90 2 7/6^ Government^ Lawsj and ConUitution Book III. 
Source of tlie frequent Troubles, Rebellions, and Re- that they commonly make a Purfc, and procure a hi- 
volutions which have fo often brought the Perfian Go- vourabie Repreientation of the Cafe from the Officers 
vernment to the Brink of Ruin. This will be the more 
obvious to the Reader, when we come to ftate the Na- 
ture of Property among the Perfians^ from whence it 
will appear, that the landed Infereft in that Country is 
tolerably fecured ; but as the like Provifion is not made 
for the Money’d Intereft, People do not turn themlelves 
fufficiently to thofe Methods of Subfiftance that would 
make the Government eafy, and themfelves happy. 
10. The Lands of Perjia are either fuch as are cul- 
tivated, or fuch as are uncultivated, and uninhabited, 
of which the latter are ten to one more than the for- 
mer. The Lands in Occupation are of four kinds *, 
the Lands of the State, the Shakes demefne Lands, the 
Lands of the Church, and laflly, thofe belonging to 
private Men, The Lands of the , State contain much 
the greater Part of what is cultivated, and are in the Pof- 
feffion of the Governors of the refpedfive Provinces, who 
out of them take their own Revenue, and affign the 
reft for the Payment of their Officers, and the Troops 
they are obliged to maintain •, for every Soldier has his 
Pay affigned him upon fome Village or Farm, in the 
fame Manner as in Sweden. The Demefne Lands are 
the Shah^s particular Eftate, out of which are paid the 
Officers of the Houlliold, and the Troops he maintains 
over and above thofe which are maintained at the Charge 
of the refpediive Provinces, and the Refidue are given 
among the Courtiers and Favourites ; or managed by 
the Viziers and Intendants, who remit the Produce of 
them into the Treafury. 
The Lands which belong to the Church, are the Do- 
nation of Princes, or private Men, and are accounted fa- 
cred, fo that they are never taxed or confifeated tor any 
Crime whatever, and after one Year’s Pofleffion, the Title 
of them cannoc be called in Qiieftion, on any Account 
whatever .The Lands of privatcMen are held of the Crown 
for the Term of ninety nine Years, paying an inconfi- 
derable Quit-rent ; and at the Expiration ot the Term 
of ninety nine Years, they are allowed to renew their 
Leafe for the fame Number of Years on advancing one 
Year’s Income. As to the cultivated Lands, if any 
Perfon defires to build upon them, or to convert any 
Part of them into plowed Fields or Gardens, the 
King’s Officers procure him a Grant for ninety nine 
Years, under a fmall Rent, which Terms are renewed 
as other private Eftates ; fo that ail Ranks of Men de- 
rive their Eitates immediately from the Crown,' and by 
this Method have a Perpetuity, on Payment of their 
Fines and accuftomed Rents. 
The Officers of the Shah, as well as private Owners, 
let out their Lands to Husbandmen, upon Condition of 
receiving a third Part of the Produce ufually, but the 
Rent is more or Ids, according to-the particular Agree- 
ments of the Parties *, and the Grain in Perjta being 
fubjeft to be deftroysd by Hail, Drought, Locufts, and 
other Infcds, the Tenants never fail to infift on an 
Abatement in ihefc Cafes. When the Deftrudion is 
very great, the Husbandmen take the withered Bran- 
ches of Trees, and the damaged Ears of Corn, and 
reforc to the Shah’s Officers, complaining of the Seafon, 
and their Inability to ’pay their ufual Rent, if they 
have received never fo little Hurt •, their Complaints are 
very loud, and they frequently make an Advantage of 
the Misfortune. 
Private Landlords are lefs fubjedt to be impofed upon 
in theie Cafes, having the Lands under their Infpedion, 
but then their Tenants are not fo much opprdTed, and 
fubjeft to fuch Hardfhips as the Tenants of the Crown. 
The Shah’s Officers frequently pretend they have no 
Authority to make Abatements, and thereupon whole 
Villages go up to Court, and deliver their Petitions to 
the Shah in Perfon, infomuch that there is feldom lefs 
than feven or eight thouland People attending at Ifpa:- 
han on thefe Occafions. The Court ufually fends Or- 
ders hereupon to the Provinces to make fuch Allowance 
as the Nature of the Cafe requires, or depute Commif- 
faries to enquire into the Truth of the Complaint, but 
in either Cale the Crown is ufually defrauded ; for the 
Countrymen fo well underftand the Force of Bribes, 
fent to check them. 
