Under the Absolute Amir

I spent the intervening hour in riding about the streets and roads on the outskirts of the city where the palaces of the Amir and princes are situated and where the officials and courtiers and others have their houses and gardens. [...] The inner part is the harem serai where the women are quartered and here the rooms are built in such form as to surround and look out upon an inner courtyard ; and an outer small house which is built over the gate of the harem and overlooks the street for the use of the man and where male visitors are received and entertained by him. [...] The clear atmosphere also makes the moonlight very brilliant and the effect of the sleeping city bathed in the white light of the moon as seen from the roof of the house at night the harsh outlines of houses and mountains toned down and the domes of palaces and tombs rising above the other buildings is very beautiful. [...] Day dispels the illusion for the clear atmosphere and absence of vapour makes the colouring of the landscape very dull and the brilliant green of the trees here and there appears objectioable as out of keeping with the rest of the colour scheme. [...] In the cities when a man commits murder he is taken charge of and judged by the authorities but in the country it often results in a feud between the two families which is carried on for generations the murderer being waited for by the relatives of the man whom he killed and killed in turn ; the slayer in this case also being eventually slain by a member of the opposite party and so the feu