Having obtained this decree, with which, as it took him back to Astrabad, he was not altogether satisfied, Hanway quitted the camp of Nadir on the 27th of March. The spring in those southern regions being already advanced, the bright pure blue of the sky, "the falls of water from the rocks, the stupendous mountains, far higher than any he had seen in Europe, rising gradually one above another, some with their summits covered with snow, and others concealing their heads in the clouds, formed a delightful scene. The vines were full of foliage, the orange-groves perfumed the air with their fragrance, and the gardens were in full blossom." The beauty of the landscape, however, was almost entirely the work of nature; for the husbandman, not knowing who might reap the fruits of his industry, had ceased to cultivate the earth, or cultivated it with a sparing and unwilling hand. The curse of despotism, the bane of genius and energy, submission to which is the severest evil humanity can suffer, was deeply felt throughout the land, where, however, symptoms of a most salutary and just revenge, the sacred duty of the oppressed, were beginning to manifest themselves in a very striking manner.
Hanway reached Lanjaron on the 5th of April, where, being exceedingly fatigued both in body and mind, he remained with Captain Elton until the 1st of May. He then set forward with six well-armed companions for Astrabad. Their way, during the first part of their journey, lay through a forest, where they lost their path and were benighted on the very evening of their departure; but at length, guided by a light which they discovered among the trees, they found their way to a house which was barricaded with trees. The owner of this lonely mansion, with an inhospitable terror which was fully justified by the circumstances of the times, refused them admittance; upon which, like true Persians, they broke
