NARRATIVE.

NARRATIVE.CHAPTER XII.JOURNEY IN THE DESERT OF THE TOORKMUNS.Journey to the Oxus.At midday, on the 16th of August, we commenced our march on the Oxus, which was about twenty-seven miles distant. After journeying for ten miles, we halted in the evening at a small village, and set out at midnight for the river, under a bright moon.Sand hills.For a great part of the night our route led us among vast fields of soft sand, formed into ridges which exactly resembled, in colour and appearance, those on the verge of the ocean. The belt of these sand-hills, which lie between Bokhara and the Oxus, varies in breadth from twelve to fifteen miles. They were utterly destitute of vegetation. There was a remarkable uniformity in their formation; the whole of them preserved the shape and form of a horse-shoe, the outer rim presenting itself to the north, the direction from which the winds of this country blow. On this side the mounds sloped,while the interior of the figure was invariably precipitous; but loose sand will ever take its position from the prevailing winds. None of the hills exceeded the height of fifteen or twenty feet, and they all rested on a hard base. The wind was high, and the particles of sand moved from one mound to another, wheeling in the eddy or interior of the semicircle, and having now and then, particularly under the rays of the sun, much the look of water; an appearance, I imagine, which has given rise to the opinion of moving sands in a desert. The thermometer, which had risen to 100°, fell at night to 70° among the sand-hills; and I have always observed that the vicissitudes of cold and heat are greatest among sand. About an hour after the sun had risen, we exchanged this dreary route for verdant fields, irrigated by the Oxus; and, after winding among them for about four miles, encamped on the verge of the river, where we hid ourselves from the sun’s rays under the panniers of our camels.Freezing of the Oxus.We had come down upon the Oxus at Betik, which is opposite to Charjooee, and one of the greatest ferries between Persia and Toorkistan. There was, therefore, every facility for crossing, and the beasts and baggage were thrown into boats, and soon transported to the opposite bank. The farmer of the customs killed his sheep, andinvited most of the merchants to partake of his fare. He enquired very particularly regarding us, and requested a sight of our passport. He then waited on us in person with a couple of melons and some cakes, which we sat down and enjoyed along with him and his party on the banks of the river, and, I believe, mutually amused each other. This individual mentioned, in the course of conversation, that the Oxus had been last year frozen over from shore to shore, and that the caravans passed it on the ice. This is rather an unfrequent occurrence, and gave rise to a grave point of discussion and decision for the Mahommedan doctors. The farmer had agreed to pay 100 tillas a month, as the rent of his ferry; but since the river was passable on the ice, his boats were useless, and he lost by the farm. He proceeded to Bokhara, and urged his case to the king, requesting at the same time his royal sanction to levy a tax on the travellers. “That is impossible,” said his majesty and his advisers, “unless the farmer consents to become answerable for the blood-money of any person who may fall through the ice and perish.” The learned reply of the king is applauded for its wisdom, and met with the approbation of every person but the farmer himself, who had to pay the full amount of his contract. I will observe, first,that, as the contractor is not answerable for the lives of passengers in his boat, he could not be answerable for them on the ice. Secondly, that, since he contracted with the king for the twelve months, he should either have been relieved from payment during the time of the freezing of the river, or, at all events, allowed to levy a toll on the passengers. The law, however, is fruitful of interpretation in every country; and the King of Bokhara, while he protected his treasury from loss, had likewise the credit of appearing solicitous about the lives of the faithful.Meanness of native traders.As we were preparing to embark, I had an example of the meanness of native traders, of which I have had before and since many concurring proofs. Our boat had no horses to drag it across, and it was proposed that we should hire them; to which I gave a ready assent, saying, that we should be happy to contribute our share of the expense. The reply was unsatisfactory, since they wished we should bear it all; but this was peremptorily refused, and we embarked without the horses, though the share of each person would not have amounted to a quarter of a rupee, and one of the merchants possessed goods that were valued at 3000 tillas. From terror, they were not so sparing of the name of the Deity, while on the water, as, onland, they had been of their money; but these invocations cost them nothing, and the horses would have reduced their profits. The merchants of this country have none of the liberal notions of the same class of people in Europe; and I am disposed to attribute it to their superintending in person the sale of their goods, and witnessing every outlay which is incurred on their account. We crossed the Oxus in safety, without horses; and I did not regret the opportunity that had presented itself; to show our fellow-voyagers that we were as poor in our purses as in our dress and condition. One individual, a Persian, actually sickened at the thought of crossing the Jihoon without horses, and transferred himself to another boat with oars, where he gave the sailors the bribe of a rupee to row him speedily across. He arrived, with a pale face, to receive our congratulations on hisbravery; but this individual turned out, in the end, one of our best friends.The Oxus.We found the stream of the Oxus with a breadth of 650 yards, and in some places 25 and 29 feet deep; so that it was both narrower and deeper than at the point at which we had before crossed it. Its banks were much depressed, and completely overgrown with a rank weed, which chokes the aqueducts. Some fish of an enormous size, weighing from five to six hundred pounds,are procured in this river, a kind of dog-fish, which are used as food by the Uzbeks. Across the Oxus, we found ourselves about six miles distant from the town of Charjooee, which was in sight. For the first time, this noble river was turned to the purposes of navigation, since there is a commercial communication kept up, by means of it, between that place and Orgunje.Oxus of Alexander’s historians.The Oxus is particularly mentioned under that name by the historians of Alexander, though it appears to have been ever unknown by such a title to the Asiatics, who call it Jihoon and Amoo. We learn from the ancient authors, that Alexander approached this river from Bactra, or Balkh, by a country “which exhaled the power of a summer sun, and torrefied the sands.” The distance between Bactra and the river is even correctly stated at 400 stadia, and we have no fables regarding the breadth of the river. Arrian, who follows Aristobulus, tells us that the Oxus was six furlongs broad, and in that part of its course we have described it with a magnitude of 828 yards. The very topography of the river’s bank may, I almost think, be traced in Curtius; for there are low and peaked hillocks near that pass of the Oxus; and we are told that Alexander caused fires to be lit on the high ground, “that the distressedin the rear might perceive they were not far from camp.” There are no hillocks below Kilef. Curtius tells us that the Oxus was a muddy river, that bore much slime along with it; and I found that one fortieth of the stream is clay suspended in the water. What an approximation to the name of Maricanda in the modern city of Samarcand. It is described as being seventy stadia in circumference; and we have seen that modern Bokhara exceeds eight English miles, or about sixty-four of the Grecian stadia. What an outline have we not of the character of these nations in remote ages. “They exercised robbery, and lived by spoil.” These are the literal words of the historian; and they explain to us the genuine manners of the people, be they Hun, Scythian, Goth, Tatar, Toork, or Toorkmun. Lower down the river, we have the name of the country ruled by Pharsamanes, which is called Chorasmi, and in which the kingdom of Kharasm, subverted by Jengis, is easily recognised. Higher up, we have a description of Parætacæ, which was a mountainous region, as we learn from the mention of fir trees, and the formidable “rock of Chorienes.” This is the hill country of Karatageen, as we discover from the similarity of its name and position. In Zeriaspes, we have, I think, Shuhr Subz; and I could continue to multiply the coincidences,but I doubt if the subject would excite general interest.Charjooee:In the morning we moved up to Charjooee, which in all our maps is erroneously set down on the northern bank of the Oxus. The place is governed by a Kalmuk, and is pleasantly situated on the verge of culture and desolation, with a pretty fort that crowns a hillock, and overlooks the town. It is said to have resisted the arms of Timour; but its present condition would not impress one with any great notions of its strength, or that conqueror’s power. The people of Charjooee do not exceed 4000 or 5000 souls; but a great portion of its population wander up and down the Oxus during the hot months. We halted here for four days, since it was the last inhabited spot of civilisation between Bokhara and Persia.its bazar.The market day, or bazar, occurred during our stay; and I proceeded along with Ernuzzar, the Toorkmun, to see the assemblage, in which I passed quite unnoticed. I sauntered through the bazar, much more amused with the people than the wares they were selling, which were in every respect poor. There were knives, saddles and bridles, cloth, and horsecloths, of native manufacture: but the only articles of European fabric were a few beads, and chintz scullcaps, which latter were purchased very readily. There were alsolanterns, ewers, and copper pots, in considerable number; and the venders of many of these retailed their goodson horseback, and all the purchasers were mounted. No person ever attends the bazar in Toorkistan but on horseback; and on the present occasion there was not a female to be seen, veiled or unveiled. Most of the people were Toorkmuns of the Oxus, dressed in high sheepskin caps, like the natives of Orgunje. There were about 2000 or 3000 people in the bazar; but there was very little bustle and confusion, though there was much both of buying and selling. The custom of having market days is uncommon in India and Cabool, but of universal use in Toorkistan: it perhaps gives a stimulus to trade, and is most convenient; since all the people of the country, for miles round, assemble on the occasion. Every person seems to think it incumbent