BRITISH CONSUL'S RIDE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1023, 12 January 1911, Page 6

BRITISH CONSUL'S RIDE.

PERSIA TO FRANCE ON HORSE , BACK. , . : . Mr.. J. H. Bill, British Consul .-at Sliiraz, Persia, recently arrived in England after travelling 2500 miles oil liorsciback from Southern Persia to Fraiicb'.' V< ' / 3lr. Bill left fiis post at Shiraz in April with .one Indian orderly, , a Persian servant,. and three ponies', arid slept at night, in the Persian. villages; For toil .days .out of Sliiraz no incident of jmpoHaiiee occurred,., but,.the,;roads ■worq. very unsafe. The • post ; caravan immediately, following his .o.wn wasvat-, talked and. robbed. The consul and his party safely reached Shiilgistan.' Owing to aii accidental delay -the nest, part of the: road was passed in peace, a band of robbers who had been waiting' for tho caravan • there. having nioved to attack from elsewhere.'About mid-day quo day solitary. figures . appeared along'tho foothills :skirtiiig the road and after.-firing disappeared. The .caravan now consisted !"bf twelve Bengal .Lancers,' with a . native officer and five' Persian ; cossacks—altogether twenty guiis

The robbers did not succeed in'their intention of drawing the caravan's'fire, but a' halt was called near tho .entrance to a valley in .order to'• ascertain what wero tho robbers' intentions. The latter -were seen at. a distance of about a mile, and it was observed that- an advance party was riding along tho hills. As' -the road became more enclosed, snipilig commenced,' and it was c'onsid-' ored advisable to attack tho brigands., Accordingly half of Mr. Bill's party' were .sent on ahead, tho remainder being so disposed as to cut off, if'possible, the robbers' retreat.. The main body of the-bandits numbered somo sixty men. Somo of Mr. Bill's escort rode up to a couple of robbers who had como. to a standstill owing 'to their horses being fatigued; One of tho In,dian troopers was, instantly shot dead, and in tho" fighting which followed a second was< killed. Tho combatants came to close quarters and tho native officer killed one of tho brigands with his sword. After this. encounter the main body of the robbers canie up, but disappeared after-firing at: long range.

After two months' travelling the Consul readied tho Turkish frontier at Urumiah, and a week later started for Van, which lie reached after a ten days' ride through magnificent mountain scenery. In the Turkish territory lie was struck by tho good order prevailing on what were sunnosed to be dangerous roads. Mr. Bill went from Van to ;Bitlis, and skirting Lake. Van, reached Erzernum, and after a further einlifc days' riding arrived at Trebizond, wliero Jic took steamer to Constantinople.

From Constantinonlo Mr.. Bill proceeded by train to Salonicn and llonastiv. Here ho again resumed his ride and went right through Albania. He next rode (Renter's Agency state's) through Montenegro,, skirted the Adriatic as far as and there crossed Bosnia and Herzegovina. Finally ho proceeded across Croatia to' tho southern side of the Tyrol and rode through the Black Forest to the. Vosges. On tho French frontier lie took train to Havre en route for Southampton.