OF BOSTON,
(Class of 1815.)

















NOTES FROM NINEW EH.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH,
AND TRAVELS IN
MESOPOTAMIA, ASSYRIA, AND SYRIA;
BY
THE REV. J. P. FLETCHER.
“Thy shepherds slumber, O King of Assyria: thy nobles shall dwell in the dust; thy
people is scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth them.”
NAHUM iii. 1S.
PHILADELPHIA :
L E A A N D B L A N C H A R D.
1850.


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P. R. E. F. A. C. E.
FROM the great interest excited respecting Nineveh, I have
been induced to collect, and throw into a narrative, the notes
of two years’ residence on its mighty plains, with accounts
of excursions into the remotest parts of Assyria. In order to
complete the record of my travels, I have added some chap-
ters descriptive of the countries on the route.
The hypothesis respecting the difference between the Babel
mentioned in Genesis and that alluded to in the later inspired
writers is, I believe, entirely new; as are, also, most of the
remarks on Assyrian history. Those which relate to the true
position of the Ararat of Scripture, I found, after my return,
had suggested themselves to Bochart. and, others; but I am
not aware that they have appeared before in an English
dress. -
The history of the Nestorians and Jacobites, as well as the
account of the massacre of the former by the ferocious and
savage Kurds, proceeds from my desire to excite, on behalf of
the Christians of the East, a spirit of kindly sympathy among
their brethren in England.
The remarks on antiquities have been somewhat abridged,
in consequence of the ground being in great measure pre-
occupied by Mr. Layard.
Before I conclude, I must acknowledge my grateful ob-
ligations to the living and the dead. Among the latter, I
would particularize especially Herodotus and Joseph Simon
Assemani. The former I have always found the most vera-
1+


vi PREFACE.
cious, as well as the most simple and unaffected of writers;
while the pages of the last-named contain an almost inex-
haustible fund of information respecting the churches of the
East, and other matters connected with Oriental history.
Gibbon, who terms him “the learned and modest slave,”
might have added with truth the title of impartial to his other
epithets.
Among the living, I must number Samuel Birch, Esq.,
from whose valuable observations on the Karnak Tablet I
have derived much useful information. I am also indebted
to Mr. James Darling, of the Clerical Library, Lincoln’s Inn
Fields, for a copious supply of many rare and high-priced
works of reference.


C O N T E N T S.
CHAPTER I.
Departure. Paris. French Oriental works. Mediterranean monks and Metho-
dists. A nondescript. Sicily. A Maltese ecclesiastic. Malta. Nix man-
giare stairs - - - - - - - 13
CHAPTER II.
Malta and the Maltese. Waletta. St. John's houses. Auberges. Capucin
convent. Carneria. Fatal accident. Fortifications. Calash. Casal Mosta.
Cività Vecchia. St. Paul's Bay. Casal Crendi. Macluba. Fungus rock
19
CHAPTER III.
English and foreigners. Dissensions at Malta. The Bishop of Gibraltar.
Character of the Maltese. Language. University. The press of Valetta.
Religion. Anecdote of a preacher. The priesthood. The canon and the
beggar. The knights. Singular species of duel. The hospital. The
taking of St. Elmo . - - - - - - 26
CHAPTER IV.
The East. Fellow-passengers. Cape Matapan. Syra. Greek church. Priest-
hood. Smyrna. The streets. Bazaars. Mosque. Holy shoes. Misad-
venture. Departure from Smyrna. Constantinople - - 35


CONTENTS. IX
CHAPTER X.
Monastery of St. Matthew. Mohammedan veneration for Christian tombs.
Toma's story. An alarm. The gazelle. A night view of the plain of
Nineveh. Shereef Bey. Khoorsabad. A discovery - - 107
CHAPTER XI.
The plain. Sheikh Adi. The Yezidees . - - e 121
CHAPTER XII.
Early spread of Christianity in Assyria and Persia. The Magians. Manes
and his institutions. Manicheeism of the Yezidees. Rabban Hormuzd
125
CHAPTER XIII.
Rabban Hormuzd. Ecclesiastical customs of the Chaldeans. Language.
Extracts from the Liturgy of the Nestorians. Images. Excommunication
135
CHAPTER XIV.
Elkosh. Tomb of Nahum. A Chaldean's account of the Reformation.
American traveler. Monastery of St. George. The locusts. An Oriental
view of antiquities - - - - - - 150
CHAPTER XV.
Easter. A death and funeral. Kas Botros and Kas Michael. The Christian
fugitive. The merchant of Baghdad. Religious parties of Mosul. A
reformer. A baptized Mohammedan - - - - 161


X contRNTs.
CHAPTER XVI.
Nestorian troubles and massacre. Flight of the patriarch. The Italian
juggler. Death of Mohammed Pasha. The impostor. Nebbi Sheeth 174
CHAPTER XVII.
The Eastern Christians. Their opinions. Clergy. General character 187
CHAPTER XVIII. *
The Osmanli. Influence of Mohammedanism. Turkish civilization. State
of the law. Difference of the races inhabiting Turkey. General remarks
198
CHAPTER XIX.
A Syrian Catholic Church. Journey to Arbela. Alexander and Darius. Arbela.
The Jew. The Christians of Shucklawa. Return to Mosul - 212
CHAPTER XX.
Journey to Nimroud. The sabre. The priest's tale - - 226
CHAPTER XXI.
Tell-Nimroud. Monastery of Mar Behnam. Khoorsabad . - 236
CHAPTER XXII.
Remarks on Assyrian history - - - - • 244
CHAPTER XXIII.
Remarks on the ecclesiastical history of the Chaldeans - - 259


CONTENTS. xi
CHAPTER XXIV.
Remarks on the ecclesiastical history of the Chaldeans - - 271
CHAPTER XXV.
Remarks on the ecclesiastical history of the Chaldeans - - 280
CHAPTER XXVI.
The magician. The mollah. Kas Botros' tale. Bishop Matti. General ob-
servations . - - - - - - - 293
CHAPTER XXVII.
Remarks on the Syrian Jacobites . - • - - 304
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Departure from Mosul. Halt of a caravan. Giorgio. Sinjar, and its ancient
associations. Ruins of Dara. The Delli Ali. False alarm. Mode of
escaping from Arabs - - - - - - 315
CHAPTER XXIX.
Diarbekir. Chaldean ladies. Mar Athanasius. Italian doctor. Remains.
Inscriptions. Holy fish . - - - - - 331
* . CHAPTER XXX.
Urfah. Mochdesseh Yeshua. A Bedouin. Syrian observances. Church of
St. Thaddeus. Bir. Passage of the Euphrates. Aleppo. English mer-
chants. An Austrian consul - - - - - 345
CHAPTER XXXI.
Journey from Aleppo. Antioch. Latakia. Conclusion . - 360


-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH,
&c. &c.
CHAPTER I.
Departure. Paris. French Oriental works. Mediterranean monks and Metho-
dists. A nondescript. Sicily. A Maltese ecclesiastic. Malta. Nix man-
giare stairs.
It was about the middle of February, 1842, when I first
received the intimation that I had been appointed the lay
associate of a clergyman, who was about to proceed on a
mission of inquiry into the present state of religion and litera-
ture among the ancient Christian churches of the East. Soon
after, my colleague proceeded to Malta, where he had spent
the greater part of his early life, leaving me to follow him in
the month of May. At that time I left London, and proceeded
in the first place to Paris, where I hoped to have the oppor-
tunity of consulting two or three works on Oriental matters,
which could not so readily be procured in London.
For some time, France has taken a lively interest in the
affairs of Turkey and of the East generally. Most of the
Arabic and Turkish grammars and dictionaries are written
in French, and we have in English scarcely any elementary
work relating to either of those languages. It is true that
we possess grammars of the written or classical Arabic, but
they are of little use to one who wishes merely to acquire the
vulgar dialects used in common conversation. Until very
lately, too, no English steamer was to be found in the Medi-
terranean, while the innumerable French packets, going hither
and thither, seemed to assert the exclusive right of our Gallic
2


NOTES FROM NINEVEII. 15
around ; but the dark blue sea has met with neither alteration
nor change, and the bright sky of the south still retains its
sunny smile.
And now from the deck of a French steamer I take my
last adieu of Europe, and then turn to contemplate my fel-
low-passengers. They are a motley group. Long-bearded
Frenchmen and Italians contrast strangely with the smooth-
faced, close-shaven Englishman, while here and there a red
cap and blue tassel proclaim its wearer a son of the East.
Figures, strange and novel to the eye of an untraveled Briton,
present themselves, enveloped in long brown frocks, girt about
the waist with the friar's cord. They seem beings of another
age, relics of a system known only to us by the pages of
history, and the lifelike pictures of the Middle Ages, traced
by the pencil of the great Enchanter of the North. Yet what-
ever he might have been in times past, the monk of the nine-
teenth century has little of the poetic about him. Take the
first Methodist preacher you meet, invest him with a long
brown vest and a pair of sandals, and you have the fac-simile
of a modern monk. And, perhaps, the comparison may go
deeper yet. The same religious enthusiasm, that enthusiasm
which feels deeper longings and more intense disgust for the
world than animates the ordinary class of religionists, has
made alike the monk and the Methodist. But the Church of
Rome has cherished and recognized the wild thoughts and
irregular acts of enthusiasm, while the Church of England has
repelled them from her with cold disdain; and the result has
been, that the one possesses a well-organized body of sup-
porters, who have, in return for the protection which they
have received, consented to barter some of the independence
of enthusiasm for the almost military regularity and obedience
of a monastic rule, while the other has raised up enemies on
every side of her, who conspire her destruction, and menace
her stability continually. Whether the feeling that drove
Wesley and Whitfield from the service of the church into
the ranks of dissent, was a healthy and a proper one, I do
not pause to inquire. The repentance of the present genera-
tion for the mistakes of the past may be genuine and satis-
factory, but it can scarcely retrieve the mischief. If it could,
the numerous and zealous body of which Wesley was the
founder might yet become the bulwark of the Church of
England.


16 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
We had on board an individual who excited much curiosity,
and greater disgust. He was a short, olive-complexioned
personage, with a pair of cunning and malicious eyes twin-
kling intensely with the love of mischief. No one could dis-
cover what part of the earth had the honor of giving him
birth. The most searching inquiries failed of obtaining
satisfaction, and even the curiosity of a guessing American,
who set to the task with all the patient pertinacity of his
countrymen, was doomed to desist unsatisfied. This myste-
rious individual had been, according to his own account, in
every region of the habitable world. He spoke with equal
volubility of the cities of Europe, and the wilds of Africa.
He had been in London and at Pekin. He descanted on
the mode of traveling in Turkey, and preferred it to the rail-
roads of America. Tripoli and Timbuctoo seemed familiar
words. Some doubts existed as to his religion. One or two
judged him to be a Mohammedan; others said he was a
Greek, an Armenian, or a Jew; while a few who had been
occasionally wearied by his questions, or teased by his sar-
casms, affirmed that such conduct could proceed from no one
but a downright pagan. However, the object of our inqui-
ries deigned, in this latter particular, to satisfy in some
measure our curiosity. He had annoyed a worthy priest
very much, one day, at the dinner table, by some imperti-
nence, and attempted to appease the padre's displeasure by
professing his respect for the sacerdotal order, adding, “for
you must know, my father, that I am a good Catholic.” The
padre looked dubious, but said nothing, though I have no
doubt that he thought such an unruly member better out of
the church than in it.
But we are passing along the Calabrian coast, having ob-
tained a good external view of Naples and its celebrated
volcano, while lying at anchor for a few hours in the bay.
We sail by the Lipari, which resemble, somewhat, the tall
chimneys of a manufacturing town, and, like them, smoke
continually. Messina and Rhegium come on each side of
us, and we move peacefully by the once terrible localities of
Scylla and Charybdis. We did not fall upon or into either,
notwithstanding the well-known line; and, indeed, the rock
and the whirlpool, so dreaded of yore, seem to excite little
terror in the breasts of modern sailors. Hardly, however,
had we passed through the straits of Messina, when we were


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 17
visited by a strong breeze, which set all around us in com-
motion. A veil of mist hid Sicily from our eyes, and the
vessel began pitching and rolling to an extent which obliged
nearly all the passengers to retire below. An unfortunate
wight, who had succeeded with great difficulty in lighting
his pipe, by the aid of a short rope, which was suspended
from one of the masts, was seen staggering from one side to
the other, the sparks flying about in all directions, much to
the indignation of an Italian sailor, who imprecated on his
unlucky head all the bad wishes with which the Ausonian
vocabulary is so replete. I essayed to descend to the cabin,
but the moans, and the odor which arose from thence, were
too strong for my sympathies, and olfactory nerves; so, wrap-
ping my cloak around me, I passed the night on deck, and
awoke the next morning from uneasy slumbers, just in time
to see the first dim outline of Malta emerging from the hori-
zon. Matters being upon the whole in a more placid state
than on the preceding day, some of the sea-sick crept up the
stairs, and were much comforted by the news that we were
approaching land.
A Maltese ecclesiastic, who had accompanied us from
Naples, saluted me in Italian; but, being ignorant of that
language, I endeavored to call up my school recollections
of Cicero and Virgil, and addressed him in Latin. He an-
swered me with great volubility, having been accustomed to
speak it in the college at Rome where he was educated. I
felt disposed to envy his fluency, as I perceived myself
getting confused with concords and cases, and had besides
an awkward consciousness that my sentences were not very
Ciceronian. My friend was completely Laudator temporis
acti, and did not seem to relish the rule of England. He
dwelt complacently on the virtues of the Order of St. John,
and hinted a wish to see their dynasty restored. He com-
plained that the English had no religion, and, in the same
breath, lamented their proselyting propensities. I pointed
out to the worthy padre the slight inconsistency of these two
statements; but he maintained his ground in more voluble
Latin than I could command, and certainly he managed to
have the last word. Like many of his countrymen, he could
not admit that any one rejecting the authority of the Pope
was a Christian ; and he asked me triumphantly, whether a
nation could have much sense of piety, that, with such
-


18 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
wealth and influence at its command, was content to provide
only a miserable room, that had formerly been the kitchen or
wine cellar of the Grand Master, for the service of the
English Church." Our discourse was drawn to a close by
the entry of our vessel into the bay, and as all were eager to
descend into the boats, it was impossible to debate the ques-
tion any farther. -
Landing on the quay, we found ourselves surrounded by
a mob of dark-featured islanders, clamoring and shouting,
and proclaiming each his own particular virtues in bad
Italian, and worse English. After having been tossed and
pulled for some moments hither and thither, I succeeded in
securing the aid of a guide, with whom I prepared to ascend
the celebrated stairs known by the euphonious title of nic
mangiare. Valetta is built on the top of a rocky promontory
or headland, which, jutting out into the sea, divides the two
principal harbors from each other. The ingenuity of some
knightly engineer contrived to form on each side of this
promontory ascents of steps, so that all the lanes leading to
the principal thoroughfare are literally streets of stairs. On
those which I was ascending, a troop of ragged urchins had
taken up their post, and began to solicit my charity, with
loud cries of nic mangiare, nic mangiare, which they pre-
sently translated for my benefit into “not got nothing to eat,
not got nothing to eat.” A small donation satisfied, or at
least quieted, my youthful escort, and a few minutes after-
wards, I found myself safely lodged in the temporary
dwelling-place of my friend, who welcomed me to Malta
with his usual kindness and hospitality.
* That reproach, I am happy to say, has since been rolled away from the
English name by the munificence of the late lamented Dowager Queen Ade-
laide, who erected, at her own cost, a spacious and magnificent church for
the use of the English residents at Valetta. Yet about forty years had
elapsed, since the period of the occupation of the island by the English,
before this act of royal piety put to shame the tardiness and want of public
spirit of the English residents at Waletta,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 19
CHAPTER II.
Malta and the Maltese. Waletta. St. John's houses. Auberges. Capucin
convent. Carneria. Fatal accident. Fortifications. Calash. Casal Mosta.
Cività Vecchia. St. Paul's Bay. Casal Crendi. Macluba. Fungus rock.
ExPERIENCE confirms me more and more in the opinion
that the English public commonly know far less of their
colonies than they do of other countries. China is distant
enough, and yet we have had more written on the manners
and customs of the people of Canton or Pekin, than we have
on the character, language, and antiquities of the most
interesting of our Mediterranean colonies.
Since the overland route to India has been established,
numbers of travelers visit Malta every month, and the salu-
brity of its climate has led many medical men to recommend
it as a sanatorium for a certain species of complaints. Yet,
comparatively few that visit the island feel sufficient interest
in its people or its antiquities to deem either worthy of much
attention.
The diary of the traveler generally presents a very im-
perfect view of the interiors of one or two churches; informs
us that the Maltese are very brown, barbarous, and supersti-
tious; and then proceeds to describe the festivities of some
mess-table, or exclusive English soirée. -
A young Anglo-Maltese was astonished, during a short
visit which he paid to England, to find his friends and rela-
tives perfectly incredulous when he informed them that there
were shops in Valetta, and that his coat and pantaloons were
actually manufactured by a Maltese tailor. And yet Malta
presents no inconsiderable claims to the notice of the studious
traveler. It was for some time the residence of St. Paul, it
received the last remnant of Christian chivalry, when, driven
from Rhodes, they made this rocky isle “Europe's best bul-
wark gainst the Ottomite.” It abounds with associations of
a poetical and romantic nature. One at least of the islands,


20 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Gozo, is said to have been the enchanted home of Calypso;
and Malta itself was colonized, and inhabited by the Phoe-
'nicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, and Saracens, pre-
vious to its occupation by the Knights of St. John. Its lan-
guage excited the interest, and occupied the attention of one
of the first linguists in Europe, the late Cardinal Mezzofanti.
Its antiquities, though not numerous, are by no means to be
despised, and the habits, manners, and even superstitions of
its semi-oriental population merit some attention, and more
inquiry than the generality of travelers care to bestow. The
absurd and silly prejudices of a few English merchants and
some self-satisfied military residents have indeed created a
gulf between the two races, who, separated by mutual antipa-
thies, care not to mix together in society, and perhaps the
chilling repulsiveness of our northern manners accords ill
with the warm and excitable temperament of the south; yet,
if the traveler can get beyond the exclusive circle which his
English friends will fain draw around him, he will see and
hear much to stir up his curiosity, and to repay with interest
his inquiries. The Maltese are a lively, intelligent, quick-
witted, and ingenious race, though, like their Italian neigh-
bors, they are somewhat too fond of dolce far niente, and like
all southerns prone to push religion to the extreme of supersti-
tion. Their ballads betray much genuine feeling, and abound
in allusions which show clearly their Eastern origin; while
the magnificent churches to be found even in the poorest
villages reflect credit on their taste and religious principle.
After their knightly masters had deserted their post, the Mal-
tese bravely defended their rights and liberties against the
French invaders, and had nearly forced the garrison in Va-
letta to capitulate, when the English came to their assistance.
Yet the Maltese have been reproached with moral degrada-
tion and cowardice by men who never knew or cared to
know a single native of the island.
The Strada Reale is the grand thoroughfare of Valetta, and
towards it we direct our steps. Ascending a lane of stairs,
we come to a more natural ascent leading into the square
which fronts the old palace of the Grand Master, now occu-
pied by the English governor. This edifice is built in the
Italian style, and contains the armory of the knights. You
enter the armory, and behold two lines of figures in armor,
bearing the red-cross of Malta on their shields. Devices


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 21
composed of warlike implements decorate the walls. Here
is the suit of De Wignacourt, inlaid with gold; the sword of
the famous corsair, Dragut; and a curious cannon, com-
posed of a thin tube of iron, bound round with ropes, and
covered with a coat of plaster painted black. Everything
looks warlike and ferocious, and you may almost fancy your-
self transported to the age of the Crusades. Descending
from the armory, we pursue our way to the Collegiate Church
of St. John, where the knights were wont to assemble on
Sundays, and high festivals. It contains the chapels of the
different nations, or languages as they were called, and the
tombs of several of the grand masters. The rich variegated
pavement of Mosaic marble is formed of tombstones, on each of
which the armorial bearings of the deceased are emblazoned.
The painted roof is divided into compartments, in which are
represented scenes from the history of the order. Behind
the high altar is a well-executed group in white marble,
representing the baptism of our Saviour. To the right is the
chapel of the Holy Sacrament, at the entrance of which are
suspended the keys of Acre, Jerusalem, and Rhodes. A
superb railing of silver excites your attention, and you are
told how it was saved from French rapacity by the ready
wit of one of the canons, who covered the precious metal
with a thick coat of green paint. You descend to the crypt,
and muse over the monuments of departed chivalry, and
perhaps wax indignant against the plain, matter-of-fact spirit
of the nineteenth century. Yet the men over whose remains
you grow sentimental numbered among them the selfish
and intriguing, the gross and earthly-minded. Times are
changed, but our race changes not, notwithstanding the old
assertion—
“Tempora mutantur et nos mutamur in illis.”
What man is in the nineteenth century he was in the
fifteenth.
The houses of Waletta are built in the Italian style, and
have mostly a balcony attached to the first story. In the
evening, the people generally ascend to the flat terraced
roofs, to enjoy the sea breeze, which meets with double
welcome after the sultry and oppressive heats of the days.
Malta is frequently visited by the sirocco, a hot burning
wind, which completely enervates for the time the whole


22 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
frame, and renders it incapable of exertion. From mid-day
till three in the afternoon the Maltese close their shops, and
enjoy the Italian luxury of a siesta.
The Auberges, formerly the residences of the knights, are
still known by the names of the different nations which com-
posed the order. They are buildings of some elegance, but
not deserving of any especial notice. Valetta contains many
monasteries and nunneries, and the inmates of the former, in
their sombre dresses and cowls, may be often met in the
streets and in the Botanic Garden, situated without the gates,
in the suburb called Floriana.
A small distance from the Botanic Garden is a monastery
of Capucins, famous for its Carneria or subterranean chapel,
the ornaments of which are composed of the relics of mor-
tality, bones and skulls. When a monk dies, his body is
eviscerated, dried on the terraced roof, and then, clothed in
the monastic habit, it is placed in a niche in the Carneria.
Several of these spectre-like corpses are to be seen, slowly
mouldering away before the eyes of the beholder. One of
them holds a scroll containing a mournful, but neglected
truth, “What thou art, I was ; what I am, thou shalt be.”
It has a strange and mournful interest, that old monastery with
its long passages and narrow cells. A ghost-like air per-
vades the corridors, and makes you feel as though a spectre
were airing himself behind you. I am not very nervous, but
I detected in my mind a lurking desire to look over my
shoulder as the monk who accompanied me related the fol-
lowing tale: One evening, he and several of the inmates
had been conversing about the Carneria and its cold and
silent dwellers. One after another had told of fearful ap-
pearances and strange sounds, disturbing at midnight the
quiet of the monastery. In the midst of these legends, a
strange desire seized one of the party. He expressed a wish
to descend alone with a light into the abode of the dead.
The others attempted to dissuade him, but in vain. With
an air of bravado, and a smile of contempt for what he termed
the superstition of his companions, he burst from them, and
they continued, in awe and silence, listening to his retreating
footsteps. The door of the Carneria was heard to open, and,
for a few moments, no sound was heard as the listeners
gazed fearfully at each other. Suddenly, a piercing shriek
rang through the passages of the monastery, and hardly had


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 23
the echoes ceased, when it was followed by a succession of
cries for help. Lights were procured, and the whole con-
vent, with the superior at the head, rushed down to the sub-
terranean chapel. On the steps lay the unfortunate victim
of his own temerity, gasping in the agonies of death. A nail
in the stairs had caught the hem of his long robe, while
ascending to rejoin his companions; and his excited and
superstitious fancy had led him to imagine himself in the
grasp of the dead. He was carried to his cell, and died the
next day. His withered form, clad in monkish attire, now
fills one of the niches of the Carneria.
One striking feature about Valetta is the abundance, I may
almost say the exuberance, of its fortifications. As you pass .
out of the gates, you find yourself encompassed by draw-
bridges, moats, and other strange-sounding contrivances of
defence. The later grand-masters seem to have contended
with each other who could build the most, and when all this
fortifying had reached the acme of perfection, the town was
quietly taken without a blow having been struck in its de-
fence. No shame, however, to the engineers, for Bonaparte
candidly acknowledged, after he had gained admission into
Valetta, “that it was well for him some one from within
had opened the door.” How intensely he must have de-
spised the degenerate descendants of the men who fought so
bravely at Acre and Rhodes, when he beheld them submit-
ting, one by one, to the degradation of tearing the cross
from their breasts, as they passed through the gates which a
handful of men might have defended against a host. And
now I must ask the reader to mount a calesh and take a
drive with me into the country. A calesh is a most original
vehicle of its kind; it has two shafts of a singular and primi-
tive construction, protruding from beneath a body resembling
somewhat in shape that of a post chaise. As it jolts along
the stony roads of the country, you wish in vain that you
had trusted to the sagacity of a hired saddle-horse, to find
his way over the island, and not have shut yourself up in a
box on wheels. The driver runs by the side of the horse, and
when weary seats himself on the shafts.
We come now to Casal Mosta, a miserable collection of
small houses built in the Oriental style, and displaying, in
their plain, unornamented exteriors and latticed windows, a
striking contrast to the gay colors and Italian arrangements


24 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
of the town habitations. You hear no more the soft, liquid
sounds of the sweetest of languages, but in its stead the
rough, guttural Maltese, which resembles greatly the Arabic,
and is to be considered, if Maltese philologists speak the
truth, as the modern form of the ancient Punic or Phoenician.
In some parts of the neighboring island of Gozo, the coun-
try people speak a dialect termed “Braik,” which is said
to be a distinct language from the ordinary Maltese.
The Church of Casal Mosta will, when completed, be one
of the finest in Europe. The story of its erection is some-
what singular. A young priest, a native of the village of
Mosta, happened to say his first mass in the Pantheon at
Rome. Struck with its peculiar beauty, he made a vow that
he would erect a similar structure in his native village.
Years rolled on, and the priest became a comparatively
wealthy and prosperous man. He practiced the most rigid
economy, and, before he died, succeeded in collecting a large
sum, which he bequeathed to trustees for the purpose of
erecting the church. Various additions were made to the
original fund, and at last, after many delays, the execution
of the plan was confided to Mr. Grognet, a Maltese archi-
tect of great skill. Mr. Grognet has nearly finished the
church, although the work has been much delayed for want
of funds; when finished, it will be one of the most beautiful
temples in the world.
Cività Vecchia, or the old city, formerly the capital of
the island, possesses a splendid cathedral, from the roof of
which a most extensive view may be obtained. The cata-
combs are inferior in size and interest to those of Rome, but
their extent is very great; our guides told us that many per-
sons had been lost in endeavoring to explore some of the
more intricate passages. On many of the tombs a cross is
sculptured, which seems to indicate the resting-place of a
Christian. Perhaps the early professors of our faith held
their meetings here during seasons of persecution.
A cave containing the statue of St. Paul is pointed out as
the abode of the apostle during his residence at Malta.
Publius, who is mentioned in the Acts as the chief man of
the island, is said to have been the first bishop. Many of
the Maltese peasantry can repeat the names of the various
chief pastors of the island, from Publius to the present
archbishop.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 25
I visited St. Paul’s Bay, and was much struck with the
strong resemblance which it bears to the place described as
the scene of his shipwreck in the Acts. Nothing, in fact,
can be plainer than that Malta was the Melita of the sacred
historian, and yet men have questioned even this. Our age
seems to find great satisfaction in doubting. Perhaps it
would be happier if it could believe a little more.
The remains of Casal Crendi did not much interest me.
They consist of the outline of a Phoenician or a Carthaginian
temple, with several chambers attached. The Punic race
has done little for mankind. A nation of traders, they seem
to have selfishly confined themselves to their own peculiar
objects of traffic and gain. They have had their reward in
great national prosperity as long as they continued a nation,
and in oblivion ever since. They did not choose to remem-
ber the claims of posterity, and posterity has revenged itself
by forgetting them.
Not far from Crendi there is a kind of chasm, said to have
been formed by the giving way of the roof of a large cavern
beneath the surface. It is called Macluba, a word signifying
anything inverted, or, to use a common phrase, turned in-
side out.
On the southern coast of Gozo is a rock which derives its
name from the fungus that is found in great abundance on
its summit. This rock is almost perpendicular, and is sepa-
rated from the mainland by a narrow channel of about fifty
feet in breadth. The mode of transit adopted is curious, and
seems rather precarious. Two stout ropes are extended
across the channel in parallel lines, thus connecting the rock
to the land. From these slackened ropes, a box of oblong
form is suspended by rings, and furnished with a rope at-
tached to the outer end, by which it may be drawn across.
A Maltese then gets inside the box, and conveys himself to
the rock, where he fastens the end of what I may call the
tow line. The box is then sent back to receive the enter-
prising traveler, who, after submitting meekly to be packed
up and disposed of within the smallest possible compass,
finds himself gliding swiftly down the slackened ropes till
he arrives midway. The man on the rock then pulls him
up the ascending ropes and assists him out of his box, which
is somewhat needful after the cramping process before alluded
to. The traveler then receives a fungus or two as trophies
3


26 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
of his valorous achievement, and not unfrequently finds him-
self mulcted of a sixpence or more before his guides will
allow him to re-enter his box. He then returns to the main-
land the same way in which he came, and doubtless con-
gratulates himself that he has escaped with an unbroken
neck, though the danger is more in appearance than other-
Wise.
There are many other of the curiosities of Malta which
might, perhaps, deservedly require some notice at my hands.
But I feel that the indulgence of my natural inclination to
linger a little longer amid scenes where I passed the brightest
and happiest hours of my life would lay me open to the just
complaint that I was keeping back the reader from more
important and interesting matter.
CHAPTER III.
English and foreigners. Dissensions at Malta. The Bishop of Gibraltar.
Character of the Maltese. Language. University. The press of Waletta.
Religion. Anecdote of a preacher. The priesthood. The canon and the
beggar. The knights. Singular species of duel. The hospital. The
taking of St. Elmo.
IT is a general complaint among traveling Englishmen
that our nation is not properly estimated by foreigners.
Those, too, for whom we have expended both treasure and
blood often seem the least disposed to acknowledge the
debt, or to manifest any grateful recollection of it. Yet, to
assume ourselves the innocent and blameless victims of un-
merited dislike, however consoling it may be to the national
vanity of the mass, would hardly satisfy the inquiries of a
candid and philosophic mind into the cause of an alienation
so generally admitted. The man who is not utterly blinded
by national bigotry can hardly read on the walls of the Vati-
can, and even in St. Peter's itself, reflections in English of
the most gross and insulting kind on the Papal government
without feeling that some members, at least, of our country
and creed have laid themselves and their nation open to sus-
picion and dislike. The devout Romanist who repairs with


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 27
pious veneration to the most sacred of the mysteries of his
religion is both scandalized and shocked to behold St.
Peter's converted into an opera-house, and some of the most
respectable of our countrymen and countrywomen using
their lorg.nettes, talking and laughing, with as much care-
lessness and indifference as they would display at an opera
or a ball. Nor is his respect or love for England and the
English much improved when he hears what was actually
the case a few years ago, that an English lady has placed
her lap-dog on one of those consecrated altars where he be-
lieves the presence of God incarnate daily manifests itself.
To say that we discredit the doctrine of transubstantiation
is but a poor apology for shocking the feelings of those who
admit it.
It must be acknowledged, therefore, that improprieties of
this kind must have a tendency to create an unfavorable
impression concerning us; yet this, I believe, is not the sole
cause why we accord so little with our continental neighbors.
We differ toto cablo from every other nation on the face of
the earth. No one understands our institutions. They are
as unintelligible to the mass of continentals as Shakspeare
is. Try, for instance, to make a Frenchman understand the
precise character of the Church of England, or of the English
constitution. He would hardly be able to reconcile the pre-
tensions to Protestantism of the former with her authoritative
and dogmatic teaching: he would regard the latter as the
uninitiated do a piece of complex and intricate machinery.
Our social notions, too, are so peculiar. We can do nothing
without asking a man to dinner, and our friendship is con-
summated, like the covenants of old, by eating. The fo-
reigner will only give you eau sucrée and a cigar, and he
looks upon invitations to dinner as monstra horrenda—as a
polite way of picking your neighbor’s pocket. At Malta,
we have the mutual antagonism of the English and the con-
tinental enacted on a small scale.
The English merchants who began to establish themselves
at Valetta after 1815, were disposed to look with some con-
tempt on the Maltese baron or marchese who, with the blood
of the Testaferratas in his veins, lived on less than the wages
of an ill-paid London clerk. And the Maltese gentleman,
repaying the pride of purse with the pride of birth, avoided


28 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
the society of the foreigner where his claims were not appre-
ciated or his position respected. Religion, too, interfered in
the way of union. The sturdy Protestant looked with sur-
prise and contempt on the large wooden images of the saints
placed at every street corner, which the devout Maltese
saluted as often as he passed by. He was indignant, as a
man of business, to encounter daily such crowds of priests,
monks, and ecclesiastical idlers, who seemed to have nothing
to do but to contemplate and lounge. Moreover, collisions
often took place in the streets. The English refused to
salute the host when passing in procession, and the mob
of Malta endeavored to enforce compliance. Disturbances
often occurred on this account, for the Maltese are most zeal-
ous for the honor of their religion. I need scarcely say,
therefore, that they retaliated the contempt of the foreigner
with the most cordial hatred of him and his heresy. Nor
was this feeling softened or alleviated by the well-meant but
injudicious attempts at conversion which were made by some
dissenting societies.
Yet, inimical as he may be to our race generally, let us
give the Maltese fair play. When conciliated and treated
properly, he can show attachment and affection even to the
cold impassive sons of the North. The excellent Bishop of
Gibraltar has done, and is doing, much to bring the Maltese
and the English into friendly contact, and I have never heard
his lordship’s name mentioned by respectable and well-
educated islanders, without hearing it coupled with the
strongest expressions of respect and esteem. His lordship
has done much for Malta, and, if some of his benevolent and
well-meaning endeavors have not met with the success they
deserved, the fault must not be ascribed to want of good will,
but want of power in him who planned them.
The character of the Maltese seems, as our transatlantic
neighbors would say, a cross between the Asiatic and the
southern European. The dark eyes, the brown complexion,
the language, and the girdle commonly worn by the pea-
santry, tell of an Eastern origin; but there is a degree of
liveliness and fire, and certain scintillations of taste and
genius, which claim an Italian descent. Like all insular
people, the Maltese feels a pardonable pride in the place of
his birth, which he dignifies with the high-sounding title of


30 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
during a long vacation. Ever since the commencement of
our régime in Malta, there has been an uninterrupted suc-
cession of changes. Rector has followed rector, and regula-
tions, three months old, have been made to give way to fresh
ones, until the more sensible of the Maltese lost all confidence
in the institution, and the university has become a theme for
derision and ridicule.
Valetta, though far less than Calais or Dover, boasts of a
number of newspapers; the editors of which supply the
dearth of news by animated and sometimes ungrammatical
attacks on each other. When the freedom of the press was
claimed for Malta, the Duke of Wellington said something, I
believe, about the equal propriety of conceding it to the deck
of a man-of-war. Yet it was carried, and if the result has
not been so favorable as might have been expected, we cer-
tainly are not to blame. We are the sufferers, for the Mal-
tese use our gift to abuse us, and a young Malta has taken
its place among the other juvenilities of the age, whose chief
attempt at demonstrating its principles has been a great
effort to look ferocious and Italian. The exiles from Italy, to
whom we gave refuge, repaid our hospitality by inculcating
republican theories among the Maltese," while a Jesuit padre
insinuated from the pulpit of one of the churches that no
government unsanctioned by the Pope could prosper, or ought
to be obeyed, which declarations he followed up by sundry
lucubrations in the Jesuit organ of Valetta.
Malta is a land of churches and of priests. The former
are magnificent, and costly in their interiors, but as to the
exterior, they seem to share what I must always call the
bareness of Italian church architecture. But I, must own
that I am an enthusiast for Gothic, and therefore due allow-
ance should be made for my declaration. The priests almost
outnumber the lay population of the town, to say nothing of
the monks. The bishop ordains any one who can prove he
has a small income, I believe not more than sixpence or a
shilling a day. The consequence is a vast influx of men
into the clerical profession, who find no work ready for them,
and the sloth and indolence of which this has been the neces-
sary result have not improved the character of the body. Un-
" I allude to transactions in 1842 and 1844. Towards the close of the
latter year, the Italian exiles were prohibited by the local government of
Malta from writing in the newspapers.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 31
questionably, many talented and worthy men may be found
among them, but their number is not legion, and in a profes-
sion where conduct and deportment undergo the strictest
scrutiny, things that might escape censure in others are not
easily passed over or forgotten.
At the corners of the streets or lanes of Valetta, you per-
ceive huge images of the Virgin and of the Saints, arrayed in
gorgeous apparel, and having a lamp burning before them.
The Maltese touch them respectfully as they pass, and then
press their hands to their lips, a mode of salutation common
among the idolaters of early times. To this practice it is
possible the book of Job alludes,” when it says, “If I beheld
the sun when it shined, or the moon walking in brightness,
and my heart hath been secretly enticed, or my mouth hath
kissed my hand.” Such indeed is the extravagant venera-
tion which the Maltese pay to images and pictures, that a
German priest, a man of great talent and piety, exclaimed,
after he had seen Waletta, almost in the words of St. Luke,
“Surely the city is wholly given up to idolatry.” Much of
the blame, however, of this must rest upon the character of
the people as well as of the clergy. An able preacher was
once selected to deliver the usual Lent sermons from the
pulpit of St. John’s. A large congregation assembled at
about six o'clock in the morning to hear him. He began by
dwelling forcibly on the necessity of contrition and repentance,
but he found his auditors yawning and sleepy. Suddenly, he
changed the theme, and began a wonderful legend of some
saint who walked a dozen miles with his head in his hand.
Every body rubbed their eyes, neighbor nudged neighbor;
and the legend was listened to with marked attention, while
the moral instruction produced a most soporific effect. The
southern mind must always have truth in parables, and reli-
gion in ceremonies. It can never tolerate the pure ab-
straction.
The celibate life professed by the priesthood enables them
not only to avoid expense, but to accumulate wealth. This
generally descends to the nephews and nieces, who supply
the place of children to a race of bachelors. It would
scarcely be fair to assume, as a general rule, that the single
state produces and encourages the love of money, but most
* Job xxxi. 26, 27.


32 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
of the Maltese ecclesiastics are noted for their saving pro-
pensities. . -
Some of the wealthiest of the clergy are the canons of St.
John’s, as the collegiate church was well endowed by the
knights. - One of the chapter was once wending his way to
vespers, when, as he was toiling painfully up one of the
streets of stairs leading to the church, he was accosted by a
mendicant, who, in a low whining tone, besought his reve-
rence to give him alms. The canon, who was not the most
liberal of men, attempted to brush by, but in vain. “Padre
mio,” whined the beggar, “for the love of the Virgin, give
me a shilling.” The canon gasped, threw up his eyes, and
ejaculated, “Santa Maria!” with double emphasis. “Will
you give me sixpence then P’’ rejoined the beggar. “Go
along with you,” said the canon. “A penny at least?”
“No ſ” “A farthing, perhaps?” “Not a grain,” testily
replied the priest. The mendicant changed his ground.
“Holy father, will you give me your blessing?” “Ah!” said
the canon, brightening up, “that is another thing; kneel
down, my son.” “No,” replied the beggar, “I will not; I
asked you for a grain, and you refused me. Now, if your
blessing were worth a grain you would not bestow it, and so
.Addio, Padre mio.”
Malta abounds of course with reminiscences of the knights:
they seem to have been much beloved, though in many re-
spects they held the reins of government with a tight hand.
No Maltese, however respectable, could pass the palace of
the Grand Master, without raising his hat. No native of the
island could enter the order, although the highest dignities
connected with the church were open to him. The conse-
quences of a life of celibacy, professed by men in the flower
of their age, and with much leisure time on their hands, did
not operate favorably on the morality of the islanders. Con-
cubinage was common, though strictly forbidden by the
statutes of the order.
Among the most peculiar of the customs of the cavalieri,
was the regulation with regard to dueling, which recalled
some of the practices of early chivalry. The parties who
quarreled were to repair to the next street, unsheath their
swords, and fight out their duel in public. But at the com-
mand of a priest, a lady, or a senior knight, they were en-
joined to desist, and to be completely reconciled on the spot.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 33
Of course, such encounters seldom terminated fatally. An
old Maltese lady told me that her interference had often been
requested by the friends of the belligerent parties, and in no
single instance had it ever failed. An old Maltese priest
averred that he had often been knocked up at twelve o’clock
at night to stop the warlike proceedings of some of the
younger cavalieri.
The government of Malta, during the sojourn of the order,
was vested in the Grand Council, who exercised a check on
the proceedings of their chief. That sovereign was obliged
to swear, at his inauguration, faithfully to observe and respect
the liberties of the Maltese and their ancient institutions—
an oath which was, upon the whole, religiously observed.
Of the numerous Grand Masters who presided over the des-
tinies of the order since its removal to Malta, the annals
only record the name of one who acted with tyranny and
bad faith. I have heard, however, complaints that the exer-
cise of the judicial functions were subject to a certain con-
trol; and that the Maltese judges were mostly creatures of
the Grand Master. Yet, with all their faults, the Maltese
remembers his old masters with regret. Old men will talk
sorrowfully of the times of “the religion,” when the galleys
returned to Valetta laden with the spoils of the hated infidel,
when the crescent was hauled down amid the shouts of the
Maltese sailors, and the standard of St. John floated proudly
in the breeze.
The Knights of Malta still retained an ancient vestige of
their former occupation, as attendants on the sick, in the
hospital, which they erected at Valetta. With a pardonable
ostentation, they waited themselves on the infirm inmates,
and conveyed their food and medicines in silver utensils. A
large amount of plate belonging to this charitable institution
fell into the hands of the French, when they obtained pos-
session of the island.
Perhaps the most interesting part of Malta, as connected
with the history of the knights, is the extreme point of the
promontory, called Mt. Xibaras, on which stands the com-
paratively modern Fort of St. Elmo. It was witness to a
feat of self-sacrifice and chivalry, which can hardly find a
parallel since the days of Leonidas.
At the commencement of the year 1565, the celebrated
Suliman filled the Ottoman throne, a prince renowned for


34 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
2.
his success in war, and his indelible hatred of the Christian
name. The capture of a Turkish vessel, belonging to one
of his favorites, had filled him with indignation against the
Knights of Malta, which was still more increased by the
complaints of a numerous crowd, who beset him on his pas-
sage to the mosque, and demanded, with loud cries, satisfac-
tion for the losses they had sustained from the enterprise
and restless activity of the galleys of the order. The voice
of his people found an echo in the bosom of the monarch,
and Suliman determined to fit out a fleet and army that
should reduce the island, and totally exterminate its defend-
ers. One hundred and fifty-nine galleys received on board
an armament of thirty thousand men, the flower of the Turk-
ish troops, and on the 18th May, 1565, these formidable in-
vaders appeared in sight of Malta. Besides these, their
commander, Mustapha Pasha, was promised the valuable
aid of the Viceroy of Algiers, the inveterate enemy of the
knights, whose prowess by sea he had proved on many oc-
CaSiOnS.
The Grand Master, Lavalette, could only muster about
seven hundred knights, and a motley force of nearly eight
thousand five hundred men, composed of the servants at
arms, the mercenary troops in the pay of the order, and
some peasants and natives of the island, whom attachment
to the order, and fear of the sanguinary cruelties of the
Turks, had impelled to take up arms. With these inadequate
numbers, he intrenched himself in the modern town of
Burgo, to the south of the great harbor, having the Fort of
St. Angelo, which had been strongly garrisoned, between his
forces and the promontory of Xibaras. The latter place be-
came now of great importance, from its central position be-
tween the two harbors, into one of which it was necessary
for the Turks to penetrate. The commander, Duguarras,
with sixty knights, and a company of infantry, shut them-
selves up in the Fort of St. Elmo, determined to maintain it
to the last, even at the cost of their lives. It was there the
Turks made their first attack. On the 24th of May, the
Pasha commanded a general assault, but he was met with
the utmost gallantry, and repelled with a heavy loss. At-
tack after attack was made in vain; but the number of the
defenders decreased daily, and notwithstanding the succors
dispatched from time to time by the Grand Master, it be-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 35
came evident that the fort must shortly fall into the hands
of the assailants. At length, the Turks, having succeeded
in penetrating a short distance into the mouth of the great
harbor, prevented any reinforcements from reaching the de-
voted garrison, who, thus abandoned to their fate, determined
to prepare themselves for that death which appeared to all
inevitable. The little band received with devotion and fer-
vor, the last sacraments of the church, and then, embracing
each other, they repaired to the breach, bearing along with
them the wounded in chairs, and there waited the assault of
their enemies. On the morning of the 23d of June, the Pasha
gave the signal to attack, the conflict was sharp and decisive,
and the fall of the last knight, covered with wounds, was
succeeded by the planting of the crescent on the ramparts
of St. Elmo.
CHAPTER IV.
The East. Fellow-passengers. Cape Matapan. Syra. Greek church. Priest-
hood. Smyrna. The streets. Bazaars. Mosque. Holy shoes. Misad-
venture. Departure from Smyrna. Constantinople.
At Malta, one seems to be on the frontier line which sepa-
rates the East from the West. It is a kind of neutral ground,
on which the habits of the Orient mingle with the usages of
Europe. In leaving it, therefore, I felt that I had quitted for
a time, that might be more or less prolonged, all the associa-
tions and customs of past years. Nor can I tell whether,
in doing so, the emotions of pleasure or regret most pre-
dominated. The feeling that a new world was opening before
me was sobered by the reflection that the old one was fast
passing away, never, perhaps, to be beheld again by me.
The traveler for mere amusement can leave without re-
gret scenes that he may shortly anticipate to welcome once
more; but one whose lot is fixed in the country to which he
is journeying feels that the uncertainty of return clothes
with interest each receding object. I could not watch, with
mere indifference, the distant towers of Waletta, as our vessel


36 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
moved on, and they became gradually more indistinct, and
soon disappeared entirely from view.
For years, the East has exercised a mysterious influence
over the Western mind. It has been the El Dorado of the
imagination, and still continues to captivate and allure the
fancy, in spite of the prosaic and matter-of-fact attempts of
modern travelers to dissipate the illusion, and to destroy the
charm. The pages of Marco Polo and Mandeville represent
the East of our boyhood, with its various marvels, its mys-
teries, and its magnificence, but the efforts and energies of
their successors have been used to demonstrate that Oriental
gold is but tinsel, after all, and that its mysteries and its
marvels are as shadowy and unreal as the tales which amuse
the uncriticizing fancy of childhood. Truth is sometimes
unpleasant, and we do not always thank the hand that tears
down the enchanted veil, and shows us squalidness and
misery, in the place of the gilded visions of imagination.
My anticipations were, perhaps, less brilliant than those of
the untraveled generally are, for, during my stay at Malta, I
had heard much of the region to which I was going, and
some of my illusions were beginning to fade away. But
still there remained much to expect, and to wish for, and it
was, therefore, upon the whole, rather gratifying to find one’s
self once more en route.
My compagnons de voyage were as mixed a crew as one
might wish to see. There were three old Jews with dirty
gaberdines, and still dirtier faces, whose gray, uncombed
beards hung raggedly down almost to their waists. Their
cunning eyes, as stealthy as the glances of a cat, gleamed
wilily from beneath their high-arched eyebrows. They
seemed every moment to anticipate being either deceived by
craft, or plundered by violence. I could have pictured each
of them in the position of Isaac of York, eyeing ruefully and
suspiciously the hot glowing bars of his dungeon grate, and
struggling internally with fear of pain and love of gold.
They appeared like Ishmaelites of the town, every man
against them, and they against every one. A hard-featured,
stern-looking monk, with the aspect of an inquisitor, gazed
with undisguised contempt on the children of Abraham ;
several of his brethren were near him, all going to be em-
ployed in the Levantine Missions. One or two Oriental
physiognomies mingled with the group on the main deck,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 37
looking awkward, and by no means at home in their semi-
European dress.
An Italian artist, with his sketch book under his arm,
was going to settle at Constantinople, for he said that, in
consequence of the progress of civilization, the Turks might
require his services as a miniature painter. Another country-
man of his, who had picked up a smattering of physic some-
where, intended to bestow on the unfortunate infidels the
fruits of his medical science. He owned he knew little of
drugs, but “che fare” times were hard, and he must live,
even by other people's deaths. An interesting exile sought
for that liberty, under the paternal government of Turkey,
which was denied him under the equally paternal régime of
Austria. One man was going to teach the Turks to ride;
another intended to be their instructor in the art of war.
Verily, the poor Ottomans had reason to exclaim, “Save me
from my friends,” or rather from those who desire to become
such. Then there was the usual quota of traveling English-
men, looking stern and dissatisfied at everybody, a shabbily-
dressed German prince, with I do not know how many an-
cestors; and some gay and lively Frenchmen, who seemed
disposed to treat everything with a shrug and a ma foi. An
enthusiastic American was bent on turning Sancta Sophia
into a Presbyterian meeting-house, and had no doubt of suc-
cess, although, like George Primrose, he seemed to have
forgotten that, in order that he might teach the Turks Chris-
tianity, it was necessary that they should first teach him
Turkish.
But we are in sight of land. Telescopes are in requisition
immediately. Guide-books are produced, and referred to
with much anxiety. A large map is spread over the cover-
ing of the hatchway, and the report that land is in sight
seems to stir up everybody to redoubled cheerfulness and
activity. Young tourists, from college, strain their eyes, and
recall all their classical recollections. The deep blue eyes
of the German beam with enthusiasm; the Frenchmen be-
come silent for a moment; young ladies divide their atten-
tion between Lord Byron and the horizon; the Englishman
lays down his newspaper; while our American friend ejacu-
lates nasally, “that’s Greece, I guess.”
And Greece it is, as we ascertain from the captain, or at
least a very barren part of it, yeleped Cape Matapan. It is
4


38 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
a rocky headland, jutting out into the sea, respectable from
its connections, but by no means interesting in itself, and we
look upon it as we should upon the ninety-ninth cousin of
Napoleon, or some other great man. On the declivity to-
wards the sea, a few stones piled together was pronounced
to be a hermitage; but it was uninhabited. Perhaps the
hermit had left in disgust, at the modern innovation of
steamers; perhaps he was tired of contemplating nothing
save pontus et aer; but all seemed to agree that he had not
been visible of late years. And now we are entering the
Archipelago—
“The Isles of Greece, the Isles of Greece,
Where burning Sappho lived and sang.”
But we saw no burning Sappho, only a few Greek fisher-
women, who, with their long disheveled locks covering their
shoulders, gazed at us as we moved by them. At length,
Syra was pronounced in sight, and we soon discerned its
cone-shaped rock emerging from the waters. We anchored
in face of the small town, situated at the foot of the mountain,
the higher part of which is inhabited chiefly by Greek Catho-
lics, or those members of the Greek Church who acknow-
ledge the supremacy, and submit to the sway, of the Roman
pontiff.
A dilapidated flag, placed on the roof of the quarantine
establishment, announced that we were on the point of enter-
ing the jurisdiction of King Otho, upon whom one of our
English fellow-travelers pronounced no very flattering eulo-
giums, as we entered the close and filthy streets of his do-
minions. It seems to be an indisputable axiom, with many
of our errant countrymen, that the government of a foreign
country is responsible for everything, even for the ill-washed
faces and ragged garments of its subjects. The southern
nations are not generally noted for cleanliness, although one
might expect that the heat would render the cold bath a
pleasing and agreeable resort. Yet the use of the cold ele-
ment is not common even in Turkey, where the ablutions
are performed in a room filled with steam, and with almost
boiling water.
The dress of the Greeks of Syra was of a very mixed
character. Some of the loungers, whom we had encountered
on landing, wore a bad imitation of the European costume;
others retained the kilts, buskins, and jackets of their native


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 39
land; while a third party appeared in the modern Egyptian
costume. The two latter were, certainly, more graceful than
the former, yet the traveler, who has worn or beheld the
flowing robes of Asia, will not be easily reconciled to their
tight compression of the arms and legs. The Greek, or
Albanian jacket struck one as being more comfortless,
although, perhaps, more ornamental, than the dress coat of
Europe; while the buskins, although they presented an ele-
gant and showy appearance, must yield, in point of ease, to
the loose unfettered drawers of Turkey.
The streets of Syra are very steep, owing to the nature of
the ground on which the town is built. Its population,
which exceeds thirteen thousand, is larger than the first
view of the houses would seem to warrant; but it appears
credible enough, after you have traversed the various ins
and outs, the turnings and the bends, which are most nume-
rous and complicated. After some difficulty, we reached
the house of the Rev. Mr. Hildner, a German clergyman, in
the service of the English Church Missionary Society. Mr.
H. has opened his schools, under the sanction of government,
and is on good terms with the authorities, both civil and
ecclesiastical. His establishment consists of a school for
boys, and another for girls, and many of his pupils are
children of the most respectable Greek families.
It seemed strange to hear little Greek girls of six or seven
years of age reading and translating, with ease and fluency,
the pages of Herodotus and Xenophon. But the similarity
of the modern dialect to the ancient Hellenic renders this
comparatively easy. One of our party, however, who piqued
himself upon his classical knowledge, was unsuccessful in his
attempts to converse in the old dialect with a little girl of
ten years who professed to understand and speak Hellenic;
but the unintelligibility on both sides was probably occa-
sioned by the difference of pronunciation. The modern
Greeks pronounce Beta like v, and Upsilon like i, or y, while
they give the Chi a guttural aspiration, like that of the Ger-
man ch. The diphthongs, too, are nearly all pronounced alike,
so that the most eminent English scholar would have some
difficulty in recognizing by ear even the well-known verses
of Homer, if they were read aloud to him.
From the schools, we proceeded to the Greek church, a
small, and by no means inelegant building, standing in the


40 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
midst of a species of quadrangle, on the four sides of which
were the dwellings of the priests. They were all dressed in
a kind of long dark cassock, reaching to the ankles, over
which was thrown a gown of black cloth. Their hair was
worn long, and surmounted by a small round cap. Every
one was bearded, for the beard is considered, all over the East,
a necessary appendage to the priestly office. A Syrian eccle-
siastic whom I knew at Malta remarked of the late Bishop
Alexander, that he was a very good man, but that he had no
beard, and hinted that this latter disqualification for episco-
pacy was by no means a light one.
The clergy of the Greek Church are permitted to marry
while in deacons' orders, but their bishops and monks are
unmarried. If, however, the wife of a papas dies, he cannot
give her a successor, and it is said that the knowledge of
this gains for her a larger amount of respect and attention
than is usually the lot of her sex in the East. A friend of
mine, who had resided some time in Syra, was surprised, on
entering the house of one of the principal priests, to find the
reverend papas washing, with his own hands, the linen of the
household. On inquiring the reason, the papas replied, “I
do this to save my wife labor, that she may live the longer,
for you know, O Kyrie, that the law of our church does not
permit me to have another, and I wish to keep this as long
as I can.”
Preaching forms rarely a portion of the Greek service, the
people being instructed in their moral duties chiefly through
the medium of the confessional. Confession is one of the
Seven Sacraments which the Greeks hold in common with
the Latins; but, among the former, the priest is forbidden to
question the penitent, and the latter is not bound to reveal
everything, but merely such offences as seem to require
ghostly counsel and advice. In the Greek church, the altar,
which is square in form, and strongly resembles our own, is
separated from the nave by a wooden screen, richly decorated
and hung with pictures of the Saviour and the saints. These
portraits have frequently the heads, arms, or hands, formed
of thin silver plates, which are fastened to the canvass, and
present a curious medley, half-image, half-picture. The
pulpit, which, although rarely used, forms generally part of
the church furniture, is always surmounted by the figure of
a dove, with extended wings, said to represent the Holy Ghost.


- NoTES FROM NINEVEH. 41
The part screened off from the choir is termed the Holy of
Holies, and, strictly speaking, should never be entered by a
layman; but this rule is not always observed.
Leaving the church, we re-embarked, and in a few hours
were entering the Gulf of Smyrna. Its shores are formed
by two ranges of mountains which unite, just above the city,
in a kind of semicircle. The eye wanders with pleasure and
interest along the thickly-wooded declivities, till its view rests
upon the dark groves of cypress which indicate the site of the
cemeteries, the cities of the dead. At the foot of Mount Pagus,
is seen the modern town, extending itself along the eastern
shore of the gulf, and marking by its domes and minarets
the triumph of the crescent over the cross.
Smyrna is generally the first oriental city that greets the
eye of the wanderer in Eastern climes, nor does its aspect
disappoint the poetical and romantic visions which he may
have felt disposed to cherish. The gay colors, and almost
Italian exterior of the houses on the quay, conceal the nar-
row and somewhat filthy streets of the interior, while the
really elegant shapes of the domes and minarets, which
tower above them, delight as much by their novelty as by
their intrinsic beauty. As the eye wanders over the mass of
houses, it rests upon the rich and luxuriant gardens which
border the town, the picturesque ruins that crown the summit
of Mount Pagus, and the not inelegant outlines of the villages
in the environs.
Nor is the illusion dispelled when, on landing, the new
comer finds himself among the oriental crowd, and gazes,
with a mingled feeling of amazement and admiration, on the
rich flowing robes of the East, or the gay and glittering cos-
tume of the Albanians or Egyptians. As he proceeds along,
the narrow streets, with their latticed houses, excite his atten-
tion, which is, perhaps, more rudely solicited by a string of
loaded camels, whose driver jostles him unceremoniously
aside as he passes. Interruptions, indeed, the traveler must
expect at every step, Some of these will almost recall to his
memory, if he be classical, Horace's humorous accounts of
similar troubles in the streets of Rome. A carpenter, with
a beam on his shoulder, assails you in front, a file of Turkish
soldiers takes you in the rear. A newly-arrived Englishman
in Constantinople was once coolly pushed out of the way
with the butt end of a musket, for Turkish soldiers are not
4+


42 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
prone to sacrifice much to the courtesies of life. You stand
engaged in mute admiration of some ancient pillar placed in
a modern wine-shop, when a yell like the cry of a despair-
ing Afrite bursts on your ear, and you rush madly into the
embraces of a stout, portly Armenian banker, very much to
his surprise and your own.
Yet, if heedless of these little inconveniences, you make
your way into the bazaar, and establish yourself on one of
the stools in front of any of the coffee-houses, you will there
be enabled to satiate yourself to the full with Eastern pecu-
liarities and costumes. Inhaling the fumes of what you may
call, if you please, the pipe of contemplation, you will not
want objects to attract your attention, and inspire you with
interest. Above you is the arched roof of the bazaar, grace-
fully adorned with arabesque painting, and gay with many
and brilliant devices. Around you are the shops of which
you have so often read in boyhood’s chosen classic, the Ara-
bian Nights. How astonished you are to find, instead of the
large room usually dignified by the name of a shop in Lon-
don and Paris, its oriental namesake assuming the form and
dimensions of an English stall, or of one of those traveling
places of merchandize which one meets with in one’s pere-
grinations at home, laden with fruit or cheap china. The
Eastern shop is merely a small square recess in the wall,
having a board projecting forth a little way, which serves
the double purpose of a counter and a seat. On this the
merchant sits cross-legged, smoking his never-failing pipe.
You feel in want of something, and would fain have dealings
with him, but you are in a land where business is not trans-
acted with the same undignified and uncomfortable rapidity
as in England or America.
You make your salutation with much ceremony to the
merchant, which he returns in the same manner. Mutual
inquiries after each other's health then take place, after
which the merchant, if respectable, sends for pipes and cof-
fee from the next coffee-house, or, if poor, he takes the pipe
from his lips, wipes the mouth-piece on his sleeve, and hands
it to you with a low bow, pressing, at the same time, his hand
to his heart. Inclining your head gently, you accept the
proffered kindness, and after some indifferent conversation
venture to hint at the object of your visit. The goods are
brought forth and displayed upon the board, while you make


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 43
your choice. And, after a little haggling, but very little if
your tradesman is a Turk, you pay your money, and with
mutual salutations depart rather with the air of one who has
received, than one who has conferred a favor.
The crowd of persons passing and repassing in the ba-
zaars is very great, and mingled with them are numbers of
the fair sex, enveloped in veils, or rather wrappers of blue
stuff, which reach about half way down the long yellow boots
which the Turkish ladies always wear abroad. Their faces
are partially concealed by another veil, or cloth of white,
which is so arranged as to leave visible only the eyes and
the upper half of the nose. They have an unpleasant, ghost-
like appearance, and reminded me almost of an old school-
boy acquaintance, the Ghoul wife Amina, who was surprised
by her husband while devouring a corpse in the neighboring
cemetery.
As we were rambling through the streets, a ragged-look-
ing Jew came up and offered to be our guide, for a consider-
ation of course. He was the first Israelite I had seen dressed
in the Oriental garb, and it harmonized well with his peculiar
features and Eastern physiognomy. Go where they will, the
Hebrews bear about with them the indelible marks of their
Asiatic origin. The same love of decoration, the same taste
for gaudy colors, yea, the same appetite for fried fish, dis-
tinguish the inhabitants of Damascus and the denizens of
Petticoat Lane. I even fancied, on entering the Jewish quar-
ter of Smyrna, that I recognized that peculiar odor which
characterizes also those parts of London devoted to the sale
of old clothes.
As foreigners are allowed in Smyrna to visit the mosques,
we determined to avail ourselves of this toleration, and de-
sired our conductor to get us admission. Fresh from Europe,
we did not think of the prejudices entertained by the Mo-
hammedans with regard to Jews, or anticipate that we should
incur the wrath of the faithful, by introducing a Chefoot into
the precincts of one of their places of worship. We were
soon reminded of whom we had to deal with.
At the porch of the Great Mosque, the Jew stopped, and
entered into conversation with a stout, good-natured looking
Mohammedan, who, after a little whispering, consented to
admit us. We were ordered to pull off our shoes, and this
we were quite willing to do, but unfortunately a lady of our


44 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
party had on a pair of tightly laced boots, and the lace got
into a knot as she was endeavoring in great haste to un-
fasten it, so that they could not be taken off. Here was a
dilemma. The lady could not be left in the street, like the
heroine of some old knightly romance, surrounded by fero-
cious-looking Saracens, and she was also very anxious to see
the interior of a mosque. The Jew offered our stout friend,
who was a kind of sexton there, a small douceur, but he
shook his head. The boots were tried again, but the tangled
lace was inexorable, and there seemed to be but little chance
of our gaining admittance.
At last, one of the standers-by recollected that a great
devotee, one Hadjee Mohammed Ibn Abdallah, had left at
his decease a pair of holy slippers to the mosque, which slip-
pers were said to inherit the odor of sanctity. Now the
shoes of so great a man were evidently better than even the
feet or stockings of a female Kafir, and therefore it was agreed
that our fair companion should encase her feet, boots and all,
in the holy slippers of the late Hadjee. The slippers were
brought; they were very dilapidated, very dirty, and if the
odor which exhaled from them was the odor of sanctity, it
was certainly not very grateful to the nose. The lady gazed
at the holy shoes for some time, with indecision mingled with
apprehension, and probably with a sort of conviction that,
had she been at home, she would have called her maid to
take them up with the tongs and deposit them within the
dust-hole; however, there was no help for it, and so, with an
air of resignation, she thrust her feet into them, and entered
the mosque.
We found the interior a lofty and spacious apartment, the
marble floor of which was covered with matting. In one of
the walls, looking in the direction of Mecca, was the kublah,
or niche, towards which the worshipers turned their faces in
prayer. By the niche was the mimber, or pulpit, whence
the mollah delivered his weekly sermon. From the roof was
suspended a thin iron ring, around which was attached a
circle of small glass lamps; several large ostrich eggs and
horse tails depended, attached above by brass chains. In
fact, nothing can be plainer than the Mohammedan houses
of prayer. They rarely have any other decorations than those
which I have mentioned, excepting, perhaps, the ornamental
writing round the Čornices, consisting of sentences from the


46 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
through malice or design, left the gates closed, so that many
Jews lost their lives.
The environs of Smyrna present pictures of the most
romantic beauty, and afford an agreeable contrast to the
dark, narrow, and dirty lanes of the town. Most of the
European merchants have their country houses in the neigh-
boring villages of Boudjar, Bournabat, and Sidi Kiouy.
Through the gardens or plantations which arise at the back
of the town, glide the limpid waves of the Meles, on whose
banks, perhaps, Homer wandered when he composed his
deathless songs; a rude arch of stone, termed generally the
caravan bridge, crosses the Meles not far from the foot of the
hill, or Acropolis, on which the citadel once stood. In its
vicinity, are several coffee-houses, which receive the holiday-
makers of the city on Sundays and other festivals; when may
be seen in groups the phlegmatic Turk, dozing over his pipe
and seeing visions in the bright tinted clouds; the gay chat-
tering Greek, and the grave Armenian, who seldom speaks
except for a consideration; together with the tight swathed
and bandaged forms of the sons of Frangistan, who, with
miserable taste, prefer generally their monkeyfied costume to
the loose, comfortable, and elegant attire of the Oriental.
We left Smyrna in the afternoon, and when I woke the
next morning, a general clatter and bustle seemed to an-
nounce that we were nearing the imperial city, even Stam-
boul itself. I hurried on my habiliments, and rushing upon
deck beheld a vision of the most glorious and exquisite
beauty, far surpassing anything that the most poetical ima-
gination could conceive. I feel my powers of description
too feeble and too unsatisfactory to paint the impressions
which that scene of more than fairy splendor stamped upon
my soul. On my left were the seven towers, the ancient
fortifications, the palace of the seraglio with its gardens, and
innumerable domes and minarets gilded by the rays of the
scarcely risen sun. Beyond was the hilly suburb of Pera,
with the cypresses of its cemetery, the Champ des Morts,
waving mournfully in the morning breeze, and the orna-
mented fountain of Top Khana, with hundreds of swift
cayiques" skimming lightly over the placid waves of the
* Turkish boats used on the Bosphorus, which are lighter and more elegant
than even the wherries of the Thames.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 47
Bosphorus. To the right were the Princes’ Islands, with
their richly-wooded summits and ancient monastery, the Gulf
of Nicomedia, and the gloomy-looking cemeteries of Scutari,
while, almost united at the back of the picture, rose the mount-
ains of Europe and Asia, winding and entwining themselves
in such a manner as to seem one vast semicircle of hills,
covered with kiosks and vineyards, and adorned equally by
the luxuriance of nature and the mechanical elegance of art.
We disembarked, and were soon toiling up the narrow
lanes of Pera, attended by a couple of Turkish hamals or
porters, who conducted us and our baggage in safety to the
hospitable portals of Madame Josephine, who herself ap-
peared at her gate, with a good-humored countenance, radiant
with smiles, to welcome us to Constantinople and to the
Bellevue.
CHAPTER W.
Departure from Constantinople. Samsoun. Mohammed Aga. St. Basil.
Ancient monasticism of Pontus. Cazal Kiouy. Nocturnal invaders.
Ladik. The Ramadan. Robbers. Oppression of the government.
Amasia. Ina Bazaar. Anecdote of a pasha. Turkal. Tokat. Coloni-
zation.
CoNSTANTINoPLE has been so frequently and so ably
described, that I deem it almost needless to say anything
respecting it, except perhaps to express a warm admiration
of the romantic beauty of its environs, and to extol the many
opportunities which it affords a stranger of being initiated, at
a cheap rate, into the manners of the East. Not indeed that
living or lodgings are reasonable in cost, but a sojourn in the
capital encroaches less upon your pocket or your ease than
an excursion in the provinces would do, and you are enabled
to keep up some of your European associations, which must
be abandoned entirely in the purely Oriental regions of the
country. It is a mistake to imagine that the civilization of
the metropolis has made its way into the rural districts, or
that hotels and clean linen are ready to welcome those who
venture even twenty miles from the gates of Constantinople.


48 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
The traveler in the interior must carry with him his bed, his
cooking utensils, his saddles, and his medicines, and reckon
upon finding nothing on the road but bare provisions, and
ont always a superabundance of these.
We spent the last three days of our sojourn in the Turkish
capital in making such purchases as seemed necessary for
the journey. Padded saddles, water bags, capotes, stuffed
coverlets, and traveling boots, were among the principal
articles which we required. These were all made up in
bundles, and dispatched on board the Austrian steamer, in
which we embarked for Samsoun, on the Black Sea, which
we reached without any disaster, even without sea-sickness,
which seems, according to an unsavory couplet of Lord
Byron’s, inseparably connected with the Euxine.
We passed Sinope, the dwelling-place of the cynical Dio-
genes, and, a few hours after, were discharged with our bag-
gage into a large boat that was hired to convey us to the
shore. But, as the sea was very shallow, and would not allow
our bark, which was a very primitive affair, to approach near
enough to the land, we were carried through the intervening
water on men’s shoulders, a mode of transit which I recollect
was formerly practiced at Calais during the good old days.
I had no reason to complain of my biped, who was a stout
able-bodied fellow, a hamal, or porter by trade, and therefore
used to bearing burdens. Glass or crockery could not have
been carried more carefully, and as I looked back and saw
one of my companions struggling in the agonies of fear with
his steed, a struggle which ended in their both going down
with a heavy splash, I really felt no inconsiderable amount
of gratitude to the broad-shouldered bearer of burdens who
had acquitted himself so successfully.
Marshaled by the vice-consul’s khawass, we proceeded to
the consulate, but found that the house was undergoing
repairs, and that of course we could not be accommodated
there. A lodging was, however, procured in the street hard
by, and, after a good dinner at the hospitable board of Mr.
Stevens, we repaired to our new quarters.
They were decidedly airy, for one of the rooms was no-
thing more than a raised platform of wood, with a very dilapi-
dated roof, and sheltered at the sides by two walls of very
questionable stability. A group of curious idlers, who had
followed us from the consulate, stood gazing on our prepara-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 49
tions for retiring to rest. These were soon made. I laid
down my padded coverlet on the floor, and, having rolled up
several miscellaneous articles so as to form a kind of extem-
pore pillow, I wrapt myself in my capote, and, drawing the
hood comfortably over my head, was dozing quietly off, when
my incipient slumbers were interrupted by a low hissing
sound. I immediately thought of snakes, and, flinging off
my hood, started up in some alarm, but was speedily reas-
sured on perceiving that the noise proceeded from the whis-
pers of a group of women who had thrust their heads through
a kind of trap-door, and were scrutinizing me at their leisure.
The movement I made startled them in their turn, and with
a suppressed titter, they vanished, leaving me to undisturbed
slumbers.
We rose early the next morning, and after breakfast, pre-
pared to commence our journey. We had secured at Con-
stantinople the services of a Tatar, who, for a certain sum,
had covenanted to convey us safely to Mosul. He was an
old Turk, with by no means a prepossessing countenance,
which was rendered more grim by the mutilated condition of
his nose, as well as by the ferocious pair of mustachios which
extended on either side of it.
Mohammed Aga, for such was his appellation, had been
for many years on the road, but he was now getting stiff and
infirm, and could no longer discharge the more active duties
of his profession. He was not intrusted, therefore, with the
conveyance of government dispatches, as these demanded
the activity and dispatch of a younger man. But, as travel-
ers now and then required his services, he had not relin-
quished entirely his occupation as a Tatar. He was habit-
ed in a short jacket, richly braided, his nether man being
enveloped in an enormous pair of trunk breeches, terminated
by Turkish boots. He wore on his head a fez or red cap,
with a blue silk tassel, bound round his brows by a small
shawl or handkerchief arranged turban-wise. In addition
to this useful protector and guide, we were provided with
a magnificent parchment document from his majesty the
Sultan, answering the purpose of a continental passport, and
known by the name of a firman. This document, however,
proved eventually of little use, and it was only by the active
endeavors of Mohammed Aga, or Kusker Oglu as he was
5


50 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
sometimes called, that we were enabled to get on at all in
many parts of the journey.
The country about Samsoun presented a most agreeable
appearance. To the south of the town extends a long range
of hills in an easterly direction, covered with luxuriant vege-
tation, and crowned on the summit by forests of the stunted
oak and the graceful acacia. As we advanced, our caval-
cade proceeded through leafy avenues formed by projecting
branches, which, mingling together overhead, proved a grate-
ful shelter from the powerful rays of the mid-day sun. Here
and there, patches of green, sown with wild flowers of various
colors, retained their verdure unimpaired, protected by the
kindly shade. The silence was unbroken, save by the song
of numbers of feathered choristers, who, from their unseen
fastnesses in the wood, poured forth an unremitted strain of
harmony; occasionally crossing our path, and resting listlessly
for a moment on the wing, to take a passing view of the in-
vaders of their tranquillity.
We were now in Pontus, the region to which the great St.
Basil transported the monastic system from the flat plains and
desert wastes of Egypt. Yet not here, in the midst of nature’s
secluded beauties, did he fix the abodes of silent meditation
and ceaseless prayer. In the rough and savage mountain
scenery which borders the dark and inhospitable Euxine, the
mind, retiring from the world and its attractive loveliness,
found a congenial home. Dark, frowning precipices, and
the summits of rocky eminences, tutored the thoughts to
higher and more sublime musings. In the majestic and yet
fearful solitudes where nature appeared in her grander
features, amidst the dark mountain pines and the roaring
cascades of a more uncultivated region, men learned to anti-
cipate the terrific splendors of the last great day, the wreck
of nature, and the expiring convulsions of creation. The
early monks betrayed a singular indifference to the loveliness
of a world which they had renounced. The worn and wasted
regions in which they generally chose to dwell awoke, per-
haps, responsive and sympathetic emotions in hearts too
. sensible of the barrenness and emptiness of all created
things.
As we emerged from the shelter of the forests, the sky,
which had hitherto preserved a placid and smiling aspect,
became overcharged with dark and lowering clouds; the


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 51
rain poured down in torrents, and it seemed desirable that
we should seek for some shelter from its violence. We were
still at some distance from the place of our destination; but
the Tatar remembered that, by diverging a little from the
road, we might reach the village of Cazal Kiouy, where he
hoped to find shelter for us.
We put our beasts to a gallop, and, after riding hard for
about half an hour, we reached a small collection of mud
houses, but learned to our great disappointment that the khan
had been occupied early in the day by a caravan of merchants,
who of course could not be dislodged. Some delay ensued,
but at last the Tatar made room for us in one of the neigh-
boring houses, where he proposed we should spend the
night, and then set forward in the morning.
The people to whom the dwelling belonged were trans-
ferred, without much ceremony, to an adjoining house, and
we hastened with our baggage to take possession of the only
decent room on the first story. We ascended by a flight of
ruinous wooden stairs, abounding in yawning gaps which
threatened to swallow us up at every step. By cautious
climbing, however, we succeeded in reaching the top, and
beheld before us our destined quarters. If we had been
fastidious, the exhibition would have been a sore trial to the
nerves. A fire of green wood, just lighted, was pouring
forth volumes of smoke, which seemed to be making furious
charges against the wind and rain, in its laudable endeavors
to force itself through a very wide aperture in the roof. A
shriveled old crone, whom I rather ungallantly thought re-
sembled strongly one of the witches in Macbeth, was labor-
ing hard to arrange in some order a vast quantity of small
apples, which covered the floor so thickly that not a vestige
of it could be discerned.
The Tatar and our servants came to her assistance, and
at length succeeded, with some trouble, in piling up two
ranges of apple hills against the walls, leaving a sort of val-
ley in the centre for our accommodation. Tired, wet, and
hungry, we crowded round the fire, our eyes distilling tears,
which mingled with the drops of rain descending from above.
The old woman had put on a large caldron in which was
our future dinner, and, as the flame cast its gleam over her
decrepit, yet strongly marked, features and long withered
arms moving hither and thither, one might have deemed her


52 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
an aged portrait of her countrywoman Medea, engaged in
the preparation of some mystic charm. The worthy old
sybil, however, was very kind and courteous, nodding be-
nignantly to us from time to time, as if to bid us make our-
selves at home. The dinner was soon ready, and, having
devoured it as well as we could, it seemed advisable to re-
tire as soon as possible to rest. A sheet, extended curtain-
wise across the room, separated me from my friend B
and his wife; we bade each other good night, and, having
arranged my bed as well as I could in the valley before al-
luded to, I endeavored to compose myself to slumber.
For some time I could not get settled. Avalanches of
apples poured down from the hills on each side, but at last
their locomotive propensities seemed at an end, and I com-
forted myself with the hope of a good night’s rest. The
lights were put out in both the compartments, and a silence
ensued, which was broken at length by a groan from the
other side of the curtain. I soon knew the cause. In four
or five minutes, I was covered with myriads of fleas, assisted
by other of their allies, who poured in from all quarters.
Sleep became out of the question. I groaned and writhed
in vain; fresh bites followed each contortion, and my vora-
cious tormentors seemed to be making my body one vast
wound. My companions fared no better, and groan answered
groan from either side of the curtain. At length, a despe-
rate contortion of mine disturbed the equilibrium of the apples,
and brought down such a shower upon me as almost to bury
me beneath them.
I could bear it no longer; but, groping my way down the
ruined staircase as well as I could, I joined the Tatar, who,
with our servants, had comfortably established himself in
the lower story. Too feverish to sleep, I availed myself of
the remedy he recommended, namely, two cups of Turkish
coffee, and, lighting my pipe, I smoked on till the break of
day admonished us to mount and away. Thus ended my
first night’s experience of traveling in the interior.
The next morning, we all mounted and rode sleepily along,
still retaining about us the reminiscences of the preceding
night’s encounters. The road lay through part of the forest
we had entered on the previous day, on emerging from which,
we entered a widely-extended plain bordered by low hills.
The flat dullness of the level ground was succeeded by the


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 53
no less wearying ascents and descents of the hill country,
which had not been improved by the rains.
After a ride of nine hours we came in sight of Ladik, a
pretty town situated in a kind of recess at the foot of some
rather lofty hills. We were assigned quarters in the house
of an Armenian baker; where we were certainly free from
the inconveniences of Cazal Kiouy; but our night’s rest was
not improved by the noise which celebrated the commence-
ment of the Ramadan. From the vast number of Seyids or
descendants of the Prophet, who, with their green turbans
ostentatiously displayed, perambulated the streets of Ladik,
I was led to conclude that the innovations of reform had not
yet reached this quiet nook of the ancient Pontus. The
abundance of Seyids seems to indicate, like the multitude of
friars in some Roman Catholic countries, that the established
religion is flourishing in full vigor. The emblems of rela-
tionship to the Prophet of Mecca are more charily displayed
where his system has already lost or is losing its sway over
the public mind.
The noise and shouting which generally precede the com-
mencement of Ramadan in most Turkish towns may seem
a curious forerunner of a fast so rigorously observed, but,
during this penitential season, the night is consecrated to
feasting and rejoicing, while, during the day, the most rigid
mortification prevails. Every night of this month of abase-
ment presents the same singular contrast of boisterous mirth
with mortification that the carnival does, in Roman Catholic
countries, with the penitential rigors of Lent. As soon as
the shouting in the streets had died away, a tribe of howling
dervishes in an adjacent mosque took upon themselves to
continue the reign of noise, and they supported it manfully
till near midnight, when I fell asleep in the midst of the din.
The next morning, most of the faces we met presented
the wan and lugubrious appearance of men who had been
making merry over night. They scowled at us as we rode
along, for to encounter a Christian at the time of a solemn
fast or festival is as unwelcome to a Turk as the flesh of
the unclean beast. Even in Constantinople it is only lately
that Christians deemed it prudent to venture abroad during
these seasons of rampant bigotry and fanaticism.
On leaving Ladik, we continued our route over the hills
for some time, till we met two men armed in a very irregu-
5*


54 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
lar manner, who began to regale us with the tidings that a
large band of robbers was abroad, in consequence of which
they had been placed there by government to escort travelers
as far as the limits of the plain of Amasia. Their protection,
however, was not likely to prove very efficient in case of at-
tack, as one of their muskets wanted a lock, and the other,
from its rusty appearance, seemed likely to do its owner
more injury than any one else. Still, we deemed it advisa-
ble to accept of them as a guard, not knowing whether, in
case of refusal, they might not have thought fit to bring the
robbers upon us. It is generally believed that the authori-
ties in these parts have a secret understanding with the ban-
ditti, and give them intimation of the movements of travelers.
In case they are not to attack the person or caravan, one or
more individuals known to the robbers accompany him or it,
and thus guarantee a safe passage. A similar practice exists
among the Bedouins in some parts. It was not unlikely,
therefore, that our guides might be themselves members of,
or connected with, the band of depredators from whom they
were deputed to guard us. At all events, if there had not
been some mutual good understanding, their number and
their arms were ill qualified to afford us any solid protection.
While on this subject, I may remark that most of these
banditti have been driven to a course of violence and crime
by the grinding tyranny of the government. The heavy
taxation, and the vexatious measures resorted to for its exac-
tion, will often, in a few days, make desolate a whole village,
and compel its inhabitants to take refuge in the neighboring
woods and mountains.
The peasant quits the mud cottage of his fathers with his
wife and children, procures either by craft or plunder some
weapons, and, preserving a tacit good understanding with
his fellow-villagers who remain behind, he employs them as
spies on the movements of travelers. For a time he pursues
a hazardous and wandering life, till he has either secured
enough booty to be able to make his peace with the pasha,
or has rendered himself too obnoxious to be forgiven. In
the latter case, he is often hunted by the savage Albanian
irregulars to his mountain lair, where he meets death reso-
lutely with arms in his hands, or is overpowered and taken
alive, to be reserved for the most exquisite and refined tor-
tures. Writhing in agony on the stake, he not unfrequently


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 55
maintains his courage unbroken to the last, and, maddened
by torture and despair, he invokes with his last breath the
curses of Heaven on the head of his oppressor. I have often,
in the course of a day’s ride, encountered several of these
deserted villages abandoned by the whole of their unfortunate
inhabitants, who had chosen rather to brave the perils and
hardships of a robber’s life than submit to the grinding
tyranny of their governors.
On leaving the hilly region, we entered a widely-extended
plain, bearing the signs of cultivation and abundant fertility.
It is watered by the river called anciently the Iris, and is
bounded on all sides by mountain ranges. At the further
extremity, near the foot of a chain of lofty eminences which
overhang the town, stands the city of Amasia, noted in
history as having been the birthplace of Mithridates and
Strabo. As the traveler makes a slight circuit, he passes
by some low rocks, in which are cut several sepulchral cham-
bers. A lofty eminence, crowned with the ruins of an ancient
castle, rises abruptly in the vicinity of the town. The city
is built on the two banks of the Iris, which are connected by
bridges constructed for the most part from the relics of the
ancient city. Large and luxuriant plantations surround the
town, irrigated by numerous water-mills, which are situated
on the banks of the river. The gilded dome and minarets of
the principal mosque attract the attention, on entering the
city, by the taste and splendor of their decorations; but the
main body of the building differs so little from the ordinary
style of mosques that it scarcely merits particular notice.
The governor had quartered us in a house connected
with the Armenian church, in the lower part of which was a
boy’s school. Presently, the schoolmaster himself came to
pay us a visit. He said that the boys were instructed to
read and write Armenian and Turkish. Their books had
been supplied by the American Presbyterian missionaries at
Constantinople, whom, like many other Orientals, he con-
founded with the English, and supposed them to be repre-
sentatives of the Church of England. I found on inquiry
that the Bible was nearly the only book used in Armenian
schools. Most of the Eastern Christian children learn to read
from it, as the Oriental churches have not the same prejudices
which are entertained by the Romanists against the indis-
criminate use of the Scriptures by the laity.


