THE PRESENT STATUS OF BOKHARA. 183 



known that he would go. What happened then ? 

 Why, the iron showed through the velvet of the glove, 

 and he was peremptorily forbidden to leave his king- 

 dom ! And the Amir now realises — what all the rest of 

 the world realised long ago — that the ruler of Bokhara 

 the Noble has fallen from his high estate. 



I have mentioned this because it gives a correct idea 

 of the status of Bokhara to-day. There is no reason 

 why it should not remain independent to this extent for 

 many years to come — indeed there are two very good 

 reasons why it should : firstly, because it suits the 

 Russians to enjoy all the advantages of practical pos- 

 session while they suffer none of the disadvantages 

 entailed by the responsibility of actual occupation ; and, 

 secondly, because it is affirmed that at the time of his 

 coronation the reigning Emperor gave his word to the 

 Amir that the position of Bokhara should remain un- 

 changed so long as he was Tsar of all the Bussias, 



But I am wandering away from the citadel which 

 rises straight in front of us as we cross the Biofistan. 

 The accompanying illustration shows the great gateway 

 which gives access to it, constructed by Nadir Shah in 

 1742, and high above the entrance, midway between 

 the two round towers which support it, may be seen 

 the dilapidated dial of an ancient clock. It is a 

 curiosity in Bokhara, and it ticks out a piteous tale 

 of woe. 



An Italian of Parma, Giovanni Orlandi by name, had 

 the misfortune to fall into the hands of Nasrullah, King 

 of Bokhara. It is said that he was sold with the con- 

 nivance of a Bussian of Orenburg, who grew rich on 

 the profits of an illegal and infamous slave traffic. On 

 his refusing to become a convert to Islamism, he was 

 thrown into prison and condemned to die ; but on 

 promising to construct for the Amir a machine for 



