The New York herald., 1870-08-20

ing men, diversified only by the occasional break
age Of bale or Q saddle bag, until I know
Ii by heart. II is by far the most fatiguing
part of tho days work, aad is rarely accom-
plished under couple of hours. After two or
three days travelling this mule falls Lame or that
one gels sore back and general redistribution
Of the burdens takes place. From that time FOR
ward each day witness $ a new arrangement, each
change occasioniag general debate among the
muleteers with pieous appeals to tho traveller to
remember that hs is killing with overwork the
animals OF the poorest Of mon. The Turks say
that caravanjces arc tho greatest rosues in the
country and this is no doubt true. But IL must
be remembered that these men lead the hardest
Of all possible lives. Year after year they tramp
along the same weary roads, from Bagdad to
SAMSON, from Aleppo TO Mosui, or perhaps even
to Constantinople, walking generally twenty or
twenty-five miles day, breaklasting on o few
cakes of bread, warmed over fire of dried cow.
dung, and dining upon dish Of boiled rice. Their
pay is very small. From Bagdad TO Mosul, three
hundred miles, or twelve days' journey, you can
hire three mules and q driver for twenty dollars,
the muleteer feeding himself and his animals.
That il about half dollar o day for each
mule, with the mau thrown in. It Is
perhaps therefore, only natural that his scent for
backsheesh should be keen, and that he should
now and then perpetrate little mild cheating.
Some of the earavanjees grow rich they add
slowly to the number of their animals until per-
haps they own 100. and employ twenty or thirty
drivers. The caravan business. however, grows
worse and worse every year, owing to the differ
ent channels which the Eastern trade is now
taking. Formerly all the European trade with
Bagded was done by caravans to AleppO and
Damascus; single caravans Of fve or six thou
sand camels, mules and horses, with an escort of
200 men, were not uncommon, Bat now the
greater part of this commerce is done by the
steamship lines to Bussorah, and the caravans
have dwindled down to comparatively contempt-
BILE proportions, 1t is estimated that 900 mules
or 700 cames are required to transport the cargo
of vessel of 500 tons.
Packing at length finished, the mules fall into
line, the travellers mount and take their place at
the head of the caravan, the soldiers Jump into
the saddle and the days journey begins. The
pace is frghtfally slow. never exceeding three or
four miles an hour. Progress, however, is steady,
if not speedy. A halt is made at the completion
Of the half of the journey, or, rather, at the
animals wash the dust out Of their mouths; but
that is all. The caravan crawls aiong, indeed,
with the persistence Of destiny and as one looks at
IL painfully travereing some long stretch of level
road every image Of patience and continuous
effort-the travelling tortoise, kingdom of ants,
colony Of spiders-rises spontaneously in one's
mind. The distance traversed s generally about
twenty-five or tkrty miles Q day, but Is reekoned
by time, not by measured length. An Arab says
sit is SO many hours (not miles or leagues) to
such place." And there are different varieties
of hours. The Turkish official hour, according to
which post distances are reckoned, is almost ex-
actly three miles; the Camel hour rs only little
more than two, and the Koordish hour, as il is
called, s more than four. In asking your position
you must always ask also the kind of hours in
which your informant is reckoning.
INFLUENCE or TaB CARAVAN UPON NATIONAL
CHARACrER.
Perhaps the Oriental calm and patience ani
laizness which all travellers have remarked, i
owing chiefly to the Oriental mode of travelling
During the winter days Journey is necessary
fixed, not by the capacity of the animals, but b.
the village nearest to what ought to be a day
journey. From Bagdad to Mosul, for instance, +
sometimes happens that in distance of fifty miles
you will only pass single village. That village
may, perhaps, be only fifteen miles from the point
of departure but you are perforce obliged to stay
there, because your beasts could not possibly push
on another thirty-Ave. In summer, travelling is
regulated even more rgidly by the position Of the
wells aud rivers SO that you arc never at liberty
to 20 as quickly as the animals might carry you;
many days you arc only able to get over four or
five hours of road, and as you still start at dawn
you reach your camping place before noon. To
an Asiatic this is no sourcs of irritation, but an
American frets and chafes over the waste OF
time, even though the delay gives him a pleasant
afternoons shooting. The Turk or Arab or
Koord takes the matter quietly, as q decree OF
destiny, and settles himself in his quarters upon
his carpets and cushions, consoling himself
with the never-failing balm of nargheelah
or chiboque and innumerable cups Of coffee.
1t is only natural, isn't it, that people thus
strictly and palpably confined by circumstances
to q particular course in one field of action
should succumb TO difficulties in other M alters
without struggling very violently to overc ONE
them? But Let railroad once pierce the country,
let the Asiatic once be convinced--as the iron
horse has already convinced the Europe an-of
the vast power which man can acquire over
nature, and this ready submission TO the appa-
rently unalterable will give place to spirited and
energetic effort. The statesmen of Europe have
already tried ursuccessfuily many remed TO
restore the "sick mani to health and vigor.
When they become wise they will adopt the one
great and unlaiing measure OF American national
hygiene-tle locomotive. The locomotive, and
the locomotive alone, can rcgeneratc Turkey.
TUE PLBAsUsEs OF CARAVAN TRAVEL.
But should be uugratefhl if were to rcpo;
caravan travel az simply tedious and wholly disa-
Creeable In spite of its slowness, in spite of
many inconveniences which shall detail below,
in spite of the monotony Of the scenery through
which have passed, the journey has been q very
enjoyable one. left Bagdad sick mar; have
arrived at Aleppo in the best health