The Grenada gazette. (Grenada, Miss.) 1885-18??, 1886-09-25
PERSIAN HORSE RACE.
The Reason Why the Shah's
Horse Always Wins.
his Maiesty's Appearance and His Little
Jokc-scenes Upon the Track-Spec-
~tacular March of the Army
4 Noble Gift.

\ an Nt'A' ''''"
hast crowds of people might have been
sccn pouring through the western gate
ol the City Of Teheran on their way to
the annual horse races. The sight
was one which could scarcely be seen
anywhere else in the world. A hun
dred bright colors were to be observed
in the dresses of the men. the women
= bcinr dressed all alike in wide blue
trousers, blue overall and white lace
coverings, some on foot. others astridc
on horses or donkoys, but all bent on
the same errand-a few hours inno-
cent amusement.
At nine a. m. the firing of a gun at
the palace gates announced that the
sShah had risen; this caused a sudden
stampede Of the crowd, many of whom
mistook the gun as Il signal for the
commencement of the racing. In a
few minutes, however, they we're
sauntcring gaily along again. Another
gun, announcing that the Shah was
ready to start, caused me to wend my
way to the palace, where a couple of
horses were awaiting his Majesty, the
(statc carriage standing ready close by
in case he should prefer it. The Shah,
who appeared one blaze of diamonds,
mounted a fine gray Arab, and, with
some fifty runners in front, and a mass
of horsemen riding behind, started for
the course. The gray proving FESTIVE
another horse was brought, and, in a
flew minutes y third gun announced
that the Shah had arrived at the grand
stand, and the racing might begin.
Imagine an oval-shaped garden en-
|circled by a high mud wall, with a
hard gravel road thirty yards in width
and thickly covered with loose stones,
on the outer side of the wall, two miles
In circumference, and you have the
|Tcheran racing track. Sitting or
standing in the sun, on horseback, or
comfortably ensconced in tents around
thc outer edge of the course, are some
thirty thousand citizens and soldiers,
eagerly waiting for tho casual glimpse
(which is all that can be obtained of the
horSes as they pass; whilst the grand
stand, a large, substantial brick build
hng, opposite the starting and finishing
post, is filed with the exception of
two rooms reserved for the European
legations-by the Shah, his harem and
|retalners. On the open plain behind
the grand stand some hundreds of
richly comparisoned horses are being
FED about by grooms, whilst their own
|ers are comfortably seated in their
tents watching the races. In the CEN
tral saloon of the grand stand is seated
Ethe Shah, surrounded by his ministers
|and personal attendants. the front of
the saloon being entirely open. The
Rooms to the east are filled with the
peter class of Persians and a few
Europeans, while the whole of the
western wing is devoted to the harem
and attendant cunuchs. Opposite
the grand stand, in q crescent
cut out of the garden, two elephants
with gold saddle-cloths, their trunks
painted all the colors of the rainbow,
stand, solemnly ignoring the hustle
around them. In the center of the
crescent is a tank, around which are
seated some twenty native musicians
playing tom-toms and tars-thc latter
2 species Of fiddle, probably the origi-
nal OF the fiddle itself; whilst in front
on the crescent, and directly opposite
|the shah's saloon, a dozen Luti boys,
from eight to twelve years of age, go
khrough their disgusting performance.
wo brass bands occupy the remainder
the crescent. Here and there
mongst the crowd outside, horsemen
snrmed with huge silver batons-em-
sDiems OF authority-push their way or
aerihg inc crowd to sit down, stand
'oack' etc. and instructing the fer
rashes o. foot, who are armed with
long sticks, to enforce these orders.
lhis they DO somewhat roughly, caus-
ing a constant war Of words, but little
else, the people meckly taking their
t~hrashing and sitting down or falling
back as the.case may be.
sAfaas twater-cMricrs) equipped