upon him to be present. The different articles are arranged in separate parts of the bazar, with as much regularity as in Bokhara itself: here you may buy grain, there fruit: here is meat, there is cloth, &c. The streets are so narrow, that the bazar is generally held at one end of the country towns; and such was the case at Charjooee: so that fruit, grain, or any thing which requires to be displayed, is spread out on the ground. The bazar lasts fromeleven to four o’clock, which is the hottest time of the day.The desert.The wants of all had been supplied during our stay at Charjooee; every one was ready to move, and every skin, pot, and pitcher was filled to the brim, from the canals of the Oxus. At noon on the 22d we commenced our march, and, before we had travelled a distance of two miles, entered upon the great desert which separates the kingdoms of Iran and Tooran. The mode of travelling in Toorkistan is to start at midday, and march till sunset; and, after a couple of hours’ rest and the indispensable cup of tea, to resume the task, and advance to the stage, which is usually reached at daylight. We made the usual evening halt, and then travelled till sunrise, when we reached Karoul, a well of brackish water, thirty feet under ground, and lined with branches of trees, at which we halted, a distance of twenty-two miles from Charjooee. The whole tract presented to our view was a dreary waste of sand-hills, but by no means so destitute of vegetation and underwood as on the northern bank of the Oxus. They, however, occurred in the same succession and formation as have been there described: they were quite soft, but the sand was not dusty, and the camels slid down them with their burthens. Here and there we came upon asheet of indurated clay, as if the sand-hills here also rested on a base of that kind. In these hollows, and on the brow of the hills, we found a shrub like tamarisk, called “kasura,” also a kind of grass, orbent, called “salun.” There were likewise two thorny shrubs, called “kuzzak” and “karaghan”[1], neither of them the common camel thorn, but on which the camels delighted to browse. There was no water throughout the whole march, and no signs of inhabitants but a ruined fort, that had once served as a look-out from the Oxus. The Indian deserts of Jaysulmeer and Parkur sank into insignificance before this vast ocean of sand. No sight is more imposing than a desert; and the eye rests with a deep interest on the long line of camels, as it winds its crooked course through the frightful waste. The simile of a ship in the ocean and a camel in the desert may be hackneyed, but it is just. The objects animate impart a strong interest to inanimate nature.Slaves.In the middle of our march through the desert, we met seven unfortunate Persians, who had been captured by the Toorkmuns, and were now on their road to Bokhara, where they would be sold. Five of them were chained together, and trod their way through the deepsand. There was a general shout of compassion, as the caravan passed these miserable beings; and the sympathy did not fail to affect the poor creatures themselves. They cried, and gave a longing look, as the last camel of the caravan passed to their dear native country. The camel on which I rode happened to be in the rear, and I stayed to hear their tale of woe. They had been seized by the Toorkmuns at Ghaeen, near Meshid, a few weeks before, when the culture of their fields had led them beyond the threshold of their homes. They were weary and thirsty, and I gave them all I could,—a single melon; a civility, little as it was, which was received with gratitude. What a frightful notion must not these unfortunate beings have entertained of the country they were entering, after their travels in such a desert. The Toorkmuns evince but little compassion for their Persian slaves; and what other treatment is to be expected from men who pass their lives in selling human beings. They give them but a scanty supply of food and water, that they may waste their strength, and prevent their escape; but beyond this the Toorkmun inflicts no other ills. The tales which have been circulated of their cutting the sinew of the heel, and of their passing a cord round the collar bone, are at variance with truth, sincethese blemishes would diminish the value of the slave. These unfortunate captives suffer a much heavier calamity,—they lose their liberty.The caravan.As we reached our halting-ground in the morning, we had now an opportunity of observing the number and composition of the caravan. There were upwards of eighty camels, and about 150 persons, several of them men of the first respectability, who accompanied their merchandise to the markets of Persia. Some travelled in panniers placed on camels; others rode, some on horses, many on donkeys; but every person, even the meanest, had some kind of conveyance. The horsemen preceded the camels; and, stretching themselves out on the sand with their bridles in their grasp, stole a few moments’ sleep, till the caravan overtook them. The scene was altogether curious and novel. Among the party there were eight or ten Persians, who had passed many years of slavery in Toorkistan, and, after purchasing their liberty, were now returning by stealth to their homes. These people were delighted with our enquiries; and, in the journey, many of them became attached to us. They would bring melons for us; kill a sheep; draw water; and were always at hand. Some of them had been no less than three times captured, and as often had they redeemed themselves; for the Uzbeks are readilyimposed upon and cheated by their slaves, who make money in service. I conversed with several of them; and it was equally painful to hear their past sufferings and present anxiety. Their influential countrymen in the caravan had put several of them in charge of a portion of their merchandise, that they might be the less noticed, and considered rather as traders than emancipated slaves; for a Persian merchant in a caravan is generally safe. In spite of all this arrangement, some hard-hearted wretches had told tales on the banks of the Oxus: one individual had been forced to return to Bokhara; and some of the others had crossed with difficulty. One single hint to the people of Orgunje would, in all probability, yet arrest their further progress; but every one had been well tutored. What must be the feelings of some of these men as they approach Persia. One of them told me that he had had a wife and a numerous family when sold into captivity, twenty-two years before; of whom he had not heard any account since that period. If any of them are alive, the parent will show himself among them as an apparition from the tomb. Another of these unfortunate individuals had a tale which was not less touching. He had been seized along with his family, and, indeed, all the inhabitants of his village, near Toorshish; and delivered up,by one of the Khorasan chiefs, to the Toorkmuns, who drove, on this occasion, upwards of a hundred people to Bokhara. At Maimunu, which is on the road, they were disposed of to other Toorkmuns, and at Bokhara finally sold. There this unfortunate man saw his wife sold to one, his daughter and son to others, and himself to a different person. A humane man, hearing of his misfortunes, released him, since he believed it good in the sight of God; and the poor fellow lurked in Bokhara, like a bird near its nest that is robbed, in hopes of relieving the other members of his family. He had failed, and was now travelling into his own country, to excite the compassion and pity of those who had known him in his prosperity. It would harrow up a man’s heart, to listen to all the tales of the woe which is inflicted upon mankind by these plundering Toorkmuns.Well of Balghooee.In marching from Karoul, we quitted the high road of the caravans, which leads to Merve, and proceeded westward into the desert, by a way that is altogether unfrequented. We had no option in the selection of such a route, since the officer who commands the Orgunje army sent a messenger to direct our march upon his camp. We were thus thrown into the jaws of the lion, but were helpless; and the merchants appeared to regret it more than ourselves. After theusual halt, we reached the well of Balghooee twenty-four miles distant, on the morning of the 23d. It was a small and single well, about four feet in diameter, as deep as that at Karoul; and the Toorkmuns only discovered it after a zigzag search of some hours. We soon emptied it (for the water was good), and had to wait a night till it again filled.The desert.In this march the desert was overgrown with brushwood, but the tract was entirely destitute of water; and a few rats, lizards, and beetles, with here and there a solitary bird, were its only inhabitants. Some of the sand-hills now attained the height of sixty feet: but at that elevation they are invariably bare of all vegetation; which, I suppose, cannot thrive in such an exposed situation. The highest hills were about a distance of eight miles from the halting-place, and named “sheer i shootr,” or “the camel’s milk,” from some allusion to that useful animal. There was nothing peculiar in the colour of the sand, which was quartzose. There was no turf, grass, or creeping plants; every shrub grew separately; and the grass, which I before mentioned, was only to be found in clumps. The heat of the sand rose to 150°: and that of the atmosphere exceeded 100°, but the wind blew steadily; nor do I believe it would be possible to traverse this tract in summer, if it ceased toblow: the steady manner in which it comes from one direction is remarkable in this inland country. It is true, that in every direction except the north we have mountains, but they are too distant to impede the winds. Our caravan advanced at a firm and equal pace among the sand; nor can I discover that the progress of a camel is much impeded in the desert. They moved at the rate of two miles and one eighth in the hour (3740 yards); and I have since found, that the judicious Volney assigns the distance of 3600 yards as the hourly journey of a camel in the sands of Egypt and Syria.Dangers of the desert.We had before heard of the deserts south of the Oxus; and had now the means of forming a judgment from personal observation. We saw the skeletons of camels and horses now bleaching in the sun, which had perished from thirst. The nature of the roads or pathways admits of their easy obliteration; and, if the beaten track be once forsaken, the traveller and his jaded animal generally perish. A circumstance of this very nature occurred but a few days previous to our leaving Charjooee. A party of three persons travelling from the Orgunje camp lost the road, and their supply of water failed them. Two of their horses sank under the parching thirst; and the unfortunate men opened the vein of their surviving camel,sucked its blood, and reached Charjooee from the nourishment which they thus derived. The camel died. These are facts