kfi 
 

SELECTIONS 
 
 FKOM THE 
 
 of 
 
 FOREIGN DEPARTMENT 
 
 ISTo. 
 
 RECORD 
 
 OP THE 
 
 MARCH OF THE MISSION TO SEISTAN 
 
 UNDER THE COMMAND OF 
 
 MAJOR-GENERAL F. R. POLLOCK, C.S.I., 
 
 BY 
 
 SURGEON H. W. BELLEW, PERSONAL ASSISTANT. 
 
 CALCUTTA: 
 
 PRINTED AT THE FOREIGN DEPARTMENT PRESS. 
 1873. 
 
PS 324 
 
 64-34- 
 
 HENRY MORSE STEfHEH* 
 

 Page. 
 
 Preface ... ,., ... ... ... ... 1 
 
 Route through Beloochistan : 
 SECTION I. 
 
 From Jacobabad in Sind to Khozdar in Jhalawan ... ... 1 to 9 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 From Khozdar in Jhalawan to Khelat, the capital ... ... 9 to 15 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 From Khelat, the capital, to Shalkot, the frontier ... ... 16 to 21 
 
 Route through Afghanistan : 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 From Lora Cushlac to Candahar city ... ... ... 21 to 34 
 
 SECTION V. 
 
 From Candahar to Cala' Bust Helm und ... ... ... 34 to 41 
 
 SECTION VI. 
 
 From Cala' Bust to Bandar G-urmsel ... ... ... 41 to 54 
 
 SECTION VII. 
 
 From Bandar to Chahi Sagak, Seistan ... ... ... 54 to 71 
 
 Route through Khorassan Persia : 
 SECTION VIII. 
 
 From Chahi Sagak, Seistan to Dashti Byaz, G-haynat ... ... 71 to 89 
 
 SECTION IX. 
 
 From Dashti Byaz to Yunsi Tubbus ... ... ... 89 to 94 
 
 SECTION X. 
 
 From Yunsi to Asadabad Turbat Hyderi ... ... 94 to 98 
 
 SECTION XI. 
 
 From Asadabad to Meshed city ... ... ... 99 to 102 
 
 SECTION XII. 
 
 From Meshed to Tehran ... ... ... ... 102 to 123 
 
 Geographical Limits : 
 
 Physical ... ... ... ... 124 & 125 
 
 Political ... ... ... 125 to 127 
 
 Physical Features ... ... ... ... ... 127 to 129 
 
 Climate, Soil, and Productions : 
 
 Climate ... ... ... ... ... i 30 & 131 
 
 Soil ... ... ... 131 
 
 Productions, Vegetable ... ... ... 131 & ^32 
 
 Animal ... ... ... 132 & 133 
 
 Mineral ... ... ... 133 
 
 Antiquities and Ruins ... ... ... _ ^33 ^ jgg 
 
 History, Ancient and Modern : 
 
 Ancienfc ... ... 136 & 137 
 
 Modern ... ... ... 137 to 147 
 
 Inhabitants and Language ... ... ... ^47 ^ Q j-* 
 
 Religion and mode of life : 
 
 Keli g ion - -. ... ... 157 & 158 
 
 Mode of life ... ... . ... ... 15g ^ Q jg,j 
 
 Agriculture and Industry : 
 
 Agriculture ... ... ... ... J^Q 
 
 Industry ... ... ... jgj 
 
 511554 
 
RECORD 
 
 OF THE 
 
 MARCH OF THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 
 
 THE final arrangements for the departure of the Mission were made 
 at Jacobabftd in Sind. And from this frontier station the Mission set 
 out on the 8th January 1872. For convenience of description and faci- 
 lity of reference I have here divided the march into sections correspojid-^ 
 ing with, the limits of the different countries traversecl, and have arranged" 
 the matter under each in the form ot l a diary, because the rapidity of 
 our movements through the country, and the nature of the information 
 acquired, hardly admit of a generalization, whilst the meteorological 
 observations daily recorded, from the nature of the case, forbid their 
 tabulation. The distances recorded, I may here state, have been calcu- 
 lated at the rate of five miles an hour by riding camel, and four to four 
 and a half miles an hour, according to the nature of the country, by 
 riding horse, the Afghan or Persian galloway in this instance. 
 
 The barometric indications have been registered by myself on a 
 compensated aneroid by Newton & Co. of Fleet Street, and those of the 
 thermometer on a standard instrument. 
 
 The altitudes of mountain passes have been registered on the 
 aneroid scale, allowing, that is, subtracting 1,350 feet for atmospheric 
 variation. 
 
 The notice of the Flora is confined to the plants actually seen by us 
 at the time of our passag-e through the several countries traversed in our 
 route. 
 
 ROUTE THROUGH BELOOCIIISTAN. 
 
 SECTION I. 
 From Jacobabad in Sind to Khozdar in JJtalawan. 
 
 &th January 1872. Jacobabad to Barshori, 35 miles. 
 Bar. 5 P.M. 29*36. 8 P.M. 29'40. 8 A.M. 29--10. 
 Therm. 76 50 38. 
 
 Departure from Jacobabad at 9-5 A.M., 'and at five miles arrived at 
 Mumal, a small village of thirty-five huts in the territory of the 
 Khan of Khelat. The British border runs about midway between 
 Jacobabad and Mumal. At the latter place we mounted our riding 
 camels, and escorted by a party of ten Muzaree horsemen under Pir Jan, 
 Muzaree Belooch of the Rind Section, and son of Mahomed Khan, the 
 
OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Khan of Khelat's Agent at Jacobabad, struck across the desert, the dashll 
 lie-dar or " treeless waste " in a north-west direction towards Barshori, 
 where we arrived at 4-45 P.M. This desert is a wide expanse, apparently 
 perfectly flat, of a firm dry clay surface, and bare as a board for the most 
 part. On it we saw the mirage to perfection, the small heaps of earth 
 round a well midway on our route being transformed into hills, and the 
 
 scattered tufts of lana (a species of Salsola) growing in their vicinity being 
 converted into tall jungle. We reached this_w_ellat 1-30 P.M. and halted 
 till 2 P.M. We found the^gell dry, thougK with a moist bottom at about 
 fifty feet from the surface. Its diameter is 16 feet, and the well itself is 
 a mere shaft sunk in the parched soil. The thermometer here rose to 92 
 F. in the open air. During the summer months this tract is almost 
 impassable owing to the fierce heat and absence of w r ater, and the pre- 
 valence of a deadly hot wind called juloh. It is described as killing 
 those exposed to its violence by suddenly drying up all the moisture in 
 their bodies, so that the skin cracks and fissures like drying mud. Its 
 victims rarely, we were told, survive more than three or four hours, and 
 always die within the twenty-four. 
 
 Barshori is an open village of from eighty to a hundred houses, and 
 is inhabited by Manjhu Jats. There is a good deal of cultivated ground 
 immediately around it, and just now the house tops are piled with stacks 
 of juari (Sorghum Vulgare) . We observed too some carts laden with 
 its long stalks coming to the village from the adjoining fields. The 
 water supply of Barshori is from seventy or eighty narrow well shafts 
 sunk in the bed of a dry water-course close to the village. These wells 
 are about sixteen feet deep and contain only a scanty supply of turbid 
 and brackish water. During the months of July and August the now 
 dry water-course is flooded from the overflow of the Nari River, a 
 mountain stream which drains the country between Dadar and Kalian. 
 
 At Barshori we found a Jcafila of 1,200 camels and 1,800 followers 
 who had just come through the Bolan Pass. They had been attacked 
 and plundered in the vicinity of Dadar a week ago by Moolla Mahomed, 
 the Raisanee Chief of Sarawan, who is in open revolt against his suzerain, 
 the Khan of Khelat. 
 
 They had lost 150 camels with their loads, six or seven men were 
 killed in the defence, and fourteen wounded ; of the latter I saw eight 
 men at Barshori, all severely wounded, six by gunshot, and two by sword 
 cut. 
 
 The Mission was originally to have proceeded bv this route, but owing 
 
 to the disturbed state of that part of the Khan oT Khelat's territory, it 
 
 was ultimately decided to make the detour by the Gundava or Miloh Pass 
 
 further to the south. Our camp marched from Jacobabad at 4 A.M. 
 
 | under escort of a party of Sind Irregular Horse, two Native officers and 
 
 | forty troopers, and did not reach Barshori till 6-30 P.M. 
 
 th January 1872. Barshori to Saujarani, 13 miles. 
 
 Bar. 4 P.M. 29'30. 8 P.M. 29'35. 7 A.M. 29'41. 
 Therm. 78 60 45. 
 
 Route north-west along the course of a dry canal for one hour, 
 then west across a level tract of bare clay surface. Crossing two shallow 
 water-courses at a short distance from each other in twenty minutes, 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 3 
 
 passed about two miles due south of Kikri, a hamlet of about twenty 
 houses inhabited by Manjhu Jats, shaded by a few tamarisk and acacia 
 trees, and surrounded by a good deal of cultivated land. The fields are 
 ^ watered during two months of the year by the canals fed from the Nari 
 River, which in July and August spreads its waters over the desert tract 
 between Jacobabad and Barshori, the Kachi pat or " plain of Kach." 
 Along the course of the canals we observed a few bushes of the marr 
 or mimosa, the khaler or wild caper, the kharag or calotropis, ihepissi 
 or zyziphus, and a few others. 
 
 In fifty minutes more, proceeding due west over a level plain covered 
 with corn fields in stubble, and intersected by numerous dry water- 
 courses, we arrived at Bushkii, an open village of 180 houses, the tops 
 and courts of which were piled up with stacks otjuari. The village 
 is shaded by some acacia and tamarisk trees, and grazing about it we 
 observed camels, goats, and sheep. The village stands on the bank of a 
 dry canal, in the bed of which are some two hundred or more well shafts, 
 whence is derived a supply of muddy and brackish water. Passing on 
 through the village, and over stubble fields, we in twenty-five minutes 
 reached Sanjarani, a flourishing villn^e of two hundred houses, like the 
 last, open, and built on the bank of a wide canal, in the bed of which are 
 some three hundred well shafts, which at about sixteen feet below the 
 surface top a shallow stratum of muddy and slightly brackish water. 
 There are some fine tamarisk and jujube trees round the village. The 
 inhabitants are Sanjarani Jats. 
 
 ISl/i January 1872. Sanjarani to Kotrah, 30 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3P.M. 29-35. 8 P.M. 29'27. 8 A.M. 29'36. 
 
 Therm. 76 65 62. 
 
 Route due west as far as Gundava, which we reached in four hours 
 and fifteen minutes, across a grgajjjevel plain everywhere intersected by 
 shallow water-courses, and in the vicinity of Gundava furrowed by the 
 action of water. Signs of cultivation were seen all over the surface, 
 and the plain supported a thin jungle of the wild caper, dwarf mimosa 
 and ber or zyziphus. 
 
 At one hour and fifteen minutes we came to the deserted village of 
 Odhana, one hundred houses. Half a mile due south is Kubiha, fifty 
 houses; and about two miles west is another Odhana, fifty houses. All 
 these villages, inhabited by Sindee_Jats, had been surprized and plundered 
 less than a month ago by a party of marauding Brahooces acting under 
 instigation of the rebel Belooch Chiefs, Moolla Mahomed, Raisanee and 
 Alladeena Koord. They*are now deserted except by some half dozen 
 old men and women, who laid their pitiful complaints before us. We 
 dismounted from our camels to inspect the empty and deserted home- 
 steads. The work of plunder had been most effectively completed, for 
 except the bare and mostly roofless walls naught was left behind. The t 
 Brahooees, we were told, had, contrary to custom, on this occasion taken 
 even the veils from the women and the trowsers from the men. I . 
 observed here that the water supply is from wells thirty feet deep. 
 
 Gundava, the capital of Kuch, is a fortified town, built on what 
 appears tol)e an artificial mound, formed possibly by the ruins of more 
 ancient towns on the same site. It wears an appearance of decay even 
 
4 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 in such a country as this. The only decent edifice in the place is the 
 residence of the Khan of Khelat, hiswinter palace, which overlooks the 
 town from an eminence on its north side. The west and south sides 
 of the town are swept by a wide water-course in which we found a pool 
 of clear water, some three hundred yards long by fifty wide. 
 
 ' Beyond this to the south is the Khan's garden, a walled enclosure, 
 over-crowded with a confused growth of fruit trees, such as the mango, 
 jujube, jamun, date, palm, sweet, lime, vine, &c., with the Indian fig, 
 sirrus, cassia, and others. To the east of this garden is the white-washed 
 mausoleum of Bukhari Shah, and a mile or so to the south is the Fathpoor 
 village, conspicuous by the lofty domes of its sacred shrines. 
 
 z. At about ten or twelve miles to the west of Gundava is the Nagao 
 range of hills running north and south. Their east face is abrupt 
 and precipitous in strata, dipping westward at an angle of from 35 to 
 40. There are three passes leading over this range to Khelat. All are 
 described as very steep and difficult, and each is usually traversed by 
 natives in seven days. They are from north to south the Takari lakh 
 or "pass." The Sukleji lakh, and theNagaos lakh. About three weeks 
 ago the Khan's troops made a forced march from Khelat over the Takari 
 lakh to Gundava, and arrived in time to save the place from an attack 
 by the rebel Brahooees, who threatened it from the Miloh pass, in front 
 of which they were attacked and dispersed. |) From Gundava our route 
 was west-south-west by a winding path through a thick jungle of wild 
 caper, the phir or Salvadora, the dwarf mimosa, &c., to the bank of the 
 Garro ravine, which we reached in fifty-five minutes. We dropped into 
 the ravine by a steep path slanting down its vertical clay bank, and then 
 following its wide, dry, sandy, and tamarisk-grown bed for half a mile 
 or more, rose out of it by a similar path on to a jungle covered plain, 
 and in forty-five minutes reached Kotrah, where we camped at sunset. 
 Kotrah is a collection of four villages close together. They belong to the 
 Meer's or Chiefs of the Iltafzai family of which the Khan of Khelat is 
 the head. They are neat and prosperous villages, and possess some com- 
 fortable dwellings, the residences of the Iltafzai Meers. They serve as 
 the entrepot of the trade between Khelat and Shikarpoor. Around 
 them are several walled gardens and some very fine trees. The water 
 supply is from a strong stream coming from the spring at Peer Chhalta. 
 Tobacco is freely cultivatedjiere. 
 
 Our camp marched at 7 A.M., and did not reach Kotrah till 8-45 p. M. 
 
 11M January 1872. Kotrah to Peer Chhatta, 9 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 28'89. 8 P.M. 28'92. 7 A.M. 29'03. 
 Therm. 88 70? 59. 
 
 During the night the thermometer sunk to 39 F., and at midday 
 exposed to the sun rose to 98 F. 
 
 Route west-south-west winding through jungle similar to that tra- 
 versed yesterday. Our path lead past a tumulus covered with bits of red 
 pottery, to the bank of the Miloh or Muloh ravine, into which we 
 descended by a steep and narrow path cut slantingly in the clay bank, 
 which is here vertical and about twenty-five feet high. Hard by are a 
 score or so temporary huts and sheds of some Kambarani and Siyani 
 Brahooees employed as camel drivers between Khelat and Shikarpoor. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 5 
 
 "7 Proceeding up the course of the wide boulder-strewn ravine, at one 
 hour and ten minutes, we turned to the right out of it near the domed 
 tomb of the late Meer Iltaf, uncle of the present Meer of Kotrah, JChyr 
 Mahomed Khan, and followed the course of a brisk stream up to Peer 
 Chhatta, where we arrived in one hour more, and camped amongst a 
 cluster of date palms at the spring head of the stream. The ground 
 here, though turfy, is white with saline efflorescence. The Peer Chhatta 
 rivulet works three or four water mills on its way to Kotrah, and their 
 sites are marked by clusters of trees. From the tomb to the spring 
 head, the road, diverging from the entrance to the Miloh pass, conducts 
 over some rough ridges of conglomerate and twice crosses branches 
 from the Peer Chhatta stream. There is no village at Peer Chhatta, but only 
 a few patches of cultivation in the bends of the stream near the spring 
 head, where is a little shrine and a peal of bells. No provisions for 
 either man or beast are procurable here. Supplies must be brought on 
 from Kotrah. 
 
 \Wi January 1872. Peer Chhatta to Kuhaw, 12 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 28'59. 8 P.M. 28'GO. 7 A.M. 2871. 
 Therm. 76 62 55. 
 
 Route south by west through a long, narrow, and stony hollow with 
 high hills on the right and a low conglomerate ridge on the left. A few 
 scattered bushes dot the surface here and there, and fossil shells strew 
 it everywhere. At fifty minutes, emerging from the defile we entered 
 a wide basin in the hills. Through it winds the broad boulder-strewn 
 bed of the Miloh stream, so named from the b|ue (nllah) colour of its 
 bounding hills, which divides into several branches separated by patches 
 of tamarisk jungle. The stream flows eastward through tbiL-p^ss of the^ 
 same__name, a little to the south of the route taken by us. In fact we 
 made a short cut and entered the pass some seven or eight miles above 
 the spot where it opens on the plain. Our course through this basin 
 was south-south-west over very rough ground, and across several broad and 
 shallow streamlets to the entrance to the nali-langa tangi, " the defile or 
 straight of nine crossings," so named because its stream must be crossed 
 nine times in the passage. It took us an hour and fifteen minutes to 
 traverse the basin, and the passage of the " straight" occupied forty " 
 minutes more. This straight is a very narrow and tortuous passage 
 between perpendicular masses of hill, and is almost completely filled by 
 the strong stream of the Miloh rivulet. We left it between perpendicu- 
 lar walls of rock, the strata of which were vertical, and at once entered 
 another basin in the hills. Skirting its southern border by a path 
 winding through a jungle of tamarisk and salvadora, we rose on to a 
 stony ledge that overlooked the ravine and its stream to the right, and 
 beyond this, following a thin strip of corn fields, along a very uneven 
 and winding path, in fifty-five minutes reached Kuhaw. This is the 
 name of a small glen confined between hills of bare rock, suggestive of 
 intolerable heat in summer. There are several small patches of cultiva- 
 tion here, at this season corn for the spring crop, and our camp is 
 pitched on a field of the kunjid or ff sesame" stubble. There is no village 
 here nor other permanent habitation, and no supplies, except cattle 
 fodder in small quantity, are procurable. On a stony ledge hard by we \ 
 found an encampment of Zangijo Brahooees, vassals of the Meer of Kotrah. j ^ cf( 
 
 t t , -I i t T ss 1 1 1 1 si ' / 
 
 They are very poor and dirty, and their 
 
 kifri or " palm-mat sheds," of 
 
6 RECORD OP THE MARCH OF 
 
 which about a score formed the camp, are wretched protection from the 
 weather. The men however look healthy and hardy, and the women 
 particularly so. They are here only for the winter months, and in 
 summer move up to the highlands. 
 
 I3f/i January 1872. Kuhaw to Hatachi, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 2771. 8 P.M. 2771. 7 A.M. 2773. 
 Therm. 63 60 46. 
 
 Route south to south by west up the Miloh pass by an easy and' gently 
 rising path winding between boulders, several times crossing the "Miloh 
 stream, and now and then passing through belts of tall tamarisk jungle, 
 to Pani-want, which we reached in one hour and fifty-five minutes. Here 
 the pass widens considerably, and the ground on each side of the stream 
 is occupied by long strips of cultivation. There are some scattered huts 
 here of the Musujani Brahooees, dependents of Cysar Khan of Zahri. 
 Beyond Pani-want the_ pass widens into a basin enclosed by hills that 
 converge towards the south where is a narrow outlet into another wide 
 basin. The first is called Jah, and is well cultivated. Amidst the corn 
 fields were observed some solitary scattered huts. They belong to the 
 corn dealers of Kotrah, who occupy them in harvest time when they 
 come up to collect the grain, for which they make advances to the cultiva- 
 tors in the cold weather. Formerly this land was devoted to the cultiva- 
 tion -of rice, but this has been stopped by the Khan of Khelat as it 
 interfered with the water supply of Kotrah. In some parts the surface 
 was green with young corn, and in others we observed the stubble of 
 cotton, maize, and sesame. 
 
 The second basin is that of Hatachi, and here we camped close to 
 the village of the same name. We reached it in two hours and five 
 minutes from Pani-want, the last part of the way through a thick tama- 
 risk jungle. Hatachi consist of some thirty detached huts scattered 
 amongst corn fields on a shelving ledge at the foot of the hills. These 
 are the first permanent dwellings we have met with since we left Kotrah. 
 On the march we passed a camp of Chanal BraEooees at Jah, and here we 
 found another of the Khanzai Brahooees. Each camp contained about 
 thirty kirri or "mat sheds/' Those belonging to one family are called 
 
 and those belonging to a collection of families of the same tribe 
 tuman. During this and yesterday's march we met several camel kafilas 
 on their way to Kotrah with dates from Panjgur and Kaj, under the 
 charge of Bizanjo Brahooees, all armed with sword, shield, and matchlock. 
 We found abundant supplies at Hatachi, and observed the most conspicu- 
 ous object in the place to be the Shrine of Baha-ul-huq ensconced in a 
 thick clump of palm and other trees. 
 
 \Uh January 1872. Hatachi to Narr, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'68. 8 P.M. 2672. 7 4.21. 2674. 
 Therm. 72 "62 42. j 
 
 Route south by west by a winding, stony path, through tamarisk 
 jungle for an hour and forty-five minute, then skirting the Farzan 
 na bent or " cultivation of Farzan/' which occupies a wide bend in the 
 pass towards the south, and belongs to the Khanzai Brahooees of Hatachi 
 entered a narrow defile or straight to the westward, and passing a little, 
 glen on the left emerged on to the Peer Lakha basin, and arrived at the 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 7 
 
 domed shrine of that name in forty-five minutes more. The shrine, 
 though only built in the time of the first Nasir Khan, about a century 
 and a quarter ago, is in a decayed state. Around it are gathered some 
 humble graves, and under the shade of some adjoining date palm and 
 jujube trees are a couple of neat huts occupied by fakir families in 
 charge of the shrine. They appear to be a prosperous little community, 
 and have some well cultivated land. Some of the fields are green with 
 young corn,, and others show the stubble of rice and juar crops. The 
 land here only yields one crop in the year. 
 
 Near Peer Lakha we met a partyof Samalari Brahooees on their way 
 to Kotrah for corn for the use of their families camped in the nooks and 
 hollows of the hills around. We also met a kafila of camels carrying 
 madder and wool from Khelat to Shikarpoor under the charge of Zahri 
 Brahooees. 
 
 From Peer Lakha our path turned sharp to the north, leaving a wide 
 glen stretching away in the opposite direction, and leading through a 
 tortuous defile wound round to the west and south and conducted us 
 into the basin of Hassnah. There are a few scattered huts of 'the Jaum 
 Zahri Brahooees here, and some small patches of corn fieldbetween them. 
 Beyond this, leaving the Miloh stream on our right we- emerged upon 
 the great open tract of Narr, situated at the south extremity of the 
 jjahri valley which stretches away to the north-west with the Miloh 
 rivulet flowing through its centre. We reached Narr in one hour and 
 forty-five minutes from Peer Lakha,and camped on some open level ground 
 on its south-east border. There is no village here, nor are any huts 
 visible, but some Jaum Zahri sheds are scattered in threes and fours in the 
 nooks at the foot of the hills. Up to yesterday our march had been 
 amongst hills of oolitic sandstone abounding in fossil marine shells. 
 We have to-day lost these, though the hills are still of a coarse sandstone, 
 and here and there we found the rocks crumbling into a greenish coloured 
 sand. 
 
 There is a good deal of cultivation at Narr in scattered patches 
 between strips of tamarisk jungle and elephant grass. The water supply 
 is from a little tributary of the Miloh stream, and pasture is found on 
 the hills around. 
 
 There is a direct road from this to Khelat up the Zahri valley by 
 Pandran and Nichara in five days. 
 
 \th January 1872. Narr to Goru, 13 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 25-67. 8 P.M. 2575. 7 A.M. 2578. 
 Therm. 78 50 25. 
 
 Route south by west across the stony waterless and tamarisk-grown 
 Narr basin for one hour, then enter a, narrow and windingjlefile, at com- 
 mencement of which are a few pools of clear good water at the foot of 
 perpendicular and lofty rocks. Traversing this by a path over rolled 
 pebbles, we soon reach a wider pass between more distant hills, and skirt- 
 ing those on our right by a very rough and stony path in fifty minutes 
 reach the ruins of an ancient dam built across the outlet of a little gully 
 in the hills. It is of very solid and artistic build, and is called Gam-bund QIC W 
 the " Gabar's (Guebre's) dam/' from a traditionary idea that they are r 
 
D RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 the handiwork of the ancient fireworshippers. From this point west- 
 ward the hills diverge somewhat, and the country becomes more 
 ^ open^ the hill slopes too are thinly dotted with trees and shrubs, and 
 pasture grass now becomes abundant. Following the hills on our right 
 (our course turns to the west here) along a rough and stony path for 
 fifty minutes we reached a collection of four wells belonging to the 
 Goru village, about a mile further on. We camped at these wells. They 
 are sunk in a friable slaty soil and tap water at twelve or fourteen feet 
 from the surface. During the day vast herds of goats and sheep were 
 watered at them. TTith the exception of these wells and the little pools 
 at the commencement of the defile, we found no water on the route from 
 Narr to this, and there is none except in a drainage gully running along 
 the base of the hills on our left, and which bound the pass on the south. 
 This drainage gully runs into the defile we passed through. Throughout 
 the march we saw no signs of habitation or cultivation, but were told that 
 at about two miles south-east of our camp was the cultivation of Gaz, 
 which belongs to Zaliri Brahooees. It is described as very limited in extant, 
 and precarious owing to the want of water. 
 
 The weather to-day has been very bleak and the night air here was 
 bitterly cold. 
 
 \btli January 1872. Goru to Khozdar, 18 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 25'50. 10 P.M. 25'55. 6 A.M. 2570. 
 Therm. 70 51 43. 
 
 Route west skirting an open flat on our right. In twenty-five 
 minutes reached a cemetery of neatly raised graves at the entrance to a 
 little glen running south. The surface of the glen is covered with fields 
 of young corn, and at its further end is a small hamlet of about thirty 
 houses. It belongs to the Zahri Brahooees, who are now all out with their 
 families and flocks in the hollows of the hills around. Close to the 
 grave-yard we observed a dry cattle pond. It is only filled once a year by 
 the summer rains. Between our camp at the Goru wells and Khozdar 
 there is no water on or near the road. 
 
 Proceeding from the Goru grave-yard along a rough and stony path 
 for one hour and five minutes we descended across a deep stony ravine on 
 to an open valley of considerable width and extent. Our path skirted the 
 hills bounding it on the north, and crossed a succession of drainage cuts, 
 some of which are deep and rocky. In two hours and a half we reached 
 the fort of Khozdar, where we camped. 
 
 /^ The fort of Khozdar is an oblong with bastions at the angles, and a 
 fortified gateway in the west face. The curtains are loopholed and crene- 
 lated, and there is no ditch. It was built last year to protect the 
 caravan routes converging at this spot. The garrison consists of fifty 
 regular infantry and sixty Brahooee levies, with a few artillerymen and two 
 guns. There is no town here, but at a short distance south-east of the fort 
 is a small collection of inhabited huts, and north of these a larger collec- 
 tion of uninhabited ones. There is a good bit of cultivation around, 
 irrigated by small streams brought from a spring in the hills to the north. 
 
 ^ The Khozdar valley with those of Surab, Baghwana, and Nal are the 
 principal corn growing districts of Beloochistan. The villages and culti- 
 vated tracts are in the southern part of the valley, which is watered by 
 numerous little rivulets from the hills. The principal village is Zedi, 
 
 Exd. J. T. F. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 9 
 
 and through it passes the route to Kurachee by Wadd, Belah, and Sonmiani. 
 At the western end of the valley is the route through Nal to Punjgoor, 
 Kej, and the towns of Mekran. 
 
 At about three miles from Khozdar we were met by Major Harrison, 
 Political Agent at the Court of Khelat, with an escort of forf.v Sabres of 
 the Sind Irregular Horse, and alighted at his camp close to the fort, under 
 a salute ol" eleven guns. 
 
 11 th January 1872. Halt at Khozdar. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 25'56. 8 P.M. 25'63. 7 A.M. 25'60. 
 Therm. 60 52 49. 
 
 Throughout the march from Kotrah to this place the country at this 
 season presents a dreary, desolate, and wild aspect. Mountain -follows 
 mountain in a monotonous succession of bare, rugged rocks, which even 
 in the winter midday sun radiate an uncomfortable degree of heat ; whilst 
 dale and defile succeed each other, with no more striking feature than their 
 wildness and poverty in the one case, and their rugged narrowness in the 
 other. In the whole distance from Kotrah to Khozdar there are but two 
 permanent habitations, those of Hatachi and Goru, about thirty houses 
 in each, whilst the camps we saw were few in number, widely separated, 
 and small in size. We were assured, however, that the nooks and hollows 
 in the mountains were full of the tents of migratory Brahooees, whose 
 flocks and herds swarmed on the hill sides ; and that in the spring and 
 summer months their camps filled the cultivated portions of the pass 
 with life and activity. But judging from the amount of cultivation the 
 Miloh pass admits of, the population dependent on it alone for support 
 cannot be very large. In the pass itself there is an abundant growth of 
 tamarisk jungle, and an ample supply of water ; but the hills around are 
 singularly bare of vegetation, and there is a general dearth of pasture. 
 
 The rainy season is in July and August. During these months 
 violent storms occur on the mountains, and the pass often becomes 
 suddenly flooded by swift torrents that sweep all before them. g ~ 
 
 The Miloh pass may be said to extend from Peer Chhatta to Gazfnear, 
 Goru, a distance of a.hont fifty miles. In this extent it presents a suc- 
 cession of basins connected by narrow straights that are very crooked. 
 The basins are those of Peer Chhatta, Kuhaw, Pani-want, Jah, Hatachi, 
 Fazzan, Peer Lakha, Hassuah, and Narr. Each of them is more or less 
 cultivated, contains abundant water and fuel, but very little or no pastures 
 and limited camping surface. 
 
 The pass itself is easy, and presents no obstacles. The surface ' 
 everywhere is covered with rolled pebbles and boulders. The ascent is 
 very gradual, the rise from Peer Chhatta to Gaz being about 3,850 feet. 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 From Khozdar in Jhalawan to Khelat, the capital. 
 \&th January 1872. Khozdar to Baghwana, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3p.M. 25-05. 8 P.M. 25*05. 7 A.M. 25'51. 
 Therm. 68 59 56. 
 
 Route north up the bed of a wide, shallow, and boulder-strewn drain 
 age run from the hills, and then winding between low ridges of bare 
 
 I 
 
. 
 7 
 
 10 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 rock turn to north by west, and in one hour and fifty minutes,, rising 
 ntly all the way, reach Chiku Koh Kanda, a narrow gap that marks the 
 oundary between Khozdar and Baghwana. The surface here is rough 
 and stony. It supports a thin growth of a coarse tufted grass, the 
 mimosa and r/cj::ut, and a few indigofera. There is no water on the 
 route from Khozdar. On the descent of the gap are the remains of a 
 stone breastwork erected four years ago by the rebel Sirdar Noorooddeen 
 Mingul, when he took the field against the Khan of Khelat to contest the 
 possession of the Baghwana villages known as Kamal Khan. The 
 descent from the gap is by a gen tie slope on to the great plain of Bagh- 
 wana, which stretches away in a level flat to the northward. The general 
 surface is bare and treeless, but several villages and gardens are seen 
 along the hill skirts. We crossed the southern end of the plain over a 
 great extent of ploughed fields, the sides of which are banked to retain 
 water, and leaving a great patch of white saline efflorescence on the 
 right in fifty-five minutes arrived at Kamal Khan, and camped close to 
 the village, and hard by an irrigation stream brought from a spring two 
 or three miles off. The weather is cold and bleak, the sky is overcast 
 with clouds, and a strong north-east wind has prevailed all day. Though 
 / now seen in its winter aspect, and dreary enough it looks, the plain of 
 ' Baghwana in summer, we are assured, is one sheet of corn-fields ; its villages 
 are buried in the foliage of their fruit gardens, and the general surface 
 is covered with the camps of migratory Brahooees. Corn, fuel, fodder, 
 water, and other supplies are obtainable here in abundance, Baghwana is 
 one of the chief corn-growing districts of Beloochistan. 
 
 19M January 1872. Baghwaiia to Lakuryan, 26 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 24'45. 8 P.M. 2410. 7 A.M. 24'00. 
 Therm. 56 43 42. 
 
 Route north-west over fields of young corn, past some walled gardens 
 of pomegranate trees watered by a stream fringed with willows. We 
 followed this stream by a good path for fifty-five minutes, and then, 
 opposite the spring head from which it issues at the foot of a low ridg-e 
 of rock to the left, the site is marked by a clump of five or six date 
 palms, turned off to the right, and skirting some low hills by a rough 
 and stony path presently crossed a dry ravine, and descending a little 
 ' came upon the wide plateau or tablejand of Lohgai ; the village of the 
 same name was seen awayto the west and our path skirted a wide 
 stretch of corn-fields. There is no jungle here, but the surface is thinly 
 dotted with scattered bushes of the rhazzia stricta, withiana coac/ulans, 
 the camel's thorn (hedysarum alhagi) , and a coarse grass growing in 
 tufts. In summer the whole plateau is a sheet of pasture. From 
 Lohgai there is a road south-west to the Khappar lead mines near Feroz- 
 abad. Crossing this plateau, we passed through a gap in a low rocky 
 ridge running east and west, and entered on_a similar platea_u, the southern 
 portion of which is called Mughali and the northern Tutak, and beyond 
 this last came to Zawah in one hour and twenty-five minutes from the 
 spring-head of Baghwana. There is no village at Zawah, though there 
 is a good strip of cultivation on the plateau. The land is mostly 
 dependent on the rains for irrigation. But we found a small brackish 
 irrigation Rtroam here and the remains of a decayed Karez. And on a 
 low rocky ridge at the entrance to the defile by which we left Zawah 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 11 
 
 plateau are the ruins of an ancient town. The foundations are broad 
 and solid, and built of the stone of the hill, and the surface is strewed 
 with fragments of red pottery. 
 
 / Prom Zawah our route led through a narrow-winding' defile down 
 which is brought the irrigation stream above-mentioned. Beyond it, 
 passing over some very rough and rocky ground, we rose up to the crest 
 of a_Jow_jifige running north and south at once entered on the wide 
 plateau of Juvan. Its surface is covered with pasture and small patches 
 of cultivation are here and there seen. Traversing this plateau we crossed 
 a deep and narrow ravine near a cavern, the Duzdan Khond or " robber's 
 retreat," in its gravelly bank, and ascending a narrow and stony pass or 
 tang i, with hills on each side, passed on to the plateaiLjj? Lakuryan, and 
 crossing to its north-west end in three hours and twenty minutes from 
 Zawah reached a decayed Serai near a small spring of water and camped 
 between the two. The surface of this plateau is stony and spongy with 
 efflorescing salines. At its southern end are some patches of cultivation, 
 and along the borders of some of the fields we found a number of bell- 
 shaped pits for the storing of grain, &c. Shortly after leaving Zawah 
 we passed a Gaurband, and there is a very fine one on the Lakuryan. 
 plateau ; there are also remains of an ancient town of the same solid 
 build at the foot of the hills at the north end of the plateau. 
 
 With the exception of Lohgai we saw no villages or other perma- 
 nent habitations in this day's march, nor did we see a single camp, or 
 meet any natives of the country. 
 
 ^- The weather is cold, wintry and bleak, and heavy clouds have 
 darkened the air all day. Our camp, carried on Yabus and Afghan 
 donkeys, marched from Baghwana at 7-50 A.M., and did not arrive at 
 Lakuryan till 8-15 P.M. There are no supplies of any kind procurable 
 here, and the water is in very small quantity from a little spring in the 
 hill side. 
 
 20^ January 1872. Lakuryau to Surab, 20 miles. eit &njJi^ 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 23*85. 7 A.M. 23'90. 
 Therm. 49 23. 
 
 Route north-west across a stony and spongy plateau for thirty minutes, 
 then north through a rough and difficult little gftp in a low ridge of hills oi 
 to the An .lira pjajjpnn flip surface of which is wide and undulating. We 
 crossed this, and in one hour arrived at a small 'Serai situated at its north 
 end near a small spring issuing from a turfy bank. We halted here 
 a while to dry ourselves and allow the baggage to come up, for we had 
 set out from Lakuryan in a steady downpour of rain and sleet, because 
 a further delay there was impracticable owing to the utter absence of 
 supplies for man or beast. The Anjira gap we passed through is full 
 of the remains of some very solid and substantial Gaur bands, and close 
 by, at the foot of the hills to the right, are the remains of a town built in 
 the same solid and artistic manner. Most of the Gaur bands were built 
 across gaps on the ridge separating Lakuryan from Anjira. Some very 
 large ones, however, were built on the open ground a little in advance of 
 the ridge towards Lakuryan. From their appearance and position we con- 
 cluded that they had been built as^ works of defence. 
 
 Whilst at the Anjira Serai, the rain ceased and the sky cleared 
 for an hour or so, and exposed to our view the snow-covered range of 
 Harboi due north of our position. At the north-east end of the plateau 
 
12 
 
 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 we observed a small village, and on the plain near it were some shepherds 
 tending large flocks of goats and sheep. There is a good deal of culti- 
 vation on the plateau in scattered patches ; and the surface generally is 
 well covered with pasture herbs, with here and there small stretches 
 of brushwood jungle. The plants recognized were the pipli 
 poisonous to camels and cattle, the ritachk or caper spurge, the kisankur 
 or Syrian rue, the khardarnaw or wormwood, the riff Ait or salsola (lana), 
 the shenalo or camel-thorn, the kuroh or langar boj (withiana sp.) f 
 and the Panirband (withiana coagulans). Near the spring and along 
 the thready little stream led from it grew tufts of kasakun (lycopodion 
 sp.), and scattered all over the plain were little tufts of a coarse grass, 
 good pasture for cattle. Much of the Anjira table-land is covered with 
 saline efflorescence. "We observed several tombs scattered singly over 
 the surface and an extensive grave-yard. After a halt of two hours, 
 remounting our horses we proceeded north-west across a succession of low 
 ridges and intervening gullies, and presently entered on the plateau of 
 Khulk-na-khud. This is a wide plain covered with rich pasture, worm- 
 wood, camel's-thorn, salsola, &c., but no cultivation. On it we found 
 a weather-bound kafila of about eighty camels carrying wool from 
 Nooshky to Kurachee. The soil here is porous and spongy, but on the 
 ridges and gullies previously crossed the rocks are of different bright 
 colours, as red, green, blue, orange and fawn colour. In the gullies the 
 surface is strewed with fossil oysters, bivalves and other marine shells 
 similar to those seen in the Miloh pass. 
 
 We went north across the Khulk-na-khud plateau, and, passing 
 through a rough and rocky gap in the ridge separating it from the next 
 at once, entered on the Azakhel plateau. Near and in the gap itself we 
 noticed some very perfect die da pillars and chap circles. We have 
 observed numbers of the latter of these emblems of the Brahooee national 
 customs throughout the route from Peer Chhatta, but find them here more 
 perfectly constructed and more thickly grouped. Of the former we have 
 only seen two or three hitherto, and here we find half a dozen of 
 them. The cheda commemorates the death of a tribesman who has 
 died without issue, and it is the custom for his surviving relatives to 
 feast the clan to which he belonged on the first anniversary of his 
 demise, if possible in the vicinity of the monument, and for this purpose 
 the feast is generally given in the spring, when the tribes nn'o-ratp 
 from the lowlands to the highlands. *" 
 
 y The chap is a circle of stones laid flat in the ground with a central 
 one set upright and projecting above the surface. In some instances 
 the form is different. The surface of the circle is covered with stones 
 laid flat, the central upright one retaining its position, whilst from the 
 circumference a long straight line of flat laid stones projects some thirty 
 feet, and terminates in a stone set upright like the one in the centre of 
 the circle. The chap commemorates a wedding in the Brahooee clans, 
 and occupies the exact spot on which the reel accompanying 
 the ceremony was danced. The reel, from the attendant clapping of 
 hands, is here called chap, and corresponds with the ataur of the Afghans. 
 The form and general appearance of these commemorative emblems are 
 suggestive of the Hindoo combination of Ling am and Yuni. 
 
 Azakhel is a wide and undulating plain, on w r hich there are several 
 villages and a good deal of cultivation, but the general surface is .a rich 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 13 
 
 pasture tract. At this season it wears a very dreary and inhospitable / 
 aspect, a few wormwood and Syrian rue plants only appearing on its hard 
 stony surface. Our path skirted the hills bounding- it on the east, and 
 crossing- the lines of well shafts of two karez streams passed the shrine 
 of Lala Suleman-na-kher, surrounded by a heap of stones from the hills 
 around and ornamented with the horns of wild sheep and goats, and 
 then turned off to the left down to the village of Nighar, and a little 
 further on to Khan Gala' of Surab, where we found shelter from the 
 inclemency of the weather in some huts prepared for our reception. We 
 reached Khan Gala' in two hours and forty-five minutes from the Anjira 
 Serai. Our camp marched from Lakuryaii at 8-45 A. M. and reached 
 Khan Gala' at 7-30 P.M. The weather most of the time was most 
 unfavourable. A biting north-west wind, driving sleet and rain against 
 us and forming stiff icicles on our beards, proved most trying and quite 
 numbed the limbs of many of -our camp-followers. 
 
 y^ Surab is the most populous and fertile district we have seen since 
 crossing the British frontier. It is a collection of four or five villages 
 in the northern part of the Azakhel plateau, and is freely irrigated by 
 numerous streams from springs in the hills to the east. The other 
 villages of Azakhel are Ghijdegan and Dhand to the south. All are 
 surrounded by fruit gardens and corn-fields, and are freely watered from 
 springs and karez streams. 
 
 3 In the wood supplied as fuel here the following were recognized, 
 viz., hapurs or arbor vitce, khat or wild olive, harshin or wild almond, 
 koto-r or wild peach, and narom or periploca aphylla, the wood ashes of 
 which are added to snuff to increase its pungency. All these are brought 
 from the hills around. The plain is bare of brushwood. 
 
 %\st January 1872. Surab to Gandaghen, 13 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 23'60. 8 P.M. 23'87. 7 A.M. 23'66. 
 Therm. 44 16 10. 
 
 Route north over an undulating plateau with small patches of 
 cultivation at distant intervals. The general surface is spongy with 
 efflorescing salines, and covered with a thick growth of aromatic worm- 
 wood. At one hour from Khan Gala' Surab, we passed the village of 
 Hajika, close under the hills on the right, and entered on the pasture 
 tract of that name. It is continuous with the plateau already traversed, 
 and extends up to Gandaghen in gentle undulations. 
 
 Gandaghen is a small Serai on the bank of a brackish pool, which is 
 fed from a spring that issues from under a layer of conglomerate rock. We 
 reached it in one hour and thirty-five minutes from Hajika and camped 
 outside the Serai. Except Hajika no villages nor water were seen en route. 
 
 'Y* The weather is clear, with a sharp frosty air and keen north wind. 
 At daylight here (22nd January) the thermometer fell to 8 F. 
 22#d? January 1872. Gandaghen to Rodinjo, 15 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 23'09. 8 P.M. 23'11. 7 A.M. 23'21. 
 Therm. 64 42 22. 
 
 A clear star-light night and hard frost. Morning air intensely 
 cold owing to a keen and strong northerly wind. Our tent roofs were 
 frozen stiff as boards. Camp was not struck till half past ten o'clock, 
 
14 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 by which time the tents were somewhat thawed and the camp-followers 
 able to move their limbs. Route north by a well-trodden path over the 
 wide pasture tract of Mall. In one hour and twenty minutes reached 
 the .Daub camping- ground. There is a pool of water here, at the foot 
 of a low detached hillock. At one hour, further on, cross a pebbly ravine 
 bordering a low ridge of rocks, and then over undulating pasture land 
 for one hour up to Rodinjo. This is a flourishing village of about two 
 "hundred or so houses and is freely irrigated by numerous hill streams. 
 There is a commodious Serai here adjoining the village, and some fine 
 poplar and willow trees. 
 
