Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-08-18
old CITY IN THE EAST.
Bokhara CIassed as Among
the Most Ancient.
SEAT OF MANY SCHOOLS
Once Occupied by Alexander the
Great as Headquarters.
RUINS IN HUNGRY DESERT
For Two Thousand Years Re-
garded as the Most Dreaded
Plain to Traverse.
SEAT OF MANY SCHOOLS
RUINS IN HUNGRY DESERT
BY WILLIAM r. CURTIS.


Special Correspondence Of The star and the
Chicago Record-Herald.
BOKHARA, Central Asia, July IL. 1910.
There is little doubt that Bokhara is
one of the most ancient cities in the east.
1t had a place In history long before the
Christian era. and for two thousand years
has been enriched and despoiled In turn
by the conquerors of Asia. 1t has been
a pillar Of Islam. the capital of some OF
the greatest kings of the east and It's uni
versities and schools have been the PRIDE
of the Mohammedan world. Their facul-
ties have consisted of the most learned
mullahs. and they have drawn scholars
here to study and to discuss. Bokhara
has been the object of pilgrimages from
every country in the east and there is
Q proverb which describes the venera-
ton in which this city was formerly
held:
I'm all other parts of the world light
descends upon the earth; from Old
Bokhara IL ascends."
The wealth and commerce of Bokhara
have equaled in fame its piety and
learning. Its silks were the most deli
cate, expensive and beautiful In design
in all Asia; its carpets and brocades nave
been unrivaled, and even today Its rugs
rank next to the finest of Persia. Inc
exchanged hands in its caravansaries and
its merchants were among the richest
and most influential in all the world
Alexander the Great occupied Bokhara
for several years and reigned afterward
in the person of one of his trusted lieu
tenants. Quintus Curtius tells US that
here he overcame lion In single COM
bat, at which the envoy from Sparta ex-
claimed:
"Well done, Alexander. nobly hast thou
won the prize OF kingship from the king
The same authority tells us that Alex
ander sacrificed four thousand animals to
the gods upon his return from India, and
il was here that he killed his Old friend
and comrade, Clytus. In drunken pas
sion.
Governments Endure Many Years.
The exploits of the great Macedonsky.
as the Russian writers refer to him, are
quite az familiar to the people as are
those of Tamerlane. and several proml-
nent families claim descent from him. He
did little for Samarkand or for Bokhara
himself, but the governments he organized
here existed for several hundred years,
until q short time before the Christian
era. and introduced q considerable degree
OF Greek culture, of which, however, no
traces remain The only tangible evil
dence Of the presence Of the world con-
aueror In these parts are the remains of
a few mud walls and few coins bearing
his bust, which are occasionally aug
I'D in the ruins around Samarkand. That
city was the headquarters Of Alexander
for several years, and he fortified II.
The first description we have of this
country was written by Chinese trav-
eIer named Hiouen TSang. who visited
Central Asia between $50 and $40 A. D..
and wrote elaborate accounts OF his OBJ
servations and experiences. He crossed
the Golodnaya. or Hungry steppe."
which has been the most dreaded and
dangerous portion OF the desert KILL
Kun for 1000 years. and writes that
"One enters into q great sandy plain.
where neither water nor grass Is to be
found II is necessary to look at some
high mountain in the distance and seek
for abandoned bones. to know how to
guide ones self and recognise the trails to
be followed
It's Reclamation Sought.
This Ia the section which the Grand
Duke Constantine is trying TO reclaim by
means OF q canal cut through q mountain
pass by which water may be brought from
the river Zarafshan. There are traces of
old canals and bitches IN several places
on the desert. showing that II was culti-
waited az one time, but Tch' Ang-Tch'Cn.
who passed through the same region In
l22.,. makes no mention OF agriculture,
therefore, whatever farming was done
here must have been during the period De-
tween the visits OF the two Chinese. which
was nearly six hundred years. Pernaps
an earthquake occurring In the meantime
may have lifted the surface Of the plain
above the reach OF water.
IL is a curious freak OF nature that
whenever the rain does fall. and there Is
a smart shower every year or two. inn
measurable beds OF scarlet peoples will
spring up like miracle, similar to the
flowers that always bloom after rainfall
on the deserts along the west coast OF
South America. How did the seed come
here, and where did IL come from? are
two questions which the botanists have
never answered. But you will remember.
perhaps. that wherever the pioneer rail-
road builders In Kansas, Indian Territory
and other parts Of the southwest of the
United States turned up the sod. beds OF
wild geraniums sprang UP Immediately TO
cover the wounds that the picks and the
spades had made in the breast of mother
earth
The Chinese writer's to which I have re-
ferred both speak of venomous spiders
cry Steppe." but they are not noticeable
today. SO that some means Of extermina-
ton must have been practiced.
Ancient Ruins Found.
In the midst or the Hungry desert are
the ruins OF a great caravanserai called
Murgah Raybat. supposed to have been
built between 1890 and 1910 by Abdullah
Khan. one OF the most famous and pro-
gressive rulers In the history of central
Asia. He did much to promote commerce
between the east and the west. and pro-
vided similar accommodations for travel
ers and caravans at other points on the
desert. Here the camel trains could stop
and rest and renew their supplies OF wa
ter and food. For hundreds of years the
trafic was enormous. The building was
square. OF a single story, with a central
court. covered by squatty dome and sur