A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W X Z

Afghanistan and the Anglo Russian Dispute

T >> Theo. F. Rodenbough >> Afghanistan and the Anglo Russian Dispute





[Illustration: Mahaz Khan (a Tajik), Khan of Pest Bolak.
Jehandad (Lohanir), from Ghazni.]

Thus it is seen that modern Afghanistan comprises three great
districts--Herat in the west, Kabul in the east, and Kandahar in the
centre, with the seat of government at the cities of the same names
respectively. Within each district are, as already described, a
large number of tribes occupying sub-districts, closely connected
like the cells of a honey-comb, but each with its destinctive
manners and customs and irregular military forces, in no instance
numbering less than 6,000 men, and often twice that number, divided
about equally into horse and foot. Many of these render military
service to the Ameer, many are bandits in the worst sense. The
nomadic tribes--like the Eimaks peopling the Heratic region--live
principally in tents, encamping in winter in the valleys, and in
summer on the table-lands of the mountain ranges. They are ignorant,
hospitable, and brave and ardent hunters. Their principal trade is
with Herat, and consists of woollen and camel-hair fabrics and
clarified butter.


[Illustration: Wullie Mohammed, a Dahzungi Hazara.
Pozai Khan, a Shinwarri (Musician).]


The farming population all live in small hamlets. The better classes
of these live in villages surrounding or joined to the castle of a
Khan. These castles are encompassed by a rude wall, having
frequently turrets at the corners, and occasionally armed with
swivel-guns or wall-pieces. The principal gardens are always on the
outside of the castle, and the herds of horses and camels belonging
to the Khan are kept at distant pastures and attended by herders,
who live in tents. In the Bori and Ghazgar valleys the houses are of
wood. In the Ghazgar valley they are all fortified, as already
described; the doors are generally mere man-holes, and the top of
the towers are loopholes. The better class, and more modern of
these, have flat roofs, from which the water is carried by spouts;
the walls surrounding are at least twelve feet high, and cover
nearly an acre of ground. Three or four such houses usually
constitute a village. These semi-barbarians are noted for the length
and ferocity of their feuds. Sometimes two branches of a family who
are neighbors become enemies. The distance between their "fortlets"
may be two hundred yards, and on that space no one ventures. They go
out at opposite gates and walk straight from their own fort in a
line protected by its walls from the fire of the other, until out of
range, then they turn around to their fields. Broadfoot relates that
"once in Zurmat I saw a fort shut by rolling a stone against the
door, instead of with the usual heavy chain. On inquiring as to the
cause of such carelessness, the Malik, a fine old man with a plump,
good-humored face, stretched his arms out toward the line of distant
forts, and said: 'I have not an enemy!' It was a pleasing exception
to the rule."


[Illustration: Khan Baz, a Khumbhur Khel Afreedi.
Tooro Baz, a Kookie Khel Afreedi.]


These feuds are a system of petty warfare, carried on by long shots,
stealing cattle, and burning crops. Samson, burning his neighbor's
corn, acted just like an Afghan. When the harvest is nearly ripe,
neither party dare sleep. The remedy is sometimes for both to fight
until an equal number are killed on each side, when the neighbors
step in and effect a reconciliation; another method is to pay
forfeit of a feast and some sheep or cloth; in exceptional cases, a
few Afghan virgins are substituted for the sheep, but they are given
in marriage, and are well treated.

Our space does not permit an extended reference to the manners and
customs of this primitive people but a few characteristics may be
briefly noted. The love of war is felt much more among Afghans than
by other Eastern peoples, although but little effort has been made
by them to augment the means of resistance and aggression. Pillage,
fighting, and disturbances are at times necessary to their very
existence, and are followed by long days of idleness, during which
they live on the fruits of their depredations. There is no shade of
difference between the character of the nomad and the citizen; a
town life does not soften their habits; they live there as they live
in a tent, armed to the teeth and ready for the onslaught. Though
full of duplicity, one is nevertheless liable to be taken in by
their apparent frankness. They are hospitable to strangers, but only
because this is an ancient custom which has the force of law and is
not a virtue which springs from the heart. The pride of the Afghans
is a marked feature of their national character. They boast of their
descent, their prowess in arms, their independence; and cap all by
"Am I not a Puktan?"

