The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1885-06-11

reached the magnificent bridge. a struc-
ture of twenty-three arches, and called
Puhli-mahlan, truly the most splendid
piece of engineering skill that we had
seen since leaving Yezd. Crossing it,
we were at the gate of the best fortified
of the Oriental cities.
Beautiful of situation, and notably a
stronghold, Herat comes to the eve
with grand earthwork claiming hon
or as the most stupendous in all Asia,
crowned by mighty wall, and pro-
tected by wide, well-kept moat Here
are the figures: Earthwork, $50 feet
wide, 80 feet high; wall, IA feet wide,
20 feet high; ditch, 45 feet wide, 16 feet
deep. Well may the English soldiers
speak of Herat's imposing strength
Well may we wonder at the story of
the sieges of Tmur and Jenghiz Khan
We got down and entered by the Irak
gate. There are five gates to the city,
two at the north, and three others in
the center of the remaining faces.
From each gate street runs straight
to the center of the city, where is aYast
quadrangular reservoir, having wood
en- dome, and holding years supply
of water. OF the five streets, that from
the south of Kandahar gate is the prin-
cipal. 1t is covered the whole length,
forming mammoth caravanserai with
well-built bazaars on each side, and be-
ing of itself a great thoroughfare. The
1rak like the other three streets, is in
ferior to it. But all of the streets are
lined with bazaars. Passing into the
rear OF the bazaars you find the houses.
These are of two kinds, of brick and
mud. Most of the latter are in ruins,
and uninhabited except by vermin.
The brick structures are more modern,
but sadly out OF repair, and fast going
to dllapidatiOn. In these houses the
people live in swarms, going out into
the Chaharsuk (''Four BazaarsnO to
traffic. There may be thirty thousand
population, but they are enough to
make city of the same sanitary class
as many others of India. Filthy is no
name for its condition. 1t is not so
very disgusting around and about the
houses, though they are by no means
clean; but 90 into the streets! There
are drains-and they open into the
streets; seWers-and they discharge in
to the same thoroughfares; garbage,
ashes, and refuse-all thrown into the
olICCbS III ItdpS- SuOIcId Is always = jill
invited guest there, and | had to Won
der If the people were not differently
constituted from their beings to
escape the invasion of deadly plague.
The public buildings of Herat are neith-
er many nor grand. The naesjid-i-jama
(great mosque) is vast ruin, not un-
like the Colosseum at Rome. 1t was
once magnificent in architecture and
adornment, but no one has the means
or inclination to care for it now. The
chdt-r-6agh (royal palace is not infer
lor to some similar buildings in Tehe-
ran, but is more modern.
A word or two of our experience
from our arrival at the Irak gate. The
American minister at Teheran, Mr..
Benjamin, had put into our hands
memorial on the subject of the propos-
ed cted road to Herat, and we were in
structed to deliver it to the governor.
Having informed the courier of our
purpose, he kept us at the gate until he
could send a ldSr (genera), func-
tionary blazing with blue, scarlet, and
gold thread. Giving us each an arm,
he marched us into Sdla and ordered
tea and pipes, and then marched us
direct to the citadel and repeated the
same performance. Forthwith a cham
berlain appeared, and, ushering us into
an elegant and spacious hall, treated
us to more tea and narghilehs. After
this we We're escorted up a staircase
with much fuss and ceremony, and in
to the presence of the governor, who
received the letter and placed it in his
breast-pocket in manner which betok-
ened that the exhaustive etiquette of
Persia was the fashion of Herat. We
did not see the governor afterward,
though we had to send to him for
congo when we left for Cabul. He en-
joyed the honor of being both the faith
er-in-law and son-in-law of Abdurrah-
man, and to be father of the ameer's
wife and husband of the ameer's daugh-
ter is no small distinction.