Far Off Part 14

TENTS.--A Tartar tent is very unlike an Arab tent.

It is in the shape of a hut, for the sides are upright, and the roof only is slanting, and there is a small hole at the top to let the smoke escape. Neither is it made of skins, but of thick woollen stuff, called felt, which keeps the cold out. At night the entrance is closed, and the family sleep on mats around the fire in the midst.

APPEARANCE.--The Tartars are not handsome like the Turks and Circa.s.sians.

They are short and thick; their faces are broad and bony, their eyes very small, and only half open; their noses flat, their lips thick, their chins pointed, their ears large and flapping, and their skin dark and yellow.

Their dress is warm, and well suited for riding in the desert. Different tribes have different dresses: this is the dress of the Kalmuck Tartar.

He wears a yellow cloth cap trimmed with black lamb-skin; wide trowsers, a tight jacket, and over all a loose tunic, fastened round the waist. His boots are red, with high heels. The women dress like the men; but they let their hair grow in two long tresses, while the men shave part of their heads, and keep only _one_ lock of hair hanging on their shoulders.

[Ill.u.s.tration: TARTAR TENTS.]

You see that the Tartars are much like the Chinese in their persons and dress; but they are a much stronger, bolder people, and much more ignorant. No wonder, therefore, that many years ago the Tartars got over the Chinese wall, and took possession of the Chinese throne. You must not forget that the Emperor of China is a Tartar.

GOVERNMENT.--To whom does Tartary belong? Has it a king of its own? No.

Once it had many kings, called khans; but now the khans have lost their power, and are only _called_ khan to do them honor. Now Tartary belongs to the great empires on each side of it,--Russia and China. Part of Tartary is called Russian Tartary, and part--Chinese Tartary. There is only a small part that is not conquered; and it is called Independent Tartary.

There are many different tribes, and each tribe keeps to a certain part of the land, and never ventures to wander beyond its own bounds.

RELIGION.--The religion is the same as that which is so common in China,--the religion of Buddha; but in some parts of Tartary there is the religion of Mahomet. It is sad to think that far more people in the world wors.h.i.+p Buddha, the deceiver, than Jesus, the Son of G.o.d. The Tartars think to please their false G.o.d by making a loud noise. It would astonish a stranger to hear their jingling bells, shrill horns, squeaking sh.e.l.ls, bellowing trumpets, and deafening drums. How unlike is their senseless noise to the sweet sound of a Christian hymn!

The Tartars think also to please their G.o.ds by glaring colors; so their priests dress in red and yellow, and bear flags, adorned with strips of gay silk. A band of priests looks something like a regiment of soldiers.

The chief priest is called the Lama, and he is wors.h.i.+pped as a G.o.d; but his situation is not very pleasant; for he is not allowed to walk without help. Whenever he attempts to walk, he is held up by a man on each side, as if he were an infant; and usually he is drawn in a car, or carried in a palanquin. From want of exercise, he becomes very weak and helpless.

When he dies, his body is burned, and the ashes are gathered up and made into an idol. Thus he continues to be a G.o.d after he is dead. Another Lama is chosen by one of the princes. There are many Lamas in Tartary for the various tribes.

As the Tartars are always moving about, a tent serves for a temple; and the idols are carried in great chests. They cannot walk, therefore they must be carried. What use are such G.o.ds?

The Tartars have found out a way of praying without any trouble; and it is a way that suits idols very well. They get some prayers written, and place them in a drum, and then turn the drum round and round with a string. This they call praying; and while they are thus praying, they can be chattering, smoking, and even quarrelling. The princes have a still easier way of offering up prayers. They write prayers upon a flag, and then place it before their tents for the wind to blow it about.

This is _their_ way of praying to their G.o.ds.

And what, my dear child, is _your_ way of praying to your G.o.d?

Have missionaries visited the Tartars?