The Afghan people, occupied with the defence of their homes, have
failed to assist the Ameer in the formation and maintenance of that
indispensable instrument--an organized, well-equipped, easily
mobilized army. In regular battle the Afghans can have but little
hope of success; their strength lies in the petty warfare peculiar
to a wild, mountainous country. As auxiliaries, as partisan troops
in their own country, they would be of great value to their allies
and extremely troublesome to their enemies. For outpost, courier,
and scouting purposes, they would doubtless be most efficient. The
strength of the organized army in the service of the Ameer of
Afghanistan is about 50,000 men of all arms. The traveller Vambery,
who visited Herat in 1863, says:

"The Afghan's national costume consists of a long shirt, drawers,
and dirty linen clothes; or, if he is a soldier, he affects a
British red coat. He throws it over his shirt, while he gets on his
head the picturesque Indo-Afghan turban. Others again--and these are
the _beau-monde_--are wont to assume a half-Persian costume. Weapons
are borne by all. Rarely does any one, whether civil or military,
enter the bazar without his sword and shield. To be quite _a la
mode_ one must carry about one quite an arsenal, consisting of two
pistols, a sword, poniard, hand-jar, gun, and shield." M. Vambery
also describes a drill of some Afghan regulars.

"The men had a very military bearing, far better than the Ottoman
army that was so drilled forty years ago. These might have been
mistaken for European troops if most of them had not had on their
bare feet the pointed Kabuli shoe, and had not had their short
trowsers so tightly stretched by their straps that they threatened
every moment to burst and fly up above the knee."

The adventurous O'Donovan thus describes an Afghan cavalryman whom
he met unexpectedly, near Herat, in 1880: "He wore a dark-colored
turban, one end of the cloth pulled up in front so as to resemble a
small cockade. His uniform was blue-black, and he wore long boots. A
broad black leather cross-belt, with two very large brass buckles,
crossed his breast. He had sabre, pistols, and carbine."


[Illustration: Zool Kuddar, an Adam Khel Afreedi.
Mousa, a Kizilbash, Born in Peshawur.]


The actual fighting strength of the army of Afghanistan cannot be
definitely stated. Major Lumsden, who has represented the British
Government in that country in various diplomatic capacities, stated
(some years since) that the regular army of the Ameer consisted of
sixteen regiments of infantry, three of cavalry, and seventy-six
field guns. The infantry regiments numbered about 800 men each; the
men were obtained by compulsory levy. Their uniform consisted of
English cast-off clothes purchased at auction. The pay, about five
rupees per mensem, was paid irregularly and often in kind; two
months' pay was deducted for clothing. The cavalry and artillery
were badly horsed; and the horses were sent to graze in summer. A
Russian report of 1868 estimates the infantry at 10,000 men. The
armament, equipment, and instruction of the troops have doubtless
improved since that time, as ten years later the British Government
supplied the Afghan Government with 10,000 Enfield and 5,000 Snider
rifles and one field battery, and very recently (1885) it was
announced that a present of Martini-Henry rifles and improved field
guns had been sent to Abdurrahman by the Indian authorities.

Besides the regular army there is a paid irregular mounted force of
about 20,000 men, active and formidable in "hill operations," and
known as Jezailchis.

The late General Colin Mackenzie, in an account of his experiences
in the Elphinstone disaster of 1842, says:

"The Jezailchis are so called from their jezails or long rifles. The
Afghans are said to be among the best marksmen in the world. They
are accustomed to arms from early boyhood, live in a chronic state
of warfare with their neighbors, and are most skilful in taking
advantage of cover. An Afghan will throw himself flat, behind a
stone barely big enough to cover his head, and scoop a hollow in the
ground with his left elbow as he loads. Men like these only require
training to make first-rate irregular troops.

"As a trait of Afghan character, I must mention that whenever the
Jezailchis could snatch five minutes to refresh themselves with a
pipe, one of them would twang a sort of a rude guitar as an
accompaniment to some martial song, which, mingling with the notes
of war, sounded very strangely."

The Russian General Staff have also estimated the Ameer's force,
exclusive of the irregulars, at 66,400 men with 30 guns.

The efficiency of this body, by reason of their peculiar
surroundings, must vary with the character of the operations. For
defence--particularly of their own section--they form an important
consideration; for aggressive purposes their strength lies in
partisan operations, in small detachments, requiring great mobility.

Just as it is difficult to understand the rapidity with which
large numbers are assembled in Afghanistan for fighting purposes,
so the dispersing of an Afghan army together with its attendant
masses of tribal levies in flight is almost beyond comprehension;
men who have been actually engaged in hand-to-hand combat dispose of
their arms in the villages they pass through, and meet their
pursuers with melons or other fruit in their hands, While they adopt
the _role_ of peaceful inhabitants.