of frequent occurrence. The Khan of Orgunje, in his late march into the desert, lost upwards of two thousand camels, that had been loaded with water and provisions for his men. He dug his wells as he advanced; but the supply of water was scanty. Camels are very patient under thirst: it is a vulgar error, however, to believe that they can live any length of time without water. They generally pine, and die on the fourth day, and, under great heat, will even sink sooner.Seerab.After a day’s detention to rest the camels, we marched at sunrise, and continued our progress, with a short halt, till the same time next day. We journied thirty-five miles, and alighted at a fetid well called Seerab; and from well to well we had no water. We appeared to have lost the great sand hills in our advance westward. The desert, though it had the same features as before, now presented an undulating and uneven country of sand, partially covered with shrubs. The soil was salt in some places; but the water of the well was good enough after it was some time drawn. Our Toorkmun Sirdar made his appearance shortly after our arrival, to claim his cup of tea; and never was a schoolboy more fond of sugar than this hoary-headed Toorkmun. I used to give it to him to havethe pleasure of seeing him grind it, though some of the merchants wondered at our wasting it on such a person. I always felt the happier in the company of this man, for I looked upon him as the only bond between us and the barbarians we were to encounter. He used also to tell us the news of the caravan, and all the particulars of the country, which he even knew that we noted down. Ernuzzer did not deceive us, and the tea and the sugar which he consumed, were but a small tax for his service. In return for these favours, he promised to give me abonne bouche,Camel’s milk.when we reached the first camp of the Toorkmuns; and when I expected nothing else than “kimmiz” or “boozu,” mare’s milk or fermented liquor, he brought me camel’s milk, which is the only drink of the Toorkmuns. The milk is mixed with water, and the cream is then drawn off. It is called “chal,” and has a salt, bitter taste. The thinner part of the milk is considered a grateful draught by the people, but to me it tasted sour and acrid. I believed that the Uzbeks and Toorkmuns drank mare’s milk and fermented liquors; but these are unknown in Bokhara, and only peculiar to the Kuzzaks and Kirgizzes, between that city and Russia.An Eastern caravan.A caravan is a complete republic; but I do not believe that most republics are so orderly.Of our eighty camels every three or four belonged to different individuals; and there were four Cafila-bashees. Still there was no disputing about the arrangement or order of the march; and it is a point of honour, that the one shall at all times wait for the other. If a single camel throws its load, the whole line halts till it is replaced; and one feels pleased at such universal sympathy. These feelings make it agreeable to travel in a caravan, for the detentions are much fewer than would really be imagined. The more I mingled with Asiatics in their own sphere, and judged them by their own standard, I imbibed more favourable impressions regarding them. One does not see in civilised Europe that generous feeling, which induces the natives of Asia, great and small, to share with each other every mouthful that they possess. Among Mahommedans we have no distinction of gentleman and villain,—at least, so far as hospitality is concerned. The khan fares as simply as the peasant; and never offers to raise a morsel to his lips till he has shared it with those near him. I myself frequently have been partaker of this bounty from rich and poor, for nothing is enjoyed without society. How different is the feeling that besets the sots of lower society in Britain! Nor is this good fellowship among the Asiatics confined to thetravelled merchant: it is to be found in the towns as well as the country. It is a pity that civilisation, with all its advantages, does not retain for us these virtues. Barbarians are hospitable, civilised men are polite; but hospitality added to politeness makes it more acceptable. A caravan is an interesting scene at all times; and the shifts of the pious to prevent its detention in the Toorkmun desert were not unworthy of notice. The line was too extended to sound a general halt for prayers; and at the appointed time, each individual was to be seen on the back of his camel or in his pannier, performing his orisons before the Deity, in the best manner which he could accomplish them. The laws of the Prophet admit of a true believer being cleansed by sand, where there is no water; and the back of a horse or a camel is as legitimate a position for prayer, as the most splendid mosque of a city. The busy scene on our reaching the halting-ground in the evening, was both lively and entertaining. The Uzbeks, like ourselves, do not water their horses when they are warm: in this journey, we had no sooner arrived than we again took our departure, the horses were therefore permitted to quench their thirst; and to prevent any evil effects from the water, the animal was immediately mounted and galloped at speedover hill and dale, for miles. This brought the water, as the Uzbeks would tell you, to the heated temperature of the animal’s body. The easy carriage of some of the cavaliers, and the light saddles which they rode,—some of them little larger than racing saddles,—imparted an interest to these scampering freaks which was most exciting.Oochghooee and the wandering Toorkmuns.Our next march brought us at midnight to Oochghooee, or the Three Wells, which we had great difficulty in finding. We wandered to the right and to the left, and the Toorkmuns dismounted in the dark, and felt for the pathway with their hands among the sand. We had almost despaired of recovering it, and were preparing for our bivouac, when the bark of a dog, and a distant answer to our repeated calls dispelled our anxiety, and we were soon encamped at the well. We here found a few wandering Toorkmuns, the first we had seen since leaving the Oxus. The well was bitter; but these shepherds seem indifferent to the quality of the water. The country continued to change still further as we advanced, becoming more flat and free from sand, but still running in alternate ridges and hollows. In these we discovered some small red sharp-edged pebbles, not unlike iron pyrites; nor did the wells which were dug in them, yet exceed the depth of thirty feet: inthe Indian desert they are 300. The Toorkmuns rallied round us next morning, and we had the freest intercourse with them; for they were quite ignorant of our character, and the presence of one of their own tribe, our Toorkmun Ernuzzer, proved a sufficient attraction to these “children of the desert.” They spoke of the piercing cold of the winters in this country; and assured us that the snow sometimes lay a foot deep. We ourselves had experienced a depression of ten degrees in the temperature since leaving the Oxus.Ruins of castles. Moorghab.We were now informed that we were approaching the camp of the Khan of Orgunje, which, it appears, was on the banks of the Moorghab, or Merve river, considerably below the place of that name, and about thirty miles distant from us. We set out at noon, and by the time the sun had set, found ourselves among the ruins of forts and villages, now deserted, which rose in castellated groups over an extensive plain. I have observed that we had been gradually emerging from the sand-hills; and these marks of human industry, which we had now approached, were the ancient remnants of civilisation of the famous kingdom of Merve, or, as our historians have erroneously called it, Meroo. Before we had approached them, we had not wanted signs of our being delivered from the ocean of sand, since several flocks ofbirds had passed over us. As the mariner is assured by such indications that he nears land, we had the satisfaction of knowing that we were approaching the water, after a journey of 150 miles through a sterile waste, where we had suffered considerable inconvenience from the want of it. We were not yet within the pale of habitations; but after a cool and pleasant march, over a perfectly flat and hard plain, every where interspersed with forts and ruins, we found ourselves, about nine in the following morning, at a large Toorkmun camp, (or, as it is called, an Oba,) near the banks of the Moorghab. The name of the place was Khwaju Abdoolla, and the whole colony sallied forth to meet the caravan. We took up a position on a hillock about two or three hundred yards distant; and the merchants instructed us to huddle together among themselves, and appear lowly and humble. We did so, and the Toorkmuns of the encampment soon crowded around us, begging for tobacco, for which they brought loads of the most luscious melons, that we cut up, and enjoyed in the company of camel drivers and slaves, braving the sun, though I cannot say to the detriment of our already sun-burned complexions. It now was discovered that the Orgunje camp lay on the other side of the river, which was not fordable but in certain places; and the merchants decidedthat they themselves, with all the Cafila-bashees, should forthwith proceed in person to the spot, and use their utmost to conciliate the officer in charge, for the Khan had returned within these few days to Khiva. Their great object seemed to be to effect a discharge of the duties in the spot where they were now encamped, since no one relished trusting their property within reach of an Orgunje detachment. If the party prayed for success, I can add that we were equally fervent, and the deputation set out accordingly with the good wishes of every one. We were left among the “oi polloi” of the caravan; and when night came, stretched our felts under a clear and cloudless sky, and slept without fear or anxiety from our man-selling neighbours. This state of security among such people and countries is very remarkable; but a Toorkmun, though he can engage in a foray, and execute it with unexampled address, cannot commit a theft in a quiet way, which is not congenial to his nature.Remarks on the desert.I have now a little leisure to speak of the desert which we had traversed on our route to the Moorghab. In a military point of view, the scarcity of water is a great obstacle. In some places the wells were thirty-six miles apart; and, generally, the water was both bitter and scanty. The water which we had transportedwith us from the Oxus was not less nauseous than that of the desert; for it must be carried in skins, and these must be oiled to preserve them from bursting. The grease mixes with the water, which latterly became so tainted that the horses even refused to drink it. There is nothing of which we feel the want so much as good water. In the march, several people of the caravan, particularly the camel-drivers, were attacked with inflammation of the eyes; I suppose, from the