Chapter I: On the Punjab, as Ruled by Runjeet Sing (2)

The military strength of Peshawur is unimportant. Its contingent of troops cannot be rated above 3,000, two thirds of whom may be cavalry. The chief might rally round him a numerous body of irregulars, or, as they are called, “ooloosee;” but they are badly armed, and not to be relied on. Six pieces of artillery and 200 regular infantry complete the power of the chief of Peshawur. With money, the services of the Khyberees, and other hill tribes, may be purchased on an emergency; but the chief has no treasury. In a religious war with the Seiks, an infuriated population may be always raised, and has proved itself formidable on a late occasion, when the Syud Ahmed preached his crusade in this country; yet the whole of these, combined, form a diminutive force, as compared with his neighbours on the east and west,--the Seiks, and his brother of Cabool. The political influence of Peshawur is as limited as its military power. The Seiks have exacted a tribute from it since the death of the Vizier’s brother, Azeem Khan, and retain a son of the chief as a hostage for its fulfilment. It now amounts to sixty horses, with some rice, which is peculiar to Peshawur; and it is annually enforced by an army which crosses the Indus, and lays waste their territories, if not speedily paid. The amount of the tribute depends on the caprice of Runjeet Sing, but the Seiks will not make a conquest of this country. Without Mahommedan auxiliaries they could not retain it.

~Political relations of Peshawur.~

The chiefs of Peshawur and Cabool, who are brothers, are at enmity. The power of Cabool is far more consolidated than that of Peshawur, but the latter has an ally in his brother of Candahar, who would resent any attack, either on Peshawur or his own country. The Chiefs of Peshawur and Candahar have been some time past concerting an attack on Cabool; but it is not improbable that the territories of both may, ere long, be threatened, and perhaps taken, by the Khan of Cabool. In such an event, the chief of Peshawur would call in the aid of the Seiks. This would probably be given, since Dost Mahommed of Cabool would never consent to the annual tribute now paid to Lahore by his brother of Peshawur. Sirdar Sooltan Mahommed Khan entertains hopes of being able to interest the British Government in his cause, should it decline. He seems to believe that he might hold one portion of the country, by surrendering a part for the protection of the remainder. No chief in the kingdom of Cabool entertains a higher respect for the British Government than Sooltan Mahommed Khan. This has always been shown by his attention to Europeans who have entered his country. If misfortunes fell upon him, he might be a useful or dangerous partisan. He might espouse the cause of the King Shah Shooja ool Moolk, though that monarch is no favourite with his family; yet the inconsistency and inconstancy of the Afghan chiefs are proverbial. In any difficulty, the chief of Peshawur would be ably assisted by Peer Mahommed, but his other brother is destitute of energy and enterprise. The whole of the Barukzye family entertain a dread of Shah Shooja ool Moolk, and the Prince Kamran of Herat. The one, if aided by the British, would drive them from their usurped authority; and the other, if assisted by the Persians, might perhaps fix himself on the throne of his ancestors.

~Chief and government of Peshawur.~

Sooltan Mahommed Khan bears a fair reputation, but his government is most oppressive and vexatious. His agents and underlings practise all manner of exactions; goods are taxed far above their value; and the currency is constantly altered and depreciated. An enormous tax is levied on the water mills, which grind the flour, and it falls heaviest on the lower orders of the people. This chief is a man about thirty-five; he is ambitious, and at one time held the government of Cabool. He is well educated, and, with good talents, possesses an engaging manner: he reads and writes, and transacts his business in person. He has not the art of settling disputes, and his court presents a scene of confusion, which is hardly to be described or believed. The complainants intrude at all times and places, and state their grievances in the most free and republican manner; yet nothing is ever settled, and the population are heartily disaffected. Like Afghans, the chief of Peshawur, and his relatives, live from hand to mouth; they are liberal of what they possess, and have no wealth. I have been informed that they could not retain their government without this open-handed liberality. The chief of Peshawur has rallied round him some of the most celebrated of the Dooranee nation, who share his bounty. The sons of Akram Khan, and the Mookhtar o Doula, Shah Shooja’s two ministers, as also of the celebrated Meer Waeez, are among the number; the latter is an officer of the chief of Peshawur. The only son of the Vizier Futteh Khan likewise resides with Sooltan Mahommed Khan.

~Provisions and productions.~

Provisions are cheap and plentiful in Peshawur, though their price has risen with the decrease of population. Grain of every description abounds, but is not exported; 65lbs. of wheat may be purchased for a rupee, which is 10lbs. less than might be had for the same sum in 1809. Ninety-six lbs. of barley sell for a rupee. A sheep may be had for two rupees; a bullock costs twelve or fourteen; and the rupee is a quarter less in value than the common sonat of India. Fruit of almost every kind is to be had in Peshawur, but it does not stand a journey, like that of Cabool, on account of the great heat. One of the large gardens, which used to let for 7000 rupees a year, now brings but 2000. The diminution is ascribed to the decrease of population; but fruit sells for half the price, now that there is no court to purchase it. The sugar cane thrives here, but the people are ignorant of the mode of crystallising its juice. That which is candied is brought from Hindostan, though the native sugar is excellent. The Afghans are very fond of the fresh cane, which they cut in small pieces, and use as a sweetmeat. The most remarkable production of the plain of Peshawur is a kind of rice called “bara,” produced on the banks of a rivulet of that name, which comes from Teera, in the Khyber country. The grains of this rice are so long, that fourteen of them are said to make a span. This rice is very superior, which is attributed to the excellence of the water. So strong is this prejudice, that most of the wells of Peshawur are filled from it during winter, and roofed in till the hot weather. They believe this keeps the water cold. The “bara” rice sells so high as 8lbs. for a rupee, and is exported as a rarity to Persia, Tartary, and all the neighbouring countries, and composes a part of Runjeet Sing’s tribute. The rice produced in other parts of the plain of Peshawur does not differ from common rice.

