'Travels in Beloochistan and Sinde; accompanied by a geographical and historical account of those countries, with a map.' [‎212] (254/476)

11
212 PERSIAN MANNERS.
thin, and baked in pieces two or three feet square, it forms a tolerable
substitute. Another vast objection is the want of spoons to help the
different sauces : a fowl or a kid may be Xorn into scraps without
much offence to our ideas of cleanliness; but, to see a person daub
his greasy hand, that he has just licked, in a vessel of sauce, out of
which his neighbour helps himself in the same manner the next
minute, is truly barbarous and disgusting.
There are no people in the world who understand better the forms
of politeness and etiquette to strangers, in their own houses, than the
Persians ; and were it not for their fancied pre-eminence, they would
be exceedingly pleasant companions ; but that spirit ot egotism and
false pride which they all inherit, from the highest to the lowest,
makes them, even in their infancy, dogmatical to a degree sometimes
bordering on rudeness.
Among themselves, with their equals, the Persians are affable and
polite; to their superiors, servile and obsequious ; and towards their
inferiors haughty and domineering. All ranks are equally avaricious,
sordid, and dishonest, when they have an opportunity of being so ;
nor do they care for detection when they have once reaped the bene
fit of their superior genius, as they term it. Falsehood they look
upon, in all cases where it facilitates their ends, not only justifiable
but highly commendable, and good faith, generosity, and gratitude,
are alike unknown to them. In debauchery none can exceed them ;
and some of their propensities are too execrable and infamous to
admit of mention. In short, to close this outline of the Persian
character, I shall add, without the fear of confutation, that, from my
own observation, I feel inclined to look upon Persia, at the present
day, to be the very fountain-head of every species of tyranny, cruelty,
meanness, injustice, extortion, and infamy, that can disgrace or
pollute human nature j and have ever been found in any age 01
nation. *
* Perhaps a few of my readers may conceive what is here said to be too severe; but I
think, of those who have had an opportunity of judging, there will be very few indeed oi