Merv, the Queen of the
World;
and the Scourge of the Man-stealing Turcomans. With an
Exposition of the Khorassan Question:
By Charles Thomas Marvin, Published by W.H. Allen, 1881
CHAPTER II. TUKKMENIA.
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the dell; and almost every fruit
grew in a state of nature. The fig, the vine,
pomegranate, raspberry, black currant, and the hazel,
shot up everywhere; and, as we approached the camp of the
Turkmen,
there were extensive plantations of the mulberry. The
different groups of tents were pitched in grotesque order
on the upper lawn near the river; and our party halted at
one of their settlements on a beautiful shelf of green
turf that lay at the base of a cloud-capped hill, clothed
with the richest foliage."
The Turkmen
region has been so persistently described as a mere
desert that it is well to bear in mind the foregoing
glowing description of the Goklan country. The easiest
route from Russia to Herat is not via Merv, but through
Astrabad and Meshed. To Meshed there are three roads. The
best runs through the beautiful valleys and dales of the
Goklan district, and has already been partly annexed by Russia
without attracting the notice of England.
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