 23>v/ January 1872. Rodinjo to Khelat, 13 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 23'02. 8 P.M. 23'09. 7 A.M. 23'05. 
 Therm. 44 26 14. 
 
 Route north over an undulating plain, with low hills on the east 
 and west, and about six or seven miles apart. No village or tree visible, 
 surface covered with wormwood ; small patches of cultivation at distant 
 intervals ; soil spongy and gravelly ; no water met with. In one hour 
 and fifteen minutes reached a ridge of white magnesian limestone, and 
 at its foot found a narrow well sunk in the rock and gravel. 
 ^ Mounting over the ridge we entered a narrow winding gully 
 between high gravelly banks, and presently rose to a gap from which we 
 looked down upon the valley of Khelat, and saw ihe^Miri or Palace at 
 the extremity of a ridge of bare rocky hill, which concealed the city 
 from our view. From this point we passed down a long narrow glen 
 of bare gravelly soil, and in fifty-five minutes arrived at the Miri, and 
 proceeding ten minutes more to the east of the city alighted at some 
 houses prepared for our reception in one of the suburban gardens. 
 
 At two miles from the city a cavalcade of about thirty-five or forty 
 horsemen, a_very ragged rabble of mixed races, came out for our istikbal 
 or welcome, headed by two members of the Khan's family, viz., Meer 
 Kurum and Meer Syud Mahomed Iltafzai. As we alighted at our 
 quarters a salute of eleven guns was fired from the fort. 
 
 In the afternoon we visited the Khan, Meer Khodadad, in his palace, 
 which occupies the highest part of the town. The approach is through 
 the bazar and up a steep ascent. The Mirins a confused mass of build- 7*- 
 ings crowded together and built on to one another. The approaches are 
 filthy and full of all sorts of refuse, and the entire precincts bear an air 
 
 | of neglect and decay. 
 
 ^3 Khelat is a fortified town, built at the extremity of a ridge of bare 
 rocky hill and on the plain at its foot. It contains about three thou- 
 sand five hundred houses and some good bazars. Weather clear, sharp 
 and cold ; the ground about Khelat was frozen hard all day, and snow 
 wreaths lay in the shelter of the walls, whilst a cutting north wind blew 
 down the valley with unmitigated severity. We found the shelter of our 
 garden house most acceptable. 
 
 24.^ January 1872. Halt at Khelat, 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 22'95. 8 P.M. 23'00. 7 A.M. 22-04. 
 Therm. 53 25~ 23. 
 
 . During the night the thermometer fell to 8 C F. 
 
 i In the afternoon the Khan of Khelat returned our visit. He was 
 accompanied by his son, Meer Mahomed, a boy of seven years, and by his 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 15 
 
 nephew (sister's son), Meer Kurum, a youth of twenty-three years. Meer 
 Khodadad Khan himself is about thirty-five years of age. His demean- 
 our to-day impressed me even more unfavourably than yesterday. He 
 has no deportment and seems wanting in common intelligence ; his con- 
 versation is trifling and he has a bad habit of staring vacantly with a 
 gaping mouth. His courtiers appear to be men of no weight or merit, 
 with the exception of his Wazeer, Wulee Mahomed, an astute old man 
 of seventy years. 
 
 / The valley of Khelat is populous and highly cultivated. There are 
 many villages and walled gardens clustered together in the valley east of 
 the town, the cultivation is rich, and water in abundance from numer- 
 ous springs in the adjacent hills and from a large clear stream that flows 
 on a pebbly bottom past the eastern side of the town. 
 
 The cultivation here, and the care of the fruit gardens, is almost 
 entirely in the hands of the Dihwars. They are a Persian-speaking 
 community and correspond to the Tajeeks of Afghanistan. Lucerne or 
 usp list is largely cultivated here as fodder for cattle. It yields five or six 
 crops in the year, and with careful irrigation and manuring may be made 
 to yield eifflit or ten. From Khozdar to Khelat, a distance reckoned by 
 our route at one hundred and three miles, the country presents a succes- 
 sion of plateaus or table-lands rising gradually one above the other, the 
 rise in the land for the whole distance being 2,850 feet. The mean of 
 six observations of the Aneroid Barometer at Khozdar was 25*59, giving 
 an approximate elevation of 3,850 feet. At Khelat the mean of six obser- 
 vations (in both places during forty-eight hours) was 23*05, giving an 
 approximate elevation of 6,700 feet. 
 
 The plateaus are in succession, those of Baghwana, Lohgai, Zawah, 
 Mughali, and Tutak, Jiwan, Lakuiyan, Anjira, Khulknakhud, Surab, with 
 Azakhel and Gandaghen, and Rodinjo. They liejaetween more or less ] y 
 pMi'11<j_rariP'fts of rocmivtams_ whose general course is from north to south, ' ^ 
 and are separated from each other by low ridges projecting east and~~west 
 from the bounding hills on either side. The surface generally is undu- 
 lating, and more or less thickly covered with wormwood, rue and salsola, 
 and, with the exception of Surab and Rodinjo, where there is a fixed 
 population in villages, is entirely pasture land, with here and there small 
 scattered patches of corn-fields dependent on the rains for irrigation. At 
 this season, the whole tract wears a wild, desolate and inhospitable look, 
 which is intensified by the bare rugged mountains, topped with snow 
 on their highest points that bound the view, whilst the climate is 
 bleak and rigorous owing to a keen north wind that blows over the open 
 ground with great force and blighting effect. 
 
 In summer, however, this picture is reversed. The dreary and 
 deserted pastures are then covered with a bright carpet of many coloured 
 flowers, and are alive with the camps of migratory Brahooees of the Min- 
 gul tribe, whose flocks and herds swarm upon the plain, or seek shelter 
 from the summer heats in the nooks and hollows of the mountains. 
 
 The country, except in the vicinity of villages, is singularly bare of if 
 trees, nor do the hills produce any timber. Water too is very scarce all 
 over the region. In these facts may be found the explanation of the 
 migratory habits of the Brahooees. 
 
16 RECORD OF THE tt^RCH OF 
 
 SECTION III. 
 From Khelat, the capital, to Shalkot, the frontier. 
 
 Z5th January 1872. Khelat to Mungachar, 26 miles. 
 
 Bar. 5 P.M. 2377. 8 P.M. 23'85. 7 A.M. 23'90. 
 Therm. 56 " 28 23. 
 
 Route north down the Khelat valley by a narrow path winding 
 amongst corn-fields and karez shafts as far as the Baba Wulee Shrine, near 
 a deep and wide ravine on our right. Here the cultivation ends, and the 
 path skirting low hills on the right lies along the pasture tract of 
 Banduki, and passing an opening on the right that leads to Girani on the 
 other side of the ridge, gently descends the stony moorland tract of 
 Mar j an, and then rises up to the Laghani Kotul, the foot of which we 
 reached in one hour and twenty minutes. The ascent is not steep, nor is 
 the pass high, but the path is very narrow, difficult and stony, and 
 the descent to the valley on the other side is down a long stony hill skirt. 
 The ascent and descent occupied one hour and thirty minutes. This is a 
 short and direct route to the Mungachar valley, but is impracticable for 
 troops without much previous preparation. Our camp followed the usual 
 route by Girani, which, though a few miles longer, is much easier. 
 
 2, From the top of the Laghani pass we got a very good and exten- 
 sive view. In the distant north the snowy mass of Chihltan overtopped 
 the mountains in that direction, whilst immediately below lay the wide 
 plain of Mungachar, the central parts of which are white as snow from 
 effloresced salines. 
 
 Our route from the foot of the pass skirted the Melah range on 
 our right for a few miles, and then, turning to the left in full view of 
 the Karchap mountain, bounding the valley on the south-west, struck 
 across the plain to the village of Mundi Hajee at the foot of the Bidiring 
 Hill. We arrived here in three hours from the foot of the pass, and, 
 owing to the inclemency of the weather, occupied some huts in the little 
 village of some twenty houses. The detour on the plain was made in 
 * order to avoid the flooded fields and karez streams in the direct route. 
 
 1 Mungachar is a wide valley with twelve or fourteen villages, the 
 principal of which are fortified, and a great extent of cultivation. But 
 there is an absence of fruit gardens and trees that gives it a bare and 
 poor look. The hills around are thinly coated with snow, and dotted 
 with arbor vitce and Cabul pistacia trees, the hapurs and gwan respectively 
 of the natives. 
 
 %Qth January 1872. Mungachar to Amanoollah, 26 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 23*96. 8 P.M. 24'00. 7 A.M. 24'00. 
 Therm. 58 28 23. 
 
 Route at first east and then round skirt of Bidiring Hill, due north 
 ^ up a moorland tract lying between the parallel ranges of Bidiring and 
 Buzi, the tops of which are tipped with snow. In two hours we reached 
 the water-shed of this tract, and in one hour more by a very gentle slope 
 reached a roadside ziyarat on the verge of the Khud Mastung plain, 
 and on it found some very fine horns of the wild goat and wild sheep. 
 The moorland tract we came over is long and straight, the surface of which 
 
 t-iyfot'* 
 
 c| *-* 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 17 
 
 is very stony and covered with pasture and shrubs, mostly of wormwood, 
 salsola, the skampastir or astragalus, &c. Route through Khud Mastung 
 or Lower Mastung by a good road over an alluvial plain passing the 
 Shawani cultivation, and the Goru cemetery on the left and right respec- 
 tively, and then over some undulating ground to the Karez Amanoollah, 
 where we camped in the hollows of some undulations of the surface as a 
 protection from the keen blasts of the north wind. It took us two hours 
 and forty-five minutes to reach the Karez Amanoollah from the Ziydrat 
 mounted on riding camels. 
 
 The Lower Mastung valley is continuous with that of Mastiing Pro- // 
 per, which is seen to be closed to the north by the Great Chihltan 
 mountain. It is bounded on either side by ranges of bare hills that 
 resemble those of Kuch Gundava. The surface is for the most part level 
 and traversed by some deep and wide ravines. The soil is poor and 
 spongy, and covered with some extensive patches of white saline efflores- 
 cence ; there is nevertheless a good deal of cultivation scattered over the 
 general surface, th^jfieWsbeing^banked_at the sides to retain the rain- 
 fall. Along the centre oFlhevaliey are a few widely-separajed villages, 
 and along the foot of the Chhuttok hills forming its western boundary 
 is a long succession of little hamlets. They all belong to the Shawani 
 Brabooees. To the eastward the valley is bounded by the Khatun Aca 
 range of hills in which are many little glens. The hills are bare and 
 weather- worn and tipped with snow. There is a scarcity of water in 
 Khud Mastung. We found none in all the route from Mungachar to 
 Karez Amanoollah, which is a good stream, but crossed the well shafts of 
 two Karez streams, opening on the surface away to the left of our path, 
 to the north of Goru. 
 
 Zltk January 1872. Amanoollah to Mastung, 9 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 24'00. 8 P.M. 24-04. 7 A.M. 23'95. 
 Therm. 49 40 36. 
 
 During the night the thermometer fell to 19 F. 
 
 Route north over the Khuskkdba cultivation of Amanoollah, a village 
 of fifty houses, a little way to the left of our route, then across the deep 
 banked Shoto Karez on to an undulating raviny tract of spongy saline 
 soil ; beyond this we entered amongst the corn-fields and walled gardens 
 of Mastung, and by a winding path across a succession of little irrigation 
 streams in one hour and fifty minutes reached the fort of Mastung, 
 where we found shelter in quarters prepared for us. In front of the fort 
 we were received with military honors by a small guard of infantry, and 
 a salute of eleven guns was fired as we entered. 
 
 Mastung is a fortified little town of about j^2QQ houses in the centre n 
 of a very fertile and populous little valley. It has a thriving bazar, 
 and the people, amongst whom are manyjVfghans, are well__cjothed and 
 look a prosperous community. The town is surrounded by walled gar- 
 dens and villages, which extend in unbroken succession for many miles 
 along the base of the Hamach and Kerrak hills on the east. The 
 ground is everywhere cultivated, and in some parts terraced and freely 
 irrigated by numerous kdrez streams and springs. 
 
 The gardens produce the apple, apricot, plum, cherry, quince, ^ 
 pomegranate, almond, a variety of grapes, the mulberry and the celeaguns, 
 
<X 
 
 18 HE COED OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 but neither the pear nor peach, both of which grow in the next valley 
 of Shal. The fields produce wheat, barley and maize, lucerne, madder 
 and tobacco, but not cotton. 
 
 Weather cheerless and wintry, sky dull and heavy with clouds, 
 almost obscuring- from view the great snowy mass of Chihltan, which 
 overlooks the valley from the north. 
 
 28M January 1872. Mastung to Sariab, 29 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 23'80. 8 P.M. 23'90. 7 A.M. 23'94. 
 Therm. 53 40 40. 
 
 A cold misty morning with a high north-east wind. Departure from 
 Mastung fort at 7-15 A.M. under a salute of eleven guns. 
 
 Route northerly by a winding road through a succession of walled 
 gardens, on to a wide surface of corn-fields, green with newly-sprouting 
 corn. Beyond this, over a sandy tract, in the midst of which, with a 
 strip of cultivation on each side, is the little village of Isa Khan (to the 
 west of it lay the prosperous and large village of Tin, and to the east 
 that of Pringabad, each with its surrounding gardens and cultivation) . 
 Further on, after passing through a driving storm of sand, which beat 
 against our chilled faces with great force, and proved most trying to the 
 eyes, we crossed the Mobi rivulet, a little below the village of Khushrud 
 (the Mobi stream flows in a deep and winding ravine to Tiri and the lands 
 beyond), and entered on a rough raviny hill skirt, the surface of which 
 was covered with snow wreaths drifted into wavy lines by the wind. 
 
 Our path led over this tract, and by a gradual ascent in three hours 
 and fifteen minutes brought us to the entrance to the Neshpa pass, over 
 the ridge passing between Chihltan and the Zindan hill. This ridge is 
 called Tosrhaghi and closes the Mastung valley towards the north. 
 There is a steep lak or pass over it, a little to ihe east of the Neshpa 
 pass. It is called Kandi Mastung and conducts to the Dashti bedaulat, 
 and thence to Marao and Ispalinji. It is only practicable to footmen. 
 
 Our route through the Neshpa pass was by a gradual rise, at first 
 over very rough ground, and then by a good road (made, we were told, 
 by the British army in 1 839-40) up to its crest, which we reached in one 
 hour. The pass is very narrow, but winds little. On the left or west 
 is the immense mass of Chihltan towering aloft in vast heaps of snow, 
 and on the right or east is a lower range, also snow covered. At the 
 crest of the pass the Aneroid barometer fell to 23'67 giving the approxi- 
 mate elevation at 6,000 feet. Our passage up the pass was in the face 
 of a strong north-east wind driving hail and sleet in our faces nearly 
 the whole way. 
 
 From the crest the road turns to the right east by north down the hill 
 
 skirt, the descent is gradual, and the surface very rough and stony. To 
 
 . the left, as we descend, is an extensive hill skirt called Hazar Gwanji, 
 
 from a forest of Gwan or Khinjak (pistacia cabulica) trees growing on it. 
 
 At the foot of the descent is the verge of the great Dashti bedaulat. 
 
 Our road skirts it to the small strip of cultivation, called Matora, 
 
 at the foot of the Koh Landi (a bare range of hills that limits the Dasht 
 
 to the north, and intervenes between us and the route from Sari Bholan 
 
 ff to Sariab), and then turning to the north crosses the moorland tract. 
 
 fringed to the left by the Hazar Gwanji forest, and leads down to the 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 19 
 
 valley of Shtil, which we enter at Sariab after crossing the Lora rivulet, 
 near its sources in Chihltan. We reached Sariab in two hours and fifteen 
 minutes from the crest of the pass, and found shelter from the incle- 
 mency of the weather in a small Serai, a few hundred yards from the 
 Lora. 
 
 29M January 1872. Sariab to Shalkot, 13 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 23'92, 8 P.M. 23'95. 7 A,M. 24'00. 
 Therm. 56 48 32. 
 
 Route south-east to east and then north by a circuit of the southern 
 end of the valley, and then along the skirt of the Murdar range, 
 bounding it on the east up to the fort of Shal, in which quarters had 
 been prepared for us. Time on the march, two hours and forty-five 
 minutes. 
 
 In this detour we crossed the Lora at the same spot as yesterday, 
 the stream being impassable lower down its course owing to .the swamps 
 and bogs on each side of it. 
 
 The valley of Shal is very populous and highly cultivated, the fields 
 being irrigated from numerous kd/rez streams. The soil, however, is very 
 strongly impregnated with salines. 
 
 The fort, Kwatta as it is called by the Afghans, occupies the 
 summit of an artificial mound and wears an appearance of decay. 
 Around it lies the town of Shal, enclosed by fortified walls. It is about 
 the same size as Mastung. The garrison of the fort consists of one 
 hundred infantry, mostly Afghans, and about forty horsemen ; there are 
 also a few artillerymen who take care of the single gun here. 
 
 Just now the valley wears a very bare and wintry aspect, but in 
 summer it must be a charming place, when all the fruit gardens, &c., are 
 in full foliage and the climate tempered by cool breezes from the hills 
 around. To the north are the Tokatii and Zarghiin mountains occupied 
 by independent Kakars of the Domar tribe. They are very savage and 
 most of them live in caves. To the south are Chihltan and Koh Landi. 
 To the east, the Murdar range with its great Siyahpusht ridge. To the 
 west, the valley expands into a wide plain which is continuous with that 
 of Shorawak between the hills of Ghizaband and Muchilagh to the 
 west, and is separated from the Dulay valley to the south-west by the 
 Karassa range from Chihltan. 
 
 30M January 1872. Shal to Cushlac, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 24*35. 8 P.M. 24'40. 7 A.M. 24' 50. 
 Therm. 22 23 18. 
 
 Four or five inches of snow fell during the night and continued 
 falling as we quitted the fort at 9-10 A.M. under a salute of 11 guns as 
 on our arrival. Snow continued to fall with but slight intermission 
 throughout the day and at nightfall set in heavily. 
 
 Route north over cultivated land, intersected by numerous irrigation 
 cuts, to Kiroghar, at the foot of the Tokatii mountain, in one hour and 
 fifty minutes. Kiroghar is a straggling village of one hundred and 
 twenty houses of the Banzai Kakars, who have small colonies along the 
 hill skirts on the north and east boundaries of the Shal valley. They are 
 estimated at five thousand families, and, though settled here during the 
 
20 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 past five generations, were only last year made subject to the Khan of 
 Khelat. With the Domar tribe on the other side of Tokatu and 011 
 Zarghum, they are considered the most savage and warlike sections of 
 the great Kakar tribe, whose communities occupy the mountain tract 
 from this up to the Wuzeeree hills. Until recently, these Banzais used to 
 harry the roads between Shal and Mastung, and plunder kafilas in the 
 Neshpa pass. Several of the houses in Kiroghar were adorned with very 
 fine specimens of the mdrJchor horns stuck upright over the doorway. 
 
 From this village our path turned west by north along the rough 
 and rocky skirt of Tokatu, and gradually veering to the north round a 
 projection from the mountain in thirty minutes brought us to a clump of 
 trees at the spring head of a strong stream which flows towards Shal. 
 We crossed it near the spring head. At this spot we were met by the 
 Afghan Commissioner, Syud Noor Mahomed Shah, and a troop of 
 Afghan cavalry as escort. We were surprized at the superior equipment 
 and serviceable appearance of the Afghans, a complete contrast to the ill- 
 equipped rabble of our Khelat escort. The Afghans are excellently 
 mounted, armed with carbine and sabre, and well dressed (in blue uni- 
 forms with top-boots and scarlet busbies), whilst the men are very fine, 
 powerful and active fellows. Dismissing our Khelat escort we proceeded 
 with our Afghan friends up a stony slope to a gap in the ridge projecting 
 west from Tokatu and separating Shal from Cushlac, and in forty-five 
 minutes surmounted its crest. The gap is called Murghi-tangi and is 
 very narrow and stony, though the ascent is gradual. It is the short 
 road to Cushlac ; the ordinary route lies a little further to the west by 
 Ispangli, round the end of the Murghi ridge, and follows the hill skirt, in 
 order to avoid the deep and water-logged soil of the plain. 
 
 From the Murghi-tangi we made a sudden and steep descent into a 
 narrow glen, from which we passed on to the valley of Cushlac. The 
 path skirted the hills on our right and crossed kdrez streams and two 
 good springs at the foot of the hills. In one hour and fifty minutes we 
 crossed the Lora rivulet, where it flows in a deep narrow channel, and in 
 fifty minutes more reached the camp of our Afghan escort, close to the 
 Shahjahan village, which is one of four or five, which are collectively 
 called Cushlac. The Lora rivulet marks the limit in this direction 
 between the Afghan and Beloochistan territories. The Cushlac Lora joins 
 the Shal Lora some miles to the south-west, and their united streams fur- 
 ther on join the Peshin Lora, which then turning north-west flows 
 through Shorawak, and is lost in the sandy desert, extending thence to 
 the Gurmsel of the Helmund. 
 
 Owing to the snow mists and heaviness of the ground, our baggage 
 did not arrive in camp till 6 P.M. A couple of hours later snow ceased 
 to fall, a strong north-east wind then dispersed- the clouds and a hard 
 frost set in. 
 
 3lst January 1872. Halt at Cushlac, weather-bound. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 24'50. 8 P.M. 24'45. 7 A.M. 24'47. 
 
 Therm. 22 17 11. 
 
 The night was extremely cold and a keen north-east wind blew 
 during the forenoon. In the afternoon snow again set in. The outer 
 roofs of our tents were frozen hard, and large icicles, three feet long, hang 
 from the sides. 
 
Till. MISSION TO SE1STAN. 21 
 
 Our route from Khelat to the frontier has been through the most 
 populous and fertile portion of the country, and has traversed a succession 
 of little valleys gradually descending toth^norbWard. The fall in the 
 land from Khelat to Shal is, according^EcTthe indications of the Aneroid, 
 about 1,100 feet in a distance of one hundred miles, the altitude of Shal 
 being 1 estimated at 5,600 feet. 
 
 At this season the country bears a very bleak and inhospitable 
 character, and its climate is rigorous. In spring and summer, however, 
 when the fruit gardens and corn-fields are in full foliage, it must be a 
 charming country, the climate being described as salubrious and temperate. 
 The mountains, except Chihltan and those to the north of Shal (Tokatu 
 and Zarghiin), are almost entirely bare of vegetation, and timber trees 
 are altogether absent. On Chihltan, &c., there are no fir trees, but only 
 a sparse growth of mulberry, fig, arbor vitce and the gwan (pistacia 
 cabulica], called khinjak by the Afghans, and sometimes by the name of 
 its berry, shuah. 
 
 The soil of the valleys, though generally cultivated, is more or less 
 impregnated with salines, and in many parts great patches of white 
 efflorescence cover the surface. In rainy weather these tracts become 
 deep in mud and difficult to cross. 
 
 The valleys from Khelat to the frontier are Mungachar, Mastung and 
 Shal. In them the population is fixed in villages. The three valleys, it 
 is said, can muster between five and six thousand fighting men. I 
 believe this is below the real fact. 
 
 EOUTE THROUGH AFGHANISTAN. 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 From Lora Cushlac to Candahar city. 
 \st February 1872. Cushlac to Hykalzai, 18 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 2474. 8 P.M. 2475. 7 A.M. 2470. 
 Therm. 42 22 34. 
 During the night the thermometer sunk to 10 F. 
 
 Route north for thirty-five minutes over an undulating surface covered 
 with snow, trn surface of which was frozen hard, so that our horses'' 
 hoofs did not sink in it ; then by a narrow and slippery path, through 
 a gap in some low ridges of red clay, on to the Peshm valley, which 
 stretches away before us-to the north-west as a great open plain of undu- 
 lating surface. 
 
 The gap or pass is called Surmaghzi Tangi. Its soil is a greasy 
 reddish yellow clay, and but for the hard frost prevailing would have 
 proved very slippery. 
 
 From the top of this pass we got a very extensive view of the surround- 
 ing country and its mountain ranges. Directly behind_us rose the north 
 face of Tokatu, and beyond it far away to the south stood the tower- ^i 
 ing mass of Chihltan. West of this appeared the high snowy range of 
 Mushilagh, and north of it stretched the great range of x/ Khwaia Amran. * 
 running north-east to the Sufed Koh of Jalalabad and Nangrihar, with 
 
22 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 \vhich it unites. Towards the south this range sends off several spurs, 
 the chief of them from west to east, as pointed out to us, are Khojak, 
 Aranbi, Tobah (over which is the Dagai Sehu pass to Zhob of the 
 Batezai Kakars), and Surkhab. This last closes the Peshin valley to the 
 north-east, and running 1 south from it to Tokatii is a low range which 
 closes the valley to the east. Over this range passes the road (used by 
 camels) from Peshin to Thai Chhotiali. All these spurs start off from 
 prominent mountains and are at this time with the valley itself covered 
 with snow. 
 
 The Surkhab mountain, described as very populous, gives rise to 
 the Peshin Lora, and from its height conceals from view the prolonga- 
 tion north-east of the Khwaja Amran range. I may here state, 
 however, that after crossing the Khojak we saw the continuation of the 
 range, as will be noticed hereafter. J" i$? 
 
 From the Surmaghzi Tangi we descended, by a narrow slippery 
 path, into a hollow between low banks of reddish clay, here and there 
 showing from under the snow, and winding along this, for some time 
 emerged on an undulating tract, close to a large kdrez stream, fringed for 
 short distance with some large willow trees called here padda (saliv 
 babylonica). Following this stream we presently came to the little 
 village of Hydarzai, situated in a small hollow overhung by clay cliffs, 
 in one hour and thirty-five minutes from the pass. Beyond this, round- 
 ing a stony ridge, where are a couple of kkinjak trees the trunks of 
 which are studded with iron nails and wooden pegs driven in by pilgrims 
 suffering from toothache or other ailment, we in twenty-five minutes 
 more crossed the Karez Yar Mahomed, a little way from the hamlet 
 of the same name, and halted for an hour near a large cattle pond, 
 to allow the baggage to come up. Both Hydarzai and this hamlet are 
 inhabited by Syuds^ 
 
 Further on, crossing a succession of low clay banks, and then the 
 Surkhab rivulet, we entered on a plain country, and in two hours and 
 fifty-five minutes reached our camping ground near the ruins of a village 
 midway between Hykabzai and Khwaezai or Khudaedadzai. These 
 villages are about half a mile apart, and each contain about 180 houses. 
 The approach to them is over cultivated land intersected by small water- 
 cuts, and very heavy from the soft and boggy nature of the soil. 
 
 To the north of our position are seen the following villages from 
 east to west, viz., SraCala' or the "red fort" (in ruins), old and new bazar 
 of Surkhab, Alizai, Semzai and Pitao. This last is a collection of five 
 villages at the foot of the Aranbi hills ; they are entirely occupied by 
 - Syud families. The others are occupied by the Tor Tarin tribe, who 
 nold three-fourths of the whole valley. Many of them lead a nomadic 
 life, and the whole surface of the plain is dotted with small clusters of 
 their black hair tents or kijdi, which show prominently on the snow- 
 covered ground. 'y* ^ 
 
 I The Tarin tribe is a powerful and important one. It consists of four 
 main divisions, viz., the Tor Tarin settled in Peshin and the Arghasan 
 district south of the river Tarnak, the Spin Tarin occupying Sur- 
 khab and the hills to the north-east, the Zard Tarin or Zarin located in 
 the Zhob valley and part of Arghasan, and the Abdalli or Doorran.ee, 
 who hold Candahar and the districts around. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 
 
 The air all day has been very keen. On the march most of 
 us suffered in the hands and feet from the cold. Icicles formed repeat- 
 edly on our beards and moustaches and formed long pendants from the 
 necks of the camels. 
 
 %tid February. Hykabzai to Aranbi Kurez, 15 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 24'51. 8 P.M. 24'52. 7 A.M. 24'59. 
 Therm. 44 32 32. 
 
 Route north-west across the plain to Aranbi Karez. Time four hours 
 and ten minutes. Snow fell on us throughout the march, and the j 
 distant view was observed by low-lying clouds and mist. About midway 
 we crossed the Lora rivulet ; the stream is about ten yards wide and two 
 feet deep; it flows on a soft and muddy bottom and abounds in quick 
 sands. The stream winds along in a wide and deep ravine with perpen- 
 dicular banks of hard clay ; the descent and ascent are by a number of 
 steep and narrow tracks slanting on each bank. We found them 
 very slippery and difficult. Many of our escort and laden cattle fell 
 in the passage of this rivulet. The smooth shoes of our horses made 
 the passage over the frozen surface difficult and hazardous ; they were 
 constantly slipping and sliding on the snow. 
 
 The general surface of the plain is covered with Tamarisk bushes, 
 the camel's thorn and artemisia, with small patches of cultivation at 
 distant intervals. The soil is everywhere highly impregnated with 
 salines, and between Aranbi Karez and Sra Gala' are many salt pits for 
 the preparation of alimentary salt. After crossing the Lora, our route 
 diverged to the right, in order to avoid a tract of very heavy land 
 saturated with water, and led over a stony hill shirt, and across the entrance 
 to the Toba glen, occupied by Achakzais and then curved round to the 
 two hamlets of Sherdil Cala' and Aranbi beyond them. Near our camp 
 are the villages of Utmankhel, Torkhel and Maijai, all belonging to the 
 TorJTarms. On the march we passed many clusters of kijdt, from two 
 fo seven or eight in each, and dismounting, examined "some of them. 
 They afford perfect protection from the weather, are warm and roomy, and 
 besides the family, afford shelter to camels, cattle and poultry, and 
 accommodate sacks of grain, fodder and other stores. They are formed 
 of strong and close-woven sheets of coarse goat's hair, supported on thin 
 poles and props, and a fire burns in a pit in the centre. 
 
 The Peshin valley is very populous, and notwithstanding its saline, 
 soil is described as very fertile. A fourth part of the whole valley is in f. 
 the possession of Syuds who have been settled here from ancient times. ' 
 They are mostly engaged in trade with India and enjoy the reputation 
 of being wealthy. They possess large herds of camels and monopolize 1 
 the horse trade with India, at least, as regards Afghanistan. 
 
 The valley is drained by the Surkhab and Lora streams, which 
 unite below Shadizai, one of the principal Syud villages. Further on 
 to the south-west, the stream receives the Cushlac and Shal combined 
 Loras, and then turns west through Shorawak into the sandy desert of ~~ 
 Nooshky, on which it is lost in the soil. There are no trees seen on the 
 plain and very few around the villages. The salt manufactured in d lb, 
 Peshin is taken to the Kandahar market, and sells there at from Rupees 
 1-8 to Rupees 2 the man of 80 Ibs. 
 
24 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 3rd February. Aranbi to Churga, Khojak, 13 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 22'82. 8 P.M. 22'81. 7 A.M. 22'84. 
 
 Therm. 49 34 38. 
 
 Route north-west over very heavy ground, cultivated fields, for thirty 
 five minutes, then turned to the right on to a stony tract at the 
 foot of low ridges projecting into the plain from the Toba spur. Our 
 path followed the hill skirt for a while and then turned to the north, 
 and crossing in succession the Melan and Machuka glens, coming down 
 from the Toba hiljs on the east, entered the Khojakdarra, a long and 
 narrow glen winding up to the foot of the Khojak pass, where there is a 
 good spring. This pass is called Churga or the ' ' little gully." We reached 
 it in four hours and twenty minutes from Aranbi Karez, and camped on 
 the deep snow at its entrance. The hill above Churga is called Puras ; 
 there are three paths over it, all very steep and difficult at the best of 
 times, but now impassable. 
 
 The Khojakdarra is thickly wooded with khmjak trees, with which 
 also the hill slopes are studded. It is bounded on either side by a low 
 ridge of dark schistose rock, disintegrated on the surface ; on the crest 
 of each ridge we noticed some graveyards, and on the slopes were small 
 patches of ploughed land. 
 
 We set out from Aranbi in a thick fall of snow. After an hour or 
 so it ceased, the clouds cleared and towards midday the sun shone out 
 hotly. As we approached the entrance to the Khojakdarra, we got a 
 good view of the flourishing village of Abdoolla Khan, at the mouth of 
 the Dihsuri glen away to the westward. It contains about 400 houses 
 and is surrounded by fruit gardens. During the British occupation it 
 was held by Captain Bosanquet with a detachment of Bombay troops. 
 It is the capital of the Achakzais settled on this border of the Peshin 
 valley. 
 
 At the entrance to the Khojakdarra are two branch glens that join 
 it from opposite sides. That on the east is called Sauzali and that on 
 the west Shamsikhan. There are several small springs in these glens, 
 and we saw many camps of the kijdinishin Achakzais scattered about 
 in the nooks of the hills. In summer these hills are covered with excel- 
 lent pasture and enjoy a very delightful climate. They are then resorted 
 to by the nomads whose tents we have seen on the plain. 
 
 Between Aranbi and Churga we met no water on the line of march, 
 and were told that there is none, except in small springs amongst the 
 hills off the line of road. During the latter part of the inarch the 
 glare from the snow under a bright sun was almost insupportable and 
 produced severe headache and pain in the eyes. 
 
 In the afternoon a large party of Achakzais were sent forward to 
 clear the pass of snow drifts and make a road for us, and meanwhile 
 our party, about three hundred and fifty strong, with nearly as many 
 camels and cattle, are camped on the snow which is from two feet to 
 thirty inches deep. 
 
 ^tJi Fberuary. Churga to Chaman Choki, 7 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 24'00. 8 P.M. 24-10. 7 A.M. 24*05. 
 Therm. 46 38 38. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN- 25 
 
 Weather very inclement with storms of snow ; sleet and rain in 
 succession all day. Camp struck early and baggage sent ahead at 7 A.M., 
 we following at 11 A.M. 
 
 Route north by west up a very narrow and deep gully down which / 
 flows a little rill of clear water, here and there appearing from under the 
 snow. The path very steep and winding over snow and rocks of brown 
 friable slate. In thirty-three minutes we reached the summit of the hill 
 which was enveloped in a thick mist that completely obscured the pros- 
 pect beyond a few yards around. The Aneroid here fell to 22*47, giving 
 an elevation of 400 feet above Churga and 2,400 feet above Aranbi, 
 and an approximate elevation of 7,400 feet above the sea. 
 
 The descent was by a very steep path, sometimes over the slaty soil, 
 and sometimes over trodden snow ; owing to the steepness and slipperiness 
 of the path we dismounted and walked down. In seventeen minutes we 
 reached the foot of the descent where it joins the slope of a long and 
 gradually expanding glen called Chaokah. Here the Aneroid rose to 
 23-15, giving a descent of 800 feet from the summit. The glen slopes 
 rapidly to the north and soon loses the covering of snow ; down its centre 
 is a wide though shallow ravine cut through loose schist and slate. The 
 whole glen is studded with khinjak trees which in full foliage must 
 look like a forest, and the general surface is covered with a sprinkling 
 of the Jrelga and Karkana, the barberry and Zizyp/ms, and a general 
 growth of the Zamai (Sucada fruticosa}, TarkJia (Artemisia Indica), 
 Gord (AcantJms Sp ?) and other plants. There is no water in this glen, 
 except in a nook off the road to the right, near the foot of the descent. 
 Beyond the glen we passed by an easy road, gently sloping between a 
 succession of round-topped hillocks, down to Chaman Choki, a little 
 hollow of green turf near a good spring of water. There is no habi- 
 tation here, nor is there any in the vicinity. To the north spreads 
 before us the great plain of Kandahar, traversed from north-east to 
 south-west by broken, irregular and isolated ridges of rocky hills. 
 At Chaman Choki the Aneroid rose to 24'00, giving a descent of 1,800 
 feet from the summit of the Khojak pass, and of 1,000 feet from Chaokah. 
 We reached Chaman Choki in fifty-five minutes from Chaokah. 
 
 The rhubarb plant grows in great abundance on these hills. It is 
 here called pashai ; the dried stalks are called irae, and are prepared by 
 covering the plant as it grows with heated stones and earth! The hills 
 on this side of the Khojak are the summer resort of the Ashezai 
 Achakzais, who are now camped with their camels and flocks and herds 
 on the skirts of the great sandy desert of Beloochistan and Seistan, the 
 border cliffs of which rise against the horizon far away to the west. 
 Towards the south and east the view is obstructed by projections from 
 the Khwaja Amran range. Properly this name only applies to the 
 south-west end of the range where is the shrine of I^bwaja Amran. 
 From this towards the north-east, as far as Toba peak, are the following 
 three passes over the range, viz., the Ghwaje or Ghwajadarra, an easy 
 defile and the one mostly used by kafilas ; the Roghani Kotal, and the 
 Khojak Kotal, both steep and difficult, and little used by kafilas. The 
 Khojak was the pass by which the British Army crossed this range. 
 The engineers, we were told, had made two good roads near the one we 
 followed, but they were now buried under deep snow drifts and were 
 impracticable. 
 
 d 
 
26 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 bth February. ~- Chaman Choki to Gatai, 22 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 25'45. 8 P.M. 25'49. 7 A.M. 25'50. 
 
 Therm. 50 36 32. 
 
 Route north by west down a gentle slope on to a vast plain, covered 
 with excellent pasture just commencing' to sprout, and dotted at inter- 
 vals by the kijdi of the Ashezai and Adozai Aehakzais. The surface 
 of the plain undulates gently and is traversed from north-east to south- 
 west by a number of shallow water runs. Soil firm and slaty grit. 
 Little if any cultivation and no water. In three hours and forty 
 minutes we reached the Buldak hill, an isolated rocky ridge on the 
 plain, forming the boundary between the Nurzais and Achakzais. From 
 this point we got a very good view of the whole Khojak range, extend- 
 ing from north-east to south-west, in which latter direction it terminates 
 on the plain of Shorawak. This end of the range and the country 
 adjoining is occupied by the Barechi Afghans, who, like the Syuds 
 / of Peshin, are mostly__en^a^dnnjtrade__withjjidia. To the north-east 
 it rises into a great mountain called Narin ; east of it is the Tobah valley, 
 bounded on the south by the hill of the same name, not visible from this 
 point ; east of the Toba valley is the Zhob valley and hill. The drain- 
 age of both these valleys passes by Thai Chhotiali to the Nari river of 
 Kuch Gundava. Further to the north-east, beyond Narin, the range 
 , rises into another high mountain called Ma'riif and nearly due south of 
 ^ Khelat-i-Ghilzi : and beyond this again to the north-east is another high 
 mountain called Samai, occupied by the Hotak Ghilzais, whose tribe 
 extend all along the continuation of the range right up to Cabul and 
 Sufed Koh. Samai is described as a very fertile and populous mountain, 
 abounding in springs and rich pastures, in reference to which, after the 
 disappearence of the winter snows, there is a popular couplet Chi Samai 
 tor shi, no ghivaye mor wi ; " when Samai becomes black, then the 
 cattle will be fat." 
 
 The Narin hill is the source of the Kadani river, which flows across 
 the plain to our front in a south-west direction as far as the sand cliffs 
 of the Seistan desert. It then bends round to the north under the name 
 of Dori and joins the Arghasan river near Dih Hajee. 
 
 From Buldak our route was north-north-west, across the Kadani 
 7 lands of the Nurzais, a ffreat plain extending east and west and 
 drained by the Kadani rivulet, a small and shallow stream which we 
 crossed at a short distance from Buldak, up to a gap in an isolated ridge 
 of granite hills called Gatai. Time two hours and five minutes. On 
 the plain, a little to the north of Buldak hill, is a well said to be 
 150 feet down to the water, and there are others on the plain, all 
 equally deep. 
 
 V There are several villages on the Kadani plain, all dome-roofed, and 
 many little Nurzai camps of blackjHffi/. The land is extensively culti- 
 vated and intersected by numerouslittle irrigation cuts ; most of it however 
 is pasture. Near Buldak are the ruins of a small fort built by Khamdil 
 Khan to coerce the Achakzais. 
 
 Our camp at Gatai is on a patch of green turf at the foot of the rock, 
 and the soil all around is saturated with moisture. On the north side 
 ^ of the ridge are a number of small springs which only made their 
 appearance above the surface three years ago. They are led off into a num- 
 ber of small cuts and now irrigate a wide stretch of cultivation. Formerly 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 
 
 the route to Kandahar was by the Daud Gulai road. This is the name of 
 a camping* ground at the foot of a hill similar to Gatai and six or seven 
 miles to its south-west. It was pointed out to us on the march. It is 
 not now used as a camping ground owing to its water having disappeared. 
 
 Weather cloudy with occasional showers of hail and rain during the 
 afternoon. Forenoon sunny, with a clear sky and mild air. 
 
 6th February. Gatai to* Mel Mandah, 14 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 25'29. 8 P.M. 25'34. 7 A.M. 25'45. 
 Therm. 47 30 15. 
 
 Koute north-north-west at first, through gap in the ridge of Gatai, across 
 a well-irrigated tract of cultivation, then in the face of a keen and wither- 
 ing north wind, over a level plain of good pasture land up to the foot 
 of the Mel Mandah ridge of hills. Time three hours and five minutes. 
 On the right of the road at the foot of the rise to the ridge is a small 
 spring; around it is some boggy turf bordered by some white saline 
 encrustation. 
 
 Beyond this we rose by a stony path on to a succession of undulating 
 pasture downs, backed in a broken line from north-east to south-west by 
 detached hills of bare and rugged rock, and turning north-west, in one 
 hour camped near a kdrez on the north side of Mel Mandah and about 
 a mile west of Hardo hill. The last mile or so of our route was down the 
 bed of the now dry Mel Mandah ravine which is a gradually widening 
 pebbly channel conveying the drainage of these hills to the Kadani river. 
 
 At about eight miles to the west of the first part of the march 
 appeared the isolated hill at the foot of which is the Hauz Ahmed camp- 
 ing ground, and beyond it far away to the west by south rose the cliffs of 
 the sandy desert of Seistan. The Mel Mandah ridge separates the Kadani 
 plain from that of Mulhid and Arghasan. En route we saw no village 
 nor camp, nor any signs of cultivation except at Gatai itself. Nor did 
 we see any water, except the little spring mentioned above. 
 
 1th February. Mel Mandah to Makukarez, 18 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 25'90. 8 P.M. 25.91. 7 A.M. 25'94. 
 Therm. 50 33 34. 
 
 Route north-west over the undulating pasture tract of Mulhid north of 
 the Hardo hill, on which are said to be the ruins of an ancient city and 
 reservoirs for water excavated in the rock, up by a gradual ascent, to the 
 summit of the Barghana pass. Time two hours and seventeen minutes. 
 The Aneroid here stood at 25 '38, giving an approximate elevation of 
 4,100 feet above the sea, and of 620 feet above our camp at Mel Mandah 
 the ravine or " run " of Mel apparently the abbreviated form of Mulhid, 
 the name of the hill, ridge and plain drained by it. 
 
 From the Barghana pass we got a very good and extensive view of 
 the country. Away to the south portions of the snowy range of Khojak * 
 were seen through a gap in the scattered ridges traversing the intervening ^ 
 plain from north-east to south-west. In the distant east, the snowy top ' 
 of Samai was seen against the sky, and north-east of the snowy top of 
 Surghar or " Red hill." Both are projections from the great Khwaia 
 Arrmm or Khojak range, which, setting out from the west end of tnV 
 Sufed K oh, courses south-west and terminates on the Shordwak plain, and 
 forms the watershed between the drainage of the Indus and Helmund. 
 
28 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Surghar and Samai are the sources of the Arghasan river to the 
 west. The drainage of their eastern slopes, as also that of the eastern 
 slopes of the Zhob mountain, flows to the Gowal river. A great snowy 
 spur is seen to project south-east from Samai to the Zhob mountain. 
 It separates the Zhob and Bori valleys and forms the watershed between 
 them. All the drainage to the north-east flows to the Gowal river, and 
 all to the south-east by the streams of Zao and Sibi to the Kari river of 
 .Kuch Gundava. 
 
