'GAZETTEER OF PERSIA. VOL. III.' [‎157r] (318/982)

saves the province from becoming a pandemonium; Of the inhabitants
of the tract of country between Bushire and Jehrum, Stotherd (1893) re
ported :—
“ The inhabitants are civil and disposed to be friendly, and the khans
and ndibs, as a rule, come to visit a European on arrival, and offer assistance
etc. Generally two or three of the leading men of each village carry fairly
good rifles. These are something of the Martini-Henry type, with a single
barrel, lever and falling block, but short fore-end and very coarse sighting
They are manufactured apparently expressly for Persia, as they are stamped
with the “ Lion and Sun ” device, but bear no maker’s name, though them
are a few rifles of much superior make bearing the name of Hollis, London
Owners of these rifles are very proud of them, and invariably bring them
up to show, asking questions as to their probable value. The usual price
they said they paid, was about Rs. 200. This included 100 rounds of ammu
nition, which' they carry stuck all.'round them in a belt. At least half
[ the remainder of the men of a village possess long muzzle-loader guns of
th& Arab type, generally only single barrelled with percussion cap locks.
They are as a rule good shots, as they are always shooting game, and so
are well accustomed to the use of Their weapons .; but there is no organisa
tion, among them for military purposes. The physique of the race seemed
good, and they are ghle to traverse long distances on foot. The ohief diseases
they suffer from are ophthalmia, fever, earache and rheumatism. They
are not very hardworking, and never move far from their villages unless
obliged to, spending their time cultivating a small piece of ground in the
close vicinity of their huts. During the hot time of year, they shut them
selves up in their housesMuring the heat of the day, though in some villages
they move out to summer quarters in a camp formed of temporary huts
of boughs and goat’s hair tents, generally close by their permanent village,
which is for the time deserted. Of the part between Jehrum and Niriz the
same authority reports :—
“ The inhabitants are less inclined to be civil to Europeans, and are not
under so good control as about Firuzabad. In some places there is no ndib
or any appearance of authority, except that a revenue collector, I was
informed, came once a year to collect dues.
Ndibs . and Governors are appointed yearly, and take np appointments
about this time* of year. There is now (June 1893) a great amount of
highway robbery and violence going on about these parts. A certain
amount of this is always carried on here ; but this year, owing to the distress
caused by bad crops, locusts and the disturbed state of the head-quarters
of Government at Shiraz, there is a great deal more than usual. ”
Of the remainder of the population, which is extremely mixed especial
ly towards the coast where they are now more generally known by the name
of the district or locality to which they belong, such as Ehishtis, Dashtis,
Kazarunis, Tangistanis, etc., a description of each will be found under the
heads of the different districts in this Gazetteer. The inhabitants of each
village also, wherever possible, have been mentioned in the article regard
ing it.
* Note by Sir Thomas Gordon. —Almost all changes are made at “Nauruz ”, New
years’s day, 21st March.