A caravan is a complete republic; but I do not believe that most republics are so orderly. Of our eighty camels every three or four belonged to different individuals; and there were four Cafila-bashees. Still there was no disputing about the arrangement or order of the march; and it is a point of honour, that the one shall at all times wait for the other. If a single camel throws its load, the whole line halts till it is replaced; and one feels pleased at such universal sympathy. These feelings make it agreeable to travel in a caravan, for the detentions are much fewer than would really be imagined. The more I mingled with Asiatics in their own sphere, and judged them by their own standard, I imbibed more favourable impressions regarding them. One does not see in civilised Europe that generous feeling, which induces the natives of Asia, great and small, to share with each other every mouthful that they possess. Among Mahommedans we have no distinction of gentleman and villain,—at least, so far as hospitality is concerned. The khan fares as simply as the peasant; and never offers to raise a morsel to his lips till he has shared it with those near him. I myself frequently have been partaker of this bounty from rich and poor, for nothing is enjoyed without society. How different is the feeling that besets the sots of lower society in Britain! Nor is this good fellowship among the Asiatics confined to the travelled merchant: it is to be found in the towns as well as the country. It is a pity that civilisation, with all its advantages, does not retain for us these virtues. Barbarians are hospitable, civilised men are polite; but hospitality added to politeness makes it more acceptable. A caravan is an interesting scene at all times; and the shifts of the pious to prevent its detention in the Toorkmun desert were not unworthy of notice. The line was too extended to sound a general halt for prayers; and at the appointed time, each individual was to be seen on the back of his camel or in his pannier, performing his orisons before the Deity, in the best manner which he could accomplish them. The laws of the Prophet admit of a true believer being cleansed by sand, where there is no water; and the back of a horse or a camel is as legitimate a position for prayer, as the most splendid mosque of a city. The busy scene on our reaching the halting-ground in the evening, was both lively and entertaining. The Uzbeks, like ourselves, do not water their horses when they are warm: in this journey, we had no sooner arrived than we again took our departure, the horses were therefore permitted to quench their thirst; and to prevent any evil effects from the water, the animal was immediately mounted and galloped at speed over hill and dale, for miles. This brought the water, as the Uzbeks would tell you, to the heated temperature of the animal’s body. The easy carriage of some of the cavaliers, and the light saddles which they rode,—some of them little larger than racing saddles,—imparted an interest to these scampering freaks which was most exciting.
Oochghooee and the wandering Toorkmuns.
Our next march brought us at midnight to Oochghooee, or the Three Wells, which we had great difficulty in finding. We wandered to the right and to the left, and the Toorkmuns dismounted in the dark, and felt for the pathway with their hands among the sand. We had almost despaired of recovering it, and were preparing for our bivouac, when the bark of a dog, and a distant answer to our repeated calls dispelled our anxiety, and we were soon encamped at the well. We here found a few wandering Toorkmuns, the first we had seen since leaving the Oxus. The well was bitter; but these shepherds seem indifferent to the quality of the water. The country continued to change still further as we advanced, becoming more flat and free from sand, but still running in alternate ridges and hollows. In these we discovered some small red sharp-edged pebbles, not unlike iron pyrites; nor did the wells which were dug in them, yet exceed the depth of thirty feet: in the Indian desert they are 300. The Toorkmuns rallied round us next morning, and we had the freest intercourse with them; for they were quite ignorant of our character, and the presence of one of their own tribe, our Toorkmun Ernuzzer, proved a sufficient attraction to these “children of the desert.” They spoke of the piercing cold of the winters in this country; and assured us that the snow sometimes lay a foot deep. We ourselves had experienced a depression of ten degrees in the temperature since leaving the Oxus.
Ruins of castles. Moorghab.
We were now informed that we were approaching the camp of the Khan of Orgunje, which, it appears, was on the banks of the Moorghab, or Merve river, considerably below the place of that name, and about thirty miles distant from us. We set out at noon, and by the time the sun had set, found ourselves among the ruins of forts and villages, now deserted, which rose in castellated groups over an extensive plain. I have observed that we had been gradually emerging from the sand-hills; and these marks of human industry, which we had now approached, were the ancient remnants of civilisation of the famous kingdom of Merve, or, as our historians have erroneously called it, Meroo. Before we had approached them, we had not wanted signs of our being delivered from the ocean of sand, since several flocks of birds had passed over us. As the mariner is assured by such indications that he nears land, we had the satisfaction of knowing that we were approaching the water, after a journey of 150 miles through a sterile waste, where we had suffered considerable inconvenience from the want of it. We were not yet within the pale of habitations; but after a cool and pleasant march, over a perfectly flat and hard plain, every where interspersed with forts and ruins, we found ourselves, about nine in the following morning, at a large Toorkmun camp, (or, as it is called, an Oba,) near the banks of the Moorghab. The name of the place was Khwaju Abdoolla, and the whole colony sallied forth to meet the caravan. We took up a position on a hillock about two or three hundred yards distant; and the merchants instructed us to huddle together among themselves, and appear lowly and humble. We did so, and the Toorkmuns of the encampment soon crowded around us, begging for tobacco, for which they brought loads of the most luscious melons, that we cut up, and enjoyed in the company of camel drivers and slaves, braving the sun, though I cannot say to the detriment of our already sun-burned complexions. It now was discovered that the Orgunje camp lay on the other side of the river, which was not fordable but in certain places; and the merchants decided that they themselves, with all the Cafila-bashees, should forthwith proceed in person to the spot, and use their utmost to conciliate the officer in charge, for the Khan had returned within these few days to Khiva. Their great object seemed to be to effect a discharge of the duties in the spot where they were now encamped, since no one relished trusting their property within reach of an Orgunje detachment. If the party prayed for success, I can add that we were equally fervent, and the deputation set out accordingly with the good wishes of every one. We were left among the “oi polloi” of the caravan; and when night came, stretched our felts under a clear and cloudless sky, and slept without fear or anxiety from our man-selling neighbours. This state of security among such people and countries is very remarkable; but a Toorkmun, though he can engage in a foray, and execute it with unexampled address, cannot commit a theft in a quiet way, which is not congenial to his nature.
