362 MR. E. T. GtiNTHEE ON THE 



insectifuge is as well known as it was in the days of our fore- 

 fathers, when the housewife was taught that — 



" Where chamber is swept, and wormwood is strewn, 

 No flea, for his hfe, dare bide or be known ! " 



Plains. — The shores of the lake are for the most part sur- 

 rounded by gently sloping gravel or alluvial plains, which extend 

 as far as the feet of the hills. They are traversed by the 

 numerous rivers which flow into the lake, and which distribute 

 their waters among innumerable villages and over vast tracks of 

 cultivated land. When seen from a distance the irrigated fields 

 look like extensive forests, owing to the poplars and willows 

 which line the watercourses, and which doubtless have given rise 

 to the misleading statement that Lake TTrmi is " surrounded by 

 wooded shores and hills " (Curzon, 'Persia,' p. 532). 



The country which is too far from water to be irrigated is of 

 the nature of a thistle-covered steppe, whereas the lower marshy 

 portions exhibit rank growth of rushes and blue irises. 



My first impressions of the Zoology of the Urmi plains were 

 of disappointment, and for two reasons — firstly, because the 

 general facies of the fauna is pre-eminently European, and, 

 secondly, because I found the country much more densely popu- 

 lated than I had expected. There are villages w^herever sufficient 

 water is obtainable to make agriculture possible ; and as these 

 villages have existed for very long periods of time, within their 

 spheres of influence, Nature has been tamed and the fauna pro- 

 foundly changed. 



Among domesticated animals the most striking are the camels, 

 buflialoes, and fat-tailed sheep (0y^> steatopygus). Buff"aloes only 

 do really well where they can spend several hours a day in the 

 water. When water deep enough for complete immersion cannot 

 be found, a small boy is often told off" for an hour or so to bale 

 up water in a pot and to pour it over their backs. The winter 

 on the Urmi plateau is so severe that the buffaloes have to be 

 kept in stables until the return of warm weather. 



The gazelle (Gazella suhgutturosa) doubtless once lived on 

 the plains of Urmi, but has now become exterminated by the 

 spread of cultivation. The badger (Meles canescens) is rare. The 

 rats and mice are unknown to science, although their holes are 

 common in the fields and along watercourses. A species of 

 gerbilJe occurs, but is not very common. 



