cious all our great men are of power
over their own servants, I did not fail immediately to inform him of the
language which the serdar had entertained me with. He became furious,
and I had only to fan the flame which I had raised in order to create a
quarrel between them; but, having more fears about the serdar's power of
hurting me than I had confidence in the ability of the chief executioner
to protect me, I thought it best for all parties that I should retire
from the scene, and craved my master's permission to return to Tehran.
Pleased with an opportunity of showing the serdar that no body but
himself could control his servants, he at once assented to my proposal;
and forthwith began to give me instructions concerning what I should say
to the grand vizier touching the late expedition, and particularly in
what light I was to place his own individual prowess.

'You yourself were there, Hajji,' said he to me, 'and therefore can
describe the whole action as well as I could. We cannot precisely say
that we gained a victory, because, alas! we have no heads to show;
but we also were not defeated. The serdar, ass that he is, instead of
waiting for the artillery, and availing himself of the infantry, attacks
a walled town with his cavalry only, and is very much surprised that the
garrison shut their gates, and fire at him from the ramparts: of course
he can achieve nothing, and retires in disgrace. Had I been your leader,
things would have gone otherwise; and as it was, I was the only man who
came hand to hand with the enemy. I was wounded in a desperate manner;
and had it not been for the river between us, not a man of them would
have been left to tell the tale. You will say all this, and as much more
as you please'; then, giving me a packet of letters to the grand vizier,
and to the different men in office, and an _arizeh_ (a memorial) to
the Shah, he ordered me to depart; I found the Shah still encamped at
Sultanieh, although the autumn was now far advanced, and the season
for returning to Tehran near at hand. I presented myself at the grand
vizier's levee, with several other couriers, from different parts of
the empire, and delivered my dispatches. When he had inspected mine,
he called me to him, and said aloud, 'You are welcome! You also were at
Hamamlu? The infidels did not dare to face the _Kizzil bashes_, eh? The
Persian horseman, and the Persian sword, after all, nobody can face.
Your khan, I see, has been wounded;