Ch.XXVI, p.605, f.1
Renan, in his work entitled "Les Apotres" (p. 378), characterises the great
massacre of Tihran, following on the attempt made on the life of the
Shah, as "un jour sans pareil peut-etre dans l'historire du monde." (E.
G. Browne's introduction to "A Traveller's Narrative," p. 45.) [BRZ - a provisional translation might be "A day perhaps without parallel in the history of the world."] "The number
of martyrdoms which have taken place in Persia has been estimated at ten
thousand. [This estimate is conservative. Many place the number at from
twenty to thirty thousand. [This estimate is conservative. Many place the
number at from twenty to thirty thousand, and some even higher.] Most of
these occurred during the early history of the faith, but they have
continued with diminishing frequency, even down to the present time."
(M. H. Phelps' "Life and Teachings of Abbas Effendi," introduction, p.
36.) "Amongst the documents referring to the Babis in my possession is a
manuscript copy of an article in German published on October 17, 1852 in
No. 291 of some German or Austrian newspaper of which, unhappily, the name
is not noted. I think that I received it a good many years ago from the
widow of the late Dr. Polak, an Austrian doctor, who was a physician to
Nasiri'd-Din Shah at the beginning of his reign, and who is the author of
a valuable book and several smaller treatises on Persia and matters
connected therewith. It is chiefly based on a letter written on August 29,
1852, by an Austrian officer, Captain von Goumoens, who was in the Shah's
service, but who was so disgusted, and horrified at the cruelties he was
compelled to witness that he sent in his resignation. The translation of
this article is as follows: `Some days ago we mentioned the attempt made
on the life of the Shah of Persia on the occasion of a hunting-party. The
conspirators, as is well known, belonged to the Babis, a religious sect.
Concerning this sect and the repressive measures adopted against it, the
letter of Austrian Captain von Goumoens lately published in the "Soldier's
Friend" (Soldatenfreund) contains interesting disclosures, and elucidates
to some extent the attempt in question. This letter runs as follows:
"Tihran, August 29, 1852. Dear Friend, My last letter of the 20th inst.
mentioned the attempt on the King. I will now communicate to you the
result of the interrogation to which the two criminals were subjected. In
spite of the terrible tortures inflicted, the examination extorted no
comprehensive confession; the lips of the fanatics remained closed, even
when by means of red-hot pincers and limb-rending screws they sought to
discover the chief conspirator.... But follow me, my friend, you who lay
claim to a heart and European ethics, follow me to the unhappy ones who,
with gouged-out eyes, must eat, on the scene of the deed, without any
sauce, their own amputated ears; or whose teeth are torn out with inhuman
violence by the hand of the executioner; or whose bare skulls are simply
crushed by blows from a hammer; or where the bazar is illuminated with
unhappy victims, because on right and left the people dig deep holes in
their breasts and shoulders and insert burning wicks in the wounds. I saw
some dragged in chains through the bazar preceded by a military band, in
whom these wicks had burned so deep that now the fat flickered convulsively
in the wound like a newly-extinguished lamp. Not seldom it happens that
the unwearying ingenuity of the Orientals leads to fresh tortures. They
will skin the soles of the Babi's feet, soak the wounds in boiling oil,
shoe the foot like the hoof of a horse, and compel the victim to run. No
cry escaped from the victim's breast; the torment is endured in dark
silence by the numbed sensation of the fanatic; now he must run; the body
cannot endure what the soul has endured; he falls. Give him the coup de
grace! Put him out of his pain! No! The executioner swings the whip,
and--I myself have had to witness it--the unhappy victim of hundredfold
tortures and runs! This is the beginning of the end. As for the end
itself, they hang the scorched and perforated bodies by their hands and
feet to a tree head downwards, and now every Persian may try his
marksmanship to heart's content from a fixed but not too proximate distance
on the noble quarry placed at his disposal. I saw corpses torn by nearly
150 bullets.... When I read over again what I have written I am overcome
by the thought that those who are with you in our dearly beloved Austria
may doubt the full truth of the picture, and accuse me of exaggeration.
Would to God that I had not lived to see it! But by the duties of my
profession I was unhappily often, only too often, a witness of these
abominations. At present I never leave my house, in order not to meet with
fresh scenes of horror. After their death the Babis are hacked in two and
either nailed to the city gate, or cast out into the plain as food for the
dogs and jackals. Thus the punishment extends even beyond the limits which
bound this bitter world, for Musulmans who are not buried have no right to
enter the Prophet's Paradise. Since my whole soul revolts against such
infamy, against such abominations as recent times, according to the
judgment of all, present, I will no longer maintain my connection with the
scene of such crimes."' (He goes on to say that he has already asked for
his discharge, but has not yet received an answer.)" (E. G. Browne's
"Materials for the Study of the Babi Religion," pp. 267-71.)
"Ardishir Mirza was forced to act in consequence. He kept the gates of
the city closed and guarded, giving orders to examine closely all those who
might ask to leave. The people were urged to climb the walls near the
Shimiran gate in order to see in the open field across the bridge the
mutilated body of Sadiq. The prince governor called together the
Kalantar or prefect of police, the Vazir of the city, the Darughih or
police judge, and the heads of the boroughs and ordered them to seek and
arrest all persons suspected of being Babis. As no one could leave the
city, they waited until night-fall to start ferreting them out, ruse and
cunning being the main requisites employed.
"The police force in Tihran, as in all Asiatic cities, is very well
organized. It is a legacy of the Sassanides which the Arabian Khalifs
have carefully preserved. As it was to the advantage of all governments
(no matter how bad, and even more so to the worst ones) to maintain it, it
has remained, so to speak, unchanged, in the midst of the ruins of other
institutions, equally efficient, which have decayed.
"One should know that the head of every borough, always in touch with the
Kalantar, has under him a few men called `sar-ghishmihs,' policemen who,
without either uniform or badge, never leave the streets which are assigned
to them. They are generally well liked by the people and they live on
familiar terms with them. They are helpful at all times and, at night, be
it winter or summer, they recline under the awning of any store,
indifferent to rain or snow, and watch over private property. In this way
they reduce the number of thefts by rendering them difficult. Moreover,
they know every dweller and his ways, so that they can assist in case of
investigation; they know the minds, the opinions, the acquaintances, the
relations of everyone; and if one asks three friends to dinner, the
sar-ghishmih without spying, so well informed is he about everyone, knows
the time of the arrival of the guests, what has been served, what has been
said and done, and the time of their departure. The Kad-khudas warned
these policemen to watch the Babis in their respective sections and
everyone awaited the results." (Comte de Gobineau's "Les Religions et les
Philosophies dans l'Asie Centrale," pp. 234-235.)