Arriving without accident or adventure at Akalziké, and remaining there four days to repose himself, he departed for Georgia. The route now presented nothing extraordinary. A castle or a ruin, picturesquely perched upon the crest of a rocky eminence, a church, or a village, or a forest—such were the objects which met the eye. He at length reached the Capuchin convent in the vicinity of Gory, whence, after mature consultation with the monks, who, for strangers, entered with extraordinary earnestness into his views, he set out, accompanied by a lay-brother of the order, for Tiflis, partly with the design of demanding aid from the Prince of Georgia, and partly to obtain the advice of the principal missionary respecting the steps he ought to take in order to deliver his partner and property from the avaricious hands of the Mingrelians. The opinion of the monks was, that since the Prince of Georgia entertained rather loose notions respecting his allegiance to the King of Persia, whose servant Chardin was to be considered, and, like all petty potentates, was possessed by extreme cupidity and laxity of principle, there would in all probability be as much danger in being aided by him, as in depending on the uncertain will of fortune and his own prudence and ingenuity; that he ought to return secretly to Mingrelia; and that, for the greater chance of success, he should take with him one of the brotherhood, who was deeply versed in the small politics of those countries; and a native dependent on the monastery, who had been a thousand times in Mingrelia.
With these able coadjutors he returned once more into the country of Media, whence, after incredible difficulties and very considerable danger, he succeeded in rescuing his property. On his return to Tiflis he calculated, with the aid of his companion, the losses they had sustained during the journey from Constantinople to Georgia, and found that, by great good fortune, it did not exceed one per cent. upon the merchandise they had succeeded in conveying safe and entire to that city. He now tasted of that delight which springs up in the mind after dangers escaped and difficulties overcome; and commenced the pleasing task of studying the manners of a people among whom, however impure and depraved might be their morals, a stranger had little to fear. The beauty of the women, he found, was so irresistible in Georgia, and their manners so graceful and bewitching, that it was impossible to behold them without love; but the depravity of their morals, and the blackness and perfidy of their souls, exceeded, if possible, the perfection of their forms, and rendered them as odious to the mind as they were pleasing to the eye.
After remaining a short time at Tiflis, and going through the usual routine of giving and receiving presents, &c., he departed for Armenia. Being now accompanied by a mehmandar, or guest-guard, he proceeded without obstacle or extortion; this officer taking upon himself the care of adjusting matters with the custom-houses, and of providing horses, carriage, and provisions on the way. Though in so low a latitude, the whole face of the country was still covered with snow in March, and it was with much difficulty that they proceeded over the narrow pathways made by the few travellers who were compelled to traverse the country at such a season. To guard against the reflection of the sun’s rays from the snow, which weakened the sight, and caused a burning heat in the face, our traveller wore a handkerchief of green or black silk tied across the eyes, after the manner of the inhabitants, though this merely diminished, but could not altogether prevent the evil. Whenever they met any travellers moving in a contrary direction, they had to dispute who should yield up the narrow path, upon which two horses could not pass each other, and go out into the soft snow, in which the animals instantly sunk up to their bellies; but in the end every one yielded the preference to the mehmandar. Creeping along in this manner through the cold, they arrived at Eryvan on the 7th of March.
Being now in a country where civilization had made some progress, Chardin took lodgings in a caravansary, and was provided abundantly with the necessaries of life by the bounty of the governor, who, no doubt, expected that his civilities would be remembered when he should come in the sequel to bargain for a portion of the traveller’s jewels. In the East it is an established rule that the natives shall always take advantage of a stranger, sometimes by force, at other times by cunning, but invariably in some way or another. In Mingrelia our traveller had to guard against force and violence; here against wheedling, deceit, flattery, double-dealing, hypocrisy, and meanness. In the former case, however, being weak, it was necessary to evade or succumb; but in the present, since ingenuity was the weapon on both sides, there were more chances of success, though it often appeared that plain honest good sense is not always a match for practised cunning. In the intervals of business the time was passed in parties, dinners, and visits, which at least furnished opportunities of studying the manners of the people.
Perceiving that the time of his departure was drawing nigh, the governor came to the point at which he had been steadily aiming all the while, under cover of his hospitality and caresses, which were put forward as so many stalking-horses, to enable him to bring down his game with greater certainty. Sending for Chardin to the palace, he proceeded warily and stealthily to business, occasionally shaking the dust of compliments and flattery in the traveller’s eyes as he went along. He first lamented the actual state of Persia, in which, reduced by bad government and the malignant inclemency of the seasons to a state bordering upon famine and anarchy, there was of course little or no demand for expensive articles of luxury; besides, even if public affairs had been flourishing, and the royal resources abundant, the present king had no taste for jewelry; and that, therefore, there was no hope of disposing of costly precious stones at the court of Ispahan. From this preliminary discourse, which was meant to diminish in the traveller’s eyes the value of his merchandise, though in reality the picture was correct, the governor passed at once to the genuine object of his oration, and made an offer to purchase a part of the jewels. His conduct on this occasion was a masterpiece of mercantile skill, and he succeeded, by holding out the hope of more important purchases in the sequel, in getting every thing he really intended to buy at a very cheap rate. When his object was gained, he closed the negotiation in the coolest manner in the world, by returning the large quantity of jewels which he had caused to be sent to his palace, as if he had intended to bargain for them all; and the traveller now perceived that the wily Persian had made a dupe of him. As all manifestations of discontent, however, would have been altogether useless, he affected to be extremely well pleased at his bad luck, and retired to his caravansary, cursing all the way the talents and aptitude of the governor of Eryvan for business and cheating.
