-708 
PERSIA. 
livers or fprings, which is made-monthly in the following 
manner. On the canal which conduits the water into 
the field is put a circular bowl of very thin copper, with 
a fmall hole in the middle : at this hole the water (lowly 
enters. When the bowl (inks to the bottom, the mea. 
fure is complete. This operation is repeated till the ne- 
cefi'ary quantity is furnifhed. The proprietor pays in 
proportion to the number of bowls thus filled. The 
price of the water varies according to the nature and 
fitustion. River-water is dearer than fpring-water. Each 
province has its meer-aub, under whom there are nume¬ 
rous agents for conducting dreams from dillriit to didridl, 
and from field to field. His income is immenfe, for his 
extortion has no other bounds than his avarice. His fa¬ 
vour is of greater importance to the cultivator of the foil 
than that of the prime minider. His patronage is there¬ 
fore purebafed, and his probity is afiailed in a thouland 
ways by thofe who are folicitous to obtain a little more 
water than their neighbours, or to induce him to change 
the direction of a canal. Jourdain, tom. i. ch. z. and tom. 
ii>* P- 143- 
There is a great difference in point of fertility in the 
different provinces of the empire; and thofe of Media, 
Iberia, Hyrcania, and BaCtria, are now in a great mea- 
fiire what they were formerly, and furpafs moll of the 
others in their productions. All along the Perfian Gulf, 
the foil is dill more barren, cattle lets plenty, and every 
thing in a worle condition than anywhere elfe. 
Though there is fcarcely a province in Perfia which 
does not produce wine, yet the wine of fome provinces is 
much more efteemed than that of others; but Shiraz, or, 
as it is written by Mr. Francklin, Shirauz, wine is uni- 
verfally allowed to he the very heft in Perfia ; infomuch, 
that it is a common proverb there, “ That to live hap¬ 
pily one muff eat the bread of Yezd, and drink the wine 
of Shiraz.” 
The grain mod common in Perfia is wheat; which is- 
wonderfully fair and clean. As for barley, rice, and mil¬ 
let, they only make bread of them in fome places, as in 
Curdiftan, when their wheat-bread is exhaufted before 
the return of harveft. They do not cultivate either oats 
cr rye; except where the Armenians are fettled, who 
make great life of the latter in Lent. Rice is the univer- 
fal aliment of all forts of people in Perfia; for this rea- 
fon they are extremely careful in its cultivation ; for, 
after they have fown it in the fame manner as other 
grain, they in three months time tranfplant it, root by 
root, into fields which are well watered, othervvife it 
would never attain that perfeCiion in which W'e find it 
there ; fince it is fofter, fooner boiled, and more delicious, 
than the fame grain in any other part of the world. 
Perhaps its tafte is, in fome meafure, heightened by a 
praClice which they follow to give it a glofly whitenefs, 
viz, by cleanfing it, after it is beaten out of the luifks, 
with a mixture of flour and fait. Corn ripens exceed¬ 
ingly in this country ; fo that in fome parts they have a 
threefold crop in the year. The Perfian bread is generally 
very thin, white, and good; and commonly cheap enough. 
Metals of all forts have been found in Perfia. Since 
the reign of Shah Abbas the Great, iron, copper, and 
lead, have been very common ; but there are no gold or 
filver mines open at prefent; though, as Perfia is a very 
mountainous country, fuch might very probably be 
found, if pains were taken to fearcli them out. There 
are filver mines in Kerman and Mazanderan, and one not 
far from Jfpahan; but they cannot be worked for want 
of wood. Minerals are alfo found in Perfia in abundance; 
efpecially fulphur, falt-petre, fait, and alum. Nothing 
is more common in this country than to meet with plains 
fometimes ten leagues in length, covered entirely with 
fait, and others with fulphur or alum. In lome places 
fait is dug out of mines, and even ufed in building 
houTes. Marble, freellone, and (late, are found in great 
plenty about Hamadan. The marble is of four colours, 
A 
viz. white, black, red and black, and white and black^- 
Perlia yields two forts of-petroleum, or naphtha; name¬ 
ly, black and white. In the neighbourhood of Tauris 
they find azure, but it is not fo good as that brought 
from Tartary. Among the mod valuable produdlions of 
Perfia are the precious (tones called tur'quoifes , of which 
there are feveral rocks or mines. 
