Parsees are
generally accused.

In Yezd the Guebres told me that they possessed very few sacred books in
their temple (or if they had them could not show them). They said that
all the ancient books had been destroyed by the Mahommedans or had been
taken away to India.

There were also several smaller temples in the neighbourhood of Yezd,
which had gone through a good many vicissitudes in their time, but now
the Parsees and their places of worship are left in comparative peace.
Parsee men and women are still compelled to wear special clothes so as to
be detected at once in the streets, but this custom is gradually dying
out. The women are garbed in highly-coloured striped garments, a short
jacket and a small turban, leaving the face uncovered. The men are only
allowed to wear certain specially-coloured cloaks and are not allowed to
ride a horse in the streets of Yezd.

Parsees do not enjoy the civil rights of other citizens in Persia, and
justice was until quite lately out of the question in the case of
differences with Mussulmans. At death a man's property would be lawfully
inherited by any distant relation who had adopted the religion of Moslem,
instead of by the man's own children and wife who had remained faithful
to their creed; and in the matter of recovering debts from Mussulmans the
law of Persia is certainly very far indeed from helping a Guebre. This is
necessarily a great obstacle in commercial intercourse.

Worst of all the burdens formerly inflicted upon the Guebres--as well as
upon Armenians and Jews of Persia--was the "jazia" tax. Some thousand or
so male Guebres of Yezd were ordered to pay the tax yearly, which with
commissions and "squeezes" of Governors and officials was made to amount
to some two thousand tomans, or about L400 at the present rate of
exchange. Much severity and even cruelty were enforced to obtain payment
of the tax.

The Parsees were, until quite lately, debarred from undertaking any
occupation that might place them on a level with Mahommedans. With the
exception of a few merchants--who, by migrating to India and obtaining
British nationality, returned and enjoyed a certain amount of nominal
safety--the majority of the population consists of agriculturists and
scavengers.

Mainly by the efforts of the Bombay Amelioration Society of the Parsees,
the Guebres of Yezd and Kerman fare to-day comparatively well. The
"jazia" has been abolished, and the present Shah and the local Govern