Wed Ap 19. [19 April 1911] At 6.45 Temp 44 Bar 26. Went off about 8
with my new muleteer to Deir Zafran. Wonderful ride along the side of
the hill with all the almond trees in flower. Under K. el Marra with a
village at its foot. The patriarch was away in India. I saw a very old
bp who gave me leave to photograph. The church is roofed with a
Klosterkuppel (it may be rebuilt). The tomb chamber with a fluted
dome which is certainly new. On the outer cornice of the church
rinceaux with animals in the circles like Syrian work. The church is
certainly later than the Tur 'Abdin. Decoration overloaded and ofter
very wild. Rode home, lunching on the way and in the town went to
see the Zengiriyyeh Medresseh, the big mosque (said to have been
a church) also another old Mosque, Jami' esh Shahid, much rebuilt,
the Old Syrian church (said to be ancient but no details to go by,
heavy basilica plan) and the Catholic Armenian church St George
ditto. It has a building inscrip on a stone of which I only saw the copy
dating it in the 4th c. Saw the bp designate Ignace Vartabed Maloyan
who has recently come from Egypt where he desires to return, Mardin
being too poor and out of the world for a man of his culture. He is a
Mardelli. He complains that the new Govt is not better than the old
especially they have difficulties with respect to the recruits. In the old
days they used to conceal the numbers of their community and give
returns much under the mark. Now they are obliged to give full returns
for recruiting purposes and the Govt seeing many new names insists
that they must be those of boys or young men who have therefore to
serve, whereas they are often men over 30 with wives and children. I
saw another church on my way home Mar [space left blank] but it was
equally uninteresting. Dined with the Emrichs and came back early
and talked to the Thoms. They have had a bad Mutesarrif here who
is just going, consequently things are pretty slack. The country is
much safer since Ibrahim Pasha's death. Dr Thom described his raid
on Nisibin [Nusaybin (Nisibis)] which was totally uncalled for, just to fill
the pot. A number of Yezidis had joined him and suffered greatly at
his fall; all their possessions stripped from them, but they were mostly
stolen goods. The Milleh Kurds still very rich. The children of I. Pasha
have been sent to Trebezond [Trabzon (Trabizond)]. Khansa Khatun
at Wiranshehr [Viransehir]. A Xian boy who goes down yearly to
trade with the Arabs recently murdered and robbed by them in the
plain - remains to be seen if justice will be done. Fraternity of course
all a dream. Mrs Emrich told me that in April 2 years ago they were
hourly expecting massacre. The Kurds were coming in from the mts
all armed. Only Abd ul Hamid's fall stopped it. They dispersed at
once. Terrible suffering in the snow. Provisions and fuel ran out. The
snow from the roofs piled up in the streets higher than the houses.
Lots of consumption here; it has greatly increased in the last 30 years.
The people live in houses partly rock cut, the rock very porous and
damp and they sleep with closed windows and doors. Horribly dirty
habits and early marriages also contribute.