The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1886-05-29

A correspondent of the New York Times,
under date Teheran, Persia, April Z, writes:
Travelling in Persia can never be an unal-
loyed pleasure so long as the roads are so
extremely rough, the climate so trying, and
the whole vast country innocent of any
other mode of locomotion than horses,
mules, or camels. But when the travelling
has to be done at conjuncture, when tor
rents of rain, clouds of sizzling snow, or
waves of scorching heat are evenly distrib-
uted during the brief time of one single
week; when the roads-or rather, mule
paths-are soaked and almost impossible;
when the mountain brooks are swollen be-
yond recognition, and the smaller rivers
have become momentary Mississippis-
then, indeed, travelling in Irak is a thing
which needs lots of luck, more endurance,
and an iron constitution to be accomplished
without loss of health, limb, or life. L
consider that the ride of 270 miles just
have name from Enzeli to Teheran, albeit
much shorter, ought to rank in contempo-
raneous history side by side with Burnaby's s
famous ride to Khiva. Especially was that
portion of it from Palchena to Aghababa-
distance of 43 miles-as dangerous and
fatiguing as anything that can well be con-
ceived. From 5 in the morning till 4 in
the afternoon nothing but deep, unbroken
snow, path 18 inches wide, often indis
tinguishable while, to right and left and
on the mountain sides above you lay the
winding sheet of grim death, in many
places Is to 20 feet high, sitting on horses
stumbling with fatigue, whose one misstep
might mean the engulfng of you and your
poor beast beyond recovery, where the
springing up Of an untimely wind would
have destroyed the path behind you and
before, and would have buried the whole
cavalcade so securely that even their bones
might never have been recovered, with a
glaring sun on the endless snow6elds, which
blinded you and made you see as well as
feel blue-that is an experience which any
body else is welcome to hereafter, if he
cares to make it, but which l have made
my mind up to never try again.
The party of Minister Winston landed
at Enzeli, the Persian port on the Caspian
Sea, on March 25, and for fully four days
we never caught glimpse of the sun
nothing but drizzling or driving rain. The
province is called Gielan, (Which means
midland, and there never was truer
name. The climate here is always uncer-
tain, but very certain is this that there is
much rain all the year round. Vegetation,
when the soil is fertile, is luxurious, but
the fruit cannot properly ripen there is not
enough sun. Other parts of Persia, it is
true, make ample amends for this, so that
on the whole this may still BE- appropriate
ly termed the land of the sun, But, then,
we had to get through Gielan first in order
to get to the sunny and warmer portion of
Persia. Well, Iii spare you the details of
the trip From the foregoing you must
have gathered enough to know that
it was exceedingly trying. 1t was on
Friday, April 2, that the party at last,
travel-worn and travel-stained, halted be-
fore the gates of Teheran. The reason we
had to halt was this: Our meimander, in one
of his frequent fits of observation-disclosures,
had completely forgotten that this day was
the Moslem holiday, and that it was besides,
the last of the 13 days, the Persian Noon
Rouz Cor New Years celebration lasts, in
consequence of which officials, burghers,
everybody, has last grand "blow out, "
and the few remaining tomaDs jingling in
their pockets are spent in merry-making,
mostly outside the city, leaving the latter
practically deserted A courier from the
Minister of Foreign Affairs, apprising Mr..
Winston of this, and requesting him to
postpone his entry for one day, had met
US at Shahabad, the last stage before the
capital. But the American Minister de-
cided to push ahead and if possible to find
way of sleeping under the roof of the
American Legation that night, being hearth
ly sick of this Persian invention of the devil,
the chapper khane, (pest house. } with its
myriads of vermin, its smoky chimneys,
and its total absence of all comforts. The
meimandar (the envoy of the Shah, sent
to conduct the Minister to Teheran, at last
effected compromise, sanctioned by the
Minister of Foreign Affairs. Mr.. Winston
and suite were allowed to enter the city
incognito, but the formal reception was to
take place next day Saturday at noon.
Thus the thing was done, and we slept that
night, for the first time in a fortnight,
warm and undisturbed by those various
voracious insects which make life in chap
per khane burden.
Next day the Shah sent two closed car
riages around, and we were taken, in a
manner calculated to attract the least at
tention, to the royal pavilion, near the race
course, not far from the gates Of the CITY,
Here sort of preliminary reception took
place, the persons paying honor to the
American envoy being about 100 in num-
Der, the most prominent being Mass ul
Mulk, representing the Shah; Ameer To-
man, commander of an army corps; Gen.
Mahsoon Khan, Secretary of the Foreign
Office; Gen. Mira Abbas Koats Khan,
sent on the part of the War Office, and
three moostafy, sent by the Premier, Sadr
Azem, who at that moment was lying at
the point of death at his house. The mill
tary personages were clad in dazzling uni
forms, all of them with many decorations
on their breasts and Mass ul Mulk, besides,
wearing the portrait of the Shah, set in
huge diamonds. The civil dignitaries wore
royal robes of honor of wonderfully fine
cashmere, with diamond and ruby buckles
and lined with costly fur, and on their heads
they had the old-fashioned high turban.
The place-of-honor, next to the window on
divan of green silk, was assigned to the
American Minister, and next to him sat
Mass ul Mulk. A number of the Persians
present spoke more or less endurable French,
and sort of rambling conversation took
place, while sherbets, tea, and coffee were
served, and the ghalyan persian water
pipe) and cigarettes were handed round.
Some of the questions put were rather
ludicrous Thus, one man asked if the
nobility in the United States kept their rank
for life; another, if our country would soon
have another revolution. Then we all
descended and mounted horses. Those
for the Minister and his suite had been
sent from the Shah's private stable and
were magnificent Arabians, caparisoned
with all the luxury the Oriental is so fond
of. While 200 royal runners, armed with
silver-knobbed slaves and clad in scarlet,