ut, strange to say,
there were no such tools in the place, although they were wanted
daily. I at last succeeded in persuading them to break off the lid
with care. Notwithstanding the anxiety I was in, I could not help
laughing at the foolish faces which both the women and the customs'
officer made when they saw the fragments of brick from Babylon, and
the somewhat damaged Ninevite head. They could not at all
comprehend why I should carry such objects with me.

The German woman, Henriette Alexandwer, invited me to take coffee
with her; and when she heard of my perplexity with respect to a
lodging, she offered me a room in her house. On the following day,
I visited the governor, who received me very politely, and
overpowered me with favours,--I was obliged to move into his house
directly. He attended to my passport, and obtained all the
necessary vises, of which I required half a dozen since entering the
Christian dominions, and made an agreement for me with some Tartars,
whose caravan was going to Tiflis. I then looked round the
miserable half-ruined town with the good Mrs. Alexandwer, and saw
Noah's monument.

According to Persian accounts, Natschivan is said to have been one
of the largest and handsomest towns of Armenia; and Armenian writers
affirm that Noah was the founder. The modern town is built quite in
the Oriental style; only a few of the houses have the windows and
doors turned towards the streets; generally the front faces the
small garden. The dress of the people is also rather like the
Persian, but the officials, merchants, etc., wear European costume.

Nothing more remains of Noah's sepulchre than a small arched
chamber, without a cupola. It appears to have been formerly covered
with one, but it is not possible to decide from the few ruins that
now remain. In the interior, neither a sarcophagus nor grave are to
be seen; a single brick pillar stands in the centre, and supports
the roof. The whole is surrounded by a low wall. Many pilgrims
come here, Mahomedans as well as Christians; and both sects
entertain the remarkable belief, that if they press a stone into the
wall while thinking of something at the same time, and the stone
remains sticking to the wall, that their thoughts are either true or
will come to pass, and the reverse when the stone does not adhere.
The truth of the matter is, however, simply this: the cement or
mortar is always rather moist, and if a smooth stone is pushed a