 To t^ie south, Samai is connected by a lesser range with the Nariu 
 and Toha mountains. The drainage from these ranges flows eastward 
 to the Nari and westward to the Kadani rivers, and towards its southern 
 end are the Daghae Sehu or Sehu Daghuna, the tablelands of the Sehu 
 Kakars which drain to the Kadani ; north-east of the Sehu Daghuna is 
 the Zhob district. 
 
 Immediately below us lies the Mulhid plain just crossed by us. 
 It stretches away in a wide expanse of gently undulating pasture 
 land gi-ariully rising to the north-east, in which direction it ends in 
 a crest or low ridge, beyond which the land drops abruptly to the valley 
 of the Arghasan which is mostly concealed from view by the hills of the 
 Barghana ridge, just as the Kadani plain crossed yesterday is now con- 
 cealed from our view by the intervening Mulhid ridge left behind us. 
 All the prospect to the north and south is obstructed by hills of this Bar- 
 ghana range, but through a gap between them to the south-west are seen 
 the red sandy cliffs of the desert bounding Shorawak on the north. 
 The nomads of Kandahar are said to be there in great force during the 
 winter months, with their camels and flocks, for the pastures on the 
 borders of the desert. In Shorawak are the Barech Afghans, to the 
 number of four thousand families. They possess numbers of camels, the 
 best for burthen in this country, and are rich in sheep and goats. 
 
 From the Barghana pass the road goes down over stony ground 
 to the Barghana Mandah, a wide pebbly ravine coursing through a wind- 
 ing defile in which are several pools of good water and scattered patches 
 of Tamarisk, and thick clumps of reed grass, here called darga and at 
 Peshawur durma (Arundo Danax). The descent through the Barghana 
 defile is easy and gradual, and conducts on to the open plain of the same 
 names, and on which, at a distance of about four miles, is the Maku 
 village consisting of 120 domed huts. We reached it in two hours and 
 twenty-five minutes from the pass, and camped on a good and plentiful 
 kdrez stream hard by. About four miles to the west of our camp is the 
 Tangi ridge of hills, on the further side of which is the old road between 
 Peshin and Kandahar by the Fathullah camping ground. Up to Maku 
 we saw no village nor cultivation en route and but few nomad camps. 
 The whole country on this side of Khojak is absolutely bare of trees ; we 
 have not seen one up to this. 
 
 8t/i February. Maku, Barghana, to Mund Hissar, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 2612. 8 P.M. 26'14. 7 A.M. 26'19. 
 Therm. 50 36 34. 
 
 Route north, over an undulating plateau of good pasture land up to the 
 river Arghasan, where it strikes the end of a spur from the hill range 
 separating it from the Tarnak to the north. Time one hour and thirty- 
 three minutes. The Arghasan drains the snow-covered Ma'ruf mountain 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 29 
 
 away to the east-north-east, and flows south-west in a wide and shallow 
 bed. Where we crossed it the banks are barely raised above the general 
 surface of the plain and are about 180 yards apart. The river flows on 
 a pebbly bottom in two streams,, between which is a thin strip of 
 Tamarisk bushes. The first stream is 12 feet wide and about 14 inches 
 deep, and the second is 20 feet wide and 8 inches deep. Close to, and 
 here running parallel with, each bank of the river is a strong irrigation 
 stream taken off from the river some way up its course. Each is banked 
 with earth, and the further one we crossed by a rustic bridge. The 
 water is clear and good. The upper portion of the Arghasan is in the 
 hands of the Barukzais, so is the lower portion where it joins the 
 Tarnak; but the central portion is in the hands of the Alikozai Populzais, 
 whilst its sources in Surghar and Samai are in the hands of the Ghilzais. 
 
 After crossing the Arghasan and the banked canal beyond it, the 
 road winds round a projecting spur of hill to the village of Nandih, 60 
 domed houses, and then rising over some undulations of the surface 
 slopes down to a wide hollow of waste land. We crossed this towards 
 the north-west and in two hours and twenty-seven minutes reached 
 Mund Hissar, 220 houses, near an ancient tumulus of pottery strewn 
 debris, and close to the river Tarnak. This village is Crown property or 
 kkalisa, and is tenanted by different races and tribes who render one-half 
 the produce of the land to Government. Weather extremely bleak and 
 inclement. A nipping cold north wind blew against us throughout the 
 march ; at midday we find all the streams (irrigation) round our camp, 
 close to the village, frozen hard; and during the afternoon snow and 
 sleet fell in fitful showers. 
 
 $tk February. Mund Hissar to Kandahar City, 12 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'12. 8 P.M. 26'19. 7 A.M. 2619. 
 Therm. 45 40 36. 
 
 Route north for forty minutes to a gap in a ridge of hills separating the 
 river Tarnak from the plain of Kandahar, then through the gap, and 
 north-west over an undulating tract without habitation or cultivation 
 down to the plain of Kandahar. 
 
 At about a mile from Mund Hissar we crossed the river Tarnak. 
 It here has a wide pebbly channel with low banks, and flows in two or 
 three separate channels with a strong current two feet deep. The water 
 is very turbid and on its edges are snow wreaths and ice flakes. Water- 
 fowl in great variety, and vast numbers swarm all along its course and 
 on the fields flooded from the irrigation cuts taken from the river. 
 Beyond the river the road lies over a level tract up to the gap, on the 
 further side of which is an undulating hill skirt from which is seen the 
 whole plain of Kandahar. The city and its surrounding gardens and 
 villages appear crowded together in the north-west corner of the plain, 
 where the prospect is closed by the hills of Baba Wulee and Shahr-i- 
 Kuhna. Towards the south-west, along the course of the Tarnak, are 
 seen many villages and gardens, whilst towards the east lies a bare 
 expanse of pasture land. 
 
 At three miles from the city, Sirdar Meer Afzul Khan met us with 
 a large istikldl. He is now the oldest and most respected of the Mahom- 
 meclzai Barukzai nobles. His father was the late Sirdar Ptirdil Khan, 
 
30 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 a brother of the Ameer Dost Mahomed Khan. His daughter is the 
 favorite wife of Ameer Shere Ali Khan and mother of the heir-appar- 
 ent, Sirdar Abdoollah Khan. He has held the post of Governor of 
 Furrah for the last seven or eight years, and is intimately acquainted 
 with the whole Seistan question. On this occasion of coming out to do 
 honor to the Mission on behalf of the Ameer, he was accompanied by a 
 brilliant cavalcade of the chivalry of Kandahar. About a hundred and 
 fifty of the nobility and local gentry followed his standard. They were 
 all well mounted and richly dressed in their picturesque national 
 costumes, and altogether formed a very gay and formidable looking 
 throng, for all carried arms and not a few a superfluity of them. 
 
 Our path, after joining this party, led through cultivated fields and 
 across numerous karez streams to the villages of Dih Khoja and Hadera, 
 between which we passed to the Bardurrani gate of the city and then 
 round its north and west sides to the gardens of the late Sirdar Ruhmdil 
 Khan, where apartments had been prepared for us. Our approach to the 
 garden, about a mile west of the city, was through a street formed by 
 the troops composing the Kandahar garrison, viz., a regiment of cavalry, 
 three regiments of infantry and a few companies of militia. Three artillery 
 guns were drawn up in a field on one side and fired a salute of fifteen guns 
 as we passed, whilst the infantry dipped their colors and the bands 
 played " God save the Queen/' 
 
 10M February. Halt at Kandahar. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 2614 8 P.M. 26-19. 7 A.M. 26-20. 
 Therm. 45 40 35. 
 
 Weather wintry, raw and cold; sky cloudy; and a cutting north-west 
 wind driving strongly over the plain. 
 
 This morning we visited a gold mine at the foot of the hills north of 
 the city. It is situated in a little glen between two converging ridges of 
 bare, hard, blue limestone rock. Down the centre of the glen runs a 
 rough stony little ravine, mostly, as now, quite dry. On the south side 
 of this is the mine. It is a mere superficial excavation, effected by blast- 
 ing and digging. The pit excavated is about 120 feet long, 40 feet wide, 
 and in its deepest part about 90 feet below the surface. The rock exca- 
 vated is not limestone, nor does it rise above the surface soil covering it 
 and forming the general surface of the glen. It is a soft stone of a 
 schistose character, mottled reddish, greenish, bluish, and fawn colour, and 
 looks like syenite in a state of disintegration. Its substance is traversed 
 by veins of quartz mostly running horizontally. In these veins is 
 found the gold ore. 
 
 The procedure, as practised here, for obtaining and purifying the pre- 
 cious metal, is as follows : The rock is excavated with hammer and pickaxe, 
 or blasted till a vein of quartz is exposed. This is followed up by picking, 
 and the exposed parts examined with the naked eye. Where the ore is 
 found it is either chiselled out in pure granules of gold, or else, where 
 more finely distributed, the matrix is removed with it ; but no ore is 
 collected in which the gold is not seen with the naked eye. A vein of 
 quartz is followed and examined for a length of four or five feet, and if 
 gold is not found in it, it is abandoned and another vein sought. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 31 
 
 The ore thus collected is taken to the city to be smelted. The process 
 is as follows : The ore is first coarsely pounded between stones. It is then, 
 after rejecting the coarser non-auriferous lumps, crushed on a slab by a 
 smooth stone worked by the hands. The crushed ore is next powdered 
 in an ordinary hand mill, having been first sifted on an ordinary winnow- 
 ing tray to separate the coarse grains of the metal from its finer parti- 
 cles. The coarse grains of gold are thrown into a crucible and melted 
 with a little borax flux, but the powdered ore is thrown into a wide- 
 mouthed pot or pipkin and washed repeatedly till the water ceases to 
 become turbid. The residue is then treated with quicksilver and again 
 washed with water, which after a good deal of shaking is poured off. 
 The amalgam is then rolled up in a piece of strong cloth, and the quick- 
 silver expressed by very tightly wringing it between the fingers. The 
 lump of gold left in the cloth is then thrown into a crucible and melted 
 with a little borax over a charcoal fire. From the crucible the metal is 
 poured into an iron trough previously oiled, and at once solidifies into an 
 ingot of bright gold. Such was the rough, simple and wasteful process 
 we witnessed. The mine is the property of Government and has been 
 worked for about twelve years, but apparently with no care or energy or 
 enterprise. It is now leased to a contractor for five thousand rupees a 
 year. The working expenses, we were told, amount to an equivalent sum 
 annually. The outturn is said to but exceed the total of both, though 
 this is not likely, for judging from our inspection the mine is a rich one. 
 It is the interest of the contractor to maintain that the work is an unpro- 
 fitable speculation owing to the jealousy of the people and the insecurity 
 of life and property in the country. I believe that with good machi- 
 nery and systematic working the mine would prove a source of great 
 profit. We found great heaps of quartzose rock that had been excavated 
 lying around the mouth of the great pit, and there is little doubt they 
 contained a quantity of the metal. The mine was discovered through 
 the agency of a shepherd boy, who pointed out the site on which he 
 picked up some pebbles of auriferous quartz to the native goldsmith to 
 whom he offered them for sale. 
 
 On our return from the mine we visited the shrine of Baba Wulee ; 
 from its elevated position got a good view of the populous and fertile 
 valley of the Argandab, held by the Alikozai Populzais. 
 
 There are four passes from Kandahar to the Argandab valley across 
 the Baba Wulee range. Two of them, known as Baba Wulee tangi are 
 close together and lead direct to the shrine. Of these, that on the west has 
 been recently widening and made into a good road by blasting the rock. 
 The other is very rough and narrow, but passable to horses. To the east 
 of these are the Morcha and Kohmyaii passes, both very narrow and 
 difficult, but practicable for camels. 
 
 \\tJi February. Halt at Kandahar. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26-8. 8 P.M. 2619. 7 A.M. 26*33. 
 Therm. 48 41 31. 
 
 During the forenoon we visited the ruins of Ancient Kandahar and 
 Nadirabad. The former, known as Shahr-i-Kuhna or " old city," or Hussen 
 Shahr, the " City of Hussen," occupy the base and east face of the rocky 
 hill closing the valley to the west ; the latter occupy a low marshy spot a 
 couple of miles south of the present city or Ahmed Shahi. En route " we 
 
32 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 visited the shrine of Sultan Wais or Ois (not to be confounded with the 
 tomb of Meer Wais or Ois, Ghilzai, at Kohkaran), and examined the 
 celebrated black porphry bowl supposed to be the j^gggji^gL pot of Fo or 
 Budh. It rests propped upright against the trunk of a great mulberry 
 tree and the wall of the little enclosure of the saint's grave. The trunk 
 of the tree is thickly studded with iron nails and pegs of wood driven in 
 by visitors to the shrine for the alleviation of bodily ailment, aversion of 
 k domestic calamity, or the gratification of some personal desire. 
 
 The relic is a great circular bowl carved out of a solid block of fine 
 black porphry. I made the following measurements of its dimensions. 
 The bowl is four feet wide, inner measurement at the rim ; it is two feet 
 deep in the centre ; and the sides are four inches thick and give out a 
 clear metallic ring on being tapped with the knuckles. The interior is 
 unpolished and bears traces of the chisel, and below the rim are two short 
 lines of very indistinct Persian writing, possibly giving the date of the 
 inscription on the exterior. The words Skakrydr Jalalooddeen were deci- 
 phered. The exterior of the bowl is polished and covered with inscrip- 
 tions in Arabic letters in the upper part, the lower being occupied by an 
 ornamental scroll of simple design. The upper surface of the edge is 
 covered with writing which is almost obliterated ; below it forming 
 the rim are two lines of small Arabic letters, and below these are four 
 other lines of larger Arabic letters ; and below these again is the 
 ornamental scroll. The writing on the edge is engraved ; that on the 
 exterior is carved in alto relievo, as is the scroll. The lines of writing 
 run horizontally round the bowl. An accurate transcript of the inscrip- 
 tion was made for Major-General Pollock by a scribe of Kandahar city. 
 
 There used to be another bowl of smaller size than this, and with 
 handles at opposite sides, but carved out of a similar stone, in this shrine. 
 It was, we were told, carried away by the British in 1840. Outside the 
 enclosure of the saint's grave we found a number of large spherical balls 
 of coarsely chiselled blue limestone, evidently for propulsion by catapult 
 or ballista. The natives know nothing of the history of this bowl. If 
 possible it may have come here from Peshin, which is still written FosM-n 
 and Foskanj in documents and correspondence. In this form the name 
 bears a near approach to the Chinese Fo-chien. 
 
 VLth February. Unit at Kandahar. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'16. 8 P.M. 2618. 7 A.M. 26'28. 
 Therm. 54 42 32. 
 
 We visited the city this afternoon and on crossing the parade to the Aro* 
 or citadel (where I resided thirteen months in 1857-58, when here with 
 Lumsden's Mission at the court of the late heir-apparent, Sirdar Gholam 
 Hyder Khan) were received with a salute of 15 guns from the artillery. 
 The Arg is now occupied by Sirdar Meer Afzul Khan and General 
 Sufdar 'Ali. The main bazars and the ckdrsu had evidently been put in 
 order for our benefit. The roads had been swept, and the shops displayed 
 a full and varied assortment of merchandise and wares ; but the crowd 
 was nbt as great as expected. The people however were generally well- 
 clad and appeared prosperous, observed a quiet and orderly demeanour, 
 and bore friendly looks. We visited the mausoleum of Shah Ahmed, 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAX. 33 
 
 Doorranee, and left the city by the Topkhana gate. The filthy state of 
 this quarter of the city is indescribable, and the stinks on all sides quite 
 sickened us. 
 
 -/ The city is said to contain nearly five thousand houses, but a fifth 
 portion of these are unoccupied. The population is reckoned at about 
 fifteen thousand within the city. The district contains upwards of two 
 "Tumdi-ed villages, ranging in size from sixty to three hundred and fifty 
 houses. The annual government revenue of the province is thirteen 
 lacs of Rupees, and to this is added about nine lacs annually from the 
 city dues and taxes. Most of the revenue is spent in the province on the 
 Civil and Military establishments. They are paid by bonds or bardt on 
 the peasantry and landowners. 
 
 The city is enclosed within fortified walls of an oblong shape, the 
 length being from north to south. They are surrounded by a deep ditch 
 which can be flooded at pleasure, as the city is supplied with water from 
 three canals brought from the Argandab, and flowing through it. At 
 each comer is a strong bastion, and there are smaller ones at intervals on 
 each side. There are two gates on each of the long sides, and one on each 
 of the short sides, but that on the north side leading into the Arg is 
 built up. On the south side from the south-east corner bastion to the 
 Shikarpoor gate, which is protected by a large double bastion, there are 
 five small bastions or turretted buttresses, and from the gate to the 
 south-west corner bastion there are six. On the west side there are six 
 more from the south-west corner to the Herat gate (also bastioned), five 
 from this to the Topkhana gate, and four on to the north-west corner 
 bastion. The bastions and curtains between them are all crenulated and 
 loopholed. On the west side, some hundred yards or so in advance of 
 the walls, is a series of four circular redoubts or kdm-burj ; each is sur- 
 rounded by a ditch and connected with a covered way between the city 
 wall and ditch by a loopholed curtain. These redoubts were built four 
 years ago by Sirdar Mahomed Shureef Khan, and the fortifications 
 were at the same time put into thorough repair. They still look as if 
 freshly plastered and repaired. 
 
 13/y& February. Halt at Kandahar. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26;20. 8 P.M. 26%30. 7 A..M. 26'30. 
 Therm. 52 42 32. 
 
 The weather during our stay here has been bleak, wintry and cloudy. 
 A sharp north-west wind has prevailed and at night blown in violent 
 stormy gusts. The maximum rise of the thermometer was 56 in the 
 open air, and the minimum fall, in the shelter of a walled garden, 31 : 
 in the open country it must have been much less. The winter climate 
 of Kandahar is more trying than that of Peshm, owing to the wither- 
 ing blasts of the north-west wind or Shamdl which blows across its open 
 downs and plains with* great force and persistence. The valley of Peshm 
 is in a measure protected from this by the high hills surrounding it. 
 The entire absence of trees from the plain country here is in a measure 
 attributable to the prevalence of this wind, as much perhaps as to the 
 scorching heats of summer. These plains afford excellent pasture for 
 camels and sheep during the spring and autumn mouths, but are a perfect 
 
34 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 waste during the summer and winter months. In the former seasons 
 they are covered with the camps of nomad Afghans, who for the winter 
 retire to the borders of the Seistan desert, and for the summer move 
 up to the highlands of Ghuznee and Cabul with their cattle and flocks. 
 / In these emigrations are their lives spent, and their move- 
 ments are timed with the greatest accuracy and regularity according 
 to the changes of the seasons, and are used to chronicle events. Their 
 migration from the desert skirts commences about the 20th March, the 
 vernal equinox ; and they move leisurely across the lowlands so as to 
 reach the highland pastures about the end of April or early in May. 
 Their return commences about the 23rd September, the autumnal equi- 
 nox, and they reach their winter-quarters towards the end of October 
 or early in. November; thus on each journey finding pasture on the low- 
 lands in spring after the winter rains, and in autumn after those of 
 the summer. 
 
 These nomads possess numbers of camels and immense flocks of sheep 
 and goats, but not so many horned cattle. The camels' hair and wool pro- 
 vide them with the material of their felts and camlets, and a variety of 
 soft, warm and delicate fabrics known as Shuturi. From the goat's hair 
 they make a coarse and strong sacking for the transport of their grain, 
 &c., and the thick durable material of their tents, also ropes and cords. 
 From the wool of their sheep they make the k'hosai, or " felt cloak," uni- 
 versally worn as their winter dress by the Afghan peasantry, and the 
 strong material known as barak. From the fine down or wool of 
 both goats and sheep is manufactured the soft and warm fabric called 
 kurk and pasJimma respectively. The barak, from the long narrow 
 length of its pieces, is also called patlu. Their wool too is a principal 
 item in the exports of Kandahar, and yields more profit than either of the 
 other chief items of export, viz., dried fruits and madder. During the 
 past ten years the quantity of wool exported from Kandahar to Kurachee 
 and Bombay has averaged five thousand candies annually. Each candy 
 sells at from Rupees 150 to Rupees 200 at Kurachee, thus giving from 
 Rupees 50,000 to Rupees 10,00,000 as the annual produce of the wool 
 trade of this province alone. 
 
 SECTION V. 
 
 From Kandahar to Cala' Bust Helmund. 
 14/yfc February. Kandahar to Kohkaran, 7 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'20. 8 P.M. 26'21. 7 A.M. 26'25. 
 Therm. 62 40 42. 
 
 Route west for a few minutes, by a narrow path over corn-fields, the 
 sprouting crops here and there scorched yellow by the recent frosts, then 
 amongst walled gardens and over small canals by rustic bridges, through 
 the little village Chihldukhtaran, and round to the Chihlzina at the end 
 of the rock on which stand the ruins of Ancient Kandahar. We dis- 
 / mounted here and ascended to the recess in the rock (it is described in my 
 Kandahar journal of 1857), for the purpose of viewing the prospect. 
 
 J" The weather was fine and the sky clear, and we obtained a very good 
 
 and extensive view of the country except towards the south. Towards 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 35 
 
 the north-west the snowy range of Shah Muksood, beyond which are the 
 Darawat district and the valley of the Helmund, rose against the sky 
 in a long line of snowy peaks running from north-east to south-west. 
 To the northward the distant prospect is closed by the Baba Wulee ridge, 
 along the southern side of which spreads out the plain of Kandahar with 
 its city and surrounding cornfields and gardens, and a crowd of villages 
 and their network of canals. Eastwards the hills bounding the plain 
 close the view, but over them, away in the distance, are seen the white 
 tops of Surghar, on this side of Abistada, and south of it the top of 
 Samai. To the south-west of this again we caught glimpses of the Kho- 
 jak range through gaps between the isolated ridges traversing the Kanda- 
 har plain from north-east to south-west. 
 
 From Chihlzina our road passed between the villages of Meer Bazar 
 on the left and Gundigan on the right. The latter is inhabited entirely 
 by Parsiwans of the Sheea sect. Further on, leaving the Mvtrghan village 
 some way off the road to the right, we followed the northern skirt of the 
 Kohkaran hills, and passing the Mausoleum of Hajee Meer Wais, Ghilzai, 
 on the roadside, and the village of Kohkaran at a mile further on, 
 camped on a gravelly slope between the foot of the hills and the bank of 
 the Argandab, which is here high above the river bed. From our camp 
 we have a good view of the Argandab valley, a picture of prosperity and 
 plenty. The river banks are closely studded with villages, .gardens and 
 cornfields that extend in an unbroken succession for miles up the valley. 
 Higher up than at our camp the river banks are low, and many canals 
 are led off from each side for purposes of irrigation. Three large ones 
 are brought round the end of Baba Wulee range for the supply of Kan- 
 dahar. To the north-west of the river the land slopes up as a wide 
 moorland to the foot of the range separating the Arganda valley from 
 that of Khakrez, north of which again is the range of Shah Muksood, 
 running north-east and south-west. Weather fine, and air mild and fresh. 
 
 15M February. Kohkaran to Hauz Maddat, 18 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'29. 8 P.M. 26'35. 7 A.M. 26'48. 
 Therm. 76 45 30. 
 
 Route at first north-west across the Argandab, the west to Ashugha, 
 and then west by south to Hauz Maddat. At a few hundred yards 
 from camp, crossed a deep irrigation canal close to the river bank, and a 
 then at once descending by a very steep and narrow path sloping down 
 to the river bed, crossed its wide boulder strewn and pebbly surface to 
 the river, which winds along its centre in a strong stream full two feet 
 deep and about thirty yards wide. We forded this, and, crossing a strip jt 
 of boulder and pebme, rose out of the river bed over a low bank, and 
 immediately crossing a deep and narrow canal, entered on a good road 
 that leads through a long tra c^of^cprnfieldsj gardens_ajid.villages j col- ^ 
 lectively called Sauzari. To the^southof it, and beyoncl theliverTis the 
 range of hills called Takhti Sauzari, on which it is said there are the 
 ruins of some ancient castles. On the further or south side of the range 
 are the district of PanjwaL__janious for its excellent pomegranates, and f~ 
 the river Tarnak. In one hour and fifty minutes we cleared the Sau- 
 zari tract at a small roadside ziydrat, around which are a few huts ; 
 and opposite the village of Ashugha, turning a little to the left, 
 
36 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 proceeded by a weji-beaten path over a wide treeless waste that slopes 
 gently up to the Khakrez range to the north-west, and in two hours 
 and fifty minutes arrived at Hauz Maddat, and camped a little beyond 
 it near Sang Hissar. This is a large mound, surmounted by ruined for- 
 tifications, on the Argandab, a little below where it is joined by the 
 united streams of the Tarnak and Arghasan cum Dori. 
 
 On the left of our route, on leaving Sauzari, is the Ashugha canal, 
 and away down by the bank of the Argandab are the Sufed Hawaii 
 villages and gardens, &c. 
 
 At Hauz Maddat, which is a domed reservoir, now dry and very 
 much out of repair, the road bifurcates. The tract to the right goes to 
 Kishkinakhud, due west across a desert waste ; that to the left goes west- 
 south-west to Gala' Bust and Gurmsel along the course of the Argandab. 
 
 The country here assumes a different aspect and all to the westward 
 appears as a wide waste ending in the horizon. All the hill ranges pro- 
 jecting hitherward from the north and east here abut upon the desert and 
 terminate in low spurs. Thus the range of Baba Wulee ends in the angle 
 of junction of the Argandab and Tarnak. The Takhti Sauzari, the 
 detached ridges of Arghasan, Barghana, Radani, &c., all terminate in the 
 bend of the Dori river; and so on the other side the range of Khakrez 
 ends on the desert at Kishkinakhud. To the south appears the crest of 
 the great desert of Seistan and Beloochistan. 
 
 February. Hauz Maddat to Chashma, 22 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'65. 8 P.M. 26'69. 7 A.M. 26'59. 
 Therm. 68 44 48. 
 
 During the nightthe thermometer fell to 29F., and in the open air at midday rose to 78F. 
 
 Route west by south at a little distance from the Argandab. Along 
 its right bank from Sang Hissar westward are the fort of Khushdil 
 Khan (a son of the late Sirdar Mehrdil Khan, an elder brother of Sirdar 
 Shere Ali Khan, Governor of Kandahar), the village of Meerakhor Ahmed 
 Khan, and the collection of hamlets comprised in Bugh Marez and 
 Shahmir. They form a continuous line of gardens and cornfields for 
 some 8 or 10 miles. On the opposite bank of the river, and rising direct 
 from it, are the sand hills of the desert; they present a very undulating 
 surface and are for fifteen miles towards the desert covered with pasture ; 
 the hollows between the sand hills on the river bank are occupied by a 
 close succession of nomad camps, which extend all the way down to the 
 borders of Gurmsel, and represent_a very numerous population. These 
 nomad camps extend all along the desert edge from Shorawak to the 
 Gurmsel. Those bordering on the Dori and Tarnak belong to the 
 Achakzai clans, and those on the Argandab to the Nurzais. In this day's 
 march we must have seen at least fifty of the camps of the latter ; and 
 each camp contained from ten to twenty kijdi. Their flocks and herds 
 graze on the sand hills and are watered at the river every third day only. 
 
 In the opposite direction, on the right of our route, away to the 
 north, beyond the gravelly waste spreading in that direction, are the 
 terminal spurs of the Khakrez range ending at Kishkinakhud. Towards 
 the latter part of the march we got a view up the Khakrez valley or 
 
THE MISSION TO SE1STAN. 37 
 
 plain. It lias no perennial stream, but is drained by a central ravine 
 and watered f rain Karez streams. North of this valley is the great 
 Shah Muksood range. At the foot of a dark spur branching off south 
 from it are the ruins of My wand, described as very extensive, and mark- 
 ing the site of a former city, the seat of government of Meer Hassan, of 
 Wuzeer of Mahomed of Ghuznee. This spur forms the limit between 
 the Khakrez and Kishkinakhud districts, and to the north-west of it is 
 the Garmaba valley, in which, at the foot of the main range, are some hot \ 
 sulphur springs. They are resorted to by the natives for the cure of j 
 rheumatic affections, &c. 
 
 Our route from Hauz Maddat was by a well-trodden path over a i 
 great level waste, at this season covered with newly-sprouting grass, 
 crocuses, dwarf mimosoe, hedysarum, &c. The soil is gravelly and firm, 
 and without water. At three hours and thirty-two minutes we crossed a ] 
 wide and shallow ravine with a dry sandy bed, near some low mounds on 
 our right. 
 
 At another thirty minutes we came to a small hamlet occupied by 
 Hotak Ghilzais. There is a small spring here which feeds a thready 
 little stream. At about twenty minutes more we crossed a kdrcz stream 
 and then turned down towards the river on our left. In one hour and 
 forty minutes more, crossing the Khakrez Shela, a wide and shallow 
 water run now dry, we camped on the river bank, a little below Chashma, 
 one of the Kishkinakhud villages. The soil here is moist and sandy and 
 covered with a white saline crust. The land drops gradually to the river 
 bed, which is very wide and stony, and interspersed with long stretches 
 of dwarf Tamarisk jungle. 
 
 Ylth February. Chashma to Balakhan, 23 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'54. 8 P.M. 26'58. 7 A.M. 2675. 
 Therm. 64 50 40. 
 
 During the night the thermometer fell to 29F. 
 
 Route west by south along the river course and a little way from it by 
 a good road over gravelly ground. On either side is a succession of ' 
 little villages and cornfields. At about three miles we passed the little 
 village of Moolla Azim occupied by Mandinzai Ishakzais, who being 
 descendants of a Saraban Saint, or Astangjar^Jbold theirjands rent-free. , 
 Beyond this we entered on the Bund-i-Timoor, a succession of villages and 
 gardens, and fields extending for, ten or twelve miles along the course of 
 the river, and so named from a river or bund thrown across it in the time 
 of Timoor for the irrigation of the lands on its north bank. The bund 
 has long since disappeared, and the numerous deep and narrow canals | 
 formerly fed by it are now dry, except v hen the river is in flood. 
 
 The ground is everywhere gravelly and more or less impregnated 
 with salines. It is watered by kdrez streams brought down at intervals 
 from the Khaki Choupan plain, a wide tract of undulating pasture land 
 to the north, in the hollows of which are scattered some small hamlets. 
 Looking northward across this plain, is seen, in the gaps between the 
 Khakrez and Shah Muksood ranges, the valley of Ghorat or Garmaba. 
 To its north-west is the Dosang mountain, separating it from Darawat 
 valley, the stream of which drains to the Helmund in Zamindawar. 
 
38 RECORD OP THE MARCH OF 
 
 111 three hours we passed beyond the cultivation and .entered on a 
 bare spongy saline tract covered with the Salsola, Salicornia, Hedysarum, 
 and similar plants, at a spot where are some detached ruins round the 
 remains of an ancient mausoleum; and amongst them to the right, 
 across a large dry canal, is a mound with traces of a fort, close on the 
 river bank. 
 
 ( In two hours and forty minutes from these rivers we reached (lie 
 
 river bank and camped on a moist saline soil in the midst of a thin 
 Tamarisk jungle. The whole of this tract is traversed by several deep 
 water-cuts, mostly dry and generally crossed by small rustic bridges. 
 The surface everywhere is white with salines, and for miles together 
 covered with a long succession of saltpits and ovens for the manufacture 
 of alimentary salt. 
 
 On the opposite side of the river is a long succession, as yesterday, 
 of nomad camps of from twenty to sixty kijdt'w each. They belong to 
 ^ Nurzais and Ghilzais and represent a considerable population. Weather 
 raw and wintry. A strong north-east wind blew clouds of dust before us 
 during the march, and during the afternoon brought rain in strong 
 gusty storms, continuing through the night. 
 
 ISl/t February. Balakhun to Gala' Bust, 28 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'S5. 8 P.M. 26'88. 7 A.M. 26'94. 
 Therm. 02 42 36. 
 
 Roads very heavy and deep in mud from last night's rain. Route west 
 I for three hours up to a roadside mound on the Nurullah Khushkaba, 
 over country similar to that traversed yesterday, with numerous saltpits 
 ancLjpvensalonff the roadsides. Each pit is a large circular basin ; the 
 edge of ItlnsTs set round^with a series of small basins dug in the soil ; 
 these last are filled with saline earth taken from a heap formed close by 
 from scrapings from the surface. They are then flooded from a thready 
 stream of water which dissolves the salt and overflows into the deep 
 central basin. From this last the saline liqour, after having become clear 
 by the deposition of mud, &c., is drawn off into great jars of red pottery 
 and boiled to evaporation successively till the jar is full of crystallized or 
 more generally granular salt. The ovens occupy a hollow at one side of 
 the pit, are roofed and contain fireplaces for three or four jars, and are 
 connected with the pit by a slope in the ground. We examined some of 
 the salt thus prepared ; it is in large granular masses taking the shape 
 of the vessel, is of a clean white colour and good taste. These pits 
 supply the Kandahar market and the country around. 
 
 _ On each side of our route are large and deep irrigation cuts and 
 
 extensive tracts of cultivated land, with intervening patches of waste on 
 which is a thick growth of Artemisia, Syrian Rue, Hedysarum, Dwarf 
 Tamarisk, three or four species of Salsolacce and Mimosce. The soil is 
 everywhere saline ; it is cured by sowing first with rice and then with 
 clover, after which it is fit for any crop. Shortly after leaving camp we 
 passed the ruins of Balakhan on a mound to the right of the road, and 
 a mile or so further on, the Joo-i-Mahmund belonging to the Nurzais, 
 who hold all this tract down to Karez-i-Sarkar. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 39 
 
 From the Nurullah mound, near which we found a Nurzai camp of 
 about thirty k'tjdi, Girishk is ten miles, we are told, distant due north. 
 Looking north-west across the plain we saw the top of the Dubrar 
 mound on the Helmund, and nearer at hand to the west the Mukhattar 
 mound, on which are the ruins of an ancient fort. Far off the west by 
 south stand out the ruins of Gala' Bust. 
 
 In one hour and twenty minutes from this mound we passed the 
 Karez-i-Sarkar to the right of our road and a little further on the 
 Lashkari basar hamlet, amidst scattered ruins. Karez-i-Sarkar is the 
 country-seat of Gool Mahomed, son of Mahomed Sadik and grandson of 
 the late Sirdar Kohndil Khan. 
 
 From this point our route was south-west for two hours and ten 
 minutes down to the bank of the Helmund, where we camped at the foot 
 of the ruins of the lofty citadel of Gala' Bust. For the whole distance 
 we passed through scattered ruins, with patches of cultivation interven- 
 ing, and met with no water except at a roadside shrine, and it proved 
 undrinkably briny. 
 
 South of camp and close by is a cluster of villages in the angle of 
 junction of the Argandab and Helmund rivers. They are Nyaz Maho- 
 med, Surwar Gala' Cutuh Gala' Syed Bulghar, Hajee Khan, 'Alum Khan, 
 Meer Ahmed, and some small collections of reed huts. They are occupied 
 by mixed tribes, viz., Nurzai, Achakzai, Ishakzai, Barakzai, Barech, Kurd, 
 Uzbek and Parsiwan. They contain from eighty to a hundred houses 
 each, and are surrounded by cornfields, vineyards and fruit gardens. 
 Weather cloudy, raw and inclement; a cold west wind blowing all day. 
 
 19M February. Halt at Gala' Bust. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'85. 8 P.M. 26'90. 7 A.M. 27'00. 
 
 Therm. 84 47 36. 
 
 During the night the thermometer fell to 29 F. and at 2 P.M. in the sun rose to 92 F. 
 
 The ruins of Gala' Bust and its suburbs, the Ancient Abeste, are 
 very extensive and extend over several miles of country. They may be 
 said to extend from Lashkari bazar to the river, a distance which it took 
 us upwards of two hours to traverse. At their south-west corner and abut- 
 ting upon the river is the fortified city with its lofty citadel, which are in 
 a better state of preservation than the rest of the ruins. 
 
 Malcom, in his history of Persia, says that in A. D. 977, when 
 Ghazai was in the possession of Sebuktagin, Bust was held by Tegha. 
 This latter it appears was expelled, and, applying for aid to Sebuktagin, 
 was reinstated by him on condition of paying tribute. This he failed 
 to do, and Sebuktagin making a sudden attack captured the place, Tegha 
 effecting his escape. At this period Jaipal, Hindoo, was King of Cabul, 
 and Kulif, Samtmi, ruled over Seistan. 
 
 Erskine, in his " House of Timoor," mentions that Bust was taken, 
 A. D. 1498, by Sultan Hossein Mirza, Bykara, whose capital was Herat, 
 when he marched against his rebel son Khosro at Kandahar. He was 
 forced, however, to give up the place and retire from Kandahar, but the 
 
40 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 supplies found in it enabled him to retrace his steps with comfort. Later 
 in A. D. 1542, Bust was beseiged by and surrendered to Hoomayoon on 
 his advance against Kandahar with a Persian army. 
 
 It was finally sacked and razed by Na,dir Shah A. D. 1736 on his 
 way to Kandahar. The fortified city as it.now stands is an oblong from 
 north to south. The southern portion, about a sixth of the whole, is 
 separated from the rest by a deep ditch, and contains the citadel, which 
 occupies the summit of a high mound in the south-w r est corner ; its base 
 towards the west is washed by the river Helmund, which further to the 
 south bends away from the walls, a strip of bank about 120 yards wide 
 intervening. In the citadel is a deep masonry well (red brick and lime), 
 now dry. Its upper part all round the shaft is occupied by three tiers of 
 circular passages opening on one side into the well shaft, and furnished on 
 the other with arched recesses for repose. The well is about 120 feet deep 
 and 18 feet wide. Its floor is reached by a flight of steps on the outside 
 of its walls, and is now owing to the accumulation of debris a few feet 
 higher than the river level. The top of the well, it would appear, was 
 originally covered in by a dome, traces of which are still distinguishable. 
 
 Below the citadel, on an open space to the east, inside the walls, is a 
 very fine arch standing out by itself. It is broad, lancet-shaped, and 
 about 64 feet high in the centre, and 50 feet wide at the pedestals. The 
 under surface of the arch is about six feet broad and is decorated by the 
 brick-work being arranged in arabesque patterns. The faade has dis- 
 appeared on the south side, but on the north a few feet of it remain, and 
 show that the arch fronted to the east and was flanked on each side by an 
 ornamented fa9ade on which were Arabic inscriptions produced by the 
 disposition of the brickwork, some letters being distinctly traceable on the 
 fa9ade remaining. The arch was probably the entrance to a mosque. 
 
 The enclosing walls of the city and fort are very broad and appear 
 to have had houses along the top. The north-west and north-east corners 
 and the south-east corner are furnished with strong circular bastions ; the 
 curtains between have small bastions at short distances and are surrounded 
 by a deep ditch and a covered way. In the city portion are two gates, one 
 on the east side and the other on the west side, and both close to where the 
 interior ditch separates the citadel from the rest of the city. There is a 
 gateway to the north of the great arch which apparently communicated 
 across the interior ditch with the city ; and in the middle of the south face 
 is another gateway leading direct into the citadel, w r hich rises directly from 
 the river bed. Sirdar Kohndil Khan of Kandahar in 1846 thought of 
 restoring this city as a frontier fortress towards Persia, and commenced 
 repairing the citadel, but the work was soon after abandoned. 
 
 General Pollock caused some excavations to be made on the top of 
 the citadel mound and on the floor of the well, and also made a sketch 
 of the archway. 
 
 The excavations produced numerous fragments of china and glass of 
 far superior manufacture to anything of the kind now produced in the 
 country and also a few fire-altar coins. The china found was of two 
 different kinds, but both of white clay ; the one had the familiar blue 
 designs of common china, the other was coated with a thick crust of 
 glaze of a mother-o'pearl appearance and pale lilac hue. Some frag- 
 ments of glass vessels were also found, and amongst them some bits 
 delicately glazed over transverse bars of a chocolate brown colour. 
 
THE MISSION TO SE1STAN. 41 
 
 We obtained a few coins from the villagers of the vicinity, but they 
 were much defaced and illegible. 
 
 < The Helmund at Gala' Bust has a channel of from 250 to 300 yards 
 ' wide. Its banks are from 16 to 20 feet high and are fringed with tall 
 
 reed grass, and the west bank is also covered with a strip of Tamarisk 
 r jungle from a few hundred yards to a mile or more broad. The river is 
 
 now at its lowest and flows over pebbly bottom ; its stream is about 
 
 eighty yards broad and is f ordable opposite our camp. 
 
 j The country from Kandahar to Gala' Bust is for the most part waste 
 land and void of water. The course of the river for a width of four or 
 five miles is populous, well-cultivated and irrigated from numerous 
 canals, but all to the north of this tract is a wide waste. Many of the 
 canals are deep and narrow with high banks. Where not bridged, they 
 offer serious obstruction to the traveller with laden cattle. With a little 
 labour, however, they can be easily made passable without obstructing 
 the flow of the water. This is effected by ramping down the sides and 
 filling the bed of the stream with fascines of the thorny bushes growing 
 on its banks, by which process the stream, instead of being a deep arid 
 narrow one between high banks, becomes a broad and shallow one 
 between gradually sloping banks. 
 
 SECTION VI. 
 
 From Cala' Bust to Bandar Gurmsel. 
 20^ February. Gala' Bust to Hazarjuft, 40 miles. 
 
 Bar. 5 P.M. 27'06. 10 P.M. 27'10. 7 A.M. 27'02. 
 Therm. 70 39 35. 
 
 Route south-south-east past several villages, walled gardens and 
 vineyards, for three miles down to the river Argandab, which here flows 
 on a broad stony bottom with a sandy shore on each side. We forded 
 the river, girth deep in its centre and about forty yards wide, a few hun- 
 dred yards above where it joins the Helmund, under the abrupt bluff of 
 a high sand hill, which here turns the latter from its southern course to 
 the westward, and by its continuation to the eastward bounds the bed of 
 the Argandab to the south. Beyond the river our path wound between 
 sand hills for a mile or so, and then turning south-south-west, where a 
 road branches off westward along the river bank, rose up to an undulating 
 succession of sand hills, all running north and south, draining into the 
 river on which they abut. This tract of sand hills extends for twelve 
 or fourteen miles to the southward and forms the northern skirt of the 
 great sandy desert between Beloochistan and Seistan. It is covered with 
 a thick growth of pasture bushes and herbs, and now a thin grass is 
 beginning to green the surface. The taghaz (a species of Tamarisk), and 
 the barak (not recognized) are the two principal shrubs capable of 
 supplying fuel. The wood oE the latter is burnt for charcoal used in 
 the manufacture of gunpowder when that of the willow or vine is not 
 procurable. The whole of this tract is now occupied by hundreds of 
 nomad camps, with vast flacky of sheep and goats, and numbers of 
 camels. They are brought to the river for water every third day, and 
 the surface is everywhere scored by long lines oE the sheep walks and 
 cattle tracks. There are cattle ponds or nawar in all parts of this tract ; 
 they are filled by the rains and do not last long. 
 
42 RECORD OF THE MAECH OF 
 
 The nomads with their flocks and herds leave these pastures and 
 winter-quarters for the highlands of Khojak and Cabul and ShahMuksood 
 during March and April, and return again during October and November. 
 ' The summer heats here are unbearable. 
 
