who also began to stare 
 at me with those penetrating eyes of his, which almost turned 
 my heart inside out. He continued looking at me like one 
 in doubt, whilst I endeavoured to skulk away ; but at length 
 appearing to recollect himself, he exclaimed, " I have it, I 
 have it ! it is the very man ; he it is who laughed at my beard 
 and stole the hundred tomauns." Then addressing himself 
 to the bystanders, he said, "If you want a thief, there is one. 
 Seize him in the name of the Prophet ! " 
 
 I began to expostulate, and to deny the accusation, and 
 probably should have succeeded to convince those who sur- 
 rounded us that I was wrongly accused, when, to my conster-
 
 488 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 nation, the promoter of matrimony came up, at once recognised 
 me, and called me by name. Then my whole history came to 
 light. I was denounced as the murderer of the chief priest ; 
 and this event produced so general a bustle throughout the 
 caravan, that fear of the robbers was for a while suspended, 
 and every one came to gaze upon me. 
 
 I was seized, my hands were pinioned behind my back, I 
 was about being dragged before the chief priest's widow to be 
 exhibited, when my good planet came to my help and showed 
 its ascendant. Of a sudden a great cry was heard at a dis- 
 tance, and to my delight I beheld a body of cavaliers rushing 
 down the slope of an adjacent hill. These were the very 
 Curds so much dreaded. The consternation was universal, 
 the whole caravan was thrown into confusion, and resistance 
 was unavailing when both heart and hand were wanting. 
 Those who were mounted ran away ; the muleteers, anxious 
 for the safety of their cattle, cut the ropes of their loads, 
 which fell and were left spread on the plain to the mercy of 
 the marauders. The camels were also disencumbered of 
 their burdens, and coffins were to be seen in all parts of the 
 road. I remarked that the one containing the chief priest had 
 fallen into a rivulet, as if fate was not tired of drowning him. 
 In short, the rout was universal and complete. 
 
 I soon was left to myself, and easily found means to 
 disengage my bonds. I perceived that the Curds had directed 
 their attention principally to the litter and its attendants, 
 where they naturally expected to find prisoners of conse- 
 quence ; and it rejoiced me to observe that those whom but 
 a few minutes before I had looked upon as destined to be the 
 perpetrators of my ruin, and very possibly of my death, were 
 now themselves thrown into a dilemma nearly equally disas- 
 trous with the one from which I was now relieved. 
 
 In vain the widow's attendants threatened, swore, and 
 bade defiance ; nothing would soften their wild and barbarous 
 assailants, who, under some lawless pretext of fees to be paid, 
 began a regular pillage of such parts of the caravan as had 
 not fled their attack. I again had an opportunity of ascer-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 489 
 
 taining that my good star was prevailing ; for now, whilst 
 those who possessed any article of dress which might give 
 respectability to their appearance became the object of the 
 robbers' attention, I and my solitary mule had the satisfaction 
 to find ourselves so totally unworthy of notice, that we pro- 
 ceeded without molestation on the original object of our 
 journey. I owned no corpse I was not called upon to pay 
 duty upon a dead relation I was free as air ; and as soon as 
 I once found myself released from the thousand miseries 
 which had arisen all around me, and which, as if by magic, 
 had been as quickly dispelled, I went on my way, exclaim- 
 ing, " Barikallah, ai talleh muni Well done, oh my good 
 fortune ! " 
 
 CHAPTER LXIV 
 
 He reaches Bagdad, meets his first master, and turns his views 
 to commerce. 
 
 LEAVING the mollah bashi's widow, her slaves, and attendants 
 in the hands of the Curds, I made the best of my way to my 
 destination ; and caring little to hold converse with any one, 
 after what had so recently taken place, I shaped my course in 
 such a manner as not to attract observation. 
 
 Many stragglers, flying from the Curds, were to be seen 
 on the road ; but as they all, more or less, had interest in the 
 fate of the caravan, they did not proceed far, but hovered 
 about the scene of action, in the hopes of reclaiming either 
 their friends or their property. I alone seemed to be totally 
 independent ; and by the time I had travelled two or three 
 parasangs from the danger, I had the road to myself. Every- 
 thing that had befallen me was turned over and over again in 
 my mind; and I came to this conclusion, that powerfully 
 protected as I seemed to be by fate, I might again turn my 
 steps towards the paths of ambition, and hope that my last
 
 490 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 failure in the pursuits of advancement was to be made up by 
 realising a speedy and ample fortune. 
 
 " Ninety-five tomauns in my girdle, and all the world before 
 me," said I, "is no insignificant prospect. And if Nadan be 
 but blown from a mortar, and the chief priest's widow detained 
 and ruined by the Curds, I do not see why I may not put my 
 cap on one side as well as the best man in Persia." 
 
 At length the walls and turrets of Bagdad appeared in view, 
 and I entered the city a total stranger, and ignorant of its 
 localities. Caravanserais I knew that I should find at every 
 turn ; and indifferent whither I bent my steps, or where I 
 alighted, I let my mule take the road it liked best. Well 
 acquainted with every street, the animal took me to a large 
 caravanserai, where it no doubt had long been accustomed to 
 resort, and there stopping, gave several loud grunts as it 
 entered the porch, in the expectation of meeting its com- 
 panions of the caravan. Although disappointed, yet I was 
 more fortunate (if fortunate I could call myself), in seeing 
 some of my countrymen in the square, and I soon found out 
 that this was their usual rendezvous. 
 
 My person, I flattered myself, could attract no notice, go 
 where I might : but I was sorry to find it otherwise. Upon 
 alighting I was assailed by a thousand questions the caravan 
 was hourly expected, the merchants were eager for the re- 
 ception of their goods, and I might possibly give them some 
 intelligence respecting it. I made such answers as were 
 necessary for the occasion ; but resolved within myself very 
 soon to quit so inquisitive a society, and bury myself in 
 obscurity. I accordingly left my mule to its fate, reflecting 
 that its owner would very soon arrive and take possession of 
 it, and straightway settled myself in another part of the city. 
 
 As a first step towards preserving my incognito, I ex- 
 changed my dusty and weather-beaten sheep-skin cap for a 
 head-dress of the country ; namely, a long red cloth bag, 
 which fell down in a flap behind, and fastened to my head 
 with a parti -coloured silk. I also bought a second-hand 
 beniche, or cloak, usually worn by the Turks, which, going
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 491 
 
 over my Persian garments, gave me the general appearance 
 of an Osmanli ; and finished my adjustment by a pair of 
 bright crimson leather slippers. 
 
 Having done this, it came into my head that much good 
 might accrue if I made myself known to the family of my first 
 master, Osman Aga, for through them I might make acquaint- 
 ance in the city, and promote my views in trade. 
 
 I accordingly sallied forth, and took my road through the 
 principal bazaars and bezestens, in order to make inquiries, 
 and particularly stopped where lamb-skins were sold, for I 
 well recollected that they were his favourite article of trade. 
 I also recollected many particulars concerning Bagdad, which 
 he used to take pleasure in relating during our journeys, and 
 I fancied that I could almost find my way to his very door 
 without inquiry. 
 
 However, my trouble was soon at an end, for in putting 
 my head into the shop of one of the principal Bokhara 
 merchants, and inquiring if any news had reached Bagdad 
 of one Osman Aga, I heard a well-known voice, in answer, 
 say, "Who wants me? In the name of the Prophet, I 
 am he ! " 
 
 Guess at my joy and surprise it was the old man himself. 
 I was almost as much astonished to see him at Bagdad as I 
 had before been to meet him at Tehran, and his surprise was 
 equal to mine. I related as much of my history as I thought 
 it necessary for him to know, and he told me his in return, 
 which in two words was as follows. 
 
 He had left Tehran in the determination of proceeding to 
 Constantinople, there to dispose of his merchandise ; but 
 hearing that great danger of being robbed existed on the road 
 between Erivan and Arz Roum, he had deemed it a safer 
 plan to visit Bagdad : and here he was, restored to his native 
 city after an absence of many years. He had found his son 
 grown up to man's estate, who, having gone through all the 
 ceremony of mourning for his loss, had duly taken possession 
 of his patrimony, which, according to the law, he had shared 
 in the prescribed portions between his mother and sister. But
 
 492 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 as soon as his father was restored to him, he made no wry 
 
 
 A CONFECTIONER. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 faces, and, like a good Mussulman, put into practice that
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 493 
 
 precept of the Koran which ordaineth man to show kindness 
 to his parents but not to say unto them, "Fie upon you!" 
 The old man added, that he had found his wife alive, and that 
 his daughter was old enough to be married. 
 
 But having thus disburthened himself of this short history 
 of his adventures, he turned round upon me in a sharper 
 manner than he had ever done before, and said, " But, Hajji, 
 my friend, in the name of the blessed Mohammed, what could 
 have possessed you to join me to that female Satan at Tehran, 
 by way of making me pass my time agreeably ? By the salt 
 which we have so often eaten together, the few days that I 
 passed in her company were filled with more misery than was 
 the whole time I spent among the Turcomans ! Was it right 
 to treat an old friend thus ?" 
 
 I assured him that I had no object in view but his 
 happiness, taking it for granted that she, who had been the 
 favourite of the monarch of Persia, must, even in her later 
 days, have had charms more than enough for one who had 
 passed some of the best years of his life with camels. 
 
 "Camels!" exclaimed Osman, " camels, indeed ! they are 
 angels compared to this fury. Would to Heaven that you 
 had married me to a camel instead, for it, at least, poor animal, 
 would have sat quiet, with calm and thoughtful gravity, and 
 let me have my own way ; whereas your dragon, she, the 
 viper, she passed her whole time in telling me how vastly 
 honoured I was in having taken to wife one who had led the 
 Shah by the beard, and enforced each word with either a slap 
 or a scratch. Amdnl A man I" said the old man, rubbing 
 his hand on his cheek, " I think I feel them now." 
 
 He at length ceded to my assurances that I had no other 
 object in view than his happiness, and then very kindly asked 
 me to take up my abode at his house during my stay at 
 Bagdad, to which, of course, I acceded with all manner of 
 pleasure. 
 
 This conversation had taken place in the back room of 
 the Bokhara merchant's shop, during which the old man had 
 treated me to five paras' worth of coffee, brought from a
 
 494 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 neighbouring coffee-house ; and when it was over, he pro- 
 posed going to his son's shop, situated in the same bazaar, 
 some few doors farther on. His son's name was Suleiman. 
 Having set himself up in the cloth trade during his father's 
 long absence, he had acquired an easy livelihood, and passed 
 the greatest part of the day (except when necessary to go to 
 his prayers) seated in the little platform in the front of his 
 shop, surrounded by his merchandise, neatly arranged on 
 shelves fixed in the wall. He was a fat, squat little man, 
 very like his father ; and when he was informed that I was 
 Hajji Baba, he said that I was welcome, and taking the pipe 
 which he was smoking from his own mouth, he immediately 
 transferred it to mine. 
 
 These preliminaries of mutual good-will being established, 
 I enjoyed the prospect of an easy and quiet sojourn at Bagdad, 
 in the company of these good people ; but in order to show 
 that I did not intend wholly to be a dependent upon them, I 
 made it known that I was possessed of ninety-five tomauns, 
 and asked their opinion upon the mode of laying them out to 
 the best advantage in trade. I gave them to understand 
 that, tired of the buffetings of an adventurer's life, it was my 
 intention for the future to devote my time to securing an 
 independence by my own industry. Many had acquired 
 wealth from beginnings much smaller than mine, said I ; to 
 which they both agreed ; and, as we anticipated the fortune 
 that I was to make, Osman Aga gravely let off the only bit 
 of Persian poetry which he had picked up during his travels 
 " Drop by drop water distilleth from the rock, till at length it 
 becometh a sea." 
 
 Upon this conclusion we, that is, the father and I, pro- 
 ceeded to his house, which was situated at a convenient 
 distance from the bazaars.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 495 
 
 CHAPTER LXV 
 
 He purchases pipe-sticks, and inspires a hopeless passion in the breast 
 of his old master's daughter. 
 
 OSMAN AGA'S house was situated in a narrow lane, leading 
 out of the street which leads into one of the principal bazaars. 
 Immediately in front of the door was a heap of rubbish, upon 
 which a litter of kittens had just been thrown, making an 
 essay of their young voices as we passed ; and a little farther, 
 on a similar mound, a colony of puppies had been planted, 
 guarded by a mangy mother, which, by their united cries, 
 left us nothing to desire in the way of discord. Between 
 these was situated the gate of Osman Aga's house, into which 
 we entered. It was a small building, consisting of some 
 crazy rooms, which indicated neither riches nor cleanliness. 
 As I had no baggage belonging to me, except a small carpet, 
 my removal here from the caravanserai was soon accomplished, 
 and I took up my future abode in a corner of mine host's 
 principal room, where he also spread his bed and slept. 
 
 By way of celebrating my arrival, he treated me with 
 roasted lamb, and an abundant dish of rice, to which were 
 added dates, cheese, and onions. The dishes were cooked in 
 the harem, by the hands of his wife and daughter, aided by a 
 female slave, the only domestic in the establishment. Neither 
 of these had I yet seen, for it was dusk when we reached the 
 house ; nor, from good manners, did I ask more about them 
 than Osman was inclined to tell me. 
 
 Besides myself and his son, the old man had invited a 
 brother dealer in lamb-skins to the entertainment, with whom 
 he had formed a close intimacy during his travels in Bokhara. 
 The conversation turned exclusively upon commerce, about 
 which I was so ignorant, that I took very little share in 
 it, although, considering that it was my intention to enter
 
 496 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 it myself, I was very happy to open my ears to all that 
 was said. 
 
 They entered deeply into the subject, and discussed the 
 relative merits of each article of trade. To hear them talk, 
 one might have inferred that the end of the world was at 
 hand, because it was rumoured that the price of their 
 favourite commodity had fallen at Constantinople. They 
 dissuaded me from embarking my capital in that article, 
 but recommended in preference that I should invest it 
 in pipe-sticks, which, they remarked, were subject to no 
 decay, and for which there was a constant demand in the 
 market of Constantinople. 
 
 The entertainment being over, and the guests having 
 parted, I ruminated deeply upon what I had heard, and 
 forthwith turned the whole weight of my thoughts to pipe- 
 sticks. There, in a corner, I sat all day calculating what 
 number of pipes I might acquire for my tomauns, and what 
 would be my profit when sold at Constantinople ; and when 
 my imagination was heated by the hopes of the ultimate 
 fortune that might be realised, I gave myself up to the most 
 extravagant expectations. The plan of the merchant whom 
 Saadi relates he met in the island of Kish, was trifling 
 when compared to the one which I formed. " With the 
 produce of my pipe-sticks," said I, "I will buy figs at 
 Smyrna, which 1 will take to Europe, and having made 
 great profit by them there, my money shall then be invested 
 in skullcaps, which 1 will carry to Grand Cairo ; these being 
 sold in detail for ready cash, I will carefully pack my money 
 in sacks, and proceed to Ethiopia, where I will purchase 
 slaves, each of whom I will sell for great profit at Moccha, 
 and thence I will make the pilgrimage to the tomb of the 
 Prophet. From Moccha I will transport coffee to Persia, 
 which will fetch an amazing price ; and then I will repose in 
 my native city, until I can purchase a high situation at court, 
 which may in time lead me to become the grand vizier to the 
 King of Kings." 
 
 Having thus disposed of the future in my favour, I
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 497 
 
 set myself actively to work in laying in my merchandise. 
 According to the most approved method, I made a bargain 
 with a wood-cutter, who was to proceed to the mountains 
 of Lour and Bakhtiari, where he would find forests of the 
 wild cherry tree, from which he would make his selections, 
 according to the sizes with which I should furnish him. He 
 was then to return to Bagdad, where the sticks would be 
 bored, and made up into appropriate parcels for the markets 
 of Turkey. 
 
 All this was duly executed ; but during the time that I 
 was waiting for the return of the wood-cutter, I was attacked 
 by a disorder, from which few residents, as well as strangers, 
 at Bagdad are exempt, which terminating by a large pimple, 
 as it dries up, leaves an indelible mark on the skin. To my 
 great mortification, it broke out upon the middle of my right 
 cheek, immediately uppn the confines of the beard, and there 
 left its baleful print, destroying some of the most favourite of 
 my hairs, and making that appear a broken and irregular 
 waste, which before might be likened to a highly-cultivated 
 slope. 
 
 I bore this calamity as well as I was able, although I 
 could not help frequently quarrelling with fate, for having 
 chosen so conspicuous a spot to place that which might have 
 been so conveniently settled anywhere else. 
 
 " So be it," said I, heaving a sigh at the same time ; "the 
 wise man said true when he remarked, ' If every stone was 
 left to choose what it would be, most probably it would be a 
 diamond ; ' and if every man might choose whereabouts he 
 would have his pimple, there would be no ugly faces in 
 Bagdad." 
 
 However, by way of consolation, I recollected that Osman 
 Aga's face was the mirror of deformity, although his pimple 
 had budded elsewhere. He, instead of condoling with me on 
 my misfortune, rather seemed to enjoy it. 
 
 " Hajji," said he to me, "if you are not afflicted with 
 any greater calamity than this in life, look upon it as a 
 blessing : although one side of your face be deformed, still 
 
 2 I
 
 498 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 the other is perfect. The turquoise is the perfection of 
 colour on one side, but is black and dirty on the other ; 
 still it is a turquoise, and a precious stone." 
 
 " Ah ! " said I to myself, " the ugly man cannot endure the 
 sight of the handsome, no more than the vicious can the 
 virtuous : in the same manner as the curs of the market howl 
 at a hunting dog, but dare not approach him." 
 
 ENAMEL ON GOLD. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 Notwithstanding the deformity of my cheek, I found, as 
 I continued to be an inmate in the house of my old master, 
 that I had made no small impression upon the heart of his 
 daughter, the fair Dilaram, who, by a thousand little arts, 
 did not fail to make me acquainted with the state of her 
 affections. Her mother and she were both experienced in 
 the mode of curing the Bagdad disorder, and they undertook
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 499 
 
 to superintend mine. My pimple and Dilaram's love appear 
 to have risen at about the same time ; their progress was 
 mutual ; and by the time that the former had risen to its full 
 height, the latter had become quite inconvenient. 
 
 I, it is true, had not caught the infection ; for my charmer 
 was the very image of her father, whose face and that of an 
 old camel's were so entirely identified in my mind, that I 
 never could lose that ugly association of ideas when I gazed 
 upon her. It was therefore a considerable relief to me when 
 the season for travelling approached, and when the caravan 
 for Constantinople was about to assemble. My pipe-sticks 
 were collected and packed into their proper bundles, my 
 accounts with my creditors regularly discharged, my wardrobe 
 complete, and I was all delight when it was announced, that 
 at the very next favourable conjunction of the planets the 
 caravan was to take its departure. But as for poor Dilaram, 
 she hovered about my cheek with looks of despair ; and as 
 fast as the swelling subsided, she appeared to lose the only 
 tie which kept her united to this world and its vanities. 
 
 CHAPTER LXVI 
 
 He becomes a merchant, leaves Bagdad, and accompanies a caravan 
 to Constantinople. 
 
 IT was a fine spring morning when the caravan took its 
 departure from the Constantinople gate of the city. 
 
 Mounted on the top of one of my loads, with my bed tied 
 on the pad by way of a soft seat, and my bags surrounding 
 me, I contemplated the scene with pleasure, listened to the 
 bells of the mules as I would to music, and surveyed myself 
 as a merchant of no small consequence. 
 
 My more immediate companions were Osman Aga, and 
 his associate in lamb-skins (he of whom I have already made
 
 500 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 honourable mention at the entertainment), and one or two 
 other Bagdad merchants ; but besides, there were many of 
 my own countrymen, natives of different cities of Persia, all 
 bound upon purposes of trade to Constantinople, and with 
 whom I was more or less acquainted. My adventure with 
 the chief priest of Tehran had in great measure blown over ; 
 and, indeed, the dress I had adopted, with the scar on my 
 cheek, made me look so entirely like a native of Bagdad, 
 that I retained little in my appearance to remind the world 
 that I was in fact a Persian. 
 
 I will not tire the reader with a recital of our adventures 
 through Turkey, which consisted of the usual fear of robbers, 
 squabbles with muleteers, and frays at caravanserais. It will 
 be sufficient to say, that we reached our destination in safety ; 
 but I cannot omit the expression of my first emotions upon 
 seeing Constantinople. 
 
 I, a Persian, and an Ispahani, had ever been accustomed 
 to hold my native city as the first in the world : never had 
 it crossed my mind that any other could, in the smallest 
 degree, enter into competition with it, and when the capital 
 of Roum was described to me as finer, I always laughed the 
 describer to scorn. But what was my astonishment, and 
 I may add mortification, on beholding, for the first time, this 
 magnificent city ! I had always looked upon the royal 
 mosque, in the great square at Ispahan, as the most superb 
 building in the world ; but here were a hundred finer, each 
 surpassing the other in beauty and in splendour. Nothing 
 did I ever conceive could equal the extent of my native place ; 
 but here my eyes became tired with wandering over the 
 numerous hills and creeks thickly covered with buildings, 
 which seemed to bid defiance to calculation. If Ispahan was 
 half the world, this indeed was the whole. And then this 
 gem of cities possesses this great advantage over Ispahan, 
 that it is situated on the borders of a beautiful succession 
 of waters, instead of being surrounded by arid and craggy 
 mountains ; and, in addition to its own extent and beauty, 
 enjoys the advantage of being reflected in one never-failing
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 501 
 
 mirror, ever at hand to multiply them. But where should 
 I stop, if I attempted to describe the numerous moving 
 objects which attracted my attention ? Thousands of boats, 
 of all forms and sizes, skimmed along in every direction, 
 whilst the larger vessels, whose masts looked like forests, 
 more numerous than those of Mazanderan, lined the shores 
 of the intricate and widely-extended harbour. 
 
 "Oh! this is a paradise," said I to those around me; 
 "and may I never leave it!" But when I recollected in 
 whose hands it was, possessed by a race of the most accursed 
 of heretics, whose beards were not fit to be brooms to our 
 dust-holes, then I thought myself too condescending in allow- 
 ing them to possess me amongst them. One consolation, 
 however, I did not fail to derive from reflection, which was, 
 that if they were allowed the possession of so choice a spot 
 for their use in this world, they would doubly feel the horror 
 of that which was doubtless preparing for them in the next. 
 
 After undergoing the necessary forms and examinations 
 at the custom-house, I and my companions took boat at 
 Scutari, crossed over to Constantinople, and established our- 
 selves and merchandise in a large caravanserai, the resort of 
 Persian traders, situated in a very central part of the city, 
 near the principal bazaars. I felt myself a slender personage, 
 indeed, when I considered that I was only one among the 
 crowd of the immense population that was continually floating 
 through the great thoroughfares. And when I saw the 
 riches displayed in the shops, the magnificence of dress of 
 almost every inhabitant, and the constant succession of great 
 lords and agas, riding about on the finest and most richly- 
 caparisoned horses, I could not help exclaiming, in a secret 
 whisper to myself, "Where is Constantinople and her 
 splendours ? and where Persia and her poverty ? " 
 
 I, in conjunction with old Osman, hired a room in 
 the caravanserai, in which we deposited our merchandise. 
 During the day-time I displayed my pipe-sticks in goodly 
 rows on a platform ; and, as my assortments were good, 
 I began my sales with great vigour, and reaped considerable
 
 502 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 profit. In proportion as I found money returning to my 
 purse, so did I launch out into luxuries which I little heeded 
 before. I increased the beauty and conveniences of my 
 dress ; I bought a handsome amber - headed chibouk ; I 
 girded my waist with a lively -coloured shawl ; my tobacco 
 pouch was made of silk, covered with spangles ; my slippers 
 were of bright yellow, and I treated myself to a glittering 
 dagger. Temptations to expense surrounded me every- 
 where, and I began to think that there was something 
 worth living for in this world. So numerous were the 
 places in which I might exhibit my person in public, that 
 I could not refrain from visiting the most frequented 
 coffee-houses, where, mounted on a high bench, with soft 
 cushions to recline upon, I smoked my pipe and sipped 
 my coffee like one of the highest degree. 
 
 Implicated as I had been in disagreeable adventures in 
 Persia, I was mistrustful of my own countrymen, and rather 
 shunned them, whilst I sought the acquaintance of the Turks. 
 But they, my countrymen, who are always so inquisitive, and 
 who feel themselves slighted upon the least inattention they 
 discovered who and what I was, and eyed me with no great 
 feelings of approbation. However, I endeavoured to live 
 upon good terms with them ; and as long as we did not enter 
 into competition in matters of trade, they left me unmolested. 
 
 In places of public resort I gave myself out for a rich 
 Bagdad merchant ; and now my scar, which I had before 
 esteemed a great misfortune, was conveniently conspicuous 
 to attest the truth of my assertions. Nothing, I found, 
 was so easy as to deceive the Turks by outward appearance. 
 Their taciturnity, the dignity and composure of their manner 
 and deportment, their slow walk, their set phrases, were all 
 so easy to acquire, that in the course of a very short time 
 I managed to imitate them so well, that I could at pleasure 
 make myself one of the dullest and most solemn of their 
 species. So perfect a hearer had I become, so well did I 
 sigh out, every now and then, in soft accents, my sacred 
 ejaculations of " Allah ! and there is but one Allah ! " and so
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 503 
 
 steady was I in counting my beads, that I was received at 
 the coffee-house, which I frequented, with distinguished 
 attention. The owner of it himself made my coffee, and 
 as he poured it out with a high flourish of his arm, he 
 never failed to welcome me by the friendly epithets of 
 " My aga, my sultan." Such influence had the respecta- 
 bility of my appearance secured for me, that in every 
 trifling dispute which might take place in the coffee-room, 
 either upon the . subjects of horses, dogs, arms, or tobacco 
 (the principal topics of conversation), I was ever referred 
 to, and any low growl from my lips, of either belli (yes) or 
 yok (no), was sure to set the matter at rest. 
 
 EARRING, GOLD AND PEARLS. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 504 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJji BABA 
 
 CHAPTER LXVII 
 
 Hajji Baba makes a conquest of the widow of an emir, which at first 
 alarms, but afterwards elates him. 
 
 I HAD jived in this manner for some time, when for three 
 successive evenings, towards the dusk, retiring from my 
 coffee-house, I remarked an old woman standing at the 
 corner of a small street that nearly faced it. She always 
 gazed intensely at me, seemed desirous to speak, looked up 
 every now and then at the latticed windows of the house 
 at the foot of which she had taken post, and then allowed 
 me to pass on. 
 
 The first time I scarcely took notice of her, an old 
 woman standing at the corner of a street being nothing 
 remarkable ; but, on the second, I became surprised, and 
 was on my guard ; the third roused all my curiosity ; and 
 on the fourth evening I determined, if she appeared again, 
 to discover what could be her meaning. 
 
 Accordingly I dressed myself rather better than usual, 
 having taken it for granted that my good looks, added to 
 the protection of my good planet, were at work for me ; and 
 issuing forth from the coffee-house, I walked with a slow 
 and sauntering step towards the mysterious woman. I was 
 about accosting her, when, as I turned the angle of the street 
 that screened me from the windows of the coffee-house, of a 
 sudden a lattice of the house before mentioned was thrown 
 open, and an unveiled female presented herself to my sight, 
 whose face and form appeared to me of the most dazzling 
 beauty. A flower was in her hand, which she first held out 
 to my notice, then placed it on her heart, threw it to me, and 
 then shut the lattice in such haste, that the whole scene was 
 like an apparition which had shown itself, and then suddenly 
 disappeared. I stood with my mouth open, and my eyes
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 505 
 
 directed upwards, until I was gently pulled- by the sleeve 
 by the old woman, who had picked up the flower, and was 
 presenting it to me as I looked round upon her. 
 
 "What is this," said I, "in the name of the Prophet? 
 Are there Gins and Peris in this land ? " 
 
 "Are you such a novice," answered the old woman, "not 
 to know what that flower means? Your beard is long 
 enough, you are not a child, and your dress proclaims that 
 you have travelled ; but you have travelled to little purpose, 
 if you know not what a lady means when she gives you an 
 almond flower." 
 
 " Oh yes," said I, " I know \\\z.\.fistek (almond) rhymes to 
 yastek (pillow) ; and I know that two heads upon one pillow 
 have frequently been compared to two kernels in one almond ; 
 but my beard is long enough to remind me also, that such 
 things do not happen without danger, and that the heads may 
 be cut off, as well as the kernels swallowed up." 
 
 " Fear nothing," said my companion, with great emotion. 
 " By the holy Mohammed, we are clean ones, and you 
 despise fortune, if you reject us. Are you an ass that you 
 should start at a shadow? for such are your fears." 
 
 " Tell me then," said I, " who is the lady I have just seen ? 
 and what am I to do ? " 
 
 " Be not in such a hurry," answered she ; " nothing can be 
 done to-night, and you must have patience. Time and place 
 are not now convenient ; but meet me to-morrow at noon, at 
 the cemetery of Eyub, and you will hear all that you wish to 
 know. I shall be seated at the foot of the tomb of the first 
 emir on your right hand, and you- will recognise me from any 
 other woman by a red shawl, thrown over my left shoulder 
 Go, and Allah go with you ! " 
 
 Upon this we parted, and I returned to my room in the 
 caravanserai to ruminate over what had happened. I did not 
 doubt that something good was in store for me ; but I had 
 heard terrible accounts of the jealousy of Turkish husbands, 
 and could not help imagining that I might fall a victim to the 
 fury of some much-injured man. Zeenab and her tower,
 
 506 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 Mariam and her Yusuf, Dilaram and her pimple, all the 
 instances of unfortunate loves, came across my mind in suc- 
 cession, and damped any desire that I might at first have felt 
 in prosecuting this adventure. However, my blood was yet 
 young and warm enough to carry me forwards, and I deter- 
 mined, though reluctantly, to proceed. 
 
 On the noon of the ensuing day I faithfully kept my 
 engagement, looked for the first green-turbaned tomb, which 
 I duly found on my right hand, where I discovered the old 
 woman with her red shawl over her left shoulder. We retired 
 from the roadside, and retreated to the shade of some of the 
 loftiest cypress trees in the burial-ground ; where, seated on 
 the ground, with the magnificent view of the harbour of Con- 
 stantinople before us, we calmly entered upon the subject of 
 our conference. 
 
