PERSIA. 



695 



Armenian population of any Persian town ; still 

 the number of families does hardly exceed 400, 

 instead of the 12,000 which lived there for- 

 merly. With the exception of a few merchants 

 in Tabris, the congregations are very poor, and 

 living upon poor agriculture and manufacture 

 of wine. They suffer greatly from the despotic 

 and arbitrary acts of the Governors, although 

 they are at present enjoying in some respects the 

 protection of Eussia. To this external oppres- 

 sion are frequently added serious troubles be- 

 tween those Armenians which have joined the 

 Roman Catholic Church (United Armenians) 

 and those which adhere to the old Armenian 

 Church (Non -United Armenians). In conse- 

 quence of their unfavorable situation in Persia, 

 emigration to Eussia and India is becoming 

 frequent, especially among the younger genera- 

 tion. From India, the Armenians of Persia 

 are already receiving large sums for the sup- 

 port of their churches and their poor. * 



Among the Nestorians^ Eomans Catholic and 

 American Protestant (of the American Board 

 of Commissioners of Foreign Missions) mission- 

 aries have been laboring for many years. Both 

 have established churches and schools. The 

 Shah, in 1865, granted to the friends of the 

 Protestant missionaries a new site for a church, 

 and subscribed himself 100 for its erection. 

 The English ambassador also subscribed 50, 

 and the Shah also appointed General Gehangir 

 Khan, an Armenian, to represent the interests 

 of the Protestant Nestorian community. 



The Jews were very numerous and powerful 

 in southern Persia in the times of the Sassan- 

 idaa, and ever since the beginning of the Mo- 

 hammedan rule. But oppression and persecu- 

 tion have reduced their number to such an 

 extent that, as a learned Jewish Mnla (rabbi) 

 assured Dr. Polak, they are now estimated at 

 only about 2,000. They constitute three large 

 congregations in Shiraz, Ispahan, and Kashan, 

 and smaller ones in Teheran, Demavend, Bala- 

 frush, and Kazeran. The Persian Jews are 

 allowed to live in polygamy, but actual cases 

 of polygamy are rare, on account of their ex- 

 treme poverty. They still have to-day the cap- 

 itation tax which was imposed upon the Jews by 

 Mohammed. The continuous persecution in- 

 duced most of the Jews to emigrate to Turkey 

 and the Eastern countries, although the Gov- 

 ernment tried to prevent emigfation in every 

 possible way. In 1865 Sir Moses Montefiore, 

 of England, made efforts to relieve his core- 

 ligionists in Persia from the ty.anny under 

 which they were groaning. The British min- 

 ister in Teheran received the assurance that 

 the Jewish subjects of the Shah should be 

 no longer oppressed. In Persia, Jews are 

 always engaged in the mint, and many of them 

 are celebrated as physicians. The Persian 

 Jews still continue to make pilgrimages to 

 the tomb of Esther, in Hamadais (the ancient 



* The Gotha Almanac for 1866 estimates the number of 

 Armenians as high as 200,000, and that of the Nestorians at 

 100,000. 



Ecbatana), their only national monument. The 

 Parsees, or, as they call themselves, Zerdush- 

 tee, still live in small numbers in the towns 

 of Yezd and Kerman. The wealthier Parsees, 

 in India, annually send them large sums of 

 money, in order to satisfy the extortion of the 

 Governors ; for they desire that a small rem- 

 nant of the adherents of Zoroaster remain in 

 their native land and preserve the holy fire. A 

 delegate, the Manookisliee Sahib, was sent by 

 them to Teheran, to obtain the permission to 

 pay the taxes for the Persian Parsees, and to 

 establish an educational institution. The Per- 

 sian Government refused both requests; the 

 former because it was regarded as an infringe- 

 ment upon the sovereignty of the Shah, the 

 second on the ground that it could not grant 

 permission for the establishment of an idola- 

 trous institution. The Parsee merchants and 

 agriculturists enjoy the reputation of industry, 

 perseverance, and honesty. They conduct the 

 commerce with India. Among themselves they 

 still use the old Persian language. Their priests 

 are called Mabeds. Although the Shah is of a 

 different religion, they regard him as their le- 

 gitimate ruler, and reverence him as the succes- 

 sor of Kaoos and Djemshid. Their numbers 

 amount to about 8,000 or 9,000. 



The number of European residents in Persia 

 is very small. They comprise a limited num- 

 ber of merchants (Frenchmen, Greeks, Germans, 

 Swiss, and Russians), a few military officers, 

 physicians, and mechanics. They live mostly 

 in Tabris and Teheran. 



The art of printing was introduced into Per- 

 sia at the beginning -of the nineteenth century, 

 by the Prince Abbaz Mirza ISTayibe-Sultaneh. 

 But the Persians have never learned to appre- 

 ciate it, and the number of books printed is 

 very small. A great extension, on the other 

 hand, has been given to lithography. Every 

 large town has one or several lithographic 

 institutions, in which a considerable num- 

 ber of dictionaries, historical and poetical 

 works, treatises of a religious character, etc., 

 have been lithographed. Libraries are very 

 rare ; the royal collection of Persian and Arabic 

 works embraces no more than 300 manuscripts 

 and a few printed European books. The larg- 

 est library of Persia, that of Ardebil, has been 

 carried off by the Russians to St. Petersburg, 

 where, it is said, now the most beautiful Per- 

 sian and Arabic manuscripts are to be found. 



For several years a lithographed official 

 weekly newspaper has been published at Tehe- 

 ran, at an annual subscription price of two and a 

 half ducats. In its first part the paper gives court 

 news, distinctions, appoinments. The name of 

 the Shah is always accompanied by some titles, 

 and prayers for the preservation of his life. 

 Next follow reports from the provinces, gener- 

 ally to the effect, that " owing to the justice 

 and circumspection of the Governor, the 

 ' rayet ' (subjects) enjoy undisturbed happi- 

 ness," that "impartiality and justice prevail at 

 the raising of taxes ; that the ways and bridges 