56 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Few boys at school learn more than the elements of reading
and writing. As soon as they can read correctly, and write
intelligibly, they begin to assist their parents in their trade or
commerce. Those who have a turn for literature study the
liturgies and legends of their church, which are generally
written in ancient Armenian, a dialect bearing the same rela-
tion to the modern tongue as the phraseology of Chaucer to
the English spoken at the present day. The Easterns are
not, as a people, partial to science or literature. Theology
is their great forte, and to this they consider all other branches
of knowledge subordinate. I am very much of their opinion.
In the evening, M. Krug, a Swiss mercantile agent, and
the only European in the town, called upon us. He was
engaged in the collection and exportation of leeches, of which
great numbers are to be found in the small streams, which
branch off from the Iris, as well as in that river itself. With
M. Krug came a young Armenian merchant, who was en-
gaged in the silk trade, a branch of commerce for which
Amasia is famous.
We left Amasia early in the morning, and rode for about
three miles over an uncultivated and undulating tract of
country. At this distance from the town, stands a ruined
edifice, built over a spring of water, which is said to have
been produced by the touch of the body of St. John Chrysos-
tom, deposited on this spot by the bearers who were convey-
ing the corpse to Constantinople from its obscure sepulchre
in Comana, a small town of Pontus.
The road from the spring to the village of Ina Bazaar was
dull and monotonous, surrounded on both sides by desolate
tracts of waste land covered with furze-bushes, and other
wild productions of the desert. The village consisted of a
few mud huts, with a small mosque, and is situated about
eighteen miles to the south of Amasia.
From Ina Bazaar we proceeded to Turkal, a large village,
containing about one thousand five hundred people, built on
the banks of a small rivulet. In the course of the day, we
passed a durbend or temporary barrack, erected for the use
of the irregulars appointed by the pasha to guard the roads.
They were wretchedly clad, and as wretchedly armed. Three
or four of them were grouped round the fire roasting kabob.
This name is given to small pieces of meat, spitted together
on a skewer and roasted. The military cooks, being unpro-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 57
vided with proper skewers, used their ramrods instead. They
were kind enough to cook some for us, which we enjoyed
exceedingly, after our uninteresting and monotonous journey.
The mention of the ramrod reminds me of one of those
capricious acts of brutal cruelty by which the Turkish gover-
nors have been, and still are, disgraced. A pasha of some
note had risen from the humble situation of a cook to the high
station of governor of a province. His excellency was pro-
verbial, after his elevation, for his nice culinary judgment, as
well as for his attachment to the pleasures of the table. One
day the kabob tasted but indifferently. The pasha called
the cook, who, trembling and afraid, appeared meekly before
the great man. -
“Son of a burnt father,” cried his excellency, in a rage,
“what have you been doing to my kabob P’
The cook was all ignorance and innocence. The skewer
on which the meat had been dressed was produced, and ap-
peared to have been slightly charred by the operations of the
preceding day.
“Do you make me eat cinders, O unclean * indignantly
demanded the irate epicure, and, drawing from his pistol the
bright and polished ramrod, he commanded that it should be
made red hot, and thrust through the tongue of the unfortu-
nate cook. Happily for Turkey, instances of this kind of
wanton barbarity are becoming more rare; but we still hear
of acts of savage cruelty, perpetrated without shame and with-
out punishment in the districts removed from the surveillance
of Europe, and the capital.
From Turkal we had a long and tedious ride to the city of
Tocat. This place is distant about sixty miles to the south
of Amasia, and is situated on the banks of the Iris. It is sur-
rounded by gardens and vineyards, and is famed for the flavor
and abundance of its fruit. Indeed, the Pashalic of Sivas may
be considered as one of the most naturally fertile tracts of
Asiatic Turkey; but the tyranny and oppression of man have
done their utmost to check the bounty of nature, and to pre-
vent that bounty from being multiplied by cultivation. Were
the immense regions of untilled soil, now covered with furze
and other useless and unprofitable vegetation, subjected to
the labors of an enterprising, industrious, and free peasantry,
the wild and the waste would soon lose their desolate appear-


58 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
ance, and display the pleasing prospect of an extensive and
well cultivated garden.
I may be mistaken in my judgment, but I have often thought,
while wandering over the once fertile and productive regions
of Asiatic Turkey, that considerable benefit might accrue
from their colonization by emigrants from Europe. We send
annually large bodies of our countrymen to the antipodes,
when a more salubrious climate and a more fruitful soil might
be allotted to them nearer home. In a land where labor is
cheap, and the necessaries of life easily procured, a colony
might at once commence their operations, with equal benefit
to the inhabitants and themselves. Protected by the agents
of European sovereigns from the capricious tyranny of the
Turks, their intercourse with the natives would tend, almost
necessarily, to civilize and to elevate them in the scale of
humanity. The blessings of sound morality and pure religion
would be appreciated and felt by the Christians of the East,
and might be the means of raising from their present degra-
dation the once flourishing and widely-extended Oriental
churches.
The heat is trifling when compared with India and Ceylon,
where many of our countrymen have established themselves
as merchants and planters. The objections of the Turkish
government might be easily overruled by the influence of
European power, and one of the finest portions of the globe,
with its unfortunate inhabitants, rescued from the barbarism
which is annually tending to produce final desolation and
decay. Measures have already been taken, as far as I can
understand, for the colonization of Syria, and the same argu-
ments which prove the propriety and desirableness of such a
step will apply with equal force to the territory of which I
am now writing.
At present the natives of this land, especially the Christ-
ians, look with hope and expectation to the West, and would
gladly hail its sovereigns as their deliverers from a system as
cruel as it is blindly destructive. The satraps of the Sultan,
indifferent to everything but the calls of personal avarice,
blight the hopes and paralyze the endeavors of individual
enterprise, which often receives, as a reward for its exertion,
spoliation and torture, a painful prison, and a dishonored
grave.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 59
CHAPTER VI.
Tocat. Papal Armenians. Greek church. Nuns of St. Basil. Martyn's
grave. Sivas. Scriptural allusion. Legend of the Two Brothers. Mount-
ain scenery. Ulash. Hekim khan. Kabban Maaden. Mezraa. Entry
of a pasha. Province of Diarbekir and its boundaries.
THE Governor of Tocat had assigned us lodgings in the
Episcopal house, or convent of the Papal Armenians. We
were hospitably received by two priests who had been edu-
cated at the Propaganda College in Rome, and spoke tole-
rable Italian. The bishop was absent, making one of his
official visitations, but we experienced no lack of welcome
on this account. We were struck by the air of neatness that
distinguished both the dress and the dwelling of our worthy
hosts, and rendered their habitation so very different from
those of the generality of Oriental Christians. It is certainly
an undeniable fact that those members of the Eastern
churches who have admitted the supremacy of Rome are
much more remarkable, as a body, for cleanliness and intel-
ligence, than their independent brethren. I attribute this,
mainly, to the frequent visits paid by members of their priest-
hood and episcopate to Italy and France, as well as to the
effects of the education received by various young men of
their body in the college of the Propaganda. This inter-
course with Europe, limited as it is, gives the papal Orientals
a great advantage over their co-religionists, who go on flou-
rishing in dirt and ignorance, unchecked and undisturbed
by foreign monitions or interference.
We found at Tocat an Austrian engineer, who was esta-
blishing some copper works, the material for which was fur-
nished by the mines of Arghana Maaden. Tocat is famed
for its copper utensils, of which a large exportation takes
place yearly. An agent for leeches had also taken up his
residence in this town; he was an Austrian by birth, and


60 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
was connected with a company at Trieste, who had several
employés in various parts of Greece and Asia Minor.
The next day after our arrival, we repaired to visit the
Greek church, which was under the custody of some nuns,
of the order of St. Basil; the priest having gone some dis-
tance into the country, to serve another congregation. As
the church was not in use, we asked permission to read our
morning prayers there, which was cheerfully granted. We
each took possession of a stall in the choir, and turning our
faces to the altar, B read, while I made the responses.
A few Greeks, who had been attracted to the spot by curio-
sity, and the novelty, in their eyes, of an English service, re-
mained during our prayers, and conducted themselves with
great reverence and decorum. We felt ourselves once more
among Christian brethren, no small consolation, when wan-
dering in a land where you are perpetually reminded of the
predominance of Islam over Christianity. An acolyte came
forward before we began our prayers, and lighted, with much
ceremony, two large candles, about sixteen inches in circum-
ference, and nearly ten feet in height, that were placed on
two massive brass candlesticks, before the entrance to the
sanctuary.
After prayers, we adjourned to the neighboring house,
where the nuns received us with great kindness. They were
all advanced in years, but wore no veils, nor did they exhi-
bit any signs of shyness or reserve. They talked fluently,
and asked many questions relative to the English Church
and nation, of which they knew only that such a country
existed. They did not seem to prize very highly the celibacy
they professed, for they scolded me for remaining single ;
and asked the reason why I was not married. They gave
us some fruit and Rosolio, of which, however, they did not
partake themselves.
On leaving the Greek church, we proceeded to the Arme-
nian cemetery, accompanied by an Armenian priest, whom
he had encountered on the way. He was the individual who
had performed the last rites of Christian burial over the re-
mains of the devoted missionary, Martyn, who died here, on
his way back to his native land, far from his fellow-country-
men, surrounded by strangers, and exposed to the brutality
of his Tatar, who hurried him on without mercy, from stage
to stage. The poor Armenians, however, did what they


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 61
could ; they tended his dying pillow, and they consigned his
last relics to the dust, accompanied by the solemn, soothing
rites of the Christian service. Their simple veneration for
him outlasted the tomb, and the hands of the Christians of
Tocat weed and tend the grave of the stranger from a dis-
tant isle. The Armenian priest who accompanied us stood
for some moments with his turban off, at the head of the
grave, engaged in prayer. As we turned to go away, he
remarked, “he was a martyr of Jesus Christ; may his soul
rest in peace!” A few wild flowers were growing by the
grave. I plucked one of them, and have regarded it ever
since as the memorial of a martyr’s resting-place.
We left Tocat at about 8 A.M., and pursued our journey
over a rude and mountainous district, abounding in rocky
passes and defiles. At certain distances, the traveler en-
counters rude barracks, situated by the wayside, and termed
durbends, where small bodies of irregular troops are posted,
to guard the roads from the depredations of the Kurds and
other plunderers. As we passed along, we noticed a few
rude stones fixed in the earth, marking out the graves of this
wild and wandering people, who, like the Bedouin Arabs,
rove about the country with their black tents, and spurn any-
thing like a fixed or settled habitation.
The snow began to fall thickly around us, as we journeyed
on, and the roads through which we passed were fast assum-
ing the hue of the lofty mountain summits which surround-
ed us on every side. We were now approaching the high
table land in the vicinity of Sivas, and the cold became more
and more piercing, notwithstanding our thick capotes and
heavy boots.
We passed the night at Ghir Khan, about twenty-seven
miles from Tocat, a comparatively short distance, but it oc-
cupied nearly nine hours, as we marched at caravan pace,
which rarely exceeds three miles an hour. On the morn-
ing, we started at half-past six A. M. for Sivas, which we
reached in about eight hours. As we drew near the town,
the cold increased in rigor, and some of our first purchases
were several pairs of thick woolen gloves, of which the in-
habitants manufacture large quantities.
Sivas, the ancient Sebaste, is situated at a small distance
from the range of mountains known in Europe by the name
of Anti-Taurus. The cold and chilling blasts from their
6 a


62 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
summits render its winters almost as rigorous as those of
France or Germany. Snow and ice are by no means uncom-
mon, and the nights, even in summer, present a freezing
contrast to the heat of the days. Frequently, indeed, have I
been reminded, while traveling in these regions, of the seem-
ing contradictory assertion of the patriarch, in Genesis xxxi.
40: “In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by
night.”
The modern Sebaste is not celebrated for its cleanliness, as
it is one of the most filthy towns I ever passed through : nor
does it possess any edifice worth noticing. Its only advantage
seems to be a fine view of the neighboring mountains, which
range along to the north-east and south-west of the city.
Finding, therefore, little to interest us in the place itself, we
employed our leisure in arming ourselves for the passage of
the Taurus, on the ensuing day, with all kinds of woolen
defences against the cold.
At 8 A. M., we left Sivas, and began the gradual ascent of
the hills we had been contemplating yesterday. As we ad-
vanced, the cold grew more intense: but, being well fortified
against it, I rather enjoyed its bracing effects. Perhaps
nothing could be more comfortable or even luxurious than
the thick and well-lined hood of the capote, which, drawn
over my head, and arranged something like a friar's cowl,
enabled me to bid defiance to the icy breeze. My legs were
enveloped in long woolen hose, which, although comfortable
in the extreme, must have made one resemble externally one
of those straw-stuffed effigies of Guy Fawkes which are, or
rather were, the delight of London boys on the fifth of Novem-
ber. A flask of cold rakee and water hangs at my saddle-
bow, and the fumes of my chibouque are curling gracefully
above in the frosty air. I grow indifferent to the blast as it
howls by, and gird up my loins cheerfully, to encounter the
rigors of the Taurus.
About seven miles from Sivas is a double passage in the
mountains, which is known by the name of the Two Brothers.
The two paths are divided from each other by a ledge of rock
which effectually prevents the persons who choose the one
from observing those who pass through the other. The legend
to which the appellation refers is, to the best of my recollec-
tion, as follows:—
Once there dwelt at Constantinople a merchant of great


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 63
wealth, who had an only brother, also engaged in commerce,
at the same time, at Baghdad. And it came to pass that
they made a covenant with each other that, in order to keep
alive their fraternal affection, they would visit one another on
alternate years at their several places of abode. This prac-
tice they continued for a long time; and the khans of Con-
stantinople and Baghdad were loud in their praises of the love
and mutual tenderness of the two brothers. But it happened
that a tyrannical vizier occupied the chief seat on the diwan
at that time, and he hated the Constantinople merchant for his
probity, and he envied him for his riches: so the result was
that one day he threw him into prison, and would fain have
strangled or beheaded him if he had not been prevented. The
aga of the Janizaries, however, had long been a friend, and
was originally a protégé of the good merchant. He had seen
with indignation the arrest of his patron, and having sundry
other causes of complaint against the unjust vizier, he stirred
up his troops to demand the head of the unpopular minister.
While these measures were in progress, the unfortunate
merchant remained in his prison, with the inevitable prospect
of death before his eyes. Calling to him one of his friends, he
said, mournfully, “Oh, my brother! God is great, from Him
we come, and unto Him we return. This unclean fellow of
a vizier seeks my riches; and for the sake of them will not
hesitate to take my head. Praise be to God, I am not un-
willing to die: but there is one thing which disturbs me. It
is now the time for my brother's visit, and he will soon be
leaving Baghdad. Do thou, therefore, hasten to him, and
acquaint him with what has befallen me, that he may spare
the journey, and not expose himself to the peril of falling
into the hands of the vizier.”
When the merchant had said these words, his friend wept
sore; and promised, by the All-Merciful, that he would per-
form his request.
“Then,” said the merchant, “go to my stables, and take
from thence the fleetest of my Arab mares, and tarry neither
day nor night until thou reach Baghdad, the city of peace.”
His friend answered, “There is no trust save in God, the
Merciful and Gracious;” and he took from the stables an
Arab mare of great price, and he hasted on his way, till, on
the fourteenth day, he discerned the minarets of Baghdad.
Then he entered into the house of the merchant’s brother,


64 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
and saluted him, and he told him the tidings of which he was
the bearer. The merchant’s brother smote his face, and rent
his clothes; and he exclaimed, “Oh God, the Merciful
One!” Moreover, he remained that day absorbed in grief.
But it came to pass that, on the morrow, he said, “If it please
God, I will arise and go to Constantinople; and it may be
that I shall see my brother before Azrael summons him
away.”
Then he made himself ready, and set forth, the messenger
also going with him. But in the mean time the aga of the
Janizaries had incited his men to rebel, they attacked the
palace, with loud cries, and the vizier was delivered unto
them, and they cut off his head; while, by the interest of the
aga, the merchant was appointed in his room. Then the
merchant remembered the message which he had sent to his
brother; and he besought the Sultan to suffer him to go to
Baghdad to see and comfort him, for he feared that the
tidings would greatly have distressed him. And the Sultan
said unto him, “Go.” So he took ten slaves with him, and
departed.
Now it happened that both the brothers arrived at the op-
posite entrances of the pass at the same time, but they each
took a different path, and thus missed each other; so the mer-
chant of Constantinople went on to Baghdad, and his bro-
ther to Constantinople, where he was greatly overjoyed to
hear what had occurred, and determined on returning to meet
his brother half-way. But, as he was obliged to perform part
of the journey by sea, he was delayed longer than he ex-
pected, and he arrived at the pass just as his brother reached
it; but this time they took the same road, and they met half-
way and embraced each other, and the Baghdad merchant
accompanied his brother to Constantinople, where he was
loaded with wealth and honors, and died at a good old age,
leaving a numerous family to perpetuate his name, and
inherit his gains. Thus ends the legend of the Two Brothers,
which, although I cannot vouch for its authenticity, seems
too romantic and interesting not to find a place in these pages.
On leaving the pass, the road began to descend until we
reached a level valley, occupying the intervening space be-
tween the high ground which we had left, and another range
of lofty mountains that rose before us in majestic splendor,
their towering crests covered with snow. As we passed


NOTES FROM NINEVETI. 65
along, we observed a salt spring, from which great quantities
of that mineral were extracted during the summer season by
the process of evaporation. The valley we rode through was
desolate and void of cultivation, and it was with no small
gratification that I found myself once more ascending towards
the mountain region. Here everything presented images of
the most sublime character. The sun’s rays lit up the whole,
and cast into strong relief the lofty peaks of the mountain
giants, each rearing his snowy crest resembling the plumed
casque of some ancient Titan, and exulting in his strength.
Dark ravines yawned at our side, and disclosed masses of
vegetation at the bottom of their profound abysses, while here
and there a rivulet fell with gentle murmurs from rock to
rock, and finally precipitated itself with a loud roar into some
basin, prepared by nature’s hand to receive it down below.
Our roads were filled with large fragments of rock, which
had from time to time been detached from the surrounding
mountains, and the horses toiled slowly and painfully up the
ascent. After a journey of six hours, we reached Ulash, a
small collection of huts, where we found wretched accommo-
dations.
From Ulash we pursued our route through a barren and
mountainous region, now ascending and then again descend-
ing; now among the lofty peaks and table-lands of the
Taurus, and now crossing some valley which looked the very
picture of desolation. Our progress was slow, as we wished
to keep with our baggage, which could not follow very
rapidly up the steep and stony paths. Our night accommo-
dations at the several villages of Delikli Tash, Kaugul, and
Alajah Khan, were miserable in the extreme, and we were
often obliged to share the mud room allotted to us, with our
baggage horses and mules. In the latter villages, we found
the dwellings almost subterranean, the lower part of each
abode resting some feet below the surface of the earth; others
were mere caves, hollowed in the side of a small mound or
eminence. In these semi-subterranean houses, the tops of
which emerged like so many ant-hills from the level of the
ground, the unfortunate peasants burrowed like moles, the
light glimmering through a small aperture in the roof.
The fourth day after our departure from Sivas, we reached
Hekim Khan, a village composed of huts constructed on the
principle which I have wºuld to. One half of the


66 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
villagers were Christians of the Armenian church, and shortly
after our arrival, we received a visit from their priest, who
had brought a few coins to dispose of . His dress and gene-
ral appearance betokened the most abject poverty, and he
told us a sad tale of the oppression under which his people
groaned. Time after time they had seen their little church
plundered and desecrated by the infidel, their wives dis-
honored, and their children carried away captive into a dis-
tant land. Yet still they continued to linger among the
scenes endeared to them by the associations of childhood,
and to maintain faithfully and unflinchingly the creed of
their fathers.
At our request, the poor priest led the way to his little
church. Its exterior was as plain and unassuming as any
of the mud cabins by which it was surrounded. A descent
of a few steps led to a door almost below the surface of the
street, under whose low portal we crept, rather than walked,
into the church. The interior was almost as mean as the
wretched apartment we had just quitted. The walls were
of mud, and a close and earthly odor seemed struggling with
the sweet savor of the incense which had accompanied the
celebration of the eucharist on the previous day. Four rude
pillars of pine, which age or polish had rendered quite red,
supported the mud roof, while a kind of cupboard formed of
deal boards constituted the altar. A pair of curtains of dirty
red cotton, begrimed with smoke and dirt, served in place of
the stone or wooden screen, which, in all oriental churches,
divides the sanctuary from the choir. Above the altar was a
painting of the Virgin and child of no mean execution, which
the ruthless spoliators had left untouched. To the left was
the portrait of a bishop, and to the right that of a martyr of
the Armenian church. In a recess at the side, were two
worm-eaten boxes, containing the tattered remains of the
liturgies and service books.
The poor Christians crowded round us with interest as we
examined their little church and its contents. In their sim-
plicity, they begged of us to represent their wretched state,
and the oppressions which they suffered, to the Queen of
England, and to their brethren in our own free and happy
land. , Poor people, they little knew that the days of the
Crusaders had past, and that Christian princes, from motives


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 67
of state policy, had become the friends and allies of their
persecutors.
The priest, like the rest of his flock, supported himself by
the work of his hands. His condition, and the aspect of his
simple church, brought to my mind the recollection of primi-
tive times, when the early believers hid themselves and prac-
ticed their sacred rites in the caves and dens of the earth,
while their priests and even bishops labored with their own
hands, that they might not be chargeable to their poor and
oppressed flocks. The worthy man was almost overpowered
with joy when we poured into his rude and horny palm a
sum which must have seemed almost inexhaustible to him,
in exchange for a few coins which he had brought us for sale.
He and others asked us for some Armenian books, but we
had none to give. An American missionary who had passed
that way a short time before our arrival had left some books
and tracts in vulgar Armenian for the use of the villagers,
which had been carefully laid by in the church chest.
At 4 A.M., we left Hekim Khan. After riding for about
an hour in darkness, we came to a steep and almost perpen-
dicular mountain, resembling in shape the cone of a sugar-
loaf, to which is affixed the title of the camel’s back, because
its summit has been assimilated to the hump of that animal.
The path was dangerous, or would have been to any animal
but a Turkish post horse; however, we got over it safely, and
soon descended into an extensive plain, called the Sultan’s
Pasture Ground. It is said that Murad encamped here when
on his way to besiege Baghdad.* We still continued gra-
dually descending, until our road lay for some miles over a
narrow plain surrounded on all sides with hills, beyond
which the snow-capped summits of lofty mountains were
discernible.
We passed the night in a mud hut, and arrived the next
* The Sultan Murad IV. was one of the most successful of the princes of
the Ottoman line. At an early age, he succeeded Mustapha I., his uncle, who
had been deposed by the Janizaries in 1622. Having concluded a peace
with the Emperor Ferdinand II., he resolved to turn his arms against Persia.
He began the war by laying siege to Baghdad, which was then garrisoned by
Persian troops. He was at first obliged to retire; but in 1637 he again took
the field, stormed Baghdad, and disgraced his reputation by the cruel massa-
cre of the greater part of the inhabitants. In 1639, he returned to Constan-
tinople, and made peace with Persia, which event he did not long survive,
as a fit of prolonged debauchery soon afterwards put an end to his life.


68 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
day at Kabban Maaden, where, for the first time, we saw the
Euphrates, here a comparatively narrow stream flowing be-
tween two opposite ranges of rock. We had, during the
two previous days, forded several of its tributary streams,
which are known by different appellations; but it was with
no small interest that we found ourselves on the banks of a
river so noted for its historical and scriptural associations.
The width of the Euphrates at Kabban Maaden scarcely
equals that of the Thames at Twickenham ; its current was
rapid, and its channel was said to be much deeper here than
it is nearer the sea.
Kabban Maaden is famous for its silver mines, the work-
ing of which is superintended by Europeans. About two
hundred Greeks are employed in the works, and those of
them with whom we conversed seemed satisfied with their
employment and treatment. The silver ore is found to be
largely mixed with lead, from which it is separated in a fur-
nace, worked only at night by the Greeks.
Leaving Kabban Maaden, we proceeded to Pelté, about
twenty miles distant from the former, a miserable collection
of mud huts, inhabited by most inhospitable Moslems, who
would scarcely afford us the shelter of a roof. However, our
Tatar's influence was successful in procuring us a place
wherein to pass the night.
The next morning, we gladly quitted our churlish hosts,
aud after three hours’ ride reached Mezraa, a town of some
size, where we put up at the post house, a commodious and
comfortable building, commanding a good view of the road
and of the town. Seated on our carpets, we enjoyed the
luxury of a bowl of Leben (sour milk), and procured, for a
trifle, some delicious grapes, as they are produced in great
abundance by the vines surrounding the town. The heavy
clusters which loaded our leaden tray recalled to mind the
grapes of Eshcol, which the spies brought to the children of
Israel as the first fruits of the Promised Land.
As I was quietly inhaling my chibouque in the wooden
balcony outside the chief apartment, the sound of drums
and trumpets disturbed my half-sleepy reverie; and the Ta-
tar came to announce that the Pasha of Kharpoot, who had
been newly appointed, and whose usual official residence
was at Mezraa, was now entering the town. I hurried to
the window commanding the best view of the cavalcade,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 69
which was as striking and as gay as eastern pomp could
make it. Horse-tail standards were mingled with banners of
green silk, inscribed with sentences from the Koran ; Kurd-
ish chiefs, distinguished by their gaudy turbans and wide
pantaloons, decorated with gold or silver embroidery, min-
gled with the troops of mounted officials, clad in the un-
graceful uniform of Europe. Spears glittered, spurs jingled,
and the band of the pasha performed military music with
some correctness and skill.
The cadi and mufti were there to offer the homage and
recognition of law and religion to the representative of the
sovereign ; and those who did not know the truth might
imagine that there was some sincerity in the acclamations
with which the new governor was welcomed. And yet op-
pression had been at work to furnish all this splendor. Every
town or village through which the procession passed had
been compelled to supply provisions and forage gratis for the
pasha and his hungry followers, who doubtless exacted four-
fold more than their instructions bade them, and insulted
and perhaps injured severely the poor peasants whom they
stripped of their all. And, as I thought on this, and more
than this, on wives and daughters torn away to languish in
the harem of a tyrant, or abandoned, perhaps, to glut the
brutality of his followers; as I pondered over old age, beaten
and degraded, honesty plundered of its lawful gains, and
numberless victims driven forth from their childhood’s homes
to wander, like outcasts, on the mountains, till they termi-
nated their career by a cruel and agonizing death, I felt deep
inward satisfaction, and heartfelt gratitude to the Almighty,
that I was not a Turkish pasha.
We had entered near Kabban Maaden, the Pachalic of
Diarbekir, which occupies the northern extremity of the an-
cient land of Naharaim, the Mesopotamia of the Greeks. It
contains the cities of Diarbekir, and Urfah, better known in
history as Amida and Edessa. Continuing its natural
boundary towards the east, by the mountain chain, which
descends almost in a curve from Mardin to Sinjar, we may
define, with tolerable accuracy, the general extent of the
Roman dominion to the eastward. Occasional enterprises,
indeed, may have led the masters cf the Western world as
far as the banks of the Tigris, and the regions southward of
Mosul ; but their actual territory can hardly have extended


70 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
beyond the mountains of Singara. To the westward of
these natural fortifications they possessed cities of no incon-
siderable strength and size, and we read, almost with sur-
prise, that the border town of Nisibis was able to repel, in
later times, three successive assaults made by the whole force
of the Persian monarchy, under one of its most warlike sove-
reigns. With the loss of that city, and the infringements of
their natural frontier, began the decline of Roman power in
the extreme east, a decline which was consummated by the
conquests of the successors of Mohammed, aided, or at least
unopposed, by the Christians of the Nestorian and Jacobite
communities, whose affections the Greeks of the Lower Em-
pire had persisted in alienating by a series of insults and
persecutions.
After leaving Kabban Maaden, we seem to have done with
the Greek Church. Except at Diarbekir, where their num-
bers are few, the followers of the imperial creed, called from
that circumstance Melkites or King’s men, have left no traces
of their rites in Mesopotamia. The Jacobites and the Nes-
torians, with here or there a few Armenians, who are, how-
ever, only sojourners, and not originally natives of the
country, seem to divide between them the land of the two
rivers. The rough and guttural tones of the Chaldee or
Syrian ritual succeed to the polished accents and winning
melody of the Greek. Perhaps the same difference may
have been observable in ancient days. The Hellenic bore
partial sway at Amida and Nisibis: but it was not the idiom
of the country. Even St. Ephraim, though educated at
Edessa, was little versed in Greek. The natives of Meso-
potamia maintained manfully their own languages, and
resisted the fascinations of that musical dialect which had
subdued by its charms other and remoter nations.


NOTES FROM NINEWEH. 71
CHAPTER VII.
Anti-Taurus. Argana Maaden. Armenian house. Black tents of Bektash
Aga. Arrival of Osman Pasha. Chimbel bam. Diarbekir. A disap-
pointment. Deacons of the Syrian church. SS. Cosmas and Damianus.
Reputed miraculous oil. Progress of the Roman see in the East. French
policy. Syrian church and pictures.
WE had hitherto been wandering among the wild scenery
of the Taurus, but we were to make our last essay of it on
leaving Mezraa. From the day that we left Sivas, mountains
and rocks had been our constant companions; and our fare-
well of them was accompanied by circumstances which
tended to awaken our regret at parting. We left Mezraa
before daybreak, and were hardly clear of the town before
we began ascending. The lower ranges of rocky hills were
soon passed; but at the foot of the higher and steeper mount-
ains, we paused for a quarter of an hour to take breath and
breakfast.
Refreshed by this halt, we recommenced our ascent; and
for some time the dull and barren surface of the mountain
side formed our only prospect though it was somewhat en-
livened by the faint gleams of light which illumined the
summit, and gave promise of coming day. But if our toils
in ascending had been fatiguing and disappointing, the view
which burst upon us as we gained the crest of the mountain
was so magnificent that it amply repaid all our past incon-
veniences. Imbedded as it were in a circle of rocks, and
surrounded, on every side, by lofty peaks covered with snow,
was a lake of water, about a quarter of a mile in length,
whose still and placid surface seemed unagitated even by
the morning breeze. The sun was just rising, behind the
lofty heights that formed the background of the picture,
throwing their pure white summits into strong relief by the
effulgence with which his coming had overspread the sky
beyond them. As he mounted still higher in the heavens, a


72 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
gentle and reflected light seemed to play upon the lake, and
gradually develop the gentle rippling of its silvery waters, as
they felt the sway of the morning air. We all yielded our-
selves to the influence of the scene, and for some time re-
mained stationary, gazing at the beautiful lake, and the strange
fantastic shapes of the rocks by which it was surrounded.
As we pursued our route, the path became narrow and
dangerous. Our horses’ steps were but a few inches from
the brink of the precipitous gulf which opened at our side,
forming, in its deep and secluded bosom, a valley covered
with vegetation, through the midst of which a mountain
stream was quietly gliding. We continued our journey
for some hours along the sides of lofty mountains surrounded
by the most glorious mountain scenery imaginable. The
sides of the eminences were generally bare, as great quanti-
ties of wood are annually collected for the use of the mines at
Argana Maaden, to which place we were looking somewhat
anxiously forward as the termination of our day's march.
We came upon it rather more suddenly than we expected.
Winding round a mountain side, we turned a species of pro-
jection, and beheld before us an extensive gorge, near the
centre of which was the town of Argana Maaden. It seemed
almost buried by the hills that surrounded it, and nothing
could convey a more perfect image of seclusion from the
world than this collection of houses shut in on all sides by
lofty mountains, whose towering peaks appeared to bar even
the light of heaven from ingress. Our descent was slow and
tiresome, owing to the winding nature of the path. With
Argana Maaden in constant view we never seemed to have
advanced one step nearer; and when we flattered ourselves
with the hope that our conductor was about to take a direct
course, we found ourselves balked by some unexpected turn
which led us still further about.
But even circuitous roads must have an end, and we were
at length comfortably housed in the comfortable habitation of
an Armenian merchant, connected with the mines. It seems
strange enough for a European to write thus coolly of a pro-
cess of appropriation, which, however customary in the East,
is not exactly accordant with English tastes. Imagine a
stranger newly arrived in London quartered on Mr. Roths-
child, or Mr. Baring, usurping his best rooms, occupying his
choicest beds, and sending his servants into his cuisine to


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 73
direct culinary matters. Yet in Turkish travel, it is a thing
of everyday occurrence, and no Christian at least, however
respectable for his wealth and character, can relieve himself
from the liability of having his house invaded, and his do-
mestic arrangements disturbed, by the first traveling Frank
who requires a lodging, and has influence enough to secure
One.
We are now occupying the state apartment of the Arme-
nian merchant’s house. It is a long narrow room lined with
divans, raised about a foot from the floor, and amply furnished
with soft cushions. Various silken curtains conceal from
view recesses fitted up with shelves, on which are deposited
mattresses stuffed with wool, sufficient in number to accom-
modate twenty or thirty people. Our host sends us a smoking
pillaw from his own table, and treats us with a polite hospi-
tality which, I am sure, we have not deserved. I may be
told that he is obliged to receive us—granted, but his kind
and courteous deportment was not part of the bond. He
might have been surly and ill-tempered, had he so chosen it.
The mines of Argana Maaden produce annually great
quantities of copper, which is sent on to Tocat to undergo
a refining and purifying process. The mines are under the
control of a company of native merchants, who farm the
revenues derived from them. A colony of Greeks have been
imported here, as they are considered the best workmen in
these parts. They are far superior to Armenians and Syrians
in intelligence, quickness, and ingenuity. The Armenian is
a heavy animal, and the Syrian is indolent, and by no means
friendly to exertion. The poor Kurds are the Gibeonites of
the Argana Maaden community, and supply them with fuel,
for which they get poorly paid.
We left Argana Maaden at 6 A.M., and, four miles dis-
tant from the mines, we crossed a tributary stream of the
Tigris, not far from its source. That river takes its rise
among the mountains which we had just passed. Its sources
are seven in number, which are all founded between Argana
Maaden and Mush, and unite themselves into one stream not
far from the city of Sert, in the eastern part of the Pashalic
of Diarbekir.
The descent of the Taurus was difficult and tedious, and
we arrived at Argana, wearied and spiritless. The journey
of a few miles had occupied nearly four hours, and our
7


74 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
quarters at the latter town were not so comfortable as at the
former; but I consoled myself with a chibouque and the
never-failing Eastern aphorism of Allah Kerim. There is
something depressing in the transition from the wild and
magnificent scenery of the mountains to the dead level of a
flat and uninteresting plain, where you can see nothing before
you for miles but the same unchanging prospect. The grass
around us had become completely parched by the sun, whose
rays descended on our heads with painful vehemence as we
rode along. -
Two irregulars had been dispatched with us from Argana
Maaden, whose equipments were, as usual, far from satis-
factory. The firelock of one was interesting, doubtless, as
a relic of antiquity, and would have formed no mean figure
in a museum; but its fighting days were clearly over, and its
venerable barrel was deeply encrusted with rust. The other
irregular carried an ancient scimitar suspended by a piece of
cord over his shoulder. The blade and point of his trusty
weapon protruded for several inches from the dilapidated
scabbard, which seemed to adhere to its companion with a
tenacity that rendered perfectly hopeless all ideas of separa-
tion. These valiant men-at-arms resembled in their apparel
that celebrated company with which Sir John Falstaff de-
clared so stoutly he would not march through Coventry.
However, they guarded us in safety to the black tents of
Bektash Aga.
We were received courteously at this Kurdish encamp-
ment, which was situated about midway between Argana
and Diarbekir, on the vast plain bounded on the west by the
Euphrates, and on the east by the branch of the Tigris which
we had forded on the preceding day.
A large tent was assigned us, divided by a slight screen
from the habitation of several rather noisy fowls, who proved
finally very troublesome neighbors, as they contrived by some
means or other to open a communication with us, and we
were rather disagreeably surprised by the entry of two or
three members of the feathered family in the course of the
evening, who, in performing their evolutions round the tent,
generally contrived to extinguish our light.
The Kurds had kindled fires on the heath before their tents,
and were busily engaged in preparing the evening meal,
when an interruption occurred of no very pleasant nature.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 75
Distant notes of warlike melody came floating on the evening
breeze, and soon the outlines of a body of horsemen could
be traced wending their way towards the encampment. The
chief, doubtless, thought of his anticipated dinner, and de-
sponded. The contents of the great caldron, that had been
latterly simmering away with such spirit in front of the great
tent, must all go to the coming aga and his hungry train.
Nearer and nearer sound the horses’ steps, the moon breaks
forth from behind a cloud, and discovers a gallant band ad-
vancing with a portly figure at their head, whose uniform
betokens that he has held, or is still holding, the rank of a
pasha. Presently the whole encampment is in an uproar.
The poor dinnerless Kurds fly hither and thither to procure
forage and refreshment for man and beast; the aga himself,
with low and reverential demeanor, holds the stirrup, and
assists the great man to dismount, and we learn, after the
guests have become somewhat settled in their new quarters,
that the late arrival is entitled Osman Pasha, and that he
comes from Baghdad to salute the Pasha of Kharpoot, whose
triumphal entry into Mezraa we had already witnessed.
On hearing that two Europeans had arrived at the encamp-
ment, the pasha condescended to invite us to dinner, an invi-
tation which only my companion accepted, as I had already
eaten, and felt more disposed to sleep: he returned in about
two hours, well satisfied with his entertainment; but his en-
trance woke me, and I was not destined again to taste the
sweets of slumber. The pasha and his attendants seemed
inclined to prolong their revelry, and the sounds of uproar-
ious mirth scared away sleep from my eyes; I lay tossing
about on my mattress in vain. At length, they broke out with
a song, the burden of which, as far as I can recollect, was
“Chimbel bam, chimbel bam.” It seemed very comic, for
shouts of laughter hailed each refrain, “Chimbel bam, chim-
bel bam.” I closed my ears in desperation, but the sound
would creep in; even when the singer was silent, and the
noise gradually died away, the echo of that strain rang in my
hearing still. As I dozed offin uneasy slumbers, “Chimbel
bam” seemed present with me. It appeared almost to change
from a sound to a form, and to bestride me like a nightmare.
I could not account for it then, I can hardly do so now; but
the first words I caught myself repeating on the morrow were
“Chimbel bam.”


76 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
The Kurds of Bektash Aga had formerly been robbers, and
their chief had only lately sent in his adhesion to the govern-
ment. Perhaps this circumstance led him to treat his visitor
from Baghdad with such marked respect. He performed for
him the offices of a menial, held his horse, and served him at
dinner with the assiduity of a humble dependent. A few
months may see a quarrel arise between the Pasha of Diar-
bekir and his feudatories, Bektash Aga and his tribe will once
more become robbers, and woe betide Osman Pasha if he falls
into their hands; they will make him bring sticks to boil their
caldron, and that fine French watch, which he displayed
with so much ostentation before dinner, will soon find its way
into the custody of the Jews.
Osman Pasha and his train have taken their departure, and
we purpose to pursue our journey in the opposite direction.
The road lies through a flat uncultivated plain, varied now
and then by slight undulations. Barrenness and desolation
are around us, and we ride along, each with his head en-
veloped in the cowl of his capote, till aroused by the an-
nouncement that Diarbekir is in sight; we lift up our eyes,
and perceive a well-fortified town, with walls built of black
stone, and well garnished with formidable towers. This is
the ancient Amida, or Amid, called also Kara, or Black Amid,
from the color of its walls. It was one of the most opulent
and populous of the Mesopotamian cities during the time of
Constantine and his successors, though it suffered severely
from the invasions of the Persians. Abulfeda characterizes
it as an ancient city of the province of Diarbekir, situated on
the western bank of the Tigris, abounding in trees and shrubs.
Another writer tells us that it is a splendid city, possessing a
magnificent citadel, and great store of provisions, surrounded
by walls of immense strength constructed of black stones,
over which neither iron nor fire has any power.
The appearance of the place from the outside seemed to
justify and support the descriptions which I have just quoted.
The compactness and solidity of the walls presented a strik-
ing contrast to the mean and dilapidated fortifications of other
towns that we had passed, and the state of the towers and
gates seemed to lead us to expect that we should find the
interior less squalid and filthy than the interiors of Eastern
cities usually are ; but the anticipations we had formed, as
we contemplated the well-built walls and bulwarks, were


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 77
speedily dissipated, as we entered the narrow streets, and
inhaled the abominable odors which proceeded from them.
Nearly half of the houses were in ruins, the thoroughfares
seemed deserted, and a few wretched, half-naked outcasts
were contending with each other for the possession of a few
melon rinds covered with filth, which a passer-by had cast
carelessly away.
They scarcely heeded us as we rode past, and we shud-
dered with surprise and disgust, as we marked their gaunt
features, bodies attenuated by famine, and the wild looks in
which the pain of physical suffering was fearfully mingled
with the semi-madness of despair.
We were assigned lodgings in the house of a Syrian Catho-
lic, and, after a brief interval of rest and refreshment, we
sallied forth to pay a visit to a Syrian deacon, for whom my
companion had received letters from a bishop of that com-
munion at Constantinople.
We found this gentleman seated in the court of his house
in company with the ex-bishop of Kharpoot, Mar Georgios,
who was then making a short stay at Diarbekir. The bishop
was a good-looking man, of middle stature, clothed in the dark
robes of his order, and possessing a countenance less dignified
than good-natured. The deacon was a man of about forty
years of age, clad in the usual costume of merchants and
tradesmen. As the wakeel, or agent of the patriarch, he
possessed great influence over the Jacobite Syrians of Diar-
bekir ; the more so, perhaps, because no bishop was ap-
pointed to it, it having been considered from early times as
part of the diocese of the patriarch himself.
The office of deacon in the Greek, Roman, and English
churches has commonly been considered as an ecclesiastical
grade preparatory to the priesthood, and possessing the least
possible amount of authority or influence; those who hold it
are generally persons who have devoted themselves entirely
to the ministerial office, and have totally separated themselves
from every secular pursuit. But the diaconate of the Syrian
Jacobites has assumed a widely different character, inasmuch
as its members are usually engaged in traffic, and possess a
greater amount of wealth and influence than the priests or
bishops, their ecclesiastical superiors. The number of dea-
cons attached to each church is very considerable, sometimes
exceeding thirty; and it is difficult to meet a respectable or
7+


78 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
well-educated Syrian who has not been advanced to this
primary grade among the church’s officers. Few compara-
tively enter the priestly office, as their canons require, like
our own, a total renunciation of worldly pursuits. From the
peculiar character of the Syrian diaconate, it generally fol-
lows that its members are among the most able and respecta-
ble of their community. Their connection with the church
induces them to study its theology and its history, while their
commerce obliges them to mix with the world, to travel, and
to observe, and thus generates habits of greater activity, and
opinions of more practical utility than those possessed by their
bishops and priests, who are drawn chiefly from the seclusion
and inexperience of the cloister to discharge their serious and
important duties.
Theology is the grand theme of Oriental discourse, and
both the bishop and the deacon were anxious to understand
the nature, rites, and doctrines of the English Church. Like
most of the Oriental Christians, they seemed scarcely to be
aware of our belief in the Gospel, and were disposed to con-
found us with the American Presbyterians, whose missionary
had lately passed through the town. Of the doctrines of the
latter they had gathered a confused notion from the tracts
which had at various times been distributed, translated into
Arabic and other languages; but they seemed to view the
dogmas of Calvinism with no great favor.
At their request, we consented to take luncheon with them
on the morrow, to meet some of the most wealthy and influ-
ential laymen of the Syrian community; we then strolled
through the town, which we found did not improve upon ac-
quaintance, and directed our footsteps to the Greek church.
It was a small but not inelegant structure, circular in form
and surmounted by a dome. The screen was furnished with
the usual quota of gaudy and ill-executed paintings, and the
church was dirty and badly ventilated. We found here the
sepulchres of SS. Cosmas and Damianus, whose names are
well known to the ecclesiastical antiquary, from their fre-
quent recurrence in the earlier liturgies, and particularly in
the canon of the Roman mass.
They were, says the legend, two Christian brothers, who
lived in the reign of the Emperor Diocletian. Educated in
the strictest principles of piety by their devout mother, Theo-
dora, they were remarkable even at an early age for their


* NOTES FROM NINEVEII. 79
numerous acts of charity and benevolence. Taking a literal
view of the precepts of Christ, they disposed of all their pro-
perty and distributed the produce among the poor. That
they might be more useful, they studied medicine, that they
might minister to the afflictions of the sick and suffering.
By persevering diligence they acquired an almost super-
human knowledge of the art of healing, which they used
only for the benefit of their fellow-creatures, utterly refusing
all recompense for their skill. Their virtues attracted many
to Christianity, and marked them as a prey to its enemies.
During the persecution which Diocletian and Maximian ex-
cited against the church, the two brethren were apprehended
and dragged before the proconsul, who offered to their choice
the dreadful alternative of death or apostacy; as may well
be imagined, they cheerfully chose the former, and sentence
having been pronounced, they were beheaded in the presence
of a vast multitude, confirming, by the constancy with which
they suffered, the truth of that faith which the charity and
devotion of their lives had so nobly illustrated.
A marble slab covers the bodies of the saints, bearing on
its surface a plain cross in bas-relief. There was a kind of
aperture near the edge of the tomb, through which it is said
a miraculous oil oozes forth on the festival of the saints.
This oil, which is supposed to issue from the bodies within,
is highly esteemed as a remedy for all kinds of sickness; it
is collected in bottles, and disposed of to the Greeks of the
province, who have full faith in its virtue.
The priest told us that his congregation was now reduced
to ten or twelve, as the great majority had joined the Greek
Catholics, or members of the Greek Church in communion
with Rome; the seceders were gaining ground every day,
and had a bishop just appointed over them.
The progress which the Church of Rome is making, in
winning over the members of the Oriental churches to ac-
knowledge her supremacy, and to submit to her jurisdiction,
will affect different minds in various ways. By the devout
adherent of the See of Rome it will be regarded as the tri-
umph of truth over error and heresy; while those who deem
the pretensions of that see alike opposed to reason and
Scripture will feel sorrow that the long maintained independ-
ence of the Orientals is slowly, but surely, yielding to usurp-
ation. Yet, whatever effect it may produce on his mind,
*


80 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
no candid observer of the course of events can, for an
instant, deny that the Roman interest is gaining rapidly in
these parts, and that, ere long, as far as human foresight can
foretell the future, the pontiff of the seven-hilled city will
add the patriarchs and bishops of the East to the long list of
his tributaries.
But there are circumstances mixed up with these triumphs
of Romanism which may excite the attention of the states-
man, as well as the consideration of the divine. The See
of Rome is not single-handed in the conflict; she is aided
and sustained by the political power of France. Every
French official is more or less, as far as a layman can be, a
missionary of the Roman See. The missions are everywhere
considered as enjoying French protection. Do they embroil
themselves with the government? The French consul steps
forward as their champion. Are they engaged in litigation
with a rival sect? French influence is thrown into the scale.
Nor is this line of conduct on the part of France a noyelty
or accident; it dates from the days of Louis XIV., and has
been pursued with steadiness and consistency by monar-
chical, imperial, consular, and republican governments.-
France directs the Christians of the East, through the medi-
um of the Roman missionaries, and in the case of the down-
fall of the Turkish empire, she will find warm and energetic
partisans in those Christians of the East who have yielded
obedience to the supremacy of Rome.
Her only rival in the affections of the Orientals is Russia,
and Russia meddles only with the Greeks. But the Greek
clergy are ignorant, and without influence, while the Pro-
paganda is continually training, and sending forth young
Orientals, prepared by the advantages of a European edu-
cation to take the lead among their countrymen. By these
means the adherents of the papacy maintain a visible supe-
riority over the other Christians. The former are better
dressed, they have more intelligence, their churches and
their houses are cleaner, and more elegant. They are better
protected from the violence and caprice of the government,
for they have always the French consul to resort to. The
sovereignty of Rome in the East seems indeed inevitable.
On the following day, according to promise, we repaired
to the house of the Syrian deacon, Daood, where we found
the bishop and the leading men of the body assembled.—


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. , 81
Glasses of liqueur were handed round before luncheon, and
each guest drank five or six, to sharpen the appetite. The
cloth was laid on the floor, and upon it was placed a small
round table of ebony, inlaid with ivory. We all surrounded
it, and covered our knees with the white cloth. The posture
was most unpleasant to those who had not been accustomed
to sit cross-legged; but our Syrian friends were, of course,
quite at their ease. The lunch was a substantial one, and
comprised ragouts of various kinds, soup, pillaw, and leben.
The repast wound up with a supply of delicious fruit. I
must not omit to mention that the bishop pronounced a long
grace in Syriac, which was devoutly listened to, every one
giving a hearty Amen, and crossing themselves at the con-
clusion.
After we had finished our repast, we went to look at the
church. It was a large building, very dirty, and abounding
zin tawdry decorations. On each side of the great altar were
two smaller ones, on one of which the elements are placed
before consecration. The other marks the place where the
priest is to robe himself for the service. There were no
seats, but the floor was covered with matting as in a mosque,
on which the congregation sat cross-legged, when not stand-
ing or kneeling. The altar of the Syrians is a square table,
either of wood or stone, generally the latter, raised upon
three steps. It is surmounted by a cross, on each side of
which is a candlestick, holding a short wax candle, which is
lighted only when the liturgy is recited. The vestments of
the priests resemble somewhat those of the Greek Church.-
The Syrian clergy may marry while in deacons' orders, but not
afterwards.
We found several pictures in the church, but they did not
seem to attract any veneration, and, as far as execution is
concerned, were certainly not deserving of it. One of these
daubs represented the day of judgment, and a more perfect
burlesque of an awful and serious subject could hardly be
imagined. A very truculent-looking angel was busily en-
gaged, with a pair of balances, in weighing souls. A large
pit at the corner emitted flames and smoke, and received into
its yawning jaws a number of men and women, who were
writhing under the agonies inflicted by a number of three
pronged tridents, wielded by black figures with horns, hoofs,
and tails, one of whom was bearing a man in triumph, on


82 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
the top of his fork. In another compartment of the picture,
the artists had portrayed seven infants, in a gloomy and dis-
mal kind of a place, which seemed to be a species of cavern
and was expounded to us as a representation of the state
of unbaptized children. Various portraits of saints embel-
lished the walls, all looking very grim, and void of expres-
sion, so that, upon the whole, we could not compliment the
Apelles of Diarbekir on his proficiency in art.
We took a friendly leave of our Syrian friends, and re-
turned home to prepare for the next day’s journey. The
governor was kind enough to order the gates of the town to
be opened at an early hour, and it was nearly dark when we
took our farewell look at Amida the black.
CHAPTER VIII.
Kurdish village and people. Turkish oppression. The skull. Syrian bishop.
The monastery of Zaphran. Library and manuscripts. Armenian banker.
Nisibin and its traditions. Tomb of St. James. Jezirah.
SHORTLY after we had left the gates of Diarbekir, we forded
the Tigris in two places, and pursued our route over stony
hills, covered, here and there, with patches of vegetation.
Turkish now ceases to be the vernacular of the towns—and
villages, but gives way to Arabic and Kurdish. The latter,
however, seems to predominate in the villages, as they are
chiefly inhabited by settlers from the neighboring mountains.
We arrived at one of these Kurdish villages about mid-day,
but found very sorry accommodation, as it had just been
visited, and, of course, plundered by the Albanians of the
pasha. Most of the inhabitants had taken to flight, and the
others intended to follow their example, for they frankly
avowed that it was impossible to sustain any longer the
grinding tyranny of the Turkish officials.
The Kurdish character is one that has been plentifully
laden with execration, and it must be avowed that their
savage ferocity in war can admit neither of excuse nor pal-
liation. Yet I have seldom experienced more cordial wel-
come, or more genuine hospitality, than I have received at


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 83
the hands of these half-civilized mountaineers. As a nation,
tney possess a bold independence of character, and an entire
freedom from the low servility and its attendant vices which
disgrace and degrade the greater portion of the vassals of
Turkish oppression. Divided into clans or tribes, they sub-
mit cheerfully to the patriarchal authority of the chieftain,
an authority which seldom exceeds the limits of a just and
paternal rule; individual liberty is unfettered by the nume-
rous restrictions with which, under the Turkish regimen, the
cruelty or caprice of numberless petty tyrants has restrained
the enterprise, and blasted the industry, of their unfortunate
Rayahs. Yet the mountains, which nurse the rude independ-
ence of the mountaineer, are barren and incapable of afford-
ing him, to any extent, the means of supporting his freedom.
The desire of providing for his own wants, and for those
of his family, drives him down to the more fertile and fruitful
plains whose rich soil and luxuriant harvests are marred by
the tyranny of those who rule over them. The unhappy
wanderer finds to his cost that the mild and genial tempera-
ture which forms so pleasing and so marked a contrast to
the cold chilling blasts of his native mountains, is an atmo-
sphere of slavery, whose zephyrs fan not the limbs, and re-
fresh not the toils of the free. Hardly have the unfortunate
Kurd and his companions completed the rude huts of their
village colony, and sown their little crop, when the stern
exactions of a relentless pasha apprise them that they must
not expect to labor for themselves. The harvest is plentedus,
perhaps; but three parts of it, at least, find their way into the
garners of a governor whose grasping avarice is too intent
upon present gain to perceive that, by oppression, it is de-
stroying the source of future profit. The inhabitants of the
village murmur and pay, but, after several repetitions of the
same conduct, they begin to grow weary of a system which
holds out no hope or encouragement to honest industry.
They become idle and disinclined to labor, and sigh in the
midst of oppression for the former independence of their
mountain home. The pasha's exactions increase as the
means to satisfy them fail, and the wretched cultivators find,
at last, that they have no alternative between a sudden flight
and torture or insult from the Albanian myrmidons of the
pasha. -
Sometimes, when the villagers are numerous, and possess


84 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
arms, they resolutely set the tyrant at defiance, and break out
into open rebellion against his authority. Troops are sent
against them, and, if successful, they rarely leave many sur-
vivors in the rebellious district. Men, women, and children
are put to the sword indiscriminately, and their ears, strung
together on small cords, are suspended at the principal gate
of the chief city of the province, as a warning to those who
may feel disposed hereafter to question the pasha's right of
exaction, or to refuse submission to his legalized robbery.
Should the villagers, however, be fortunate enough to escape
before the ministers of vengeance can arrest their flight, they
usually betake themselves either to the mountains or to some
deserted part of the province, where they subsist chiefly by
plunder. Yet even in this case, they are liable continually
to be pursued and hunted down by the Albanians, and they
learn, by sad and fatal experience, that from Turkish tyranny
there is no sure and certain refuge but the grave.
The political quidnuncs of London and Paris may extol the
advancing liberality of the Turkish government, its Hatti
Sherifs, and very lately manifested humane anxiety for the
lives and liberties of its subjects; but these fair-seeming pro-
fessions are confined, as far as regards their actual fruits, to
the immediate vicinity of the capital. The peasant of the
interior is still pillaged, insulted, and oppressed by governors,
who regard a province solely as a source of individual profit,
and endeavor to lay up a sufficient store against the day of
dismissal or disgrace. The Porte still disposes of its employ-
ments, and encourages the peculations of its agents, by the
ruinous and unjust demands which it makes upon them. The
laws of the empire may be in themselves reasonable and just,
but what is law when the executive has the power of super-
seding it by an act of arbitrary will In every Turkish pro-
vince, the pasha is the law.
About three hours' journey from Mardin, we passed the
boundary of the province of Diarbekir, and entered that of
Mosul. Our road lay through an uneven plain, at the ter-
mination of which rose abruptly the eminence on whose
southern brow the town of Mardin is situated. For some
miles before we arrived at the foot of the mountain, we could
discern the distant outline of the citadel, which crowned the
highest visible summit. A chain of rocky hills wound off to


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 85
the eastward, and curving round in a southerly direction, bore
down towards the desert of Sinjar.
The city of Mardin is built on the sloping brow of a
mountain, which is commonly considered as claiming some
alliance with Mount Masius, though the connection between
them does not appear to be distinctly defined. As the traveler
crosses the summit of the eminence, and begins to descend
into the town, a prospect of boundless extent opens before
him. To the south and west he beholds a vast expanse of
plains terminated only by the horizon, and formed into a
species of delta by the rivers Euphrates and Khabur. Here
Mesopotamia may be said truly to commence, and its general
features, as described by Xenophon, appear even at this day
strikingly correct.
The eye of the traveler seeks in vain for the green forests
and agreeable shades of Northern Asia, such as he passed
during the former part of his journey by the banks of the
limpid Iris. In their stead, dwarf-bushes and the scanty
foliage of the olive and palm will occasionally relieve inade-
quately the general monotony of Mesopotamian scenery. The
dull, tame level of the plain eschews the bold and sublime
grandeurs of Pontus and Cappadocia; and the wayfarer feels,
as he gazes over the widely-extending flats, that he will
speedily bid adieu for some time to mountains. Yet the hand of
Nature, which has denied the more splendid and striking
features of creation, has liberally bestowed what, perhaps, is
more in itself conducive to the happiness and comfort of
existence. The fertility and richness of the Mesopotamian
plains have, from early ages, been celebrated in history, and
even at the present day the blessings of an ever-teeming soil
seem to compensate for the violence and spoliation which is
the lot of the husbandman. Yet thousands of acres remain
untended and uncultivated. The population decreases annu-
ally, and the time may speedily be anticipated when the
miseries of Turkish rule will have reduced the once plentiful
and fruitful land of the two rivers into a barren and desolate
wilderness, as frightful and terrific in its desolation as that
which surrounds the last relics of proud and haughty Babylon.
The citadel of Mardin is celebrated by Abulfeda as one of
the strongest fortresses in Mesopotamia. He mentions a sin-
gular race of serpents to be found near the summit of the
mountain, which exceeded all others in ferocity and venom.
8


86 NOTES FROM NINEVEH,
It was not, however, my ill fortune to meet with any of
them.
The town itself seemed to have a tolerable share of ruined
habitations. As we ascended the narrow streets that led to
our appointed quarters, my horse stumbled over some round
substance which lay near a heap of rubbish on the ground.
One of the servants touched it with his stick. It was a
human skull, and, with several others that we perceived in
different corners of the street, had served as a football for the
idle boys. These sad mementos of persecuted humanity had
been brought in some days before by the governor's troops,
who had been lately making a foray against some neighbor-
ing villages.
We were rescued from our uncomfortable quarters at the
post-house, where we had been assigned lodgings, by the
hospitable invitation sent us by Khowajeh Murad, the Arme-
nian banker of the pasha. This gentleman was polite enough
to dispatch horses to convey us through the town to his resi-
dence, which was situated in one of the highest parts of the
city, and commanded a fine view of the plains below.
We had scarcely changed our traveling dresses and per-
formed our ablutions, when a visitor was announced in the
person of Bishop Matthew, a Syrian Jacobite prelate, from
the neighboring convent of Zaphian. The reason of his visit
was soon explained. B had sent on in the morning
some letters from a Syrian bishop with whom we had been
very intimate at Constantinople. Just as we were alighting,
we received, by way of reply, an invitation to the convent,
worded, however, in such a cold and apparently unfriendly
manner, that we judged it best not to accept it. Bishop
Matthew had come, therefore, to explain, and account for the
seeming reserve of his community. The patriarch, he said,
was absent, and some members of their body looked upon
the English with dislike and suspicion. He hoped, however,
that we would not leave Mardin without visiting the monas-
tery. He had himself just returned from a tour among the
Syrian villages near the Euphrates, and had seen in one of
them an illuminated MS. of the entire Scriptures, in Syriac,
of great antiquity, and much reverenced by the people. It
had been thrown into the Euphrates by the Turks, and had
been rescued with great difficulty. The bishop was anxious


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 87
to purchase it for the patriarch’s library, but the villagers
refused to part with it at any price.
The bishop then entered at some length into a description
of the present condition of his people. Some of them, he
said, who had traveled and conversed with the American
missionaries, were desirous of promoting a reformation in the
usages and doctrines of the Syrian community; these were
opposed by those who formed the majority of the body, and
whose views were of a strictly conservative character. A
third party was considered as favoring the pretensions of
Rome, though as yet no actual separation had taken place
between them and their brethren. Bishop Matthew was
himself disposed to forward the tendencies of the reforming
party, though he described their views as undefined, and
verging in some individuals towards ultra-liberalism. Of
the second class he spoke with much contempt, as of men
who had neither reason nor Scripture on their side, but were
actuated solely by a blind reverence for the practices of
their fathers, and a superstitious fear of change. He gave
the Papal Syrians credit for activity, energy, and zeal, though
it was easy to see that he viewed their success with regret,
and even positive enmity. Having obtained from us a pro-
mise that we would visit the monastery on the following day,
he took his leave.
The next morning, we set forth from Mardin to pay the
promised visit. We descended the mountain on which the
city is built, and then began to ascend the side of another
eminence, after which we came to a valley surrounded on
almost every part with rocks. Leaving this secluded spot,
which would have served admirably for a hermitage, we
passed a mountain stream, and soon after arrived at the foot
of an isolated rocky hill, on the summit of which was the
monastery, resembling strongly in its external appearance
rather the fort or stronghold of a band of robbers than the
abode of pious meditation and peace. The vicinity of the
Kurds, however, rendered it desirable that due precautions
should be taken, as these wild people, though ignorant in the
extreme, are bigoted fanatics, and apt to esteem the sacking
of a monastery, and the murder of Christian ecclesiastics, as
actions of supererogatory virtue.
The interior of the monastery seemed to promise well, in
the event of a siege, and the ramparts were certainly stout


88 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
enough to bid defiance to the rude and ill managed artillery
of the Kurds. The various offices of the establishment, the
chapel, and the habitations of the monks, were grouped in a
straggling way around a court of extensive dimensions. In
the chapel, which was dedicated to St. Eugenius, we saw a
kind of case or tabernacle, bearing some verses engraved
upon it from the Gospel of St. Matthew, in the Estranglo cha-
racter, which was said to have been consecrated by St. Peter,
at Antioch, and from him was transmitted to the patriarchs
of that city. Near the altar we noticed the fans, or screens
of silver, which are used by most of the Oriental churches
during the celebration of the eucharist; they are consigned
to the deacon, who waves them to and fro over the altar to
drive away the flies and other insects, which, in these warm
climates, are likely to be attracted to the sacred elements.
From the chapel we proceeded to visit the library of the
monastery, which seemed to meet with little attention from
the inmates. After descending some stone stairs, a rusty
bunch of keys was produced, and with a little difficulty the
door was opened, and the venerable tomes appeared, some
piled up in a corner, and others scattered in careless con-
fusion about the floor. They were all manuscripts; but our
monkish friends could not, or would not, give us much infor-
mation respecting them. They said that the chronicles and
some other of the works of Bar Hebraeus were among their
collection, and likewise several volumes of a species of di-
ary, in which it is customary for each patriarch to record the
principal events of his patriarchate.
We now ascended to the reception room of the monastery,
a long narrow apartment, fitted up with divans, and having
a species of platform at the upper end, on which the patriarch
and dignitaries of the monastery usually sat. The tables
were brought up, and, after the customary preface of several
glasses of rakee, we were regaled with a substantial lunch,
after which, pipes and coffee having been duly discussed, we
mounted our horses and returned to the house of our kind
host Murad. - -
Some of the principal Christians of the town had assembled
at the board of our hospitable friend. We found, when we
descended into the drawing-room, that he had procured for
us a long table, furnished in the European fashion, and his
guests, in compliment doubtless to the Frank strangers,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 89
omitted their usual custom of eating with their fingers.
Knives and forks were laid for each, and, though our com-
panions’ mode of handling utensils so new to them might
have provoked a smile, yet they succeeded, perhaps, much
better than a party of Europeans would have done, had they
been deprived of the long-accustomed implements of feeding,
and required to confine themselves to their fingers.
The conversation at table was strictly local. The doings
of the governor, the last expedition of the Albanians, the
state of the roads, and the changes in the ecclesiastical
departments of their several churches, were the topics that
engaged principally the attention of the guests. To the re-
cital of the wonders of Europe they listened with surprise
and suspicion. Railroads and balloons, though prosaic and
matter-of-fact to us, were to them as romantic and poetical
as the tales of the Thousand and One are in our eyes. They
bestowed upon our relations an equal share of attention and
credence to that usually accorded by the audience of a Turk-
ish coffee house to the story of the Wonderful Lamp.
On the morrow, we took our departure from Mardin, and
bade adieu, with some regret, to our worthy friend and enter-
tainer, Khowajeh Murad. As we rode down the steep de-
scent which leads from the town into the plain, I could not
help meditating on the precarious character of our late host’s
position. The banker of a Turkish governor is an individual
who realizes, in his every-day life, what the old classic story
relates of Damocles. For a time, he revels in luxury and
pleasure. A splendid mansion, a magnificent stud are his.
As long as the pasha's coffers are full, all is well; but every
consideration of meum and tuum must disappear when his
excellency wants money. The unfortunate banker finds
some morning, to his great dismay, that the debtor and cre-
ditor sides of the account-book have, as it were by magic,
changed places; and that, instead of receiving a large sum
from his highness, he is expected to pay it. If he is wise, he
will bend his head to the storm, and acquiesce in his loss
with an expression of thankfulness that it was not greater;
but if his confidence in the justice of his cause, and unwill-
ingness to submit to imposition get the better of his discre-
tion, he will probably soon exchange his luxurious mansion
for a cold and damp prison, from whence, after suffering all
the agony and torture that a tyrant’s baffled cupidity can in-
8+


90 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
flict, he will depart a ruined and impoverished man, if death
do not kindly forestall his deliverance and liberate him at an
earlier period from his torments.
Our route from Mardin to Nisibin lay over a flat, unculti-
vated plain, keeping to our left the range of rocky hills,
known anciently by the name of Mount Masius, near the
foot of which was formerly situated the ancient city of
Nisibis. On arriving at its modern representative, we found
a miserable collection of mud huts grouped together on the
banks of the river Jakh Jakah, the ancient Mygdonius. The
present inhabitants of Nisibis number about three hundred
families. Some ragged tents were pitched near the huts,
tenanted by wandering Arabs.
Less than a quarter of a mile from the village, stands a
monument of ancient times, which we examined with great
interest. Its architecture is Grecian, but of the depraved
style of the Lower Empire. It consists of two apartments,
which are nearly filled with rubbish and ruins, so that we
could hardly work our way to a staircase leading to the sub-
terranean cell, in which, entombed in a marble sarcophagus,
repose, it is said, the ashes of St. James of Nisibis. Near
one of the entrances into the building we found the follow-
ing inscription, much defaced :
NHTE:tº HTow Ticº PIONTON,
׺ok ENX PC)
|—|—|—|-|-IC COYETTICKOTIO YC 1
TIOYAHAkéº
Y.Ya Ampeº (Zeroyº,
Nº N.H.
|...}
The Mohammedans hold this building in great veneration,
as they do the tombs of all Christian saints who lived before
the birth of Mohammed; but the cause of their reverence
for this particular building was somewhat singular. One of
the late pashas of the province erected some large barracks
, near Nisibis, and determined to transform the ruined mauso-
leum of St. James into a magazine for straw. The plans
had been drawn up, and the architect was prepared to com.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 91
mence his work on the following day, when, early in the
morning, he was summoned hastily to the presence of the
pasha, who charged him, on the strictest penalties, to forbear
from touching the building. The astonished builder asked the
reason of this change in his excellency’s intentions, and was
informed that during the night he had been visited by revela-
tions of a most awful nature, in the course of which he was
strictly forbidden to meddle with the mausoleum. Shortly
after, he made an offer to the Syrian patriarch at Mardin to
rebuild the church, and make it fit for divine service at his
own expense, if the patriarch would send a colony of Syrians
and a priest to Nisibin: while, however, the negotiation was
pending, the pasha was deposed, and the whole project fell
to the ground.
A former governor, it is said, presumed to stable a favor-
ite mare in one of the apartments of the building, and the
next morning she was found dead without any assignable
cause. These accounts were given us, it must be observed,
by Mohammedans, who knew nothing of St. James beyond
his name, and they were amply corroborated by the Chris-
tians.
What renders, perhaps, these legends the more remarkable
is the fact that they refer to one who, during his lifetime,
was connected with some most singular and well-authenti-
cated circumstances which occurred during the siege of
Nisibis by the Persians.” The account of them is as fol-
lows:—
In A. D. 350, Sapor, King of Persia, one of the most war-
like and successful monarchs of his day, determined to in-
vade the territories of the Romans, and, if possible, to
surprise the strong city of Nisibis, one of the most formi-
dable garrisons on the Roman frontier. He laid siege to it
with a large army, and the men of Nisibis gave themselves
up for lost, for the Emperor Constantius was then at Antioch,
and many a long and weary march was necessary before he
* My relation is taken from the statements of Theodoret, lib. ii. cap. 30.
Philostorgius, an Arian historian, lib. iii. sec. 23, alludes to the siege of Nisibis
and repulse of Sapor in the following terms: “Sapor, King of the Persians,
marched an army against Nisibis, and having in form besieged it, was in a
strange and unexpected manner obliged to retreat shamefully. For James,
the bishop of the city, having instructed the inhabitants in what was ne:
cessary to be done, by his trust in God deſended the town in a wonderful
manner.”


92 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
could succor them, or even hear of their danger. At that
time, St. James was Bishop of Nisibis, and he exhorted the
citizens to defend themselves valiantly, promising them at
the same time the aid of his prayers. And night and day,
as long as the beleaguering host lay around the walls of
Nisibis, might St. James have been seen in the great church,
interceding for the city and its inhabitants.
The Persians made many attacks, which were bravely re-
pulsed; but at last they succeeded in effecting a breach by
the curious expedient of collecting, by means of dams, a great
body of water together, and then letting it loose against the
town. A vast torrent was thus precipitated with impetuous
fury against the walls, and laid a considerable portion of them
level with the ground. The Persians determined to march
in the next day, and passed the night in feasting and revelry.
But in the morning, as they were about to occupy the breach,
a strange and novel sight arrested their attention. A new
wall had been hastily thrown up by the inhabitants during
the night, and on this stood a person of tall stature, clad in
robes of purple, and bearing a coronet on his head. He was
surrounded by attendants, and seemed to be giving directions.
But so stern and fearful was his glance, as he gazed in wrath
at the Persian host, that the boldest soldier trembled as he
looked upon him.
Then Sapor declared, “Verily, it is the Emperor of the
Romans that hath brought succor to the town.” But his
courtiers whispered together, and they said at last, “O king,
the Emperor Constantius is indeed at Antioch, and the person
whom thou seest is one more than mortal.” Then Sapor
hurled his javelin in anger against the walls, and retired in
moody silence to his tent. And, as the Persian host with-
drew themselves from their posts, the Bishop St. James gazed
down upon them from the ramparts, and he pronounced the
curse of the Lord upon them. A short interval elapsed, when
an immense swarm of flies appeared in the west. They
passed over the city, but attacked with fury the Persian camp,
stinging men, elephants, and horses, and scattering confusion
and dismay wherever they alighted. Terrified at what had
happened, the Persian king commanded the tents to be struck,
and with great haste recrossed the Tigris.
The name Nisibin, corrupted by Greek writers into Nisibis,
is supposed to be the same as the Chaldean 'a's], which sig-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 93
nifies military stations or garrisons. Arabian geographers
consider it as the capital of the province of Diar Rabyah, and
entitle the river on whose bank it stands the Hirmas, or Hir-
masius. The Macedonians, however, called the latter stream
Mygdonius, and changed the name of Nisibin to Antiochia
Mygdonia. In the time of Abulfeda, it seems to have been a
town of some magnitude. He depicts it as surrounded with
gardens, in which only white roses could be grown, and as
producing a species of scorpion whose sting was followed by
instantaneous death.
To the south of Nisibis extend the desert regions known by
the name of Sinjar, the Singara of the Romans. The range
called Mount Masius has probably some connection with the
hills of Sinjar, which are inhabited chiefly by Yezidees. The
traveler to Mosul has here the choice of two routes. That
by Jezirah is the longest, but supplies more plentiful accom-
modations and provisions, while the road by the desert occu-
pies less time, but presents no convenient halting-place, and
is infested with banditti. We therefore judged it advisable,
as we had laid in no supplies, to journey by way of Jezirah.
Accordingly, we skirted the northern extremity of the desert
of Sinjar, traveling through a rocky and barren country, having
to the south the mountains called Jebel Tor, which are chiefly
inhabited by Syrian Jacobites. We passed several villages,
but encountered nothing of interest till the next day, when
we came in sight of Jebel Judi, which rises abruptly from
the eastern bank of the Tigris, and almost overlooks the town
of Jezirah.
We arrived at the latter place in the afternoon, two days
after leaving Nisibis, and were not a little disappointed to
find that there were scarcely twenty tenantable habitations in
the whole town. With much trouble, the Tatar succeeded
in gaining us lodgings in the house of two Kurdish females,
who screamed and cursed the infidels most fluently, when
they were informed that we were to be billeted on them.
To add to my troubles, B , who had been ailing ever
since we left Nisibis, fairly gave in at Jezirah, and the only
room that could be got for him was a kind of dilapidated
shed exposed on all sides to the chilling breezes, which, as
the winter season was coming on, blew harsh and biting from
the neighboring mountains. Fortunately, however, we pos-
sessed a medicine chest, and a female professor of the heal-


94 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
ing art in the town, by religion a Chaldean Christian, having
heard that a sick Englishman had arrived, came and tendered
her services. -
The good lady had, it seems, a considerable and lucrative
practice among both Mohammedans and Christians, and was
considered very skillful in her mode of treatment. She looked
at B with great attention, felt his pulse, inspected his
tongue, and went through the usual evolutions of her profes-
sion, after which she recommended bleeding; B followed
her advice, and the next day was much better.
Leaving him asleep, I rambled out on the banks of the
Tigris, which here flows with its wonted rapidity. On the
opposite side, were the tall and commanding heights of Jebel
Judi, along which the gallant ten thousand had fought their
way in days of yore. To the westward of the river, a barren
and rocky plain extended itself as far as the eye could see.
The water of the river seemed muddy and disturbed, being in
color a kind of dirty red. I drank some of it, but did not
detect any evidence of its superior qualities, so much vaunted
by the dwellers in these regions. I learnt afterwards, at
Mosul, that it should be kept standing for some time in
pitchers, before it was used, in order to allow the sediment to
sink to the bottom.
CHAPTER IX.
Kurdistan. Derivation of the word Kurd. Resting-place of the ark. Mosul.
Houses. Climate. Ana Gholamuk. Chaldean servant. The Yezidee.
Bagh Sheikha. Yezidee host. Syrian priest. An Oriental's account of
England and the English.
THE region to which the name of Kurdistan has been
generally assigned comprises the narrow tract of mountainous
country which separates Persia from Turkey. The long ranges
of rocky eminences are divided from each other by fertile
valleys, where the numerous flocks find pasture during the
warm and temperate seasons of the year. Yet the general
character of the inhospitable soil has forced the hardy
inhabitants of these mountains to migrate to the plains,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 95
sometimes as peaceful cultivators, but not unfrequently as
armed marauders, like the ancient Highlanders of Scotland.
Their hardy valor, no less than their savage ferocity, has
made the name of Kurd terrible throughout the East; and the
rugged mountains of ancient Assyria may boast of having
sent forth one of the greatest of Eastern conquerors, the
celebrated Salaheddin, better known, perhaps, under his
Latinized appellation of Saladdin.
The Arabian philologists tell us that the Kurds are of
Persian origin, and were expelled from Iran during the reign
of the tyrannical Zohauk. They assert that the exiles derive
their name of Kurd from the root *, r, he drove forth or
persecuted, from which the Greek geographers and historians
formed their Carduchia and Carduchi. It is probable that the
national name of Kord or Gord is very ancient, as we find
traces of it not only in the appellation given by Xenophon to
the inhabitants of the mountains, but also in the title assigned
by early writers to the mountains themselves. Berosus speaks
of them as Öpm, row xopóvatow—which the Latin authors render
Montes Gordyaeorum," a name bearing a strong affinity to the
word °, ſ, Kord or Gord, as the sounds K and G are fre-
quently interchanged in Semetic languages.
My object in dwelling thus upon an etymology, which to
some may seem to involve inferences of but little consequence,
will appear when I come to analyze the ancient opinion
that the ark of Noah rested, after the deluge, upon the
mountains of Armenia. For several reasons, I consider the
common notion that the Ararat of modern Armenia is the
place indicated by Scripture, as founded on error, and as
incompatible with the narrative of what followed the deli-
verance of the second founder of the human race.
One glance at the map of Asia will show the extreme
improbability that the descendants of Noah should have
journeyed in the direction of Babylon, over the rude and
rugged mountains which intervene between Ararat and the
Assyrian plains. Their route would rather have been towards
the fertile country of Persia; and Iran, and not Shinar,
would have been recorded as the first colony of the human
race.
* Apud Joseph. Ant., lib. i. cap. 4.


96 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Nor is the opinion which assigns the Ararat of Armenia
as the resting-place of the ark at all supported either by
the literal interpretation of Scripture, or by the testimony of
accredited writers. The term Ararat is used in Hebrew to
signify the mountainous country to the north and east of
Assyria. In 2 Kings xix. 37, and Isaiah xxxvii. 38, we are
told that the sons of Sennacherib, having assassinated their
father, fled for refuge into the land of Ararat, or Armenia,
as our translators render it, following the rendering of the
Septuagint and Vulgate. Can it be supposed, then, that the
fugitives would traverse the mountains of Kurdistan, as far
as the modern peak of Ararat, or that men, bred up in the
luxury and effeminacy of the Assyrian court, would advance
one step further in a barbarous, and almost inaccessible
region, than was absolutely needful for their safety? We are
compelled, therefore, to allow that the term Ararat must be
taken as indicating the mountainous country in the vicinity of
Nineveh, the same, in fact, which is known at the present
day by the name of Jebel Giodi, or Judi, an evident cor-
ruption of the ancient Gordi."
This supposition derives much additional weight from the
authority of the Targumist Jonathan, who, in his gloss upon
Genesis viii. 4, makes the ark to rest, "TPT mu by al
toorai d’Kardon, upon the mountains of Kurdon or Gordon,
thus almost establishing the identity of the modern Godi or
Judi with the resting-place of the ark. With him agree most of
the profane writers who have mentioned the deluge, a list of
whom will be found in Bochart's Geographia Sacra, Cap. III.
To these, I may add the modern tradition, still current among
the Mohammedans and Christians of Assyria, that Jebel Judi
received the survivors of the deluge. Another remarkable
coincidence is the aptitude of the soil in the valleys of the
Judi range for the rearing of the vine. The grape is still
much cultivated among the Nestorians, and I regret to say
that they frequently abuse the bounty of Providence in the
same manner that Noah is recorded to have done.
Most interpreters have restricted the plain of Shinar to the
* The appellation of the mountains near Jezirah is written in Arabic
4$2.5- Judi. But the .2 wav, is easily substituted for the J re, and thus
&*Jº Gurdi or Jurdi, might become with little visible alteration 4532-
Gudi or Judi.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 97
immediate vicinity of Babylon. Yet it seems probable that
this appellation embraced the whole of the plain country,
from the Judi range to the city of Baghdad, including both
shores of the Tigris, bounded to the east by the mountains
of Kurdistan, and to the west by the mountains of Sinjar
and the confines of Arabia. Nor does the conjecture seem
improbable that the name Shinar or Sinar, which, in Semetic
languages, is written with an y, ain, should have been
changed during the lapse of years into Singar or Sinjar, more
especially as there are instances on record where this change
has been effected.*
From Jezirah we proceeded by slow journeys to Zakko,
and from thence to Mosul, where we crossed the bridge of
boats, and were soon resting from our labors under the
hospitable roof of Mr. Rassam, the English vice-consul,
whose name and merits are so well known to the majority of
travelers.
My poor friend B still continued seriously ill, but the
medical art in Mosul had fallen to a very low ebb, and the
only Esculapius we could procure was the physician of the
pasha, an Armenian, who had studied in Italy. His know-
ledge, however, was by no means equal to his good will, and
B was obliged to bring his own medical science to bear
upon his own case; at length, after a hard struggle, he was
pronounced convalescent, and was able to commence the
duties of his mission.
The town of Mosul is situated on the western bank of the
Tigris, about three hundred miles to the north of Baghdad;
behind it, to the westward, extend the plains of Sinjar, in
front is the river, and on the opposite side the mounds, com-
monly called Kuyunjik, which have hitherto been supposed
to be the only remains of ancient Nineveh. A little to the
south of these is a village, situated on the top of a low hill,
called Nebbi Yunas, or the Prophet Jonah, from a tradition,
long current in these parts, that Jonah died and was buried
there.
Following the course of the road which divides Kuyunjik
-
* One well-known example occurs to me at the present moment of this
mutation of the y, ain, and j, gimel, of the Semetic dialects. The name Go-
morrah, is written in Hebrew with y, ain, and should be pronounced ‘Amor-
rah, the first a being sounded with a slight guttural intonation. Yet the Sep-
tuagint gives it in Greek characters thus, Top, ofta, Gomorrha.