 She first complimented me upon my punctuality, and then 
 again assured me, that 1 had nothing to fear from what she 
 was about to propose. She had all the garrulity of her age, 
 and spoke for some time, but to little purpose, making pro- 
 fessions of her attachment, and of her desire to serve me ; all 
 of which I foresaw would ultimately diminish the profits of 
 my pipe-sticks, and I therefore stopped her progress, and at 
 once requested her to let me know the history of the fair lady 
 at the window. 
 
 Divesting her narrative of all her repetitions and circum- 
 locutions, she spoke nearly to the following effect : 
 
 " The lady whom you saw, and whose servant I am, is 
 the only daughter of a rich Aleppo merchant, who, besides 
 her, had two sons. The father died not long ago, and was 
 succeeded in his business by his sons, who are now wealthy 
 merchants, and reside in this city. My mistress, whose name 
 is Shekerleb, or Sugar-lips, was married when very young to 
 an old, but rich emir, who scrupulously refrained from having 
 more than one wife at a time, because from experience he 
 knew that he could have no peace at home if he took advan- 
 tage of the permission of his law in multiplying to himself his 
 female companions. He was very fond of domestic quiet,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 507 
 
 and therefore hoped, by taking one so young, he might be 
 able to mould her to his wishes, and that she would never 
 thwart him in his inclinations. In that he was fortunate, for 
 a more gentle and docile creature than my mistress does not 
 exist. There was only one point upon which they could 
 never agree, which proved indeed one of the causes of the 
 emir's death, which happened soon after. She liked tarts 
 made with cream, and he preferred his with cheese. On this 
 subject, regularly for five years they daily at breakfast had a 
 dispute, until, about six months ago, the old man, having ate 
 over much of his favourite cheese-tarts, had an indigestion 
 and died. He bequeathed one-fourth of his wealth, the house 
 which you saw, his furniture, his slaves, in short, all that he 
 could leave according to the Mahomedan law, to the fair 
 Shekerleb, now his disconsolate widow. With the advantages 
 of youth, beauty, and riches, you may be certain that she has 
 not lived without admirers ; but she has wisdom and dis- 
 cretion beyond most young women of her age, and hitherto 
 resisted forming any new tie, resolving to wait until some 
 good opportunity, to marry one whom she might really love, 
 and who would be swayed by neither interest nor ambition. 
 
 " Living opposite to one of the most fashionable coffee- 
 houses in the city, she has had an opportunity of watching 
 those who frequent it ; and without a compliment, I need not 
 say that she soon distinguished you as the handsomest 
 amongst them, and, indeed, as the man most to her fancy 
 whom she had ever seen. My brother," said the old woman, 
 " is the owner of the coffee-house, and as the opportunities of 
 seeing him are frequent, I requested him to inquire who you 
 were ; and to let me know what sort of a character you bore. 
 His report was such as highly pleased my mistress ; and we 
 resolved to endeavour to make you notice us, and if possible 
 to get acquainted with you. You best know how we have 
 succeeded, and now will be able to judge whether I have 
 rendered you a service or not." 
 
 Little did I expect to hear such a result when first the old 
 woman began her tale. I now felt like one who had received
 
 5 o8 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 his reprieve after condemnation. Instead of the mysteries, 
 disguises, scaling of walls and windows, drawn scimitars, and 
 bloody wounds attendant on a Turkish intrigue, I saw nothing 
 before me but riches, ease, and repose from all future care. 
 I blessed my star ; in short, I held my fortune to be made. 
 I was so transported at what I heard, that I made use of a 
 thousand incoherent expressions to my companion ; I pro- 
 tested and vowed eternal love to her mistress, and promised 
 the most liberal remuneration to herself. 
 
 "But there is one circumstance," said she, "which my 
 mistress has ordered me to ascertain before she can receive 
 you ; which is, the respectability of your family and the 
 extent of your fortune. You must know that her brothers 
 and relations are very proud ; and if she were to make an 
 unworthy alliance, they would treat her with the greatest 
 harshness, and not fail to ill-treat, if not to make away with, 
 her husband." 
 
 Although I was not prepared for this, yet such was the 
 quickness with which I had seized the whole extent of the 
 good fortune awaiting me, that with the same quickness I 
 without hesitation said, " Family ? Family did you say ? 
 Who is there that does not know Hajji Baba? Let him 
 inquire from the confines of Yemen to those of Irak, and 
 from the seas of Hind to the shores of the Caspian, and his 
 name will be well known." 
 
 " But who was your father ? " said the old woman. 
 
 "My father?" said I, after a pause; "he was a man of 
 great power. More heads came under his thumb, and he 
 took more men with impunity by the beard, than even the 
 chief of the Wahabi himself." 
 
 I had now gained sufficient time to arrange a little offhand 
 genealogy for myself; and as the old woman's countenance 
 expanded at what I had said, I continued to speak to her 
 after this manner : 
 
 " If your mistress wants high blood, then let her look to 
 me. Be assured, that she and her brothers, be they who 
 they may, will never exceed me in descent. Arab blood
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 509 
 
 flows in my veins, and that of the purest kind. My ancestor 
 was a Mansouri Arab, from the province of Nejd in Arabia 
 Felix, who with the whole of his tribe was established by 
 Shah Ismael of Persia in some of the finest pastures of Irak, 
 and where they have lived ever since. My great ancestor 
 Kdtir, ben Khur, ben Asp, ben A I Madian, was of the tribe 
 of Koreish, and that brought him in direct relationship with 
 the family of our blessed Prophet, from whom all the best 
 blood of Islam flows." 
 
 " Allah, Allah ! " exclaimed the old woman, " enough, 
 enough. If you are all this, my mistress wants no more. 
 And if your riches are equal to your birth, we shall be entirely 
 satisfied." 
 
 "As for my riches," said I, "I cannot boast of much 
 cash ; but what merchant ever has cash at command ? You 
 must know as well as myself, that it is always laid out in 
 merchandise, which is dispersed over different parts of the 
 world, and which in due time returns back to him with 
 increase. My Persian silks and velvets are now travelling 
 into Khorassan, and will bring me back the lamb-skins of 
 Bokhara. My agents, provided with gold and otter-skins, 
 are ready at Meshed to buy the shawls of Cashmere and the 
 precious stones of India. At Astracan, my cotton stuffs are 
 to be bartered against sables, cloth, and glass ware ; and the 
 Indian goods which I buy at Bassorah and send to Aleppo 
 are to return to me in the shape of skullcaps and shalli stuffs. 
 In short, to say precisely what I am worth, would be as diffi- 
 cult as to count the ears in a field of wheat ; but you may 
 safely tell your mistress that the man of her choice, whenever 
 he gathers his wealth together, will astonish her and her 
 family by its extent." 
 
 " Praise be to Allah ! " said the confidante, "all is now as it 
 should be, and it only remains to make you acquainted with 
 each other. You must not fail to be at the corner of the 
 street at nightfall, when with all the necessary precautions 
 you will be introduced to the divine Shekerleb ; and if she 
 approves of you, nothing will interpose to defer your marriage
 
 5 io 
 
 and your happiness. There is only one piece of advice which 
 I have to give ; that is, be sure to like cream tarts, and to 
 disapprove of cheese ones. Upon every other topic she is 
 liberal and without prejudice. May Allah keep you in peace 
 and safety ! " 
 
 So saying, she drew up the lower part of her veil over her 
 mouth ; and receiving two pieces of gold without a struggle, 
 which I put into her hand, she walked away, and left me 
 again to my meditations. 
 
 EMBROIDERY WORKED UPON CLOTH, WITH COLOURED SILKS AND STRIPS 
 
 OF COLOURED CLOTH. 
 {From the north of Persia.) From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 511 
 
 CHAPTER LXVIII 
 
 He obtains an interview with the fair Shekerleb, makes a settlement 
 upon her, and becomes her husband. 
 
 I DID not long remain at the foot of the tree, for I felt that 
 much was to be done before the time of assignation. It 
 would be necessary to put on an appearance of wealth, to have 
 a purse well furnished, and a dress suited to my character ; 
 and, moreover, it quite behoved me to make my person as 
 acceptable as possible, by going to the bath, and using all the 
 requisite perfumes. Frequently as I walked along did I 
 apostrophise myself in terms of the highest approbation. 
 " Ahi Hajji, friend Hajji," would I exclaim, "by the beard of 
 your father, and by your own soul, for this once you have 
 shown the difference between a fool and a sage. Well done, 
 thou descendant from the Mansouris ! thou scion of the root 
 of Koreish ! " 
 
 Deeply pondering over my future destinies, at length I 
 reached my caravanserai. I saw the old Osman seated in 
 one corner of our apartment, calculating the profits of his 
 merchandise, and in the other I observed my bundle of pipe- 
 sticks. The contrast which these ignoble objects formed to 
 the great schemes then planning in my mind struck me so 
 forcibly, that it affected my ordinary deportment, and gave 
 a certain tone of superiority to my manner which I had never 
 before felt. I know not whether it was noticed by Osman ; 
 but he seemed rather startled when I asked him immediately 
 to advance me fifty gold pieces, for which I offered to deliver 
 over my merchandise as security. 
 
 "My son," said he, "what news is this? what can you 
 want with so much money, and in such haste? Are you 
 mad, or are you become a gambler ? " 
 
 "God forgive me," answered I, " I am neither a madman
 
 5 i2 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 nor a gambler. My brain is in good order, and the world 
 has taken me into favour ; but give me the money, and you 
 will hear the rest hereafter." 
 
 He did not longer hesitate to accede to my wishes, for he 
 well knew the value of my goods, and that the transaction 
 could not fail to be safe and profitable. So, without further 
 hesitation, he counted out the money, and I forthwith left 
 him. 
 
 I immediately bought some very handsome additions to 
 my wardrobe, and proceeded without delay to the bath, where 
 I went through all the necessary lustrations, and attired 
 myself like a man of the highest fashion. 
 
 By the time that my new arrangements were complete, the 
 hour of assignation had arrived, and with a beating heart I 
 proceeded to the place appointed. 
 
 I found the old woman waiting ; and having looked well 
 round to see that nobody remarked us, she introduced me 
 into the house through a door situated in a remote corner. 
 
 I was charmed at the great ease and comfort which 
 appeared to exist throughout the whole establishment ; for I 
 now looked upon myself as lord and master of all I saw. We 
 had entered at once into the apartments kept sacred for the 
 use of the women, because it seems that the principal entrance 
 of the house had been but little used since the emir's death, 
 out of reverence to his memory ; and the same sort of mystery 
 and precaution in entering here was kept up as if the good 
 man was still in existence.' Having passed through the small 
 street-door, we entered into a courtyard, in which was a 
 fountain. We then ascended a wooden flight of steps, at the 
 top of which we found a cloth curtain, composed of various 
 colours, which being lifted up, I was introduced into an ante- 
 room, the only furniture of which consisted of women's slippers 
 and a lamp. Four doors, which were now closed, opened 
 upon this, and here I was left to myself, whilst my old con- 
 ductress shuffled off to prepare her mistress for my reception. 
 I heard voices in the different apartments, the owners of 
 which I presumed belonged to the slippers ; and imagined
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 513 
 
 that many eyes were directed at me, for I could distinguish 
 them through the crannies. At length the door at the farthest 
 angle was opened, and I was beckoned to approach. 
 
 My heart beat within me as I stepped forwards ; and, 
 covering myself close with the flaps of my cloak, in order to 
 show my respect, I entered a room that was lighted up by 
 only one lamp, which shed a soft and dubious light over the 
 objects within it. 
 
 It was surrounded by a divan, covered with the richest 
 light blue satins fringed with gold, in one angle of which, near 
 the window, was seated the object of all my desires. She 
 was carefully veiled from head to foot, and all I could then 
 distinguish of her person was a pair of brilliant black eyes, 
 that seemed to delight in the anxious curiosity which they 
 had roused in my features. 
 
 She pointed to me with her hand to be seated ; but this I 
 obstinately refused, so anxious was I to show the depth of 
 my respect and gratitude. At length, when further resist- 
 ance was useless, I took off my slippers, and seated myself 
 with a corner of my hip just resting upon the edge of the 
 sofa, keeping my hands covered with the sleeves of my 
 garment, and affecting a coyness and a backwardness, at 
 which, now that I recollect myself, I cannot help laughing. 
 
 After we had sat facing each other for some few minutes, 
 little, except commonplace compliments, having passed, my 
 fair mistress ordered the old Ayesha (for that was the name 
 of my conductress) to leave the room, and then, leaning 
 forwards, as if to take up her fan of peacock's feathers, which 
 was on the cushion, she permitted her veil to fall, and ex- 
 hibited to my impatient eyes the most beautiful face that 
 nature had ever formed. 
 
 This was the signal for laying by all reserve ; and I 
 prostrated myself before this divinity with all the adoration 
 of a profound devotee, and poured out such a rhapsody of 
 love and admiration, as to leave no doubt in her mind of 
 the tenderness of my heart, the acuteness of my wit, and 
 the excellence of my taste. In short, the emir's widow 
 
 2 K
 
 5 14 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 had every reason to be satisfied with the choice she had 
 made ; and she very soon showed the confidence which she 
 intended to place in me, by making me at once the depositary 
 of her secrets. 
 
 " I am in a difficult situation," said she, " and the evil eye 
 which many cast upon me hath embittered my soul. You 
 may conceive, that, owing to the wealth with which I have 
 been endowed by my late husband (upon whom be eternal 
 blessings!) and to my own dower besides, which was consider- 
 able, I have been tormented with many persecutions, and 
 they have almost driven me mad. My relations all claim 
 a right to me, as if I were part of the family estate. My 
 brothers have their own interest in view when they would 
 negotiate a husband for me, as if they would barter a sack 
 of wool against bags of rice. A nephew of my husband, 
 a man of the law, pretends to claim an old custom, by which, 
 when a man died, one of his relations had a right to his 
 widow, which he might assert by throwing his cloak over 
 her. Another relation again pretends, that, according to 
 law, I am not entitled to the whole of what I now possess, 
 and threatens to dispute it. In short, so sadly perplexed 
 have I been under these circumstances, that I only saw 
 one way to set the matter at rest, which was to marry again. 
 Fate has thrown you in my way, and I am no longer at a 
 loss." 
 
 She then informed me of the arrangements she had made 
 for our immediate union, in case I was not averse to it, 
 and referred me to a man of the law, whom she had secured 
 to act in her behalf, who would make out all the proper 
 papers, and who, she informed me, was now in the house 
 ready to officiate. 
 
 I was not prepared for quite so much despatch, and felt 
 my heart misgive me, as if it were hovering between heaven 
 and earth ; but I did not hesitate to reiterate my protesta- 
 tions of eternal love and devotion, and said nothing to my 
 intended but what seemed to overwhelm her with delight. 
 
 So impatient was she of any delay, that she immediately
 
 ordered the old Ayesha to conduct me to the man of the law, 
 who was in attendance in a small apartment, in a more dis- 
 tant part of the house. Besides himself he had brought 
 another, who, he informed me, would act as my vakeel, 
 or trustee, such an intervention being necessary on the part 
 of the man as well as the woman ; and then he exhibited 
 before me the akdnameh, or marriage deed, in which he 
 had already inscribed the dower of my intended, consisting 
 of her own property, and demanded from me what additions 
 it was my intention to make thereto. 
 
 I was again thrown back upon my ingenuity, and, as the 
 best answer I could give, repeated what I had before said to 
 Ayesha, namely, that a merchant was uncertain of his wealth, 
 which was dispersed in trade in different parts of the world ; 
 but I did not hesitate to settle all that I possessed upon my 
 wife, provided such engagement were mutual. 
 
 "That is very liberal," replied my wily scribe; "but 
 we require something more specific. As, for instance, what 
 do you possess here at Constantinople ? You cannot have 
 come thus far, except for important purposes. Settle the 
 wealth which you can command upon the spot, be it in 
 cash, merchandise, or houses, and that will suffice for the 
 present." 
 
 "Be it so," said I, putting the best face possible upon 
 the demand. "Be it so let us see." Then, appearing to 
 calculate within myself what I could command, I boldly said, 
 "You may insert that I give twenty purses in money, and 
 ten in clothes." 
 
 Upon this, a communication took place between the emir's 
 widow and her agent, for the purpose of informing her what 
 were my proposals, and for gaining her consent to them. 
 After some little negotiation, the whole was arranged to the 
 apparent satisfaction of both parties ; and our different seals 
 having been affixed to the documents, and the necessary 
 forms of speech having been pronounced by our different 
 vakeels, the marriage was declared lawful, and I received the 
 compliments of all present.
 
 516 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 I did not fail to reward the scribes before they were dis- 
 missed, and also to send a very liberal donation to be distri- 
 buted throughout the household of my fair bride. 
 
 Then, instead of returning to old Osman, and my pillow 
 of pipe-sticks, I retired, with all the dignity and consequence 
 of the gravest Turk, into the inmost recesses of my harem. 
 
 CHAPTER LXIX 
 
 From a vendor of pipe-sticks he becomes a rich aga, but feels all the 
 inconvenience of supporting a false character. 
 
 I SOON found that I had a very difficult part to perform. A 
 Chinese philosopher is said to have remarked, that if the 
 operation of eating was confined to what takes place between 
 the mouth and the palate, then nothing could be more plea- 
 sant, and one might eat for ever ; but it is the stomach, the 
 digestive organs, and, in fact, the rest of the body, which 
 decide ultimately whether the said operation has been pre- 
 judicial or healthful. So it is in marriage. If it were con- 
 fined to what takes place between man and wife, nothing 
 more simple ; but then come the ties of relationship and the 
 interests of families, and they decide much upon its happiness 
 or misery. 
 
 My fair spouse entertained me, for several successive 
 days after our marriage, with such manifold and intricate 
 stories of her family, of their quarrels and their makings-up, 
 of their jealousies and their hatreds, and particularly of their 
 interested motives in their conduct towards her, that she 
 made me feel as if I might have got into a nest of scorpions. 
 She recommended that we should use the greatest circum- 
 spection in the manner of informing her brothers of our 
 marriage ; and remarked, that, although we were so far 
 secure in being lawful man and wife, still, as much of our
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 517 
 
 future happiness depended upon their good-will towards us 
 (they being men of wealth, and consequently men of influence 
 in the city), we ought to do everything in our power to con- 
 ciliate them. As a precautionary measure, she had spread 
 a report that she was on the point of being married to one 
 of the richest and most respectable of the Bagdad merchants, 
 and in a conversation with one of her brothers had not 
 denied, although she had abstained from confessing it to be 
 the case. She now requested that our marriage might be 
 proclaimed, and to that effect recommended that we should 
 give an entertainment to all her relations, and that no expense 
 should be spared in making it as magnificent as possible, in 
 order that they might be convinced she had not thrown her- 
 self away upon an adventurer, but, in fact, had made an 
 alliance worthy of them and of herself. 
 
 She found me ready in seconding her wishes, and I was 
 delighted to have so early an opportunity to make a display 
 of our wealth. I began by hiring a suite of servants, each of 
 whom had their appropriate situation and title. I exchanged 
 the deceased emir's family pipes for others of greater value 
 and of the newest fashion. In the same manner I provided 
 myself with a new set of coffee-cups, the saucers of which 
 were fashioned in the most expensive manner ; some of fili- 
 greed gold, others of enamel, and one or two, for my own 
 particular use, inlaid with precious stones. Then, as I had 
 stepped into the emir's shoes, I determined to slip on his 
 pelisses also. He was curious in the luxuries of dress, for his 
 wardrobe consisted of robes and furs of great value, which 
 his widow informed me had existed in his family for many 
 years, and which I did not now blush to adjust to my own 
 shoulders. In short, before the day of the entertainment 
 came, I had time to set up an establishment worthy of a great 
 aga ; and I do believe, although born a barber, yet in look, 
 manner, and deportment, no one could have acted a part truer 
 to my new character than I did. 
 
 But I must not omit to mention, that, previously to the 
 feast, I had not failed to visit my new relations in all due
 
 5 i8 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 form ; and although I was greatly anxious respecting the 
 result of our meeting, yet when I rode through the streets 
 mounted on one of the emir's fat horses, caparisoned in velvet 
 housings that swept the ground, and surrounded by a crowd 
 of well-dressed servants, my delight and exultation exceeded 
 any feeling that I had ever before experienced. To see the 
 crowd make way, look up, and lay their hands on their breast 
 as I passed to feel and hear the fretting and champing of 
 my horse's bit as he moved under me, apparently proud of the 
 burden he bore to enjoy the luxury of a soft and easy seat, 
 whilst others were on foot ; in fine, to revel in those feelings 
 of consequence and consideration which my appearance pro- 
 cured, and not to have been intoxicated, was more than mere 
 humanity could withstand, and accordingly I was completely 
 beside myself. But what added most to the zest of this my 
 first exhibition, was meeting some of my own needy country- 
 men in the streets, who had been my companions in the 
 caravan from Bagdad, and who, in their sheep-skin caps and 
 thin scanty cotton garments, made but a sorry figure among 
 the gaily-dressed Osmanlies, and seemed to stand forth 
 expressly to make me relish in the highest degree the good 
 fortune with which I had been visited. Whether or no they 
 recognised me, I know not ; but this I recollect, that I turned 
 my head on one side as I passed, and buried my face as well 
 as I could in the combined shade of my beard, great turban, 
 and furred pelisse. 
 
 My visits succeeded better than I could have expected. 
 Whatever might have been the motives of my wife's brothers, 
 they behaved to me with marked civility, and indeed flattered 
 me into the belief that I had conferred an honour on their 
 family in taking their sister off their hands. Merchants as 
 they were, their conversation turned principally upon trade, 
 and I made my best endeavours to talk up to the character I 
 had assumed, and convinced them of the extent of my under- 
 takings in commerce. But, at the same time, great was my 
 circumspection not to commit myself; for when they began to 
 question and cross-examine me upon the trade of Bagdad and
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 519 
 
 Bassorah, the relations of those cities and of Arabia in general 
 with India and China, and to propose joint concerns in their 
 various articles and produce, I immediately reduced my 
 speech to monosyllables, entrenched myself in general terms, 
 and assented to proposals which ted to nothing. 
 
 Having completed my visits, I felt that one duty was still 
 left, which was, to make the good old Osman a partaker of 
 my happiness, to inform him of my marriage, and to invite 
 him to our ensuing entertainment. But, shall I own it ? so 
 much did I feel that I was acting a false part, and so fearful 
 was I of being detected, that I dared not trust even him, 
 taciturn as he naturally was, with my secret, and therefore 
 determined for the present to have no communication with 
 him, or, in fact, with any of my countrymen, until I could 
 feel myself so securely fixed in my new situation as to be 
 fearless of being displaced. 
 
 A WRITING-TABLE AND BOX OF POLISHED PEARWOOD, ELABORATELY CARVED 
 
 (ABADEH WORK). 
 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 520 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 CHAPTER LXX 
 
 His desire to excite envy lays the foundation of his disgrace 
 He quarrels with his wife. 
 
 THE entertainment went off with the greatest success, and 
 there was every reason to suppose that I fully succeeded 
 in making my guests believe I was really the personage 
 whom I pretended to be. I therefore began to feel secure 
 in my new possessions, and gave myself up to enjoyment, 
 associating with men of pleasure, dressing in the gayest 
 attire, and, in short, keeping a house that was the talk and 
 envy of the city. 'Tis true that I almost daily felt the in- 
 convenience of being indebted to my wife for such good 
 fortune ; for, notwithstanding the previous assurances of the 
 old Ayesha, I soon found that differences of opinion would 
 arise on many other subjects besides the comparative delicacy 
 of cream and cheese tarts. " Excellent man must that old 
 emir have been," frequently did I exclaim, "who could go 
 through life with only one subject of dispute with his wife ! 
 For my part, if there happens to be two sides to a question, 
 we are sure to appropriate them one in opposition to the 
 other." 
 
 I had long promised to myself the enjoyment of one of the 
 principal pleasures arising from my good fortune ; I mean, 
 the exhibition of myself in all my splendour before my 
 countrymen in the caravanserai, and enjoying the astonish- 
 ment which I should excite in the old Osman, my former 
 master. 
 
 Now that all was safe, as I fully hoped, I could no longer 
 resist the temptation, and accordingly dressed myself in my 
 best attire, mounted the finest horse in my stable, gathered 
 my whole suite of servants about me, and in the very busiest 
 hour of the day proceeded to the caravanserai, in which, on
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 521 
 
 my first arrival at Constantinople, I had appeared as a vendor 
 of pipe-sticks. Upon entering the gate, no one seemed to 
 know me, but all were anxious to do me honour, hoping that 
 in me they might find a purchaser of their merchandise. I 
 inquired for Osman Aga, whilst my servants spread a beauti- 
 ful Persian carpet for my seat, and at the same time offered 
 me one of my most costly amber-headed chibouks to smoke. 
 He came and seated himself, with all due respect, on the edge 
 of my carpet, without recognising me. I talked to him with- 
 out reserve for some time, and remarked that he eyed me with 
 looks of peculiar interest, when at length, unable to restrain 
 himself any longer, he exclaimed, " By the beard of the blessed 
 Mohammed, you are either Hajji Baba, or you are nobody ! " 
 
 I laughed with all my heart at his exclamation, and, when 
 we had mutually explained, very soon related how I was 
 situated, and to what profit I had turned the fifty pieces of 
 gold which he had lent me. His philosophic mind did not 
 appear so much elated with my change of fortune as I had 
 anticipated ; but my countrymen, the Persians, as soon as 
 they heard that under that large turban and that heavy pelisse 
 was seated Hajji Baba, the once vendor of little wares like 
 themselves, and that all that splendour and circumstance of 
 horse, servants, and rich pipes was attendant upon his person, 
 their national feelings were awakened, and they could neither 
 contain their envy nor their malevolence. 
 
 I now, too late, discovered the mistake I had committed 
 in showing myself off in this manner, and would willingly have 
 sneaked away without further triumph. 
 
 "What! is this Hajji Baba?" said one, "the son of the 
 Ispahan barber? May his father's grave be polluted, and his 
 mother abused ! " 
 
 "Well acted, true child of Iran!" said another; "you 
 have done your utmost with the Turk's beard, and may others 
 do the same with yours ! " / 
 
 " Look at his great turban, and his large trowsers, and his 
 long pipe," said a third: "his father never saw such things, 
 not even in a dream ! '
 
 522 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 In this manner did my envious countrymen taunt me, 
 until, asserting all my dignity, I rose from my seat, mounted 
 my horse, and left the place amidst their scoffs and expres- 
 sions of contempt. 
 
 My first sensation was that of indignation at them, my 
 second of anger at myself. 
 
 "You have been rightly served," said I to myself, "by 
 the soul of Kerbelai Hassan, the barber ! What well-fed 
 hound ever went among wolves without being torn to pieces ? 
 What fool of a townsman ever risked himself amongst the 
 wild Arabs of the desert without being robbed and beaten ? 
 Perhaps Hajji may one day become a wise man ; but plentiful 
 is the vexation he must eat first! Of what use is a beard, )r 
 said I, "taking mine into my hand, when an empty sconce is 
 tied to the end of it ? about as much as a handle is to a basket 
 without dates. Great wisdom had the sage who declared that 
 no man was ever pleased with the elevation of his fellow, 
 except, perhaps, when he saw him dangling on a gibbet ! " 
 
 In this manner did I soliloquise until I reached my house, 
 where, having retired to the harem, I endeavoured to seek 
 repose for the remainder of the day, in order to chew the cud 
 of my bitter reflections. But I was mistaken ; for, to add to 
 my misery, Shekerleb, my wife, as if impelled by some wicked 
 demon, demanded that I should immediately advance her the 
 money inserted in the marriage settlement for clothes ; and 
 so worked upon me by her very unreasonable entreaties, 
 that, involving her in the ill humour in which I had continued 
 against my countrymen, I poured forth the current of my 
 feelings in language and gestures the most violent. Curses 
 upon them, and maledictions upon her, came from my lips in 
 horrid succession, until I, the once mild and patient Hajji, 
 had become more furious than a Mazanderan lion. 
 
 My wife at first was all astonishment ; and, as she drew 
 herself up at the head of her slaves and handmaids, seconded 
 by the old Ayesha, waited with impatient silence for an 
 opportunity to speak. At length, when she had found utter- 
 ance, her mouth appeared too small for the volume of words
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 523 
 
 which flowed from it. Her volubility unloosed the tongue of 
 Ayesha, and the old woman's those of all the other women, 
 until there arose such a tempest of words and screams, all of 
 which were directed against me, that I was nearly over- 
 whelmed. 
 
 I would have resisted, but I found it impossible. It raged 
 with such fury, that the room in which we all stood was not 
 large enough to contain us. I was the first to seek shelter, 
 and made a retreat from my harem amid the groans, the 
 revilings, and the clapping of hands of the beings within it, 
 who, with my wife at their head, looked more like maniacs 
 than those fair creatures in paradise promised by our Prophet 
 to all true believers. 
 
 Tired, jaded, and distressed by my day's adventures, I 
 retired into my own apartment, locked the door, and there, 
 though surrounded by and master' of every luxury that man 
 can enjoy, I felt myself the most miserable of beings, detest- 
 ing myself for my idiotical conduct in the present posture of 
 my affairs, and full of evil forebodings for the future. The 
 inconveniences of lying now stared me full in the face. I felt 
 that I was caught in my own snare ; for, if I endeavoured to 
 extricate myself from my present dilemma by telling more 
 lies, it was evident that at the end I should not fail to be 
 entirely entangled. 
 
 "Would to Heaven!" did I exclaim, "that I had been 
 fair and candid at first ; for now I should be free as air, and 
 my wife might have stormed until the day of judgment with- 
 out being a single shift the better for it ; but I am bound by 
 writings, sealed and doubly sealed, and I must ever and shall 
 stand before the world a liar both by word and deed.
 
 524 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 CHAPTER LXXI 
 
 He is discovered to be an impostor, loses his wife, and the wide world 
 is again before hint. 
 
 I PASSED a feverish night, and did not fall asleep until the 
 muezzins from the minarets had announced the break of day. 
 Scarcely had an hour elapsed, ere I was awoke by an unusual 
 stir, and then was informed by one of my servants that my 
 wife's brothers, attended by several other persons, were in 
 the house. 
 
 Involuntarily, upon hearing this, I was seized with a 
 trembling, which at first deprived me of all power of action, 
 and the consequences of lying now spoke for themselves. 
 Fifty horrors, one more hideous than the other, rose in my 
 mind, and I began to feel a tingling in the soles of my feet, 
 which the lapse of years had. not been able to dispel, so 
 impressive had been the lesson received at Meshed. "But, 
 after all," I reflected, " Shekerleb is my wife, happen what 
 may ; and if I have pretended to be richer than is really the 
 case, I have only done what thousands before me have done 
 also." I then turned to my servant, and said, "In the name 
 of the Prophet, let them come in ; and make ready the pipes 
 and coffee." 
 
