is
unsophisticated ways, absolutely devoid of nonsensical red-tape or false
pride, is to my mind also to be held responsible for the reverence which
he inspires among the masses.

To me personally, I must confess, it was a very great pleasure indeed to
see an English gentleman held in such respect, and that solely on account
of his tact and _savoir faire_. It is not a common sight.

Of course, a certain amount of show has also to be made to impress the
natives, but "show" alone, as some believe, will be of little good unless
there is something more attractive behind it. Major Benn seemed to be
everybody's welcomed friend; everybody, whether rich or poor, whether in
smart clothes or rags, gleamed with delight as they saw him come; and
Major Benn stopped his horse, now to say a kind word to a merchant, then
to shake hands with a native friend, further on to talk to a little child
who had run to the door of his parents' mud hut to say "salameleko" to
the Consul.

It is men with sound common sense, civil manners, and human sympathy, of
Benn's type, that we want to represent England everywhere, and these men,
as I have ever maintained, can do Great Britain more good in foreign
countries in a day than all the official red-tape in a year. It is a
mistake to believe that Persians or other Asiatics are only impressed by
gold braiding and by a large retinue of servants. The natives have a
wonderful intuitive way of correctly gauging people, as we civilised folk
do not seem able to do, and it is the man himself, and his doings, that
they judge and criticise, and not so much the amount of gold braiding on
a man's coat or trousers, or the cut of a resplendent uniform.

In the northern portion of the main street are the few shops with English
and Russian goods. Most of the articles I saw in the couple of Indian
shops were of Indian or English importation--many of the articles
appeared to me of German manufacture, like the usual cheap goods one sees
in the Indian bazaars.

On the opposite side of the road was the rival merchant who dealt in
Russian goods, and he seemed to be doing quite a brisk business. He
appeared to deal mostly in clothes. There is a kind of moleskin Russian
cloth called the _shikin maghut_, of various shades, colours and
qualities, which commands a ready sale both in Khorassan and Sistan,
although its price is high and its quality and dye not particularly good.
With a little enterprise Indian manufacturers co