sand, glare, and dust. With such an enumeration of petty vexations and physical obstacles, it is dubious if an army could cross it at this point. The heavy sandy pathways, for there are no roads, might certainly be rendered passable to guns, by placing brushwood on the sand; but there is a great scarcity of grass for cattle, and the few horses which accompanied the caravan, were jaded and worn out before they reached the river. A horse which travels with a camel, has great injustice done to him; but an army could not outstrip the motions of a caravan, and fatigues would still fall heavily upon them. History tells us, that many armies have fought in and crossed this desert; but they consisted of hordes of light cavalry, that could move with rapidity. It is to be remembered, that we had not a foot-passenger in our party. Light horse might pass such a desert, by divisions, and separate routes; for besides the high road to Merve, there is a road both to the east and the west. It would, at all times, be a difficult task for a great body of men to pass from the Moorghab to the Oxus, since our caravan, of eighty camels, emptied the wells; and it would be easy to hide, or even fill up these scanty reservoirs. Where water lies within thirty feet of the surface, an energetic commander may remedy his wants, since we have an instance of it in the advance of the Orgunje Khan to the banks of the Moorghab. But after I have written, and, perhaps, diffusely, on the passage of such a desert, I may ask myself, who seeks to cross it, and in the line of what invader it lies? It is not in the route between India and Europe; and if the descendants of the Scythians and Parthians wish to invade and tyrannize over each other, they may do so without, perhaps, exciting even the notice of the “fierce Britons.”A Toorkmun camp.The Toorkmun camp, or “oba,” at which we halted, presented to us a scene of great novelty. It consisted of about 150 conical moveable huts, called “khirgahs,” which were perched on a rising ground. There was no order in the distribution, and they stood like so many gigantic beehives, which, if they had not had black roofs, might not be a bad comparison; and we might also take the children as the bees, for they were verynumerous. I wondered at the collection of so many rising plunderers. Seeing the Toorkmuns in a body, it may be certainly distinguished, that they have something Tatar in their appearance; their eyes are small, and the eyelids appear swollen. They are a handsome race of people. All of them were dressed in the “tilpak,” a square or conical black cap of sheep-skin, about a foot high, which is far more becoming than a turban, and gives to a party of Toorkmuns the appearance of a soldierlike and disciplined body. The Toorkmuns are remarkably fond of bright-coloured clothes, and choose the lightest shades of red, green, and yellow, as the patterns of their flowing “chupkuns,” or pelisses. They sauntered about their encampment in a great state of listlessness; and what have they to do but to live on the proceeds of their last foray? They have but few fields, and one or two individuals may tend their countless flocks at pasture. Their dogs, indeed, perform this office for them. These animals are very docile, but ferocious to a stranger: they are shaggy, appearing to be of the mastiff breed, and bear a high price even among these people. The martial habits of the Toorkmuns appeared in my eyes the more striking, as they had cleared the circle of their encampment of brushwood for about a mile round. It had, I believe, been cut for firewood;but the resemblance to an esplanade, or a parade ground, was none the less on that account. In my notice of the Toorkmuns, I must not now forget the ladies, whose head-dress would do honour to the galaxy of an English ball-room. It consists of a lofty white turban, shaped like a military chako, but higher, over which a red or white scarf is thrown, that falls down to the waist. Some of these Toorkmun females were fair and handsome, adorning themselves with a variety of ornaments, that were attached to their hair, which hangs in tresses over their shoulders. Their head-dress is, perhaps, a little large, but they themselves are generally on a large scale, and as they never veil it becomes them. The other part of their costume is a long gown that reaches to the ancle, and hides both it and the waist, the very standard points of beauty in our country; but so it is, that nations remote from each other differ not more in language and laws than in taste and manners.Orgunje officers.The party which had proceeded to the Orgunje camp, returned next morning with the deputy of the Yooz-bashee, or the Commander of an Hundred, and his very appearance made the hearts of the merchants thrill with fear. No taxes had been collected before this, and every thing was uncertain. The deputy was an elderly man, with a large “tilpak” stuck on his head,like a regimental cap. He was accompanied by a party of desert Toorkmuns, among whom was a chief, or “aksukal,” (literally, a white beard,) of the great tribe of Saruk. The merchants seated the deputation in the place of honour, addressed the deputy as he had been the Yooz-bashee himself, refreshed him with tea and tobacco (for they now smoked in public), and presented him with silks, cloths, raisins, and sugar, and then proceeded to display their merchandize. Every person made an offering, and we sent two handfuls of raisins and a bit of sugar as our homage. We sat at a short distance in our panniers, and witnessed the whole scene. The Yooz-bashee, as I also must call him, now spoke out to all the members of the caravan, and in the most candid language, said, that he had been directed to levy the lawful tax of one in forty, but that he would dispense with opening the bales. Truth, said he, had better be told; for, if I have reason to doubt any of you, I will then examine them, and you will experience the wrath of the Khan of Orgunje, my lord and master. This speech was listened to with terror; some, I believe, actually said that they had more goods than they really possessed; and, as far as I could judge, no one deviated from the truth. Pen and ink were called for, and the congress proceeded to make a list of the merchandize, which was no easy matter.Precarious situation.While the merchants were disputing about tillas, and flattering the Yooz-bashee, we had taken up a quiet position, and even pretended to be wrapped in sleep. I never was more awake in my life, and was near enough to hear and see every thing. There were several questions put regarding us, and the principal merchants spoke with earnestness and kindness. We had never instructed them, but they now chose to denominate us Hindoos from Cabool, who were proceeding on a pilgrimage to the flames of Bakoo, on the Caspian. We had been successively Englishmen, Afghans, Uzbeks, Armenians, and Jews, and they now denominated us Hindoos. These people are very simple; nor do they ever interrogate closely. Shortly after the subject of our character and objects had been discussed, the Toorkmun Aksukal rose from the party, and most unwelcomely seated himself by us. “Aksukal,” as I have said, means white beard, though this personage had a black enough plumage to his chin: he wore a splendid scarlet pelisse, and never did our national uniform appear to me more formidable than on his person; for he might have proved himself “a very Tartar” under his British colours. He spoke a little Persian, and said, “You are from Cabool?” to which I gave a nod of assent. The Doctor stretched himself back in his panier, and ourvisitor addressed himself to an Afghan, one of our people, of which I was glad, since it would keep up the illusion. It is said that the natives of Orgunje are, of all the tribes in Toorkistan, most hostile to Europeans, as well from their vicinity to Russia, as their knowledge that the Persians, who threaten their country, are assisted by them. They of course know nothing of the different nations of Europe, and look upon all Europeans as their enemies. I was not sorry when the Toorkmun chief selected another group, and that this patriarchal “white beard” had made no discovery, even after seeing us, and entering into conversation. The whole scene appeared to me a perfect riddle, for we ourselves had mixed with the Toorkmuns of our party as Europeans; and our real character was known to every individual of the caravan. Fear may have prevented some of them from making a full disclosure, but it was very creditable; since I have reason to believe that the people of the Orgunje Khan would not have willingly extended their favour towards us. We, however, had one instance of bad feeling, in a quarter where we least of all looked for it, at the hands of our Cafila-bashee. He required money to pay the just taxes on goods, which he had at the outset hoped to smuggle, and though all settlement had been made between us, and he hadnearly received the full hire of his camels, he sent in the middle of the confusion to say, that the caravan would be detained on our account, if we did not lend him some tillas. What a moment, and what a trial for the temper. It was useless to complain of ungenerous treatment, and it would have been worse to show that we felt it. I considered a couple of tillas enough to give the wretch, though we had provided ourselves with some three hundred of them, which I knew might befriend us, where men are sold and bought like sheep. Evening advanced, and our transactions with the Orgunje Yooz-bashee drew to a close. The commander of a hundred carried off two hundred golden tillas, and all the merchants accompanied him to his horse, and saw him beyond the limits of our camp. Such is the dread of authority, and the power of the meanest man who wears it. In the dusk the merchants came to visit us, and to relate the affairs of the day over a cup of tea. We had to thank an Uzbek, named Ullahdad, and Abdool, a Persian; but we had to make some acknowledgment to all, for we had now become intimate with every body. Whenever the horsemen of the caravan passed us on the road, they would shout out to us, “Ah, Meerza! how are you?” with all the consecutive compliments of their language. Little did many of them know, thatthe name of “Meerza Sikunder,” or the secretary Alexander, which they had given me, was so well merited; since I took every opportunity that I secretly could to use the pen and ink, and give a secretary’s account of all their proceedings. On this day I felt pleased with mankind, for we were now free to prosecute our journey. The Bokharees assured me that they were interested in our favour, from the commands of their minister the Koosh Begee; and the Persians, of whom there were many in the caravan, dreaded the friendship between Abbas Meerza and the English. Individually, I did not presume to believe that either of these great personages bestowed much care upon us, but it was pleasant to know that such were the opinions of our companions.

