aspers, a Dizdár, and garrison; the castle stands on a chalk hill with two gates, one opening to the east, and the other to the west. At the foot of the castle flows the river Oltí, which waters the gardens of the town, and enters the Aras on the Kiblah side. The houses are all inhabited and covered with terraces. There are a number of mosques, a khán, a bath, garden, and school for boys; its beauties are celebrated. The inhabitants are good moslims. From hence we travelled direct north, and came at the end of two hours to the castle of Maverván built by the Georgian Kings, and conquered by Lala Kara Mustafa Páshá; it is the seat of a Sanjak Beg subordinate to Erzerúm, whose khass amounts to two hundred and three thousand aspers; the officers are a Colonel and Captain of the feudal militia. The militia of the Beg amounts to fifteen hundred men; the judge is appointed with a hundred and fifty aspers. The castle is of a square form and gigantic size, standing upon a hill; its gate looks to the Kibláh, there are eight hundred houses, a mosque, a bath, and a khán, the inhabitants are almost all poor people. Three hours further on to the west, is the village Aide Mamerván, a village inhabited by Armenians and Moslims. Further on among bleak mountains is the village Karakunk, it belongs to the district of Erzerúm; we passed the straight of Georgia and arrived at the village of Osmúdúm Sultán, a fine kent of a hundred houses on the border of a high mountain; it is situated at the very source of the Euphrates, which issues from a cavern in the mountain of Dúmlí Sultán, a delightful, refreshing water, which seems to be alluded to in the Korán by the verse: “I gave thee the Keuther.” Trouts of a cubit’s length sport in it; their bodies are ruby-coloured and interspersed with smaragdine spots. Umúdúm Sultán the Saint, who is buried here, protects these fish, so that it is impossible to catch them; but a farsang below they are taken by fishermen, and fill the brains of those who eat them with ambergris; however much a man may eat, he is never incommoded by them. The Pilgrimage to Rúmlí Sultán is much frequented. We marched five hours to the south, on the plain of Erzerúm and entered it, God be thanked! in perfect health. Before I changed my dress, I laid the letters and presents of the khán of Eriván at the feet of my gracious Lord the Páshá, and gave him a detailed account of all the castles, towns, kents and villages, which I had seen on my journey. He gave me a splendid dress and three hundred piastres bath-money, besides two purses, which he assigned to me on the extraordinary revenues of the custom-houses. I had remained scarcely a week, when a message arrived from the Khán of Eriván complaining that some of the soldiers of Karss had molested one of his caravans, and requesting that an Aghá might be sent to convey the caraván safe to Erzerúm. In consequence of this letter I was sent back into Persia on the tenth day.