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Diary entry by Gertrude Bell

Reference code
GB/2/11/4/14
Creator
Bell, Gertrude Margaret Lowthian
Creation Date
Extent and medium
1 entry, paper
Language
English
Location
Iraq ยป Balad
Coordinates

34.0076216, 44.148291

Wed Ap 14. [14 April 1909] All this country up to the ferry is Seniyyeh.
Since the Constitution 1/5 [one fifth] goes to the Sultan, 1/5 [one fifth]
to the Bait el Meslimeh (army) and 3/5 [three fifths] to the peasants.
The Sultan used to take 2/5 [two fifths]. The peasants are very well
off. They will always if they get into trouble say "I am of the Seniyyeh"
and so escape. I had a man called Jasim as guide and a very nice
Onbashi called Sfug[?]. He is an Arab of the 'Adwan and was in the
Liquorice Co. We left camp at 6.15 and rode through Sumeicha[?], a
prosperous village, and so out across the desert to the E. At 7.15 we
came to Tell Hir where there has been a considerable town on the old
Tigris. At 7.50 to Tell Ghazab, ditto. Both covered with Arab pottery.
At 8.25 to Tell Manjur. Manjur is probably Opis. It covers an
enormous area and ends with some high tells near the present Tigris.
There was no coloured pottery here but a good deal of what I
suspect to be Parthian. We left at 8.45 and rode NW till 9.30 when we
reached Tell edh Dhahab where we stayed 10 minutes collecting
coloured and plain pottery - lots of it some bits with patterns, Arab.
Half an hour (I guess) further W is Tell 'Abir where I did not go. So we
rode N to Said Muhammad, a Mazar dated 1310 AH. We got there at
10.30 and stayed till 10.45. There is a large khan near the Mazar. We
then rode NW to Beled [Balad] which we reached at 11.15. It is far the
most prosperous village I have seen - Seniyyeh of course. There are
large gardens with all kinds of fruit trees and vines and in the middle
what looks like a large village green of real grass. Outside we saw
the peasants laying out new vineyards and all the canals are well
bridged. We rode through the town and when we got to the outskirts
sat down and lunched under the shade of a wall 11.35-12.5. Here I
sent back Jasim who is a native of Beled. We rode on with a
charming Arab who joined us, called Selim. He is of the Mujamma'.
Their sheikh is Sultan. He gave us news of ghaza maza. There is a
little row going on in the Khawijeh with some Kurds who raided tents of
the Mujamma'. The 'Anazeh and the Shammar are both Gom. So at
2.15 we came to the ferry, 'Ibreh (but we had ridden past, it's really
21/2 hours from Beled.) The Dije[?] was comparatively near; we cd
see its high banks. The first part of the caravan had just gone over in
the Shahtur which presently came back for us and we ferried over too.
Charming camp by the Tigris. I saw the first kelek carrying tobacco to
Baghdad. A man with a couple of monkeys coming from Baghdad I
asked him where he was going and he said vaguely "'Al wilala."
However I think he has stopped here with us. The Shahtur man sang
a song about me as we crossed. "Jenab as Sirkar: khosh, khosh! fi
khidmat; khosh, khosh! Bakhshish: khosh khosh!" We saw the
Malwiyyeh tower from the other side of the river. We are just inside
the Nahrwan.

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