NARRATIVE.CHAPTER XII.JOURNEY IN THE DESERT OF THE TOORKMUNS.

Journey to the Oxus.

At midday, on the 16th of August, we commenced our march on the Oxus, which was about twenty-seven miles distant. After journeying for ten miles, we halted in the evening at a small village, and set out at midnight for the river, under a bright moon.Sand hills.For a great part of the night our route led us among vast fields of soft sand, formed into ridges which exactly resembled, in colour and appearance, those on the verge of the ocean. The belt of these sand-hills, which lie between Bokhara and the Oxus, varies in breadth from twelve to fifteen miles. They were utterly destitute of vegetation. There was a remarkable uniformity in their formation; the whole of them preserved the shape and form of a horse-shoe, the outer rim presenting itself to the north, the direction from which the winds of this country blow. On this side the mounds sloped,while the interior of the figure was invariably precipitous; but loose sand will ever take its position from the prevailing winds. None of the hills exceeded the height of fifteen or twenty feet, and they all rested on a hard base. The wind was high, and the particles of sand moved from one mound to another, wheeling in the eddy or interior of the semicircle, and having now and then, particularly under the rays of the sun, much the look of water; an appearance, I imagine, which has given rise to the opinion of moving sands in a desert. The thermometer, which had risen to 100°, fell at night to 70° among the sand-hills; and I have always observed that the vicissitudes of cold and heat are greatest among sand. About an hour after the sun had risen, we exchanged this dreary route for verdant fields, irrigated by the Oxus; and, after winding among them for about four miles, encamped on the verge of the river, where we hid ourselves from the sun’s rays under the panniers of our camels.

Freezing of the Oxus.

We had come down upon the Oxus at Betik, which is opposite to Charjooee, and one of the greatest ferries between Persia and Toorkistan. There was, therefore, every facility for crossing, and the beasts and baggage were thrown into boats, and soon transported to the opposite bank. The farmer of the customs killed his sheep, andinvited most of the merchants to partake of his fare. He enquired very particularly regarding us, and requested a sight of our passport. He then waited on us in person with a couple of melons and some cakes, which we sat down and enjoyed along with him and his party on the banks of the river, and, I believe, mutually amused each other. This individual mentioned, in the course of conversation, that the Oxus had been last year frozen over from shore to shore, and that the caravans passed it on the ice. This is rather an unfrequent occurrence, and gave rise to a grave point of discussion and decision for the Mahommedan doctors. The farmer had agreed to pay 100 tillas a month, as the rent of his ferry; but since the river was passable on the ice, his boats were useless, and he lost by the farm. He proceeded to Bokhara, and urged his case to the king, requesting at the same time his royal sanction to levy a tax on the travellers. “That is impossible,” said his majesty and his advisers, “unless the farmer consents to become answerable for the blood-money of any person who may fall through the ice and perish.” The learned reply of the king is applauded for its wisdom, and met with the approbation of every person but the farmer himself, who had to pay the full amount of his contract. I will observe, first,that, as the contractor is not answerable for the lives of passengers in his boat, he could not be answerable for them on the ice. Secondly, that, since he contracted with the king for the twelve months, he should either have been relieved from payment during the time of the freezing of the river, or, at all events, allowed to levy a toll on the passengers. The law, however, is fruitful of interpretation in every country; and the King of Bokhara, while he protected his treasury from loss, had likewise the credit of appearing solicitous about the lives of the faithful.

Meanness of native traders.

As we were preparing to embark, I had an example of the meanness of native traders, of which I have had before and since many concurring proofs. Our boat had no horses to drag it across, and it was proposed that we should hire them; to which I gave a ready assent, saying, that we should be happy to contribute our share of the expense. The reply was unsatisfactory, since they wished we should bear it all; but this was peremptorily refused, and we embarked without the horses, though the share of each person would not have amounted to a quarter of a rupee, and one of the merchants possessed goods that were valued at 3000 tillas. From terror, they were not so sparing of the name of the Deity, while on the water, as, onland, they had been of their money; but these invocations cost them nothing, and the horses would have reduced their profits. The merchants of this country have none of the liberal notions of the same class of people in Europe; and I am disposed to attribute it to their superintending in person the sale of their goods, and witnessing every outlay which is incurred on their account. We crossed the Oxus in safety, without horses; and I did not regret the opportunity that had presented itself; to show our fellow-voyagers that we were as poor in our purses as in our dress and condition. One individual, a Persian, actually sickened at the thought of crossing the Jihoon without horses, and transferred himself to another boat with oars, where he gave the sailors the bribe of a rupee to row him speedily across. He arrived, with a pale face, to receive our congratulations on hisbravery; but this individual turned out, in the end, one of our best friends.

The Oxus.

We found the stream of the Oxus with a breadth of 650 yards, and in some places 25 and 29 feet deep; so that it was both narrower and deeper than at the point at which we had before crossed it. Its banks were much depressed, and completely overgrown with a rank weed, which chokes the aqueducts. Some fish of an enormous size, weighing from five to six hundred pounds,are procured in this river, a kind of dog-fish, which are used as food by the Uzbeks. Across the Oxus, we found ourselves about six miles distant from the town of Charjooee, which was in sight. For the first time, this noble river was turned to the purposes of navigation, since there is a commercial communication kept up, by means of it, between that place and Orgunje.

Oxus of Alexander’s historians.

The Oxus is particularly mentioned under that name by the historians of Alexander, though it appears to have been ever unknown by such a title to the Asiatics, who call it Jihoon and Amoo. We learn from the ancient authors, that Alexander approached this river from Bactra, or Balkh, by a country “which exhaled the power of a summer sun, and torrefied the sands.” The distance between Bactra and the river is even correctly stated at 400 stadia, and we have no fables regarding the breadth of the river. Arrian, who follows Aristobulus, tells us that the Oxus was six furlongs broad, and in that part of its course we have described it with a magnitude of 828 yards. The very topography of the river’s bank may, I almost think, be traced in Curtius; for there are low and peaked hillocks near that pass of the Oxus; and we are told that Alexander caused fires to be lit on the high ground, “that the distressedin the rear might perceive they were not far from camp.” There are no hillocks below Kilef. Curtius tells us that the Oxus was a muddy river, that bore much slime along with it; and I found that one fortieth of the stream is clay suspended in the water. What an approximation to the name of Maricanda in the modern city of Samarcand. It is described as being seventy stadia in circumference; and we have seen that modern Bokhara exceeds eight English miles, or about sixty-four of the Grecian stadia. What an outline have we not of the character of these nations in remote ages. “They exercised robbery, and lived by spoil.” These are the literal words of the historian; and they explain to us the genuine manners of the people, be they Hun, Scythian, Goth, Tatar, Toork, or Toorkmun. Lower down the river, we have the name of the country ruled by Pharsamanes, which is called Chorasmi, and in which the kingdom of Kharasm, subverted by Jengis, is easily recognised. Higher up, we have a description of Parætacæ, which was a mountainous region, as we learn from the mention of fir trees, and the formidable “rock of Chorienes.” This is the hill country of Karatageen, as we discover from the similarity of its name and position. In Zeriaspes, we have, I think, Shuhr Subz; and I could continue to multiply the coincidences,but I doubt if the subject would excite general interest.

Charjooee:

In the morning we moved up to Charjooee, which in all our maps is erroneously set down on the northern bank of the Oxus. The place is governed by a Kalmuk, and is pleasantly situated on the verge of culture and desolation, with a pretty fort that crowns a hillock, and overlooks the town. It is said to have resisted the arms of Timour; but its present condition would not impress one with any great notions of its strength, or that conqueror’s power. The people of Charjooee do not exceed 4000 or 5000 souls; but a great portion of its population wander up and down the Oxus during the hot months. We halted here for four days, since it was the last inhabited spot of civilisation between Bokhara and Persia.its bazar.The market day, or bazar, occurred during our stay; and I proceeded along with Ernuzzar, the Toorkmun, to see the assemblage, in which I passed quite unnoticed. I sauntered through the bazar, much more amused with the people than the wares they were selling, which were in every respect poor. There were knives, saddles and bridles, cloth, and horsecloths, of native manufacture: but the only articles of European fabric were a few beads, and chintz scullcaps, which latter were purchased very readily. There were alsolanterns, ewers, and copper pots, in considerable number; and the venders of many of these retailed their goodson horseback, and all the purchasers were mounted. No person ever attends the bazar in Toorkistan but on horseback; and on the present occasion there was not a female to be seen, veiled or unveiled. Most of the people were Toorkmuns of the Oxus, dressed in high sheepskin caps, like the natives of Orgunje. There were about 2000 or 3000 people in the bazar; but there was very little bustle and confusion, though there was much both of buying and selling. The custom of having market days is uncommon in India and Cabool, but of universal use in Toorkistan: it perhaps gives a stimulus to trade, and is most convenient; since all the people of the country, for miles round, assemble on the occasion. Every person seems to think it incumbent upon him to be present. The different articles are arranged in separate parts of the bazar, with as much regularity as in Bokhara itself: here you may buy grain, there fruit: here is meat, there is cloth, &c. The streets are so narrow, that the bazar is generally held at one end of the country towns; and such was the case at Charjooee: so that fruit, grain, or any thing which requires to be displayed, is spread out on the ground. The bazar lasts fromeleven to four o’clock, which is the hottest time of the day.

