352 
Overland Journey to India. 
[Nov. 
more than | of a mile. We counted 25 bastions in the south-wall, chiefly of 
burnt brick, and some of them double, like two nuts of one shell. Being on a 
camel, we could see over the broken wall, before which was a nearly filled-up 
ditch : there were many ruined houses, and in the centre two very high minars 
and a mosque in good repair. On two sides were remains of high-arched gates, such 
as now front royal residences in Persia. In advance of the south wall was a watch 
tower, and fronting the eastern one, was a large stuccoed mosque, in excellent re- 
pair. Outside the city had evidently been mixed gardens and houses, and at some 
miles distance we passed a mosque, round which we thought we could distinguish 
where the beds and walks of a garden had been, from the rain resting in the 
former 1 a . 
We kept on towards the sea, a little to the south of west, meeting no one ; but 
during the whole of this day, we viewed marks of buildings and canauts, which 
proved that the plain had once been populously tenanted. The remains 
were evidently Persian, shewing that the latter people had yielded to the encroach- 
ment of the Turkmans, until they had been brought up by the billy country, 
which it would not suit the Tartars to occupy. An hour after sunset we halted 
at a patch of coarse grass, and our conductors busied themselves in keeping alive 
in the rain, a fire by which to cook a young deer, which they had ridden down. 
We had gradually become less cordial, and I believe kept a wary eye on each 
other, as we retained our arms, so that we were considerably alarmed when our 
servant, who alone understood Turkish, told us that the Ttirkmans intended to 
murder us, and proposed being before-hand with them when they lay down to 
sleep, seizing their horses, and riding to the coast, or to Astrabdd. We rejected 
this murderous and wild proposal, but passed a most comfortless night, exposed 
to rain, and in fear of being attacked. 
The next morning our guides thought proper to come to the point. They sail 
that I was reported to be a Russian spy in Abbas Mirza’s service, travelling with 
loads of ducats on my master’s business, and that they must examine our baggage, 
to judge how far the story was correct. They were much disappointed on the 
examination of our effects, to find pepper instead of ducats ; but begged us to produce 
our purses, and on various pretences, deprived us of half our money, and some of 
our clothes. They then said, that the danger being now past, they would escort 
us back to Khiva $ but suggested that as our money and provision had both 
decreased, we had better recruit them from Astrab&d. They volunteered to carry 
the letter to our friends, but forgot not to promise to cut our heads off if we wrote 
aught against them. They then helped to load our camels, and rode away with 
the letter, leaving us with our rascal guide Pirwali, who led us about the desart 
in all directions for two days, having for object to keep us out of sight till his 
friends returned, and flattering himself that we did not know in which direction we 
were going. On the evening of the second day, seeing some tents in the distance, 
we threatened to shoot Pirwali if lie did not go to them, and much against his will 
he reached them about 9, by moonlight. 
The encampment belonged to another tribe. Pirwali found one of his own branch 
who had married into it, and he made us guests in his tent. We were with this 
ls Of Meschid-i-Misrean we could obtain no satisfactory accounts : the Turkman* 
esteem the place holy, and carry their dead to be buried there. Those who had be*’ 
within the walls said that there were many Cufi inscriptions, and that coins impress* 
with the same character had been found there. There are several large ruined town* 
esides Meshid-i-Misrean in advance of the present Persian frontier, which, perhap* 
on y ell to ruin when the founder of the Karasmian dynasty invaded Khorassau » tl 
death of Shah Ismael Sufi. 
