The excavations near Nebbi Yunus are still being carried on. An annual grant is made by the British government for this purpose.
The English resident at Baghdad, Major Rawlinson, had made himself perfectly master of the cuneiform character. He reads the inscriptions with ease, and many of the translations are the results of his labours.
We returned to Mósul on horseback in five hours and a half. The power of endurance of the Arabian horses is almost incredible. They were allowed only a quarter of an hour’s rest in Mósul, where they had nothing but water, and then travelled the eighteen miles back again during the hottest part of the day. Mr. Ross told me that even this was not equal to the work done by the post horses: the stations for these are from forty-eight to seventy-two miles distant from each other. It is possible to travel from Mósul by Tokat to Constantinople in this way. The best Arabian horses are found round Baghdad and Mósul.
An agent of the Queen of Spain had just purchased a stud of twelve magnificent horses (eight mares and four stallions), the dearest of which had cost on the spot £150 sterling. They stood in Mr. Rassam’s stable. Their handsome, long, slender heads, their sparkling eyes, slight bodies, and their small delicately formed feet, would have filled any admirer of horses with delight.
I could now venture, not, indeed, without considerable risk, although with the possibility of some insult, upon the desired journey into Persia. I sought a caravan to Tebris. Unfortunately, I could not find one which went direct there, and I was, therefore, compelled to make this journey in separate stages, a circumstance which was so much the worse for me, as I was told that I should not find any Europeans on the way.
Nevertheless I took the chance. Mr. Rassam arranged for me the journey as far as Ravandus, and furnished me with a letter of recommendation to one of the natives there. I wrote out a small lexicon of Arabian and Persian words, and took leave of this hospitable family at sunset, on the 8th of July. I started on this journey with some feelings of anxiety, and scarcely dared to hope for a fortunate termination. On that account I sent my papers and manuscripts from here to Europe, so that in case I was robbed or murdered my diary would at least come into the hands of my sons. [{270}]
CHAPTER XX. PERSIA.
JOURNEY OF THE CARAVAN TO RAVANDUS—ARRIVAL AT AND STAY IN RAVANDUS—A KURDISH FAMILY—CONTINUATION OF THE JOURNEY—SAUH-BULAK—OROMIA—AMERICAN MISSIONARIES—KUTSCHIÉ—THREE GENEROUS ROBBERS—PERSIAN CHANS AND ENGLISH BUNGALOWS—ARRIVAL AT TEBRIS.
On the 8th of July the caravan guide called for me in the evening. His appearance was so unfavourable that I should scarcely have ventured to travel a mile with him had I not been assured that he was a man well known in the place. His dress consisted of rags and tatters, and his countenance resembled that of a robber. Ali, that was his name, told me that the travellers and goods had already gone on and were encamped in the chan near Nebbi-Yunus, where they were to pass the night. The journey was to be commenced before sunrise. I found three men and some pack-horses; the men (Kurds) were no better in appearance than Ali, so that I could not promise myself much gratification from their society. I took up my quarters for the night in the dirty court-yard of the chan, but was too much frightened to sleep well.
In the morning, to my astonishment, there were no indications of starting. I asked Ali what was the cause of this, and received as answer that the travellers were not all assembled yet, and that, as soon as they were, we should proceed immediately. In the expectation that this might soon happen, I dared not leave the miserable shelter to return to Mósul, from which we were only a mile distant. The whole day was spent in waiting; these people did not come until evening. There were five of them: one, who appeared to be a wealthy man, with his two servants, was returning from a pilgrimage. We started at last about 10 o’clock at night. After travelling for four hours we crossed several ranges of hills, which form the boundaries of Mesopotamia and Kurdistan. We passed several villages, and reached Secani on the morning of the 10th of July. Ali did not halt at the village which lies on the pretty river Kasir, but on the other side of the river near a couple of deserted, half-ruined huts. I hastened directly into one of the best to make sure of a good place, where the sun did not come through the sieve-like roof, which I fortunately found but the pilgrim, who hobbled in directly after me, was inclined to dispute its possession. I threw my mantle down, and seating myself upon it, did not move from the place, well knowing that a Mussulman never uses force towards a woman, not even towards a Christian one. And so it turned out; he left me in my place and went grumbling away. One of the pedlars behaved himself in a very different manner: when he saw that I had nothing for my meal but dry bread, while he had cucumbers and sweet melons, he gave me a cucumber and a melon, for which he would not take any money. The pilgrim also ate nothing else, although he had only to send one of his servants to the village to procure either fowls or eggs, etc. The frugality of these people is really astonishing.