The horfes of Perfia are the mod beautiful of the Eaff, 
though they are not fo much edeemed as thofe of Arabia. 
They are higher than the Eaglifii faddle-horfes ; draight 
before, with a fmall head, legs wonderfully (lender, and 
finely proportioned ; they are gentle,' good travellers, 
very light and fprightly, and do goodfervice till they are 
eighteen or twenty years old. The great numbers of 
them fold into Turkey and the Indies, though none can 
be carried out of the kingdom without (pedal licenfe 
from the king, is what makes them fo dear. - Next to 
horfes we may reckon mules, which are much edeemed 
here, and very fine; and next to thefe we may judly 
place affes, of which they have in this country two forts; 
the fird bred in Periia, heavy and dolti(h, as affes in other 
countries are; the other originally of an Arabian breed, 
the mod docile and ufeful creature of its kind in the 
world. They are ufed wholly for the-faddle; being re¬ 
markable for their eafy manner of going, and are very 
fure footed, carrying their heads lofty, and moving 
gracefully. Some of them are valued at 20I. derling. 
The mules here are alfo very fine; they pace well, never 
fall, and are feldom tired. The highed price of a mule 
is about 45I. derling. Camels are alfo numerous in 
Perfia, and very ferviceable ; they call them liechty-krouch - 
konion, i. e. “ the (hips of the land;” becaufe the inland 
trade is carried on by them as the foreign is by (hips. Of 
thefe camels there are two forts, the northern and fonth- 
ern : the latter, which is much the (mailer, but ('wifeer, 
will carry a load of about 70.0 weight, and trot as fad as 
a horfe will gallop ; the other will travel with a load of 
1200 or 1300 weight; both are profitable to their maders, 
as coding little or nothing to keep. They travel without 
halter or reins ; grazing on the road from time to time, 
notwithdanding their load. They are managed entirely 
by the voice ; thofe who direct them making ufe of a kind 
of fong, and the camel moving brifker, or at its ordinary 
pace, as they keep a quicker or (lower time. The camels 
(bed their hair fo clean in the (pring, that they look like 
Raided (wine; but then they are pitched over, to keep 
the flies from dinging them. The camels hair is the mod 
profitable fleece of all the tame beads: fine duff's are 
made of it; and in Europe, hats, with a mixture cf a- 
little beaver. 
As beef is little eaten in Perfia, their oxen are generally 
employed in ploughing, and other forts of labour. Hogs 
are nowhere found in Perfia, if we except a province or 
two on the borders of the Cafpian Sea. Sheep and deer 
are very common throughout all Perfia. Of wild beads, 
the number is not great in this country, becaufe there 
are few forelts; but where there are any, as in Hyrcania, 
now called Tabridan, abundance of lions, bears, tigers, 
leopards, porcupines, wild boars, and wolves, are to be 
found. 
In Perfia may be feen all the feveral forts of fowls 
which we have in Europe, but not in fuch plenty; except¬ 
ing, however, wild and tame pigeons, of which va(t num¬ 
bers are kept all over the kingdom, chiefly on account of 
their dung, which is the bed manure for melons. It is a 
great diverfion among the lower fort of people in town 
or country to catch pigeons, though it be forbidden; for 
this purpofe they have pigeons fo taught, that, flying in 
one flock, they furround luch wild ones as they find in 
the field, and bring them back with them to their maders. 
The partridges of this country are the larged and fined in 
the world, being generally of the fize of our fowls. 
Geefe, ducks, cranes, herons, and many other forts of 
water-fowl, are common here; as are hkewife nightin¬ 
gales. 
4 