98 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
from the village, the traveler arrives, after a journey of fifteen
miles, at a group of rocky hills entitled Jebel Makloub, oc-
cupying an isolated position in the midst of a large plain,
which extends from the banks of the Tigris to the Judi
range." Behind these, and on either side of them, appear
the mountains of Kurdistan, the highest of which are covered
with snow during six months of the year, and may be plainly
seen from the terraces of Mosul.
The houses of this modern Nineveh are built of stone, and
profusely ornamented with a kind of marble found in the
vicinity. Externally, they present little that is pleasing or
attractive. As you proceed through the streets, the eye wan-
ders along a connected series of dead walls, which give the
city an air of desolation and decay. Few of the houses are
in a perfect state, and it is not uncommon to perceive a heap
of ruins in the court of a spacious and handsome mansion;
the interiors are arranged in the usual Oriental fashion, the
apartments being built round a square or oblong court; they
have rarely any connection with each other. On one side of
this court is a large arched recess, called the aiwān, the point
of which is only three or four feet below the terraced roof.
Within the aiwān are arranged sofas, for the accommodation
of visitors and of the family during the hot season, when it is
considered unhealthy to remain in the rooms. Most of the
houses possess a suite of subterranean apartments, called
serdāb, where the wealthier people retire during the three hot
months of the year; these lower rooms are generally hand-
somely decorated with marble, while, in the midst, a bubbling
fountain diffuses coolness and refreshment throughout the
heated and oppressive atmosphere.
The roofs of the houses are perfectly flat, with low balus-
trades; they prove an agreeable walk in the cool of the
evening, and are peculiarly favorable to meditation. Fre-
quently have I enjoyed a solitary promenade on my terrace,
my eye fixed on the mounds of Nineveh and the snow-capped
mountains of Kurdistan, and my thoughts, perhaps, far away.
Thus we read in ancient days of an apostle going up to the
house-top to pray; a strange circumstance in European eyes,
* The name Jebel Judi is only applied at present to the mountains of that
range in the vicinity of Jezirah; but, to avoid confusion, I have bestowed it,
according to the ancient usage, on the whole chain to the eastward of the
plains of Nineveh and Navkoor.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 99
but perfectly natural to an Oriental. For my own part,
when I wished to be particularly solitary, I always repaired
to the roof, and felt myself perfectly cut off from the world
below.
The terrace is to the Eastern, in fact, what the study is to
the English gentleman, a sort of sanctum into which no one
intrudes without special leave. When I was in the court or
the aiwān, even strangers would come in without scruple,
seat themselves, and enter unreservedly into conversation;
but if they were told I was above, they either went away, or
desired my servant to announce them. I never remember a
single instance in which any other than a very intimate friend
ever mounted the stairs. On one occasion, I had a number
of Nestorians residing in my house, who were remarkably
fond of strolling about the terraces when I was not there, but
when I made my appearance above, they always withdrew,
lest they should seem to intrude upon my privacy.
For about eight months in the year the weather at Mosul
is temperate, though the cold in winter, particularly towards
night, is sometimes intense. On these occasions, the houses
are generally warmed by wood fires where there is a chimney
to the apartment, which is not always the case. In the latter
instance, the fire is kindled in a small round brazen vessel,
with two rings attached to the sides to facilitate its convey-
ance from one room to the other; the warmth thus obtained
is, however, very inconsiderable. During the months of
May, June, July, and August, the heat is most intense and
intolerable; I could scarcely bear the thin drawers and silken
shirt which formed my only clothing within doors while the
hot weather lasted. It was indeed a luxury to throw off the
tight pantaloons, stiff cravats, and coats of civilized Europe,
and give the limbs their full freedom in the loose and flowing
garments of the East; yet a strange and unaccountable pre-
judice seems to have induced the great majority of European
residents to maintain their uncomfortable and undignified
costume, and the traveler who should dare to be so singular
as to prefer comfort and common sense to the scruples and
whims of his countrymen would be treated with ridicule, if
not with contempt. It is urged, indeed, that there is more
respect paid to the Frank costume since its introduction as
an official garb by the late sultan, and this, doubtless, is the
reason why every man who can boast, even indirectly, of


100 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
European descent, delights to make himself as frightful and
uncomfortable as possible; but, if the matter were rightly
examined, it might be found that the estimation so much
coveted, if it really exists, is shown to the arts and arms of
Frangistan, and not to her costume.
It is most refreshing, during the burning heats of July, to
walk with bare feet on the marble pavement of the room, or
on the flags of the court. Even the fastidious sons and
daughters of Europe agree during this period to eschew the
use of stockings, and sometimes of shoes. One great draw-
back, however, to this pleasure is the abundance of scorpions
and centipedes during the hot weather; you put your hand
to the latch of your door, and a black and dangerous scorpion
creeps out of the keyhole to exact vengeance for his disturbed
peace and comfort. As you lie on your sofa, and stretch
forth your fingers to grasp the beads, which are a constant
appendage to every resident in the East, your hand falls upon
a most unprepossessing-looking centipede, who has been
quietly contemplating you for the last half hour.
One evening I was seated barefoot in the middle of the
court, and had just called for a chibouque, regardless of a
black round mass that lay near one of my feet; the servant
came with the pipe in his hand, uttered an exclamation, and,
hastily withdrawing his slipper, he inflicted two or three
vigorous blows on the ground; astonished at the action, I
looked in the direction of his attack, and beheld the crushed
and battered form of a black scorpion, about five inches
long. This incident made me more careful of going bare-
foot ever after.
After a short stay at the consulate, I hired a house in the
neighborhood for nine pounds a year. It contained six
rooms, a kitchen, and a court, where the sun never penetrated,
even during the hottest season of the year. I also engaged
a servant, a papal Chaldean by religion, who was a native of
one of the neighboring villages. He spoke only Arabic,
Chaldee, and Kurdish, and I trusted by his aid, and that of
necessity, soon to master the former. A day or two after his
engagement, Toma, for so he was called, desired my permis-
sion to spend a few days among his friends, before entering
upon his new duties as my man of all work. As it was
Christmas, I could not refuse him, and he took his departure.
But, being desirous to take possession of my new quarters, I


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 101
determined not to wait for him, but to install myself in the
house before his arrival. For this purpose, I demanded and
obtained the key, notwithstanding the remonstrances of my
Mosulian friends, who deemed the act of sleeping alone in an
empty house an act of great moral courage.
The key was not one of those convenient media of obtain-
ing an entrance which may be carried commodiously in the
waistcoat pocket; it was a long bar of wood, with two pro-
jections towards the end, more than a foot in length, and
well qualified not only to open a door, but to knock down
any one who might attempt to enter it without permission.
Armed with this implement of offence and defence, I went
to and fro between my own dwelling and the consulate,
generally taking my meals, and spending my evenings at the
latter.
During my servantless state, I received the attentions and
the services of an old Chaldean, who was considered rather
a character, and who was one of the hangers on at the
consulate. His figure was gaunt and bony, but attenuated
and bare; his dress was of the most scanty description; and
he resembled exceedingly the figure of Don Quixote, divested
of his arms and warlike accoutrements. But his politeness
was most exemplary, and even extra-Oriental. At almost
every word, and certainly between every sentence he uttered,
there occurred the constant repetition of the phrase, Ana
Gholamuk, I am thy slave; from which circumstance, he was
never called by his baptismal name, but always Ana Gho-
lamuk, which appellation had become so familiar to him
that I doubt whether he would have answered to any other.
Poor Ana Gholamuk, however, did not possess a virtue void
of suspicion, for, on one occasion, he was shrewdly suspected
of having purloined sundry articles from my friend B 2
who was more than half inclined to have him sent to prison
in consequence. But as yet he was blameless, and as far as
regarded me, his honesty was unimpeachable, probably, be-
cause there was nothing left in his way.
With the aid of this faithful retainer, who ever after mani-
fested a particular affection to my kitchen, I managed to
conduct my household affairs until the arrival of my servant
Toma, who made his appearance two days behind time, with
a long apology, and a present, both of which I was graciously
pleased to accept. I now commenced housekeeping in the
9%


102 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Oriental style, and rarely found my expenses exceed sixpence
per diem.
The European society at Mosul was of course limited.
There were the English vice consul Mr. Rassam, his wife an
English lady, and her mother, who had come to end her days
so many miles away from old England. Besides these, there
were the American Presbyterian missionaries, among whom
was then numbered the late lamented Dr. Grant, M. Botta
the French consul, whose name is well known as the dis-
coverer of the antiquities of Khorsabad, ourselves, and an
English merchant, who had spent about four years in the
country and did not know a syllable of the language. I
must not omit to mention the Italian Dominican Friars, who
superintended the affairs of the Papal Chaldean Church; but
they withheld themselves from society, and seemed studiously
to avoid the “English heretics.”
I began, soon after my arrival, to apply myself to the Arabic
language, in which I had no sooner made some proficiency,
than I determined to put my mettle to the proof, and make
some excursions in the vicinity. Toma was taken into con-
sultation, and undertook to provide the necessary articles.
Post horses were hired as far as the village of Bagh Sheikha,
and, as my own private wants were small, I managed to be
on horseback, and crossing the bridge of boats over the Tigris,
two days after my design had been formed.
Near the village of Nebbi Yunas is a well, entitled Beer-
el-benat, the Well of the Girls, respecting which there seems
to be no tradition, except that, in the opinion of the wise men
of Mosul, it is subject to nightly visits from the Djin. Toma
was riding by my side, and had commenced a narrative re-
specting his sickness while at Diarbekir, and recovery by
means of the intercession of St. George—who, he affirmed
positively, had appeared to him three times—when a man
dressed in white passed by, and seemed to eye us with no
friendly countenance. Toma gave his horse a kick, the
creature reared, and he uttered a very common phrase,
“Yinnaal ish sheitān,” “May the devil (alluding to the
horse) be cursed.”
At the word “sheitän” the stranger scowled fearfully, his
hand sought the hilt of his long dagger, and he overwhelmed
* The word sheitän is used in Arabic as an equivalent for a daring or
mischievous person. Sometimes the application is considered complimentary,
and means simply, he is a clever fellow.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 103
Toma with a volley of abuse in a kind of mixed jargon, which
I did not understand ; the latter began to retaliate, but I bade
him come on, and as we were riding forward I asked him the
reason of the stranger's anger. He replied, “He is a dog of
a Yezidee, (may his father be cursed and his grave defiled!)
and he cannot bear to hear the name of Satan his master,
may confusion fall upon him l’”
“Are there any Yezidees in Bagh Sheikha 2° I demanded.
“There are many of them,” he rejoined, “and not only
there, but in all the villages of the plain, even to the foot of
the Kurdish mountains. Do I not know them and their
doings, for am not I a son of the villages * -
“What is their belief, and when do they worship ’” I in-
quired.
“Upon my head,” was his answer, “they believe in the
devil and worship him. That is known to everybody; but
they have no priests, no altars, and no sacrifice. Their chief
church is at Sheikh Adi, and they call those white buildings
which you see yonder sacred places.”
I looked in the direction indicated, and beheld a number of
small cone-shaped edifices covered with white plaster, which
I had at first mistaken for tombs. Each of these temples was
entered by an aperture about four feet in height and wide
enough to suffer one person to creep through at a time. I
looked in, but perceived nothing except the bare walls. Some
of these buildings might have been large enough to contain
four persons at once, but scarcely more. Altogether, they
seemed more adapted to serve as memorials of some person
or thing than to act as places of worship.
We arrived soon after at the village of Bagh Sheikha, pret-
tily situated at the foot of Jebel Makloub. Not far from it
was a plantation of olives, which, viewed from a distance,
gave it the appearance of being embosomed in trees. Our
arrival excited no little commotion, and the whole of the popu-
lation who were at leisure, which happened to be all the
males, assembled in the market-place to stare at the strangers.
The poor women were obliged to be contented with looking
at us as they passed, bending under the weight of their nu-
merous tasks. They seemed, indeed, to be the only persons
in the village who had anything to do. Toma left me station-
ary, while he went on with my papers to the Kiahya of the
place, a papal Syrian, in company with whom he speedily
returned.


104 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Toma made his appearance in a great rage : he stamped,
shouted, and bestowed on the head man all the uncompli-
mentary epithets, and they are many, in the Arabic and Chal-
daic vocabulary.
“What is the matter?” I inquired. “What has he done?”
“Aish amal! what has he done, the unclean' why, he has
quartered thy Revelation on a cursed Yezidee. But thou
shalt punish his insolence; for, verily, if thou writest to the
pasha, he shall eat the stick exceedingly. May his father—”
But here I interposed, being somewhat weary of listening
to vociferation, and of remaining like an equestrian statue in
the middle of the square. I assumed a dignified air, and
expressing in broken Arabic my sorrow that Christians should
have so little hospitality as to refuse shelter to one of their
own faith, I bade Toma lead the way to the Yezidee's house.
He obeyed, reluctantly.
“It is the best house in the place,” remonstrated the
Kiahya, submissively, as, completely crestfallen, he followed
in the rear.
“I believe it, oh Kiahya,” I replied; “for, bil hock, truly,
you Syrians are a poor people; you have no money nor
houses.”
“I did not mean that,” said the Kiahya.
“You are all dogs, you villagers, and may eat dirt,”
growled Toma.
And with this polite speech we arrived at the door of the
Yezidee. -
It had a clean and neat exterior, very different from the
dirty huts that surrounded it; and the air of the owner, who
had stepped out to welcome us, very much prepossessed me
in his favor. His look was melancholy, but not servile, and
he addressed himself to the cringing Kiahya with the ap-
pearance of one who was conscious of belonging to a despised
and persecuted race, yet had preserved his self-respect and
independence of character unaltered by the conviction.
He looked doubtfully at me for a few minutes, and then
inquired of Toma whether I was a Christian.
“Christian!” exclaimed Toma, “ Christian! To be sure
he is, and a better Christian than the swine of this village.
For several years,” continued Toma, addressing himself to
the crowd of villagers who were lounging about the door,
“for several years have I eaten the bread of the English, and
22


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. - 105
can testify that they are good Christians, who believe truly
in our Lord the Messiah, and our Lady Mary the Virgin.
What more would you require?” said Toma, looking tri-
umphantly at the Kiahya, as, with a view to confound him
still more, he drew out an Arabic translation of our Prayer
Book, which I had given him, and counted up the different
festivals of the Virgin and Saints, reading them aloud for the
edification of the crowd. “Who shall say now,” he tri-
umphantly inquired, “that the English are not Christians?”
“Saheeh! saheeh! it is true, it is true,” responded the
crowd, among whom were several Mohammedans, “the
English are Christians, and believe in the Saints.”
The Yezidee's countenance brightened. “It is enough,”
he said, taking my hand and laying it upon his breast;
“you are a Christian. Enter, my lord, and may peace be
with you.”
I followed him into a small but neat apartment, the floor
of which was covered with carpets, which he kindly per-
mitted to remain during my stay. He spoke some words in
Kurdish to two women, who had followed us into the room,
and they brought in my bed, spread it in one corner, and
presently sent me a bowl of yawort, or sour milk, a drink
much prized by the Turks. My host seated himself oppo-
site to me, and I endeavored, with the occasional assistance
of Toma, to draw him into conversation; but he either knew
very little of the tenets of his sect, or was not disposed to be
communicative. He told me that his people hated the Mo-
hammedans, and loved the Christians; that, from my red cap,
and other parts of my dress, he had, at first, taken me for a
Moslem; but, praise be to God! I was a Christian instead.
He advised me to go to the great temple of Sheikh Adi,
where I should be welcome, and see many wonderful things.
Our conversation was interrupted by the arrival of a crowd
of visitors, headed by the priest of the papal Syrians, a short,
pompous man, with a nasal twang in his speech, and a most
self-satisfied air. They seated themselves, and the conver-
sation soon fell upon the English.
“They have no religion, wonderful to say,” began one of
the party.
“Yes, yes,” said another; “they believe in our Lord Jesus,
but not in our Father, the Pope.”
“But they have no churches,” remonstrated number one.


106 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Toma here interposed. “He had seen,” he said, “our
service performed in a chapel at Mosul, which Kass Geor-
gios (my friend B.) had fitted up in a style like their own,
and there was consecration every Sunday, and prayers every
day; and the English fasted also, for, behold, here it was
written in their book.”
“That may be,” was the answer; “but are we fools, O
man? Do we not know that they do all this to deceive us?”
Toma's choler was rising, but he was afraid of the priest,
whose hand he had devoutly kissed when he entered; and
merely remarked, apologetically, “Well, they are good
people.”
The clergyman had been puffing away in silence at the pipe,
which, according to Eastern etiquette, I had handed him when
he sat down; but he now deemed it derogatory to his dignity
to listen any longer to observations from others on a point
concerning his own profession. I could easily perceive that
he was the learned man of the village; and well might he
be, for he understood Arabic, Syriac, Chaldee, and Kurdish.
He spoke with the air of a man who has been considering
his subject carefully, and has thoroughly mastered it at last.
“The English are Christians, and have churches; but
they only go to them once a month, and take the Lord's
Supper once in twenty years. On the latter occasion, the
priest stands on a high place, that he may not be torn in
pieces by the crowd who rush tumultuously forward, snatch
the consecrated bread out of his hands, and scramble for it.
They are also allowed to marry as many wives as they
please, and some of them have more than twenty. They
are a poor and beggarly people, and have a heavy debt which
they are unable to pay. They are obliged to borrow large
sums of the King of France, who has obtained by this means
a kind of dominion over them.”
At the conclusion of this oration, the speaker looked at
me as if he had been advancing heavy and unanswerable
truths, which I might dislike, but could not controvert.
“Ma hu Saheeh, is it not true P’’ he asked.
“It is a great falsehood,” I answered, calmly, as I took
the pipe from my lips.
The assembly seemed divided, and appeared to expect
that I should enter still more into the defence of my nation.
My speech, in Arabic, was feeble; but I contrived, by


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 107
help of the Prayer Book, to maintain my ground ; and, after
a little, forced even the priest to confess that the English
might be Christians, and they might have the sacrament
oftener than once in twenty years; but as to their poverty
that was a known fact, and could not be controverted. Had
they not a debt which amounted to many millions of pias-
tres 2 Of course I could not deny this ; but my attempts
to explain the benefit of that national blessing were utterly
unavailing, and my hearers departed with the firm and in-
vincible conviction that the English were a beggarly and
bankrupt nation.
My host remained till they had all left. “That priest,”
he said, “is a conceited fellow. When I first came here,
he tried to stir up the people against me, and I had much
sorrow from him. Bey, what you have said is the truth,
and the English are a good people. Are there any of our
race among them in your own land 2 They tell me that
some of our brethren live in peace in the country of Hind,
under the English Sultan.”
My reply was cut short by Toma, who had been escorting
the priest to the outer door, where he asked him, with great
earnestness, at what hour he would say mass on the follow-
ing morning. To his credit, be it said, he was a great
church-goer, and had a considerable respect for the clergy.
Nevertheless, he could not help saying, as he prepared the
bed, “My master, that priest is a great hunzeer," but, In-
shallah, he shall be disappointed to-morrow, for he may wait
long enough before I go to his service.”
CHAPTER X.
Monastery of St. Matthew. Mohammedan veneration for Christian tombs.
Toma's story. An alarm. The gazelle. A night view of the plain of
Nineveh. Shereef Bey. Khoorsabad. A discovery.
ONE of my objects in leaving Mosul had been the accom-
plishment of a design, which I had lately entertained, of
* Pig.


108 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
visiting the deserted monastery of St. Matthew, distant about
six miles from the village of Bagh Sheikha. As our post
horses had been hired only as far as the latter place, I
directed Toma to procure some mules from the village, which
after some trouble he succeeded in doing. In these matters,
much must depend upon the disposition and personal feeling
of the Kiahya, who rules absolute over the villages. In the
present instance, that magistrate was not very friendly dis-
posed, for, being a most bigoted adherent of the Syrian Papal
Church, he looked upon an Englishman as a heretic and in-
fidel, whom it was the duty of a good Christian to harass and
annoy as much as possible. The priest had shown himself,
the day before, decidedly inimical, and his influence in the
village was by no means inconsiderable. In the course of
conversation, he had accused the English of being worse
than pagans, of instigating the Nestorians at Ouromiah to
break crosses, pollute their churches, and abandon the weekly
celebration of the Holy Communion. He alluded to the
operations of the American missionaries in that city; and I
could hardly convince him that they were not Englishmen,
nor even members of the English Church.
After he had seen our Liturgy, he began to waver some-
what in his former opinion; but it was quite clear that, in
times past, he had pictured an Englishman as the represent-
ative of everything vicious and impious. Charity compels
me to hope that these calumnies against our nation and re-
ligion have not been disseminated by the emissaries of the
Roman Church to forward a political and religious end; but
it is singular that they should be generally most prevalent
among members of that communion, and that, when they
appear elsewhere, they can almost always be traced to a
similar source.
Our road to the monastery lay at the foot of the range
called Jebel Makloub, which rises in the midst of the great
plain extending from the Kurdish mountains to the Tigris.
We were accompanied by two villagers, at the earnest re-
quest of Toma, who feared alike the Kurds and the goblins,
that were said to play strange nocturnal pranks in the ruined
and deserted monastery. Our escort had girded on two rusty
swords, which act appeared to afford them much satisfaction
and courage, as though the possession of arms had been suf-
ficient of itself to deter all assailants from attacking us.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 109
After a ride of two hours over stones and large fragments
of rock, which threatened at each moment to impede our
further progress, we arrived at the mouth of a narrow gorge
which separates the mountain of St. Matthew from Jebel
Makloub. At the foot of the former, was a small Kurd-
ish village inhabited by Mohammedans, who cast no very
friendly looks at us as we rode by. The ascent of the mount-
ain was by a winding path, rendered difficult and dangerous
by the fragments of rock which blocked it up, and, in some
places, obliged us to dismount and climb over them the best
way we could.
From the ledge on which the monastery was situated a
gentle slope, covered with green grass, descended about one-
fourth of the elevation of the former, and was bounded by a
low wall, as it were, of rocky fragments, which might have
been the result of manual labor. Skirting this slope to the
left, we soon arrived in front of the grand entrance, over
which are the apartments formerly occupied by the Syrian
Jacobite Bishop of Mosul, who, during the prevalence of the
hot season in the town, generally made this place his summer
residence. When Mr. Rich visited the monastery (in 1820)
he found it tenanted by the monks and their episcopal supe-
rior, under whom the establishment was then flourishing in
full vigor. Since then, however, it has undergone a total
change, and has been entirely abandoned by its inmates.
Not many years ago, as the monks were celebrating the
midnight service of their church, a band of Kurds crossed
the summit of the mountain, burst into the monastery, broke
open the church doors, and defiled the sanctuary with the
blood of the worshipers. Ever since that fatal night, the
building has been deserted, and the superstitious peasant
tells of lights seen dancing amid the ruins, of fearful and
spectral forms gliding along the rocky terraces, of wails and
moanings, and strange and supernatural sounds that have
broken the stillness of the midnight hour.
The monastery consists of four courts, now covered with
grass, and surrounded by the ruins of the cells which formed
originally the dwellings of the monks. The stone bench of
the kitchen was still black from the fires that had been kindled
upon it, and the refectory was in a tolerable state of pre-
servation. But the part most perfect and uninjured was the
10


110 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
church of the monastery, a fine building with a porch before
the entrance. The interior consisted of two aisles, divided
from each other by a row of stout pillars supporting saracenic
arches, which were terminated by a wall passing along the
right side of the choir, and dividing the sanctuary from the
small chapel on the south side, formerly used as a baptistery.
A low balustrade of stone work divided the choir from the
nave, the former of which contained two octangular desks of
marble, from which the lessons were wont to be read. At
the east end of the choir, a stone wall, with three arched en-
trances, supplied the place of a screen, and separated the
choir from the sanctuary. Within this wall was the great
altar, a square block of stone, raised on three steps, behind
which appeared a semicircular recess. Within the recess
was a bench of similar form, in the centre of which was an
elevated seat or throne, surmounted by a stone canopy. Here
was the place of the bishop and his clergy, at the celebration
of the Liturgy. During the other offices, they stood in the
second division of the church, which I have entitled the
choir.
On the north side of the great altar, which occupied a
central and detached position in the middle of the sanctuary,
was a small chapel, containing a stone table attached to the
wall. This table is termed the prothesis, and upon it the
elements are placed before they are carried to the great altar.
The corresponding chapel to the south of the latter contained
the font, a large vessel of stone, well adapted for the pur-
poses of immersion, which the Eastern churches practice in
lieu of sprinkling. To the north of the choir was an en-
trance leading to a small chamber, which contained the
monuments of several Syrian Jacobite bishops, among Qthers
of the celebrated. Oriental historian and divine, Gregorius
Bar Hebraeus, called also Aboulfarage.
One of the men who had accompanied us from Bagh
Sheikha was a Mohammedan, and, to my great surprise, he
knelt respectfully before each of the tombs, and kissed them
repeatedly and with great veneration. On asking him the
reason why he thus reverenced the memory of Christians, he
replied, that they were good men, and professors of Islam.
This term in fact includes not only Mohammedans, but all
Jews until the time of our Saviour, and all Christians from
that period till the appearance of the false prophet.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 111
As we moved about the different parts of the church, we
disturbed large assemblages of bats and owls, the flapping of
whose wings dislodged portions of the plaster from the roof
and covered us with dust. After having satisfied my cu-
riosity, I returned to the porch. Between it and the church
was a narrow staircase leading to a small room, one window
of which looked into the sacred building, and the other into
a small chapel dedicated to the Virgin. It had served as a
kind of vestry in former times, and was used by visitors to
the monastery as a sleeping apartment.
My dinner or supper having been cooked below, I ate and
drank, and was about to prepare myself for repose. But,
hardly had I finished my meal when a violent storm came on,
the wind howled dismally through the old arches and ruined
cells, the rain began to pour down in torrents, and imagina-
tion might almost trace, in the mournful echo of the blasts,
the origin of those moans and lamentations which had so
often been heard below. Toma and his companions had
originally taken up their station in a room underneath; but,
when the storm began, they appeared with rueful faces, and
requested permission to keep me company, for Toma re-
marked, that his solicitude for my safety could not allow him
to remain at a distance from me. The others complained
that the rain had invaded their apartment, and, therefore,
they hoped that they might be allowed to share mine.
Although I felt that their society would be little protection
in case of a visitation from either Kurds or genii, I could not
refuse to have pity on their terrors, and consented to grant
their request. The villagers from Bagh Sheikha had brought
a good supply of wood, from which they supplied the mate-
rials for a cheerful fire. The wind and rain without had not
abated in violence, and feeling indisposed for sleep, I re-
quested Toma to continue the story of his illness at Diarbekir,
which had been interrupted on a previous occasion by the
appearance of the Yezidee. My worthy Chaldean adherent
loved nothing better than to hear himself talk; and having,
by my directions, taken his seat cross-legged on the floor, he
began his tale:—
“I have informed you already, oh, my master, that I was
the servant of an Englishman, who, like yourself, was a tra-
veler in this country. He was a good man, but rather hasty
and impatient, as, with your leave, most Englishmen are.


112 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Instead of journeying, as we do, for about an hour, and then
alighting to smoke a pipe and to drink coffee, it was nothing
but ‘Yallah, yallah” from the beginning of the day’s march
to the end. When we arrived at a station, only a few hours’
rest was allotted to us, and away went my master again as
if some evil demon was in pursuit of him. Well, I could
not endure all this haste, for my motto, and that of every
Eastern man, is, as you doubtless know, ‘Yawash, yawash.”f
So, when we reached Diarbekir, I fell sick, and was unable
to proceed any further.
“My master was very sorry, for, as I told you, he was a
good man, but, had I been his brother, he would not have
waited for me. So he said, “Toma, Inshallah, I depart from
Diarbekir at two o'clock to-morrow morning, but I shall leave
you here, pay you the whole of your wages and give you a
present besides, so that, when you are well, you may return
in peace to your village.” Before I could thank him he was
gone to make arrangements for me, and ere I had recovered
from my surprise I was comfortably settled in the house of
one of our priests, whom my master begged to take care of
me, leaving him money for necessary expenses, and he also
gave me money, saying, ‘Addio, Toma, may God restore you!”
“So I kissed his hand, and lo! he was gone, and I heard
the trampling of his horse's feet as I was counting the sum
he had left me. I need not tell you that it was more than
my due, for the English, although hasty, are a generous peo-
ple; may God preserve them!
“My illness increased, and though the good priest, my
host, who understood medicine much better, as he said, than
any Frank doctor, did his best for me, I grew worse and
worse. My mind began to wander, and often I seemed to be
in my own village again, with my old friends and neighbors
around me, far from Diarbekir and its black walls. Once I
thought that I went into our village church and prayed be-
fore the picture of St. George, that Father Antoun, may God
have mercy upon him, brought from Rome. And when I
awoke, I reasoned with myself thus: “Why should I not ask
the good St. George to help me? for it seems that man can
do nothing for me.” So I prayed to the good saint for his in-
* An exclamation used to express haste, and to hurry on the Tatar or Sur-
redjee, who accompanies travelers.
| Gently, gently.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 113
tercession and aid before I slept, and in the night he stood
before me, dressed like the picture in the church, except that
he seemed to be on foot. His countenance looked pleasant
and smiling, so that I took courage and said, “O Mar Geor-
gios, pity me.” Then he smiled graciously on me, and
seemed to touch me with his spear, after which he disap-
peared, and I awoke. Then sending for Kas" Stephan, I
related to him my dream.
“But Kas Stephan said, ‘Isbar, have patience my son, for
it may be that the holy George will again appear to thee.”
And behold, on that night, and on the next also, he came as
before, and I began to recover, and soon after was completely
restored, whereupon I returned with joy, and made an offer-
ing to St. George in my own village church, telling my story
to all the villagers, who wondered thereat exceedingly.”
“Toma,” I said, when he had concluded, “there is but
one Mediator between God and man, even our Lord Yesua.
St. George we know little of; but I hope and believe that he
was a holy man who would have counseled you, if you could
have asked his advice, to pray directly to God himself. Per-
haps, however, it may have pleased Allah to forgive you for
what you did in ignorance, and with a good intention, and
to look rather on your faith, and earnest desire to obtain a
supernatural blessing through the medium of His servant.”
I might have gone on farther in my admonition, but when
I had proceeded thus far, Toma laid his hand on my arm,
and entreated me to be silent, as he heard, he said, the sound
of footsteps. I listened, and could clearly distinguish the
falling of rubbish, and other noises, which seemed to indicate
the approach of intruders. Snatching up my gun, I sallied
forth in spite of Toma's entreaties, and followed the sounds,
which appeared to be receding, into the court below. An-
other fall of rubbish directed my attention to the ramparts of
the monastery, where, in full relief against the sky, I beheld
the figure of a large gazelle, its wild watchful eyes directed
towards the porch.
The storm was passing over, and the moon was shining in
her full brightness, with that clear brilliancy which is wit-
nessed only in Eastern skies. Sheltered by a pillar, I watched
* Kas for Kasees means literally presbyter, and is always prefixed to the
names of priests by the Chaldean and Syrian Christians.
10+


114 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
the movements of the gazelle. It stood for some minutes as
if irresolute, and then leaped over the rampart: I rushed for-
ward, and clambering over some rubbish, reached the place
where I first saw it. Looking down, I beheld the beautiful
creature bounding from ledge to ledge along the side of the
mountain, as if exulting in its wild freedom, and defying the
swiftest efforts of pursuers. I was enjoying the sight when
Toma and his companions joined me. Feeling in no mood
for their society, I dismissed them to their repose, and con-
tinued to gaze with much interest on the scene before me.
At the foot of the mountain lay the plains of Athur, once
the site of that great and mighty Nineveh, where reigned the
first conquerors whom the earth ever knew. Happy might
it have been for her children, had the era of conquest, spolia-
tion, and violence terminated with the downfall and ruin of
that haughty city, which first taught the lessons of ambition
and crime to those who too eagerly received and carried
them into action. Yet what a moral might be derived from
the present condition of the capital of Assur. In lieu of
lofty palaces and gorgeous temples, the eye surveys only the
mounds composed of their dust, or the miserable collections
of huts which have arisen on their site. The gardens where
Sardanapalus reveled are wasted and desolate; the sounds of
soft and luxurious music that once floated on the soft Assy-
rian breezes, have yielded to the silence of devastation or
decay. Nothing could be more striking, indeed, than the
stillness which prevailed. Not a sound interrupted the pro-
found repose of nature and of man. Even the cry of the
wild animals which disturbs the solitude of ancient Babylon,
was not heard here. It was the calmness, the dignified
decay of ruined majesty, not the blighting operation of a
curse which the crimes and the sins of past days had called
forth. The relics of Babylon impressed me with awe, almost
with terror; those of Nineveh inspired more a feeling of sym-
pathy and mournful regret. -
As I pace that lonely rampart in my midnight walk, visions
of the past seem to rise from yonder deserted plains, and to
present themselves before me. Lofty palaces uprear their
towering pinnacles in every direction. Terraced gardens,
where art has done its utmost to rival, and, perhaps, to out-
vie nature, appear filled with choicest fruits, and garnished
with flowers of the most varied and brilliant hues. Artificial


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 115
streams pursue their winding course amid these luxuriant
plantations, and temper with refreshing coolness the heats of
a summer sun. On their banks a thousand curiously wrought
bowers receive the gay troups of revelers, who, crowned with
garlands, spend their hours as if life were designed to be one
long and uninterrupted revel. ... From his marble tower, the
Chaldean sage tracks the silent course of the heavenly
watchers, as they gleam with redoubled brilliancy from the
blue and cloudless expanse above. Glittering bands of war-
riors pass to and fro, exhibiting to the gaze of the curious,
the spoils of distant India and Media, mingled with the
trophies torn from the cities of the sacred land. Suddenly
in the midst of that careless and rejoicing city, a worn and
travel-stained form pronounces in a loud and unearthly voice
—“Yet, forty days, and Nineveh shall be destroyed.” The
monarch quits his throne, the people change their habits of
festivity for sackcloth, and all prostrate themselves before the
God of the stranger. The supplication is heard, and, for a
time at least, the doom of Nineveh is averted.
The vision changes, and in lieu of the gay and joyous
scenes which first attracted the eye, or the mournful and
penitential groups that succeeded to them, the imagination
pictures the public places of the mighty city filled with anx-
ious and apprehensive crowds who recall with trembling ear-
nestness the fearful predictions of a Hebrew Seer. From
the neighboring regions of Alkosh have gone forth the accents
of doom. The bloody city, the city of robbery and lies, must
perish. Hosts of barbarians rush from the neighboring hills,
overpower the effeminate and feeble inhabitants; and Nineveh
falls, even as a gallant ship that founders in the midst of the
solitary and trackless ocean, leaving no trace of her existence,
no floating memorial of her fate.”
Returning to my room, I slept undisturbed till the next
morning, when we prepared to return to Bagh Sheikha.
While Toma and his companions were getting things in
readiness, I set out to examine the locality of the monastery,
having arranged to meet the mules at the bottom of the
* The greatest obscurity seems to envelop the final ſate of Nineveh. After
a brief, but extensive dominion over Western Asia, its name disappears alto-
gether from the pages of history. Diodorus informs us that it was destroyed
by Arbaces the Mede, and Belesis, a Babylonian, supposed to be the same
with Nabopolasser,


116 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
mountain of St. Matthew. Above us, rose the summit of the
eminence to a considerable height, the rocky side having
been hollowed in many places, to form retreats for those who
considered life in the monastery as not sufficiently solitary
for their tastes. The paths leading to these caves were steep,
narrow, and dangerous, but custom had doubtless rendered
them less difficult to the devotees, who were accustomed to
attend even the midnight services in the church below.
Descending the mountain, I came to a hollow cavern, con-
taining a dropping well, near which was a kind of reservoir
or tank, excavated by the hand of nature or art in the recesses
of the rock. It was full of water, supplied from an internal
spring, and communicated with a well which we had observed
above in one of the apartments of the bishop’s house.
On arriving at Bagh Sheikha, I resumed my old quarters
in the house of the Yezidee, who daily treated us with increas-
ing kindness and hospitality. My opponents, the priest and
the Kiahya, were busily engaged in collecting the salian.
The season of application for taxes is a period of no small
tribulation to the inhabitants of an Eastern village. No in-
considerable amount of cunning and chicanery is called into
action to oppose the violence of government agents, who
generally apply the bastinado as the last resort. Nature,
however, has endowed the Oriental peasant with the faculty
of endurance to an extraordinary degree. Men have frequently
allowed their feet to be beaten almost to a jelly before they
would yield up their secreted earnings.
Soon after my return, I was honored with a visit from She-
reef Bey, the proprietor of the village, and the adjoining lands.
He viewed some maps, which I showed him, with the curi-
osity of a child. Though well versed in Arabic literature,
he seemed astonished and even scandalized, when I informed
him that the world was round. He told me that Arabic was
a low vulgar dialect, and advised me to study Turkish. The
interview terminated with a request for medicine, but I had
unfortunately none to bestow. On inquiry, I found that the
bey was the physician of the whole village, and had consider-
able practice, as it was his custom to give both medicine
and advice gratis. He required the Frank drugs for his own
use, having probably little faith in the nostrums of the country.
In the afternoon, I returned the visit, and ſound the bey’s
mansion a large, irregularly built edifice, the court of which


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 117
was, as usual, crowded with dependents. The sitting-room
was a long apartment, furnished with divan mattresses, ex-
tended on the ground, and not raised upon frames as at
Mosul. A large number of the head men of the neighboring
villages sat cross-legged on these, leaning against the wall,
and smoking their long pipes. At the end of the room, two
diwans slightly raised from the ground, were appropriated to
the bey and his visitor. He rose to receive me, and, after
the usual salutations, requested me to be seated.
While pipes and coffee were being served, my host began
to question me about Europe. He asked whether England
was larger than Russia, and if it was true that every English-
man had twenty wives; whether France were not an island,
and Germany subject to the Pope of Rome. “He had
heard,” he continued, “that the English had a kind of ma-
chine, which traversed immeasurable distances, in a short
period of time, through the air.”
“Ajaib, ajaib, wonderful! wonderful!” ejaculated the
whole room.
“You must know,” said the bey, condescendingly, “that,
when the English want to take a city, they cause this ma-
chine to hover over it, and then they begin with cannons and
bombshells to demolish the houses! Verily the English are a
wonderful people!”
After this, my explanation of the nature and use of bal-
loons was thought tame and flat, and was interrupted by the
bey, who inquired, “whether the English had any religion,
and whether they fasted?”
“They have fast days appointed,” said the priest, “ in
their Book of Prayers, but they do not abstain from eating on
those occasions; they only substitute fish for meat.”
“The wiser men, they,” rejoined the bey, who probably
spoke feelingly, as it was Ramadan.
When I had finished my pipe, I rose to take my leave,
having impressed the bey with a more favorable opinion than
he had hitherto entertained of the English. I am afraid,
however, that he retained respecting us much the same sen-
timents that we should hold concerning the Chinese or Ja-
panese, and considered us a race of civilized barbarians.
On my return to the house of the Yezidee, I distributed
several small Arabic translations of the Elements of Geogra-
phy among the villagers, and bade Toma hire some horses


118 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
for our journey. While he was gone, a Mohammedan en-
tered, followed by several of the villagers, and, addressing
himself to me, said:— -
“O bey, why are you lingering here, when wonderful
things are doing at Khoorsabad? Upon my head, the work-
men of the French Balios” have discovered the treasure
halls of Nineveh, and the idols which those Kafirs (may the
curse of Allah light upon their graves!) used to worship.”
“Surely, you jest, O man!” I replied ; “you mean they
have found some bricks with writing upon them.”
“No, on my eye,” he answered, “they are idols and no-
thing else. Did I not see them as I passed through?”
This intelligence, which I received with no small degree
of incredulity, determined me to change my route, and go
first to Khoorsabad. The Mohammedan remained till Toma's
arrival with the horses, and, finding he still persisted in his
story, I took the road leading to the place where the dis-
covery had been made. My host, the Yezidee, refused all
compensation; so, taking a kind leave of him, I left the vil-
lage tolerably satisfied, upon the whole, with my sojourn
there.
For some days previous to my departure from Mosul, M.
Botta, the amiable and intelligent Consul of France at that
place, had been making excavations on the largest of the
Nineveh mounds, called Kuyunjik by the Turks, but had
found nothing but bricks with arrow-headed inscriptions.
It would have seemed then to me and others at Mosul, the
height of improbability to anticipate that any more substan-
tial relics of ancient Assyria might be brought to light, or to
imagine that, within a few feet of the green turf, which our
horses’ feet had so often trodden, there lay buried some of
the most singular and interesting memorials of a nation’s
greatness, that ever survived the wreck of time.
My disbelief and unwillingness to credit the relation of
the Mohammedan villager were succeeded by emotions of
almost stupefying surprise, when, after hastening through the
village of Khoorsabad, I dismounted near the excavations,
and cast a wondering glance at the scene which there pre-
sented itself. Slowly emerging from the excavated soil, was
the upper part of a stone slab, containing, in bas-relief, the
* Consul.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 119
representation of a siege, as I learned afterwards, when the
workmen, stimulated by my presence, had cleared away the
earth from the lower extremity. It is impossible for me to
say, whether astonishment or gratification predominated, as
I gazed on these remains of a mighty empire. Nineveh had
latterly occupied my thoughts very much, but I should al-
most as soon have expected to encounter the figure of Ninus
himself as to witness the discovery of these relics of his far-
famed city. Yet, even while I hailed this first fruits of As-
syrian researches, I doubted whether the slabs would bear
transmission to Europe. Those tablets seemed too fragile
to endure the rude mode of conveyance which must be
adopted in a country so little famed for progress in the me-
chanical arts. They will be broken before they reach Mosul,
I murmured to myself, as I stood wrapt in contemplation at
the edge of the excavation. I am happy in being able to
add that this prophecy has been falsified, and that my old
acquaintances of Khoorsabad, with many others, have been
conveyed in safety to Paris, and lodged securely within the
Bibliothèque du Roi.
As M. Botta was expected to arrive the next evening at
the village, I determined to await his coming, even at the
personal sacrifice of passing a night in one of the wretched
mud cabins in the vicinity of the excavations. Having
nothing to occupy my attention, I walked into the neighbor-
ing plain, which was only partially cultivated. As I strolled
along, I perceived, at the distance of about a mile from the
village, what I at first supposed to be a column of stone. On
approaching nearer, however, I found it was an altar or table
of triangular form, supporting a round top or platform, of
about two inches in thickness, bearing an inscription in
cuneiform characters.
When M. Botta arrived, I made over to him my discovery,
upon which he informed me that his workmen had found a
similar one in another part of the plain. It is wonderful to
reflect on, and almost impossible to realize, the fact that this
altar must have remained in the place where I found it, for
nearly two thousand years, and perhaps for a longer period :
exposed to the weather, to the injuries of time, and to the
misuses to which the ignorant villagers might have subjected
it, still retaining its form and appearance unimpaired. The
men who had offered sacrifice upon it, the haughty monarchs,


120 - NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
-
the proud priests, had long since become dust, and their very
names had been forgotten; while the mute and inanimate
stone alone remained to recall the existence of an empire.
A humiliating reflection for the vanity of man!
The village of Khoorsabad is distant about fifteen miles to
the north-east of Mosul ; and is built on an artificial mound,
rising about ninety feet from the plain. Its present name is
supposed to be an abbreviation of the word Khosroobad, the
city of Khosroo or Cyrus. If this be true, these remains may
have been the work of the same people who executed the
sculptures and inscriptions at Persepolis, described by Sir R.
K. Porter. The arrow-headed characters seem to have been
common to the three nations of Persia, Chaldea, and Assyria;
and perhaps formed the vehicle for the communication, or
perhaps rather concealment, of religious mysteries and astro-
nomical observations.”
It is possible that the mound on which the village is situ-
ated would, if carefully examined, fully repay the trouble of
excavating. For a small sum, the villagers would willingly
quit their mud dwellings, and establish themselves elsewhere.
Constant trouble and interruptions, however, must be antici-
pated from the Pasha of Mosul, should such a step be at-
tempted. Ignorant themselves, and brutally indifferent to the
remains of antiquity, the Turks can never be persuaded that
old sculptures and inscriptions are the objects searched for
by the enterprising Frank. They think that he is looking for
buried treasures, or some long hidden parchments or docu-
ments, concealed by the former owners of the country; the
possession of which would cause it to revert to the fortunate
discoverer. Among the better classes, jealousy and prejudice,
as well as the hatred and contempt for Christians, so inherent
in every Mussulman breast, supply the same opposition offered
by the superstition of the vulgar.
* Pliny speaks of “DCCXX annorum observationes siderum coctilibus later-
culis inscriptae.” Nat. Hist. i. VII. e.


122 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
valley, at the termination of which, arising from a thick mass
of foliage, might be discerned the spires and dome of Sheikh
Adi. I dispatched Toma on in front to prepare the guardians
of the tomb for my visit. Tired as I was, the scene was so
enchanting, that I could hardly help checking the speed of
my horse, and proceeding more leisurely that I might enjoy it.
A quiet rivulet flowed through the midst of the valley, and
supplied the inmates of the temple with the means of ablu-
tion and purification.
After I had passed the outer gate, my attention was directed
to numerous tanks or cisterns, containing the purest and clear-
est water I have ever seen or tasted.
At the inner entrance, the subordinate ministers of the
shrine met me, with expressions of kindly welcome. They
were clad in garments of black, which gave a sombre air to
their appearance. I dismounted, and passed through an outer
court, at the side of which were several cells or recesses,
which they told me were for the accommodation of the pil-
grims at the great annual festival. This outer court was
separated by a wall from the inner inclosure, which surrounds
the edifice containing the tomb. To the right hand was a
dwelling for the ministers and guardians, on the second floor
of which I took up my abode. Several Nestorians from the
mountains shared the hospitality of our hosts. They spoke
in high terms to Toma of the kindness which they had always
experienced from the Yezidees.
After my dinner, I received a visit from two of the servants
of the tomb, accompanied by a middle-aged woman, who
was treated with great respect, and who proved to be the
mother of one of my visitors. They knew but little of Arabic,
so that my conversation with them was carried on through
the medium of Toma, who spoke Kurdish fluently. The old
lady received with great pleasure the pipe which one of the
men handed her, and showed no want of acquaintance with
the art of smoking. I endeavored, but with small success,
to gain from my hosts some information as to their tenets and
peculiar habits. They seemed to know little, or to be unwilling
to reveal what they knew. I was enabled afterwards to collect
more intelligence respecting them, which will be communi-
cated in another paragraph.
In the morning, I expressed my wish to view the interior
of the temple. It forms one side of the inner court, and the


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 123
outward wall is covered with emblems, which may or may
not bear a mystical character. One of the most conspicu-
ous of these was the figure of a serpent, which might convey
an allusion to the Evil Principle. On entering, I found the
interior resembled very much that of a church with two aisles,
divided by a range of arches. On the right of the door ap-
peared a large tank filled with water, which my guides
informed me was used for baptism. To the left were several
sepulchral cells, before which lamps were burning. Curtains
of printed calico suspended before the entrance of each con-
cealed from view the sarcophagus within. The last of these
cells contains the tomb of Sheikh Adi himself, and bears on
it an inscription taken from the Koran.
I shall now take this opportunity of furnishing the reader
with all the information which I have been able to collect
respecting the Yezidees, and will then offer a few remarks
on the probable origin of this singular sect.
As far as I have been able to ascertain, Hyde, in his
“Religio Veterum Persarum,” is the first European writer
who mentions the Yezidees. His account, though full of
prejudicial statements derived from the writings of their ene-
mies, contains some curious particulars, a few of which I
shall now insert.
“The Yezidees of Kurdistan greatly esteem black dogs,
and everything else black, on account of the color of the
devil, whom they venerate and call ustad, or master. The
priest of the Yezidees also, who, like a fit minister of such a
master, goes clad in a sombre garb, is styled by them the
Yezidee disciple; but all men of this kind are called by the
Mohammedans and Christians Sheitani, that is, belonging to
Satan, because they acknowledge Satan to be their peer,
sheikh, or guide, after that saying of the Orientals, ‘Who-
soever has no guide, the devil will guide him.” These
deny the resurrection, and hold a middle opinion between
the Mohammedans and pagans. They believe in the exist-
ence of God, but they do not worship Him.”
He goes on to accuse them of committing certain crimes
and impurities at their great annual festival. The report of
this writer may be taken as fairly representing the view
entertained of the Yezidees by the Mohammedans and Christ-
* Hyde, “Historia Religionis Veterum Persarum.” Appendix.


124 NOTES FROM NINEVEH:
ians of Mosul and the vicinity. Yet the candid inquirer
into their tenets must remember that similar calumnies ex-
isted in early times with regard to the primitive believers.
The love of exaggeration and of the marvelous, which is
the ruling passion of the Oriental, may well account for the
propagation and reception of these monstrous charges.
The sect commonly called Yezidees refuse that appellation,
as a mark of reproach. They prefer the title of Daseni,
which is supposed to be derived from the name of an ancient
province of Assyria. In contradiction to the assertion of
Hyde, that they prefer black as a favorite color, I must op-
pose the fact, that not any of them wear it, except the
guardians, or servants, of the tomb of Sheikh Adi. Their
priesthood, if I may give it this title, possesses, like that
of the Christians, three grades, answering to the orders of
bishop, priest, and deacon.” They pay a great veneration to
fire, and to the rising sun. They practice circumcision, and
a rite similar in administration to baptism. A writer, quoted
by Hyde, represents them as holding wine in great esteem,
and of giving to it the appellation of the blood of Christ.
Much mystery seems to exist as to the object of their wor-
ship. Persons of tried veracity have assured me that, at the
village of Baadri, is preserved, with great care, the figure of
a peacock, made of tin, and termed Malek Taoos, or King
Peacock. The Yezidees at Sheikh Adi admitted their belief
in Malek Taoos. When questioned as to his whereabouts,
they inquired where is Jesus? The answer was, every-
where. Upon which they rejoined, so is Malek Taoos.
They profess generally great love to Christians, and to Chris-
tianity, and I have even heard the opinion expressed, that
they would willingly embrace our religion, were it not that
they fear the rapacity of the government might make this
change of faith a pretence for extortion and violence.
The respect with which the Yezidees regard the Evil Prin-
ciple renders them angry and annoyed when his name is
mentioned in conversation. Yet I have never been able to
discover that any act of direct adoration is paid to him. The
most peculiar feature in the creed of the Yezidees is the
* It is doubtful whether those termed by the Yezidees peers are to be
considered a separate grade. I have heard of their existence, but I never
encountered any person belonging to this order. Their name, and that of the
lowest grade, the Fakeers, is Persian. -


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 125
total absence of any ritual or prescribed mode of worship.
Although I have remained among them for several days, I
have never been able to detect anything like veneration for a
superior power; except that, at Sheikh Adi, I have remarked
that they paid a kind of adoration to the rising sun.
They speak with the utmost veneration of Christ, and
seem even to expect His re-appearance upon earth. They
also expressed great veneration for the Gospel, a copy of
which I showed them at Sheikh Adi. Respecting the lat-
ter person, I could learn nothing very satisfactory, although
I was profuse in my inquiries. They did not seem to know
how long the Temple had been in the possession of their
sect; and, when it was asserted, in their presence, that the
building had formerly been a Christian monastery, they
merely remarked that it might have been so. On my asking
more particularly respecting the origin of their creed, they
seemed, as far as I could understand, to indicate the East as
the direction from which it had formerly been introduced.
Such appear to be the principal characteristics of this in-
teresting, and much calumniated sect, characteristics which
seem to point clearly to the soutce from whence their doctrines
originally sprang. Let us now endeavor to ascertain whether
we can establish the connection, which appears at first sight
so strikingly evident, between their tenets and those of Manes.
CHAPTER XII.
Early spread of Christianity in Assyria and Persia. The Magians. Manes
and his institutions. Manicheeism of the Yezidees. Rabban Hormuzd.
THE attention of the apostles had been, at an early period,
directed to the land of Naharaim and the parts adjacent.
Among the converts at the day of Pentecost, we read of the
dwellers in Mesopotamia, of Parthians, Medes, and Elamites;
many of whom probably carried back with them the seeds of
truth, and labored in scattering them among their idolatrous
countrymen. The strong similarity which existed between
the manners, customs, and language of the Eastern and
Western Syrians probably tended to facilitate the extension
11+


126 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
of the Gospel, so that it is not surprising, if, before the middle
of the second century, we find the Christian religion pervad-
ing the regions of ancient Assyria, and possessing a consider-
able number of adherents even in Persia itself.
Three hundred years after the birth of Our Lord, his divine
religion had effected great conquests, and the metropolitan of
Seleucia, the modern Babylon, might almost with justice lay
claim to the lofty title of Patriarch of the East. But Christ-
ianity had to struggle in Persia with an antagonist more
subtle and more dangerous than the effete and worn-out
systems of idolatry which, in the West, yielded to it almost
without a struggle. The legends of the Greek mythology
required and obtained the assistance of the civil power to
sustain their influence, and the rapidity with which the whole
fabric of superstition crumbled and fell, after that assistance
had been withdrawn, proved at once its inherent weakness,
and incapability of maintaining its ground alone. But the
theology of the Magi was of a widely different character.
Free from much of the puerility and open folly of the Grecian
system, it gave less offence to the reasoning and philosophical
mind by its ceremonial observances, while an attentive regard
for the duties of morality, and a freedom from the licentious
practices enjoined by the rituals of other superstitions, tended
to secure to its priesthood a large amount of authority and
popular veneration.
Nor must we forget that the Magian system professed to
solve a problem which had long been the subject of anxious
and earnest speculation. The mind that attempts, without
the aid of Revelation, to understand the constitution and course
of mortal affairs, will find itself unable to account for the ex-
istence of evil in a world where all things seem to bear the
impress of goodness. The earth that nourishes, the beauties
of nature that delight their beholders, form a strong and
marked contrast to the sickness that wastes and destroys the
human frame, and the storms which scatter ruin and devasta-
tion in their course. The evils brought upon mankind by
poverty, rapine, and warfare seem to indicate, the active
operation of an evil principle, endeavoring to disturb the
placid serenity produced by plenty, quiet, and peace. The
question, therefore, will necessarily arise, whence and of
what nature is this influence, which seems to mar and dis-
turb the happiness of creation ? How is it possible that a


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 127
beneficent Being like the Creator of the universe can be at
once the author of evil, and the producer of good; the parent
of two principles which must be ever in active antagonism,
and mutually counteract, and therefore nullify each other?
The Magian philosophy attempted to answer and to satisfy
these queries, by referring the different effects of good and
evil to the operation of two principles, equal in power and
authority, and continually in conflict; nor can it be doubted
that a theory could not be wanting in subtlety and apparent
truth, which, under the name of Manicheeism, prevailed so
extensively in Western Asia and in Europe, and possessed
sufficient attractions for the clear and logical mind of St.
Augustine.
Such was the opinion which, in the third century, contested
with Christianity the empire of the extreme East; attracting
reverence from its antiquity, and attention from the specious-
ness of its doctrines. The Magi found themselves, however,
losing their hold on the minds of their votaries; the doctrine
of the two principles, with its hopeless fatalism, yielded before
the bright vision of good, triumphing finally over evil, and of
man, reconciled to God by the sufferings of incarnate Deity.
Despite the persecution with which the Magi assailed the
new opinions, their adherents increased; and in Persia, as
elsewhere, the blood of martyrs proved, eventually, the seed
of the church.
While matters were in this state, a young Magian, named
Manes, conceived the idea of reconciling, and uniting in one,
the teaching of the Magi and the doctrines of Christ. Nor
did the attempt seem altogether hopeless; the Jehovah of the
Gospel might be easily made to represent the Yezd, the Good
Principle of the Persian mythology; while the Satan of the
Christian system became identical with the Ahriman, or Evil
Principle. A substitute for the Redeemer was found in the
Persian Mithras, who was supposed to represent to mankind
the brightness of eternal light.
In order to recommend himself more strongly to the Christ-
ians, whose system he appears to have carefully studied,
the audacious impostor had the effrontery to represent him-
self as the Paraclete promised by Christ to his disciples, who
should lead them into all truth. This expression was per-
verted, by Manes, to signify that the Christian system was
not yet perfect, but was to expect its completion and final


128 - NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
settlement at the coming of a Divine messenger, commis-
sioned by God to explain more fully the way of life. The
same pretensions were afterwards advanced by Mohammed,
and admitted by his disciples as an authority for his mission.
As he proceeded in his attempt to reconcile the two sys-
tems, the Persian impostor found himself reduced to the ne-
cessity of casting discredit on nearly all the books of the Old
and New Testaments, and of substituting in their place a
fabrication of his own. He also affirmed that the Evil Prin-
ciple was the God of the Jews, and had stirred up the chief
priests to put Christ to death. He denied, however, that he
really suffered crucifixion; a phantom was substituted in his
place, and the Redeemer returned to his throne in the sun,
having previously commissioned twelve apostles to propa-
gate his doctrine; announcing, at the same time, that they
were to expect a fuller and more perfect revelation at the
appearance of a mysterious messenger termed the Paraclete.
The tenets of this new revelation seem to have been as
follows. The empire of the universe is divided between two
potentates, the Rulers of Light and Darkness; the Ruler of
Light is in himself supremely happy and benevolent, while the
Prince of Darkness is unhappy, evil, and malignant. Both
these have given existence, at various times, to numberless
beings, resembling themselves in character and in disposi-
tion. The Prince of Darkness, becoming aware of the exist-
ence of light in the universe, resolved to do his utmost to
suppress it; to counteract his malicious designs, the Ruler of
Light opposed an army, commanded by the first man, which
was partially unsuccessful, for the Prince of Darkness was
enabled to seize on a considerable portion of the Divine light,
and to mingle it with the mass of corrupt matter; he, how-
ever, suffered afterwards a signal defeat from the armies of
light, but they failed in recovering any portion of the element
that had been captured.
The Prince of Darkness afterwards created the parents of
the human race from this mingled mass, forming the bodies
from corrupt matter, and the souls from those particles of
Divine light which he had captured. The beneficence of
the Good Principle then formed the earth as an habitation
for the newly-created beings, that, while dwelling upon it,
the captive particles of light might be delivered from their
corporeal prisons, and be restored to their former condition.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 129
In order to aid them in their struggles with corrupt and ma-
lignant matter, the Ruler of Light produced, from his own
essence, two beings, entitled Christ and the Holy Ghost, the
former of whom he dispatched on a mission to mankind,
clothed with the shadowy form of a human body. The
Prince of Darkness procured his seeming death, and, having
fulfilled his appointed mission, he left the completion of the
system revealed by him, to the care of Manes, the Persian—
the promised Paraclete.
The substance of the new doctrine appears to have been,
that the body, being composed of corrupt matter, is natu-
rally evil, and attempts to defeat the aspirations of its celes-
tial prisoner, the soul. Sin, therefore, is nothing more than
the obeying the inclinations of the body, which ought to be
mortified and chastised by fasting, and other acts of dis-
cipline, in order to diminish its influence, and restrain its
importunities. Those, therefore, who, by extravagant aus-
terities, succeed in vanquishing the frailties of their corporeal
foe, shall depart, after death, to the moon, where they under-
go a lustration, by means of water, which purifies still more
their nature, and renders them capable of essaying the last
probation—that of fire, which will take place in the sun.
Having passed, successfully, through these two stages of
being, they enter the dwelling of Eternal Light, leaving their
corrupt and evil bodies to return to their former state.
A more lengthened trial, however, awaits those who neglect
to obey the injunctions of Christ as interpreted and explained
by Manes. They must pass through the bodies of different
animals, and undergo, in those forms, the amount of pain
and suffering that may be deemed necessary for their purifi-
cation. When this is terminated, a fire shall burst forth and
consume the earth, while the Prince of Darkness and his
adherents will be delivered over to perpetual misery in the
regions of eternal gloom, from which all egress shall be
barred by an army of the delivered souls, who will also pre-
vent all farther invasions of the realms of light.”
These opinions were intrusted for propagation to the zeal
of several grades of ministers, answering in degree to the
orders of the church. A president, who was said to represent
* This account of the system of Manes has been adopted from Mosheim,
Eccl. Hist. Cent. iii, and Beausobre, Histoire du Manicheisme.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 131
of propitiating, or, perhaps, of deceiving, their Mohammedan
tyrants.
It is not, indeed, to be imagined that the Yezidees have
maintained untainted the system of Manes. In their venera-
tion for the Evil Principle, they will seem to have exceeded
the tenets propounded by him. But it is ever the tendency
of error to corrupt itself, and to make its successive develop-
ments more evil still. It may be remarked, also, that a
savage and uncivilized people are more prone to be influ-
enced by the striking and terrific features of a religious creed,
than by its milder lessons and representations. The deity of
a barbarous race is generally a celestial warrior, who must
be propitiated with human sacrifices and libations of blood.
The same predominance of the wild and terrible, over the
gentler influences of religion, may be traced in some of the
wild legends of the Middle Ages, where the enemy of man
plays so striking a part. It will scarcely surprise us, there-
fore, if the terror inspired by the Evil Principle should, among
a rude, uncivilized, and illiterate race, be productive, in time,
of a species of veneration, which the mild and beneficent
character of the Author of Good had failed in inspiring.
The title of Yezidee, signifying a follower or worshiper
of Yezd, the Good Principle, seems to assign to the people
who bear it some affinity with the ancient Persians in creed,
as well as in race. The tradition of the Mohammedans,
which traces the appellation to a wicked khalif of Damascus,
may be regarded as an idle fable; but the knowledge that
such a legend existed among their sworn enemies may have
suggested to a race, not very scrupulous in practicing decep-
tion, the policy of changing it for a name derived from the
province of Dasen, where great numbers of them were then
resident. Farther inquiries into the habits and tenets of the
Yezidees may tend to show more points of resemblance be-
tween them and the earlier followers of the Persian here-
siarch; and, therefore, I may be hardly justified in propound-
ing at any length that, as a theory, which may shortly be
established as a fact. I, therefore, turn from the considera-
tion of their doctrines, to make a few remarks on their prin-
cipal shrine and hierarchy.
The temple of Sheikh Adi is reported to have been
formerly a Christian monastery, dedicated probably to Adacus
or Adai, the disciple of St. Thaddeus and his coadjutor, in


132 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
effecting the conversion of Mesopotamia. The veneration
which the present Yezidees blindly pay him is doubtless
founded on a tradition dimmed and obscured by time, but
derived originally from their Manicheean or Christian ances-
tors. The inscriptions contained in the temple are quite
modern, nor is it certain that the present holders have pos-
sessed it for any length of time. Yet that their veneration
for Sheikh Adi is evidently a vital part of their creed, is
testified by their annual pilgrimage to his tomb. Nor should
it be forgotten that, while the sepulchres of St. Thomas and
St. Thaddeus have been pointed out, the last resting-place of
the Apostle of Mesopotamia has hitherto remained unknown.
The priesthood of the Yezidees comprises three, or at
most four, orders of ministers—the head sheikh, who pre-
sides over the whole body; the peers, who occupy the se-
cond rank; the Kawals and the Fakeers, or Guardians of the
Tomb. In the Manicheean hierarchy, we find one more
grade, that of the twelve, who were supposed to represent
the Apostles of Christ. But it may be doubted whether
this was intended to be of permanent duration. Its func-
tions may have ceased when the Manicheeans suspended
their more active missionary exertions.
Omitting this second rank or grade, we find four orders in
each sect, of which the head Sheikh of the Yezidees will
correspond to the President or Patriarch of the Manichees,
while the Peers, Kawals, and Fakeers accord with the bish-
ops, priests, and deacons of the Persian heretics. The
resemblance might be more fully established, if we knew the
names given by the Manichees to these grades of their hie-
rarchy. But the information we possess concerning Manes
and his system comes through the medium of Christian writ-
ers, who, finding a similarity existing between the grades
of the Manichee priesthood and those of the church, accom-
modated the names used among themselves to express the
different orders of the former.
I have thus endeavored to point out a few features of re-
semblance between the followers of Manes and the votaries
of Sheikh Adi. Whether what has been said will satisfy
others, I know not; but, after a most careful consideration of
the state of the case, I cannot avoid coming to the conclu-
sion that the Yezidees are the only surviving representatives
of that widely-extended heresy which proved, in early days,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 133
the most active and dangerous opponent of Eastern Christ-
ianity. The open-hearted hospitality, the kindness and
good humor of these poor persecuted people, must excite a
wish in the mind of the benevolent and Christian traveler,
that the lessons of a purer creed might dispel their super-
stitions, and imbue them with a clear and perfect knowledge
of our divine religion.
It is greatly to be lamented, that some protection from the
persecutions of their Kurdish and Turkish enemies cannot
be obtained for the unfortunate Yezidees. The hatred of the
Mohammedans has ranked them far below the Jews in their
charitable estimate of those who differ from themselves, and
the option of the Koran or the sword, which the latter may
turn aside by the offer of tribute, remains in full force for
the unhappy Yezidee.
“They are cursed dogs, who have no revelation nor even
a prophet,” said a Moslem to me one day, when speaking of
the Yezidees; “why should you lament over their fate?
For myself, the killing of them would be as the killing of a
wild beast.”
It must, however, in candor be acknowledged that the
Yezidees have not learnt mercy by persecution, but have
treated with wanton cruelty those of the Moslems who have
fallen into their hands. They have invariably spared the
Christians, and when the massacre of the Nestorians drove
many hundreds of unhappy fugitives to Mosul, they received
shelter and protection at the tomb of Sheikh Adi.
Early in the morning, I bade adieu to the delightful valley
and its kind inhabitants, and ascended the mountains in a
northerly direction. My road was steep, but surrounded
with plantations of oak, whose verdant foliage reminded me
of scenes far away. I was quietly musing on the Yezidees
and their history, when my mule made a false step, and I
found myself suddenly rolling on the ground. Fortunately,
we had nearly reached the summit, and I was deposited on
a heap of dry leaves, the accumulation of many weeks. The
mention of this fall might sound somewhat strange to Euro-
pean readers if I did not explain its cause. I determined to
eschew the use of a saddle on leaving Bagh Sheikha, and had
latterly bestrode my coverlet only, which was balanced on
the back of the mule by a pair of saddle-bags. On this easy
and comfortable seat I had traveled for some miles, but the
12


134 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
late catastrophe admonished me that some kind of girth was .
absolutely necessary for mountain roads. A piece of rope,
which we had brought with us, answered the purpose tolera-
bly well, and I reached the other side of the range without
any further accidents.
We were now again at the foot of the Gordyaean Mountains,
riding along the edge of the plains of Nineveh, in the direc-
tion of the great Chaldean monastery of Rabban Hormuzd.
As we proceeded, Toma pointed out the remains of seven or
eight ruined villages, formerly inhabited by Yezidees. Where
were their late occupants? Murdered or captives. Far
away in exile they longed in vain, it may be, for a sight of
those distant mountains which they were never again to be-
hold, or pictured in the tablet of memory that fair and fertile
valley, with its gently murmuring rivulet and its holy tomb.
At length we arrived at the entrance to the winding pass,
within which stood the convent of Rabban Hormuzd. It
terminated in a wide semicircular ravine, round which wound
a steep and circuitous path. The rain had begun to fall
heavily before we accomplished the half of the ascent, and a
thick, mist-like vapor filled the hollow formed by the semi-
circle of rocks. Blinded by these mists, we were obliged to
remain stationary, as the mules seemed indecisive, and we
could hardly discern our path. At length, the deep tone of
the summons to prayers sounded from the convent, the mules
pricked up their ears and moved forward, while the mist
suddenly disappeared, and soon, as if a veil or curtain had
been gradually withdrawn, we discovered the form of the
monastery before us, and perceived a body of monks, who
were issuing forth from the great gate to meet and welcome
us. The good fathers were well acquainted with Toma, and
in a few minutes I was occupying a comfortable cave, within
whose rocky walls the early Christian converts had often,
it is said, found a refuge from their pagan and Magian
persecutors.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 135
CHAPTER XIII.
Rabban Hormuzd. Ecclesiastical customs of the Chaldeans. Language.
Extracts from the Liturgy of the Nestorians. Images. Excommunication.
THE Chaldean monastery of Rabban or Saint Hormuzd
occupies a rocky ledge or platform, on the side of one of the
mountains of the Judi range. It is surrounded on all sides
by lofty eminences, and looks over the semicircular recess
which I have alluded to in the last chapter. The buildings
connected with the establishment are arranged in no regular
order, so that much of the effect which might be produced
by a skillful and judicious grouping of the different edifices
has been neglected. Still there remains enough to make the
view of the convent and its offices an agreeable and striking
prospect, when contemplated from the entrance of the ravine.
The church and the adjacent buildings seem, as it were, to
spring out of the barren side of the mountain, their white
walls contrasting vividly with the dark ground behind.
Above, appear the signs of cultivation in the shape of several
vine plantations, which are tended by the lay brethren. A
narrow and circuitous path gives access to them, and con-
ducts the inquisitive traveler in a short time to the summit of
the mountain. -
Kas Emmanuel, the abbot, was absent from Rabban Hor-
muzd, at the time of my visit, but I received a most hospi-
table welcome from Brother Antonius, the sub-prior. He was
a small, spare man, on whose saturnine features mortifica-
tion, or disgust with the world, had left the traces of melan-
choly and rigid self-denial. In the East, as in the West,
disappointment and misfortunes drive many to the cloister,
to brood, in solitude and silence, over sorrows, the recollec-
tion of which can rarely be effaced.
Many of the cells of the monks are simply caves hewn in
the sides of the mountain, on which their monastery is built.
One of these was allotted to me, and I liked it so well that,


136 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
when on a subsequent visit, the worthy abbot would have
offered me an apartment in his own house, I declined the
honor, and begged to be conducted again to my old lodging.
The kindness of my monastic friends showed itself in
various little acts of courtesy. One spread my carpet, and
brought me a comfortable pillow to recline against; another
filled and arranged my pipe, from his own tobacco-pouch;
while a third, a lay-brother, assisted my servant in kindling
a fire. As it was Lent, the monks were unprovided with
meat, but I received, with much thankfulness, a bowl of red
lentiles, made into pottage, and called Ades. This is evi-
dently the same with the Adesh of Scripture, the word used
in the original Hebrew to signify the red pottage for which
Esau sold his birthright to his brother Jacob.” The Ades
in question was savory in the extreme, and its odor very
tempting to a hungry man. Its taste resembled, exceedingly,
that well-known luxury of sailors, pea-soup.
A short time before my visit, the monastery had been at-
tacked by the Kurdish soldiers of Ismail Pasha, of Amadi-
yeh; who, in wanton barbarity, tore up all the manuscripts
which they could find for cartridges, used the altars as tar-
gets, and committed various acts of shameful indecency in
the church. The monks were seized, and several of their
number severely beaten. One was suffering still, at the pe-
riod of my visit, from the tortures which had been inflicted
on him. The Kurds tried to burn the church, but their
attempt was frustrated, and, after a stay of some days, they
and their valiant commander, who had treated with such un-
provoked and unmanly cruelty a few aged and helpless
men, thought proper to retreat, laden with booty, to their
mountain fortress. The outrage was passed over unpunished,
for Mohammed Pasha of Mosul was not inclined to make a
formal rupture with the Kurds for the sake of a few Christian
monks.
The revenues of the monastery are supplied from the pro-
duce of the vineyards and other lands in the vicinity, as
well as from the offerings and donations of the surrounding
villages, whose churches are served by priests from Rabban
Hormuzd. The monastic clergy, therefore, do not always
remain in the convent, but each, in his turn, resides for some
* Gen. xxv.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 137
time at any particular village which is indicated by the supe-
rior. In like manner, some of our old monasteries, in for-
mer times, engrossed to themselves the patronage of many
parishes, and were responsible for the due performance of
divine service.
Before a portion of the Nestorian community placed them-
selves under a patriarch, nominated by the Pope, and arro-
gated to their new sect the distinctive title of the Chaldean
church, the monks of Rabban Hormuzd had been the most
formidable opponents to Roman usurpation. Private and
personal feelings may have borne their share in the active
resistance which they offered, for an alteration, or, as they
termed it, a reform, of the monastic system had been one of
the first steps contemplated by the Italian missionaries. The
monks of the older Nestorians, like those of the primitive
church, were not required to take a vow of perpetual celi-
bacy.” Men who, from motives of piety or convenience, had
entered a monastery, were allowed to quit it, to return to the
world, and even to take upon themselves connubial ties,
when they found that their inclinations tended that way; like
the English fellows of colleges, the early Nestorian monks
devoted themselves to the work of education, and the cities
of Mosul, Nisibis, and Arbela were deservedly famed for the
number of learned doctors and zealous missionaries who
had issued from the learned shades of their monasteries.
The indignant Assemani can scarcely stifle his wrath while
he records such deviations from the Monachins, sanctioned
by his church; and though he enumerates their acts of use-
fulness and cultivation of learning, refuses the title of real
and true monks to such erring ecclesiastics. Of late years,
however, the opposition offered by the former inhabitants of
Rabban Hormuzd to the sway of the pope has been succeeded
by passive submission to his authority and that of the Italian
missionaries. The monks are now faithful and obedient de-
fenders of the rights of Rome.
I went to visit the church, which, being a mere modern
building, possesses little to interest, or to describe. The
altars were placed Roman-wise against the wall, and a pro-
fusion of pictures and images showed proofs of the departure
of the modern Chaldeans from the rigid tenets of their fathers.
* Assemani de Syris Nestorianis.


138 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
A sarcophagus of marble, in a small chapel attached to the
church, is pointed out as the resting-place of Rabban Hor-
muzd. The pages of Assemani mention two Persians of
that name, one the companion and disciple of Nestorius;
and the other a Persian abbot and martyr, who flourished
before his time. The inmate of the tomb is said to have
been the latter, who, flying with his sister from the persecu-
tion of Sapor, dwelt for many years in a cave near the spot
where he now lies buried, and occupied himself in preach-
ing the faith to the rude and idolatrous inhabitants of the
Gordyaean mountains. His exertions proved so far successful
as to excite the rage of the bigoted priests, who stirred up
the multitude to seize the holy recluse, and put him to a
painful and lingering death.
On leaving the church, I returned to my own apartment,
which contained, among other things, a rude altar cut in the
rock, where service was performed on certain days in the
year. It is said that this cave was in early times the recep-
tacle of the neighboring Christians, who fled thither for a
refuge from their pagan persecutors, and performed in dark-
ness and solitude their sacred rites. As the shades of even-
ing drew on, the solitary lamp which hung suspended from
the rocky ceiling cast a sad and melancholy light on the
rude altar, and the crosses, with other mystical emblems,
which pious hands had graven in the hard rock. It was both
a scene and a time calculated to produce meditation and
solemn feelings, and rarely since have I felt so vividly the
luxury of solitude and its sacred inspirations.
In the morning, I visited the library, which was also a cave
in the vicinity of my own habitation. The floor was strewn
with the torn fragments of manuscripts, and the half burned
covers, which had resisted partially the ravages of the de-
stroyer. I am not naturally vindictive, but the sight of this
wanton and profitless outrage made me anything but charita-
bly disposed towards its perpetrators. One might excuse the
pillages of savage marauders, who, from their cradle, had
been accustomed to look upon theft as a virtue; but the
destruction of that which might have enlightened and bene-
fited thousands, to satisfy a savage bigotry and unprovoked
hatred of Christians, can find no palliation or defence.
The monks were busily engaged in copying such of the
fragments as were legible, on paper prepared in a peculiar


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. - 139
manner, and resembling parchment in its appearance. The
ink which they used was remarkable for its fine glossy color,
which promised well for durability. They wrote with reeds,
and, dispensing with a table or desk, rested the paper on the
knee.
The Chaldean character is difficult to form, and renders
the movements of the transcriber necessarily slow. It is an
alteration or adaptation of the old Estrangelo or ancient Syriac
letters, but differs little from its original. It is said that
formerly the Eastern and Western Syrians used the same
forms, but that the present mode of writing the Chaldean
was introduced by Joseph Huzita, who succeeded Narses in
the school of Nisibis.”
The radical structure of the Chaldean differs so slightly from
the Aramaic or Western Syriac, that they may be considered
almost as one language. Yet there exists a marked dis-
tinction in the pronunciation of the two. The vowel point,
zakopho, which the Westerns sound like o, the Chaldeans
enunciate as a broad a. Thus, the words rendered by the
Syrians Eloho Bro and JWuro, are sounded by the Chaldeans
Eloha Bra and JWura, a difference sufficiently remarkable to
cause some confusion in a conversation carried on between
those who follow the different modes of pronunciation. This
dissimilarity between two dialects which have evidently the
same origin seems to have been of early date. In Ezra iv.
7, we find a passage, the mysterious wording of which ap-
pears to require the admission of this difference to interpret
it aright. It is said that, “in the days of Artaxerxes wrote
Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their com-
panions, unto Artaxerxes, King of Persia, and the writing
of the letter was written in the Syrian tongue and interpreted
in the Syrian tongue.”
The apparent tautology of the above is explained by the
supposition that the characters of the epistle were those com-
mon to Eastern and Western Syria, while the words were
read before the king, and explained to him according to the
pronunciation of the Assyrians and Chaldeans, who both
seem to have used one language similar in substance to that
employed in the offices of the Chaldean Church, and entitled
the Chaldee or Chaldaic.
Besides the pure and elegant idiom in which the services
* Gregory Bar Hebræus, as cited by Assemani de Syris Nestorianis.


140 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
and theological treatises of the Chaldeans are written, there
is a kind of vulgar patois spoken by the Christian villagers
around Mosul, and by the Nestorians of the Tiyari mountains.
It is called Fellahi, or the laborer's dialect, and bears the
same relation to the ancient language that the modern Romaic
does to the Hellenic. Among themselves, the Christians of
the plains constantly use this jargon in preference to Arabic,
which they consider of infidel origin; and the ordinary Nes-
torians know no other medium of communication, except
when they have dealings with the Kurds, at which times the
necessary conversation is carried on in Kurdish. I have been
told in Mosul that the dialect of the mountain Nestorians ap-
proaches nearer to the written language, and is of a more
grammatical and elevated character, than that spoken by the
Chaldeans of the plains. The Ecclesiastics use both the lite-
rary and colloquial dialects in conversation, though some of
them are not very well acquainted with the former.
During my residence in the monastery, I frequently attend-
ed the services performed by the monks, and gained from
them much information respecting the forms and ceremonies
of the Chaldean church. Their chants, though generally
harsh and unmusical to a European ear, sometimes exhibited
tones of a plaintive and mournful character that were not
unpleasing. Unlike the generality of Eastern singers, who
seem unaccountably to confound shouting with devotion, the
recitative of the monks of Rabban Hormuzd was of a more
quiet and dignified kind.
I am no admirer in general of the doings of the Church of
Rome in these parts, but I cannot in candor refuse to the
Italian instructors of the Chaldeans the praise of having in-
troduced some beneficial improvements. The interior of the
church was neat and clean, unlike the generality of Oriental
temples, where the dirt and odor would be insupportable,
were not the latter dispelled in some measure by the constant
use of incense. In the church of Rabban Hormuzd, the ope-
ration of Western taste was seen in the absence of the tawdry
finery and puerile decorations which disfigure most of the
Eastern houses of prayer. It would have been better, per-
haps, if this taste had suggested also the removal of sundry
wax-dolls, intended to represent the blessed Virgin and other
saints, but which tended, in my judgment at least, to degrade
and debase a sacred edifice to the level of a baby-house,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 141
The Chaldean Church has always regarded with peculiar
veneration the rite of ordination, which, by many writers, has
even been described as a sacrament. Ebedjesus of Soba, in
his Nomo-canon, after enumerating the three grades of bishop,
priest, and deacon, proceeds to subdivide each, and to dis-
tinguish them as follows: The first grade embraces the sim-
ple bishop, whose labors are restricted to the care of a single
diocese; the metropolitan, who rules over a certain number
of bishops, and the catholicos or patriarch, who was looked up
to as the visible head of the whole church. Under the priestly
grade are ranked the simple presbyter, the periodeuta, whose
functions resembled those of the ancient chorepiscopos; and
the archdeacon, whose rank and duties correspond with those
of a similar dignitary in our own church. The third and
lowest order embraced the deacons, whose office it is to read
the Gospel, to minister the cup, and to assist the priest in the
celebration of the eucharist; the hypodiaconos, or subdeacon,
and the reader, who recited or chanted the lessons in the
daily service. The title of patriarch was first assumed by
the catholicos of the Nestorians, when the latter withdrew
themselves from the jurisdiction of Antioch, after the council
of Ephesus, held in A. D. 431.
Many alterations and omissions have taken place in the
Nestorian or Chaldean hierarchy since the days of the writer
quoted above. The Romanist Chaldeans still retain, at pre-
sent, the nine grades of ecclesiastics; although, in some places,
a slight change has been introduced by the Italian mission-
aries. Among the independent Nestorians, however, one sole
bishop and the patriarch are the only representatives in the
Tiyari of the episcopal order. While he resided at Mosul,
Mar Shimon frequently expressed his sorrow at this fact, and
also his determination to consecrate three other bishops as
soon as the troubles brought upon him by the Kurdish inva-
sion were at an end.
In former days, all the Nestorian ecclesiastics, including
even the bishops and the catholicos were allowed to marry;
nor was it considered necessary, as in other Oriental churches,
to refuse orders to a person who had been united to two wives
in succession.* A somewhat curiously worded canon pre-
scribes the number of times that a priest or deacon may enter
* Assemani de Syris Nestorianis.