 My bed was then rolled up and carried out of the room, 
 and my visitors one after the other in silent procession 
 walked in, and seated themselves on my divan. They con- 
 sisted of my wife's two brothers, of her late father's brother, 
 and his son, and of a stern-looking man whom I had never 
 before seen. These were seated ; but, besides, a numerous 
 train of servants followed, who stood in a row at the end 
 of the room, amongst whom, standing foremost, were two 
 ruffian-like looking fellows armed with heavy canes, eyeing 
 me, as I thought, with peculiar fierceness.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 525 
 
 I endeavoured to appear as innocent and undisturbed as 
 possible, and pretended the greatest delight at seeing them. 
 Having made them every civil speech which I could devise, 
 to which, indeed, I received nothing but monosyllables for 
 answers, I ordered pipes and coffee, at the partaking of 
 which I hoped to acquire some insight into the object of 
 their visit. 
 
 "May your hours be fortunate!" said I to the elder 
 brother. "Is there anything at this early time of the day 
 in which I can be of use? If there is, command me." 
 
 " Hajji," said he, after an ominous pause, " look at me! 
 Do you take us for animals, without understanding, without 
 common-sense ? or do you look upon yourself as the man of 
 his day without compare, specially privileged to take the 
 beards of humankind into your hand, and to do what you 
 like with them ? " 
 
 "What is this that you say?" I replied. "O my Aga! 
 I am nobody and nothing ; I am less than an ounce of 
 dust." 
 
 " Man ! " said the second brother, in a warmer tone of 
 voice, " nobody and nothing, do you say ? then what have 
 you made of us ? Are we nothing, that you should come 
 all this distance from Bagdad to make us dance like apes 
 at your bidding ? " 
 
 "O Allah! great and good!" exclaimed I, "what is all 
 this ? Why do you speak after this manner ? What have 
 I done ? Speak, and speak truth ! " 
 
 "Ah! Hajji, Hajji!" said my wife's uncle, shaking his 
 head and grey beard at the same time, "you have been 
 eating much abomination ! Could a man who has seen the 
 world like you, suppose that others will eat it with you, and 
 say, thanks be to Allah ! No, no we may eat, but will not 
 digest your insolence." 
 
 " But what have I done, O my uncle?" said I to him; 
 " by my soul, speak ! " 
 
 " What have you done ? " said my wife's cousin. " Is 
 lying nothing ? is stealing nothing ? is marrying a wife under
 
 526 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 false pretences nothing? You must be a rare man without 
 shame to call such acts nothing ! " 
 
 " Perhaps," said the eldest brother, "you think it a great 
 honour which the son of an Ispahan barber confers upon one 
 of the richest families of Constantinople when he marries 
 their daughter ! " 
 
 "And perhaps," said the other, "you may look upon a 
 beggarly vendor of pipe-sticks in the light of a merchant, and 
 think him worthy of any alliance ! " 
 
 "But Hajji, praise be to Allah! is a great merchant," 
 said the uncle ironically : "his silks and velvets are now on 
 their way to bring us lamb-skins from Bokhara ; his shawls 
 are travelling to us from Cashmere ; and his ships are black- 
 ening the surface of the seas between China and Bassorah ! " 
 
 " And his parentage," continued his son in the same 
 strain "a barber's son did you say? forbid it, Allah! No, 
 no ; he dates from the Koreish. He is not even the de- 
 scendant, but, by the blessing of God, of the ancestry of the 
 Prophet ; and who can come in competition with a Mansouri 
 Arab?" 
 
 "What is all this?" again and again did I exclaim, as I 
 saw the storm gathering about my ears. "If you want to 
 kill me, do so ; but do not pull off my skin by inches." 
 
 " I tell you what it is, man without faith," said the stern 
 man, who hitherto had remained immovable "you are a 
 wretch who deserves not to live ! And if you do not im- 
 mediately give up all pretensions to your wife, and leave this 
 house and everything that belongs to it, without a moment's 
 delay, do you see those men " (pointing to the two ruffians 
 before mentioned), "they will just make your soul take leave 
 of your body as easy as they would knock the tobacco out of 
 their pipes. I have spoken, and you are master to act as you 
 please." 
 
 Then the whole of the assembly, as if excited by this 
 speech, unloosed their tongues at once ; and, without reserve 
 of words or action, told me a great number of disagreeable 
 truths.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJ1 BAB A 527 
 
 This storm, which I permitted to rage without opening 
 my lips, gave me time for reflection, and I determined to try 
 what a little resistance would do. 
 
 " And who are you," said I to the stern man, " who dares 
 come into my house, and treat me as your dog? As for 
 these," pointing to my wife's relations, "the house is theirs, 
 and they are welcome ; but you, who are neither her father, 
 her brother, nor her uncle, what have you to do here ? I 
 neither married your daughter nor your sister, and therefore 
 what can it be to you who I am ? " 
 
 All this while he seemed swelling with rage. He and his 
 ruffians were curling up their mustachios to the corners of 
 their eyes, and eyeing me as the lion does the hind before he 
 pounces upon it. 
 
 "Who am I ?" said he with a voice of anger. " If you 
 want to know, ask those who brought me here. I and my 
 men act from authority, which, if you dispute, it will be the 
 worse for you." 
 
 " But," said I, softening my tone, for I now found that 
 they were officers of the police, " but if you insist upon sepa- 
 rating me from my wife, to whom I have been lawfully 
 married, give me time to consult the men of the law. Every 
 son of Islam has the blessed Koran as his refuge, and ye 
 would not be such infidels as to deprive me of that. Besides, 
 I have not been told yet that she agrees to what you propose. 
 She first sought me out ; I did not seek her. She wooed me 
 for my own sake, not for any worldly interest ; and when I 
 accepted her I knew her not, neither had I any tidings of 
 either her wealth or her family. The whole has been the 
 business of predestination, and if ye are Mussulmans, will ye 
 dare to oppose that ? " 
 
 " As to the wishes of Shekerleb upon the subject," said 
 the eldest brother, "make your mind easy. She desires a 
 separation more even than we do." 
 
 " Yes, yes, in the name of the Prophet, yes, let him go in 
 peace. For the sake of Allah, let us be free," and fifty other 
 such exclamations, all at once struck my ear ; and on looking
 
 528 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 to the door which led into the women's apartments, from 
 whence the sound came, I beheld my women veiled, headed 
 by my wife, who had been conducted there on purpose to give 
 evidence against me, and who all seemed possessed by so 
 many evil spirits, shouting and wailing out their lamentations 
 and entreaties for my dismissal, as if I were the wicked one 
 in person to be exorcised from the house. 
 
 Finding that all was over with me, that it was in vain to 
 contend against a power I could not withstand, stranger and 
 unprotected as I was in a foreign land, I put the best face I 
 could upon my forlorn situation, and getting up from my seat, 
 I exclaimed, " If it is so, be it so. I neither want Shekerleb, 
 nor her money, nor her brothers, nor her uncle, nor anything 
 that belongs to them, since they do not want me ; but this I 
 will say, that they have treated me in a manner unworthy of 
 the creed and name of Mussulmans. Had I been a dog 
 among the unbelievers, I should have been treated better. 
 From the bottom of my heart I believe that the same 
 punishment which shall be inflicted on the last day, upon 
 those who reject our holy Prophet, shall be inflicted upon my 
 oppressors." I then, with great emphasis, pronounced the 
 following sentence against them, as near as my memory 
 would serve me, from the blessed Koran: "They shall have 
 garments of living fire, fitted tight upon them ; boiling water 
 shall be poured over them ; their bowels and skins shall be 
 dissolved, and, in this state, they be beaten with red-hot maces 
 of iron, and flogged with whips, whose lashes are made of 
 lightnings, and the noise of which shall be claps of thunder." 
 
 Upon this, roused and excited as I was with the speech I 
 had made. I stood in the middle of the room, and divested 
 myself of every part of my dress which had belonged to my 
 wife, or which I might have purchased with her money. 
 Throwing down every article from me, as if it had been 
 abomination, and then calling for an old cloak which had 
 originally belonged to me, I threw it over my shoulders and 
 made my exit, denouncing a curse upon the staring assembly 
 I left behind me.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 529 
 
 CHAPTER LXXII 
 
 An incident in the street diverts his despair He seeks consolation in 
 the advice of old Ostnan. 
 
 WHEN I had got into the street I walked hastily on, without, 
 for some time, heeding whither I was bending my steps. My 
 breast was convulsed by a thousand contending passions ; 
 and so nearly had I lost possession of my reason, that, when 
 in sight of the sea, I began seriously to consider whether it 
 would not be wisdom to throw myself headlong in. 
 
 But, crossing a large open space, an occurrence happened, 
 which, however trifling it may appear, was of great con- 
 sequence to me, inasmuch as it turned the current of my 
 thoughts into a new channel, and saved me from destruction. 
 I was witness to one of those dog fights so frequently seen 
 in the streets of Constantinople. A dog had strayed into 
 the territory of another community, had infringed their rights, 
 and stolen a bone. Immediately an immense uproar ensued ; 
 all were on foot, and in full cry, and the strange dog was 
 chased across the border into his own territory. Here, 
 meeting some of his own friends, he called them about him, 
 returned to the attack, and a general engagement ensued as 
 I was passing. 
 
 While I stood by, intent upon the scene, a thought struck 
 me, and I exclaimed, " Allah ! O Allah ! how inscrutable are 
 thy designs ! and how little ought man, narrow-minded, short- 
 sighted man, ever to repine at thy decrees ! Thou throwest 
 into my path a lesson, which teaches me the way that I 
 should go, and that assistance is ever at hand to those who 
 will seek it ; and, though given by a dog, let me not despise 
 it. No, am I to be surprised at anything, when I see animals, 
 without reason, acting like men with it ? Let me not be 
 cast down, but rather retreat to where I may still find a 
 friend, and seek consolation in his advice and experience ! " 
 
 2 L
 
 530 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 Upon this I turned almost mechanically to where I knew 
 I should find my faithful friend and adviser, the old Osman, 
 who, although a Turk and a Suni, had always behaved to 
 me as if he had been my countryman and one of my own 
 religious persuasion. He received me in his usual quiet 
 manner ; and when I had related all my misfortunes, he 
 puffed out a long volume of smoke from his never-failing 
 chibouk, and exclaimed, with a deep sigh, "Allah kerim!" 
 (God is merciful !) 
 
 "My friend," said he, "when you appeared here in all 
 your magnificence before the Persians, from that moment I 
 was apprehensive that some evil would befall you. You 
 perhaps are not yet old enough to have learnt how odious are 
 comparisons. Could you for a moment suppose, that men, 
 in your own station in life, who are drudging on, day after 
 day, intent upon the sale of a pipe-stick or a bag of Shiraz 
 tobacco, that they could bear to be bearded by an appearance 
 of greatness and prosperity so much beyond anything which 
 they could ever expect to attain ? Had you appeared with 
 a better coat or a richer cap than they, or had you been 
 mounted on a horse when they could only afford an ass, then, 
 perhaps, nothing more would have been said, but that you 
 were more expert in making your fortune, and a better retailer 
 of your wares. But to crush, to beat them down, with your 
 magnificent dress, your amber-headed pipes, your train of 
 servants, your richly-caparisoned horse, and, above all, the 
 airs of grandeur and protection which you took upon yourself, 
 was more than they could allow, and they immediately rose 
 in hostility, and determined to bring you down to their own 
 level again, if possible. Evidently, it is they who have 
 whispered into the ear of your wife's brothers that you were 
 not a Bagdad merchant, but only the son of an Ispahan 
 barber, and a sorry vendor of little wares. They, doubtless, 
 soon undeceived them respecting the possibility of fulfilling 
 the stipulations to which you have bound, yourself in your 
 wife's marriage contract ; and they, it is plain, have commented 
 freely upon your pretensions to noble birth, and upon the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 531 
 
 flourishing account which you gave of your mercantile con- 
 cerns, of your transactions in Bokhara, and of your ships 
 sailing to China. Had you first visited me in a quiet way, 
 as Hajji Baba the Ispahani, and not as Hajji Baba the 
 Turkish aga, I would have warned you against making an 
 undue exhibition of yourself and your prosperity before your 
 countrymen ; but the mischief was done as soon as the deed 
 was over, and now all that can be recommended is, that from 
 the past you gain experience for the future." After this 
 speech he took to his pipe again, and puffed away with 
 redoubled vigour. 
 
 "This may be very true," said I. "What is done, is done, 
 and peace abide with it ; but, after all, I am a Mussulman, 
 and justice is due to me as well as to another. I never heard 
 of a woman putting away her husband, although the contrary 
 frequently happens ; and it has not yet reached my under- 
 standing why I should be the only true believer who is called 
 into the house, and thrust out of it again in a manner that 
 would even disgrace a dog, merely because it suits a capricious 
 woman one morning to like and the evening after to dislike 
 me. Cadies, mufties, sheikh-el-islams, abound here as well as 
 in other Mahomedan cities, and why should I not have 
 recourse to them ? They are paid to administer justice, and 
 wherefore should they sit, with their hands across, counting 
 their beads, when such injustice as that with which I have 
 been visited is going about the land seeking for redress?" 
 
 "Are you mad, Hajji ? " rejoined the old man, " to think of 
 redress from the widow and relations of one of the most 
 powerful emirs of Islam, and that, too, when she is supported 
 by her brothers, two of the richest merchants in Constantinople! 
 Where have you lived all your lifetime, not to know that 
 he who hath most gold hath most justice ? and that, if such 
 a man as you were to appear before the tribunal of the mufti, 
 with every word, line, leaf, and surai of the Koran in your 
 favour, and one as rich and powerful as your wife's brother 
 were to appear on the other side against you, as long as he 
 had gold in his favour you might appeal to your sacred book
 
 532 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 until you and it were tired of walking round each other, for 
 justice you would never obtain ? " 
 
 "O Ali ! O Mohammed!" exclaimed I, "if the world is 
 indeed as iniquitous as this, then Hajji Baba, truly, has made 
 a bad bargain, and I wish he were again in possession of his 
 pipe-sticks ; but I cannot, and will not, lose all and every- 
 thing in this easy manner I will go and proclaim my 
 misfortunes from the housetop, rather." 
 
 Upon which, in utter despair, I began to cry and moan, 
 and pulled out some of my beard by the roots. 
 
 ENAMEL ON GOLD. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills. 
 
 Osman Aga endeavoured to comfort me made me look 
 back upon my past life, and brought to my recollection our 
 mutual adventures while prisoners among the Turcomans. 
 
 "God is all powerful and all merciful," said he. "Our 
 destinies are written in the book, and, therefore, what is 
 there left but to submit ? " 
 
 " But I am a Persian," exclaimed I (a new thought having 
 crossed my mind), "as well as a Mussulman ; why, therefore, 
 should I submit to injustice from a Turk ? We are, after 
 all, a nation, and have had our Jinghizs, our Timours, and
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 533 
 
 our Nadirs, who made our name respected throughout the 
 world, and who burnt the fathers of the Turks wherever they 
 could find them. I will seek our ambassador, and, if he 
 be a man, he will insist upon justice being done me. Yes, 
 yes, the ambassador shall get back my wife (oh, lucky 
 thought ! ) ; and then we shall see who will take her from 
 me again." 
 
 So elated was I by this idea, that I did not stop to hear 
 what Osman might have to say on the subject, but immediately 
 sallied forth, full of fresh spirits and vigour, to seek out the 
 representative of our King of Kings, who, at the best of all 
 fortunate hours, had very recently arrived on a mission to 
 the Sublime Porte. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXIII . 
 
 /;/ endeavouring to gain satisfaction from his enemies he acquires a friend 
 Some account of Mirza Firouz. 
 
 UPON inquiry I found that the ambassador had been provided 
 with a residence at Scutari, and thither I immediately bent 
 my course, happy to have the time which I should pass in 
 the boat at my disposal, in order to arrange my ideas for the 
 purpose of making out a clear and strong case of complaint. 
 
 Having landed, I inquired the way to his house, the 
 avenues of which were thronged by his numerous servants, 
 who reminded me of my country (so different from that 
 in which we were) by their loquaciousness and quick 
 gesticulation. 
 
 They soon found by my discourse that I was one of them, 
 although disguised by a Turkish dress, and without any 
 difficulty I was promised immediately to be ushered into the 
 presence of their master. But previously to this I was 
 anxious to acquire some little insight into his character, in 
 order that I might shape my discourse accordingly ; and
 
 534 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 therefore entered into conversation with one of his valets, 
 who did not scruple to talk fully and unreservedly upon every 
 topic upon which I required information. 
 
 The result of my inquiries was as follows : The am- 
 bassador, by name Mirza Firouz, was by birth a Shirazi, of 
 respectable though not of high parentage, excepting in the 
 instance of his mother, who was sister to a former grand vizier 
 of great power, who, in fact, had been the means of placing 
 the Shah upon his throne. The Mirza married his cousin, a 
 daughter of the said vizier ; and this led to his being employed 
 in the government, though he had previously undergone many 
 vicissitudes, which had caused him to travel into various 
 countries. This circumstance, however, was one of the 
 reasons of his being selected by the Shah to transact his 
 business at foreign courts. "He is a man of a quick and 
 penetrating mind," said my informant ; " irascible, but easy to 
 soothe ; of a tender and forgiving nature, although in his first 
 anger led to commit acts of violence. He is gifted with the 
 most overwhelming powers of speech, which always are sure 
 to get him out of the scrapes into which his indiscreet use of 
 them very frequently leads him. To his servants and fol- 
 lowers he is kind and the contrary, by turns. Sometimes 'he 
 permits them to do and say everything which they choose, 
 at others he keeps them at a most chilling distance. But, 
 on the whole, he is easy of access, of agreeable commerce, 
 of most fascinating manners, and of a joyous and sociable 
 nature." 
 
 Such was the man into whose presence I was conducted. 
 He was seated in a corner, after the manner of Persia ; 
 therefore I could not ascertain what his height might be, but 
 his bust was extremely fine. His head was symmetrically 
 placed on his shoulders, which were blended in an easy curve 
 with his neck ; whilst his tight dress helped to give great 
 breadth to his breast. His face was one of the handsomest 
 I had ever seen amongst my countrymen, his nose aquiline, 
 his eyes large and sparkling, his teeth and mouth exquisite, 
 and his beard the envy of all beholders. In short, as a speci-
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 535 
 
 men of the country he represented, none could have been 
 better selected. 
 
 MIRZA FIROUZ. 
 From a drawing by James Morier. 
 
 When we had interchanged our greetings as true believers, 
 he said to me, " Are yoi>an Irani ? "
 
 536 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 "Yes," said I, "so please you." 
 
 " Then why in looks an Osmanli ? " said he. " Praise be 
 to Allah, that we have a king and a country of whom no one 
 need be ashamed." 
 
 "Yes," answered I, "your ordinances are truth, and I am 
 become less than a dog since I have put on the airs of a 
 Turk. My days have been passed in bitterness, and my liver 
 has melted into water, since I have entangled myself by a 
 connection with this hated people ; and my only refuge is in 
 God and you." 
 
 " How is this ? " said he " speak. Has a child of Ispahan 
 
 (for such you are by your accent) been taken in by a Turk ? 
 
 This is wonderful indeed ! We travel all this wav to make 
 
 j 
 
 them feed upon our abomination, not to learn to eat theirs." 
 
 I then related the whole of my adventures from the 
 beginning to the end. As I proceeded he seemed wonder- 
 fully interested. When I got to my marriage he became 
 much amused, and roared with laughter at the settlements I 
 had made on my wife. The account I gave of the entertain- 
 ment, the respect with which I was treated, my magnificence 
 and grandeur, afforded him great delight ; and the more I 
 descanted upon the deception which I had practised upon 
 the cows of Turks, as he called them, the more interest he 
 took in my narrative, which he constantly interrupted by his 
 exclamations, "Ay, well done, O Ispahan! ! Oh! thou bank- 
 rupt! By Allah! You did well! If I had been there, I 
 could not have done better." 
 
 But when I informed him of the manner I had been served 
 by my envious countrymen, of the finishing scene in my own 
 house, of the screams of my women, of the speeches of my 
 wife's relations and when I represented the very words, 
 look, and attitude with which I made my exit, far from having 
 produced the sympathy I expected, his mirth was excited to 
 such a degree that I thought the veins in his forehead would 
 have burst, and he actually rolled himself on his sofa in the 
 convulsions of laughter. 
 
 " But, may it please you to consider," said I, " O my aga !
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 537 
 
 the situation in which I am now placed. Instead of the bed 
 of roses upon which I slept, I have not even a pillow whereon 
 to lay my head. As for the horses and velvet which I used 
 to bestride, happy should I now be could I claim even an ass 
 for my own. And when I call to mind the luxuries in which 
 I revelled, my rich dresses, my splendid horses, my train of 
 servants, my marble baths, my pipes, my coffee-cups in short, 
 what shall I say ? my everything a man could wish for, and 
 now find myself a beggar conceive the bitter recollections 
 which prey upon me, and which excite anything but laughter 
 in my breast, whatever they may do in yours." 
 
 " But those Turks, those heavy buffaloes of Turks," 
 roared he, still screaming with laughter; "praise be to 
 Allah ! I can see them now with their long beards, their 
 great caps, and their empty heads, believing all that the 
 sharp-witted madman of Persia chose to tell them, and they 
 would have gone on believing, had they not been undeceived 
 by a similar species of madman." 
 
 " But what have I to do in the business ? " said he to me. 
 " I am neither your father nor your uncle, to interfere and 
 make it up with your wife's relations ; nor am I a cadi, or a 
 mufti, who can judge the case between you." 
 
 " No," answered I ; "but you are my refuge here, and the 
 representative of God's vicegerent upon earth ; and you can 
 see justice done me, and not let a poor unfriended stranger 
 be oppressed." 
 
 " But would you get back possession of your wife," said 
 he, "and stand a chance of being murdered? Of what 
 good would all your riches be, if the day after repossessing 
 them you were found dead in your bed ? No, no ; lend me 
 your ear, and hearken to good counsel. Throw off your 
 Turkish clothes, and be a Persian again ; and when in 
 your proper character, I will keep you in mind, and see 
 what may be done for you. Your story has interested me, 
 your wit and manner are agreeable, and believe me that 
 many better things are to be done in the world than to 
 smoke a long pipe all day, with no other object in life than
 
 538 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 to sleep upon a bed of roses and to ride a fat horse. In 
 the meanwhile, take up your quarters here ; look upon your- 
 self as one of my suite for the present, and whenever I 
 wish to be merry you shall come and relate your story 
 over again." 
 
 Upon this I went up to him, kissed his knee in token of 
 acknowledgment, and retired, scarcely knowing what steps 
 to take in this unsettled posture of my affairs. 
 
 AN EARRING IN THE GOLD FILIGREE-WORK OF ZINjAN. 
 From the collection of Dr. Wills.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 539 
 
 CHAPTER LXXIV 
 
 He becomes useful to an ambassador, who makes him a partaker 
 of his confidence. 
 
 "NECESSITY," so the poet saith, "is as a strong rider with 
 sharp stirrups, who maketh the sorry jade do that which the 
 strong horse sometimes will not do." 
 
 I was disappointed, vexed, and mortified. My hopes of 
 living a life of ease and enjoyment had disappeared, and I 
 once more saw myself obliged to have recourse to my own 
 ingenuity to keep me from starvation. 
 
 " If I have lost a home," said I, "see, I have found a 
 friend. Let me not reject his proffered protection ; and 
 the same powerful destiny which has led me on step by 
 step through the labyrinth of life will doubtless again take 
 me by the hand, and perhaps at length safely land me where 
 I shall no longer be perplexed respecting the path I ought 
 to pursue." 
 
 I determined to make the most ot my access to the 
 ambassador ; and happy was I to find, that the liking which 
 he had taken to me at first, sensibly though gradually in- 
 creased during our succeeding interviews. He made use 
 of me to acquire information, and conversed freely upon the 
 business of his government and upon matters connected 
 with his mission. 
 
 Having all my life been taken up in making my own 
 fortune, I turned my mind but little to public events. Of 
 the nations of the world I scarcely knew any but my own 
 and the Turks. By name only the Chinese, the Indians, 
 the Affghans, the Tartars, the Curds, and the Arabs were 
 known to me ; and of the Africans I had some knowledge, 
 having seen different specimens of them as slaves in our 
 houses. Of the Franks the Russians (if such they may
 
 540 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 be called) were those of whom we had the most knowledge 
 in Persia, and I had also heard of the Ingliz and the Franciz. 
 When I reached Constantinople I was surprised to hear that 
 many more Frank nations existed besides the three above 
 mentioned ; but still, occupied with my own affairs, I acquired 
 but little knowledge concerning them. 
 
 Now that I was thrown into the ambassador's society, my 
 ideas took a new turn, and hearing matters discussed which 
 had never even reached my understanding, I became more 
 inquisitive. He seemed pleased to have found in me one 
 who took interest in his views, and at length let me entirely 
 into his confidence. 
 
 One morning, having received letters from his court, he 
 called me to him, said that he wished for some private con- 
 versation, and accordingly ordered every one to depart from 
 before him except myself. 
 
 He made me sit, and then in a low voice said, " Hajji, 
 I have long wished to speak to you. Those who compose 
 my suite, between you and me, do not possess the sort 
 of understanding I require. 'Tis true, they are Persians, 
 and are endowed with more wit than all the world beside ; 
 but in affairs of the doivlet (the state) they are nothing, and 
 rather impede than forward the business upon which I have 
 been sent. Now, praise be to Allah ! I see that you are not 
 one of them. You are much of a man, one who has seen the 
 world and its business, and something may come from out 
 of your hands. You are a man who can make play under 
 another's beard, and suck the marrow out of an affair without 
 touching its outside. Such I am in want of; and if you will 
 devote yourself to me, and to our Shah, the King of Kings, 
 both my face as well as your own will be duly whitewashed ; 
 and, by the blessings of our good destinies, both our heads 
 will touch the skies." 
 
 " Whatever is of my strength," replied I, " is at your 
 service. I am your slave and your servant, and I myself will 
 place my own ear into your hand. Order and command me : 
 by my head and eyes, I am ready."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 541 
 
 " Perhaps you have heard it reported in the world," said 
 he, " that the object of my mission is to buy women slaves 
 for the Shah, to see them instructed in dancing, music, and 
 embroidery, and to purchase spangled silks and other luxuries 
 for the royal harem ; but that is, of course, a blind for the 
 multitude. I am not an ambassador for such miserable 
 purposes : no, my business is of greater import ; and our 
 king, whose penetration is as searching as lightning itself, 
 does not select men to transact his affairs without very sub- 
 stantial reasons. He has chosen me, and that's enough. 
 Now hearken to what I shall tell you. 
 
 " But a few months ago an ambassador from Europe 
 arrived at the Gate of Empire, Tehran, and said he was sent 
 by a certain Boonapoort, calling himself Emperor of the 
 French nation, to bring a letter and presents to the Shah. 
 He exhibited full powers, by which his words were to be 
 looked upon as his master's, and his actions as his actions ; 
 and he also affirmed that he had full instructions to make a 
 treaty. He held himself very high indeed, and talked of all 
 other nations of Franks as dirt under his feet, and not worth 
 even a name. He promised to make the Russians restore 
 their conquests in Georgia to us, to put the Shah in posses- 
 sion of Teflis, Baadkoo, Derbent, and of all which belonged 
 to Persia in former times. He said, that he would conquer 
 India for us, and drive the English from it ; and, in short, 
 whatever we asked he promised to be ready to grant. 
 
 " Now, 'tis true, we had heard of the French before, and 
 knew that they made good cloth and rich brocades ; but we 
 never heard that they could do all this ambassador pro- 
 claimed. 
 
 " Something we had heard also of their attacking Egypt, 
 for coffee and henna had become dear in consequence ; and 
 it was in the recollection of one of our old khans of the Seffi 
 family, that an ambassador from a certain Shah Louis of 
 France had been seen at the court of Shah Sultan Hosein ; 
 but how this Boonapoort had become Shah, not a single man 
 in Persia could explain. The Armenian merchants, who
 
 542 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 travel into all countries, affirmed that, to their knowledge, such 
 a person in fact did exist, and that he was a great breeder of 
 disturbance ; and it was from what they said, and from other 
 circumstances, that the Shah agreed to receive his am- 
 bassador ; but whether the papers which he exhibited, written 
 in characters that no one could read, were true or false, or 
 whether all he said was to the purpose or not, who was to 
 say? Our viziers, great and small, knew nothing of the 
 matter ; our Shah, who (may Allah preserve him !) knows 
 everything under the sun, he had no knowledge of it ; and 
 excepting one Coja Obed, an Armenian, who had been to 
 Marsilia, a town in France, where he had been shut up in a 
 prison for forty days, 1 and one Narses, a priest of that nation, 
 who had studied in a convent of dervishes somewhere in 
 those countries, we had no one at the gate of the King of 
 Kings who could let any light into the chambers of our brain, 
 or who could in the least explain whether this Boonapoort or 
 his representative were impostors or not whether they were 
 come to take our caps from off our heads, or to clothe us with 
 the kalaats of good fortune. 
 
 " However, we were not very long in doubt ; for when 
 the English infidels who trade between India and Persia, 
 some of whom reside at Abusheher, heard of the arrival of 
 this ambassador, they immediately sent off messengers, letters, 
 and an agent, to endeavour to impede the reception of this 
 Frenchman, and made such extraordinary efforts to prevent his 
 success, that we soon discovered much was to be got between 
 the rival dogs. 
 
 "'By my crown,' exclaimed the Shah, 'all this cometh 
 from the ascendant of my good stars. Here sit I upon my 
 throne, whilst the curs of uncleanness come from the north 
 and the south, from the east and west, bringing me vast pre- 
 sents for the liberty of fighting and quarrelling at the foot of 
 it. In the name of the Prophet, let them approach ! ' 
 
 " When I left the Imperial Gate, an ambassador from the 
 English was expected, and the letters which I have just re- 
 
 1 Quarantine, we presume, is here meant.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 543 
 
 ceived are full of the circumstances of his proposed reception, 
 and the negotiations on foot concerning it ; but the Shah 
 cannot well enter upon them before he hears from me, because, 
 having been informed that specimens of all the different Euro- 
 pean nations were to be seen at Constantinople, each of whom 
 
 A BOWL FOR HOLDING BOILED RICE (ANCIENT PERSIAN PORCELAIN). 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 had an ambassador there, he, in his wisdom, has judged it 
 expedient to despatch me hither, to obtain all the information 
 of which we are so much in want, to clear up every doubt 
 that exists in Persia about the French and English, and, if 
 possible, to find out whether all they say of themselves be 
 true or false.
 
