The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1897-12-16
B|k|AG THROUGH PERSIA.
THE ROUGH AND THORNY PATHS
TRAVELLED BY TWO ADVENTURE
GUS AMERICANS.
oats FOR THE SILENT Sized.
The Shnh's Little Jolse-IIc Wanted
10 See One of the Bicyclists Break
His Neck and Almost Had his
Wish GrntiGed.

If you look at the northwest corner
of map of Persia, you may, or you
may not, find n spot marked Julia, lying
on the Armenian side Of the stream
AraXes. That is the place where, with
Two friends, ! commenced n bicycle ride
through the land OF the Lion and Sun.
If you are good at tracing routes on
drops on Tabriz, and on the right will
he seen Kazvin. Let your fingers slide
in line almost down the map, end YOU
will find Teheran, Kurn, Ispahan, and
Shlraz, and then. with twist to the
left. Bushire will be discovered on the
coast. 1t was at Bushire we finished
our cycling in the realm Of the Shah,
covering distance of nearly fifteen
hundred miles.
1t was a curious experience. There
are no fine parks and asphalted roads in
Persin. No cycle sports have ever been
held there This may be because there
are no cycles. / am glad of this. for
the eyes of the sons of Iran would be
opened, and then they would declare
the cyclists to be frauds. At present
they believe any distance can be cover
ed in no time. At Teheran | told
man had come from Julia, only some
800 miles off. "What, sahib, today"
he asked, with the faintest astonish-
ment.
Another man was peering curiously
Mt my wheel. The pneumatic tires were
"A mystery. He pressed his sallow thumb
on the rubber, and then blandly asked
"Sahib, is this like the heel of a
mans foot? Does it get ha-dcr the
more it Is used?"
| wished 1t did.
One day l was talking to the governor
of the village. 1t was blisteringly hot
and l casually remarked it was cold in
America at that time of year.
but it is very hot in Bombay, isn't |
"Yes but Bombay isn't New York." |
| answered.
Surprise spread over his features, and
then he questioned:
but are not both Bombay and New
York in Frankistan" Which shows
that knowledge of geography in the Do
minion of the king of kings is hazy.
Our first day in Persia was character
istic We had crossed the Araxes from
Armenia, and we started off all right
over bunny, bone shaking mule track.
and went hard for black gorge that
CAPPED in the center of high rcd cliffs.
w ith We IGuCuctl Tie BOISG the DIlH
took fancy to occasionally dabble in
a stream. AS the stream was deep,
boulders slippery, and our necks pre- ,ious
we thought it best to walk. Now and
then we carried the bicycles mile or
two. Each bicycle, with baggage,
weighed seventy pounds. OF course
we were wet up to the thighs. But
we soon got used to that. Night closed
In and the moon was good enough to
oblige.
There had been fearful robbery in
the Duardees pass n few weeks before;
the mail had been attacked, and bars of
gold and bags of money for the Persian
bank had been purloined. We wonder
ed whether the robbers would deem 1t
worth while attacking us. And we had
hardly escaped from the dark hail. and
were cautiously and silently wheeling
over faint track, when two horsrmen
whispered, and noticing the flash of the
foes pistols in the moonlight we parley-
ed at n distance. They seemed more
frightened than we We're
We went searching for one village and
found another 1t was not much of
a place, as far as villages go. But we
were very cold, and very hungry, and
very tired, and very wet. SO we aroused
the place, and made them find us a
'Voh'' anu Nlilt we NcIc DC'IS SuLeu
ut like wild beasts we dangled our frozen ,
legs over twig fire and thawcd Them.
One man made us tea in .irty pan,
and another fried us sandy rice IN a fat :
swimming dish, much dirtier. Then I
we had to hustle the whole crowd out ,
and lie down to sleep the sleep of the !
wandering cyclists, always keeping the +
six-shOoters within reach.
Poets have much to answer for. ,
hinE / ppt m i1an Of |
Lallah Rookh. | anticipated II gorgeous
and-one big garden, where there were ,
)erfume-laden orange groves and bril- s
liant rose bowers, delicious retreats and :
unlimited sherbet, where one would sec :
The fierce warriors of the turquoise 7
1ills,' and sip the "red wcepngs of the