re fixed, business would soon be done. But
if you have taken a fancy to a Kurdish mat and ask the price, the
tradesman demands a quite absurd sum. You shrug your shoulders and go
your way. He calls out another, lower price. You go on quietly, and the
man comes running after you and has dropped his price to the lowest. In
every shop bargains are made vociferously in the same way. There is a
continual buzz of voices, now and then interrupted by the bells of
caravans.

The illumination is dim. The noonday sun penetrates only through
openings in the vault and forms patches of light. Dust floats about in
the shafts of light, mixed with smoke from water-pipes. The greater the
distance the dimmer this confined air appears. There is also an
indescribable odour. The smell of men and animals, of dusty goods, of
rank tobacco, of rotting refuse, strong spices, fresh, juicy fruit--all
mixed together into a peculiar odour which is characteristic of all
Oriental bazaars.

The bazaar of Stambul contains a great deal besides. On the northern
side is a line of old caravanserais, massive stone buildings of several
storeys, with galleries, passages, and rooms, and with a large open
court in the centre. Here resort the wholesale merchants, and here are
their warehouses and stocks. Lastly, cafes and eating-houses are found
in the tunnelled streets, baths and small oratories, so that a man can
pass his whole day in the bazaar without needing to go home. He can
obtain all he wants in the vicinity of his shop.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] "Pasha" is an honorary title given to officials of high rank in
Turkey and Egypt, as to governors of provinces, military commanders,
etc.

[2] A garment worn throughout the Levant, consisting of a long gown
fastened by a girdle and having sleeves reaching below the hands.

[3] A "droshky" is a low, four-wheeled, open carriage, plying for hire.
The word is Russian.

II

CONSTANTINOPLE TO TEHERAN (1905)

THE BLACK SEA

Attended by the _cavass_[4] of the Swedish Embassy, old Ali, I drove
down to the quay on a fresh, sunny October morning, loaded all my boxes
on board a _caique_, and was rowed by four men out to the Bosporus
between anchored sailing vessels, steamers, and yachts. On arriving at
the gangway of a large Russian steamer, I waited until all my luggage
was safe on board and then followed it.

The anchor is weighed, the propeller begins to turn, and the vessel
steers a course northwards throu