~Feasible improvements.~

~Agriculture.~

~Sugar. Silk.~

It has been lately discovered in the low countries of Europe, that a much greater population can be subsisted on a small space of ground, by following the Flemish mode of agriculture. The soil is dug up by the spade, and a succession of crops, chiefly of garden stuffs, is the produce. If there be a country in the Eastern World where this practice might be followed with advantage, it is the plain of Peshawur. The soil is a rich mould, and its spacious plain is intersected with water on all sides. The country, it is said, continues green during the twelve months of the year. It yields a succession of three crops annually; and if we reckon the barley (which is cut twice before it ears, and given to horses,) we have no less than five returns a year. The wheat and barley are off the ground by April. Vegetables abound, and are produced in fields rather than gardens. Public spirit and intelligence might render Peshawur a most productive region. We have seen that it is favourable to the cane, and recent experiments have proved, that the silk-worm may be reared with advantage. Mulberry trees abound, and the insect is liable to no particular disease. Those which I saw were brought from Cabool and Balkh. The eggs are hatched at the vernal equinox, a few days before the mulberry is in leaf. Till then the insects are fed on a kind of weed, with a yellow flower, called “khoobikulan” by the Persians, and common to England. Their education does not differ from that of Europe. The silk is boiled before it is wound. The worms are brought forth by artificial heat, and generally by being tied under the armpits. Exposure to the sun kills the insects, and it likewise deprives the chrysalis of life when in the cocoon. By the end of May the worms have finished their career, and lie dormant in the egg till next spring. They are placed in cellars under ground, to protect them from heat, and they are as carefully guarded against damp. I do not doubt but successions of these worms might be brought forth during the warm months.

~District of Cohat.~

~Minerals and coal.~

The district of Cohat, under Peshawur, deserves a minute description, from the richness and variety of its productions, though it yields but two lacs of rupees to the chief. The salt range lies within this tract, and the mineral abounds. It is sold for one eighth of the price east of the Indus. Gold, copper, iron, and antimony have been extracted from ores found in these hills; and there are two kinds of sulphur. There are also wells of naphtha, or petroleum, for the matter which they eject is used in the neighbouring villages for oil. But the most valuable production of Cohat is its coal, which we discovered during our visit, and explained its utility, much to the astonishment of the people. It occurs on the surface of one of the hills, and in great abundance. The specimens which were procured for my satisfaction were of a greyish hue, intermixed with much sulphur. It burns well, but leaves much refuse. It has more the appearance of slate than coal; but, as the specimens were from the surface, they are not to be taken as a fair criterion of the mine. The coal is bituminous, and ignites at the candle. The villagers now use it as fuel. The discovery of a coal-mine at the head of the Indus may prove of the utmost importance in these times, since the navigation of that river is open to Attok; and the mineral is found about forty miles distant from that place, with a level road intervening, and near a large city, where labour is cheap. It is a singular circumstance, that deposits of coal should have been discovered, both at the mouth and head of the Indus (in Cutch and Cohat), within these few years, and since steam has been used in India. It is seldom that discoveries are so opportune, and I trust that they augur favourably for the opening of a new route to commerce by the Indus.

CHAP. IV.

THE CHIEFSHIP OF CABOOL.

~Chiefship. Power and extent.~

The capital of Cabool now forms the residence of an independent chief, who holds the surrounding districts and Ghuzni, without any control over the kingdom of the Dooranees. The same circumstances which separated Peshawur, have dismembered Cabool; and since the death of Azeem Khan, the possession of it has been disputed by different members of the Barukzye family. In the year 1826, it fell into the hands of Dost Mahommed Khan, the present chief, and a brother of the Vizier, Futteh Khan. Since then he has greatly extended and consolidated his power. He intrusts the town and dependencies of Ghuzni to a brother, and admits no one else to share his fortunes. The limits of the chiefship extend north to Hindoo Koosh and Bameean. On the west it is bounded by the hill country of the Huzaras. To the south is Ghuzni, and to the east it stretches half way to Peshawur, terminating at the garden of Neemla. Much of the country is mountainous; but it contains a large portion of arable land, which is most productive. It lies along the base of hills, and derives a richness from the soil washed from them. The revenues of Cabool amount to eighteen lacs of rupees. Its military force is greater than any among the Afghans, since the chief retains a body of 9000 horse, who are well mounted and accoutred. He has also 2000 infantry, with other auxiliaries, village troops, and a park of fourteen guns, which are well served for a native state. This country is by nature strong and mountainous, though it has good roads through it.