A brief description of some of the more noted cities of Afghanistan
may be appropriate here.

Sir Henry Rawlinson gives the following details respecting the
so-called Key of India--the city of Herat:

"That which distinguishes Herat from all other Oriental cities, and
at the same time constitutes its main defence, is the stupendous
character of the earthwork upon which the city wall is built. This
earthwork averages 250 feet in width at the base and about 50 feet
in height, and as it is crowned by a wall 25 feet high and 14 feet
thick at the base, supported by about 150 semicircular towers, and
is further protected by a ditch 45 feet in width and 16 feet in
depth, it presents an appearance of imposing strength. Whether the
place is really as strong as it looks has been differently
estimated. General Ferrier, who resided for some time in Herat, in
1846, states that the city is nothing more than an immense redoubt,
and gives it as his opinion that, as the line of wall is entirely
without flanking defences, the place could not hold out for twenty
days against a European army; and M. Khanikoff, who, although not a
professional soldier, was a very acute observer, further remarks
that the whole interior of the city is dominated from the rising
ground 700 yards distant and covered with solid buildings at the
northeast angle, while the water supply both for the ditch and the
city would be at the mercy of an enemy holding the outside country;
the wells and reservoirs inside the wall, which could then alone be
available--being quite inadequate to the wants of the inhabitants:
but on the other hand, all experience testifies to the defensibility
of the position.

"Not to speak of the siege which Herat sustained at the hands of
Genghiz Khan, of Timur, and of Ahmed Shah, we have only to remember
that in 1837 the Afghans of Herat, under Major Eldred Pottinger,
beat off the continuous attacks, for nearly ten months, of a Persian
army of 35,000 regular troops supported by fifty pieces of
artillery, and in many cases directed and even commanded by Russian
officers. The truth seems to be that Herat, although in its present
state quite unfit to resist a European army, possesses great
capabilities of defence, and might by a skilful adaptation of the
resources of modern science be made almost impregnable. Major
Saunders, a British engineer officer, calculated in 1840 that, at an
outlay of L60,000, which would include the expenses of deepening the
ditch, clearing the glacis and esplanade, providing flanking
defences, and repairing the walls throughout, Herat might be
rendered secure against any possible renewal of the attack by
Persia."

The location of this city upon the principal thoroughfare between
India, Persia, and Turkestan gives it a special importance in a
military sense. It is also the principal mart of Western
Afghanistan, and comprises extensive manufactures in wool and
leather. The natural fertility of the country near Herat has been
enhanced by irrigation.

"The valley, or _julgah_ (as the Persians say), in which the
city lies is rich in the possession of a river. This valley is about
thirty miles long by sixteen in breadth, exclusive of the ground
taken up by the fortress and the walls. Four of these miles separate
the town from the northern and twelve from the southern hills, while
at one quarter of the greater distance runs the Her-i-Rud or Herat
River, which, rising near the Kuh-i-Baba, pursues a westerly course
till, passing the city, it sweeps, first gradually, then decidedly,
to the north, eventually to lose its identity in the environs of
Sarakhs. It is of political as well as of geographical importance,
for it passes between the Persian and Afghan frontier posts of
Kahriz and Kusun respectively, and may be considered to mark the
Perso-Afghan boundary at the Western Paropismus. The Plain, south of
the walls, is watered by a net-work of eight or nine large and many
minor ditches. The aqueducts are stated to be superior to those of
Bokhara, Samarcand, and Ispahan. The grain produced is abundant--
beyond the requirements of town and suburbs together. The bread, the
water, and the vines have the merit of special excellence. Yet, with
all this wealth of means and material, capable of subsisting an army
of 150,000 men for some time, much of the legacy of past ages is
disregarded and nullified by the supineness of a present generation.
The ruins visible on all sides are not all useless or obsolete
works. As one conclusive instance may be cited the neglected
'Pul-i-Malan.' This bridge, of twenty-three arches, can scarcely be
considered void of purpose or practical benefit. It is, however,
rapidly falling into decay, and as the river has changed its bed,
part of it remains, barren of object, on dry land. On the rising of
the waters this state of things is inconvenient; for the river, at
such time, is no longer fordable, and the Kandahar caravans, going
to and fro, have difficulty in crossing." [Footnote: Sir F. J.
Goldsmid, "Journeys Between Herat and Khiva."]