 Our baggage took the road along the river bank which is reached 
 (after crossing over a high sand hill) at Gudar Burhana, where there is a 
 ford across the Helmund. We took the southern route which circles round 
 the great Gudar Burhana sand hill (it ends in an abrupt cliff upon the 
 river), and, traversing the upper part of the wide hollow of the same 
 name, rose up to another high cliff overlooking the river and the country 
 to the north. We halted here awhile to view the prospect. The low 
 sand hills to the south of the Gudar Burhana are known as Nimchol or 
 half desert waste. It took us four hours and thirty-five minutes to 
 reach this spot (the cliff west of Gudar Burhana) from Gala' Bust, which 
 is seen indistinctly away to the north-east. Immediately below us, on 
 
 2- the opposite side of the river, lay the well-cultivated and populous district 
 of Zaras, which is included in that of Girishk. It contains the villages 
 of Zaras, Khallach, Surkhduzd, Shahmalan and Moin Gala'. To the 
 north of this tract is seen the fort of Nadali near Girishk, and to its 
 north-west extends a vast undulating plain of waste land. Away to the 
 west, rising against the sky, is the isolated Landi or Khiimshin hill, the 
 
 fc only one visible. Here we changed from our 
 
 _____ 
 
 and for one hour and thirty minutes proceeded over an undulating sandy 
 tract up to a small roadside hostelry, now in ruins, called Rabat. 
 Beyond this the land is flat and slopes gently down to Hazarjuft ; its 
 surface is bare of vegetation and firm, and thickly strewed with small 
 black or dark-coloured pebbles. Hazarjuft or the " thousand yokes" is so 
 named because its land employs that number of ploughs ; it is a wide 
 gulf of level land between the river and a great bend of the sand cliffs 
 to the south. We crossed its north-east corner down to the river bank 
 where we camped. Time from Rabat three hours and ten minutes. 
 
 After crossing the Arganda on our arrival at Hazarjuft, our route 
 lay across an uninhabited desert of coarse gravelly sand, without water. 
 Our Afghan infantry escort was so exhausted for want of water that 
 we left them midway on the march, to follow in the evening. Weather 
 fair and air delightfully pure and fresh. 
 
 Hazarjuft is the jagir or fief of Azad Khan, Kayani orNowsheerwani 
 Belooch. He resides at Kharan, of which place he is governor on the 
 part of the Ameer of Cabul ; his family reside here in a very compact 
 little fort with a tower at each of the four corners and a fifth over the 
 gateway. There are four or five fortified villages and six or seven col- 
 lections of open "wattle and dab" huts. The surface is everywhere 
 cultivated and freely irrigated by numerous little canals branching off 
 from a main one taken from the Helmund. Altogether Hazarjuft is a 
 populous and very productive estate. Its villages contain Trorri one 
 hundred to a hundredjtnd fifty houses each, and the temporary settle- 
 ments around them contain about two hundred huts each. All over the 
 surface are seen_tbe rums_of walls and, towers. These mark the former 
 sites of the temporary habitations above referred to as of " wattle and 
 dab/' They are the settlements of migratory tribes and emigrants. 
 The huts consist of a rear and side walls (not always the latter) on which 
 are supported the roofs. These, as also the front and often side walls, 
 
I Ml-. MISSION TO SE1STAN. 
 
 are formed of " wattle" worked into lengths of twelve feet by eight with 
 Tamarisk twigs in the same way that baskets are worked, and then daubed 
 over with a coating of mud plaister. When the tribe migrates these 
 portable portions of their dwellings are removed to the new settlement, 
 and only the bare walls and watch towers left in the old one. These 
 temporary huts afford very comfortable quarters and good protection 
 from the weather. The fixed population of Hazarjuft are Nurzais of 
 the Adozai and 'Umarzai sections. There are also a few Belooch settlers. 
 
 2Ist February. Hazarjuft to Myaii Pushta, 14 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'15. 8 P.M. 2719. 7 A.M. 27'27. 
 
 Therm. 80 46 33. 
 
 Route south-south-west over a ri^hly-cultivateJ^alluyiaHract on the / 
 left or south bank of the Helmund, by a good level road winding between 
 cornfields and irrigation outs, fortified villages and temporary settlements, 
 up to Myan Pushta, which we reached in three hours and forty-five 
 minutes. The first forty minutes was over cornfields up to two small fortified 
 villages of Danveshan Payin and their surrounding ({ wattle and dab" 
 settlements. Beyond these are the corresponding villages and settlements 
 of Darwesban Bala, and between the two is the ziyarat of Amir Biland 
 Sahib, a very popular shrine buried in a thick cluster of willow (paclda] 
 and mulberry trees. Further on is the village of Kashti and then My an . 
 Pnshta, where we camped. The general surface of the plain is scattered I 
 all over with the ruins of ancient villages, crumbling watch towers and 
 dilapidated walls ; they are more numerous than the existing habitations / 
 and evidently belong to two widely-separated periods. Some are massive / 
 and show remains of large buildings, but most are remains of temporary 
 settlements. Myan Pushta is some way from the river, the right or north 
 bank of which rises directly into the low cliffs and bluffs of the desert 
 that stretches away to the north and north-west. 
 
 Weather cloudy, air mild, nightfall frosty. 
 
 ZZnd February. Myan Pushta to Sufar, 18 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'21. 8 P.M. 27'21. 7 A.M. 27'16. 
 Therm. 74 55 48. 
 
 Route south-south-west across a wide extent of cultivation, interspersed 
 with waste patches covered with the camel thorn (Iledysaruni] and other 
 plants, up to the desert cliffs which here approach the river; then south-west 
 by a weljUbfiatfin path down to the river bank, where we camped a little ^ 
 beyond Sufar. Time four hours and a half. Shortly after bearing Myan 
 Pushta we passed the 'Abbasabad collection of huts, and beyond them a 
 ziyarat and clump oJLtr-s close under the desert cliffs which here end in * 
 perpendicular walls three or four hundred feet high. In the face of the 
 cliff and high up are three caves with arched entrances. 
 
 At about two hours and ten minutes we passed the fortified Lakki * 
 village, around which are clustered several collections of huts of the 
 'Adozai and 'Alizai Nurzais. Beyond these at intervals are other little settle- 
 ments up to Sufiir. The number of families occupying these huts passed 
 on this day's march is reckoned at between five and six hundred. About 
 an equal number were passed on yesterday's march and about four hun- 
 dred more were scattered over other parts of the Hazarjuft plain. The 
 
41 KKCOKD OF T11K MARCFl OF 
 
 men are rough, hardy and ill-looking- savages; their women are very 
 much fairer and generally comely-featured. Their clothing is a loose 
 shirt of coarse home-spun cotton (karbas) and full trowsers of the same, 
 dyed blue. The men over all wear the khosai or felt cloak, and the 
 "-WLomen a white sheet. 
 
 These Nurzais are rich in com and cattle; a good deal of the 
 former is exported to Khelat. The river here flows in a wide channel in 
 which are extensive strips of thick Tamarisk jungle. From the drift 
 adhering to the trees it would appear that the river rises from twelve to 
 fourteen feet above its present level in seasons of flood. Weirs and 
 water-cuts occur at frequent intervals along the course of the river, and 
 there are water-mills on most of them. 
 
 The opposite bank of the river has no alluvium, but rises at once 
 into desert cliffs. 
 
 23rd February. Sufar to Banadir Juma' Khan, 15 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'19. 8 P.M. 27'24. 7 A.M. 27'26. 
 Therm. 82 58 46. 
 
 Route south-west over a level tract midway between the river and the 
 desert cliffs for six or seven miles, then west by south down to the river 
 bank near the Juma' Khan village where we camped. Time three hours and 
 fifty minutes. On leaving camp we passed the village of Sufar, and at 
 about five miles beyond it came to the extensive ruins of Sultan Khwaja, 
 in which are the remains of a citadel larger than that of Cala' Bust. 
 Opposite Sufar, on the north side of the river is a solitary tower of solid 
 construction. It is perched on the top of one of the desert cliffs and 
 attracts attention from its prominent position. 
 
 At about the tenth mile we passed Banadir Talu Khan, a collection 
 of 150 huts in the midst of ruins of former habitations and vineyards 
 without vines. There are three or four similar collections of huts along 
 the course of the river. They are all called Banadir (plural of Bandar) 
 and are distinguished from one another by the name of the chief of the 
 community. 
 
 The country in this day's march is less cultivated than that traversed on 
 the two preceding ones and has fewer water-cuts. The soil is more or less 
 spongy and saline and much of the surface is waste. The bed of the 
 river widens very considerably, being about two, mileswide ; its stream 
 flows in broken channels between which are small islands covered with 
 Tamarisk jungle; this is very thick and high, and is full of wild pig, hare, &c. 
 Towards the south the desert cliffs disappear, and the alluvium gradually 
 slopes up to the sandy waste which in this part is about ten miles from 
 the river. Through this break in the cliffs we got a distant view of the 
 Harbo hill on the borders of the sand. It has a good spring of water 
 and is one of the stages on the route from Roodbar to Nooshky. It lies 
 nearly due south of Juma' Khan ; Koh Landi or Khanishin is to its (Juma* 
 Khan's) west, and is very prominent against the sky. 
 
 This place is said to be intolerably hot in summer; its arid appear- 
 ance even at this season, with a bare and scorched desert on each side, 
 supports the truth of the assertion. There is a singular paucity of trees, 
 though the land is very fertile and produces rich crops of wheat, barley 
 acid maize, supplied to Girishk, Kandahar and Nooshky. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAX.. 45 
 
 February. Banadir Juma' Khan to Landi, 14 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'24. 8 P.M. 27'30. 7 A.M. 27'29. 
 Therm. 70 54 46. 
 
 Route at first south-west for two or three miles, then due west skirting 
 the low hillocks of red sand which here encroach upon the alluvium of the 
 river,, and gradually rise in wide undulations up to the foot of the 
 isolated Koh Khanishin. 
 
 Shortly after leading- Juma' Khan we passed a roadside graveyard, 
 remarkable for the large blocks of semi-transparent white and yellow 
 gypsum, and long slabs of fine-grained red sandstone covering the 
 graves. We were told that they had been brought from the Harbo hill. 
 Beyond this we passed over a long strip of perfectly level ground covered 
 to redness with bits of broken pottery, but without a trace of walls or 
 buildings. About midway we passed Baggat, a couple of hut settlements 
 of the Populzai tribe (altogether about 350 families), and further on, 
 near Landi, the ruined fort of Sultan Khan, destroyed some years ago 
 by the Barechis, and then, crossing a highly-cultivated tract watered from 
 several deep water-cuts, camped near Landi. Time three hours and forty 
 minutes. Landi is a fortified village of 180 houses belonging to the 
 Ishakzais; near it is aTiut settlement of about 150 families of the 
 same tribe. 
 
 The alluvium here becomes very narrow owing to the encroachment 
 of the desert cliffs, and a few miles further on it is entirely moved to 
 the opposite side of the river by the Koh Khanishin, which abuts directly 
 on its bank and in fact turns the course of the river which here makes 
 a wide sweep to the north round the hill. 
 
 The soil here is a light red sand and said to be wonderfully fertile. 
 We find the young corn well forward, though a good deal of it has been 
 nipped and turned yellow by the hard frosts. 
 
 There is a caravan route from this to Nooshky in seven stages of 
 about thirty miles each. They are described as follows : 
 
 1. Landi to camp in desert, 30 miles, carrying water and provisions. 
 
 2. Harbo, 30 miles desert, at foot of an isolated hill. In the 
 vicinity are four or five wells, very narrow arid very shallow. The water 
 wells up from the soil as it is removed in cups. There is a sufficient 
 supply for two hundred men. 
 
 3. Shah Ismail ziyarat, 30 miles, also desert. Water from wells 
 or posts at Harbo. Two fakir families live here in charge of the 
 shrine and on the bounty of travellers. 
 
 4. Sufya, 30 miles desert. Two wells of water. 
 
 5. Choti, 30 miles desert. One well of water. 
 
 6. Syud Mahmud, 30 miles desert. One well of water. 
 
 7. Nooshky, 30 miles water from hill springs. Several villages 
 and abundant cultivation. 
 
 On all this route fuel is found along the road which is sandy and 
 gravelly. Camel fodder is procurable at each stage. The distances are 
 reckoned at what a laden camel marches a day. The road is free from 
 
46 RECORD OP THE MARCH OF 
 
 danger ; travellers go in parties of from ten to fifty with grain for the 
 Nooshky market. Weather cloudy, with slight showers during the day 
 and a sharp and smart storm from the north-west at sunset. 
 
 25/>& February. Land! to Gala' Sabz, 22 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27 24. 8 P.M. 27'24. 7 A.M. 27'18. 
 Therm. 86 56 - 58. 
 
 Route west, at first over a great stretch of cornfields, here and there 
 blighted by the frosts and snow of last month (snow rarely falls here, 
 but this year it fell to the depth of a span and remained on the ground 
 for four or five days), and then over firm gravelly ground sloping up 
 towards the Khanishin hill. At the foot of the hill the ground becomes 
 very broken and water-worn, and presents vertical banks which in the 
 mirage assume the appearance of extensive fortifications. After a couple 
 of miles of ascent we crested a ridge of red sand extending from the 
 hill to the river, where it terminates in high perpendicular cliffs. Beyond 
 this, for about eight miles, we crossed an undulating sandy waste, and 
 then passing through a narrow gap descended into a wide hollow running 
 down to the river. Beyond this we traversed more sand hills similar to 
 the first ridge, and, crossing a very deep and narrow ravine of pure dry 
 sand without a rock or stone of any kind, rose on to some sand knolls 
 overlooking the river, and halted a while for the baggage to come up. 
 Time four hours. From this position we got a wide view of the great 
 desert waste to the north of the river and the low alluvial tract between 
 its border cliffs and the river bed. To the west of this point (Khanishin 
 hill) the alluvium lies on the right or north bank of the river, and ex- 
 tends in a gradually widening expanse for three days' journey. The left 
 or south bank is formed by the sandy desert cliffs and bluffs. To the 
 south rises the sharp-peaked mass of Khanishin or Koh Landi. It is a 
 clean, black rogk of jagged appearance and runs in an uninterrupted 
 range for six or seven miles north and south. From fragments of rock 
 found along our route I conclude the hill is of black basalt. Between 
 it and the river, a distance of some four miles or so, the country rises 
 considerably and forms a belt of some twenty miles width of undulating 
 desert and sand hills. The surface is firm red sand or gravel and is 
 , covered with a thin growth of the itshmalzai or tagJiaz (a kind of 
 Tamarisk), the barak (a species of willow) and many varieties of 
 Salsolacos. 
 
 Proceeding again, we traversed a succession of sandy ridges, and gra- 
 dually descending, in one hour and thirty minutes reached the river bank 
 opposite Gala' Sabz on the opposite side, and camped a little way on 
 between it and Taghaz. 
 
 This march is similar to that between Gala' Bust and Hazarjuft. 
 There is another road along the river bank, but it is interrupted by 
 ravines and difficult ; there is another also across the desert to the south 
 of Khanishin hill, but it is five or six miles longer than the route we 
 took and is altogether without water. 
 
 Gala' Sabz, so named from the greenish clay of the high isolated 
 mound on which it stands, appears to be a very ancient and extensive 
 ruin. From near its base, where the river is confined in a narrow chan- 
 nel, a large canal was in former times carried across the alluvion as far as 
 Gala' Fath. and its course is still traceable at intervals. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 47 
 
 To the eust of Gala' Sabz and along* the right bank of the river (oppo- 
 site to Khanishm hill), as far back as Landi on the left bank, is a great 
 alluvial reach covered with cultivation and villages and settlements. 
 Nearly opposite to Landi are Khanishin, Nunabad and Dewalan. Fur- 
 ther west are Ghulaman, near a large fort in ruins, Gala' Naw and Gala' 
 Sabz and Taghaz, all belonging to the Ishakzais. 
 
 There is no habitation on the_ south side of the river here. Our 
 supplies and forage,, See., were all brought from the villages on the oppo- 
 site side. There are two fords across the river at this season below Gala 
 Sabz, but the water is girth deep. 
 
 Weather cloudy, with slight showers during the day. At nightfall 
 a heavy thunder-storm, with high north-west wind, passed over our camp, 
 and heavy rain fell for an hour. 
 
 26^ l?elruary.V*\*' Sabz to Mel Gudar, 23 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'24. 8 P.M. 27'27. 7 A.M. 27.28. 
 Therm. 74 60 55. 
 
 Route south-south-west, diverging from the river bank across a low lying 
 tract, which for six or seven miles was deep in_ mud from last night's rain; 
 our horses in several places sunk up to the knees and got on with difficulty. 
 At an Tiour and half from camp we came to the junction of this road 
 from Landi round the south end of Khanishm hill. 
 
 At about three hours we passed the Malakhan fort on a mound over- 
 looking the river on the opposite side. It was dismantled in 18 by the 
 Ameer Dost Mahomed as it afforded a rallying point to the deposed 
 Kandahar Sirdars, and it is now in ruins. The river here is narrow and 
 our route strikes it opposite the fort at one of its many short bends. 
 About two miles from Malakhan are Dcshu and its cultivation. The vil- 
 lage contains 160 huts of Ishaczais in a bend of the river. Beyond 
 this a wide extent of ruins (towers and walls), the surface strewed with 
 bits of red pottery. We halted at a small mound here for the baggage to 
 come up. Time five hours and five minutes ; in forty minutes more from 
 this spot we struck the river bank at one of its many bends and camped 
 near the Mel Gudar ford. On the opposite side of the river is a thick 
 forest of willow and Tamarisk trees, and beyond it are the cliffs of the 
 Khash or Shand desert. This desert abounds in wild asses, and along 
 the course of the Shand u ravine are a few camps of Nurz,ais. 
 
 Zllh February. Mel Gudar to Landi, 36 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'38. 8 P.M. 27'41. 7 A.M. 27'54. 
 Therm. 64 54 50. 
 
 Route south-south-west along the winding course of the river by a well- 
 trodden path over spongy saline soil covered with Salicorma and Salsola. 
 The river concealed from view by thick forests of Tamarisk and willow 
 growing in its bed. In about an hour, rounding a promontory of the 
 desert, we entered on a wide alluvial bay known as Abdullahabad. The 
 tract affords good pasture and is named after a noted Belooch nomad (the 
 grandfather of Khan Jehan Khan, Sauzarani Belooch, lord of Ghakansoor), 
 who in former times pitched his camp here with the consent of the Nur- 
 zais to whom the lands belong. About the centre of the plain is a low 
 mound called Sauzar. Beyond this the road gradually veers to the south- 
 
48 EECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 west, and, passing through a narrow strip of jungle between the river 
 bank and the desert cliffs, enters on the Dashti Khwaja 'Ali, a similar allu- 
 vium to that of Abdullahabad, though of lesser extent. Its surface is 
 red with bits of pottery, but with the exception of a solitary ruined 
 tower in its centre there is not a trace of walls or buildings. We halted 
 while at this tower, which is called Khwaja 'Ali. Time from camp, four 
 hours exactly. 
 
 From this, passing by a narrow path under the desert cliffs, which 
 here abut directly on the river bank, only thirty yards intervening 
 between them and the river bed, we entered the Dashti Hadera or " the 
 plain of the cemetery." This is another alluvial bay between the river 
 and a great curve of the desert cliffs to the south. Its surface also is 
 covered to redness with bits of pottery and glazed ware, but no traces 
 of walls or buildings are discernible ; it is about two miles broad. 
 Beyond it we rose on to a prolongation of the desert which here ends at 
 the river and separates the alluvium of Dashti Hadera from that of 
 Palalah. Its surface is flat, hard and gravelly, and bare of vegetation. 
 On its crest overlooking Dashti Hadera is an extensive collection 
 of graves, a cemetery or hadera. Crossing this strip of desert we 
 descended to the Palalah alluvium, and, passing the ruins of its village, 
 destroyed three years ago by the fugitive Ex-Ameer Mahomed Azeem Khan 
 rounded some more projecting cliffs of the desert and entered on the 
 Landi alluvium, and traversing this for a mile or so camped on the river 
 bank close to the village of that name. Time from Khwaja 'Ali three 
 hours and thirty-five minutes. Landi is a fortified village of 120 houses, 
 and belongs to the BarechL tribe of Afghans. Around it is a settlement 
 of about 200 "wattle and dab" huts of their clansmen and others. 
 
 Weather thick and cloudy ; steady rain all the afternoon. 
 
 Palalah is now a wilderness of jungle and sand drifts. Its former 
 Barechi occupants have deserted the place to join their clansmen in 
 Shorawak. U 9 ro ( 
 
 %%th February. Landi to Roodbar, 17 miles. ' 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'60. 8 P.M. 27'60. 7 A.M. 27'56. 
 Therm. 68 52 47. 
 
 Route west-south-west over good hard ground along the foot of the 
 desert cliffs, with the Roodbar canal close on our right. On the top of 
 a projecting desert cliff, a little to the south-west of Landi, is a dilapi- 
 dated fort which commands the passage below to the east and west. 
 Rounding this and following the desert cliffs for a while, we entered on 
 the Lat Gala' alluvium, so named from the ruins of a fort on a mound 
 in its centre. The surface" around is strewed with red pottery. We 
 halted here a while. Time two hours and ten minutes. Beyond Lat 
 Gala', still skirting the sand hills on our left, we passed the ruins 
 of Karbasak or Garshasap (?), amongst which is a large fort in fair 
 preservation, and in two hours reached our camping ground midway 
 between the two forts of Roodbar. These are about half a mile apart 
 and each is surrounded by its own collection of huts and cornfields. One 
 of these forts belongs to Imam Khan of Charboorjuk, and the other to 
 Kama! Khan of the Bandar Traku. They are the sons of two frontiers 
 of the late Khan Jehan Khan of Chakansoor, and are consequently cousins 
 of his son, Ibrahim Khan, the present lord of that place. They belong 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 49 
 
 to the Sauzarani tribe of Belooch ; their subjects in the huts belong to the ' 
 Tawei tribe of Belooch. The cultivation here is confined to the vicinity ^ 
 of the forts ; the rest of the country is jungle waste, and a strip along | 
 the foot of the desert cliffs is hard, bare and thickly set with smooth 
 pebbles of dark colour. A short distance to the south-west of Roodbar 
 are the extensive ruins of Pushti Gao. Through them runs the line of 
 an ancient canal the Jiie Karshasp or canal of Karshasp. It used to > . 
 irrigate all the southern portion of Seistan, and was destroyed by Timqor ' 
 Lang. 
 
 29^ February. Roodbar to Gala' Jan Beg, 28 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'60. 8 P.M. 27'62. 7 A.M. 27'66. 
 Therm. 70 54 4*3. 
 
 Route west over a long strip of cornfields along the river bank for six v 
 or seven miles, with scatterea clumps of Tamarisk trees, all around the 
 roots of which were heaps of drift sand interspersed. Beyond the 
 cultivation we entered upon a perfectly bare tract, the surface of which 
 is hard and thickly set with smooth brown pebbles, which in the sunlight 
 shine with a silvery lustre. To the south the land undulates and 
 gradually rises on to the desert. The entire tract from the Pushti Gao 
 ruins at Roodbar to those at Gala' Jan Beg is covered at short intervals 
 with the remains of ancient towns, forts and canals. These ruins are ^ 
 collectively called Caikobad and are supposed to have formed the capital ' 
 of Caikhosro. j v 
 
 At four hours and five minutes we came to the ruins of a compacu ] 
 fort with massive and lofty mud walls. It is called Cala'e Madari 
 Padshah or the " Fort of the King's Mother/' It stands a little apart from ^- 
 the other ruins and is supposed to be the actual former residence of that 
 royal lady. In its interior is a large mosque, still sufficiently preserved 
 to be recognizable. At about two.kours further on we came to two 
 tall towers, much dilapidated, that rise up in the midst of a vast extent 
 of ruins. They are about three hundred yards apart, and between 
 them are the remains of a connecting wall, very massive and lofty, and 
 pierced by a series of close-set arched windows. This is the proper 
 Caikobad and is supposed to be the actual site of Caikhosrc/s palace. 
 It stands upon a slight eminence on the^river bank and alTaround are 
 the remains of massive walls and large buildings. Directly opposite, on 
 the other side of the river, are the ruins of an extensive city, high walls, 
 forts and bastions being distinguishable. 
 
 All these ruins are of hard clay and raw brick and very few baked 
 bricks were seen. In some parts they are so well preserved as to be 
 capable of restoration and give rise to the idea that the ruins are not all 
 of the same date. 
 
 From Caikobad we proceeded over some broken ground and dropped 
 on to a tract of thick Tamarisk jungle in which at fifty minutes we 
 reached the fort of Gala' Jan Beg, so named from a noted robber chief, 
 the father of Khan Jehan Khan of Chakansoor, who in former times 
 occupied its ruins as his stronghold and retreat. The fort now appears 
 capable of restoration. We camped in a thick jungle of Tamarisk 
 between it and the river bank hard by. 
 
50 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 1st MarcJi. Gala' Jan Beg to Charboorjuk, 14 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 p. M. 27'69. 8 p. M. 27'65. 7 A. M. 2775. 
 
 Therm. 73 57 47. 
 
 Route west by north over an undulating desert tract, hard, bare and 
 thick-set, with smooth pebbles that glisten like silver in the morning 
 sun. Scattered over the country are the remains of forts, towns and 
 canals of ancient times. On the opposite or right bank of the river 
 on the alluvium between it and the high cliffs of the desert to the north, 
 are the ruins of a large fortified town. Around it are the huts and corn- 
 fields of the Zabardast Belooch, who on being ejected from Malakhun 
 some thirty years ago settled here. The ruins are called Ishkinak and 
 have recently been occupied by a party of Persian troops from Seistan. 
 Beyond Ishkinak to the north-west are the Husenabad alluvium, and 
 the settlements of the Belooch subjects of Imam Khan of Charboorjuk. 
 
 At two hours and twenty minutes we halted awhile on a slight 
 undulation of the ground to survey the prospect. In the distant south 
 (three days' journey hence) were seen the tops of the Sarbadd mountains. 
 They are said to abound in springs and their valleys to be full of date- 
 palms and rice-fields. To the north-west of these mountains is, we are 
 told, the Belooch district of Ispi, which is watered from the Helmund. 
 Away to the west stretches a vast basin, the Seistan country, bounded 
 by the Neh Bundan range running north and south. The tops of the 
 range are seen against the sky. To the north, beyond the wide river bed 
 and its alluvium, the prospect is closed by the high chiffs of the Khash 
 and Kaddah desert ; whilst to the east behind us is the narrow valley 
 of the Helmund, bounded on the north and south by desert cliffs, and 
 presenting to the view a confused mass of ruins and jungle interspersed 
 on either side of the river bed. 
 
 From this spot we followed the river bank for one hour and ten 
 minutes, and -theii camped on a sandy spot directly opposite the fort 
 of Charboorjuk on the other side of the river. Around the fort are a 
 number of huts and a good deal of cultivation, and some clumps of 
 mulberry, willow and Tamarisk trees. Charboorjuk is a recent fort; it 
 was built about twenty years ago in the time of Mahomed Raza 
 Khan of Sikkoha, Ishkinak was settled by the Zabardost section of 
 the Mammasani (Muhommad Hasani) Belooch in the time of the British 
 occupation, when they were ejected from Malakhan. 
 
 In the time of Shah Mahmood, Doorranee, all this country was held 
 by the Nurzai Afghans under their chief, Meer 'Alum Khan. He was 
 murdered by the Wuzeer Fath Khan, Barukzai, of Nadali, Girishk, in 
 1810, near Jugduluk from motives of political jealousy, who then gave 
 his country to three brother chiefs of the Sauzarani Belooch, who for 
 some generations had been in the habit of frequenting this part of the 
 Helmund course to pasture their cattle and flocks. He gave the Cha- 
 kansoor district to Khan Jehan Khan, father of the present Chief, Ibra- 
 him Khan; Bandar Traku he gave to Nawab Khan, father of the 
 present Chief, Kamal Khan ; and Roodbar he gave to Islam Khan, father 
 of the present Chief, Imam Khan. 
 
 The father of these three original recipients was Jan Beg, a noted 
 robber who occupied the ruins of a fort, now named after him, in the 
 vicinity of the ancient Caikobad, as already mentioned. Jan Beg's 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 51. 
 
 father, Abdoollah Khan, settled himself in the district now named after 
 him further to the eastward up the course of the river. He and his 
 following 1 appear to have first roamed up here from Beloochistan about the 
 time that Shah Ahmed, Doorranee, established himself in the sovereignty 
 of Afghanistan. 
 
 2nd March. Charboorjuk to Bandar Traku, 13 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'66. 8 P.M. 27'67. 7 A.M. 27'68. 
 
 Therm. 77 62 48. 
 
 Route nearly due west away from the river which here turns northward. 
 At first the road led over a sandy tract (evidently a deposit by river 
 floods), firm under foot, and covered with a thin jungle of the mimosa 
 and Tamarisk ; then for some miles it led over a bare, hard, pebbly j 
 surface along the foot of the desert cliffs which are here perpendicular, 
 and for some distance followed the course of an ancient canal now 
 mostly obliterated by sand drifts. It is the Jue Karshasp and gives off 
 many branches. The main branches in former times used to be Balba- 
 khan for Roodbar and Traku ; Yakhab opposite Gala' Fath for Daki Dela ; 
 Kohuk now in use at the north limit of Seistan ; Khojah Ahmed and 
 its branch from Boorj 'Alum to the north-west by the Farrah Rood 
 Hamoon to the Sar Shela and Zarrah marsh. 
 
 Beyond the Jue Karshasp we passed the ruins of a small town close 
 on the river bank to our right, and in about two hours and ten minutes 
 struck the modern Traku canal, and crossing it by a rustic bridge wound 
 through a thick Tamarisk jungle for half an hour, the cliffs of the desert 
 overhanging our path on the left; and then passing into a deep gully 
 between them rose on to the desert itself, which here projects a long way_ 
 forward to the river. From this elevated position we got a good view 
 of the country around. To the south the great undulations of a vast 
 bare pebbly desert cut the horizon. To the west and north lies the 
 great plain of Seistan, bounded to the west by the Neh Bundan range, 
 whilst to the north it presents the winding bed of the Helmund which in 
 one of its many bends flows close under the cliffs we stand on, and from 
 the Bandar fort in our front makes a decided turn to the north-west. 
 On its right bank is a wide extent of alluvium bounded on the east by 
 the cliffs of the Khash desert. Traversing the strip of desert whence 
 we got this view, we descended into a wide and deep ravine, the banks 
 of stiff clay, where it opens on the plain of Seistan, and at about a mile 
 further, in thirty-five minutes from the gully, reached Bandar Kamal 
 Khan, where we camped on the new Traku canal flowing hard by it. 
 
 From Charboorjuk to this place the Helmund valley gradually widens, 
 the alluvium being on its right bank, and at Bandar opens on to the 
 great Seistan plain. The fort of Bandar was built at the same time 
 as that of Charboorjuk by Muhammad Raza Khan of Sikkoha. It is a 
 strong place in such a country and consists of double fortified walls 
 a fort within a_fort. The walls are loopholed and there are projecting 
 bastions for flank fire. The inner fort is occupied by Kamal Khan and 
 his clansmen, and the space between it and the outer walls is occupied 
 by his subjects, Tawci Belooch. Around the fort is a good deal of cul- 
 tivation, but the country to the south and west is a great waste bor- 
 dered to the south by the desert cliffs, and merging to the west in the 
 
52 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 basin or god of Zarrah, the central portion of which is said to be occu- 
 pied by a great marsh or swamp fed from the drainage of Seistan through 
 the Sar Shela, a great ravine leading from the Farrah Rood Hamoon along 
 the foot of the Neh Bundan range to the southern portion of the plain. 
 
 On the surface of this waste are seen many scattered ruins amongst 
 which winds the course of a great branch (called Bulbakhan) , here and 
 there completely obliterated, of the ancient Jue Karshasp on its way to 
 Traku. 
 
 The forts of Bandar and Charboorjuk are reckoned as part of Seistan* 
 the Gurmsel limit being at Roodbar ; but the Helmund valley terminates 
 at Bandar,, where the river entering the Seistan plain makes a decided 
 turn to the northward. 
 
 * From Gala' Bust to Bandar Traku by our route along the course of 
 the Helmund, or liermund as it is often called,, is an estimated distance 
 of two> hundred and fifty-four miles. From Hazarjuft to Roodbar, a dis- 
 tance of about one hundred and fifty-nine miles, the valley of the river 
 is known as Gurmsel, or " the hot tract/' a very appropriate name. The 
 valley however does not end at Roodbar, but goes on to Bandar where 
 the river enters the plain of Seistan. In all this part of its course the 
 Helmund flows in a narrow valley bounded on the south by the cliffs 
 of the great sandy desert between Seistan and Beloochistan, and on the 
 north by the cliffs of the desert waste extending from Girishk to the 
 borders of Seistan south of Khash. It is known as the desert of Khash 
 or Shandii ; the latter name in Pukshto signifies barren. 
 
 2- From Hazarjuft to Roodbar the Gurmsel is divided into nearly two 
 equal parts by the Koh Khanishin. Here the desert cliffs on the south 
 abut directly upon the river and divert its alluvium from the left or 
 southern bank to the right or northern. In the eastern half, or 
 between Hazarjuft and Landi, Ishakzai, the alluvium is entirely on the 
 left bank, and forms a succession of deep bays or reaches in which are 
 the villages and cultivation, &c. On the right bank in this half there 
 is no alluvium ; the river flows along the foot of the desert cliffs. 
 
 In the western half, or between Khanishin and Roodbar the alluvium 
 is mostly on the right or northern bank. From opposite Land! Ishakzai, 
 that is, from the Khanishin village to Malakhan, a distance of about 
 thirty-five miles, the alluvion is on the north or right bank. West of 
 Malakhan the desert cliffs abut upon the river and throw the alluvium 
 on its left bank from Deshu to Roodbar. Beyond this the alluvium 
 appears again on the right bank, and, gradually widening into the Ishki- 
 nak and Husenabad tracts, beyond the latter, opens on to the Seistan plain. 
 From Deshii onwards on the left bank the alluvium forms a succession 
 of semicircular reaches, such as those of Abdullahabad, Hadera, Palalah 
 and Landi Barechi. Beyond this is the narrow ruin-covered tract as far 
 as Charboorjuk, between which and Bandar the cliffs of the southern 
 desert abut upon the river and turn its course to the north-west through 
 an open plain country. 
 
 ^ Gurmsel is highly cultivated and very fertile. It produces largely 
 wheat, barley and the common pulses, also Indian-corn. These are 
 exported to Kandahar and Girishk in one direction, and Nooshky and 
 Khelat on the other. The alluvium on either side of the river is^very^ 
 where intersected by irrigation canals drawn off from its stream. Some 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 
 
 53 
 
 of these canals are very deep and narrow, and have raised, jungle-grown 
 banks, and where not bridged are difficult to cross for footmen and 
 impossible to cattle. Pasture for cattle is deficient, but for camels there 
 is Abundance. The supply of fuel from the Tamarisk and willow jungles 
 in the Uver bed is unlimited. The population of Gurmsel from Hazar- 
 juft to Palalah (now deserted) is entirely Afghan ; from Rudbar to 
 Bandar it is Belooch. The Afghans are the Nurzai, Ishakzai, Populzai 
 and Barechi ; amongst them are other Afghan and Pathan refugees, such 
 as Ghilzais, Khattaks, &c. ; also some Brahoe and Belooch emigrants and 
 settlers as Curdgalis and Raisanis, and Mammassanis, &c. The Belooch 
 are the Sauzarani (the ruling tribe) , and their vassals the Tawci, Mamas- 
 sani, &c.^ In the summer months between fifty and sixty camps of 
 Raisanis, Curdgalis and other Brahoes, and Mammassani and other 
 Belooch, visit Gurmsel or Gurmsir for the pasturage on the river bank. 
 Each camp contains from twenty to fifty or sixty tents or booths termed 
 joalds. They are mere mat^huts, supported on thin poles, sometimes 
 supplemented by wicker walls. In the winter months these nomads 
 return with their flocks and herds to the desert about Nooshky_and JCha- 
 ran. The fixed population of Gurmsel may be reckoned at, in round 
 numbers, 5,*9SO families or 29,900 souls, Afghans, and 1,510 families or 
 7,500 souls, Belooch, as shewn in the subjoined tabular statement of their 
 distribution by villages and settlements. In summer this number is 
 increased by the nomad Brahoes and Belooch who for that season occupy 
 the left bank of the river from Koh Khanishin westward to Bandar 
 Trakii. Their numbers may be taken collectively at 8,000 souls or more. 
 
 Villages and Settlements. 
 
 Number of 
 houses. 
 
 Name of tribe. 
 
 Total number of families 
 by tribes. 
 
 Hazarjuft and Settlements 
 Muhammad Ghaus, Bala and Payi 
 Ameer Buland ... 
 Darweshan, Bala and Payin 
 Aelam Khan and Dajwar 
 Khan Muhammad 
 Fath Muhammad 
 Sirdar Khan 
 Muhammad 'Alum 
 Abbassabad 
 
 n 
 
 750 
 260 
 40 
 650 
 120 
 80 
 100 
 120 
 60 
 100 
 280 
 750 
 700 
 350 
 330 
 400 
 230 
 160 
 280 
 320 
 120 
 600 
 250 
 320 
 120 
 220 
 
 Nurzai ~TT 
 
 Populzai 
 Ishakzai 
 
 Barechi Afghan ... 
 
 Sauzarani and Taw- 
 ci Belooch. 
 
 Mamassani do. ... 
 
 1 
 
 3,910 Nurzai families, at 
 five souls per family, 
 equals 19,550 souls. 
 
 1,750 souls. 
 
 } 1,400 Ishakzai Afghan fa- 
 milies or 7,000 souls. 
 
 7320 Barechi families or 
 j 1,600 souls. 
 
 I 1,510 Belooch families or 
 * 7,550 souls. 
 
 Total families, Afghan, 6,980, . 
 Beleoch, 1,510. 
 
 Kushti and Myan Pushta 
 Sutar 250 and Lakki 500 
 Banadir, altogether 
 Baggat... 
 Landi 
 Khanishin 250, Nunabad 150 
 Dewaban 150, Ghulaman 80 
 Cala' Nao 100, Cala' Sabz 60 
 Taghaz 120, Deshu 160 .. 
 Landi ... 
 Palalah (deserted) 
 _Ropdbar 
 "Charboorjuk 
 Bandar Tr&ku 
 
 
 Ishkinak 
 Husenabad 
 
 
 The Gurmsel, as far as Roodbar, belongs to Kandahar, and until 
 recently, the country as far as Bandar acknowledged the authority of the 
 Kandahar Chief in common with the rest of the Belooch on the line of 
 the Helmund up to Chakansoor. But since the Persian occupation of 
 Seistan the Belooch between Roodbar and Bandar have succumbed to 
 the invaders. Gurmsel, like many districts on the eastern borders 
 
54 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 of the country, has long been a neglected portion of the Afghan 
 kingdom ; and the several tribes holding it have pretty well had their 
 own way as regards lawlessness and independence. The district was in 
 1845 annexed to Kandahar by Kohndil Khan; previous to this it was 
 f reckoned part of Seistan, the eastern limit of which was at Gala' Bust. 
 It is still included in the province of Kandahar ; its revenue is paid 
 almost entirely in grain and cattle, and the collection is made at uncer- 
 tain intervals with the aid of troops. 
 
 The climate of Gurmsel is described as unbearably hot during the 
 summer months, owing to the prevalence of hot winds from the great 
 desert tracts bounding it on the north and south. The spring and 
 winter seasons are reckoned healthy, but in the autumn marsh fevers are 
 rife. During winter hard frosts prevail, and storms are frequent with 
 heavy rainfalls, but snow rarely whitens the ground. 
 
 The wild animals are the jackal, fox, wolf and hyaena. Waterfowl, 
 cranes and pelicans in vast numbers and great variety swarm upon 
 the river-course. The wild pig, hares and partridges abound in the thick 
 jungle, filling the wider portions of the riverbed. Through Gurmsel 
 lies the direct and safest military route to Kandahar. The tract itself 
 is free from obstacle against an organized force, whilst the deserts on 
 either side protect it from flank attack. During the summer floods 
 the river is nowhere fordable, but in winter it is so in many parts. 
 
 SECTION VII. 
 
 From Bandar to Chdhi Sagak, Seistan. 
 3rd March. Bandar to Daki Dela, 14 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'56. 8 P.M. 27'56. 7 A.M. 27'ol. 
 Therm. 80 66 60. 
 
 Route from Bandar Traku or Bandar Kamal Khan at first north- 
 west (leaving the ruins of Gumbazi Nadir on our left), across a small 
 canal on either side of which is a small strip of cultivation, on to a wide 
 desert waste that stretches away to the west and south-west as far as the 
 eye can follow. Here our route turned to the north and followed the 
 course of the river which flows in a very serpentine manner through a 
 wide bed overgrown with Tamarisk jungle. The wide alluvium 011 the 
 opposite side of the river up to the high cliffs of the desert appeared 
 quite uncultivated, and for a distance of some miles is covered with the 
 scattered ruins of an extensive city. This tract is called Meer. 
 
 Our route along the left bank after leaving Bandar is over a wide 
 and bare desert. The surface undulates very gently and is very thickly 
 covered with smooth brown and black pebbles. In three hours and ten 
 minutes we came to the ruins of a lofty citadel built on the river brink. 
 Passing this we entered a thick Tamarisk jungle between the river and a 
 high bank of clay on our left, and in twenty minutes more camped on 
 some mounds of sand overlooking the river and directly opposite a small 
 Tamarisk-grown island in its stream, which here flows in three or four 
 channels, all at this season fordable. There is no habitation here, nor 
 any sign of cultivation. All around our camp is a thick Tamarisk 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. OD 
 
 jungle, and on the sand banks and drainage gullies is a plentiful growth 
 of a tall coarse grass called kerta (Oyperus tuberosus). The roots of 
 this grass are sometimes used as food under the name of dila or dela. 
 Hence probably the name of this spot Daki Dela, or the " Mound or 
 Bank' of the dela." The long coarse leaves furnish a good and readily- 
 eaten fodder for horses and cattle. 
 
 kth March. Daki Dela to Cabr-i-Hajee, 12 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'46. 8 P.M. 27'50. 7 A.M. 27'61. 
 Therm. 84 78. 58. 
 
 Route nearly due north, at first through Tamarisk jungle, on to a 
 level tract thinly covered with Salsolacos and Tamarisk, and then on to a 
 great desert plain similar to, and continuous ' to the west and south with 
 that traversed yesterday. 
 
 In about two hours we came abreast of the Gala' Fath citadel on the 
 opposite side of the river, which here makes a great sweep round to the 
 east and north. Our route followed the river bank, but for the last twenty 
 minutes of the above time, holding a straight course due north, diverged 
 from it and again struck it further on at the end of its bend. Gala' 
 Fath is a lofty and massive pile of fortifications rising prominently from 
 the midst of a vast extent of ruins. It is overlooked on the east by the 
 desert cliffs, on the verge of which are some substantial ruins. The fort 
 or citadel of Gala' Fath is now occupied by a Persian garrison. They 
 have partially restored the fortifications which appear to be in a sufficient 
 state of preservation to admit of easy restoration throughout. Gala' 
 Fath is said to have been the capital of the last of Kayani kings ; it was 
 finally sacked and dismantled by Nadir Shah. The ruins are mostly of 
 raw brick and clay, but the citadel, in which stood the palace and some 
 extensive buildings on the verge of the desert cliffs, are of baked bricks. 
 Beyond the Persian garrison, located in the citadel: about a month ago, 
 there is neither habitation nor cultivation at Gala' Fath. 
 
 Proceeding on our route we presently crossed the bed of an ancient 
 canal, and a little further on again struck the river bank, and following its 
 course in one hour arrived at Cabr-i-Hajee, and camped on a bare desert 
 tract of undulating surface similar to, and part of that already described. 
 The canal abovementioned comes off from the river below Gala' Fath 
 and proceeds across the plain to the north-west. It must have carried a 
 large stream and fertilized an extensive area. It is called Yakhab. 
 
 Below Gala' Fath the river flows in two great channels round a long 
 strip of island covered with Tamarisk jungle. Our camp is opposite this 
 island, and below us in the river bed is a thick belt of Tamarisk jungle 
 and an abundant growth of the kerta, which is the only fodder procur- 
 able here, there being neither habitation nor cultivation in the vicinity. 
 The river we observed was rising as we rode along its bank and were 
 told it had been doing so for the past three days. Its stream was very 
 muddy instead of clear as above, and carried a good deal of drift wood 
 and scum. This is the little flood and is the result of the spring rains 
 on the Hazarah mountains. The hot weather flood from the melting of 
 the snows on the same hills does not set in till May or June. On the 
 subsidence of this flood musquitoes and a white stinging fly make their 
 appearance in myriads along the marshy banks and wherever there 
 is much irrigated land. These insects from their vast numbers are 
 
.56 BECORD OF THE MATICH OF 
 
 extremely troublesome to man and beast ; and the white fly, it is said, 
 sometimes stings horses to such an extent as to produce death. 
 