On the 8th of April he departed from the capital of Armenia, and travelling for several days through level and fertile plains, interspersed with churches and villages, arrived at Nacchivan, a city formerly celebrated, and of great antiquity, but now in ruins. From hence he proceeded, etymologizing and making researches as he moved along, towards Tabriz, where he arrived on the 17th. At this city, then the second in Persia in rank, riches, and population, he took up his quarters at the Capuchin convent, where he was visited by several of the nobles of the place, on account of his jewelry, the fame of which flew before him on the road, and like a pioneer smoothed and laid level his passage into Persia. In proceeding southward from Tabriz he had to traverse the plains of Aderbijān, the ancient Media, which being covered at this season of the year by tribes of Koords, Saraneshins, and Turcomans, all striking their tents, and putting themselves in motion for their summer emigration to the mountains, could not be crossed by a stranger without considerable danger. He was therefore counselled to defer his departure for a few days, when he would have the advantage of travelling in the company of a Persian nobleman, whose presence would be a sufficient protection. He adopted this advice, and in less than a week set out under the safeguard of his noble escort, and crossed those rich and beautiful plains, which afford the best pasturage in the world, and where, accordingly, the ancient kings of Media kept their prodigious studs, which sometimes consisted of fifty thousand horses. The ancients relate, that the horses of Nysa, which must be sought for in these plains, were all cream-coloured; but the nobleman who accompanied Chardin had never read or heard of any part of Persia where horses of that colour were produced.
In his journey through Media he saw on the side of the road circles of huge stones, like those of Stonehenge, and the Dolmens of Normandy and Brittany, which, according to the traditions of the Persians, were placed there by the Kaous, or giants, who formerly held possession of those regions. The same superstitions, the same fables, the same wild belief in the enormous strength and stature of past generations, prevail, we see, throughout the world, because the desires, faculties, and passions of the mind are everywhere the same.
It was now June, and instead of disputing with those they met on the road the possession of a narrow snow-track, they were compelled to travel by night to avoid the scorching heat of the sun. They usually set out about two hours before sunset, and when day had entirely disappeared, the stars, which in the clear blue atmosphere of Persia yield a strong brilliant light, agreeably supplied its place, and enabled them to proceed from caravansary to caravansary with facility. At every step historical associations crowded upon the traveller’s mind. The dust which was thrown up into a cloud by the hoof of his camel, and the stones over which he stumbled in the darkness, were the dust and the wrecks of heroes and mighty cities, crumbled by time, and whirled about by the breath of oblivion. Cyrus and Alexander, khalifs, khans, and sultans, had fought, conquered, or perished on those plains. Vast cities had risen, flourished, and vanished like a dream. A few days before his arrival at Kom he passed at a little distance the ruins of Rhe, a city scarcely less vast in its dimensions, or less magnificent or populous than Babylon, but now deserted, and become so unhealthy in consequence, that, according to a Persian poet, the very angel of death retired from it on account of the badness of the air.
On his arrival at Koms, after escaping from the storms of the Black Sea and the Mingrelians, Chardin was nearly killed by the kick of a horse. He escaped, however, and set out two days afterward for Kashan, traversing fine fertile plains, covered with villages. In this city, celebrated for its burning climate and scorpions, he merely remained one day to allow his horses a little repose, and then departed and pushed on to Ispahan, where he arrived on the 23d of June.
Chardin was faithful to the Capuchin friars; for whenever he passed through or visited a city in which they possessed a convent, it was the first place to which he repaired, and the last he quitted. On the present occasion he took up his residence, as usual, with these monks, at whose convent he found on his arrival a bag of letters addressed to him from various parts of the world: before he could read the half of which, many of his Persian and Armenian friends, whom he had known during his former residence, and all the Europeans of the city, came to welcome him on his return to Ispahan. From these he learned that the court, which had undergone innumerable changes during his absence, the greater number of those great men who had distinguished themselves, or held any offices of trust under the late king, being either dead or in disgrace, was now in the utmost confusion, the persons who exercised most influence in it being a set of young noblemen without virtue, talents, or experience. And what was still worse for Chardin, though not for Persia, it was secretly whispered about that Sheïkh Ali Khan, formerly prime minister, but now in disgrace, was about to be restored to favour; in which case our traveller anticipated great losses, as this virtuous and inflexible man, whose great talents had always been employed in the service of his country, was an enemy to all lavish expenditure, and regarded jewels and other costly toys as mere dross, unworthy the attention of a sovereign prince.