~Character of the chief.~

The reputation of Dost Mahommed Khan is made known to a traveller long before he enters his country, and no one better merits the high character which he has obtained. He is unremitting in his attention to business, and attends daily at the Court-house, with the Cazee and Moollahs, to decide every cause according to the law. The Koran and its commentaries may not be the standard of legislative excellence, but this sort of decision is exceedingly popular with the people, since it fixes a line, and relieves them from the “jus vagum aut incognitum” of a despot. Trade has received the greatest encouragement from him, and he has derived his own reward, since the receipts of the Custom-house of the city have increased fifty thousand rupees, and now furnish him with a net revenue of two lacs of rupees per annum. One in forty, _i.e._ 2-1/2 per cent., is the only duty levied in his territory; and the merchant may travel without guard or protection from one frontier to another, an unheard of circumstance in the time of the kings. The chief of Cabool, in his zeal for orthodox government, has deprived his subjects of the luxury of wine and spirits, as being prohibited by his creed. The enactment has driven the Jews and Armenians from his country, since they had no other means to procure a subsistence. A good Mahommedan ought not to regret the loss of such luxuries; but with this single exception, I heard of no complaint against the rule of Dost Mahommed Khan. That chief, in common with many of the Afghan nation, was addicted in early life to wine and its concomitant vices. His prohibition of them may be, therefore, capricious; but he, as well as his court, hold out a bright example of sobriety to the community. The justice of this chief affords a constant theme of praise to all classes: the peasant rejoices at the absence of tyranny; the citizen at the safety of his home and the strict municipal regulations regarding weights and measures; the merchant at the equity of the decisions and the protection of his property, and the soldiers at the regular manner in which their arrears are discharged. A man in power can have no higher praise. Dost Mahommed Khan has not attained his fortieth year; his mother was a Persian, and he has been trained up with people of that nation, which has sharpened his understanding, and given him advantages over all his brothers. One is struck with the intelligence, knowledge, and curiosity which he displays, as well as his accomplished manners and address. He is doubtless the most powerful chief in Afghanistan, and may yet raise himself by his abilities to a much greater rank in his native country.

~Political relations of the chiefship.~

The differences which subsist between Dost Mahommed Khan and his brothers lessen the influence of all parties, and would lay open the state to intrigue and faction, if invaded. The family of Barukzye have nothing to fear from any other Afghan tribe, since they surpass all in numbers as much as in power. The chiefs of Peshawur and Candahar do not want the wish to injure their brother of Cabool, but they cannot accomplish their purpose. Both of them have had a footing in Cabool, and look with envy on the prosperity of Dost Mahommed Khan. Both have emissaries at his court, who excite disturbance; and both cherish hopes of rooting out one whom they consider a usurper. The task will be found difficult; for the chief of Cabool, besides the moderation and justice which secure him so many friends, enjoys an advantage in his Persian descent, which will prove of material service to him in adversity. He holds the warlike clan of Juwansheer in his interests, and takes every occasion to conciliate this tribe, which has so often turned the scale in favour of different pretenders to the throne. He has acquired their language (the Turkish), and promoted their interests and well-being. The Persians of Cabool amount to about 12,000 families; they reside in a separate quarter of the city, which keeps up an _esprit de corps_ among them. It also gives them a knowledge of their power, which may prove salutary or prejudicial to the factions that divide the country, according to circumstances. The state of fear which an enemy on both sides must inspire has a bad effect on Dost Mahommed Khan’s administration. With his own house as an object of care, he is not likely to pursue conquests abroad, or retrieve the fallen state of Cabool. This alone deters him from attacking Herat, and making some endeavours to wrest Mooltan and Dera Ghazee Khan from the Seiks. He last year made a demonstration against Julalabad, a district between Cabool and Peshawur, worth about seven lacs of rupees a year. He will probably annex it to his power; but, until able to coerce or subdue either Peshawur or Candahar, Dost Mahommed Khan cannot rise above the rank of a chief, or be aught than one among many in Afghanistan. In the present state of politics in the country, he is, nevertheless, the most rising man in the Cabool dominions.

~Supplies of Cabool.~

Cabool is a country of great strength, but small resource. It abounds in fruit, but grain grows scantily. The Emperor Baber, on his conquering it, imposed a tax of 30,000 khurwars[36] of grain on Cabool and Ghuzni, but found in after-years, when better acquainted with the country, that the levy was exorbitant. The territory has no doubt improved in a lapse of three hundred years; but provisions are dear in Cabool. In summer, the necessaries of life are rather moderate; fruit and vegetables abound, and the city receives supplies from the surrounding country. In winter, the roads are shut, wood is scarce, grain is dear, and the severity of the climate demands warm clothing. The mills which grind the flour are also frozen up, and the poorest people must purchase animal food. The presence of a force in Cabool has the effect of doubling the price of provisions, which is a sure indication of their scarcity. A large army might still find a comfortable quarter in the city of Cabool, and draw the supplies which it required, additional to the resources of the country, from Peshawur and the valley of the Cabool river, near Julalabad. Forage for cattle is most plentiful; artificial grasses are cultivated to a great extent, and prove a most nutritious food to horses. There are likewise most extensive meadows both at Cabool and Ghuzni. One, called Nawur, in particular, near the latter place, would supply a force of 20,000 cavalry. The city of Cabool has been described elsewhere. It has a population of about 60,000 souls, and a bazar of nearly 2000 shops. Each trade has a separate division of the town. Cabool furnishes a supply of articles far beyond what its size would indicate, for it is a mart, and the entrepôt of a great trade.