The Shah and private Owners have the like Profits of 
the Hufband men’s Cattle, as they have of their Corn, 
as the third Fleece, and the third Part of the Breeds and 
of Fruit, the Crown has ftill a greater Share, there be- 
ing not that Charge of manuring and cultivating Fruit- 
trees, as there is of the Grounds which produep 
Grain. 
The Governors of Provinces receiv'e the fame Pro- 
fits out of the Lands of the State, towards the Payment 
of the Officers, and 'I'roops of the Province, as the 
Shah does out of his own Lands, and every Province 
befides makes large Prefents, frora Time to Time to 
the Court, of the beft the Country affords, whether' 
Silk, Grain, Fruits, Cattle, or whatever is in Efteem 
among them ; and thefe are fent up in fuch Quantities, 
as are fufficient to fupply the Shah’s Houfhold, and 
therefore may be accounted a confiderable Part of the 
Revenue. The Shah has alfo the feventh Fleece, and 
the feventh of the Breed of the Cattle, in thofe Lands 
which are not appropriated to his Ufe, and this is a 
great Addition to his Revenue, for the Shepherds of 
PerJia^Wke the ancient Patriarchs, poftels vaft Flocks and 
Herds, on which they continually attend, living in 
d'ents, and removing from one Place to another, as 
they can meet with Pafiure for them ; for thofe Lands 
which are not the Property of particular Perfons, are at 
Liberty for all Men to graze upon, though the Shah’s^ 
and this Payment of the feventh Beaft feems to be an 
Acknowledgment of his Property in them. Thefe 
weahhy Siiepiitrds the People of the Eaft call, Saranet- 
chin., from wj-enee we have the Word, e^aracen, that is 
to fav, an Inhariitant of the Fii,;ds, for they live in 
Teiits, far from Towns, two or three hundred together, 
a> d lomeniner ye'-.i fee a .hbufand or two encamped in 
one Place ; tn.. •, p- rfefflv cover the Plains with their 
Floi ks and Herds, that fometimes you may be two or 
thrc'c Hours in jiaffing through them ; and the Shah has 
an Officer called Ichomban Ba(H, or chief of the Shep- 
herds, refiding in every Province, who takes the le- 
venth of the Cattle for the Shah’s Ufe, viz. of Sheep, 
Affes, Mules, Camels and Goats •, as to Korfes, it feems 
the Sho;h is entitled to every third Colt ; of Silk and 
Cotton alfo, it is faid the Shah has a third Part over 
the whole Kingdom. 
Minerals and precious Stones belong to the Shah only, 
and he has' Two of all Money. The Money 
that is raifed by the Waters is another confiderable Part 
of the Revenue, for every Perfon pays for their being 
let into his Fields or Gardens ; nothing v/ill grow in that 
parched Country without it. A Tribute is alfo paid 
to the Crown by all People who are not of the 
Religion of the Country, whether Natives or Foreign- 
ers, and this amounts to a Ducat a Head ; and there 
is a Tax of ten Pence on every Shop of the handy- 
craft Trades, and twenty Pence, on the reft. The Cuf- 
toms and Port Duties are another Branch of the Reve- 
nue, but thefe do not amount to much here, for they 
have no confiderable Port except Gamhron. As for the 
Merchandize carried into Perfia., or out of it, by Land, 
they only pay a fmaJl Sum for a Camel’s Load, and 
proportionably for every Mule or Ox, without exami- 
ning what the Packs contain. But that Part of the 
Revenue which is merely cafual, exceeds all the reft, 
viz. what arifes by the confifeated Eftates, and the 
Prefents which are made by the great Lords, Governors 
of Provinces', Efc. and particularly thofe which are made 
on New Year’s Day. They prefent the Shah with 
wrought Silks, Horfes, Affes, beautiful Boys and Girls, 
Gold^ Silver, precious Stones, Perfumes, and every 
thing which is rich and curious, and may ferve for 
Ufe,"^Ornament, or the Pleafures of Life ; and as there are 
feveral handicraft Trades which pay no Duties to the 
Crown, as Carpenters, Mafons, and fome others, thefe are 
oblif^ed to work for the Shah when he requires it, without 
Pay, ° whatever Buildings or Palaces the Shah erects 
or repairs, he has only the Materials to find, the War- 
den or Chief of tfie Trade is obliged to fend a certain 
- Numbsf 
