The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-07-22


Of the nrst Introduction Of Persia 70 the Stock Ex-
change and then ali ct once there VIII BE- saik Of
dividends In arrear end Reputation. IL might be
also ~ wen, too, widows, halfpay on1oers and
trustees vino are generally victimized In these
cases, would reject, before II u zoo late that
PerHia II very poor country. Tho little money
shat there Ii In 10 Ii buried away for fear OF
the government. and certainly no Perslans VIII
place the smallest confidence IN any security
guaranteed by their own government. The great
est part Of Persia IL . parched and uncultivated
desert. IL has no commerce worth men,
ton, and the population Is scarcely numerous
enough to render railways remunerattve The
cost OF making iron roads over almost impossible
mountains and stony plains Will DO immense, and
everything required to make them, from the labor
ers to the steam engines, must be brought BY land
carriage, on the backs OF mules and pack horses
from abroad. Nor will managing men OF the riRnt
stamp be very anxious to take places In Persia.
The climate is abominable, and so unfavorable to
the health ana vfgor Of the European and American
race that after short residence there they are In
variably attacked with dysentery, which commonly
proves fatal and their hair falls Oh, their teeth
drop out or decay, ana they are racked BY fever
and ague It Is all very well to say that business
men win do anything for money. 80 they will but
sensible man WIN want o good deal OF 1t to do
Baron Reuters work for him, and his shareholders
can only expect the rifraG and sweepings OF the
labor market upon anything like the usual terms.
It Is quite true that living was formerly
cheap In Persia, ana perhaps It Is stu 80
as compared with the prices OF New York, Paris
ana London; but 1t VIII be cheap only so long 90
foreign consumers are kept, % they have been
hitherto kept, out OF the country by the Difficulty
Of getting into It, Teheran Ia more than thousand
miles by land from Trebizond, the nearest seaport
| IN I'm md mn ho mi
horseback, through pathless roads and over noun
tains which cannot DO passed without extreme
danger and diniculty. During half the year they
are covered by snow; for three months more they
are perilous from mud and slush. In the hot sea-
son the sun ana the east wind beat pitilessly on
the traveller There are no inns on the way,
nothing but q few empty and desolate barns and
posting houses which swarm with vermtn and
| afford nothing but dubious shelter. The wild
tribes on the frontier between Turkey and
Persia are always In movement, and wander
about In armed bands thousands strong. They
are feroclous and filthy robbers. Woe to the snug
railway clerk or well fed engineer OF plump and
rosy aspect who falls into their hands. Some
| years ago they caught an English attache Ia Mr..
| Tod) and ate up his pomatum. What was worse
| for him, they made him eat some OF 1t too, and
stripped him naked, tied him to q horse's tail,
pricked him up behind with, SPEARS point when
he tagged and ultimately held him to ransom.
Baron Reuters friends will be rare prize for the
Koords, some OF whom, by the way, are worship
pers OF tho devil Then, II the English SPECTATORS
are ever allowed to get to their journeys end
their comfort will be small Until the railways are
made ian end OF the business which viii hardly
come about in the present century, everything
which constitutes the comfort OF civilized house
hold must be imported, and land carriage Is ex-
pensive. moderate man. too, will be obliged to
keep dozen servants and half o dozen horses,
neither OF which articles are cheap or good
and upon the whole salaries must be calculated
much higher In Persia than even In India Nothing
under Q thousand pounds sterling yearly win keep
family decently; and to 60 to Persia for mere
victuals snd drink without being able to save q
dollar. would be poor business, indeed. There Is
no mistake about the actual cost OF living and
moving ABOUT In Persia, and tents, cooks, guards
tent pitchers Interpreters, food and wine are not
be had and carried about for nothing. There Is
indeed certain queer sort of respect paid to the
Frank In Persia. For instance, the soldiers pre-
sents arms to everv man who we"-. eHs..nes -po'
nat, under the belief that he is foreign ambassa
dor or one of his suite; but the fanatic Sniites or
heretical Mohammedans, will not allow Christian
| to enter their public baths lest he should dedle
them. They will not drink out of o cup or glass
| which he has used or sit upon carpet after him
lo THE COURT OF PERSIA. ei
The Persian court Is the most brilliant in Asia,
and II any one desires to know more precisely
what that may mean, in the present day, It may De
briefly described. When foreign envoy Ia about
a days journey from the capital he halts his cara
van, and nfty-three OF the principal officers
| OF the court 60 on horseback to welcome
| him and to conduct hum to Teheran. They
| are very well mounted, but Will not sell any
| OF their best horses to the Franks. In Persia
mans rank Is estimated by the size and height Of
his horse. The Persian magnates all ride tall
horses Of the Turcoman breed, splendidly capari.
soned with golden bits and saddle cloths wrought
with embroidery and precious stones Each mag.
| nate has cloud OF armed servants mounted be-
| hind him, and these fellows gallop round and
| round In circles to show on their horsemanship.
Their horses tails and their own boards are often
| dyed bright red, like to nothing In nature Their
hair Is also dyed from their earliest youth with
| mixture Of indigo and nenna. Most OF the court
dignitares wear the star Of the Order OF the Lion
| and the Sun, decoration first invented by Sir
John Malcolm, an English general, who did good
service In Persia till the Foreign once sent one Sir
| John Hartford Jones, an opposition envoy, to
! thwart him. ie.
When the new Ambassador has been duly
| escorted to his residence according to custom the
courtiers send him presents Of fruit money, loaves
| OF sugar, tea and sour cream. Shortly afterwards
ue is W Iue pTeScuCe VI Tue OI Kings.
| The Shah receives him In q rambling. desoate
building, very little better than barn In q civil.
| lied country, and says few words, Of course. to
him, his Ministers looking gravely on the while.
Nothing Of Importance passes at the interview,
which lasts about ten minutes, and then the Am
| bassador returns on horseback, as he came to his
own residence. He does not see much of the Shah
| after that unless he requests an audience on
some special occasion. There are no court fes-
tivties, no invitations to dinner except upon some
| great event. It must be admitted that when such
invitations do come they are well worth accepting.
| When the Shah proclaimed hts second son heir to
the throne there was very grand banquet. All the
diplomatic corps were present, and feasted with
| the Ministers In Q room apart, the Shah dining
alone, like superior being as he Is After dinner
which took place in broad daylight at an early
| hour. and which, by the way. was abomiuably bad