In 1830 Conolly was of opinion that the city was one of the dirtiest
in the world, being absolutely destitute of drainage; and Vambery,
thirty-three years afterward, when the city was captured by Dost
Mohammed, says the city was largely a heap of rubbish, having
suffered the horrors of a long siege.

The city of Kabul, from which the surrounding territory of Eastern
Afghanistan takes its name, stands in lat. 34 degrees 30' N., and
long. 69 degrees 6' E., near the point where the Kabul River is
crossed by three bridges. Its altitude is 6,400 feet, and, within a
short distance to the north, is overtopped by pinnacles of the Hindu
Kush about 14,000 feet higher.

The winters are severe, but the summers are very temperate--seldom
going above 80 degrees. Kabul is fortified without and within; being
separated into quarters by stone walls: the Bala Hissar, or citadel
proper, being on the east, while the Persian quarter of the city is
strongly protected on the southwest. In the days of Sultan Baber,
Kabul was the capital of the Mogul empire. In modern times, it has
been the scene of many Anglo-Indian struggles. It was taken by the
British in 1839, and lost by them, through treachery, in 1841;
in the following January, 4,000 British soldiers and 12,000
camp-followers were massacred while retreating.

Kandahar, the capital of Central Afghanistan, is about two hundred
miles S. W. of Kabul, and three hundred and seventy-one miles E. of
Herat. It is said to have been founded by Alexander of Macedon. The
city is laid out at right angles, and is watered from the
neighboring rivers through canals, which send to every street an
ample supply. Sir Michael Biddulph describes the surroundings:
"Kandahar stands on the western side of a plain, which was
originally a barren skirt of the mountain. Exactly opposite to the
city, and two miles to the westward, there is a wide break in the
dividing ridge, through which the road to Herat leads, and by which
are conducted the many canals and watercourses, taken from the
Argandab, to supply the town and fertilize its environs. The energy
and skill displayed in these extensive water-works cannot be too
highly extolled. Brought from a point many miles distant in the
Argandab valley, the chief canal, with its offshoots, conducts a
vast body of water, which is dispersed along the contours of the
declining plain in innumerable channels, spreading a rich fertility
for many miles in a fan-like form to the southeast of the gap.
Villages cluster around the city on three sides; cornfields,
orchards, gardens, and vineyards are seen in luxurious succession,
presenting a veritable oasis within the girdle of rugged hills and
desert wastes all around. And if we turn to the aspect of the
country beyond the gap, we see in the Argandab valley, along the
canals and the river banks, a fair and beautiful landscape of
village and cultivated ground, stretching for many miles in each
direction. This productive character of the immediate neighborhood
of Kandahar, and its commanding position within reach of other
fertile districts, would give to this place, under a strong, stable,
and just government, as much prosperity and happiness as falls to
the lot of any place in the world."


[Illustration: City of Kandahar, Afghanistan.]


Jelalabad stands on the Kabul River, about half-way between Kabul
and the Khaiber Pass. It was the scene of the stubborn defence by
Sir Robert Sale in 1842, referred to elsewhere. It has a floating
population of about three thousand souls. Our engraving is taken
from the south and west. The stream in the west is the Kabul River.
The Jati gate in the south wall is the exit from the Hindu quarter.
The Kabul exit is on the west, while the road to Peshawur commences
at the gate of that name on the east wall of the city. The northern
gate is known as the Pheel Khana, or elephant quarter. The walls of
the town and of its houses are of mud, and the roofs generally of
wood. The city is laid out in the form of a parallelogram
intersected by two main streets crossing in the centre.

The town of Ghazni (the ancient Ghizni) is another historical
landmark in a region famous for its evidences of former grandeur. It
stands about 230 miles northeast of Kandahar on the road to Kabul;
it is literally "founded upon a rock" at an elevation of 7,726 feet,
and its base is 280 feet above the adjacent plain. It has walls
thirty-five feet high, and a wet ditch, but is not considered in any
sense formidable by modern engineers, as it is commanded by
neighboring heights; it will always be a rendezvous for the natives,
and forms a station or an important line of communication between
the Indus and the Murghab. In the tenth century it was the seat of
an empire comprising the present territory of Afghanistan, and which
had in the space of seventy years absorbed thirty-eight degrees of
longitude and twenty degrees of latitude. Its decline dates from the
twelfth century, when the seat of government was transferred to
Lahore. From 1839 to 1880 it has been occupied alternately by the
British and the Afghans. The climate is not exceptionally severe,
although in winter the mercury drops to 25 degrees below zero at
times. The population averages about ten thousand.