142 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
into the married state, and fixes the ultimatum at seven and
a half, with an explanatory remark that the half-wife is to be
considered as referring to a widow, while the other seven are
to be virgins.” By the Levitical law, on which most of the
early canons were founded, it is commanded that a priest
shall marry a virgin only, and the same injunction strictly
forbids him to contract any alliance with a widow or divorced
woman. The above rule, however, seems to consider the
marriage of an ecclesiastic with a widow as lawful, though,
from the circumstances under which it was allowed, such a
union could seldom take place. The patriarch Marabas was
the first who introduced a law that the bishops and catholicos
should remain single, yet the marriage of the clergy is ac-
knowledged by Assemani to have been a custom transmitted
from the earliest prelates of the Nestorian Church.i.
The sacrament of baptism should, according to the ritual,
be preceded by the anointing of the neophyte, and his solemn
reception by the church as a catechumen. In the baptism
of children, however, the introductory ceremonies are omitted,
and the child is at once immersed three times, in the name
of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. The
godfather then stands before the entrance to the sanctuary
with the infant in his arms, while the priest anoints the fore-
head with consecrated oil, making upon it the sign of the
cross. A white garment is thrown over the newly baptized,
and a drop of consecrated wine is given to it from the chalice,
a remnant, doubtless, of the old practice of administering the
eucharist to children. The anointing after baptism is con-
sidered equivalent to our rite of confirmation, and may be
performed by a priest, though the oil itself must be conse-
crated by a bishop. Some of the earlier Nestorians are said
to have joined the rite of circumcision to the Christian sacra-
ment of baptism.S
Several of the early Nestorian writers mention an ingre-
dient which they term the leaven of the holy oil and of the
eucharist, the history of which is thus related by two writers
cited in Assemani:—
When our Lord Jesus was baptized in Jordan by St. John
* Assemani de Syris Nestorianis,
f Lev. xxi. 13, 14.
† Assemani de Syris Nestorianis. § Ibid.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 143
the Baptist, the latter received the waters flowing from his
sacred body in a vessel, which he carefully preserved till the
day of his martyrdom, when he gave it over to the keeping
of his disciple, St. John the Evangelist. At the Last Supper,
our Lord presented a double portion of bread to the latter
apostle, who carefully put by a part of it and laid it up
together with the vessel of water. During the crucifixion,
St. John sedulously collected the drops of blood which flowed
from the pierced side of the Redeemer, and mingled them
with the water and the bread.
This mixture or leaven was afterwards divided by the
apostles among themselves, and was delivered by St. Thomas
to Adalus, the Apostle of Mesopotamia and Assyria, from
whom it has descended to the Patriarchs of Seleucia, the pon-
tiffs of the Nestorians. It is but fair to observe that the above
legend seems to have been received by a few writers only,
and does not appear to be generally credited now.
The bread intended for the Holy Communion, which the
Nestorians, in common with other Orientals, term the Conse-
cration, and the Unbloody Sacrifice, is ordered by the canons
to be made and prepared within the precincts of the church
itself.
“Let the priest,” says an old canon, “take to him fine
flour, with salt, olive oil, and three drops of water, and let
him mix it, using at the time certain appointed prayers. Let
him do this on a table adorned or prepared for that purpose,
and after the Gospel is read, let it be sprinkled with old
leaven.” This canon, according to Assemani, goes on to
refer to the leaven handed down from Adaeus, as mentioned
in the legend quoted above, but I have omitted this part,
because I neither saw nor heard any reference made to it
during the making of the bread of which I was an eye-wit-
ness at Mosul. In another place, Assemani seems to speak
of the legend as now obsolete, but the former part of the
canon is to this day observed. The loaf thus prepared is
placed upon the altar after the reading of the Gospel.
The majority of Nestorian writers acknowledge only three
daily canonical hours of worship founded, as they say, on
Scriptural authority. The offering of the lambs, every morn-
ing and evening, enjoined by the Levitical law, typifies the
morning and evening hours of prayer, while the words of


144 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
David, “At midnight I will rise to give thanks to thee,”
warrant the appointment of a night service. The later Nes-
torians, however, only observe, as far as the laity are con-
cerned, the morning and evening hours. The clergy make
it a rule at present to recite the Psalter twice a week, re-
peating fifty psalms at each nocturn or night office, and the
days on which they usually assemble in church for this pur-
pose are Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. On the
Saturday night, which they designate by the Jewish title of
“the preparation,” they recite half the Psalter, and some-
times the whole on solemn occasions.
The eucharist, or Liturgy, is always begun at daybreak.
The priest puts on a kind of surplice, in which he recites
the preparatory prayers; over this is thrown, at the com-
mencement of the Anaphora or canon, a garment resembling
nearly in shape the Roman chasuble, which should be richly
embroidered, and marked with a cross at the back. The
priest wears a thin strip of embroidered cloth round his neck,
disposed like the black scarf worn in our church, but crossed
over the breast instead of hanging down, and fastened at the
waist with a girdle. The altar on which the elements are
placed can only be used once a-day, and must be furnished
with a cross and two lights.
Having put on his vestments, the Liturgy begins with the
anthem “Glory be to God in the Highest,” followed by the
Lord’s Prayer. Various supplications succeed, after which,
the priest kisses the book of the Gospels on the altar, and the
deacons exclaim to the people “Bow down your heads.”
This is followed by other prayers, after which the priest and
deacons mount the steps of the altar and arrange it for the
reception and celebration of the sacred mysteries.
As so little is known respecting the service of the Nesto-
rians, and their mode of conducting their worship, it may
interest my readers to see a few extracts from the Liturgy
most commonly used by them on Sundays and festivals days,
which is called the Liturgy of the Apostles; not from the
twelve, but from Adaeus and Mares, the disciples of St.
Thomas, who first preached the doctrines of Christianity in
Assyria. It is entitled “The Liturgy of the Blessed Apostles,
composed by St. Adaeus and St. Mares, the Doctors or Instruct-
* Psalm cir. 62.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 145
ors of the Easterns;” and commences with the following
rubric:—
The priest approaches to celebrate, and bows himself thrice
before the altar, the middle part of which he kisses first, then
the right and left extremities, and inclines himself towards the
upper part.” Afterwards he shall say:— -
Bless, O Lord. Pray for me, my lords, fathers, and bre-
thren, that God may give me power and ability to perform in
a suitable manner this ministry, to which I have approached
and have entered upon, and that He may receive this obla-
tion at the hands of my unworthiness (which is offered) for
me, for you, and for the whole body of the Holy Catholic
Church, according to his grace and compassion. Amen.
The people shall answer. May Christ hearthy prayers, and
graciously accept thy sacrifice, and receive thy oblation,
honoring thy priesthood, and may He grant to us, through
thy mediation, the pardon of our faults, and the remission of
our sins, through his infinite grace and compassion.
Then the priest shall bow himself towards the lower part of
the altar, and shall say:—
May God, the Lord of all, be with each of us according to
his infinite grace and mercy. Amen.
Bowing to the deacon, who stands at his left hand, he shall
say:—
May God, the Lord of all, confirm thy words, and grant to
thee peace, and receive this oblation from my hands for me,
and for thee, and for the whole body of the Holy Catholic
Church, and for the whole world, through his infinite grace
and compassion. Amen.
After some prayers said secretly and in an inaudible tone
by the priest, the deacon says:–
Be watchful and attentive. (The priest then rises and un-
covers the elements, taking off the veil with which they were
covered. He blesses the incense, and says with a loud voice :)
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God
the Father, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with
us all now and for ever.
The people answer. Amen.
Priest. Let your minds be lifted up.
* At the back of every Oriental altar appears a raised ledge, on which
are placed the candles and cross. It is called the Thronos, or throne, and
seems to be the same designated in the above rubric as the upper part.
13


146 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
People. They are lifted up to thee, O God of Abraham, -
and Isaac, and the glorious King of Israel.
Priest. Let an oblation be offered to God, the Lord of all.
People. It is worthy and right.
Deacon. Peace be with us.
Priest. The adorable and glorious Name of the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit, which created the world through his
grace, and its inhabitants through his clemency, which hath
saved mankind through his mercy, and hath shown great
grace to mortals, is worthy of glory from every mouth—of
confession from every tongue—and of exaltation by all crea-
tures. Thousands of thousands of the celestial ones bless
and adore thy majesty, O Lord ; and tens of thousands of
myriads of holy angels, the armies of the spiritual world, with
the holy cherubim and the spiritual seraphim, sanctify and
celebrate thy name, continually proclaiming and praising thee,
and with never ceasing voice exclaiming one to the other.
The people with a loud voice. Holy, holy, holy Lord God
Almighty, heaven and earth are full of His glory.
The priest in a low tone. O Lord and mighty God, receive
this oblation which we offer to thee for the whole of the Holy
Catholic Church, and for all our pious and righteous fathers
who have pleased thee, for all prophets and apostles, for all
martyrs and confessors, for all that mourn, for the sick and
the afflicted, for those who suffer any need or vexation, for
all the weak and oppressed, for all the departed, who, being
separated from us, have journeyed hence to another region,
as well as for all who have requested the prayers of our in-
firmity, and for me a humble and powerless sinner. O Lord
our God, according to thy compassion and the multitude of
thy grace, look upon thy people, and upon me, a weak one,
not according to my sins and my follies, but (grant) that all
may be worthy to obtain the remission of sins through this
holy body, which they receive with faith by the grace of thy
mercy. Amen.
Then the priest shall say this prayer secretly. But thou, O
Lord, for the sake of thy many and unspeakable mercies,
remember for good all those of our fathers who were pious
and just, and who pleased thee in the commemoration of the
body and blood of thy Christ, which we offer on thy pure and
holy altar even as thou hast taught us, and grant us thy
peace all the days of this life.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 147
He continues. O Lord our God, grant us thy peace and
tranquillity all the days of this life, that all the dwellers upon
earth may know thee: for thou art God alone, even the true
Father, and thou hast sent our Lord Jesus Christ, thy son
and thy beloved one; and He, our Lord and God, came and
taught us all purity and holiness. Remember the prophets,
apostles, martyrs, confessors, bishops, doctors, priests, dea-
cons, and all the children of the Holy Catholic Church, who
have been signed with the sign of life, even holy baptism.
We also, thy humble, weak, and ignorant servants, who have
met together in thy name, now stand before thee, and receive
with joy the form which is from thee—praising, glorifying,
and exalting thee. We commemorate and celebrate this
great and tremendous, holy and divine mystery of the passion,
death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ.
O Lord, may thy Holy Spirit come and rest upon this ob-
lation which thy servants have offered, to bless and sanctify
it, that it may be to us, O Lord, for a propitiation of our
faults and for the remission of our sins, and (may it produce)
a strong hope for the resurrection of the dead, and a new life
in the kingdom of heaven with all those who have been well
pleasing in thy sight: we, therefore, will ever praise and
glorify thee in thy church, redeemed by the precious blood
of thy Christ, on account of thy universal and wonderful
dealings with us, with open mouths and a joyful countenance,
offering thee a hymn of praise, and giving honor and adora-
tion to thy holy, living, and vivifying name, now and for
eVer.
The priest signs the mysteries with the cross, and the people
answer Amen.
The priest bows himself, and kisses the altar, first in the
middle, then at the two sides, and says the following prayer:—
O Christ, the peace of the upper and the great tranquillity
of the lower ones, grant that thy peace and tranquillity may
dwell in the four parts of the world, but chiefly in the Holy
Catholic Church. Grant that the priesthood and the govern-
ment may have peace. Make wars to cease in all the corners
of the earth, and scatter the people who delight in war, that
we may lead a quiet and peaceful life, in all temperance and
in the fear of God. Have mercy on the sins and transgres-


148 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
sions of the departed, for the sake of thy mercy and tender
compassion.
Then shall he say to those who are about the altar: Bless
the Lord : Bless the Lord.
..And he shall put on incense, with which he shall perfume
himself, and shall say: O Lord our God, make pleasing the
odor of our souls, through the suavity of thy love, and by it
cleanse me from the defilements of sin, and pardon my faults
and transgressions—both those which I know and those which
I know not.
He again takes the incense vessel in both hands, and in-
censing the mysteries (elements) he says:—
May the clemency of thy grace, O Lord our God, grant us
access to these fair, holy, vivifying, and divine mysteries,
unworthy as we are to partake of them.
The priest repeats these words once and again, and during
each interval joins his hands upon his breast in the form of a
cross. He then kisses the altar in the midst, and, taking in
both hands the oblation, he lifts it up and says:—
Praise be to thy holy name, O Lord Jesus Christ, and let
thy majesty be adored for ever and ever. Amen. For He
is the living bread and the life-giving one who descended
from heaven, and giveth life to the whole world; and those
who eat Him shall not die, and those who receive Him shall
be saved through Him, nor shall they feel corruption, but
shall live by Him through all eternity. For thou art the
antidote of our mortality, and the resurrection of our clay.
Breaking the bread with both hands, he shall say: We
approach, O Lord, with true faith, and we break with giving
of thanks, and we sign through thy mercy the body and
blood of our life-giver Jesus Christ. In the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
.And while he is naming the Trinity, he breaks the bread,
which he holds in his hands, and separating it into two parts,
he places the piece in his left hand on the paten, and signing
the cup with the portion held in the right hand, he says:–
The precious blood is signed with the holy body of our
Lord Jesus Christ. In the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
The people answer, Amen.”
* The original of the above Liturgy may be found in Renaudot's Collection
of Eastern Liturgies.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 149
After the consecration has taken place, a priest and deacon
take up their stations at the entrance of the sanctuary, the
former holding the paten with the consecrated bread, while
the latter takes the cup or chalice. After the clergy have
communicated, the people approach one by one, the men
preceding the women. A vessel filled with incense is placed
near the door of the sanctuary, and as the people walk by it
they each pass their hands through the smoke, a kind of
symbolical purification for the solemn act which they are
about to perform.
The bread is received in the palm of the right hand, placed
crosswise over the left, and the cup never leaves the hands
of the deacon, who holds it to the lips of each communicant,
wiping his mouth afterwards with an embroidered cloth. It
is customary to administer the eucharist to children, several
of whom I observed among the communicants at Mosul.
The rites of the Romish Chaldeans differ little externally
from those of their independent brethren. By both, Divine
service is solemnized in the ancient Chaldean language; but
the Roman missionaries have inserted into the missal, used
by the former, several lines favorable to the doctrine of
transubstantiation," and have introduced the custom of pay-
ing adoration to the consecrated bread. In all other parti-
culars, the service remains the same, and many of the Tiyari
Nestorians who had been induced to attend the worship of
the Romish Chaldeans, found scarcely any difference between
it and their own. They, however, objected strongly to the
pictures and images which, by degrees, had crept into the
churches of Mosul and the neighboring villages.
Auricular confession is practiced among the Romish
Chaldeans, but is considered unnecessary by the Nestorians.
Yet Ebedjesus, one of their earliest writers, teaches that the
penitent should go to the priest’s house, and there make a
special confession of his sins in order to obtain absolution,
citing, in proof, the text, “Whosesoever sins ye remit, they
are remitted unto them ; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they
are retained.”f According to Assemani, John Sulaka, who
was the first patriarch of the Romish Chaldeans, accused
* Leontius Byzantinus apud Assemani accuses the early Nestorians of
teaching that the bread and wine were merely types of the body and blood
of Christ.
f St. John xx. 23.
13%


150 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Simon Barmama of having abolished this practice in the
Nestorian Church.” Some time after, Joseph II. reproached
the Independent Nestorians with their neglect of this rite.
The aversion of the Tiyari people to the use of pictures is
very strong, and they found it upon a literal interpretation of
the second Commandment. One of them was much scandal-
ized at finding a small print of the queen hung up in my
room at Mosul. It was in vain, I observed, that a private
apartment was not a church, nor the portrait of an English
sovereign an object of worship. My Nestorian friend insisted,
with some plausibility, that the Commandment prohibited the
making of a graven image, or the likeness of anything, as well
as the adoration of it, and seemed by no means satisfied with
my excuses.
Excommunication is seldom resorted to among the Nes-
torians, though very much dreaded when put in force. The
person denounced is deprived of civil as well as ecclesiastical
privileges, and is considered as lying under the curse of God.
Even his nearest relatives shun him, and will hold no com-
munication with him. No one may buy or sell with the
offender as long as he remains under the ban. In short, it is
considered so fearful a doom that it is only inflicted for great
and grievous offences. The Nestorian patriarchs, indeed,
seem to use their unlimited authority in a mild and paternal
manner. The Chaldean bishops of the plains, however, have
made such frequent and unsparing application of the thunders
of the church that their flocks begin to lose their respect for
the once dreaded denunciations. Yet, even in Mosul, an
excommunicated person is generally shunned and avoided.
CHAPTER XIV.
, Elkosh. Tomb of Nahum. A Chaldean's account of the Reformation.
American traveler. Monastery of St. George. The locusts. An Orien-
tal view of antiquities.
AFTER a stay of two days at Rabban Hormuzd, I took
leave of the hospitable monks, and descended to the city of
* Assemani de Syris Nestorianis.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 151
Elkosh, which is distant about two miles from the convent.
It was formerly one of the most populous towns in these re-
gions, but is now almost a heap of ruins. From its proxi-
mity to the mountains, it has been particularly exposed to
the ravages of the Kurds. -
I felt much interested in this place, from the fact that it
contains the tomb of the Prophet Nahum, who is termed, in
Scripture, the Elkoshite and who prophesied, in such striking
and terrific language, the downfall of the proud metropolis of
the Assyrian kings. The prophet was probably one of the
numerous captives carried away by Shalmanaser, who in-
vaded and ravaged Palestine about B. C. 721. The allu-
sions made in Nahum i. 4 seem to justify a belief that the
seer was of mature age before he quitted the land of his
fathers. If we follow the Scripture chronology, the prophecy
of the fall of Nineveh was uttered about eight years after the
date of the invasion, and the event must shortly have suc-
ceeded to the prediction. Nahum probably lived to witness,
with his own eyes, the ruin of the “bloody city.”
The tomb of the Prophet is within a mean edifice, consist-
ing of two small chambers. It was covered with a piece of
ragged and filthy green baize, on which was lying a manu-
script roll, containing the Book of Nahum, in Hebrew. As
I liſted it up, to examine it more closely, a large beetle crept
from beneath, and hurried across the baize at a rapid pace.
The tomb is much respected by the Jews, who make annual
pilgrimages to it; and it is, also, held in great esteem by the
Christians.
The present city can scarcely contain buildings older than
the time of the Mohammedan conquest, although, if the as-
sumption be correct that it was the residence of Nahum, its
predecessor must have been coéval with Nineveh. It seems
to have been the practice of the Arab invaders to restore or
to retain the ancient appellations of cities, contrary to the
practice of the Greeks, who were fond of inventing new
names for the subjugated towns and districts. The Hellenic
titles, however, had a less familiar sound to the ear of an
Arab than the old Chaldean or Syrian appellations. The
retention of the latter tends to make the identification of an-
cient and modern places more easy.
I lodged, at Elkosh, in the house of the head man of the
Chaldean Christians, a silent and sententious individual, who
__*


152 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
spoke little, and smoked much. However, I was not doomed
to endure the burden of silence very long, for numbers of the
Elkoshites, hearing that a Frank had arrived, came to smoke
and talk in my room. Some of these were merchants, who
were engaged in the gall nut trade, a production found in
abundance among the neighboring mountains. As my visit-
ors were generally Christians, the conversation turned prin-
cipally on theological matters.
. They had, like the people of Bagh Sheikha, a poor opinion
of the English. I was often called upon to defend our nation
from the charges of polygamy and atheism. They were
dreadfully scandalized at our refusing to acknowledge the
authority of the Pope, and one gentleman asked me seriously,
and with an air of great concern, whether I ever said my
prayers! . On one occasion, a large party had assembled,
among whom was a merchant, recently arrived from Aleppo.
In the course of conversation, he began to attack the English.
“The Ingleez,” he said, “are a very fierce and intracta-
ble nation. They marry many wives, and care very little
about Allah, whose name be exalted.”
I here interrupted the speaker, and asked if, in the course
of his travels, he had ever heard of the English Church.
“Belli, yes,” he answered; “I know the whole history
of your church. You must understand,” continued he,
turning to the rest, “that once there lived in England a
great sultan whose name was Napoleon Bonaparte. This
sultan was like unto Antar and Iskander, the Macedonian,
and he made many of the kings of Frangistan his footstool.
But his heart was lifted up, and he defied Allah in his pride.
And Napoleon’s wife was old, and she was no longer pleas-
ing in his eyes. Then it came to pass that he looked upon
a certain fair damsel with the glances of love, and he said,
“Inshallah, I will divorce my wife and get me this fair one
in marriage. Now, the Ingleez were all Catholics then, and,
therefore, Napoleon sent a message to our father the pope,
desiring that he would grant him a divorce. But the pope
reproved Napoleon for his pride and unkind dealing with his
wife, at which the sultan waxed wrath, and said, ‘Surely,
this pope is no better than Abou Jahash, even the Father of
Stupidity; but, Inshallah, I will make him eat abomination.”
So he went with many soldiers and besieged Rome, and took
the pope prisoner, and shut him up in a great tower in Lon-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 153
don, which is the chief city of the Ingleez. But the kings
of the Franks all joined together, and made war upon Napo-
leon Bonaparte, and overcame him. Then their soldiers
came to London and set the pope at liberty. And when the
pope returned to Rome, he cursed Napoleon, and excom-
municated him and all the Ingleez. But Napoleon laughed
at his beard, and he said, “Inshallah, but I will have a church
of my own.” So he made bishops, and they divorced his
wife, and they married him to the beautiful damsel, after
which he founded the English Church.”
All the assembly were deeply penetrated and impressed
with this narrative, which was delivered with great volubility
and lively pantomimic action. I had but little chance of
being attended to in my vindication of my country and its
religion, for, say what I would, the audience shook their
heads doubtfully, and departed full of admiration at the wis-
dom of the Aleppo merchant, and regarding the English
Church as the profane invention of that second Nimrod,
Napoleon Bonaparte.
The Aleppo merchant had probably heard some mangled
account of Henry the Eighth and Anne Boleyn, while his
lively imagination, or the suggestions of some Roman mis-
sionary, had supplied the rest. The reputation which Napo-
leon has acquired in the East would account for his being
the hero of the story, more particularly as Orientals are not
very exact in their notions of countries and dates. Even
the chronology of their own land they know little about, and
all time past is divided into two epochs, the period before
Mohammed and that which has elapsed since.
Yet, when I came to reflect upon the tale of the worthy
Elkoshite, the feelings of contempt for his ignorance were
checked by the recollection that few persons in England
were much better acquainted with the East, its manners, re-
ligion, and history, than the Oriental was with the nature of
the Reformation. How often since have I heard well in-
formed persons inquire whether there were any Christians in
the East, and express surprise on hearing of the Oriental
churches. The Nestorians have, of late, excited a little
attention; but the great mass of sympathizers with them
know nothing of their history, except that they are a sort of
Asiatic Protestants, who read their Bibles and abominate the
pope.


154 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Once, an American traveler was journeying to Aleppo in
company with an active and intelligent Greek, whose services
he had secured at Beyrout. One day, as they halted under
some trees, and had spread their carpets for the night’s re-
pose, the traveler commenced a long discourse on the excel-
lencies of the New Testament, which contained, he said, the
life of Jesus Christ. The Greek listened for some time in
astonishment as the loquacious native of the West detailed,
with much self-satisfaction, the events of the Gospel narra-
tive; but when the latter drew forth, with an air of import-
ance, a small copy of the Testament and presented it to him
as a book which he had never seen or heard of before, he
lost all patience, and said, “Kyrie, my nation received that
book from the hands of the apostles themselves, and you are
indebted to us for it. Have I heard of it, say you? Why,
I know the greater part by heart, and I tell you candidly,
Kyrie, that with us, as, perhaps, with you, the difficulty is,
not to know what the Gospel says, but to practice what it
teaches.”
I left Elkosh next day upon a most obstinate and perverse
mule, who seemed most disinclined to carry peaceably a dis-
ciple of the wicked Napoleon Bonaparte. Once he slipped
as we were ascending a steep hill, and laid me flat upon my
back, which feat having accomplished to his satisfaction,
doubtless, he stood contemplating me with an air that seemed
to say, “It has served you right, you heretic.” I mounted
again, and was soon after deposited in a heap of soft mud,
close to the door of a worthy Chaldean priest, who came forth,
with many exclamations of surprise and sympathy, to rescue
me from my uncomfortable couch. He had been educated
at the Propaganda College, and spoke Italian fluently. Find-
ing that my clothes still retained many traces of my two falls,
he proposed that I should step into his house, and get myself
dried and cleansed. I complied with this welcome invitation,
and was soon seated at the good presbyter’s hospitable board,
discussing some fried eggs and a bottle of village wine.
The deportment of my new friend displayed a polish and
refinement which formed rather a pleasing contrast to the
rude and coarse conduct of the savages of Elkosh, who, I
believe, are noted for their Kurdish manners. He spoke of
Rome with a feeling of regret, though he told me he never
felt himself quite at home there. He disliked the Italian


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 155
cuisine and the Frank dress, and complained that he could
seldom enjoy the luxury of smoking. Some ecclesiastical
business had led him as far as Paris, but his Eastern gravity
did not accord with the gayety of the French, whom he termed
the Fathers of motion. Of the English he had heard but little,
and that little was to their disadvantage. He considered them
evidently as people without a faith, as the Mohammedans of
the West.
The house of my worthy host was situated near a village
called Tell Eskof, to the north of which he informed me was
a larger town or village inhabited chiefly by Yezidees, and
called Haterah. The Syrian geographers consider it to be
identical with the Calah of Genesis. Eastward of Tell Eskof
is another village called Kas-el-ain, or the head of the spring,
from a small rivulet which takes its rise near it, and empties
itself into the Tigris, to the north of the mound of Kuyunjik.
Admitting the latter to have formed part of Nineveh, this
stream probably flowed through the city. In Nahum ii. 6,
there is an allusion to the gates of the rivers, which seems to
indicate that, besides the Tigris, there were other streams
which either passed through Nineveh itself, or glided along
at the foot of its walls. -
From Tell Eskof, I rode on till we arrived at the ruined
monastery of St. George, not far from the eastern bank of the
Tigris. It had been for some months untenanted, save by a
single monk, who received me at the gate, and recommended
me to spread my carpet on the floor of a room adjoining the
church. The latter contained little that was either interest-
ing or curious. Over the altar was a grim portrait of St.
George, slaying a ferocious dragon, that was breathing forth
flames from mouth and nostrils, and emitting fountains of
blood from various ghastly wounds, any one of which might
have deprived an ordinary dragon of life.
The old monk was courteous and communicative. He
showed me his books and his priestly garments, which were
rather tarnished by frequent wear. At the west end of the
church was a kind of gallery, fronting the altar, in which
were two desks similar to those that in most Eastern churches
are placed in the choir. I asked the reason of this, but could
get no satisfactory explanation of the seeming anomaly.
In the course of the afternoon, a Mohammedan from the
neighboring village came in, and seemed to be on very friendly


156 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
terms with the monk. Both were loud in the praises of St.
George, who was feared, they said, even by the Kurds, whom
he had restrained on several occasions from burning the
monastery. On the eve of his festival, the belligerent saint
crosses the Tigris from Mosul, in company with Khudder
Elias, both mounted on white horses, and armed cap a pie.
They scour the plain of Nineveh till daybreak, and woe to
him who meets them in their nocturnal ride. I asked the
Mohammedan some particulars respecting Khudder Elias,
but he only knew that he was a great prophet, and was buried
at Mosul. An Arabian geographer mentions that the tomb
of the Prophet George stands in the midst of Mosul, and it is
probable that he alludes to the great mosque, which the tra-
dition of the inhabitants represents as having been formerly a
Christian church. It is likely that the old Nestorian cathe-
dral of the modern Nineveh was dedicated to St. George, and
hence the legends respecting him which are so plentiful in
the vicinity.
During the evening, three other Mohammedans came in,
one of whom was the mollah of the village. They began to
talk very loudly against the tyranny and oppression of Mo-
hammed Pasha, who had lately imposed some rather heavy
taxes on their village. The following colloquy ensued be-
tween us.
Mollah. —“When are your people coming to take the coun-
try?”
Myself.-‘‘I can hardly tell you, seeing that, to the best
of my knowledge, they have no intention of doing anything
of the kind. But tell me, O mollah, you who are a servant
of the prophet and a priest of his religion, why should you
wish that the Franks and Christians might bear rule over
you?” -
- Mollah. —“Kowajah,” God is great, and knows all things.
If it be His will that we should become Christians, or that
Islam should fall, He can bring it to pass, whether we desire
the change or no. Why, then, should we be anxious for the
future destiny of religion when the exalted One takes care of
it? We are blind, and know nothing.”
. Another.—“I have heard say our mosques were once Christ-
ian churches, and, Allah knows, they may be so again. Any-
* Sir,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 157
thing, however, is better than the tyranny of this dog of a
pasha. May he sleep in Gehennam!”
Mollah. —“Mohammed Pasha is, in one respect, a just man;
he robs Jews, Christians, and Moslem alike. A year ago, he
sent for a student of my acquaintance, a humble and 'holy
man. , ‘Oh, man,” said he, “it grieves me to hear that you
are behind with the salian.” “I am poor, O pasha,” was the
reply, “and my patrimony is small. My crop, also, has not
been prospered by Allah, and the Kurds have carried off
several of my sheep.” The pasha grew wroth like a sheitan
as he is, and interrupting the student he roared out, ‘You dog,
you unclean, pay you shall, or the bastinado shall compel
you.” So the poor man returned home in great fear, and he
had to sell his books to meet the demand. Shall such a Mos-
lem as this go to Paradise? Shall he not rather be thrust
down to the lowest pit of Gehennam, even below the accurs-
ed Jews?”
Myself-‘‘But the Cadi and Mufti of Mosul; surely they
are, or ought to be, good Mussulmen; can they not help you,
or moderate the tyranny of the pasha?”
Mollah. —“Kowajah, the pasha is a drunken infidel; and
as for the cadi and mufti, they, excellent men, are worse
than he ſ”
I was somewhat surprised to hear sentiments like these ut-
tered by Mohammedans so near the residence of the dreaded
pasha. Bad as the Turks are, however, they have not imi-
tated the evil example of certain more civilized and Christian
governments. The movements of the oppressed are at least
free, nor are his words watched by some lurking spy and made
a matter of accusation against him.
I remember on one occasion a butcher was condemned to
have his ear nailed to his own door-post. The sentence was
executed with small consideration for the feelings of the suf-
ferer, who, however, indemnified himself by heaping a torrent
of abuse on the cadi, mufti, and the pasha himself. No no-
tice was taken of what he said; but when the term of his
sentence had expired, he was released, and allowed to depart
unmolested. Perhaps, however, when the Turks become a
little more civilized, they will adopt the system of espionage,
with some other European improvements which they lack at
present.
From the monastery we repaired the next morning to the
14


158 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
bank of the Tigris, where we embarked in one of the clumsy
ferry-boats, and after a passage which lasted a full hour at
least, we arrived in safety at the eastern entrance of Mosul.
A peasant from one of the villages had preferred the ancient
mode of transit. Inflating two bags of skin which he carried
in his hand, he supported himself upon them, and with his
feet propelled himself across the river. Oppressed by the
heat of the mid-day sun, and tired of the dilatory movement of
the vessel, I almost envied him his cool and refreshing bath.
Soon after my return, I was standing on my terrace when
my attention was attracted by what seemed to be a moving
cloud. A dark compact body of insects came floating along
from the west, while here and there a straggler lingered be-
hind the others, and, after vain attempts to join the main
column, fell exhausted on the terrace before me. I took up
one of these in my hand, and was soon watching, with mingled
curiosity and compassion, the last moments of an expiring
locust. Despite their destructive qualities, I could not help
pitying the poor weary insect, who, after a flight of so many
miles, was doomed to sink down with the land of plenty be-
fore his eyes. A few minutes longer and he would have been
banqueting with his more fortunate brethren on the olive
trees of Bagh Sheikha, or the corn-fields of old Nineveh. I
placed a drop or two of water in the palm of my hand; he
seemed to drink eagerly of the refreshing element; but his
brief span of life was closing, and I laid him down to die.
As the locusts proceeded, great numbers of them fell and
covered the terraces of the city in heaps. Their color was
a darkish yellow, and they were about an inch and a half in
length. Their whole appearance resembled very much that
of a grasshopper.
The last straggler had crossed the Tigris, and the people
around all appeared on the neighboring terraces furnished
with large baskets, into which they threw whole heaps of the
dead and dying insects. I was not sorry to get rid of them,
on account of the stench which arose from their rapidly de-
caying bodies. The putrefaction of unburied locusts is said
to have been the cause of plague in various parts of Asiatic
Turkey. Their ravages are much dreaded, for they leave all
the trees quite bare, stripping off even the hardest bark. I
have heard that on some occasions they have entered houses
in a body, and consumed everything that they could find.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 159
My knowledge of Arabic was now progressing, and I was
able to understand and converse with most of the numerous
visitors who made calls upon me. Among those was an old
Mohammedan merchant, whose quiet habits I liked, and
whose visits were seldom protracted to any length of time.
My friend Mohammed was a widower, and had two sons,
very fine lads, whom he was proud of characterizing as two
of the greatest sheitans in Mosul. The old gentleman loved
stories to distraction, and often importuned me to relate what
I had seen in my travels. He himself had smoked and dosed
away fifty years in Mosul, during which time he had never
been outside either of the gates. Sometimes two or three of
his friends would accompany him. They were a silent race,
devoted to their pipes and coffee, and knowing or caring little
about anything exterior to their own little world. -
When I mentioned to Mohammed the excavations of
Khoorsabad, he ruminated for a moment, and then asked me,
in a confidential tone, how much gold the French Balios” had
discovered. When I told him that M. Botta neither sought
for, nor expected, anything more valuable than some ancient
sculptures, my worthy old friend looked grievously disap-
pointed, and, after a few thoughtful puffs, said:—
“I have often been astonished, O Yacoub, that a people,
so wise and intelligent as it must be admitted the Franks
generally are, should take such delight in old stones. Praise
be to God, I know nothing of Nimroud and Athoor that you
have been telling me of, except that one of them put our
Father Ibraheem, upon whom be peace, into a great furnace,
from which he miraculously escaped. They were both
Kafirs, and have doubtless been roasting in Gehennam for
many years on account of their misdeeds; so why should you
or I trouble our heads about them 2 Did I not know that the
Ingleez are a truth-speaking nation, I should suspect that
you were telling me falsehoods when you assure me that
crowds of people in your country go to gaze upon these idols.
I have heard that they of your nation curse the other Christians
who worship images; and I know that Musa, the Prophet,
was charged by Allah, the Exalted, to forbid the making of
such abominations. Why, even the mountain Nestorians
would not suffer a picture in their houses; and are you less
wise than they?
* Consul.


160 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
“I remember I once went to the house of a Frank who
passed through here a little time ago, and he received me
with great honor. We sat down together in peace, and were
quietly smoking when a dog of a Jew brought some worn
and rusted coins, for which I would not have given a para.
The Frank acted as if the father of the Djin (genii) had pos-
sessed him. He leaped from his sofa like one who had dis-
covered a treasure. He viewed the rubbish as if it had been
some beautiful damsel, and gave the old thief of a Jew a sum
which would have kept my household for a week. The cun-
ning rogue departed, laughing in his sleeve—may confusion
rest upon him!—and the Frank left me hastily, without saying
“Peace be with you,” to examine his purchase. I asked the
servant if they were relics or pictures of saints that his excel-
lency worshiped, but he only laughed at my beard. Verily,
the Franks are a strange people.”
After this speech, a long one for him, my old friend kept
silence till the sound of the muezzin’s voice summoned him
to quit his beloved pipe. His sentiments, however, represent
accurately the feelings of his countrymen with regard to
antiquities. *
Even my friend , one of the most intelligent Orientals
I ever met, and a person well acquainted with European
habits and tastes, could not account for or enter into our
admiration for antiquities. “When I was in Rome,” said
he to a countryman, “I found the Franks more attentive to
these old pagan images than to the rites of their own worship.
The churches were deserted, and the museums and galleries
thronged. These Westerns seem to pay the same devotion
to a statue or an antique that we do to the blessed saints.”
I think it was St. Jerome who once said, addressing our
European ancestors: “The churches are adorned with costly
marbles and pictures, which every one flocks to admire.
God and purple are lavished on senseless structures, while
the poor of Christ, the living image of the great Creator, are
abandoned to suffering and neglect. Would that you who
make so much of an inanimate mass of marble would feel for
the miseries of the moving and breathing statue!”
The Easterns at least do not merit the application of the
latter portion of the sentence.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 161
CHAPTER XV.
Easter. A death and funeral. Kas Botros and Kas Michael. The Christian
fugitive. The merchant of Baghdad. Religious parties of Mosul. A
reformer. A baptized Mohammedan.
THE season of Lent is rigorously observed by the Christians
of the Oriental churches. Few of them touch any food till
after mid-day, when they take a slight repast, which sustains
them until sunset. The close of the period of mortification
was drawing nigh at the time of my return to Mosul, and
men and women were looking forward with no small satis-
faction to the celebration of the Easter festival. The pope
had sent an indulgence to his Chaldean children, in virtue of
which the severity of the fast was to be in some measure
mitigated; but they had declined to avail themselves of the
favor, as it was deemed an infringement of ancient customs.
Easter came at last, and we distinguished it by a feast at
the English Consulate, in which that noted dish of the Arabian
Nights, lamb stuffed with pistachio nuts, formed no unimport-
ant item of the repast. Prayers had previously been said in
our little chapel, and after dinner we walked abroad to pay
the compliments of Easter to our numerous acquaintance.
Their feast, however, did not occur till some days after,
when the whole of the Christian population appeared abroad
dressed in their gayest habiliments, which were set off by
their happy and joyous countenances. Friends stopped in
street to greet one another with the glad announcement,
“Kam el Meseeh, the Christ, has risen;” while the wealthy
and respectable made the hearts of their poorer brethren
joyful with their donations of money and rice.
Yet amidst the universal joy one heart at least in Mosul
was feeling the most poignant affliction. Mr. , one of
the American missionaries, had long been struggling with a
malignant and incurable disorder, and the echo of the mirth
called forth by the high and joyous festival had scarcely died
14*


162 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
away before his wife found herself a lonely widow in the
midst of a strange country. The last breath had not long
left the body of the departed when his friends were called
upon to solemnize his funeral obsequies. The Chaldean
clergy, instigated by the Italian missionaries, had refused
even a grave to one whom they considered a heretic; but the
Syrian Jacobites came forward and offered to bestow alike a
place of burial and the rites of their church on the stranger
from a distant land.
The whole of the Europeans in Mosul accompanied the
mournful cortège as it defiled slowly through the narrow streets
of the city to the Syrian church. The coffin was placed be-
fore the altar, with lights at each end, and the numerous
assemblage listened in solemn silence to the deep-toned chant
of the priests and deacons who recited those passages from
Scripture which contain the accounts of the burial of Sarah
and of Jacob. -
After a brief ceremony, the bearers took up their load once
more, and conveyed it to an open grave in the cemetery at-
tached to the church. A prayer from one of the missionaries
followed, and the remains of their brother were lowered into
their final resting-place. The deceased had been generally
beloved on account of the kindness and amiability of his
manners, and even those who differed widely from him in
creed could hardly restrain themselves from bestowing a tear
to the memory of one whose piety and humility had endeared
him to all.
Soon after this mournful event, two Chaldean priests, Kas
Michael and Kas Botros, arrived at Mosul. In the latter, I
had the pleasure of greeting an old Maltese acquaintance,
and one of the most talented members of the Oriental priest-
hood I ever encountered. He had formerly belonged to the
Romish Syrians, but, from long study and examination, had
come to the conclusion that the doctrines of the Church of
England were purer than those of Rome, or of any Oriental
community. He had been in great danger from the machi-
nations of his enemies, who had seized already a small estate
which he possessed, near Aleppo, and would willingly have
incarcerated his person, also, had he not obtained the pro-
tection of the English consul. Kas Michael was a Chaldean,
and had formerly been a monk at Rabban Hormuzd.
Kas Botros had taken up his abode at my house, and was


. NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 163
accompanied thither by a poor Christian from Aleppo, who
had been much persecuted on account of some property
which a merciless Mohammedan was endeavoring to wrest
from him. The day after his arrival, a kawass of the pasha
appeared, to demand his person of me. Having, however,
ascertained the injustice of the case, I determined to act upon
the maxim that every Frank’s house is his castle, a piece of
traditional law generally recognized in Turkey. I accord-
ingly bolted the outer door, and answered the knocking of
the kawass from a small terrace that overlooked the street.
“Khowajah Yacoub,” said the official, “I am sent from
his excellency, the pasha, to enter your house, and to seize
the person of a runaway debtor who has taken refuge there.
Will you open the door?”
“Assuredly I will not,” was my reply. “Am I your
porter, O man! Make your way in, if you are able, but I
draw no bolt for you!”
“Very well; I shall return to-morrow,” said the kawass,
as he departed.
No time was to be lost. I gave the poor Christian a small
sum, by means of which he bribed the guard at the gate, and
before his persecutors returned, the next morning, he was on
his way to Baghdad. I ordered my servant to admit them;
but their search was, of course, ineffectual, and they retired,
muttering no very complimentary comments on my conduct.
Old Mohammed, who was, as usual, enjoying his pipe on
my divan, was highly amused, and laughed heartily when
the intruders had departed.
“Verily, you are a sheitan, Khowajah Yacoub,” said he.
That I may do the Mohammedans full justice, however, I
will relate an instance of rare and unexpected generosity,
which took place some time before my arrival at Mosul.
A poor Christian merchant of the latter place had been
unfortunate in his speculations, so much so, indeed, that
there was no prospect of satisfying his numerous creditors,
among whom was a rich Mohammedan merchant of Bagh-
dad, that he had only seen once or twice. At length his
affairs became in such an embarrassed state that he had no
money left, so that, when one of his Mosul creditors came to
his house, and insisted upon being paid, the poor man was
driven to his wits’ end,


164 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
“May Allah and the Virgin assist me!” he exclaimed; “I
know not what to do or to say.”
“Pay me my debt, O Christian dog!” roared the inexora-
ble creditor, “ or by Allah you shall be dragged to prison,
where you will eat stick without measure or limit.”
“Have pity upon me, miserable wretch that I am l’’ sup-
plicated the unhappy debtor. “Give me but a little time,
and I will endeavor to satisfy your demand.”
“By our holy prophet,” was the reply, “I will not grant
your request, O unclean; and hear me—if the money is not
paid before to-morrow, at noon, you will find yourself in
prison and in chains.”
With this menace the angry creditor departed, leaving his
unfortunate debtor to no very enviable reflections. All the
miseries which he might expect would be heaped upon him
before another sunset came in succession before his agitated
mind. He was sensible that he had to look forward, not
merely to loss of liberty, but to tortures and torments which
every rigid creditor in the East has the power of inflicting.
His faith, also, would be an additional offence in the eyes of
his persecutors, who, instigated by their bigotry, consider
mercy to a Christian almost as a crime. His wife and chil-
dren, too, must be left defenceless and alone, exposed to all
the temptations and privations of helpless indigence. It was
a sore moment for the poor man, and when he saw his favor-
ite little daughter running up the stairs of the terrace to
embrace him, he felt, as he pressed her to his bosom, that he
could almost rejoice if the holy angels bore her away that
instant from a world of sorrow.
The sight of a raft making ready for its voyage down the
river to Baghdad turned his thoughts to his rich creditor in
that city. He had heard him well spoken of as a man of
generous and liberal character, and one who was humane
and charitable to all who were in need. “But he is a Mos-
lem,” reflected the poor Christian, “and, like the rest of his
sect, would be but too glad to trample on the despised Naza-
rene.”
At this moment, a strong temptation came into his mind.
If he could obtain a few days’ delay, a wealthy relative at
* To eat stick is a metaphorical expression for the bastinado. It is not, as
may be imagined, a very digestible species of food,
-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 165
Diarbekir had promised him the loan of a sum sufficient to
discharge his present debts in Mosul, and he would then be
saved from the dreaded prison and the tortures. What if he
gave his pressing creditor an order upon the merchant at
Baghdad for the money he demanded? The time occupied
by the voyage there, and the journey back, would afford
ample leisure for a trusty messenger to go to Diarbekir and
to return with the advanced loan, from which he could both
pay the debt and silence his creditor, whom he knew to be
an avaricious greedy man, with such a present as would ap-
pease his anger at the bootless errand.
He thought over his plan all night, and although at first
his conscience reproached him with intended duplicity, its
remonstrances were overpowered by the cruel images of
future suffering which his mind had conjured up. The result
of his cogitations was that he determined to carry it into
execution. -
Early the next morning, he rose from broken and uneasy
slumbers, rendered more unquiet by visions of chains, gloomy
dungeons, and scourges. Very welcome was the cool breeze
that played upon his fevered cheek as he leaned on the wall
of his balcony; and his aching eye wandered over the mounds
of Nineveh to the distant Kurdish mountains, the abode of the
free.
“Should the worst happen, I can escape thither with my
family,” he thought. “The Nestorians, our ancient brethren,
will afford shelter and protection to an oppressed fugitive ;
and even the Kurds are not fond of delivering up one who
has sought the shadow of their roofs.”
His meditations were interrupted by the unwelcome voice
of his creditor in the court below. He descended to meet
him, and endeavored to put on the air of a man who, though
unfortunate, is not wholly destitute of resources.
“Salaam Khowajah Ibraheem,” he said, “I have thought
over our conversation yesterday, and I must certainly avow
that I am able to pay your demand, though it will much in-
convenience me. I have intrusted a sum to Suleiman Aga
at Baghdad, with which he is to purchase for me some mer-
chandise from El Hind. The vessels do not arrive till after
at least fourteen days, so that he has the money still in his
hands. Yet the payment of this sum will greatly distress
me, seeing that I have no immediate means of replacing


166 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
what I had destined to be the price of the Indian goods,
which I must therefore lose the opportunity of purchasing if .
you refuse to wait.” -
Ibraheem listened to his speech with increasing satisfac-
tion, for he knew that a bill on Suleiman was like so much
gold, and, as he had occasion to go to Baghdad on affairs of
his own, the voyage would not much signify. He replied,
therefore, in as conciliatory a tone as he could assume, that
he was grieved that his own necessities obliged him to insist
on instant payment: but he secretly chuckled to himself as
he placed in the bosom of his gown the paper which the
Christian had just written with a trembling hand. He was
indeed so full of self-congratulation that he did not observe
the pale mournful expression of his debtor, who, after his de-
parture, threw himself on his diwan, and, covering his face
with his hands, wept long and bitterly.
Days rolled on, but, although a messenger had been dis-
patched to Diarbekir the very morning of Ibraheem’s de-
parture, and had been charged to ride as if Azrael were
behind him, he tarried and came not. At length, the Christian
received the intelligence that Ibraheem had returned, and
was even then entering the Baghdad gate of Mosul. The
poor Nazarene trembled at the prospect of his wrath. He
made an attempt to escape that very night: but his excel-
lency the pasha, from some caprice or other, having given
orders that no one should leave the city, he was rudely re-
pulsed by the guardians of the gate. Returning to his house,
he spent the night in fear and agitation, scarcely knowing
what course to adopt. At length, he determined to go to
Ibraheem, confess the fraud he had practiced, and surrender
himself to his vengeance.
The morning breeze was blowing cool and refreshing from
the mountains of Kurdistan, as he set forth, the next morning,
on his unpleasant errand. More than one church was open,
and the worshipers were pouring in for the morning prayers.
The poor merchant entered, and joined in the service; and
when it was over he bent his burning forehead to the cool
marble pavement, and prayed earnestly for deliverance from
peril, and that He, who sways the thoughts of all men, would
soften the stony heart of his adversary, and incline him to
compassion and pity.
He left the church, and, quickening his pace, arrived at


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 167
the house of Ibraheem just as that person was crossing his
own threshold to go forth to his daily avocations. To the as-
tonishment of the Christian, the countenance of his creditor
became radiant with the most cringing civility.
“Djanum, O my soul!” said he, “you are welcome to
the dwelling of the unworthy Ibraheem. Will you not honor
me by entering and drinking a pipe,” since it is yet early, and
to a guest like you all business must give place.” w
The Christian stared in utter amazement at Ibraheem while
he uttered this complimentary address. “Verily,” he thought
within himself, “the Djin of Babel, which I have heard of
from the Holy Writings, must have possessed the man.” He
restrained his astonishment, however, and sat down as in-
vited.
“O, my friend,” said the obsequious Ibraheem, as he
handed to his guest with a low bend the pipe which he had
lit, “why did you not tell me that you are even as the brother
of Suleiman Aga. Evil light upon my head that I should
behave with such rudeness to the friend of so excellent a
man.”
“You speak parables, O Ibraheem l’” said the surprised
Christian.
“I say what is the truth,” replied his host. “I went to
Baghdad with your paper, and my first care was to repair to
Suleiman Aga. Mashallah! what a house is his On my
head, it is far larger and more beautiful than the palace of
our pashal Well, I entered into the court and saw a num-
ber of mendicants, Christians as well as Mohammedans, who
were receiving from the servants large bowls of rice. ‘Has
something extraordinary occurred, O man!” said I to one of
the beggars who stood near me, ‘that this distribution is
taking place?’ ‘It happens daily,” he replied. ‘May God
grant, long life to Suleiman Aga! He is the father of the
poor.
“I then signified to one of the slaves, a stout black, whose
cheeks were as well stuffed as the cushions of my best divan,
that I wished to see Suleiman Aga.
“‘Follow me, my master,’ he replied, and led the way
* The Orientals use the word “drink” in lieu of “smoke.” It arises pro-
bably from the fact that the first pipes invented were those termed narguilehs
or hookahs, in which the smoke, drawn through water, is inhaled by the
sunoker in a manner which much resembles the act of drinking.


168 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
into a large room, where, reclining on cushions richly em-
broidered, sat the prince of the Baghdad merchants. I made
a low obeisance, and would have taken my seat at the lower
end of the room, but Suleiman motioned me to sit by his
side. Pipes and coffee were served, and, after a few com-
pliments, I related the object of my journey and produced
your document. Suleiman seemed surprised as he read it
carefully through; but, after pondering awhile, he said, “Tell
me the circumstances under which you received this paper.”
Whereupon I told him all that had happened between me
and yourself. When Suleiman had heard my tale, his coun-
tenance grew stern, and he said, “O Ibraheem, you have
been hard and severe upon my friend and my brother; never-
theless, here is your money and something besides for the
expenses of the journey. Return to Mosul, and tell the
Christian merchant that in a month's time from the present
day I expect to see him beneath the shadow of my roof.” I
began to excuse myself, but Suleiman stopped me. “The
heart of the covetous,” he said, “is like the ocean : it can
never be filled. Depart in peace, and henceforth learn to
show mercy to the unfortunate.” Ashamed, I left his pre-
sence and returned to Mosul. My intention was to seek you
out to-day and relate what had occurred; though doubtless
Suleiman Aga, your excellent friend, has already made it
known to you by letter. I must have been medjnoon" to
have treated so worthy a man as yourself in so rude a man-
ner, but I trust that you and your brother Suleiman Aga will
pardon me.”
Soon after, the Christian merchant left the house, astonished
beyond measure at the munificence of Suleiman Aga. He
could hardly believe that one, almost a stranger, would have
befriended him in such a manner, or that a Mohammedan
would have given help and assistance to a Christian. Pene-
trated with gratitude, he rushed into the nearest church and
gave vent to his feelings in energetic and heartfelt thanks-
givings. Afterwards he went to his house, took a hasty
farewell of his family, and embarked on a raft that was just
then leaving for Baghdad. When he arrived at the City of
Peace, he hastened to the house of Suleiman, and, throwing
himself at his feet, confessed at once the imposition and en-
treated his forgiveness.
* Mad.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 169
The prince of the Baghdad merchants bade him rise and
be seated, assuring him that the past was pardoned and for-
gotten. He even invited him to take up his quarters for a
few days at his house, and bestowed upon him some mag-
nificent robes in lieu of his travel-stained vestments. After
dinner, when they were alone, the Christian was profuse in
his expressions of gratitude, and ventured to hint his surprise
that a stranger should confer a benefit so costly on one utterly
unknown to him.
“O my brother,” said Suleiman, “Allah, the Exalted, is
the father of us all, and has committed the poor and the
unfortunate to the care of the wealthy and the prosperous.
When we aid the misfortunes of one another, and supply from
our own abundance the deficiencies of our fellow men, we
do but relieve those who are closely related to us by the ties
of nature and position. The showing of compassion renders
us like to Him whose chosen title is El Raham, the Merciful
One.”
“But I am a Christian, O Suleiman,” said the Mosul
merchant, “and the professors of your creed deem us worse
than the dogs of the streets.”
“The Maker of all,” was the reply, “has caused the
birds to differ in the color of their plumage, and men in their
opinions; but both the Koran and the Injeel agree in enjoin-
ing charity and mercy.”
The day after, the Christian left for his native city, bear-
ing with him a large sum lent him by the munificent Sulei-
man, who proved ever afterwards his sure and stanch friend.
The aid so seasonably rendered enabled him to retrieve his
losses, and to repay in a short time the money advanced, as
well as the original debt. Mindful of the lesson taught him
by the liberality of the Mohammedan, he endeavored in after
life to imitate his example; bestowing his bounties on all who
needed them, without any distinction of religion or sect. ,
Among the objects of his charity was his former creditor,
Ibraheem, who became unfortunate in his old days, and was
indebted to the kindness of the man whom he had persecuted
for an asylum in his time of need. At a good old age, the
worthy merchant slept with his fathers, and the corpse was
accompanied to its last resting-place by crowds of the un-
fortunate and the miserable, who lamented with sincere and
15


170 - NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
unfeigned grief the loss of their munificent benefactor and
friend.
The priests Botros and Michael very soon found it neces-
sary to move from my house to one in the middle of the
quarter inhabited chiefly by the Chaldean Christians. Their
arrival at Mosul had created no small stir, and the Italian
missionaries instigated the clergy of the town to curse them
from their altars, and to prohibit, under pain of excommuni-
cation, any person from holding the least intercourse with
them. They were induced to take these violent measures,
from fear of the reforming spirit which had begun to mani-
fest itself among the Christians of Mosul.
For several centuries, the Nestorians of Mesopotamia,
Persia, and Assyria had maintained an independent and
hostile attitude with regard to the pretensions of the See of
Rome. The numerous papal emissaries who had endeavored,
from time to time, to win over the discontented and the fac-
tious, two classes rarely absent from any community, to even
a nominal submission to the papal supremacy, had most sin-
gularly failed in their attempts. Their arguments and their
bribes proved alike ineffectual, till the disappointed vanity of
a Nestorian prelate came to their aid, and effected a schism,
the fruits of which became more manifest in succeeding
years.
The same century which witnessed the Reformation, and
the detachment of nearly the whole of Northern Europe from
the pope’s spiritual dominions, beheld a Nestorian bishop
prostrate at the feet of Julius III. A spirited contest for the
possession of the patriarchate of the East had arisen between
Simeon Barmamas and John Sulaka. The character of the
former has been differently described by friends and enemies.
The one revere him as the reformer of many abuses and
superstitions which had crept into the Chaldean Church;
while the latter represent him as an heretical and impious
tyrant, whose sacrilegious hand was stretched forth to pro-
fane and abolish the pious customs of devout antiquity. He
was probably one of those men who, with the best intentions,
enter upon the work of reform with more zeal and precipitate
haste than prudence, and avert, by their ill-judging violence,
the co-operation of those who would otherwise be well dis-
posed towards the objects which they have in view.
The wishes of the majority being in favor of Simeon, the


172 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
of patriarchs retired to a state of poverty and obscurity in
one of the neighboring villages.
We found the Chaldeans of Mosul, therefore, divided into
two parties, one of which recognized the pretensions of Mar
Nicholas, the papal nominee, while the other, without abso-
lutely rejecting him, retained a secret fidelity to the fallen
house of Elia.
The latter party soon added to their private animosity
towards the authority of Rome a hearty and determined dis-
like of the novelties which the papal party had introduced.
They complained that new and unapproved rites, supported
neither by Scripture nor tradition, had been forced upon them
by the machinations of a foreign priesthood. The celebra-
tion of the mass in the chapel of the Italian missionaries was
intended, they asserted, to prepare the way for its general
adoption. The impediments laid in the way of the circula-
tion of the Scriptures, they censured as policy of which even
Mohammedans would be ashamed; while they pointed out,
in coarse and bitter irony, the lamentable results of an enforced
celibacy on the morals of the clerical body.
In countries where circumstances allow of the exercise of
arbitrary power, the motto of the Church of Rome has always
been “argue not, but strike.” One Sunday morning, thir-
teen of the discontented were solemnly excommunicated, and
a curse denounced against those who should converse or have
any dealings with them.
One of these men was the leader of the rest, and was noted
in the city for being among the most determined opponents
of Rome. He was a short, square-built personage, with a
burly face, more English than Chaldean. Though a little
extreme in his views, like all reformers, his motives were
single and pure. He desired to see his church freed from
the hateful yoke of the stranger, and was ready to sacrifice
anything to obtain so valuable an end. The rude eloquence
of his tones, and the overwhelming ridicule which he poured
unsparingly upon his shrinking and cowardly adversaries,
might have been considered worthy of a more enlarged sphere
of action. The papist party dreaded his approach, and fled
from the sound of his voice as the Trojans retreated at the
shout of Achilles. They endeavored to incense the pasha
against him, but his bold daring had won the esteem of one
who was in some respects a kindred spirit, and the governor


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 173
bade the accusers be gone, adding that Georgios was quite
right in exposing the folly of a set of insane worshipers of
images.
Some mollahs made our friend tempting offers if he would
embrace the religion of the Prophet; but Georgios, while he
disliked its corruptions, was sincerely attached to the Christ-
ian faith. He generally attended the daily service in our
little chapel, and expressed himself much gratified with the
purity and simplicity of the English ritual.
One day while on a visit to Kas Botros, an old Mohamme-
dan came in, and, taking up a book of the Gospels which
lay on the diwan, expressed himself much pleased with its
contents. A conversation ensued, during which he informed
us that he himself had been baptized in his infancy by a
Christian priest.
“That is curious,” remarked Kas Botros; “I certainly
never heard of that practice before.”
“It is often performed in Mosul,” replied the old Moslem,
“for most of us who live here are descended from Christian
parents, who have become at various times professors of
Islam. Not many years ago, I have heard old men say that
a Christian pasha bare rule here, and Christians were above
the Moslem in those days. On my head they were powerful
then, and even a Mohammedan governor did not care to
interfere with them. But since they quarreled among them-
selves, they have become weak as water.”
“Is it common then in this city,” I inquired, “for Moham-
medan children to be baptized '' -
“On my head it is,” he answered; “I will tell you how
it happened with me. I had not long left my mother’s arms
when I was taken very sick. My mother was distracted, for
the physician gave me up, and said that Azrael was even then
flapping his wings over my head. Then my mother slapped
her face and tore her hair, and called to my sister to run for
the mollah. He came, and gave her a verse of the Koran to
hang about my neck in a little bag, for which he demanded
five piastres, which my mother willingly paid, for she would
gladly even have sold all her jewels to save my life. Still I
grew worse and worse, and every one thought I was going
to die, when an old Christian woman came in to visit my
mother.
“‘Ayesha,” said the new comer, ‘Djanum my soul, do not
:k


174 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
lament and grieve, but listen to what I am about to tell you.
Your child’s life may depend on it. Let me call our priest
to baptize your son, and, by the mercy of the Holy Virgin, he
shall recover.”
“But what will the mollah say ?’ argued my mother.
“The mollah is an ass, Djanum,” said the old woman;
“he told me once our sex should never see Paradise. Ah,
Christianity is the religion for women. They say the Franks
in the West even worship their females.”
“‘Run, then, Rachel and fetch the priest,” said my mother;
‘I am willing to try every means to save my child’s life.”
“So old Kas Zachariah came and baptized me, and soon
after, praise be to God, I recovered.”
“Then do you attribute your recovery to your baptism?”
asked I.
“Allah, the Exalted, knows,” said the old Mohammedan,
thoughtfully, as he arose to take his leave.
CHAPTER XVI.
Nestorian troubles and massacre. Flight of the patriarch. The Italian
juggler. Death of Mohammed Pasha. The impostor. Nebbi Sheeth.
At the commencement of June, 1843, rumors of a strange
and distressing character reached Mosul from the region of
the Tiyari Nestorians. Various fugitives, who had barely
escaped with their lives from the murderous attacks of the
Kurds, reported that their once peaceful country was now a
scene of desolating and savage warfare. From day to day,
more disastrous tidings were arriving, till at length it was
announced that the patriarch himself, with a considerable
body of his clergy and flock, were upon their way to Mosul,
intending to place themselves under the protection of the
vice-consul of England, and to solicit through him the inter-
position of the British government with the Ottoman Porte.
In order, however, to save the reader and myself much un-
necessary trouble, I shall endeavor to trace from their com-
mencement the causes which led to the Nestorian massacre.
I am the more anxious to do this, in order to contradict the


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. ' 175
false and calumnious statement which appeared in some
English newspapers during the latter part of the year 1843.
The town of Jezirah has been already mentioned as
situated on a small island formed by the Tigris, which, in
that place, flows directly at the foot of the Kurdish Mountains.
Inhabited almost exclusively by Kurds, it may indeed be
considered as part of Kurdistan; and, though nominally
under the Pasha of Erzeroum, the real government of it and
part of the adjacent mountain territory has been confided to
the charge of Kurdish chiefs, who claim the title of Beys of
Jezirah.
At the period of my visit, the ruler of this insular town was
Beder Khan, a man of some talent and more ambition. A
kind of Oriental Cromwell in his way, he had obtained great
influence and power by his known zeal for the tenets of the
Koran, and unqualified abhorrence of Christians. Bigoted
Kurds and fanatical mollahs fanned his prejudices, and
flattered his ambition, with the prospect of erecting Kurdistan
into an independent kingdom. The only obstacle to his
wishes was the existence of a Christian power in the midst
of the mountains, whose political interests rendered them
likely to prove most inimical to his views.
The chosen ally and confederate of the Jezirah chief was
the Emir of Hakkari, a district to the north-east of Mosul.
This man, whose name was Noor Allah Bey, had gained an
unenviable notoriety from his having connived at the murder
of the European traveler Schulz. Dark, sullen, and fero-
cious, he was distinguished above all the Kurdish chiefs by
his many acts of savage cruelty. He hated the Christians,
and longed for nothing so much as an opportunity of showing
his dislike by deeds.
Mohammed Pasha, of Mosul, was said to have become a
party to a nefarious arrangement, whereby he engaged him-
self to allow the two Kurdish confederates to pursue their
designs unmolested, provided he received a certain portion of
the spoil. It is probable, also, that his brother of Erzeroum
was not so ignorant of the intended plot as he ſound it after-
wards necessary to pretend.
Having arranged their plan of operation, the two Kurdish
chieftains discovered that a pretext for aggression was easily
found. A slight quarrel between the Nestorians of one of
the villages of Dez and some neighboring Kurds was made


176 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
-
use of as a pretence for beginning a bloody and extermi-
nating war. Pleading the authority of an order from the
Pasha of Erzeroum, Beder Khan Bey invaded the Nestorian
territory at the head of a Kurdish force. Noor Allah Bey
attacked them on the other side, and the Christians found
that they were suddenly surrounded by foes.
Relying on the amity which had for some time subsisted be-
tween the patriarch and the Kurdish chiefs, they had taken no
care to provide themselves with arms. At the commencement
of the war they were massacred by hundreds without resist-
ance; but the first panic of surprise having passed away, des-
pair lent them courage and the means of defence. The peasant
sharpened up the rusty sword which had so long lain neg-
lected in the corner of his cottage, and prepared for more
deadly warfare the long rifle which had hitherto been used
only against the wild deer of the mountains. The husband-
man, in lieu of more perfect implements of defence, converted
his tools into weapons, and though distracted and divided
among themselves by the arts of the Kurds, the Christians of
the mountains determined to struggle manfully for their lives
and liberties.
The conflict was desperate and sanguinary, for it was
literally a war to the knife. The Kurds treated their captives
with such barbarity, that the Christians perceived it was use-
less to count upon the mercy or magnanimity of their cap-
tors. They chose, in most instances, therefore, to die with
arms in their hands, rather than be reserved for the tortures
which the cruelty of the infidels delighted in inflicting.
In many captured villages, the ruthless barbarians tossed
infants and children in fiendish sport on the points of their
pikes, and reserved the youth of maturer age for ignominy
worse than death. The groans of men expiring under the
most dreadful tortures, and the shrieks and cries of insulted
women, filled the whole region, while troops of helpless
captives were driven like oxen down the steep paths of the
Kurdish Mountains.
On one occasion, a fortress into which a body of armed
Kurds had thrown themselves was besieged by the Nestorians.
The former held out for some time, hoping for the arrival of
succors from the main army of Beder Khan Bey. At length
they became exceedingly distressed for want of water, and
promised upon the Koran to capitulate if they were allowed


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 177
a plentiful supply from a well in the rear of the besiegers.
The unsuspicious Christians granted them the permission ,
desired, and even aided them in drawing the water. When
the Kurds had satisfied their thirst, they retracted their solemn
engagement and refused to deliver up the castle. The same
day the expected succors arrived, a sharp contest ensued,
in which the Christians were defeated, and many of them
taken prisoners.
The Kurdish commander, incensed at the loss of men
which he had sustained, ordered a large fire to be kindled in
the square or market-place of the next village. His directions
were obeyed, and, forcing his captives to sit round the blazing
pile, he commanded his soldiers to force their legs into the
flames, and thus gradually to burn the unfortunate men
alive.
The struggle was carried on by both parties, at first with
almost equal success, but it soon became evident that the
Christians were the weaker, and must eventually succumb.
Various circumstances contributed to their defeat. In the
first place, the Maleks or chiefs of the Nestorians were divided
among themselves, and jealous of the patriarchal power. In
times of warfare too, an ecclesiastical government is rarely able
to develop successfully those measures of resistance and op-
position which are often necessary to the safety of the state.
For many years, the spiritual chiefs of the Tiyari had main-
tained their position more by the arts of policy than of war.
The Maleks felt themselves without a leader or guide in the
hour of battle, and many of them were disposed to under-
value a ruler whose marked deficiency in the arts which
they themselves excelled in was becoming daily more ap-
parent.
Had the patriarch been emulous of the actions performed
by the warlike clergy of Europe in the Middle Ages, he might
have exchanged his mitre for a helmet, and, unfurling the
banner of the cross, called upon his people to charge the in-
fidels boldly in the name of God and of St. George.” Had
he possessed the sentiments of an ancient Puritan, he would
have exhorted his vassals to smite the modern Moabites and
Amalekites with the edge of the sword, in nearly the same
* St. George has long been the favorite saint of the Chaldeans, if one may
judge from the numerous churches that bear his name.


178 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
language that was used by Joshua and Gideon.” But he had
neither the talents nor the enthusiasm necessary to inflame
the ardor of his subjects, although there is strong reason to
believe that they would readily have responded to his exhort-
ations.
Moreover, the temper of the Orientals is most averse to com-
plicated and united movements, however well adapted for
desultory and irregular warfare. The Nestorian who defended
with dauntless bravery the safety of his hearth and the honor
of his family would have been as reluctant as an ancient
Highlander to abandon his local position for a main army,
whose rendezvous was distant from his own abode. Unskilled
in military manoeuvres, he chose rather to rescue his humble
dwelling from its assailants, or, if he failed, to redden the
threshold of his fathers with his blood. When his village was
burnt, and his wife and children slain or captives, he still
maintained a species of guerilla warfare with his trusty rifle
from crag to crag. When driven to his last retreat, he stood
like the wolves of his native mountains boldly at bay, and
left the marks of his expiring prowess on the bodies of his
foes.
During the continuation of this contest, the Pasha of Mosul,
who was well informed of all the events that had taken place
in the mountains, affected the utmost astonishment at the
movements of the Kurds. His pretended regret, however,
was too palpable to deceive those who knew his character,
and were well aware that a Turkish regiment, backed by a
detachment of Albanians, with two or three field pieces, would
have terminated the war at once. -
The reverses of the Christians became more marked, and
at length the patriarch was hunted from village to village
with a small but faithful band of supporters, who refused to
desert him in his distress. One of his last asylums was a
small collection of huts on the banks of the Zab, where a
visitation of a most painful character was destined to fall on
his doomed head. A little higher up the river, the Kurds had
succeeded in capturing the mother and one of the brothers of
the patriarch. The age, sex, and rank of the former might
have pleaded in her behalf, but such appeals were lost upon the
savage barbarians, who, after offering shameful insults to their
* The Chaldee bears a strong similarity to the Hebrew.


- NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 179
defenceless captive, finally butchered her in the most savage
manner, and cutting the corpse in four pieces, they sent the
mutilated remains, secured to a small raft, floating down the
Zab. Some Christians saw it as it passed the temporary
refuge of the patriarch, they brought it to the shore, and the
unfortunate and broken-hearted chieftain bent in mute agony
over the dishonored form of her who had given him birth.
His spirit was now overwhelmed with calamities, and he
determined to strive no longer, but to seek in Mosul a refuge
from his pursuers.
The knowledge that the patriarch had abandoned the Tiyari
country was the signal for a vast tide of fugitives to descend
to the plains. The villages on the site of Nineveh were filled
with men, women, and children, covered with wounds, and
suffering from the forced marches through the rocky defiles
of Kurdistan. Numbers sank exhausted on the stony soil
never to rise again; women clasped to their bosoms the cold
and lifeless memorials of a husband slain in defending them
from outrage. Sorrow and grief seemed the portion of the
unhappy Nestorians, and the patriarch not unaptly availed
himself of the mournful language of the prophet Jeremiah to
express the extent of his own and his people’s misfortunes.
One morning, as I was sitting with my friend B. in the
court-yard of his house, it was announced that Mar Shimon
had entered Mosul, and would shortly arrive at the English
consulate. We immediately repaired thither, and in a few
minutes the patriarch made his appearance. He possessed
a tall, muscular figure, with more of the bearing of a soldier
than of an ecclesiastic. His dress was strikingly dissimilar
to the usual episcopal vestments of the East. A pair of long
scarlet pantaloons and a short jacket seemed somewhat
strange vestments for an Oriental catholicos. Such habili-
ments, however, might be necessary in the mountains, where
long, flowing robes would have been attended with incon-
venience, if not with danger.
The patriarch’s manner was gentle and subdued. A
marked melancholy sat on his features, and his hair, although
his years did not exceed thirty, was prematurely gray. . His
archdeacon, Kas Auraha, or Abraham, and his two brothers,
in deacon’s orders, who had escaped the late massacre, ac-
companied him.
The patriarch and his principal attendants were accommo-


180 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
dated with rooms in the consulate, while I opened my house
to the numerous fugitives, who came pouring in daily.
They occupied chiefly the subterranean apartments, which
were very spacious, and they always sought opportunities of
viewing from the terraces the far distant hills of their mount-
ain home. -
My new guests were very orderly in their manners, though
wild in their appearance. Only one decided quarrel broke
out among them during, their abode with me, and this was
occasioned by a half-crazy old man who served the patriarch
in the double capacity of a domestic and buffoon. This
worthy was addicted, like many of his countrymen, to the
vice of intoxication, and having on one occasion partaken
rather freely of the juice of the grape, he grew riotous, and
addressed a reproachful epithet to one of his companions.
The fiery nature of the mountaineer was excited, and he
retorted in no complimentary terms. The old buffoon drew
his dagger and made a rush at his antagonist, who retreated
into an inner apartment and shut the door. Nothing could
equal the rage of old Yohannan at being thus balked of his
vengeance. Two or three times he burst from those who
were restraining him, and drove his knife into the hard wood
of the door. At length he was quieted, and after sleeping
off his drunkenness, appeared the next morning with a sober
and abashed countenance.
Among the Nestorian fugitives was a woman named Mar-
tha, who had displayed, under trying circumstances, the
courage of a heroine, and the hardihood of the sterner sex.
Her story was interesting, and worthy of record. In one of
the villages of the Tiyari, she had lived in peace for five
years with her husband Daniel, a man of some standing
among his fellow villagers. Two children had blessed their
union, and in few cottages of the mountains could be found
a happier or more affectionate pair. The Christian women
of the Tiyari possess more freedom than their sisters of the
plain, and are trained up in that hardy manner which ena-
bles them to face danger with almost the courage and reso-
lution of a man.
One evening, Martha and Daniel were sitting in their cot-
tage, and talking over the sad rumors which had lately
reached the village. It was reported that war had broken
out, that many Christians had been massacred, and that a


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 181
body of Kurds were in the neighborhood, who intended, in a
few days, to make an attack upon them. A sorrowful fore-
boding seized the mind of Daniel as he took down his rifle
and began to clean and arrange it for the approaching strug-
gle. But he looked at his wife and his slumbering children,
and he vowed inwardly to defend them to the last gasp.
With the active energy of a female mountaineer, Martha
had been polishing and sharpening her husband’s sabre,
when a red glow was reflected through the small window of
the cottage. Daniel opened the door and listened. His
house was a few yards distant from the village, but he heard
the shots and cries, and saw the flames arising from one or
two of the more remote cottages. He hastily shut to the door,
and barricaded it in the best way he was able.
A few minutes of fearful expectation had passed, during
which Daniel girt on his sword, and loaded his rifle. Foot-
steps approached the door, and a rough voice demanded
admittance in Kurdish.
“I cannot open to strangers,” was the reply.
“Give us instant entrance, you Christian dog,” shouted
several voices outside, “ or we will burn your house without
delay.” -
The Nestorian returned no answer, and the assailants en-
deavored to force the door. It resisted their efforts for some
time, and when it at last gave way to repeated blows, they
found the entrance defended by one who was prepared to
maintain his ground with the desperation of a husband and
father. One shot from his rifle had struck down one of the
Kurds, and he had handed it to Martha to reload while he
endeavored to make good his position with his sabre. At
this moment, a bullet pierced his heart, and he fell mortally
wounded on his threshold. “The bear is dead,” said the
Kurdish leader; “spare not the cubs.”
One of his followers fired his pistol at the eldest boy, and
killed him on the spot. The wife had seen her husband fall,
with a mute grief that almost paralyzed her exertions, and
overwhelmed her with a species of helpless stupor; but the
sight of her children’s blood drove the mother almost frantic.
The assassin paid the penalty of his brutal act with his life;
and Martha, casting down the discharged rifle, which had
avenged her son, caught up the sabre which had fallen from
her husband’s dying hand.
16


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 183
The patriarch seemed at first amused at the facetious tricks
which were exhibited. He even laughed heartily at the sur-
prise of some of his flock, who found articles of their property
had suddenly been multiplied or annihilated by the Frank
enchanter. At length, however, the conjuror proceeded to
exhibit the abstruser mysteries of his art. The patriarch’s
face became gradually more serious, and his features at last
assumed an expression of deep alarm. He rose hastily from
his seat, and whispered to B. “I can remain no longer, for
surely the Evil One worketh through this man.”
An English merchant, resident at Mosul, had been among
the spectators, and by some chance had seated himself next
to the patriarch. His good-humored countenance attracted
the attention of the latter, who exchanged with him, during
the evening, a mute pantomime of smiles and nods. At the
conclusion of the performance, when the patriarch rose to
retire, he presented his hand to this gentleman, expecting
that, according to the custom of the East, he would respect-
fully press it to his lips. But the worthy Englishman, not
understanding this mode of salutation, grasped with much
vigor the proffered member, and after bestowing on it a
hearty shake, said, in good earnest English, “I’m glad to
make your acquaintance, Mar Shimon.”
The representations of Sir Stratford Canning on behalf of
the murdered Nestorians had roused the Ottoman govern-
ment into something like a determination to look into the
matter. Beder Khan Bey was no favorite at Stamboul, and
the influence of Mohammed Pasha was on the wane. Vari-
ous complaints of extortion against the latter had awakened
the Porte to the fact that his coffers were too full, and might
undergo a slight diminution with great profit to his majesty,
the Sultan. It is never, however, the nature of Turks to be
precipitate. After the usual course of Inshallah and Bac-
calum,” they agreed to send a young effendi of the Reformed
school to investigate the affair. The English vice-consul at
Samsoun was joined in commission, and the two gentlemen
arrived at Mosul in due time.
While they were on the road, tidings of the proposed com-
mission of inquiry had reached the watchful ears of Mohammed
* If it please God, and we shall see; two phrases very common in Turkish
mouths, especially when they desire to promote delay.


