Hajji Baba commences his travels--His encounter with the Turcomans, and
his captivity.
Osman Aga, my master, was now on a journey to Meshed, the object of
which was to purchase the lamb-skins of Bokhara, which he afterwards
purposed to convey to Constantinople for sale. Imagine a short squat
man, with a large head, prominent spongy nose, and a thick, black beard,
and you will see my fellow traveller. He was a good Mussulman, very
strict in his devotions, and never failed to pull off his stockings,
even in the coldest morning, to wash his feet, in order that his
ablutions might be perfect; and, withal, he was a great hater of the
sect of Ali, a feeling he strictly kept to himself, as long as he was
in Persia. His prevailing passion was love of gain, and he never went to
sleep without having ascertained that his money was deposited in a place
of safety. He was, however, devoted to his own ease; smoked constantly,
ate much, and secretly drank wine, although he denounced eternal
perdition to those who openly indulged in it.
The caravan was appointed to collect in the spring, and we made
preparations for our departure. My master bought a strong, ambling mule
for his own riding; whilst I was provided with a horse, which, besides
myself, bore the _kaliân_[2] (for he adopted the Persian style of
smoking), the fire-pan and leather bottle, the charcoal, and also my own
wardrobe. A black slave, who cooked for us, spread the carpets, loaded
and unloaded the beasts, bestrode another mule, upon which were piled
the bedding, carpets, and kitchen utensils. A third, carrying a pair of
trunks, in which was my masters wardrobe, and every other necessary,
completed our equipment.
The day before our departure, the prudent Osman had taken precaution
to sew into the cotton wadding of his heavy turban fifty ducats, a
circumstance known only to him and me, and these were to serve in case
of accidents; for the remainder of his cash, with which he intended
to make his purchases, was sewn up in small white leather bags, and
deposited in the very centre of the trunks.
The caravan being ready to depart consisted of about five hundred
mules and horses, and two hundred camels, most of which were laden with
merchandize for the north of Persia, and escorted by about one hundred
and fifty men, composed of merchants, their servants, and the conductors
of the caravan. Besides these, a small body of pilgrims bound to the
tomb of Imâm Reza at Meshed joined the caravan, and gave a character of
sanctity to the procession of which its other members were happy to take
advantage, considering in what high estimation persons bound upon so
laudable a purpose as a pilgrimage are always supposed to be held.
Every man on these occasions is armed, and my master, who always turned
his head away whenever a gun was fired, and became pale at the sight of
a drawn sword, now appeared with a long carbine slung obliquely across
his back, and a crooked sword by his side, whilst a pair of huge pistols
projected from his girdle; the rest of his surface was almost made up of
the apparatus of cartouch-boxes, powder-flasks, ramrods, &c. I also
was armed cap-à-pie, only in addition to what my master carried, I was
honoured by wielding a huge spear. The black slave had a sword with only
half a blade, and a gun without a lock.
We started at break of day from the northern suburb of Ispahan, led by
the _chaoûshes_[3] of the pilgrimage, who announced our departure by
loud cries and the beating of their copper drums. We soon got acquainted
with our fellow travellers, who were all armed; but who, notwithstanding
their martial equipment, appeared to be very peaceably disposed persons.
I was delighted with the novelty of the scene, and could not help
galloping and curvetting my horse to the annoyance of my master, who in
a somewhat crabbed tone, bid me keep in mind that the beast would not
last the journey if I wore it out by unseasonable feats of horsemanship.
I soon became a favourite with all the company, many of whom I shaved
after the days march was over. As for my master, it is not too much to
say that I was a great source of comfort to him, for after the fatigue
of sitting his mule was at an end, I practised many of the arts which
I had acquired at the bath to do away the stiffness of his limbs, by
kneading his body all over, and rubbing him with my hands.
We proceeded without impediment to Tehran, where we sojourned ten days
to rest our mules, and to increase our numbers. The dangerous part of
the journey was to come, as a tribe of Turcomans, who were at war
with the king of Persia, were known to infest the road, and had lately
attacked and plundered a caravan, whilst at the same time they had
carried those who composed it into captivity. Such were the horrors
related of the Turcomans, that many of our party, and my master in
particular, were fearful of proceeding to Meshed; but the account he
received of the enormous price of lamb-skins at Constantinople was so
alluring, that, in spite of everything, he resolved not to be frightened
out of his prospect of gain.
A chaoûsh had long been collecting pilgrims at Tehran and its vicinity,
in the expectation of the arrival of our caravan, and as soon as we
made our appearance, he informed us, that he was ready to join us with
a numerous band, a reinforcement which he assured us we ought to
receive with gratitude, considering the dangers which we were about to
encounter. He was a character well known on the road between Tehran
and Meshed, and enjoyed a great reputation for courage, which he had
acquired for having cut off a Turcomans head whom he had once found
dead on the road. His appearance was most formidable, being in person
tall and broad-shouldered, with a swarthy sunburnt face, ornamented by
a few stiff hairs by way of beard at the end of a bony chin. Clad in
a breastplate of iron, a helmet with a chain cape flapping over his
shoulders, a curved sword by his side, pistols in his girdle, a shield
slung behind his back, and a long spear in his hand, he seemed to bid
defiance to danger. He made such boast of his prowess, and talked of the
Turcomans with such contempt, that my master determined to proceed under
his immediate escort. The caravan was ready to depart a week after
the festival of the New Years day[4], and after having performed our
devotions at the great mosque of the congregation on the Friday, we went
to the village of Shahabdul Azim, whence the whole body was to proceed
the next day on its journey.
