The Persian is, I regret to say, a liar, but Oriental exaggeration and a tendency “to run into poetry,” as Mr. Wegg said, perhaps accounts for much of this. After a time one learns to mentally discount the statements made by the natives, and habit generally enables one to do this correctly. All ranks of society exaggerate and draw the long bow; a curious instance of this occurred in Shiraz. I was conversing on the subject of hunting with the king’s son, and a large circle of courtiers and priests filled the room. The prince narrated his exploits in hunting the antelope the previous day, and gravely stated that while pursuing a pair of “ahū,” when riding a very restive horse that he had, his head-stall broke. “What should you have done, doctor?” “I should have tried to stick on as long as the ground was good, and, expecting an accident, have awaited it.” “Ah, that was because _you_ were not a prince,” he said. “_I_ leant forward, and unclasping my belt, placed it in the horse’s mouth as a bridle, and thus directing him, pursued my game and killed both antelope.” All the circle applauded (as of course they were bound to do). I was silent. “You don’t mean to say you don’t believe that?” said the prince. I smiled. “Speak out if you don’t; I shan’t be offended in the least.” “Well, your Highness, I don’t believe it.” “Quite right, darogh bood” (it was a lie), unblushingly replied his Royal Highness, and burst into a fit of laughter quite unabashed; the circle of courtiers, of course, were convulsed. The giving of the lie is no insult in Persia; among the natives a common expression is, “You are lying,” and the general reply is merely to asseverate the statement by an oath, no indignation whatever being shown at the charge. Procrastination is the attribute of all Persians, “please God, to-morrow,” being ever the answer to any proposition, and the to-morrow means indefinite delay. A great dislike is shown generally to a written contract binding the parties to a fixed date; and, as a rule, on breaking it the Persian always appeals for and expects delay and indefinite days of grace. Only the upper classes and the natives of towns, among the military and servant class, are in the habit of indulging in intoxicants, and unchastity is confined to the females of these classes; this vice among young women _prior to marriage_ is very unusual; and the Persian woman compares favourably with her European sister in this respect. Persians are clean in their persons, washing themselves and their garments frequently, differing in this habit from the Armenians, who never wash more frequently than once a month, and consider it _unhealthy_ to do so; these people have great fear of taking cold, and dread water like cats.