184 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Pasha. He had taken very much of late to habits of intoxi-
cation; for, like most of his class, he felt and expressed a
great contempt for the mollahs and their doctrines. One
morning it was announced that the pasha was ailing, news
which filled all Mosul with secret joy. In the evening, he
was worse, and Dr. Grant, of the American mission, was
requested to hold a consultation with the Armenian physician
of the pasha. But their efforts were useless, and the remorse-
ful tyrant expired soon afterwards, loudly lamenting in his
last moments the injuries which he had done to Mar Shimon.
His death was a signal for a general rejoicing, since all
classes felt that they could well spare him. The day of his
burial was held as a fête, and numbers appeared abroad, clad
in their best apparel, and making holiday with their wives
and children. Small booths were erected on the banks of
the river, and in that part of the city called the quarter of
the Tahara, which was covered with gardens and ruins. Had
some signal and unexpected good fortune happened to each of
the population of Mosul, they could hardly have rejoiced more.
It was even feared that they might attempt a riot in the exu-
berance of their joy. People in the East are so little accus-
tomed to freedom, that even the semblance of it produces a
species of moral intoxication.
The mollahs of Mosul had never been great favorites with
the late ruler. He had abridged their privileges, and made
free, on several occasions, with their cash. Moreover, he was
decidedly opposed to the pious frauds which they sometimes
played off upon the people in the name of the Prophet.
One day, a pretender to sanctity was detected in a mani-
fest fraud. This fanatic had inveigled himself into the con-
fidence and esteem of an old merchant of Mosul, who was
very credulous and very rich. The impostor had promised
to obtain for him a vision of houries and the secret of making
gold, two things which the old man coveted extremely. His
delusion became so great that he received the dervish into
his house and treated him as a son. The fears of his family
were even excited that he might make him his heir; a pro-
ceeding not at all to their taste. They carried their com-
plaint to the pasha, who summoned the impostor and his
dupe before him.
“Is it true, O Father of Stupidity,” said the governor,
addressing the old merchant, “that you have been promised


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 185
visions by this fellow, and that he has instructed you in the
art of making gold 2’’
“It is true, O pasha,” was the reply; “and I fully believe
his words.”
“Baccalum, we shall see!” observed the pasha. “Bring
the necessary things for inflicting the bastinado.”
His orders were obeyed, and four stout kawasses entered,
bearing each a formidable whip of cowhide. The dervish
eyed these preparations with a rueful look, while the pasha
addressed him in the following words:—
“Unclean fellow that you are, you are imposing upon this
man’s ignorance and folly, to serve certain purposes of your
own. You have asserted that it is in your power to make
gold. I, therefore, command you to transmute this piece of
money (throwing down a piastre) into the precious metal, on
pain of fifty sticks.”
The impostor had no lack of impudence, and he perceived
that nothing but an extraordinary effort could save him from
the punishment which his roguery had so well deserved.
Assuming an injured air, he complained that the pasha
should treat a holy devotee in that rude and peremptory
manner. “The secrets of heaven,” he concluded, “are only
for those who seek them with humility and fasting. I am
not at liberty, O pasha, to discover to you any of these mys-
teries, unless you will submit to the necessary initiatory pro-
cess.”
“Peki, very well,” said his excellency; “I believe you
will soon change your tone. Kawasses, down with this fel-
low, and beat him soundly till he confesses his villainy.”
“I hear and obey,” was the reply, as they placed the im-
postor.on his back, and began to belabor his feet with their
formidable whips. But he was not proof against the pain,
and, after a few blows, he expressed his willingness to con-
fess. Having acknowledged his imposture, the pasha set
him at liberty, with a grave caution never to offend again.
The mollahs, however, were little disposed to admit the
justice of a procedure which exposed the knavish doings of
their class. They had also another cause of complaint
against the deceased pasha, which, they persuaded the peo-
ple, had brought down upon him the vengeance of Heaven.
Among the Mohammedan places of worship in Mosul, was a
mosque dedicated to Nebbi. Sheeth, or the Prophet Seth,
16+ -


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 187
young Georgians, who enjoyed little consideration from a
man who had outlived the attractions of lust.
The town of Mosul is divided into several quarters, the
inhabitants of which have a species of hereditary feud with
each other. After the pasha's death, several quarrels took
place between them, which frequently made parts of the city
scenes of riot and confusion. When the emotions of joy at
their late release were somewhat abated, not a few of the
most wealthy and respectable citizens sighed for the arrival
of another governor, and confessed concerning the late one,
almost in the words of Shakspeare, their conviction that
“they could have better spared a better man.”
CHAPTER XVII.
The Eastern Christians. Their opinions. Clergy. General character.
THE majority of travelers in the East have found them-
selves constrained to devote a few pages to notices of the
present state and tenets of that numerous and influential body,
the Oriental Christians. Missionary journals have been pub-
lished to acquaint the public with the differences that prevail
among them, to censure their ignorance, or to condemn their
superstitions; but neither the traveler nor the missionary seems
to have succeeded in exciting the great mass of English
readers to feel either interest or curiosity respecting their
brethren in the East.
Yet the fault seems to lie not so much in the nature of the
subject as in the manner in which it has been generally
brought forward. The traveler confines himself to sketches
of individuals, while the missionary deals with systems, and
neither represents to us, in one single and concentrated view,
the workings and developments of the latter, as exemplified
by the habits, manners, and belief of the former. But, that
I may not seem to censure in others what I have myself
been afraid of attempting, I shall endeavor as briefly as pos-
sible to give a connected, and, I trust, impartial survey of
the state of the Christians in the Turkish dominions.
The great body of readers are by no means well informed


188 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
respecting the various religious º of the East. I have
heard it gravely stated by persons of education that the in-
habitants of the Turkish dominions professed exclusively the
Mohammedan faith. Few have fully received and compre-
hended my assertion, that there were Christians in the East,
and even when this fact has been admitted as possible, it was
supposed that they were foreign residents, and not the natives
of the soil. To such persons, therefore, the information that
nearly half the population of Asiatic Turkey profess the
Christian faith, may seem novel and startling.
Nor do those among us who lay claim to more extensive
knowledge of the subject appear to have entertained any
clear or decided views of Eastern Christendom. By some
the latter is made to consist only of the members of the Greek
or Malekite Church, who continue, in Syria and Asia Minor,
to maintain the supremacy of the Patriarch of Constantinople,
with the ritual and customs of that see. Others imagine the
Christians of these regions to be a species of Papists, while
a third class have little more than a mere vague, undefined
suspicion, that they are a degraded, superstitious race, few
in numbers, and contemptible in influence, possessing little
to excite either interest or inquiry.
Yet there can be little doubt but that in the Oriental Christ-
ians, we behold the descendants of the great Asiatic nations
of antiquity. The Malekite and the Syrian represent the
Syro-Macedonian race, which, under the rule of Alexander's
successors, acquired to themselves the empire of the East.
The Chaldean and the Nestorian are the only surviving
human memorial of Assyria and Babylon; while in the fea-
tures of the Persian Christian, we trace the lineaments of the
ancient Magian physiognomy. The Mohammedan religion
is but a comparatively modern superstition, and its profes-
sors, for the most part in the East, are the descendants of the
Arab invaders, or the posterity of the barbarians of the Cau-
casus. The same feeling, therefore, that teaches us to view
with respect the relics of antiquity, and the tokens of civili-
zation, whose sway has long been annihilated, may induce us
to contemplate with interest the descendants of the mighty
of our race.
Those who have studied with care the sculptured repre-
sentations of the ancient Assyrians, and compared them with
the modern inhabitants of the plains of Nineveh, can hardly


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 189
fail to trace the strong features of affinity which exist be-
tween the robed monarchs and priests of early days, and the
Christian peasants of Bagh Sheikha and Bagh Zani.
Nor should it be forgotten that, while change after change,
and innovation after innovation, has altered repeatedly the
aspect of the religious systems of Europe, the East has re-
mained immovably steadfast to her ancient traditions, and
presents to the unprejudiced and philosophic inquirer the
unmistakable outlines of Christianity in the third century. It
is true, indeed, that the inward spirit has nearly deserted the
outward shrine, and too often the actual existing state of our
faith in the regions of the East bears the same resemblance
to th eprimitive church that the motionless corpse does to
the acting and thinking man. Yet even the sight of the dull,
cold, and lifeless clay conveys a faithful idea of the living
being as he moved and spoke, before the eyes were closed,
and the soul had winged its flight.
The corruptions of Oriental Christianity have been chiefly
internal, altering and changing little in its outward appear-
ance, while in the West a cotemporary of Basil or Cyprian
would be chiefly struck by the external difference which the
institutions of European piety present to the religious usages
of his own day. The Romanist and the Protestant of modern
times would be equally at a loss to discover in the outward
features of Oriental religion the type of his individual creed.
The former might point with triumph to the opinions enter-
tained respecting the sacrificial character of the eucharist, to
the veneration for tradition and the priestly office, to confes-
sion, invocation of saints, and many ritual observances, which
bear a strong resemblance to his own system. The Protest-
ant, on his side, might urge the non-reception of the theory
of transubstantiation, the unlimited use of the Scriptures by
the laity, the marriage of ecclesiastics, the practice of re-
ceiving the communion in both kinds, and last, though not
least, the rejection of the pope's supremacy. An impartial
observer, whether his own views were papal or Anglican, could
hardly fail to admit that, with some peculiar errors omitted,
the external fabric of Eastern Christianity bore no slight re-
semblance to the portrait drawn of the Church in early ages.
Such an one, also, might find the explanation of this un-
changeableness in the well known Oriental hatred of varia-
tion, in their adherence to even the forms of expression used


190 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
in Scriptural times,” and in the tenacity with which they have
resisted every known attempt at innovation. Not all the
power, the bribes, or the sophistry of Rome, have been able
to procure submission to permanent alterations; and the wiser
and more prudent pontiffs have generally preferred content-
ing themselves with an empty act of homage, to hazarding
the risk of enforcing a more marked uniformity between East
and West. The Chaldeans or Syrians who have acknow-
ledged the authority of the Pope still retain their former ser-
vice, manners, and customs; their ecclesiastics marry as be-
fore, the vernacular translations of the Scriptures are widely
circulated and thankfully perused, and a church that professes
to be infallible has proved herself guilty of manifest incon-
sistency by sanctioning with approval in one place what she
has been most forward to condemn in another.
The first impression that the inquirer into the state of East-
ern Christendom would probably entertain, when he came
to reflect on the objects of his survey, would be that the
services, rites, and liturgies of the Orientals were, in their
construction, the models of a pure Hebrew type. The form
of their edifices, and the aspect, dress, and general appear-
ance of their priests, would almost recall the days of the
Temple worship; and the stranger who inhaled the odors of
the incense, listened to the Chaldean or Syriac tones, and
marked the sacrificial bearings of the whole service, might
almost imagine himself an assistant at one of the symbolical
oblations of the Levitical law. As his inquiries penetrated
still deeper, he would meet with stronger traits of resem-
blance. The threefold divisions of the churches corre-
sponding to a similar arrangement in the ancient Tabernacle
and Temple, the deep mysterious aspect of the Sanctuary,
walled in from ordinary view, and seen only through three
narrow openings, before which at the time of consecration a
veil is frequently suspended, would all tend to call to mind
the ceremonial of the Old Testament. The constant use
in the liturgies of the term sacrifice, and its application in
various ways to the holy eucharist, gives a striking example
of the sacrificial system of the East.
Like Clement, of Rome, in the first century, the Oriental
* “As the Lord liveth,” and “as thy soul liveth,” is a common expression
among the Tiyari Nestorians, used, not as a quotation, but as an affirmation.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 191
Christians view the three orders of the church as the success-
ive continuation of the Jewish hierarchy, and in all their
theological works the analogy is carefully inculcated. The
Syriac, Arabic, and Chaldean terms for the Christian altar
are all derived from the same root as the Hebrew word used
in the Old Testament, and it is observable that, except among
the Greeks, the appellation of “the Holy Table” is utterly
unknown. The vestments, the incense, and the lights of the
altar have been copied by Western churches, yet they have
generally contrived to change their form or to alter their
symbolical import. They have added to, or diminished
from, the original patterns, while the East has observed them
with scrupulous and minute fidelity.
Still more observable, perhaps, has been the marked oppo-
sition offered by the Orientals to the image worship of the
West. Interpreting, literally, the prohibition of the second
commandment, they have considered the making and adora-
tion of statues as equally erroneous. Until a comparatively
late period, the use of any painted or graven resemblance,
even of a father or of a dear friend, although totally uncon-
nected with the idea of worship, would have been utterly
proscribed. The scrupulous Oriental, when he received the
gift of a crucifix from some Italian missionary, rudely tore
off the figure of the Saviour, and flung it from him with
contempt and abhorrence, while he respectfully pressed the
cross to his lips, and deposited it carefully in the bosom of
his gown. The Gentile element has, since the promulgation
of Christianity, been operating more or less in the West, while
the Hebrew spirit, a spirit averse to the pictured resemblance
of any divine or celestial being, has governed and influenced
the spiritual children of the Apostles of the East.
The Eastern Christians have preserved among themselves
the only remaining vestige of an hereditary priesthood. The
Chaldean and Nestorian patriarchs have not of late been
elected to their high and important office by the suffrages
either of clergy or people. From very early times, the
unmarried uncle transmitted to a favorite nephew the name
and authority attached to the patriarchal rank. For some
years, the appellation of Joseph designated the head of the
church of Amida, an Elias ruled the clergy of the Patri-
archate of Mosul, while a Shimon or Simon presided over
the rude Nestorians of the mountains. This custom, so


192 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
peculiarly Hebrew, had gained the affections of the people to
such an extent, that its abolition a short time back by papal
authority, nearly drove the Chaldeans into rebellion.
The Orientals possess, in addition to their patriarchs, the
three orders to be found in the English Church. But the
Eastern bishop differs as widely from the Anglican prelate in
his temporal circumstances as in external appearance. A
venerable beard flows over a long vest of purple, covered
by a gown of dark cloth. His shaven head is concealed by
a black turban, twisted in a peculiar fashion, and a dark-
colored shawl encircles his waist. An attendant deacon pre-
cedes his steps, bearing a silver-tipped staff.
The income of an episcopal dignitary would be consi-
dered magnificent if it exceeded one hundred pounds per
annum. Few receive more than an annual stipend of eighty
pounds, and some can scarcely be said to have any revenue
at all; their necessary expenses being furnished from the
rents of lands of the monastery where they reside. The
priest’s income is of course much less than that of his
superior, and would be thought fairly represented by the
average rate of twenty pounds per annum. The deacons
rarely receive anything, as they are generally merchants and
men of business, from whom the canons of the East do not
require the surrender of their worldly calling, unless they
wish to advance to the higher grade of the priesthood.
The monks are supported, as in Europe, by the revenues
attached to each monastery, which afford an ample supply for
their slender wants. By the rules of the Eastern churches, most
of the laity would be restricted from the use of animal food
during nearly a third portion of the year; but the abstinence
of the monks is, of course, more rigorous and severe. Their
garb is not so varied or distinctive as that of monastic habits
of Europe. A long dark vest, resembling the common
zeboon of the country, with, perhaps, a jacket of black
cloth, is the usual attire of an Eastern monk. They are a
pale, mild, and gentle race, often ignorant and not very
liberal in their views; but, during the frequent intercourse I
have held with them, I never knew one who was a hypocrite,
or a secret debauchee, two characters which have been sup-
posed by some inseparable from the system of monachism.
I have seen these men eat, thankfully, food which the lowest
of English laborers would not touch. I have heard them


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 193
engaged in praising God at an hour when English rectors
and curates have been quietly sleeping, or returning from
some pleasant social party, and I have watched them delving
and digging in their little plantations till the perspiration
poured from them in streams. Such is the idle, lazy, and
luxurious life of the monks of the East.
The poverty of the clergy may, at first sight, seem to infer
their abasement and degradation, but the respect in which
their persons are held fully compensates for any inconve-
nience which they might suffer, were they the inhabitants of
more civilized countries. The stout and prosperous merchant,
the rich shopkeeper, or the stalwart squire, who condescend
to pity and to patronize the threadbare curate or the small
and ill-paid vicar, will be astonished to hear that, at the ap-
proach of some ragged priest or bishop, a wealthy and well-
dressed assembly will rise with respect and reverence to press
his hand to their lips, and to seat him in the most comforta-
ble corner of the diwan. Money and a home are little wanted
where hospitality is a national virtue, and it is a priest that
seeks for it in the name of the God whom he serves.
Nor are the clergy less beloved on account of their general
familiarity and condescension to even the meanest members
of their flock. I have frequently witnessed the small room
of a bishop crowded from morning till night with the poor,
the distressed, and the unfortunate, each seeking from his
spiritual pastor advice, assistance, and consolation. The
slender purse of a self-denying prelate often furnishes many
with the means of life, and those who lack the direction of
a man elevated above the passions and prejudices of the
world may find it freely bestowed by one who is, in every
respect, the father of his people.
The Christians of the East are in some measure subject to
their clergy in civil as well as in spiritual matters. The pa-
triarch of each community is responsible for the Kharadj or
poll-tax paid by each individual Christian. He even pos-
sesses the power of inflicting imprisonment or stripes in
certain cases, and it is frequently extremely difficult for an
Oriental Christian to quit his own community, and transfer
his obedience to another church.
The appointments to episcopal rank are generally placed
in the hands of the patriarch of each church, who is, in turn,
either elected by the bishops, or succeeds to his office by
17


194 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
hereditary right. But the chiefs of the Christians who reside
at Constantinople are frequently liable to deposition. They
are usually the creatures of some rich and wealthy laymen,
who oblige the bishops to acquiesce in their choice. Among
the Armenians, an association of wealthy bankers generally
nominate the patriarch, while the head of the Greek Constan-
tinopolitan Church is more commonly chosen by the princes
or archons of the Fanar. Political motives may urge the
Porte to depose a patriarch, and to exile him to the seclusion
of some distant monastery. Nor are any of the great spiritual
chiefs exempt from so painful a degradation. But these
measures are seldom taken, except against the patriarchs
resident at Constantinople; and even then they more fre-
quently result from the cabals of the Christians and of foreign
powers than from any direct hostility to the individual on
the part of the Turks.
By an edict, which dates from the period of the Moham-
medan conquest, it has been forbidden to the Christians to
erect new churches, although those at present in existence
may lawfully be repaired. It has not, however, been found
utterly impossible to elude this law, by obtaining a special
firman from the Sultan, authorizing the erection of new edi-
fices. In some cases, where the members of a Christian
community have joined another church, as was the case with
the Syrians, who submitted themselves to the authority of
the Roman See, the sacred building has been divided by a
central partition and a separate end allotted to each of the
contending parties. The Jacobite Syrians, however, made
a vigorous attempt to recover possession of the whole of their
divided edifices, alleging, with some appearance of plausi-
bility, that they were originally the property of the sect, and
could not be alienated from them.
The force of circumstances and the character of their Mo-
hammedan rulers have introduced many restraints into the
domestic regulations of the Oriental Christians. Their
females appear abroad veiled in the same manner as those of
the Mohammedans, and, according to an old Hebrew cus-
tom, they are obliged to confine themselves during the service
at church to a latticed gallery, which is frequently too distant
from the altar to allow of their seeing or hearing with com-
fort. I have been told, though I trust it is an unfounded
calumny, that they frequently beguile the tedium occasioned


NOTES FROM NINEVEII. 195
by a worship conducted in an unknown language, with lively
discussions and local gossip on the appearance of the males,
and on the domestic concerns of their family circles. Few
of them are able to read, but the prejudice at first entertained
against female education is gradually decreasing, and we may
hope soon that a new and more intellectual generation will
atone for the deficiencies of their mothers and grandmothers.
Many of the Christians have imbibed the manners of their
Turkish masters, and treat their wives with little considera-
tion or respect. Yet, upon the whole, the Christian women
have more liberty than their Mohammedan sisters, and are
not slaves to the caprices of an angry despot. They are not
liable to have their affections slighted, and their tranquillity
destroyed, by the introduction of a second wife or a favorite
concubine into their homes; nor can the marriage tie be
annulled with the same facility as among the Mohammedans.
Of late years, also, the prevalence of a better and more
enlightened spirit has secured for Christian wives and daugh-
ters a greater amount of affection and kindness from those
whom the religion of the Gospel enjoins to render both.
Few people have met with more undeserved reproaches
from various Frank travelers than those Orientals who pro-
fess our faith. Looked upon as a degraded class, their
acquaintance is little sought for by those who desire to make
a figure in the eyes of the rulers of the land. The privacy
of the unfortunate Christian is intruded upon, his best rooms
given up, and his finest pipes and choicest provisions deemed
only the just meed of the traveler, who, at the same time,
despises and annoys him. If he murmur, the intelligent
Frank notes his remarks in his book, as an instance of the
ingratitude of Christians; if he civilly submits to be put out
of the way, his good humor is ascribed to servility. The
intoxication of one individual and the falsehood of another
are made the characteristics of a whole body; and the wan-
dering son of Japhet convinces himself, and would fain con-
vince his readers, that the Christians of the East are the worst
of created beings.
Yet even if they were as evil and worthless as the unsym-
pathizing strangers depict them, no slight share of the blame
may rest upon their brethren in Europe. For the last few
years Turkey has been inundated with the scum of Italy and
France, with adventurers whose vices and defects have called
*


196 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
forth derision and contempt from Mohammedans themselves.
It is a fact well ascertained by persons resident in the differ-
ent maritime towns, that the increase of European settlers
has kept equal pace with the increase of immorality and vice.
Yet in places where he is free from the contamination of
Frank associates, the character of the native Christian can
bear the test of a searching and impartial examination. He
is neither a hero nor a saint, though within the compass of
twenty years from the present time the Moslem sword has
been red with the blood of martyrs. Oppression has made
him servile, and ignorance superstitious, but in morality he
need not shrink from a comparison with the European pro-
fessors of his faith. Rarely will a profane expletive or the
irreverent use of the Divine name be heard from one who
understands in its literal import the precept “Swear not at
all.” -
The Eastern Christian is generally a tender father and
faithful husband; he reverences his clergy, but reads for
himself the Sacred Records. Unlike the inhabitants of some
civilized nations, he does not conceive that orthodoxy re-
sides more in a black garment than a white one; and he can
abominate idols and idolatry without being thrown into con-
vulsions at the sight of a cross. The perusal of the Divine
Word has neither made him a fanatic nor an opposer of the
laws; and if it has produced in him sentiments of toleration,
which some may deem too widely extended, it is a fault that
most candid observers will deem venial.
At a time when Jews and pagans draw so largely on our
national sympathies, it can scarcely be expected that a mere
Christian should gain much attention. The calamities of
the Nestorians and their patriarch have not even drawn
a lament from those whose tender feelings were outraged
by attacks on the interesting savages of the China seas.
The murder of several hundreds of peaceful husbandmen,
holding a form of Christianity which few Protestants would
consider objectionable, has excited less interest than the
story of a fugitive negro who should invoke the genius of
insulted freedom from the platform of Exeter Hall. Yet the
Christian of the East has not been entirely passed over either
by Europeans or Americans. The former have filled his
country with bishops in partibus, and missionary monks,
while the latter have also transplanted to the far East the


NOTES FROM NINEVEII. 197
system of the Puritans, and the dogmas of Geneva. The
motives of both are perhaps equally disinterested and sin-
cere; yet they will probably end in the annihilation of Orien-
tal Christianity as a system.
The American missionaries have generally proved them-
selves men whom every one must respect for their sincerity
and piety; but it seems clear that their system, if successful,
would be the downfall of the Oriental churches. Divided
into small sections, animated by a zeal more fiery and unac-
commodating than that which warms the colder bosoms of
the North, the prevalence of the Presbyterian system would
be the signal for universal confusion and party strife. The
warm and ardent temperament of the Asiatic would not rest
content with words, and an appeal to more potent weapons
could have no other effect than to bring disgrace upon the
Christian name.
But the Calvinistic creed is too intellectual to adapt or to
recommend itself to an Oriental mind. That warm and im-
aginative nature requires symbolism as the guide to religious
truth. It adores not emblems, it only uses them : but still
it cannot dispense with the assistance which they convey.
Yet there is. one system which professes symbolism in
common with the Oriental, and desires to subdue all other
forms of Christianity to herself. The Church of Rome, that
wonderful and gigantic power whose footsteps are every-
where, is gaining daily fresh strength in the East. Active,
restless, and bold, her emissaries move from city to city with
the celerity and order of trained soldiers. They tolerate
what they have at present no strength to change, and extend
at once the political power of France, and their own au-
thority. Possessed of a system at the same time flexible and
firm, they can in one breath proclaim their unchangeableness,
and assimilate themselves to the prejudices of the East.
Russia protects the Greek, and France the Roman Catholic
Christians, while the Protestant powers of Europe are to
both objects of suspicion and dislike. Yet in the event of
the downfall of Turkey, a consummation which cannot long
be delayed, the Christians cannot be overlooked or disre-
garded. Nearly all the commerce, trade, and money of the
Ottoman empire is in their hands. The Nestorians and the
Maronites have shown themselves equal to the fatigues of
warfare and the dangers of active strife. The power of the
17+


198 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Christians, therefore, is not to be despised, particularly if
united by the creed of Rome into one body, and supported
either by France or Russia.
The time may come when English politicians will regret
their short-sightedness, in neglecting to create a friendly
interest in the midst of an empire whose present dynasty must
soon surrender to its ancient possessors their ill-used and
usurped dominion. When the Russian eagle waves from
the towers of Constantinople, and the French standard floats
over the dome of Omar, the rulers of England may feel
bootless and unavailing sorrow that they have treated with
contempt and indifference the important claims of the Christ-
ians of the East.*
CHAPTER XVIII.
The Osmanli. Influence of Mohammedanism. Turkish civilization. State
of the law. Difference of the races inhabiting Turkey. General remarks.
ONE thousand years have nearly elapsed since a horde of
wandering Sarmatians issued from the plains of Tartary, and
formed settlements to the north of Bokhara, in a region which
still retains the appellation of Turkistan. A few scattered
and wandering tribes maintain to the present day the name
of Turcoman, and the nomadic habits of their progenitors.
With their dark-colored tents, and their numerous flocks,
they roam through the fairest portions of Western Asia, and
preserve intact, in their habits and usages, the simplicity of .
pastoral life. But, at the commencement of the eleventh
century, the majority of the Turcomans had quitted the mild
and peaceful pursuits of their fathers, for the more brilliant
attractions of mercenary warfare. Under the banners of the
house of Abbas, they had rendered valuable service in the
Persian war, and the grateful caliphs assigned their faithful
tributaries some of the fairest portions of the conquered soil.’
The new colony was no sooner settled in their foreign
* Under this title I have referred principally to the Chaldean and Syrian
Christians, as the Greeks may be considered as Europeans, or at least the
observers of a European form of Christianity.


200 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Cyprus obeyed their authority, while Egypt and the coast of
Africa paid them at least a nominal obedience. Wise and
politic measures, introduced by a sagacious and far-sighted
government, might have rendered Turkey the first empire in
the world.
But the great princes of the Ottoman race were mere con-
querors, who had no talent for legislation. They abandoned
their tributaries to the tyranny of pashas, who used their un-
limited authority for the purpose of amassing wealth. The
Porte, indeed, exercised a species of retributive justice,
which, however, tended to increase the evil it was designed
to remedy. The plundered and desolated province found
that its tyrant was removed, and his wealth confiscated; but
his ill-gotten gains were not made use of to repair the wrongs :
which he had inflicted. The whole property of the deposed
or strangled pasha went to swell the treasury of his sovereign,
while, in many instances, the sacrifice of a large sum pro-
cured for a politic offender both indemnity and impunity.
Some of the governors of provinces acquired influence
enough to defy the authority of the Sultan; and the danger-
ous alternative of private assassination was substituted for a
legal trial and execution.
Yet the greatest hinderance to civilization was probably to
be sought for in the unchanging character of the Moham-
medan system. That system was not merely a series of doc-
trines purely theological, which formed a state creed, but it
was the political and civil code of the country. The crude
notions and shadowy theories of the obscure merchant of
Mecca were made the standard by which all measures were
to be tested. As long as they adhered faithfully to such a
system, the Sultans of Turkey were bound to be constantly
at war with their Christian neighbors, and to impose upon
all conquered states the alternative of the Koran, or the
sword. They could scarcely tolerate, much less reward, the
ingenuity or ability of their Christian subjects. They dared
hardly, indeed, protect the latter from pillage and injustice,
since the doctors of their law had declared that, in a suit be-
tween a Christian and a Mohammedan, the oath of the for-
mer was not valid.
Moreover, the system of the Koran waged war against art
of every description, and considered science, with its expe-
riments, as another name for magic. The superstitious dread


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 201
of an ignorant populace was easily excited, and the unfortu-
nate innovator might atone for his ingenuity with his life.
The aid of Europeans was, for a time, rejected with disdain,
and thus, while Europe was advancing in civilization, Tur-
key retained, at the commencement of the nineteenth century,
the habits and institutions of the thirteenth. Yet, with all
this apparent and external fidelity to the precepts of the Ara-
bian lawgiver, a great and vital change was slowly operating
internally.
The first ancestors of the Turcomans who embraced the
creed of Islam received probably the teaching of its mollahs
with a mingled feeling of curiosity and indifference. But
their descendants imbibed with more devotion and zeal the
dogmas of a system which was at once attractive to sensu-
ality, and fostered the love of enterprise. The Turkish war-
rior, aided, as he imagined, by supernatural power, fought
with redoubled fury against those whom he considered the
enemies of God. If he vanquished, and remained alive to
enjoy the fruits of his victory, the persons of his captives
were at his disposal, and their ransom or their sale in the
slave-market of Constantinople produced an addition to the
ordinary booty of a victor.
He believed himself to be performing not merely a politi-
cal, but a religious duty, when he charged the squadrons of
the Christians, and anticipated, besides the rewards of success-
ful warfare, an increase of felicity in the paradise of Allah!
If he fell in conflict with the enemies of Islam, his instructors
had taught him to expect the celestial glories of martyrdom,
and the embraces of the houries in the ever verdant gardens
of the blessed on high. Nor was he at liberty to avoid or
to arrest the stroke of destiny. His cowardice, or unwilling-
ness to meet danger, would make little difference as to his
final fate. All the actions of his life had been decreed before
his birth, and the hand of Allah could secure him uninjured,
when surrounded by foes; or terminate his career in the
midst of apparent safety and tranquillity.
The courage of the Moslem, therefore, was a necessary
deduction from his creed, but it ceased to animate him when
his faith in that creed was shaken or impaired. The adher-
ent of Islam ceased to conquer when he ceased to believe.
Moreover, the system of Mohammed is one that does not
depend, like Christianity, on its own inherent truth for sup-


202 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
port. The doctrines of the Prophet of Mecca are the notions
of a fanatical and successful warrior. They allure in the ex-
eitement of conflict, or in the bustle of a campaign, but they
are not suited for a season of peace and tranquillity. The
glories of Islam are only to be sustained at the point of the
sword, and the votary who pauses for a moment in his in-
toxicating career of victory, to examine eritically the articles
of his faith, will soon find that the result will be skepticism
or indifference.
Nor must it be forgotten that a system like Mohammedan-
ism can only be sustained by constant and unremitting suc-
cess. The moment reverses are encountered, the Moslem
combatant must question, in some degree, the correctness of
the supposition that he is the exclusive favorite of Heaven.
The fanatical peasant of the interior still believes that his
great Sultan is paramount over all nations, and that the kings
of Europe are his tributaries. Deprive him of this belief,
convince him of the superiority of the Franks, and the charm
is broken, the illusion destroyed. He slowly awakes to the
reality that his creed is not necessarily the same victorious
and Heaven-sent system which it has hitherto been repre-
sented, and the tenet of predestination inculcated by it in-
duces, in the place of desperate and superhuman courage, a
sullen and helpless submission to what is considered the will
of Allah.
The European reverses of the Turks may be considered,
perhaps, as the first step in the decline of Islam, but their
acquaintance with the rising nations of Christendom may be
ranked as a more dangerous blow to its power. It became
every day more evident that, while Christian States were
growing annually more powerful, the true believer was sink-
ing fast in the scale of nations. Vanquished in turn by Rus-
sia and Austria, he was only enabled to hold his ground by
means of the dissensions among European powers. The
French Revolution broke out, and the apostles of infidelity
disseminated, even in the Turkish capital, their theories of
liberty and equality. A modern Tamerlane conquered Egypt,
and occupied Syria; and Mohammedan pride was humbled
and debased by the consideration that the invaders of Africa
and Spain were now doomed to be invaded with impunity.
A few more years of success might have enabled Napoleon
to abolish the Ottoman line, and to emulate the Asiatic con-


- NOTES FROM NINEVEH. . 203
quests of Alexander; but his downfall secured for the effete
and tottering dynasty a brief respite from their inevitable fate.
Sultan Mahmoud was a prince of some talent, and greater
ambition, but his judgment was not sufficiently solid to enable
him to discharge the functions of a reformer. He was sensi-
ble of Frank superiority, and by no means blind to the ob-
stacles which Mohammedanism placed in his way, but he
fell into the mistake of supposing that the one could be at-
tained by the adoption of European tactics, and a European
costume, and the other overcome by diminishing the public
faith in the national religion, while he was yet unprovided
with any substitute for it. A wiser and more cautious mind
would have seen that the civilization of a country, or of a
race, can only prove successful when it is a development of
what is good and valuable in earlier institutions. A true
reformer must carefully collect and segregate the good of
former ages, and, by amplifying and encouraging the influence
which it already possesses, he must make it in time over-
power and nullify what is bad and barbarous in the national
institutions.
But the Sultan did exactly the reverse of all this. He
seized with an eager and ill-judging haste upon foreign insti-
tutions, and sought to make them part and parcel of a system
entirely opposed in its character to the usages of the Western
world. The prejudices of his subjects were shocked by what
they considered the indelicacy of the Frank costume, but
Mahmoud disregarded their scruples to a degree which
would not have been ventured on by Amurath or Murad.
The professor of a picture-hating creed, he presented his
portrait with great solemnity to his troops, and caused the
idol (as a conscientious Mohammedan must have termed and
considered it) to be saluted with imperial honors. His love
of wine had been common to many of his predecessors, but
few had displayed their indulgence in the forbidden liquid
with such utter recklessness and contempt for public opinion.
Still, however, Mohammedanism continued the religion of
the State, and the Sultan had even invoked its aid, when he
unfurled the sacred banner of the Prophet, and called upon
all true believers to march under its folds against the rebel-
lious Janizaries. But the life and energy of the system,
which once awoke the warlike and courageous of Asia to


204 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
deeds of the most chivalrous valor, had long ago been suf-
fered to fall into decay. -
The establishment of the Nizam Djedeed, or new soldiers,
completed the ruin of Mohammedanism as a political system.
It was tantamount to a declaration that the tactics and evolu-
tions of Infidel Europe were far superior to the valor inspired
by the words of the Prophet; and the continual employment
of Christians in the highest and most responsible grades was
in direct defiance to the traditions of centuries, which re-
stricted the profession of arms to the Moslem alone.
Thus, at the close of Mahmoud's reign a complete change
had passed over Turkish affairs. In lieu of the costly and
flowing robes of former days, the pashas and the govern-
ment officials appeared in European uniforms, which sat
awkwardly upon them, and produced, sometimes, actions
perfectly ludicrous in the eyes of a Frank. Pictures deco-
rated the habitations of Mohammedans, dissection was intro-
duced into the hospitals, much to the horror of the Ulemah,
and newspapers were established to form an unnatural coali-
tion between the new improvements and the Mohammedan
religion.
The tidings of Turkey’s advances in civilization brought
a number of adventurers from different parts of Europe to
aid in and assist the good work. Those persons, of whom
their respective countries had grown weary, or who, having
nothing to lose, thought they must be certain to gain some-
thing from the ignorance of the Turks, flocked in numbers
to the ill-fated shores of Islam. The Polish wanderer, whose
begging epistles and fictitious misfortunes were known to
half the police of civilized Europe, the Italian patriot or as-
sassin, the French apostle of Socialism and Communism,
with all the scum and refuse of Europe, poured themselves
in shoals upon the unfortunate Ottomans, and for a time suc-
ceeded in imposing on their credulity.
Quacks abounded in every part of Turkey, whose drugs
and lancets destroyed more annually than the steel of their
crusading ancestors. Drill sergeants, cavalry instructors,
ship builders, and all who could minister to the newly-awak-
ened zeal for reform, repaired to the Turkish dominions.
The late arrivals pretended not to strictness of manners or
of morals. Some turned Mohammedans that they might
enjoy the privileges of polygamy; others preserved the


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 205
name of Christian, only to render it contemptible by their
vices. Drunkenness and debauchery followed in the foot-
steps of these European reformers, and their conduct became
so thoroughly vile and despicable that the Turks themselves
recoiled in horror from the society of these specimens of
civilization. It was observed, that in proportion as a town
increased in its foreign inhabitants, it increased in vice; and
the Osmanli of the old school alluded triumphantly to this
fact as an evidence of the evil fruits of infidel civilization.
The young pashas, and the sons of the more respectable
Turkish families who shared the festivities of Mahmoud,
gave their full support and co-operation to his projects of
reform. The study of French, of Italian, and even of Eng-
lish, became fashionable, and the members of young Turkey
imbibed with assiduity the lessons of civilization from the
novels and newspapers of Europe. The thin veil of con--
formity to the external rites of their religion was by degrees
laid aside; and, while the Turk of the old school observed
punctiliously the stated hours of prayer, even in the midst of
the most crowded saloon, the reforming Osmanlis retired
from view, and seemed ashamed of owning that they per-
formed their devotions at all.
A neglect of the external precepts of their religion was
followed. by marked disobedience to its moral injunctions,
and the profligacy and sensuality of the new school far ex-
ceeded the more regulated debauchery of earlier times. The
prevalent dissoluteness has produced cruelty and indifference
to the feelings of others, and it is said that the unhappy vic-
tims of the slave markets dread nothing so much as to be pur-
chased by a Frank resident, or by one of the reforming school.
Bribery and corruption have been inherent vices in Eastern
courts since the earliest times. We find in Scripture frequent
allusions to the injustice of judges, and to the practice of
biasing the course of justice by gifts. At the present day,
there is scarcely a single case brought before the cadis, in
which both plaintiff and defendant are not made to pay largely
for the administration of the law. All decisions are drawn
from the Koran, but when its text is embarrassed and obscure,
reference is made to the works of the commentators. If these
fail to render the required information, the judge places the
Koran respectfully on his head, and gives such a decision as
he deems most in accordance with the rules of justice. Some-
18


206 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
times wills of a strange and eccentric character elicit the
subtilty and ingenuity of the judicial mind. One of these
appears singular enough to deserve insertion here.
A certain merchant left in his last testament seventeen
horses, to be divided among his three sons according to the
following proportion: The first was to receive half, the
second one-third, and the youngest a ninth part of the whole.
But, when they came to arrange about the division, it was
found that, to comply with the terms of the will, without
sacrificing one or more of the animals, was impossible. Puz-
zled in the extreme, they repaired to the cadi, who, having
read the will, observed that such a difficult question required
time for deliberation, and commanded them to return after
two days.
When they again made their appearance, the judge said,
“I have considered carefully your case, and I find that I
can make such a division of the seventeen horses among you
as will give each more than his strict share, and yet not one
of the animals shall be injured. Are you content?”
“We are, O judge,” was the reply.
“Bring forth the seventeen horses, and let them be placed
in the court,” said the cadi.
The animals were brought, and the judge ordered his groom
to place his own horse with them. He bade the eldest bro-
ther count the horses.
“They are eighteen in number, O judge,” he said.
“I will now make the division,” observed the cadi.
“You, the eldest, are entitled to half; take then nine of
the horses. You, the second son, are to receive one-third ;
take, therefore, six: while to you, the youngest, belongs the
ninth part, namely, two. Thus, the seventeen horses are
divided among you; you have each more than your share,
and I may now take my own steed back again.”
“Mashallah P’ exclaimed the brothers, with delight, “O
cadi, your wisdom equals that of our Lord Suleiman Ibn
Daood.”
Few travelers can have journeyed for any distance in
Asiatic Turkey, without having been struck with the number
of ruined villages which one encounters everywhere. Even
in the great towns and cities, the quantity of houses, either
wholly or partially in ruins, is very great. Diarbekir, Mar-
din, Nisibis, and Mosul were large and flourishing cities


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 207
about four centuries ago. The two former, and the latter,
have very few houses that are not in some degree in a dilapi-
dated state, while the whole of ancient Nisibis, which Abul-
feda describes as an extensive and populous town, in his
time, has entirely disappeared from its site, and a few mud
huts bear the name of one of the most powerful cities of for-
mer days.
This fact marks the great and gradual diminution which
has taken place in the numbers of the population since the
conquest of these countries by the Turks. It must be borne
in mind, also, that no new cities or towns have arisen to
supply the places of those which have been, and are thus
rapidly sinking to decay. Should the decrease in the popu-
lation go on in the same ratio, the close of the next three
hundred years will find the whole of Mesopotamia and Assy-
ria in as desolate a condition as the mounds of Nineveh.
Vast and uncultivated solitudes will occupy the sites of some
of the largest and most celebrated cities of Asiatic Turkey.
The Ottoman dominions are inhabited by different races,
who, separated from each other by various prejudices, agree
in a common hatred of the Osmanlis. The Kurds and Arabs,
although sincere, if not bigoted followers of the creed of
Islam, entertain a greater aversion to the Turks than to the
Christians. The latter are divided among themselves, but
lack only union to make them formidable opponents of the
Turkish rule. Thus the enmity which exists between the
several heterogeneous materials of which the Sultan’s domin-
ions are composed, alone prevents their combining against
the common enemy. Yet the same cause proves also an
insurmountable obstacle in the way of reform.
The fear of increasing the power of one portion, or of ex-
citing the prejudices of another part of their subjects, leads
Turkish statesmen to prefer a stagnant calm to the necessary
agitation which projects of useful reform could not fail of
producing. An attempt to limit the authority of the pashas
might induce these governors to form projects of independent
sovereignty, which would be certain to find support from some
at least of the discontented. A chief who could stir up the
old Moslem fanaticism, either of the Kurds or Arabs, might
succeed in detaching from the Sultan's dominions many con-
siderable districts of the present Turkish empire. Should
the Roman Church be able to unite in one the various Christ-


208 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
ian sects, a second Peter the Hermit might rouse the warlike
inhabitants of Mount Lebanon and Kurdistan to undertake
another crusade. The powers of Europe could scarcely with
decency refuse their aid to an enslaved population of Christ-
ians struggling to be free.
Yet, notwithstanding all the oppression, tyranny, and stu-
pidity which characterize the Ottoman rule, the individual
Turk is far from participating in the vices of his superiors,
and of his government. He is not naturally cruel or avari-
cious; he is a lover of his children, and by no means an
unkind husband. If the customs or prejudices of his coun-
try, and the ignorance and childishness of Oriental females,
prevent his treating his wife in the European style, she is
seldom the victim of brutality. Our English notions re-
specting polygamy, female slavery, and unfortunate wives
sown up for the least trifle in a sackful of snakes, are some-
what exaggerated. Fiendlike acts of cruelty do occur occa-
sionally, but they emanate from the pashas and men in power,
who have frequently little of the pure Osmanli blood in their
veins. They are, generally, the sons or the descendants of
slaves, or of Georgian adventurers who have embraced
Islamism.
The genuine Osmanli hates the trouble and fatigue of
power ; he loves to spend his days on a carpet, engaged in
contemplation, and inhaling the fumes of his chibouque.
He is not sanguinary, except when violently excited, and
then he becomes a tiger. He is charitable to excess, and a
strict observer of the good as well as of the evil precepts of
El Islam. He is childlike in his simplicity, and loves the
amusements of a child. Yet, when once his courage is
stirred up, and his blood on fire, he will fight like a Spartan.
In the field, he has always shown himself the true descend-
ant of the conquerors of Asia.
Yet the Turk is conscious that his empire is waning, and
his day of dominion passing away. On his countenance sits
the shade of mute and dignified resignation, as he observes
with a sigh that the Ottoman rule is drawing near its close.
His favorite tenet of predestination, however, serves to
soothe the disappointed feelings which are provoked by na-
tional vanity. The hand of Allah is working the decay of
his people, and it is no degradation to be vanquished by Him
who is All Powerful. With an earnestness of faith which


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 209
it is impossible not to admire, the Turk sees the working of
Providence in his day of downfall as much as in his hour
of success. He only regrets that his rulers have not suffered
his nation to fall with dignity, but have sought to uphold her
by arts and customs borrowed from the Franks, which inno-
vations he views with a mixture of hatred and contempt.
The true Osmanli would rather meet his fate with the scimi-
tar of his fathers in his hand, than be indebted to the Franks
for instruction in warfare, only to be more completely van-
quished by them at last.
The religion of the Turk is more an affair of feeling, of
policy, and of ancestral pride, than of intellectual conviction.
He does not study it like the Arab, nor does he share the
blind bigotry of the Kurd. He reveres its morality, and
conforms strictly to its ritual, but he cannot argue in its
favor. Perhaps one of his chief objections against abandon-
ing it would be the recollection that, under its standard, his
fathers so often marched to victory. But the Osmanli of the
present day has little animosity to Christianity as a spiritual
creed. He will read with delight the moral lessons of the
Gospel, and treats with the deepest respect the names of
Jesus and Mary.
Under a good government, and enlightened by Christ-
ianity, there can be little doubt but that the Osmanli race
might be greatly improved. They are honest, moral, and
courageous. Their faults proceed from the workings of a
depraved and corrupt system of tyranny, based on the ab-
surdities of a false and contradictory creed. In order, there-
fore, to improve or to exalt the Turks as a nation, Moham-
medanism must be destroyed. It is not merely a religious,
but a political system. It is entwined with the whole fabric
of Turkish law. Every act of reform is a blow inflicted
upon it. Some have thought that it may be modified or
adapted to new measures, or confined to the limited sphere
of a mere moral code. But all acquainted with the charac-
ter of Islamism, must be aware that it cannot be reduced to
the level of a series of philosophical or religious dogmas.
Its motto must always be “aut Caesar, aut nullus.”
To assert that part of an inspired code is false or errone-
ous is to infer the falsehood of the whole. If the Prophet
erred, and deceived mankind as to his political regulations,
might not his revelations rºling ritual and morals be
>k


210 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
equally untrue? The impostor of Mecca legislated for a
small community, and for a barbarous age: he could not
foresee the extension of his system, or the causes which
would lead to its ultimate decay and ruin. He aspired to
teach men, not only religion, but politics and civil law. He
would fain have been a second Moses, but he forgot that the
object of the Mosaic regulations confined them to a single
nation, and to a certain limited period. But it is the fault
of all false systems to grow obsolete in the course of time.
The divine origin of Christianity is best proved by its elas-
ticity—by its power of combination with every varied form
of political authority. He who could foresee the changes
which would take place in the governments of this world,
and adapt his system to meet every exigency, must have
been more than man.
There are, at present, however, many difficulties in the
way of the abolition of Mohammedanism. According to
Turkish law, a convert to Christianity would suffer capital
punishment, and the dread of this might operate as an ob-
stacle in the way of any missionary efforts. The Christians
of the East require themselves instruction and enlighten-
ment, while, from the long period of slavery and degradation
which they have sustained, they would be ill suited to com-
municate a knowledge of the Gospel to the haughty Osmanli.
The latter would look coldly on the mysterious dogmas and
bare ritual of either American or Dissenting Protestantism ;
nor perhaps might the worship of the Church of England be
sufficiently showy and symbolical to attract an Eastern mind.
The Roman Church would, perhaps, have more advan-
tages and attractions; but the veneration of pictures and
images must come in contact with the Hebrew element,
which appears so conspicuously in all modern Oriental forms
of religion. Perhaps, however, the Turks could be induced
to receive the teaching of the Gospel, and embody it in a
church system of their own. This would be more successful
than the attempt to force upon them any of the rituals of
Europe.
There remains a most important question for the politicians
of our age to decide, and that is, “What shall be done with
Turkey * It is impossible that she can continue in her
present state for many years longer. To attempt to intro-
duce reforms while the Mohammedan religion is dominant,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 211
will result in nothing but disappointment. On the other
hand, the question of partition is attended with many prac-
tical difficulties. The jealousy of the great powers must
always hold each other in check; and extensive coloniza-
tion on the part of either would be viewed with suspicion,
and excite, it may be, serious opposition from the rest.
A Christian kingdom could hardly be formed in the pre-
sent divided condition of Oriental Christendom ; and it
could not be maintained without foreign aid. Nor has the
experiment tried in the case of Greece produced such results
as would encourage politicians to repeat it in Asia. Union
among the Christians might lead to something, but this union
could only be effected, humanly speaking, under the auspices
of the Church of Rome; and then French influence would
be predominant.
Yet something must be done, and the sooner active mea-
sures are taken to arrest the progress of decay and desola-
tion the better. My own experience of the Turkish character
would lead to the conclusion that the abolition of Moham-
medanism, and the introduction of Christianity among them,
might yet operate favorably on the destinies of the Osmanli
race. European influence could easily obtain the repeal of
the barbarous and inhuman statute which fetters the liberty
of conscience; and the Turks, freed from the shackles im-
posed by the creed of the false prophet, would be at liberty
to adopt and to carry out measures of wholesome reform.
The manly and common sense features of the race would be
allowed free scope, and the educated and enlightened Os-
manli might yet occupy no mean position among the nations
of the earth. -
Our prejudices against the cruelties, barbarities, and per-
fidy which have characterized the government, must not blind
our eyes to the virtues of the individuals who suffer from
them. The Turk has been the victim of a bad political
system, and of a sensual and immoral creed; yet honesty and
morality have not entirely forsaken him. Placed by the side
of the false, treacherous, and deceitful Greek, he shows to
advantage, even by the confession of the most prejudiced of
travelers. His vices are the vices of his education; his
good qualities are his own.
Whatever may be the difficulties which beset the arrange-
ment of the Eastern question, it is to be hoped that the pre-


212 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
sent state of stagnation and decay may speedily be put an
end to, and that we may see once more the blessings of
civilization and true religion extending themselves over the
fairest and most fertile regions of the habitable world. The
knowledge that thousands of oppressed and miserable beings
are turning their eyes towards their European brethren for
succor and deliverance should awaken in our hearts the
emotions of sympathizing humanity, and induce us to do our
utmost to procure for them such assistance as may relieve
them from their present state of destructive inaction and
ruinous decay.
CHAPTER XIX.
A Syrian Catholic Church. Journey to Arbela. Alexander and Darius. Arbela.
The Jew. The Christians of Shucklawa. Return to Mosul.
THE longer I resided at Mosul, the more intimate I became
with different individuals among its Mohammedan and Christ-
ian inhabitants. The Orientals require very few of those
ceremonies of introduction which are considered so import-
ant by Englishmen in every part of the globe. Leave to
enter a house, a seat on the diwan, a pipe, and coffee may
easily be obtained by the merest stranger in an Eastern town
who understands the manners and language of the country.
Some reserve is practiced by Mohammedans, who rarely cul-
tivate the society of Christians, but this coolness, which is
founded entirely on religious prejudice, is rapidly dying
away. -
The nature of my mission to Mosul rendered it desirable
that I should study both the tenets and the ceremonies of
the Eastern churches. Their Sunday service usually com-
menced at six o'clock in the morning, so that I had frequent
opportunities of attending the celebration of their rites, as
our own prayers did not begin till eleven o’clock.
On one occasion, a friend of mine, who was a Syrian
Catholic priest, and the rector of a church near to my abode,
invited me to be present at the morning service. I went,
accompanied by Toma, but found on arrival that Kas Yusef


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 213
had made preparations for receiving me which did not exactly
accord with either my expectations or my tastes. I had an-
ticipated a seat on the matting among the congregation, and,
indeed, had already taken possession of a quiet corner, when
a message from the priest arrived that I would “come up
higher.” Somewhat surprised, I followed the messenger, a
deacon, behind the stone screen which divides the sanctuary
from the choir. Beside the altar was a large chair lined
with tarnished velvet, in which, notwithstanding my protest-
ations and remonstrances, I was almost forcibly installed.
Neither priests nor deacons would hear of my sitting cross-
legged among the people.
“It is not your custom,” said they ; “we know that Franks
cannot dispense with chairs; so sit down quietly, and Kas
Yusef will show you the places, and Deacon Matthew shall
stand by to explain what is going on.”
It was in vain I protested that I needed neither explanation
nor aid, and even quietly hinted that the before-mentioned
gentlemen might be much better employed; my friends would
hear of no excuse. A large volume was pushed into my
hands, Kas Yusef turned, from time to time, over the leaves,
to point out the different places, while Deacon Matthew kept
up a running commentary sotto voce in Arabic on the Syriac
service. I received several fumigations with the incense,
and after all was over, I made a vow that I would never again
go in state, as it were, to an Oriental church. Afterwards,
I used to walk in without notice after the service had begun,
and take my seat in some obscure corner, although many of
my native friends, both clergy and laity, objected seriously to
my proceedings as undignified.
The affairs of the Nestorians continued in an unsatisfac-
tory and unsettled state, but an order was obtained from the
Turkish government that the numerous captives should be set
at liberty. This intelligence was received with no small de-
gree of concern by those who had purchased any of the
Nestorian prisoners, and some endeavored to elude compli-
ance by leaving Mosul and the vicinity with their late pur-
chases. Every measure, however, that could be taken to
prevent their departure was put in operation, and numerous
slaves were in this manner rescued from a cruel and hopeless
captivity.
One day, intelligence came that several captives had been


214 NOTES FROM NINEVERI.
removed to Arbil, the ancient Arbela, and, as it was more
than probable that the governor of that town might be bribed
to connive at their being transported beyond the Turkish
frontier, my friend B determined to go down there in
person, and gained from me a willing consent to accompany
him. We left home at about two o'clock in the afternoon,
and, after three hours’ ride, reached Bagh Tolli, a large vil-
lage of Syrians, direct east from Mosul. To the north-east
of the village was a range of hills, at the foot of which is
situated the monastery of Mar Daniel, mentioned frequently
in the pages of Assemani. The ruins of four churches attest
the former extent and populous condition of Bagh Tolli, but,
like all towns and villages of Asiatic Turkey, its inhabitants
have very much diminished in point of numbers. They
were suffering also from internal dissensions, for nearly a
fourth part of the families in the village had joined the papal
Syrians, a circumstance which excited perpetual bickerings
and ill feeling.
At about five miles distance from Bagh Tolli, we came to
the banks of the Hazir, a branch of the greater Zab, and
generally identified with the ancient Bumadus. Near this
river, Quintus Curtius tells us that Darius had encamped
on the eve of that decisive battle which decided the fate of
the Persian monarchy. He had crossed the Tigris some
miles to the south of Nimroud, and, passing through Arbil,
had forded the Lycus, or Great Zab, from the banks of which
he marched to the Bumadus, where he halted to await the
coming up of Alexander.
The fertile plains of Mesopotamia were then experiencing
the sad consequences of warfare. A band of six thousand
Persian horse had been ravaging the country to the west of
the Tigris, by the express orders of Darius, and the mould-
ering flames which had consumed the produce of those fruit-
ful fields were emitting dense columns of smoke as the Mace-
donian army passed along." A dark and mistlike cloud
hovered over the blackened relics of cultivation, and induced
the invaders to fear the existence of an ambush between
themselves and the Tigris. Their scouts, however, reported
that the road was clear, and Alexander reached and forded
this rapid stream, in the mid-channel of which the water
came up to the horses’ necks. #
* Quint. Curtius, lib. 4. f Ibid.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 215
The passage of the Tigris was effected without the slight-
est molestation from the enemy. It took place some miles
to the south of Nimroud, although the historian does not
mention the crossing of the Zab by Alexander. A bold and
decisive policy would have suggested the ford of the Tigris
as the place of battle, but it was the fate of Darius to suffer
from the vacillation and indecision of his counselors and of
his own mind. Another alternative lay before him, which
perhaps, indeed, he intended originally to have adopted.
Not far from the banks of the Bumadus rose the mountains
of Kurdistan, within whose winding and intricate defiles he
might have laughed to scorn the efforts of his pursuers.
Among the names of the numerous Persian auxiliaries, we
find the Cadusii mentioned, who were probably the Cardusii
or Carduchii, the old antagonists of Xenophon and the an-
cestors of the modern Kurds. If these wild people, them-
selves of Persian descent, had been disposed to receive
within their mountains the last monarch of their race, a
small and select band would have sufficed to arrest the pro-
gress of the invaders. Entangled among the rocky regions
of Kurdistan, they would have been exposed to dangers,
against which, both their courage and their discipline might
have proved inadequate to defend them. It is probable,
however, that this design, if, indeed, it was ever entertained,
was frustrated by the temptations which the nature of the
ground between the Hazir and the Zab offered to one whose
principal force consisted of horsemen.
The union of the two rivers forms a species of delta, the
superficies of which is covered by mounds and slight undu-
lations, presenting few or no impediments to the irregular
movements of Eastern cavalry; yet the uneven nature of the
soil might seriously interfere with the complicated manoeuvres
of the phalanx, justly esteemed the chief strength of the
opposing host. The site seemed one of the most favorable
that could have been chosen for the display of the principal
advantages possessed by the Persians, and Darius might,
without incurring the reproach of vain confidence, have flat-
tered himself with the hope of complete success. The re-
sult, however, is too well known to need repetition. The
same sun which had shone on the gayly-accoutred ranks of
the Persians, and had received their adoration, was destined
to behold their defeat. Before he had sunk below the horizon


216 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
in the west, Darius was crossing the Zab, a hopeless and
despairing fugitive.
Doctor Grant has suggested, and the notion is not void of
plausibility, that the Syriac name of the neighboring district,
Beth Garmae, which means literally the house or place of
bones, derives its origin from the sanguinary contest which
was known afterwards as the battle of Arbela.” The histo-
rians who have recorded it mention the village of Guagau-
mela as the nearest inhabited region, but there are, at pre-
sent, no traces of such an appellation in the immediate
vicinity.
After a ride of two hours and a half from Bagh Tolli, we
reached the ford of the Zab, which is opposite the village of
Kellak. This rapid and dangerous river derives its present
name from the Chaldean word signifying a wolf, with which
also its Greek appellation of Lycus corresponds. It probably
owes its title to the violence with which its waters rush along
when the mountain rivulets have been swollen by the rains,
and discharge their streams into its channel. At these sea-
sons, it is considered dangerous to cross, and very frequently
rafts and horses are borne along with impetuous force into
the Tigris, with which the Zab effects a junction near Nim-
roud.
The mode of transit is very simple and of ancient date.
A rudely constructed raft rests upon inflated skins, and, in
this manner, conveys not only passengers, but even heavy
merchandize across the river. The horses swim over, guided
by a man who supports himself on two small inflated skins.
The rafts are the same as those used at Mosul, which periodi-
cally descend as far as Baghdad with passengers and goods.
When they undertake this latter journey, however, a small
hut or cabin is formed of branches and boughs of trees, be-
neath the shelter of which the traveler reposes during his
voyage. At night, the rafts anchor near the shore, and are
sometimes exposed to the visitations of unwelcome intruders.
On one occasion, a gentleman had secured one of these
rafts at Mosul, and, at first, found no reason to repent of his
choice. His cabin was comfortable enough, and reclining
on his temporary divan, he found himself able to while away
the time with a volume of Chateaubriand. A small window
* “Nestorians or the Lost Tribes,” chap. iv.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 217
at the side of his hut was generally left open towards even-
ing to admit any passing breeze that might feel disposed to
enter and beguile the tedium of an anchorage which present-
ed few attractions to the eye.
The first evening of his voyage, M. thought he might
enjoy the prospect, and surveyed it from his window. But
he saw nothing but a continuation of barren plains reaching
down to within a few yards of his raft. With a shrug, he
retreated to his diwan, lighted a cigar, and was soon en-
grossed by the charms of “Atala.” Suddenly, his aperture
was darkened, a dark countenance with shaggy hair intruded
itself, and a rough voice growled out in no very courteous
tones the fatal syllables, “Backsheesh.” M. was, at
first, much alarmed, as he had some valuable property about
him, but recovering his presence of mind, he stepped out on
what I may call the deck of the raft to reconnoiter the num-
bers of the enemy. They consisted of three half naked
Arabs, who stood holding the raft, with the water up to their
waists. M. thought, at first, of cutting his cable and
floating off, but he perceived that the raftmen were half dead
with fright, and he feared the result of an attempt to escape.
He determined, therefore, to parley with the foe, and, being
a good Arabic scholar, entered into conversation with his
captors, and, after a little discussion, succeeded in obtaining
their concurrence in his departure by the welcome present
of a few pounds of Mosul tobacco.
The sons of Ishmael transferred the much-coveted luxury
to the shore, where they sat smoking nearly half the night,
and the next morning saluted their late captive with loud
acclamations and good wishes as he floated off gayly, con-
gratulating himself upon his fortunate escape.
We were nearly an hour crossing the Zab, and found the
current very violent about midway. After strenuous exer-
tions, however, we arrived in safety at Kellak, but, with the
exception of one or two old men, the village had been en-
tirely deserted by its inhabitants. Those who were left
behind informed us that a band of predatory Kurds, having
paid them a visit the day before, had plundered the village and
murdered two of the people, on account of which all the
survivors abandoned their dwellings and took refuge in
Arbela.
“Those Kurds are true sons of the Accursed,” said the
19


218 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
ferryman; “when Mohammed Pasha, peace be upon him,
was alive, they dared not have made free with even the sole
of an old slipper. He has gone now, and every thief of a
Kurd that can muster a dozen idle rascals together makes
up for lost time by spoiling honest people, and taking their
lives if they resist.”
“But the pasha was an oppressor, and a tyrant,” I ob-
served.
“It is true,” was his reply; “yet still he kept the country
quiet, and these Kurds within their mountains. We never
saw their ill-favored visages in our neighborhood before, may
confusion light upon them . As for oppression, O Effendi,
we are used to that, and probably may suffer as much, or
more, under the next pasha, as we did under him that is
gone. Still it is something to wake in the morning with a
whole throat, and not be roused up at midnight with your
roof all on fire, your women screaming, and your children
spitted like Kabob on the spears of those unclean sons of
darkness. Heavy taxes are bad, but they are better than all
this.”
I felt much disposed to agree with the sentiments of the
worthy ferryman, who, however, was a native of a village on
the other side, and after expressing my hope that they might
remain free from a similar visitation, I mounted my horse,
and rode on to rejoin my companions, who were some
distance in advance. As I proceeded, I could not help
contrasting the feelings which an occurrence like that above
mentioned would excite in England, with those produced
by it in this country. In our own land, a single murder
would be the talk of the whole neighborhood, but here the
violent death of two persons, and the plunder of a village,
seemed too much of an every day event to create much
notice. The people who were only a few miles distant from
the scene of the atrocity professed their utter ignorance of it.
It was now near evening, but as we had not deemed it
prudent to pass the night at Kellak, in consequence of the
attack by the Kurds, we rode on to Tov Zawa, a village of
about fifty houses, situated on the southern bank of the river.
We had but poor accommodations here, however, and were
glad to leave it the next morning at half-past nine.
For a short time, we followed the course of the Zab, having
on the left a range of low hills, which intervened between us


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 219
and the river. At length our road bore round in an easterly
direction, and we passed the villages of Oghlan, Kiouy Itch,
and Kiouy Jaghan, arriving at Ain Quawa about 2 P. M.
The latter place is situated on an extensive plain, bounded
to the north-east by low hills. The inhabitants were nearly
all of them Christians of the Chaldean Church, and ardently
attached to the sway of Rome. One of their priests visited
us to ask whether or no the English were Christians. He
gazed on an Arabic translation of our Liturgy with wonder
and surprise, but made no comments upon it.
Near Ain Quawa we observed several plantations which
were irrigated in a singular manner. A number of wells had
been sunk, each at a small distance from the other, which
supplied water to the cultivators. These were connected
with each other by a species of aqueduct or channel beneath
the surface. The reason of this strange arrangement did not
appear, but its origin was ascribed to very early times.
We could discern clearly and distinctly the mound and
minaret of Arbil from Ain Quawa, and an hour’s ride brought
us to the suburb of that town, where the chief object deserving
of notice was a broken tower, which serves as a landmark
for many miles around. This tower, which is attached to
the ruins of a mosque, resembled greatly in size and shape
the round minaret at Mosul, connected with the dilapidated
building still bearing the name of the Prophet George. The
latter inclines almost to the same extent as the leaning tower
of Pisa, the fashion of which was probably introduced from
the East. The minaret at Arbil probably measured about
120 feet in height, and was surrounded by three rings of a
bluish color, which were probably intended to strengthen the
shaft. I made an attempt to ascend the staircase, but found
it so dark and blocked up with rubbish, that I desisted.
The aspect of Arbil is rendered imposing by the elevation
of the upper town on an artificial mound about 150 feet in
height, the sides of which are plentifully covered with marsh-
mallow. The lower town is built in a straggling way at the
foot of the mound, in the vicinity of which fragments of the
old wall are still visible.
We were quartered at the house of a Turkish bin bashi, or
colonel, in the lower town. Our host was absent, but his
wife commanded the servants to furnish us with everything
that was necessary. He had married two ladies, one for the


220 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
sake of interest, and the other for affection, but his servant
hinted that his time was not pleasantly spent between them.
Each had her own separate establishment, with servants and
slaves attached, and the bin bashi was at present residing in
the house of his other wife. Great jealousy existed between
the two, and all the arts of espionage and intrigue were
resorted to, in order to discover when a present had been
made by the husband. If he gave a black slave to the first,
the second thought herself wronged if she did not obtain two,
and thus every outlay that was made in one quarter was
expected to be doubled in the other. With these continual
demands on his pocket, it may be imagined that the matri-
monial happiness of the poor man was very small, but he
had to undergo in addition the humors of his two helpmates.
Incensed by mutual animosity, each regaled his ear with
abuse of her rival, or insinuations that his love for her per-
sonally was not sincere. Daggers and cups of poison, which
in England we regard as harmless figures of speech, are not
unfrequently used more literally in Turkey, and the death
of a husband or a rival may very commonly be traced to the
jealous fury of a slighted and suspicious woman.
On walking out to inspect the lower town, we found the
principal streets intersected by gutters three feet in breadth,
and traversed at intervals by small bridges of brick. The
houses seemed for the most part to be constructed from the
latter material, and were covered with a species of white-
wash or cement. On the eastern side of the mound we per-
ceived some sepulchres covered with domes, and resembling
in shape doubtless those whited tombs of which our Saviour
spoke, when he cautioned his disciples against the hypocrisy
of the scribes and Pharisees.” The form of these chambers
of death varies in different parts of the East. In one place
four walls inclose and protect from intruders the stone sar-
cophagus which contains the ashes of the departed; while
in another, the dome is supported on pillars only, and the
sides are left open. When the latter is the case, the sepul-
chres frequently serve as asylums for the poor and houseless,
as well as for thieves and bad characters.
Beyond these tombs we found some gardens and vineyards,
stretching out into the plain and affording a pleasant retreat
* Matt. xxiii. 27.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 221
for the townsmen during the heats of summer. There is
nothing so much delights an Oriental as to “make kaif.”
With his trusty pipe under his arm and his tobacco pouch in
the breast of his gown, he sallies forth from the dark and
narrow streets of the town to the suburbs, where an assem-
blage of trees or vines, enclosed by a low wall or fence from
the road, obtains the name of “bostun” or garden. If a run-
ning stream passes through the midst, all the better; and if
a troop of jugglers or strolling musicians should be attracted
thither, their presence will add materially to the satisfaction
of the kaif makers.
Stretching his carpet under a tree, the Oriental gazes with
half shut eyes on the ripple of the water, or watches with
apparent interest the curling vapors which ascend from his
chibouque. There is nothing of the gay boisterous merriment
of Northern Europe, none of the light vivacity of the South,
connected with an Eastern merry-making. They meet to
smoke, perhaps also to drink some beverage stronger than
coffee, though this is seldom ; to converse and to listen to
the oft-told stories which they have laughed or shuddered at
times without number before. No women mingle with their
unbendings, for it is considered wrong for the two sexes to
mix together in public, though among the Christians this
feeling is passing away. When evening comes on, they
retire to their homes, pleased and gratified with a day’s kaif,
while apparently so little has occurred to call forth either
pleasure or satisfaction.
As we returned, we passed through the bazaar in the lower
town. It was a miserable collection of stalls arranged in
rows, forming alleys partly open and partly covered with
boughs and dry leaves. A great crowd came to stare at us
as we walked along, who bestowed from time to time no very
flattering comments on our costume. As we proceeded, we
observed an altercation going on near one of the stalls, which
was destined to terminate in no very pleasant manner. The
owner of the shop, a tall and portly-looking Jew of about
thirty years of age, had given dire offence to a customer,
who, though yet in his teens, was a true believer, and deter-
mined to exercise the privileges of one. After heaping on
* This word is not very susceptible of translation, but it generally implies
“pleasure,” “amusement.”
19%


224 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
police had secured one of the thieves, and was bearing him
in chains to the dungeon in the upper town.
Soon after the capture had taken place, a Christian arrived
from Shucklawa, a town situated on a mountain of the same
name, about a day’s journey from Arbela, bringing tidings of
a shameful outrage which had just been perpetrated by the
Kurds of the neighborhood. During the vigorous adminis-
tration of Mohammed Pasha, the Christians of Shucklawa
had lived in peace and amity with their Moslem neighbors.
When his death, however, became generally known, the
Kurds, animated by the success of their late enterprise against
the Christians of the hills, determined on introducing a little
persecution into the hitherto quiet community. Their hostility
against the detested Nazarenes was inflamed by the persuasions
and harangues of a mollah of their own race, who was by
no means deficient in that fanatical bigotry which rages in
the breasts of the majority of his brethren.
The Christian inhabitants of the village were peaceful cul-
tivators, who had learned to bear oppression with a patient
shrug. They had shared in none of the warlike measures
resorted to by the Nestorians of the hills. As Chaldean ad-
herents of the See of Rome, they were little disposed to
sympathize with heretics, had their courage even impelled
them to active resistance. But this mattered little, for they
bore the hated name of Nazarene—that title which awakens
the bitterest animosity in the bosom of a true Moslem. The
mollah hated the Christians, and determined, in some way or
other, to gratify his feelings of enmity against them.
An ancient church, which some said had been first erected
in the fourth or fifth century, stood within the confines of the
village. At its simple altar thousands of the forefathers of
the humble Christians had knelt to celebrate the most sacred
rites of their religion. In the hymns and psalms of the in-
spired Psalmist, they had forgotten their toils, and felt, for a
time at least, the yoke of slavery less bitter and less galling.
It was the only relic that bound them to the past—that re-
called the old days of independence and freedom. Its fur-
niture and sacred utensils offered no temptation to the spoiler.
A metal cup and a paten of less value served for the celebra-
tion of the Holy Communion, while their tattered Liturgies
were so worn, that the priest was obliged to trust to his me-
mory for the holy words of prayer. Above the altar a plain


226 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
like demonstration. Mohammedanism is too feeble to require
the influence of arms; its rulers are not sufficiently attached
to it to hazard any loss on its behalf. A simple order to our
consuls to protect and assist Christians unjustly oppressed is
all that would be requisite.
We left Arbil the next morning, after the capture of the
horse-stealer, and, after riding seven hours and a half, reached
Kermalis, a large Chaldean village to the north of the Zab,
which is supposed by some to have been the Gaugamela of
those historians who describe the actions of Alexander. It
is clear that the battle must have taken place on this side of
the Zab, as Quintus Curtius expressly mentions that Darius
crossed that river in his flight to Arbela. Yet for my own
part I should feel disposed to place it farther east, and nearer
the Hazir or Bumadas.
We arrived at Mosul in safety, but unfortunate news awaited
me at home. I had been presented with two young gazelles,
of great beauty, whose natural shyness I succeeded, in some
measure, in overcoming. They would eat out of my hand,
and often beguiled a heavy hour by their playful and sportive
gambols. During my absence, they had ascended to the ter-
race, and were diverting themselves there, when my servant
suddenly made his appearance above, and gave chase to them.
The scared and terrified animals bounded away, and in their
attempt to leap over the vacant space between the terraces,
they fell upon the hard stones in the court below, and were
almost instantaneously killed.
CHAPTER XX.
Journey to Nimroud. The sabre. The priest's tale.
Soon after my return from Arbil, a Russian traveler arrived
at Mosul, who was anxious to make a few excursions in the
vicinity. As, however, he had been somewhat fatigued by
solitary journeys, he was desirous of securing my company
in his intended trip. I had placed one of the rooms of my
house at his disposal; and finding that he was likely to prove


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 227
an agreeable compagnon de voyage, our arrangements for a
short excursion were soon made, and carried into effect.
We obtained from the executive of Mosul the services of a
government kawass, hired posthorses, and engaged a tall
Chaldean, named Baho, to act as a guide and general servant.
At 10 A.M. we had got our baggage safely arranged on the
backs of two stout beasts of burden, and were preparing to
mount, when my friend B and Kas Botros volunteered
to bear us company as far as Nimroud. In Oriental travel
the well-known proverb of “the more the merrier” is not
without weight; and we gladly welcomed this addition to our
party.
My old friend Mohammed had come in to smoke a morning
pipe, and was much astonished at all this bustle in the court
yard.
“Are you going back to Ingelterra '' inquired he.
“Not this time, my friend,” I said; “we are merely going
to Mar Matti, to Nimroud, and to Rabban Hormuzd.”
“Mashallah!” exclaimed my old companion, “what people
these Franks are Here have I been living for twenty years
in Mosul, and have never gone further, during that period,
than to the Mound of Nebbi Yunas. Surely you cannot be
in your senses to change this comfortable diwan for a rough
saddle and a stony road. Then you will meet Kurds, Yezi-
dees, and other obscene sons of Satan, who may rob you, or
cut your throats. Allah knows, Khowajah Yacoub, whether
I shall ever smoke another pipe in your house.”
I endeavored to quiet his fears by the assurance that he
would most probably see my face again in a week; and with
this consolatory remark I rode off. My Russian friend had
fully equipped himself for the dangers of the road. Two
small pocket pistols hung suspended by a silver chain from
his belt, in which were deposited two others of larger size,
while by his side swung a heavy cavalry sword. Our servants
were also armed, but I myself had neglected to take any
weapons of offence or defence. I had not proceeded the
length of the street, however, before I heard a voice calling
me from behind. I stopped my horse, and, turning round,
beheld Mohammed, in a state of breathless exhaustion, carry-
ing a formidable sabre.
“Take at least this with you,” he gasped, as he came up
with me.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 229
and, after a brisk ride of an hour, we reached our destination,
as wet as if we had stood for some time under a shower-bath.
The habitation which was allotted to us was a wretched
hut, constructed of stones of all shapes and sizes, plastered
with mud, and covered with a roof by no means impervious
to the rain. At last, we found a dry spot whereon to kindle
a fire, which was effected with no small difficulty, as the
wood brought in for our use was green, and showed a decided
antipathy to fire. After we had changed our clothes, we
sat round the small table cross-legged, and demolished a
pillaw with much appetite and satisfaction, though the rice
was none of the cleanest, and abundantly mixed with small
Stones.
After dinner, the fire blazed up nobly, and we prepared
to spend the evening as comfortably as we could, though the
rain, which occasionally worked its way through the roof, by
no means improved our position. By and by, the élite of the
village came in to pay us a visit. We gave them some cof-
fee and tobacco, they sat down with us, and we all became
very good friends in a few minutes. They sang Kurdish
songs, and told Kurdish stories about robber chieftains, who
lived in castles perched on the wild crags of their native
land. These gentlemen seemed to resemble the “barons
bold” of our own early ballads. They were not very honest,
nor very scrupulous. They had a decided penchant for cut-
ting off heads, and carrying off unfortunate damsels, while
they were by no means wanting in rude wit and dauntless
courage. The listeners drank in eagerly the tales of these
good old times, and seemed to think them much better than
the present. Perhaps they were right.
My friend Kas Botros was accustomed, not without rea-
son, to pique himself upon his story-telling abilities. Few
events could happen that did not draw from him some anec-
dote or recital. He was by no means, therefore, disposed to
sit a silent listener to semi-barbarian tales, and determined
on taking the conversation into his own hands. The Kurd-
ish villagers who understood Arabic were willing to listen,
and the worthy Abuna thus began:-
“There lived, many years ago, a Sultan who was one of
the most prosperous of men. He had gold, jewels, and
wives without number, the choicest meats were placed upon
his table, while lute players, with voices sweeter than that of


230 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Israfil," poured forth the most delicious sounds for his amuse-
ment and for the entertainment of his chosen guests. Three
hundred sons and two hundred daughters claimed the honor
of being his offspring, and the beauty or good qualities of
each had been duly celebrated by the four hundred poets,
who extolled in every species of verse -the greatness and
felicity of so sublime a monarch. -
“What could he wish for more? Yet the nature of the
sons of Adam is insatiable, and desires ever something new.
The monarch grew weary of his pleasures; the gratifications
in which he had formerly delighted disgusted him; and he
sighed for the knowledge which is unlawful, and the posses-
sion of those secrets which Allah has wisely hidden from the
children of men. By degrees he fell into a deep melan-
choly, diversified, however, by fits of irritation. The poet
who ventured to celebrate his felicity in a new copy of
verses was told that he was a liar for his pains; while an-
other of his brethren, who presented to the monarch on his
birthday a new poem, which he had expected would produce
a gold dinaraline, received a serious bruise from the royal
slipper, which the impatient Sultan had hurled at his head.
The indignant man of letters went home and composed a
satire on the ungrateful prince, which he sold to one of the
Sultan’s enemies for two hundred pieces of gold.
“Withdrawing himself into the deep solitude of his gar-
dens, the dissatisfied monarch pondered over his situation,
and his desires. The fairest of his wives appeared to com-
fort and console him.
“‘Light of my eyes,” said she, “wherefore art thou sad?”
“‘Plague of my heart,” he replied, ‘why art thou trouble-
some? Surely the chattering of women is more intolerable
than the croaking of the green bird of El-Hind. Begone,
O daughter of the tongue, and leave me to my meditations.”
“The fair Shems-en-nahar was about to try the expedient
of a shower of tears, but the pearly drops were arrested by
the growing blackness of the royal brow. She saw that it
was no time for trifling, and withdrew.
“‘Wali!” she exclaimed to herself, as she departed, “our
lord is surely medjnoon.”f
“The monarch bent his eyes on the ground, in moody
* The angel of song. f Mad.


232 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
with clouds, and saw the gigantic birds of those regions
flying along many miles below him. Nay, it is said that on
one occasion curiosity led him as far as the centre of the
earth, where he watched the gambols of the subterranean
genii, and heard an assembly of Dives disputing learnedly on
the properties of the seal of Solomon.
“The tempers of most people improve when they succeed
in obtaining their own way, and our Sultan was no exception
to the general rule. His politeness and affability delighted
every one, Shems-en-nahar was in raptures, and even the
discontented poet forgot the affront of the slipper, and, finding
that he could not conveniently recall the satire he had sold,
indemnified the monarch by composing one doubly bitter
upon the purchaser.
“For some time, the king adhered faithfully to the terms
of the compact, and presented with laudable regularity the
appointed tribute. His fear of the dwarf, however, had
greatly worn off, and he began to consider with himself the
propriety of performing his homage by proxy. Unfortunately
for his own peace, he had intrusted his wuzeer, Ibn Fadel,
with the secret, and the crafty minister, who had been bred
in a college of mollahs, treated his master’s scruples with
polite derision. He represented to his majesty that it was
but too great honor for a misbegotton dwarf to minister to
the amusement of so great a king; that, in fact, the ring and
its wonderful powers were but a ransom for a life justly for-
feited by unwarrantable intrusion into the sacred precincts of
the court; and finally, that kings, as the vicegerents of Allah,
had undoubtedly a right to do what they thought proper, and
were not bound by the same ties of obligation or gratitude
which influence common men.
“‘But my promise, O wuzeer,” remonstrated the Sultan.
“‘Gracious sir,’ argued the minister, “this individual,
whoever he may be, is doubtless one of the unbelieving, and
therefore all promises or oaths made to him are null and void.
Nay, for aught we know, he may be one of that accursed
race of Eblis, so frequently denounced by our holy Prophet,
and whom, as the known enemies of true Mussulmen, we
are bound by our religion to persecute to the utmost of our
ability. Do not give yourself, then, the trouble to perform
so irksome a duty, but let one of your slaves undertake the
office in your stead.”