We advanced by slow marches over a parched and dreary country, that
afforded little to relieve the eye or cheer the heart. Whenever we
approached a village, or met travellers on the road, our conductors,
made invocations of Allah and of the Prophet in loud and shrill
tones, accompanied by repeated blows with a leather thong on the drums
suspended to their saddle-bow. Our conversation chiefly turned upon the
Turcomans, and although we were all agreed that they were a desperate
enemy, yet we managed to console ourselves by the hope that nothing
could withstand our numbers and appearance, and by repeatedly
exclaiming, In the name of God, whose dogs are they, that they should
think of attacking us? Every one vaunted his own courage. My master
above the rest, with his teeth actually chattering from apprehension,
boasted of what he would do, in case we were attacked; and, to hear his
language, one would suppose that he had done nothing all his life but
fight and slaughter Turcomans. The chaoûsh, who overheard his boastings,
and who was jealous of being considered the only man of courage of the
party, said aloud, No one can speak of the Turcomans until they have
seen them--and none but an eater of lions (at the same time pulling up
his moustaches toward his ears) ever came unhurt out of their clutches.
Saadi speaks truth when he sayeth, A young man, though he hath strength
of arm, and the force of an elephant, will kick his heel ropes[5] to
pieces with fear in the day of battle.
But Osman Agas principal hope of security, and of faring better than
others in case we were attacked, was in the circumstance of his being a
follower of Omar;[6] and, by way of proclaiming it, he wound a piece
of green muslin round his cap, and gave himself out as an _emir_, or a
descendant of the Prophet, to whom, as the reader may guess, he was no
more allied than to the mule upon which he rode.
We had proceeded in this manner for several days, when the chaoûsh
informed us, in a solemn and important manner, that we were now
approaching to the places where the Turcomans generally lie in wait for
caravans, and directed that we should all march in a compact body, and
invited us to make preparations for a desperate resistance in case we
were attacked. The first impulse of my master was to tie his gun,
sword, and pistols on one of his baggage mules. He then complained of an
affection in the bowels, and so abandoning all his former intentions of
engaging in combat, wrapped himself up in the folds of his cloak, put
on a face of great misery, took to counting his beads, ever and anon
repeating the prayer of _Staferallah_, or God forgive me, and, thus
prepared, resigned himself to his destiny. His greatest dependence for
protection he seemed to have placed upon the chaoûsh, who, among
other reasons for asserting his indifference to danger, pointed to the
numerous talismans and spells that he wore bound on his arms, and which,
he boldly maintained, would avert the arrow of a Turcoman at any time.
This double-bladed sword of a man, and one or two of the boldest of the
caravan, rode ahead, at some distance, as an advanced guard, and every
now and then, by way of keeping up their courage, galloped their horses,
brandishing their lances, and thrusting them forward into the air.
At length, what we so much apprehended actually came to pass. We heard
some shots fired, and then our ears were struck by wild and barbarous
shoutings. The whole of us stopped in dismay, and men and animals, as if
by common instinct, like a flock of small birds when they see a hawk at
a distance, huddled ourselves together into one compact body. But when
we in reality perceived a body of Turcomans coming down upon us, the
scene instantly changed. Some ran away; others, and among them my
master, losing all their energies, yielded to intense fear, and began to
exclaim, Oh Allah!--Oh Imâms!--Oh Mohammed the prophet; we are gone! we
are dying! we are dead! The muleteers unloosed their loads from
their beasts, and drove them away. A shower of arrows, which the enemy
discharged as they came on, achieved their conquest, and we soon became
their prey. The chaoûsh, who had outlived many a similar fray, fled in
the very first encounter, and we neither saw nor heard any more of him.
The invaders soon fell to work upon the baggage, which was now spread
all over the plain.
[Illustration: Hajjis master and the great Turcoman. 3.jpg]
My master had rolled himself up between two bales of goods to wait the
event, but was discovered by a Turcoman of great size, and of a most
ferocious aspect, who, taking him at first for part of the baggage,
turned him over on his back, when (as we see a wood-louse do) he opened
out at full length, and expressed all his fears by the most abject
entreaties. He tried to soften the Turcoman by invoking Omar, and
cursing Ali; but nothing would do; the barbarian was inexorable: he
only left him in possession of his turban, out of consideration to its
colour, but in other respects he completely stripped him, leaving him
nothing but his drawers and shirt, and clothing himself with my masters
comfortable cloak and trousers before his face. My clothes being
scarcely worth the taking, I was permitted to enjoy them unmolested, and
I retained possession of my case of razors, to my no small satisfaction.
The Turcomans having completed their plunder, made a distribution of the
prisoners. We were blindfolded, and placed each of us behind a horseman,
and after having travelled for a whole day in this manner, we rested at
night in a lonely dell. The next day we were permitted to see, and found
ourselves on roads known only to the Turcomans.
Passing through wild and unfrequented tracts of mountainous country,
we at length discovered a large plain, which was so extensive that it
seemed the limits of the world, and was covered with the black tents and
the numerous flocks and herds of our enemies.
[Illustration: Hajji Baba bleeds the Banou. 4.jpg]