 Weather cloudy and still till noon ; then a strong south wind blew 
 till 4t P.M., followed by a close, oppressive atmosphere and cloud-cast sky. 
 At 7 P.M. a smart storm blew over camp for an hour, a few drops of 
 rain fell and a lull followed for the night ; air close, warm, moist and 
 oppressive, and swarming with midges and musquitoes. These appear 
 to have been blown up by the south wind for they were not observed 
 before. 
 
 blh March. Cabr-i-Hajee to Boorj 'Alum, 19 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'60. 8 P.M. 27'60. 7 A.M. 27'56. 
 
 Therm. 80 64 55. 
 
 Route north and then north-west gradually diverging from the river 
 over the bare, hard, pebbly desert already described, with nothing to note 
 except the ruins scattered over the alluvium on the opposite side of the 
 river. In three hours and ten minutes we came to the water-worn banks 
 of one of the several channels forming the delta of the Helmund. -It 
 is perfectly dry in most of its course, but just below our position are two 
 pools of beautifully clear blue water, separated by a low bank. Together, 
 the pools are about two miles in length by a width of three hundred 
 yards. The banks, which are here fifty or sixty feet high, are of stiff 
 clay and show by the horizontal water lines that the flood of the Hel- 
 mund rises some thirty or forty feet. This channel, we were told, had not 
 been flooded from the river for the past four years ; it is of varying 
 width from eight to twelve hundred yards. 
 
 At an hour further on we descended by a gently sloping gully into 
 a wide circular basin, formerly part of the hamoon or lake, and entered 
 Seistan. This basin is now perfectly dry and its surface is bare and 
 fissured ; its banks are deeply furrowed by water-cuts and marked 
 horizontally by water lines, here and there obliterated by desiccation of 
 the clay banks. We crossed this and in a strait by which it communi- 
 cates with another and far more extensive basin were met by an istikbal 
 of sixty horsemen, headed by Ali Mahomed, son of Shureef Khan of 
 Boorj 'Alum. He conducted us out of the strait over a ridge of hard 
 pebbly ground into a wide basin that stretches away for many miles 
 to the south-west with a well-defined high coast-line. We crossed this 
 nearly due north and, passing some domed shrines on the crest of 
 its coast-line and an extensive graveyard in the hollow at its base, in 
 forty-five minutes reached Boorj 'Alum, where we camped. This is a 
 fortified village of about two hundred houses built on the slopes of the 
 high bank of the dry hamoon, the bed of which is now covered with 
 cornfields and orchards and vineyards. The houses are almost all domed ; 
 the surrounding walls are all loopholed and crenulated ; the upper portion 
 of the village is commanded from the hollow over the walls running 
 along the base of the bank; the citadel occupies the high north-west angle 
 and commands the whole village. Boorj 'Alum takes its name from the 
 Chiefs of the Nahroe Belooch who were first settled here by Bahram Khan, 
 Kayani. A little way to the east is another fortified village, Gala' Nao, 
 the residence of Shureef Khan, the present Nahroe Chief. 
 
 Boorj 'Alum is the first inhabited spot we have come to since we left 
 Bandar; it is also the first village we have come to in Seistan. This name 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 57 
 
 it appears has a very wide and undefined application. In one sense it is 
 applied to all that extensive region forming the southern half of 
 Afghanistan which is drained by the several rivers emptying into the 
 hamoon or lake. In a more limited sense it is only applied to Seistan 
 Proper, which is a very limited area confined to the point of junction of 
 the several rivers in the lake itself. Its limits are thus given by the 
 natives. The northern boundary is the Naizar or "belt of reeds/' 
 between the hamoon of the Helmund and the hamoon of the Farrah Rood ; 
 its eastern boundary is formed by the delta of the Helmund ; the cliffs 
 of the Zarrak desert form its southern boundary ; and the great drainage 
 gully running from the Farrah Rood Hamoon to the " Zarrak Hollow" or 
 Godi Zarrah, and known as the Sar Shela, bounds it on the west. 
 
 6t/i March. Boorj 'Alum to Wasilan, 7 miles. 
 
 Route north across corn-fields to a canal flowing in a high banked 
 channel about eight feet above the level of the hollow ; then diverging 
 from this to the north-east passed over a promontory of stiff clay 
 strewed with brown pebbles the shore of the old hamoon and descended 
 again to the hollow of the old and dry lake which is now marshy and 
 dotted with stagnant pools formed by escaped water from the great canal 
 hard by. We crossed this hollow due north and presently came to the 
 great Kohuk canal or Madariab, directly opposite Kimak on the further 
 bank. Time from Boorj 'Alum forty-five minutes. The marshes and 
 pools in this hollow were swarming with wild-fowl in vast numbers and 
 great variety ; their shrill cries were heard above the shouts and impre- 
 cations of our escort and camp-followers in the crossing of the canal. 
 
 The Kohuk canal where we crossed it at Kimak is about sixty feet 
 wide and eight feet deep. In some parts here its banks are slightly 
 raised above the general level. We were ferried across to a narrow land- 
 ing directly under the walls of Kimak (a fortified village of 120 houses, 
 with a citadel in the south-west corner, the residence of Sherdil Khan, 
 brother of Shureef, with a small Persian garrison), on a little float made 
 of reeds, bound together with Tamarisk stakes and twigs. The float or 
 raft is called tuti, and the reed or rush of which it is made tut. 
 
 There were only two of these awkward and dangerous vehicles for 
 the passage. Ourselves and baggage were first ferried across in succes- 
 sive trips, whilst the escort and camp crossed by a ford chin-deep a little 
 way down the stream. In three hours and a half the whole of our party, 
 comprising, in round numbers, 120 horsemen, 50 laden camels, 30 laden 
 yabus and 100 camp-followers on foot, had crossed the canal. 
 
 Passing round the west side of Kimak between it and a collection 
 of huts outside its walls, our path led between newly-planted orchards 
 and vineyards to a patch of cornfields. Beyond this, leaving the clay 
 ridge of Atashgah, running north-west and south-east about half a 
 mile to our left, we crossed a small tract of loose ridgy sand and came 
 to a wide stretch of cornfields flooded with water from numerous little 
 water-cuts running in every direction. To avoid the heavy ground, we 
 made a circuit to the north over a sandy waste, and in one hour and 
 twenty minutes reached some huts of migratory Belooch about five 
 hundred yards from Wasilan, and camped between the two. 
 
 The country around is an undulating sandy plain, here and there 
 thrown into ridges and hillocks of loose sand. The hollows are freely 
 
 ft 
 
58 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 irrigated and covered with corn crops. North-north-west of our camp 
 is seen the top of Koh Khoja, said to be thirty miles off. Weather cold 
 and cloudy. 
 
 7l/i March. TTasilan to Nasirabad, 12 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'59 8 P.M. 27'59 7 A.M. 2775. 
 Therm. 78 65 57. 
 
 Route north over a level plain of light sandy soil covered with corn- 
 fields and intersected in every direction by numerous little water-cuts. 
 In one hour and three quarters we entered on a very rough uncultivated 
 tract, on which were scattered the Tamarisk, Camel-thorn and Salsola. 
 The surface soil is a caked and stratified deposit from floods and abounds 
 in bi-valves. It is cut into sharp-edged scoops and furrows by the action 
 of a strong north-west wind, by which also the Tamarisk bushes are 
 twisted and bent. Beyond this we passed some village ruins and then 
 the dirty little Kandurak hamlet of forty houses, round which are some 
 - melon fields and some corn cultivation. Further on, at a mile from the 
 fort of Nasirabad, we were met by an istikbdl of thirty horsemen headed 
 by Yoozbashee Hajee Asad Khan, expressly sent here by the Prince Gover- 
 nor of Meshed. He conducted us along the south and west faces of 
 the Nasirabad fort to our camp on the plain beyond the north-west 
 angle occupied by the citadel. Time one hour and twenty minutes. 
 
 Nasirabad is a newly-erected fort surrounding the former village of 
 that name, and is the residence and seat of Government of the Persian 
 Governor of Seistan, Meer 'Alum Khan of Ghayii. The fortified walls 
 are of a square shape and surrounded by a deep ditch ; the earth dug 
 out of this is thrown up against the base of the walls, and forms a slope 
 reaching nearly to their crenulated tops, where the thickness is barely a 
 foot. The walls are very carelessly and hastily built of clay clods loosely 
 plaistered together. The south-west faces have each thirteen round 
 bastions exclusive of those at the angles. In the middle of the west 
 face is a gateway through which we saw that the greater portion of the 
 interior is an open and unoccupied space, and that the surrounding walls 
 are unsupported on the inside. The buttress bastions on each face are 
 about sixty yards apart. The village of Nasirabad occupies the north- 
 east portion of the interior. Outside the north-west angle and separate 
 from the rest of the fortifications is the citadal. It is strongly and care- 
 fully built and has eight turreted bastions on each of the west and north 
 faces, with a covered way between the ditch and walls. In the interior 
 of the larger fortification, at each of the south-east and south-west angles, 
 is a large round bastion or mole ; they command the plain over the walls. 
 
 On the plain close to the north-west angle of the citadel ditch is a 
 large windmill or asyai bad. It consists of two parallel mud walls about 
 sixteen feet apart ; they run north and south, are about twenty feet high 
 and about the same in length. The eastern wall is curved round to the 
 north, and stops four feet short of the western one. In the centre of the 
 interior are placed on the ground the millstones ; each is four feet in 
 diameter and ten inches thick. In the upper a post is fixed vertically 
 and supported above by a cross-beam resting" on the side walls ; in its 
 sides are fixed half a dozen flanges. These are light frames of wood 
 furnished along the outer margin with a band of reed matting. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 59 
 
 The win d, -generally north or north-west, rushes through the narrow 
 passage, turns the flanges and escapes at the wide opening to the south. 
 Weather cloudy during forenoon,, fine and clear in afternoon, with a brisk 
 north-west wind towards sunset. 
 
 8M March. Nasirabad to Banjar, 6 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'65. 8 P,M. 2770. 7 A.M. 27*93. 
 Therm. 68 52 52. 
 
 A high north wind blew steadily all night and during this day ; at 
 nightfall it increased in violence. Weather cold, bleak and cloudy. Route 
 along the north face of the Nasirabad fort and then north-east over a 
 jungle tract of Tamarisk covered with pools from the overflowing of 
 numerous canals. Two of these were of considerable size and bridged 
 over by Tamarisk logs supported on projecting piers. The soil is a loose 
 sodden sand thrown into hillocks and ridges of wind drift. The pools 
 and jungle everywhere swarm with waterfowl. Our path was very 
 narrow and wound about the jungle following the dry slips of land. In 
 one hour and forty minutes we alighted at Sir Frederick Goldsmid's 
 camp close to Banjar, and on the edge of a great sheet of water from 
 the overflowing of a great canal on its further side ; this is one of the 
 main branches of the Kohuk Madariab, and irrigates Nasirabad and the 
 country to its west. The soil here is spongy and encrusted with salines, 
 and, excepting a tough and stunted little grass growing in tufts, is bare 
 of vegetation. The whole of our march from Nasirabad to Banjar 
 was water-logged and difficult, and would prove a serious obstacle to the 
 movement* of troops. By their canal system the Persians have it in 
 their power to inundate the greater portion of the country and thus pro- 
 tect it from invasion by an enemy. 
 
 $tk March. Halt at Banjar. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'93. 8 P.M. 28'00. 7 A.M. 28'04. 
 Therm. 64 49 50. 
 
 Weather bleak and sky cloudy. A high north wind all night and most 
 of the day. It is called Shamdl and blows more or less irregularly all 
 through the winter. During the summer this north wind blows continu- 
 ously for one hundred and twenty days, and is from this circumstance 
 called bddi sadoHst; it is said to commence very regularly two months 
 &Hernau roz or the "vernal equinox/' that is to say, it prevails from the 
 15th May to the 12th September. The absence of trees -from the plain 
 of Seistan is attributed to this wind ; and if as keen and strong then as 
 it is now, its injurious effects on the growth of trees is easily understood, 
 for its persistent force would materially interfere with the process of 
 fructification. It is however utilized to work the numerous windmills 
 all over the district. There are two kinds of windmill, built on the 
 same principle as the one already described, but worked in different ways 
 and for different purposes. The vertical ones are used for the grinding of 
 corn, &c. ; and those working horizontally are adjusted for the raising of 
 water for purposes of irrigation. These last however are not of common 
 occurrence and we saw none ourselves. Banjar is a Kayani village of 
 about 400 houses, which, like all others in this country, are dome-roofed. 
 The Kayanis, however, form but a fraction of its inhabitants, who are 
 mostly Sarbandi and Persian masters with their dependants of various 
 
60 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 tribes. The Kayanis as a distinct tribe have almost disappeared ; their 
 numbers in this country, it is said, hardly exceeds a hundred families. 
 We were told that there is in the possession of one of the old Kayani 
 families of Banjar a very ancient scroll or tumdr, giving the bygone 
 records of the country in an unknown language. It is guarded with 
 jealous secrecy and is not to be purchased. Prince Kamran, when he 
 conquered Seistan, is reported to have carried off to Herat some very 
 ancient books and illuminated tablets from Banjar ; the writing of these 
 was in an unknown language. He also seized here a very ancient Koran 
 and some other Arabic books. 
 
 lOt/i March. Halt at Banjar. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'89. 8 P.M. 27'89. 7 A.M. 27'97. 
 Therm. 66 54 48. 
 
 A high north wind throughout the night and all day, subsiding at sun- 
 set; forenoon dull and cloudy; afternoon clear and sunny. Air cold, 
 raw and damp. The Koh Khojak, formerly surrounded by the marsh of 
 the Hamoon and now by its dry bed, is seen very distinctly at about 
 twenty-five miles due west of our camp. The hill was visited by Major 
 Lovett, B.E., and from a specimen of the rock procured by him it 
 appears to be of basaltic matter. On its surface are extensive ruins. 
 Beyond Koh Khojak, in the distance is seen the Neh Bun dan range, run- 
 ning north and south and bounding Seistan to the westward. The rang'e 
 is divided midway by a narrow valley, and the hills run from this north- 
 east and south-west. 
 
 The mean of nine barometric registrations of the Aneroid at Banjar 
 is 27'80. From this I calculate the approximate elevation above the sea 
 to be 1,600 feet. The mean of sixteen registrations of the thermometer 
 is 55'9 F., the maximum 68 and the minimum 43, all in the open air. 
 
 \\tkMarch. Banjar to Bolay, 7 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'80. 8 P.M. 27'90. 7 A.M. 27'89. 
 
 % 
 
 Therm. 74 50 53. 
 
 Route north round the west side of Banjar, across a stirrup-deep canal 
 on to a wide sheet of cornfields. Here the path turned due east and 
 then north again in order to avoid the deep and heavy soil of the flooded 
 fields. On our way over this ground we crossed three water-cuts by 
 rustic bridges and forded a fourth and wider one ; its water reached the 
 saddle flaps. Beyond this we came to a belt of sandy waste scooped and 
 rasped into extraordinary sharp edges by the action of the north wind, 
 and, crossing it in an easterly direction, in one hour passed Dih Afghan 
 on our right. This is a square fort with look-out tower and loopholed 
 walls, and is now occupied by a Persian garrison. Around it are some 
 domed huts occupied by Tokhi Ghilzais. To its west, at three miles, is 
 Shytanak (fortified), and far away to the east and south is a vast 
 sketch of ruins extending over several miles of country in the Iskil and 
 Kasimabad districts. 
 
 From Dih Afghan our route turned to the north over cornfields and 
 melon grounds to Bolay, which we reached in twenty-eight minutes, and 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 61 
 
 proceeding* for fifteen minutes more camped on the open plain a little 
 beyond a water-cut. The ground here is a hard, bare, clean and wind- 
 swept level, mostly of firm clay ; where sandy it is scooped and wind-cut. 
 We found some Kuvdr bushes (Zyzipkus Sp.J here, affected in a singular 
 manner by the north wind. The stem and branches instead of growing 
 upwards were spread out on the ground in long horizontal and straight 
 lines running north and south. I found some Tamarisk and wormwood 
 here similarly influenced in their growth. 
 
 Bolay consists of two villages close to each other and of 100 
 houses each. 
 
 They are occupied by Sarbandis and their subjects or dependants. 
 
 Weather cloudy and windy during forenoon; fine and clear in 
 afternoon. 
 
 At nightfall a cutting north wind set in with its usual force. 
 \Uh March. Rait at Bolay. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'80. 8 P.M. 27'83. 7 A.M. 27'82. 
 Therm. 68 51 49. 
 
 Weather cold, bleak and cloudy, with slight rain during the forenoon ; 
 afternoon clear and sunny. 
 
 The horizon to the north-east has been obscured all day by pillars of 
 smoke ; they were observed on the line of march yesterday, and are now seen 
 to extend across the country for many miles. They rise from the burning 
 reeds on the shores of the Hamoon. The old reeds are thus got rid of 
 annually to make room for the fresh spring shoots, which furnish a good 
 pasture for cattle. 
 
 At about two miles east of our camp commences the great stretch 
 of ruins, called Zahidan after the modern village in their midst. They 
 extend for many miles north-east up to Jalalabad, where they are con- 
 tinuous with those of Dahshakh, about nine miles from the Helmund. 
 These ruins, with those of Pulki, Nadali, Caikobad, Gala' Fath and 
 Peshawaran, are the most extensive in Seistan, and from the height of 
 their walls are visible from* a long distance across the plain. Dahshakh 
 or Doshak and Zahidan are supposed to represent one great city, the 
 ancient capital of Seistan and residence of Yakoob-bin-Lais. It was 
 finally sacked and destroyed by Timoor. Dahshakh is supposed by 
 Kinneir to be the ancient Zarang of Ptolemy. In the midst of its ruins 
 stands the modern town of Jalalabad, the residence formerly of the 
 Kayani Chief, Bahrain Khan. It was visited in 1810 by Captain 
 Christie, in the time of Bahrain Khan. He found it to contain 2,000 
 houses and a tolerable bazar. 
 
 13a Jfar^. Bolay to Silyan, 28 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 2771. 8 P.M. 2778. 7 A.M. 2779. 
 Therm. 66 55 54 
 
 Weather cloudy during forenoon, with a high north-west wind which 
 subsided at noon ; afternoon clear and sunny. 
 
 Route north by east in the face of a blighting north-west wind 
 across a bare wind-swept flat (leaving the ruins of Zahidan two miles to 
 
62 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 the right), on to a patch of cornfields irrigated by numerous small 
 water-cuts ; beyond this, across a rough wind-scooped sandy tract, 
 covered with scattered Tamarisk and Salsolacea up to a thick belt of 
 high Tamarisk jungle along the course of the Jahanabad canal. The 
 bushes on the skirt of this jungle are covered at about 18 inches from 
 the ground by shreds of dry scum and drift caught in the branches, 
 and all directed from north to south as if from a flood of waters drain- 
 ing in that course. Following the belt of jungle for a mile or two we 
 halted at two hours and thirty-five minutes to examine the canal ; it 
 is about twenty feet wide at bottom and fourteen feet deep. Its sloping 
 banks are covered with tall reeds and high Tamarisk jungle. The 
 canal runs from Jahanabad on the Helmund midway between Kohuk 
 and Jalalabad across the plain to the Koh Khojak. It has been dry for 
 four years ; in its bed are some pits of yellow putrid water, apparently 
 used for cattle as they are furnished with drinking troughs formed of 
 loose bricks. As we approached this canal we passed through the Kohuk 
 ruins, leaving away to the right the village of E/indan and to the left 
 that of Gala' Nau. These are the last habitations on this border of 
 Seistan Proper which ends at the Naizar ahead of us. 
 
 Proceeding from the canal across a slightly raised plain, we in one 
 hour reached the Naizar, where it narrows between the wide swamps 
 (now dry) of the Helmund and Farrah Rood Hamoons. In one hour and 
 a half we crossed this belt of bulrush stumps by a narrow- winding foot- 
 path, and, clearing a small open space between the wide tracts of tall bul- 
 rushes on each side, entered upon a wilderness of Tamarisk and Salsolacea. 
 
 The Naizar has been dry for four years. Previous to that period it 
 was under water to a depth of three or four feet, and was crossed in the 
 bulrush rafts called Mi'; these were poled along a narrow passage cut 
 through the reeds. The Naizar forms the northern limit of Seistan 
 Proper and separates it from Hokat. 
 
 The country directly north of the Naizar is broken into small 
 tumuli of spongy soil and white as snow, with saline efflorescence. The 
 surface of most is strewed with red bricks belonging to old graves, many 
 of which are still distinctly traceable. The low ground between the 
 tumuli is now hard and marked by deep-sunk cattle tracks. We tra- 
 versed this wilderness in a north-west direction and presently came upon 
 the vast collection of ruins called Peshawaran. They cover the country 
 for many square miles. In one hour and forty minutes from the Naizar 
 we arrived at the ruins of Silyan and camped on an open flat hard by 
 between two irrigation canals, one dry and in decay, the other restored 
 and filled last year by Sirdar Ahmed Khan of Lash, the Lord of Hokat. 
 
 \^th March. Halt at Silyan, Peshawaran. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 2770. 8 P.M. 2774 7 A.M. 2773. 
 Therm. 70 48 51. 
 
 During the night the thermometer fell to 39 F. and in the afternoon rose to 
 85 F. in the sun. 
 
 Weather fine. We visited the ruins of Peshawaran about a mile and 
 a half to the west of camp. The principal buildings are a large fort and 
 two mosques, with colleges attached. These are built of baked bricks ; 
 most of the other buildings around are of raw brick. The city appears 
 to have been an open one with gardens and fields amongst the houses, 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 63 
 
 and the fort in the centre of all. The ruins evidently date from the Arab 
 period,, as on the facades of the arches of both the mosques (in one of 
 which the wihrab pointing west by south is still intact) are Arabic 
 letters set in the plaister covering the brickwork. 
 
 From the walls of the fort we got a good view of the country. 
 That to the south sinks and is lost to view beyond the mass of ruins 
 covering the surface in that direction. To the west is the isolated Kohi 
 Ghuch hill, on each side of which a river empties into the Hamoon it 
 overlooks ; that on the east is the Farrah Rood and that on the west the 
 Hariit Rood ; opposite the hill to the south is the Gurguri village,so named 
 from the gurgling of the waters in a narrow passage of the Hamoon 
 close by. Beyond the Kohi Ghuch or Kula Ghuch, to the west and south 
 the country sinks and then rises to the skirt of the Gala' Kah and Neh 
 Bundan hills. To the north of Peshawaran are seen the Farrah hills 
 with the valley of the Farrah Rood and the desert cliffs encircling it, 
 except to the south where is a gap through which the river flows to the 
 lake. To the east lies our camp and beyond it the group of ruins 
 called Silyan ; north of these are those of Deh Malan and south-west those 
 of K61 Marut. 
 
 15/7* March. Silyan to Lash, 18 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'60. 8 P.M. 27'65. 7 A.M. 2773. 
 Therm. 75 61 50. 
 
 The direct route to Lash is north over the ruin-covered plain by the 
 shrine of Syed Ikbal; our baggage proceeded by this route, but we 
 made a long detour to visit the ruins of K61 Marut about two miles 
 south-west of Peshawaran fort. We were told we should here find some 
 ancient inscriptions; our brief search however failed to discover any. 
 We found a very fine mosque here and large cloistered college attached ; 
 there are some Arabic sentences in " high relief " on the fagades of the 
 arches ; and in a long transept covered by three domes we found a 
 masonic design or emblem in a recess of the wall under the centre 
 dome, viz., the crossed triangles and stars. 
 
 Over an arch leading into a narrow vault in one of the buildings 
 here is said to be the following Persian inscription, viz. : 
 
 K61 Marut klmsha ba sarirah o guzar 
 
 Abish zamzam o khakisli namazar 
 
 Agar khwahi jamali ca'ba daryabi baro ba masjidi 
 
 K61 Marut ba wacti saliar 
 
 Chaf chaf chafri chafur chapi dasti chap haft khtimzar. 
 
 From these ruins we proceeded north-east along the highway 
 between Hokat and Seistan. It has a direct course over a wide plain, 
 intersected by the banks and dykes of former canals, dotted here and 
 there by groups of ruins, and covered all over with a scattered jungle 
 of Mimosa, Hedysarwn, Caroxylon and other Salsolacea, Artemisia, Syrian 
 rue, &c., and patches of the kerta grass along the banks of the old 
 water-courses. In two hours and a half we arrived at Khyrabad, the 
 first inhabited spot seen by us on this side the Naizar ; it is a poor 
 hamlet of twenty houses enclosed by very dilapidated fortified walls ; 
 its inhabitants are Populzai Afghans; they met us on the road and 
 
64 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 poured out loud complaints against the oppression of the Persians in 
 Seistan, who, they aver, habitually raid this country and carry off their 
 men and cattle as forced settlers in Seistan. Within gunshot of the village 
 walls are a few small patches of corn, and amongst the ruins around 
 are more extensive but neglected fields through which flow two good 
 irrigation streams, drawn from the Farrah Rood which flows in a deep 
 bed about a mile to the north-west. The ruins here present a curious 
 appearance ; all the houses are detached and of far superior construction 
 to those now in use in this country. They all consist of two high 
 parallel walls running north and south and strengthened by buttresses at 
 the sides ; the front is open and faces the south, and presents an arched 
 roof beneath which the family dwelt ; above the arched roof is a flat 
 surface open in front and above, but closed on each side by high walls, 
 and on the north by two walls with a gap between for the passage of the 
 north wind ; on these roofs were fixed the windmills, which, it appears, 
 every house was furnished with. The gap in the upper part of the 
 north wall is always at its western end and not in the centre. 
 
 From Khyrabad our route continued north-east over a fcerta-grown 
 tract similar to that already traversed, and gradually diverging from the 
 river and the extensive ruins of Sumur on its left shore, crossed a bare 
 pebbly tract towards a high coast-line of desert cliffs ; and then turning 
 north again struck the river, and followed its course through the wide 
 ruins of Luftan to the Lash Juwein basin of the Farrah Rood. Here we 
 camped close to the river and immediately below the fortress of Lash on 
 the summit of the high cliffs rising from its opposite shore. Time from 
 Khyrabad two hours and fifteen minutes. 
 
 The ruins of Luftan consist of two distinct groups, one of the 
 same date as those of Peshawaran and the other of modern date. Each 
 group, though side by side, has its own fort and surrounding houses. 
 The older ruins are far more substantial than, and of superior build to 
 the modern, which in no way differ from the mud huts of the present 
 day ; they exhibit some traces of art which the latter lack entirely. 
 
 IQth March. Halt at Lash, Hokat. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'65. 8 P.M. 2774 7 A.M. 2779. 
 Therm. 96 50 42. 
 
 Weather fine. Midday sun hot. Nightfall air chilly. 
 
 A more dreary and desolate, yet inhabited spot than this is not often 
 seen. On every side are the evidences of ruin, decay and neglect, of 
 anarchy and oppression. The land is most fertile and abounds in excel- 
 lent pasture for cattle. Water is in plenty and for purposes of irrigation 
 is easily derived from the river as evidenced by the numerous water-cuts, 
 now mostly in decay, intersecting the country. But the air of decay and 
 neglect pervades the place in striking contrast to the prosperity and 
 industry of the adjoining district of Seistan. All this is attributed to 
 the conduct of the Persian Governor of Seistan, who has carried off 
 most of the peasantry of Persian descent and settled them in the newly- 
 acquired territory of Seistan, and raids and harries the lands of those 
 who refuse to emigrate to his territory. Hokat formerly contained 
 twelve inhabited villages, and during the winter and spring seasons used 
 to be crowded with the camps of nomad Afghans (Nurzais and Ishakzais) ; 
 but since the Persian invasion of Seistan the district has been quite 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 65 
 
 deserted by them and five villages have been completely abandoned. 
 Four thousand families, we are assured, have been removed hence to Seistan 
 by the Persian Governor, Meer 'Alum Khan of Ghayn, and have emigrated 
 thither to avoid the raids made from that quarter. Hokat in fact is now 
 almost ruined, and unless protected by the Cabul Ameer must succumb to 
 Persian rule. It will then no doubt quickly recover its former prosperity 
 and enjoy the blessings of government, of which it is now entirely lacking. 
 
 11 tk March. Halt at Lash, Hokat. 
 
 Bar. 8 P.M. 27'66. 7 A.M. 27*72. 
 Therm. 54 40. 
 
 During the night the thermometer fell to 34 F. and in the afternoon rose to 
 89 F. in the sun. 
 
 Weather fine, with some clouds. We visited Sirdar Ahmed Khan of 
 Lash in his fort this afternoon. 
 
 The Farrah Rood washes the foot of the cliff on which the fortress is 
 built. We forded it a little below the fort, the water reaching to 
 middle of the saddle flaps in a clear quiet stream about forty yards wide. 
 Lash consists of three separate little forts united together within one 
 line of outer fortifications, but each distinct from the other with its own 
 supply of grain, fodder, wells, &c. It occupies the southern slope and 
 top of a cliff which rises in a sheer vertical wall about four hundred feet 
 above the river. The cliff is of firm clay and is separated on the north 
 and south-west sides from the coast-line of desert cliffs by a deep gully, 
 which towards the north disappears on the surface of the desert. 
 
 The citadel in which the Khan resides occupies the highest part of 
 the cliff. In it is a windmill similar to that at Nasirabad. The ascent 
 to the citadel is very steep through the two lower forts by a winding 
 path through vaulted passages and wickets at right angles.. The entire 
 fort is a jumble of houses packed close together and over each other, and 
 is capable of accommodating about four hundred families. From the 
 Sirdar's reception room we got a good view of the country except to the 
 north and west. Below us to the east lay the Jowein alluvium, a wide 
 basin between the river bed and the desert cliffs on the east ; to the north- 
 east the prospect is barred by some emanations from the Farrah hills ; 
 to the south and east is the wide plain north of the Naizar, the plain of 
 Peshawaran. 
 
 Where Lash stands the river makes a great bend to the south-west 
 under the cliffs of the desert on a promontory from which the fortress is 
 built. In flood time the river washes the foot of the cliff below the fort ; its 
 stream now flows at least two hundred yards off to the eastward. North- 
 east from Lash, at two miles on the opposite side of the river, is the fort 
 of Jowein. It is the strongest fort we have seen since leaving Kandahar. 
 The ancient name of both Lash and Jowein was Hok or Ok, and hence the 
 plural Hokat to designate the district commanded by them. The present 
 names, it would appear, are of Afghan origin ; in Pukkhto or Pukshto lash 
 or Idkkk or Idksli (in the east and west dialects respectively) means a 
 cliff or precipice ; the present name is the Persian form of the word. Jowein 
 means the " two canals" (Arabic plural of the Persian and Pukkhto jue or 
 ju or jo, a canal), and there are two main irrigation canals in the vicinity 
 of the fortress. Jowein is now the residence of Samad Khan, brother of 
 Sirdar Ahmad Kha-n, Isbakzai Afghan. 
 
 I 
 
66 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 This family has only been settled here since the reign of Shah 
 Timoor, the son and successor of Shah Ahmed, Doorranee. Kamal Khan, 
 Ishakzai, their ancestor, separated from Madad Khan, the Chief of the 
 tribe at Kandahar, and sought his fortune as a soldier in the service of 
 Prince Timoor at Herat and rose to influence. He managed to secure 
 an uncertain possession of Hokat, at that time hardly recovered from the 
 state of desolation and waste to which it had been reduced by Timoor 
 Lang and his successors. His son, Rahmdil Khan, was a man of no 
 capacity or influence, but his son, Salih Mahomed, early became a favor- 
 rite of Shah Mahmood whose cause he espoused against Shah Shooja in 
 1809-10. Attaching himself to the person of Mahmood he soon 
 became his most trusted and confidential servant and companion. He 
 followed his master in all his fortunes, and receiving from him the title 
 of Shah Pusund Khan was appointed to the management and charge 
 of his whole household ; subsequently, in return for his varied services, 
 Mahmood granted him the district of Hokat in jaghire. Its principal 
 forts were Lash, Jowein and Gala' Kah. 
 
 Salih Mahomed, Shah Pusund Khan (" the Approved of the King") , 
 restored Lash from a state of decay and made it his residence. His son, 
 Abdoorrosool, died at Farrah during the father's lifetime, and left a son 
 (among others), the present Sirdar Ahmed Khan, in charge of Gala' Kah, 
 and another son, the present Samad Khan, in charge of Jowein. On the 
 death of his grandfather, Salih Mahomed, in 1850, Ahmed Khan 
 succeeded to the rule of Hokat and removed his family from Gala' Kah 
 to Lash. He has two sons, Shumsooddeen, a promising youth of twenty 
 years, who accompanied Ameer Sher Ali Khan to Umballa, and another, 
 an intelligent boy of ten years. 
 
 Ahmed Khan, owing to a feud with the Muhammadzai Barukzais, 
 his grandfather having taken part in the murder of the Wuzeer Tata Khan, 
 was not on good terms with his son, the late Ameer Dost Mahomed 
 Khan. He had four years maintained independence and intrigued with 
 Persia, and has always taken an active part in the affairs of Herat and 
 Seistan. He refused to join the Dost's camp in 1862 when marching 
 to the seige of Herat, and fled to Meshed. The Dost consequently 
 detached a force under Mahomed Shureef Khan (his son) to dismantle 
 the fort of Gala' Kah. He now holds a doubtful position between the 
 Gajar Shah and Afghan Ameer. 
 
 March. Lash to Panjdeh, 6 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27-50. 8 P.M. 27-60. 7 A.M. 27-69. 
 Therm. 83 66 50. 
 
 Our camp and baggage went across the river at the ford below the 
 fort during morning and we followed later in the day. Route round 
 the south and west faces of the Lash cliff, northwards up a deep pebbly 
 gully, on to the desert promontory of which the Lash cliff is the extrem- 
 ity. From this elevated strip of desert we got a good view of the 
 Jowein fort and surrounding ruins, and in fact of the whole alluvial basin 
 in which they stand. In former times it must have been very populous 
 and highly cultivated. The ruins of extensive towns and castles, and 
 the traces of decayed canals of far superior construction to those of the 
 present day, meet the eye in every direction. 
 
1HK MISSION TO SEISTAN. () / 
 
 From this desert promontory, which is only about half a mile in 
 width, we descended by an easy drainage gully down to the river bed, 
 and, turning north-west along the alluvium on its right bank, passed some 
 caves at foot of a projecting cliff on the left, and then entering on a 
 wide, well-cultivated reach or bend in one hour and twenty minutes 
 camped in the midst of ruins (of an ancient and well-built town) close 
 to the fortified little village of Panjdeh, eighty houses of Ishakzai 
 Afghans, on the river bank which is here very low. The bed of the 
 river is wide, shallow and boulder-strewn, and dividing the stream of the 
 latter are several strips of tamarisk and willow jungle, now budding 
 into leaf. 
 
 I explored the caves abovementioned. They extend for a considerable 
 distance under the cliff, are very low-roofed (not admitting of the 
 erect posture), and are divided into numerous compartments by thick 
 pillars of the soil of the cliff. These compartments all communicate 
 with each other between the supporting pillars, and the surface is every- 
 where blackened by soot, which has hardened the stiff clay of the soil. 
 The innermost chambers are quite dark. The floor of those near the 
 entrance is covered with human foot-prints, and of those further in with 
 the pad-marks of hysenas or wolves. The two caves together could 
 accommodate forty or fifty people. Local tradition assigns them to the 
 gabr or ancient fire-worshipper. 
 
 Weather warm ; atmosphere hazy, with sun haze. 
 19M March. Panjdeh to Khushkrodak, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'49. 8 P.M. 27'50. 7 A.M. 27'49. 
 Therm. 83 . 68 51. 
 
 Route north skirting the desert cliffs bounding the Lash, Jowein 
 basin on the west. Soil firm and pebbly and covered with fresh sprou ting- 
 pasture herbs and jungle shrubs, such as the chugliak (Mimosa sensitlra}, 
 the hum (periploca sp.), the tar Ma (artemisia sp.), the pinazghai 
 (Astragalus spinosus], the Surazghai, (Caryophylla spmosa), &c. To 
 the right of our route is a wide flat of cornfields reaching to the river 
 bank; it is crossed by several irrigation cuts, along the banked up 
 course of which is a thick growth of the kerta grass. In one hour 
 and thirty-five minutes we struck the river where it flows under a pro- 
 jecting cliff of the desert. Its bed here is very winding and fringed 
 with a belt of willow, poplar and tamarisk trees. In a small reach, with a 
 pebbly shore directly under the cliff, is a watering-place called karwan-rez. 
 
 From this we rose on to the desert by a wide pebbly drainage gully, 
 and proceeding across it north-west with the Gala' Kah hills against the 
 sky to our front, in two hours and five minutes reached the Khushkrodak 
 ravine. Descending into it by an easy path past some masses of con- 
 glomerate, we turned up its bed due north aud crossing a thready little 
 stream in ten minutes more camped near a patch of kerta grass. The 
 banks are high and of stiff clay, vertical on the east side and shelving on 
 the west, and wind across the desert from north to south. The desert 
 stretches away to the south and west as far as the eye can reach; its 
 surface is gently undulating and covered with pasture plants ; the soil is 
 light, spongy and gravelly, and in rainy weather would prove very deep 
 
68 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 and muddy. In a hollow on the right o our path we passed a wide 
 shallow pool of rain-water and in others en route some that were dry and 
 desiccated. 
 
 20M March. Khushkrodak to Gala' Kah, 15 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'40. 8 P.M. 27'38. 7 A.M. 27'40. 
 Therm. 94 63 52. 
 
 Route west for a short distance to the high road from Lash, then 
 north by west over the desert on which are found herds of deer and troops 
 of wild asses. The refraction of the vapours on the Gala' Kah range in 
 the early morning sun produced a very fine mirage, exhibiting the hills 
 in the form of tabular rocks, and the ruins at their base as lofty 
 castles and towers. 
 
 On approaching camp we passed over a piece of ground flooded 
 by a broken irrigation canal. It was deep with a thick tenacious 
 mud, and was crossed with difficulty; our horses sunk to the knees at 
 each step, and many of the baggage animals stuck in the mire and 
 fell under their loads; they were extricated and got across with much 
 trouble and some delay. A little beyond this we camped on ploughed 
 land by an irrigation canal close to the village of Payin Gala'. Time 
 three hours and thirty-five minutes. 
 
 Gala' Kah is a collection of villages extending over several miles 
 along the foot of the hills of that name; they are from east to west 
 Shush, Fareb, Payin Gala' and Jurg. Amongst them are the ruins of 
 several strong little forts ; one of them near our camp was the former 
 residence of Sirdar Ahmed Khan of Lash ; it was dismantled in 1862 
 by orders of Ameer Dost Mahomed Khan. All these villages are 
 surrounded by wide sheets of corn cultivation, irrigated by numerous 
 little water-cuts branching off from a canal brought down from the 
 Farrah Rood. There is a remarkable paucity of trees here. The soil is 
 light and porous, with here and there waste patches of saline encrustation. 
 
 The summer heats here are described as almost unendurable, owing 
 to the radiation from the rocky hills hard by. Even at this season we 
 found the midday sun very powerful. At 2 P.M. the thermometer stood 
 at 95 F. in the shade ; placed in the sun it rose to 110 F. ; at nightfall 
 it sunk to 60 F. There is no water on the route from Khushkrodak to 
 Gala' Kah. 
 
 21^ March. Gala' Kah to Hariit Rood, 15 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 27'22. 7 A.M. 27'39. 
 Therm. 92 70. 
 
 Route north-west along a strip of green cornfields to the village and 
 fort of Jurg. The former contains fifty or sixty houses of Ishakzai 
 Afghans; the latter is a curious jumble of domed huts inside high 
 castellated walls. Beyond this is a saline spongy tract; we found it 
 flooded with water and deep in mud ; and avoiding it by a detour to the 
 hill skirts on our right made for the Reg-raivdn or " moving sand" a 
 couple of miles ahead. This is an isolated mass of loose red sand similar 
 to that of the Seistan desert; it is lodged in a hollow sloping down the 
 south side of one of the spurs from the Gala'' Kah range, and is remark- 
 able for emitting sounds of distant music and drums. We heard these 
 sounds for a moment whilst a party ascending the sandy slope had set its 
 particles in motion ; they resembled those of a loud ^Eolian harp. At 
 
"NIL MISSION TO SEISTAN. 69 
 
 the foot of this hill is the shrine of Imam Zahid ; round it is a collection 
 of fifteen or sixteen wretched cabins and a clump of poor date-palms/ 
 
 Beyond this our route was due west over a wide pasture tract; its 
 soil is spongy and gravelly and more or less saline ; the surface is covered 
 with hum and ghich bushes, salsolacea, salicornia and a variety 
 of bulbous plants, such as orchids, crocuses, tulips, &c. The Persian ghicli 
 and Pukshto mdkay has thick juicy roundish leaves and bears a yellow 
 flower ; it is greedily eaten by camels and cattle, and its wood is used 
 as fuel. 
 
 To the north this plain stretches up into a wide bay amongst the 
 hills ; to the south it spreads out into a great level flat which towards the 
 west is bounded by a range of hills running north and south ; in three 
 hours we came up to this range, and passing through a small gap between 
 low and rocky spurs dropped gradually down to the valley of the Harut 
 Rood. This is a wide basin covered with a thick jungle of tamarisks 
 (both the ghaz and tdghaz], caroxylon, salicornia, wild almond, prickly 
 astragalus, acanthus, &c., &c. We crossed it west by south by a narrow 
 path winding through the jungle, and in forty-five minutes came to the 
 bed of the river, now perfectly dry, and camped on its bank. We found 
 no water en route this side of Reg-rawan, but obtained a sufficient supply 
 here by digging three or four feet deep in the pebbly and sandy bed of 
 the river. The Harut Rood here has very low banks and its bed is not 
 a hundred yards wide, whilst the main channel of its stream is not thirty. 
 The river is used up for purposes of irrigation in Subzwar and Anar- 
 darrah, and never reaches the Seistan Hamoon, near which it is joined by 
 the Khushkrodak, except in seasons of flood. This river is also called 
 Radi Adraskun. The country here is a thorough wild waste. 
 
 Weather fine ; midday sun hot ; nightfall cool. 
 
 %%nd March. Harut Rood to Chahi Sagak, 24 miles. 
 Bar. 3 P.M. 26'23. 8 P.M. 26'25. 7 A.M. 26'22. 
 Therm. 78 72 60. 
 
 Route west by south across the dry pebbly and gravelly bed of the 
 Harut Rood; over a spongy tract white with saline encrustation, and 
 onwards through a belt of jungle similar to that traversed yesterday. At 
 twenty-five minutes crossed a wide and shallow water run in which were 
 some thin sheets of brackish water. Beyond this, turning due west, we 
 entered amongst hills running north and south, and presently emerged 
 upon the wide undulating pasture tract of Arwita ; it extends north to 
 the Koh Chahi Shor or "Saline Well Hill/' and beyond it joins the valley 
 of the Harut Rood below Anardarrah ; its soil is firm and gravelly, and here 
 and there strewed with lumps of cellular trap or lava of black, red and 
 orange colour ; the surface is covered with pasture herbs and grasses. 
 We crossed this, and passing through a gap in the Regoh or Regkoh, 
 the " Sandy Hill/' entered on the similar pasture tract of Damdam, and 
 crossing it halted at the Chahi Damdam for breakfast. Time three hours 
 and twenty minutes. 
 
 Chahi Damdam is a shallow well of stagnant water, which is dark- 
 coloured and looks putrid ; it is not bad tasting however and is free 
 from smell and brackishness. The well pit, which is about twelve feet 
 deep by eight in diameter, is dug in loose gravelly soil, and its sides are 
 supported by fascines of the tamarisk ; it is situated at the foot of a 
 rocky knoll on the south slope of which is a mass of loose red sand. 
 