~Strength.~

It increases daily under the fostering care of its present ruler. As a place of defence, it is contemptible; the city-wall, which has never been good, has fallen down; the summits of the hills that environ the town are crowned with walls, but they are a useless ornament. The Bala Hissar, or citadel, which stands on the eastern side, is a place of no strength, and the other Bala Hissar below it is even more defenceless. The former building, which stands on an eminence, commands a noble view of the surrounding country, and might be made to command the city, which lies at its base.

CHAP. V.

ON THE AFFAIRS OF WESTERN AFGHANISTAN.

~Western Afghanistan.~

The western portion of Afghanistan is held by the chiefs of Candahar and Herat; who rule as at Cabool and Peshawur. They complete the number of governments into which the monarchy has been dismembered; and, after our more minute accounts of the two other chiefships, do not require much notice. Candahar is in the possession of a branch of the Barukzye family, and Herat is ruled by Kamran, the son of King Mahmood of Cabool.

~Chiefships of Candahar.~

It has been already mentioned that Shere Dil Khan fled from Cabool to Candahar; and formed the present chiefship, with the spoil of his nephew. He was a man of singular habits, in some respects resembling his brother, Futteh Khan; but morose as well as cruel. They give an anecdote of his lopping off the finger of one of his boys, telling him at the same time, if he cried, that he could not be his child, or a Barukzye. The young fellow bore it with great patience. Shere Dil Khan, in his flight to Candahar, was accompanied by four brothers. He himself is since dead, as also one of his brothers. Candahar is now governed by Cohun Dil Khan, supported by his two surviving brothers, Ruhum Dil and Meer Dil. The revenues amount to about eight lacs of rupees; his force consists of 9000 horse, and six pieces of artillery; but, as the city is situated in the heart of the Dooranee country, and near the native seat of the Barukzye family, he could, perhaps, increase his cavalry on an emergency. The government is not popular, nor would it appear, from the acts of oppression, that it deserved to be so. The chief is on bad terms with most of his neighbours. In common with all his family, he is inimical to Kamran of Herat, and has at different times attempted to seize that city. He is also at issue with the chief of Cabool. The connexion between the Peshawur and Candahar branches of the Barukzyes, is very close and sincere; but their united efforts will not, in all probability, injure their brother of Cabool. The Candahar chief also seeks to form a settlement on the Indus; and has for several years past sent his troops to threaten Shikarpoor in Sinde. The Ameers of that country have been hitherto able to resist his attacks; but, as there is an open and easy communication between Candahar and the Indus, by the pass of Bolan, the chief is not likely to discontinue his endeavours in that quarter. In a disorganised state of Sinde, he might easily possess himself of Shikarpoor; and such a state of events seems by no means improbable in the country of the Ameers. The chief of Candahar would gladly interest the ruler of the Punjab in his cause; but it is not probable that he will procure his assistance, as he himself looks upon Shikarpoor with an eye of cupidity.

~Government of Herat.~

Herat is the only province of the kingdom of Cabool, now held by a descendant of the royal family; and the Prince Kamran rules more from tolerance in his enemies than his own power. He receives no aid from his countrymen, since the whole of the chiefs in Afghanistan are his enemies, and desire his destruction, in revenge for the assassination of their brother Futteh Khan. Herat has, therefore, become a dependency of Persia. The town itself has of late years been several times entered by the troops of that nation; and only spared by the ready tender of money on the part of its governor. It was threatened in September 1832, by the Prince Royal in person, who made a pecuniary demand; and also required that the coinage of the city should be struck in the name of the King of Persia. It is probable that both these requests will be granted, since Kamran would gladly hold his power on any terms. The Persians do not appear to contemplate any permanent settlement in Herat, since it would incur the expense of retaining a force, that would diminish the tribute now gained from it. Kamran is said to be in possession of some of the crown jewels of Cabool, and derives a large revenue from Herat, which is situated in one of the most fertile countries of the world. By this wealth he is yet able to retain about his person some of the Afghan chiefs, and can raise a body of 4000 or 5000 horse. He has no political connexions in any quarter; but still clings to the hope of being able to re-establish the monarchy of his father. He has the character of a cruel and tyrannical man, is destitute of friends, and odious to his countrymen.

CHAP. VI.

SUMMARY OF THE AFFAIRS OF CABOOL.

~Remarks on the overthrow of the royal dynasty.~

We have now given a sketch of the events which have occurred in Cabool, to the fall of the monarchy; and described the several governments into which it has been divided. Its prosperity as a kingdom seems almost to have terminated with its founder, Ahmed Shah Dooranee. His son Timour evinced none of the energy and activity of his parent. Shah Zuman, his child and successor, defective in education, and cruel in disposition, succeeded to a government relaxed by a long reign of indolence. Shah Zuman, and his brothers, Mahmood and Shooja, seem alike to have forgotten, on their elevation to a throne, that they ruled a people whose genius was republican. The total overthrow of the dynasty is universally attributed to the misplaced pride and arrogance of the last kings, who now receive no sympathy from the Afghans in their overthrow. Shooja, indeed, might have regained his power, but for his rash attempts to exercise the authority of king, before he was firmly fixed in it. The Afghans cannot control their feelings of jealousy towards men in power; and this universal envy has dethroned their kings and butchered their nobles. There is not a person of note, that figures in their history for the last thirty years, who has died a natural death. To be happy under any government, they must either be ruled by a vigorous despot, or formed into many small republics.

