From the palace we went to the grain market close by, and found a scene, the picturesqueness of which beggars description. Indeed an apology is due to the reader for the number of adjectives and superlatives used in this chapter (I believe these are quite antiquated grammatical terms, but I am ignorant of the new names which are later than my day); the fact is that this is the most wonderful city I have yet come across in my wanderings, and no words seem adequate, so I trust to be forgiven. Here one could escape from European anachronisms, and the place was filled with a gay, bustling throng of men and beasts. The water-carrier was busy quenching man’s thirst from an unappetising-looking skin slung over his shoulder, which still retained the shape of the animal to whom it originally belonged. Another man provides the smoker with a whiff of tobacco from a general pipe. We pushed our way gently through the throng, treated with utmost courtesy by young and old. We climbed up to Bibi Khanum’s tomb, an excellent point of vantage from which to look down on the busy scene. Immediately below us was the grain market, to the right a busy traffic in green grass used for fodder; beyond that was a space specially devoted to camels, where the beasts knelt in long rows, tranquilly surveying the scene. Further away was a large enclosure full of horses, and another space devoted to the sale of fuel. All round the market were low buildings, or booths, for all sorts of things, and a row of busy blacksmiths and harness makers. Blocks of rock-salt from Hissar, sweetmeats, tobacco, and green snuff found plenty of purchasers, while itinerant vendors plied a busy trade in all directions. Every day that we were there seemed equally busy, and in the bazaars they sell not only native goods, but large quantities of Russian silks, especially those made in Moscow. Cotton goods from Manchester were not lacking, and it is to be feared that competition is killing to a large extent the native industries. They no longer make the wonderful carpets of ancient times, and we were warned that it is risky to buy old ones on account of infection. Some of the silks are attractive, but majenta is a favourite colour, and the curious designs would not look well transplanted from their local setting. [Illustration: HAZRÉTI SHAH ZINDEH]