 544 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 " Now, Hajji," said the ambassador, " I am only one man, 
 and this is a business, as I have found out, sufficient for fifty. 
 The Franks are composed of many, many nations. As fast 
 as I hear of one hog, another begins to grunt, and then 
 another and another, until I find that there is a whole herd 
 of them. As I told you before, those who compose my suite 
 are not men to help me in research, and I have cast my eyes 
 upon you. From your exertions I expect much. You must 
 become acquainted with some infidels ; you understand the 
 Turkish language, and they will be able to inform you of 
 much that we want to know. I will furnish you with a copy 
 of the Shah's instructions to me upon that head, which you 
 will lock up, of course, in the secret corners of your brain, 
 and which will be your guide upon what we wish to acquire. 
 And until that be done, go, sit in a corner, and make one 
 long and deep thought upon the plan of operations that we 
 ought to pursue." 
 
 Upon this he dismissed me, and I left him with new 
 prospects of advancement in the career of life. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXV 
 
 Of his first essays in public life, and of the use he was to his employer. 
 
 As soon as the ambassador had furnished me with an extract 
 of his vakayeh namek, or his instructions, I walked out to an 
 adjacent cemetery to read it over undisturbed. I kept the 
 paper carefully folded in the lining of my cap ; and as it was 
 my first initiation into public business, the principal contents 
 of it have remained in my memory through life. 
 
 The ambassador was, in the first place, enjoined to dis- 
 cover, in truth, what was the extent of that country called 
 Frangistan ; and if the Shah known in Persia by the name
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 545 
 
 of the SJiahi Frank, or king of the Franks, actually existed, 
 and which was his capital. 
 
 In the second place, he was ordered to discover how 
 many Ils, or tribes, of Franks there were ; whether they 
 were divided into Shekernisheens and Sahranisheens, inhabi- 
 tants of towns and dwellers in the desert, as in Persia ; who 
 were their khans, and how governed. 
 
 Thirdly, to inquire what was the extent of France ; 
 whether it was a tribe of the Franks or a separate kingdom, 
 and who was the infidel Boonapoort, calling himself emperor 
 of that country. 
 
 In the fourth place, his attention was to be turned particu- 
 larly to what regarded the Ingltz, who had long been known 
 in Persia, by means of their broadcloth, watches, and pen- 
 knives. He was to inquire what description of infidels they 
 were, whether they lived in an island all the year round, 
 without possessing any kishlak (warm region) to migrate to 
 in the summer, and whether most of them did not inhabit 
 ships and eat fish ; and if they did live there, how it hap- 
 pened that they had obtained possession of India ; and he 
 was to clear up that question so long agitated in Persia, how 
 England and London were connected, whether England was 
 part of London, or London part of England. 
 
 In the fifth place, he was commanded to bring positive 
 intelligence of who and what the Coompani was of whom 
 so much was said how connected with England whether 
 an old woman, as sometimes reported, or whether it consisted 
 of many old women ; and whether the account, which was 
 credited, of its never dying, like the lama of Thibet, were not 
 a fable. He was also enjoined to clear up certain unin- 
 telligible accounts of the manner in which England was 
 governed. 
 
 In the sixth place, some positive information concerning 
 Yengi duniak, or the New World, was much wanted, and he 
 was to devote part of his attention to that subject. 
 
 Lastly, he was ordered to write a general history of the 
 Franks, and to inquire what would be the easiest method of 
 
 2 M
 
 546 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 making them renounce pork and wine, and converting them 
 to the true and holy faith, that is, to the religion of Islam. 
 
 Having well pondered over this paper, I considered that 
 it would be easy to get it answered through the means of a 
 katibi or scribe, attached to the then Reis Effendi, and with 
 whom, during the short gleam of splendour and riches which 
 had shone upon me, I had formed a great intimacy. I knew 
 the coffee-house he frequented, and the hour when he was 
 most likely to be found there ; and although he was not much 
 addicted to talking, yet I hoped, as he sipped his coffee and 
 smoked his pipe (particularly if I treated him), his heart 
 might expand, and I might obtain his real opinion. 
 
 Full of this idea, I immediately imparted it to the am- 
 bassador, who seemed so delighted that he at once did me 
 the honour to take all the merit of it to himself. 
 
 "Did not I tell you so?" exclaimed he; "did I not say 
 that you were a man of ingenuity ? Acknowledge, then, that 
 I am not without penetration : own, that it requires a sharp 
 discernment to discover at once where abilities lie ; and that, 
 had it not been for me, we should never have discovered this 
 katfb, who is to tell us everything, and thus fulfil the instruc- 
 tions of the Asylum of the Universe." 
 
 He then empowered me, if I found it necessary, to 
 promise him a present, by which means, should there be any 
 deficiency in his information, he might perhaps succeed in 
 obtaining it from the fountain-head, namely, the Reis Effendi 
 himself. 
 
 I went to the coffee-house at the proper time, and there 
 found my friend. I approached him with great demonstra- 
 tions of friendship ; and, calling to the waiting-man, ordered 
 some best Yemen coffee, which was served up as we sat one 
 opposite the other. In the course of conversation he pulled 
 out his watch, when I seized the opportunity of introducing 
 my subject. 
 
 "That is an European watch," said I, " is it not?" 
 
 "Yes, truly," said he; "there are none in the world 
 beside."
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 547 
 
 "Wonderful!" answered I "those Franks must be an 
 extraordinary people." 
 
 " Yes," said he, " but they are kafirs (infidels)." 
 
 "In the name of Allah." taking my pipe from my mouth 
 and putting it into his, " tell me something respecting them. 
 This Frangistan, is it a large country ? Where does its king 
 reside ? " 
 
 " What say you, friend ? " answered he ; "a large country, 
 do you ask ? A large country indeed it is, not governed by 
 one king alone, but by many kings." 
 
 " But I have heard," said I, "it is composed of many 
 tribes, all having different names and different chiefs ; still 
 being, in fact, but one nation." 
 
 " You may call them one nation if you choose," said he, 
 "and perhaps such is the case, for they all shave their chins, 
 let their hair grow, and wear hats ; they all wear tight 
 clothes ; they all drink wine, eat pork, and do not believe 
 in the blessed Mahomed. But it is plain they are governed 
 by many kings ; see the numerous ambassadors who flock 
 here to rub their foreheads against the threshold of our 
 Imperial Gate. So many of these dogs are here, that it 
 is necessary to put one's trust in the mercies of Allah, such is 
 the pollution they create." 
 
 "In the name of the Prophet speak on," said I, " and I 
 will write. Praise be to Allah! you are a man of wisdom." 
 Upon which, whilst I took out my inkstand from my girdle, 
 and composed myself to write, he stroked his beard, and 
 curled the tips of his mustachios, recollecting within himself 
 which were the principal nations of Europe. 
 
 He prefaced his information by saying, " But why trouble 
 yourself? They all are dogs alike all sprung from one 
 dunghill ; and if there be truth in heaven, and we believe our 
 blessed Koran, all will burn hereafter in one common furnace. 
 But, stop," said he, counting his fingers "in the first place, 
 there is the Nemse giaour, the Austrian infidel, our neigh- 
 bours ; a quiet smoking race, who send us cloth, steel, and 
 glassware ; and are governed by a shah, springing from the
 
 548 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 most ancient race of unbelievers : he sends us a representative 
 to be fed and clothed. 
 
 " Then come those heretics of Muscovites, a most unclean 
 and accursed generation. Their country is so large, that 
 one extremity is said to be buried in eternal snows whilst its 
 other is raging with heat. They are truly our enemy ; and 
 when we kill them we cry " Mashallah, praise be to God ! " 
 Men and women govern there by turns ; but they resemble 
 us inasmuch as they put their sovereigns to death almost as 
 frequently as we do. 
 
 "Again, there is a Prussian infidel, who sends us an 
 ambassador, Allah only knows why, for we are in no need 
 of such vermin; but you well know that the Imperial Gate 
 is open to the dog as well as the true believer, for the rain 
 of Providence descends equally upon both. 
 
 " Who shall I say next, in the name of the Prophet ? Let 
 us see : there are two northern unbelievers, living at the 
 extremity of all things the Danes and Swedes. They are 
 small tribes, scarcely to be accounted among men, although 
 it is said the Shah of Denmark is the most despotic of the 
 kings of Franks, not having even janissaries to dispute his 
 will ; whilst the Swedes are famous for a madman, who once 
 waged a desperate war in Europe, caring little in what 
 country he fought, provided only that he did fight ; and who, 
 in one of his acts of desperation, made his way into our 
 borders, where, like a wild beast, he was at length brought 
 to bay, and taken prisoner. Owing to this circumstance we 
 were introduced to the knowledge of his nation ; or other- 
 wise, by the blessing of Allah, we should never have known 
 that it even existed. 
 
 " I will mention one more, called Flemings ; infidels, dull, 
 heavy, and boorish ; who are amongst the Franks what the 
 Armenians are amongst us having no ideas beyond those 
 of thrift, and no ambition beyond that of riches. They used 
 to send us a sleepy ambassador to negotiate the introduction 
 of their cheeses, butter, and salt-fish ; but their government has 
 been destroyed since the appearance of a certain Boonapoort,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 549 
 
 who (let them and the patron of all unbelief have their due) 
 is in truth a man, one whom we need not be ashamed to class 
 with the Persian Nadir and with our own Suleiman." 
 
 Here I stopped the katib in his narrative, and, catching at 
 the name, I exclaimed, " Boonapoort, Boonapoort that is 
 the word I wanted ! Say something concerning him ; for I 
 have heard he is a rare and a daring infidel." 
 
 " What can I say," said my companion, " except that he 
 once was a man of nothing, a mere soldier ; and now he is 
 the sultan of an immense nation, and gives the law to all the 
 Franks? He did his best endeavours to molest us also, by 
 taking Egypt, and sent innumerable armies to conquer it ; but 
 he had omitted to try the edge of a true believer's sword 
 ere he set out, and was obliged to retreat, after having 
 frightened a few Mamalukes, and driven the Bedouins into 
 
 o 
 
 their deserts." 
 
 " But is there not a certain tribe of infidels called Ingliz," 
 said I, "the most unaccountable people on earth, who live in 
 an island, and make penknives ? " 
 
 "Yes, truly," said the katib ; "they, amongst the Franks, 
 are those who for centuries have most rubbed their heads 
 against the imperial threshold, and who have found most 
 favour in the sight of our great and magnanimous sultan. 
 They are powerful in ships ; and in watches and broadcloth 
 unrivalled." 
 
 " But what have you heard of their government ? " said I. 
 " Is it not composed of something besides a king?" 
 
 "Yes," returned he, "you have been rightly informed; 
 but how can you and I understand the humours of such mad- 
 men ? They have a shah, 'tis true ; but it is a farce to call 
 him by that title. They feed, clothe, and lodge him ; give 
 him a yearly income ; surround him by all the state and form 
 of a throne ; and mock him with as fine words and with as 
 high-sounding titles as we give our sovereigns ; but a common 
 aga of the Janissaries has more power than he : he does not 
 dare even to give the bastinado to one of his own viziers, be 
 his fault what it may ; whereas the aga, if expedient, would
 
 550 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 crop the ears of half the city, and still receive nothing but 
 reward and encouragement. 
 
 " Then they have certain houses full of madmen, who 
 meet half the year round for the purposes of quarrelling. If 
 one set says white, the other cries black ; and they throw 
 more words away in settling a common question than would 
 suffice one of our muftis during a whole reign. In short, 
 nothing can be settled in the state, be it only whether a 
 rebellious aga is to have his head cut off and his property 
 confiscated, or some such trifle, until these people have 
 wrangled. Then what are we to believe ? Allah, the 
 almighty and all wise, to some nations giveth wisdom, and to 
 others folly ! Let us bless Him and our Prophet, that we are 
 not born to eat the miseries of the poor English infidels, but 
 can smoke our pipes in quiet on the shores of our own peace- 
 ful Bosphorus ! " 
 
 "Strange, strange things you tell me," said I ; "and had 
 I not heard them, I could not believe something more, which 
 is, that all India belongs to them, and that it is governed by 
 old women. Do you know that fact?" 
 
 " I shall not be surprised to hear of anything they do," 
 answered he, "so mad are they generally reported to be ; but 
 that India is governed by infidel old women, that has never 
 yet reached our ears. Perhaps it is so. God knows," con- 
 tinued he, musing, "for mad people do wonderful things." 
 
 After a pause, "Now," said I, "have I learnt all, or are 
 there more unbelievers ? By your beard, tell me ; for who 
 would have thought that the world was so composed ? " 
 
 He reflected for some time, and said, " Oh yes, I forgot 
 to mention two or three nations ; but, in truth, they are not 
 worthy of notice. There are Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian 
 infidels, who eat their swine, and worship their image after 
 their own manner ; but who, in fact, are nothing even amongst 
 the Franks. The first is known to us by their patakas 
 (dollars) ; the second sends us some Jews ; and the third im- 
 ports different sorts of dervishes, who pay considerable sums 
 into the imperial treasury for building churches and for the
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 551 
 
 privilege of ringing bells. I must also mention the papa 
 (pope), the caliph of the Franks, who lives in Italia, and does 
 not cease his endeavours to make converts to his faith ; but 
 we are more than even with him, for we convert the infidels 
 in much greater proportion than they, notwithstanding all the 
 previous pain which man must suffer before he is accepted for 
 a true believer." 
 
 A FLUTE-PLAYER. 
 
 From a sketch by James Morier. 
 
 "One more question I must ask," said I, "and then I am 
 satisfied. Can you tell me anything positive about Yengi 
 duniah, the New World ; for I have heard so many contra- 
 dictory reports, that my brain is bewildered ? How do they 
 get at it ? underground, or how ? " 
 
 "We have not had many dealings with it," said the katib, 
 " and therefore know not much of the matter ; but this is true,
 
 552 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjf BABA 
 
 that one can get there by ship, because ships belonging to the 
 New World have actually been seen here. They are all 
 infidels, my friend," exclaimed he, with a sigh "all infidels, 
 as much as those of the Old World, and, by the blessing of 
 Allah, will all grill in the same furnace." 
 
 Finding that upon this subject the katib was deficient, I 
 ceased questioning ; and our conversation having now lasted 
 a long time, I released him from further importunity by call- 
 ing for more coffee and replenishing our pipes. We then 
 separated, not without mutual promises of meeting again. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXVI 
 
 Hajji Baba writes the history of Europe, and ivith his ambassador 
 returns to Persia. 
 
 I RETURNED to my ambassador full of the information I had 
 acquired, and all-joyous at the success which had attended my 
 first essay in diplomatic life. He was delighted at the memoir 
 I had drawn up from the materials furnished me by the katib, 
 and, as long as we remained at Constantinople, daily sent me 
 in search of further particulars, until we both thought our- 
 selves sufficiently in force to be able to draw up a general 
 History of Europe, which the Centre of the Universe, in his 
 instructions to the ambassador, had ordered him to present 
 on his return. Most assiduously did I apply myself in com- 
 posing this precious morsel of history. I made a rough 
 draught, which was submitted to the correction of my chief; 
 and when he had seasoned its contents to the palate of the 
 King of Kings, softening down those parts which might 
 appear improbable, and adding to those not sufficiently strong, 
 he delivered it over to a clerk, who in a fair hand transcribed 
 the whole, until at length a very handsome volume was pro- 
 duced. It was duly bound, ornamented, and inserted in a
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 553 
 
 silk and muslin bag, and then the ambassador conceived it 
 might be fit to be placed in the hands of the Shah. 
 
 Mirza Firouz having now, as he conceived, accomplished 
 the objects of his mission, prepared to return, and announced 
 his intention not only of taking me with him, but also of 
 continuing me in the employ of the government as soon 
 as we should reach Tehran; "for," said he, "a person so 
 well acquainted with the interests of the Franks will be of 
 great use in treating with' the infidel ambassadors now in 
 Persia." 
 
 He could not have devised a plan better suited to my 
 wishes ; for, after my cruel treatment by the Turks, I hated 
 everything relating to them. Their city was become odious 
 to me ; and whenever I thought upon Shekerleb my heart 
 swelled with rage. Much time had now elapsed since my 
 affair with the chief priest of Tehran. The mollah Nadan, 
 so I had heard, had long ago been blown from the mouth 
 of a mortar, and the widow, whom I left in the hands of the 
 Curds, had never returned to Persia. Therefore I concluded 
 I might show myself in all safety ; for I argued thus : should 
 I even be recognised, still who would venture to molest me, 
 powerfully protected as I should be by men in office ? The 
 chief executioner had recovered possession of his horse and 
 furniture, when the unfortunate Nadan had been seized ; and 
 there was every reason to suppose that Abdul Kerim had 
 shared the fate of his mistress, the chief priest's widow, for 
 he had no more been heard of; so I did not fear that he 
 would call upon me to refund the hundred tomauns. What 
 had I then to apprehend on returning to Tehran? Nothing 
 that I could foresee ; and if once it were known that I was 
 a servant of the Shah, even being a thousand times more 
 criminal than I was in fact, I might put my cap on one side, 
 and walk all over the empire with impunity. 
 
 Fortified by these reflections, I made my preparations 
 with alacrity to accompany the ambassador. But previous 
 to our departure I determined upon visiting my countrymen 
 in the caravanserai, where with a better chance of success I
 
 554 
 
 now might give myself those airs of importance which had 
 succeeded so ill at my last exhibition. Having taken some 
 trouble to make it well understood that I was attached to the 
 embassy, I no longer dreaded their contempt ; and such is 
 the respect that one invested with that character is sure to 
 inspire, that on this occasion I had no reason to complain of 
 any want of attention. Every word addressed to me was now 
 prefaced with, " By your favour," " By your condescension," 
 " May your kindness never be less ; " and compliments which 
 never ended, interlarded all the fine discourses I heard. To 
 hear them, nobody could have ever supposed that I was the 
 same person whom not two months before they had laughed 
 to scorn : on the contrary, one ignorant of the circumstance 
 would have set me down for a personage upon whom the 
 issues of life and death depended. But when I took my 
 leave of the old Osman, I found him unchanged, and every 
 word he spoke showed that his affection for the son of the 
 barber of Ispahan was the feeling which ever actuated his 
 conduct towards me. " Go, my son," said he, as he parted 
 from me, " whether you be a prisoner with the Turcomans, 
 or a priest, or a seller of pipe-sticks, or a Turkish aga, or a 
 Persian mirza ; be you what you may, I shall always put up 
 my prayers for your prosperity, and may Allah attend your 
 steps wherever you go." 
 
 Having made his visits of ceremony, and taken his leave 
 of the Turkish authorities, the ambassador left Scutari, ac- 
 companied by a large company of his own countrymen, who 
 conducted him about one parasang on the road to Persia, and 
 then received their dismissal. Our journey was propitious, 
 and nothing took place in it worthy of notice from the day of 
 our departure until our arrival in Persia. At Erivan we 
 heard the news of the day, though but imperfectly ; but at 
 Tabriz, the seat of Abbas Mirza's government, we were 
 initiated into the various questions which then agitated the 
 country and the court. The principal one was the rivalry 
 between the French and English ambassadors ; the object 
 of the former, who had already been received by the Shah,
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 555 
 
 being to keep away the latter, who had not yet reached the 
 foot of the throne. 
 
 Various were the anecdotes related of the exertions made 
 by them to attain their ends, and the whole of Persia was 
 thrown into astonishment upon seeing infidels come so far 
 from their own countries, at so much trouble and expense, to 
 quarrel in the face of the whole nation of true believers, who 
 were sure to despise, to deride, and to take them in. 
 
 The Frenchman, by way of enforcing his demands, con- 
 stantly brought forward the power of his own sovereign, his 
 greatness and preponderance over all the states of Europe, 
 and did not cease to extol the immense numbers of troops he 
 could bring into the field. 
 
 To this he was answered, " That may be very true ; but 
 what is that to us ? Whole empires intervene, and therefore 
 what affinity can there be between France and Persia ? " 
 
 " But," said the Frenchman, "we want to conquer India 
 from the English, and we wish to have an open road through 
 your territories." 
 
 " What is that to us ?" again said the Shah. " You may 
 want India, but we are in no way anxious to entertain your 
 troops." 
 
 "But we will conquer Georgia for you, put you in pos- 
 session of Teflis, and secure you from further molestation from 
 the Russians." 
 
 " That is- another case," said the Shah. " When once we 
 see the effects of your interference, and hear that there are no 
 more Russians on this side the Caucasus, we will treat with 
 you ; until then, we can allow no passage through our terri- 
 tories, nor break with our old friends the English." 
 
 On the other hand, the English said, " The French can 
 have no other object in coming to Persia than to molest us ; 
 we require that you send them away." 
 
 " How ! " said the Shah, " we cannot do that ; for that 
 would be against the laws of hospitality. The gate of our 
 palace is open to every one." 
 
 " But," urged the English, "you must either retain one or
 
 556 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 
 
 the other and must decide between us. Either agree to be 
 our friends and expel the French, or make up your minds to 
 receive us as enemies." 
 
 "Why should we make ourselves enemies to please you? 
 We want to be friends with all the world." 
 
 "But," continued the English, "we will help and strengthen 
 you, and give you money." 
 
 " Oh ! that is another case," said the Shah ; " tell me how 
 much, and then all may be done." 
 
 ON THE ROAD FROM TEHRAN, MOUNT DEMAVEND IN THE DISTANCE. 
 From a sketch by James Morier. 
 
 Such was nearly the state of things when we left Tabriz ; 
 and as my ambassador was expected with impatience at 
 Tehran, we did not tarry long with the prince royal, but 
 prosecuted our journey with all despatch. 
 
 On the morning of our arrival at Sultanieh, on the road 
 from Tehran, we discovered a long train of horsemen with 
 their baggage, who we could make out were not Persians, 
 and who, as they approached, we saw were Franks. They
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 557 
 
 were accompanied by a mehmander, an officer from the Shah, 
 who informed us, that this was the French embassy on its 
 return, who it seems had been politely requested to take its 
 leave ; and it was moreover added, that the English am- 
 bassador would very shortly take its place. 
 
 This at once explained how matters stood at court, and 
 that between the rival bidders for his majesty's favour the 
 King of Kings had come to a good market. My ambassador 
 was rather surprised how such a determination could have 
 been taken previous to his arrival, fraught as he was with 
 important information upon all the nations of Europe ; but 
 every difficulty is easily explained away when money is per- 
 mitted to exert its eloquence, particularly if one recollects the 
 words of the sheikh 
 
 " Let money only appear, and every head is prostrate. 
 Tis thus the heaviest weight in the scales lowers the iron beam." 
 
 We were happy to have an opportunity of observing the 
 manners of a nation about whom we had lately heard so 
 much, and, as we passed the day together in the same place, 
 my chief did not fail to make himself known to the French 
 ambassador. 
 
 We expected, of course, to find them much depressed in 
 spirits, and in no good humour, having been driven as it were 
 from the presence of the Earth's Centre ; but what was our 
 surprise to remark the contrary ! Never did Persia see such 
 a company of madmen. They were singing, dancing, and 
 making the luti all the livelong day. They all talked at 
 once, one louder than the other, without any apparent defer- 
 ence to rank, for all seemed on the same footing. Without in 
 the least respecting our carpets, they were eternally pacing 
 them with rapid strides, and, what most shocked our feelings, 
 spitting upon them. As I now looked upon myself in some 
 measure identified with the Franks, considering at what pains 
 I had lately been to acquire information concerning them, 
 I endeavoured to discover if there was any affinity between 
 their language and ours ; but not a word could I comprehend.
 
 558 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 However, I thought to have made some progress in it by 
 
 SKETCH OF CAPTAIN L , A FRENCH OFFICER OF CAVALRY WHO DESERTED 
 
 FROM THE FRENCH LEGATION AND TOOK SERVICE IN THE PERSIAN 
 ARMY. 
 
 From a sketch by James Moriei: 
 
 recollecting and writing down the words in their speech which
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BAB A 559 
 
 most frequently occurred one was sacrt, the other Paris, 
 and a third r Empereur. 
 
 On the whole we liked them. We thought to discern 
 many points of similitude between them and ourselves ; and 
 were of opinion, that if, as infidels, they were doomed to the 
 douzak of hereafter, even there, instead of moaning over and 
 deploring their lot, they would still be found in the same 
 happy mood we saw them at Sultanieh. 
 
 We parted on the following morning they laughing, 
 chattering, and screaming with joy ; we, full of anxiety and 
 apprehension about the reception with which our ambassador 
 would meet from the King of Kings. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXVII 
 
 The ceremony of receiving a Frank ambassador at the court 
 is described. 
 
 MY chief, the Mirza Firouz, was received with great con- 
 descension by the Shah, who was pleased at the ready 
 answers he received to his numerous questions concerning 
 the nations of Europe. Never was man better adapted to 
 fill the situation to which he had been appointed than the 
 mirza. Every question which the Shah put to him was 
 received with a ready answer. Ignorance did not confound 
 him, no difficulty stopped him. The words " Nemi danum, 
 I don't know," ever a sin in the hearing of a king, were never 
 known to pass his lips. He discoursed upon every matter 
 with a confidence that made his hearers believe that what- 
 ever he said must be conclusive ; and upon the subject of 
 Europeans, to listen to him, one could not but suppose he 
 had been born and bred among them. 
 
 As I was known to have been employed under him in 
 "seizing news," as the phrase goes, concerning Europe, and
 
 560 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 also in writing its history, I in some measure enjoyed the 
 reputation of being learned in whatever regarded its inhabi- 
 tants. Although my assurance was nothing equal to my 
 master's, yet I managed to answer the questions put to me 
 with tolerable readiness, although, in so doing, I was obliged 
 to be very circumspect not to commit him, therefore I passed 
 my days in the double fear of appearing ignorant, and of 
 having my ears cut off in case I happened to be too wise. 
 However, as none among our own countrymen could con- 
 tradict us, we were listened to as oracles ; and we exemplified 
 what the poet Al Miei has so justly remarked : " That in the 
 country of the dumb, the sound of one voice, be it even that 
 of an ass, would be called -harmony." 
 
 The English elchi (ambassador) had reached Tehran a 
 few days before we arrived there, and his reception was as 
 brilliant as it was possible for a dog of an unbeliever to 
 expect from our blessed Prophet's own lieutenant. Indeed 
 the city was almost shocked at the honours paid him, and 
 some of the most violent of our mollahs declared, that, in 
 treating a Giaour so well, we were ourselves in some measure 
 guilty of his infidelity, and preparing our own damnation. 
 At different stations on the road, the throats of oxen had 
 been cut before his horses' feet, in many places his path 
 was strewn with sugar- candy, and on the day of his entry 
 he was permitted to have his trumpets sounded in the pro- 
 cession ; all of which were honours that could be exacted 
 by none, save our own princes. 
 
 Then all the proper attentions of hospitality were shown. 
 The house of a khan was taken from him and given to the 
 ambassador, and whatever furniture was wanting was de- 
 manded from the neighbours and placed therein. A hand- 
 some garden was levied upon another, and added to the 
 house. The lord high treasurer was commanded to feed 
 the strangers at his own expense as long as they chose, 
 and clothes and shawls were collected from the courtiers 
 and servants of the court, for the dresses of honour which 
 it is the custom to make on such occasions. The princes
 
 5 6i 
 
 and noblemen were enjoined to send the ambassador pre- 
 sents, and a general command issued that he and his suite 
 were the Shah's guests, and that, on the pain of the royal 
 anger, nothing but what was agreeable should be said to 
 them. 
 
 All these attentions, one might suppose, would be more 
 than sufficient to make infidels contented with their lot ; but, 
 on the contrary, when the subject of etiquette came to be 
 discussed, interminable difficulties seemed to arise. The 
 elchi was the most intractable of mortals. First, on the 
 subject of sitting. On the day of his audience of the Shah, 
 he would not sit on the ground, but insisted upon having 
 a chair ; then the chair was to be placed so far, and no 
 farther, from the throne. In the second place, of shoes, 
 he insisted upon keeping on his shoes, and not walking 
 barefooted upon the pavement ; and he would not even put 
 on our red cloth stockings. Thirdly, with respect to hats : 
 he announced his intention of pulling his off to make his 
 bow to the king, although we assured him that it was an act 
 of great indecorum to uncover the head. -And then, on the 
 article of dress, a most violent dispute arose : at first, it was 
 intimated that proper dresses should be sent to him and his 
 suite, which would cover their persons (now too indecently 
 exposed) so effectually, that they might be fit to be seen 
 by the king ; but this proposal he rejected with derision. 
 He said, that he would appear before the Shah of Persia 
 in the very same dress he wore when before his own sove- 
 reign. Now, as there was not a Persian who had ever been 
 at the court of a Frank king, nobody could say what that 
 proper dress was ; and, for aught we knew, the elchi might 
 put on his bed-gown and nightcap on the occasion. This was 
 a difficulty apparently not to be overcome, when, turning the 
 subject over in my own mind, I recollected that among the 
 paintings in the palace of Forty Pillars at Ispahan, there 
 were portraits of Europeans, who, in the days of the great 
 Shah Abbas, flocked to his court and even established them- 
 selves in the city. In particular, I well recollected one in 
 
 2 N
 
 562 THE- ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 the very same painting in which Shah Abbas himself is 
 represented, whose dress was doubtless the only proper 
 
 "PROPER DRESSES SHOULD BE SENT TO HIM." 
 
 {Fancy sketch by James Morier, representing Sir Gore Ouseley, the English. Ambassador, 
 in Persian court-dress.) 
 
 costume to wear before a crowned head. I immediately 
 suggested this to my master, who mentioned it to the grand 
 vizier, who ordered that a copy of it should, without loss of
 
 564 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 time, be made by the best artist of Ispahan, and sent to 
 Tehran. 
 
 So soon as it arrived it was officially presented to the 
 English elchi, with a notification that the Shah was satisfied 
 to receive him in the same dress he wore before his own 
 sovereign, a model of which was now offered to him, and to 
 which it was expected that he and his suite would strictly 
 conform. 
 
 The shouts of laughter which the infidels set up, upon 
 seeing the picture and hearing the message, are not to be 
 described. They asked if we thought them monkeys, that 
 they should dress themselves as such at our bidding, and 
 were so disagreeably obstinate in their resolution of keeping 
 to their own mode of attire, that at length they were per- 
 mitted to do as they chose. 
 
