30 TRAVEL, ADVENTURE, AND SPORT. 



him that whatever an Englishman said was true, and 

 although there was no harm in accusing a Persian of 

 telling lies and eating dirt, still that saying such 

 things to an Englishman was a matter of very grave 

 offence. The sun was setting as the hospitable old 

 Mirza stood at his gate to see me on my horse. I 

 wished him good-bye, fervently praying that his 

 shadow might never be less, he that God should 

 ever be my protector, and so we parted. 



This evening our last in Shiraz was one of 

 revelry to our servants. They had had a great deal 

 of hard work and exposure during the last few weeks, 

 and I was consequently anxious to put them in a 

 good humour previous to our start on the morrow. 

 A sheep, with the very fattest tail procurable, had 

 been purchased by my orders at the morning bazaar. 

 It was determined that the gholaum and his fellow 

 should have a summons to attend. It was a stroke 

 of policy to humour him also as much as lay in our 

 power, for on his exertions much of our future com- 

 fort on the road depended. I knew that, at a frown 

 of his, hens that had never been known to lay eggs 

 before would in some wonderful way at once produce 

 them in sufficient numbers to fill our saddle-bags ; 

 that one oath of his by the Shah's (the King's) beard 

 would instantly cause lambs to frisk and kids to jump 

 in places where before nothing moved but the very 

 toughest and ugliest of old he-goats ; that a crack of 

 his whip would make the most obstinate and the 



