126 
BAKHTIAREE TRIBE. 
miounidezoa in the Bakhtiaree language, and is represented as situated 
in the centre of a long narrow defile, which it commands. 
The tribe is divided into two branches, the Haft Leng and the ChaJiar 
Leng, which again are divided and subdivided into many Tirs or Shafts. 
Leng, im their dialect, means feet; and the denominations of Haft 
Leng, seven feet, and Chahar Leng, four feet, they say, originated in a 
demand made upon their tribe in ancient times, for a certain quota of 
cavalry, which was so levied that one part of the tribe was assessed 
seven feet, or one horse and three quarters, and the other part only 
four, or one horse. They have strong ties of clanship, are extremely 
attached to their Khans, and will espouse their cause whenever they are 
called upon ; but the Bakhtiaree who gave me the greatest part of 
this information, assured me, that amongst themselves, in their do¬ 
mestic circles, they constantly are at variance with each other, and that 
he himself had received 16 wounds from disputes in the Mejlis (assem¬ 
bly) with his relations. If they had opportunity and assistance, it is 
likely that they would throw off their allegiance to Persia; and the 
King is so well aware of that, that he keeps many families of them 
in separate villages about Teheran, as hostages for the good behaviour of 
the rest. As it is, part of them are already looked upon as YagJii, or in 
rebellion, and are headed by Assad Khan, one of their chiefs, who 
keeps all the country in a state of alarm, and even threatens Ispahan. 
On the 25th, before we reached our tents at Komeesha, we met our 
old friend Mirza Abul Hassan Khan, the late Persian Ambassador in 
England, who had come thus far from Ispahan to meet us. He had 
quitted us at Shiraz, having been called to Teheran by the King, who af¬ 
terwards gave him permission to pass some time with his family at Ispa¬ 
han. He seemed greatly pleased to see us again, and adopted the Persian 
mode of salutation, which consists, among intimate friends, of inclining 
the body over each other’s necks, and then touching cheek to cheek j 
which I should suppose must be the falling upon the neck and kissing,^' 
so frequently mentioned both in the Old and New Testament.* 
* Genesis xxxiii. 4. xlv. 14. St. Luke, xv. 20. 