~Improbabilities of restoring it.~

All the institutions of the Afghans are favourable to a republic; and the supremacy of the Barukzye family in Cabool is acceptable to the people; and I even think favourable to the prosperity of the country. It is by far the greatest clan of the Dooranees, amounting to about 60,000 families, which will enable it to maintain its authority. The late royal family of the Sudozyes, on the other hand, were few in number, and looked for support to other tribes. Of these, the principal were the Barukzyes. Hajee Jumal, the most influential of its chiefs, willingly bowed to the authority of Ahmed Shah; and contributed to fix him on his throne. The successors of that monarch rewarded his services by the murder of his son Poynda Khan; and we have related the atrocious assassination of his grandson the Vizier. Had the royal house treated these benefactors with justice, and their subjects with moderation, they might still have reigned in peace. The hatred of this family to the house of Cabool, and the cause which excites it (the assassination of two of their chiefs), forbid the belief that the Barukzyes will ever consent to their restoration. It is certain that the aid of no other tribe can avail them, for the whole wealth of the country is in the hands of their enemies; and the bulk of the people view their misfortunes with indifference, since it is believed they have drawn them upon themselves. It is evident, therefore, that the restoration of either Shooja ool Moolk, or Kamran, is an event of the most improbable nature. The dynasty of the Sudozyes has passed away, unless it be propped up by foreign aid; and it would be impossible to reclaim the lost provinces of the empire, without a continuation of the same assistance. It is more difficult to revive than to raise a dynasty; and in the common chain of events, if the country is to be ruled by another king, we must look for another family to establish its power in Cabool; and this, in all probability, will be the Barukzyes.

~Relative power of Cabool and Persia.~

At present, there is no connexion of a political nature between the states in Cabool and any foreign power. The Persians have long talked vaingloriously of invading the country, but if there were no treachery on the part of the Kuzzilbash guards, at Cabool, they could not certainly make an impression on the kingdom. In a general war, the enmity between the different houses would probably be forgotten, and the united force of the Barukzyes alone amounts to about 30,000 horse. While we were in Cabool, the chief received a notice from his brother at Candahar, who had been threatened by an ambassador from the Persian camp. The reply of Dost Mahommed Khan was characteristic:--“When the Persians come, let me know, and as I am now your enemy, will I then be your friend.” The natural strength of Cabool is its best barrier against a successful invasion by an Asiatic power, and if we look to the expedition of Nadir Shah, we are to remember that he was accompanied by many Afghan chiefs, whom he had advanced to favour, and who largely participated in his acquisitions, and the spoils he gained from others.

The political state of Cabool, as a kingdom, becomes at all times an object of the deepest importance to India, from the many changes which constantly take place in that country. Of its four chiefships, one is subject to the Punjab, and another to Persia. The chief of Cabool himself is a man of enlightened views, and may secure a thorough supremacy over the country, on the death of Runjeet Sing. It would not be difficult for him to subdue Peshawur, and he might then seize the provinces on the Indus, and very probably Cashmere. He is a man favourably disposed towards the British Government, as indeed are the whole chiefs of the kingdom. They were not in power when the British mission entered the country in 1809, but our reputation was then established, and the good opinion of all parties has been acquired by our immediate withdrawal afterwards. That circumstance, it is true, was unavoidable; but it has left impressions most favourable to our disinterestedness. In Cabool, therefore, it would not be difficult to form a connexion; and the chief is certainly worthy of notice, since his country lies on the great road by which the manufactures of Britain are imported, and which of late have been considerably increased by his equity and justice. It would require no great expenditure of the public funds to conciliate this chief; and, it is to be remembered, that he is in possession of the most important position in Asia, as regards the protection of British India. Had circumstances brought us into an alliance with Cabool instead of Persia, we might have now possessed more trusty and useful allies, nearer home, than we can boast of in that country. We also should have never incurred a tenth of the expenditure, which has been so freely lavished in Persia.

CHAP. VII.

ON THE POWER OF KOONDOOZ.

~Chiefship of Koondooz.~

~Its extent.~

The territories of Koondooz lie between Cabool and Bokhara. I shall comprehend under that designation all which I have to say on the countries, north of Hindoo Koosh, and south of the Oxus, as far westward as the city of Balkh. These limits bound a chiefship, which is ruled by an Uzbek family that has lately extended its power, and is now possessed of great influence in these countries. This is the tribe of Kutghun; the name of the chief is Mahommed Moorad Beg, and Meer is the title by which he is known to his subjects. At no late period the tribe was confined to the canton of Koondooz, but this chief has established a power over all the neighbouring states; he holds Khooloom, Heibuk, Ghoree, Inderab, Talighan, and Huzrut-Imam, and is master of the valley of the Upper Oxus, and its tributary rivers. The city of Balkh has likewise been in his hands; he contented himself with sacking it, and marching off a great part of the population to his other conquests. He has also reduced the whole kingdom of Budukhshan, and is at present engaged in operations against the hill states north of the Oxus. The district of Koolab, which is one of these, and lies between Durwaz and Shughnan, is already in his possession. His power extends south to Syghan, within thirty miles of Bameean, and across two of the passes of Hindoo Koosh.