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 233
“The king was irresolute at first, but at length he yielded
to the arguments of his wuzeer, and, calling a trusty slave,
he commanded him to carry the three bowls of milk to the
appointed place. The slave went and returned, but reported
that nothing extraordinary had happened.
“‘Said I not well, O king of the world?” observed Ibn
Fadel, with a self-complacent simper.
“The Sultan felt a pang of inward reproach as he thought
over what had passed, but he determined not to give way to
his feelings.
“‘I will go forth and make kaif,” said he.
“A brilliant cortège was soon on horseback, and issuing
from the portals of the palace. Shems-en-nahar, and the ladies
of the court, followed in curtained carriages, drawn by oxen.
“The cavalcade proceeded to a delightful grove on the
banks of the river, which intersected the capital city of the
Sultan’s dominions. Here the Sultan and his male courtiers
dismounted, and seated themselves on the grass, while Shems-
en-nahar and her ladies proceeded farther on to some gardens
which overlook the river, where, in a superb pavilion lined
with diwans, they enjoyed their kaif, guarded by the zealous
eunuchs of the harem from the profane gaze of any intruder.
“The Sultan grew more cheerful as the time flew on, and
he quaffed goblet after goblet of Shiraz wine. When he first
sat down, he thought he traced a strange-looking form lurk-
ing among the trees, and had even mentioned it to the wuzeer,
but the latter, after a careful search, reported that no one could
be found in the vicinity who was not of the court, and the
monarch gave himself up to merriment.
“In the mean time, Shems-en-nahar and her ladies were
reposing after their bath, while some of their slaves played
and sang for their diversion. The music was disturbed by a
knock at the door of the pavilion. A female slave opened it,
and gave admittance to an aged woman of loathsome and
repulsive aspect.
“‘I would speak with the Sultana Shems-en-nahar,’ said
the old crone. -
“‘What do you desire of me?” said the lady, arising from
her divan.
“‘I must deliver my message to you alone,’ replied the
new comer; “cause these to stand apart.”
“The ladies withdrew to another apartment of the pavilion,
20+ -


234 NoTES FROM NINEVEII.
leaving the old woman with the Sultana. The latter then
turned an inquiring glance on her visitor.
“‘Queen of the world,” said the crone, you must have
noticed with surprise the strange change which has taken
place lately in the king, your husband, but you will be more
astonished and pained when you hear the cause. Know,
then, that a daughter of the djin has fallen in love with him,
and is beloved by him, while you are marked out as a sacri-
fice to her jealousy, unless you take measures to avert your
doom. Happily, however, the remedy is in your own power.
The djinee has given the Sultan a ring, which both attracts
his affections and binds his destiny indissolubly with hers.
If you can pluck off the ring from his finger, and throw it
into yonder stream, the spell will be broken, and his love will
be restored to you.”
“The ladies of Shems-en-nahar were alarmed by a loud
scream, they returned to find their mistress alone, and lying
in a fainting fit on the divan. They applied the usual reme-
dies, and sent one of the eunuchs to acquaint the Sultan with
what had occurred.
“The king came hastily, for he dearly loved Shems-en-
nahar, and felt deeply anxious on account of the tidings which
he had received. She revived as soon as she heard his voice.
“‘What aileth thee, O my eyes?” inquired the monarch.
“‘Nothing, O my lord,” was the reply, “but the weather
is oppressive, and I am fatigued with bathing.”
“She took the hand which was graciously extended to her,
and, while pressing it to her lips, affected for the first time to
notice the ring.
“‘What a beautiful diamond may I examine it?’ she
asked.
“The Sultan, in his anxiety, had forgotten the caution of
the dwarf, and he was desirous to do everything in his power
to soothe his fair Sultana. He drew the ring from his finger,
and placed it in her hand. She started up from the sofa with
the bound of a gazelle, and, opening the window of the pavil-
ion, cast the fatal gift into the river.
“‘Now the spell is broken, and thou art wholly mine !” she
exclaimed, as she threw herself into the Sultan’s arms.
“The monarch stood for a moment mute with terror, as the
consequences of the fatal act flashed across his mind; then,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 235
uttering an imprecation on his own folly, he pushed her rudely
from him, and rushed from the pavilion.
“When the unfortunate Sultan returned to his companions,
he found them indulging in all the wild freaks of insanity,
with goblets in their hands, which at once betrayed the cause
of their conduct. They laughed, shouted, sang, and danced:
respect was thrown entirely aside, and those who had shown
in former times the most slavish deference to the monarch
were now most forward in their familiarity. Plucking his
beard with sorrow, the Sultan fled into the recesses of the
neighboring wood, where he found Ibn Fadel, who had se-
cured himself from the temptation of drinking water by
imbibing a considerable quantity of wine.
“The king and his minister held a hasty consultation, the
result of which was that they both determined to retire to the
palace, and endeavor, by digging, to discover a spring on
which the malediction of the dwarf would take no effect.
They returned to the palace, and repairing to the gardens,
they dug for some time, till at length they came to a spring,
which they resolved should supply their present necessities,
as the curse had power only over the rivers and cisterns,
which existed at the time it was pronounced. They soon
found, however, their condition most solitary and desolate, for
every one had abandoned the palace. Once or twice they
ventured abroad, but were driven back by the scoffs and jeers
of the crowd, who shouted after them “There go the mad-
men.” They attempted to reason with their persecutors, but
in vain, for all the insane were convinced that their prince
and his wuzeer were mad. To such an extent did this
opinion prevail that it was agreed among the citizens that a
physician should make a visit to the two unfortunates in the
palace. The man of medicine came ; he was distinguished
by a long beard, and the gestures of a mountebank; and the
Sultan, in reply to his questions, bade him indignantly go home
and heal himself. -
“The physician’s report was, of course, unfavorable, and
his remedy for the madness of his two patients would not
have been unworthy of the Avicennas of a more civilized
age. He ordered that the king and his wuzeer should
suffer the daily infliction of fifty pails of water, and receive
each a hundred stripes, till they acknowledged themselves to


236 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
be mad. At the end of three days, this regimen began to
work wonders, and the king said to the wuzeer—
“‘O, Ibn Fadel, let us drink of the water of the river, and
become even as the rest, for of what avail is our reason, if
we are persecuted for being mad? My soles are sore from
the bastinado, and my garments flow with water even as a
fountain; yet the consciousness of my sanity will neither heal
the one nor dry the other. Surely the poet has wisely said
that, “if a wise man would dwell in peace among fools, he
must also become foolish.” ” -
“The wuzeer agreed fully with the sentiments of his
sovereign; they both drank of the river, and the next day
were received with acclamations by a grateful and frantic
crowd.”*
CHAPTER XXI.
Tell Nimroud. Monastery of Mar Behnam. Khoorsabad.
THE conclusion of the priest’s story was a signal for the
departure of our visitors, who seemed well satisfied with their
entertainment. We now thought of retiring to rest, but it
was no easy matter to parcel out the mud floor among four
people. One found that when he had selected a place which
seemed suitable, and had spread his coverlet upon it, a small
hillock, which he never observed before, prevented his re-
clining with comfort. Another discovered that a pool of
water occupied the greater part of his allotment, while a third
gazed with gloomy forebodings on the suspicious appearance
of the roof, which seemed likely to admit the rain during the
night. At length we made our arrangements, and were fast
sinking into the arms of Morpheus, when the storm of rain
* Part of the above story was related by my friend the priest at the time
alluded to, but, as I heard it afterwards in a more complete form, I have given
the reader the benefit of my after knowledge. My chief reason for inserting
it is to furnish a specimen of the narratives which, even at the present day,
are the delight of Orientals. This story recommended itself to my notice
by its freedom from the gross indelicacy which is too commonly the charac.
teristic of Eastern tales. Yet even in this some alterations have been found
necessary.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 237
and hail commenced anew. Our coverlets were soon flooded,
and we determined to sit up for the remainder of the night
in the dryest corner of the hut. To our great relief, morning
dawned at last, and we prepared to resume our journey.
We rode along over a succession of small mounds, each
containing, it may be, no inconsiderable portion of the relics
of old Nineveh, until we reached a village of mud huts, about
a mile and a half distant from the Tell, or mound of Nimroud.
This village is situated near the apex of the delta, formed by
the junction of the Tigris and the Zab, about twenty-five
miles to the south of Mosul. From hence, after a slight rest,
we proceeded to the Tell itself, which has since been the
scene of Mr. Layard’s discoveries.
Tell-Nimroud consists of an assemblage of mounds, the
highest of which is of a pyramidal form. As we rambled
over the grass-clad eminences, we discovered from time to
time fragments of bricks inscribed with the cuneiform cha-
racter. We talked of M. Botta’s discoveries, and I remarked
to our Russian companion, half in jest, the probability of find-
ing some Assyrian relics in the mound over which we were
walking.
“Let us try,” said he, laughing, as he drew from its sheath
his long sabre, and converted it into a temporary spade.
The infection of investigation seized us all. Swords and
a spear or two, which we borrowed from some of the villag-
ers, were put into requisition, and we were soon busily en-
gaged in turning over the soil. A few bricks were the reward
of our labors, but as we shortly became fatigued with such
desultory work, we left off and returned to the village.
The sheikh, in whose house we had taken up our abode,
inquired earnestly what treasure we had found, and was much
disappointed when assured that we sought for nothing of the
kind. He appeared half incredulous, and asserted with em-
phasis that Franks were too wise to travel all that distance
to look for old stones.
The Tell of Nimroud and its lately discovered treasures
have excited so much interest that I trust I may be pardoned
if I interrupt the course of the narrative to bestow a few
remarks on the identity of this site with that of the ancient
city of Rehoboth, mentioned in Genesis, x. 11."
* “Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh and the city
Rehoboth and Calah.”


238 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
-
It is evident from the sculptures which have been disco-
vered at Nimroud, that these mounds were in ancient days
occupied by some large Assyrian city. Major Rawlinson, in
his interesting paper on Assyrian Antiquities, quoted in the
JAthenaeum of January 26, 1850, assumes that the ruins of
Nimroud represent the old city of Calah, or Halah, while he
places Nineveh at Nebbi Yunas. Yet it appears likely that
, the ancient Calah, or Halah, which was probably the capital
of the district of Calachene, must have been nearer to the
Kurdish Mountains. Ptolemy mentions the province of Ca-
lachene as bounded on the north by the Mountains of Arme-
nia, and on the south by the district of Adiabene.” Most
writers place Ninus, or Nineveh, within the latter province.
But if so, Adiabene would include also Nimroud, and, there-
fore, it is not probable that Halah, or Calah, could have
occupied the site indicated by Major Rawlinson. Saint
Ephraim, himself a learned Syrian and well acquainted with
the history and geography of the East, considers Calah to be
the modern Hatareh, a large town inhabited chiefly by Yezi-
dees, and situated N. N.W. of Nineveh. Between Hatareh
and the site of Nineveh, we find a village bearing the name of
Ras el Ain, which is evidently a corrupted form of the Resen
of Genesis. It is worthy of remark that this theory confirms
the statement made in Genesis x. 12, where Resen is repre-
sented as occupying a midway position between Calah and
Nineveh. But assuming Major Rawlinson’s hypothesis to
be correct, it is clear that there would be no room for a large
city between Nebbi Yunas and Nimroud, a distance of, at
most, twenty-five miles.
Nor is it certain that the latter may be considered as the
site of the Larissa of Xenophon. A considerable interval
must have taken place between the passage of the river Zab
by the Ten Thousand, and their arrival at the Tigris. It is
expressly mentioned that they forded a mountain stream,
which seems to have been of some width, soon after they
* Ptolemy, lib. vi. cap. i. -
f Strabo, lib. 16, mentions the plain in the vicinity of Nineveh, and seems
to consider it as not belonging to the province of Adiabene. But his testimony,
if taken, would also exclude that city, and the land to the southward of it,
from the district of Calachene, as he enumerates that as a distinct part of
Assyria immediately afterwards. In the arrangement of the dioceses recorded
in Assemani, tom. iii., Athoor and Adiabene seem to be continually connected,
while Calachene is spoken of as nearer the mountains.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 239
had passed over the Zab. But no vestige of any stream of
this kind appears between Nimroud and the Tigris. It is
probable, therefore, that the Xapaépa of Xenophon was the
Hazir or Bumadas, after passing which, the Ten Thousand
marched in a north-westerly direction, past the modern
village of Kermalis to the Tigris. At a short distance from
the latter, they encountered a ruined city, which Xenophon
terms Larissa, and which occupied, probably, the site of the
modern Ras el Ain. The village known by this name is
about twelve miles from the Tigris, but the ancient city may
have been much nearer.”
Both Ptolemy and Ammianus Marcellinus mention a city
situated at the mouth of the Zab, on precisely the same site
as that occupied by the mounds of Nimroud, which they
term Birtha, or Wirtha. But Birtha, or Britha, in Chaldee,
signifies the same as Rehoboth in Hebrew, namely, wide
squares or streets, an identity in name, which seems to imply
also an identity in locality. It appears likely, therefore, that
Nimroud is the same as Rehoboth, which, it is said, Asshur
founded after his departure from the land of Shinar.
On leaving Tell-Nimroud, we directed our course east-
ward, towards the village of El Khudder, in order to visit
the ruined monastery of Mar Behnam. We arrived there in
about three hours and a half, and found only a few mud huts
situated near the convent. It had formerly belonged to the
Syrian Jacobites, but, from want of funds, they had been
obliged to abandon it. The church and the dwellings of the
monks were still in a very perfect condition.
Near the monastery was the tomb of Mar Behnam, situated
in a subterranean chapel, covered by a dome, which rises, as
it were, out of the ground, and resembles, at a distance, a
hillock or mound. We descended by a flight of stone steps,
but the passage was so dark that we required the aid of
torches to find our way. The chapel below was circular in
form, and was lighted by lamps of silver, suspended from the
roof. In the wall were several recesses, containing the sarco-
phagi of Mar Behnam, and several other saints who lived
about his time. On each tomb was an inscription in Syriac,
stating the name, age, and station of the occupant.
The odor of the incense, which was daily burnt in this
* Xenophon Anab, lib. iii. cap, iv.


240 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
chamber of the dead, served to relieve the close atmosphere
of the vault. We were informed that numbers of pilgrims
made an annual visit to the tomb, and took away with them
portions of the dust of the place, which is esteemed a specific
for all kinds of diseases.
Mar Behnam was a Persian by birth, and his sepulchre is
mentioned by John of Mardin as having been, in his day,
famous for the miracles performed there. The people of the
village gave us, during our stay, the following account of
him :—
In the reign of Shapoor the Cruel, King of Persia, the chief
of the Magi had a son, whose name was Behnam. This
youth was beautiful in his person, and famed for pre-
eminence in all active exercises. Shapoor himself distin-
guished him by special notice, and all things seemed to
predict a favorable destiny to one who was so generally
beloved and admired.
During the reign of Shapoor, the Christians met with bitter
persecution, and numbers of them were daily led to execu-
tion. Among the unhappy victims was a young female slave,
who had been brought up in the family of the chief of the
Magi, and had been specially attached to the service of his
daughter, the sister of Behnam. Before they led the young
girl to the place of execution, she desired earnestly one last
interview with her mistress. The daughter of the chief
Magus remained several hours in her company, and when
she returned to her father’s house, she avowed to her sur-
prised and indignant parent that she had been induced to
embrace the Christian faith, and was, indeed, a baptized
member of the Christian Church.
Unwilling to behold his daughter dragged to prison, the
chief of the Magi confined her in one of the chambers of his
house, and directed her brother to visit and argue with her
on the folly and guilt of abandoning the religion of her
ancestors. But the young Christian defended her new creed
with such ability and zeal that Behnam was himself over-
come, and, after a vain attempt to stifle his convictions, he
sought and obtained baptism at the hands of Mar Symeon,
the Christian bishop.
Shapoor grew daily more and more inveterate against the
Nazarene. Hundreds suffered martyrdom rather than re-
nounce their faith, nor could age, rank, or station, protect


242 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
executed. A neck ornament, which resembled in form a
tassel, had each thread distinctly marked. In front of the
chariot was a quiver with arrows.
From the hall, we entered a passage or gallery, which had
formerly been adorned with sculptures, the remains of which
were adhering to the earth. To the right of this gallery, we
entered a second apartment, containing three figures in long
robes, the borders of which were adorned with rich fringes.
Returning to the gallery, we explored it to the farthest extre-
mity, and arrived at the entrance to another large apartment,
on each side of which were two quadruped sphinxes, with
large wings. On one of these I observed a long cuneiform
inscription. To the right of the entrance was the figure of
a man with the head of an eagle or hawk, which has since
been supposed to represent the god Assarac or Nisroch. The
sphinxes were in an excellent state of preservation, and bore
the marks of coloring.
Returning towards the entrance hall, we explored a pas-
sage to our right, the first two tablets in which were covered
with inscriptions. We found here a group of captives with
chains round their ankles, kneeling before a figure in royal
robes. Behind these was another company of prisoners erect
and in chains. The upper part of the tablet was defaced,
so that all the figures were headless. I thought, as I gazed
upon them, that they might have represented the captives led
away by Sennacherib from Syria and Palestine. Major Raw-
linson supposes that a monarch named Sargon was the
founder of Khoorsabad, and this appellation is found in
Isaiah, and is thought to have been applied to Sennacherib."
Passing onwards, we entered another large chamber, on
the left hand wall of which were two warriors on horseback.
To the right we found a tablet representing two horsemen
with lances, preceding a chariot, in which were two figures,
but the whole was very much defaced. In a passage to the
right of the chamber was the figure of a warrior in a cha-
riot, the two horses of which were led by attendants. Above
this group were several inscriptions. Along this gallery,
the earth on each side was largely mingled with fragments of
Stone.
We returned to the large apartment, and proceeded along
* Isaiah xx. i.


244 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
researches. Mohammed Pasha showed himself decidedly
hostile to his undertaking, and while he received him with
smiles and good wishes, he sent private intelligence to Con-
stantinople, that the French consul was building a fort. The
cadi and mufti of Mosul were not slow in aiding and abet-
ting any project that might irritate and annoy the misbeliever.
They stirred up the people of Khoorsabad to remonstrate,
and these poor peasants, who would gladly have sold the
whole of their miserable huts twenty times over, were made
to utter fine sounding and pathetic appeals against the wicked
Frank who was undermining their mud cabins. -
Fortunately, however, for M. Botta, he obtained all the
support and assistance which his government could afford
him. When the success of his excavations was communi-
cated to the Académie Française by M. Mohl, that learned
body applied at once to the minister of Public Instruction,
and obtained for M. Botta the grant of ample funds to meet
all necessary expenses, together with the valuable aid of an
artist, M. Flandin, who was directed to proceed to Mosul,
and take sketches of such sculptures and inscriptions as
seemed unlikely to bear removal.
Most heartily do I wish that it was in my power to com-
mend a similar act of liberality on the part of the British
government towards Mr. Layard; but this active and enter-
prising traveler, after having made discoveries double the
value of those at Khoorsabad, has been left to experience
the same coldness and neglect which have rewarded every
English discoverer since the days of Belzoni. With the ex-
ception of Sir Stratford Canning, whose liberality and good
feeling on this and other occasions cannot be too highly
praised, I have heard of no English official who seems to
have taken the slightest interest in the labors by which Mr.
Layard has enriched our national museum.
—o-
CHAPTER XXII.
Remarks on Assyrian History.
THE early history of the Assyrian empire seems involved
in great obscurity, while even with regard to the later period


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 245
of its existence, few writers agree among themselves. The
history of Ctesias bears evident marks of falsehood, although
it is probable that all he relates is not entirely void of founda-
tion. Herodotus is a safer guide, but the particulars which
he furnishes are necessarily few, as he seems to have com-
piled a separate history of the Assyrians, which has unfortu-
nately been lost. In making a few remarks, therefore, on
the foundation of Nineveh, and other matters connected
with the rise and decline of that great nation of which it
was the capital, I must be considered as one who is groping
his way through a region full of darkness and obscurity, and
is often in danger of mistaking shadows for realities.
The etymology of the name Nineveh seems, in some de-
gree, to indicate its vicinity to the mountains of Armenia, on
which the ark rested after the deluge. The first syllable,
nin, or nun, implies, in the Semitic languages, any floating
substance, and was, for that reason, used afterwards to
signify a fish. The suffix, neveh, or nooh, has generally the
signification of a resting-place or habitation, whence we may
consider the name Nineveh as indicating the rest of the float-
ing vessel or of the ark. It is likely that the sons of Noah
would erect some memorial of their escape on their descent
into the plains; and Asshur, who completed, or perhaps
founded Nineveh, could hardly select a more appropriate
title for his new city. The attempt to identify Ninus with
Nimrod must do violence to all chronology, even if we ad-
mitted the plea urged by some—that Nimrod founded Nine-
veh, and that its appellation was taken from his Assyrian
name, Nin or Nun.
It must not be concealed, indeed, that some have read
Genesis x. 11, as if it referred to the going forth of Nimrod
into the land of Asshur. Jonathan Ben Uzziel, in his Tar-
gum, renders the verse thus: “And Nimrod having gone
out from that land, reigned in Assyria because he was un-
willing to join himself with the builders of the tower (of
Babel) and to agree with them ; wherefore God prospered
him, and in the place of the four cities which he had left, he
gave him four other ones, namely, Nineveh, Resen, Reho-
both, and Calah.”
Yet it seems more probable to imagine that Asshur, from
* Targum on Genesis, c. x.
21+


246 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
whom the region called afterwards Athoor or Assyria evi-
dently takes its name, was the person who founded this city,
more especially as he lived a generation earlier than Nim-
rod; the beginning or capital of whose kingdom was Babel.
And here it may be worthy of inquiry whether the Babel of
Genesis is the same city, or occupies the same locality with
the Babylon of a later period. The similarity of the names
will not prove an identity of position, since we know that
there existed a Babel or Babylon in Egypt. It would cer-
tainly seem more natural that the descendants of Noah should
have settled themselves near to the mountains on which the
ark rested, than that they should have emigrated three hun-
dred miles through arid and desolate plains, to the site of the
later Babylon. Admitting the identity of the plain of Shinar
with that of Sinjar, the northern position of which seems to
be established by the Karnak Tablet,” we may fairly infer
that the Babel of Genesis occupied a position farther north
than that region which was afterwards known by the name
of Chaldea.
In the course of a journey from Nisibis to Jezirah, I passed
a small village not far from the latter, which still bears the
name of Babeel. It stands in the plain which extends to
the south of Nisibis, and to which the Arabian geographers
apply the title of Sinjar. Within a day's journey from the
mountains, it is not improbable that the sons of Noah might
have pitched their tents on this fertile plain, where their de-
scendants afterwards built a city on which was conferred
subsequently the appropriate title of Babel, or confusion.
The early emigrants from the plain of Shinar, who colonized
Egypt, carried with them the recollection of the cause of
their exile, and erected in their new country another Babel
which might recall the memory of Shinar.
The Babel of a later period seems to have been founded
by Semiramis;f nor does this view appear at all repugnant
to the testimony of Scripture. In Isaiah xxiii. 13, it is said,
“Behold the land of the Chaldeans; this people was not, till
the Assyrian founded it for them that dwelt in the wilder-
* Saenkara or Shinar is placed next to the Ruten or Cappadocians among
the conquests of Sethos I. They are all described as Northern nations, an
expression which would hardly apply to a territory south of Mosul.
f Philo Byzantius apud Leo Aſlat. de Septem Mirac, Orb. cap. v. p. 110.
* Quintus Curtius, liv. v. i. Ammian. Marcellin. xxiii. 6. Diod. Sic. ii. 7.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 247
ness: they set up the towers thereof, they raised up the
palaces thereof.” This passage must refer to the foundation
of a city, nor do we know any city of the Chaldeans which
more fully answers to the above description than the later
Babel or Babylon.
Nor does it seem probable, from the words of Scripture,
that the Babel mentioned in Genesis survived for any length
of time the confusion of languages and the dispersion of man-
kind. It is expressly stated that they left off to build the
city,” while all traditions agree in affirming that the first Ba-
bel was destroyed by a storm. In no place do we read of
Babel as a kingdom until the time of Hezekiah. A king of
Shinar is mentioned Gen. xiv. 1; while in the Karnak Tablet,
references are perpetually made to kings or chiefs of Saenkara
(Shinar), but the name of Babel does not occur. It appears
likely, then, that the Babel of Genesis was either destroyed
or left unfinished soon after the dispersion, and that the plains
of Sinjar and of Nineveh, with perhaps all the northern parts
of Mesopotamia, were included in the kingdom of Shinar,
which formed the germ of the Assyrian empire. It is pro-
bable that Nimrod succeeded Asshur in the government of
this kingdom, and greatly extended its boundaries. He may
be considered as the founder of the first dynasty of the As-
syrian kings, and was probably afterwards deified under the
title of Nisroch, which signifies not only an eagle, but a
hawk, a bird which, being used in the chase, typified the
ruling passion of the “mighty hunter.”
An interval of 1098 years seems to have intervened be-
tween the foundation of Nineveh and the first rise of the
Assyrian empire to the dominion of Upper Asia, which is
mentioned by Herodotus. According to the common chro-
nology, the building of Nineveh is placed in B. C. 2304.
The period during which the Assyrian empire exercised a
supreme influence over Asia, embraced, according to Hero-
dotus, five hundred and twenty years, while the duration of
the Median rule, commencing at the destruction of Nineveh,
and enduring till the time of Cyrus, is reckoned by the same
authority at one hundred and fifty years. The first year of
Cyrus is computed to be B. C. 536, to which we must add
the united periods of the Assyrian and Median sway. These
* Gen. xi. 8. f Herod. lib. i. cap. 95. f Ibid.


248 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
amount to six hundred and seventy years, which, if added
to the era of Cyrus, bring the first rise of the Assyrian power
to B. C. 1206, a period which synchronizes as nearly as pos-
sible with the statement of Major Rawlinson, which places
the sudden aggrandizement of the Assyrian empire in the
twelfth or thirteenth century before the Christian era.
The Assyrian kings mentioned in Scripture are five in
number, and they all flourished at the close of the period
mentioned by Herodotus. Their names and the dates when
they began to reign are as follows:—
Pul, B. C. 771.
Tiglath Pileser, B. C. 747.
Shalmaneser, B. C. 728.
Sennacherib, B. C. 714.
Esarhaddon, B. C. 710.
Of these monarchs, it is probable that the former, Pul, was
the same as the Asser adanpul, or Sardanapalus the First,
mentioned by Major Rawlinson as distinguished from Sar-
danapalus the Second, or Esarhaddon, the last king of Nine-
veh mentioned in Scripture. Asser Adan Pul is described
in the inscriptions as the builder of the N. W. palace at
Nimroud, and the ruler over many districts in Syria, Asia
Minor, Mesopotamia, Armenia, the country between the two
Zabs, and the lower regions near the Persian Gulf. The
gods whom he worshiped, Assarac, Beltis, Ani, and Dagon,
are then alluded to, and Major Rawlinson seems disposed to
identify Assarac with the Nisroch of Scripture. We find
from the inscriptions on some votive bulls and lions, that
Sardanapalus soon after passed the great desert into Syria,
and received the tribute of Tyre and Sidon, of Akarra (Acre),
of Gubul, and of Arvad. All this corresponds remarkably
with the acts of Pul, as recorded in 2 Kings. He is the
first Assyrian king mentioned in Scripture, and he seems to
have invaded Syria and Phoenicia, and to have subdued the
northern parts of Palestine : Menahem, King of Israel, paid
him tribute, after which he returned to his own dominions.
This Pul, Pal, or Sardanapalus the First, seems to have
been the Bel or Belus of the Babylonians; the letters P. and
B. being frequently interchanged in Semitic languages. To
this Belus many persons in the time of Quintus Curtius


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 249
ascribed the building of Babylon.” His name is thus brought
in contact with that of Semiramis, who is mentioned by other
writers as the foundress of that city. It seems likely that
Pul was the Ninus of the Greeks, the more especially as
Herodotus, the only trustworthy historian of these matters,
places but five generations between Nitocris, the queen of
Nebuchadnezzar, and Semiramis. But Nebuchadnezzar was
the son of Baladan, the first king of Babylon, who attained
that dignity by conspiring with Arbaces the Mede against
Asser adanpal, Sardanapalus II., or Esarhaddon, as he is
termed in Scripture. From Nebuchadnezzar, therefore, to
the period of Pul, were exactly five generations, namely,
Baladan, Esarhaddon, Sennacherib, Shalmaneser, and Tig-
lath Pileser. The assertions of Herodotus are peculiarly
entitled to respect, as he is supposed to have written a his-
tory of Assyria, and to have derived his information exclu-
sively from Chaldean sources. The simplicity of that vene-
rable and veracious historian placed him far above the
conceited ignorance of many of his countrymen, who affected
to despise the records of barbarians, even when they were
writing their history. . As for Ctesias, his propensity for
fiction was so well known that not even his cotemporaries
could trust him.
It seems likely that Pul commenced the erection of a city
in the province of Babylonia, of which he left the completion
to his wife Semiramis. After his death he was worshiped
under the name of Bel, a very different divinity from the
Baal of the Ammonites and Western Syria, and with whom
the chief of the Babylonian Pantheon must not be con-
founded. -
The new city was peopled by the Chasdin, or Chaldeans,
wandering tribes who had hitherto inhabited the northern
* Quint. Curt., lib. 5. In his description of Babylon, he mentions that a
king of Syria constructed the hanging gardens for the use of his wife. If for
Syria we read Assyria, two names often confounded, this assertion may sup-
port the hypothesis advocated above.
+ “Asser adanpal” and “Esarhaddon” are too much alike to need any
attempt at identification. The similarity of the names shows that the Greek
Sardanapalus, whom all profane historians agree was the last king of Assyria,
and the Esarhaddon of Scripture, are one and the same person. Shortly after
the accession of the latter is mentioned, we read of Merodach Baladan, King
of Babylon, the Belesis of profane history. The conjectures of Prideaux and
others, who have considered Tiglath Pileser to be the same person as Arbaces
the Mede, seem unnatural, and destitute of any solid foundation.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 251
of the sculptures or inscriptions lately discovered, are more
than a century older than the reign of Pul or Sardanapalus
the First. Nor am I disposed to agree with Major Rawlinson
that these memorials are wholly unconnected with the later
Assyrian sovereigns mentioned in Scripture. I have read
carefully the report of his paper in the “Athenaeum,” but I
have not been able to discover any single argument to prove
that any one of the inscriptions or sculptures are older than
the period alluded to. If they are, we must be driven to the
alternative of supposing that the Assyrian monarchs invaded
Syria and the Holy Land before the time of Pul, a fact which
is utterly irreconcilable with Scripture history.
The last of the Assyrian kings was Sardanapalus II., the
Esarhaddon of the Bible. He seems to have been a prince
of effeminate and vicious habits, if we may trust the report
of Ctesias. In the midst of his concubines, the successor of
Semiramis devoted himself to the study of female arts and
accomplishments. He excelled in spinning and the myste-
ries of the toilet, and joined to his unmanly affectation of
female manners the grossest and most disgusting vices. An
inscription, composed by himself, and inscribed, it is said, on
the gates of his sepulchre, betrays the low sensuality of an
ignoble mind.
On one occasion the Median satrap, Arbaces, was admit-
ted on important business to the presence of his sovereign.
He encountered a being whose habits and demeanor appear-
ed those of one who could scarcely be called a man. With
painted cheeks, and lisping accents, the monarch treated the
grave affairs of state as of less importance than the proper
management of a spindle, and the indignant satrap withdrew
in anger and contempt from the presence of one whom he
felt himself degraded in serving. He communicated his
discontent and his hopes to Baladan, who then ruled the pro-
vince of the Chasdim and the rising city of Babylon. The
two satraps combined their forces and besieged Nineveh,
where Esarhaddon was indulging his passions and his vices
in voluptuous security. He found himself deserted by his
allies, and, after some vain attempts to repulse the rebels, he
constructed a large and spacious pile, on which, surrounded
by his wives and concubines, the last King of Assyria met
his death amid the flames which his own hand had kindled."
* Diod. Siculus, lib. xi. 23.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 253
the establishment of the Parthian empire. The kings of
Parthia, or rather their lieutenants, maintained their ground
in Assyria, with varied success, till the foundation of the
kingdom of Adiabene, which dates its commencement from the
Mithradatic wars. Plutarch, in his life of Lucullus, mentions
a king of Adiabene who allied himself with Tigranes against
the Romans. His dominions seem to have comprised the
whole of Assyria proper, which was bounded on the north
by the Gordian or Kurdish mountains, on the west by the
Tigris, and on the east and south by the lower Zab.
One of the successors of this king, whose name was Mono-
bazus, was the father of several sons by his wife Helena, but
he set his affections chiefly on the youngest, Izates, a par-
tiality which excited the jealousy of the others. Fearing
that their envy would work some evil to his favorite, the
king sent him, with many presents, to Abennerig, the king
or chief of Charax Spasini, who gladly received and pro-
tected him, and finally gave him his daughter, Samacha, in
marriage. A short time before his death, the King of Adia-
bene sent for his son, and bestowed upon him a province
called Caeron, or Carraº, where it is said the remains of the
ark were still at that time preserved. In this country, Izates
continued in peace till his father’s death, when, by the una-
nimous voice of the nobles of Adiabene, he was proclaimed
king.
While Izates resided at the court of Abennerig he was
converted to the Jewish religion, which soon after his mother,
Helena, also embraced, and became remarkable for her zeal
and devotion. She had no sooner seen her son quietly
established in his kingdom than she determined to make a
pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and to take up her abode there.
When she arrived at the Holy City, she found that a great
famine prevailed in the country of Judea, which is, indeed,
supposed to be the scarcity predicted by Agabus in Acts xi.
28. The queen immediately sent to Alexandria and to Cy-
prus to purchase great quantities of provisions, which, when
they arrived at Jerusalem, she distributed among all those
who needed assistance. Izates also dispatched large sums
of money to the chief men among the Jews about the same
time.
The sincerity of the king's religious views was shown by
one of his first actions after his accession to the throne of
22


254 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Adiabene. At the death of his father, Monobazus, the
children of the deceased monarch had been placed in con-
finement, according to the usual Parthian and Persian custom.
Izates not only released them, but expressed his deep sor-
row that they had been subjected to this treatment, for
which he endeavored to atone by the consideration with
which he afterwards behaved towards them.
During the early part of the reign of Izates, Artabanus,
King of Parthia, finding that his nobles had conspired
against him, left Ctesiphon, and took refuge in the territory
of Adiabene. This proud monarch, who styled himself in
all his epistles the King of Kings, advanced to meet Izates
with the air of a suppliant. Dismounting from his horse, he
made a low obeisance, and entreated in the humblest terms
protection and support as from a brother monarch. The
generous Adiabenian was no sooner aware of the quality
and misfortunes of his guest than he leaped from his horse,
which he compelled the royal exile to mount, while he him-
self escorted him on foot to his palace. During his stay in
Adiabene, Artabanus was treated with all the consideration
which his rank demanded; the upper place at festivals was
conceded to him, and all the sympathy which a generous
mind could exhibit to depressed and fallen royalty was freely
bestowed.
Nor did Izates neglect to employ more active measures in
behalf of his friend and ally. By his mediation the Par-
thians were induced again to receive their sovereign, and
the grateful Artabanus soon departed for his own kingdom,
having conferred on his host and benefactor the most sub-
stantial tokens of his regard. The King of Adiabene re-
ceived the permission of the Parthian monarch to wear his
tiara upright, and to sleep on a golden bed, while the rich
province of Nisibis was bestowed upon him to furnish the
means of supporting his new dignities.
After the death of Artabanus, the kingdom of the Par-
thians became a prey to intestine troubles. Gotarzes, the
son of the late king, seized upon the throne, but met with a
warm opposition from his brother, Bardanes, who at length
succeeded in inducing him to give up his claims to the
crown and to retire into Hyrcania. He soon, however, re-
pented of his act, and raised forces, with which he marched
against Bardanes, but was defeated, and obliged to fly.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 255
Elated with his victory, Bardanes behaved himself with such
haughtiness and cruelty to his subjects that they conspired
against him, and he was assassinated during a hunting expe-
dition. He had previously denounced war against Izates,
being provoked that he would not join him in an intended
expedition against the Romans.
Gotarzes now mounted the Parthian throne, but he be-
coming in his turn obnoxious to his subjects, some of them
called in Meherdates, the grandson of a former King Phra-
ates, who had been dispatched as an hostage to Rome.
The Parthian ambassadors appeared before the Senate, and
in a pathetic oration deplored the miseries of their country,
devastated by civil contests, and the extinction of the line
of their ancient kings. -
The Senate was pleased to grant Meherdates to their
prayers, being doubtless by no means unwilling to excite or
continue dissensions which prevented the Parthians from
turning their arms against the Roman dominions in the East.
In a long oration, the Emperor Claudius addressed the am-
bassadors and the Parthian prince, who was himself present
in the august assembly, inculcating on the latter the neces-
sity of ruling his dominions with moderation and justice,
while he warned the former of the danger of frequent
changes, and insinuated the policy of sometimes complying
with the humors of their kings. He concluded by remark-
ing that the Romans, satiated with military glory, desired
nothing more than to see universal peace pervading all
foreign nations. Caius Cassius, the Governor of Syria, was
charged to escort the young prince as far as the banks of the
Euphrates, which office he fulfilled satisfactorily, and dis-
missed him with just and reasonable counsels, which, how-
ever, Meherdates did not afterwards follow.
This aspirant to the Parthian throne having wasted both
time and opportunity by unseasonable delays, at length
crossed the Tigris, and marched through the territory of
Adiabene. Izates had openly professed himself in his favor,
though he seems to have carried on, at the same time, a
secret correspondence with Gotarzes. It appears, however,
that the forces of Meherdates captured the city of Ninus,
which still seems to have been large enough to be occupied
as a military post.*
* Tacit. Annal., lib. xii. Josephus Antiq., lib. xx.


256 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Izates and Akbar, King of the Arabians,” soon deserted
the cause of the Parthian pretender, who shortly after was
defeated in battle by Gotarzes, who spared his life, but com-
manded that his ears should be cut off.
The success which had attended the affairs of Izates, and
the virtues which distinguished him, produced a favorable
effect on his brother Monobazus, and his other kindred.
Ascribing his good fortune to the religion which he pro-
fessed, they determined also to become proselytes to the
Jewish faith. But this intention of theirs having greatly dis-
pleased the great men of the country, the latter formed a
league against them, and endeavored to enlist in their cause
Abia, King of the Arabians, who, for the sake of a large
bribe that had been promised him, marched against Izates.
The King of Adiabene prepared to repel the invaders, but
soon discovered the domestic treason of some of his nobles,
who had agreed that during the conflict they would take to
flight, and thus throw into disorder the ranks of Izates. These
traitors having met with the punishment they deserved, their
sovereign marched against the Arabians, whom he defeated
with great slaughter; after which Abia, fearing to fall into
the hands of the enemy, fell upon his own sword, and expired
i. º: fortress of Arsum, where he had taken refuge after the
attle.
But the nobles of Adiabene still maintaining their aversion
to the royal family, dispatched messengers to solicit the aid
of the Parthian king, Volagases, the grandson of Gotarzes.
The ambassadors complained that their sovereign had de-
parted from the laws and customs of his forefathers, and was
endeavoring to introduce Jewish customs. It is not impro-
bable that Izates had become a Christian, as about this time
the Gospel was promulgated with great success in Mesopo-
tamia, by St. Thomas, St. Bartholomew, and Adacus. The
Jewish religion was not a creed that sought to obtain con-
verts among the heathen, nor, indeed, did it provoke that
hostility which we find was always excited by the preaching
of Christianity. On the other hand, the first teachers of the
Gospel used every effort to extend the empire of the Church,
nor is it unlikely that their active zeal would produce feel-
ings of the most bitter hostility among people who adhered
with superstitious firmness to the tenets of their fathers.
* This prince was probably the Agbarus of ecclesiastical history.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 257
The King of Parthia lent a favorable ear to the complaints
of the malcontents of Adiabene, and after sending an em-
bassage to Izates to demand back those privileges which
Artabanus had bestowed, he determined, in the event of a
refusal, to make it the pretext for war. The King of Adia-
bene, who had penetrated the designs of the Parthian, not
only refused to accede to his demand, but prepared imme-
diately for an invasion. He placed his family in a strong
ſortress, and having well garrisoned the citadels of his domin-
ions, he awaited the advance of the Parthians. -
Volagases, in the mean time, had pitched his tents on the
banks of a river which separated Adiabene from Media. He
dispatched an ambassador to Izates, who was charged with
a message that breathed all the lofty arrogance of the Par-
thian kings. The envoy dwelt upon the greatness of his
master, and the magnitude of his dominions, which extended
from the river Euphrates, even to Bactria, while with an im-
pious boldness he insulted the religion professed by Izates,
and declared almost in the language of Rab Shakeh, the in-
ability of the God of Israel to oppose the power of the great
king.
The reply of Izates to these menaces was calm and digni-
fied. While he acknowledged the extent of territory which
was subject to the Parthian monarch, the valor of his nation,
and the multitude of his troops, he reminded the messenger
that the power of God was greater than that of man, and
professed his determination to await with hope and confidence
the decision of Heaven.
The envoy of Volagases took his departure, and Izates,
clothed in sackcloth, devoted himself, with his family, to
fasting and supplication. The night after, Volagases having
received intelligence that the Dahae and Sacae had made an
inroad into Parthia during his absence, retired back to his
own dominions. -
After a reign of twenty-four years, the wise and virtuous
Izates was buried in the sepulchre of his fathers, and was
succeeded by his elder brother Monobazus, who had distin-
guished himself by his affectionate loyalty to the late sove-
reign. The mournful news reached the aged Helena, in her
pious retreat at Jerusalem, from which she hastened with
many lamentations to Adiabene, where she soon afterwards
expired. Monobazus caused her bones, and those of his
22%


258 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
deceased brother, to be transported to Jerusalem, and buried
in the pyramids which his mother had erected during her
residence at the Holy City.
From the death of Izates, we find no mention of the king-
dom of Adiabene until the time of Trajan, when the Adiabe-
nians, with their King Mebarsapes, joined Chosroes, King
of Persia, against the Romans.” Mebarsapes was, however,
driven from his dominions, and obliged to take refuge in
Arabia, but soon after succeeded in effecting a peace, and
seems to have returned to his kingdom. Another long in-
terval of silence occurs respecting the affairs of this coun-
try, and we hear nothing of Adiabene till the reign of Sapor
II., King of Persia, who was cotemporary with the Empe-
rors Constans, Julian, and Jovian, and persecuted the Christ-
ians of Persia with great severity. Most of the inhabitants
of Adiabene had by this time embraced the doctrines of the
Gospel, and Arbela was the seat of a Christian bishop. The
Adiabenians are mentioned, in ecclesiastical history, as hav-
ing withstood, with noble constancy, the efforts of their per-
secutors, and several bishops and priests watered with their
blood the plains of ancient Assyria.f
The kingdom of Adiabene had now become a province of
the Persian empire, and the very name of Nineveh was for
a long period buried in obscurity. The caliphs, having sub-
dued Persia, seem to have added Mosul and the vicinity to
their dominions, among which it remained until the fall of
Baghdad and the rise of the Ottoman power.
I have thus endeavored, briefly, to trace the history of
Nineveh from the earliest records of its existence to the pre-
sent time. Perhaps few places that have exercised great
influence over the destinies of mankind have left so little to
supply materials for the historian. Yet we may reasonably
hope that the labors of Major Rawlinson and others will be
attended with success, and that a vast fund of information,
derived from the cuneiform inscriptions, may soon be added
to the few and scanty pages which, up to a recent period,
have comprised what has been called the history of Assyria.
* Dio. in Trajan.
f Sozom. Eccl. Hist, lib. ii. cap. 12.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 259
CHAPTER XXIII.
Remarks on the Ecclesiastical History of the Chaldeans.
At the period of the birth of Christ, the various religions
professed by the inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Assyria, and
Chaldea, were as numerous as the nations or races which
composed the mixed population of those countries. The
professors of the ancient system of idolatry which had pre-
vailed before the Persian conquest were mingled with the
followers of the Magi. The sacred groves that concealed
from public view the mysteries of the Assyrian Venus were
planted at the foot of the mountain, on whose lofty summit
arose the fire temple of the image-hating Persians, while
the simple synagogue of the Jew confronted the Grecian
temple, adorned by the taste of the descendants of the Mace-
donian conquerors. The worship of the sun, and of the
heavenly bodies, seems to have been the most prevalent form
of idolatary in the Mesopotamian plains, while the opinions
of the Magians respecting the evil nature of matter, the
necessity of bodily mortification, and the continual conflict
between the principles of good and evil, were certainly re-
ceived by numerous votaries, and formed the germ of that
heresy which, under the name of Gnosticism, impeded the
progress of the early Christain church.
Nor was the Hebrew system without numerous representa-
tives among the dwellers in Mesopotamia and Assyria. The
Jews had met with signal favor and encouragement from the
monarchs of Persia, and large numbers of them had preferred
remaining at Babylon and Susa, to returning with Zorobabel
to the land of their fathers. There seems strong reason for
supposing that many accompanied the Macedonian conqueror
in his Eastern expedition, and were allotted equal privileges
with his Grecian followers. At a later period we find Izates,
a powerful prince, making an open profession of Judaism,
and inducing a large number of the chief men of Adiabene


260 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
to imitate his example. At the day of Pentecost, we read of
strangers from Parthia, Media, Persia, and Mesopotamia, as-
sembled to celebrate the festival of the Passover at Jerusalem,
and numbered afterwards among the hearers of the apostles.
Some of these doubtless became converts to the new faith,
and diffused among their countrymen, after their return, the
knowledge of the principles which they had imbibed.
The three Magi who had been miraculously guided to the
humble stable of Bethlehem, where they saw and adored the
infant Saviour, are reckoned by the Chaldeans among their
earliest missionaries; nor does this tradition seem entirely
void of probability. Other Oriental writers record that St.
Peter, St. Thomas, St. Bartholomew, and St. Matthew propa-
gated among the Chaldeans the tenets of the Divine Saviour."
But the first town of any note on the eastern bank of the
Euphrates which received the teaching of the apostles, ap-
pears to have been the city of Edessa, the ancient Ur, and
the modern Urfa. During the lifetime of the Saviour, a
chieftain of the name of Agbarus or Akbar occupied this
city and its adjoining territory. Moved by the reports which
he had received of the miracles of a great Jewish teacher, he
is said to have dispatched an epistle to our Lord, offering to
afford him a safe asylum from the malice of the Jews.
Writers of no small note have affirmed that the Saviour
returned him a gracious answer, accompanied by his picture,
and the intimation that an apostle should be sent to him after
the resurrection to instruct him more fully in the way of
truth.
I shall not enter upon the frequently discussed question as
to whether such an event did really take place; yet it must
be remembered that Eusebius, who relates it, professes to
have derived his information from documents preserved in
the public archives of the city. At the present day, a
spring is pointed out in the neighborhood of Urfah, into
which, it is said, the picture was thrown at the time of the
Mohammedan conquest; and even at Aleppo I found bottles
of water which had been brought thence as a remedy against
sickness.
It is certain that, a short time after the day of Pentecost,
St. Thaddeus, one of the Seventy, preached the Gospel at
Edessa, accompanied by his disciples Aghaeus or Adaus, and
* Assem, tom. iii. f Euseb. Eccl. Hist, lib. i. c. 13.


262 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
prayers proved successful, the course of the persecution
should be arrested. The intercession of Abraham is said to
have procured health for the sufferer, and the grateful parent
used his influence and authority to protect his Christian
subjects.” s
Shortly after this event, the expedition of Trajan took
place, and this prince, whose hands had already been imbrued
in the blood of Ignatius of Smyrna, treated the Christians of
Edessa with great severity. His forces overran Adiabene,
Mesopotamia, and Chaldea, where he seems to have afflicted
the rising churches with equal cruelty. The fact that the
Eastern Christians were generally subjects of the monarchs
of Persia and Parthia, rendered them objects of suspicion to
the Roman government. When Achadbues, a priest of
Seleucia, repaired in company with one Jabjesu to Antioch,
that he might receive consecration to the episcopal office, the
fellow-travelers were arrested by the Roman magistrate as
Persian spies, and Achadbues escaped, by flight only, a cruel
and lingering death. The unfortunate Jabjesu, with his host,
were dragged before the praetor and crucified, notwithstand-
ing they loudly protested their innocence of any evil or
treasonable intention. Achadbues succeeded in reaching
Jerusalem, where he obtained consecration as bishop, and
returned soon after to Seleucia.
After the decease of Achadbues, his successor Sciachlupha
was prevented from repairing to Antioch by the war which
was then raging between the Parthians and the Romans. He
was therefore consecrated by the neighboring bishops, who
had lately increased greatly in numbers; and this seems to
have been the first step towards the separation of the church
of the extreme East from the patriarchate of Antioch. The
latter see, in early times, possessed the chief jurisdiction over
the Christians of Mesopotamia and Persia. Antioch was not
only the metropolitan city of the Roman dominions in the
East, but it was the place where the disciples of Jesus had
first received the cherished title of Christians. From Antioch
the zealous missionaries of the Gospel had gone forth to the
remote regions beyond the Euphrates. To her the Orientals
owed their rites and their doctrines, and by her judgment
they regulated their decisions in questions of faith. It was
* Bar Hebraeus apud Assem. tom. iii.
-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 263
natural, therefore, that, during the first and second centuries,
the Metropolitans of Seleucia and Persia should testify their
allegiance to the patriarch of the Syrian city, by receiving at
his hands those privileges and powers which were necessary
for the due discharge of their sacred and important duties.
But as time rolled on, and Christianity extended itself in
Persia, and on the banks of the Tigris, it seemed incongruous
that the chief bishop of a tract of country almost extra-patri-
archal in extent, should continue subject to the spiritual ruler
of a district far removed from the place of his residence, and
with whom he had few opportunities of taking counsel, or of
holding official intercourse. Nor were these difficulties dimi-
nished by the political arrangements which then prevailed.
With the exception of the Christians of Nisibis and Amida,
the whole of those to whom, for the sake of distinction, I shall
affix the title of Chaldeans, were subject to the authority of
the Persian or Parthian kings. The former always looked
suspiciously on the Christianity of their Chaldean subjects, as
they considered it a tie of union which bound them to their
Roman foes. It must also be remembered that the journey
to Antioch from Seleucia was not always a safe one in times
of peace, as the intervening country was frequently the seat
of warfare, which of course entirely intercepted all commu-
nication. It soon became evident, therefore, that the Chal-
deans of the East must sooner or later withdraw themselves
from a jurisdiction which afforded them much inconvenience
and little benefit. Their distant position had also a tendency
to prevent their feeling much sympathy with the movements
or theological investigations of the Eastern Syrian Church.
In their remote regions, the echo of the logical disputes of
Antioch and Edessa never reached them, or, if it did, was
entirely lost upon a people who lacked the subtle, curious
spirit of the Asiatic Greeks. It is not improbable, therefore,
that their notions were often illogical and ill-digested, or that
they adhered with blind fondness to antiquated forms of ex-
pression which the perversion of Western heresy had rendered
it ambiguous and dangerous to use."
About the middle of the third century, Sapor or Shapoor I.
succeeded Ardsheer or Artaxares, who was the first monarch
of the Sassanides. The Persian race had now recovered the
* Bar Hebraeus apud Assem, tom. iii.


264 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
ascendency over their Parthian rulers, and the new sovereigns
felt or feigned a zeal for the ancient institutions of their coun-
try, which led them to tolerate, and perhaps encourage, the
persecution of their Christian subjects.
Sapor had no sooner ascended the throne than a sangui-
nary war broke out between Persia and Rome. The Persian
king, at the head of a large army, ravaged the Mesopotamian
provinces with fire and sword, and even captured Antioch
itself. He was, however, compelled speedily to retreat. The
Emperor Gordian retook in the course of one campaign all
that had been wrested from the Romans, and was even about
to lay siege to Ctesiphon, when he was assassinated by Philip,
the Arabian, who, anxious to reap the fruits of his perfidy,
concluded a hasty peace with the Persians, and returned to
Antioch.
In the year 250, the persecution which Decius had com-
menced against the Christians at Rome penetrated to the
remote region of Mesopotamia. Several Persians received
the crown of martyrdom during its continuance; while, to
add to the calamities of the Chaldean Christians, the armies
of Sapor invaded the Roman territories after the death of
Decius, and the proud monarch of the East had the gratifica-
tion of beholding the Emperor Valerian a captive in Persia."
The valor of Odenatus of Palmyra alone maintained the
honor of Rome, and the imperial city of the Caesars was in-
debted to a Syrian for the safety of her Eastern provinces.
Sapor founded, to commemorate his victories, a city entitled
Gandisapor, which is chiefly noted as having attracted thither
several Greek physicians, who translated into the Oriental
languages the medical works of Hippocrates.
The third century produced two heresiarchs, whose opin-
ions made some progress in the East. The first of these
was Paul of Samosata, who had been raised by the influence
of Zenobia to the Bishopric of Antioch. He was vain, pre-
sumptuous, and self-conceited, nor did the excellence of his
moral character compensate for the defects of his understand-
ing. The hatred and disgust of his opponents may have
exaggerated the charges brought against him, yet his con-
duct even an impartial judge must pronounce in every respect
unworthy of a Christian bishop. The heresy which he held
* Acta Martyr. Oriental. Pagius ad Ann. 297, apud Assemani.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 265
and taught, seems to have been “That Christ and the Holy
Ghost were not distinct persons in the Godhead, but merely
the representatives of certain divine attributes, which it pleased
God to manifest under their names, and that Jesus Christ was
a mere man, upon whom the wisdom or reason of the Father
descended, in order to work out certain ends.” The imme-
diate followers of Paul were not numerous, but his system
lingered in the Eastern schools, and perhaps produced in
many minds a scarcely perceptible bias towards the opinions
which were afterwards advocated and defended by Nestorius.*
The second heresiarch alluded to was Manes, or Manichaeus,
a Persian by birth, who endeavored to combine the doctrines
of the Gospel with the Magian philosophy. The opinions of
this person, having already been noticed at some length in
the course of this work, I shall not recapitulate his tenets,
which, however, at first excited some attention in Persia,
where the doctrine was perhaps secretly favored by many of
the Magi. The success of his system in his native land
induced the heresiarch to attempt the propagation of his errors
in Mesopotamia and the parts adjacent. Some writers affirm,
however, that he was obliged to leave Persia to avoid the
anger of the king, whose son he had failed in curing, after
he had undertaken to restore him to health by a miracle.
While in Mesopotamia he challenged Archelaus, Bishop of
Cascara, to a public disputation, in which he was manifestly
defeated, and returned foiled and disappointed to his native
country, where the officers of the king seized and conveyed
him to a royal fortress, where he was flayed alive and perished
miserably.f
At the commencement of the fourth century, the course of
the Manichaean heresy had been to a certain extent arrested
by the zealous endeavors of Archelaus and others, but it still
continued for many centuries to retain many secret and
avowed supporters in the regions of the East. The Christ-
ians of Persia enjoyed for a short time the blessings of tran-
quillity and peace, while their brethren in the Roman territories
were suffering severely from the persecution which had lately
been commenced by the Emperors Carus and Numerian.
* Mosheim, Eccles. Hist, Cent. III. Burton. Hist. of the First Three Cen-
turies.
t Mosheim, Cent. III. Photius Adversus Manicharos. Beausobre Histoire
du Manicheisme.
23


266 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
But they were soon destined to experience the same misfor-
tunes; for the Romans, having broken the peace which Probus
had made with the Persians, invaded Mesopotamia, and
captured Seleucia, Ctesiphon, and Coche, inflicting great
cruelties on the Christian inhabitants of those places.
From the nature of its position, Edessa was the first to
experience the severity of the emperor. Since the days of
Agbarus, its schools had been the receptacles and the dispen-
sers of Christian learning. Macarius gave lectures in Syriac,
upon the text of Scripture, and instructed in Biblical criticism
the future priests and bishops of the Syro Chaldean Church.
After the death of Carus, the Persians recovered, for a
short time, the regions of Mesopotamia, but they suffered
great loss towards the termination of the reign of Diocletian.
Galerius concluded a peace with them, or rather a truce of
forty years, by the terms of which the general Roman boun-
dary was terminated by the Tigris, and the five provinces of
Azanene, Sophene, Intilene, Zabdicene, and Corduene,
situated on the eastern side of that river, were ceded to Rome.*
About this time, monachism was first introduced into Meso-
potamia from Egypt by Aones, who seems to have been the
disciple of the Syrian Hilarion. The climate of Mesopotamia
and the character of its inhabitants were favorable to the
progress of the new system. The dry, arid nature of the for-
mer presented few incentives to the appetite, and rendered
rigid fasting less difficult than it would have been found in
colder regions, while the sober, meditative, and grave charac-
ter of the Oriental inclined him to view favorably a life of
contemplation. Aones soon numbered some of the most
ardent, learned, and zealous of the Eastern priesthood among
his followers, at the head of whom stands the celebrated
James of Nisibis, whose name and actions I have alluded to
in another place.f -
Yet the monks of the East must not be confounded with
those idle and luxurious drones who have so often excited the
ridicule and contempt of Western Europe. Aones, who is also
called Eugenius, employed his disciples in works of practical
utility. Freed from all restraint and impediment, which the ties
of matrimony or the quiet seductions of a comfortable home
might have cast in their path, they went boldly forth to in-
* Assem., tom. iii. Dissertatio. * Assem, tom iii.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 267
struct the population of the most miserable villages, and the
inhabitants of the steepest and most rugged mountains.
Fearless of danger, they scaled the precipices of Kurdistan,
and poured into the ear of the dying Carduchian the consola-
tions of a faith which had induced them to brave all perils
for the love of God and of man. With a wallet on his
shoulders, and a traveling staff in his hand, the Chaldean
monk, transformed at a moment’s notice into a zealous and
active missionary, crossed the widest rivers, and traversed
the most inhospitable plains. His home was the first cottage
that afforded the shelter of its mud walls to the wandering
stranger, his food the fare of the humblest peasant, his com-
panions the rude and ignorant tillers of the earth, whose toils
he lightened, and whose troubles he consoled by the bright
and glorious tidings on which, with rude but touching elo-
quence, he loved to dilate. Such were the men who in the
fourth century of the Christian era evangelized the numerous
inhabitants of Mesopotamia and Assyria, such were also their
successors, who in after ages spread the triumphs of Christi-
anity over the distant regions of Tartary, India, and China.
Shortly after the introduction of monachism into the Eastern
church, a schism took place which was provoked by the pride
and intolerable arrogance of Papas, the son of Aghaeus, Arch-
bishop of Ctesiphon and Seleucia. This unworthy successor
of St. Thaddeus treated the priests and deacons of his church
with indignity and contempt, while he proudly rejected the
authority of the Synod which had assembled to take cogni-
zance of his unjust and unchristian proceedings.
Milles, Bishop of Susa, had long been noted among the
Chaldeans for the purity of his doctrine and the innocence of
his life. He accosted Papas in a public assembly with all
the fervor of a zealous and earnest mind—“Dost thou think,”
he indignantly exclaimed, “that the faults of thy brethren
give thee a just right to treat them with pride and scorn ?
Can it be that thou deemest the words of God a fable, which
teach that he who would be chief among Christians should
be the servant of all ?”
Papas answered the remonstrance of the venerable bishop
with derisive contempt, upon which Milles, taking from his
bag the manuscript of the Gospel, placed it respectfully on a
desk in the midst.
“If thou wilt not hear these words,” he said, with calm


208 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
dignity, “from me who am but a mortal like thyself, consult
the decisions of the Evangelists, which now lay open before
the eyes of thy body, though I fear they are hidden from the
view of thy mind.”
Almost beside himself with rage, Papas insolently advanced
in the midst, and striking the holy volume with his clenched
hand, he cried, in a sneering tone, “Speak, O Gospell speak
if thou canst, since verily my speech faileth me.”
Penetrated with grief, the aged Milles rushed forward, over-
come by emotions of horror and regret. With both hands he
seized the sacred tome, covered it with kisses, and pressed it
respectfully to his forehead. Then turning to Papas, he said,
with deep solemnity, “Because thou hast thus shamefully
treated the word of the living God, behold his angel standeth
beside thee, and shall cause thy hand to wither, which has
offered such insult to him.” -
The historian adds that the right side of Papas was sud-
denly smitten with paralysis, and that he continued until the
day of his death an object of astonishment and terror to many."
Simeon succeeded the unworthy Papas in the see of Seleu-
cia, and was present at the council of Nice, where the heresy
of Arius was condemned. The creed drawn up by the bishops
there assembled was generally received by the Chaldean
church, and is held by their descendants even at the present
day. I shall transcribe it as it is now recited in their
churches. It is entitled “The creed that was composed by
three hundred and eighteen Holy Fathers, who were assem-
bled at Nice, a city of Bithynia, in the time of King Constan-
tine the Pious, on account of Arius the accursed infidel.
“We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of
all things, both visible and invisible, and in our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, the only begotten of His Father before
all worlds, who was not created, True God of True God, of
the same substance with His Father; by whose hands the
worlds were made, and all things created, who for us men,
and for our salvation, descended from Heaven and was incar-
nate by the Holy Ghost and became man, and was conceived
and born of the Virgin, and suffered and was crucified in the
days of Pontius Pilate, and died and was buried, and rose on
the third day according to the Scriptures, and ascended into
* Bar Hebraeus apud Assemani, tom. iii.


270 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
sian Satrap. But the persecutors cared neither for age nor
sex, and the whole body were at once dragged off to die.
They suffered with patient constancy, but their blood did not
quench the flame of persecution. A vast multitude of both
sexes were seized, and doomed to cruel and lingering
deaths.”
The expedition under Julian terminated fatally for the
Romans, and by an ignominious treaty, the city of Nisibis
was surrendered to the Persian monarch. An innumerable
crowd of citizens, among which the majority were Christians,
followed the retreat of Jovian, forsaking for ever the homes
where they had so long dwelt in happiness and tranquillity.
One voice was raised with honest courage to rebuke the pu-
sillanimity of the emperor in the accents of sarcastic re-
proach; and the vain and arrogant Jovian was but too glad
to conceal himself from the murmurs of those whom his
want of courage and conduct had driven forth as wanderers
and fugitives.t
In the year 419 of the Christian era, and the twentieth of
the reign of Yezdegerd, the rash zeal of Abdas, Bishop of
Susa, provoked a renewal of the persecution. The prelate
had destroyed a fire-temple belonging to the Magi, and this
imprudent and indefensible action so excited the anger of
the king that he put to death the bishop and some of his
presbyters, and ordered the Christian Church to be leveled
with the ground. The intercession of one of his Christian
officers, however, appeased his fury, but not before a small
number of persons had suffered martyrdom.
Soon after the persecution had ceased, war broke out be-
tween the Romans and the Persians, on account of the pro-
tection and succor which the former had afforded to some
Christian fugitives. During the hostilities which ensued,
the Romans laid waste the province of Azanene, and carried
with them to Amida a band of wretched captives, whose
naked and miserable condition exciting the commiseration of
Acacius, the bishop of that city, he sold the sacred utensils
of the church, and parted with all his own property to relieve
their wants. The unhappy Persians obtained by his means
a release from their bondage, and were clothed and furnished
with all the necessaries that they required by the aid of the
* Assem., tom. iii. f Gibbon, chap. xxv.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 271
charitable prelate, whose munificent and truly Christian
benevolence had the double effect of soothing the miseries
inflicted by the horrors of war and of disposing the King of
Persia to regard with more good will the religion which pro-
duced such excellent fruits.”
CHAPTER XXIV.
Remarks on the ecclesiastical history of the Chaldeans.
THE Chaldean or Assyrian Church maintained, during the
first four centuries of the Christian era, a perfect and unin-
terrupted communion with her sisters of Asia, Africa, and
Europe; her prelates assisted in their councils, and her mar-
tyrs were gratefully mentioned in their martyrologie. But
the time was now fast approaching when the bonds of union
were to be severed, and discord and division prevail among
those who had hitherto considered each other as brethren in
the one faith.
The subject which provoked these fatal disputes was one
which the wisdom and ingenuity of man can never fathom
with entire satisfaction, or express with perfect intelligibility.
The Incarnation of our Saviour, the process whereby a Divine
Being united himself to our human nature, had from the be-
ginning of the promulgation of Christianity excited the spe-
culations of restless and inquisitive minds. The active
subtlety of the Greek intellect had led many into heresy on
this important matter, and the opinions of Apollinaris were,
even at the commencement of the fifth century, troubling the
peace of the church. The councils had hitherto contented
themselves with determining that Christ was very God and
very man, but they had said nothing on the manner in which
the mysterious union was effected. Two opposite modes of
expression therefore prevailed among the Syrian and Egypt-
ian theologians. The former, in order to avoid the opinions
of Apollinaris, who maintained that the Godhead of Christ
performed in His human body the functions of a soul, were
* Gibbon, chap. xxxii. Assem, tom. iii.


272 NOTES FROM NINEVEM.
exceedingly precise in maintaining the most marked distinc-
tion between the Godhead and the manhood of the Saviour ;
while the latter, in their zeal against Gnosticism, seemed
almost to confuse both the human and divine natures, and to
blend them into one. Hitherto, however, both schools had
remained at peace with each other, and although they might
differ in words and terms, their differences had never been
thought of sufficient importance to mar the unity of the
church.* - -
Matters were in this state when Nestorius, who had been
educated in the schools of Antioch and Edessa, was raised to
the patriarchate of Constantinople. The learning of the new
prelate was marred by the vanity and self-conceit of his cha-
racter, as well as by the bigoted intolerance which he dis-
played against those who differed with him in opinion. From
the pulpit of the cathedral of Constantinople, he publicly
called upon the emperor to crush all heretics with the secular
arm, promising him, at the same time, as an inducement,
the aid of his prayers against the Persians.
Among the chief favorites of Nestorius, was a presbyter
named Anastasius, whose turgid and flowery discourses had
procured for him great popularity. He was, like his patron,
a favorer of the Syrian doctrine, and thought himself justified
in attempting to attract a crowd of auditors, by introducing
in his sermons sentiments which had the gloss of novelty to
recommend them. The minds of the superficial and the
ignorant are easily captivated by startling assertions, and
the fertile brain of Anastasius seems at last to have hit
upon an expedient of satisfying at once the patriarch’s vanity
and his own.
The numerous auditors who crowded the principal church
of Constantinople, and who not unfrequently expressed their
approbation and disapproval in a mode more suitable to the
circus or the theatre, were astonished beyond measure to
hear from the lips of Anastasius that the term Theotokos,
which had been considered orthodox since the days of St.
Athanasius, was a heretical and Apollinarian expression.
The sermon of the presbyter excited some commotion, which
was by no means allayed by the appearance of the patriarch
as the defender of his friend. H
* Mosheim, Eccl. Hist., Cent. W.
f Mosheim, Cent. V. Fleury, Eccl. Hist, Cent. W.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 273
The word Theotokos, as applied to the Virgin Mary, is
scarcely susceptible of direct translation, and although some-
times rendered “Mother of God,” it is better expressed by
the paraphrase, “She who bore Him that was God.” Those
who defended the use of the term argued that Elizabeth had
termed the Blessed Virgin “the Mother of my Lord,” and
that the latter word was equally significative of the divine
nature of the Saviour. They referred their opponents to the
language used by St. Paul, in which he speaks, without
scruple, of the blood of God as expressive of the close union
which existed between the two natures, authorizing the inter-
change of the terms proper to each. To this it was answered
that the word Christotokos, the bearer or mother of Christ,
was the fittest designation of the Holy Virgin, since she is
called constantly in the Gospel the mother of Christ, and the
Deity cannot properly be said either to be born or to die.
The works of Nestorius, in which he defended his favorite
opinions, were widely disseminated and eagerly perused,
while a large number of the Egyptian monks declared them-
selves to be convinced by his arguments, and abandoned the
use of the term Theotokos. This proceeding brought the
matter under the notice of Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria,
who censured the conduct of the monks, and commenced a
written controversy with Nestorius, which terminated little to
the satisfaction of either party. After much inflammatory
discussion of the subject in question, it was referred to the
decision of a general council, which met at Ephesus, A. D.
431.*
The bishops of Greece, Europe, and Africa, having arrived
at Ephesus, they waited several days for the arrival of John,
Patriarch of Antioch, with the prelates of the East. But, as
his coming was delayed from day to day, it seemed advisable
to commence proceedings in his absence, the more particu-
larly as the office of the different prelates did not allow them
to remain for any length of time at a distance from their
various spheres of duty. Cyril was chosen president of the
assembly, and opened the session by summoning Nestorius
to appear before them. The Patriarch of Constantinople
declined to defend himself in the presence of a partial and
imperfect tribunal, and refused to make his appearance. But
* Assem., tom. iii.


274 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
as he had of late written several works on the subject in
debate, these were placed before the council, and the follow-
ing errors were laid to his charge.
First, that he had denied the term Theotokos to the Blessed
Virgin; and, secondly, that he had asserted the existence of
two separate and distinct persons in the Son of God. The
contest, however, hinged principally on the latter assertion ;
for, with regard to the former, the use or non-use of the par-
ticular word Theotokos was only regarded as important from
its bearing on the true character of the Incarnation. The
point in question, therefore, was whether the expressions
used by Nestorius on the latter mystery were in accordance
with the teaching of Scripture and the primitive Fathers.
He had asserted that the Godhead dwelt in the Redeemer’s
human body, as in a shrine or temple, and he declared that
he would never concede the title of God to one who increased
daily in age by two months and three months. Other parts
of his works seem even to set forth that the divine nature did
not descend upon Christ till after His birth.
The evil consequences which might have resulted from
these opinions being tolerated and encouraged in the church,
were such, that the council could scarcely do otherwise than
condemn them. In an age when theology was the one grand
topic which interested men’s minds, and when the fertile
imaginations of the Greek doctors were but too prone to
philosophize on the solemn doctrines of Christianity, it be-
came doubly necessary that all definitions should as far as
possible be free from exception. Nor did it require much
foresight to perceive that the expressions of Nestorius, so
divided the Son of God from the Son of Man, that he im-
pugned the divinity of Christ, and, therefore, struck at the
very root of the doctrine of the atonement. If the Godhead
dwelt merely in Christ as in a temple, He was but little
exalted above those prophets upon whom it is said, in the
Old Testament, that the Spirit of God rested, nor could the
expressions of Nestorius be reconciled with the direct teach-
ing of the Gospel, that “the Word was made flesh.”
The majority of the council had decided against him, when
John of Antioch arrived. The latter seems, at first, to have
taken part with the heresiarch, in which he was supported by
* Cyril, Epist. Mosheim, Cent. W. Palmer, Eccl. Hist.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 275
the Eastern bishops, who were naturally partial to their own
countryman. But, after some serious and animated discus-
sions, the Patriarch of Antioch was led to concur in the
decision of the council, and peace and unanimity were once
more restored to the church. -
The judgment put forth by the assembled bishops, and
which has since been accepted by the generality of Christians,
was this, “That in Christ our Lord there are two natures
most closely and intimately united in one person without
mixture or confusion.” The almost unanimous consent to
the sentence of the Ephesine Synod, which has since pre-
vailed among all parties, is perhaps a conclusive argument
in favor of its soundness and intelligibility, nor could Nes-
torius complain that upon the whole he was treated with
injustice or partiality. Even if we admit that Cyril of Alex-
andria was moved by personal enmity to oppose a hated rival,
it cannot be supposed that the whole of the bishops assem-
bled, many of whom presided over dioceses in the patriarch-
ate of Nestorius himself, were animated by similar feelings.
Yet even supposing this insinuation correct, how shall we
account for the acquiescence of John of Antioch and the
Eastern bishops, who had already given the most unmis-
takeable proofs of their aversion to Cyril, and partiality to
Nestorius. -
The Nestorian controversy gave rise to another error, into
which a strong desire to avoid the sentiments of Nestorius
had propelled Eutyches, an abbot of Constantinople. This
man taught that the divine and human natures of our Lord
were so mingled as to form but one compounded nature, and
his doctrine, after its condemnation at the Council of Chalce-
don, in A. D. 451, was widely spread among the Christians
of the East, many of whom also had begun to embrace the
tenets of Nestorius.
The person to whom is chiefly attributable the progress of
the Nestorian doctrine, was one Bar Sumas, a Persian by
birth, who was educated in the University of Edessa. One
of the colleges there was called, from the origin of the greater
part of its scholars, the Persian school: the members of
which were much attached to the writings of their former
preceptors, Diodorus of Tarsus, and Theodore of Mopsuesta,
under the latter of whom Nestorius himself had imbibed the
principles of theology. These doctors of the Syrian Church


276 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
held and promulgated dogmas similar to those for which
Nestorius was condemned, and their influence over the Per-
sian school predisposed the minds of its members in favor of
the tenets of the deposed patriarch. They were confirmed
in their attachment to these views by an event which took
place shortly after the condemnation of Nestorius.
Rabulus, Bishop of Edessa, had been at first one of the
warmest supporters of the latter during the debates at Ephesus.
He had seconded John of Antioch in his inimical proceed-
ings against Cyril, but after his return a marked change took
place in his views. He began to regard the Persian school
with suspicious dislike, and at last broke it up entirely, and
required the masters to leave the city with their disciples.
Burning with resentment on account of the affront which they
had received, the expelled students returned to Persia, and
became noted for their zeal in propagating the opinions of
Nestorius. The names of the principal men of this party
were Bar Sumas, Acacius, and Manes, who obtained, in
course of time, the sees of Nisibis, Seleucia, and Persia.
The great majority of the Chaldean Christians would
doubtless have maintained a neutral position, but for the
restless activity and intrigues of Bar Sumas, who seems to
have obtained considerable influence at the Persian court.
Having gained access to Firouz, who then occupied the
throne of Persia, he represented to him the policy of dividing
the Oriental Christians from the Greeks. He urged that, as
long as both agreed in their doctrinal views, the affections of
the Chaldeans would always be in danger of alienation from
their lawful monarchs, and their allegiance might be tam-
pered with by the Greek emperors. He concluded by coun-
seling the Persian monarch to aid and protect him in extend-
ing those opinions which could not fail to excite and maintain
perpetual enmity between the two races.
The counsel of Bar Sumas was eagerly adopted by Firouz;
Babuaeus, the Metropolitan of Seleucia, was put to death, and
Acacius, one of the expelled students of Edessa, appointed
in his room. At the same time, the Emperor Zeno, who
favored the Monophysites, caused all Persian students to leave
Edessa—an act which inflamed still more the anger of the
Persian monarch, who commenced a furious persecution
against all Christians opposed to the doctrines of Nestorius.
At the head of a large band of soldiers, the infamous Bar


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 277
Sumas marched over the Assyrian plains, and massacred
without pity about seven thousand persons. The body of
Bar Sobedes, Bishop of Nineveh, which was among the slain,
was carried off and honorably interred by a Jew who had
lately embraced the Christian faith.
The process of Nestorianism was finally triumphant in the
churches of Assyria under Babuaeus, who was raised to the
See of Seleucia A.D. 496, and who first threw off the alle-
giance of Antioch, and assumed the title of Patriarch of the
East.
Among the bishops of Western Asia, a few supported the
cause, and embraced the tenets of Nestorius'; but, in a cen-
tury after the Council of Ephesus, all external traces of the
heresy had disappeared from the Roman dominions in the
East. This was mainly attributable to the expulsion of the
Persians from Edessa, and to the great prevalence of the Mo-
nophysite doctrine in that celebrated university. Fostered by
the Emperor Zeno and Severus, Patriarch of Antioch, the
disciples of Eutyches had nearly succeeded in gaining for the
dogma of the one nature, a reception almost universal. The
Monophysite Syrians became the most violent opponents of
Nestorianism, and obliged the opposers of the Council of
Ephesus to confine themselves exclusively to the Persian
dominions.”
The monarchs of Persia, on the other hand, when they dis-
covered that their Chaldean subjects were violently averse to
the rule and the tenets of the Greek emperors, began to treat
them with greater toleration than before. The loss of the
school at Edessa was compensated by the foundation of Chal-
dean seminaries at Nisibis and Arbela, where the doctors of
the Nestorian sect propagated their opinions with great suc-
cess. They began to review and to refine the terms of their
creed, and to clothe its doctrines in less objectionable lan-
guage. They labored to prove that they had not followed
the sentiments of a private individual, but were maintaining,
in all its purity, the technical phraseology which had always
been received in their church from the days of the apostles.
Their doctrine, after much discussion and difference of
opinion, assumed at length the following form, which was
solemnly set forth and defended by several councils assem-
bled at Seleucia:—
* Assem., tom. iii.
24


278 NOTES FROM NINEWEH.
“In Christ there are two substances, two natures, two per-
sons, namely, the Divine Person of the Word, and the human
Person of Jesus. But both these two natures and two per-
sons are closely united by the existence of one will, one ope-
ration, one power, one prosopon or appearance, and one
aspect. The Blessed Virgin is not to be termed, therefore,
the mother of God, but the mother of Christ.”
The meaning of these dogmas will be more clearly illus-
trated, perhaps, by the following extract from one of their
most esteemed authors, who composed an exposition of the
Nicene Creed: “We say,” he writes, “that the Word was
united with the [humanity] assumed by a union of will, of
adhesion,i and of person.
“Wherefore Christ is one, even one son, since there is a
union of will. As, in like manner, two or three men differ-
ing from each other in essence and person may be united by
the agreement of their several wills, for the Scripture saith,
“To the believing there was one mind and one will.” There
is a union of adhesion, which resembles the union of a man
and his wife, who, according to the Gospel, become one
flesh, as it is said, “Wherefore a man shall leave his father
and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife.” The union
of person is as the union of a king and his friend, the latter
of whom often holds the place of the former, and exercises
rule, authority, and power. In this manner, the Eternal Son
is united to the assumed human nature, and hence is made
one Christ, one son, one will, by means of the contiguity of
the persons, but not naturally. Wherefore Christ is termed
two natures, two persons, but one son, even as in the Scrip-
tures David and Jonathan, a man and his wife, a king
and his friend, are sometimes called two prosopa. Thus,
the Eternal Son and the man Jesus Christ are one. As David
and Jonathan, a man and his wife, a king and his friend,
have but one will in all things, so in the Eternal Word, and
in the assumed humanity, there exists also only one will.”
By a careful perusal of the above, it will be seen that the
Nestorians differed from other Christians in teaching that the
* Mosheim, Cent. W.' Assem., tom. iii.
f The word used signifies the union, real or supposed, which is derived
from the contiguity of two persons or things.
f The words “Prosopa” and “Prosopon” denote the outward form and
appearance which distinguish one person ſtom another.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 279
union between the manhood and the Godhead was figurative
merely, and not real or substantial. They held that the
Deity dwelt in the human body of Jesus as in a temple, and
hence they denied the title of Cheotokos to the Virgin Mary.
A careful distinction is always maintained, in their contro-
versial writings, between God and Christ, the union between
them being always described as one solely of will and affec-
tion, or adhesion, as will be seen by the examples referred
to above. -
All communication having been broken off between the
Sees of Antioch and Seleucia, the metropolitan of the latter
was regarded by all the Persian bishops as the head of their
new community. The title of Patriarch of the Chaldeans
seems to have been assumed by the new spiritual chief,
though some of his successors termed themselves Patriarchs
of the East. At the commencement of the sixth century,
Cosmas Indicopleustes described their dominion as extending
over Persia, India, and Arabia Felix.
About the year 530 A.D., Patricius, Archbishop of Per-
sia, ordained priests, deacons, and even bishops, for the
regions of Calliana Male (Malabar), and Sielediva (Ceylon).
The Bactrians, the Huns, the Persarmeni, the Medes and
Elamites, numbered, in their several countries, large and
flourishing congregations, who obeyed the authority of the
Chaldean patriarch.
In Arabia, the doctrines of Nestorianism appear to have pre-
vailed for some time prior to the birth of Mohammed, who is
reported to have derived considerable information and assist-
ance from Sergius, a Chaldean monk. It is stated, on credi-
ble authority, that Jesujabus, Patriarch of the Nestorians, went
in company with Said, the chief of an Arab-Christian tribe,
to visit the Prophet at Mecca, and obtained from him a
written compact, whereby he promised to respect the faith
and the privileges of the Chaldeans of the East. The au-
thenticity and genuineness of this document have been much
disputed, and those who impugn its veracity have considered
it as the forgery of some Nestorian or Syrian monks, the latter
of whom were, as is generally admitted, at one time guilty of
a similar fraud. Yet, when we consider the mutual hostility
which prevailed between these two sects, as well as the
known favor with which the Mohammedans afterwards
treated the Nestorians, the fact that such a grant emanated


280 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
from the Arabian Impostor may be considered at least pro-
bable.
This document commends the Christians to the good will
of the Arabs, and charges that they shall not be molested or
injured in any manner. They are not to be compelled to
change their customs or their laws; and the aid of a Moslem
may be lawfully employed in rebuilding a ruined church.
Priests and monks are not required to pay tribute. A mode-
rate tax is placed upon both rich and poor, and it is expressly
forbidden that the Christian female servant or slave, who
serves in the house of an Arab, should be molested in the
performance of her religious duties.”
Maremes, the successor of Jesujabus, is recorded to have
obtained from Ali Ben Abi Taleb a similar document, in
reward for certain services which he rendered the Moslem
army during the siege of Mosul, about A. D. 648. The
Arabian conquerors seem to have adhered faithfully to their
written promises; and the successor of Maremes, in writing
to Simon, Metropolitan of Persia, commends the honor which
they bestowed on the saints and servants of God, their vene-
ration for Christianity, and even their gifts to churches and
Convents.
It is not improbable, indeed, that the toleration bestowed
on the Christians by the Moslem invader proceeded from a
grateful sense of the services which the former had rendered
them during their campaigns in Mesopotamia and Persia.
The bigotry of the Magi had alienated the affections of the
Chaldeans from the Persian monarch, and they hoped, doubt-
less, to find themselves less exposed to persecution under
those whose creed was partially adopted from their own.
CHAPTER XXV.
Remarks on the ecclesiastical history of the Chaldeans.
THE Arabian Caliphs of Baghdad were generally men of a
very different character from the rude and ignorant fanatics
* Assem., tom. iii.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 281
who first assumed to themselves the title of Successors of the
Prophet. Several members of the house of Abbas were
distinguished by the encouragement which they afforded to
poetry, and polite literature, while the arts which they cul-
tivated seem to have rendered their political and religious
sentiments more tolerant and humane. The Christians, re-
viled and insulted in other parts of the East, found both
protection and support from the chief pontiffs of Islam. Their
knowledge of medicine and of Greek learning gained them
favor from the polished sovereigns, who amused their leisure
hours by poetical compositions, which have not been con-
sidered by posterity entirely void of merit. Aristotle, Plato,
and Hippocrates soon appeared in an Arabian dress, while
the skill of the Nestorian physicians rendered their services
of no small value to the caliphs and their nobles.
The Greek Melekites and the Syrian Jacobites seem to
have possessed churches and congregations at Baghdad dur-
ing the dynasty of the Abbasides; but of all Christians, the
Nestorians were held in the greatest esteem. They had ren-
dered signal services to the Mohammedan cause; and it is
not improbable that their known enmity to the Greeks in-
duced the Caliphs to regard them as more firm adherents than
the Melekites or Jacobites, both of whom were suspected of
a secret attachment to the emperors of the East.
Nor was it merely as physicians and scholars that the
Nestorians distinguished themselves at this period. They
obtained occasionally the government of cities and provinces,
a policy in which Abdallah, the son of Suleiman, was sup-
ported and encouraged on one occasion by the Caliph Motaded
himself. Some zealous Mussulmen had accused the satrap
to his sovereign of showing more favor to Christians than was
just and right. The Caliph presented his officer with the
written complaint, upon which Abdallah answered that he
had, indeed, appointed trustworthy Christians, Magians, and
even Jews, to offices of trust; but that this circumstance
rendered him no more favorable to the religion of the one
than of the other.
The Caliph replied, “You do well to use the services of
Christians when you can obtain them, and even to give them
a special preference over Jews, Mohammedans, and Magi,
seeing that their obedience and faith are more praiseworthy
than either of these. For the Jews expect a future kingdom
24*