 The audience of the Shah passed off much better than 
 could have been expected from such rude and uncivilised 
 people, and we were all astonished that men so unaccustomed 
 to the manners and forms of the world should have con- 
 ducted themselves on this difficult occasion without com- 
 mitting some act that was flagrant and improper. The king 
 was seated on his throne of gold, dressed with a magnificence 
 that dazzled the eyes of the strangers, and made even his 
 subjects exclaim, "Jemshid? who was he? or Darab ? or 
 Nushirvan? that they should be mentioned in the same 
 breath ? " On the right and left of the throne stood 
 the princes, more beautiful than the gems which blazed 
 upon their father's person. At a distance were placed the 
 three viziers of the state, those depositaries of wisdom and 
 good counsel ; and, with their backs to the wall, each bearing 
 a part of the paraphernalia of the crown, were marshalled 
 in a row the black-eyed pages of royalty, who might be com- 
 pared to angels supporting planets from the starry firmament. 
 In the midst appeared the Franks, who, with their unhidden 
 legs, their coats cut to the quick, their unbearded chins, 
 and unwhiskered lips, looked like birds moulting, or diseased 
 apes, or anything but human creatures, when contrasted with
 
 565 
 
 the ample and splendidly -dressed persons by whom they 
 were surrounded. And they stood their ground, not in the 
 least abashed by the refulgent presence of the great king ; 
 but their attitude, manner, and expression of countenance 
 would have made us suppose they were quite as good and 
 as undefined as ourselves. 
 
 The speech made on the occasion by the elchi was char- 
 acteristic of the people he represented that is, unadorned, 
 unpolished, neither more nor less than the truth, such as a 
 camel-driver might use to a muleteer ; and had it not been 
 for the ingenuity of the interpreter, our Shah would neither 
 have been addressed by his title of King of Kings, nor of the 
 Kebleh of the Universe. 
 
 It would be taking up the pen of eternity were I to 
 attempt to describe the boundless difference that we dis- 
 covered between the manners and sentiments of these people 
 and ourselves. Some of our sages endeavoured to account 
 for it upon philosophical principles, and attributed much to 
 the climate of those dark, watery, and sunless regions in 
 which they were bred and born: "for," said they, "how 
 can men living surrounded by water, and who never feel 
 the warmth of the sun, be like those who are never a day 
 without enjoying the full effulgence of its rays, and do not 
 even know what the sea means ? " But the men of the 
 law settled the question in a much more satisfactory manner, 
 by saying, " it was owing to their infidelity that they were 
 doomed to be cursed even in this life ; and that if the 
 ambassador, his suite, and even his whole nation, would 
 submit to become Mussulmans, and embrace the only true 
 faith, they would immediately be like ourselves, their 
 defilements would be washed clean, and they even might 
 stand a chance of walking in the same story of the heavens 
 as the genuine children of Islam would in the world to 
 come."
 
 566 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 CHAPTER LXXVIII 
 
 Hajji is noticed by the grand 'vizier, and is the means of gratifying 
 that minister's favourite passion. 
 
 THE transactions just recorded were all propitious to my 
 advancement. Owing to the knowledge I was supposed 
 to have acquired respecting Europe, I was employed in 
 most of the affairs which concerned the Franks in Persia, 
 and this had furnished me with many opportunities of be- 
 coming known to the grand vizier, and to other ministers 
 and men in power. 
 
 The Mirza Firouz was not rich, and the maintenance 
 which he received in his public character ceasing as soon 
 as he returned to Tehran, he could no longer afford to 
 support me, and he was happy to find that I was able to 
 work my own way into a livelihood. He did not fail to praise 
 my good qualities, and never lost an opportunity of extolling 
 my abilities. Nor was I backward in seconding his en- 
 deavours, for I brought everything and every person, infidels 
 as well as true believers, to bear upon my ambitious views ; 
 and destiny (without whose aid man's endeavours are of no 
 avail) almost as much as whispered, that the buffetings of the 
 world had taken their departure from me. 
 
 The grand vizier was, without a doubt, the man in Persia 
 who, from his acuteness, tact, and presence of mind, had the 
 most influence over the Shah. He had enjoyed his high 
 situation almost from the commencement of the present long 
 reign, and had so interlaced his office with every transaction, 
 public as well as private, that his counsels became as neces- 
 sary to the country as the rising and setting of the sun. 
 
 To secure his protection became then the first object of 
 my endeavours. I began by daily attending his levees and 
 standing before him, and as the affairs relating to Europe
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 567 
 
 now took up his principal attention, he never saw me without 
 asking some question referring thereto. This led to my 
 being intrusted with messages to the English ambassador, 
 the answers to which I always brought back, with something 
 of my own surcharged, flattering to his abilities as a great 
 statesman, and thus by creating good-will between the parties, 
 I myself became a favourite. 
 
 The leading passion of the vizier was the love of receiv- 
 ing presents. This was my kebleh in all transactions with 
 the elchi, and my ingenuity was constantly exercised in en- 
 deavouring to extract something from him which would be 
 acceptable to the vizier, and serviceable to myself. That 
 presents of ceremony should be received and given was a 
 matter of course, and therefore I stood no chance of acquiring 
 any credit on such occasions ; but I was once or 'twice acces- 
 sory in making the balance strongly preponderate in favour 
 of my own countrymen, and the vizier from that time began 
 to look upon me with a favourable aspect. 
 
 A treaty was to be negotiated between the two countries, 
 and my patron was appointed one of the plenipotentiaries on 
 the part of the Shah. Although this was matter in which 
 one of my insignificance could not expect to be employed, yet 
 I did not cease to ply about the negotiators, like a dog at an 
 entertainment seeking for a chance bone ; and every now and 
 then 1 got so much of the scent as to make me almost sure 
 of springing some game for myself. 
 
 At length, one morning, after a late sitting of the nego- 
 tiators, I was summoned to attend the grand vizier in his 
 very anderun, a place to which none but his most confidential 
 servants were ever admitted. I found him still in bed, 
 bolstered up with many soft pillows, and entirely alone. 
 
 " Hajji," said he, in a familiar tone, " draw near, and 
 seat yourself close to me ; I have something of importance 
 to say." 
 
 I was staggered by so high an honour ; but as his com- 
 mand was law, I did not hesitate to kneel by his bedside. 
 
 Without circumlocution, he at once told me that he was
 
 568 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJj! BABA 
 
 placed in a situation of great difficulty, for the English am- 
 bassador had made some demands impossible to be granted, 
 and declared that he must quit Tehran should they not re- 
 ceive our acquiescence. 
 
 "Now," said he, "the Shah has threatened, if I permit 
 the elchi to leave Persia dissatisfied, that my head shall 
 answer for it ; and at the same time I and my brother pleni- 
 potentiary are half persuaded that his majesty will never 
 accede to the demands of England. What is to be done ? " 
 
 " Could he not be bribed ? " said I, with all humility, and 
 looking as if I would give other meaning to my words. 
 
 "He be bribed ?" said the vizier: "in the first place, 
 whence could the bribe come ? and in the second, these 
 people are such fools, that they know not what a bribe means. 
 But, give me your ear. We are no fools, whatever they may 
 be. The elchi is very anxious to carry his point, and you 
 know me well enough to be aware that there is nothing I 
 cannot accomplish if once I take it in hand. You must go 
 and talk to him. You are his friend. You may say that you 
 are mine you may whisper many things to him which I 
 cannot do you understand ? " 
 
 Upon this I kissed his hands w r ith much fervour, and 
 raising it to my head I exclaimed, " By my head and by my 
 eyes, I will go and, inshall'ah, please God, I will not return 
 without a white face." 
 
 He then dismissed me, and, full of happy prospects, I 
 made the best of my way to the English ambassador. 
 
 I will not relate all I said and did to induce him to come 
 into the grand vizier's terms ; but, in two words, I so entirely 
 and completely succeeded, that I returned with a heavy sack 
 of gold, of good and solid cash, in my hand, as the fore- 
 runner of what was to follow in case all was concluded to 
 the ambassador's satisfaction, and I also secured the promise 
 of a large diamond ring that was forthwith to be transferred 
 from the finger of England to that of Persia, by way of an 
 emblem of eternal friendship between the representatives of 
 the two states.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 569 
 
 The vizier was so astonished when he saw me place the 
 sack before him, that he looked at me and then at it, some 
 time before he spoke, and then broke out into all sorts of 
 exclamations in praise of my activity and zeal. 
 
 " Hajjl," said he, "you are now my property. We are 
 somebody in Persia, and you will not long remain without a 
 cap to your head. Make an arz, a representation, and its 
 accomplishment will rest with me." 
 
 Many were the protestations I made him of fidelity and 
 redoubled zeal. I disowned any intention of asking for any 
 remuneration, except the favour of being permitted to stand 
 before him ; and I looked so humble, and talked in so dis- 
 interested a manner, that if he ever could have believed a 
 Persian, I flattered myself he did me. 
 
 But he understood the value of such speeches a great deal 
 better than I, and said, " Do not throw away your words at 
 random. I was once with my head turning round and round 
 in the world for a livelihood as well as yourself, and, therefore, 
 I know the value of the service which you have rendered. 
 Proceed in the path which now lies before you. The Franks 
 are proper materials for your ingenuity. I give you my sanc- 
 tion to work upon them. They have plenty of gold, and are 
 in want of us. What more need be said ? The people of 
 Iran are like the earth ; they require rishwek, 1 their interests 
 must be highly excited, before they will bring forth fruit. 
 The Franks talk of feelings in public life of which we are 
 ignorant. They pretend to be actuated by no other principle 
 than the good of their country. These are words without 
 meaning to us ; for as soon as I die, or when the Shah is no 
 more, all that we may have done for the welfare of Persia will 
 most likely be destroyed ; and when his successor shall have 
 well ruined the people in securing himself, the whole business 
 of improvement and consolidation must be gone over again. 
 Certain privileges and enjoyments are the lawful inheritance 
 of the Shahs of Persia : let them possess them in the name 
 of Allah ! And their viziers also have their allotted portion : 
 
 1 The word rishweh, bribery, is also used for manure in agriculture.
 
 570 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 why should they refuse them ? Certainly not for the good of 
 the country, because not one individual throughout the whole 
 empire even understands what that good means, much less 
 would he work for it." 
 
 My mind was greatly enlightened by this speech, and as 
 the curtain which hitherto had darkened my understanding 
 drew up, I discovered new prospects, and could extend my 
 view over a new and more diversified region of profit. The 
 words, "the Franks are pr.oper materials for your ingenuity," 
 rung in my ears, and my wits immediately began their career 
 of invention. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXIX 
 
 Of the manner in which he turned his influence to use, and how he 
 was again noticed by the vizier. 
 
 I GAVE myself much pains to have it well understood in the 
 city that I was a confidential agent of the grand vizier, and 
 did my best endeavour to impress upon the infidels that with- 
 out my interference nothing could be done. The fruits of 
 this proceeding were soon manifest, and my services put 
 into requisition in a manner highly conducive to our mutual 
 advantage. 
 
 One of the most remarkable features in the character of 
 our English guests was their extreme desire to do us good 
 against our inclination. Rather than not attempt it, they put 
 themselves to infinite trouble, and even did not refrain from 
 expense to secure their ends. They felt a great deal more 
 for us than we did for ourselves ; and what they could dis- 
 cover in us worthy of their love, we, who did not cease to 
 revile them as unclean infidels, and as creatures doomed to 
 eternal fires, were quite at a loss to discover. However, I 
 had nothing to do with their tastes ; my business was to study
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 571 
 
 how to turn them to account, and the subject in all conscience 
 was rich, and repaid me well for my trouble. 
 
 My readers will, perhaps, recollect that, in an early part 
 of this my narrative, I mentioned my acquaintance with an 
 infidel doctor, who, among other novelties in medicine, did 
 his utmost endeavours to introduce into Persia a new mode 
 of curing the small-pox. The practice was now totally laid 
 aside ; our faculty continued to treat the disorder as our fore- 
 fathers had done, and the usual quantity of children died as 
 heretofore. A doctor was also attached to the suite of the 
 present elchi, and he was impelled by more than common 
 anxiety to do us good. His zeal to renew the practice of 
 the cow medicine was unbounded, and the quantity of 
 mothers whom he enticed to bring their children to him 
 astonishing. 
 
 I, in pursuit of my own schemes, was the first to cry out, 
 that this great influx of women of the true faith, into the 
 dwelling of an infidel, be the object what it might, was highly 
 indecorous ; and I persuaded the grand vizier to place an 
 officer of the police as sentry at the doctor's door to prevent 
 the women entering. This very soon stopped his practice, 
 and he was in despair. 
 
 "But why should you grieve?" said I to him. "You 
 get nothing for your trouble, and the people are not obliged 
 to you." 
 
 "Oh," said he (for he and his countrymen had learnt our 
 language), "you know not what you say. This blessing 
 must be spread throughout the world ; and if your govern- 
 ment stops it here, it will be guilty of the blood of all those 
 lives which might have been saved." 
 
 " What is that to us ? " answered I : "let them die we 
 get nothing by their being alive." 
 
 " If it be profit that you require," exclaimed the doctor, 
 " I will willingly pay any sum you may demand, rather than 
 lose my vaccinating matter, which must dry up and be lost 
 if my practice ceases." 
 
 Here we entered into a negotiation, and, after much
 
 572 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJjl BABA 
 
 difficulty and show of apprehension concerning the risk I 
 ran of incurring the grand vizier's displeasure, it was agreed 
 that, for certain advantages which I should enjoy, the restric- 
 tion should be taken from the doctor's house ; and I leave 
 those who know me to guess the numbers of children who 
 now flocked to the man of medicine. His gate was thronged, 
 and nothing more was said respecting the impropriety of the 
 women's attendance. 
 
 Another of his manias was a desire to cut up dead bodies. 
 He did so languish after every corpse that was carried by 
 his house for burial, that I was surprised the people did not 
 set upon him for his impure propensities. 
 
 " But what possible good will accrue to mankind in 
 general," said I to him, " if you dissect a dead Mussulman ? " 
 
 "It is impossible to say what good may be lost by my 
 not dissecting him," said he ; "besides, if I do not keep my 
 hand in practice, I shall lose my former skill." 
 
 He then of his own accord proposed to give a large sum 
 for a corpse, and avowed that he was not particular about 
 its quality ; for that of a Jew, Christian, or a true believer, 
 would be equally acceptable. 
 
 I kept this in remembrance ; and, indeed, I had so many 
 opportunities afforded me of advancing the designs of the 
 infidels, and of filling my own pockets at the same time, that 
 I felt myself gradually growing into wealth. 
 
 The ambassador himself was not without his desires of 
 improving (as he called it) our state ; and I cannot resist 
 relating a circumstance which took place between him and 
 the grand vizier. He announced it as his intention to make 
 a present to us of a certain produce of the earth, unknown 
 in most parts of Asia, but much cultivated in Europe, which 
 would not fail to be of incalculable benefit to the people of 
 Persia ; and he requested the vizier to assist him in his 
 undertaking, promising shortly to send him a specimen of the 
 intended gift. The vizier, whose nose was always carried 
 very high whenever a present was in the wind, did not fail 
 daily to discuss with me what this great benefit which the
 
 
 
 MAJOR LINDESAY, A MEMBER OF THE ENGLISH AMBASSADOR'S SUITE, 
 
 WEARING "SHALWAR" (PERSIAN RIDING-TROWSERS). 
 
 From a drawing by James Morier.
 
 574 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 ambassador was about to confer might be, and his impatience 
 to -gain possession became very great. He discovered, 
 through me, that the English representative had brought 
 with him a store of fine broadcloth, upon which he had 
 constantly kept a steady eye. Finding that the projected 
 public benefit was not forthcoming, he conceived in his 
 wisdom that the elchi would have an easy bargain if he 
 agreed to commute it for a private gift to himself. There- 
 fore one morning at his uprising he called me, and said, " By 
 the blessing of God, whatever we want we have : we have 
 bread and meat we have salt, and rice, and corn, and fruits, 
 such as the infidels never even saw in a dream ; in short, we 
 have everything that it is possible to conceive. Then why 
 should we become indebted to this infidel ambassador for 
 things that we do not want ? A happy thought has struck 
 me, by which he will be a gainer, and be saved the trouble 
 he wishes to incur : I will agree to receive cloth in lieu of the 
 public benefit. This is so easy a transaction, that you, who, 
 praise be to Allah ! are a man of sharp wit, will easily 
 negotiate. Go, say this to the ambassador, and without 
 loss of time bring me the cloth." 
 
 I forthwith presented myself, and delivered the message. 
 Will it be believed, that he and all his beardless suite, upon 
 hearing it, set up such shouts of laughter, as might be heard 
 from the top of Demawend ? " What affinity has cloth to 
 potatoes?" said one. "We wish to give a cheap and com- 
 fortable article of food to your countrymen," said another. 
 " But it seems that your vizier likes to transfer the whole 
 advantage of the gift from the bellies of the nation to his own 
 back," cried a third. The ambassador, however, who ap- 
 peared the most reasonable of the party, without hesitation, 
 very politely ordered a piece of cloth to be delivered to me, 
 which he requested me to present to my master with reiter- 
 ated expressions of friendship ; and with the assurance that 
 it could make no alteration in the sentiments which he enter- 
 tained for the Persian nation, who, he hoped, would still receive 
 the potato, as a mark of his high esteem and consideration.
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 575 
 
 I returned to the vizier full of exultation at the success 
 of my visit ; and this, with the preceding and subsequent 
 instances of my abilities, so entirely won his affections, that 
 I soon outstrip! every rival, and became his principal favourite 
 and confidant. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXX 
 
 The conclusion Misfortune seems to take leave of Hajji Baba, who 
 returns to his native city, a greater man than when he first left it. 
 
 THE negotiations with the infidels were now about being 
 closed ; and it was agreed, in order to strengthen the bonds 
 of friendship between the two, that an embassy on the part of 
 the Shah should forthwith be sent to the King of England. 
 
 The experience of each succeeding day convinced me of 
 the influence I had acquired over the mind of the grand 
 vizier ; and the event just recorded was the means of showing 
 me to what extent he depended upon my services and zeal. 
 The day after the treaty with England was signed, he called 
 me into his private apartment, and spoke to me in the 
 following manner : 
 
 -'Hajji," said he, "give me your ear. I have things of 
 importance to impart, and as I look upon you as one exclu- 
 sively mine, I am sure that you will listen to them with 
 becoming attention." 
 
 I was proceeding to make the necessary protestations of 
 my entire devotedness, when he stopped me, and proceeded 
 thus : 
 
 "Well or ill, our business with the English ambassador 
 is at length concluded, and the Shah has ceded to his wishes 
 of sending an ambassador to England in return. Now, you 
 know the Persians as well as I, how they detest leaving their 
 own country, and the difficulty I shall find in selecting a 
 man to devote himself to this service. I have one in my
 
 576 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 eye, whom I wish to send above every other ; and as it is 
 of the utmost importance to me that he should be removed 
 for the present from Persia, and particularly from the pre- 
 sence of the Centre of the Universe, I require that you use 
 your best endeavours to persuade his acceptance of the 
 appointment." 
 
 I immediately felt assured that he could mean no other 
 than me, although I did not see what reason he could have 
 for removing me from the presence of the king ; and, elated 
 by so bright a prospect of sudden elevation to rank and 
 honours, I sprung towards him, and seizing his hand with 
 fervour to kiss, I exclaimed, " The least of your slaves will 
 always prove to be the most faithful of your servants ; speak, 
 and you will always find me ready, even to death." 
 
 "That is well spoken," said he, with great composure; 
 " and now listen to me. The man I allude to is Mirza Firouz." 
 (Here my countenance fell, and I drawled out in answer a 
 long "belli, yes.") "The truth is, I have lately discovered 
 that his influence with the Shah has been considerably upon 
 the increase. He possesses such great volubility of speech, 
 and such vast command of language, he flatters so intensely, 
 and lies so profoundly, that the king is more amused by 
 him than by any other man of his court. Who knows how 
 far he may go ? Besides, I am assured that secretly he is 
 my most bitter enemy, whilst openly he affects to be my most 
 devoted of servants ; and although to this day I have never 
 for a moment dreaded the hatred or the intrigues of any one, 
 yet I cannot but own, that, in this instance, I am not without 
 my fears. By sending him among the infidels, as the Shah's 
 representative, I at once cut off the source of my uneasi- 
 ness ; and once let him be gone, I will so arrange matters, 
 that even should he return successful from his mission 
 (which, please God, he never may !) he shall never acquire 
 the influence over the Shah which he is now attempting 
 to establish." 
 
 I agreed to all he said without hesitation ; and was losing 
 myself in the reflection how I could possibly turn this piece of
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 577 
 
 confidence to my own advantage, when the vizier accosted me 
 again, and said 
 
 " I have only let you into one part of my scheme : the 
 second object is, that you, Hajji, should accompany the am- 
 bassador in the capacity of his first mirza, or chief secretary. 
 You, who are my friend and confidant, who know all my 
 wishes, and who have an intimate knowledge of all that has 
 occurred since the arrival of the infidels, you are precisely the 
 man to fill this situation, and you will render me the greatest 
 of services by accepting my proposal." 
 
 However delighted I might have been at the prospect of 
 becoming the chief of an embassy, yet when I was offered the 
 inferior appointment, my feelings were very different. I felt 
 that, in quitting the situation I now enjoyed, I should leave 
 the high-road to preferment, to get into one of its crooked 
 lanes. Besides, I strongly participated in the national anti- 
 pathy, the horror of leaving one's country, and particularly 
 dreaded the idea of going to sea ; and when I came to reflect 
 that the country to which I was likely to be sent was unknown 
 land a land situated in eternal darkness, beyond the regions 
 of the sun, and whose inhabitants were an unclean and un- 
 believing race I drew back from the vizier's offer with the 
 
 o 
 
 fear of one who had the gulf of perdition placed before 
 him. 
 
 The answer I made to the prime minister was by a string 
 of cold assents, such as constantly hang on every Persian's 
 lips, whatever may be his real feelings. I said, " By my eyes ; 
 I am your servant ; my ear is in your hand ; whatever you 
 ordain I am bound to obey : " and then remained mute as 
 a stone. 
 
 The vizier easily discovered what passed within me, and 
 said, "If you dislike my offer, you are your own master, and 
 another may easily be found to accept it. I have your ad- 
 vantage in view as well as my own. In the first place, you 
 should immediately proceed to Ispahan, as the Shah's deputy, 
 to collect a considerable portion of the presents intended to be 
 sent by our court to the King of England, and which must be 
 
 2 o
 
 578 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 levied upon the inhabitants of that city. You would then have 
 an opportunity of enriching yourself." 
 
 I did not let the vizier proceed farther. The temptation 
 of returning to my native place in such a character, clothed 
 with such powers, was too great to be withstood, and, in a 
 very altered tone, I immediately exclaimed, with great 
 earnestness 
 
 " By the salt of your highness, by your death, and by the 
 beard of the Shah, I am ready to go. No other word need be 
 said, I will go wherever you command, were it even to fetch 
 the father of all the Franks from the inmost chambers of the 
 world below." 
 
 "Be it so," said the vizier, " and, as the first step towards 
 it, go at once to Mirza Firouz, flatter and assure him that he 
 is the only man in Persia fit to be sent upon such an embassy, 
 and persuade him of the advantages that will accrue to him. 
 Honour, riches, the good-will of the Shah, and my protection, 
 all will abound ; and at his return, God best knows to what 
 heights he may not ascend. Throw out hints that some other 
 man, some rival, whom you may discover, has been talked of 
 for the situation, and you will see how easily he will swallow 
 the bait. Go, and Allah be with you ! " 
 
 I left his presence scarcely knowing whether I soared in 
 the heavens, or trod on the earth. " What ! " said I to myself, 
 " shall I then attain the summit of all earthly happiness, 
 shall my long-past prognostics at length be fulfilled, and 
 shall I, indeed, enter my native place; clothed with the kalaat 
 of honour, armed with the hand of power, and mounted upon 
 the steed of splendour ? Let those who once scorned Hajji 
 Baba, the barber's son, now beware, for they will have to deal 
 with the Shah's deputy. Let those crowns which once sub- 
 mitted to my razor, now be prostrate, for he who can cut the 
 head off is at hand. Ye that have deprived me of my inheri- 
 tance tremble, for the power of making you restore it is 
 mine." 
 
 Indulging in such like feelings, I am aware that I strutted 
 along the street with a swell and dignity of manner which
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 579 
 
 must have surprised every one who saw me. I could think of 
 nothing save my approaching honours ; and my mind was 
 riveted by the one idea of seeing myself mounted on a finely- 
 caparisoned horse, adorned by a gold chain round its neck, 
 and a silver tassel under its throat, preceded by my led horses, 
 and by running footmen, and greeted by a deputation from 
 the governor of the city, to welcome my arrival in my native 
 place. 
 
 However, I proceeded to the house of Mirza Firouz, whom 
 I found prepared to converse on the subject of the embassy, 
 because it seems that the English elchi had already made 
 proposals to him to the same effect as those which the grand 
 vizier intended to make. Although I had attached myself 
 almost exclusively to the service of the prime minister, yet 
 I always persevered in my friendship with the intended 
 ambassador, who was very glad to hear that I was to accom- 
 pany him. We talked long upon our future plans, as well as 
 upon our past adventures, and when, roaring with laugh- 
 ter, he asked whether I should now endeavour to regain 
 possession of my faithless Shekerleb, I slipped away, not 
 over-pleased to have that event of my life recalled to my 
 recollection. 
 
 The next day, the Shah announced at the public audience 
 his intention of sending Mirza Firouz to England as his 
 representative, and the grand vizier ordered me to be in 
 readiness to proceed to Ispahan, as soon as the proper 
 firmans necessary to arm me with power should be prepared. 
 
 I will not tire the reader with a description of the 
 numerous deta'ils of my preparatives for this expedition. He 
 would sicken and I should blush at my vanity. It is sufficient 
 to say that I travelled to Ispahan with all the parade of a 
 man of consequence ; and that I entered my native city with 
 feelings that none but a Persian, bred and born in the crav- 
 ings of ambition, can understand. I found myself at the 
 summit, of what, in my eyes, was perfect human bliss. Mis- 
 fortune seemed to have taken its leave, and everything 
 informed me that a new chapter in the book of my life was
 
 580 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 
 
 about to open. Hajji Baba, the barber's son, entered his 
 native place, as Mirza Hajji Baba, the Shah's deputy. Need 
 I say more ? 
 
 A BOTTLE OF ANCIENT PERSIAN FAIENCE. 
 From the South Kensington Museum. 
 
 And here, gentle Reader ! the humble translator of the 
 Adventures of Hajji Baba presumes to address you, and pro- 
 fiting by the hint afforded him by the Persian story-tellers, 
 stops his narrative, makes his bow, and says, " Give me
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF HAJJI BABA 581 
 
 encouragement, and I will tell you more. You shall be 
 informed how Hajji Baba accompanied a great ambassador 
 to England, of their adventures by sea and land, of all he saw, 
 and all he remarked, and of what happened to him on his 
 return to Persia." But he begs to add, should he find, like 
 Hajji's friend the third dervish, he has not yet acquired the 
 art of leading on the attention of the curious, he will never 
 venture to appear again before the public until he has gained 
 the necessary experience to ensure success. And so he very 
 humbly takes his leave. 
 
 P. P.
 
 NOTES 
 
 THE PRONUNCIATION OF ACCENTED VOWELS. 
 
 d = ah. 
 
 e~ = e as in French. 
 
 i = ee 
 ft = oo 
 
 INTRODUCTORY EPISTLE 
 
 Fol. xia, 1. 1 6. Surujees. 
 
 The surujees are the grooms who accompany travellers riding post in 
 Turkey; they act as guides, and take the tired horses back to the last post-house. 
 They shout as they approach a post-house, in order to warn the horse-keepers 
 to prepare fresh animals for the traveller. 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 P. i, 1. 5. Brought him no offspring. 
 
 Sterility is the terror of all Oriental women; it is the most frequent 
 cause of polygamy and divorce in Persia. A large proportion of the patients 
 attending dispensaries and the consultations of the native physicians is 
 formed of childless women. A brisk trade is done, in charms and magic 
 philtres, by dervishes, Jews, and old women, with females of all ages who 
 have no offspring. 
 
 P. i, 1. 9. Second wife. 
 
 Polygamy is not very common among the lower and middle classes in 
 Persia : even a second wife is seldom taken by them, save when the first 
 wife proves childless, and affection, or interest, renders divorcing her in- 
 expedient. There is great facility in obtaining divorces ; the permanence 
 of the marriage tie is only secured by the settlements and the woman's 
 marriage portion, which latter has to be refunded when she is divorced for 
 any other reason than adultery. 
 
 P. 3, 1. i. Read and write. 
 
 Education, though not compulsory, is general in Persia. Boys in towns 
 and villages are taught to read the Koran in Arabic, without understanding 
 its meaning, to recite a little poetry, to write Persian (in Persia caligraphy 
 is an art a single line by a celebrated penman is at once bought up by 
 enthusiastic amateurs), and to do sums in simple arithmetic ; the fees paid 
 to the schoolmaster being from sixpence to a shilling a month. All the 
 
 583
 
 584 NOTES 
 
 pupils read the Koran in chorus, parrot-wise ; the noise is deafening. Of 
 this, and no more, consists primary education in Persia. The bastinado, 
 well laid on by his fellow-pupils, is the punishment of idleness ; insubordina- 
 tion is unknown. From the roof of the schoolroom, generally, hangs a pulley, 
 from which depends a noose ; when a boy is troublesome, one foot and one 
 wrist are placed in the noose, and he is hoisted, perhaps for half-an-hour. 
 This is looked on as a mild punishment, a sort of substitute for our " stand- 
 ing on the form." 
 
 P. $.The Poet Saadi. 
 
 This portrait and the portrait of Hafiz, given on p. 62, are in a building 
 close to the tomb of Hafiz, called the Haftan, in the environs of Shiraz. 
 They have been figured by Ansely and Johnson. 
 
