Page:The Nestorians and their rituals, volume 1.djvu/438

378 tion of the second volume of this work, induced me to undertake another visit to the mountain Nestorians. Mr. R. Clive, who together with the Hon. Mr. Herbert, had been spending a few days at Mosul, and who intended to travel to Trebizond through central Coordistan, having kindly promised to take a portrait of the Patriarch for me in case he happened to be in their route, I preceded those gentlemen by one day in order to make arrangements for the interview. Accompanied by Kas Michael, and Habeeb an excellent Beyroot servant, I left the Tigris on the 3rd of April, 1850; the weather was now delightfully cool and pleasant, the fields were smiling with abundance, and the air was perfumed with the fragrance of the wild flowers which decked our path with their rich and gaudy colouring. The Khoser being swollen at this season of the year we passed to the east of Koyoonjuk, where the Arabs were still engaged in excavating the relics of ancient Nineveh. Mr. Layard and his party were absent at the time on a visit to the Khaboor, (the Chebar of Ezekiel and the Chaboras of the Romans,) where they expected to find a new treasure of Assyrian remains. "What do you want these stones and sculptures for?" inquired our muleteer. I endeavoured to satisfy his curiosity; but the idea of their historical value was far beyond his comprehension. "And do you wish to persuade me," continued he, "that you are taking so much trouble, and spending so much money, to know who built these palaces, and when and why they were built?" "Such is the truth," I replied; "but what is your idea on the subject." "Why," said he, "I think two things: first, that you wish to learn from the inscriptions where all the treasures of those old kings are hid; and, secondly, that you intend to send the sculptures and images to your subjects in India, who are idolaters as the people who erected these palaces were, and you will make a pretty penny by the trade, for these idols being so ancient will doubtless be held in high veneration by the infidels of Hindostan." Reason and argument are very poor weapons to combat prejudices like these; we can only smile at the simplicity which they indicate, and pass on, as our party did towards Telkèf, where we put up for the night.

It would weary rather than interest the reader were I to describe our present route to Amedia, since it varied little from that