70 IIECOUD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 The Regoh hill is of red granite streaked with veins of quartz in 
 a hollow on its south slope in a mass of loose red sand similar to that of 
 Reg-rawan, and hence its name. On the way to Chahi Damdam from 
 this hill we passed a cairn of white quartz on an outcross of the same. 
 Hard by it we observed some small burrows roofed in with the shrubs 
 growing around ; each is large enough to contain one man in a prostrate 
 position ; they are used as shelter by the shepherds visiting this pasture 
 tract. 
 
 Proceeding, we passed through a gap in the Damdam hills, and drop- 
 ped on to a wide and very long plateau extending north and south between 
 parallel ranges of hills. This is the Dashti Na-ummed or " Desert of 
 Despair ; " it extends north, up to the latitude of Meshed, and constitutes 
 the boundary between Persia and Afghanistan. It has different names 
 for its separate portions ; at this part it is called Tagi Atashkhana from a 
 high hill of that name away to the south ; this hill was seen by us on the 
 line of march from Seistan across the Naizar to Hokat. Flint stones, it 
 is said, are found on it. 
 
 The Dashti Na-ummed is covered with excellent pasture in which 
 the assafatseda, wormwood, astragalus and ghich (cygophyllum sp.J, the 
 blue flag, orchids, tulips, &c., abound. It used formerly to be frequented 
 by the shepherds of Farrah, Hokat and Seistan, but has been abandoned 
 by all since the Persian occupation of Seistan. 
 
 We crossed this Dasht or plain in one hour and fifteen minutes from 
 side to side by a well-beaten track, thus giving its width at about five 
 miles; it expands, however, very considerably both to the north and 
 south. After crossing it we entered a hollow between low spurs of slaty 
 rock, and proceeding a short distance camped on broken ground at the 
 Chahi Sagak or the " Dog's Well/' Time from the Chahi Damdam one 
 hour and thirty-five minutes. 
 
 Chahi Sagak is a shallow well of putrid, turbid and very brackish 
 water, which is barely drinkable even when corrected with brandy and 
 tea; it is the only water obtainable on this side of Chahi Damdam, and 
 fortunately is in very limited quantity ; our cattle mostly refused to drink 
 it. This route by Chahi Sagak was the ancient highway and caravan 
 route between Persia and India; it has long been deserted owing to the 
 predatory habits of the tribes around, of the Heratis, Farrahis, Seistanis 
 and Ghaynis. 
 
 The difference in elevation between our camp on the Hariit Rood and 
 at Chahi Sagak is about 1,200 feet. The rise in the country is gradual 
 all the way, except at the Dasht where there is a dip. 
 
 Weather thick and cloudy all day, with fitful north-west breezes. 
 
 At Chahi Sagak the Afghan territory in this direction ends ; beyond 
 it is the territory of Ghayn, now a portion of the kingdom of Persia. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 71 
 
 ROUTE THROUGH KHORASSAN PERSIA. 
 
 SECTION VIII. 
 From Chdhl Sagak, Seislan to Uashli Byctz, Gkdyndt. 
 
 Mnl March 1872. Chain Sugak to Duroh, 28 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M., 25'45 8 P.M., 25 48 7 A.M., 25'50. 
 Therm. 60 62 50 
 
 Route west, up the bed of an easy drainage gully flanked on each 
 side by low tumular ridges of fissile slate, on which grow a few scattered 
 khmjak trees, here called bannah. At about four miles the gully 
 widens and branches off between the hills to the north and south. 
 
 In one hour and fifteen minutes we reached the watershed at a 
 narrow gap between rocky heights. The aneroid here figured 2559', 
 giving its approximate elevation at 3,900 feet above the sea. The 
 weather being thick and showery, we did not get a very wide prospect 
 from the heights on either side, but we distinctly saw the wide plain 
 of Seistan on one side and the great desert soutli of Ghayn on the 
 other. This range of hills running north and south forms the boundary 
 between Afghanistan and Persia. The descent from this gap is by a 
 narrow stony path on to yellow clay, on the right of which rise hills 
 of bare rock ; this strip is called Lard-i-zard, " the yellow flat,," and 
 on it are two small pools of clear, sweet water. 
 
 Further on, the path descends gradually to the dry bed of a wide 
 and shallow water-run called Rood-i-usbtarran, " the camel-track river," 
 which drains away to the southward. Its bed is shingly and pebbly, 
 and very winding. We followed up its course to Gaz-gah, " the 
 swinging place," so named from a cluster of bannah trees, from the 
 branches of which the shepherd children are accustomed to swing. They 
 are the only trees about here. A little beyond this we turned out 
 of the ravine by a path going north-west along the skirt of some 
 high hills called Majok, and in forty minutes from Gaz-gah, and 
 one hour and twenty-five minutes from the watershed gap, came to 
 Garawez, a small spring fringed with fresh sprouting reeds in the 
 centre of a little turfy hollow. Beyond this the path descends to the dry 
 bed of the Rood-i-Mil. This is a very wide and shallow water-run 
 with a gravelly and pebbly bed, divided into numerous little channels 
 by strips of vegetation, mostly thorny bushes such as the barberry 
 and wild rose. It runs from north-west to south-east where it joins 
 the Rood-i-ushtarran. We proceeded up its course for some miles, 
 and then crossing a low ridge on our left, at one hour and twenty 
 minutes from Garawery, halted in a little hollow, the surface of 
 which is strewed with boulders of granitic trap. Looking down on 
 us from the south-west is the Gala' Kah, so named from the resemblance 
 of its top to a fort, and projecting north-west from it is the Calata 
 spur, at the foot of which is a strong spring, and some cultivation, 
 but no habitation. The vegetation here comprises both kinds of 
 tamarisk (ghaz and taghaz), wild almond, artetnisia, Syrian rue, barberry, 
 asafoetida, crocus, orchid, lily, &c., &c., but none of the salsolacce, 
 of which we have seen so much in the previous marches. The soil 
 here is a light-coloured loose grit or gravel. 
 
/2 RECORD OF THE MARCH OP 
 
 Proceeding north-west, we in thirty-two minutes entered a circular 
 basin through a very rough and stony gap, over rocks of grey granite 
 and blue limestone streaked with white veins of quartz. The surround- 
 ing hills are of grey granite. We crossed this basin in half an hour, 
 and entered a similar but wider one through another stony gap. Be- 
 yond the second basin we descended by a deep ravine with straight clay 
 banks, and in one hour and fifty minutes from Gala' Kali came to a strong 
 spring issuing from a limestone rock. It is situated in a narrow gorge, 
 and under the rocks on the opposite side is a small spring oozing from 
 boggy soil, on the margin of which grows the peppermint. In the face 
 of the cliff above this is a curious little cavern coated with a thick 
 crust of white calc-sinter. The large spring on the right is led off to 
 Duroh, and on the way turns a mill. We followed its course down the 
 gorge for a little way, and then turning sharp to the left, past a water- 
 mill on its stream, went over some stony ground, and in twenty minutes 
 from the spring reached Duroh. This is a flourishing village of 300 
 houses, two in divisions at the foot of a bare limestone ridge, on which 
 are built a couple of look-out towers. Below the village winds a wide 
 sandy ravine, and on its bank are a few walled gardens and some corn- 
 fields. Beyond the ravine is a wide valley covered with excellent pasture. 
 
 Duroh is the first village west of Gala' Kah on this route, a distance 
 of sixty-seven miles. The climate here is notably different from that of 
 Seistan ; the change is observed on crossing the Harut Hood and getting 
 into the hills. Owing to the absence of the north wind the air here 
 is mild. This evening, however, a storm from the north broke over 
 Duroh. 
 
 24^ March. Duroh to,Husenabad, 27 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M., 24'96 8 P.M., 25'09 7 A.M., 25'03. 
 
 Therm. 64 52 40 
 
 Route, aft >r crossing the sandy ravine, west by north across the Duroh 
 valley, which runs from north to south in a great sheet of pasture land. 
 In four hours exactly, on rounding the end of a low spur of close- 
 grained dark granite, we came to Chah-i-bannali, "the pistacia tree well," 
 at the entrance of a defile in the hills. It is a natural extern built 
 up like a well with large stones; the water is excellent, and at about 
 six feet from the surface its depth is eight or ten feet, and the diameter 
 of the cistern about five feet. It is named from some lanna/i trees 
 (Pistacia ierebintuus} growing in a gully hard by. The rocks around 
 are chlorite slate with veins of talc, overlying dark granite of a close- 
 grained hornblende and feldspar. We found the rhubarb plant on the 
 chlorite ridges. 
 
 Proceeding up the defile along the course of a little hill torrent 
 now dry, we in forty-five minutes reached the Gudari Mesham pass. 
 This is on the. watershed between the Duroh and Husenabad valleys. 
 The ascent from Chah-i-bannah is very winding between west and north, 
 but not steep except just at the pass, which is 720 feet above Chah-i- 
 bannah, and 950 feet above Duroh. The aneroid here figured 2465', 
 giving the approximate elevation above the sea at 4,900 feet. The path 
 up the defile is mostly along the bed of a narrow ravine with straight 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 73 
 
 banks of crumbling chlorite slate and granite ; and water oozes here and 
 there from its gravelly bed ; it would require some preparation for the 
 passage of guns. The hills on either side are close-set and bare ; and 
 along their base are mounds of dessicated clay of different colours, such 
 as ash-grey, bluish and fawn colour, the result of the disintegration of 
 the rocks around. 
 
 The descent from Gudari Mesham is by an easy path west by 
 north, down to the wide upland plateau of Husenabad, which resembles 
 Duroh valley in general appearance. At the foot of the descent the path 
 turns to the right, and, hugging the hills north by west, in forty-five 
 minutes crossed a stony ridge projecting westward from the hills on 
 our right, and rose into an open plateau. We traversed this to the 
 north-west and in another hour and five minutes reached Husenabad. 
 This is a neat little square fort with a bastion at each angle ; outside its 
 walls is a collection of two hundred domed huts, and by them flow a karez 
 stream of briny water. 
 
 The Husenabad valley runs north and south, and is a wide plateau 
 of excellent pasture. To the south of the fort is some cultivated land, 
 and to the north-east at a couple of miles are the ruins of the former 
 fort of Husenabad, abandoned owing to the drying up of its water- 
 supply. On the hill skirt due east of the fort is a ruined tower of 
 very ancient look. It is built over a spring called Caimah, and is about 
 two miles distant. We found large herds and flocks grazing on this pas- 
 ture tract. Weather cloudy ; a storm over the hills to the west at mid-day 
 tipped the highest points with snow. 
 
 25^ March. Halt at Husenabad. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'96 8 P.M., 25'02 7 A.M., 25'00 
 Therm. ... 66 55 45 
 
 The thermometer fell to 38 F. in the night, and did not exceed 66 F. 
 during the day. Weather cloudy ; a squall with slight rain broke over 
 camp during the afternoon. 
 
 The Husenabad and Duroh valley are the favourite pasture grounds 
 of the Ilyat of the Ghayn district, on account of their protection from 
 the raids of Toorkman, Afghan, or Belooch. Here we find their camps of 
 five or six to a dozen or more black tents scattered all over the valley, 
 but mostly along the hill skirts where water is generally found. Their 
 flocks of goats and sheep are very numerous, but not so camels and horned 
 cattle. The goats are of a small breed and mostly black ; they are now 
 shedding the soft downy hair called kurk ; its adherent flocks gives the 
 animal a very shaggy look, for the kurk is of a light brown colour, and 
 hangs in tangled bunches to the coarse long black hair. This Jmrk is 
 collected, picked, and sorted for the manufacture of soft felts, cloths, and 
 shawls, according to quality. The finer kinds of namad, kurk, and 
 pashmina are very soft and warm fabrics, and sell at a high price. Similar 
 fabrics are manufactured from, the camels' hair and soft down under the 
 distinguishing appellation shutur-i. The sheep's wool is mostly used in 
 the manufacture of carpets for which the Ghayn district has long been 
 celebrated. Some of the wool finds its way to Bunder Abbas for export- 
 ation. Formerly these valleys used to be harried by Belooch and Afghan 
 
74 "RECORD OP THE MAECH OF 
 
 marauders, but since Persia took possession of Ghayn some twenty years 
 ago this has been put a stop to. Both Duroh and Huseuabad belong 
 to the district of Muminabad, which is under the charge of a zdbit, or 
 f ' governor/-' whose head-quarters are at Sarbesha. The present zddit, Meer 
 Asadullah Beg, met us here yesterday to escort us through his territory. 
 
 26^ March. Husenabad to Sarbesha, 29 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 23'60 8 P.M., 23'68 7 A.M., 23'69 
 Therm. ... 50 42 40 
 
 Route north-west over an open and extensive upland plateau covered 
 with excellent pasture, on which we found some Ilyat camps and large 
 flocks of goats and sheep. The vegetation is thick, principally artemi- 
 sia, assafcetida (just sprouting), camel-thorn, ghich (Cygophyllum sp.}, 
 orchids, &c. &c. In three hours and forty-five minutes we entered a 
 wide gully coming down from the hills to the west, and, passing some low 
 heights on either side, in ten minutes more arrived at Ab-i-Ghunda Koh. 
 This is a post of good water near the ruins of a former post-house ; it 
 is fed from a spring hard by, and irrigates a few fields. The rocks 
 here are of black trap speckled with grains of a white colour, and the 
 bed of the ravine is strewn with bits of a light blue water agate and frag- 
 ments of green stone. There are a few bannah trees here. 
 
 From this, gradually ascending along the course of a winding 
 ravine, we rose by a steep and narrow path over some granite rocks up 
 to the gap or pass of Gudar-i-Ghunda Koh. Here the aneroid figured 
 2291', giving the approximate elevation at 6,900 feet above the sea. 
 For wheeled vehicles the road would require a good deal of making 
 and some blasting. The descent is easy and by a good path, nearly 
 north by south over a long stretch of hill skirt, down to an open pla- 
 teau that runs north and south, the Sarbesha plain. The aspect of the 
 country here is very wild and dreary at this season. We crossed the 
 end of the Sarbesha plateau, and in one hour and forty minutes from 
 the pass arrived at the village of the same name. It is at the foot of 
 an isolated ridge of hills, and contains about 350 domed huts, the portals 
 of which face the north and north-west. From the centre of the village 
 rises a round tower, and another overlooks it from an eminence of the low 
 spur at the foot of which the village lies ; at its south-east end on a de- 
 tached mound are the ruins of a small fort. Water here is from karez 
 streams and abundant. There is a good deal of corn cultivation round 
 the village, but a singular paucity of trees. Weather inclement, much 
 rain, and cold raw south wind. 
 
 27^ March. Halt at Sarbesha or Sardbesha. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 2370 8 P.M., 2370 7 A.M., 2370 
 Therm. ... 54 40 30 
 
 The elevation of this place is about 5,770 feet above the sea. The 
 Muminabacl mountain, bearing north by west, is tipped with snow. In 
 the glens at its base are several villages and hamlets. The range runs 
 north-west and south-east, and separates the district of Narjiin or Mumi- 
 nabad from that of Sunnikhana. The villages along its base from east to 
 west are Dastaghich (at the foot of the hills, eight miles or so across the 
 plain, due north), with its gardens visible from Sarbesha, Ghughu, 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 75 
 
 Zulish, Shika or Shi, Bydar, and Bushka. The plateau of Sarbesha, or 
 Sardbesha, " the cold wilderness/' is a wide plain that extends in gentle 
 undulations north-west as far as Birjand, where it is closed by a range 
 separating it north and south from the district of Khusp. It is covered 
 with rich pasture, but water is scarce except in the hollows at the foot of 
 the hills. 
 
 In the hills about six miles south of the Sarbesha village is a copper 
 mine. It was worked till four or five years ago, when, the vein being lost, 
 it was abandoned. In Sarbesha, as in most of the villages about here, 
 the people manufacture carpets of the kind called caliu. Those shewn to 
 us were of inferior quality. 
 
 Weather cloudy, with a cold wintry air. The thermometer fell to 
 28 F. in the night, and did not rise higher than 71 F. during the 
 day. 
 
 28M March.- Sarbesha to Gala Mud, 22 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 23'57 8 P.M., 23*61 7 A.M., 23'57 
 Therm. ... 71 50 34 
 
 Route north-west along the skirt of Sarbesha hill on our left (with 
 the wide plateau on our right) by a well-beaten path over soft spongy 
 soil of dessicated clay. Close to the right of the road is a shallow water- 
 run going down to the village of Sarbesha. At about three miles is a 
 hollow at the foot of the hills, on our left is a spring and clump of trees ; 
 a camping place for shepherds in the summer. A little further on is a 
 roadside dbambdr or water-cistern in decay. 
 
 At about two hours the road turns west, and, leaving the plateau to 
 the right, enters an open glade between low hills. These further on 
 diverge and enclose a wide basin called Hauz-i-Khan bayabdn, from an 
 dbambdr of that name in its centre. We reached this cistern in two 
 hours and twenty minutes from Sarbesha. It is a domed masonry 
 reservoir, and is flanked by two small chambers for the shelter of travellers. 
 It is on the roadside, and was restored some ten years ago by Meer Alum 
 Khan, the Governor of Ghayn. From it, through a gap bearing due 
 north, in the range separating this bdydbdn, or "wild," from the Sarbesha 
 plateau, is seen the Bydar village at the foot of the Muminabad range 
 of hills. To the south spreads out the bdydbdn, and to the west over a 
 low intervening ridge is seen the snow-streaked range of Koh Baghran 
 running east and west and separating Ghayn from Nih. 
 
 The surface of the bdydbdn is covered with Syrian rue, camel-thorn, 
 artemisia, assafoetida, tulips, orchids, &c., and on the hills grows the 
 rhubarb. The assafoetida is called camd, and its sprouts are used as a 
 pot-herb ; we met some donkey loads of it being taken to Mud for sale. 
 Proceeding north-west from the dbambdr, we in ten minutes came to some 
 undulating ridges, up the slopes of which we found some ploughmen at 
 work. Crossing these we presently came to a low watershed, a broad 
 ridge of coarse trap rock, beyond which we came in succession to slate, 
 sandstone, and limestone. 
 
 The descent from the watershed was gradual along the course of a 
 rocky ravine, and conducted to a wild tract of pasture downs. We 
 crossed these west-north-west, having the snow-streaked Baghran range 
 
70 RECOED OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 on our left and the Sarbesha plateau on our right, and across it due north 
 at the foot of MuminaMd hill range was seen the village of Bushka. 
 Beyond these downs we turned to the left by a very winding path over 
 some low mounds of black cellular lava or trap, and descended into the 
 Mod or Mud valley, and, crossing a shallow rivulet from the south-east, 
 reached our camp at the village in two hours and twenty-five minutes 
 from Hauz-i-Khan dbambdr. Mud is a poor-looking village of some 
 300 domed huts, and appears only half occupied. It is overlooked on 
 the north-east by the ruins of a castle on an artificial mound. Due south 
 of Mud at six or seven hundred yards is the square fort of Gala Nau, 
 formerly the residence of Meer Alum of Ghayn. It is now unoccupied 
 and in a state of decay. Under its walls to the north is a zirishk, or 
 " barberry " plantation, and in it are a few cypress trees. The fruit of 
 the barberry is made into a preserve, and also exported in the dry state 
 as currants ; the root of the bush is used as a yellow dye, and also as an 
 astringent in diarrhoea. 
 
 Towards the south the Mud valley rises rapidly up to the hills, 
 where, bearing south-east, is the village of Chahikha"n, 300 houses, 
 surrounded by gardens, At the foot of the same range, but bearing 
 south-west, is another large village and fruit gardens, Naofiris, 350 
 houses. Between them, along the hill skirt, are seen several little 
 hamlets. To the west the valley slopes very rapidly down the Birjand. 
 The elevation of Mud is about 6,050 feet above the sea. Its climate at 
 this season is bleak and wintry, and in winter is rigorous ; snow lies 
 on the ground here for two months. 
 
 Formerly Mud used to be periodically forayed by Toorkman, Afghan, 
 and Belooch marauders, and its people carried off into slavery. The 
 people here are a handsome, fair-complexioned race, particularly the 
 women. They are very well clothed, and appear to live comfortably. 
 
 29M March. -Mud to Birjand, 25 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'60 8 P.M., 24'69 7 A.M., 24'76 
 Therm. ... 70 50 46 
 
 Route west by north, down the long slope of the Mud valley by a 
 well-beaten track. Our road after crossing the Mud rivulet (it flows in a 
 thin stream over a soft, slaty, and shingly bed), and clearing its orchards 
 and corn-fields, held a course parallel with some sandy ridges to the right 
 which separate this valley from that of Sarbesha. These sandy hills are 
 marked by innumerable sheep-walks ; they are a mile or so from the 
 road, and along their base winds the ravine of the Mud rivulet, which, at 
 about twelve miles down the valley, passes through a gap in the ridge 
 on to the Sarbesha valley, and there joins another ravine that passes 
 through Birjand and drains to the Khusp river. 
 
 At two hours and fifty- five minutes, having passed iwoadamddr (the 
 first dry) en route, we halted at a third opposite the gap above mentioned. 
 The surface here is mostly bare- a few cameFs-thorn, thistles, blue flags, 
 lilies, prickly astragulas, and fresh-sprouting isjpand (Peganum narmala), 
 here and there appearing in scattered patches. The soil is firm gravel, 
 strewed with bits of chlorite, granite, trap, serpentine and clay slate. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 77 
 
 To the south the land slopes up to the snow-streaked Baghran range 
 which bounds the valley in that direction; the hills are bare and slaty, 
 and of various colours, black, green, red, grey, &c., and the surface 
 appears at this distance (about four miles) to be much disintegrated. 
 The base of the hills is studded from east to west by a close succession of 
 hamlets, forts, villages, and gardens ; the largest are Chahikhan, Naofiris, 
 Beja, Bahuljird, &c. Altogether there are, it is said, thirty villages and 
 hamlets along the foot of Baghran on the south side of the Mud 
 valley, which extends east and west for about thirty miles down to 
 Birjand, with an average width of four miles. At Birjand it expands 
 into a hill-girt plain from which the land drops rapidly to the Khusp 
 valley on the west. Mud is the most populous district in the eastern 
 borders of Persia ; we have seen nothing like it since leaving Seistan. 
 Its gardens produce the jujube, plum, apricot, peach, apple, barberry, 
 mulberry, grape, &c. 
 
 Looking north through the gap above mentioned, the lower end of 
 the Sarbesha plateau is seen ; it stretches away north in a rising upland 
 moor to the hills that separate it from the Alghor district, and wears a 
 very wild and bleak aspect, and only one village was seen on it. 
 Proceeding from the dbambar, our road still skirting the range of low 
 hills bounding the valley to the north, we had the town of Birjand and 
 its gardens in full view at the bottom of the valley. In forty-three 
 minutes we arrived at Bojd, a dirty-looking village of 100 huts at the 
 end of a spur from the ridge on our left, and then passing some walled 
 gardens of jujube, apricot and plum trees, and some corn-fields, in twenty 
 minutes more came to Hajiabad, the residence of the mother of the 
 Ameer of Ghayn. It is a neat villa in the midst of a garden with poplar 
 avenues, and in front of the garden is a large tank, beyond which is a 
 collection of sixty or eighty huts of her dependants. Further on, 
 skirting a long strip of corn-fields, we passed an dbambdr, the eighth on 
 this day's march from Mud, and then passing along some low gravelly 
 hillocks on our right, arrived at our camping ground under the Birjand 
 fort in which resides Ali Akbar, the eldest son of Meer Alum of Ghayn. 
 Time from the dbambdr where we halted, two hours and twenty-five 
 minutes. Weather fine and mild. 
 
 302/& March. Halt at Birjand. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'69 8 P.M., 24'70 7 A.M., 24'79 
 Therm. ... 74 56 48 
 
 At the last dbambdr yesterday we were met by an istikbal party of 
 twelve or fourteen horsemen headed by Hyder Culi, a boy of ten years, 
 third son of Meer Alum Khan ; and to-day the eldest son, Sarhang 
 Ali Akbar, aged 18 years, called on Sir Fred. Goldsmid. He is gover- 
 nor here in the absence of his father, who is Persian governor of Seistan. 
 He has recently married a daughter of Shureef Khan, Nahroe Belooch 
 of Seistan. 
 
 Up to the time of Yar Mahomed's death in 1851, Birjand and 
 Ghayn were dependencies of Herat, and Bojd was the residence of an 
 Afghan revenue collector. After that event the Ghayn chief went over 
 to the Persians at Meshed, and in the subsequent seige of Herat the 
 country was annexed to Persia. 
 
78 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Birjand, the capital of the Ghayn or Cayin district, is an open 
 town of about 2,500 houses; its population is estimated at 10,000 souls. 
 It occupies the base and slope of some low sand hills that separate the 
 western terminations of the Mud and Sarbesha valleys ; through the 
 town passes the Sarbesha ravine on its way to the Khusp river ; to the 
 south of the town is a wide plain more or less cultivated. The southern 
 part of the town is occupied by the citadel, public offices, and residence 
 of the governor ; on the western side of the town is a small fort com- 
 manding the main bazar ; and on the mounds on its northern side are 
 three detached round towers, now in a state of decay. 
 
 The district of Ghayn has long been under the rule of Arab chiefs. 
 Malcolm states (History of Persia) that the ancestor of the present chief, 
 Meer Ismail, received the country in grant from the last of the Saffavi 
 kings, and that he was a Syed of the tribe of Khazinah. Meer Ismail's 
 grandson, Meer AH, was the grandfather of Meer Asadullah, the father of 
 the present chief, Meer Alum, who has three sons living, viz., Ali Akbar, 
 aged 18 years; Meer Ismail, aged 15 years; and Hyder Culi, aged 
 10 years. 
 
 The district of Ghayn is an elevated table-land divided into a 
 succession of plateaus extending east and west in echelon from north to 
 south. It is separated on the south from Kirman and Seistan by the 
 Dasht-i-Lut, or the " Desert of Lot " on the east from Hokat and 
 Furrah by the Dasht-i-naummed, or " Desert of Despair ;" on the north 
 from Khaf and Ghayn by the Reg-i-Amrani, or " Amrani sands ;" and 
 on the west from Yezd by the Kavir, or Great Salt Desert. 
 
 The district is divided into nine divisions, or buluc, viz. :- 
 
 I. Mb Villages Neh, Bundan, Dakoha, Juftrud, and about 
 twenty-five or thirty others, large and small. 
 
 II. Sunnikhana. Villages Gizik, Darmyan, Yurik, and about 
 twenty others. 
 
 III. Zerkot. Villages about twenty. 
 
 IV. Khusp. Villages Fidisk, Nasirabad, Baghun, Jau-myan, 
 Gosha, Mahalla, Shazullah, Khusp, Dnrokhsh, Gulfiris, 
 Nozad, Shakun, and about eighty hamlets. 
 
 V. Ndrjun. Villages Sarbesha, Husenabad, Duroh, Dastaghich^ 
 Ghughu, Zulish, Shika, Bydar, Bushka, Mud, Fanud, 
 Nanfiris, Arwand, Murtawang, Beja, Yaka Darakht, Ba- 
 huljird, Bojd, Hajiabad, Mazrua, Aliabad, Ispardih, 
 Amirabad, Barkot, Birjand, and about forty others. 
 
 VI. Alghor, or Arghol. Villages Mark, Bujdi, Ishkambarabad, 
 Mahyabad, Pisukh, Firinj, Ismailabad, Aldang, Naudih, 
 Arwi, Ghibk or Ghyuk, Zarwi, Gazar, Nokhan, Pistakhan, 
 Chahikan, Husenabad, Jafarabad, Mayun, Barkuk, Za- 
 mini, Tagab, Kundar, Khushk, Rum, Birinjan, Khanik, 
 Roshawand, Nayk, Sihchah, Sariab, Teghdar, Badamak, 
 Hydrabad, Agha Mirza, Afris ; Ayasik, Sihdih, and about 
 eighty others. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 79 
 
 VII. Ghdyn y or Cayin. Villages Kharbaj, Khanih Pae Gudar, 
 Khanik, Shernmrgh, Razdumbal, Nangirift, Ghayn, 
 Ispishad, Zawar, Buznabad, Farizabad, Wazar, Mahanj, 
 Farukhab&d, Bilori, Shahak, Shebi, Pahnai, Behudf, and 
 others. 
 
 VIII. Awzbuluc. Villages Girimunj, Dihushk, Buzuabad, Akbari, 
 Aliabad, Mardosha, Sayyidabad, Badiin, Buzkab, Karish, 
 Jamin, Behut, Munawaj, Duduna, Murdabad, Sihkuri, 
 Alipalang, Khidrf, Dushtibyaz, Mahyam, Silyani, Agba 
 Jan, Asadabdd, Noghab, and about thirty others. 
 
 IX. SJiahwd. Villages-about sixty. 
 
 Some of the villages in tbe above list contain six hundred houses, 
 and other less than twenty. The villages, the names of which are not 
 given under each buluc above (except the last), are mostly small hamlets 
 called mazrd of from five to twenty huts, and generally only occupied 
 during the summer season. 
 
 In the villages above given, if an average of 150 houses is taken as 
 representing the general size of the villages, it will, I think, afford an 
 approximate datum for calculating the population of the district at its 
 maximum figure. 
 
 The district of Ghayn produces wheat, barley, millet, beans, and 
 pulses j cotton, grapes, pears, apricots, plums, almonds, figs, barberry, 
 mulberry, quince, celeaguns, or sanjit, &c., generally, and saffron and 
 tobacco in particular localities, as Birjand, Khusp, &c. The turnips, carrots, 
 beet, cucumber, and melons are grown in most parts of the district, and 
 the rhubarb and assafcetida are found wild on its hills and plateaus re- 
 spectively ; both are commonly used as pot-herbs. Silk is produced in the 
 Khusp and Ghayn bulncs, but not in great quantity. 
 
 The manufactures of this district are carpets of very superior quality ; 
 the best are worked at Duroksh (20 looms) and Nozad (16 looms) in the 
 Khusp luluc ; they are largely exported and fetch high prices. Felts 
 and coarse woollens are also manufactured for home use, as are some 
 coarse silk fabrics and embroideries ; the latter mostly in the Ghayn 
 Mluc. 
 
 The exports are felts, carpets, saffron, wool, kurk (goats' wool), raw 
 silk, and dried fruits. The three first find a market at Kandahar, and 
 all the rest are taken to Yezd and Teheran and the Gulf ports. 
 
 The imports are, sugar refined at Yezd from the Indian raw material 
 or gur, spices from Teheran, as also Russian prints and calicoes, French 
 velvets and broadcloths, and some English chintzes and piece-goods ; 
 kirmiz, a scarlet dye, from Bokhara via Herat ; indigo from India via 
 Kandahar ; postins, or fur coats, from Herat ; tobacco from Shiraz, 
 rice from Mazanderaii, and wheat and barley from Seistan. 
 
 31^ March. Halt at Birjand. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M., 24'67 8 P.M., 24'70 7 A.M., 24-70 
 
 Therm. ... 80 60 50 
 
 The Governor or Ameer of Ghayn pays no revenue direct to the 
 Persian Government, but he defrays all the expenses of the royal troops 
 employed in his province ; he also sends an annual tribute to the Shah ; 
 
80 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 in other respects he is very much of an independent chief. The present 
 chief, Meer Alum Khan, is a popular ruler, and a very intelligent and 
 liberal-minded man. He keeps his province in very good order, and 
 during the famine which has raged all overJPersia for the last two years, 
 has considerably mitigated its horrors within his own territory by largely 
 importing grains from Seistan, and transferring the populations of the 
 districts more severely visited by drought to that recently acquired 
 territory. It is said that nearly ten thousand families have emigrated 
 from the Ghayn province to Seistan during the last three years under the 
 auspices of Meer Alum Khan,. and it is reckoned that an equal number of 
 families have emigrated to the same country from other parts of Khoras- 
 san as far north as Meshed. 
 
 The people of Ghayn are a fair-complexioned (as compared with 
 Afghans) and generally handsome race, judging from those seen at 
 Birjand. Here they appear to be a prosperous community ; we saw no 
 beggars, and the people generally appeared well clad and well nourished. 
 They appear, too, to be a healthy people ; of those coming to our camp 
 for medical advice, most were sufferers from chest complaints and 
 rheumatism. I observed that a good many of them were pitted by small- 
 pox ; opthalmias and venereal diseases are of common occurrence. 
 
 1st April. Halt at Birjand. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'56 8 P.M., 24'63 7 A.M., 24*61 
 Therm. ... 84 62 58 
 
 The weather here is fine, and the air delightfully fresh and mild. The 
 mean of twelve barometrical observations recorded during four days' stay 
 here is 24*67, which gives an approximate elevation of 4,870 feet. The 
 climate of Birjand, and of the Ghayn district generally, is described as 
 very salubrious ; the winter is a rigorous season, owing to the prevalence 
 of hard frosts and cold winds, mostly from the north ; snow lies on the 
 higher plateau for two months, and at Birjand and Ghayn for a fort- 
 night or three weeks ; on the hills it lasts much longer, and some of 
 the higher mountains retain their winter snows till midsummer. Spring 
 and autumn are described as delightful seasons, and our experience of 
 the first bears out the truth of the assertion. Summer is a temperate 
 season notwithstanding the parched deserts surrounding the district ; 
 the hot winds from these tracts are intercepted by the mountains, and 
 the heat of the sun is tempered by cool breezes from the hills, on which 
 storms with thunder and rain are of frequent occurrence. The regular 
 rains occur in spring and autumn, and stock the numerous springs in 
 the glens and hollows of the mountains. 
 
 Here, as in other parts of Persia, almost every village has its one 
 or more yakh-chdl, or " ice-pit," whence all classes are supplied during 
 the summer months at a nominal cost. 
 
 ^nd April. Birjand to Ghibk or Ghyuk, 18 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... SP.M., 23-12 8 P.M., 7 A.M., 23'12 
 Therm. ... 39 
 
 A strong east wind blew in strong gusts during the greater part of the 
 night; during the forenoon it changed, and blew from the west; and 
 at sunset again changed, and blew from the north, with clouds and rain. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. SI 
 
 Route over the low sand hills to the north-east of the town, and then 
 up the course of a shallow, sandy, and gravel ly ravine that drains the Sar- 
 besah and Mud valleys westward to the Khusp rivulet ; it passes through 
 the town of Birjand, and is at this time dry ; along its course is the line of 
 wells of the Fakhrabad karez, which waters the town and irrigates the 
 land to its south-west. In thirty minutes we left the ravine on our 
 right, and, turning east by a very slight rise, entered on a wide plateau 
 which, extending eastward, is continuous with the Sarbesha valley. We 
 crossed its western end in a north-eastern direction, having a high range 
 of bare and rugged hills, the Umar Koh, on our left ; the plateau slopes 
 gradually up to the east, and is bare of trees and habitation and cul- 
 tivation; its soil is light and gravelly, and is just commencing to green 
 with newly- sprouting herbs. In one hour and fifty-five minutes from 
 Birjand we came to an undulating ridge of fissile slate, projecting eastward 
 from the hills on our left, and dividing this end of the plateau into two 
 great culs de sac ; the ridge, though wide, is of no height, and the 
 ascent is easy ; its surface is mostly covered with saline-charged clay, 
 and in wet weather would prove very miry and slippery. 
 
 On this ridge we passed an dbambar, and then crossing the Ishcam- 
 bar Rood (a deep and boulder-strewn ravine, which, running south-east, 
 turns round the ridge just crossed, and joins the ravine before mentioned 
 as draining through Birjand to the Khusp valley), again entered on the 
 wide plateau, and crossing it north-east towards the hill range closing 
 it to the northward, in twenty-five minutes reached the roadside hamlet 
 of Mahiabad, of fifteen huts and a round tower. After crossing the 
 ravine we passed a roadside dbambar, and near it on the left the Ishcambar 
 hamlet of twenty houses, on the edge of the ravine of that name, now 
 dry ; it has a round tower, and some fruit gardens and corn-fields. On 
 the plain a little to the right of the road is a similar hamlet, Calata 
 Bujdi, at the foot of an isolated conical peak, apparently of volcanic 
 origin, called Markoh or Cf Serpent hill/' 
 
 At Mahiabad the suface is strewed with fragments of rock from 
 the adjoining hills ; they are of coarse trap, speckled black and white. 
 There is a pool of brackish water here fed from a karez, the edges of 
 which are white with saline encrustations ; the pool contains no fish, 
 but is full of leeches. Mahiabad contains only four families, the rest 
 have died or emigrated to Seistan during the famine which still presses 
 sorely. This place is 850 feet higher than Birjand, and the view from 
 it is fine and defined. To the west, the country is closed by the Umar 
 Koh range, and to the north by that of Muminabad. To the east lie 
 the Sarbesha and Mud valleys, separated from each other by a low ridge 
 of hills that ends in low mounds at Birjand ; both valleys lie east and 
 west, and drain through the Birjand hollow to Khusp ; the surface pre- 
 sents a wide pasture tract, bare of trees and without habitation or cul- 
 tivation except in the glens along the hill skirts. To the south the 
 country is closed by the Baghran range of chlorite and trap, the summit 
 of which is streaked with snow. 
 
 Proceeding from Mahiabad in the face of a strong and cold north 
 wind, we, at a few hundred yards, entered the hills along the course of 
 karez shafts, and turning due north at an dbambar (the fourth on the 
 road from Birjand), presently came to the picturesque little castle of 
 Pisukh, perched on an eminence at the entrance to a wild and rugged 
 
82 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 defile. Beyond this our path led up a winding and narrow gorge strewed 
 with rocks and boulders of trap from the close-flanking hills, and 
 passing another little castellated hamlet called Firinj, about which are 
 some vineyards and patches of corn cultivation, one hour and thirty- 
 two minutes from Mahfabad brought us to the top of the Saman Shahi 
 pass, which is the watershed between the Sarbesha or Birjand valley and 
 that of Sihdih. The pass is about six miles long, and is very winding; 
 here and there are small open spaces with cultivated patches and karez 
 wells ; the surface is everywhere very strong, with sharp pointed frag- 
 ments of trap rock; the flanking hills are rugged and bare of vege- 
 tation ; along their base are tumuli of bright-coloured marls of red, 
 green, blue, and grey, the result of surface disintegration of the chlorite 
 and slate here overlying the trap. Near its top the defile narrows to a 
 very small passage only some twenty feet wide and forty or fifty long, 
 and again widens to a small basin in which are some barberry bushes, 
 rhubarb, and assafoetida and other plants. At the top of the pass the 
 aneriod figured 22'80, giving its approximate elevation at 2,130 feet 
 above Birjand, and 7,000 feet above the sea. 
 
 The descent from the Saman Shahi pass is gradual and easy to a 
 deep dell in which are some walled vineyards and fruit gardens ; it is 
 drained by a wide, deep, and stony ravine ; this we crossed, and then 
 rose out a broad undulating ridge of fissile slate, and beyond it, descend- 
 ed by a good road to the village of Ghibk, perched on an eminence 
 overlooking a deep little dell cultivated in terraces ; passing under the 
 village and crossing its corn-fields, which are watered from a strong 
 spring-fed stream, we camped in a little hollow between slaty hills. Time 
 from the top of the pass, thirty-five minutes. 
 
 Weather cloudy, cold, and inclement; wind high and in fitful 
 gusts from the north. As we arrived in camp, a smart storm with heavy 
 rain broke upon us at about 6 P.M. Our baggage started from Bir- 
 jand at 10 A.M., and did not arrive in camp till 9 P.M. 
 
 Srd April. Halt at Ghibk, or Ghyuk. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 23-10 8 P.M., 23'12 7. A.M., 23-10 
 
 Therm. ... 61 38 40 
 
 Weather fine and clear, with a bracing fresh air. The elevation of 
 Ghibk is about 6,650 feet above the sea. The village is picturesquely 
 situated on a high mound overlooking the dell below it. In the centre 
 of the village rise the ruins of a compact little castle ; the village con - 
 tains only eighty houses, and its population now does not exceed 270 
 souls ; a couple of years ago it was nearly 400 ; last year, we are told, 
 53 persons died of starvation, and thirty families emigrated to Seistan. 
 Ghibk, though not the largest, is one of the chief villages of the Alghor 
 buluc, so named from the mountain range running north and south to its 
 east, and on a spur of which is the Sawan Shahi pass ; it is the residence 
 of the agent of the Ameer of Ghayn. This bittuc, it is said, contains upwards 
 of 300 villages and hamlets ; some of the former as Sihdih, Arwi, and 
 Zarwi, contain 150 houses and upwards each, but most are less than 100 
 houses ; the latter, or mazrd, only contain from five to twenty houses each ; 
 most of them are situated high up on the hills, and are only occupied 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 83 
 
 during the summer. Ghibk is a bleak and inhospitable spot in winter, but 
 in summer must be a charming 1 residence ; snow is still lying- in stray 
 wreaths and drifts in the hollows around. The little dell of Ghibk 
 drains into the great ravine crossed yesterday ; it winds south-west 
 through the Arwi and Zarwi basins down to the Khusp valley. 
 
 Uh April. Ghibk to Sihdih, 18 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... SP.M., 24-00 8 P.M., 24'02 7 P.M., 24'07 
 Therm. ... 64 50 39 
 
 Route more or less north by west, winding amongst hills and passing 
 from dell to dell. On leaving camp, we passed some walled vineyards and 
 fruit gardens called Razuk, and then traversed a succession of little 
 hollows, all more or less sown with corn, and in thirty minutes arrived at a 
 watershed running east and west, and formed by a spur from the Saghi 
 range on our right. The road up to this point is by a gradual rise along 
 the slopes of low round hills of disintegrated trap and slate ; the sur- 
 face soil is marly, and covered with fresh-sprouting plants such as crocus, 
 bluebell, tulip, orchid, &c., assafcetida, rhubarb, camel-thorn, and a spe- 
 cies of periploca or tamarisk, I am not sure which ; it grows in tufts 
 and is browsed by cattle, and makes a good fuel in these woodless 
 tracts of country. 
 
 The aneroid at the Saghi watershed figured 23' 00, giving the ap- 
 proximate elevation at 6,750 feet above the sea. During the past winter 
 heavy snow fell on these hills and confined the people to their villages 
 for two months ; it is now a month since the snows cleared away. The 
 drainage on the south side of this watershed runs to the Arwi ravine, 
 and that to the north of it to the Sihdih ravine. 
 
 The descent from the watershed is by an easy path, and gradual 
 along the course of a long drainage gully, which, as it descends, widens 
 into a more open and undulating country surrounded by hills. We passed 
 in succession the villages of Nankhan, Chdhikan, and Pistakhan, in 
 secluded hollows on the left of our route, and Saghi and Husenaba'd on 
 the right of it, away in glens at the foot of the Saghi range. The sur- 
 face here is very generally sown with corn, and the villages are surround- 
 ed by fruit gardens, and the hills are covered with rich pasture ; in the 
 summer these hills are frequented by nomads with their camels, goats, 
 and sheep. The wild animals here are the markhor, or wild goat, the 
 ibex, and the wild sheep; also the leopard, hycena, and wolf . Beyond 
 Nankhan we passed the roadside dbamMr of Pistakhan, and from it got 
 a good view of a distant snow-clad mountain range called Bakharry ; 
 it runs east and west, and closes the distant view to the north. In 
 two hours and thirty minutes from Ghibk we came to the small spring 
 and vineyard of Gilangan on the marly slope of a slate hill ; there is no 
 habitation here, but we found a sheep-pen and a shepherd's cell excavated 
 in the bluish clay and slate of the hill-side. Beyond this the gully, 
 after two or three winds, expands rapidly and slopes down to the wide 
 valley or j nig ah of Sihdih. In fifty two minutes from Gilangan we 
 left the hills, and crossing a wide slope nearly due north, in one hour 
 and five minutes more arrived at Sihdih, where we camped on the open 
 plain near the village. 
 
 Weather stormy and showery ; air cold and wind bleak. 
 
