while we were endeavouring to put the latter at ease, and induce him to come out, but he declined doing so.

Meerza Hashem has a wife, who married him after many other husbands, and who happened to have a doubtful reputation in public, yet she was the daughter of the late Prince Ahmed Ali Meerza, and sister to the principal lady of the Shah's harem. When Meerza Hashem Khan was Under Secretary at the Embassy, his wife also shewed a preference for that neighbourhood; and from this, scandalous reports, the mention of which would be disgraceful to our Government and people, grew current among the people of Tehran, inside and outside. The Ministers, in consequence, found themselves under an obligation (to take notice of it), and addressed a circular letter to the foreign Representatives in Tehran, couched in the most veiled and decorous terms, in the hopes of awakening the attention of the members of the British Mission to this point, and putting them on their guard against the future possibility of tearing the curtain of sanctity by which the connections of the Imperial harem are veiled. This made no impression on the tastes of the Mission, who not only acted as before, but gave Meerza Hashem Khan authority to bring his wife to Gollahe (the summer quarters of the Mission), and place her in a tent among those belonging to the Mission, only separated by one wall. These circumstances at last grew so notorious that the Prince Sultan Hussein Meerza, brother of the lady, and son of the late Ahmed Ali Meerza, being indignant at these reports, proceeded first to the principal ulemah and moollahs of the city, from whom he sought and obtained a fetwah, bearing all their seals, after which he wrote to me, informing me that he had taken his sister, and detained her in her own house as a place of refuge. A copy of the Prince's letter, and of the fetwah, is inclosed for your information. It was upon this that the British Minister came forward in opposition, and the whole of the correspondence that has passed with him is inclosed herewith, according to their date and number, and he has brought affairs to that pass that he has terminated friendly relations, and has lowered the flag of the Mission, the symbol of the continued amity of the two countries; a proceeding with which this Government can never be satisfied, and must always deeply regret. If I were to state the whole of the business in this paper, it would never be contained within limits; I have, therefore, to refer you for the details to the correspondence. In every step taken, and every message sent by us, whether by the intervention of the principal noblemen of the State, or the friendly mediation of M. Bourré, the French Minister, or of Haider Effendi, the Ottoman Chargé d'Affaires, Mr. Murray's conduct was that of an Agent specially appointed to embroil the 2 countries, so little

moderation did he show, and with such increased force did he insist on his proposition; so much so, that when we, at the instance of M. Bourré, addressed him a letter, giving him unquestionable satisfaction, and revoking our last previous letter, he would not accept the letter of satisfaction, but sent it back again. These particulars are fully known to the French and Ottoman Representatives, as are also all the circumstances, and I also send this last letter for your own information. The object of sending you all this amount of correspondence is that you should be thoroughly acquainted with the affair, and should call, immediately upon its receipt, upon the French and Austrian Ministers, and most especially upon his Excellency the British Ambassador, to whom you will remit the short letter which I have addressed to him, and, further, put into his hands copies of the whole correspondence which has passed from the beginning to the end. You will state that the Persian Government is surprised at the conduct of an Agent of the British Government: at the present moment, when it is the object of every State to cement and increase its friendship with other States, upon what considerations do your Agents alienate from their Government its old and faithful friend? The English Government has been and is always desirous of witnessing a strong and settled order of things in this country, and they make use of language, which is occasionally heard, to the effect that we are not reckoned among the number of "civilized" nations. Now when the Agents of Britain might be introducing what they are convinced to be the benefits of civilization into Persia, and guiding and instructing her people in that path, why and upon what considerations do they now seek to disgust the Persian Government with civilization and force them back in the contrary direction? The accusation brought at the beginning of the war against Russia by the nations of Europe was this, that Russia was as yet imperfectly civilized, and was desirous of pursuing a course of war and bloodshed; but against the Government of Persia, which has always maintained the most perfect observance of its previous friendship with each State, and the most complete respect for the principle of civilization, what accusation can lie ?

The Ministers of this country endeavoured as long as it was in their power to accommodate and arrange matters with Mr. Murray, and made the utmost exertions; but in the same proportion that we evinced a conciliatory spirit, the hardness of his terms increased. Finally, under the mediation of the French Minister and the Ottoman Chargé d'Affaires, we sent him a message to the following effect: That if Meerza Hashem Khan is so disposed, he may remain in Tehran, and a bill for 400 tomauns, being the amount of two years' salary, lies in his favour at the Treasury; although he has been for

2 years in sanctuary at the Mission, and the Government have been deprived of his services, yet taking the request of the Mission into consideration, the money will be given him, together with an addi tional sum of 300 tomauns, on account of debts, losses, &c., incurred by him, and he will resume his former service; I also will write him a letter bearing my seal, and recording my promise that he shall incur no harm or injury, in order that his mind may be set at ease: and after he has come out, he will promise and engage on his part to keep his wife safe, and not take her to unsuitable places, or leave her there, and also to restrain her from going there of her own accord; upon which terms his wife will be surrendered to him. Moreover, if he feel so disposed, he may repair and be employed in service in any province of Persia out of Tehran, with the exception of Tabreez and Shiraz; he will in that case be promoted, and receive 100 tomauns additional; an instruction will also be addressed to the governor of the province in which he may be, to pay him 200 tomauns a-year out of his own funds-so that he will get 500 tomauns a-year; while in the event of his choosing to live out of Tehran, his wife will be surrendered to him unconditionally, so that he may take her with him. But if, however, he remains in Tehran, he cannot be promoted, nor his salary increased, for such a proceeding might form a precedent; other public servants might entertain the delusion of moving off to the Mission; in the hopes of obtaining promotion and increase of pay, and a cause of mutual bitterness and ill-will might be thereby generated between this Government and the Mission.

