'GAZETTEER OF PERSIA. VOLUME I' [‎75r] (154/820)

CHE—CHE
135
an,
from the famine of 1871. There are gardens here and a good supply of
sweet water. The whole country around is composed of sand , but, thanks
to the water with which the sand is irrigated, dates are produced in
great abundance, and a few other trees, such as mulberry and pomegra
nates, are to be seen. Tobacco and grain are grown in small quan
tities, and dates in very large quantities indeed, and exported to all
parts of Persia. The names of the four villages from which the place
takes it name are Jhqar, Targhinan, Tashkanan and Mihdiabad, con
taining in all about 200 houses. Juqar, the largest of the four villages,
contains an aggregate of 800 inhabitants. There are two caravan roads
from here to Meshed ordinarily used by pilgrims—one by Bijistan, and
the other by Nishapur, both passing by Tabas, at a distance of 10 miles.
It contains a fine serai built of burnt bricks. It is about 80 yards
square, exclusive of the outer court, which is about the same size,
and through which access to the inner building is alone obtainable. It
contains accommodation for about 250 men and 300 horses. It is strongly
built, but has no flank defence. The roof has an all-round wall and a
5-foot parapet badly loopholed. Water plentiful from stream from the
hills .—(MacGregor ; Stewart; Vaughan.)
CHEHAR DEH (No. 2)—Elev. 6,500'.
A group of four villages in Astarabad, north of Damghan, 12 miles
north of Chashmeh-i-’Ali. They are situated in the midst of gardens at the
foot of some high, rocky hills. Their names are Kaleh Tsh, Zirdamuks,
Varasam, Harab-i-Deh. The revenue is about £25 in money and 40
Iharwars in produce, and they are bound to furnish 200 soldiers to the
Government. Barley and wheat form the chief cultivation, which crops,
however, occasionally fail on account of drought, when grain is importe d
from Astarabad. The inhabitants of this village are exempted _from_ all
taxes on condition of furnishing 300 men to the regiment of Damghan ;
and in consequence of this immunity they are said to be very rich.
The village is a great depot for mules, which are sold in Khorasan. The
style of the houses and dress of the inhabitants areon the Traq model. A
fine stream, coming from the snows of the Shah Kuh range, rushes
through the villages, and is sub-divided and distributed by numerous side
channels, conveying the water to the fields. They all have numerous
walled gardens, with rows of poplar and willow trees and stunted mulber
ries, and the inevitable imdmzddeh. There are a few mosques and a bath
and’a public bakery—a great economiser of time—in which excellent bread
resembling biscuits is made, by which means each peasant is not employed,
as in India, in passing most of his time baking his own bread. Situ
ated as this village is on one of the main trade routes with Persia, a
number of mules are always kept up, and can be readily obtained at
short notice. ™ t t ™
B —Lovett says that the Tang-i-Sar and Chashmeh-i- Ah valleys
can be best observed from Chebar Deh. These converge on Fulad
Mahalleh. Cavalry stationed at Chehar Deh could easily ride to Fulad
Mahalleh for supplies in twelve hours, as also to villages in the Tang-i-
Sar valley.— {Lovett; Napier.)
icli