Peshawur is one of the most important towns, both in a military and
commercial sense, in the _Derajat_. It is the capital of a province
of the same name on the N. W. frontier of India, eighteen miles from
the Khaiber Pass and one hundred and fifty miles S.E. of Kabul. It
has the usual bastioned defences, besides some detached works of
more importance. It was once a rich and populous city, but has, like
many other like places in that region, fallen from its high estate.
It is garrisoned by the British, and can boast of fair trade and a
population of about fifty thousand. It is the centre of a fruitful
district containing more than one million inhabitants.

The fruitful valley and pass of Bamian lie on the road leading from
Kabul to Turkestan. The pass, at an elevation of 8,496 feet, is the
only known defile over the Hindu Kush practicable for artillery.
This valley was one of the chief centres of Buddhist worship, as
gigantic idols, mutilated indeed by fanatical Mussulmans,
conclusively prove. Bamian, with its colossal statues cut out in the
rock, was among the wonders described by the Buddhist monks who
traversed Central Asia in the fourth century. The statues are found
on a hill about three hundred feet high, in which are a number of
cells excavated in the rock, not unlike those found in the Zuni
country in the western part of the United States. The male figure is
about 160 feet, the female 120 feet, in height; they are clothed in
light drapery, and a winding stair may be ascended to the head.

Eight miles eastward of Bamian lies the ancient fortress of Zohak,
attributed to the fabulous Persian serpent-king of that name. It is
still used as one of the defences of the pass.


[Illustration: Castle of Zohak, First March from Bamian, on the Irak
Road to Kabul.]


The animals of Afghanistan adapted to military transport purposes
are the camel, the _yabu_ (mountain pony), and the donkey.

From certain professional papers, on the camel, by Captain Yaldwyn
and other officers of the Indian Army, we learn that this beast of
burden has been often utilized by the British in Afghanistan, and
the supply of camels raised in that country has generally been
augmented by drafts from India, although the last mentioned do not
thrive under the transition. The camel is docile, capable of
abstinence in an emergency, well adapted for the imposition of loads
and for traversing over flat or sandy ground, adapts itself to rough
roads, has acute sight and smell, and, during progression, moves
both feet on one side, simultaneously. Its flesh and milk are
wholesome articles of food. It is deficient in muscular power
behind, and cannot readily climb hills. Those found in Afghanistan
are of the Arabian species. They are strong, thickset, with
abundance of hair; are short in the leg, better climbers, and more
accustomed to cold than others of the species. Their feeding
requires as much care as that of cavalry or artillery horses; they
are fond of green food, and certain trees and shrubs. In grazing,
camels brought from India sometimes are poisoned by eating the
oleander bush and other plants which the native camel avoids.
Elphinstone's ill-fated expedition in 1841 lost 800 out of 2,500
camels from this cause alone. On the march, or where grazing does
not abound, they are fed with grain and _bhoosa_ [Footnote:
Chopped straw.]; this is given them in one ration at the end of the
day. The theory that camels do not require much watering is declared
a fallacy; the Arabian species can take in five or six gallons,
sufficient for as many days; they will not drink cold running water;
but, where water can be had, they should be watered daily. The load
of the camel varies from 300 to 450 pounds, depending upon its
condition. It is admirably adapted for carrying long articles, as
ladders, tent-poles, and even light mountain guns. The marching
power of camels depends on a number of conditions. They are good
goers in loose sandy soil, and even over stony ground, if the stones
are not too large and sharp; in slippery places they are useless, as
they have no hold with their feet. They are very enduring, making
the longest marches at an average speed of two miles an hour, and
can ford deep rivers with ease if the current is not too rapid. When
the bottom of the ford is shifting sand, the passage of a number of
camels renders it firm. A string of 500 camels covers about one mile
of road; 1,250 mules, carrying the same weight of supplies, occupy
double the distance. Camels must be unladen at ferries. For military
purposes these animals are purchased between the ages of five and
nine years, and may be used up to the age of sixteen. They average
about one thousand pounds in weight, seven feet in height to the top
of the hump, and eight feet in length from nose to tail. In camp and
when not at work they are arranged in lines facing each other, or in
circles heads inward; the latter plan is the favorite formation at
night. The allowance of spare camels on service is ten per cent.

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