84 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 The Sihdih valley is a wide plateau extending some 25 or 30 miles 
 east and west. A dozen villages are visible on the plain and along the hill 
 skirts, the nearest bearing east by south. At about three miles is Jafarabad, 
 of 200 houses within castellated walls. The aspect of the valley just 
 now is bare and wintry, but there is a good surface of cultivation round 
 its villages, and a notable paucity of trees; the plain is here of 
 brushwood, and its firm gravelly soil is only now greening with pasture 
 herbs, the most common of which is a very dwarf rose called khalora. 
 Sihdih is a collection of three villages, as the name implies, but two 
 of them are in ruins and deserted since the battle fought here some 
 thirty-five years ago between the Herat troops of Kamran and the Meshed 
 army of Asufoodowlah. Sihdih is famous for its carpets and saffron ; 
 the former are not equal to those made in Durokhsb. There are 280 
 houses in Sihdih within fortified walls. The water of the karez on 
 which our camp is pitched is brackish, but we got good sweet water from 
 a karez at the village itself. All the villages here are fortified, owing to 
 the liability to attack from the Toorkmans who come down by Khaf and 
 Gunabad. They are said to have visited the neighbourhood very re- 
 cently. 
 
 th April. Sihdih to Rum, 10 miles. . 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 23'90 8 P.M., 23'90 7 A.M., 23'90 
 Therm. ... 60 50 45 
 
 Route north over a low ridge, and across a small plain on which we 
 saw some large herds of goats grazing. Soil spongy and gravelly, and 
 covered with rich pasture of wormwood and dwarf rose (khalora). 
 Beyond this the path becomes rough and stony, and winds up and down 
 over a very uneven surface thrown into low ridges and tumuli by rocks 
 of conglomerate, coarse sandstone, and slate in succession, up to a small 
 valley draining to the westward, as does the plain of Sihdih. On reach- 
 ing this valley we came upon a thin and shallow stream of good water, 
 and following its course for a mile or two north-east, arrived at Rum, 
 where we camped. Time, two hours and thirty -five minutes. 
 
 Rum is a castellated little village of 80 houses on the edge of its 
 stream, which here flows in a wide pebbly ravine with increasing banks. 
 The village wears a poverty-stricken and decayed look. Its population 
 is reduced to thirty miserably poor families from the effects of famine 
 and emigration. It has an abundant supply of water, and a few fruit 
 gardens and corn-fields now neglected. 
 
 Weather fine in forenoon ; cloudy and showery in afternoon. 
 
 Qfji April. Rum to Ghayn, 22 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'65 8 P.M., 24'61 7 A.M., 24'65 
 Therm. ... 70 61 52 
 
 Route north up the Rum valley along the course of its drainage 
 ravine by a good though stony road; the valley is hemmed 
 in by low round hillocks that here and there rise into bold rocky cliffs, 
 and open out into undulating spaces, all ploughed up and sown with corn. 
 Jn one hour and a half we came to the little village of Birinjan with 
 its watch tower, gardens, and fields at the foot of a high hill to 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 85 
 
 the left of the road ; in the secluded hollows on each side of our route are 
 several other villages to which the cultivated lands above mentioned 
 belong. 
 
 In two hours and fifteen minutes from Rum we came to the water- 
 shed, a ridge of fissile slate running east and west between the main 
 ranges that run north-west and south-east. The ascent to it is very 
 gradual by a general rise of the land. The aneroid here figured 23 '20, 
 thus giving an approximate elevation of 6,550 feet above the sea, 800 
 feet above Hum and 970 feet above Sihdih. The view from the gap in this 
 ridge is very fine and wild, and looks down direct on the valley of 
 Ghayn lying east and west far below, and beyond some intervening 
 hills of rugged bare rock. 
 
 The descent from this gap is by a horse-path across the slope of the 
 hill-side, which here steeps rapidly to a deep chasm ; for carriages a road 
 would require to be cut, but this could be done without difficulty in the 
 soft slaty rock (fissile) . At the foot of the slope we came to a ravine 
 that receives the drainage from the chasms between the hills, and follow- 
 ing this a little way, reached the village of Khanikpae Gudar on the right 
 of the road; here turning round a spur to the left we passed two little 
 hamlets of eight or ten huts each, and some saffron gardens and mulberry 
 plantations for silkworm culture, and a little beyond came to the Syed 
 village of Kharbaj, occupying the end and slopes of a low ridge overlooking 
 a bend of the ravine and the corn-fields on the reach formed by its curve. 
 Time from the watershed gap, fifty- two minutes. Kharbaj is 750 feet 
 below the watershed gap, and contains 120 houses protected by a couple 
 of round towers. 
 
 Crossing the ridge on which it stands, we proceeded down a narrow 
 glen along the course of its ravine ; the valley widens as it descends, and 
 opens by a gentle slope on to the hill-girt plain or valley of Ghayn. 
 At about an hour we passed a roadside dbambdr, and in forty-five minutes 
 more arrived at the gardens of Ghayn, and winding between these by a 
 narrow road between high mud walls, in another thirty minutes, passing 
 under the walls of the town, reached a brisk little rivulet, on the edge of 
 which we camped close on the west side of the town. 
 
 1th April. Halt at Ghayn. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'64 8 P.M., 24'69 7 A.M., 24'74 
 Therm. . 63 43 
 
 Ghayn, or Cayin, wears a neglected and decayed look, notwithstand- 
 ing its many fruit gardens and corn-fields. The present town is supposed 
 to date from the time of the Arab conquest; it is enclosed within fortified 
 walls of clay and brick, and covers a very considerable surface. In former 
 times it contained ten thousand houses within the area of the fortifica- 
 tions, but at the present time only about five hundred houses are occupied, 
 and the most prominent building in their midst is the mosque of Imam 
 Jafar which is a lofty pile of domes very badly built, and propped from fall- 
 ing by outer buttresses and arches that completely mar the architec- 
 ture. The rest of the area within the fortifications is a waste of ruins 
 amidst which are small patches of cultivation ; the fortifications are in 
 decay, but here and there some of the bastions have been restored, and 
 
86 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 the curtains between them built up as a protection against the inroads 
 of Toorkmans who occasionally harry this district ; there are still many 
 gaps in the walls. 
 
 The site of the original Persian city of Cayin lies south of the 
 present town at the foot, and on the slope of Koh Imam Jafar ; it is said to 
 have been founded by Carin, the son of the blacksmith Cavvah (the hero 
 of the Peshdadian kings), who slew Zohak, and whose leather apron, after- 
 wards captured by the Arab Saad bin Wacass, became the standard of Persia, 
 and was known as the darafsh-'i-cdwdni, and was destroyed by Hulakoo 
 Khan, the son of Changheez; the ruins are now called Shahr-i-Gabri 
 (City of the fire-worshippers) j they extend up the slope of the hill Imam 
 Jafar, which overlooks the present town from the south-east at a dis- 
 tance of three miles or so. On the top of the hill there is said to be a 
 large reservoir excavated out of the solid rock. 
 
 The inhabitants of Ghayn are mostly Syeds, with Toorks and 
 Heratis; they are afair-complexioned and robust-looking people, are well 
 clad, and appear to be a flourishing community. They are mostly em- 
 ployed in the culture of silk and fruits, and agriculture. 
 
 A good deal of silk is produced here and sent in the raw state 
 to Kirman; some inferior fabrics are manufactured here from it for 
 home use ; and it is used also in silk embroideries mostly for home use. 
 A good deal of saffron is grown here and exported, as are the dried 
 fruits. 
 
 The gardens o Ghayn are watered from numerous karez streams, 
 and a perennial stream from Koh Baras to the west of the valley flows 
 eastward close by the north face of the town ; it flows in a shallow pebbly 
 bed, and the water is good. 
 
 The Ghayn valley spreads out as a wide plateau towards the west, 
 in which direction it is closed by the snow-topped range at the Koh 
 Baras ; to the north it is separated from the Nimbuluc district by a low 
 range o hills over which is a pass to Noghab and Asadabad ; to the east 
 the valley narrows between high hills, and extend away towards Gizik, 
 the chief village of the Sunnikhana district. In the time of Yar Mahomed, 
 Gizik belonged to Herat ; it is about 60 miles from Birjand, through 
 a peopled valley or open plateau ; 80 miles from Gunabad, mostly across a 
 desert ; 5 miles over a peopled plain to Khaf; and about 120 miles through 
 a pasture tract between parallel hills running north-west to south-east 
 from Anardarrah. 
 
 In the Ghayn valley there are many villages in the nooks along 
 the foot o the hills, but the open valley or plain is a wide pasture 
 tract ; it is bare of trees and bushes, but abounds in good pasture herbs. 
 The soil is light, spongy, and gravelly ; the wormwood, Syrian rue, and 
 assafcetida are common on it. The assafcetida is of tvvo kinds, viz., 
 Kimd i gdur, or that grazed by cattle ; and Kim d i anguza, or that 
 yielding assafoatida : the young leaves and stalks of both kinds are 
 eaten by the natives, cooked either as a pot-herb or roasted (in the case 
 of the latter) as a vegetable. 
 
THE MISSION TO SETSTAX. 87 
 
 8tk April. Halt at Ghayn. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'66 8 P.M., 2173 7 P.M., 24'76 
 
 Therm. ... 64 51 40 
 
 The mean of nine barometric observations recorded during* three days' 
 halt at Ghayn is 24'68, giving- an approximate elevation of 4,850 feet 
 above the sea. The mean temperature during the same period was 57 
 Fahr., the maximum 75 Fahr., and the minimum 40 Fahr. From this 
 point we were to have proceeded to Turbat Hyderi by the direct route of 
 Gunabad and Reg-i-Amrani, but owing to the presence of Toorkman 
 parties on this route, it was decided to proceed by one more to the west, 
 through a hilly tract in which there was some protection from attack by 
 these marauders. 
 
 $th April. Ghayn to Girimunj, 22 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3P.M., 8 P.M., 24/50 7 P.M., 24'50 
 
 Therm. ... 50 44 
 
 Route north-west over a level plain covered with rich pasture. At 
 about four miles passed a roadside dbambdr, and then nearing some 
 low spurs from the Koh Baras range running north-west to south-east 
 on our left, turned a point westward, and, proceeding along a drainage 
 ravine skirting low mounds on our left, in two hours and thirty-five 
 minutes halted a little beyond the little castle of Sheramrgh. The coun- 
 try here is overrun by low ridges from the hills bounding the valley on 
 the north and west, and in the angle of junction of the two ranges is a 
 cul de sac of open undulating ground covered with pasture, on which we 
 found large flocks of goats grazing. 
 
 Proceeding north-west from Shermurgh we crossed a low ridge, the 
 soil of which is gravelly and spongy from saline -charged clay, and 
 skirting the northern edge of the cul de sac above mentioned, in one 
 hour and fifty minutes reached the Gudar God watershed pass, the boun- 
 dary between the Ghayn and Nimbuluc districts. 
 
 At Shermurgh is a small karez stream of briny water, and the edges 
 of the watercourse are white with saline encrustations. Our route on- 
 ward to the pass skirted the hills closing the valley of Ghayn to the north, 
 and separating it from Nimbuluc ; the road is narrow and stony, and winds 
 over and between low ridges. In the cul de sac on our left were seen the 
 castellated villages of Naugirift, Razdumbal, and Mahanj, in hollows 
 along the hill skirt. The ascent to the pass is up a stony gully with 
 bare hills on each side, of limestone and sandstone. At Gudari God the 
 Aneroid figured 23-60, giving an approximate elevation of 6,050 feet 
 above the sea, and 1,200 feet above Ghayn. The descent from the pass 
 is by a stony road that winds round the slopes of great mounds of 
 dessicated clay, and crosses a succession of gullies between rocky ridges 
 running northwards to the hill range separating us from Noghab and 
 Asadabad in Nimbuluc ; to our left is the Koh Baras and its contin- 
 uation west, the Koh Behud. On the descent from the pass we found 
 a fossil ammonite, and several bits of water agate; and further on, cross- 
 ing some ridges, got a full view of the plain of Nimbuluc and its villages 
 of Silayam, Mahyam, and Khidri, to the north-east and north and north- 
 west respectively. 
 
88 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 In four hours and thirty minutes from the pass we came to the Rood-i- 
 Myanpyaz, a brisk little stream flowing on a pebbly bed between high 
 banks of conglomerate. It is perennial, and is used up for irrigation on 
 the Nimbuluc plain close on our right. In twenty minutes more, travers- 
 ing a cultivated hill skirt that slopes rapidly to the Nimbuluc plain, we 
 reached Girimauj and camped under its walls. The village contains J30 
 houses, and from their midst rises a small fort ; it is situated at the foot of 
 the hills and surrounded by corn-fields watered by karez streams. In 
 a glen a few miles west are seen the Dihushk and Buznabad villages and 
 fruit gardens. 
 
 The Nimbuluc valley or plain lies north -west to south-east, and is 
 about thirty-five miles long by twelve wide ; to the north-east and east it is 
 separated from the Gunabad plain by the Mysur range of bare rocky hills, 
 over which are the following passes, viz., Dahna Ghareah, Mugri, 
 Rijing, and Balaghor ; to the north-west the valley is closed by a low 
 range through which is an easy pass, the Dahna Suleman, to Gunabad. 
 Girimunj is 5,050 feet above the sea, and 1,000 feet below the Gudar God 
 pass. Weather fine and mild. During the night the thermometer fell 
 to 35 Fahr. 
 
 10^ April. Girimunj to Dushti Byaz, 15 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'26 8 P.M., 24'24. 7 A.M., 24 24 
 Therm, ... 80 57 53 
 
 Route north-west across the Nimbuluc plain ; the Isfyan range of 
 hills (a continuation of the Koh Behud) a mile or so on our left, and the 
 Mysur range across the plain some ten miles or so to our right. The 
 Isfyan range runs north-west and south-east to the north-west of Dushti 
 Byaz, This range rises into a high mountain, the Sujah Koh ; in the 
 valley at its base are the villages of Munaiduj and Bushkabad with their 
 gardens and numerous hamlets. Here also are the ruins of an ancient 
 city called Jahul Pars, said to have been founded by Isfandyar. 
 
 En route, across the pasture-covered plain, we passed a couple ot 
 roadside dbambdr, and two or three hamlets at the foot of the hills to our 
 left. Beyond this, crossing a small hill-stream, we rose gently up to 
 Khidri, a flourishing village of 200 houses surrounded by fruit gardens 
 and mulberry plantations, and abundantly watered by streams from 
 springs in the hills hard by to the left. Time from Dushti Byaz 
 to an dbambdr just beyond Khidri, three hours exactly. 
 
 Proceeding from Khidri went over a rising upland, and leaving the 
 Mahyam or Myanmai castle on the plain about: four miles to our right, 
 in thirty-five minutes reached Dashti Byaz, where we camped close under 
 its fort, which is in a state of decay, though full of houses. Outside the 
 fort is the village; both together contain 300 houses, and are surrounded 
 by fruit gardens, mulberry plantations, and corn-fields ; through their 
 midst pass wide, shallow, and shingly drainage channels. In a valley 
 to the north-west are seen the castellated Mandwaj and Bushkabad 
 villages. 
 
 The people here are mostly of Arab descent with some ilyats. 
 They have suffered severely from the famine, and most of the infant 
 population has died off, Our camp was surrounded by starving beggars. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN 89 
 
 \lth April. Halt at Dashti Byaz. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 2413 8 P.M., 2413 7 A.M., 2416 
 Therm , 64 56 49 
 
 Weather cloudy, with rain at right. Delayed for the arrival of our 
 camels with heavy baggage from Birjand. 
 
 The gardens here produce plums, apricots, apples, &c. The poppy 
 is grown here for opium, and the mulberry for silkworms. 
 
 IZth April. Halt at Dashti Byaz. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24-11 8 P.M., 2410 7 A.M., 24'20 
 Therm. 64 48 38 
 
 Weather cold, raw, and rainy. Elevation 5,430 feet above the sea. 
 March delayed owing to a party of Toorkmans, reckoned at from 200 to 
 400, having been in the vicinity of the Balaghor pass. It is reported by 
 our Persian mihmdnddr that they will either raid this valley or that of 
 Gunabad in advance. These Toorkman raiders are said to be mostly 
 Tyinuri horsemen, who, to the number of 400 families, were transferred 
 from Herat to the Turshiz district by the Prince-Governor of Meshed 
 in 1856. Their chief, Ataoollah Khan, joined Sultan Morad Mirza when 
 he laid seige to Herat ; for his services he and his tribe were granted the 
 following villages in the Kohi Surkh valley, viz., Kundar, Khalilabad, 
 Dih Nau, Mujdi, Sarmujdf, Bijingar, and Arghi. During the famine, 
 Ataoollah's men took to plundering the caravan routes from Herat to 
 Meshed, and, being joined by other robbers, now raid the whole country 
 to Ghayn. Ataoollah himself went to Meshed, and is now a hostage 
 at Tehran. 
 
 SECTION IX. 
 
 From Dashti Byaz to Yunsi Tubbus. 
 \?>th April. Dashti Byaz to Kakhk, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24 20. 8 P.M., 24'22. 7 A.M., 24'24 
 Therm. ... 64 53 51 
 
 Route west-north-west up a wide upland covered with excellent 
 pasture, on which we found large flocks of goats and sheep grazing; 
 the road skirts the Laki range which here separates us from the 
 plain of Gunabad ; at about half way we passed a roadside dbambdr, and 
 in one hour and thirty minutes arrived at the castle hamlet of Sihkuri, 
 20 houses, near a willow and poplar fringed tank fed from a karez stream. 
 This place is 970 feet higher than Dashti Byaz, and from it, looking back, 
 is obtained a full view of the Nimbuluc plain. Snow lies on this upland 
 tract for two months, and in midwinter the route is closed for three or 
 four weeks. 
 
 A little beyond Sihkuri the road enters a narrow gorge winding 
 north-north-west between low hills of bare slate and magnesian lime- 
 stone; in the latter we found fossil bivalves and oysters. The path leads 
 up the stony bed of a dry ravine, and, by a gradual rise, in fifty minutes 
 brought us to the Gudari Kakhk or Gudari darakhtibannah (not a single 
 
90 EECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 bannah or other tree is to be seen in the vicinity) . This watershed is the 
 boundary between the Ghayn and Tubbus provinces, and separates 
 Ghayn from Gunabad district. The aneroid here figured 22'95, giving 
 an approximate elevation of 6,850 feet above the sea, and 1,420 feet 
 above Dashti Byaz, and 1,800 feet above Girimunj. 
 
 The descent from this pass is by a very narrow footpath on the 
 steep slope of a great clay mound ; below it, to the left, is a deep drainage 
 cleft or chasm ; in wet weather this road is impassable for camels, and 
 for guns it would require making, but this could be easily done and the 
 road laid with stones from the other side of the pass. The easy and 
 short route is direct across the Gunabad plain. 
 
 After the first steep descent, the road leads along the dry slaty bed 
 of a wide and shallow ravine, the surface of which glistens with bits of 
 mica schist and quartz ; it is flanked on each side by low heights, and 
 at forty-five minutes from the pass, branches join it on the right and left. 
 Here is an dbambdr in the gully ; branching off to the left, through this 
 gully, there is a direct road to Kakhk, but it has two passes very difficult 
 for camels. In the gully to the right there is said to be a copper mine, 
 not now worked ; the rocks here are slate, mica schist, and magnesian 
 limestone, and on the surface are strewed stones coated greenish-blue 
 with acetate of copper. Onwards from this point, the ravine deepens 
 and the defile widens ; in twenty-five minutes from the dbambdr we came 
 to the little village of Mullahab&d on the high left bank of the ravine, 
 which here has a large boulder-strewn bed ; before reaching the village 
 we passed a willow-fringed pond, fed from a spring on the left of the 
 ravine. In twenty minutes more, turning out of the ravine (it opens on 
 to the Gunabad plain) to the left, we passed over some bare gravelly un- 
 dulations, and camped near some gardens a little to the north of Kakhk. 
 The village is situated at the foot of some mounds on the hill skirt ; it 
 contains about 350 houses, and is overlooked from an eminence by the 
 shrine or mausoleum erected to the memory of Sultan Muhammad, a 
 brother of the Imam Raza of Meshed : its handsome glazed tile dome 
 and whitewashed portals are attractive objects. 
 
 This place, as mentioned by Ferrier (Caravan Journeys) was the 
 scene of one of the most bloody battles ever fought between the Afghans 
 and Persians. It occurred in 1751, when Shah Ahmed's Belooch allies, 
 under their chief, Nasir Khan, defeated the Persians and slew their leader, 
 All Morad Khan, the Governor of Tubbus. By this victory Tubbus was 
 annexed to Afghanistan. 
 
 There are extensive fruit gardens here, all walled, and watered from 
 numerous karez streams; and on the slope extending from them to the 
 Gunabad plateau or valley are terraced strips of corn-fields. From Kakhk 
 the view of the Gunabad valley is complete. The valley runs north- 
 west to south-east in a wide expanse of pasture land ; through its 
 centre runs a drainage ravine, along the course of which are the Guuabad 
 villages, some eight or ten in close succession ; the villages, gardens, and 
 fields are freely watered from karez wells and by the floods carried down 
 the ravine. The valley slopes towards the east, in which direction it is 
 bounded by a range of peaky, bare hills ; about midway in this there is 
 a gap leading on to the desert of Khaf, which extends on to Ghoryan 
 and Herat. To the north-west and north-east the Gunabad valley is 
 
THE MISSSION TO SEISTAN 91 
 
 separated from Bijistau and Reg-i-Amrani respectively by ail irregular 
 ridge of low hills or tappak. 
 
 lUh April. Kakhk to Zihbud, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M., 24'48 8 P.M., 24'50 7 A.M., 24'50 
 
 Therm. ... 88 57 66 
 
 Route nearly due west, hugging the hill skirt on our left, and leav- 
 ing the great Gunabad plain to our right : the land slopes down to it 
 gradually. From Kakhk there is a road direct to Gunabad down this 
 slope, and on it are four dbambdr at three miles apart. At the foot of 
 the hills to the left we passed the villages of Iddoh and Dih Isfyan, 
 with their gardens and protecting castle, and crossing two deep ravines 
 running towards Gunabad (the first dry from Dih Isfyan, the second 
 containing a small stream from the Calat tangal or " $ully"), a little 
 beyond the second, halted in the shade of some mulberry trees close to the 
 Calat, a village of 120 houses built on the lower slopes of some slate 
 hills, the sides of which are covered, with wild rhubarb. Time, two hours 
 exactly. Calat looks down upon rich gardens, mulberry plantations, 
 corn and poppy fields, all freely watered from hill springs ; but the 
 village, has been depopulated by famine and Toorkman raids, and now only 
 contains thirty poor families. The approach of our party round a pro- 
 jecting spur of the hills on our left was unexpected, and surprised the 
 villagers, who, taking us for Toorkmans, discharged their matchlocks at us 
 and hastily scrambled up the hill side, leaving their empty village to 
 its fate. 
 
 Proceeding, we passed through the village under the walls of its 
 decayed fort. The whole place wears an air of utter desolation and 
 poverty ; the people are miserably poor, and have lost all their children 
 by the famine ; we did not see a single child in the village. Beyond 
 Calat we followed a rough track north-west skirting the hills on our 
 left, and in one hour and fifty-five minutes reached Zihbud, where we 
 camped. 
 
 En route we passed the following villages along the foot of the 
 hills, viz., Saghi, Rochi, and Zaharabad on our left, and Shirazabad 
 on the right of our path. Beyond Shirazabad we crossed a strong irriga- 
 tion stream on the bank of a deep ravine, in which flows a clear little 
 hill stream towards Gunabad, and, crossing this, passed over some gravelly 
 undulations to Zihbud close by. 
 
 The country traversed in this march is covered with the rhubarb and 
 yellow dwarf rose in profusion, and almost to the exclusion of other vege- 
 tation. The soil is firm gravel, strewed with fragments of coarse trap, 
 cellular lava, and slate. 
 
 Zihbud contains 200 houses, and, like the other villages here, is 
 surrounded by fruit gardens watered from hill springs. On the Guna- 
 bad plain are seen several detached little round towers, places of refuge 
 for shepherds and ploughmen from the attacks of the Turkmans. 
 
 lUh April. Zihbud to Bijistan, 28 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... SP.M., 25-13 8 P.M., 25'24 7 A.M , 25'20 
 Therm. ... 84 67 62 
 
 Route north-north-west along the hill skirt to the west of the 
 Gunabad valley. Road rough and stony, and up and down across a 
 
92 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 drainage cut slope. Soil, coarse gravel and stones of slate, trap, and 
 pudding-stone. Surface covered with pasture herbs, rhubarb, yellow rose, 
 wormwood, Syrian rue, and wild safflower. 
 
 En route passed the villages of Brezu, Kasum and Sinoh, then 
 Naudih to Patanjo, where we halted under the shade of a fine plane tree 
 in the centre of the village, which contains about 100 houses. Time 
 from Zihbud, two hours and forty minutes. Naudih is a hamlet of 40 
 houses ; the others contain about 1 20 each, and are continuous through 
 their gardens, which give this place a prosperous look. Water is abundant 
 from hill springs. 
 
 Proceeding from Patanjo, we followed the hill skirt by a rough stony 
 path, and in fifty minutes entered the hills, which, branching off to the 
 eastward here, close the Gunabad valley to the north. The little rise 
 or pass is called Gudar-i-Kamih, and leads by a gentle slope through an 
 easy defile to an open space in which is the little castlellated hamlet 
 of Kamih, 20 houses. From this a path leads down a gully to the 
 hamlet of Chedu. Beyond Kamih, where water is scarce, the path winds 
 over ridges and through defiles everywhere very rough and stony, and in 
 some parts very narrow, and impassable to guns without previous prepa- 
 ration. The hills around are close-set and rugged ; they are of volcanic 
 origin ; the surface is everywhere strewed with fragments of trap rock, 
 cellular lava, and basalt. A few bannah (Pistacia terebintkus) trees, 
 and a bush, resembling the broom plant, called bddamushk, were found 
 growing here. 
 
 In one hour from Gudar-i-Kamih we came to the Gudar-i~Rudi Gaz, 
 a watershed running north and south. The aneroid here figured 24'42, 
 giving the approximate elevation at 5,150 feet above the sea. Beyond 
 this the hills open out, and drain to the north by a wide ravine. After 
 crossing some intervening undulations, the path strikes this ravine and 
 follows its dry bed for some miles ; in one hour and twenty minutes from 
 the pass we turned to the left out of the ravine opposite to the ruins of 
 a tower hamlet, and entered on a wide waste of bare firm gravel, 
 and crossing this, in forty minutes more arrived at Bijistan, where we 
 camped. 
 
 The country here slopes very considerably down to the eastward, 
 where it joins a vast desert waste, white with saline efflorescence ; it is 
 called Kavir, or Darya i kabu, " the Great Sea." 
 
 Iftth April. Halt at Bijistan. 
 
 Bar. ... SP.M., 25-: 6 8 P.M., 25'18 7 A.M., 25'15 
 Therm. ... 79 62 58 
 
 Weather cloudy and thundery, with gusty breezes from the south. 
 Elevation about 4,300 feet above the sea. 
 
 Bijistan is a flourishing village of about 600 houses, surrounded 
 by fruit gardens, and watered from karez streams. It lies at the foot of 
 a bare hill, running east and west for three or four miles ; to its east 
 and west the country falls very considerably to the great salt desert, or 
 kavir, which is seen between the hills to spread out in a vast white 
 expanse to the westward. This place has suffered very severely in the 
 famine, and has lost numbers of its people, and most of its cattle and 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN 93 
 
 flocks. Our camp is surrounded by famished, gaunt, and wizened men, 
 women, and children begging for food, and all day long pitiful cries and 
 calls to Ali (Ya Aliii) for aid are heard on every side. 
 
 Bijistan is the chief town of the buluc of the same name, and 
 belongs to the Tubbus province or district. Tubbus contains four and a 
 half buluc j they yield a revenue of 30,000 tomans (the toman equals 
 four rupees), half of which goes to the imperial treasury, and the 
 remainder to meet expenses of local government. Tabbas is the capital 
 and residence of the governor, at this time Hajee Bakar Khan. 
 
 The several buluc and their villages are as follows, viz.: 
 
 Qunabdd. Villages : Gunabad, Ghojd, Sarghojd, Khybari, Dalivi* 
 Jamin, Rahin, Rayab, Katmarabad, Baghi Siyah, Belun, Bedaghj 
 Naghab, Hajiabad, Nandih, Cysiir, Nankar, Khiidafrid, Shorab, 
 Paemurgh, Roshawand, and some others. 
 
 Kdkhk. Villages : Kakhk, Ali Mansiir, Shekhi, Darganj, Kalawn, 
 Turunj, Calata Nan, Magas, Takizan, Shokhi, Calata Sher, Iddo, Dih 
 Isfi, Calat, Saghi, Rochi, Zahrabad, Khanik, Shirazabad, Muhalla Sujah, 
 Zihbud, Razawja, Racasu, Sinoh, Kasum, Brezii, Miiseraz, Naudih, 
 Patanjo, Gumbaz, Kamih, Chedu, and some others. 
 
 . Villages : Tun, Sarayan, Anarak, Khor, Bakhjir, Fathabad, 
 Amriid Koh, Mahwi, Tarshishu, Nyuk^ Gazi_, Saradik, Barad, Zynabad, 
 Naristang, Khanik, and others. 
 
 Tubbus. The city, and about twenty villages. 
 
 Bijistan. Villages : Bijistan, Calata Mirza, Darayis, Warzo, Dar- 
 chah Darkas, Purkak, Rue Sang, Sardae, Fakhrabad, Yunsi, Marandez, 
 Rodi Gaz, and others. 
 
 \ltJi April. Bijistan to Yunsi, 26 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26*48 8 P.M., 26'58 7 A.M., 26'61 
 Therm. ... 80 64 49 
 
 A heavy storm with strong gusts of wind passed over Bijistan 
 during the night; heavy rain fell, followed by hail, and thunder and 
 lightning continued for several hours. 
 
 Route north-east to north -north-east down a sloping plateau 
 crossed by irregular ridges of hill on either side of the road ; in our 
 front and to our left is the Kavir ; it extends np to the Herat desert on 
 one side, and to that of Turshiz on the other. On the north and north- 
 east is the great hill range of Asgaud ; it ends on the desert between 
 Khaf and Ghoryan, and separates the district of Tubbus from that of 
 Bakharz. 
 
 In two hours and fifty-five minutes arrived at Sihfarsakh hamlet 
 (so named from its distance from Bijistan) at the foot of a hill curiously 
 streaked with great veins of quartz. Here the road winds to the left 
 round the hill over an undulating open country with hills in the distance. 
 In fifty minutes from Sihfarsakh, passing en route a camp of Belooch 
 gypsies, we halted at a road side dbambdr, fed from the drainage of the 
 surface around. The soil here is loose and gravelly, and thinly covered 
 with pasture herbs; the wormwood, wild rue or sipand, the ghick. 
 
94 KECOR.D OF THE MARCH OP 
 
 gentian,, prophet-flower, Malcomia, bluebell, caroxylon, &c., were recog- 
 nised, and a few bannah, trees were seen on the hills close by. 
 
 Proceeding hence, we crossed a few undulations, and passing between 
 low hills in one hour from the dbambdr, entered, on a wide plain, 
 the Kavir. On clearing the hills we saw the Marandez village and 
 fort a couple of miles to the left of the road, and in fifty-five minutes 
 more, passing an dbambdr on the way arrived at Yunsi, where we 
 camped. Yunsi is a poor-looking village of 250 huts round a central 
 fort ; it has a large sarae, but there are no gardens here, and the water- 
 supply is inferior in quality and limited in quantity. The village is 
 named after the prophet Jonas (Yiinus), who, according to local tradition, 
 was here cast up from the whale's belly, when the Kavir was covered by 
 a great sea. It has suffered severely in the famine, and is now only half 
 peopled ; it has also lost its former prosperity owing to the drying up 
 of several of its karez streams. It used formerly to be frequented by 
 caravans from Kirman to Meshed via Ghayn and Tubbus. It looks 
 a very parched and uninviting place, and the summer heats are described 
 as great ; we found the mid-day sun hot, and a strong north-western 
 wind blew all the afternoon, raising clouds of saline dust. 
 
 SECTION X. 
 
 From Yunsi to Asadabdd Turbat Hyderi, 
 
 April.Yunsi to Abdullahabad, 25 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 2610 8 P.M., 2610 7 A.M., 26'20 
 Therm , 85 67 60 
 
 Route east-north-east. Passing the village and its red brick serai 
 on our right, we crossed the Rood-i-Kavfr by a masonry bridge of nine 
 pointed arches on to the desert. The Rood-i- Kavir is a thin stream 
 flowing west ; it forms the boundary between the Tubbus and Turbat 
 Hydari districts, and is said to be spanned by six other bridges similar 
 to the one we crossed. In about half an hour from this, passing over 
 an undulating tract, we dropped to a wide lacustrine basin, here and 
 there white with great patches of saline efflorescence, and thinly 
 covered with indigofera, and salsolacea, and tufts of reed grass. In 
 two hours and fifty minutes from Yunsi we reached Myandih, and 
 halted at a large dbambdr near the village. Myandih is a collection 
 of about eighty huts round a dilapidated square fort. There is a 
 windmill here similar to those we saw in Seistan, only it is built so as 
 to work with an east wind. Myandih is in the desert, which runs east 
 and west between ranges of high hills, and is almost bare of vegetation. 
 
 Beyond Myandih our route continued east-north-east, over a wide 
 plain covered with thin pasture ; on it we found a number of camels, 
 oxen and asses grazing, which belong to Belooch nomads of the Mirz& 
 Jahan tribe. The plain here is dotted all over with small circular 
 towers, places of refuge for shepherds, &c., against Toorkman incursions. 
 At two hours and twenty-five minutes from Myandih we came to some 
 extensive ruins around a large square fort ; they are called Fyzabad, and 
 are said to have been in their present state for upwards of a century. 
 At half an hour further on to the north we came to the modern village 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN 95 
 
 of Fyzabad ; it is a very compact place, sunk below the level of the 
 ground, and surrounded by a deep ditch ; to the south, between it and 
 the ruins, are its fruit gardens, mulberry plantations, and corn-fields. 
 From this point we turned nearly due north over a level country, and in 
 one hour arrived at Abdullahabad, where we camped. En route we passed 
 two or three dbambdr, stocked from the surface drainage, and at four 
 miles to the right passed the new fort of Husenabad. 
 
 19^ April.Rdt at Abdullahabad. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26'10 8 P.M., 26'10 7 A.M., 26'05 
 Therm. ... 89 67 60 
 
 Abdullahabad is a flourishing town of 500 houses ; through its 
 midst flows a fine k&rez stream, and around it are extensive gardens and 
 vineyards ; the apple, quince, jujube, sinjit, and other fruit grow here. 
 There is a strong castle here, surrounded by a ditch. It was the 
 residence of Yakoob Khan, Carai, and was dismantled by Futeh Ali Shah 
 when he annexed Meshed to Persia; YakooVs son, Husien Ali Khan, is 
 now governor of the place; he looks more like an Afghan than a 
 Persian, and is said to be dissatisfied with the Persian regime. 
 
 The hills to the north of this are of white clay, and present a 
 curious appearance in contrast to the dark hills on each side. 
 
 20^ April. Abdullahabad to Turbat Hydari, 32 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'95 8 P.M., 24'92 7 A.M., 2495 
 
 Therm. ... 68 64 48 
 
 Route generally north-east over a wide upland pasture plain, crossed 
 to the westward by three or four shallow and wide water-runs with 
 coarse gravel beds. Vegetation mostly wormwood, lilies, and blue flags. 
 En route we passed the villages of Doghabad on the left, and Salmidasht 
 on the right, and in two hours and twenty minutes from Abdullahabad 
 entered between low hillocks on to an undulating plateau that rises up 
 to the Asgand hills in our front; this range runs north-west to south- 
 east, and, due north of Abdullahabad, rises into a lofty mass called Koh 
 Fighan, or " Hill of Lamentation/'' According to local tradition, it was 
 Roostum's retreat for mourning after he had killed his son Sohrab, whilst 
 fighting against the army of Afrasyab commanded by him. In 
 thirty-five minutes more we halted at a karez stream to allow the 
 baggage to get on, and breakfast. From this, proceeding over an 
 undulating upland, we entered amongst hills, and passing a long 
 succession of villages and gardens, to the north of which winds a 
 very deep and wide ravine, we turned left round a great hill, and 
 further on came to Turbat Hydari ; we passed through its covered bazar 
 on to a garden where quarters had been prepared for us. Time from 
 the karez, four hours and fifteen minutes. 
 
 Weather cold, cloudy, and showery all day. 
 2lst April. Halt at Turbat Hydari. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24-90 8 P.M., 25'00 7 A.M., 25'04 
 Therm. ... 82 54 50 
 
 JTurbat Hydari is the seat of the Carai family who, under Ishak Khkn 
 Carai rose to power and independence during the revolution following 
 
96 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 on Nadir Shah's death. The family is of Tatar origin. On Shaah 
 Ahmed's conquest of Khorassan, Ishak Khan was established here as 
 the local chief of Turbat and Zawah as a reward for his services to the 
 Dooranee sovereiga during his siege of Meshed. Subsequently, during 
 the convulsions that ended in the dismemberment of the Dooranee empire, 
 the Carai became independent, and, with the aid of the numerous adven- 
 turers thrown in his way by the vicissitudes of the times, succeeded in 
 annexing all the country from Yunsi to Sharifab^d near Meshhed 
 in one direction, and from Khaf to Bijistan on the other. 
 
 On the march of Agha Mahomed Shah, Cajar, against Meshed, 
 Ishak Khan came forward with a tender of allegiance to the new king, 
 and was by him re-established in the government of Turbat ; but on his 
 death a few years later, the Carai again became independent, and for 
 many years figured prominently in the political troubles of Meshed 
 and Herat. Ishak Khan was succeeded by his son Mahomed Khan. 
 He was reduced to subjection and his territory annexed to Persia by 
 Abbas Mirza towards the close of Futeh Ali Shah's reign. Since that 
 period the family has lost all its power and influence and much of its 
 wealth. The district is now governed by a Persian official, Hajee Mirza 
 Mahomed Khan (formerly a chamberlain in the Shah's court at Tehran) 
 who has his residence in Turba^ Hydari. 
 
 The district of Turbat Hydari (so named from the mausoleum here 
 of an Arab saint in distinction to Turbat Sheikh Jam, where there is 
 another mausoleum of a saint of Bokhara) contains the following buluo 
 and villages, viz. : 
 
 Turbat. Villages : Turbat Hydari Sikandrabad, Ali ^ Tajrud, 
 Jumogh, Baryabad, Hindabad, Calata Nan, Emni, Rabat, 
 Shymez, Zymir, Khoshtari, Calajog, Chinar, Jangal, 
 Garjo, Gharcaj, Wazghan, Surkhabad, Agha, Kuchghareo, 
 Calat Isa, and others. 
 
 MaMwalat. Villages : Dih Darmyan, Fyzabad, Abdullahabad, 
 Muhammadabad, Hussanabad, Shamsabad, Mahnah, Calata 
 Nan, Doghabad, Sarmindasht, Sabera, Shahrah, Mayinabad, 
 and others. 
 
 Khaf. Villages : Muhammadabad, Agha, Hasan, Hasanabad Khaf, 
 Kalandarabad, Sango, Rishkar, and others. 
 
 Zawah. Villages: Noghab, Dih Muhammad, Simyabad, Jafarabad, 
 Muhammadabad, Julga, Karnih Payin, Kamih Bala, 
 Husenabad, and others. 
 
 Azghand. Villages : Aliabad, Shafiabad, Ghurud, and others. 
 Bdyah. Villages.: Bayak, Fadafan, Poras, Kadagan, Rozmajan^ 
 
 and others. 
 Das Mi Rukh. Villages : Shor Hissar, Asadabad, Baghistan, Bazah, 
 
 Rakhad, Khiidafrid, Nasraz, Zerkoh, and others. 
 
 ZZnd April. Halt, at Turbat Hydari. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'95 8 P.M., 24'92 7 A.M., 24-90 
 Therm. ... 63 52 46 
 
 Turbat Hydari is a flourishing village of about a thousand houses ; it 
 is surrounded by fortified walls and a ditch, and has a large covered 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 97 
 
 bazar, which we found full of life and bustle. The villages around are 
 of large size, and are surrounded by vineyards, fruit gardens, and mul- 
 berry plantations, and corn-fields. The oeleagnus or sinjit, jujube or 
 unnab, and white poplar or sanofiar, are common here. 
 
 Altogether the place looks very populous and flourishing. We 
 are assured, however, that the district has lost nearly 20,000 people 
 in the famine from deaths and emigration, and that the silk culture, 
 which is the principal source of wealth here, is nearly destroyed owing 
 to the drying up of many springs, and the decay of the mulberry plant- 
 ations watered by them, as well as to the want of hands to tend the 
 worms. Formerly the value of the silk crop alone of this district was 
 estimated at forty thousand tomans (of 4 rupees each) , and is now reckoned 
 at less than a tenth of that sum. The district contains about 150 
 villages and hamlets, many of the former of large size, and formerly 
 had a nomad population of six thousand tents, mostly Belooch. These 
 have now left the country, and the villages are only half populated. 
 It is reckoned that the district will not recover its former prosperity for 
 thirty years. About 64 miles north-west of this is Turshiz, 1,500 houses. 
 It is the capital of a district of the same name, which contains thirty 
 or forty villages, and a considerable nomad population, mostly Belooch. 
 
 Turbat Sheikhjam lies to the east of this, and is the chief town of 
 a district of that name. The town contains about a thousand houses, and 
 there are twelve or fourteen villages in the district ; there is also a nomad 
 population of about three thousand tents, mostly Hazarah. 
 
 The mean of nine barometric observations recorded during three 
 days here is 24 - 94, which gives the approximate elevation of Turbat 
 Hydari at 4,575 feet above the sea, and 1,250 feet above Abdullahabad. 
 The place is surrounded by high hills on which grow a few bannah and 
 other trees ; but mostly the hills are bare rock, with pasture on their 
 lower spurs only. The climate here is described as very salubrious and 
 temperate in summer, but rigorous in winter ; snow lies on the ground 
 for upwards of two months, and cold north winds prevail in this season. 
 During our stay the weather was cold and raw, and rain fell nearly all 
 the time in intermitting showers. 
 
 23? April. Turbat Hydari to Asadabad, 28 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... SP.M., 23-89 8 P.M., 23'82 7 A.M., 23'84 
 
 Therm. ... 49 40 42 
 
 Weather cold and cloudy, with mists and rain all day. 
 
 We left Turbat Hydari by the route we entered,- viz., through its 
 dome-covered bazar. On emerging from the gateway and crossing the 
 ditch, we turned to the right, and, passing some old graveyards and 
 walled gardens, entered on an undulating open tract gently sloping up 
 to the Bydar mountain in our front. To the right the country falls 
 and breaks into hollows in which are corn-fields, fruit-gardens, and ham- 
 lets. Our route across this upland was due north by a good, firm, and 
 gravelly road, on which the rain (it was falling fast) made no impression. 
 In one hour and fifty minutes we came to a large roadside addmbdr, with 
 resting-rooms attached. Here the country is covered with good pasture, 
 the yellow dwarf-rose, wormwood, prickly astragalus, and wild vetch, &c. 
 
98 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 At thirty minutes beyond this we entered a narrow gully, and 
 going- up its course, by an easy ascent over indurated clay and disin- 
 tegrating slate, in twenty minutes more rose to the water-shed of a spur 
 from the Bydar mountain. The aneroid here figured 23*74, giving an 
 approximate elevation of 5,925 feet above the sea, and 1,350 feet above 
 Turbat Hydari. 
 