The desert.

The wants of all had been supplied during our stay at Charjooee; every one was ready to move, and every skin, pot, and pitcher was filled to the brim, from the canals of the Oxus. At noon on the 22d we commenced our march, and, before we had travelled a distance of two miles, entered upon the great desert which separates the kingdoms of Iran and Tooran. The mode of travelling in Toorkistan is to start at midday, and march till sunset; and, after a couple of hours’ rest and the indispensable cup of tea, to resume the task, and advance to the stage, which is usually reached at daylight. We made the usual evening halt, and then travelled till sunrise, when we reached Karoul, a well of brackish water, thirty feet under ground, and lined with branches of trees, at which we halted, a distance of twenty-two miles from Charjooee. The whole tract presented to our view was a dreary waste of sand-hills, but by no means so destitute of vegetation and underwood as on the northern bank of the Oxus. They, however, occurred in the same succession and formation as have been there described: they were quite soft, but the sand was not dusty, and the camels slid down them with their burthens. Here and there we came upon asheet of indurated clay, as if the sand-hills here also rested on a base of that kind. In these hollows, and on the brow of the hills, we found a shrub like tamarisk, called “kasura,” also a kind of grass, orbent, called “salun.” There were likewise two thorny shrubs, called “kuzzak” and “karaghan”[1], neither of them the common camel thorn, but on which the camels delighted to browse. There was no water throughout the whole march, and no signs of inhabitants but a ruined fort, that had once served as a look-out from the Oxus. The Indian deserts of Jaysulmeer and Parkur sank into insignificance before this vast ocean of sand. No sight is more imposing than a desert; and the eye rests with a deep interest on the long line of camels, as it winds its crooked course through the frightful waste. The simile of a ship in the ocean and a camel in the desert may be hackneyed, but it is just. The objects animate impart a strong interest to inanimate nature.

Slaves.

In the middle of our march through the desert, we met seven unfortunate Persians, who had been captured by the Toorkmuns, and were now on their road to Bokhara, where they would be sold. Five of them were chained together, and trod their way through the deepsand. There was a general shout of compassion, as the caravan passed these miserable beings; and the sympathy did not fail to affect the poor creatures themselves. They cried, and gave a longing look, as the last camel of the caravan passed to their dear native country. The camel on which I rode happened to be in the rear, and I stayed to hear their tale of woe. They had been seized by the Toorkmuns at Ghaeen, near Meshid, a few weeks before, when the culture of their fields had led them beyond the threshold of their homes. They were weary and thirsty, and I gave them all I could,—a single melon; a civility, little as it was, which was received with gratitude. What a frightful notion must not these unfortunate beings have entertained of the country they were entering, after their travels in such a desert. The Toorkmuns evince but little compassion for their Persian slaves; and what other treatment is to be expected from men who pass their lives in selling human beings. They give them but a scanty supply of food and water, that they may waste their strength, and prevent their escape; but beyond this the Toorkmun inflicts no other ills. The tales which have been circulated of their cutting the sinew of the heel, and of their passing a cord round the collar bone, are at variance with truth, sincethese blemishes would diminish the value of the slave. These unfortunate captives suffer a much heavier calamity,—they lose their liberty.

The caravan.

As we reached our halting-ground in the morning, we had now an opportunity of observing the number and composition of the caravan. There were upwards of eighty camels, and about 150 persons, several of them men of the first respectability, who accompanied their merchandise to the markets of Persia. Some travelled in panniers placed on camels; others rode, some on horses, many on donkeys; but every person, even the meanest, had some kind of conveyance. The horsemen preceded the camels; and, stretching themselves out on the sand with their bridles in their grasp, stole a few moments’ sleep, till the caravan overtook them. The scene was altogether curious and novel. Among the party there were eight or ten Persians, who had passed many years of slavery in Toorkistan, and, after purchasing their liberty, were now returning by stealth to their homes. These people were delighted with our enquiries; and, in the journey, many of them became attached to us. They would bring melons for us; kill a sheep; draw water; and were always at hand. Some of them had been no less than three times captured, and as often had they redeemed themselves; for the Uzbeks are readilyimposed upon and cheated by their slaves, who make money in service. I conversed with several of them; and it was equally painful to hear their past sufferings and present anxiety. Their influential countrymen in the caravan had put several of them in charge of a portion of their merchandise, that they might be the less noticed, and considered rather as traders than emancipated slaves; for a Persian merchant in a caravan is generally safe. In spite of all this arrangement, some hard-hearted wretches had told tales on the banks of the Oxus: one individual had been forced to return to Bokhara; and some of the others had crossed with difficulty. One single hint to the people of Orgunje would, in all probability, yet arrest their further progress; but every one had been well tutored. What must be the feelings of some of these men as they approach Persia. One of them told me that he had had a wife and a numerous family when sold into captivity, twenty-two years before; of whom he had not heard any account since that period. If any of them are alive, the parent will show himself among them as an apparition from the tomb. Another of these unfortunate individuals had a tale which was not less touching. He had been seized along with his family, and, indeed, all the inhabitants of his village, near Toorshish; and delivered up,by one of the Khorasan chiefs, to the Toorkmuns, who drove, on this occasion, upwards of a hundred people to Bokhara. At Maimunu, which is on the road, they were disposed of to other Toorkmuns, and at Bokhara finally sold. There this unfortunate man saw his wife sold to one, his daughter and son to others, and himself to a different person. A humane man, hearing of his misfortunes, released him, since he believed it good in the sight of God; and the poor fellow lurked in Bokhara, like a bird near its nest that is robbed, in hopes of relieving the other members of his family. He had failed, and was now travelling into his own country, to excite the compassion and pity of those who had known him in his prosperity. It would harrow up a man’s heart, to listen to all the tales of the woe which is inflicted upon mankind by these plundering Toorkmuns.

Well of Balghooee.

In marching from Karoul, we quitted the high road of the caravans, which leads to Merve, and proceeded westward into the desert, by a way that is altogether unfrequented. We had no option in the selection of such a route, since the officer who commands the Orgunje army sent a messenger to direct our march upon his camp. We were thus thrown into the jaws of the lion, but were helpless; and the merchants appeared to regret it more than ourselves. After theusual halt, we reached the well of Balghooee twenty-four miles distant, on the morning of the 23d. It was a small and single well, about four feet in diameter, as deep as that at Karoul; and the Toorkmuns only discovered it after a zigzag search of some hours. We soon emptied it (for the water was good), and had to wait a night till it again filled.

The desert.

In this march the desert was overgrown with brushwood, but the tract was entirely destitute of water; and a few rats, lizards, and beetles, with here and there a solitary bird, were its only inhabitants. Some of the sand-hills now attained the height of sixty feet: but at that elevation they are invariably bare of all vegetation; which, I suppose, cannot thrive in such an exposed situation. The highest hills were about a distance of eight miles from the halting-place, and named “sheer i shootr,” or “the camel’s milk,” from some allusion to that useful animal. There was nothing peculiar in the colour of the sand, which was quartzose. There was no turf, grass, or creeping plants; every shrub grew separately; and the grass, which I before mentioned, was only to be found in clumps. The heat of the sand rose to 150°: and that of the atmosphere exceeded 100°, but the wind blew steadily; nor do I believe it would be possible to traverse this tract in summer, if it ceased toblow: the steady manner in which it comes from one direction is remarkable in this inland country. It is true, that in every direction except the north we have mountains, but they are too distant to impede the winds. Our caravan advanced at a firm and equal pace among the sand; nor can I discover that the progress of a camel is much impeded in the desert. They moved at the rate of two miles and one eighth in the hour (3740 yards); and I have since found, that the judicious Volney assigns the distance of 3600 yards as the hourly journey of a camel in the sands of Egypt and Syria.

Dangers of the desert.

We had before heard of the deserts south of the Oxus; and had now the means of forming a judgment from personal observation. We saw the skeletons of camels and horses now bleaching in the sun, which had perished from thirst. The nature of the roads or pathways admits of their easy obliteration; and, if the beaten track be once forsaken, the traveller and his jaded animal generally perish. A circumstance of this very nature occurred but a few days previous to our leaving Charjooee. A party of three persons travelling from the Orgunje camp lost the road, and their supply of water failed them. Two of their horses sank under the parching thirst; and the unfortunate men opened the vein of their surviving camel,sucked its blood, and reached Charjooee from the nourishment which they thus derived. The camel died. These are facts of frequent occurrence. The Khan of Orgunje, in his late march into the desert, lost upwards of two thousand camels, that had been loaded with water and provisions for his men. He dug his wells as he advanced; but the supply of water was scanty. Camels are very patient under thirst: it is a vulgar error, however, to believe that they can live any length of time without water. They generally pine, and die on the fourth day, and, under great heat, will even sink sooner.