282 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
that will overthrow our power; the Mohammedans will en-
deavor to circumvent thee and usurp thy dignity; while the
Magi have not forgotten their lost rule. Therefore, I deem
it more politic that thou shouldst commit the chief posts in
thy province to Christians.”
The Caliph's opinion seems to have influenced, also, his
successors, and we find Christian governors were frequently
appointed to the provinces of Adiabene, Assyria, and Nisi-
bis.”
The power of the Nestorian physicians and secretariest-
was not only exerted in protecting the members of their sect
from the tyranny of the Mohammedans, but it enabled them
also to control the internal affairs of their community. Their
influence prevailed to a great extent in ecclesiastical matters;
they nominated and deposed patriarchs, and appointed bishops
to their sees. A canon contained in the Chaldean Pontifical
recognizes their authority and their privileges, by intrusting
the election of patriarchs to a mixed assemblage of bishops,
priests, physicians, and scribes. On one occasion, we find
Abraham, the son of Noah, a physician, was permitted to
name whom he would as the chief of the Chaldean Church.
His nominee, however, was opposed by Boch Yesus, another
layman, whose influence with the Caliph Motawakkel ena-
bled him to carry his point.
The Nestorian patriarch was recognized by the Caliphs as
the head of all other Christians in their dominions. Some
Greek inhabitants of Baghdad sent a petition to the Patriarch
of Antioch, in which they begged him to appoint a metro-
politan holding the Melekite faith to the See of Seleucia. He
complied with their request, and dispatched an ecclesiastic,
whose name was John, to assume the rank of a metropolitan,
and to regulate the affairs of the Greeks. But Abraham, the
head of the Nestorian Church, considering this act an invasion
of his privileges, carried the case before the wuzeer, who,
being propitiated by a large bribe, determined it in his favor,
and decreed that in future no Greek metropolitan or bishop
should take up his residence at Baghdad, seeing that the
* Mares in Vita Abrahae Patriarch. Thomas Margensis, tom. iii. Asse-
mani, tom. iii.
f I have used this term as the best translation of the Arabic Katib, which
signified literally a writer or scribe.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 283
Patriarch of the Nestorians was the only chief of the Christ-
ians recognized by law. -
The Caliph, Moktadi Biamerallah, granted the Patriarch
Machica a document, in which the following terms occur:
“The Commander of the Faithful appointeth thee the catho-
licos of the Christian Nestorians residing in. Baghdad, the
city of peace, and in the other provinces and regions; he
declareth thee their prelate, and the spiritual governor of all
Jacobites and Greeks also, who dwell in the countries of the
Mohammedans, or have come thither; and it is commanded
that all obey thy orders and commands.”
Yet, notwithstanding these honors and privileges, the state
of the Nestorians under the Caliphs was precarious and un-
certain. The fickle character of a despotism like that under
which they lived often brought them under the frown of the
sovereign, when individual members of their sect had been
so unfortunate as to displease him. The intrigues of ambi-
tious patriarchs and aspiring laymen often rent the community
asunder, while under the Egyptian Caliph, Hakim Biameral-
lah, a persecution was excited against the Christians, the
effects of which seem to have been felt as far as Baghdad.
It seems now a fitting opportunity to notice the missions of
the Nestorians, and the character of the different regions and
people whither their enterprising missionaries penetrated.
Shortly after their expulsion from Edessa, a large and flour-
ishing school was formed by the Nestorians at Nisibis, which
had been recently taken by Sapor from the Romans. The
captured city, it is likely, was almost entirely peopled by
Chaldean inhabitants, who replaced those followers of the
Greek rite that had accompanied Jovian in his retreat. From
Nisibis they penetrated into the provinces of Upper and Lower
Armenia, while a large number lived peaceably in Cilicia and
Asia Minor, under the protection of the princes of those coun-
tries, and the Greek emperors. At a later period, we find
them in Palestine, and even in Cyprus, whither they had
doubtless followed the retreating crusaders.
But their chief success seems to have been in the more
eastern regions of Asia. They gained numerous proselytes
at an early period in Persia, and from that kingdom they ap-
pear to have advanced into Afghanistan, India, and Tartary.
The Chaldean writers inform us that St. Thomas was the first
who announced the tidings of Christianity to the inhabitants of


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. - 285
China, and are spoken of by Bar Hebraeus as a race whose
savage and uncivilized habits provoked the disgust of their
cotemporaries. Their clothing was composed of the skins
of wolves and of dogs, and they fed greedily on the carrion
of dead animals. Their leader was distinguished by an iron
stirrup borne before him, which served as a standard in their
numerous predatory expeditions.
The religion of this wild people seems to have resembled
the rude and baseless superstitions of the early Turcomans.
They professed to believe in a God, but they paid him neither
honor nor worship, while they received with avidity the pre-
dictions and advice of certain kami, or soothsayers, whose
credit was, however, destroyed by the contrivance of Gengis
Khan. Having understood that the Chinese possessed mag- .
nificent idols, and priests of uncommon wisdom, he sent an
embassy to request that some of the latter might be sent him,
promising to treat them with great honor. When they arrived,
he ordered the kami to hold a public disputation with the
new comers on the subject of religion; but the ignorant sooth-
sayers were soon silenced by their more able antagonists, who
reinforced their arguments by reading copious extracts from
a ritual which they entitled Num. With the illiterate, the
affectation of learning is frequently sufficient to convince or
to persuade, and the kami retreated from the arena pursued
by the sneers and ridicule of their late admirers. In this
manner, the doctrines of Budh appear, for the first time, to
have been introduced among the Tartars.
The first great exploit of Gengis was his successful war
with Unch Khan, a Tartar prince, who is supposed to be the
same as the person commonly known by the appellation of
Prester, or Presbyter John. From the epistle addressed by
the latter to the Emperor of Constantinople, there seems rea-
son to believe that many Tartar chiefs had embraced the
Christian faith, and given protection and encouragement to
the labors of the Nestorian missionaries. Yet the polygamy
of Prester John and his intolerable pride appear contradictory
to any form of Christianity, and not a few learned men have
considered the whole epistle an ingenious fraud.
Gengis Khan, having assembled around him a large num-
ber of vassals, resolved to demand in marriage the daughter
of Unch Khan. The latter received the envoy with indig-
nant pride, and answered that he could better endure the


286 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
death of his daughter than see her united to a slave. En-
raged at this uncourteous message, Gengis assembled his
forces, and a battle ensued, in which Unch Khan was de-
feated and slain.
The indifference of the princes of the house of Gengis to
their own superstitions seems to have induced them to lend
a ready ear to the teaching of the Nestorians. John of Monte
Corvino, who visited Tartary in the fourteenth century, men-
tions the chief of a country called Cambaliech, who was
converted by him from the Nestorian errors, to which his
brothers and family continued devotedly attached. A Nesto-
rian monk of the name of Babban was the confessor and
privy councilor of the daughter of Unch Khan after her mar-
riage to Gengis. The character of this person, however, does
not appear to have reflected much credit upon his religion.
A European traveler describes him as deceiving the Tartars
by pretended gifts of divination, and as practicing the petty
arts of a merchant and a usurer. -
An Armenian noble, in the thirteenth century, gives the
following curious account of the Christians in the Tartar
dominions: “Five years after that the Tartars raised to the
throne the younger khan, they could scarcely be gathered
together in one place, for some of them were in India, others
in the land of Katha, in Russia, in the land of Chasqur, and
in Tangarth. This last is the country from which the three
kings came to Bethlehem to adore Christ, and the men of
that land are also Christians. I was, on one occasion, in
several of their churches, where I saw pictures of Jesus
Christ and of the three kings, one offering gold, another
frankincense, and a third myrrh. The inhabitants received
the Christian faith from these three kings, and by them the
Cham and his nobles have been made Christians. They
have churches near his gates, in which they ring bells and
beat boards" to show that those who are going in to the khan
ought first to enter the church and salute the Lord Jesus.
We found many Christians scattered over the regions of the
East, and many large, handsome, and spacious churches
which had been destroyed by the Tartars. The khan treated
the followers of Christ with great honor and respect.”
• Few of the Eastern churches are allowed to use bells. They supply
their places by beating a board.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 287
In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Nestorian me-
tropolitans were dispatched to Tartary; and it is not impro-
bable that some vestiges of Christianity may yet be lingering
in the cities of that vast and unexplored region. Still, we
may doubt, upon the whole, whether the Nestorian missions
effected any real and permanent good. The versatile charac-
ter of the Tartars often induced them to patronize the Nesto-
rian missionaries, and even to hold out hopes of conversion,
which were greedily seized upon, and industriously circu-
lated. Yet impartial travelers have recorded that the mis-
sionaries not unfrequently disgraced their sacred character
by pandering to the vices and superstitions of the ignorant
people they came to reclaim. They boasted of their skill in
divination, and asked a blessing on the vast goblets whose
intoxicating contents the wine-loving barbarians drained at a
single draught. Polygamy seems to have been permitted to
the real or imaginary converts, as attested by the Epistle of
Prester John; nor does the Christian faith appear to have
made any solid impression on the minds of the Tartars.
The kingdom of Cathay seems to have comprised the
more northern regions of the Chinese Empire, whose present
capital is Pekin, the Cambalu of the older travelers. At the
close of the seventh century, it contained a large number of
Christian inhabitants, who were under the spiritual guidance
of Nestorian teachers. In the seventeenth century, a monu-
ment was discovered near the city of Segan-fu, which contained
many curious particulars with regard to the early introduc-
tion of Christianity into China. The stone in question bore
the figure of the cross engraved at the top, beneath which
were inscriptions in Chinese and Syriac. The date of its
erection is given as A. D. 781, and it records the names of
those who had preached Christianity in China from the
year 636.
The first section of the inscription contains a disquisition
on the Trinity in Unity. It represents God as having created
all things from nothing, and as forming man endowed with
original righteousness, to whose charge and dominion all
human things have been subjected. It is worthy of remark
that, in this portion of the inscription, the Syriac word Oloho
is used in Chinese characters to express the Supreme Being.
Section 2 relates to the fall of Adam, and the various errors


288 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
of his descendants, who, adoring the creature in the place of
the Creator, are said to have been divided into sixty-five sects.
Section 3 treats of the incarnation, nativity, death, and
resurrection of Jesus Christ; it notices, also, the books of
the Old and New Testaments, the nature of baptism, the
veneration due to the cross, and the necessity of worshiping
towards the East. -
Section 4 contains remarks on the preaching of the apostles,
on the sacred vestments used by Christians, on their civil
habits and manners. It mentions the beard worn by eccle-
siastics, the tonsure, fasting, and the seven daily hours of
prayer.
Section 5 records the preaching the Christian religion in
the regions of China by Olopuen, who is described as a native
of Ta Sin, or Syria. He enters China in the reign of Tai
Sum, and his religion receives the royal approval; the em-
peror causes a church to be built, and assigns Olopuen
twenty-one attendants. The Olopuen of the inscription is
supposed to be the Nestorian missionary Jaballaha.
Section 6. A description of Ta Sin, or Syria.
Section 7. A relation of the progress of Christianity during
the reign of Cao Sum. The emperor being by no means
degenerate from the virtues of his father, intends to continue
the designs of the latter; he charges that churches should be
erected in all the provinces, and honors Olopuen with the title
of Bishop of the Great Law which governs the kingdom of
China. The law of God is spoken of as promulgated through
the ten provinces, and the multitude of churches and of con-
gregations is alluded to.
Section 8 treats of the persecution of the Christians from
A. D. 699 to A. D. 713, by the Bonzes in the province of
Honan.
In section 9, and the twelve following, we find a history
of the progress, persecutions, and successes of Christianity
from A. D. 719 to A. D. 782.
That this tablet contains a true history of the efforts of the
Nestorian missionaries during the above-mentioned periods
seems beyond the possibility of doubt. It is probable that
Christianity prevailed in the northern parts of China until
the subjugation of the Chinese dynasties by Gengis Khan,
and that Unch Khan, or Prester John, was the last of these
native princes. Whether, however, the Chinese sovereigns


NOTES FROM NINEVEII. 289
embraced the Gospel, or merely encouraged and protected
its professors, may be regarded as an unsettled point. That
many conversions were made is certain, but the missionaries
seem to have been too little desirous of maintaining the purity
of religion uncorrupted. They have been accused of allow-
ing polygamy to the converts of rank, of overlooking many
of their excesses, and of persecuting the Latin missionaries
who penetrated into China at the commencement of the four-
teenth century.
Nor does it seem easy to account for the fact of the sudden
disappearance of Christianity in China, except we admit, as
candor compels us, that its first promulgation was accom-
panied by many defects, and even positive errors, on the part
of those who first announced it to the Chinese. Yet to mar
that which should be perfect by faults proceeding from human
imperfection is a law of human action, whose operation is
witnessed too frequently to excite in a reasonable mind either
indignation or surprise. The frailty of our common nature
renders it more easy to point out the defects of others than to
recognize or amend our own, and it is always less difficult to
censure than to imitate, even in its imperfection, a noble and
virtuous undertaking.
The expulsion of the Tartar emperors in the fourteenth
century, and the restoration of the dynasty of the Mim family,
seem to have caused the ruin of Christianity in China. In
A. D. 1517, the Portuguese merchants at Canton could dis-
cover no person who professed himself a Christian, though
they often met with crosses and other relics of the Nestorian
and Latin missionaries. In fact, the very name of our faith
seemed to have been abolished ; and it was only the disco-
very of the monument before alluded to that could induce the
Europeans to believe that there had ever been Christians in
China.
At the commencement of the seventeenth century, a Jew
of Cai-fum-fu informed the Jesuit missionary Ricci that, sixty
years before, a large number of Christians occupied the
northern provinces of China, who were called, in the lan-
guage of the country, “the Adorers of the Cross.” By the
ill offices of the Mohammedans, the suspicions of the govern-
ment were excited against them, and a severe persecution
commenced, which led many to embrace Judaism and the
creed of Islam. Their churches were either destroyed or
25 -


290 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
turned into private houses, and they were induced, from fear
of the magistrates, to conceal their origin and former faith.
Ricci afterwards traveled to the region indicated by the Jew;
but he could obtain no satisfaction from his inquiries or
researches: and this report, which, however, seems to bear
the marks of probability on its surface, is the last tidings that
have been obtained of the once extensive and flourishing
Chinese Nestorian Church.
The position of the Nestorians of Assyria under the Tartar
successors of the Caliphs appears to have been as favorable
as they could desire. The mother of Hulaku Khan was well
disposed towards the Christians, who even considered her a
second. Helena. In 1248, messengers came from Kyokay
Khan to St. Louis, to treat about an alliance against the
Saracens. In his letters, the khan alludes to himself as a
Christian, and professes that he regards with equal favor the
Armenians, the Jacobites, and the Nestorians. In 1258
A. D., the Tartars captured Baghdad, and destroyed the
power of the Caliphs. One of the wives of their leaders
Hulaku is said to have been a Christian, and by her influence
the Saracen mosques were shut up, or converted into churches,
while the Mohammedans suffered some persecution, and were
afraid to appear in public.
After the death of Hulaku, his son and successor Huolon
entered into alliances with the Christian monarchs of Georgia
and Armenia, and planned, in conjunction with them, an
expedition to the Holy Land, which design, however, was
frustrated by his death. During the following reign, a tumult
was excited at Baghdad by the report that the Nestorian pa-
triarch had caused a renegado from Christianity to Moham-
medanism to be drowned in the Tigris. He denied the
accusation strenuously, but was obliged to fly to Arbela in
order to escape the violence of the populace. His successor
was Jaballaha, a man of exemplary piety, who sent a con-
fession of his faith to the reigning pontiff, Nicholas IV.
Under Bayid, the grandson of Hulaku, the Nestorians re-
ceived much favor and assistance. The monarch was wise,
chaste, and temperate, and it was even said that he had
secretly embraced the Christian faith. His favor to the Nes-
torians awakened the jealousy of the Mohammedans, who
intrigued against him secretly with a Tartar chief named
Casan or Kazan. The latter, affecting great zeal for the


292 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
tensions of Bar Mama, and elected John Sulaka or Siud, a
monk of Rabban Hormuzd, to fill the patriarchal throne. A
still larger faction seems to have supported the cause of Bar
Mama, who appears to have prevailed over his rival, main-
taining his claim to the patriarchate successfully. Sulaka
then repaired to Rome, ostensibly to seek for consecration,
but really to enlist the pope’s influence in his favor. He
was well received, and obtained the object of his wishes by
a specious and acceptable confession of faith, whereupon,
returning to the East, he fixed the seat of the patriarchate at
Amida, which has since continued the head quarters of the
Romish Chaldeans. It is asserted, though perhaps not on
the most trustworthy authority, that, soon after his return,
Bar Mama obtained, by his influence with the Turks, the
destruction of his rival.
After this event, the Nestorian Church seems to have been
divided into three sections, at the head of which appear the
Patriarchs of Amida, Mosul, and Gelu. Of these, the former
had from the commencement considered themselves the faith-
ful vassals of Rome, and were regarded as the chiefs of the
papal Chaldeans. In A. D. 1580, the Metropolitan of Gelu
revolted from the jurisdiction of Elias of Mosul, and got him-
self appointed Patriarch of the Kurdish and Persian Chaldeans
at Rome. His successors, however, seem afterwards to have
thrown off the papal authority, and to have maintained their
independence among the mountains of Kurdistan.
In A. D. 1622, the missionaries of the Carmelite and Capu-
cin orders appeared in Assyria, and commenced vigorously
their operations among the Nestorians. Many were induced
to yield a nominal and hollow obedience, and, in 1629, the
Patriarch Elias of Mosul sent a profession of submission to
the pope, which doubtless exercised some influence over those
who adhered still to the doctrines of Nestorius.
At the period of our visit, the term Nestorian might have
been confined to the mountaineers of Kurdistan, and the in-
habitants of the Persian city of Ouromiah. They still resist
with great firmness the intrusion of any Roman missionary;
but their numbers are rapidly decreasing, and soon the de-
scendants of those whose spiritual jurisdiction extended over
some of the most populous and flourishing countries of Asia
will probably be reduced to a small and insignificant sect,
whose numbers may be computed by individuals.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 293
The surviving Nestorians still hold in words the same creed
which was promulgated by Bar Sumas and his followers,
though it may be doubted whether they enter into or com-
prehend its subtilties. But the whole of both clergy and laity
are so deeply immersed in ignorance that they are scarcely
capable of defending or explaining their doctrines. The Ame-
rican independent missionaries have established schools among
them at Ouromiah, which are, I believe, well attended.
In concluding these remarks, I cannot but hope that some
measures may be taken by the English government to pro-
cure the restoration of this poor and persecuted race to the
mountain homes from which they were so barbarously driven.
Whatever their theological errors may be, and I have en-
deavored neither to extenuate nor defend them, the people
themselves are deeply deserving of our sympathy and pity.
Suffering for the sake of Christianity, they have a right to
claim the support of a Christian nation, and of a church that,
with all her failings, has never shown herself willing to
trample on or slight the destitute and oppressed.
-—e —
CHAPTER XXVI.
The magician. The mollah. Kas Botros' tale. Bishop Matti. General
observations.
As I was sitting, one evening, in my house at Mosul, en-
deavoring to extract some warmth from the wood fire which
blazed before me, the servant announced an individual of
singular appearance, who, he said, wished to have some
conversation with me. I bade my new visitor be seated,
and handed him a pipe, while, during the customary saluta-
tions, I took a short survey of his figure and habiliments.
He was a man of middle age, with a wild, haggard counte-
nance, and dull, glassy eye, which, when seated, he fixed
intently on one corner of the ceiling, and never took them
off until his departure. I was wondering what he could
have to say to me, but, after a short pause, he inquired
abruptly, “Do you not know me? I am a friend to the
djin” (genii).
25%


294 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
I now recollected that I had seen him exhibit some con-
juring tricks at one of the houses in Mosul, and, after
acknowledging the acquaintance, I asked what his business
might be. He seemed scarcely to notice my question, but,
after a little while, he said, “Should you like to see the djin 2’’
“What do they resemble, O man º’’ I inquired. “Are
they very frightful ?”
“On my head, no,” he answered. “They are very hand-
some and comely, and there are those among them who are
like the houries, which our Prophet—may he enjoy happi-
ness —promised to the true believers in Paradise. Doubtless
you wonder that I should ask you if you would see them, but
you will not be surprised when you hear the reason. Know,
then, that the djin do not dress as the Easterns do; they are
not habited in turbans, zeboons, and flowing abbas, but they
appear in short coats of cloth, in pantour,” and in hats.”
“Hats, do you say?” I exclaimed.
“Upon my head, hats,” he replied ; “and, from the
similarity of dress, I presumed there might be some connec-
tion between them and the Ingleez, the more particularly as
your people are always digging for treasures, which every
child knows are under the special guardianship of the djin.
Thinking, therefore, that you might like to see them, I have
brought a form of incantation, which, if you like, I will sell
you for a few piastres ''
I took the paper he offered me, and found it was composed
of a number of Arabic words, which to me were perfectly
unintelligible, written round a kind of circle divided into
four compartments, each of which was inscribed with the
name of an angel.
“How is this to be used ?” I inquired.
“You must draw a circle on the floor at midnight,” he
said, “with the blood of a black cock. You must then
place within it four vessels of incense towards the four cor-
ners of the earth. When these rites have been duly performed,
light the incense, and begin to read from the paper. The genii
will then appear on every side of you, and, it may be, will
tempt you to step out of the circle, which you must on no
account do, or you will be torn in pieces by them. As long
as you remain within, ask any questions you choose, and
* Pantaloons.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 295
they must answer. Nay, should you command them to show
you the palaces of Nimroud the Accursed, they are bound to
obey.”
Feeling, however, in nowise inclined to figure in a Der
Freyschutz scene of this kind, I returned him his paper, and
addressed him on the folly and wickedness of his pretensions.
He still persisted, however, that he was in league with the
djin ; nor could he see any impropriety in practicing an art
which had always been tolerated by El Islam. Finding, at
last, that I declined purchasing his wares, he took his de-
parture. What struck me as most singular in this interview
was his assertion that the genii resembled in their appearance
the natives of Europe. The same thing, however, was told
me by a heathen in India respecting the evil spirits who
were supposed to haunt a wood in the neighborhood of his
village. They appeared, he said, in English dresses, used
English oaths, and were carried about in palanquins. This
differs greatly from our common notion of the supernatural
world, according to which we are accustomed to depict
immortal forms as resembling Orientals, and clothed in all
the flowing drapery of the East.
The next day I received a visitor of a very different de-
scription. He was a mollah, from a neighboring mosque,
who had often obtained from us small pamphlets in Arabic
on moral subjects. The contents of these books he was
wont to transfer to his Friday sermon, omitting carefully, of
course, any allusions to Christianity which they might con-
tain. The mollah had great hopes of the English, because
he found that they did not venerate images, and he seemed
not to despair of effecting my conversion. We, therefore,
entered sometimes into long arguments on the truth of Is-
lamism, but generally ended where we began. My antago-
nist was, however, more mild and temperate than many of
his brethren ; he professed to repudiate persecution, and
asserted that the sensual descriptions of paradise contained
in the Koran were to be understood figuratively, and by no
means according to the letter. He showed some logical skill
in defending the Mohammedan view of the Unity, but failed
in making out the authenticity and genuineness of the Koran.
After his departure, my servant Yusef, whom I had taken
lately in the place of Toma, began to abuse the mollah.
“Do not trust his fine words and his fair professions, O my


296 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
master,” said he. “This mollah, like the rest, is a wolf
with the skin of a sheep. Have I not heard him rail against
Christians, and swear that we ought to be exterminated 2
You hear him now ; he is mild and gentle ; but stand be-
hind him when he is with the cadi and mufti, and verily you
will have a different tone. We Christians know these dogs
of old. When Franks are before them, all is smiles and
civility; the poor Christian is then their brother and their
friend ; but when the stranger is gone, it is nothing but kicks,
and cuffs, and “Out of my way, you Nazarene dog P Do I
not know by experience these unclean Kafirs?”
My friend Kas Botros has already been mentioned in these
pages as a good relator of stories, an accomplishment which
drew around him every evening a large and attentive circle
of auditors. Frequently, when I have shared the hospitality
of his roof, I have heard a grave discussion wound up by a
pertinent anecdote or an amusing tale. On one occasion, he
had been remarking the importance of choosing fit persons
to perform difficult commissions, and ended his discourse by
the usual question, “Shall I tell you a tale * to which, hav-
ing assented, he began.
“There was once in Baghdad a Sultan who was so great
a patron of ingenuity that he readily forgave all inconveni-
ences which it might occasion him. His doors were never
closed against the ready-witted or the eccentric, and, provided
their sayings and doings entertained him, he was by no means
niggardly in rewarding them. The clumsy jester, however,
or the withess narrator generally suffered in proportion to his
presumption, for the royal critic contented himself not with
mere satire or censure, but made his soles sore with the bas-
tinado. Thus, while success elevated the fortunate to the
seventh heaven, those who failed were thrust down to Ge-
hennam, and from the royal judgment there was no appeal.
Boys ran after the unfortunates in the streets, and shouted
“There go the disappointed buffoons!”
“In the same city, lived a fisherman named Abd el Aziz,
whose poverty-stricken habitation was never visited by pros-
perity. Day after day he toiled to procure for himself a bare
subsistence, and though he succeeded in warding off starva-
tion, he never earned enough to repel the necessity for labor.
This state of things grieved Abd el Aziz, who was by no
means partial to work.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 297
“One day, as he was returning mournfully from the Tigris
with empty nets, he espied a man, habited in rich robes,
riding a gayly-caparisoned steed. A large multitude followed
him with acclamations, and the curiosity of the fisherman
being excited, he asked who it was. A passer-by informed
him that the fortunate horseman had just furnished a most
witty answer to one of the Sultan’s very difficult riddles, and
had obtained all this honor in consequence. The unfortunate
fisherman sighed as he thought of the difference between the
circumstances of the answerer and his own, and he strode
moodily home to his wife, Aisha, who expected to see him
return with a net full of fish. Her disappointed looks may
well be conceived when she saw the empty nets; and being,
like most females of her class, somewhat of a shrew, she did
not spare her husband, but poured forth with great volubility
an angry harangue, the terms of which might somewhat as-
tonish those of you Franks who represent the women of the
East as the meek, gentle, and unresisting slaves of man.
“The poor fisherman listened in silence to the reproaches
which were so liberally showered upon him, for he knew that
remonstrance would only increase wrath. He sat for some
time without making any reply, but at last, starting up with
the air of one who has formed a desperate resolution, said,
“I will go to the presence of the Sultan, and try what fortune
will befall me there.”
“‘Are you mad ' inquired his wife. “Shall a man who
has not wit enough to catch fish hope to succeed in an under-
taking wherein so many wiser heads have failed 2 Are you
our Lord Suleiman, O man, that you should aspire to answer
the riddles of the Sultan 2 Truly you will return with sore
soles and a broken heart, if you thus presume.”
“‘Woman,” said the fisherman, “your clamors would
deprive even Lokman of sense. Happen what may, I can
scarcely encounter severer strokes than those your tongue
gives me. Speak no more, therefore, but let me go my way
in peace. If it is written that I die, it is useless to attempt
avoiding the stroke of fate.”
“Aisha repented of her ill humor, and gave vent to a flood
of tears. Much as she scolded her husband occasionally,
she really loved him at the bottom, and when she saw him
going forth in moody silence, she could not conceal her
apprehension that something evil would happen. The fisher-


298 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
man, however, took no notice of her entreaties and tears.
He walked briskly along, and soon arrived at the gate of the
mosque, where the people of his district assembled for the
Friday prayers. A poor, ragged devotee, with a long, gray
beard, was seated near the gate, rocking his body to and fro,
and reciting, in a nasal chant, the words of the Koran which
enjoin the sacred duty of almsgiving. Abd el Aziz felt in
the pocket of his gown, and with some difficulty discovered
a para.
P. ‘I may be going to my death,’ thought he, “and an act
of charity will render my passage more easy over the bridge
that leadeth to paradise.” He gave the money to the devotee,
and requested the benefit of his prayers.
“May Allah and the Prophet help your enterprise, my
son, whatever it may be l’ said the old man, as he received
the gift.
“The fisherman felt his spirits grow lighter as he moved
on, and, for the first time, a ray of hope shot across his mind.
Arrived at the gate of the palace, he desired to be admitted
into the presence of the king.
“‘Look to your head and your heels, my friend,” said the
porter; ‘those who please not our lord seldom come off with
both scatheless.”
“He admitted him, however, and in a few minutes the
fisherman stood before the Sultan, who was sitting down to
dinner with his wuzeer, his favorite Sultana, and his two
sons. When his majesty understood the name and errand
of his guest, he pointed to a roast fowl which had just been
brought in, and bade him make a proper division of the seve-
ral parts to each member of the company. A large knife
was then placed into the hands of Abd el Aziz, with which
he cut off the head, the breast, the wings, and the legs of the
bird. Then, kneeling respectfully to the Sultan, he pre-
sented him gravely with the head, saying, ‘Let the head go
to him who is, under Allah, head over all.” Taking the
breast, he offered it to the Sultana, and said, “The breast to
her who is the breast of the king.” Giving the wings to the
minister, he said, ‘Let the wings go to him who supports the
Sultan, and by whose wise counsels the monarch directs his
course.” The legs he presented to the king's sons, with the
remark, ‘The legs of a king are a brave, healthy, and affec-
tionate offspring.”


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 299
“‘But there remains yet the body of the fowl, O Abd el
Aziz,” observed the Sultan. ‘To whom shall that be given º'
“‘To myself, O king,’ was the reply; “for are not the
subjects of a monarch those who nourish him, his sons, and
his ministers ? Are we not, also, the back that always bears
burdens P’
“‘You have accomplished your task well, and have de-
served my approbation,” said the Sultan. “Henceforth your
face is white before me. Slaves, escort Abd el Aziz to his
house, give him a horse, a dress of honor, and fifty pieces
of gold.”
“The king’s orders were instantly obeyed, and Aisha
could scarcely credit the evidence of her senses when she
saw her husband riding along like an emir, with a splendid
robe, and attended by attendants richly dressed. The grati-
fication was still further increased when he showed her the
money which he had received from the Sultan.
“Abd el Aziz went to his rest that evening a happy man;
but, as prosperity had not made him idle, he departed, as
usual, the next morning to his customary occupation. Aisha,
however, was soon beset by a numerous crowd of her female
acquaintances, who were speedily put in possession of every-
thing that had occurred. Among them was a sour, discon-
tented woman, whose name was Fatima, and whose husband
exercised the calling of a cobbler near the house of the fish-
erman. This person returned home in an ill humor, and be-
gan to inveigh bitterly against the stupidity of her helpmate.
“‘Is it well, O Father of Sloth,” said she, “that you sit
here from day to day mending old papouches, while your
neighbor finds gold in the streets Have you no brains, O
man, that you cannot invent smart replies? or is your tongue
cut out, that you cannot utter them 2 Upon my head, you
have no more ingenuity than the donkey of an Arab.”
“Now the cobbler had no small opinion of his own abili-
ties, and he was by no means pleased with these reproaches
of his wife. However, he determined first to discover the
cause of her anger, which he soon found out was the unex-
pected prosperity of Abd el Aziz. The discovery excited
his envy and indignation also, for the honest fisherman had
always been an object of contempt to him. He bade his
wife be silent, and assured her that he would at once go to
the palace, and doubted not that he should return with a


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 801
by a large curtain from the nave of the church. At first this
curtain was drawn up, and some preliminary ceremonies
commenced.
The bishop was seated in an arm-chair, holding a cross in
his hand, while four stout Syrian deacons lifted him on their
shoulders, and paraded him round the church. The proces-
sion, however, was anything but dignified, as the crowd was
very great, and every one endeavored to get near the chair.
The poor bishop was borne to and fro by his supporters, evi-
dently in great peril of falling out of his seat, while the choir
sang, or rather shouted, a hymn, and accompanied their
voices with the clashing of several pairs of cymbals, which
are the only species of instrumental music tolerated in the
Syrian Church. When the procession was over, the bishop
mounted the altar, the curtain was let down, and the Liturgy
proceeded more quietly, though the mode in which the re-
sponses were made would rather have scandalized an Eng-
lish audience. Yet I saw a great many among the wor-
shipers whose devotion seemed evidently heartfelt and sin-
cere; and, doubtless, could the Syrians have been present
at one of our churches, they would have been equally aston-
ished to find that a people who profess to entertain so much
more pure and untainted religious feeling than all other na-
tions, invariably sit or loll when they are offering up their
prayers.
Most persons form a most extravagant estimate of the
cleanliness of Orientals in general, because they have heard
or read that the East is the land of the bath; and yet nothing
can be more filthy than the habits of the great mass of the
people. Those who hear of their visits to the bath should
be told also that they rarely wash themselves at any other
time than the hours of prayer, when a little water is poured
over the hands and arms, and a wet thumb inserted in the
orifice of each ear. Among the middle classes, few take the
bath oftener than once a month, and, with the exception of
the ritual purifications I have alluded to, which amount to
very little, this may be considered the only real cleansing
which most Orientals undergo. The visit to the bath is
therefore made a matter of some importance, and the day on
which it occurs is marked out as a holiday. When the
cleansing has taken place, the Eastern wraps himself luxu-
26


302 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
riously in clean towels, and discusses the news of the neigh-
borhood over pipes and coffee.
At one o'clock in the day, the males take their departure,
and the women use the building till sunset. The bath sup-
plies the same source of recreation to an Eastern lady that
balls and parties do to their European sisters. Here each
khatoun" meets her female friends, discusses scandal and
fashions, and deplores the jealousy or inconstancy of her
husband. Sometimes curiosity leads a European lady to the
bath, which she has no sooner entered than a loquacious and
inquisitive crowd surrounds her. All flock to examine the
dress and the appearance of the stranger, and it is well if
she is enabled to escape; uninjured in temper or equanimity,
from their searching scrutiny.
At home, the Eastern woman is a very child in her lan-
guage, thoughts, and habits. European ladies have told me
of their interrupting the mistress of a Turkish mansion in the
agreeable pastime of throwing pillows at her attendants,
while sometimes she has been discovered demolishing whole
platefuls of sweetmeats. The rank of the husband never
relieves the wife from the necessity of superintending the
culinary preparations of the household. Even the spouse of
a pasha usually cooks her husband's dinner, of which, how-
ever, she does not partake.
We often form exaggerated notions of the unhappiness of
Turkish women; yet we must remember that what would
be considered here a degradation would there be looked upon
as a necessary part of female modesty. An Oriental female
would deem herself lowered in the opinion of others, and in
her own, if she went unveiled, or sat down at the same table
with men. The customs, therefore, which impose these re-
strictions upon her are regarded by her as deductions from
the natural rules of right conduct, and are, therefore, not felt
as degrading, or even as tyrannical. Were the Oriental
female solicited to go about as European ladies do, she
would reject the suggestion as a most grievous insult.
One peculiarity in the social parties of the East is the
absence of all females. Among the Christians, women some-
times sit down with their husbands and receive their guests,
if those guests are Europeans; but this is rarely, if ever,
* Madam, mistress, or lady.


NOTES FROM NINEVEII. 303
done when the persons invited are Orientals. It is considered
also indecent for people of different sexes to be seen together
in public, although the closest ties of relationship may exist
between them. I shall never forget the unqualified stare of
astonishment with which an Eastern lady regarded me when
I informed her that in England husbands walked abroad in
company with their wives.
An Oriental friend, having entertained the idea of marrying
a European, applied to me for information respecting the
probable wants and requirements of his future bride in pros-
pectu. His countenance lengthened as I enlarged upon the
necessity of allowing his wife to mix in society where males
were admitted, and of tolerating her going abroad without
a veil. After a few moments’ thought, however, he said—
“All this, I suppose, is right, according to the customs of
the Franks; and, as I must not expect her to change the
habits in which she has been educated, I suppose I must
consent to her following manners to which, I own, my East-
ern mind is repugnant. But is there anything else?”
“Yes,” I replied; “you must give her your arm when
she has a mind to walk abroad.”
“That,” he replied, “I will not and cannot do. But is
it absolutely necessary?”
“It is,” I answered.
“Then the marriage is at an end,” observed he, decidedly;
“for, were she a houri from Paradise, I would never have
her on those terms.”
The early age at which Easterns generally marry tends to
prevent the occurrence of much evil, and acts as a restraint
to vicious habits. But a young couple do not, as with us,
immediately commence housekeeping on their own account.
The newly-wedded pair reside with the father and mother of
the husband, and continue in their house sometimes for years.
I know of no sight more interesting than that of an aged
Oriental, with his long gray beard and venerable aspect, pre-
siding over a whole circle of married sons. It has often
brought vividly before me the patriarchs of Holy Writ.
It is a custom in Assyria to call the father by the name of
his eldest son. Thus, supposing the appellation of the latter
to be Mohammed, the father would be termed Abou Moham-
med, the father of Mohammed; and this compound title is
often substituted for his proper name. On one occasion, an


304 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
old gentleman, entitled Ismail, who was much respected by
his neighbors, was so unfortunate as to have no son from
whom to derive an honorific appellation. What was to be
done? All the neighbors agreed it would be a great shame
that so respectable and worthy a man should be called all
his life plain Ismail. A mollah was called into consultation,
and it was determined, by a species of legal fiction, to de-
nominate him Abou Ahmed, the father of Ahmed. He had
been known by this name for a year or two, when he mar-
ried again, and a son was born, to whom, in acknowledg-
ment of the kindness of his neighbors, he gave the name of
Ahmed.
CHAPTER XXVII.
Remarks on the Syrian Jacobites.
THE Syrian Jacobites have been alluded to so often, in the
course of these pages, that it seems proper to insert a few
remarks on their history and peculiar opinions, the more
especially as they constitute a considerable portion of the
Eastern Christians. Various derivations have been given of
the name Jacobite, by which they are generally known.
Some writers of this sect have affected to deduce it from the
appellation of the Patriarch Jacob, or from that of St. James
or Jacobos, the brother of our Lord. The most probable
derivation, however, seems to be founded on the supposition
that it was an appellative fastened on the followers of Jaco-
bus Baradaeus by the orthodox, about a century and a half
after the Council of Chalcedon.
The latter synod was held, A. D. 451, to condemn the
opinions of Eutyches, an abbot of Constantinople, who, in
his eager detestation of the doctrines of Nestorius, had fallen
into the opposite extreme, and pronounced that there was
but one nature in Christ. The term itself was comparatively
harmless, as it seems to have been used by the Egyptian and
Syrian doctors before his time; but, from the language of
Eutyches, it appeared that he affixed to it a peculiar sense
of his own, and considered the humanity of the Saviour as


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 807
The year following that in which John accomplished his
arduous mission, he relates that the city of Cyzicum was
visited by an earthquake, while a comet of fearful magnitude
appeared in the west. Brazen vessels, manned by headless
navigators, were reported to have been discovered at sea,
directing their course towards those places which were after-
wards visited by the plague. This fearful scourge overran
Gaza, Ascalon, the whole region of Palestine, and pursued
its course over the countries of Mesopotamia, Cilicia, Mysia,
and Bithynia.
In Egypt, a whole city was depopulated by the plague,
with the exception of seven men, and a boy of ten years of
age. The survivors employed themselves in collecting to-
gether the riches of the town, which they gathered into one
immense heap; and afterwards the men fell down and ex-
pired. The lad, affrighted at what had befallen his compa-
nions, left the treasure and fled. He reached the gate in
safety, but was there met by a spectral form, who persuaded
him to return to the place where he had left his companions.
The youth obeyed, and perished.
At another city in the confines of Palestine, the inhabit-
ants were deceived by some evil spirits, who assumed the
garb and appearance of angels, and persuaded the people
that they should be safe from the plague if they would adore
a brazen image to be found in the market-place. The towns-
men complied with the insidious suggestion, but soon had
reason to repent of their credulity. As soon as they com-
menced the idolatrous ceremony, a violent storm arose, the
wind raised the statue to the height of a thousand cubits in
the air, after which it fell with such violence that it was dis-
solved by the shock to powder, and all the men of the place
were instantly seized with the plague and died.
In Antioch itself, sepulchres were wanting for the nume-
rous bodies which required burial. It was said that vessels
were thrown from on high upon the earth, filled with vapors,
which escaped, and disseminated everywhere the fatal dis-
order. The villages and towns in the neighborhood were
deserted by the superstitious peasantry, who affirmed that
evil spirits had been seen traversing the country in the attire
of priests and monks, thus casting discredit on the members
of the sacred order.
Meanwhile, the plague directed its devastating course


303 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
eastwards, in the direction of Amida and Nisibis. Earth-
quakes prevailed in all parts of Asia, and, to add to the
miseries of the time, the Jews and Samaritans broke out
into rebellion, and massacred great numbers of the Christians
in Palestine. Soon after, the principal cities of Galilee and
Phoenicia were much injured by earthquakes, and the sea
receded for about two miles from the usual water-mark.
Towards the termination of these troubles, a meteor appeared
in the air, shaped like a lance, which was quickly followed
by the death of the Emperor Justinian."
After this period, the Monophysites seem to have increased
greatly in numbers, though they were from time to time
visited by persecutions. An Oriental writer relates that,
among other grievances, they were often made to serve as
steeds for the Orthodox; and the unfortunate heretic who
possessed the unenviable qualification of broad shoulders
was frequently obliged to groan beneath the weight of a
stout and portly member of the Imperial or Melchite Church.
During the seventh and eighth centuries, we find them aiding
the Moslem invaders against their Greek oppressors, though
by so doing they only exchanged one species of servitude for
another. At the commencement of the ninth century, a
Syrian bishop presided over a large congregation in the city
of Baghdad, which had recently been founded by the Caliph
Al Mansoor.
During the ninth century, a question was much agitated
between the Syrian and Egyptian Monophysites concerning
the propriety of mixing the bread of the eucharist with oil
and salt, which occasioned, for a time, the cessation of inter-
communion between them. Peace was afterwards restored,
and the Syrians have ever since regarded the Copts and
Abyssinians as brethren. Towards the end of this period,
Moses Bar Cepha was Patriarch of the Jacobites, and pub-
lished several works which were highly esteemed by the
sect. In his Dissertation on Paradise, he advanced an
opinion still generally received among the Syrians, that the
Garden of Eden, from which Adam was expelled, is still
existing, though invisible, and receives the souls of the just
and pious, to remain there until the day of the resurrection.
* I have drawn the above statements from the chronicle of the Bishop
John. He seems to have been somewhat credulous; but the main facts are
corroborated by Theophanes and Procopins.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 309
He was the author of two liturgies, and wrote commentaries
on the Syriac Ritual.
In the tenth century, a Jacobite patriarch, named John,
was led captive to Constantinople, where he defended the
Monophysite doctrine in the presence of the Greek emperor
Nicephorus Phocas, and the Patriarch Polyeuctes. His de-
scription of his reception at the imperial city is addressed to
the Coptic primate Mennas, and contains some curious parti-
culars, a few of which I shall transcribe.
“The Greek emperor commanded that the patriarch should
send for us, which order he obeyed, and we waited upon him
the Thursday before Palm Sunday, when he received us in
the presence of a large body of his clergy. Before we reached
his palace, a number of men met us, who endeavored by
loud outcries to make us afraid. But God, in consideration
of thy acceptable prayers, afforded us both fortitude and
patience.
“After some time, we came to the palace of the patriarch,
which is a large edifice, surrounded by soldiers and a large
crowd of attendants. When we had saluted him, and he had
returned our salutation, he inquired, “Of what place art thou
patriarch 2° We answered, “We are Bishop of the See of
Antioch.’”
After this, some conversation took place respecting the
theological sentiments of the Jacobites, which John avowed
boldly, and without disguise. He was then allowed to
return, but was subsequently sent for by the emperor, whose
proceedings he thus describes:—
“He caused us to enter their great church (Sancta Sophia),
and showed us all the ecclesiastical ornaments, the robes,
veils, and lamps, with the multitudes of people who flocked
daily thither, thinking that we should be moved like chil-
dren by the sight of these perishable things. Then, after he
had communicated, he began to speak harshly to us, accusing
us of dividing Christ, and urging against us the saying of
Paul, in which he represents one as asserting “I am of
Cephas, and another I am of Christ.” To which accusations
we were enabled, by God’s help, to make a suitable reply.
“On Easter, the emperor again sent for us, and said,
“The Moslem and the Jews continually reproach us with our
divisions, and point out how some are called Melekites,
others Jacobites, and others Nestorians. What, then, is the


310 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
cause of the schism between you and ourselves? Let us
come together and search the Scriptures for two or three
months, and, having found out truth, let us all follow it.’”
An interview afterwards took place between the Jacobite
and the Greek patriarchs, in the course of which, the former
reproached the Melekites with holding the opinions of Nesto-
rius, a charge indignantly denied. The epistle concludes
with the expression of the writer’s steadfast determination to
maintain firmly the tenets of the Monophysites, and with a
request that he may be aided and supported by the prayers of
Mennas.
At the commencement of the eleventh century, John, the
son of Abdon, was elected Patriarch of the Jacobites. He
was the first who moved the seat of the patriarchate from
Antioch to Malatiah, a city of Armenia. Before his election,
he lived a solitary life on the Black Mountain, near Antioch,
in company with a brother anchorite, who was also named
John. The Patriarch Athanasius had, on his deathbed,
designated the son of Abdon as his successor, which fact,
according to his biographer, was miraculously announced to
John in a vision. The modest hermit resolved to decline
the intended dignity, and, addressing his friend, he related
to him what had occurred, and also his determination to con-
ceal himself from those who were on their way to invest him
with rank patriarchal. But the other, who nourished beneath
his hermit’s gown a spirit of worldliness and ambition,
resolved to remain, and to accept the proffered dignity.
The son of Abdon replied, “I will not submit to bear the
burden of worldly honor, nor can I endure to be torn away
from this blessed retreat where I have spent so many happy
years. But if thou deemest that thou canst support this yoke,
remain, and take it on thyself. As for me, I shall seek to
conceal myself until this calamity be overpast.”
Having said these words, he fled away, and concealed
himself in the recesses of the mountain, leaving his compa-
nion to receive the deputation, who, arriving on the following
day, found the other John awaiting them, and, supposing
him to be the person intended, saluted him patriarch. The
ambitious monk gladly accepted the honor, and took his
departure in company with the others. But, as they were
journeying to Antioch, the sun being very oppressive, they
reposed for a short time under a tree, the boughs of ‘which


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 311
happened to strike the monk on the eyes, and blinded him.
Conscience-stricken, he related what had passed between
him and the son of Abdon, who was immediately sought for,
and installed, against his will, Patriarch of Antioch.
The city of Malatiah, in his day, was a large and flourish-
ing town, containing fifty-six churches and about sixty thou-
sand males, among whom were reckoned a small number of
Melekites, who raised great troubles, and finally succeeded
in procuring the imprisonment of the Jacobite patriarch. It
is now, however, in a semi-ruinous state, owing to the mis-
government of the Turks.
During the following century, Dionysius Bar Salibi occu-
pied the patriarchal throne, a man noted for piety and
learning. He composed several works on theological sub-
jects, among which we find a curious disquisition on bells,
the invention of which he ascribes to Noah. He mentions
that several histories record a command given to that patriarch
to strike on the bell with a piece of wood three times a day,
in order to summon the workmen to their labor while he was
building the ark, and this he seems to consider the origin of
church bells, an opinion which, indeed, is common to other
Oriental writers.
We find, in the writings of Bar Salibi, a distinct admission
of the doctrine of consubstantiation, for he affirms that the
body and blood of Christ in the eucharist were the same that
were born of the Blessed Virgin ; and this opinion seems
still to be entertained by many of the later Syrians, although
they do not admit the Roman definition of the change of sub-
stance. In another place, he illustrates the union of the body
and blood of the Redeemer to the elements, by the example
of the junction of fire and iron in a red hot bar.
In the thirteenth century, flourished the learned Gregorius
Bar Hebraeus, a most voluminous writer in Arabic and
Syriac, who obtained from the Mohammedans the apellation
of Abou’l Farraj, which has been Latinized into Abulphara-
gius. He was born in the city of Malatiah, and his father
seems to have been a Jewish convert, from which circum-
stance he derived the name of Bar Hebrai, the son of
the Hebrew. In A. D. 1243, the Tartars invaded the terri-
tory of Malatiah, and laid siege to the city; but their assault
was warded off by the prudence and courage of the Syrian
archbishop, who, assembling the citizens, exhorted them to


312 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
take arms, and repel the assailants. In the following year,
Bar Hebraeus repaired to Antioch, where he devoted himself
to an ascetic life. From thence, after a short time, he went
to Tripoli, where he was ordained priest and bishop by
Ignatius, the Jacobite patriarch. In A. D. 1264, he was
elected to the high dignity of Primate of the East, which he
held for twenty-two years.
The Patriarch of the Jacobites had found it necessary, in
consequence of the incursions of the Tartars, to fix his abode
in Western Syria, and to delegate the affairs of the East to
a metropolitan, who was termed the maphrian, or primate,
and fixed his chief residence at Mosul. Bar Hebraeus found
his new office, however, full of trouble and anxiety. The
ravages of the barbarians had alarmed and impoverished
the people. Great numbers had taken flight, while those
that remained were in daily fear that their property might
be seized, and their towns and villages destroyed. Much
mischief, also, had arisen from the discord between the Nes-
torians and the Jacobites, the former frequently making use
of their influence with the Caliphs and the Tartar sovereigns
to oppress their co-religionists. By his prudent and forbear-
ing measures, however, the new maphrian succeeded in win-
ning the favor of Hulaku Khan, and of his Christian consort,
and of conciliating the esteem of the Nestorian catholicos.
When Bar Hebraeus visited Baghdad, the latter dispatched
his nephew, and some of the principal men of the city, to
meet his brother of Mosul, and escort him into the city of
peace. For the first time since the division of the sects,
Nestorians and Jacobites joined together in celebrating the
solemn rites of Easter.
The maphrian returned soon after to Mosul, where, how-
ever, he remained but a short time, as the condition of his
community required his continual oversight. Indefatigable
in his exertions, he passed from place to place, ordaining
bishops and priests, rebuilding ruined churches, and obtain-
ing from the Tartar monarchs fresh privileges for his sect,
When, at the decease of the patriarch, he was accused of
aspiring to this high station, the maphrian of the East could
reply with pardonable pride that he coveted no higher honor
than that which he already possessed, of enjoying the fruits
of a calm and tranquillity which his own exertions had ob-
tained for his extensive diocese.


NOTES FROM NINEVEII. 313
In his sixtieth year, this great and excellent man felt a
presentiment that his last hour was drawing nigh. By the
persuasion of his friends, he had translated his Chronicle, one
of the most valuable works in Oriental literature, from the
Syriac into the Arabic language. Soon after he had finished
his labors, he was seized with a fever, for which he refused
to receive medical treatment, saying that he was sensible
that the end of his life was at hand. With the calm com-
posure of a Christian, he called for his papers, and dictated
to his weeping secretary several important instructions. He
then received the eucharist, and, charging the survivors to
remain in love and charity with each other, the Maphrian of
the East breathed his last.
Mar Jaballaha, the Catholicos of the Nestorians, had no
sooner heard of his decease than he hastened to pay the
last honors to one whose character, notwithstanding their
difference in creed, he could not but respect and esteem.
Nestorians, Armenians, Greeks, and Jacobites united in
forming the mournful procession which accompanied to the
grave the corpse of the deceased maphrian; a solemn funeral
service was performed by each ; and even the Mohammedans
paid a decent tribute to the memory of a man whose writ-
ings had enriched the literature of their country, and handed
down to posterity the actions of their most renowned Caliphs.
The prolific genius of Bar Hebraeus displayed itself in the
various subjects which he treated. Among his writings, we
find treatises on logic, astronomy, and physics; in grammar,
history, poetry, and theology, he was equally celebrated;
while the most learned doctors of Arabia acknowledged that
in ethics and the abstruse sciences his dictum was equal to
that of Aristotle himself. The disciples, who bewailed his
departure, spoke of him in terms of affectionate praise as a
glorious and shining lamp, and as the strong and stately pillar
which had hitherto sustained the weak and trembling fabric
of Jacobism.
The charity of the deceased maphrian shone no less brightly
than his intellectual acquirements and his other moral virtues.
The friend and favorite of princes, he delighted to live in a
small apartment, where he was accessible to the meanest of
his flock. Money he so much despised that he distributed
to the poor nearly the whole of his annual income, reserving
only so much as was needed for the necessaries of life. The


314 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
members of his flock strove, by stealth, to force presents upon
him, and, while kissing his hand, contrived to insert some
coins beneath the mattress of the diwan. The biographer
relates, with naive simplicity, the astonishment of the good
bishop when the matting was raised, and a whole shower of
gold or silver pieces poured down upon the floor. They did
not, however, remain there long, but were quickly transferred
to the numerous poor families who waited about the episco-
pal portals, many of whom were supported by the benevo-
lence of Bar Hebraeus. Sometimes, however, the accumu-
lated store amounted to so large an amount as to cause the
bishop no small anxiety respecting the future disposal of it.
The affairs of the Jacobite community since the death of
Bar Hebraeus have generally been in a declining state. A
long series of patriarchs might, indeed, be enumerated; yet
the account of their actions could afford little interest, as it
would be little more than a list of ordinations and of dis-
putes, which rarely yield the reader either entertainment or
edification. About the seventeenth century, the efforts of
the Roman missionaries induced many to ally themselves to
a new community, which was entitled the Syrian Catholic
Church, and which has been steadily on the increase ever
since. By the aid of the French political agents, the Syrian
Catholics obtained many of the churches, and carried on an
active system of proselytism, which was not always contented
to rely exclusively on the force of argument for success.
The Jacobites affirm that much fraud and cruelty were resorted
to for the purpose of bringing over persons to the new church,
and I once saw a manuscript history in Arabic, which charged
the adherents of Rome with many acts of violence.
The Syrian Catholics, however, are not much altered, as
far as externals are concerned, from their heretical brethren.
Their priests are still allowed to marry and to use the Syriac
language in the divine service; while their liturgies and
offices have undergone a few trifling emendations. They
have consented to receive the Council of Chalcedon, to admit
its canons as a rule of faith, and, what is perhaps of more
importance in the eyes of their Italian instructors, to acknow-
ledge the supremacy of the Roman pontiff. A Syrian Catho-
lic prelate, however, still resides at Antioch, who claims the
title of Patriarch of the East.
Besides the divisions above alluded to, it is said that a


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 315
large body of the Jacobite Syrians are desirous of effecting
some reformation in the usages of their church. They gene-
rally, however, adhere with considerable pertinacity to their
peculiar dogma of the one nature, and entertain the most
decided aversion towards any change in this particular. The
Jacobites on the coast of India, who are generally known by
the title of Malabar Syrians, receive their bishop from the
Patriarch of Mardin; but it is said that, owing to the dissen-
sions which have arisen among them, their numbers are
rapidly decreasing. The agents of the Church Missionary
Society have, I believe, induced many to join the Church of
England, while others have gone over to the Romish Syrians,
so that it is not improbable that the Indo-Jacobites may soon
become entirely extinct.
With the exception, perhaps, of the Armenians, who are
also distracted by many divisions, there seem to be strong
symptoms of decay visible in all the Christian systems of the
East. They appear to have lasted the appointed time, and
to be rapidly declining in number. Perhaps the next fifty
years may render the names even of the Jacobites and Nes-
torians a matter of history; while the descendants of those
who now bear them will be found ranged under the banners
of other communions.”
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Departure from Mosul. Halt of a caravan. Giorgio. Sinjar, and its ancient
associations. Ruins of Dara. The Delli Ali. False alarm. Mode of
escaping from Arabs.
THE period of my residence at Mosul was now fast drawing
to a close, and I had before me the daily anticipation of
leaving a place to which, notwithstanding the many disad.
vantages attendant on a European’s life in the East, I still
look back with no small amount of regret. The freedom of
social intercourse, the simple manners, and the unaffected
* For a concise view of the different Christian sects of the East, the reader
may consult with profit a small pamphlet, entitled “The Eastern Churches,”
published by Mr. Darling, of Queen Street.


316 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
goodness of heart which distinguish many individuals among
the Orientals, display themselves to advantage when one con-
siders the artificial polish and hollowness of what is termed
civilized life. Yet it cannot be denied that a person of cul-
tivated mind would often recall, at certain seasons, the
charms of a more educated, social circle than he could en-
counter on the banks of the Tigris. Nor can the magnificent
associations, or the splendid traditions of the East supply the
place of a home, or dispel entirely the feeling of loneliness
with which a stranger surveys the foreign crowd around him.
I can hardly tell, therefore, whether, speaking with regard
only to mere personal feelings, I felt more pleased or grieved
at leaving a place which, according to the tales of its inhabit-
ants, formed anciently a part of Paradise.
When the day of departure arrived, there were many, who
had grown from mere acquaintances into old friends, to take
leave of with almost the certainty that we should never
meet again. This was, of course, far from agreeable, nor is
the recollection of it less unwelcome; wherefore I must beg
the reader to suppose the last words of farewell spoken, and
ourselves outside the gate of Mosul. We intended to take
the shortest road over the plains of Sinjar to Nisibis, and
from thence to travel by way of Diarbekir, across the flat
country of Mesopotamia, to Aleppo.
As the road by the desert was considered unsafe, we ob-
tained from the executive of Mosul a cortège of Albanians,
who were to escort us till we had placed ourselves beyond
the reach of danger. We had no Tatar with us, but hired
horses to Aleppo from a native of Mosul, and, as soon as
our intention became known, several merchants, who were
traveling the same way, expressed their wish to join us, so
that, by the time we had proceeded for three hours on our
way, our numbers had swelled into a tolerable caravan.
After a ride of fifteen miles, we reached a small Arab vil-
lage called Ak Meidat; but, as the mud huts did not seem
very inviting, we pitched our tent, and prepared to spend the
night under its shadow. By this time, a large number of
persons from Mosul had joined our party, and, as they had
also brought tents with them, the plain soon presented the
animated appearance of a military encampment. Numerous
fires, kindled in different parts of the heath, lit up the whole


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 317
scene, and displayed to advantage the variously dressed figures
which surrounded them.
Near one of these were assembled our Albanian escort,
whose richly-laced jackets and buskins sparkled brightly in
the glare of the flame, which lent additional lustre also to
their sabres and ornamented pistol butts. Having few of the
scruples entertained by ordinary Mohammedans, they had
brought with them some wine-skins, by the aid of which they
proposed to beguile the drowsy hours of the night.
A group of sober, staid Moslems, not far from them,
regarded with looks, in which dislike was mingled with fear,
the unlawful proceedings of those whom in confidence they
would doubtless have stigmatized as semi-Kafirs and Ferma-
soon.” They themselves were imbibing the more sober
beverage of coffee, and smoking their chibouques, speaking
little, but appearing to be engaged in profound meditation
over their pipes. Others were busy in preparing their pro-
visions for a night repast, while some were attending to their
steeds, and getting their baggage ready for the next day’s
march.
As the evening drew on, a band of musicians, who had
arrived from Mosul, began to play in the midst of the encamp-
ment, while three of the Albanians danced the Romaika with
great spirit. The attitudes of this celebrated dance struck
me as awkward and inelegant ; but there was a wild savage
air about it which agreed tolerably with the appearance and
apparel of the performers. An old man with a cracked
voice began to sing a very nasal ditty about the chains and
torments of love ; but the sentiments, however naturally
poetical they might be in the abstract, derived little embel-
lishment from the manner in which they were set forth. A
musical Albanian nearly excited a quarrel, in his attempt to
possess himself of one of the singer's guitars, but a few paras
arranged matters, and he was allowed the loan of the instru-
ment. He seated himself on the grass, with a circle of his
companions around him, and with a fearful grimace, which
was evidently an attempt to look interesting and sentimental,
he shouted forth a ditty, the refrain of which greatly resembled
* The term Fermasoon, which, I believe, is a corruption of “Freemason,”
is used in the East to express a person void of religion. It is frequently
applied to Protestants, and to Englishmen, concerning whose theological tenets
the utmost ignorance prevails in the East.
27+


318 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
in sound the syllables bow wow. I was told, however, that it
was a very romantic lament, poured forth by a despairing
swain to some iron-hearted beauty, who was eventually so
overcome by it that she bestowed on the singer her hand and
heart. The rude mercenaries seemed much affected by it,
perhaps because it reminded them of their distant mountain-
land.
We were accompanied from Mosul by a Greek servant,
who had, for the last three or four years, been residing with
Mr. Rassam. Giorgio, in that time, had grown somewhat
tired of “the barbarians,” as his ancestors would have called
them, and as he thought them in his inmost soul. In theo-
logical matters, however, his liberality might have edified
those enlightened persons in the nineteenth century who
make it a point of conscience to commend and speak well of
every form of religion except their own. On great festivals,
he was always to be seen holding a very large candle in the
Chaldean and Syrian processions. Like a true Greek, how-
ever, he maintained the superiority of the Melchite Church to
all other communions, and considered the Pope of Rome as
unworthy to bear the slippers of the Patriarch of Constanti-
nople. But Giorgio's chief delight was to talk of the exploits
of his father in the Greek war, where he had been a very
Achilles to the infidels. At first, indeed, I could hardly un-
derstand these narratives, which he poured into my very
willing ears as we rode side by side over some dull, unin-
teresting level, but at length I managed to pick up some
words of Italian, by the aid of which, and a shrewd guess
now and then at the meaning of a modern Greek phrase, we
contrived to get on very well together.
Giorgio told me his father was a respectable farmer in
Attica, who, after his belligerent doings, had taken a second
spouse, a comely widow from Scio; but she proved such an
ill stepmother, that the son, who inherited all the paternal
spirit, was glad to quit his father’s house, and go off to Con-
stantinople. In the metropolis, he engaged in the service of
some Franks ; but rarely stayed very long in one place, for,
like Ulysses, he was fond of seeing the world. After many
misadventures, he entered the employ of Mr. Rassam, with
whom he had traveled for some months in Asia Minor; and
eventually accompanied him to Mosul. During his wander-
ing and adventurous life, he had picked up many accom-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 319
plishments—which were both useful and ornamental. He
was a very good cook, a tolerable groom; he could make and
mend clothes, play and sing a little, and dance the Romaika.
He spoke Greek, Turkish, Italian, and broken English. Few
better understood how to deal with the true believers, whose
dignity he astonished sometimes by a lash from his whip.
Perhaps no one could be more suited for our purpose, and
all of us agreed, when the journey was over, that we had
derived more assistance from Giorgio than we should have
gained from twenty Tatars.
But the dawn is now breaking, and the whole encampment
are rousing themselves from the slumbers which succeeded
their revelry. The baggage horses have been laden, the tents
struck, and the whole of the cavalcade is once more en route.
A red glow illuminates the distant summits of the Kurdish
Mountains and of Jebel Makloub. Behind us are the mina-
rets of Mosul; while around, on every side, extend the plains
of Sinjar, terminated to the eastward by the Tigris.
Near Ak Meidat, we crossed a stone bridge with two
arches, built over a rivulet whose brackish waters are said to
produce great numbers of fish. Under one of these arches,
we noticed a trap or net set for catching crabs, with which
the stream abounded.
In two hours and a half, we arrived at Hegnah, a small
tell or mound surmounted by a ruined castle, on the gate of
which was an inscription in Arabic, stating that it had been
rebuilt in the year of the Hegira 1212. We halted for the
day at the foot of the tell, near which was a pool of brackish
water, plentifully stocked with frogs. Several of these un-
pleasant reptiles crawled into our tent, where they sat for
some minutes staring at the strangers, and then disappeared
to join their comrades in a croaking chorus, which interrupted
my intended mid-day siesta.
From Hegnah we rode on to Aiwainat, another mound
situated at the edge of a large plain, which presented a very
gay appearance, being covered with the tents of the soldiers,
who had gone forth to meet and welcome the new pasha.
Report seemed to augur favorably of his character. Although
not exactly one of the reforming school, it was said that
Shereef Pasha was a man of humane and merciful disposi-
tion, strictly just and upright in his dealings; in short, a
very fair specimen of an Osmanli ruler.


320 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
There were several troops of irregulars who accompanied
the Nizam Djedeed, and I could not help contrasting their
gay and showy exteriors with the wretched Frank uniforms
of the new regiments, who seemed to feel themselves
shackled and fettered by their jackets and pantaloons. They
none of them wore any stockings; and those who were not
actually on duty wandered about in a loose unbuttoned state,
which might be comfortable, but which did not exactly respond
to our ideas of propriety. The poor fellows seemed to feel
themselves in a most uneasy situation, and evidently were at
a loss how to manage their new clothes.
On one occasion, I met at the table of Mr. Rassam the
Kaimakam of Mosul, a stout swarthy Kurd, who, as a govern-
ment official, had been doomed to submit to the rigors of the
Frank costume. When he sat down to dinner, however, old
habits suddenly assumed the predominance; with much
difficulty, he stripped up his sleeves as far as the elbow, and
began to demolish the eatables with his fingers. The poor
man, however, appeared so stiff and uncomfortable that I
could not help wishing him safely returned to his jibba and
zeboon.
From Aiwanat we had a long and tedious ride of twelve hours
to Rumaleh. The roads were very muddy, as rain had fallen
on the preceding day. The latter part of the march also was
in darkness, and the sudden sinking of our horses, every
now and then, in some bog or quagmire was the reverse of
agreeable.
The nature of the surrounding country was little adapted
to relieve the tedium of a caravan march. The flats were
indeed varied by slight excrescences here and there, and
sometimes by mounds of a larger size; but there was little
to attract attention or to call off the mind from the dull mo-
notonous tramp of the hired horses. I longed for a gallop,
but our steeds were not accustomed to quick movements,
and, as we had a long journey before us, it was necessary to
husband their strength. When we arrived at Rumaleh, I felt
quite exhausted, and, hastily dismounting, I wrapped my
cloak round me, and fell asleep on the grass.
The next morning we pitched our tent at the foot of a small
eminence, and determined to await the arrival of the pasha,
who was expected to reach Rumaleh at nine o’clock A. M.
Before he came, however, the Diwan Effendi, whom we found


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 321
also at Rumaleh, sent to borrow a bottle of brandy, as he
felt slightly indisposed. The bottle was sent, and returned
the next morning empty; but I believe the invalid made
B some small present as an acknowledgment of the
kindness.
Drums and trumpets sounded merrily as the pasha ap-
proached the tell with his escort. The whole plain was
covered with horsemen galloping to and fro, and discharging
their firearms in the air. Shouts and acclamations resounded
on all sides, as the pasha dismounted, and entered the tent
which had been prepared for his reception. Soon after his
arrival, B and I went to drink coffee with him, and were
much pleased with the politeness and affability of his man-
ners. Yet the appearance of an Eastern ruler is sometimes
deceptive in the extreme. I once went, at Constantinople,
to visit a chieftain whose name has been associated with many
a deed of blood and crime. We found a venerable man with
a long snowy beard, which gave him a most paternal and pa-
triarchal aspect. Nothing could be milder, more pious, or
more resigned than his conversation. He described himself
as the victim of undeserved calumny and persecution, and
spoke of his enemies with the calm forgiveness with which a
good man regards those who have injured him. His devout
resignation to the will of Heaven was most edifying, and few
that looked upon that venerable countenance, or watched the
repose of that aged eye, could believe that there had been a
time when both were lit up by the fiercest passions which
can agitate the bosom of man.
From Rumaleh we proceeded to Aznaoor, a Kurdish vil-
lage in the territory of Bedr Khan Bey, where we pitched our
tents under the shade of some trees. From thence we rode
on, in the evening, to Geri Zaina, a small village containing
four families of Syrian Christians. It had formerly been a
place of some size, but, like other towns and villages in these
parts, was now reduced to a few miserable huts.
We had just been traversing the northern part of the plains
of Shinar, on which, if the hypothesis advocated in a former
chapter be correct, was situated the ancient Babel, mentioned
in the early part of the Book of Genesis. The kingdom of
Shinar is first spoken of in Genesis xiv., where an expedition
is recorded, in which its monarch seems to have borne a con-
siderable share. In company with Chedorlaomer King of


322 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Elam, Arioch King of Ellasar, and Tidal King of Nations,
he is described as making war against the kings or chiefs of
Canaan. I am disposed to identify Ellasar with the modern
Tell-Afer, mentioned by Mr. Layard as situated three hours'
ride from Mosul.” Elam seems to imply the kingdom of
Persia, while the Nations may have been different scattered
tribes lately united under one head.
The races dwelling in northern Mesopotamia seem to have
acquired, at an early period, the appellation of Chasdim,
though some circumstances would lead us to imagine that it
was not generally adopted till after the birth of Abraham.
Their dominion extended to the Euphrates, if we admit the
identity of Urfah with the ancient Ur. At the time of the
expedition alluded to in Scripture, they seem to have ad-
vanced into the northern parts of Syria, as the Karnak Tablet
mentions the Khita, a people whom Mr. Birch successfully
identifies with the Chaldeans, as seated at Helbon, the modern
Aleppo. A very current tradition prevalent in the East de-
rives the appellation of Haleb, or Aleppo, which signifies
“he milked,” from the supposition that Abraham tarried
here to milk his cows, while on his way to Palestine. He,
therefore, most probably journeyed by the same route which
a modern traveler would take, passing through Aleppo, and
repairing thence by way of Hems to Damascus.
It remains an open question how far the chiefs of Shinar
were independent of the power of Elam, as the people of
Canaan are mentioned in Genesis as tributaries of the latter
country. Yet it is not certain that Elam implies Persia, or,
at least, the whole of it. It seems more to refer to the regions
eastward of the Kurdish Mountains. Elam was the brother
of Asshur, and, therefore, there appears to be a close con-
nection between the Elamites and the early Assyrians, whose
territories were probably contiguous. If so, this seems to
bear strongly upon the fact of the northern position of Shinar,
and corroborates the hypothesis respecting Babel.
During the captivity of the children of Israel in Egypt, the
kings of that country appear to have come in collision with
the Chaldeans of Shinar and the inhabitants of Central Asia.
To this period I should feel disposed to refer the events re-
corded in the Karnak Tablet. A confederation seems to
* Nineveh and its Remains, vol. i. chap. ix.


324 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
The northern position of Shinar seems here established,
though, perhaps, in after ages, the same appellation might
be applied to regions farther south.”
Mention is made also of the capture of a fort, or a fortified
city, entitled Atesh, or Atet, which is described in the Tab-
let as “situated on a circular island, in the centre of a large
river, flanked by two bridges.” It lay close to the Ruten
(Cappadocians) and the Luden (Lydians), and seems to have
been in the vicinity of Saen Kara, or Sinjar. It was gar-
risoned by a Chaldean people, and was not distant from the
Chaboras. Mr. Birch considers this Fort Haditha, on the
east bank of the Euphrates; but, though I am sorry to differ
from so eminent an authority on the subject of antiquities, I
should, with all due submission, suggest, whether the insular
position of the fort does not correspond remarkably with the
site of the modern Jezirah, which is surrounded by two arms
of the Tigris, and is close to Mesopotamia, Sinjar, and Cap-
padocia. Many other considerations concur in rendering
this view probable. In the vicinity of Jezirah flows the
modern Habor, or Khabour, which is nearly identical with
the word Chaboras, or Khaboras, found in the Tablet.f The
position of this insular town must have been in the heart of the
regions occupied by the confederates—a circumstance which
rendered its capture of signal importance to the Egyptians.
Mention is made of the drugs of Atesh, or Atet, which might
refer to the gall nuts still to be found in great quantities in
the neighboring mountains.
From all these considerations, it seems probable that the
Shinar of Genesis, and the Saen Kara of the Tablet, are
identical, and that the Chasdim, or Chaldeans, occupied the
plain of Sinjar, and the northern parts of Mesopotamia. Nor
should I consider it unlikely that the numerous tells, or
mounds, which I have lately described, might, if excavated,
be found to conceal more ancient remains even than those
discovered in the plains of Nineveh. There can be little
doubt that they are not natural excrescences, but accumula-
tions of rubbish, covered, in process of time, with verdure—
a description, indeed, that will apply to most of the small
mounds in the vicinity of Mosul. The future enterprise of
some industrious investigator may yet bring to light more
* Observations on the Karnak Tablet. f Ibid.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 325
astonishing relics of the past than have hitherto been disclosed
to the gaze of the curious ; and the ancient history of Cen-
tral Asia may become as familiar to our minds as that of
Greece and Rome.
From Geri Zaina we proceeded to Nisibin, where we
pitched our tent near the mausoleum of Mar Yacoub. Soon
after our arrival here, a band of wandering musicians made
their appearance, and desired leave to exhibit their talents
before us. The company consisted of four men and two
boys, whom we had taken, at a distance, for females, from
the nature of their attire. Their long black hair was braided,
and adorned with strings of coins; and they wore long red
petticoats, which reached as far as the ankle, and were made
like the under dresses of the Oriental women. They carried
tambourines in their hands, which they beat from time to time
during the dance. Their movements were the most ungrace-
ful and unmeaning I ever witnessed, being nothing but a
series of contortions, resembling the wriggling motion of a
snake.
The men encouraged their exertions by the sound of their
guitars, and the strains which one of the number poured
forth showed more zeal than ability. As the music continued,
however, the enthusiasm of the performers increased. The
boys leaped wildly from side to side, their cheeks glowing to
a degree that eclipsed the redness of the paint with which
they were plastered. All the musicians joined in chorus,
and produced, finally, yells of an awful and unearthly cha-
racter. At last, wearied with their labors, they suddenly
ceased, and, having received a small gratuity, departed to
take a little repose. These people belonged to a tribe called
the Delli Ali, a community which furnishes half the East with
jugglers and mountebanks. They wander about from town
to town, exhibiting their tricks, and sometimes perform in
the houses of the respectable Mohammedans. I was in-
formed that they were not celebrated for morality, and were
generally reputed to be great thieves whenever opportunities
occurred of stealing with safety.
About fifteen miles from Nisibis are the ruins of Dara,
which are situated between Nisibin and Mardin, at the dis-
tance of nearly a mile and a half from the road. Being
desirous of inspecting them, we left our companions to go on
the direct route, while we turned aside to see Dara. At our
28


326 NOTES FROM NINEWELI.
right was a low range of hills, which seem, in ancient times,
to have been included under the appellation of Mount Masius,
though the eminence which generally bears that name at
present is farther to the north.
As we rode along, a Turkish aga and his two servants
joined us. He had a residence and some landed property
near Dara, and was what we should call a country gentleman.
People of this class in Turkey very seldom mix themselves
up in politics, or seek after official distinction. They remain
at home in their paternal mansions, surrounded by their
dependents, to whom they extend a rude but ungrudging
hospitality, and by whom they are in general beloved and
respected. -
It is singular that in these parts one rarely finds a man of
good descent among the governors. Most of the latter have
risen from the dregs of the people, or are the offspring of
slaves. Some can neither read nor write; nor does their
ignorance seem, in any way, to affect their position. The
agas form the sound portion of the Ottoman dominions; but
their numbers are greatly diminishing, as their property be-
comes much depreciated in value by the tyranny of the pashas
and mutsellims, who drive the poor people to despair by their
exactions, and thus induce them to forsake their villages, and
to abstain from cultivating the soil.
The agawe met appeared to be a sensible man, and better
informed than most of his class. He had made several jour-
neys to Constantinople; but he said he always returned with
greater zest to his paternal domains. He admitted the tyranny
of the pashas, and observed that oppression was, to use his
own metaphor, eating up the land.
On arriving at Dara, we found the ruins situated on the
slope of a hill, the summit of which was occupied by a few
mud huts, inhabited chiefly by Armenian Christians, who
possessed here a church and a priest. The remains were so
extensive as to assume, at a distance, the appearance of a
town; and we were particularly struck by the perfect con-
dition of a tower, or minaret, which resembled very much the
steeple and belfry of a church.
We pitched our tent at the foot of the hill, and, having
taken some refreshment, went on an exploring expedition
among the ruins. Not far from the site we occupied was a
small rivulet, on the bank of which we discovered the remains


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 327
of an ancient wall. The stones were very massive, measur-
ing at least twelve feet by eight. We began to examine the
ruins which lay towards the north-east, and found several
buildings in an imperfect state, one or two only of the rooms
remaining. The walls abounded with inscriptions. We found
about ten tanks of stone filled with water. Each tank was
contained in a large apartment, covered by a roof, and having
the light admitted through a square aperture. The well-joined
masses of stonework excited our admiration, and accounted
for the durability of these buildings.
In the opposite direction, we found the remains of several
quarries, which had probably supplied the stone for the old
city. We proceeded through two galleries, or passages, and
examined the caves which were cut in the stony soil on each
side. Many of these had been used as tombs, but were now
inhabited by the peasantry and their families, who tilled the
neighboring lands. We noticed several bas-reliefs over the
entrances to these sepulchral grots. One was the emblem
of the cross, surrounded by a wreath of cypress; another, a
collection of skulls and bones, over which winged figures
were hovering. The borders of the arched semicircles over
each aperture were richly carved in the form of wreaths.
One of the cells contained a fine sarcophagus of marble,
nearly half of which was buried in the earth. Another was
shaped like a pyramid, and seemed to have been divided into
various compartments.
We next descended a flight of fifty-six stairs, which con-
ducted us to a subterranean hall, supported by pillars, still
retaining the marks of the staples to which chains had been
attached. Several passages were connected with this apart-
ment, leading to the ruins of an ancient castle, of which this
place had probably been the dungeon. A small, round open-
ing in the roof let in a faint glimmer of light; but the ob-
scurity was so great that we were obliged to bring torches
with us.
After a lengthy examination of these remains, we returned
to our tent, and were soon visited by a crowd of villagers,
who were anxious to dispose of coins. They told us that, in
turning over the ground, they often found “anteeka,” a term
learned from the Franks, and applied to every species of the
relics of ancient days. Among those they showed us, were
several coins of the Lower Empire of the Macedonians and


330 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
most terrified handled their sabres and pistols, and boasted
of the feats of valor which they would have performed.
It seems strange to recall now the sensation which I expe-
rienced when news was brought that no attack was to take
place; I confess I felt somewhat disappointed, although I am
not fond of fighting, and would at any time, in the language
of Shakspeare, “Walk rather with Sir Priest than Sir Knight.”
Yet there seems to be something stirring and exciting in the
prospect of a fray, which kindles the warm blood in our
veins, and makes us feel that, as far as the animal instinct
is concerned, we are all lovers of strife. Philosophy may
soften and religion tame these impulses; but they exist in
the breast of every child of Adam, and are liable to be only
too easily called into action.
On one occasion, two travelers were traversing a danger-
ous part of the wild country on the borders of Persia. One
of them held tenets most averse to warlike proceedings of
any kind, and averred that it was not lawful, even in self-
defence, to take any measure which would endanger human
life. The other endeavored to rebut his companion’s argu-
ments, and convince him of the futility of his reasoning; but
he failed in producing any impression on his friend’s mind.
While they were engaged in conversation, one of the attend-
ants who had been dispatched on before made his appearance,
galloping hard, and breathless with haste and fear. He in-
formed the travelers that eight mounted Kurds were advanc-
ing, who had fired at him as he rode on, and who were in
fact close at his heels. The man of peace seemed some-
what disconcerted, but when the clattering of the Kurds’
horses was heard, his hand stole towards his holsters, from
which he extracted two well-polished pistols; and when the
attack was made he signalized himself by the valor with
which he joined in beating off the assailants.
We proceeded on our way in safety, and met with no fur-
ther interruption from the sons of Ishmael, or the equally
marauding Kurds. When we were in sight of Diarbekir, an
individual of our party, who had hitherto maintained the
most profound silence, gave me the following recipe for ob-
taining the protection of the Arabs, which for its originality
I deem worthy of insertion here. “If you are at any time
attacked by these sons of dogs,” said my instructor, “do
not resist, for, if you lift sword or gun against them, they


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 331
will slay you without mercy. Endeavor to touch them, and,
if you succeed, you are safe; but, if you are unable to do
this, spit at them.”
“And get my throat cut to a certainty,” continued I.
“No, on my head,” he replied, “you may save your life;
for, if anything that proceeds from you, even saliva, touches
their person or clothes, it is as though you touched them, and
you have then a sacred and imperative claim upon their
hospitality. I am telling you no falsehood; for a brother of
mine, who did this, escaped out of their hands, and is still
living at Baghdad.”
CHAPTER XXIX.
Diarbekir. Chaldean ladies. Mar Athanasius. Italian doctor. Remains,
Inscriptions. Holy fish.
THE approach to Diarbekir from the direction of Mosul
presented some scenes which, though without pretensions to
sublime beauty, possessed interest enough to attract the at-
tention of a weary traveler. It was spring-time, and the
flat plains were covered with verdure, while occasionally we
crossed some winding rivulet, or, ascending the brow of a
rocky eminence, obtained an extensive survey of the coun-
try around. The road we now took was different from that
by which, on a former occasion, we had left Diarbekir, and
presented more objects of interest to the eye. As we drew
near the gate, our route lay between two rows of gardens,
from whose blossoming flowers a sweet and agreeable odor
diffused itself through the heated atmosphere.
We traversed, on entering, the best and least ruinous
quarter of Diarbekir, which even seemed to improve on ac-
quaintance. The houses on each side of us were built of
black stone, resembling the material used in the construction
of the wall; while they possessed the luxury of glass win-
dows, which had lately been somewhat of a rarity in our eyes
during our late sojourn in Mosul. In my own dwelling at
the latter place, I had been obliged to fill up the apertures


332 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
with oiled paper—which, however, answered the purpose for
which I used it remarkably well.
We took up our quarters at the house of Khowajah Bidoush,
a Chaldean merchant well known to Mr. Rassam, who re-
ceived us with great kindness and hospitality. A large
room, well carpeted, and filled with handsome diwans, was
placed at our disposal, with two sleeping apartments for my
friend and myself.
The next day after our arrival, we visited another Chal-
dean gentleman, whom we had seen before at Mosul, and
were introduced to his wife and mother-in-law. The former
was very youthful in her appearance, and seemed shy and
timid; but her mother was extremely lively and talkative.
Notwithstanding that most Eastern women seem to grow old
prematurely, this lady did not appear much more than twen-
ty-eight. Her manners were as polished and cultivated as
any of her sex and station in Europe; nor did there seem
any want of what some people call civilization, which, after
all, is little better than a species of conventional hypocrisy.
Both the ladies were richly attired, and wore a kind of round
silver head-piece, bound round with folds of muslin. Their
jackets were trimmed with gold lace, and rich shawls sur-
rounded their waists. Their nails were stained with henna,
a most odious custom in the eyes of a European, since it
always seems as though the lady had just been digging up
the ground with her fingers, and had retained about them
some of the mould. Nor did the nose jewel appear a more
appropriate ornament, though its antiquity pleads somewhat
in its favor. I remember hearing, on one occasion, that a
Frank was asked by some pasha or governor whether Euro-
peans put rings in the noses of their women, to which the
reply was, greatly to his excellency’s astonishment without
doubt, “No, but we sometimes insert them in the snouts of
our pigs.”
We visited the principal Chaldean church. It was com-
paratively new, having been built only ten years, through
French aid and influence I believe, as the erection of Chris-
tian edifices is forbidden by Mohammedan law. There were
four aisles, and a number of altars richly decorated. I no-
ticed also a vast profusion of silver lamps, censers, and other
utensils used in the Chaldean service, which were made of
the most costly materials. The pictures had been brought


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 333
from Paris and Rome; but they were not distinguished by
any particular merit in the execution.
From the church, we went to call upon Monsignore Pietro,
the Chaldean Archbishop of Diarbekir, who no longer retains
the title of patriarch. He was a good-looking man, about
forty years of age, and had received his education at the
Propaganda, where he remained for eleven years. He spoke
Italian fluently, and possessed a very fair library for the East,
which comprised some well-written manuscripts, relating
exclusively to ecclesiastical matters. He seemed to approve
of the Roman interference, as tending to improve and civilize
the East.
We then repaired to the Armenians, who have also a hand-
some church in this place. We found them, as usual, ill
acquainted with the English Church, and perpetually con-
founding us with the American Dissenters, of whom they
expressed a hearty dislike. They said, “Why do these
people come here to overturn our old churches and to alter
our customs, which we have maintained since the days of
the apostles? We do not deny them the title of Christian,
nor do we wish to meddle with their way of serving God.
It may do for them; but we prefer to hold by the ancient cus-
toms and the writings of the Holy Fathers. We do not send
missionaries to America, though perhaps we may think they
need them.”
We saw at the Syrian church Mar Athanasius, a Jacobite
prelate, who had spent eleven months in London and at
Cambridge. He spoke in high terms of England and her
church, and appeared to feel and appreciate the kindness
which he had received from many of the English clergy, and
particularly from the Bishop of London, whose name is known
and respected by many of the Oriental Christians. I have
often thought that the foundation of a scholarship, at one of
our universities, for young Oriental Christians, would tend
greatly to benefit these Eastern communities. A few young
men, educated properly, and sent back to labor, without any
sectarian end, for the good of their countrymen, and to dif-
fuse among them secular and religious knowledge, might
effect much for the East. It is painful, however, to be
obliged to observe that many well-meaning persons have
done much mischief to some of the Easterns who have visited
this country, by making lions of them, and thus encouraging


334 NOTES FROM NINEVEII.
habits of pride and self-conceit, which have marred consider-
ably their after usefulness. -
A friend of mine once received an invitation to a party
where a Syrian prince was expected to be present. As he
was well acquainted with the East, he was somewhat sur-
prised at this announcement, and still more so when, on
entering the room, he discovered in his Syrian highness an
old retainer, who had frequently, in days of yore, polished his
shoes and brushed his coat.
Bishop Athanasius, however, had not been spoiled by his
visit to our shores. He had a frank open manner about him
which was very pleasing, and he seemed really anxious to
promote in every way the welfare of his countrymen. He
informed us that the Christians were much oppressed in Diar-
bekir, as they were obliged to wear dresses of a particular
color, and were forbidden to ride on horseback. We expe-
rienced the truth of his remarks as to the disesteem in which
Christians were held, on our return to our quarters. Three
or four Mussulman boys shouted after us “Kafir,” and even
threw a few stones; but we soon dispersed them by a few
strokes from our riding-whips.
When we reached home, we found the Italian doctor of the
quarantine department waiting for our return. He informed
us that a cordon had been drawn round Diarbekir, but that
we should no doubt be able to obtain permission to proceed
on our way. We did so, in fact, and felt at the same time
the folly of the whole affair, and the inconveniences of which
it was no doubt productive to the poorer people. No one ac-
quainted with Turkey could imagine for an instant that those
who possessed money enough to bribe the officials would not
be passed through immediately, even if they came from the
most plague-stricken region; while the poor gardener or
agriculturist, who depended on the city markets for subsist-
ence, was excluded without mercy.
The doctor seemed very ignorant of medicine, though he
professed to have studied it at an Italian university. Half of
his brethren, however, in Turkey, might be numbered under
the same category. These Sangrados certainly do as much
as in them lies to diminish the number of the Sultan’s subjects,
in return for the money which they extract from Turkish
pockets. With regard to the latter particular, however, our
medical acquaintance complained that he rarely got his fees,


336 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
laws. The pipes brought us were very superbly mounted,
and were about six feet in length. On leaving the pasha,
we rambled through the gardens of the Serail, which were
tastefully laid out, and overlooked the Tigris. On the oppo-
site bank were several coffee-houses, surrounded by gardens,
under the trees of which we discerned several parties making
kaif, while the strains of music issued from different parts.
From the top of the citadel we had a good view of the town,
and counted the minarets of eleven mosques, besides the
domes of innumerable mesjids or chapels.
As we proceeded through the streets, we noticed several
of the remains of the ancient Amida, some of which had
been inserted in the walls of the modern houses. Here and
there, the capital of a Doric column was used as a horse
block; while a tablet, with a Greek inscription half erased,
made its appearance under the sill of a modern Turkish
window. -
We visited a large building, or rather the remains of one,
which still retains the name of Djameh El Kabeer, the great
mosque, and was probably the cathedral of Christian Amida.
The eastern and western walls were still in a tolerable state
of preservation, while those to the north and south had been
disfigured by Saracenic additions. The eastern wall had a
large arched recess in the centre, which had probably formed
originally the apse behind the altar where the bishop and his
clergy usually sat. The northern wall was covered with
Arabic inscriptions, and joined on to a mosque. The area
of the Djameh was used as a market, and was covered with
stalls. At the door of the mosque, we perceived the corpse
of a man lying on a species of bier, upon whose breast was
a wooden platter filled with the alms of the charitable passers-
by, who contributed in this manner to the expenses of the
funeral.
When we returned home, we found the Chaldean bishop,
who spoke of some Latin and Greek inscriptions, which he
advised us to see. He mentioned also several Greek or
Genoese ruins among the hills in the vicinity. In the even-
ing, our host, Khowajah Bidoush, came and sat with us; and,
being a papal Chaldean, entered into a long argument with
B respecting the supremacy of Rome, and the meaning
of the text “Thou art Peter.” The Khowajah contended
strongly for the literal meaning, while B quoted the Fa-


338 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
As we were stopping outside the different gates to read the
inscriptions, and to sketch the bas-reliefs which appeared
upon them, we were frequently surrounded by crowds of
idlers, who viewed our proceedings evidently with a mixture
of curiosity and distrust. Whispered rumors as to our ob-
ject began to be disseminated by two or three who assumed
the air of being wiser than their fellows. “Those Franks
are taking surveys of the country, and of the strong places,
in order that their countrymen should know where to make
their attacks,” said one. “No such thing,” observed an-
other; “you know nothing about it, my friend. These
people are cunning magicians, and have dealings with the
djin. I saw one of their countrymen once take out a piece
of paper, over which he held a small glass for a minute or
so, and on my head the whole was consumed to ashes. They
are drawing our city on their papers, which, when they get
home, they will burn by means of these magic glasses, and
the effect will be that our city will gradually fall to ruins.”
“No, no, my soul,” remarked another; “this is too much.
That people work in magic, and have dealings with the djin,
is probable; but Stoffer Allah” to suppose that a man can
burn paper with a glass; Kithub, it is a lie.” The narrator
had now to defend his own veracity, and this tended a little
to distract public attention from our movements, a diversion
for which we were not unthankful.
Returning home, we found the doctor and his faithful at-
tendant, who again endeavored to fasten himself upon me
even in the presence of his master. The latter seemed not
indisposed to get rid of him, and, therefore, gave him a most
excellent character, to which, however, I attached small cre-
dence. While we were talking, some one entered the room,
and a voice said to B , in English, “How do you do?” I
looked up, and saw a good-looking young man of about five
and twenty, who was dressed in the usual Turkish official
costume, and announced himself as Ameen Effendi. He sat
down on the sofa, and informed us that he had resided seven
years in England, and had received his education in the Lon-
don University; which he spoke of with great affection and
admiration. He had also visited Paris, which he preferred
to our own metropolis in point of elegance and gayety. It
* “May God forbid!"—an exclamation indicative of astonishment or horror.


