BATTLE AT SULTANBOOT. 
185 
him: for one of the first qualities which they require in a monarch, 
is resliadet, or courage, but that sort of courage which is allied with 
tyranny. 
Fear of the Russians was their strongest feeling; and the great object 
of their politics with that power was to get a restoration of Georgia. 
The war that was carrying on between them, however, consisted more 
of predatory incursions on the part of Persia, such as the Scythians are 
recorded to have made than of regular warfare. We had a specimen 
of this policy not long after our arrival at Teheran ; for one morning, in 
great agitation, the Grand Vizier’s confidential secretary, attended by 
Mirza Abul Hassan Khan, came to announce to us a great victory 
gained by the Prince Royal over the Russians. Their account of it 
was, that the Persians had killed 2000, taken 5000 prisoners, and 12 
guns, and had possessed themselves of the town of Shisheh. We soon 
after heard the real truth, which reduced their account to 300 killed, 
2 guns taken, and 500 made prisoners. Upon questioning them why 
they exaggerated so much, when they knew how soon the falsehood 
must be discovered, they very ingenuously said, “ If we did not know 
“ that your stubborn veracity would have come in our way, we should 
“ have said ten times as much. This is the first time our troops have 
made any stand at all against the Russians; and you would not 
“ surely restrict so glorious an event in our history to a few dry facts ?” 
The circumstances which led to this victory are as follow: — The 
Prince Royal had seen with sorrow an immense population of his wan¬ 
dering tribes emigrate from his provinces to those of the Russians, and 
his object was to compel them to return. He collected his army at 
the end of January, and marched towards Mogan. It consisted of 
9000 men, according to the Persians ; of 14,000 according to the Eng¬ 
lish officers who were employed in it. Part was composed of undis¬ 
ciplined Tufenkdiees, the common infantry of the country, and part of 
Serbaz, troops disciplined by European officers. There was also a body 
of undisciplined cavalry, as well as a corps of flying artillery, with 
* Herodotus, Melpom. xvi. 
B B 