Yes; I will tell you of two German missionaries, who tried to convert a tribe of Tartars called the Kalmucks, living near the Caspian Sea and the river Volga. These good men were treated with great contempt by the Tartars. The missionaries translated the Gospel of St. Matthew into the Tartar language. One of the Tartars, instead of thanking them, observed, "I wonder you should take so much trouble to prepare a book that we shall never read." When the precious books were given to the Tartars, some of them returned the books; and when it was read to them, they scornfully said, as they turned away, "It is only the history of Jesus."

At last one Tartar, named Sodnom, believed in Jesus. He said to the missionaries, "Now the Tartars, from my example, may turn to the Lord: for as, when sheep are to be washed, each is afraid to enter the water till _one_ has been in, so it may be with my countrymen."

Sodnom read every evening in the Testament to his family in the tent. At first his wife was displeased, and said that her husband wasted the fire-wood in making a light to read a book that was of no use. But afterwards she listened, and made the children keep quiet. The neighbors also listened, and _twenty-two_ turned to the Lord!

Then the prince and the priests grew angry, and said the Christians must leave the camp. Where could the Christians go? There was a village called Sarepta, where some Germans lived. There they determined to go, though it was two hundred miles off. One of the missionaries led the way on horseback; the Tartars followed on foot: then came camels bearing the tents and the women, while a bullock-cart contained the young children.

The flocks and herds were driven by the bigger children.

The good Germans in Sarepta received the Tartars with great joy. One gray-headed man of eighty-three came to meet them, leaning upon his staff. He said he had been praying that he might see a _Christian_ Tartar before he died. He heard these Tartars sing hymns to the praise of Jesus, and he felt his prayers were answered. Two days afterwards he died. Like old Simeon, he might have said, "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation."

The Christians went to live in a small island in the river Volga. When the river was frozen, the Germans went over the ice to visit them. Sodnom gave them tea mixed with fat in a large wooden bowl; and to please him, the kind Germans drank some, though they did not like it. Many Tartars a.s.sembled in Sodnom's tent, and seated on the ground smoking their pipes, talked together about heavenly things; and before they parted, they put away their pipes, and folding their hands, sang hymns in their own language. The Germans, in taking leave, divided a large loaf among the company; for bread is considered quite a dainty by the Tartars.

The change that had taken place in these Tartars filled the Germans with joy; and more missionaries would have gone to teach the heathen Kalmucks, had not the Emperor of Russia forbidden them.

ASTRACAN.

This city is on the Caspian Sea. It is very unpleasant, on account of the heat and the gnats.

Not only Tartars dwell there, but many people of all nations, Russians, Hindoos, and Armenians. The chief trade of Astracan is in the fish of the sea, and in the salt on the sh.o.r.es.

BOKHARA (IN TARTARY).

This is a kingdom in the midst of Tartary. It lies at the south of the Caspian Sea. It is not like the rest of Tartary, for it is a sweet green spot. Travellers have said that it is the most beautiful spot in the world, but that is not true. The reason that travellers have said so, is that, after pa.s.sing through a great desert, they have been charmed at seeing again running streams, and shady groves.

But though Bokhara is a beautiful place, it is a wicked place.

The king is one of the greatest tyrants in the world. He is called the Amir.

The city where he dwells is called Bokhara (which is also the name of the whole country). His palace is on a high mound, in the midst of splendid mosques, and mansions. Amongst these grand buildings is the prison, a place of horrible cruelty. There the prisoners lie in the dark, and the damp. One use of the prison is to keep water cool for the king in summer; it feels therefore just like a cellar.

But the worst dungeon, is filled with stinging insects, called "ticks,"

reared on purpose to torment prisoners. In order to keep the ticks alive when no prisoners are there, raw meat is thrown into the place. There is also a deep pit into which men are let down with ropes; as once the holy Jeremiah was in Jerusalem.

Once a fortnight the prisoners are judged by the Amir. Even when the ground is covered with snow they stand with bare feet, waiting for hours till the Amir appears.

Can so cruel a monarch be happy? No. He lives in constant fear of his life.

