Friday May 15. [i.e. 14 May 1909] Off at 5.35. I sent my camp direct to
Jezireh [Cizre] which they reached in 6 hours. Kas M. brought me
roses, figs and a pomegranate. Shim'un came with me and we rode
along the hill side. Oak woods of 2 kinds large and small leaved.
Lovely orchises and onion things - alliums I suppose. At 7.25 we got
to Evler a Moslem village in a big valley. Wonderful profusion of fruit
trees - pomegranate, walnut, fig, almond, mulberry and the vine
ramping over all. The corn growing beneath and oleanders in full
flower. At 8.30 we reached Shakh. Just before it there is a ruined
castle, a great wall climbing the hill as at Za'feran. The two valleys
leading down to it are both walled across - the ruins remain. Went to
Kas Sergis the Nestorian priest who accompanied us some of the
way up the hill, but I sent him back because he was so much
exhausted. His nephew, Shim'un came with me. We reached the first
stele in 3/4 of an hour, a good deal defaced. 1/2 an hour's very
steep hot climb brought us to the second which is in very good
condition. Then under the crag to the third which we reached in about
1/4 of an hour. The inscrip here is almost gone. All appear to be of
exactly the same type as the one above Hassana. We climbed to
the summit of the crag and looked for the fourth which is somewhere
on a steep face, but did not find it. Very delicious up in these rocks.
Rested and eat chocolate and drank water and so back to Shakh.
We left at 12; at 12.30 got down to the stream where I sat and lunched
for 1/2 an hour. Then we rode over rolling ground to Jezireh which we
reached at 4. The only village we passed was Zaghmur at 3. The
camp was pitched on a fine high bank above the Tigris. There is a
ruin on this side opposite where the bridge was that led from the
castle; it was so full of fleas that I hurried away from it. It consisted of 3
barrel vaulted chambers. Very tired.