MODERN PERSIA AND ITS CAPITAL 



393 



tional form of government; but they 

 were illy prepared to combat internal 

 anarchy and reaction or to resist the 

 aggression of Russian imperialism. 



International intrigue, with their coun- 

 try as a helpless tool, has prevented a 

 fair test of the ability of the Persians, 

 by their own unaided efforts, to restore 

 the Persian state. 



But now a new factor has appeared, as 

 though Aladdin had rubbed his magic 

 lamp, portending a rapid change in 

 Persia's status — oil, which has brought 

 wealth and progress to many an un- 

 promising region. This, as well as^ un- 

 developed stores of copper, lead, iron, 

 and other products, has attracted the 

 foreign capitalist; and in these days of 



dollar diplomacy there are bound to be 

 railways and valuable concessions for 

 this most-sought- for of all present-day 

 commodities of commerce. 



An overland rail route to India may 

 soon become a reality, and plans are 

 already complete for a railroad to Te- 

 heran. 



The old Persia is swiftly passing. The 

 new Persia is bound to be economically 

 prosperous. The unsolved problem is 

 the future of the Persian national life. 

 The end of another generation will re- 

 veal either a Persian resiliency and moral 

 strength sufficient to establish securely a 

 modern state or merely another failing 

 experiment in the decanting of new wine 

 into old bottles. 



AN ASCENT OF MOUNT DEMAVEND, THE 

 PERSIAN OLYMPUS 



Any one who has carefully examined 

 -a small map of Asia has probably 

 noticed as one of the few designated fea- 

 tures of the portion occupied by Persia 

 the rather striking name, Mount Dema- 

 vend. The emphasis given to this spot 

 by the absence of many other defined 

 locations throughout the country is quite 

 in keeping with its size, magnificence, 

 and importance. 



Demavend, which outrivals in propor- 

 tions any mountain in Europe, is the 

 highest peak in southwestern Asia, for it 

 rises to an altitude of nearly 20,000 feet 

 above sealevel. Whether viewed through 

 the mists from the Caspian Sea or in the 

 clear, thin air of the Iranian plateau, its 

 snow-ribbed volcanic cone is a vision of 

 surpassing splendor. But to realize its 

 full grandeur one must see it from the 

 crest of a neighboring range, where the 

 eye can take in with a single sweep the 

 unbroken rise from base to summit, or 

 from some point a hundred miles south- 

 ward across the desert, where it still 

 dominates the hazy horizon long after the 

 rugged outlines of its surrounding ranges 

 have dissolved in the distance. 



THE PARADISE OE ZOROASTER 



Is it to be wondered at that such a 

 superb landmark should hold a promi- 

 nent place from the earliest times in the 



legend and the superstition of the Iranian 

 peoples ? 



As Mount Olympus in Greece was the 

 home of the gods, so the paradise of 

 Zoroaster was the summit of Demavend 

 in Persia. Many legends have developed 

 from its mysterious, fear-inspiring gran- 

 deur, important among which is that of 

 the monster tyrant Zohak, who, halted 

 in his worldwide tyranny, was chained, 

 Prometheus like, upon this peak. This 

 tale, which is found in the sacred writ- 

 ings of the Fire Worshipers and in 

 Persian classical poetry, is still cherished 

 in the folk-lore of the inhabitants ; and so 

 strong is the inherited superstition that 

 even today the venturesome traveler is 

 warned not to attempt the ascent of the 

 mountain, because "the devils will get 

 you." 



Not only has this great mountain held 

 a lofty place in mythology, but it has 

 cast its far-reaching shadow over many 

 epoch-making events in history. Almost 

 at its very base (in the Median metrop- 

 olis of Rhages) was born the mother of 

 Zoroaster. It marks the eastern limit of 

 the raids of the Assyrians before the rise 

 to power of the great kings of Persia, 

 and its frowning eastern face overlooked 

 the mountain home of the rising Parthian 

 Empire. Alexander the Great paused 

 beneath it in his pursuit of Darius III 



