Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2021 August 4

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August 4

General Zahidi's unpleasant personal habits

In Maclean, Fitzroy (1949). "A Passage to Persia". Eastern Approaches (First ed.). London: Jonathan Cape. p. 267. Maclean is in Isfahan, discussing the kidnapping of General Zahidi with the British consul, John Gault. Zahidi was, according to Gault, "though pleasant to meet ... a really bad lot: a bitter enemy of the Allies, a man of unpleasant personal habits, and, by virtue of his grain-hoarding activities, a source of popular discontent and an obstacle to efficient administration of South Persia". What were those unpleasant personal habits? Thank you, DuncanHill (talk) 01:57, 4 August 2021 (UTC)

I found plenty of references to that quote, but no further elucidation. Perhaps his habits were too unpleasant to describe? Alansplodge (talk) 16:42, 4 August 2021 (UTC)

Perhaps the General had the habit of adding milk after pouring tea in a cup, instead of the sole acceptable way, pouring the milk into a teacup before pouring in the tea.  --Lambiam 21:24, 4 August 2021 (UTC)

Or worse, he probably didn't even warm the pot. Maybe he passed the port in the wrong direction, or (quelle horreur), was given to taking the nose of the Stilton. Alansplodge (talk) 21:41, 4 August 2021 (UTC)

The article itself mentions Maclean finding ". . . a good deal of silk underwear, some opium, an illustrated register of the prostitutes of Isfahan . . ." in Zahidi's bedroom. These might be clues to (some of?) the "unpleasant personal habits" that Maclean (and presumably others) were aware of. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 2.122.62.68 (talk) 18:36, 5 August 2021 (UTC)