134 THE PERSIAN POST-ROAD. 



unsuccessful, I was just detailing mj experiences to 

 Tucker, when lie was suddenly seized with a fainting-fit, 

 wliicli lasted for some time. When he showed signs of 

 recovering, I sent up Paul to the large house to say that 

 my friend was ill, and to ask for the loan of a saucepan to 

 make some soup in. He returned shortly, having seen the 

 head-officer, with the message that they did not keep 

 things to lend. Disgusted at our treatment the previous 

 evening, I had already written a complaint, which I j)ur- 

 posed addressing to one of our friends at Tiflis. I now 

 added this detail to the catalogue of offences, and, on going 

 up a second time to receive our passports, handed over a 

 copy of it to the officer, whose guest I had learnt spoke 

 French, and would therefore be able to read it for him. 

 He did not then, or on our return, offer any excuse for his 

 conduct towards us ; and we therefore carried out our 

 purpose of presenting the complaint, which, we were sub- 

 sequently assured, met with attention at head-quarters. 



When the Persian ferry-boat came over, about 8 o'clock, 

 Tucker was fortunately well enough to walk down to it. 

 We embarked with a miscellaneous company of six don- 

 keys, two horses, some ragged peasants, and an Armenian 

 merchant, who rode with us up to Tabreez. There was no 

 rope to the boat, which was only jtropelled by two wretched 

 apologies for oars, and the current was so strong that we 

 seemed to run a chance of seeing the Caspian shortly. 

 The men in charge knew, however, how to take advantage 

 of the eddies and backwaters of the stream, and finally 

 landed us in safety on Persian soil, about thi-ee-quai-ters 

 of a mile below the custom-house. The banks had been 

 quite lately under water, and were now an almost impass- 

 able swamp ; we picked our way along them some little 

 distance to a sandspit, on which a number of camels were 

 reposing, until the boat should be ready to return. In 