 P. 3, last line. Shampooing. 
 
 " Taking thus their ease, they often call their Barbers, who tenderly gripe 
 and smite their Armes and other parts of their bodies instead of exercise to 
 stir the bloud. It is a pleasing wantonnesse, and much valued in these hot 
 climes" (Terry, 1616). Of late years the art of shampooing (or a feeble 
 imitation of it, upon quasi-scientific principles), under the name of " massage," 
 has been introduced into this country. There is an interesting treatise on 
 '' Massage," by Dr. W. Murrell, in which the subject is treated exhaustively. 
 Shampooing as an art is, however, better understood in Persia than in 
 Europe. As a means of producing sleep, or relief from pain or fatigue, 
 combined with a distinct sense of pleasure, shampooing, well performed, is 
 extremely valuable. Adepts in the art command and deserve high fees. 
 One old lady who "got the late Shah off" for his daily siesta, by scientifically 
 drumming with her fists on his limbs, was a valued servant, and drew a large 
 annual stipend. Shampooing, as practised in Persia, is always a pleasure to 
 the patient. The editor once went to the best of our London Turkish baths, 
 and was shampooed very roughly by an attendant, who happened to be a 
 Persian. On this, the man was, to his astonishment, remonstrated with in 
 his own language. " Sahib," cried the shampooer. " the English gentlemen 
 like to be knocked about. If I don't knock them about, there is no present 
 for me " ( Verb. sap.). After a good shampooing in the bath, all sense of 
 fatigue vanishes. The writer has had occasion to frequently ride two or 
 three hundred miles post, keeping up a speed of eight miles an hour, over 
 the worst of mule tracks, and riding day and night, without halt, save to 
 change horses ; he has then taken a Persian bath, and been artistically 
 shampooed, when all sense of lassitude has, as though by magic, at once 
 disappeared, and been replaced by a feeling of exhilaration and well-being. 
 
 P. 5, 1. 5. Quotations from Saadi, Hafiz, &c. 
 
 Poetry is appreciated by all classes in Persia ; the most ignorant being 
 able to rattle off long quotations from their favourite Saadi, whose wisdom 
 forms the mainspring of the philosophy of the Persians. The habit of lying 
 is justified by the well-known maxim of the poet, " Better is a lie which 
 is expedient than the truth which causes sorrow." It is a common thing 
 to see knots of travellers, muleteers, soldiers, or servants gathered round one
 
 NOTES 585 
 
 of their number who is reading or reciting the sonorous verses of the Shah 
 Nameh of Firdausi ; and the mythological legends of this author are as 
 household words. Professional reciters of poetry are common, and many 
 dervishes gain a good living by their phenomenal memories; while the 
 endless tales of the Eastern improvisatori are freely interlarded with in- 
 numerable quotations from poets, both ancient and modern. Most educated 
 men in Persia have at some time or other written verses, and local poetasters 
 are continually met with. The composition of satirical poems and songs, 
 generally very scurrilous, and their adaptation to popular tunes, is a recog- 
 nised trade ; and in Persia the lampooner thrives. 
 
 P. 6, 1. 6. Toivards the door. 
 
 The Persians are extremely superstitious, and are continually endeavour- 
 ing to propitiate fortune by such curious expedients as the one described in 
 the text. No Persian makes a bargain or transacts business without taking 
 a preliminary omen (fal\ by means of the Sortes Hafizianae ; and the sick 
 Persian chooses his physician by lot, taking the prescription or not after 
 consulting the Fates by means of the rosary which every man of full age 
 carries in his pocket. He takes a bead haphazard, and passing the rest 
 through his fingers, until he reaches the big one at the end, he mutters : 
 " Good," " Doubtful," " Bad," alternately. The final bead is decisive. If he 
 is not satisfied with the result, or it dashes with his inclinations, he repeats the 
 process! Astrologers drive a brisk trade, and the Monajem-bashi (chief 
 astrologer) is a grandee, from whose decisions there is no appeal. These 
 astrologers work with astrolabes, some very fine and ancient specimens of 
 which have been secured by the South Kensington Museum. The dervish 
 at the tomb of Hafiz is occupied all the year round in the giving of omens from 
 the works of the dead poet. A fee is paid, varying according to the rank 
 and wealth of the inquirer ; then the dervish, taking the mystic volume be- 
 tween his palms, mutters an invocation, and opens the volume, apparently 
 haphazard ; then he reads a few lines, from which a favourable, doubtful or 
 unfavourable omen is at once deduced. It may be added that the dervish, 
 having his Hafiz by heart, generally gives a most apposite fal (omen), 
 and one suited to the inquirer's inclinations. He then usually closes the 
 book with a snap, not having in fact read his omen, but in reality merely 
 declaimed one from memory. 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 P. 7, 1. 9. Ablutions. 
 
 One of the reputed sayings of Mahomed is that "the practice of 
 religion is founded on cleanliness." Purification among Moslems is a 
 necessary part of prayer. Ablutions are by total immersion, or by cere- 
 monial washings of the hands and feet ; these latter ablutions always precede 
 prayer. The rival sects of Shiahs (the Persians) and SQnis (Arabs, and the 
 majority of the Moslems) have different modes of performing their lustra- 
 tions. In a hot country these compulsory washings are of the greatest 
 value from a sanitary point of view. Whatever his failings may be, a
 
 5 86 NOTES 
 
 Mahomedan is of necessity a cleanly person, holding that " without cleanli- 
 ness there is no godliness." Every mosque, and most houses, are provided 
 with a tank of water for the purpose of the ablutions which form a part 
 of the Moslem's religion, and he cannot pray without washing, while, to 
 him, without prayer there is no religion. 
 
 P. 8, 1. 5. Drank wine. 
 
 Drunkenness is common among the servant, courtier, and military 
 classes ; it is seldom, however, indulged in by the trading community or 
 the villagers, and is peculiarly a vice of the large towns. Great precautions 
 are taken by the Persian kosh guzeran, or " free livers," to keep their 
 potations secret. They meet at each other's houses, and, previous to a long 
 and ceremonious dinner, will drink deeply of wine, arrack, or brandy, which 
 latter is, from its potency, the favourite beverage. A Persian is never a 
 tippler ; he is fond of a systematic bout, when he drinks till he drops. Many 
 very great personages cause a large quantity of wine and arrack to be openly 
 manufactured for them, in their own houses, by the Jews and Armenians. 
 Officials living in Shiraz, where the best wine is made, are expected to send 
 annual presents of several mule-loads of wine to the heads of their depart- 
 ments in Teheran; and a tax of two kerans (is. 6d.) is exacted upon each 
 load of grapes for wine-making at the town gates. Drunken soldiers and 
 ferashes are a common sight in the large towns, and a large proportion of 
 the murders and assaults committed arise from drunkenness. Most of the 
 Julfa Armenians sell wine and arrack with impunity, and the Gurbres and 
 Jews throughout Persia invariably deal in it. 
 
 P. 8, 1. 10. Ambling. 
 
 Ambling mules, horses, and asses command a high price throughout the 
 East. The long marches, from twenty to forty miles a day, which are made 
 in caravan travelling, are rendered far less fatiguing when performed on an 
 ambling horse or mule. Some of the perfect ambling mules, ridden by 
 wealthy merchants or priests (who seldom ride horses), cost as much as 
 ;8o, and, cceteris paribus, an ambling mule is always worth more than a 
 horse. The animals are taught to amble by attaching the off fore-leg to 
 the near hind one, and vice versa. Several months of careful training are 
 needed to produce a good ambler, and the animal's education must com- 
 mence when he is first broken. White asses, which can amble eight miles 
 an hour, fetch, when of large size, from twenty to thirty pounds, and are 
 much used by ladies, priests, and men of law. 
 
 [P. 8, 1. 21. Turban. 
 
 The turban is the distinctive head-dress of priests, mirzas, lawyers, physicans, 
 and merchants ; and descendants of the Prophet (Syuds) wear turbans of a 
 dark green approaching black, while the Shushter people all wear black 
 turbans. A thin, embroidered, white skullcap, frequently changed, is worn 
 under a pointed cap of chintz, cloth, or shawl ; and over this is wound the 
 turban proper, consisting of from two to five yards of shawl, white cotton-cloth, 
 or muslin, plain or embroidered. The winding of the turban is an art, and
 
 NOTES 587 
 
 there are many fashions of winding it. "In books written upon the subject in 
 Eastern languages, it is said that there are no fewer than a thousand methods 
 of binding the turban" (Hugh, "Dictionaryof Islam"). Oncewound it is seldom 
 unfastened till it requires washing. The great thickness of the turban provides 
 the best possible protection to the shaven scalp of the Oriental. In the house 
 only, and in the family circle, is the turban removed ; and it is always treated 
 with respect for instance, when a man is to be bastinadoed, his turban is first 
 carefully removed; while to strike off a turban is a deadly insult to its wearer, 
 and a criminal act. The turban is termed the " Crown of Islam." Among 
 the lower classes a cloth is frequently bound tightly round the felt skull- 
 cap commonly worn ; this is in no sense a turban. The turban is also the 
 outward and visible sign of respectability, and is worn much in the same 
 proportion to other headgear as wearing of the tall hat in England bears 
 to that of low hats and caps. In doors, or out of doors, save when bathing, 
 a Persian is never seen bareheaded. 
 
 P. 9, 1. 13. Chaoushes. 
 
 It is from this word that the cant word " chouse " = to cheat, is derived 
 (Massinger, "chiaus"). It dates from 1609 with us. For the story, see 
 " English Past and Present" (Trench). 
 
 P. 14, 1. 15. Gave himself out as an emir. 
 
 The Syuds, or soi-disant descendants of the Prophet, are very numerous 
 in Persia, and exact and receive a considerable amount of respect. Even 
 the poorest Syud is invariably addressed as Aga (Lord), and takes precedence 
 of his social equals. Syuds invariably wear a turban of a dark green or blue 
 colour approaching black, and a similarly-coloured girdle. These distinctive 
 coloured garments are forbidden to other than descendants of the Prophet, 
 but are often assumed by beggars and vagrants who have quitted their native 
 places, and so escape detection. As a rule Syuds are more fanatical than 
 other Persians, and assume a woe-begone countenance. They mostly practise 
 their religion according to the letter of the Mahomedan law, and they occupy 
 a position in Persia very similar to that arrogated by the Pharisees amongst 
 the Jews of old, priding themselves on being not as other men. Some Syuds 
 are really able to prove their descent, and some members of their families 
 often retain the characteristic features of the family of the Prophet. A 
 mendicant Syud seldom begs in vain ; and the offences, and even crimes, of 
 the race are generally either condoned altogether, or if punished, justice 
 is very largely tempered with mercy, e.g., a Syud usually escapes the 
 bastinado ; though this is not always the case. The Muschir-ul-Molk 
 (late collector of the revenues of the province of Fars), though a Syud, 
 was severely bastinadoed (by Khosro Mirza the Motummad-ul-Molk, the 
 king's uncle, and governor of the province) in 1880, when he was over seventy 
 years of age. 
 
 P. 15, 1. i. Talismans and spells. 
 
 The Persians have great faith in charms, which are principally against the 
 evil eye. It is unusual to see a child of tender years without a charm, which
 
 5 88 NOTES 
 
 is generally enclosed in a triangular case of green silk bound to its cap. A 
 similar charm is slung round the neck of horses. A bead or button of 
 porcelain of a turquoise- blue colour is usually worn by women and children 
 as a talisman, and woven into the long tails of the horses. Charms of all 
 kinds are furnished by priests, saints, and dervishes, and are usually carried 
 in a bazu-band or armlet, which is provided with one or more tubes of gold or 
 silver to contain the charm, or charms. This usually consists of the names of 
 God, or invocations to the prophet, or of letters roughly scrawled within a 
 pentagon ; as often as not, it is a mere scribble of meaningless letters. During 
 one of the cholera epidemics the editor visited the high-priest of Shiraz, whose 
 daughter was a patient of his. The old man, surrounded by a considerable 
 crowd, was writing charms against the cholera, which he disposed of (for a 
 consideration) as fast as he wrote them. Out of curiosity the visitor asked 
 for one (it was a mere scribble of meaningless detached letters). Carefully 
 folding it, he placed it inside his watch-case, and was assured that if attacked 
 by cholera he had only to swallow it to ensure an immediate cure. The next 
 day the high-priest called on him, and insisted on presenting him with two 
 sheep and thirty pounds of sugar-candy. The high-priest stated that he was 
 selling charms as fast as he could write them. "You see, you might have 
 laughed at my beard ; you did not. I am grateful. But if I could say you 
 had eaten my charm, ah then." "Well, say so, if you like." And so the 
 interview ended. Time was in Persia when the carrying of a miniature 
 Koran, generally in a gold or silver or metal case, was almost universal. This 
 was, and is, considered the most powerful of all charms. Pilgrims and 
 travellers still observe the custom in secret. In these latter days the miniature 
 Koran cases are used by irreligious fops to contain cigarettes ! 
 
 P. 15, last line. Stripped him. 
 
 An exactly similar experience befell the editor, in Southern Persia, during 
 the famine years. He was waylaid, stripped, carried off into the desert, and 
 had to value his own kit ; but was fortunately rescued by a troop of cavalry, 
 after spending twelve hours with Bakhtiari brigands. 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 P. 21, 1. i. Kissed the knee. 
 
 Kissing the knee, the hand, and the hem of the garment is usual among 
 Orientals, on leaving or entering service. On a European's leaving Persia, 
 his servants will howl in chorus and shed floods of tears as a duty. 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 P. 23, 1. IT,. Emir. 
 Emir a descendant of the Prophet.
 
 NOTES 589 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 P. 27, 1. 28. In training. 
 
 The training of horses in Persia is peculiar. The horse is first thoroughly 
 purged. He is then walked about daily for many hours, and his allowance 
 of water gradually reduced. The animal is never permitted to sleep. He is 
 fed on barley, a very small quantity of water-melon rind, and a little cut chaff. 
 The result of this strange discipline is that the horse is in hard condition in a 
 month, and can travel for many hours without water. The Turcoman horse, 
 which is noted for its long stride and endurance, will travel a hundred miles 
 a day for several days when in hard training, keeping on for many hours at a 
 stretch at a gentle canter. 
 
 P. 30, 1. 29. Ruins. 
 
 About three-fourths of the entire city of Ispahan, the ancient capital of 
 Persia, consists of ruins. Vast bazaars of brickwork, the doors and windows 
 still remaining in the upper stories, ruined mosques, colleges, and silent 
 streets, testify to its former grandeur ; and so dry is the climate that walls built 
 of mud bricks (sun-dried) which are three hundred years old still stand. The 
 general cause of the disappearance of an ancient building in Ispahan is that 
 its bricks are required for some new building ; and one old brick is worth 
 two new ones, being both harder and larger. It is very easy to lose oneself 
 in the ruins of the city of Ispahan. 
 
 P. 31, 1. 23. Present. 
 
 A present is throughout the, East invariably given to the bearer of good 
 
 news. 
 
 P. 33, 1. i6.Roof. 
 
 The roof of the caravanserai, being reached by a narrow passage, is a 
 safe coign of vantage. The police throughout Persia are not conspicuous 
 for bravery. 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 P. 36, 1. i. Dress of honour. 
 
 A kalaat or " dress of honour " is the invariable reward of good service 
 in Persia. It may consist of a cloak or coat of Cashmere shawl lined with 
 sables, a sword of honour, a decoration, or a jewelled staff of office ; or of a 
 bit of cotton cloth for a girdle, the price of a suit of clothes, or a few pence, 
 according to the positions of the giver and the recipient. A provincial 
 governor, or a minister, receives at the new year a " dress of honour " as a 
 token of the royal confidence. As often as not the kalaat is a cast-off garment 
 of the donor's. A royal kalaat is received with much ceremony the pro- 
 vincial governor and his court, with the principal inhabitants of the city, go
 
 59 o NOTES 
 
 out in formal procession to meet the "dress of honour." The bazaars are 
 closed by order, a general holiday being decreed. When the dress of honour 
 is endued, which ceremony usually takes place in some public garden, after 
 the reading of the royal firman conferring it, a salute of cannon is fired, 
 bottles of sweets are broken, and a cow or ox is decapitated by the Jews on 
 the high-road, while at night a general illumination of the bazaars takes place 
 by order. The governor usually gives a grand display of fireworks in the 
 maidan, or public square, and often releases a few criminals. The reception 
 of the official dress of honour by a provincial governor denotes that his 
 presents (bribes) are accepted, and that he will be continued in office for 
 another year. As often as not the " dress of honour " consists of a Cashmere 
 shawl, and is at once converted into coin. 
 
 P- 39 ! 5- Tongue out. 
 
 Cutting out the tongue is a judicial punishment in Persia. As a rule 
 the victim survives the operation, and, if the tongue be thoroughly removed, 
 he is after some time able to articulate, and to make himself understood ; 
 this is not the case if only a portion of the organ has been taken away. 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 P. 41, 1. 9. Aga Mohammed Shah. 
 
 This ferocious monster, having captured a rebellious city, ordered that 
 a thousand pair of human eyes should be brought him. The eyes were 
 handed to him upon a golden salver, by his chief executioner, a nobleman 
 of position. "If there be but one short," said the Shah, "I shall know 
 from whom to make up the number." He then proceeded to count the 
 eyes with the point of his dagger ; the tale was correct. 
 
 P. 42, 1. i. His eyes. 
 
 Removal of the eyes is a punishment usually reserved for political 
 offenders, rebels, and pretenders to the throne. As a rule one or both 
 eyeballs are extirpated ; sometimes, however, a red-hot sword blade is 
 placed close to the eyes. By Persian law a blind man cannot reign. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 P. 47, 1. 7. Parasang. 
 
 A parasang or farsakh is a vague distance varying from two and a half to 
 four miles, according to the part of Persia. The actual farsakh is 3^ miles : 
 it represents the hour's journey of a loaded mule, when not pressed. The 
 parasang of Xenophon was thirty Greek stadia, or 3 miles 787 yards r foot 
 6 inches.
 
 NOTES 59 i 
 
 P. 48, 1. 2. Led horses. 
 See note to Chapter xxxiii., page 220, 1. 33. 
 
 P. 49, 1. 3. Shahzadeh. 
 
 Princes are now very numerous in Persia. The son of a prince is also 
 a prince ; and when it is remembered that Futteh Ali Shah had seventy-two 
 sons, many of whom had issue, it is easy to understand that princes are 
 numerous, and frequently very poor. 
 
 P. 50, 1. 23. Ali Katir. 
 
 This is the first of the " label " names used throughout the book by 
 Morier. In his time their use was general, and they saved an immense 
 amount of so-called descriptive matter. Ali "Katir" signifies Ali "the 
 mule." "Label" names are in the present day unfashionable. Morier 
 had a good precedent for the system in the " Pilgrim's Progress " of Bunyan. 
 These " label " names are, on their first occurrence, invariably translated in 
 a note in the present edition. 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 P. 59, 1. 10. Tobacco. 
 
 " Without doubt the Hookah is a most pleasing Companion, whether to 
 the Wayworn Traveller or to the solitary Hermit. It is a Friend in whose 
 Bosom we may repose our most confidential Secrets ; and a Counsellor upon 
 whose advice we may rely in our most important Concerns. It is an elegant 
 Ornament in our private Apartments ; it gives joy to the Beholder in our 
 public Halls. The music of its sound puts the warbling of the Nightingale 
 to Shame, and the Fragrance of its Perfume brings a Blush on the Cheek of 
 the Rose. Life in short is prolonged by the Fumes inhaled at each inspira- 
 tion, whilst every expiration of them is accompanied with ecstatic delight." 
 From a Persian author of the seventeenth century. 
 
 P. 60, 1. 5. Circle of dervishes. 
 
 Dervishes are defined as religious mendicants. In Persia dervishes are 
 not much troubled with religion, being generally Sufis, or freethinkers. They 
 are under a vow of poverty, and abstain from any kind of work. As a rule 
 they let their hair grow wild, and obtain a weird and striking appearance by 
 an eccentric dress, strange weapons, or absolute nudity. Often a dervish's 
 stock-in-trade, is a peculiar cry which he repeats continually. The writer 
 met a particularly holy dervish, who was known as Ali Oh. This man's 
 expenses on the pilgrimages to Meshed and even to Mecca were paid by the 
 Shah, upon a very liberal scale, and he was accustomed to visit the principal 
 cities of Persia to collect alms. Provincial governors and grandees were
 
 592 NOTES 
 
 delighted to treat him as an honoured guest. Seated on a camel, he un- 
 ceasingly rolled a bare bald head, crying, " Ali Oh ! Ali Oh ! " Whenever he 
 appeared, he was always accompanied by an immense crowd. Many dervishes 
 are bareheaded ; others wear the tall conical tiara of felt, embroidered in 
 coloured silks with pious ejaculations and texts from the Koran. Almost 
 invariably the dervish carries an elaborately-carved calabash, which is his 
 wallet, drinking-cup, and alms-box combined ; it consists of the half-shell of 
 the coco-de-mer (the so-called double cocoa-nut). A panther or leopard skin 
 serves the dervish for cloak, bed, and carpet ; while necklaces of beads, and 
 a huge club, a double-bladed battle-axe, or an iron mace with a bull's head 
 top, completes his equipment. The dervishes live upon the hospitality and 
 superstition of their countrymen. As a rule a small alms, or free commons 
 and lodging, is never refused to the dervish. 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 P. 63, 1. 6. Luti Bashi. 
 
 The office of Luti Bashi is generally a permanent and profitable one ; it is 
 as a rule given to some celebrated buffoon, and not infrequently descends 
 from father to son. The Luti Bashi is usually a skilled juggler, singer, or 
 musician, and also what is termed a " good all round " man. He is clever in 
 the training of animals, lions, bears, and monkeys, and teaches the saltatory 
 art and rope-dancing to several apprentices. No large entertainment can be 
 held without securing his services, and he is ready to supply a troupe of 
 singers, jugglers, musicians, dancers, and acrobats at a moment's notice. 
 He and his dependents are particularly in request at marriages and circum- 
 cisions. He is a government official, drawing a small salary, and is in no 
 way looked down upon or despised. He is always a man of some education. 
 He is responsible for all the lutis in the town, and, strange to say, though the 
 word luti (buffoon) is equivalent to blackguard, yet as a class the lutis are 
 not less honest than the rest of the world in Persia. 
 
 P. 63, 1. 19. Camel artillery. 
 
 Camel artillery (zambureK) (zambur = a. wasp) still exists in Persia, though 
 nowadays it is more one of the paraphernalia of royalty than an arm of the 
 military service. The guns are very small howitzers, borne on the backs of 
 particularly fine camels, clothed in scarlet housings. These little guns can 
 be fired from the animals' backs. They are now used for the firing of salutes. 
 Formerly the camel artillery was of great importance, as being able to pro- 
 ceed whither it would be almost impossible to drag an ordinary gun-carriage. 
 The Zamburekchi-Bashi, or chief of the camel-artillery, was and is an impor- 
 tant personage. 
 
 P. 65, 1. 20. Bideen. 
 Dervish Bideen = The dervish without (any) religion.
 
 NOTES 593 
 
 P. 65, 1. 31. Spells and charms. 
 
 Spells, charms, and philtres, and the employment of inert substances, 
 under the supposition that they are potent remedies, are universal though- 
 out the East. The native physicians are in the habit of prescribing remedies 
 which are indeed strange, and often disgusting. These are often ordered to 
 benefit the druggist, with whom there is a secret partnership ; but not- in- 
 frequently their efficacy is thoroughly believed in by the native doctor, and 
 their use is of high antiquity, dating back even to Avicenna and the Arabian 
 physicians of the Middle Ages. Serpent's dung, the urine of the bear, lion, 
 and tiger appear continually in the prescriptions of the Persian physician of the 
 present day. Pills of pounded rubies or pearls are ordered (Jor the wealthy), 
 bezoar stones powdered are still used in cases of poisoning. When the 
 apothecary has not the drug demanded, he is always ready with a succe- 
 daneum. One of these ingenious druggists was asked for so many miscals 
 of bear's milk ; he went into a neighbouring garden, and obtained the required 
 weight of milk from a goat. ' How can this be bear's milk ? " cried the 
 customer, placing his hand on the bottle; "it is yet warm." "We keep a 
 female bear on the premises," was the prompt reply of the unabashed apothe- 
 cary. To place a patient in a hotbed of fresh horse-manure, to sew him up 
 in a freshly-flayed cowhide, to apply fowls or pigeons split, or a lamb just 
 killed, to his feet, when he is in extremis, are every-day occurrences. The 
 medicine and surgery seen in Persia is that practised in Europe four cen- 
 turies ago, while the belief in the elixir of life is still almost universal. It 
 must be remembered that the Dervish Sefer firmly believed in the power of 
 the charms he so graphically described. 
 
 P. 69, 1. 30. Appear as a prophet. 
 
 Religious impostors are continually appearing in Persia. Some, to whom 
 this designation may have been too indiscriminately applied, have had a sad 
 and eventful history, and have proved themselves honest and courageous, 
 if mistaken zealots. For instance, while Morier was writing " Hajji Baba," 
 Syud Mahommed Ali, the founder of the Babi sect, was born at Shiraz. 
 He commenced as a dervish of no particular sanctity, and was im- 
 prisoned as an impostor by the Turks, when he declared himself a prophet. 
 He was released and sent to Shiraz, but notwithstanding his escape he 
 persisted in his promulgation of a new religion, the principal tenets of 
 which are said by the orthodox to be freethinking, community of property, 
 polygamy, and polyandry. The man was very eloquent and plausible, 
 and also had the advantages of a good education. His dangerous doctrines 
 were grateful to numerous proselytes, and fearing a general insurrection, 
 Syud Mahommed Ali, now known as The Bab, was executed at Tabriz. 
 He very nearly escaped, no bullet of the firing-party having struck him. He 
 fled, but was brought back, despatched, and his body flung into the town 
 ditch. After the death of the Bab, the tenets of the new religion were secretly 
 preached all over Persia by his disciples; and, after an attempt of four 
 Babis upon the life of the Shah, a furious persecution took place. Entire 
 cities were held by the Babis, and reduced with great difficulty, notably 
 Zinjan, a portion of which stood a regular siege by the royal forces for several 
 
 2 P
 
 594 NOTES 
 
 months. The Babis fought to the last, and in the end a general massacre 
 of them took place. Several executions for alleged Babiism have taken 
 place during the experience of the writer of this note. In 1880 two out of 
 three brothers, wealthy Syuds, were executed by the Zil-es-Sultan, at Ispahan, 
 and their property confiscated. These men certainly were Babis ; but it was 
 the fact of the Imam-i-Juma of Ispahan owing them ^7000, and their 
 wealth, that cost them their lives. No Ba"bi will curse his prophet, though 
 his death by torture is the alternative ; thus these people, when executed, are 
 always laivfully put to death. Was the assassin of the late Shah Nussir-u-deen 
 a Bdbi ? 
 
 P. 70, 1. 14. The wind. 
 
 A similar strong wind, blowing for a long period in the same direction, 
 was encountered by the writer of this note at Kasvin, in North Persia. (" In 
 the Land of the Lion and Sun," p. 392.) 
 
 P. 70, 1. 1 8. Eshek Mirza. 
 A label name = Mr. Donkey. 
 
 P. 70, 1. 1 8. Coffin to the grave. 
 
 To assist in carrying the coffin of any Mussulman is accounted an act of 
 piety. The Prince of Herat would be anxious to have the honour of being 
 the bearer of a reputed saint. The mausoleum would follow as a matter of 
 course, and the pilgrimages (often merely the excuse for a picnic among 
 women) would increase or decrease with the supposed activity of the 
 deceased prophet, now a Pir or saint. Pilgrimage, one of the first duties of 
 the Moslem, is never neglected by the Persian. It is the hope of every man 
 and woman in Persia some day to accomplish a visit to the shrines of Kom, 
 Meshed, Karbela, Koomisha, or the great pilgrimage to Mecca. 
 
 P. 73, 1. 23. Long glass tube. 
 
 This kind of elongated funnel has been used in the East as a clyster-pipe 
 from time immemorial. 
 
 P. 76. After foot-note. 
 
 The editor has actually seen a bill sent in to a European : " To fifteen 
 hairs from the beard of Rejeb. Its equivalent being fifteen camels, at 
 seventy kerans=io5o kerans (42). Please pay bearer. (Seal of high- 
 priest.)" 
 
 P. 78, 1. 5. Hezar Man. 
 The name Hezar Mun means 14,000 Ibs., the weight of the ogre.
 
 NOTES 595 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 P. 83, 1. 2. Remedies to apply. 
 
 The universal remedy for a bastinadoing in Persia is a poultice of the 
 raw yolks of eggs, which is not removed for many days. 
 
 P- 8 3, 1- 34- Muleteer. 
 
 The muleteers are the most honest and hard-working class in Persia. 
 Owing to the almost entire absence of roads, there is very little traffic by wheeled 
 vehicles, and nearly the whole of the imports and exports are conveyed on 
 the backs of mules or horses. Thus it is that his trade flourishes, and the 
 honesty of the muleteer is proverbial. The muleteers are a merry set of 
 fellows, and religious withal. They in the course of their daily business 
 undergo great privations, walking long stages of from twenty to thirty miles, 
 which are often mere tracks running over mountain passes, frequently rendered 
 impassable by snow, or through morasses, and across streams which are 
 hardly fordable. These men patiently attend to their animals, in which they 
 take a natural pride, and are extremely skilful in loading and regulating their 
 burdens. They are the only really virtuous class in Persia, and are every- 
 where liked and trusted. The muleteers of Persia form a sort of guild ; their 
 apprentices are usually recruited from among their own relatives ; and their 
 homes, which they frequently are unable to visit for several years, are often 
 villages whose inhabitants consist entirely of men of their own trade. A 
 muleteer not infrequently dies wealthy, as the proprietor of several strings of 
 valuable animals, the natural result of his honesty and thrift. 
 
 P. 85, 1. 4. Nargil. 
 
 Literally a cocoa-nut. This particular kind of kalyan or water-pipe has 
 its reservoir either formed of a carved cocoa-nut, or it is like it in shape. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 P. 87, 1. 24. Ramazan. 
 
 The month of Ramazan is the great fast of the Persians. No food, water, 
 or smoke may be taken from sunrise to sunset. It is rigorously observed by 
 the great majority of the adults, the sick, the very aged, children, and travellers 
 being alone exempt. Many of the more religiously inclined voluntarily add 
 a few days to their fast. In a hot country the deprivation of water (parti- 
 cularly if Ramazan happens to fall in the summer) is a very serious matter. 
 To ameliorate the rigours of the general fast, the Persians sleep through the 
 greater portion of the day, while business is almost at a complete standstill, 
 the government offices being practically closed, and the bazaars open for only 
 a few hours in the day. A gun is fired at sunrise to announce the beginning 
 of the fast ; and crowds, pipe in hand, anxiously await the sound of the
 
 596 NOTES 
 
 evening gun, which tells them that they may enjoy their tobacco. In half 
 an hour every one sits down to a heavy meal, and the night is devoted to 
 feasting, story-telling, and amusement ; many entertainments being given 
 during this month, at which the guests remain all night. Just before the 
 morning gun, every one takes a final draught of water, and retires to rest. 
 A zealous Mussulman during this month will not swallow his own saliva, and 
 bigots when riding will wrap a handkerchief over their mouths and noses, 
 lest they should break their fast by swallowing dust or invisible animalcules. 
 Of course in Meshed (a holy place) the Dervish Sefer, if detected in breaking 
 his fast, even by smoking, would have been subjected to the discipline of the 
 taziana (or cat-o'-nine-tails) by the mollahs. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 P. 95, 1. 36. Gun on the full gallop. 
 