The Minister was not satisfied with the above arrangements, and broke off his relations. The propositions which he himself made were, in the eyes of the people of this country, so onerous, that if the Government were to entertain the idea of admitting and accepting them, it would endanger the independent authority and security of this State, and compromise the safety in life and property of its foreign guests. His principal proposition was this, that the wife of Meerza Hashem Khan should, in spite of the various details and reports (about her), be they true or be they false, in spite of all the information relative to her collected by the Ulema, and of the fetwahs, and testimony as written and sealed by them, be surrendered to her husband, under the authority of the Ministers, to be by him taken to a house close to the dwelling of the Mission. Considering that the history of the Russian Minister Greybayedoff is yet fresh, and its painful circumstances, the shame and dishonour of which to Persia has not yet been obliterated before the nations of Europe and the countries of the whole world, are ever before the eyes of this Government; and if that amount of bitter feeling was then roused on account of one Georgian girl, would not those feelings be much aggravated on behalf of the present lady, who is nearly connected

with the royal harem, and who has ties of relationship with a powerful tribe or clan, like the Kajjars? Would not the shame be everlasting, and the bitterness affect the authority of the Sovereign?

The Persian Government were unable to accept Mr. Murray's terms; and, under the necessity and compulsion of the case, and with the utmost sorrow and profoundest regret at the cessation of relations by that gentlemen, remained silent. In point of fact, it does not lie against Mr. Murray as a matter of so great blame that he, newly arrived in Persia, should be imperfectly acquainted with. the customs of that people, and with the importance with which they view matters of decorum and of religion; but that the people who surround him, and especially Mr. Stevens, should have led him into this course, is eminently matter of reprobation, for they who thus urge him are well acquainted with Persian customs. This is the same Mr. Stevens whose conduct when at Tabreez is well known, and has often been made the subject of complaints to the English Government, sent by us immediately and without intervention, as the Ambassador at Constantinople is, doubtless, not unaware; and he had hardly arrived at the capital when he did what he has done. When was it ever known that political questions, which have nothing to do with the transaction of Consular business, should be brought forward under the notice of Consuls? This Mr. Murray has appointed Mr. Stevens as his own Vizier, and with him throws political affairs into confusion.

The result of all this is, that you are instructed to make his Excellency the British Ambassador informed of the whole circumstances from beginning to end, and to request him to send copies of the whole correspondence to the British Government, in order that they may be fully acquainted with the conduct of their Minister, and the dependents of the Mission in Persia, and may, in the interest of the friendship of the two countries, adopt some decision to obviate the possibility of such occurrences henceforward, and to prevent the interference of the British Mission in the internal affairs of this country.

No. 62.-Mr. Murray to the Earl of Clarendon.- (Rec. Feb. 15.) MY LORD, Tabreez, January 5, 1856. THE Mehmander in attendance upon me having, in course of conversation, intimated that the greatest obstacle to a reconciliation between myself and the Persian Goverment was, my insisting upon certain of the Mooshtehids coming in person to apologise at the Mission, I have been induced to modify my terms, as contained in the accompanying inclosure. I have no doubt that the Persian Ministers will consider any alteration a concession; but I think

your Lordship will agree with me, that a written apology, sealed by all the offending Moollahs and Mooshtehids, and delivered by their Chief, the Imaum-o'-Jooma, in person, will prove as complete a satisfaction, if not more so, than the mode of apology prescribed in the first instance. I have, &c. The Earl of Clarendon.

CH. A. MURRAY.

(Inclosure 1.)—Mr. Murray to the Mehmandar.

January 2, 1856.

As you have expressed to me your belief that the Persian Government is disposed towards a reconciliation with this Mission, and to accede to the demands which I have made for reparation for the injuries and calumnies of which I have had reason to complain, I inclose, for your information, a copy of those demands* as they were communicated to the Persian Government at Tehran, and I now add one or two modifications which subsequent events have led me to make.

With respect to demand No. 3, I have learnt, since I left Tehran, that a third destkhet of the Shah, though not sent to me, was communicated to the Russian, French, and Ottoman Missions, and that it contained expressions concerning myself, in the highest degree offensive and unbecoming. As it would be impossible for me ever to resume friendly relations with the Persian Court while this destkhet remains unretracted, I must demand that the same officer appointed by the Shah to retract the destkhet of which I before complained, should also bring with him a letter sealed by the Sadr Azim, stating, in the clearest terms, that His Majesty entirely withdrew and retracted all the offensive expressions contained in the last destkhet, and wished me to consider it as never having been written ̧ a copy of that letter to be sent by the Persian Government to the 3 Missions to whom the destkhet itself had been communicated.

With regard to the demand No. 4, you have explained to me that, on religious grounds, some of the Mooshtehids and Moollabs might decline to come in person to the British Mission, and that my insisting on that demand might cause insuperable difficulties, such as might impede all measures of reconciliation. Although I have pointed out to you the obvious truth that if Mooshtehids and Moollahs will, either of their own accord or at the instigation of others, put their seals to calumnies and falsehoods, they must also, like other men, be compelled to make apology and retractation; nevertheless, in order to show you that I personally have no wish to throw obstacles in the way of a fair and proper reconciliation, I am willing so far to modify my demand No. 4, as to agree that if the Imaumo'-Jooma, accompanied by one or two of the Moollahs or Mooshte* Enumerated in despatch of December 6, 1855.