~Rise of Moorad Beg.~

The population of the territory consists chiefly of Tajiks, the aborigines of the country, who form the entire body of the people in Budukhshan. The Uzbeks bear a very small proportion to them.

The chief of Koondooz attained his present ascendancy on the death of Khilich Ali Beg, a well-known Uzbek chief, who long ruled in Balkh, as a nominal tributary to the crown of Cabool. Moorad Beg, of Koondooz, held a secondary command under this chief.

At his death, which occurred more than eight years since, Moorad Beg entered into intrigues with the different members of his family; and finally succeeded in establishing his own authority. The sons of Khilich Ali Beg now govern Khooloom and Heibuk as his vassals. The Kutghuns have always possessed influence among the Uzbeks, but Moorad Beg is the first of his family, or of his countrymen, who has formed so extensive a principality. The tribe is of Moghul extraction, as it is termed, since they and the Kalmuks descend from one stock. They entered on their present seats in the 16th century, with the great Uzbek nation, that expelled the descendants of Timour from their paternal kingdom. Koondooz appears to have been the utmost limit of invasion, since the Uzbeks have not settled in Budukhshan, or south of Hindoo Koosh. The government of the present chief may be viewed as tolerably well consolidated: his measures are vigorous.

~Policy and power of the chief.~

The Meer of Koondooz owes much of his power to the policy which he has pursued towards those whom he has subjected. He retains the former chiefs in authority, but stipulates for a contingent of troops, and the maintenance of a portion of his own in the country, at their expense. He thus increases his strength, and provides for the protection of his newly acquired conquests, without danger of revolt. His united forces amounted to about 20,000 horse, and six pieces of artillery, one of which is a thirty-six pounder. He has no infantry, for the Uzbeks despise that branch of an army, and know as little of the use of cannon, though the possession of guns seems to secure a victory. I must, however, mention, to the credit of the chief, that he has dragged the great gun to Sarbagh, fifty miles into Hindoo Koosh. This piece of ordnance was brought from Persia by Nadir Shah, who took the route of Meshid, Shurukhs, and Meimuna, to Balkh,--a practical proof of the goodness of the road, and the calibre by which it may be traversed. The cavalry carry spears of an unwieldy size; some have matchlocks, but a great part are ill armed and accoutred, though much superior to those who oppose them. He supports these troops by an allowance of grain, and retains all the commanders, and a portion of the men, in constant attendance upon his person. Moorad Beg leads a life of great activity, and takes the field in person; he constantly sends his horse on excursions of plunder and capture, (as they are called, “Chupawul,”) north of the Oxus, in the neighbourhood of Balkh, and the country of the Huzaras. As the people there are Shiah Mahommedans, they are seized without mercy, and distributed or sold into slavery. A supply of these unfortunate wretches is also derived from Chitral, a hill state, east of Budukhshan, the chief of which pays his tribute in human beings. He excepts the caravans which pass through his territory from these attacks, and also guards against exactions from the chiefs whom he has rendered tributary. He holds little or no communication with neighbouring powers. With the Chinese authorities in Yarkund, to which there is a considerable trade, there has been an exchange of presents, and the Koondooz chief once sent an ambassador regarding the protection of the roads, which were infested by robbers from beyond the Oxus. With the king at Bokhara there is no cordiality, for they are mutually afraid of each other. Moorad Beg makes constant irruptions into the provinces of Balkh, and the Governor of that city seeks his safety in flight. The Afghans are separated from Koondooz by a great chain of mountains, and the country to the eastward of Budukhshan is equally rugged, and cut off by the lofty mountains of Beloot. The chief of Koondooz has nevertheless crossed this range, and attacked Chitral. He has also at times made inroads into the country of the Siahpoosh Kaffirs, who dwell on Hindoo Koosh; but his last campaign, in this quarter, about four years since, was not of an encouraging nature. The Kaffirs allowed the troops to advance into the mountains, and then attacked them. A snow storm ensued, and out of 4000 horse, one half were unable to extricate themselves, and fell a sacrifice to their temerity.