 The Persians, though seldom attempting to shoot a bird on the wing, are 
 good shots at a mark, and excel in firing from the saddle. They are exces- 
 sively fond of practising this, and will slue round while at full gallop, and fire 
 at a mark which is straight behind the horse, and not infrequently hit it. 
 Antelopes are nearly always shot from the saddle, there being so little cover 
 that it is impossible to stalk them. The writer has frequently seen partridges 
 and hares thus shot from the saddle, the horse being at full gallop. The 
 thing is a mere trick, and much easier than it looks. 
 
 P. 96, 1. 12. 
 Johur = The Jewel. 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 P. 101, 1. 7. 
 Khur AH Mirza = Prince Ali the Ass. 
 
 P. 101, 1. 9. Fiizul. 
 Mirza Fuzul = Mr. Empty-headed talker. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 P. 101, 1. 30. Obscure as my own. 
 
 Mirza Taki, commander-in-chief, was the son of a cook ; the late Shah, 
 Nussir-u-deen, made him his prime minister, and gave him his own sister in 
 marriage. After three years (in 1851) he was dismissed, through the all- 
 powerful influence of the queen-mother, and shortly afterwards executed (the
 
 NOTES 597 
 
 veins of his arms were opened in the bath and he was then smothered) by 
 the Shah's order. His daughter was afterwards married to the Shah's eldest 
 son, to secure her father's wealth to the royal family. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 P. 1 06, 1. 27. Price of red cloth. 
 
 In Persia the customer always purchases the material of his garments, 
 which are then cut out and made up by a tailor, or by the ladies of his family. 
 
 P. no, 1. 3. Dyeing. 
 
 The hair, beard, and moustache are almost invariably dyed in Persia. A 
 thick paste of henna and vinegar (or lemon juice) is made, which is applied 
 to the hair for two or more hours ; this produces a deep red or auburn. This 
 is usually the colour chosen by women and villagers ; but the men of the towns 
 usually prefer a glossy black, which is produced by subsequently applying a 
 paste of indigo. This dye lasts for a month or six weeks. When a Persian 
 is sick or in mourning, he ceases to dye, and a curious parti-coloured beard is 
 the result. Grey hairs among the town's people are very seldom seen (save 
 among the very poor, the Armenians, and Jews, who do not usually dye their 
 beards). Very old men, from this custom, have as a rule long glossy black 
 beards and moustaches ; the curious result is that, in towns, there seem to be 
 no old men among the upper and middle classes. 
 
 P. no, 1. 4. Depilatory. 
 
 Hair growing upon the nates and in the armpits is always removed by a 
 depilatory, made of a paste of quicklime and arsenic. 
 
 P. no, 1. 32. Looking-glass. 
 
 See Illustration, p. 109. The peculiar perspective of the Persian artist 
 should be noted in the drawing of the looking-glass. The artist declared that 
 his perspective was correct, and made an elaborate diagram to explain this. 
 Persian artists are satisfied that European ideas upon this matter are al- 
 together wrong ; several other instances of this pecularity may be seen in 
 the native drawings illustrating this book. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 P. in, 1. 24. In the very clothes. 
 
 This is always done in the East, its object being to show that so anxious 
 is the person summoned to obey, that he does not stop to change his garments.
 
 598 NOTES 
 
 P. 112, 1. 21. House and effects. 
 
 The Shah is the owner of all property in Persia, and the heir of all intes- 
 tates. Every man possesses his property subject to the permission of the Shah. 
 
 P. 113, 1. 1 8, Mirza Ahmak. 
 Mirza Ahmak = Mr. Fool. 
 
 P. 114, 1. 6. Even the dog or the cat. 
 
 The philosophy of love me, love my dog, &c., here expressed, was 
 curiously exhibited in the reign of the late Nussir-u-deen Shah. One of the 
 Shah's favourite cats went to sleep upon the Cashmerian shawl coat-tails of a 
 courtier ; rather than awaken the king's cat, the courtier, drawing the scissors 
 from his pen-case, cut away his coat-tail and was rewarded with a large 
 gratuity by the delighted king. 
 
 P. 115, 1. 1 6. Khelwet. 
 
 The house of a person of means in Persia is divided into the berun or 
 men's quarters, i.e., the public apartments and reception rooms ; the anderun, 
 harem, or women's quarters ; and the khelwet, or private apartments of the 
 master of the house. The khelwet has invariably the smallest courtyard of 
 the three sets. Here the master of the house as a rule breakfasts when 
 alone, here he receives his intimates, and here he transacts his most private 
 business. The khelwet is free from the invasions of the ladies of his family, 
 and it is to the khelwet that the Persian gentleman retreats when domestic 
 differences occur. A khelwet is to the Persian what his " study " is to the 
 Englishman. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 P. 1 1 6, 1. i. And kept my hands. 
 
 The keeping of the hands and feet carefully covered is a sign of respect 
 due from the inferior to his superior, and one of the innumerable rules of 
 polite Persian etiquette. These very intricate forms of Persian politeness are 
 acquired very early ; small children pay compliments, make set speeches, and 
 return inquiries with the exact reply suited to the position of the person 
 addressing them. The manners of a gentleman in the East are not easy to 
 learn, and the arts of subtle compliment and flattery are useful, and difficult 
 to master. Thus to a person of consequence, the plural pronoun is always 
 used, and at times even the third person plural. In lieu of I, "your slave," 
 in the third person singular, is a polite mode of address to an equal. Even in 
 the trifling matter of accepting or refusing a kalian (or hubble-bubble) the 
 badly brought up person invariably betrays himself. The politeness is not 
 altogether superficial, though almost always exaggerated. Thus, two labourers 
 will meet. " How is your Excellency's health ? " asks the one. " Thanks to 
 your Highness's favour, it is good," replies the other. The Persians are the 
 Frenchmen of the East, and politeness is their strong point.
 
 NOTES 599 
 
 P. 117, 1. iG.One little white. 
 
 Medicines in Persia are invariably bulky, and generally nauseous. A 
 quart of liquid is a common dose, while potions are dispensed by the car- 
 boy containing several gallons. Happily most of the remedies used are inert, 
 or very largely diluted. Boluses are still prescribed, and concentrated 
 remedies are almost unknown It was the small size of the European 
 doctor's pill that astonished the Persian physician. 
 
 P. 119, 1. 4. Never pray. 
 
 The Oriental is accustomed to select the most conspicuous place to pray 
 in, and as Europeans say their prayers privately, thoughout the East they are 
 supposed never to pray. 
 
 P. 119, 1. 13. - Rubbing themselves with sand. 
 
 The Koran permits the Mussulman who is unable to obtain water for his 
 legal ablutions to substitute sand for it. If " ye find no water, take fine 
 clean sand, and rub your faces and your hands therewith" (Koran, c. v.). 
 The Persians are continually washing themselves, not merely for religious 
 reasons, but because even the poorest of them are cleanly as a matter of 
 course. 
 
 P. 119, 1. 22. // is a present to you. 
 
 The invariable reply to the admiring of any object in a Persian house is, 
 " It is a present to you." This is, however, merely a polite form, and if the 
 object be accepted a present of slightly greater value must be made. Horses 
 or valuables which have been admired by a European are often subsequently 
 sent to his house "as a present," with the intention that f they should be 
 bought by him at a good price. 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 P. 123, 1. ii. Contrivances. 
 His linen collar. 
 
 P. 123, 1. 16. Lower part. 
 
 "' In Persia a cut-away or round coat is considered indecent, flowing robes 
 and cloaks, or the voluminous official kulajah or frock-coat, being de rigueur, 
 at all events to every professional person. 
 
 'P. 126, 1. 15. Is cold. 
 
 All diseases and remedies are divided by the native physicians into " hot ^ 
 or "cold." A "hot" disorder is treated by the administration of a "cold" 
 remedy, and vice versa. This simple plan does away with any necessity for
 
 600 NOTES 
 
 diagnosis. If the ailment does not give way to " cold " remedies, then a 
 " hot " one is tried, upon the supposition that, as the patient did not improve 
 under the "cold" drug, his disease could not have been a "hot" one. 
 
 P. 126, 1. 27. Red cloth stockings. 
 These are a portion of the court dress. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 P. 128, 1. 16. Cut off a man's limbs. 
 
 Amputation is seldom performed by Persian surgeons, because amputa- 
 tions of fingers, toes, arms, and legs are judicial punishments. When a limb 
 is removed, as the doctor has no knowledge of anatomy by dissection, no 
 arteries are tied ; but the stump is seared with a hot iron or plunged in pitch, 
 in fact the surgeon performs the operation in exactly the same manner as the 
 executioner. 
 
 P. 132, 1. 10. For destroying, &*c. 
 
 When the writer of this note was practising at Hamadan, the Hakim 
 Bashi (whose practice had decreased, owing to a dispensary having been 
 opened by the English doctor) spread a report that the European treated his 
 patients by magic and diabolical arts, &c. &c. The foreign doctor's house 
 was attacked by an excited crowd, but the people dispersed on a show of 
 resistance. The Hakim Bashi of Hamadan was severely bastinadoed next 
 day by the Governor, at the doctor's door. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 P. 134,1. 29. I never give salaries. 
 
 This non-payment of servants is the rule in most great men's houses in 
 Persia, from the king's downwards. The servant lives on the leavings, and 
 what he can make out of his master or his friends and suppliants ; and as a 
 rule he does not do badly. This system of " pickings " is termed his modakel. 
 The amount of a man's pay is a trifling concern : the real question is the 
 extent of his modakel. It is generally levied in the form of ten per cent, 
 extracted from all the tradespeople. The cook takes it on the food, the 
 groom on the fodder, and the nazir, or steward, on all other purchases and 
 sales, and so on. It is really a sort of heavy discount levied by the servants 
 upon the tradespeople. The Hakim Bashi's confidential servant would 
 expect to make a handsome sum from the free-will offerings of his patients. 
 The salutary rule of no cure no pay exists in Persia, so when the patient dies 
 the doctor gets nothing !
 
 NOTES 601 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 P. 137, 1. i. As soon as. 
 
 Women in Persia usually resent any invasion of their privacy. They look 
 upon their seclusion, and the wearing of the veil, as privileges, and as the 
 outward and visible sign of the jealousy, and consequently the love, of their 
 husbands. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 P. 143, 1. 25. Married one, crv. 
 
 One of these ladies who had "ceased to please" the late Shah was 
 married by the royal command to a general of infantry ; her husband could 
 not decline this mark of royal favour, and was compelled by the lady to 
 divorce a wife to whom he was much attached. The general made no secret 
 of his troubles, and always spoke of the lady as the " Old Camel ; " but he 
 dared not divorce her, the fact of her once having been "a Rose in the 
 Garden of Sweets " compelled him to submit to the honour of her lifelong 
 presence in his anderun. 
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 P. 150, 1. i. To prepare a tray, &c. 
 
 A meal is always served or eaten upon a round tray. These trays are of 
 silver, brass, or tinned copper ; the largest are three feet in diameter. 
 
 P. 151, 1. 12. Stopped with a flower. 
 
 The editor was once present at the wedding of a European at Shiraz. Six 
 bottles of champagne carefully uncorked, and a flower placed in the mouth of 
 each, occupied the place of honour upon the table on which the wedding- 
 breakfast was served. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 P. 154, 1. 1 6. 
 Okous Aga = Mr. Well-read (from the Turkish). 
 
 P. 156, 1. 28. Clad in armour, &c. 
 
 Genuine armour is now never worn by Persians, save at the annual religious 
 drama or Tazieh, which is held in the month of Mohurrim. The gorgeous 
 specimens of armour sent to Europe are merely decorative, and made for the 
 foreign market. The ancient or " Daoudean " coats of mail have a rivet in 
 each link, and are dagger- and bullet-proof.
 
 602 NOTES 
 
 P. 158, 1. 21. Mirakhor. 
 Mir = lord, Achor = a manger ; Lord of the Manger. 
 
 P. 173. After note, 
 (i.e., Mecca). 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII 
 
 P. 191, 1. 33. Go, kiss him, &>c. 
 
 Kissing among Persian men is as common as kissing among Frenchmen, 
 but vicarious kissing is peculiar to Persia. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 P. 195, 1. 4. Badenj&ns. 
 Aubergines. 
 
 P. 195, 1. 22. Spoons of, &<:. 
 
 These elaborately-carved sherbet-spoons are made at Abadeh. The bowls 
 will contain from a quarter to half a pint of fluid, and are carved from a solid 
 block of wood. So thin are these bowls that they are often semi-trans- 
 parent. While the largest size spoons are two feet in length, they only weigh 
 about three ounces, and the delicate lace-like patterns of the handles are of 
 an original design for each spoon, no two being alike. The carving is done 
 with a common penknife and a few rough chisels. When the spoon is 
 carved, it is given a coat of kaman oil, and the wood takes the colour of box- 
 wood. This simple varnish is impervious to water, and after some years 
 darkens in colour, when the spoons are greatly improved in appearance. 
 
 P. 195, 1 30. /<*. 
 
 Sherbets are served in two ways as a drink at meals in bowls, as de- 
 scribed in the text, and as a refreshment in covered cups of glass or porcelain. 
 Sherbets of orange, of violets, of cherry-juice, of willow-buds, may be added 
 to the list given in the text. Every careful housewife in Persia prepares her 
 own sherbets, while there is a large sale of inferior qualities in the bazaar. 
 The various fruit syrups, from which the sherbet is made, will keep inde- 
 finitely, if they are well prepared. It need hardly be added that real sherbet 
 does not effervesce, as does the " Royal Persian Sherbet " seen in England. 
 Ice is one of the cheap luxuries in Persia. Sometimes it is brought from the 
 mountains in the form of lumps of snow, at other times it is artificially pro- 
 duced during the winter by means of yakh-jals, as at Shiraz and Tehran. 
 An amount of earth is removed to leave a pond some forty feet wide and
 
 NOTES 603 
 
 two feet deep. With this earth, mud bricks are made in sufficient quantity 
 to build a wall high enough to protect the pond from the sun. On the first 
 frosty day of winter, water, to the depth of two inches, is admitted into the 
 pond ; by morning it is frozen ; then at sunset another inch is run in, and so 
 on. In this way blocks of ice six inches thick are procured, and at once 
 stored for summer use. At Shiraz the celebrated Rooknabad water is thus 
 used for ice-making. The writer used to pay some ten shillings for a daily 
 supply of ice, 28 Ibs. in weight, during the ivhole summer ! 
 
 P. 198, 1. 29. Shaitan. 
 Shaitan = the devil. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX 
 
 P. 203, last line. Cruel death. 
 
 Death is seldom inflicted publicly upon females, though secret executions 
 of women are not infrequent. In the writer's own experience two women 
 were publicly bastinadoed by the order of the Imad-u-dowlet at Kermanshah, 
 and then handed over to the tender mercies of the rabble of the town. 
 Another instance which occurred during his residence in Persia was the 
 execution of a young woman of great beauty, by the order of the queen- 
 mother. The girl was brought before the queen-mother charged with im- 
 moral conduct. Instead of bribing the servants, she replied to a severe 
 admonition from the royal lady by a tu quoque. This had the sting of truth, 
 the queen-mother being a notoriously evil-liver. The unhappy young woman 
 was by the queen-mother's orders instantly removed, wrapped in a carpet, 
 and the royal farrashes proceeded to jump on her body till life was extinct. 
 There is a well at Shiraz into which faithless women were flung by the 
 executioner. One of the writer's servants, with the assistance of the girl's 
 own brothers and mother, administered poison by force to a faithless wife. 
 Such tragedies are of common occurrence in the Persia of to-day. As a rule 
 in the anderuns of the great, in order to avoid a scandal, poison is administered 
 by force or stratagem to faithless wives or concubines. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 P. 214, 1. 22. Namerd. 
 Namerd Khan = Lord Coward. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
 P. 220, 1. 33. Led horses. 
 
 Led horses are a part of the state of a royal personage or a provincial 
 governor. On all occasions the king is preceded by led horses, while the 
 rest of the personages who are entitled to this sign of rank, only assume it on
 
 6o 4 NOTES 
 
 great occasions, on entering or leaving a town, and at public ceremonials, and 
 while travelling. The led horses have their saddles covered with a Cashmere 
 shawl, and their necklets are often of solid gold, while the headstalls and 
 bridles are often covered with precious stones. One of these jewelled bridles 
 was stolen from the king's eldest son ; the thief was caught, and the writer 
 saw him nailed to a wall, the theft of a royal bridle being looked on as 
 a species of high treason, and deserving of particularly severe punishment. 
 Though two iron stable nails had been driven through his chest, the man 
 lived thirty hours, and was then taken down and put out of his misery by 
 the executioner. 
 
 P. 221, 1. S.CasMn Gate.\ 
 
 The gates of Tehran, being composed of coloured tile-work, have the 
 curious effect of immense pieces of porcelain. The Kasvin Gate is the gate 
 where the high-road to Kasvin, or Casbin, in Northern Persia, commences. 
 
 P. 227, 1. 22. Father. 
 
 All these punishments are in use in the present day. During the famine, 
 and the consequent closing of their shops by the bakers of Shiraz, the Shah 
 very seriously told them that if they did not resume business he would bake 
 a baker in his own oven. The writer has seen eleven men buried alive in 
 eleven pillars of brick. Some of these unfortunates did? not expire for many 
 hours. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 P. 229,1. 17. Had attached. 
 
 The title of Beg (lit., chief or lord) is often self-imposed, or a courtesy 
 from a man's fellows, just as the titles of Meshedi, Kerbelai, Hadji, &c., 
 are given merely from politeness. As often as not, a man's right to the title 
 of Beg is that he has been so addressed by a person of importance, either 
 verbally, or in some official document. As a rule the title, like that of Esquire 
 in England, is self assumed. As often as not such titles are part of a man's 
 name, and are often of use to him where he is not known. Thus, Khan, a 
 mere name, is often supposed to be the title Khan. Servants are frequently 
 Khans by name. 
 
 P. 232, 1. 4. 
 Kharab Culi Mirza = Prince Spoil All. 
 
 P. 236. After note. 
 
 The great Persian diamond was brought from India in 1739 by Nadir 
 Shah. It passed in 1813 to Runjeet Singh of Lahore. In 1849, on the 
 annexation of the Punjab, the Koh Nur was surrendered, and presented to 
 Her Majesty in 1850; it then weighed i86 T ^ carats; it has since been cut, 
 and now weighs io6 T 1 T carats. This stone originally weighed 793! carats.
 
 NOTES 605 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVjII 
 
 P. 252,1. 1 8. Under veil. 
 
 Among modest Armenian women, this chin veil, which hides the chin, 
 mouth, and tip of the nose, and is formed generally of folded muslin, linen^ 
 or cotton cloth, is of great importance ; it is never removed during the day- 
 time, and adds to the ghostly appearance of the out-door dress of the 
 Armenian woman, who, with her white outer veil and the chin-bandage (or 
 veil), looks like a shrouded corpse with its jaw tied up. It is probable that 
 this hideous chin veil is adhered to partly because it is practically a mask, 
 and thus protects the wearer from the unwelcome attentions or insults of 
 Mussulmans. An Armenian woman will talk freely with men, exhibit her 
 bare arms, legs, and bosom ; but her chin veil she never removes. 
 
 P. 260, 1. 2. Drinking some more. 
 
 Armenians are generally heavy drinkers; they prefer arrack (a coarse 
 spirit distilled from the refuse of wine-making) to any other liquor. This 
 is usually flavoured with anise-seed. No visit of ceremony among Armenians 
 ever takes place without the production and consumption of arrack, which is 
 freely partaken of by both sexes. 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 P. 294, 1. 12. Picketed by. 
 
 In a Persian camp, or while travelling, horses are picketed out summer 
 and winter. A long rope of goat's hair is pegged down to the ground by iron 
 stable-pins ; to this the head-ropes of the horses are attached ; these are each 
 two yards long, and are fixed to the headstalls. Each horse has two heel- 
 ropes, which, being provided with rope loops and buttons, can be easily 
 attached, and these are secured by a single iron pin driven into the ground 
 behind. The animal is protected by clothing, over which is laid a heavy 
 piece of felt, four yards long by two wide (the nammad). In very severe 
 weather this is drawn over the head and hind-quarters, and thus the horse is 
 warm and comfortable on the coldest night. Dried horse dung is used 
 throughout Persia for litter, so that a stable is not a necessary, but a luxury. 
 During summer all horses are picketed in the open air. 
 
 * P. 294,1. 15. Jingle of their bells. 
 
 The bells and saddles of mules in Persia are never removed, save when 
 the animals are being groomed. The big pack-saddles form the only cloth- 
 ing and protection to the mules at night ; and when, as not infrequently 
 happens, no shelter is to be procured, the beasts have to camp out in the 
 open, even in winter.
 
 606 NOTES 
 
 CHAPTER XLI 
 
 P. 303. Illustration, Bazigers, &c. 
 
 It is doubtful if this picture is the original, said to have been painted by 
 order of Shah Abbas the Great, or a replica from a smaller copy done in the 
 reign of Shah Sultan Hosein. It is described by Chardin (1670). The 
 figures are nearly the size of life ; the colours are fresh and bright. 
 
 P. 305, 1. i.Ghols. 
 
 Ghols are the ghouls of our childhood, they are man-eating demons, 
 haunting wildernesses, cemeteries, and ruins. They are supposed to meet 
 lonely travellers in the night-time, and, beguiling them from the road, cause 
 them to lose their way, when they devour them. Ghols are described by 
 Orientals as having ass's feet. We all remember the beautiful lady ghol of 
 the " Arabian Nights," whose appetite during the day was so bad that she ate 
 her rice grain by grain, using an ear-pick as a spoon, but at night she sallied 
 forth to unholy banquets in the graveyards. 
 
 P. 307, 1. 26. Lands were allotted. 
 
 A large number of Persians and Armenians yearly emigrate into Russia. 
 This immigration is encouraged by the Russians, and Armenians are par- 
 ticularly welcome, being Christians. They are usually soon absorbed into 
 the Orthodox Russian Church ; and, being extremely industrious and thrifty 
 by nature, their rise in the world is rapid. A still larger number of Persian 
 Armenians find their way to British India and Java, where they soon become 
 rich. The inhabitants of the two provinces of Persia, Ghilan and Mazen- 
 deran, which abut upon Russia, long for the day of Russian occupation and 
 an established local government. 
 
 CHAPTER XLII 
 
 P. 310, 1. 29. 
 Moral of the first story in Saadi. 
 
 CHAPTER XLIII 
 
 P. 314, 1. ii. Fortunate hour, 
 
 Everything in Persia is done if possible at a fortunate or auspicious hour. 
 A man starts upon a journey at a fortunate hour and day. He will often 
 delay the movement of his caravan at considerable expense, because the day 
 is an inauspicious one. The astrologers are always ready to fix fortunate
 
 NOTES 607 
 
 days and hours for a trifling fee, while most Persians have them carefully 
 noted in almanacs and calendars, which are to be purchased for a few pence 
 in any large town. 
 
 P. 316, 1. 4. Gorumsak. 
 
 Gorumsak = z pander. This is one of the commonest terms t of Persian 
 abuse. 
 
 P. 316, 1 8. 
 Jehanum = hell. 
 
 P. 317, 1. 26. Demawend. 
 
 Demawend, a semi-extinct volcano, whose top is always crowned with 
 snow, dominates the beautiful mountain range close to Teheran, and seems 
 quite near to the capital. The great mountain, which is visible two hundred 
 miles from the town, puts on the most gorgeous colours at sunrise and sunset ; 
 these are compared by the Persians to the changing colours on the neck of 
 a pigeon. The mountain has been many times ascended by Europeans ; 
 there are numerous caves giving forth sulphureous fumes. The crater shows 
 no sign of activity. 
 
 P. 320, 1. 15. Mansions of the dead. 
 
 The vast cemeteries in Persia are the invariable haunt of the jackal and 
 hyaena ; porcupines too are found there, and sometimes the gur ken, or 
 " grave-digger " (Meles canescens\ an animal resembling a small badger. 
 
 P. 321, 1. $. Tobeh. 
 
 Tobeh is a vow of abstinence from some particular sin (generally drunken- 
 ness), and is usually made upon the Koran, in the presence of a mollah of 
 reputation. Pilgrims often make the tobeh on reaching the shrine. This 
 vow is generally kept for a time at least. Aged men feeling the approach of 
 death often make tobeh. The writer had occasion to send his head-servant 
 to the high-priest of Shiraz to make tobeh (the man had become a drunkard). 
 The vow was registered. " Now," said the high-priest, " if you break your 
 oath, I shall administer the cat-o'-nine-tails (taziand) very severely." When 
 the man left Shiraz he relapsed. 
 
 CHAPTER XLIV 
 
 P. 323, 1. 34. Gahi, &c. 
 
 A curiously apt quotation of this line was made by General Sir R. 
 Murdoch Smith, lately director of H.B.M.'s. Telegraph Department in Persia. 
 He met on a lonely high-road a Persian prince of his acquaintance who was 
 travelling post. The Persian saw that the English officer was on foot, and 
 carrying his saddle, &c. He expressed his astonishment. " Such is riding
 
 6o8 NOTES 
 
 post in Persia," said the Englishman, in answer to his native friend's inquiries; 
 " as you know, ' Gahi pusht ber zeen, gahi zeen ber pusht!' ' The General's 
 horse had broken down or died, a common event in riding post in Persia. 
 
 P. 327, 1. 35. Ghdls and gins. 
 
 (ForgJiMs, see note to page 504.) Gins, or genii, are spirits who eat, drink, 
 have offspring (at times from human beings), and inhabit ruins, deserts, wells, 
 baths, &c. Gins are supposed to be capable of assuming at will the forms of 
 men and animals. They were subject to Solomon the son of David, and are 
 generally propitiated by the superstitious in Persia by some exclamation of 
 reverence. 
 
 P. 329, 1. 6.ust. 
 
 A bust or sanctuary is to be found in most of the great cities of Persia. 
 The immediate neighbourhood of the great mosques is usually a sanctuary 
 for debtors ; and certain shrines, notably the one at Kom, the tomb of 
 Fatima, that at Shah Abdul Azim, Meshed, Kerbela, &c., are inviolable, even 
 in the case of the red-handed murderer. In a lesser degree the houses of 
 mollahs, saints, and holy men are sanctuary, also the stables of the Shah 
 and those of royal princes. The touching of the tail of the horse of the 
 king or his sons gives impunity for the time to the criminal who holds it ; 
 while the great gun at Teheran is also bust, or sanctuary. In these minor 
 sanctuaries, however, the great criminal is not safe, as he may be starved into 
 surrender ; but in holy places like Kom, &c., where an entire quarter is bust, 
 a criminal may live safely for months, or even years. The priests carefully 
 guard these privileges, which are a source of considerable profit to them, and 
 in the power of protecting the criminal against the secular arm lies one of the 
 principal sources of their influence. Criminals, particularly political criminals, 
 have been at times taken by force from sanctuaries, a popular tumult being 
 the invariable result. When it is determined at all hazards to destroy a man 
 whohas taken sanctuary, recourse is usually had to stratagem, bribery, false 
 promises, or even poison. 
 
 CHAPTER XLV 
 
 P. 334, 1. 12. Women. 
 
 Women in Persia are the principal supporters of the dervishes. Their 
 credulity is easily imposed upon, and they are always ready to supply these 
 impostors with food ; and by working on their fears the dervish often obtains 
 goods and even money from them. Just as the vagrant monks of old were 
 disliked and feared by the male population in Europe, while they were 
 adored by the women, so are dervishes in Persia hated by the men, and pro- 
 tected by the female sex generally, particularly by the poorer and more 
 ignorant portion of it. 
 
 P. 338, 1. 10. Muezzin. 
 
 It was probably from his age and short-sightedness that Babadul was 
 chosen as muezzin, or "official caller to prayer," of the little mosque in the 

 
 NOTES 609 
 
 fish-market. Blind men are usually selected for the office of muezzin, as from 
 the lofty minarets of the mosques they can look into the women's quarters of 
 the adjacent houses ; hence the older and more short-sighted a man is, the 
 better is he suited for the office of muezzin. 
 
 P. 340, 1. 13. Mujdeh. 
 
 Mujdeh signifies good news. The words "give me a reward for" are 
 understood, much in the same way as we say "Good morning," in lieu of, 
 " I wish you a good morning." In the East the bearer of good news expects 
 a present. 
 
 P. 341, 1. 7. Bostanji bashi. 
 
 Bostanji bashi, lit., the head-gardener, probably an officer of the Turkish 
 police. 
 
 P. 341, last line. Dog. 
 
 Dogs (with the exception of greyhounds) throughout the East are looked 
 upon as unclean animals ; but they are not beaten or treated with cruelty, as 
 is generally supposed. Every bazaar has its pack of hungry dogs, and these 
 animals never quit their own quarter, where they are fed by the trades-people, 
 and where they rear their young unmolested in some quiet corner. The 
 bazaar dogs act as scavengers, devouring offal and filth. By night they warn 
 the watchmen of the presence of thieves and strangers. To proceed without 
 a light and unarmed through the bazaars at night would be an undertaking 
 of considerable danger ; for the timid, sleepy-looking bazaar dog of the day- 
 time, by night is a very different animal, being exceedingly fierce and active, 
 and always attacking the intruder in packs. Whenever the persistent barking 
 of the street dogs in Persia is heard, every one is on the alert for thieves. 
 
 P. 345, 1. 19. Lock of hair. 
 
 This lock of hair left at the top of the clean shaven head is termed the 
 karkul. It is almost invariably left on the heads of young children, and the 
 writer has seen the lock, in men, two feet long, and carefully twisted up on 
 the summit of the crown. The karkul is left to grow, from a superstition 
 that Mahomed, at the day of judgment, may draw up the believer into 
 heaven by it. Lane states that he has been told by Mussulmans that the 
 lock is left, lest the believer being overcome and beheaded by an infidel, the 
 conqueror should be tempted to thrust his finger into the mouth to carry the 
 head, and so defile it. This theory seems far fetched. The karkul is by 
 no means invariable in Persia, and nowadays is most frequently absent 
 in the adult. Of course the head spoken of in the dervish's story is the head 
 of a Turk. 
 
