'Travels in Assyria, Media, and Persia, including a journey from Bagdad by Mount Zagros, to Hamadan, the ancient Ecbatana, researches in Ispahan and the ruins of Persepolis, and journey from thence by Shiraz and Shapoor to the sea-shore. Description of Bussorah, Bushire, Bahrein, Ormuz, and Muscat, narrative of an expedition against the pirates of the Persian Gulf, with illustrations of the voyage of Nearchus, and passage by the Arabian Sea to Bombay.' [‎26] (57/582)

26
from bagdad, across the diala,
which covers the approach to Ctesiphon, or within twenty miles,
at least, of that city itself.
The situation of the ruins here, at Giaour-Tuppe-se, or the
Hill of the Infidels, corresponds, in an extraordinary degree of
accuracy, with all these particulars. The whole of the extensive
valley in which it is placed may be called a delicious country.
The Great and the Little Zab and the Diala must be crossed
in the march to it from Nineveh, or from Moosul, where the ruins
of that ancient city are. The approach to it is covered by the
deep and clear stream of the Giaour-Soo, or Water of the Infidels,
on the north-west. And the distance of three days' march from
hence, to within twelve miles of the river that covers the ap
proach to Ctesiphon, is as near the estimate of that distance as
one can expect, since the precise distance of that river, within
eight or ten miles, is not known, if it be a branch of the Diala.^
* D'Anville seems to have been perplexed by the multiplicity of names applied to this river,
and to have spoken of it sometimes as two distinct streams.
After saying: " On lit dans I'histoire, qu'Heraclius ayant fait trois marches en avant de
Dastagerd, se trouva h douze milles dune riviere nomm^e Arba, et pres de laquelle I'armee
Persanne etait rassembl6e pour couvrir les approches de Ctesiphon;" he observes, " Or nous
sommes instruits d'une maniere positive, qu'au-dessous de Bagdad, et au moins de distance
au-dessus de Modain, le Tigre repoit une grosse riviere, dont le nom de Delas dans Tantiquit^
subsiste distinctement en s^crivant aujourd'hui Diala."-He adds, " Comme il n'est point dit
qu' Heraclius ait passe cette riviere, il faut en conclure que ce futla termede cette expedition;
et, que Chosroes n'existant plus par le crime de son fils, Siroes, c'est ce que donna lieu a un
tra^® mit fin k cet armament de 1'empire Grec contre le Persan." p. 104, et seq. 4to.
But we have before seen that Heraclius must have passed the Diala, to have destroyed the
palace of Dastagherd, since, in the words of M. D'Anville himself, « la riviere qui couvroit
ce lieu a 1'approche d'Heraclius, et dont le nom dans l'antiquit6 est Delas, le conserve en
core, etant appellee Diala."
There is an evident confounding of the same river with some other stream, by making it
appear m two Afferent positions nnder the same name: for if the Diala had been crossed to
3 ^ a J ag ' lerd ' 11 would have been necessary to re-cross it again before the army could
no where ^ a PP r0ach t0 Ctesi P ho "- ^ich re-crossing is
WhiCh • the Dia,a iS —third
Dastagherd is spoken o" as'a fourth fr0m and the "^covering the approach to
Upon the whole, therefore. I cannot think the Arba to be again this Proteus river as