~Revenues of Koondooz.~

The revenue of this principality is paid in grain. There is abundance of it and the necessaries of life; but money is exceedingly scarce. Nothing proves this so satisfactorily as the coinage now in circulation, which is of an Emperor of Delhi, prior to the age of Nadir. Many foreign luxuries are derived from Bokhara, by sending slaves and cattle to its market. Under such circumstances, it is difficult to form any correct estimate of the revenues of Koondooz. Moorad Beg is considered wealthy for an Uzbek. He demands one third of the productions of the soil from his subjects. Koondooz itself is rich in rice; and much silk is produced on the banks of the Oxus. Budukhshan, at one time so fruitful and fertile a country, is almost depopulated; and has severely felt the power of Koondooz. The ruler of it, one of those who claim descent from Alexander the Great, has been deposed; and a great part of the population driven from their own beautiful valley to the fens of Koondooz. Budukhshan, therefore, furnishes no revenue, and is occupied by Uzbek horse, who contribute to its further desolation. Of its ruby mines I have spoken in another place. The whole of the affairs of Mahommed Moorad Beg are managed by a Hindoo named Atmaram, a native of Peshawur, who has the title of Dewan Begee. He is a person of some talent, and has unlimited influence. He has risen from the meanest origin. Among the Uzbeks, Hindoos are despised, and never permitted to wear turbans; but this minister has not only secured the privilege for himself, but for all his servants and tribe who live with him. He has about 400 slaves in his household, the gift of an indulgent master, and has also enriched himself to a great extent; but his merits entitle him to the reward. The Uzbeks are incapable of conducting matters of state; for, except the priests, they are without education. Moorad Beg has therefore evinced the most unerring proof of his own superiority in the selection of such a man to conduct his government. It is to him that the merchant owes the protection of his property; and that the chief himself reigns without a rival in the countries which he has subdued.

~Character of Moorad Beg.~

Since much depends on the personal qualities of a chief who rules a country composed of such materials, we must regard his character with the greater interest. That of Moorad Beg has many prominent features, nor is it free from contradiction. He is at once cruel and indulgent: he encourages every plundering expedition which leaves his country, and shares the spoil with the barbarians who secure it. Possessed of power to retain the entire possessions over which he holds a supremacy, he concedes both property and power, certainly of a limited nature, to the individuals who, in most Asiatic governments, meet with death. Except his forced removal of the inhabitants of one province to people another, and that too a most unhealthy one; and his seizure of the unfortunate Huzaras and Kaffirs, and their sale as slaves, I have not heard him accused of any of the flagrant acts of wanton tyranny and oppression, so common in despotic governments. The trader passes through the dominions of Koondooz without molestation. The duties are low; and some articles, such as shawls, are encouraged by an entire remission. The people were also relieved from the payment of the tax on silk at the time we were in Koondooz. The greatest apprehension under which this chief labours, is a terror of the British name, as was shown in the harsh treatment of Mr. Moorcroft and our party. He suspects the conquerors of India, and it will require much to remove his suspicion. Moorad Beg is about fifty years of age; his stature is tall, and his features are those of a genuine Uzbek: his eyes are small to deformity; his forehead broad and frowning; and the whole cast of his countenance most repulsive. He is not addicted to any excess, and is moderate in his pleasures. A holy person at Talighan, about thirty-five miles from his capital, exercises great power over him. In early life he was indebted to this man for good offices and advice; and there is no favour that he might sue for which would now be refused. He has lately given one of his daughters in marriage to his son. Moorad Beg has two sons, one of them a promising lad of eighteen.

CHAP. VIII.

SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF BOKHARA.

~Early history of Bokhara.~

I procured five manuscripts on the history of Bokhara during my residence in that country. It would be foreign to my design to give the voluminous contents of these works; nor do I feel impressed with a belief that the interest of their contents would reward the notice of a general reader: I have handed them over to that flourishing society the Oriental Translation Fund, from whom I have an assurance that it will use every means to make them known to Oriental scholars. Bokhara, in early ages, is described under the name of Bykune, a city still to be traced in its vicinity, and connected by fable or truth with the well-known name of Afrasiab. The country is there stated to have been a marsh overgrown with reeds, and fed by the ice and snow which melted in the hills of Samarcand. It is said to have been a hunting thicket, and so marshy in many places, that a camel could not pass it. Such is the language of the native historians. An intercourse was then kept up with the Emperor of China, who gave his daughter to the ruler of Bokhara: but with this fair partner followed the inroads of the Toorks, which appear to have always desolated this country. We are next brought to the age of Islam and the inroads of the Arabs, who contended with a Queen, or Khatoon, famed as an idolater, but equally for her love of justice; which is yet commemorated by popular songs. Her son embraced the religion of the Faithful, but relented, and was put to death when the Arabs finally established themselves in Toorkistan. This person built a grand mosque in the ninety-fourth year of the Hejira (A.D. 716), causing the prayers to be read in Persian, “because it was the language of the country.”[37] From that time the fame and size of the city increased; and we hear of the commerce and vast population, the deeds of the renowned Haroon ool Rusheed, and of Arslan Khan, both of whom beautified and enriched it. We are also gravely told, on the authority of the Archangel Gabriel, of the joyful procession with which its inhabitants would be blessed on the day of judgment.

~From the age of Jengis to the invasion of the Uzbeks.~

Such is the early history of Bokhara, till the destroying Jengis desolated it with his horde of Tartars in the 622d year of the Hejira (A.D. 1232). It then appears, by the accounts of its bazars, buildings, and aqueducts, to have been really a wealthy and fine capital; but, in common with many great cities, it was overwhelmed by the destructive hostilities of the Tartar, who swept, with unrelenting fury from the Caspian to the Indus. In its turn, the kingdom of Bokhara, ruled by its Ameer, the great Timur, a descendant of the ferocious Jengis, wreaked its vengeance on neighbouring and distant nations, and shook the bonds of sovereignty throughout Asia. The deeds of this hero belong to the history of which I now treat; but the conquests of Timour, and his enlightened institutes, his martial and political career, require only a passing notice in this literary age. His successors, after some generations, were driven from this their paternal kingdom, and founded the dominion of the Great Moguls in India, under the valiant Baber, whose present pageant successors yet live, I cannot call it reign, in Delhi. This last revolution sprang from the invasion of the Uzbek Tartars; another tribe from the seats of Jengis, and also related to that conqueror, who crossed the Jaxartes in the beginning of the sixteenth century, and retain in these times all the countries of Mawur ool nuhr, or Transoxiana, extending to the base of Hindoo Koosh. The Uzbeks achieved this great conquest under Sheibanee Khan and his son. Baber was assisted by the King of Persia; and Sheibanee Khan was defeated and slain at the battle of Merve.

