1822.) Manners of the Persians and Turks contrasted and described, 
jugal love which render the wife a 
comforter in distress, a friend par- 
taking of our pleasures and our pains. 
How, indeed, can a woman conceive 
a profound attachment for her hus- 
band, when she knows that there are 
others under the same roof who are 
honoured with the same title as her- 
self, or concubines admitted to share 
his bed? 
The number of wives is limited by 
the law to four. The Persians take a 
fifth for a certain time; after which 
she is loaded with presents, and set 
at liberty. This sort of marriage is 
called mutiah: these women may be 
compared to kept mistresses in Eu- 
rope, the only difference being, that in 
Persia such contracts are made pub- 
licly, and are not dishonourable. 
Some travellers have extolled the 
beauty of the Persian women, and 
especially those of the province of 
Yezd: there are, indeed, pretty wo- 
men in these as in all other countries. 
The Georgian blood which is spread 
throughout Persia causes the children 
to be born with remarkable features, 
but they lose them entirely as they 
advance in age; and I believe that the 
Turkish blood isin general purer 
than the Persian. ‘There are not 
amongst the Persian women any of 
those elegant shapes which are to be 
seen amongst our European females. 
The charms of the former, it is true, 
being entirely concealed by the man- 
ner in which they are dressed, cannot 
be prociaely estimated. Accustomed 
to the sight of robes displaying grace- 
ful forms, I could not help fancying 
I saw in the Persian females only ani- 
mated masses, resembling so many in- 
distinct shades. 
Their head is adorned with a fillet 
or a cap of greater or less value, the 
form of which they vary according to. 
their taste: they frequently cover it 
with a shawl, which they dispose in a 
thousand different ways. The wives 
of the people wear only a plain black 
handkerchief about their head, Their 
hair flows in tresses behind; and be- 
fore it are turned back over the fore- 
head some ringlets, falling negligently 
down each side upon the cheeks. 
The shift which they wear reaches to 
the waist, and is of red silk or white 
cotton; tied with a string that passes 
over the shoulders, it hides the palpi- 
tations, sighs, and movements of a 
osom eneryated by the vapour-baths 
bitually taken by both sexes in the 
2t 
east. The gown or robe is open be- 
fore, being closed only over the breast. 
by means of loops, or of small gold, 
silver, or silk-covered buttons. This 
robe is also confined round the body 
by an embroidered girdle, adorned in 
front with a plate of gold or silver. 
The wives of the common people tie 
round them a Kerman shawl, or some. 
other of less value, of silk or cotton, 
manufactured in their own country. 
The Persian women, as well as the - 
men, wear very wide silk or cot- 
ton drawers. They, as well as the 
men, wear none but short knitted 
stockings, woollen or cotton, of various 
colours. The women wear on their 
feet a sort of slippers, some of which 
have high heels, and others are flat 
and shod with iron at the point; they 
are made of horse or goat skin, pre- 
pared and died green or red. 
None of the women can appear in 
the street uncovered. The face is 
concealed by a cotton veil, in which 
are made two little openings for the 
eyes. The whole body is wrapped in 
a sort of white shroud. The wives of 
the common people also make use of 
a cotton stuff; but it is ehequered 
white and black, and is‘ of Persian 
manufacture. 
Such is the general dress of the wo- 
men. They make use of additional 
embellishments, according to the 
means and the liberality of their hus- 
bands. The heads and necks of these 
ladies sparkle with pearls and precious 
stones, their fingers are loaded with 
rings, and to their arms are attached 
bracelets enriched with jewels. 
The dress of the men has not the 
imposing and majestic air which cha- 
racterises that of the Turks. The 
shirt, of red silk or white cotton, is 
not open at the breast like ours, but 
at the side; it is fastened with a: but- 
ton or lace, and reaches only to the 
waist. The breeches are wide, and 
nearly resemble our pantaloons.. The 
Persians never wear a crayat, even on 
the severest, days of winter. Upon 
the shirt they put a garment, which 
descends half-way down the thigh; it 
covers the breast, and is tied with two 
strings. Over this first habit they: 
wear a second of silk, red, green, or of 
some other colour, of very close tex- 
ture, open before, and decorated on 
each side with a, row of buttons of 
gold or silver thread; the sleeves are 
slit in front, and likewise buttoned. 
They tie round the waist a Kerman 
shawl, ° 
