ccumulations in various guises, the highest being some lofty conical
hills due east of our course. To the west in the distance we were
encircled by the Patang Kuh and the Mukh Surk ranges, which also extended
from north to south.

[Illustration: The Gate of Rustam's City, as seen from Rustam's House.]

Two farsakhs (eight miles) brought us to the British Consular Postal
Station of Mahommed Raza Chah, a mud structure of two rooms and an
ante-room between. One room was full of provisions, the other
accommodated the three postal _sawars_ (riders). Twelve holes had been
dug in search of water, but only two had been successful. One of the
sawars, a Beluch, on a _jumbaz_ camel, was just coming in with the post,
and he was a very picturesque figure in his white flowing robes and
turban over the curly long hair hanging upon his shoulders. One mile off,
six or seven more deep holes had been bored for water, but with no
success. Tamarisk was plentiful.

We were now getting near the ruins of Sher-i-Rustam or Sher-i-Sukhta, the
city of Rustam, the Persian hero. North-east of it one came first to a
ruined tower, then to a burial ground with single graves and graves in
sets of two and three, very similar in shape to those we had seen on the
Kuh-i-Kwajah. These, too, were above ground, but were made of mud instead
of stone. Most of the graves had been broken through. The graveyard was
situated on a sand hillock.

In the distance, to the east and south-east of Rustam's city, there
spread from the north a long stretch of ruins, which probably were part
of the continuation of the great Zaidan. A number of towers--as many as
six being counted in a line--and a high wall could be perceived still
standing. This must evidently have been a fort, and had what appeared to
be the wall of a tower at its north-west end. Other extensive ruins could
just be observed further south-east, and also to the south-west, where a
high tower stood prominent against the sky.

When close to Rustam's city we went through a walled oblique-angled
parallelogram enclosing a tower. A great portion of the wall had
collapsed, but it appeared to have been an outpost north of the city.

The next thing was an ancient dry canal which came from the east by
south-east, and we then found ourselves before Rustam's abode. The
photograph given in the illustration was taken as we approached the city
and gives a good idea of the place as it appeared beyond the foreground
of s