Seerab.

After a day’s detention to rest the camels, we marched at sunrise, and continued our progress, with a short halt, till the same time next day. We journied thirty-five miles, and alighted at a fetid well called Seerab; and from well to well we had no water. We appeared to have lost the great sand hills in our advance westward. The desert, though it had the same features as before, now presented an undulating and uneven country of sand, partially covered with shrubs. The soil was salt in some places; but the water of the well was good enough after it was some time drawn. Our Toorkmun Sirdar made his appearance shortly after our arrival, to claim his cup of tea; and never was a schoolboy more fond of sugar than this hoary-headed Toorkmun. I used to give it to him to havethe pleasure of seeing him grind it, though some of the merchants wondered at our wasting it on such a person. I always felt the happier in the company of this man, for I looked upon him as the only bond between us and the barbarians we were to encounter. He used also to tell us the news of the caravan, and all the particulars of the country, which he even knew that we noted down. Ernuzzer did not deceive us, and the tea and the sugar which he consumed, were but a small tax for his service. In return for these favours, he promised to give me abonne bouche,Camel’s milk.when we reached the first camp of the Toorkmuns; and when I expected nothing else than “kimmiz” or “boozu,” mare’s milk or fermented liquor, he brought me camel’s milk, which is the only drink of the Toorkmuns. The milk is mixed with water, and the cream is then drawn off. It is called “chal,” and has a salt, bitter taste. The thinner part of the milk is considered a grateful draught by the people, but to me it tasted sour and acrid. I believed that the Uzbeks and Toorkmuns drank mare’s milk and fermented liquors; but these are unknown in Bokhara, and only peculiar to the Kuzzaks and Kirgizzes, between that city and Russia.

An Eastern caravan.

A caravan is a complete republic; but I do not believe that most republics are so orderly.Of our eighty camels every three or four belonged to different individuals; and there were four Cafila-bashees. Still there was no disputing about the arrangement or order of the march; and it is a point of honour, that the one shall at all times wait for the other. If a single camel throws its load, the whole line halts till it is replaced; and one feels pleased at such universal sympathy. These feelings make it agreeable to travel in a caravan, for the detentions are much fewer than would really be imagined. The more I mingled with Asiatics in their own sphere, and judged them by their own standard, I imbibed more favourable impressions regarding them. One does not see in civilised Europe that generous feeling, which induces the natives of Asia, great and small, to share with each other every mouthful that they possess. Among Mahommedans we have no distinction of gentleman and villain,—at least, so far as hospitality is concerned. The khan fares as simply as the peasant; and never offers to raise a morsel to his lips till he has shared it with those near him. I myself frequently have been partaker of this bounty from rich and poor, for nothing is enjoyed without society. How different is the feeling that besets the sots of lower society in Britain! Nor is this good fellowship among the Asiatics confined to thetravelled merchant: it is to be found in the towns as well as the country. It is a pity that civilisation, with all its advantages, does not retain for us these virtues. Barbarians are hospitable, civilised men are polite; but hospitality added to politeness makes it more acceptable. A caravan is an interesting scene at all times; and the shifts of the pious to prevent its detention in the Toorkmun desert were not unworthy of notice. The line was too extended to sound a general halt for prayers; and at the appointed time, each individual was to be seen on the back of his camel or in his pannier, performing his orisons before the Deity, in the best manner which he could accomplish them. The laws of the Prophet admit of a true believer being cleansed by sand, where there is no water; and the back of a horse or a camel is as legitimate a position for prayer, as the most splendid mosque of a city. The busy scene on our reaching the halting-ground in the evening, was both lively and entertaining. The Uzbeks, like ourselves, do not water their horses when they are warm: in this journey, we had no sooner arrived than we again took our departure, the horses were therefore permitted to quench their thirst; and to prevent any evil effects from the water, the animal was immediately mounted and galloped at speedover hill and dale, for miles. This brought the water, as the Uzbeks would tell you, to the heated temperature of the animal’s body. The easy carriage of some of the cavaliers, and the light saddles which they rode,—some of them little larger than racing saddles,—imparted an interest to these scampering freaks which was most exciting.

Oochghooee and the wandering Toorkmuns.

Our next march brought us at midnight to Oochghooee, or the Three Wells, which we had great difficulty in finding. We wandered to the right and to the left, and the Toorkmuns dismounted in the dark, and felt for the pathway with their hands among the sand. We had almost despaired of recovering it, and were preparing for our bivouac, when the bark of a dog, and a distant answer to our repeated calls dispelled our anxiety, and we were soon encamped at the well. We here found a few wandering Toorkmuns, the first we had seen since leaving the Oxus. The well was bitter; but these shepherds seem indifferent to the quality of the water. The country continued to change still further as we advanced, becoming more flat and free from sand, but still running in alternate ridges and hollows. In these we discovered some small red sharp-edged pebbles, not unlike iron pyrites; nor did the wells which were dug in them, yet exceed the depth of thirty feet: inthe Indian desert they are 300. The Toorkmuns rallied round us next morning, and we had the freest intercourse with them; for they were quite ignorant of our character, and the presence of one of their own tribe, our Toorkmun Ernuzzer, proved a sufficient attraction to these “children of the desert.” They spoke of the piercing cold of the winters in this country; and assured us that the snow sometimes lay a foot deep. We ourselves had experienced a depression of ten degrees in the temperature since leaving the Oxus.

Ruins of castles. Moorghab.

We were now informed that we were approaching the camp of the Khan of Orgunje, which, it appears, was on the banks of the Moorghab, or Merve river, considerably below the place of that name, and about thirty miles distant from us. We set out at noon, and by the time the sun had set, found ourselves among the ruins of forts and villages, now deserted, which rose in castellated groups over an extensive plain. I have observed that we had been gradually emerging from the sand-hills; and these marks of human industry, which we had now approached, were the ancient remnants of civilisation of the famous kingdom of Merve, or, as our historians have erroneously called it, Meroo. Before we had approached them, we had not wanted signs of our being delivered from the ocean of sand, since several flocks ofbirds had passed over us. As the mariner is assured by such indications that he nears land, we had the satisfaction of knowing that we were approaching the water, after a journey of 150 miles through a sterile waste, where we had suffered considerable inconvenience from the want of it. We were not yet within the pale of habitations; but after a cool and pleasant march, over a perfectly flat and hard plain, every where interspersed with forts and ruins, we found ourselves, about nine in the following morning, at a large Toorkmun camp, (or, as it is called, an Oba,) near the banks of the Moorghab. The name of the place was Khwaju Abdoolla, and the whole colony sallied forth to meet the caravan. We took up a position on a hillock about two or three hundred yards distant; and the merchants instructed us to huddle together among themselves, and appear lowly and humble. We did so, and the Toorkmuns of the encampment soon crowded around us, begging for tobacco, for which they brought loads of the most luscious melons, that we cut up, and enjoyed in the company of camel drivers and slaves, braving the sun, though I cannot say to the detriment of our already sun-burned complexions. It now was discovered that the Orgunje camp lay on the other side of the river, which was not fordable but in certain places; and the merchants decidedthat they themselves, with all the Cafila-bashees, should forthwith proceed in person to the spot, and use their utmost to conciliate the officer in charge, for the Khan had returned within these few days to Khiva. Their great object seemed to be to effect a discharge of the duties in the spot where they were now encamped, since no one relished trusting their property within reach of an Orgunje detachment. If the party prayed for success, I can add that we were equally fervent, and the deputation set out accordingly with the good wishes of every one. We were left among the “oi polloi” of the caravan; and when night came, stretched our felts under a clear and cloudless sky, and slept without fear or anxiety from our man-selling neighbours. This state of security among such people and countries is very remarkable; but a Toorkmun, though he can engage in a foray, and execute it with unexampled address, cannot commit a theft in a quiet way, which is not congenial to his nature.

Remarks on the desert.

