Journeys In Persia And Kurdistan ( Vol.Ii).

LETTEK xxxm A "STRANGE HORSE" 379

hut the baggage horses struggling and falling, and occa-
sional glimpses of caverned limestone cliffs and precipitous
slopes, with a foamy torrent at a tremendous depth below.
On emerging from the pass, Moussa, Suleiman, and I
came at a good pace through the slush to this odah, and
I arrived so cold that I was glad to have to rub my horse
dry, and attend to him. Murphy describes him thus:
" That's a strange horse of yours, ma'am; if one were to
lie down among his legs he'd take no notice to hurt one.
When he comes in he just fills hisself, then he lies
down in the wettest place he can find, and goes to sleep.
Then he wakes and shakes hisself, and hollers, he does,
till he gets his grub "—an inelegant but forcible descrip-
tion of the excellences of a travelling horse. Soy is
truly a gentle pet; it afflicts me sorely to part with him.
A few nights ago as I took some raisins to him in a
dark recess of the stable, my light went out, and I slipped
and fell among the legs of some animal. Not knowing
whether it was a buffalo or a strange horse I did not
dare to move, and said, " Is this you, my sweet Soy ?"
A low pleasant snuffle answered " yes," and I pulled my-
self up by the strong woolly legs, which have carried me
so t sturdily and bravely for several hundred miles.

The Christians appear not to have anything analogous
to our " family worship/' but are careful in their attend-
ance at the daily prayers in church, to which they are
summoned before dawn, either by loud rappings on their
doors or the striking of a wooden gong or sounding-board.
The churches differ very little. They usually have an
attempt at an outer courtyard, the interior of the edifice
is generally square, the roof is supported by two rows of
poplar pillars, and the rough walls are concealed by
coarse pictures and dirty torn strips of printed cotton.
Dirty mats or bits of carpets cover the floor, racks are
provided for the shoes of the worshippers, and if there is