Mon. [8 May 1905] Went out about 10 with Fattuh and saw a most
lovely ruined Seljuk Mosque, Inje Jami, with a most exquisite door,
near the citadel. So on over the citadel, on the other side of which I
photographed a Seljuk lion in a garden (it probably comes from the
tower which is still standing) and into the Kara Tai where Jelal ed Din
Konyayi(?) (Konawi) is buried. It has lovely faience in the dome.
There are lots of queer tombs here, with stone walls and pointed brick
roofs on top of which storks build. Lunched with the Loytveds and met
Husne Bey, the exile who studied in Germany a very pleasant man.
He talked of Turkish govt in abusive strains, we tried to persuade him
that there were worse. After lunch the Loytveds and I went to the
Tekkiya, the Turbe with the blue dome in which Jelal ed din Rumi is
buried. A charming place, like all Tekkiyas, with a garden and stocks
and pansies blooming in it, a general air of peace. [Arabic
characters] written everywhere. We saw the two dancing halls and
the tomb with lovely Persian work round it, inlay and painting in soft
rich colours. All the Chelebis lie buried round each with his tall hat
over his grave. They are his descendants. The present Chelabi is ill
so I did not see him. They preserve a carpet on which Jelal ed Din
Rumi is said to have prayed but they wd not show it to me. Kites. I
saw a beautiful Indian in the street and talked to him. He came from
Lahore. I found a Dervish from Alexandria with whom I had some
pleasant talk. So to the carpet bazaar where I bought some killims
that Fattuh considered too dear and I afterwards sent them back. So
to the Vali, Faik Pasha, a pleasant man. He introduced me to his wife,
a charming Circassian in a stamped velvet gown[?]. Back to tea with
the Loytveds where I saw his professor who talked Arabic with me.
So home to settle plans and pay off Faris, thank Heaven! At dinner I
talked to a German who is agent for an English firm and is busy
selling threshing machines. He is displacing an American firm who
got the contract and sent machines which would not work here. The
corn in this high country is so dry and hard that it needs a special
machine. Also the machine has to made the straw into tibu. He is
supported by Ferid Pasha, the Grand Vizier who was formerly Gov.
here and who did a great deal for the place, brought the water, made
the road to the station. But the officials have had bakhshish from the
Americans (who have spent about £5000) and refuse to move. A
commission was appointed to look into the machines and reported
that his worked and the Americans' didn't. Last year there was a
bumper harvest and he brought his machine down here and worked it
for nothing, or next to nothing as an advertisement. He gets special
rates on the French railway as he is opening up the country, but not
from the German. Last year the German railway cd not carry all the
corn and were still busy carrying last year's crop this spring. The
camel competition they cannot as yet hope to get the better of, at any
rate over small distances. The corn goes a great deal to Mersina
[Mersin (IÁel)], by rail to Eregli [(Cybistra Heraclea)] and so by camel.