~Nadir Shah’s inroad to the end of Shah Moorud’s reign.~

The supremacy which the Uzbek race had thus acquired was maintained in the different kingdoms of Transoxiana, till the invasion of Nadir Shah, in the early part of the last century. Aboolfuez Khan then ruled in Bokhara, as Ameer, or Governor, and was acknowledged to be the hereditary representative of the Uzbeks, who had expelled the house of Timour, as well as a male descendant of the great Jengis. His Attalik, or Vizier, Ruheem Khan, an Uzbek of the Mungut tribe, intrigued with the Persian conqueror, and brought him to the gates of the city. Nadir spared Bokhara; but the minister put the Ameer to death, and raised up a son in his stead, to whom he had given his own daughter in marriage. Him he also murdered. On the death of Ruheem Khan, this cruel and treacherous minister was succeeded by Danial Beg, an Uzbek of the same tribe (Mungut), who was distantly related, by marriage, to Aboolfuez Khan. He pretended to no higher powers than the last minister, and governed the country in the name of Aboolghazee Khan, a descendant of the late Ameer and of Jengis. On the death of Danial Beg, his son Moorad succeeded him as Vizier; and, setting aside the pageant king, in whose name his father had ruled, proclaimed himself the Ameer of Bokhara. Shah Moorad reigned seventeen years, and died about the year 1800. He was greater as a theologian than a ruler; but the name of Begee Jan, by which he was familiarly known, is much revered by the Uzbeks, and many singular stories are related regarding him. He carried on wars with the King of Cabool, and all the neighbouring and less powerful states. He destroyed the city of Merve, in the desert, and marched the greater part of its population to Bokhara; but his deeds contributed little to his fame or the aggrandisement of a kingdom, which he had usurped. From the time of Shah Moorad, the male descendants of Jengis Khan have ceased to reign in Bokhara. There are yet some members of that family in the country who live in poverty and contempt; and the last King of Bokhara was, I understand, related to them by the mother’s side.

~Reign of Hyder and the present King Nussier oollah.~

Shah Moorad was succeeded by his son Hyder, commonly called Saeed, or Pure. He converted his office more into that of a priest than a king, and his rigid adherence to the Koran, while it has rendered him illustrious throughout the Mahommedan world, has greatly increased bigotry and fanaticism in the country which he governed. He viewed his title as Commander of the Faithful in its literal sense, and passed the greater portion of his time in endeavouring to correct and improve the morals of his age. Had his vigils been extended to external politics, he might have, perhaps, benefited his country; but, after a long and useless reign of twenty-seven years, he bequeathed (A. D. 1825) to his children a disputed succession, and a kingdom that had been insulted and encroached upon from every side. His death was the signal of revolt and civil war among his offspring. Ameer Hoosein, his son, was proclaimed King, and perished, after a reign of fifty days, not without suspicion of poison, which was administered by the Koosh Begee, or minister, who favoured the pretensions of another brother. He was succeeded by Omar Khan, who seized the reins of government and the capital. His elder brother, Nussier oollah, or, as he is generally styled, Buhadoor Khan, had, however, secured the secret influence of the Koosh Begee, (though avowedly a partisan of Omar,) and prepared to resist his power with all determination. He seized, as a preliminary step, on the city of Samarcand, and, marching down upon Bokhara, possessed himself of the canals and aqueducts which supply it with water: these he closed, and the city fell into his hands, after a siege of fifty days; delivered to him, however, by the Koosh Begee, whom he appointed minister. Omar was placed in confinement; but he fled from his keepers, and, after wandering to Meshid and Balkh, died of cholera in Kokan; from which his remains were brought for interment to Bokhara. Nussier oollah entered on the sovereignty without further resistance. He put thirty of his brother’s partisans to death, and ordered one of the principal Bees, or chiefs, to be thrown from the palace-gate, the usual mode of execution in these countries. His treatment of three younger brothers was far less justifiable: he sent them to an estate on the banks of the Oxus, and cruelly ordered them to be murdered, lest they should cabal against him; and Nussier oollah himself, the only survivor of six children, now reigns in Bokhara. How little the practical good worked by the bigoted parent on his unhappy children! But Nussier oollah has, in some degree (if such be possible), redeemed himself from the foul and vicious acts by which he secured his throne: he now rules his subjects with a just and impartial hand, and has ceased to resort to cruelty or crime in upholding his government, since he has had no rival in the scene. He has a young and increasing family.

CHAP. IX.

ON THE POLITICAL AND MILITARY POWER OF BOKHARA.

~Importance of the kingdom of Bokhara.~