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Recruitment for the ranks of the army is by conscription. Officers are recruited partly from the ranks and partly from the Military Cadet college at Tehran. A considerable number of officers have in recent years received further training in Europe. The Shah personally exercises the supreme command and is assisted by a chief-of-staff, who controls the two branches of the army staff the general and the administrative. The gen darmerie (Amnieh) has for its principal duties the policing of the country outside the towns, and also the patrolling, and (in co-operation with the army) the protection of roads. It is organ ised in mixed units in the proportion, usually, of one of cavalry to four of infantry.
The 'Persian Government possesses the following ves sels : Persepolis. An old gunboat of 600 tons and 450 h.p. built in 1884 ; in bad condition and of no fighting value. Mozafferi. An old Belgian yacht of 379 tons, built in 1899. Pehlevi. An ex-minesweeper of German type, built in 1917. 200 tons Boo h.p. Burns oil fuel. Ivy. An English yacht formerly employed on the Niger. Acquired by the Shaikh of Mohammerah after the war. An old gunboat on the Caspian. Captured by Soviet forces in 1920, but understood to have been restored to the Persian Govern ment. Several small river steamers.
At the present day it may be said that with the exception of Persian Kurdistan which like the rest of the Kurdish element is Sunni, practically the whole of Persia is Shiah. Under this faith the power wielded by the priestly hierarchy has always been very great, owing no doubt to the fact that the foundations of Society were based almost exclusively on religious law. But there is no sacerdotal caste; any person capable of reading the Koran and interpreting its laws may function as a priest or "mullah," and as soon as one of them has established a reputation for just interpretation of the shari'a or divine law, and a profound knowledge of the "traditions" and articles of faith (usually ac quired only by many years of study at the Holy Places) he is accorded the title of "Mujtahid." This word which means literally "one who strives" (i.e., after knowledge) was without any doubt intended to denote "a doctor of law," but as it is in fact the religious luminaries who interpret the law, it has become synonymous with "learned divine" or "chief priest." Time was when there were only 4 or 5 recognized mujtahids in Persia, but nowadays every large town boasts of one or more of them, as well as of several mullahs or akliunds. Nevertheless those of the highest eminence and repute seem to gravitate almost invariably to the Holy Places of Iraq, Karbala, and Najaf, where they live in a great odour of sanctity and whence their decisions are announced and accepted throughout Shiah Islam. It is to be
noted that neither the Shah nor the government has any voice whatever in the appointment of these mujtahids or of the lesser lights ; on the other hand in every large town where there are several mosques there is an important religious functionary called the "Imam fume" who does receive his appointment from the Government and enjoys certain allowances. His function is to preach in the principal mosque and to read the Friday oration, or maintain a deputy for the purpose, known as a "khcitib." The leader of the congregation's prayers is called the "Pishnamaz," and the crier who calls to prayers, the "Muazzin." Priests are often, but not necessarily, appointed guardians of the shrines or tombs of honoured scions of the Prophet's line ; these are known as "mutawalis" and are responsible for the careful ad ministration of the endowments. The shrines of some of the more famous or favourite saints are so richly endowed by pious testators as to be able to keep up an immense staff of attendant priests, servants, and miscellaneous retainers.
The few remaining Zoroastrians, commonly known in Persia as "gabrs," are to be found principally round Yezd and Kerman, though small communities of them also inhabit Tehran, Kashan, Isfahan, and Shiraz. They are mostly engaged in commerce but have earned the reputation of being expert gardeners and individuals are in demand for that purpose through out Persia. Their interests as a minority community are looked after by their co-religionists in India whose representative either resides in Tehran or pays periodical visits. They have their own deputy in the parliament.
of Persia, numbering probably 6o,000, are divided into two main communities, the one in Azerbaijan and the other at Isfahan, whither they were transplanted by Shah Abbas. The larger moiety appertain to the former centre and have their bishop located at Tabriz, with scattered communities at Tabriz, Khoi, Salmas, Urmia, and Maragha and in some 30 villages close to the Turco-Persian frontier. The other half, with headquarters and a bishop at Isfahan, have small colonies in Tehran, Hamadan, Isfahan (Julfa), Shiraz, Bushire, Resht, and other towns. The Armenian is an astute man of business and engages freely in trade and commerce, often possessing consider able capital, but the bulk of them live on the proceeds of agri culture. The prominent services of Yeprim and other Armenians during the Persian revolution of 1909 did a good deal to earn the good will of the Persian public and relations between the two nationalities improved considerably in consequence. The Armenians also are represented by a deputy in the Mallis.