1856.] Narrative of the Travels of Khivajah ATimud Shah. 355 



met one person, that I at first thought might be he, a stranger who 

 would not tell his name to any one, but upon my shewing him Major 

 McGregor's English letter that I had with me from him, he could 

 not read it, and moreover I discovered that this individual had spent 

 some ten years in Cashmere, which convinced me that he was not 

 the man I was in search of, besides which, this person had not the 

 appearance of a European. 



It is notorious in Bokhara that the king was the murderer, or 

 rather caused the murders of Conolly and Stoddard. 



Bokhara is a densely populated city, in the summer it is very 

 hot and in the winter extremely cold ; there are stone-tanks in every 

 street ; these are filled by water-cuts from the river, but for three 

 months of the year, during which the leaves of the mulberry tree 

 have been decaying in the water, people who drink from these tanks 

 become unhealthy, and suffer much from the Guinea worm, which 

 is a common disease in the country. There are several physicians 

 in the city who are great practitioners in curing it by extraction of 

 the worms. "Water for the king's private use is brought from a 

 great distance. In Bokhara are found merchants from Persia, 

 Oorgung, Cabul, and Kokan, each of which places have their re- 

 spective market-places. The Jews have also a separate division. The 

 bazars are clean and kept in good order, and well stocked with mer- 

 chandize of all descriptions. There are fifty seraies and three hundred 

 and sixty musjids ; the town also is divided into three hundred and 

 sixty mohullas or divisions. There are numerous hummams or baths. 

 Eor every division of the town, the king has a news-writer, who sup- 

 plies him with daily information of all that occurs, and weekly reports 

 are sent in the same manner from the country ; for this reason the 

 people fear him greatly, as he is acquainted with all their transac- 

 tions. The present ruler Behadoor Khan styled Syud Ameen JN"us- 

 seeroollah Khan is about fifty years of age. No great friendship 

 •exists between the governments of Kokan and Bokhara, but I know 

 that an envoy went to Bokhara during my stay at Kokan, as on the 

 road I met him returning accompanied by an envoy from Bokhara. 

 Both in the Kokan and Bokhara states, gold and silver coins are 

 coined and are current, the people are generally well off, though the 

 subjects of Bokhara are the wealthiest, owing to their having a few 



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