He is afraid of drinking water, lest it should be poisoned. All that he drinks is brought from the river in skins, and sealed, and guarded by two officers; it is then taken to the chief counsellor, called the Vizier, and tasted by him, and his servants; it is then sealed again, and sent to his majesty.

The Amir's dinner when it is ready, is not placed on the royal table, but locked up in a box, and taken to the Vizier to be tasted, before it is served up in the palace.

But it is not the Amir only who is afraid of poison. No one will accept fruit from another, unless that other tastes it first. It must be very terrible to live in the midst of such murderers as the people of Bokhara seem to be.

The Amir is so much afraid of people making plans to destroy him, that he chooses to see all the letters that are written by his subjects; if a husband write to his wife, the letter must first be shown to the Amir.

There are boys, too, going about the city listening to all that is said, that they may let the Amir know, if any one speak against him.

But while the Amir is watching his people, _they_ are watching _him_; for his chief officers hire men to listen to the Amir's conversation, that they may know if he intends to kill them. Yet every person _appears_ to approve all the Amir does, saying on every occasion, "It is the act of a king; it must be good." They are such people as Jeremiah describes in the Bible. "Their tongue is as an arrow shot out, it speaketh deceit; one _speaketh_ peaceably to his neighbor, but in his _heart_ he lieth his wait."--(Jer. ix. 8.)

APPEARANCE.--The people in Bokhara are much handsomer than other Tartars; their complexions are fairer, and their hair is of a lighter color. They wear large white turbans, and several dark pelisses with high-heeled boots. These high heels prevent their walking well, and most people, both men and women, ride; but the ladies always hide their faces with a veil of black hair cloth.

The large court of the palace is filled from morning to night with a crowd of noisy people, most of them mounted on horses and donkeys.

In the midst of the court is the fruit market. It is wonderful to behold the quant.i.ty, and beauty of the fruits. The same fruits grow in Bokhara as in England, only they are much finer. _Such_ grapes, plums, and apricots, mulberries, and melons, are never seen in Europe, and they are made more refres.h.i.+ng by being mixed with chopped ice. Large piles of ice stand all the summer long in the market-place, and even beggars drink iced water. But hot tea is preferred before any other drink. In every corner of the market there are large urns of hot tea, and small bowls of rich milk, surrounded all day by a thirsty crowd. How much better is this sight than the gin palaces of London!

But there is one great inconvenience in Bokhara, for which all its fruits can scarcely make amends. There is bad water. For Bokhara is not built on the banks of a river, or among running brooks: all the water is brought by ca.n.a.ls, from a small stream near the town, and when the ca.n.a.ls are dried up by the heat, there is no water, except in the tanks where it is kept. This stagnant water produces a disease called the Guinea worm.

In this complaint the skin is covered with painful swellings, and when they burst, a little flat worm is discovered in each, which must be drawn out before the poor sufferer can recover.

RELIGION.--It is the Mahomedan. The Amir is a strict observer of his religion. Every Friday he may be seen going to prayers in his great mosque. The Koran is carried before him, and four men with golden staves accompany him, crying out, "Pray to G.o.d that the Commander of the Faithful may act justly." As he pa.s.ses by, his people stroke their beards to show their respect. Bokhara is reckoned by Mahomedans a very religious city; for in every street there is a mosque; every evening people may be seen crowding to prayers; and if boys are caught asleep during service, they are tied together, and driven round the market by an officer, who beats them all the way with a thick thong.

There is a school, too, in almost every street of Bokhara, and there the poor boys sit from sunrise, till an hour before sunset, bawling out their foolish lessons from the Koran; and during all that time they are never allowed to go home, except once for some bread. They have no time for play, except in the evening, and no holiday, except on Friday. Seven years they spend in this manner, learning to read and write. When they leave school, if they wish to be counted very wise, they go to one of the colleges; for there are many in Bokhara. Some spend all their lives in these colleges, living in small cells, and meeting in a large hall to hear lectures about the Mahomedan religion. It is a happy thing, however, that in summer the students go out to work in the fields; for how much better is it to work with the hands, than to fill the head with the wicked inventions of Mahomed.