“Mr A.O. Rowden, the evening before last, delivered an interesting lecture on his travels through Mesopotamia and Persia. The lecture was profusely illustrated with slides, the first series of which, for the benefit of those who only knew Mesopotamia as beind situated 'somewhere east of Suez' consisted of maps, showing the positions of the countries traversed. Mr Rowden was engaged in military duties in the Near East during the war, and, apparently, made the most of his opportunities of securing records of the interesting events occurring during his daily life. Omitting scenes of military manoeuvres, which are the usual accompaniment of a lecture of this description, those present were introduced to the zoological, botanical, historical and physical features of those parts and to the inhabitants. The lecturer said that through an actual and very realistic sandstorm they passed up the Tigris, sometimes through floods, to the bazaars of Bagdad, pausing on their way to make acquaintance with the natives in their quaint costumes, pursuing their primitive methods of agriculture to provide the necessities of life.

After a glimpse into the Garden of Eden they went on to Babylon, with the remains of the palace of Nebuchadnezzar and its wonderful hanging gardens, and eventually, after descending a precipitous mountain road, reached the country of the Kurds. Here they saw relics from the reign of the great Darius, and more aspects of national life, again renewing their acquaintance with ancient Biblical and Grecian history. Possibly, the slide that attracted most attention was one presenting the interior of the stable attached to a caravanserai, in a similar building to which, in Bethlehem, it is believed that Christ was born. The warm glow of the undiluted sunshine of the country was pleasant to behold, with the keen wind prevailing outside. Considering the difficulties of photography in these parts, hot muddy water, sand, and the prevalance of insects that fed on the photographic emulsion, Mr Rowden is to be congratulated on the technical excellence of his slides. A large audience accorded him a hearty vote of thanks at the close.”