The special correspondent of the Times at Tabriz gives in
Tuesday's paper an interesting account of his experiences. The post-road to Tabriz from Julfa is a Russian concession, and all the toll-gates are in charge of. Russian employees. At Sophian he found Persian soldiers who professed to be guarding the village, but who really had deserted from Tabriz. Their officer telephoned to Tabriz for instructions, stating that his men demanded pay. The answer was : "Are there, not enough travellers on the road to satisfy the demands of the small number of men you have with you?" Hearing of this ominous episode, the correspondent proceeded to Tabriz without baggage. In Tabriz he learned that the present chaos there began when news came that the Shah had fired on the Assembly buildings at Teheran. The signal was given by two Caucasians, who introduced pandemonium by the simple act of firing their revolvers in the main bazaar. The town then fell at once into two factions, the Royalists and anti-Royalists. The first Royalist troops arrived from Teheran early in July. Only two hundred of the thousand men were armed. They were paraded with the armed company in front, and the anti- Royalists, all armed to the teeth, were indulgent spectators of the ceremony. Then the Shah's soldiers simply dispersed among the populace, adding to the number of mouths to be fed in the hungry city. The next important event was the arrival of Rakhim Khan, the es-brigand, whom the Shah had instructed to "punish" the town. No wonder that the anti- Royalists decided desperately to resist a ruffian from whom they could expect no mercy. And Rakhim Khan is not likely to depart unsatisfied, as Tabriz is, like Delhi, a place to loot.
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