The
minarets and cupolas, inlaid with variegated earthenware tiles,
glitter in the clear sunlight; palaces, gateways, and fortified
works, in endless succession, bound the yellow, muddy Tigris; and
gardens, with date and other fruit trees, cover the flat country for
miles round.
We had scarcely anchored, when a number of natives surrounded the
ship. They made use of very singular vehicles, which resemble round
baskets: these are formed of thick palm leaves, and covered with
asphalt. They are called "guffer;" are six feet in diameter and
three feet in height; are very safe, for they never upset, and may
be travelled in over the worst roads. Their invention is very
ancient.
I had a letter to the English resident, Major Rawlinson; but as Mr.
Holland, the first officer of the ship, offered me the use of his
house, I took advantage of this, on account of his being a married
man, which Mr. Rawlinson was not. I found Mrs. Holland a very
pretty, amiable woman (a native of Baghdad), who, though only three-
and-twenty, had already four children, the eldest of whom was eight
years old.
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