340 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
equality were more truly practical than our own. The
master and his servant sat down together on the grass to
partake of the pillaw which the latter had cooked; while a
black negro, whose society would have been universally
shunned in the free and enlightened country of America, was
here in despotic Turkey seated next to a free white merchant
of Mosul. The black was indeed a slave, and had always
been one from his earliest boyhood; but he had been treated
by his owner like a member of the family, and was now
filling a post similar to that of a confidential clerk. He had
been dispatched to Aleppo on a family mission of some deli-
cacy, regarding his master’s younger brother, over whom
for the time being he was to exercise full authority. Our
sable friend was well mounted on a fine stout hack; his dress
was of good materials; nor did he seem a whit inferior to any
one in the caravan.
A citizen of the American slave states would be astonished,
if not scandalized, to hear that the Turkish bondman, be he
black or white, possesses frequently greater facilities for
rising in the world than those enjoyed by his free neighbor.
He may become the friend, the counselor, and confidant of
his master, and sometimes ends by being appointed his heir.
The white slaves not unfrequently obtain their freedom, and
a wife from their master’s family—though I have never heard
that the latter has ever been the case with the blacks. Still
the latter enjoy great personal freedom, are treated with
kindness, and often amass property in their state of servitude.
The master of the household is not, all things considered,
more rigorous to his slave than towards his own sons. The
latter are obliged equally to wait upon the family, to perform
domestic tasks, and may not, without permission, sit in their
father's presence. When they do amiss, their chastisement
is rarely lighter than that inflicted on the slave. In short, if
we could admit that the loss of personal freedom can be com-
pensated by comfort and ease, we might consider the bond-
man of a wealthy Turkish merchant, or of an opulent bey,
as occupying a station more likely to be productive of hap-
piness than that of the free peasant or laborer, who is robbed
of his just gains by the tyrannical exactions of an avaricious
mutsellim or a grasping pasha.
From Kai Mari we proceeded to Severek, leaving behind
us our companions of the caravan, who journeyed more at


342 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
in perfect security, when suddenly you are half blinded by
two or three jets of mud, and find yourself floundering in the
midst of a morass, sinking deeper and deeper at every plunge.
The town of Severek is situated about thirty-six miles
south of the Taurus, between Diarbekir and the Euphrates.
It contains a population of 700 families, of whom 120 are
Armenians, five or six Jews, and the rest Mohammedans.
There is a mound in the centre of the town, on which we
found the ruins of an ancient citadel. The bazaars were
very wretched buildings, but the mosques and baths not un-
worthy a handsome town. Around in the outskirts, we saw
several plantations of fruit-trees and vineyards, which latter
belong exclusively to the Christians.
The day after our arrival being Sunday, we read over the
morning service in the Armenian Church, which was kindly
lent to us for that purpose, the Christians thinking, most
likely, that it was better we should pray in our own way than
not at all—a sentiment which some of their more civilized
brethren would find some difficulty in agreeing to.
We went on from this place to Dashlik, a few huts placed
at the foot of a mound, on the summit of which we found an
ancient tomb without any inscription, but probably belonging
to the period of the Lower Empire. The mountains of the
Taurus were still discernible in the distance; and frequently
when, amid the quagmires and morasses of the road, I looked
upon their summits, lit up with the glories of a mid-day sun,
I could not help being reminded of the hopeful confidence of
a good man, who raises his thoughts from the troubles and
calamities of life to those eternal regions of the blessed where
the wandering and the weary shall be at peace for ever.
Eight hours’ ride from Severek brought us to a small vil-
lage called Kara Djourma, where we found some families of
Yezidees living in black tents. An altercation here ensued
with the soldiers of our escort who had accompanied us from
Severek, and who were very anxious to persuade us to go on
to Urfah by a longer and a more circuitous route than we had
originally intended. By and by, however, the truth came
out. Sufook, the celebrated chieftain of the Shammar tribe,
was in the vicinity; and some of his Arabs having been
plundered by the Governor of Severek, he had sworn that he
would plunder every caravan that passed that way. This was
rather unpleasant news, particularly as Sufook was noted, on


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 343
such occasions, for keeping his word to the very letter; and,
having separated from our companions, we had only the
courage of our guards to trust to, which was rather a ques-
tionable ground of confidence. We deemed it wiser, there-
fore, to put in practice the better part of valor, and incur the
inconvenience of a lengthened route, rather than that of being
stripped to the skin and compelled to walk barefooted to the
next village; so we followed the advice of Giorgio, who had
formerly had a rencontre with St. Nicholas’ clerks, which he
related to me in nearly the following terms:—
“On one occasion, I was dispatched by the English consul
at Mosul to bring a large sum from Baghdad to the latter
place. I had also some money of my own to receive; so I
armed myself, and went down the Tigris on a raft, hoping
in less than a fortnight to have accomplished my business
and to have returned. When I arrived at Baghdad, I found
that the consul’s money had been forwarded to him; but my
own was waiting for me, and I took it and departed in peace.
There was some talk of the Kurds or Arabs being about the
road, and many advised me to wait for a caravan; but I
thought all these tales were invented by the cowardice of the
Easterns, and that it would ill become me, who am a Greek,
to listen to them. So I took with me a Turkish soldier, my
gun, and a sabre, and departed. I had disposed of my
money in the belt which I wore, and did not doubt that I
should be able to escape both the Kurds and Arabs.
“For a day and a half we pursued our journey in safety,
though my companion was very fearful, and was always tell-
ing me of the caravans that had been stopped near this place,
and of the men who had lost their lives. But I bade him
hold his tongue, and informed him that a Greek does not fear
all the Kurds and Arabs in the world, seeing that they are all
senseless animals, and barbarians who have no manners.
But while I was telling him this, he uttered an exclamation,
and said, ‘Oh, the Merciful One, the Kurds are upon us!”
Then he spurred his horse forward, and fled.
“I looked round and perceived three fellows on horseback
with long spears, who were galloping after me, and who
seemed to have no other companions with them. Then I
thought, surely it is a shame to fly before these three ; so I
waited till they came up ; when, in answer to their sum-
mons to deliver up my money, I fired my gun at the foremost,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 345
a long silvery beard, which descended as far as the girdle,
reminding me forcibly of Abraham, or of one of the patriarchs.
Nothing could be more agreeable than our journey over
these downs. The air blew cool and fresh from the distant
mountains of the Taurus; the aspect of the country around
was diversified by trees and shrubs, watered by small rivulets,
which seemed to flow in the direction of the Euphrates. The
sound of the sheep bells and the bleating of the flocks alone
broke the silence of the wilderness, and relieved the tedious-
ness of solitude. Pitching our tent on the borders of one of
the rivulets, we passed a comfortable evening; and when
night drew on, the serenity of the weather so far tempted me
that I had my coverlet spread outside in the open air, where I
gazed for some time on the cloudless Mesopotamian sky and
the brilliant stars, and then fell asleep.
The next morning, we were on horseback at 3 A.M., and
pursued our way over the downs to Kara Kupri, which we
reached about 8 A. M. It was surrounded by trees, on
several of which we perceived rags and strips of cloth and
ribbon attached to the branches. These, we were informed,
were votive offerings, made chiefly by the female peasantry,
for the safety of some relative or friend who had gone a journey.
An hour after leaving Kara Kupri, we came in sight of Urfah.
—º-
CHAPTER XXX.
Urfah. Mochdesseh Yeshua. A Bedouin. Syrian observances. Church of
St. Thaddeus. Bir. Passage of the Euphrates. Aleppo. English mer-
chants. An Austrian consul.
The city of Urfah is built at the foot of a low range of
chalk hills, part of the town being situated on the rising
ground. It presents a very beautiful appearance from a dis-
tance, being almost embosomed in trees. Nor does the in-
terior so much disappoint the eye as that of most Eastern
towns; the streets are clean, and well supplied with water,
as the city possesses numerous springs.
We took up our quarters at the house of a respectable
Syrian, whose name was Yeshua, or Joshua, to which was


346 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
added the honorific of mochdesseh, or pilgrim, a term used,
among the Christians, as equivalent to the Mohammedan
word hadjee, which is applied to one who has visited Mecca.
The appellation of mochdesseh is given, in like manner,
to a person who has made the Eastern pilgrimage to Jerusa-
lem. The worthy mochdesseh, however, scarcely answered
to the usual romantic conception and description of a Palmer
from the Holy Land. He was a stout, sleepy-looking Syrian
merchant, with very matter-of-fact habits and manners. He
treated us, however, with great kindness and civility, though
his demeanor to others was that of a man who knows he has
money in his pocket.
In the house of Mochdesseh Yeshua, several married sons
had taken up their abode with their wives. Although, ac-
cording to Eastern opinions, settled in life, and emancipated
from the shackles of youthful obedience, their behavior to
their father presented a striking and agreeable contrast to the
conduct of young men of their own age in more civilized
countries. The old-fashioned notions of the Orientals do not
tolerate that familiarity which every stripling, scarcely out of
his teens, would think himself justified in using towards his
parent in this our enlightened and educated land. An East-
ern father would deem- the correction of the rod needed by
some of those lingerers between boyhood and manhood
whose shrill piping tone and nauseous affectation of manly airs
render their society so disagreeable to people of mature age.
The houses of Urfah are, built of white stone, which ma-
terially improves their appearance, and they abound with
windows; so that a walk through one of the streets does not,
as in Mosul, present the eye with an interminable series of
dead walls. Gardens abound in every direction, and the
sides of the hills in the vicinity are covered with vineyards,
owned by Christians, who make of the produce wine of most
excellent quality. The town contains fifteen mosques, seve-
ral Christian churches, and about forty thousand inhabitants,
of which twenty thousand are Christians. The latter are
made to pay all the taxes, as well their own as those of their
Mohammedan fellow-citizens, and are subject to great insult
and oppression.
A son of Mochdesseh Yeshua informed me that there were
originally in the town a body of Moslems, whose functions
seemed to have resembled those of our militia, and who


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 347
called themselves Yencheri, or Janizaries. When, however,
the Constantinople Yencheri were broken up, these gentle-
men deemed it prudent to retire into the obscurity of private
life, from which, however, they now and then emerged, in
order to worry and annoy the Christians. An unfortunate
Syrian had been visited by them a few days before our arri-
val; they demanded spirits, and on his refusal to supply them,
broke everything in his house. He appealed to the pasha,
but in vain; the Yencheri were too powerful to be interfered
with, and the poor Christian was obliged to sacrifice a large
sum in order to get rid of his tormentors. There are also in
Urfah thirty families of Jews, who have two synagogues, and
share in the persecution which the Christians suffer from the
Mohammedans. Here, as elsewhere, however, the poor Jews
are treated worse than the Christians.
Soon after our arrival, we received visits from a Greek
doctor, an Armenian banker, and a Syrian priest. The
Greek had come all the way from Athens to explain practi-
cally the mysteries of Hippocrates to the Syrians of ancient
Edessa, nor did he at all lament the lot which had fixed him
in the midst of barbarians. He was well spoken of in the
town, although he had a Frank practitioner to contend with,
who was often admitted to the honor of feeling the pasha’s
pulse. The latter gentleman had not recommended civiliza-
tion by his moral conduct, being, in fact, one of those nu-
merous harpies who are so often found preying on the corpse
of unfortunate Turkey. The Sultan would confer a great
public benefit to his subjects, could he send these gentry
back again to their respective countries, to which, however,
their return would be anything but welcome.
The Armenian was fat, pursy, and important: a species of
Christian Hebrew, with a good-humored, though somewhat
dull, countenance. The Syrian priest had been sent on a
mission from his bishop to invite us to visit their church and
schools. Besides these, a visitor of a novel description came
to pay his respects to us. He was a Bedouin Arab from the
encampment of Sufook, and brought an invitation from that
chieftain to B , who returned an answer that he would
visit the head of the Shammar the next day at Haran. The
demeanor of this rugged son of the desert was as free and
independent as though he had been Pasha of Urfah and all
its dependencies. He looked complacently on his bare feet,


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 349
cerned also a fine tank filled with large fish, who are regarded
with great veneration, and are fed daily by a person appointed
for that purpose. Near the tank were several stalls, where
bread and cakes were sold to those who were desirous of
fulfilling the meritorious task of supplying the necessities of
the finny tribe. The fish seemed very happy and contented,
and doubtless found the reputation of sanctity very conve-
nient in many ways. I did not quarrel with the Moslem for
their care of the fish, though I told some of them that atten-
tion to the wants of their poor fellow men would be in my
estimation a better action; an opinion which did not excite
much approval, and doubtless caused me to be regarded as
a skeptical and heretical sort of person.
Near the mosque was a fine old tower, which had formerly
been part of a Christian church when Edessa was famous for
its academical reputation. I spent the day in rambling about,
and in musing over ancient walls and remains that encoun-
tered me at every step. In the course of my walk, I pro-
ceeded through a very picturesque cemetery, up the side of
the hill on which the citadel, a mere modern building, is
constructed. Within the walls of the latter were two Co-
rinthian pillars, which seemed anciently to have been sur-
mounted by statues. Near the top of one, we were told,
was a Chaldean inscription. On the side of another hill in
the vicinity, I observed several sepulchral grots and excava-
tions, with some arches of Greek or Roman construction.
Near the citadel was another reservoir of sacred fish.
We then proceeded to the Armenian church, an old build-
ing situated in the midst of a cemetery. It was filled with
tawdry pictures of the day of judgment, in which, as else-
where, devils with horns, long tails, and three-pronged forks
figured very conspicuously. Among the paintings, however,
was one of superior execution, representing the Blessed Vir-
gin and the infant Saviour, which I was told had been exe-
cuted by St. Thaddeus. From the Armenian church we
repaired to the house of the Syrian bishop, who received us
with great kindness. He mentioned that his community had
succeeded in obtaining permission to erect a new church
outside the ramparts of the city, which was rather an inno-
vation on Moslem law and practice. We then went to in-
spect the Syrian schools, which we found in excellent con-
dition, though they complained sadly of want of books, a
30


350 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
frequent want in a country where there are scarcely any
printing presses, and where the labor and expense of tran-
scription forbid the multiplication of copies of even the most
elementary works.
From the Syrian church we repaired to the Serai, in order
to wait upon the pasha, a most inane-looking personage, with
two projecting teeth like the tusks of a wild boar. His ex-
cellency asked whether England was contiguous to India,
and whether we intended returning home by land.
The next day I felt too unwell to accompany B , who
repaired, according to agreement, to pay the promised visit
to Sufook. He took with him a tinseled dress as an offering
to the Arab chief, who, in return for this civility, presented
him with a fine young Arab horse. B then visited
Haran, of which he reported that a few old walls were the
only remains. Giorgio had also his tale to tell, for, having
in a fit of curiosity mounted a camel, the beast set off with
him, molens volens, into the desert, and was stopped with
great difficulty.
The next day being Sunday, and the Feast of Pentecost,
or Whit Sunday, I accompanied our host and his son to the
Syrian church. It was handsomely decorated for the occa-
sion, and, as the service commenced before daybreak, the
silver lamps were all lighted, which produced a fine effect,
and corresponded well with the rich robes of the bishop and
numerous officiating priests and deacons. Before prayers
began, the clergy marched in procession round the church,
sprinkling the congregation with boughs dipped in water,
which ceremony they repeated three times. Some prayers
and lessons followed, after which the bishop and priests lay
down before the altar in the attitude of persons about to
sleep. All of a sudden they started up, and began tapping
each other on the back. While I was marveling what this
could mean, all the congregation imitated their example,
upon which I turned round and asked my companion the
reason. He whispered that, on the morning of Whit Sunday,
the apostles, having waited all night for the descent of the
Holy Ghost, became towards morning very drowsy, and
adopted this means of keeping one another awake. This
practice, he added, was in commemoration of it.
After the tapping was over, the service proceeded as usual,
and on its termination, I went to pay the compliments of the


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 351
feast to the bishop and his priests, who were good enough
to invite me to breakfast.
On Monday morning, B and I resumed our peregri-
nations, and visited a celebrated well, about half an hour's
walk from the town, which was called Beer Aiyoub, the
Well of Job. In this well, it is said, was thrown the mira-
culous picture. which our Saviour sent to King Agbarus.
We descended eight steps into a subterranean cave, where,
we were told, Job resided during his affliction. From the
Well of Job we repaired to the Armenian Church of SS.
Thaddeus and Ephraim Syrus. The church itself contained
little worthy of notice, though the date of its erection was
the third century. We descended nine steps into a stone
crypt beneath, where we were shown the tombs of the two
saints, with some other monuments.
After some conversation with the Armenian clergy, we
visited the ancient quarries, which seemed to have been
very extensive, and abounded with sepulchral excavations.
Near at hand was a building called the Ziarah of Sheikh
Makhoud, which our guides very much wished us to see.
Being, however, unable to make any one hear, one of the
khawasses with us adopted the novel expedient of firing his
pistol into the keyhole. The attempt, however, did not suc-
ceed, and we were doomed to be disappointed of the pro-
mised sight.
From hence we walked round the gardens, enjoying their
fresh and verdant appearance. We entered into conversa-
tion with an old Syrian, who offered us some fruit, and in-
vited us to sit and rest ourselves under his trees. After a
brief pause, we went on to the Piaret Suleiman, a pool in-
closed by walls, in which the legend relates that St. Thad-
deus baptized the King of Edessa. Bottles of this water are
sent throughout all parts of the surrounding country, and are
considered a certain specific against disease. The spring
abounds in fish, which no person is allowed to touch.
In our way home, we passed along the banks of the Kara
Kiouy, a small rivulet flowing through two high banks, con-
nected by several bridges, nearly the whole of which had
been newly erected. Following the course of the stream,
we returned to the town, and past an almost endless succes-
sion of orchards and gardens. The environs of Urfah present
some of the most pleasing views in this part of Mesopotamia,


352 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
and remind the traveler that he is already on the verge of
that land of the plain and shrub.
When we reached home, we found one of the Christian
inhabitants of the town, who had come in great affliction to
ask the advice of our host under the following circumstances.
His son, a boy of thirteen, had been sent out with a few
piastres to bring something from the bazaar. As he was
going thither, he encountered a troop of playfellows, who
engaged him in some interesting game, which so engrossed
his attention that he lost the money which his father had given
him. Not knowing what excuse to make, and dreading the
chastisement of his angry parents, he stood crying at the
corner of the street. A Mohammedan, who was passing by,
inquired the cause, and, having heard the boy’s story, in-
duced him to come to his house, promising to repair his loss.
The child followed his new friend, and in the evening a mes-
sage came to the almost distracted father that his son had
embraced Islamism, and that he would see him no more.
The terrified parent repaired to the dwelling of the Moslem;
but the latter had prevailed upon the boy to refuse to return
with his father, and, as he had already repeated the profes-
sion of faith, he could not, without periling his life, resume
again the name of Christian. Nothing, however, could be
done in the matter, as the pasha, though not a bigoted Mos-
lem, feared the violence of the Yenchiri, and other of the
Mohammedan faction, who declared that they would carry off
the youth by violence from his father, even if he were now
restored to him.
The next day we made preparations for our departure from
Urfah; but our friends were unwilling that we should pro-
ceed without a parting mark of their hospitality. It was
arranged that we were to accompany them to the premises
connected with the church of Mar Ephraim, where they in-
tended to dine, and make kaif, and the next morning bid us
adieu. After accepting their invitation, we sent on our bag-
gage under the charge of Giorgio, took a farewell ramble
about ancient Edessa, and at four o’clock joined our friends
near Mar Ephraim.
At sunset, we sat down, cross-legged, to an excellent din-
ner, al fresco, in company with our worthy host, the Greek
doctor, and the stout Armenian banker, who seemed to be
somewhat of an epicure. Then there were several priests


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 353
of the Armenian and Syrian communities, and the venerable
Armenian bishop, who pronounced a long grace before and
after meat.
As the evening drew on, the scene presented many at-
tractions to the eye of one who, like myself, is fond of strange
groups and curious combinations. A lover of the romantic
would have remarked with pleasure the mild and chastened
light which the rising moon cast on the fantastic arches, and
irregular, though striking, buildings connected with the old
church of St. Ephraim, above which appeared the summit of
the Acropolis, with its two lone columns, that had witnessed
so many stirring spectacles. Beyond was the town, with its
masses of foliage, and the graceful dome of the Mosque of
Ibraheem, recalling the memory of the patriarch pilgrim who
left the city of his fathers to wander he knew not whither.
On the side, the eye caught a glimpse of the low building
which surrounded the pool where the first Christian monarch
of Edessa received his initiation into that faith to which his
descendants so faithfully adhered. It seemed almost a vision
that flitted before the fancy when I strove to realize the fact
that I was treading ground made memorable by such recol-
lections, and surrounded by the living posterity of that old
Chaldean race.
Nor should the latter be entirely passed over while I en-
deavor to recall the circumstances which attended my fare-
well to a place so remarkable. The worthy mochdesseh
presses his good cheer upon us with all the fervor of Eastern
hospitality till the tables are removed, and we sit in all the
luxury of the dolce far niente, under the shade of the trees,
inhaling the chibouque or narguileh, and drinking the juice
of the genuine mocha berry from cups no larger than those
usually appropriated to eggs in this country. The portly
Armenian is expanding under the genial influence of Edessa
wine ; the Greek is haranguing with all the loquacity of his
nation ; and the good old bishop, with his venerable beard,
smiles gently on our mirth, as if we were all his own spiritual
children. By and by, the doctor volunteers the Romaika,
and, choosing out a plat of grass illumined by the moon’s
rays, he goes through those ancient evolutions, greatly to the
company’s satisfaction and his own. A band of wandering
minstrels have joined us, and, after a few cups of wine, they
give vent to one of those strange nasal Oriental melodies that
30+ .


354 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
one is about to pronounce frightful, when some pleasing notes
suspend our condemnation, and leave us at a loss to deter-
mine whether we like them or not.
At length, the revelry is at an end, and the party remain
buried in slumber till the first dawn of day summons the
attendants to prepare for the march. A few words of fare-
well, an affectionate blessing from the bishop as we stoop to
kiss his hand, and we are in our saddles taking our last glance
at ancient Edessa, and its hospitable sons.
After a long and weary ride over low hills, whose white
and chalky ridges presented an unpleasing contrast to the
verdant plantations we had just quitted, we arrived at Char-
melik, a village of cone-shaped huts, which is inhabited in
the winter only by wandering Turcomans. In the spring
and summer, they dwell in tents, and roam through the
Mesopotamian plains to seek pasture for their numerous
flocks. We took up our quarters in a deserted khan, oppo-
site to which was a ruined mosque, in the interior of which
we found the remains of the pulpit-steps, and the niche to
show the direction of Mecca. In the neighborhood were
several cisterns or tanks, excavated in the rocky soil, with
steps to enable the drawers of water to descend.
The next day we journeyed eight hours to Bir or Bired-
jeck, on the Euphrates, over low hills of limestone, the re-
flection from which proved intolerable after the sun had
risen. The roads were very good, however, having been
recently constructed by Hafiz Pasha, who also excavated a
large tank which we passed on our journey. As we halted
to take a little rest and refreshment, a man habited like a
derwish approached us. He professed to be a serpent
charmer, and drew one of the reptiles from beneath his
cloak, which he compelled to go through sundry contor-
tions, and finished by winding it round his neck, like a
necklace.
At Bir, we passed the night in a plantation overlooking
the river, on the opposite bank of which were the remains
of a fort which the officers of the Euphrates Expedition
had entitled Fort William, an appellation rather out of place
in such a country, where one dislikes nothing so much as to
be dragged back from the contemplation of antiquity by the
recollection of modern doings. Not that I would, however,
in the least degree undervalue the importance of the expe-


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 355
dition, or overlook the merits of the gallant officers engaged
in it, though one cannot exactly view it in the same light as
the Anabasis.
The next morning we crossed the Euphrates in a boat,
which was certainly in keeping with the scenery, as it was
undoubtedly a model of what had been used two thousand
years ago, or more. With all my respect for antiquity, I
must, however, admit that our progress was slow, and our
vessel leaky, two circumstances which made us rather pleased
when landed in safety on the other side.
In seven hours and a half, we reached the banks of the
Sajoor, a tributary of the Euphrates, where we encamped
for the night, and I experienced for the first time the dis-
tressing symptoms of fever and ague. Under our present
circumstances, however, it was impossible to stop, and I
was obliged to be content with the prospect of a speedy
arrival at Aleppo.
In the morning, we crossed the Sajoor, and pitched our
tent at the base of a small mound, near which we observed
the ruins of a wall composed of stones, whose dimensions
were truly gigantic. I continued very ill, and though Gior-
gio arranged my coverlet in the best manner he could on the
back of the mule, and our pace was exceedingly slow, yet the
motion of the animal, and the hot scorching rays of a Syrian
sun, proved almost insupportable. We passed the night
near the mound, and the next morning went on to a planta-
tion called Ain Kailan, which we quitted in the afternoon,
and soon came in sight of the citadel and minarets of Aleppo,
a prospect which then afforded me more pleasure than the
finest landscape in the world. It was some time, however,
before we reached the city and arrived at the house of Na-
hum Azar, a Syrian merchant, with whom we were to take
up our abode for a few days.
My first impression with regard to Aleppo was the ex-
ceeding neatness and cleanliness of the streets, as well as
the lively appearance of the people, and the gay exteriors of
the houses, so different from the sombre aspect of an Assy-
rian town. The dwelling of our entertainer was pleasantly
situated, and in the centre of the well-paved court we were
pleased to notice a marble fountain, whose refreshing streams
relieved the heat of mid-day. The houses of Aleppo were


356 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
well built, and their arrangements displayed a higher and
more refined taste than those of the towns we had left.
This city may almost be considered to have succeeded to
Antioch as the capital of northern Syria, and possesses pro-
bably as much commerce as any large town of Asiatic Turkey.
The bazaars almost reminded me of Constantinople; and the
splendid and varied costumes recalled the scenes which had
so powerfully impressed me at Smyrna. The inhabitants,
both male and female, of Aleppo are a handsome race, if I
might judge from those whom I saw abroad. Both natives
and sojourners, however, are subject to a species of disease
called the Aleppo button, the effects of which are said to be
very disfiguring.
Aleppo possesses a fine citadel, situated on an eminence in
the midst of the town. In it are preserved several arrows,
bows, and other warlike instruments, said to be as old as
the Crusades. This prospect from the ramparts was magni-
ficent: the eye ranged far and wide to the east, over the fer-
tile plains which intervene between the Euphrates and the
capital of northern Syria, while to the west appeared the dim
outlines of Mount Amanus, and the country around Antioch.
Like Asia Minor, this part of Syria seems too fair a portion
of the earth to remain in the hands of barbarians, whose
tyranny and oppression rob the verdant hills and smiling
valleys of their charms. Still the influence of one of the
finest climates in the world has probably not been without
some grateful influence on the mind of the enslaved Syrian.
His spirits are as light and elastic as those of a Greek, and
he has learned to dance in his fetters. Perhaps, indeed, he
scarcely feels them gall him.
In the days of Maundrell, a large English factory was es-
tablished in Aleppo, which possessed a monopoly of the trade
to the East. This factory and its exclusive privileges have
long ago disappeared; but a few English merchants still
continue to carry on their commerce here. Times, however,
are much changed since Maundrell resided at Aleppo as the
representative of the English Church, and praised the dili-
gence of his countrymen in attending.daily on divine worship.
The English residents are now left without chapel or chap-
lain, and scarcely ever have an opportunity of enjoying the
public ordinances of religion.
It seems strange when we reflect that the English, who


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 357
pride themselves upon being one of the most pious nations
in the world, should be infinitely behind every other in pro-
viding for the spiritual wants of those of their countrymen
who reside abroad. One can scarcely find two Oriental
families anywhere without a priest and a church; the Ro-
manist has his chapels and clergy in every inhabited spot;
and even Mohammedans and pagans rarely live long in any
foreign land without raising a mosque or a temple for the
services of religion. But when the English do provide such
accommodations, they are generally of the meanest and most
inexpensive description. Some garret or some cheap apart-
ment on the second floor, situated, as a matter of course, in
the filthiest and most remote corner of the town, is generally
pointed out as the English chapel. Nor is it surprising that,
under these circumstances, the natives of Great Britain should
gain the credit of having no religion. The Italian friar, the
Greek or Syrian priest who resides at Aleppo, sees a large
body of our countrymen living without a church, a clergy-
man, or any outward manifestation of their religious faith,
and he immediately comes to the same conclusion that every
other reasoning being would, namely, that the Ingleez are
fermasoon or infidels.
Nor has this been the impression of foreign Christians only.
It has been shared by Mohammedans and pagans. I have
heard both, in different parts of the world, give our coun-
trymen this character. Now, while these things are so, it
would be surely better to alter and amend them than to in-
dulge in the national cant about being misrepresented and
calumniated. Are we to give men, two or three thousand
miles off, whose ideas of our island are confused and con-
tradictory, credit for knowing what passes in England ; and
expect that they shall understand all about our religious and
charitable societies 2 Their estimate of us must, and will be,
formed by the conduct of the persons who come out from us,
and this we cannot prevent.
It is somewhat ridiculous to hear a sensible man like Mr.
Layard accusing the Romish missionaries of misrepresenting
the English character. In the first place, what they say is
not misrepresentation, according to their opportunities of
judging; and secondly, it is, unfortunately, not the Roman-
ists alone who entertain this opinion of us. Let Mr. Layard
ask any sensible Mohammedan, any decent pagan, or any


358 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
devout Jew his sentiments respecting the English and their
religion, and he will obtain the same reply in nearly the
same terms. The Romish missionaries may have been guilty
of exaggeration; this is probable enough ; but I am certain
they have too many grounds on which to found their remarks.
Surely, in the nineteenth century, it is time to discard the
wretched Pharisaical cant respecting Englishmen being so
much more pious, moral, and religious than their neighbors.
Besides the merchants of our nation settled at Aleppo, we
found commercial men of all countries inhabiting this Syrian
mart. One of these gentlemen, a Genoese, informed me
that he had been fifteen years in the country, and he seemed
proud of being able to add that he knew scarcely three words
of the language. He spent his leisure hours—as most of his
class do—in talking scandal, smoking cigars, and indulging
in that common Italian luxury the dolce far niente. All
these gentry of course despised the natives of the country
most intensely, though probably most of them were their
inferiors in knowledge and even in education. Every one
of the native merchants understood how to write and cipher,
and the Franks knew no more.
One day, during my stay at Aleppo, I accompanied Khow-
ajah Mansoor, a young merchant of Mosul, to make some
purchases at a Frank warehouse near the citadel. The mas-
ter of the establishment, a young Hebrew, informed me that
he was the representative of the Austrian government, and
gave an amusing account of his mode of keeping up his con-
sular dignity.
“You see, signore,” he remarked, “I am a man of busi-
ness, as was my father before me, and therefore you must
not feel surprised to behold me, at present, habited in a
simple jacket and patched pantaloons. On state days, how-
ever, I resume the dignity which at present I feel is better
laid aside. Could you see me when I visit the pasha, you
would be astonished at the change. I hire four Janizaries,
who, with a loud voice, clear the way before me for the
passage of my mule. They are dressed, for that day only,
in laced habiliments, of which I have a great quantity within.
I array myself in a magnificent uniform, and all the people
salute me as Khowajah Ibraheem. For the best part of the
week, my mother attends to the warehouse, and I occupy
myself in my studies. Do you ask what they are 2 I read


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 359
Arabic histories and geographies, and study the learned
works of the Rabbins. I dabble occasionally in the occult
sciences, and am well acquainted with astrology; mathe-
matics are familiar to me, and I have gone several times
through the problems of Euclid. I am now learning the
Greek language, that I may enjoy the beauties of those
incomparable writers who have enlightened the world. In
religion, I hold liberal opinions, and am, therefore, well dis-
posed towards the English nation. Should you, then, require
my services, or feel disposed to visit my study, I shall be
ravished at the honor of entertaining you.”
To this speech I made a suitable reply, and expressed my
surprise and delight at encountering, so unexpectedly, a man
of so much learning. The consul then turned to my com-
panion, and, after much haggling, sold him a penknife, which
the latter found afterwards was worth about a quarter of the
price he had paid for it. He tried also to have dealings with
me, and expressed his readiness to cash any orders or bills
of exchange at a moderate rate of interest. I found, how-
ever, that all his learning had left him a somewhat keen eye
for the main chance, and thought it might be safer to refrain
from all pecuniary transactions with a gentleman of such ex-
tensive knowledge.
While on a visit to Mr. Wherry, our hospitable consul, I
made acquaintance with his dragoman, M. Michael Sola,
who had been, I understood from him, in the employ of Lady
Hester Stanhope. He gave me much information respecting
that singular person, whose love for Syria and its mysterious
associations are so well known. Her ladyship was, however,
very rigid and exacting in her ways. She both loved and
exercised power, and on one occasion had M. Sola shut up
in prison for some whimsical reason. I asked him if she
really possessed much influence with the natives on religious
grounds. He replied that they neither understood nor gave
any credence to her pretensions; but many of them found it
profitable to carry her strange stories about astrology and
magic, and to listen respectfully to the long orations in which
she endeavored to enlighten them.
It is strange how, even after a short residence in the East,
the love of that region, its habits, and its mysticism grows
upon the mind. Many instances have come under my notice
of persons who, from sojourners, have become residents, and


360 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
feel little disposed to change their place of abode for a more
civilized habitation. Is it an instinctive attraction, an inex-
plicable longing for the early home of our race, or the influ-
ence of early implanted religious feeling, that draws us to
spots where God has so frequently made Himself visible to
man, and the footsteps of prophets and saints have conse-
crated the very soil?
CHAPTER XXXI.
Journey from Aleppo. Antioch. Latakia. Conclusion.
Not far from Aleppo is the town of Scanderoon, situated
on the gulf of that name. It is the seaport of the former
city, whence merchandise is exported to Europe and other
parts, and is frequented by many vessels, though its un-
healthiness is such that few persons can reside there for any
length of time with impunity. Near this place, lived an
Englishman who had embraced the creed of Islam, and was
married to three Syrian ladies of the same faith. He was
said to be an eccentric individual, and had erected a costly
tomb over the remains of a favorite dog.
Aleppo seems to be the head quarters of the different
Christian churches and sects prevalent in Syria. Maximus,
the papal Patriarch of the Syrians, had his residence here.
He received his education at Rome, and was considered a
man of some ability. The Greek Melekites have a church
at Aleppo, and a very fair congregation. We attended ser-
vice there one Sunday, and could follow it tolerably, having
acquired the Greek mode of pronunciation. Only certain
parts of the Liturgy, however, were in the Greek language,
as the Melekites use the Arabic in their ministrations. The
church was not well fitted up, and, as usual, decorated with
tawdry pictures. Nor could the chanting be considered
agreeable to a European ear. At the end of the Liturgy,
certain portions of consecrated bread were handed round, of
which we partook. This is a remnant of the ancient Agapai,
or love feasts, still retained in the Oriental churches. The
Armenians and papal Syrians have two superb places of


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 361
worship, adorned with silver lamps and some well-executed
paintings.
On the Monday, a female ballad singer came into the
court, and, being known to the family, she sang several
songs in Arabic, and made extempore verses on some of the
company. She played off two or three practical jokes, which
occasioned some amusement, especially when, approaching
a very pompous individual, she requested permission to kiss
his hand; but, on his holding it out for that purpose, gave
him a sharp bite.
In the course of the afternoon, we paid a visit to a newly-
married couple, and were introduced to the bride. She was
a beautiful young woman, richly dressed, but very childish
in her demeanor. Her husband was a wealthy merchant,
and possessed a magnificent house, containing some spacious
apartments and several handsome fountains. Nothing can
equal the splendor in which the rich Aleppines live, though
the city is not without its quota of poor hovels, inhabited by
ragged and poverty-stricken natives.
The gardens of Aleppo are famed for their beauty, and the
capabilities which they afford for kaif. We accompanied
Nahum Azar to one of these parties, where the usual routine
of smoking and story-telling went on for some hours. Two
of the company were Melekite Greeks, who had resided some
time in Italy. They possessed a tolerable library for the
East, consisting chiefly of theological works.
We stayed for some days at Aleppo, to enable me to re-
cover from my fever and ague, which still continued very
troublesome. The usual treatment is to place the patient on
a bed, and to heap upon him an innumerable quantity of
coverings, which produce perspiration during the shivering
stage of this disorder. While I was lying under a mountain
of bed-clothes, the mother of Nahum Azar brought me a small
phial of water which had been procured from the Holy Well
at Edessa, and begged me to try it as a remedy. To please
the good old lady, I swallowed the whole at a draught, but
cannot speak positively as to its effects, as I had previously
taken some common medicine, and certainly found myself
better on the succeeding day. My recovery was ascribed,
however, to the water by some of the family, though Nahum
Azar shook his head suspiciously, and seemed to consider it
a doubtful matter.
31


362 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
Having recovered sufficiently to resume my journey, we
left Aleppo, on the third of June, for Kefer Dail, a small vil-
lage about fifteen miles distant. It was inhabited by Arabs,
who afforded us very sorry accommodation. We took up
our quarters on a ruined terrace, which had formerly belonged
to the mansion of a bey. From Kefer Dail, we rode on five
hours to Idana, a large village of Arab Mussulmen. Near
the latter place, were some extensive quarries, and excava-
tions with sepulchral grots. We saw, also, the remains of a
church, consisting of a dome, supported on four columns.
To the right of the road, as we passed along, our attention
was directed to a solitary mountain, supposed to be that
whereon St. Simeon Stylites passed his extraordinary exist-
ence. He caused a pillar to be erected here, on the top of
which he remained for forty years, preaching sometimes,
from his lofty position, to the neighboring peasants, and
giving counsel and admonition even to emperors. The base
of his column, we were told, may still be seen on the sum-
mit of this mountain. It is strange to reflect on the well-
meant perversion of religion which reduced a sincere believer
in the Gospel to the level of a Hindoo Yougee. Simeon, how-
ever, doubtless, deemed he was doing God and man service,
at the cost of his own comfort and ease. Acting upon such
a persuasion, perhaps, his austerities rebuke the selfishness
of some of our generation, who think themselves entitled to
sneer at him, and who would not suffer the ache of a little
finger either for the sake of God or their fellow man.
The sepulchral caves at Idana were arched recesses in the
rock, about four feet high and three deep, containing each a
stone sarcophagus. In the village, we found the ruins of a
Greek church, the apse and dome, over the altar, remaining
in a fair state of preservation. Columns, architraves, bases,
and capitals were mixed up with reckless confusion, in the
exteriors of the village houses. The ruins were resorted to
by every one who wished to erect a new habitation, and will
probably soon disappear from their present site. As we
were examining these remains, many of the villagers pressed
around us, watching, with great curiosity, our researches,
and the notes which we wrote down from time to time. When
we had ceased from our investigations, they asked if we were
looking for gold, and whether there were really any treasures
buried below. They seemed to consider our notes as forms


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 363
of incantation, by which we hoped to subdue, or propitiate,
the genii guardians of the hidden riches.
From Idana, we journeyed four hours to Sou Bashi, a marshy
place, near a muddy rivulet. As we rode along, we perceived
numerous ruins of churches and monasteries covering the
slopes and summits of the hills and mountains on every side.
We were now in the vicinity of Antioch, which was celebrated
in old times for the number of its monks, whose lauras, or
monastic villages, lay scattered about the surrounding country.
Our journey from Sou Bashi to Jisr Hadeed, or the stone
bridge, occupied four hours. This place takes its name from
the bridge over the Orontes, which we crossed here. The
village itself is on the eastern bank of the river, and contains
some relics of antiquity, that have frequently aided in the
construction of its mud cabins.
From Jisr Hadeed, we rode on for two hours, and spread
our carpets, for the night, on the rising acclivities to the south
of the road. The scene, at sunset, was magnificent. Be-
fore us were the dark mountains of the Amanus range, skirt-
ing an undulating and well-cultivated plain, through the midst
of which flowed the Orontes, whose name recalled a multitude
of historical associations. Much of the enjoyment, however,
which I should otherwise have derived from this part of the
journey was impeded by a return of the fever and ague, that
I deemed had been perfectly cured at Aleppo.
From our last halting-place we pushed on to Antioch,
pursuing our route along the base of the hills, at the foot of
which we had rested the night before. At the distance of a
mile from the town, we encountered a number of gardens,
which lay on each side of the road, and seemed to be well
tended by their owners. We entered Antioch by the gate of
St. Paul, and were much struck by the mean appearance
which it presented. Most of the houses were covered with
red tiles, and were constructed without taste or elegance.
Everything looked miserable and wretched, while the beauti-
ful scenery around seemed perfectly thrown away on the
modern Antioch. The town appeared almost deserted, and
its streets were so still and silent that one might have im-
agined it to be the resuscitated form of the ancient city, raised,
like Pompeii, from a sleep of centuries, and abandoned by all
living beings except a few travelers or sight-seers. Much of
its present desolate aspect, however, was occasioned by the


364 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
terrific earthquake which took place here a few years ago,
and obliged many of the surviving inhabitants to repair to
Aleppo.
We took up our quarters at the house of a man whose
father had been the English agent; but our reception was
anything but hospitable. He complained that our govern-
ment had not recognized him as their representative, and,
therefore, travelers of our nation had no right to expect that
he would afford them any assistance. The mutsellim, how-
ever, took a very different view of the matter, and ordered
him to receive us, which, after a long delay, he did.
After dinner, we went abroad to discover if we could
search out any ancient remains ; but in this we were per-
fectly unsuccessful. Everything around was modern, except
the river and those glorious mountains which had once looked
proudly down upon the magnificent capital of the East.
We did not tarry long at Antioch, but continued our jour-
ney over the mountains, halting occasionally in the valleys,
and pitching our tent under the hospitable shades of the
wide-spreading walnut trees, which afforded a kindly shelter
from the rays of a Syrian sun. The day after our departure,
we toiled for half an hour up a steep and stony mountain
path, which conducted us to the summit of a lofty eminence,
whence we beheld beneath the wide expanse of the beautiful
Mediterranean, its numberless waves lit up by a thousand
smiles. The sight excited powerfully our home feelings, and,
to the great astonishment of our escort, we rose in our
stirrups and saluted the sea with three loud cheers. Giorgio,
who entered into our enthusiasm, remarked that it reminded
him of the joy with which some of his countrymen had hailed
a similar view in days of yore.
We continued our route, proceeding through avenues of
trees, varied now and then by hedges of oleanders and bay
myrtles, and crossing from time to time some rivulet or
mountain stream, from whose clear waters we satisfied our
horses’ thirst and our own. At length we emerged from a
mountain forest, and entered a large plain covered with ver-
dure, at the extremity of which lay the town of Latakia, the
ancient Laodicea, where we were hospitably received by the
English consular agent, a Syrian Melekite.
We remained at Latakia two days, during which time we
were honored by a visit from the Greek bishop and his priests.


NOTES FROM NINEVEH. 365
The episcopal dignitary was a fine-looking man, and was
treated with the most marked deference by his clergy, who,
on entering the room where he sat, prostrated themselves
before him, and did not presume to join in the conversation
till he had given them permission.
From Latakia we hired an Arab boat to convey us to Bey-
rout, in which we embarked two days after our arrival, and
sailed along the coast, having on our left the mountains of
the Anusarey, who, like their neighbors the Druses, cultivate
in their inaccessible retreats a mysterious and unknown wor-
ship. As we proceeded, we came in sight of the Lebanon
range, its lofty summits being covered with monasteries and
the castles of Druse and Maronite chieftains. -
During the voyage, the sailors pointed out one of the for-
mer residences of the Emir Beschir, whom I had seen at
Constantinople, a captive exile from his fair Syrian land.
The emir possessed some of the qualities which have con-
stituted in all ages a great man. He was brave, politic, and
unscrupulous; cared very little about the feelings or the lives
of those who opposed him, and deceived everybody who placed
any reliance on his promises. Alternately a Christian, a
Mohammedan, and a Druse, he seems to have been ready to
assume any religion which enabled him to exercise sovereign
power over the mountaineers. But the emir soon found him-
self in a dangerous and precarious position between Lord
Palmerston and Ibraheem Pasha. The siege of Acre fol-
lowed; and the head of the house of Shehaab was compelled
to abandon his sceptre, and to retire to an honorable banish-
ment at Stamboul.” The Holy Land was again delivered
over to the tender mercies of the Osmanli, and their hated
sway quickly restored it to its former desolate and unsafe
state. During the government of Ibraheem Pasha, a traveler
* It is but justice to observe that the character I have here given of the
Emir of Lebanon is not founded on personal knowledge, but is that gene-
rally bestowed on him by Franks in the East. Having, however, some mis-
givings respecting information collected from the latter source, I must remark
that my worthy friend, Madame Asmar, the authoress of the entertaining and
instructive “Memoirs of a Babylonian Princess,” represents the Emir Beschir
as a man of great piety and as a well-meaning and persecuted prince, who
entertained the deepest penitence for measures to which he had been led by
motives of state policy. Madame Asmar's intimate knowledge of the emir
and his subjects claims for her statement some attention, and more credit per-
haps than the on dits of ignorant and prejudiced travelers.


366 NOTES FROM NINEVEH.
could pass from Dan to Beersheba with a single attendant, or
even alone; now, however, he can hardly stir six miles with-
out a strong escort. These facts require no comment. But
it may be as well to mention that the natives very generally
lay all these calamities at our door. It seems the invariable
policy of England to interfere in all the quarrels of other
nations, to bring our self-constituted allies into greater trouble
than they were in before, and to be abused by the persons
whom our rulers supposed they were assisting and loading
with benefits. Lord Palmerston and his measures are de-
cidedly in bad odor among the inhabitants of Palestine—as
where are they not in foreign parts?
We arrived safely at Beyrout, and found ourselves once
more the tenants of an indifferent hotel, which, though not
so comfortable, gave, perhaps, more scope to the feeling of
independence than the Oriental hospitality we had for so
long a time experienced. From hence I repaired, after a
short stay in these parts, to Malta, by way of Smyrna, and
thus terminated my wanderings in the East.
And now, kind, gentle, or courteous reader—for under all
these names you have been addressed by those who wish you
to read their books—allow me to thank you for having accom-
panied me so far in the pilgrimage, whose details you have
just been perusing. You have traversed with me some of
the most interesting regions of the earth; and I would fain
indulge the vanity of supposing that you have not grown
weary of my company. Old traveler as I am, I feel some
compunction at parting with you, since our present fire-side
journey has served to recall many scenes and many ſriends
who are now far away. In taking leave, therefore, let me
conclude with the wish so prominent in Eastern farewells—
“Ma Salaam, may you depart with peace as your constant
companion!”
THE END.


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in procuring it now—and to those who read it then, but do not possess a copy, to embrace the op-
portunity of supplying themselves from the present very excellent edition.”—Saturday Evening Post.
“A new edition of this exquisite story has recently been issued by Messrs. Lea & Blanchard,
embellished and illustrated in the most elegant manner. We understand that the work was coin-
pletely out of print, and a new edition will then be welcomed. It contains a delightful letter from
the author, giving a painful insight into the personal history of the characters who figure in the
story."—Evening Bulletin.
“The most charining work we have read for many a day.”—Richmond Enquirer.
--
LOWER'S R ORY O’MORE.
Rorty of Mo RIE-A NATION AI, Rory:AN CIE,
BY SAMU E L LOVER.
A new and cheap edition, with Illustrations by the Author. Price only 25 cents.
Also, a beautiful edition in royal 12mo., price 50 cents, to match the following.
“A truly Irish, national, and characteristic story.”—London Literary Gazette.
“Mr. Lover has here produced his best work of fiction, which will survive when half the Irish
sketches with which the literary world teems are forgotten. The interest we take in the varied
adventures of Rory is never once suffered to abate. We welcome him with high delight, and
part from him with regret.”-London Sun.
LOWER'S IRISH STORIES.
I, E. Grirº D's Art D S T or IEs of IRE LAN ID,
BY SAMU E L LOW ER.
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With lllustrations by the Author.
LOWER'S SONGS AND BALL ADS,
INCLUDING THOSE OF THE “IRISH EVENINGS."
In one neat 12mo, volume, price 25 cents.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
IMA R S T ON,
OR THE MEMOIRS OF A STATESMAN AND SOLDIER
BY THE RE W. G E O R GE CRO L Y,
Author of “Salathiel,” “Angel of the World,” &c.
In one octavo volume, paper, price fifty cents.
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LEA AND BLANCHARD'S PUBLICATIONS.
DON QUIXOTE–ILLUSTRATED EDITION.
N EA R L Y READ Y.
- DON QUIX0TE DE LA MAN CHA,
TRANSLATED FROM THE SPANISH OF
MIGUE L DE C E R V ANTES S AAWE DRA
BY CHA R L E S J A R V IS, ESQ.
CAREFULLY REVISED AND CORRECTED, WITH A MEMOIR OF THE AUTHOR AND
NOTICE OF HIS WORKS.
WITH NUM E R O U S I L L U S T R ATIONS,
BY TO NY JOH A N N OT.
In two beautifully printed volumes, crown octavo, rich extra crimson cloth.
The publishers are happy in presenting to the admirers of Don Quixote an edition of that work
in some degree worthy of its reputation and popularity. The want of such a one has long been felt
in this country, and in presenting this, they have only to express their hope that it may meet the
numerous demands and inquiries. The translation is that by Jarvis, which is acknowledged supe-
rior in both force and fidelity to all others. It has in some few instances been slightly altered to adapt
it better to modern readers, or occasionally to suit it to the inimitable designs of Tony Johannot.
These latter are admitted to be the only successful pictorial exponents of the wit and humor or
Cervantes, and a choice selection of them have been engraved in the best manner. A copious
memoir of the author and his works has been added by the editor. The volumes are printed in
arge clear type, on fine paper, and handsomely bound, and the whole is confidently offered as
*orthy ºne approbation of all readers of this imperishable romance. -


LEA AND BLANCHARD'S PUBLICATIONS.
B0Y'S TREASURY OF SPORTS,
THE BOYSTREASURY OF SPORTS, PASTIMES AND RECREATIONS.
- - - - -
-- witH four hundred illustrations, -->
- BY SAINT UE L wir, LIA IVIs. - - -
- is now REApy. -
In one very meat volume, bound in extra crimson cloth; handsomely printed and
illustrated with engravings in the first style of art, and containing
about six hundred and fifty articles. A present for all seasons.
--
- -
-
- PR E FA C E.
This illustrated Manual of “Sports, Pastimes, and Recreations,” has been prepared with especial
j" the Health, Exercise, and Rational Enjoyment of the young readers to whom it is ad-
resseu.
Every variety of commendable Recreation will be found in the following pages. First, you have
the little Toys, of the Nursery; the Tops and Marbles of the Play-ground; and the Balls of the
Play-room, or the smooth Lawn.
Then, you have a number of Pastimes that serve to gladden the fireside; to light up many faces
ht joyfully, and make the parlour re-echo with ..
ext, come the Exercising Sports of the Field, the Green, and the Play-ground; followed by
the noble and truly English game of Cricket.
Gymnastics are next admitted; them, the delightful recreation of Swimming ; and the healthful
sport of Skating.
Archery, once the pride of England, is then detailed; and very properly followed by Instructions
in the grâceful accomplishment of Fencing, and the manly and enlivening exercise of Riding.
Angling, the pastime of childhood, boyhood, manhood, and old age, is next described; and by
.." # the instructions here laid down, the lad with a stick and a string may soon become an
expert Angler.
eeping Animals is a favourite pursuit of boyhood. Accordingly, we have described how to rear
the Rabbit, the Squirrel, the Dormouse, the Guinea Pig, the Pigeon, and the Silkworm. A long
chapter is adapted to the rearing of Song Birds; the several varieties of which, and their respective
cages, are next described. And here we may hint, that kindness to Animals invariably denotes an
excellent disposition; for, to pet a little creature one hour, and to treat it harshly the next, marks
a capricious if not a cruel temper. Humanity is a jewel, which every boy should be proud to wear
in his breast.
We now approach the more sedate amusements—as Draughts and Chess; two of the noblest
exercises of the ingenuity of the human mind. Dominoes and Bagatelie follow. With a know.
ledge of these four games, who would pass a dull hour in the dreariest day of winter; or who
would sit idly by the fire 1 - - - -
Amusements in Arithmetic, harmless Legerdemain, or sleight-of-hand, and Tricks with Cards,
will delight many a family circle, when the business of the day is over, and the book is laid aside.
Although the present volume is a book of amusements, Science has not been excluded from its
pages. . And why should it be 1 when Science is as entertaining as a fairy tale. The changes we
read of in little nursery-books are not more amusing than the changes in Chemistry, Optics, Elec-
tricity, Magnetism, &c. By understanding these, you may almost become a little Magician.
Toy Balloons and, Paper Fireworks, (or Fireworks without Fire,) come next. Then follow In-
structions for Moueiling in Card-Board; so that you may build for yourself a palace or a carriage,
and, in short, make for yourself a little R. er world.
Puzzles and Paradoxes, Enigmas and Riddles, and Talking with the Fingers, next make up plenty
of exercise for "Guess," and "Guess again.” And as you have the “Keys" in your own hand, you
may keep your friends in suspense, and make yourself as mysterious as the Sphynx.
A chapter of Miscellanies—useful and amusing secrets—winds up the volume.
The “Treasury” contains upwards of four hundred Engravings; so that it is not only a collection
of . worth knowing,” but it is a book of pictures, as full of prints as a Christinas pudding
is of plums.
It º, be as well to mention that the “Treasury" holds many new games that have never
before been printed in a book of this kind. The old gaines have been described afresh. Thus it
ls, altogether, a new book.
And now we take leave, wishing you many hours, and days, and weeks of enjoyment of 3r these
pages; and we hope that you may be as happy as this book is brimiul of amuseumeul.


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A s E. RIES OF W OR KS
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They form a neat 18mo: series, in paper, or strongly done up in three neat volumes, extra cloth.
THE RE ARE AL READ Y PUBLISHED,
No. 1.-PHILOSOPHICAL THEORIES AND PHILOSOPHICAL EXPERIENCE.
2.—ON THE CONNEXION BETWEEN PHYSIOLOGY AND INTELLECTUAL SCIENCE.
3.—ON MAN's Pow ER OVER HIMSELF, TO PREVENT OR CONTROL INSANITY.
4.—AN INTRODUCTION TO PRACTICAL ORGANIC CHEMISTRY, witH REFER-
ENCES TO THE works of DAVY, BRANDE, LIEBIG, &c.
5.—A BRIEF VIEW OF GREEK P1 (ILOSOPHY UP TO THE AGE OF PERICLES.
6.—GREEK PHILOSOPHY FROM THE AGE OF SOCRATES TO THE COMING OF
CHRIST.
7.—CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE AND PRACTICE IN THE SECOND CENTURY.
8.—AN EXPOSITION OF VULGAR AND COMMON ERRORS, ADAPTED TO THE YEAR
OF GRACE MIDCCCXLV.
9.—AN INTRODUCTION TO VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY, WITH REFERENCES To
THE WORKS OF DE CANDOLLE, LINDLEY, &c.
10.-ON THE PRINCIPLES OF CRIMINAL LAW.
1].-CHRISTIAN SECTS IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY.
12–THE GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF GRAMMAR.
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public to various important topics, in a novel and accessible mode of publication.”—N. Y. Morning
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-
MAC KINTO SH'S DISSERTATION ON THE PROGRESS
OF ETHICAL PHILOSOPHY,
WITH A PREFACE BY
THE REV. WILLIAM WHEWELL, M.A.
In one neat 8vo. vol., extra cloth.
-
OVERLAND JOURNEY ROUND THE WORLD,
DURING THE YEARS 1841 AND 1842,
B Y S I R G E O R G E S I M P S ON,
GOVERNOR-IN-CHIEF OF THE HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY'S TERRITORIES.
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and furnishes an immense mass of valuable information.”—Inquirer.


LEA AND BIANCHARD’S PUBLICATIONS.
HAWKER AND PORTER ON SH00TING.
INSTRUCTIONS TO YOUNG SPORTSMEN -
IN ALL THAT RELATES TO GUNS AND SHOOTING.
BY I, I E U T. C. O I, . P. H. A.V. K. E. R.
FROM THE ENLARGED AND IMPROVED NINTH LonDoN EDITION,
T0 WHICH ISADDED THE HUNTING AND SHOOTING OF NORTH AMERICA, WITH
DESCRIPTIONS OF ANIMA LS AND BIRDS, CAREFULLY COLLATED
FROM AU'I HENTIC SOURCES.
BY W. T. PORTER, E S Q.
EDITOR OF THE N. Y. SPIRIT of THE TIMES.
In one large octavo volume, rich extra cloth, with numerous Illustrations.
“Here is a book, a hand-book, or rather a text-book—one that contains the whole routine of the
science. It is the Primer, the Lexicon, and the Homer. Everything is here, from the minutest
portion of a gun-lock, to a dead Buffalo. The sportsman who reads this book understandingly, may
pass an examination. He will know the science, and may give advice to others. Every sportsman
and sportsmen are plentiful, should own this work. It should be a “vade mecum.” He should
be examined on its contents, and estimated by his abilities to answer. We have not been without
treatises on the art, but hitherto they have not descended into all the minutiae of equipments and
qualifications to proceed to the completion. This work supplies deficiencies, and completes the
sportsman's library.”—U. S. Gazette.
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“A volume splendidly printed and bound, and embellished with numerous beautiful *ś
which will doubtless be in great demand. , No sportsman, indeed, ought to be without it, while the
general reader will find in its pages a fund of curious and useful information.”—Richmond Whig.
--- ---
You ATT on Tii E. Do G.
T H E D o G,
B Y WILL I A M Y O U A TT,
Author of “The Horse,” &c.
W l'TH N U M E R O U S AND B E A U TIFU L I L L USTRATIONS.
ED ITED BY E. J. LEWIS, M. D. &c. &c.
In one beautifully printed volume, crown octavo.
LIST OF P L A T E S.
Head of Bloodhound—Ancient Greyhounds—The Thibel Dog—The Dingo, or New Holland Dog-
The Danish or Dalmatian Dog—The Hare Indian Dog—The Greyhound—The Grecian Greyhound
—Blenheims and Cockers—The Water Spaniel—The Poodle—The Alpine Spaniel or Bernardine
Dog—The Newfoundland Dog—The Esquimaux Dog-The English Sheep Dog-The Scotch Sheep
Dog—The Beagle—The Harrier—The Foxhound–Plan of Goodwood. Kennel—The Southern
Hound—The Setter—The Pointer—The Bull Dog-The Mastiff—The Terrier–Skeleton of the
Dog-Teeth of the Dog at seven different ages.
“Mr. Youatt's work is invaluable to the student of canine history; it is full of entertaining an I
instructive matter for the general reader. To the sportsman it commends itself by the large amount
of useful information in reference to his peculiar pursuits which it embodies—information which
he cannot find elsewhere in so convenient and accessible a form, and with so reliable an authority
to entitle it to his consideration. The modest preface which Dr. Lewis has made to the American
edition of this work scarcely does justice to the additional value he has imparted to it; and the
ublishers are entitled to great credit for the handsome manner in which they have got it up.”—
orth American. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
T. E. E. S. P G R ºr S ºr A. Nº 2 S LIBRARY,
OR HINTS ON HUNTERS, HUNTING, HOUNDS, SHOOTING, GAME, DOGS, GUNS,
FISHING, COURSING, &c., &c.
BY JOHN MILL S, ESQ.,
Author of “The Old English Gentleman,” &c.
In one well printed royal duodecimo volume, extra cloth.
º--~~~~~~~
--~
STAB I, E. T.A.I., IK AN ID TABLE TALK,
OR SPECTACLES FOR YOUNG SPORTSMEN.
BY H A R R Y HIE O V E R.
In one very neat duodecimo volume, extra cloth.
“These lively sketches answer to their title very well. Wherever Nimrod is welcome, there
should be cordial greeting for Harry Heover. His book is a very clever one, and contains many
instructive hints, as well as much light-hearted reading.”—Eraminer.
~~~~~~
THE Dog Art D THE sport T's MAN,
EMBRACING THE USES, FREEDING, TRAINING, DISEASES, ETC., OF DOGS, AND AN
ACCOUNT OF THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF GAME, WITH THEIR HABITS,
Also, Hints to Shooters, with various useful Recipes, &c., &c.
B Y J. s. s r. I n n E. R.
With Plates. In one very neat 12mo, volume, ºxtra cluth.


LEA AND BLANCHARD’S PUBLICATIONS.
FRANCATELLI'S MOD E R N FR EN C H C 00 KERY.
- T H E M O D E R N COO K,
A PRACTICAI, GUIDE TO THE CULINARY ART, IN ALL ITS BRANCHES, ADAPTED AS
well, FoR THE LARGEST. ESTABLISHMENTS AS FOR THE USE
OF PRIVATE FAMILIES.
BY CHARLES ELME FRANCATELLI,
Pupil of the celebrated Careme, and late Maitre D'Hotel and Chief Cook to her Majesty the Queen.
In one large octavo volume, extra cloth, with numerous illustrations.
“It appears to be the book of books on cookery, being a most comprehensive treatise on that art
preservative and conservative. The work comprises, in one large and elegant octavo volume, 1447
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tions for dinners for every month in the year, for companies of six persons to twenty-eight.—Nat.
Intellwencer.
“The ladies who read our Magazine, will thank us for calling attention to this great work on the
noble science of cooking, in which everybody, who has any taste, feels a deep and abiding interest.
Francatell is the Plato, the Shakspeare, or the Napoleon of his department; or perhaps the La
Place, for his performance bears the same relation to ordinary cook books that the Mecanique
Celeste does to Daboll's Arithmetic. It is a large octavo, profusely illustrated, and contains every-
thing on the philosophy of making dinners, suppers, etc., that is worth knowing.—Graham's Magazine.
M|S S A CI0 N'S C 00 KERY.
MoDERN cookERY IN ALL, ITs BRANCHES,
REDUCED TO A SYSTEM OF EASY PRACTICE, FOR THE USE OF PRIVATE FAMILIES.
IN A SERIES OF PRACTICAſ, RECEIPTS, ALL OF WHICH ARE GIVEN
WITH THE MOST MINUTE EXACTNESS.
B Y E L I Z. A. A C T O Ne
WITH NUMEROUS WOOD-CUT ILLUSTRATIONS.
To WHICH IS ADDED, A TABLE OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.
The whole Revised AND PREPARED FOR AMERICAN HOUSEKEEPERs.
BY M. R.S., S.A. R.A. H. J. H. A. L. E.
From the Second London Edition. In one large 12mo. volume.
“Miss Eliza Acton may congratulate herself on having composed a work of great utility, and one
that is speedily finding its way to every dresser' in the kingdom. Her Cookery-book is unques-
tionably the most valuable compendium of the art that has yet been published. It strongly incul-
cates economical principles, and points out how good things may be concocted without that reck-
less extravagance which good cooks have been wont to imagine the best evidence they can give of
skill in their profession.”—London Morning Post.
THE COMPLETE C 00 K,
FLIN AND PRACTICAL DIRECTIONS FOR COOKING AND HOUSEKEEPING,
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Directions for making Wines.
W IT h A D D I T i O N S A N D A L T E R AT I O N S.
BY J. M. SAN DER SON,
OF THE FRANKLiN HOUSE.
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W IT H A D D IT I O N S A N D A L T E R A T I O N S.
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JOHNSON AND LAND RETH ON FRUIT, KITCHEN,
AND FL.0 W E R G ARD EN IN G,
A DICTION A R Y OF MOD E R N G A R D EN IN G,
BY GE OR GE WILLIAM JOHNSON, ESQ.
Author of the “Principles of Practical Gardening,” “The Gardener's Almanac,” &c.
*
WITH ONE HUND RED AND Eighty WooD-curs.
EDITED, WITH NUMEROUS ADDITIONS, BY DAVID LANDRETH, OF PHILADELPHIA.
In one large royal duodecimo volume, extra cloth, of nearly Six Hundred and Fifty
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This edition has heen greatly altered from the original. Many articles of little interest to Ameri-
cans have been curtailed or wholly omitted, and much new matter, with numerous illustrations,
added, especially with respect to the varieties of fruit which experience has shown to be peculiarly
adapted to our climate. Still, the editor admits that he has only followed in the path so admirably
marked out by Mr. Johnson, to whom the chief merit of the work belongs. It has been an object
with the editor and publishers to increase its popular character, thereby adapting it to the larger
class of horticultural readers in this country, and they trust it will prove what they have desired it
to be, an Encyclopædia of Gardeuing, iſ not of Rural Affairs, so condensed and at such a price as to
be within reach of nearly all whom those subjects interest.
“This is a useful compendium of all that description of information which is valuable to the
modern gardener. It quotes largely from the best standard authors, journals, and transactions of
societies; and the labours of the American editor have fitted it for the tº States. by judicious
additions and omissions. The volume is abundantly illustrated with figures in the text, embracing
a judicious selection of those varieties of fruits which experience has shown to be well suted to the
United States.—Silliman's Journal.
“This is the most valuable work we have ever seen on the subject of gardening; and no man of
taste who can devote even a quarter of an acre to horticulture ought to be without it. Indeed la-
dies who merely cultivate flowers within-doors, will find this book an excellent and convenient
counsellor. It contains one hundred and eighty wood-cut illustrations, which give a distinct idea
of the fruits and garden-arrangements they are intended to represent.
“Johnson's Dictionary of Gardening, edited by Landreth, is handsomely printed, well-bound, and
sold at a price which puts it within the reach of all who would be likely to buy it.”—Evergreen.
THE COMPLETE FLOR IST.
.A. MIAIN U AI, O F. G. ARIDE IN IN G,
CONTAINTNG PRACTICAL INSTRUCTION FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF GREENHOUSE
PLANTS, AND FOR THE CULTIVATION OF THE SHRUBBERY-THE FLQWER
GARDEN, AND THE LAWN–WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF THOSE PLANTS
AND THEES MUST WORTHY OF CULTURE IN EACH
DEPARTMENT.
wr T H A D DITI on s AND AIMIEN DIMIENTS,
ADAPTED TO THE CLIMATE OF THE UNITED STATES.
In one small volume. Price only Twenty-five Cents.
THE COMPLETE KITC HEN AND FRUIT GARDENER.
A SELECT MANUAL OF KITCHEN GARDENING,
AND THE CULTURE OF FRUITS,
CONTAINING FAMILIAR DIRECTIONS FOR THE MOST APPROVED PRACTICE IN EACH
DEPARTMENT, DESCRIPTIONS OF MANY WALUABLE FRUITS, AND A
CALENDAR OF WORK TO BE PERFORMED EACH
MONTH IN THE YEAR.
THE WHOLE ADAPTED TO THE CLIMATE OF THE UNITED STATES.
In one small volume, paper. Price only Twenty-five Cents.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LANDRETH's RURAL REGISTER AND ALIVIANAC, FOR 1848,
WITH N U M E R O U S I LLUSTRATIONS.
STILT, ox HAND,
A FEw copies of THE REGISTER For 1847,
WITH O V E R O N E HUND RED WOOD-C UTS.
This work has 150 large 12mo, pages, double columns. Though published annually, and contain:
ing an almanac, the principal part of the matter is of perinanent utility to the horticulturist and
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H U M A N H E A L T H :
or, THE INFLUENCE of ATMOSPHERE AND LOCALITY, CHANGE OF AIR AND
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EXERCISE, SLEEP, CORPOREAL AND MENTAL PUR-
SUITS, &c., &c., ON HEALTHY MAN,
CONSTITUTING ELEMENTS OF HYGIENE.
BY ROBLEY DUNGLISON, M.D., &c., &c.
In one octavo volume.
*...* Persons in the pursuit of health, as well as those who desire to retain
it, would do well to examine this work. The author states the work has
been prepared “to enable the general reader to understand the nature of
the actions of various influences on human health, and assist him in adopt-
ing such means as may tend to its preservation: hence the author has
avoided introducing technicalities, except where they appeared to him indis-
pensable.”
REMARKS ON THE INFLUENCE OF MENTAL EXCITEMENT,
AND MENTAL CULTIVATION UPON HEALTH.
BY A. B. R. I. G. HAIVI, IVI. D.
Third edition; one volume, 18mo.
A T R E AT IS E O N
cohn's, BUNIons, TFIE IISEASEs or THE NAILs,
AND THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF THE FEET.
BY LEWIS D UR LAC HER,
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PROUT ON CHEMISTRY-CHALM ERS ON THE MORAL CONDITION OF MAN–WHEWELL,
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BUCKLAND'S GEOLOGY, 2...wols., with numerous plates and maps.
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THE DOMESTIC MANAGEMENT OF THE SICK ROOM,
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BY A. T. TH O MS ON, M.D., &c. &c.
First American, from the Second London Edition. Edited by R. E. GRIFFITH, M. D.
In one royal 12mo. volume, extra cloth, with cuts.
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THE MILLW RIGHT AND MILLER'S GUIDE.
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WITH ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS, BY THE PROFESSOR OF MECHA.
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ADD ISO N 0N CONTRACTS.
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men ...ipowners; Shipmasters; Innkeepers; Carriers; Infants; Luna-
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W HEAT0 N'S INTERNATIONAL LAW.
IEI, EIMIENT'S OF IN TE RINTATION A I, L.A.W.
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A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE LAW RELATING TO TRUSTEES,
THEIR POWERS, DUTIES, PRIVILEGES AND LIABILITIES.
BY JAMES HILL, ESQ.,
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ED ITED BY FRAN Cls J. TROUBAT,
Of the Philadelphia Bar.
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COMPRISING
ITS RISE, PROGRESS AND FINAL ESTABLISHMENT.
T0 WHICH IS PREFIXED, WITH A VIEW TO THE ELUCIDATION OF THE MAIN SUB.
JECT, A CONCISE ACCOUNT OF THE LEADING DOC'I RINES OF THE COMMON
LAW, AND OF THE COURSE OF PROCEDURE IN 'I'HE COURTS OF COM-
MON |AW, WITH REGARD TO CIVIL RIGHTS; WITH AN ATTEMPT
TO TRACE THEM TO THEIR SOURCES: AND IN WHICH
THE WARIOUS ALTERATIONS MAI) E BY THE
LEGISLATURE DOWN TO THE PRESENT
DAY ARE NOTICED.
BY G E o R G E SPEN CE, Es Q.,
One of her Majesty's Counsel.
I N T W O O C T A. W. O. W. O L U M E S.
Volume I., ºn; the Principles, is now ready. Volume II. is rapidly preparing and will
appear early in 1818. It is based upon the work of Mr. Maddock, brought down to the present
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A NEw LAvy Dr cºrror Arty,
CONTAINING EXPLANATIONS OF SUCH TECHNICAL TERMS AND PHRASES AS OCCUP
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AND COMMONS, TO WHICH IS ADDED, AN OUT LINE OF AN
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BY HE N R Y JAIV: Es. Ho LT Hous E, Es Q.,
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EDITED FROM THE SEconD AND ENLARGED LONDON EDITION,
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being intelligible and well devised definitions of such phrases and technicalitius as are peculiar to
the practice in the Courts of this country.—While, therefore, we recommend it especially to the
students of law, as a safe guide through the intricacies of their study, it will nevertheless be found
a valuable acquisition to the library of the practitioner himself.”–Aler. Gazette.
“This work is intended rather for the general student, than as a substitute for many abridgments,
digests, and dictionaries in use by the professional man. Its object principally is to impress accu-
rately and distinctly upon the mind the meaning of the technical terms of the law, and as such
can hardly fail to be generally useful. There is much curious information to be found in it in re-
gard to the peculiarities of the ancient Saxon law. The additiºns of the American edition, give
increased value to the work, and evince much accuracy and care."—Pennsylvania Law Journal.
T.A.Y. I, OR2 S IM EDIC A. L J U R IS PIR U DENTC E.
A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON MEDICAL JURISPRUDENCE.
BY AL FR E D S. T A Y LOR,
Lecturer on Medical Jurisprudence and Chemistry at Guy's Hospital, London.
With numerous Notes and Additions, and References to American Law,
BY R. E. G RIFFITH, M.D.
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TAYL, OR7S IMA IN U AI, OF TO XICO I, O G.Y.
IN ON E N E A T O C T A V O V O L U M E.
A NEW WORK, Now READY.
*-
Tº R.A.II, II,7S
OUTLINES OF A COURSE OF LECTURES ON MEDICAL JURISPRUDENCE,
IN ONE SMALL OCTAWO WOLUME,
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