 P. 348, last line. Remain there. 
 
 The bodies of common criminals after execution are generally exposed 
 for some hours ; at times they are quartered, and hung up as a terror to evil- 
 doers. In the case of a Jew the body would be certain to be exposed longer 
 than usual, before being handed over to the relatives for burial. 
 
 2 Q
 
 6 io NOTES 
 
 P- 35 3> 1- 7- Tailor's stall. 
 
 The shops and stalls of which the bazaars consist are locked up at night, 
 and the gates of many of the arcades are closed. At or before sunset, 
 officials call upon the tradesmen to close their shops, by sound of drum. 
 Half an hour after this the gates are fastened and guarded by the night 
 watchman. Any one found in the bazaar after this time is, unless well known, 
 arrested, and taken before the darogah or police master ; but respectable 
 persons, carrying lanterns, are allowed to traverse the bazaar at any hour of 
 the night, on stating their names and business, and giving the password for 
 the night. 
 
 P- 353> 1- ig.Azan. 
 
 The intoned call to prayers runs as follows, and (as heard in" the silence 
 of early morning) is very impressive ; " God is most great ! " (repeated four 
 times) ; " I testify that there is no god but God ! " (repeated) ; " I testify that 
 Mahomed is the apostle of God !" (repeated) ; "Come to prayer!" (repeated) ; 
 " Come to security : prayer is better than sleep ! " (repeated) ; " God is most 
 great ! " (repeated) ; " There is no god but God ! " Some of the muezzins have 
 very fine voices, in which they and their friends take great pride. The words 
 are intoned just as in our Cathedral services, i.e., the call to prayer is sung, 
 and not merely shouted. In Persia, where there are no clocks, the various 
 calls to prayer indicate the hour of the day. 
 
 P. 359, 1. 15. Fetwah. 
 
 An edict, sentence, or proclamation by one of the heads of the (religious) 
 law, of whom the mufti is the chief. 
 
 CHAPTER XLVI 
 
 P. 361, 1. z6.Felek. 
 
 is the stout pole to which the feet of a person who is bastinadoed 
 are attached by a loop of rope ; see note 2, p. 81. 
 
 P. 362, 1. 21. Mohtesib. 
 
 The mohtesiVs duty is to see that the street in front of a house is swept, and 
 that the drains are kept clear. He is satisfied with an attention to externals. 
 
 P. 364, 1. 4. Coat. 
 The covering of the hands and feet is done to show respect. 
 
 P. 364, 1. 8. 
 Kafirs, i.e., infidels.
 
 NOTES 611 
 
 P. 365, 1. \$.Ajem. 
 
 A Persian. The word Ajem is commonly applied by Sunni Arabs to 
 Persians. Ajem signifies Persia, or colloquially, as used here by the 
 Mushtahed, "a man." 
 
 P. 365 to follow note at foot of page. Faranooshi. 
 
 More correctly, faramooshi. There are no real Masonic lodges in Persia, 
 but pseudo-Masonry flourishes. These pseudo-Masons hold sham lodges, 
 and form a political engine. The ingenious gentleman who invented the 
 system only initiated rich neophytes and men of position. Implicit obedience 
 in all things temporal was to be yielded to the originator of the system, who 
 was the fountain of honour ; and large contributions were drawn from the 
 newly-made disciples. The late Shah banished the inventor of pseudo- 
 Masonry ; he was subsequently forgiven, and rose to high official rank, but he 
 is at present under a cloud. 
 
 CHAPTER XLVII 
 
 P. 375, 1. 9. Shrine of the saint. 
 
 The great golden dome over the shrine of Fatima, sister of Imam 
 Riza, is the gift of the late Shah, Nussir-u-deen. The tiles of the dome 
 are of copper, and the pure hammered gold on their surface is an eighth of an 
 inch in thickness. The great shrine contains the remains of ten kings and 
 four hundred and forty-four saints. The glittering golden dome is seen for 
 miles across the plain in which Kom is situated. 
 
 CHAPTER XLVIII 
 
 P. 378, 1. 2-].Hatem. 
 
 Hatem, or Hatim Tai. One of the wealthiest and most generous of men. 
 His son was a contemporary of Mahomed. 
 
 P. 379, 1. 29. Pilau. 
 Boiled meat smothered in boiled rice, moistened with clarified butter. 
 
 P. 380, 1. 19. Water-pipe, 
 
 The reservoir of the earthen water-pipe, hubble-bubble, or kalian being 
 made of porous clay, which causes constant evaporation, is the coolest of all 
 pipes ; it is, par excellence, the pipe of the poor man, but is affected by all 
 classes during the great heats of summer.
 
 6 12 NOTES 
 
 P. 384, 1. 17. Sneezed once. 
 
 To sneeze is considered so unlucky an omen, that it is sufficient to cause 
 the sneezer to forego any intention he has just formed ; it is looked on as a 
 Divine intimation not to do a thing. Often a Persian who repents a bargain 
 nearly made, will sneeze (purposely), and immediately cry off. When a man 
 sneezes, he exclaims, " Praise God ; " and his friends or visitors cry, " God be 
 merciful to you," just as in England it is a common custom, on a sneeze 
 taking place, to say, " God bless you." 
 
 P. 387, 1. i. Inches. 
 
 Mud placed on the hat or turban is often used to express deep mourning. 
 The writer once suddenly announced to a party of anxious grandees that the 
 son of the Shah's uncle (the local governor) had just died. The whole party 
 and their servants at once dismounted, and each man took a handful of mud 
 from the roadside, which he plastered on his hat, as a sign of mourning. 
 Every one, too, burst into (official) tears. 
 
 CHAPTER XLIX 
 P. 391, 1. 30. To deposit. 
 
 In Persia, where, tijl very recently, there were no banks, and in a country 
 where the known possession of wealth is at once a cause of persecution, the 
 custom of hoarding is very general. Religious persons object to put their 
 money out at interest, and the only safe investment is land or houses. Even 
 the most intelligent have their secret hoards. Hidden treasure is being con- 
 stantly discovered, several instances of it having come under the writer's 
 own experience. In one case five large jars full of silver coin were found by 
 a learned man in his house at Bonaat, near Shiraz. The whole was seized 
 by a local grandee, and the 'finder imprisoned. He ultimately fled to the 
 British residency in Bushire to escape further persecution. Again, in the 
 well of a house in Julfa, in which the writer lived, a secret chamber was 
 discovered by accident, with the very considerable hoards of a wealthy 
 Armenian. There are actually men in Persia who pass their lives in looking 
 for treasure in ruined houses. In another case that came under the writer's 
 personal knowledge, a peasant having found a considerable treasure, said 
 nothing to any one, but started upon a pilgrimage in forma pauperis. He 
 remained away several years, and returned a well-to-do man, accounting for 
 the change in his circumstances by the statement that he had made money in 
 trade. The matter, however, gradually leaked out. 
 
 P. 396, 1. 8. Diviners. 
 
 Law in Persia is a very expensive article, and every one is anxious to 
 avoid having anything to do with the police, who are excessively corrupt. 
 The writer has had recourse to the services of a diviner with advantage on 
 several occasions. In one case a small sum of money had been stolen. 
 The diviner was sent for, and he ordered all the servants one by one into a 
 dark room, directing them to dip their fingers into a copper pot supposed to
 
 NOTES 613 
 
 contain magic water (but really full of coloured fluid), when the finger of the 
 thief would rot off. The diviner inspected all the fingers, thinking that the 
 thief would fear to dip his hand in, but the servants stood the test. " The 
 thief is here, I am certain," cried the diviner. " We will proceed to the shrine 
 of Seyyid Hadji Kharib (a local saint) ; each man must walk round the grave of 
 the holy man three times, and I will invoke the saint's vengeance on the thief. 
 The guilty man will burst in a few minutes ! " All the servants agreed to the 
 test, except one man, whose courage failed him. He confessed the theft. A 
 thief, finding detection imminent, will avoid a confession by an ingenious 
 manoeuvre. He will have a vision from some saint, often the Prophet himself, 
 who kindly reveals the position of the lost property, which is of course 
 placed in situ by the thief. As a rule a Persian will rather confess to a small 
 crime he has not committed than swear falsely upon the Koran ; other oaths 
 he will take freely ; but most Persians will rather confess to a false accusation, 
 or lose a civil action, than swear solemnly upon the Koran, even to the truth. 
 
 CHAPTER L 
 
 P. 399, 1. 3. Teez Negah. 
 Teez Negah Sharp look. 
 
 P. 399, 1. 34. Mashallah. 
 
 Literally " what God_'pleases ! " A phrase used, when praising, to avoid the 
 evil eye. 
 
 CHAPTER LII 
 P. 413, 1. 2. Scissors. 
 
 The scissors are carried in the kalamdan or pen-case, with the reed pens 
 and inkstand. The paper on which a note is written is usually torn from 
 a small roll, which is stuck in the girdle and secured by a silken band ; 
 and, when the letter is written, the rough edges of the paper are carefully 
 cut away, and the sheet trimmed, and one small corner cut off by means of 
 the scissors, as a sheet in the form of a regular parallelogram is considered 
 to be specially unlucky and impolite. 
 
 P. 413, 1. 2-].Pul-i-dallak. 
 
 Pul i-dallak = the barber's bridge, so called because it was built (as an 
 act of charity) by the Court barber of the day. The building of bridges and 
 caravanserais is often undertaken as a work of charity by the wealthy, very 
 frequently towards the end of a long and ill-spent life. 
 
 CHAPTER LIII 
 
 P. 420, 1. n. Gengifeh. 
 
 Gengifeh are not cards similar to the playing-cards of the European. 
 They are only three inches long by one and a half wide. They are usually 
 works of art, being painted and gilt, by hand, on a species of millboard, and
 
 6 1 4 NOTES 
 
 then varnished by means of kaman oil, which gives them the appearance of 
 Japanese lacquer-work. There are twenty-five Gengifeh. The Ahs or ace, 
 the Surbaz or soldier, the Khanum or queen, the Lateefeh or courtesan, and 
 the Shahzadeh or prince, five of each, of which there are five sets, forming 
 a complete pack. The game invariably played with Gengifeh is termed Ahs- 
 an-Ahs ; it somewhat resembles Beggar-my- neighbour, and is played by two 
 persons only. When playing, the gamblers in their excitement strike the 
 Gengifeh together violently, and so cause them to rattle ; but so strongly are 
 they made that a set will last for many years. Recently European cards 
 have been introduced into Persia, and " Banco," i.e., Lansquanet, is freely 
 indulged in by the upper classes, who play high, and cheat whenever they 
 can. Cheating is supposed by Persians to be a part of the pleasure and art 
 of gambling, and a detected cheat manifests no shame, he merely regrets 
 that his own clumsiness has caused him to be found out. 
 
 P. 420, 1. 28. Suleiman, &>c. 
 
 Suleiman-ibn-Daoud, i.e., Solomon the son of David, is a favourite hero 
 of Mussulman romance. The " time of Jamschid " and the " time of Solomon " 
 are terms used to signify remote antiquity. Solomon is said by the Persians 
 to have had the power of speaking the languages of birds, animals, and all 
 created things. The hoopoe was his favourite among birds, and the symoorgh, 
 a fabulous bird, his messenger. He travelled, impelled by the winds, upon a 
 vast green carpet, which carried him and his whole court and army. In the 
 Koran, conversations between Solomon and birds, genii, &c., are gravely 
 narrated. Having heard that Balkis' (the Queen of Sheba's) legs were covered 
 with hair, as are the legs of an ass, Solomon, to satisfy his curiosity, caused 
 running water to be covered with a floor of glass. " And when she saw it, 
 she imagined it to be a great water; and she discovered her legs, by lifting 
 up her robe to pass through it" (Koran}. The Queen professed Islam, and 
 Solomon determined to marry her, but could not make up his mind to do 
 so till his genii had removed the hair from her legs by means of a depilatory. 
 Solomon's army is stated in the Koran to have been composed of genii, men, 
 and birds. All genii are said to still retain their respect for the seal of 
 Solomon, which is supposed by Orientals to be yet upon the earth. 
 
 P. 422, 1. 1 6. Wages. 
 
 This system of service without wages is common throughout Persia. The 
 vast retinues of the grandees are mostly composed of hangers-on, very few of 
 whom draw either pay or rations. The actual servants may get a suit of 
 clothes at the New Year, or its equivalent in money ; or they may even have 
 a nominal salary, which is eaten up by the r/azir, or steward. They can 
 generally, however, get two good meals from the leavings of their master. 
 Should the master dine abroad, the servants accompany him, and expect to 
 be fed at the house of the entertainer. What they look for, however, is a 
 "job" of some sort or other where they can make, or extort, ready cash. It 
 is understood that every place, however humble, has its perquisites, and it is 
 on the perquisites, extortions, and commissions that the servant lives.
 
 NOTES 615 
 
 CHAPTER L1V 
 
 P. 425, 1. 2. Surmeh. 
 
 Even the smallest infants have surmeh applied to the roots of the eye- 
 lashes and the edges of both lids, partly to give a fictitious appearance of 
 size to the eyes, partly because the powdered antimony of which it is at times 
 composed (it is often merely lampblack) is supposed to greatly strengthen 
 the eyes, and to be a sovereign remedy for ophthalmia, which, as, in most 
 Eastern countries, is very prevalent in Persia. The eyebrows' are also 
 smeared with the same black pigment, so as to greatly increase their apparent 
 size, and to give them the appearance of actually meeting, and so forming a 
 single arch. (See illustration, p. 428.) 
 
 P. 425, 1. 3. Blue stars. 
 
 Tattooing is practised among all classes in Persia. It is more usually seen 
 among the women of the tribes and of the south, and upon the Turco- 
 Persian frontier. Among women of the upper classes single tattoo marks 
 upon the chin or forehead, or upon the breast, arm, or wrist, are most fre- 
 quent ; and they are generally confined to a small blue star or a few tiny 
 dots. But among the lower classes the bosoms, necks, arms, and legs, par- 
 ticularly at the wrists and ankles, are elaborately decorated with intricate 
 patterns of tattooing in blue, black, and even red, or combinations of all 
 three colours. Most of the women of the lower classes in Southern Persia 
 have their chests tattooed with several small stars or tiny flowers, while 
 among the eelyauts, or wandering tribes, rude patterns of animals and even 
 men are common, which run in lines along or across the extremities. These 
 tattooings are performed during infancy, or at least before the child leaves its 
 mother's arms (children are suckled in Persia till they are three and even 
 four years old). The operators are old women, generally Jewesses. Lamp- 
 black, indigo, or vermilion rubbed into needle punctures produce the black- 
 blue or red colours. At times the needle-points are set in small blocks of 
 wood, so as to produce the figure desired at a single stroke. Tattooing is 
 rapidly going out of fashion among the upper classes and the townspeople. 
 (See illustration, p. 428.) 
 
 P. 425, 1. 4. Rouge. 
 
 After puberty very nearly all females of the upper classes in Persia use 
 paint. The skin of the face and neck is whitened with Chinese white, bis- 
 muth, white-lead, pipeclay, or common chalk; the cheeks are heavily rouged, and 
 decorated with spangles worn as patches were once worn in Europe ; and the 
 lips are brightly painted with a vermilion lip-salve ; while artificial moles or 
 grains de beaute, and sham tattoo marks, in blue and black, are drawn with an 
 ivory point dipped in colour upon the cheeks or chin. At wedding-feasts the 
 painting of the face is done upon the grandest scale, and a Persian lady who 
 was receiving (female) guests would never think of slighting them by omitting 
 to paint her face. Handsome girls and beautiful women who need no 
 artificial heightening of their charms, are rendered temporarily hideous by this
 
 616 NOTES 
 
 tyranny of fashion. The more paint a Persian woman applies, the more she 
 is supposed to honour her guests or husband. The villagers, and respectable 
 women of the lower classes, do not paint their faces, nor do the women of the 
 wandering tribes. 
 
 P. 426, 1. 14. Khanum. 
 Khanum = lady. 
 
 CHAPTER LV 
 
 P. 431, 1. 12. Emir. 
 
 Emir =& descendant of the Prophet. 
 
 P. 432, 1. u. Fattest of the three. 
 
 Plump beauties are admired by the Turks. Osman Aga was a Turk of 
 Baghdad. The Persian taste differs, and is in favour of loveliness of the 
 more graceful kind, the antelope, in poetry, being the favourite type of beauty. 
 
 P. 433, 1. 14.^- Golden tinge. 
 Being dyed with henna (see note to p. no, 1. 3). 
 
 P. 435, last line. Zuleikha. 
 
 Zuleikha (Potiphar's wife) is always celebrated for her beauty by Persian 
 poets, while Yusuf (Joseph) is supposed to have been the handsomest of 
 youths. The writer has a picture in which Zuleikha is entertaining her 
 female friends. Oranges have been handed round, and each lady is provided 
 with a sharp knife. Yusuf appears, and instantly every lady cuts her ringer 
 and faints. The artist gives a realistic rendering of this. See Sale's 
 " Koran," c. xii. 
 
 CHAPTER LVI 
 
 P. 437, 1, 24. Famine. 
 
 The editor was in Persia during the last famine. In Fars, no rain fell for 
 nearly three years. The price of food rose to a prohibitive figure. The 
 starving population of the remote villages began to pour into the towns ; 
 there was no trade, for the muleteers could not obtain forage upon the road, 
 and mule-hire rose to a fabulous figure. All unnecessary horses were turned 
 loose and eventually eaten. The roads became unsafe from brigandage ; the 
 fields remained unfilled for want of labourers ; the vast herds of the tribes 
 died of hunger and thirst. Then the rich and powerful bought up all the 
 grain, and stored it, in order to retail it at twenty times the original cost. 
 The bakers adulterated the bread with earth and sawdust. The starving poor
 
 NOTES 617 
 
 abandoned, sold, and even ate their children. The taxes fell into arrear, 
 and thousands died of hunger in the streets and in the wilderness. The 
 Persian Famine Relief Fund was then raised, and help was supplied none 
 too soon. At last, towards the end of the third year, rain fell. After the 
 famine came epidemics of typhoid and cholera. In Morier's time Relief 
 Funds were of course unknown. 
 
 P. 440, 1. 4. Red cloth stockings. 
 
 Red cloth stockings are always indued before appearing in the royal 
 presence, and are a part of the court costume of Persia. 
 
 P. 441, 1. 32. On an ass with, &c. 
 
 The parading through the bazaar of a criminal upon an ass, with his face 
 to the tail, is a common occurrence. Often the face of the criminal is black- 
 ened, and a bowl of curds is poured over the head. At other times the 
 culprit is led through the bazaar prior to execution or other punishment, with a 
 string through the nose (see illustration, p. 477), by the executioner, who takes 
 a small fee, generally a few pence, from each trader upon the occasion. On 
 the capital punishment of any criminal other than a political one, the exe- 
 cutioner demands, and receives as a right, a similar fee, which he collects 
 in person. 
 
 P. 442, 1. 9. Shawl. 
 
 The shawl w,as worn as a turban. It is generally of a white colour in the 
 case of a mollah, but at times is of Cashmere shawl, and very valuable. The 
 hirkeh is a striped cloak of camel's hair worn by priests and literati. 
 
 CHAPTER LVII 
 
 P. 446, 1. io."Koda 
 
 " Khoda hafiz!" "God keep you." A salutation equivalent to our 
 "Good day to you." 
 
 CHAPTER LVIII 
 
 P. 448, 1. 2. Seals. 
 
 A man's seals are a very important part of his belongings. They are 
 always mounted in silver, and are generally carried on a little bunch, each 
 upon a little string of silk woven with gold or silver thread. Letters and 
 documents in the East are sealed and not signed. A man of position, such 
 as the Mollah Bashi, would have several seals an official one of large size, of 
 square or oblong shape, on which would be engraved his name in full, and his 
 titles ; a smaller seal, which he would use for business documents, as cheques,
 
 618 NOTES 
 
 contracts, &c. ; and a still smaller one, on which would be engraved his name 
 only ; this would be kept for sealing letters to friends and intimates. There 
 would also be probably several others for special purposes. The trade of the 
 seal-engraver is carried on in every town, the poorest man having a seal of 
 brass or silver. Seals are usually engraved on cornelian, agate, or bloodstone. 
 It is a common practice to engrave gems with one of the names of God. As 
 much as a tomaun (eight shillings) a letter is paid in Teheran (where the 
 finest seals are cut) to the best seal-engravers. 
 
 CHAPTER LIX 
 
 P. 455, 1. 10. Stirrups into his flanks. 
 
 The sharp-edged shovel-shaped Persian stirrup is always used as a spur by 
 Persians. Though the word for a spur exists, the writer has never seen the 
 instrument in use. 
 
 P. 458, 1. %.Ked Khoda. 
 The head-man of a village. 
 
 P. 459, 1. 10. Omar. 
 
 Once a year in Persia is held an Omar Kushan, or killing of Omar, a sort 
 of Guy Fawkes day. Many of the houses have a ludicrous (and generally 
 indecent) effigy of Omar exhibited upon the roof, to which fireworks are 
 attached : this is burnt by the boys at night, amid much laughter and rejoic- 
 ing. Comic tazias, or dramatic representations of supposed incidents in the 
 life of Omar, also take place, in which the principal character is sustained by 
 a luti or buffoon. These usually end by the bearing away of the detested 
 Omar by the Shaitan (devil) in person. A good deal of open drunkenness 
 goes on during these performances, it being considered a time of licence, 
 during which such irregularities may be winked at. On this day Sunis are 
 generally insulted in the streets, and disturbances and even riots often result. 
 
 P. 461, 1. 35. Use of bells. 
 
 It is only in recent years that Christians have been permitted the use of 
 bells in Persia. There is a fine modern bell tower, of brick, 130 feet high, at 
 the Armenian Cathedral in Julfa ; but at the numerous other churches a 
 board is hung up between two posts, and this is drummed on with mallets, 
 at first very slowly, then more rapidly, for some quarter of an hour before 
 each service. As these services at times take place at 3.30 A.M., the din 
 produced is the reverse of pleasant. This strange call to prayers is supposed, 
 with good reason, to have been one of the primitive forms of the early 
 Church.
 
 NOTES 
 
 619 
 
 CHAPTER LXII 
 
 P. 479. I- 34- Bound to Kerbelah. 
 
 A great number of the corpses of wealthy Persians are conveyed yearly to 
 kerbelah for interment. The funeral ceremony is performed in the ordinary 
 manner. The coffin is packed with camphor and lime, and placed in a 
 temporary grave, or in the vicinity of the tomb of some saint. The process 
 of embalming, as mentioned by Morier three pages further on, is unusual 
 After a period of some months (so as to allow partial desiccation to take 
 place, which it soon does in the dry climate of Persia) the coffin is covered 
 with a wrapper of tarred felt and strongly corded. It is then handed over to 
 a muleteer, and is carried to its destination, without ceremony, as an 
 ordinary half-load. Some caravans consist entirely of coffin-laden mules. 
 A heavy fee has to be paid for interment in the holy ground at Kerbelah, 
 increasing when a grave is secured in the immediate neighbourhood of the 
 tomb of Imaum Hosein. Twenty thousand pilgrims visit Kerbelah 
 annually. 
 
 P. 480, 1. 2$.Khelwet. 
 His private bedroom. 
 
 CHAPTER LXIII 
 
 P. 487, 1. 6. The bells of the caravan. 
 
 Each mule in the caravan is provided with a bell or bells, which sound at 
 every step the animal makes. When the caravan is upon the march, the 
 gentle and regular ringing of these bells is not unpleasing ; but, as the bells 
 are never removed, the noise made by the picketed beasts at night is deafening. 
 Bells are necessary, as during the greater part of the year the muleteers travel 
 by night, in order to save their animals from the great heat. The mules 
 frequently get off the track, and would be lost, were it not for the bells. 
 Each muleteer knows the particular animal in the dark by the sound of his 
 bells. The peshang, or leader-mule, carries many bells, and the rest of the 
 string are accustomed to follow him by the sound. The headstalls to which 
 the mule-bells are attached are usually elaborately ornamented with cowries, 
 brass ornaments, and tassels and embroideries of gay-coloured wools. 
 
 P. 488, 1. i-]. Cut the ropes. 
 
 Muleteers invariably do this, partly to prevent the mules being carried off 
 by the brigands, partly because robbers are in the habit of hamstringing the 
 mules, in order to plunder the loads at their leisure, and that they may lose 
 none of their booty. It is no part of the duty of the muleteer to protect his 
 loads from banditti ; that is a matter that concerns the owner, and the governor 
 of the province.
 
 620 NOTES 
 
 P. 488, 1. 35. Fees to be paid. 
 
 The tribes on this portion of the Turco-Persian frontier are much given 
 to the plundering of caravans. The Zinjabis, one of these tribes, openly live 
 by brigandage. If they are pursued by the authorities, they simply cross the 
 frontier, and obtain by bribery a temporary protection. They generally 
 demand a sort of black-mail, in the form oirahdaree, or "road- guard money,' 
 as a pretext ; when this is paid, the caravan is usually unmolested, save in 
 disturbed times, such as during a famine, &c. 
 
 CHAPTER LXIV 
 
 P. 493, 1. 28. Aman ! Aman I 
 Mercy ! Mercy ! 
 
 CHAPTER LXV 
 
 P. 495, 1. 15. Spread his bed. 
 See note to Chapter Ixxi. p. 524, 1. 20. 
 
 CHAPTER LXVI 
 
 P. 500, 1. 21. Roum. 
 Roum, i.e., Turkey. 
 
 CHAPTER LXVI I 
 
 P. 509, 1. 6. Kafir, &c. 
 Mule, the son of Ass, the son of Horse, the son of the Mare. 
 
 P. 509, 1. 7. Koreish. 
 
 The Koreish was the dominant tribe of Arabs at Mecca at the time of 
 Mahomed. 
 
 P. 509, 1. 26. Shalli stuff. 
 
 An old Anglo-Indian word. Soft twilled cotton stuff of a red colour, 
 known now as Turkey red. The genuine shalli stuff is dyed with madder, 
 and is of a fast colour. They were originally made at Shaliyat near Calicut.
 
 NOTES 621 
 
 CHAPTER LXVIII 
 P. 512, 1. 24. Little used. 
 
 It is the custom in Turkey not to use an entrance through which the 
 body of the owner of the house has been carried to burial, or even to wall it 
 up, out of respect to his memory. 
 
 P. 515, 1. 27. -Twenty purses. 
 Twenty purses is equivalent to one hundred pounds of our money. 
 
 CHAPTER LXIX 
 P. 518, 1. 3. Fat horses. 
 
 The horses of the wealthy in the East are usually kept fat, as an obvious 
 sign of the prosperity of their masters. They are generally given a small 
 quantity of fresh clover daily, and are only used for parade, being ridden 
 when paying visits. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXI 
 
 P. 524, 1. 20. Was then rolled tip. 
 
 There are no special bedrooms in the East. The bedding, which consists 
 of a thin mattress stuffed with cotton-wool, one or more large feather pillows, 
 and a quilted coverlid of silk or chintz, is laid upon the ground, or on a 
 divan, in the ordinary living-rooms ; and rolled up in the morning in a wrapper 
 of silk or cotton, and placed in a corner of the room, or in a cupboard. Bed- 
 steads are never used, save by great personages. 
 
 P. 528, 1. 23. They shall, &c. 
 
 The exact words are (Sale's Koran, c. xxii.) : " And they who believe not, 
 shall have garments of fire fitted unto them ; boiling water shall be poured 
 on their heads ; their bowels shall be dissolved thereby, and also their skins ; 
 and they shall be beaten with maces of iron. So often as they shall en- 
 deavour to get out of hell, because of the anguish of their torments, they 
 shall be dragged back into the same, and their tormentors shall say unto 
 them, Taste ye the pain of burning." 
 
 CHAPTER LXXI 1 1 
 
 P. 534, 1. 9. Married his cousin. 
 
 " In Persia the marriage of first cousins is the favourite union. The reason 
 is that the cousins have been friends and playmates from childhood, while 
 to the rest of the world, save her brothers and sisters, the young girl is a 
 veiled mystery; so that unless there be a mutual disinclination, or too great
 
 622 NOTES 
 
 a disparity of age, the Persian youth looks naturally to the ' daughter of my 
 uncle 'as his future wife. Often the cousins are betrothed from childhood." 
 ("Persia as it is," p. 64.) 
 
 P. 534, 1. 27. Nature. 
 The above is the usual character of the upper class Persian. 
 
 P- SS^, 1- 12. By your accent. 
 
 The Ispahani pronounces his a as u; thus the well-known proverb 
 "Isfahan nisve Jehan" "Ispahan is half the world," is always pronounced 
 by the native of that city, " Jsfahun nisve Jehun." Every province has its 
 peculiarities of pronunciation. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXIV 
 
 P. 540, 1. 31. Duly whitewashed. 
 
 This is figurative; in contradistinction to the blackened face of the criminal, 
 whose countenance is often blackened with lampblack by the executioner, 
 when he is led out to death. 
 
 P. 542, 1. 20. Kalaat. 
 
 A Kalaat is a robe of honour, generally, if a royal one, of Cashmere 
 shawl trimmed with sable. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXVI 
 
 P. 559, 1. 6. Douzak. 
 Douzak = a prison. 
 
 CHAPTER LXXVII 
 
 P. 560, 1. ii. Al Miei. 
 
 ? " All my eye." A cant phrase, expressive of incredulity, in vogue in 
 Morier's day. Said to be a parody of a Popish prayer to St. Martin, com- 
 mencing, " O mihi, beate Martine." 
 
 CHAPTER LXXVIII 
 
 P. 568, 1. 34. Ring. 
 
 The transaction as to the ring actually took place. The East India 
 Company frequently gave presents in this way.
 
 NOTES 623 
 
 CHAPTER LXXIX 
 
 P. 574, last line. Potato. 
 
 When the present editor first introduced green peas and other vegetables 
 into Ispahan, they were greatly appreciated by the Persians. On offering 
 seeds to the Armenians, they refused them ; " for," said they, " we shall 
 have to grow them for the young prince-governor, for nothing." 
 
 P. 581, 1. 2. Ambassador. 
 
 "The Adventures of Hajji Baba of Ispahan in England," by Morier, was 
 published in London. 
 
 THE END 
 
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