I have now a little leisure to speak of the desert which we had traversed on our route to the Moorghab. In a military point of view, the scarcity of water is a great obstacle. In some places the wells were thirty-six miles apart; and, generally, the water was both bitter and scanty. The water which we had transportedwith us from the Oxus was not less nauseous than that of the desert; for it must be carried in skins, and these must be oiled to preserve them from bursting. The grease mixes with the water, which latterly became so tainted that the horses even refused to drink it. There is nothing of which we feel the want so much as good water. In the march, several people of the caravan, particularly the camel-drivers, were attacked with inflammation of the eyes; I suppose, from the sand, glare, and dust. With such an enumeration of petty vexations and physical obstacles, it is dubious if an army could cross it at this point. The heavy sandy pathways, for there are no roads, might certainly be rendered passable to guns, by placing brushwood on the sand; but there is a great scarcity of grass for cattle, and the few horses which accompanied the caravan, were jaded and worn out before they reached the river. A horse which travels with a camel, has great injustice done to him; but an army could not outstrip the motions of a caravan, and fatigues would still fall heavily upon them. History tells us, that many armies have fought in and crossed this desert; but they consisted of hordes of light cavalry, that could move with rapidity. It is to be remembered, that we had not a foot-passenger in our party. Light horse might pass such a desert, by divisions, and separate routes; for besides the high road to Merve, there is a road both to the east and the west. It would, at all times, be a difficult task for a great body of men to pass from the Moorghab to the Oxus, since our caravan, of eighty camels, emptied the wells; and it would be easy to hide, or even fill up these scanty reservoirs. Where water lies within thirty feet of the surface, an energetic commander may remedy his wants, since we have an instance of it in the advance of the Orgunje Khan to the banks of the Moorghab. But after I have written, and, perhaps, diffusely, on the passage of such a desert, I may ask myself, who seeks to cross it, and in the line of what invader it lies? It is not in the route between India and Europe; and if the descendants of the Scythians and Parthians wish to invade and tyrannize over each other, they may do so without, perhaps, exciting even the notice of the “fierce Britons.”

A Toorkmun camp.

The Toorkmun camp, or “oba,” at which we halted, presented to us a scene of great novelty. It consisted of about 150 conical moveable huts, called “khirgahs,” which were perched on a rising ground. There was no order in the distribution, and they stood like so many gigantic beehives, which, if they had not had black roofs, might not be a bad comparison; and we might also take the children as the bees, for they were verynumerous. I wondered at the collection of so many rising plunderers. Seeing the Toorkmuns in a body, it may be certainly distinguished, that they have something Tatar in their appearance; their eyes are small, and the eyelids appear swollen. They are a handsome race of people. All of them were dressed in the “tilpak,” a square or conical black cap of sheep-skin, about a foot high, which is far more becoming than a turban, and gives to a party of Toorkmuns the appearance of a soldierlike and disciplined body. The Toorkmuns are remarkably fond of bright-coloured clothes, and choose the lightest shades of red, green, and yellow, as the patterns of their flowing “chupkuns,” or pelisses. They sauntered about their encampment in a great state of listlessness; and what have they to do but to live on the proceeds of their last foray? They have but few fields, and one or two individuals may tend their countless flocks at pasture. Their dogs, indeed, perform this office for them. These animals are very docile, but ferocious to a stranger: they are shaggy, appearing to be of the mastiff breed, and bear a high price even among these people. The martial habits of the Toorkmuns appeared in my eyes the more striking, as they had cleared the circle of their encampment of brushwood for about a mile round. It had, I believe, been cut for firewood;but the resemblance to an esplanade, or a parade ground, was none the less on that account. In my notice of the Toorkmuns, I must not now forget the ladies, whose head-dress would do honour to the galaxy of an English ball-room. It consists of a lofty white turban, shaped like a military chako, but higher, over which a red or white scarf is thrown, that falls down to the waist. Some of these Toorkmun females were fair and handsome, adorning themselves with a variety of ornaments, that were attached to their hair, which hangs in tresses over their shoulders. Their head-dress is, perhaps, a little large, but they themselves are generally on a large scale, and as they never veil it becomes them. The other part of their costume is a long gown that reaches to the ancle, and hides both it and the waist, the very standard points of beauty in our country; but so it is, that nations remote from each other differ not more in language and laws than in taste and manners.

Orgunje officers.

The party which had proceeded to the Orgunje camp, returned next morning with the deputy of the Yooz-bashee, or the Commander of an Hundred, and his very appearance made the hearts of the merchants thrill with fear. No taxes had been collected before this, and every thing was uncertain. The deputy was an elderly man, with a large “tilpak” stuck on his head,like a regimental cap. He was accompanied by a party of desert Toorkmuns, among whom was a chief, or “aksukal,” (literally, a white beard,) of the great tribe of Saruk. The merchants seated the deputation in the place of honour, addressed the deputy as he had been the Yooz-bashee himself, refreshed him with tea and tobacco (for they now smoked in public), and presented him with silks, cloths, raisins, and sugar, and then proceeded to display their merchandize. Every person made an offering, and we sent two handfuls of raisins and a bit of sugar as our homage. We sat at a short distance in our panniers, and witnessed the whole scene. The Yooz-bashee, as I also must call him, now spoke out to all the members of the caravan, and in the most candid language, said, that he had been directed to levy the lawful tax of one in forty, but that he would dispense with opening the bales. Truth, said he, had better be told; for, if I have reason to doubt any of you, I will then examine them, and you will experience the wrath of the Khan of Orgunje, my lord and master. This speech was listened to with terror; some, I believe, actually said that they had more goods than they really possessed; and, as far as I could judge, no one deviated from the truth. Pen and ink were called for, and the congress proceeded to make a list of the merchandize, which was no easy matter.

Precarious situation.

While the merchants were disputing about tillas, and flattering the Yooz-bashee, we had taken up a quiet position, and even pretended to be wrapped in sleep. I never was more awake in my life, and was near enough to hear and see every thing. There were several questions put regarding us, and the principal merchants spoke with earnestness and kindness. We had never instructed them, but they now chose to denominate us Hindoos from Cabool, who were proceeding on a pilgrimage to the flames of Bakoo, on the Caspian. We had been successively Englishmen, Afghans, Uzbeks, Armenians, and Jews, and they now denominated us Hindoos. These people are very simple; nor do they ever interrogate closely. Shortly after the subject of our character and objects had been discussed, the Toorkmun Aksukal rose from the party, and most unwelcomely seated himself by us. “Aksukal,” as I have said, means white beard, though this personage had a black enough plumage to his chin: he wore a splendid scarlet pelisse, and never did our national uniform appear to me more formidable than on his person; for he might have proved himself “a very Tartar” under his British colours. He spoke a little Persian, and said, “You are from Cabool?” to which I gave a nod of assent. The Doctor stretched himself back in his panier, and ourvisitor addressed himself to an Afghan, one of our people, of which I was glad, since it would keep up the illusion. It is said that the natives of Orgunje are, of all the tribes in Toorkistan, most hostile to Europeans, as well from their vicinity to Russia, as their knowledge that the Persians, who threaten their country, are assisted by them. They of course know nothing of the different nations of Europe, and look upon all Europeans as their enemies. I was not sorry when the Toorkmun chief selected another group, and that this patriarchal “white beard” had made no discovery, even after seeing us, and entering into conversation. The whole scene appeared to me a perfect riddle, for we ourselves had mixed with the Toorkmuns of our party as Europeans; and our real character was known to every individual of the caravan. Fear may have prevented some of them from making a full disclosure, but it was very creditable; since I have reason to believe that the people of the Orgunje Khan would not have willingly extended their favour towards us. We, however, had one instance of bad feeling, in a quarter where we least of all looked for it, at the hands of our Cafila-bashee. He required money to pay the just taxes on goods, which he had at the outset hoped to smuggle, and though all settlement had been made between us, and he hadnearly received the full hire of his camels, he sent in the middle of the confusion to say, that the caravan would be detained on our account, if we did not lend him some tillas. What a moment, and what a trial for the temper. It was useless to complain of ungenerous treatment, and it would have been worse to show that we felt it. I considered a couple of tillas enough to give the wretch, though we had provided ourselves with some three hundred of them, which I knew might befriend us, where men are sold and bought like sheep. Evening advanced, and our transactions with the Orgunje Yooz-bashee drew to a close. The commander of a hundred carried off two hundred golden tillas, and all the merchants accompanied him to his horse, and saw him beyond the limits of our camp. Such is the dread of authority, and the power of the meanest man who wears it. In the dusk the merchants came to visit us, and to relate the affairs of the day over a cup of tea. We had to thank an Uzbek, named Ullahdad, and Abdool, a Persian; but we had to make some acknowledgment to all, for we had now become intimate with every body. Whenever the horsemen of the caravan passed us on the road, they would shout out to us, “Ah, Meerza! how are you?” with all the consecutive compliments of their language. Little did many of them know, thatthe name of “Meerza Sikunder,” or the secretary Alexander, which they had given me, was so well merited; since I took every opportunity that I secretly could to use the pen and ink, and give a secretary’s account of all their proceedings. On this day I felt pleased with mankind, for we were now free to prosecute our journey. The Bokharees assured me that they were interested in our favour, from the commands of their minister the Koosh Begee; and the Persians, of whom there were many in the caravan, dreaded the friendship between Abbas Meerza and the English. Individually, I did not presume to believe that either of these great personages bestowed much care upon us, but it was pleasant to know that such were the opinions of our companions.

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