Remarks on the desert.
I have now a little leisure to speak of the desert which we had traversed on our route to the Moorghab. In a military point of view, the scarcity of water is a great obstacle. In some places the wells were thirty-six miles apart; and, generally, the water was both bitter and scanty. The water which we had transported with us from the Oxus was not less nauseous than that of the desert; for it must be carried in skins, and these must be oiled to preserve them from bursting. The grease mixes with the water, which latterly became so tainted that the horses even refused to drink it. There is nothing of which we feel the want so much as good water. In the march, several people of the caravan, particularly the camel-drivers, were attacked with inflammation of the eyes; I suppose, from the sand, glare, and dust. With such an enumeration of petty vexations and physical obstacles, it is dubious if an army could cross it at this point. The heavy sandy pathways, for there are no roads, might certainly be rendered passable to guns, by placing brushwood on the sand; but there is a great scarcity of grass for cattle, and the few horses which accompanied the caravan, were jaded and worn out before they reached the river. A horse which travels with a camel, has great injustice done to him; but an army could not outstrip the motions of a caravan, and fatigues would still fall heavily upon them. History tells us, that many armies have fought in and crossed this desert; but they consisted of hordes of light cavalry, that could move with rapidity. It is to be remembered, that we had not a foot-passenger in our party. Light horse might pass such a desert, by divisions, and separate routes; for besides the high road to Merve, there is a road both to the east and the west. It would, at all times, be a difficult task for a great body of men to pass from the Moorghab to the Oxus, since our caravan, of eighty camels, emptied the wells; and it would be easy to hide, or even fill up these scanty reservoirs. Where water lies within thirty feet of the surface, an energetic commander may remedy his wants, since we have an instance of it in the advance of the Orgunje Khan to the banks of the Moorghab. But after I have written, and, perhaps, diffusely, on the passage of such a desert, I may ask myself, who seeks to cross it, and in the line of what invader it lies? It is not in the route between India and Europe; and if the descendants of the Scythians and Parthians wish to invade and tyrannize over each other, they may do so without, perhaps, exciting even the notice of the “fierce Britons.”
A Toorkmun camp.
The Toorkmun camp, or “oba,” at which we halted, presented to us a scene of great novelty. It consisted of about 150 conical moveable huts, called “khirgahs,” which were perched on a rising ground. There was no order in the distribution, and they stood like so many gigantic beehives, which, if they had not had black roofs, might not be a bad comparison; and we might also take the children as the bees, for they were very numerous. I wondered at the collection of so many rising plunderers. Seeing the Toorkmuns in a body, it may be certainly distinguished, that they have something Tatar in their appearance; their eyes are small, and the eyelids appear swollen. They are a handsome race of people. All of them were dressed in the “tilpak,” a square or conical black cap of sheep-skin, about a foot high, which is far more becoming than a turban, and gives to a party of Toorkmuns the appearance of a soldierlike and disciplined body. The Toorkmuns are remarkably fond of bright-coloured clothes, and choose the lightest shades of red, green, and yellow, as the patterns of their flowing “chupkuns,” or pelisses. They sauntered about their encampment in a great state of listlessness; and what have they to do but to live on the proceeds of their last foray? They have but few fields, and one or two individuals may tend their countless flocks at pasture. Their dogs, indeed, perform this office for them. These animals are very docile, but ferocious to a stranger: they are shaggy, appearing to be of the mastiff breed, and bear a high price even among these people. The martial habits of the Toorkmuns appeared in my eyes the more striking, as they had cleared the circle of their encampment of brushwood for about a mile round. It had, I believe, been cut for firewood; but the resemblance to an esplanade, or a parade ground, was none the less on that account. In my notice of the Toorkmuns, I must not now forget the ladies, whose head-dress would do honour to the galaxy of an English ball-room. It consists of a lofty white turban, shaped like a military chako, but higher, over which a red or white scarf is thrown, that falls down to the waist. Some of these Toorkmun females were fair and handsome, adorning themselves with a variety of ornaments, that were attached to their hair, which hangs in tresses over their shoulders. Their head-dress is, perhaps, a little large, but they themselves are generally on a large scale, and as they never veil it becomes them. The other part of their costume is a long gown that reaches to the ancle, and hides both it and the waist, the very standard points of beauty in our country; but so it is, that nations remote from each other differ not more in language and laws than in taste and manners.
Orgunje officers.