MOHOWEL.

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CHAPTER X.

Triumph of Travelling over Prejudice-Grotesque Dance-Fire Temple-Presentation to the Pasha of Bagdad-Feast of St. Gregory-Visit from the Officers of the Pashalick-Instance of the Pasha's despotic Power-We return the Visit of the OfficersThe Pasha's Garden-Musruf Effendy and his Screwpump-First impressions on visiting Bagdad-Description of the Streets and Bazaars-Interior of a House-Dress of the Women-Liberty enjoyed by Turkish Females.

HAVING Concluded our examinations of the ruins, we retraced our steps towards Bagdad, and reached Mohowel, the nearest caravanserai to Babylon, in the evening. After we had dined, our servants and the chief muleteer sat down together, and made a meal on the provisions that were left, an incident showing how

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PREJUDICE OVERCOME.

far travelling had been able to overcome national and religious prejudices. The persons composing the party were, two Sunnis and four Shiahs, betwixt which sects there exists the most violent hatred; and, to complete the party, two Christian "Infidels" were on the present occasion welcome partakers of the same meal with the "True Believers:" of all the party, the Indian Syyud was perhaps the person who had made the greatest sacrifice of his religious scruples; for the Indian Mahometans, following the prejudices of the Gentoos, deem it a profanation to eat with others not professing exactly the same tenets as themselves, and to eat "the leavings" of another has become in India a proverbial expression of abuse. What then must have been the situation of this descendant of the Prophet, who scrupled not to eat the leavings of those who deny the Divine mission of his great ancestor, in company with two individuals of that hated race?

March 29.-We resumed our march this

morning, and passed as many pilgrims as before. We arrived at Khana Zund in the evening, where we halted for the night. A few miles from the caravanserai we observed mound, which we thought might be the Fire Temple described by Aboo Nasir, where he told us the devils were in the habit of dancing amidst flames. Notwithstanding his denial of it now, we were convinced it was the same place; because it corresponded with the bearings we had taken on board our boat, and more particularly because he showed so fixed a determination not to go with us to the spot, begging to be excused on account of sickness,— a plea which but ill accorded with his ruddy features. Aware of his superstitious fears, we amused ourselves by pressing him to accompany us after dark; but he was obstinate, and we were ultimately obliged to give up the point.

fire

As the night came on, we went out frequently to try if we could not observe any produced by naphtha, for which Babylonia was

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GROTESQUE DANCE.

so famous, thinking it possible that some such production might have given rise to the tradition; but we could see nothing to justify this conjecture.

Before we went to sleep, two of our Arab guards entertained us with a dance of the most grotesque description; one, who represented lover, evinced his attachment by hallooing with all his might and jumping round the other, who personated a female, and continued dancing within the circle, preserving as much diffidence of demeanour as might have been expected from a fair Arab of the Desert. If strength of lungs and activity of limbs would have been claims to the hand of a fair lady, this athletic Stentor would have proved a formidable rival.

Besides our own attendants, all the chance inmates of the caravanserai assembled to witness this dance, and, with loud expressions of applause, animated the performers to continue their exertions. The whole, indeed, formed a very interesting group; for the unsteady glare

TEMPLE OF THE GUEBRES.

221

of a dying fire reflecting on the swarthy countenance of the dancers, was no bad illustration of Aboo Nasir's account of the devil's dance.

March 30.-We visited the Guebri Bena (the Temple of the Guebres) at daylight, but could not persuade Aboo Nasir to make one of the party. It is constructed of mud cemented with rushes, like the Mujellebè at Babylon. Each side faces a cardinal point; that towards the west gradually inclines to the plain. It measures thirty feet from the summit to the visible base, and is two hundred and thirtythree feet in circumference. We saw the usual fragments in the neighbourhood. The whole ruin exhibits considerable marks of the ravages of time. It bears W. of Ctesiphon, and N. by W. of Khana Zund caravanserai. Notwithstanding the dilapidated state of this mound, I feel no difficulty in conjecturing the form of the original structure.

I suppose that, like the Babylonian ruins, it was a quadrangular building; the interior of