 From this we descended by an easy path to a green turfy hollow 
 and in thirty-five minutes came to a ravine in which flows a little hill- 
 stream, and on the bank of which, a little distance to our right, stands 
 the little castle of Kamih Payin. Beyond this ravine the road rises 
 and crosses an irrigation stream (coming along the hill-side from. Ka- 
 mih Bala, in a glen to the left of our route), and further on ascends to the 
 Kaskak or Kistkat serai, where are some thirty huts. Time from the 
 ravine, twenty-five minutes. We here took shelter from the rain in the 
 serai. Looking down on us from the north-west is the great snow- 
 topped and cloud-enshrouded Bydar mountain. The rocks here are trap 
 (amygdaloid) and chlorite, and the foot of the hills are studded with 
 marly mounds of various colours, green, blue, and red predominating. 
 Proceeding hence in a stead} downpour of rain, we went up a narrow 
 gorge by a very steep ascent over rocks of fissile slate, and in forty 
 minutes mounted to the Gudar-i- Bydar watershed, on which there are 
 three towers of observation for watching the movements of Toorkman 
 raiders in the valley below. The aneroid here figured 22" 73, giving the 
 elevation at 7,150 feet above the sea, and 2,575 feet above Turbat. 
 From this we got a good view of the Asadabad valley running east and 
 west, but the hill range to its north was obscured by clouds ; we could 
 see, however, that it was topped with snow. 
 
 This pass is too steep for camels; but a road could be zig-zagged on 
 both sides without difficulty. Our camels and baggage proceeded by 
 the Kamih Bala route, which is easy, but six miles longer. The descent, 
 at first very steep, leads through a turfy dell in which we found the 
 wild rose, barberry, astragalus, &c., a variety of bulbous plants, and ob- 
 served human bones and skulls strewed along the pathway. In one 
 hour from the watershed we emerged from the hills at the little castle 
 of Sher Hissar, and going due north from this across the plain, in one 
 hour and forty-five minutes arrived at Rabat, a newly-built brick sarae, 
 and in thirty minutes more arrived at Asadabad, where we camped. 
 The elevation of this place is about 5,800 feet above the sea. 
 
 The valley or plain is called Julgah Riikh ; it has eight or ten little 
 castellated villages, and is frequently raided by Toorkmans. The Gudar-i- 
 Bydar marks the limit between Meshed territory and the Turbati Hydari 
 district. Asadabad is a fortified village, and was built some ten years 
 ago by Prince Asadoollah Khan ; it has some newly laid-out gardens, but 
 the trees have hardly commenced to bud yet. The water here is from 
 karez streams, and of insipid taste. The soil of the valley is light and 
 gravelly here, but towards Sher or Shor Hissar it is spongy and highly 
 saline. Around Rabat the surface is white with salines and covered 
 with salsolacea. Here (Asadabad) it is slaty and gravelly, and covered 
 with the wild rhubarb. 
 
 The gateway of Asadabad is a circular opening, closed by a great 
 round stone of grey trap, six feet wide and a foot thick; it slides back 
 into a side casement when the gate is opened. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 99 
 
 SECTION XI. 
 
 From Asadabad to Meshed City. 
 
 4priL Asadabad to Sharffabad, 34 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'63 8 P.M., 2470 7 A.M., 2470 
 Therm. ... 62 44 46 
 
 Weafcber cold, cloudy and misty, with frequent showers. 
 
 Route north-east and north by a good road over a bare gravelly 
 surface rising up to the hills bounding' the valley on the north. In 
 forty-five minutes we came to low mounds of red marl skirting the hills ; 
 crossing these, we in fifty minutes more reached the Gudar-i Rukh pass 
 on the watershed between the Rukh valley and Rabat-i-Safed; the ascent 
 is very steep, over rocks of chlorite slate disintegrating on the surface ; 
 the road would require a good deal of making for the passage of wheeled 
 carriages. The aneroid here figured 22*85, giving an approximate ele- 
 vation of 6 ; 965 feet above the sea, and 1,165 feet above Asadabad. 
 The hills here are rugged and bare ; the rocks are granite, trap, and 
 chlorite, and at the foot of the hills are mounds of red, blue, green, and 
 ashy clay. The descent from Gudar-i-Rukh is neither steep nor difficult ; 
 it leads down to a turfy hollow covered with the wild rose, barberry and 
 a variety of bulbous plants ; in this hollow is a small spring, and by it 
 are the ruins of a tower ; we reached this in fifteen minutes from the 
 pass. The spring and tower are called Mahomed Mirza, after two 
 noted robbers who used to frequent this spot. Beyond this we proceeded 
 down a wild defile, winding between rugged and bare hills of granite and 
 chlorite, and in forty minutes emerged from it through a very narrow 
 and deep gorge on the little valley of Rabat-i-Safed. This gorge is only 
 about forty feet wide, and through it flows a clear little stream : bur 
 horses walked through it in six minutes. The hills on either side are of 
 red and green stone, and rise in sheer cliffs, five or six hundred feet. 
 On the crest of the hill to the right, are the remains of fortified walls. 
 The}^ mark the site of the CaFa-i-Dukhtar, which local tradition assigns 
 as the refuge of a king's lovely daughter from the persecution of a 
 rejected lover. The citadel looks down on the plain to the north, where 
 is a very solid stone and lime domed chamber, in which tradition locates 
 the pining lover under the eye of his charmer. 
 
 In twenty minutes from the gorge, crossing a well-cultivated flat, 
 we came to Rabat-i-Safed. This looks a very ancient building, and is now 
 much out of repair. Behind it, a couple of miles to the west, is the 
 Gala Safed; this is a fortified village on the crest of a ridge overlooking 
 the valley from the north ; below i*, to the south-west, are its fruit 
 gardens and fields. A little way south-west to the Rabat, along the 
 skirt of the hills bounding the valley to the south, are three isolated 
 domed chambers ; each occupies the top of a separate mound ; they are 
 called dtash Jcadah, or " fire temple."" The aneroid at Rabat-i-Safed figured 
 23*82, giving the elevation at 5,825 feet above the sea, and 1,140 feet 
 below the Gudar-i-Rukh. Going across the valley (it is here well cul- 
 tivated) from this, we crossed some low mounds at the foot of the hills, 
 and in one hour, cresting a broad turfy ridge, descended by a long and 
 gentle slope to Kafir Gala, which we reached in forty minutes more. 
 Kafir Gala is a small castle, on the top of an isolated mound, the slopes 
 
100 RECORD OF THE MARCH OP 
 
 of which are occupied by huts and tents. Around it is a bright -green 
 turfy hollow. At the foot of the hills, about three miles south-south- 
 east, is the Sebzar fort with extensive gardens. On the ridge of the hill 
 to the east is a watch tower overlooking the Sargam district for Toorkman 
 raiders. To the west are some water-worn clay hills in which are mines 
 of rock salt ; some samples brought to us were very pure and transparent. 
 The mines are not extensively worked, and only supply the Meshed 
 market. There is a large kind of beaver rat found here, called Mushi 
 Sultaniyah. The aneroid here indicated a fall of 1,940 feet from Gudar-i- 
 Rukh. Proceeding from Kafir Gala, we passed over some boggy ground, 
 and, crossing a good karez stream, entered on an undulating tract of 
 red marl mounds and ridges; beyond these the road enters on the wide 
 Bevajan valley or plain, which runs east and west, and is closed to the 
 north by the hill range of the same name. We crosed this north, and 
 in one hour and forty minutes came to the little Shah Tasrhi fort. The 
 julgah or plain of Bevajan to the west joins the Nishabor plain, and to the 
 east droops by a very broken and hillocky country to the Sarjam plain which 
 is bounded on the south by the great snow- clad mountains of Sujahked 
 and Bakharz. These hills are a continuation east and west of the 
 Turbat range, and separate Sarjam and Turbat Jam! from Bakharz, the 
 chief town of which is Shahri Nan, 16 miles from the Hari Rud and 
 three stages from Herat. Sarjam to the north-east is continuous with 
 the desert of Merv; it is the rendezvous of the Takka, Saruc, and Salor 
 Toorkmans. To the west and south-west Bevajan is continuous with 
 the Kavir of Yiinsi, which extends westward to Pulabresham, &c. 
 
 Shah Taghi contains about eighty houses, but not a dozen of them are 
 now occupied. There are several similar castellated villages scattered 
 over the Bevajan plain ; most of them are without gardens owing to the 
 want of water, which is entirely from karez streams. From this point 
 our route was north-north-east, and presently entered amongst low 
 hillocks ; we crossed these up to a ruined tower near a pool of water fed 
 from a small spring. Here we joined the caravan route from Meshed 
 to Nishabor, &c. ; and, turning to the right, followed the course of a small 
 ravine winding amongst the hillocks, and soon reached a small secluded 
 hollow in which are the village gardens and fields of Sharifabad. Time 
 from Shah Taghi, one hour and forty minutes. There is a fine sarae and 
 fort here built by Ishak Khan Carai, whose territory formerly extended 
 up to this point. 
 
 Sharifabad is the first caravan stage from Meshed to Tehran. 
 The aneroid here figured 24 '66, giving the elevation at 4,880 feet 
 above the sea. Weather cold, cloudy, and rainy. 
 
 25^ April. Sharifabad to Meshed, 24 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26'29 8 P.M., 26'32 7 A.M., 26'37 
 Therm , 56 52 52 
 
 Route at first north-east, then north over a succession of rich pasture 
 downs of slate and trap and granite rocks by a good military road made 
 some years ago by the Salar Mirza Mahmud Khan; at each end of the 
 road a slab of blue limestone is set up, and inscribed with particulars as 
 to date and making of the road. In thirty minutes we reached the first 
 slab, and then, crossing a deep gully, passed over successive ridges of slate, 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAIT. 
 
 quartz, conglomerate, and coarse granite with veins of mica ; and in one 
 hour and five minutes more crested a ridge called tappa saldm or " hill 
 of obeisance." Here we got a view of Meshed and the gilded domo 
 of its sacred shrine, and the Persians in our escort reverently made their 
 bows and offered up their prayers. Beyond this we crossed some inferior 
 ridges, and in one hour and ten minutes came to the second slate slab ; 
 from this we passed down a slope of granite rocks to a ravine in which 
 flows a small stream, and, following the course of this, in forty minutes 
 came to a wide stream into which it empties. This second stream is 
 called Dariid, and flows east over a wide boulder-strewn bed. We crossed 
 it, and a little further on passed between two granite hills on to the 
 plain of Meshed. The road onwards passes the Sarae Turogh, and 
 then crosses some miles of uncultivated pasture land on which are 
 numerous Turkman towers; beyond this it passes between fields and 
 gardens to the Darwaza Khiyaban Payin, or " gate of the lower avenue.'' 
 We entered the city by this gate, and, going up to the avenue, turned to the 
 right round the area of the shrine, and passing through some densely 
 crowded (with tombstones) cemeteries, entered the upper avenue, and 
 here reached the quarters prepared for us in a garden adjoining the 
 governor's palace. Time from the Dartid river, two hours and twenty- 
 three minutes. 
 
 Weather cold and cloudy, with rain more or less all day. 
 
 26^ April to 2nd May. Halt at Meshed. 
 
 Bar. Mean ... 3 P.M., 26'21 8 P.M., 26'25 7 A.M., 26'26 
 Therm. ... 72 51 50 
 
 The elevation of Meshed is 3,190 feet above the sea. 
 
 The weather during our stay here has been more or less cloudy and 
 rainy, with occasional intervals of sunshine. 
 
 The city covers a very large area enclosed by fortified walls. It 
 contains about 9,000 houses ; and numerous gardens and cemeteries 
 occupy a large portion of the intramural space. The citadel and gover- 
 nor's palace in the south-west quarter, and the central mosque of Gohar 
 Shad and adjoining shrine of Imam Reza, with their attached colleges, 
 cover another considerable area ; there are also several capacious serais 
 within the walls. 
 
 To the east and west of the shrine the city is divided by the Khiya- 
 bani Bala and Payiu, or upper and lower avenues ; through their centre 
 flows from west to east a muddy stream flanked on each side by a long 
 row of stately plane trees or chindr ; each Khiyaban is about a mile in 
 length, and ends in a gateway leading out of the city. The walls outside 
 are surrounded by gardens and corn-fields and hamlets to a distance of 
 some hundreds of yards. 
 
 The fixed population of Meshed was reckoned at 80,000 souls before 
 amJBe ; it is now reckoned at 56,000 souls; 24,000 have died or 
 emigrated during the last three years. The total loss in population in all 
 the province of Khorassan is estimated at 124,000 souls during the last' 
 three years. Before the famine, Meshed had a fluctuating population 
 of 40,000 to 50,000 pilgrims who annually visited its shrine. 
 
AECOUD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Meshed is the capital and seat of government of the province of 
 Khorassan, and the emporium of trade between the Caspian ports, Khiva, 
 Bokhara, and Afghanistan. It is situated in a great plain, which to the 
 south-east is continuous with the deserts of Merv. Its inhabitants are 
 a mixture of Central Asian races and Persians and Koord. They are a 
 robust, fair-skinned, and generally handsome people ; they are mostly 
 employed in trade, and the manufacture of carpets, felts, silks, &c., and 
 the manufacture of various utensils and ornamental vases ; these are made 
 with the turning lathe, and engraved with ornamental designs, out of a 
 ' soft, greasy, blue stone, which is quarried in some granite hills south of 
 the city ; the material is probably a kind of soft serpentine, the same as 
 the " pot stone" or lapis allaris of the ancient Romans. 
 
 From Meshed there are several routes to Herat and Seistan through 
 the hills of Khorassan. The route followed by us from Ghayn, as shown 
 in the preceding pages, offers no obstacle to the passage of troops. Taken 
 altogether, the country is not so rough and difficult, nor so dangerous, as 
 the hill tracts of Yusufzai and Hazarah. We saw the country after it 
 had suffered three years of drought and famine ; supplies were conse- 
 quently scarce, but there is no lack of water, fuel, and pasture. 
 
 Persian Khorassan, or the country between Ghayn and Meshed, 
 may be described as an elevated table-land traversed in echelon by a 
 succession of hill ranges running from north-west to south-east, be- 
 tween which are open valleys or plateaus. To the west the land falls to 
 the great salt desert of Kashan, Yezd, and Kirm&n ; and to the east it 
 slopes to the deserts of Merv, Herat, and Seistan. The elevated country 
 between these limiting wastes presents a succession of fertile valleys 
 and rich pastures interspersed amongst the hills. The valleys are full of 
 villages and fruit gardens, vineyards and mulberry plantations ; and the 
 pastures support vast flocks of goats and sheep, and numerous herds of 
 camels. 
 
 In summer the climate of this region is temperate ; but in winter it 
 is rigorous, and snow covers the surface everywhere. The hills are mostly 
 bare, and furnish but little fuel, but the supply could be supplemented 
 from the villages, where water is in sufficiency. 
 
 SECTION XII. 
 
 From Meshed to Tehran. 
 
 Qrd Hay. Meshed to Jaghar or Jarc, 20 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 24'90 8 P.M., 24'88 7 A.M., 24'83 
 Therm. ... 64* 56 49 
 
 We left Meshed by the Durwaza Khiyabani Bala, or "upper 
 avenue gate," and, passing some walled gardens and deep karez cuts, took 
 the road across the great plain. Route west-north-west. The Dariid 
 range of hills, and the two prominent projections called Koh Nucra and 
 Koh Tila, are to the left of the road about two miles. In the distance, 
 across the plain to the right, is a lofty mountain range, a prominent point 
 of which, north of Meshed, is pointed out at Calati Nadiri, three stages 
 distant. Crossing the plain to our right front is a long line of twelve 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 103 
 
 or fourteen round towers ; they are built over water-mills on the stream 
 from the Darud river to Meshed. 
 
 In one hour and fifteen minutes we passed Hauz-i-Rahat, a roadside 
 reservoir and bathing- place. Beyond this the road approaches the hills on 
 our left ; in thirty minutes we came to Pae Chinar fort, now deserted, 
 and at the foot of the hills, half a mile or so due south, saw Pae Darra 
 village and gardens. In thirty minutes more, over slaty gravel along 
 the course of a wide and shallow water-run, leaving- the fortified villages 
 and gardens of Wakilabad and Casimabad a mile or two to the right, we 
 reached the foot of a granite ridge called tappa saldm, or " hill of 
 obeisance/'' 
 
 Five minutes' ascent over a rough and rocky path, the Kotal or 
 Gudar-i-Torbaraz, brought us to its summit. The ridge is covered with 
 piles of loose stones heaped together by pilgrims, and from them flutter 
 innumerable shreds of cloth. From this point we got an excellent view 
 of Meshed and its extensive gardens, from the midst of which shine 
 out the gilded dome an{l minars of Imam Reza/s shrine, 2nd the beauti- 
 ful blue dome and minarets of the adjoining Gohar Shad mosque. 
 Boyond the city the plain stretches to the east in an unbroken flat, and 
 cuts the horizon. 
 
 Proceeding due west from this, we crossed a small plateau and de- 
 scended into the deep and wide gully of the Darud river ; crossing the 
 stream and a little below a decayed bridge of four arches we rose on to the 
 upland plateau on its opposite bank. Here the road turns a little to the 
 left, and passing a solid weir of masonry built across the bed of the river 
 (which above it swells into a small lake), enters an avenue of mulberry 
 trees a little beyond a roadside abdmbdr. To the left of the avenue, on 
 the edge of the Darud gully, stands the picturesque village of Gulistan ; 
 it overlooks the river-course, along which is a close succession of fruit 
 gardens and corn-fields. On a hill on the opposite side of the river are 
 the ruins of a castle called Hissar, and in a hollow beyond is the village 
 of that name. We reached Gulistan in forty minutes from the tappa 
 saldm ; here the road turns south -south-west up a very long and winding 
 lane to Targobah, which we reached in thirty minutes; the lane winds 
 between orchards and poplar plantations on the slope of a slaty hill. 
 The vine, apple, plum, peach, and apricot, the cherry, filbert, walnut, and 
 mulberry, grow thickly on either side, together with the willow, ash, elm, 
 plane and poplar ; the damp ground is covered with a rank growth of 
 mignonette, poppy, crowfoot, clover, cuckoopink, goosefoot cleavers, forget- 
 me-not, and other common English flowers. The scene is quite English, 
 and in climate and surroundings reminded me of Devonshire ; on enter- 
 ing Targobah, however, we were at once brought back to the East. The 
 village is a long winding street in the midst of its plantations. Beyond 
 it the path is very narrow and broken, and leads up the winding course of 
 a rapid little hill torrent quite overgrown by trees ; we crossed it some 
 thirty times, and picked our way amongst the overhanging trees with some 
 trouble ; in one hour from Targobah we reached Jarc on the bank of the 
 torrent, and found shelter in quarters prepared for us in the village. Our 
 camels and heavy baggage were sent on from Meshed by Sharifabad, 
 to Nishabor, there to meet us, this route being impracticable to them. 
 
 Jarc is 4,650 feet above the sea, and 1,460 feet above Meshed. 
 Its climate is very damp, and in winter rigorous. 
 
104 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 %th May. Jarc to Dariid, or Dorud, 24 miles. 
 
 Bar. _ 3 P.M., 24 22 8 P.M., 24'34 7 A.M., 24<33 
 Therm. ~ . 62 61 
 
 Route south south-west up the course of the Jarc rivulet, winding 
 through orchards and poplar plantations : the latter are grown for char- 
 coal ; both yesterday and to-day we passed many charcoal kilns on the 
 hill sides. In thirty-two minutes we came to a fork of the stream formed 
 by a great round hill of slate. Here we found, besides those already 
 mentioned, the hawthorn, dog-rose, briar, barberry, &c., the common dock, 
 rhubarb, elecampane, squill, thyme, mint, and other common English 
 plants. 
 
 Our route followed the stream to the right ; in forty minutes more 
 we cleared the orchards and plantations, and continued ascending along 
 willow pollards, crossing the stream from side to side frequently. As the 
 road ascends, the defile becomes very deep and narrow between bare round 
 slaty hills of great height. In one hour and twenty-five minutes more 
 we came to the Pae Gudar Serai at the foot of a great bluff where the 
 defile branches to the left and right. Through each there is a path up to 
 the Kotali Nishabor, or " Nishabor Pass," but that to the right is only 
 practicable to footmen. At the serai the aneroid figured 22'89, giving 
 the elevation at 6,910 feet above the sea. 
 
 Following the defile to the left, we proceeded south over a mass of 
 snow blocking the entrance to the gorge, and then turning west, dis- 
 mounted and climbed up the steep hill-side by a fairly good path, and 
 reached the summit of the hill in one hour and five minutes. The aneroid 
 here figured 20*90, giving its elevation at 9,400 feet above the sea. The 
 ridge runs north and south, and has a broad summit covered with fields 
 of snow, across which the path leads. Scattered over the summit are 
 innumerable cairns of loose stone from which flutter bits of cloth, the 
 votive emblems of passing pilgrims. From the summit we got a good 
 view of the Meshed plain with its city on one side, and of the Nishabor 
 plain and its city and many villages on the other. A high and cold 
 west wind blew over the pass as we crossed. Not a tree is to be seen here. 
 The descent is due west by a very steep and stony path down into a deep 
 and dark defile. In twenty minutes we reached theRabat-i-Darud ; there 
 are some small springs here that issue from boggy banks of turf. The 
 path is strewed with the bleached bones of horses and oxen and men. 
 The aneroid here figured 21*81, giving the elevation at 8,225 feet above 
 the sea, and 1,175 feet below the pass. 
 
 From this the route follows the defile south-west by a very steep and 
 stony path through a narrow gorge choked with snow, undermined by a 
 little stream of water; the passage of this was difficult, and some of 
 our horses broke through the snow and were extricated with difficulty. In 
 fifty-eight minutes we came to the spot where a branch defile from the 
 right joins our route with its own stream. Below this point the en- 
 larged stream flows in a wider gully, and is fringed with long rows of 
 willows, ash, and poplar trees, all polled for charcoal. The hills here are 
 very high and rugged ; the rocks are trap, slate, and limestone; the road 
 everywhere very rough and stony, and only passable in summer months. 
 In thirty minutes from this we reached the vineyards and orchards of. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 105 
 
 Darud, and winding 1 amongst them for twenty minutes arrived in the 
 village, where quarters were prepared for us. On reaching the gardens the 
 road turns to the right out of the defile, which goes on down to the left, 
 and crosses several good irrigation streams led off from its rivulet along 
 the slope of the hill. 
 
 The elevation of Darud is 5,300 feet above the sea. The village 
 occupies the hill slope high above the defile; it contains 500 houses, but 
 most of them are empty ; there are hardly sixty families in the place. 
 The orchards and vineyards are in terraces down the slope of the hill to 
 the defile at its bottom ; these villages produce much fruit, but little 
 corn, hence their sufferings in the famine. On the hills on the opposite 
 side of the deep valley or defile are the ruins of a village and several 
 round towers, but no signs of gardens. 
 
 Our light baggage, carried on mules, did not arrive here till 10 P.M., 
 though started from Jarc at 7'30 A.. M. 
 
 Weather cloudy, cold, and damp all day. 
 
 $tk Hay. Darud to Nishabor, 22 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 25 37 8 P.M., 25-40 7 A.M., 24'51 
 Therm. ... ,,75 62 58 
 
 Route west, diverging- to the right from Darud rivulet, down a 
 gravelly hill skirt to the Nishabor plain. In one hour, passing the village 
 of Postfarosh a little to the left, we descended between low marly mounds 
 on to the Nishabor plain, and then going west-north-west in forty 
 minutes more passed the Cadamgah village to the left, and thirty minutes 
 later the roadside dbambdr and village of Ardaghich a little to the left, 
 and in an hour and five minutes more halted at Abbasabad, a little to 
 the left of the road. From this we got a good view of the snow-topped 
 Nishabor mountains, a lofty range running north-west to south- 
 east, and separating this plain from that of Mashhad. The high 
 central portion is called Koh Nishabor ; the range south of it is Koh 
 Khawar, from a village of that name at its base ; the range north of 
 it is Koh Binalop ; from this a spur projects north-west in which 
 are the mines of turquoise near the village of Madan. The western 
 base of the range of Nishabor mountains is studded with flourishing 
 villages and gardens. On our route from Cadamo-ah we passed the 
 following to the right of the road, viz., Khawar, Burj Miran, Dasht, 
 Bijan, Ayik ; and beyond these to the north, Pishingau, Ruh, and others. 
 To the south and west the plain is everywhere dotted with villages 
 and gardens ; some fifty or sixty are in sight at once. 
 
 Proceeding from Abbasabad, we in thirty minutes passed Shahabad, 
 close on the left of the road, and beyond this, away to the south-west, 
 saw the ruins of ancient Nishabor, amongst which a blue-tiled dome 
 and citadel mound attract attention. Beyond this we passed several 
 graveyards and roadside hamlets, and in one hour more, passing a large 
 serai, arrived at Nishabor, and passing round its south-west side in 
 eighteen minutes reached the garden of Imam Vardi Khan, where we 
 
 o 
 
10t) RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 alighted. Road good throughout, and everywhere along rich corn crops 
 and excellent pasture. Weather cloudy, close, and still. 
 
 Gtti May. Halt at N ishabor. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 25'40 8 P.M., 25'52 7 A.M., 25'60 
 
 Therm. ... 64 50 41 
 
 Weather fine ; air fresh and bracing. Elevation 3,970 feet above 
 the sea. Nishabor was formerly one of the most populous and flourish- 
 ing spots in Persia. It is now anything but prosperous, having lost 
 half its population in the famine. The present city formerly contained 
 9,000 inhabitants ; it does not now contain 5,000, and hundreds of these 
 are starving beggars. The district contains twelve buluc, viz*, 1, Zabar- 
 khan ; 2, Ardighich ; 3, Zarbi Ghazi (in which are the ruins of the 
 ancient city) ; 4, Ishcabad ; 5, Saghabad ; 6, Mazul ; 7, Tahti Julga ; 
 8, Rewand; 9, Taghum Koh ; 10, Bari Madan ; 11, Sari Wilayat; and 
 12, Darud, or Dihrud. 
 
 Formerly the district contained 12,000 karez streams, but now 
 three-fourths nearly are dry or in ruins. There are, it is said, now 
 nearly 800 villages and hamlets in the district, but this appears to be 
 an over-statement. The soil is a light porous clay, saline in some parts 
 and sandy in others ; it is very fertile and produces abundance of corn, 
 and fruits of all sorts ; the grapes are of superior quality and tended 
 with care ; cotton and tobacco are also grown here, and silk is produced 
 in considerable quantity and exported via Shahrud to Russia. Besides 
 its karez, the district is watered by twelve perennial streams, but their 
 supply appears to be fluctuating. 
 
 Nishabor is celebrated for its turquoise mines ; they are situated in 
 the hills about 45 miles north from the town. Near them are some 
 red clay hills in which rock salt is quarried. A new mine of turquoise, 
 we are told, has recently been discovered in the Turshiz range of hills 
 to the south of the valley. Nishabor is said to contain mines of lead, 
 copper, antimony, and iron ; also quarries of soapstone, marble and 
 limestone for tombstones, &c. The salt mines are at Daulatabad, and 
 the turquoise mines at Bari Madan. 
 
 The ancient city of Nishabor, the ruins of which cover a great area 
 about five miles to the south-east of the present town, was, Ferrier says 
 (Caravan Journeys), first founded by Tahmurat III. of the Peshdadi 
 dynasty, under the name of Abarshahr, or " the upper city." It was 
 destroyed by Alexander, and restored by Shahpor, Sassani, A.D. 250, 
 who called it Nishabor. This city was destroyed in the Arab conquest, 
 and again restored by the Muslim conquerors. Later, Mahmood of 
 Ghuznee, during the life of his father Sabaktaghi, resided here as governor 
 of Khorassan, and in his time the city regained its former prosperity. 
 ^ ^ In the reign of Sultan Sanjar, Saljuki, it was plundered by the Toork- 
 mans, and once more restored by the kings of Khwarizm. Finally, in 
 A. D. 1220, Kuli Khan, son of Changhiz, razed the city to the ground 
 and massacred its population, and the city has never since been restored. 
 The present town rose near its ruins, but was for many years the 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 107 
 
 annual sport of Toorkmans and Uzbeks. Early in the eighteenth century 
 the town was restored and fortified by Abbas Kuli, Bayat ; it was 
 taken from him and annexed to the Dooranee Empire in 1752 by Shah 
 Ahmed. After his death it became independent till annexed to Persia 
 in 1793 by Aghd Muhammad Shah, Cajar. 
 
 The Nishabor valley or plain is encircled by hills and mountains. 
 To the east is the Nishabor mountain ; from it the Binaloh range pro- 
 jects north-west, and separates Khabushan or Kochan from Burdjnurd ; 
 to the north-west the valley of Nishkbor becomes continuous with that 
 of Burdjnurd, just as that of Meshed does with the valleys of Cbinaran 
 and Kochan to the north-west. These three valleys are peopled by 
 Koord tribes, originally emigrants from Tartary under Changhiz, who 
 settled them in Diarbakr and Baghdad. Shah Tamasp brought them to 
 Persia, and planted them equally at Sej Bulac near Tehran, and Ashraf 
 in Mazanderan. Shah Abbas II renloved them, to the number of 
 40,000 families, from these localities to their present settlements in 
 Khorassan. The Nishabor valley is peopled by the Bayat tribe of these 
 Koords, and the others by different tribes, such as Jakir, Zafaranlii, 
 Shadlu, &c. 
 
 To the south the Nishabor valley is bounded by the Koh Surkh, a 
 range that projects east and west from the Turbat mountains ; to the 
 south of it, beyond the Koh Surkh julgah, or valley, is the Turshiz district. 
 To the west this range rises into the Koh Gomesh, which turns north 
 and separates the plains of Nishabor and Sabzwar. To the east it is 
 connected with the Khawar range of the Nishabor mountain by a low 
 chain of undulating ridges that separate the Nishabor plain from that of 
 Bewajan and its continuation eastward, Sarjam. 
 
 The southern border of the Nishabor plain (Tahti Julgah) lies low, 
 and is a sandy saline tract, through which the Kal Shor ravine drains 
 west to the desert of Kashan. 
 
 1th May. Nishabor to Zaminabad, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. 3 P.M., 25'80 8 P.M., 25*95 7 A.M., 25'96 
 
 Therm. ... 80 50 41 
 
 Weather cold, cloudy, and showery, with a bleak and strong south- 
 west wind. Route west-south-west over the plain by a good, easy road. 
 En route passed many square little forts on either hand ; each contains 
 from fifty to sixty houses, and all of them, like the rest of the villages 
 to the south and west of the plain, are without gardens, but are sur- 
 rounded by corn-fields. Trees do not grow here owing to the prevailing 
 strong winds. 
 
 In two hours and twelve minutes we came to the ruins of the Hasan- 
 abad village ; beyond these, passing over a loose soil white with salines, 
 we in one hour arrived at a muddy stream that flows south-west to the 
 Kal Shor ; we crossed it by a good brick-and-mortar bridge of three arches, 
 and then passing over a moist, slippery, saline tract of clay here and there 
 tufted with saline herbs and grasses, in twenty-five minutes reached 
 Zaminabad, where we camped. This is a fortified village of 80 houses ; 
 
108 RECORD OF THE MARCH OP 
 
 it is surrounded by corn-fields watered from three or four brackish karez 
 streams. 
 
 StA May. Zaminabad to Shorab, 9 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 25'45 8 P.M., 25'42 7 A.M., 25'47 
 Therm. ... 69 62 46 
 
 Weather fine and clear ; high south-west wind, raising clouds of 
 sand. 
 
 "Route west north-west by a good track over a gently rising pas- 
 ture tract, called Dashti Garmab, on to an uneven ridgy hill skirt to- 
 wards the Garmab range of hills ; this is an isolated range running north 
 and south across the Nishabor plain. In one hour and a half, after cross- 
 ing a ridgy undulating tract, and leaving the little Zervand fort in a 
 nook to the right of our course, we descended into a small hollow, and, 
 crossing its moist sandy ravine, rose on to other ridges. Beyond this, 
 passing over a broken mameloned country with hills on each side, we 
 descended into a second hollow and came to Shorab, where we camped. Time 
 from the ravine, twenty-five minutes. 
 
 Shorab is a fortified village of 60 houses on the edge of a ravine, in 
 which flows the brackish little Shorab rivulet ; it runs south-west between 
 the hills and joins the Kal Shor. There is a post-house here, and an ex- 
 cellent new dbambdr near a large serai in course of erection. 
 
 th May, Shorab to Zafarani, 18 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26-05 8 P.M., 26'07 7 A.M., 2612 
 Therm. ... 82 64 62 
 
 Route nearly due west over very uneven ground, thrown into little 
 mamelons between hills on either side. Crossing numerous little drain- 
 age gullies running south, we reached a low water shed in one hour and 
 twenty minutes ; there are a few deserted huts here to the left of the road. 
 This ridge runs north-west and south-east, and is the boundary between 
 Nishabor and Subzwar. From it we got a good view of the Subzwar plain 
 in our front. To the south, the hills drop down to low mameloned ridges 
 that merge into the plain in that direction. To the south-west in the 
 distance rises the lofty Koh Gomesh, and to the south is the range of 
 Turshiz hills. 
 
 From the watershed the road descends along the course of a moist 
 and gravelly ravine, here and there white with saline encrustations. In 
 fifty-five minutes we turred out of the ravine to the left at the serai 
 Caladar, where is a village of sixty houses near some good springs of 
 fresh water ; the village is called Sangi. The serai is a new and com- 
 modious one, and is furnished with a good dbambdr hard by. 
 
 The hills here are bare and rugged ; they consist of granite, trap, 
 chlorite, and fissile slate, and along their base are mounds of red, blue, 
 and grey marl. There is very scanty vegetation on the hills. 
 
 From the serai we proceeded due west down a hill skirt on to the 
 plain of Sabzwar. In one hour we passed a roadside dbambdr, and in one 
 hour and five minutes more reached Zafarani, where we camped. The 
 soil of the Sabzwar plain is a firm gritty sand, covered with excellent 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 109 
 
 pasture herbs, but bare of trees and bushes. We here found the assafcetida, 
 wild rue, wild almond, prickly astragulus, blue flag 1 , chamomile, mint, a 
 variety of vetches and other plants. The whole plain has a bare look : 
 excepting Zafarani, and a couple of castellated hamlets a few miles to 
 the north of it, and a nomad camp of sixty tents close by, there are no 
 signs of cultivation or habitations; to the south the plain slopes in a 
 great, sandy, saline waste to the Kal Shor ravine. 
 
 Zafarani is a walled village of 120 houses ; there is a good serai 
 
 here and a post-house. 
 
 
 
 IQth May. Halt at Zafarani. 
 
 Bar. ... SP.M., 25-91 8 P.M., 25'90 7 A.M., 25'90 
 Therm. ... 82 68 65 
 
 Weather windy, with clouds of sand from the south-west ; sky clear 
 and sunny. 
 
 The elevation of Zafardni is about 3,450 feet above the sea. 
 
 \\th May. Zafarani to Sabzwa"r. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26'04 8 P.M., 26'06 7 A.M., 26'16 
 Therm. ... 82 68 66 
 
 Route due west across the plain ; the surface undulates gently, the 
 soil is firm and gravelly, and covered with assafoetida and wild rue, or 
 sipand, in great profusion, with other plants. 
 
 In one hour a-nd ten minutes we passed a roadside dbamldr, and a 
 little way off to the left, two little village forts. In forty -five minutes 
 more we came to Rabat and adjoining village of Sarposhida ; we came to 
 these over a sandy, wind-cut tract, and found the village walls on the east 
 piled with driven sand, indicating the persistence of a strong east wind 
 here. In forty-five minutes beyond this we passed Julen serai, and in 
 ten minutes more came to the Julen village ; near it are two large ponds 
 fed by karez streams, and a wide extent of corn-fields. In ten minutes 
 more we passed Zydabad, and in another thirty minutes Nazlabad ; about 
 six miles due north of this, at foot of the hills, is the village of Khyrabad, 
 varied in extensive fruit gardens and vineyards ; to the north-west of 
 this is the Koh Pusht range, beyond which is the Juwen valley of Sabzwar 
 district. 
 
 Onwards from Nazlabad, we came in twenty minutes to Zaminjoe 
 and its mulberry plantations, and in twenty minutes more to Baghan, 
 and in another fifteen minutes to Delan, all on the left of our route ; to 
 the right of Delan, at two miles, is the village of Benam. Further on., 
 passing corn-fields and karez streams, we reached Sabzwar in one hour and 
 eight minutes, and passing through its covered bazar in another seven 
 minutes, alighted at the quarters prepared for us in the governor's 
 residency. 
 
 Forenoon cloudy, afternoon clear, and mid-day sun warm. A strong 
 east wind blew all day, raising clouds of dust, 
 
110 RECORD OF THE MARCH OP 
 
 12M May. Halt at Sabzwar. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26'10 8 P.M. 26'18 7 A.M. 26'20 
 Therm. ... 79 72 68 
 
 Sabzwar is a fortified town, and contains about 2,000 houses, but 
 nearly half of them are unoccupied owing to losses by the famine, 
 from which the whole district has suffered very severely. The losses by 
 death and emigration in this district are estimated at 20,000 souls, and 
 in that of Nishabor at 24,000 souls. The figures appear high, but I believe 
 they are near the fact. Sabzwar district is divided into nine buluc, viz., 
 1, Shamkan (along the Kal Shor to the south of the plain); 2,"Gomesh;, 
 3, Humaon (south of Gomesh); 4, Casaba; 5, Tabbas ; 6, Kah; 7, 
 Miaznan ; 8, Tugao (to the north of the plain) ; and 9, Zamand. The 
 divisions of Juwen and Bam of the Burjdnurd district have recently 
 been added to Sabzwar. 
 
 To the south the Sabzwar plain is bounded by the snow-topped 
 Gomesh mountain ; beyond it is the valley of the same name, which is 
 continuous to the east with that of Turshiz. Turshiz town is reckoned 
 at 18 fursakhs, or 72 miles, from Sabzwar. To the south of the Gomesh 
 valley or Humaon is a low range of hills, and then the great desert of 
 Yezd and Kashan. To the north the valley is bounded by the Koh 
 Push range, which to the west is continuous with the Chaghatai and 
 Juwen hills ; this range separates Sabzwar from Juwen and Bam. 
 
 \Sth May. Sabzwar to Mihr, 33 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26'09 8 P.M., 26'00 7 A.M., 25'98 
 Therm. ... 73 72 
 
 We left Subzwar through its bazar and western gate, and proceeded 
 by a good road due west through an uninterrupted sheet of corn-fields for 
 two miles, In fifty minutes we came to the Abyari village and gardens, 
 and a little further on to the Mil Khusran gard. This is a lofty minar, 
 standing in the midst of corn-fields to the right of the road; it is built 
 of red brick arranged in Arabesque patterns so as to form lines of Cufic 
 inscription in different parts of the columns. We came to this in seventeen 
 minutes from Abyari, and near it passed a metal -covered domed mausoleum 
 from which issued the voices of men chanting the Koran. 
 
 In one hour and thirteen minutes beyond the minar, around which 
 are some indistinct and scattered ruins, we came to the Pirastir dbambdr, 
 the village of that name a little way to the right of the road, with its 
 gardens and rich crops. Beyond this we traversed a bare uncultivated 
 plain of coarse gravelly soil ; to the south it slopes down to the Kal Shor 
 ravine, and a great desert tract, white with salts. In one hour and forty- 
 five minutes from Pirastir we came to a roadside dbambdr. Here the 
 road divides into two branches ; one goes west-south-west to Namen and 
 a succession of forts along the edge of the desert ; the other goes west- 
 north-west up a gentle slope to the village of Kewad. We took this 
 route, and in one hour reached the village ; from it the Namen fort bears 
 due south at three or four miles. 
 
 From this the route is due west over an undulating tract, skirting 
 the hills to our right, which are bare and rugged ; the soil is coarse 
 gravel, almost bare of vegetation, and strewed with bits of granite, mill- 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. Ill 
 
 stone grit, chlorite, and black and white cellular lava ; along the foot 
 of the hills to the right is a succession of red marly mounds that colour 
 the streams flowing from the hills. In one hour and forty minutes we 
 came to a roadside dbambdr and pond; and in one hour and five minutes 
 further on arrived at Mihr, 200 houses. There is a good serai here, and 
 a large extent of corn-fields nearly ready for the sickle. To the south are 
 seen a number of village forts without gardens on the edge of the desert, 
 and the plain is dotted all over with Toorkman towers. 
 
 Weather fine and clear, with clouds at sunset. 
 \^th May. Mihr to Mazinan, 20 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26'60 8 P.M , 26'60 7 A.M., 26'64 
 Therm ..... , 74 68 68 
 
 Route due west down a gentle slope, with high hills to the right. 
 Road good j soil firm sand and gravel ; surface bare of vegetation. 
 
 In one hour and five minutes came to Siidkhar ; the road passes 
 through the village, and beyond it crosses a hill skirt sloping up to the 
 Jewen or Chaghatai hills, about four miles to the right, and down to the 
 desert, about six miles to the left ; its surface is bare of vegetation and 
 covered with thick-set smooth black pebbles. In one hour and ten 
 minutes we crossed a good karez stream (the only water on the road 
 between Mihr and Mazinan), and further on, leaving the Dawarzan 
 village and gardens at the foot of the hills to the right, in two hours 
 and fifteen minutes arrived at Mirzinan on the edge of the desert, and 
 camped. 
 
 Dawarzan is protected by a double row of Toorkman towers in a 
 semicircle towards the plain. To the south of the village the country 
 slopes to the salt desert ; on the edge of this are a number of village 
 forts and Toorkman towers. These village forts are all deserted now, owing 
 to the failure of water ; the karez streams, it is said, have been choked by 
 drift sand from the desert. 
 
 There is a good new serai here, built opposite to the ruins of an 
 ancient one of the Arab period. South-west of the new serai are the 
 town and gardens of Mizinan, and a little to the north of it are the 
 extensive ruins of Mahmanabad ; and north of these again, under the 
 hills, the fields and village of Kakhk. Mazinan is supplied with water 
 from a full karez stream which flows through a graveyard as it enters 
 the villae. 
 
 . Mazinan to Abbasabad, 23 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 26'49 8 P.M., 26'50 7 A.M., 26'54 
 Therm ... 86 77 76 
 
 Weather fine and sunny, with light cool airs during the day. 
 
 Route at first north through Mihmanabad ruins under its little fort 
 on to the corn-fields of Kakhk ; then north by west to north-west, 
 skirting hills on the right and the edge of the f desert on the left. 
 For the first few miles the road leads across a humid and slippery and 
 saline tract tufted with dwarf mimosa, camel-thorn, salicornia, and 
 reeds, and gradually winds round to the hill skirt, here of firm clay 
 strewed with fragments of trap rock, In two hours and forty-five 
 
112 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 minutes we came to an dbambdr, and beyond this, bending round 
 to the west in forty minutes reached the Sadarabad Serai. On the way 
 to this we started a herd of ravine deer close to the road. 
 
 There is a good dbambdr here, and a fortified hamlet opposite the 
 serai; it contains thirty houses, but only seven inhabitants, viz., three 
 men, three women, and one child the last remnants left by the famine 
 and Turkman raids. From Mazinan we are escorted by about 100 cavalry, 
 150 infantry, and one artillery gun ; this escort passes betvveeu Mazinan 
 and Shahrud twice a month, as guard to passengers and pilgrims, &c., 
 across the desert, which is always harried by Toorkmans. Formerly, from 
 fifteen to twenty thousand pilgrims used to pass this way annually, but 
 very few have come during the past three years. There is no cultivation 
 here, nor are any supplies procurable ; our escort carry their food with 
 them; most of the infantry drive asses before them with their little 
 stores and food and clothing, &c., and when tired of marching they mount 
 them. 
 
 Sadarabad is a new and capacious serai built by the late Sadar 
 Azim. Beyond this the road goes west by south across a desert tract of 
 light sand and clay, bare of vegetation. In thirty minutes we came to 
 Pul Abresham. This is a very ancient and decayed brick bridge of a single 
 high arch across the Kal Abresham, which drains south-east to the salt 
 desert, where it joins the Kal Shor of Nishabor ; it carries a good stream 
 of clear fresh water on a sandy bottom, and is easily forded. Pul Abresham 
 marks the boundary between Sabzwar and Shahrud. It was in 1752 
 fixed by Shah Ahmed as the limit of the Dooranee Empire in this direc- 
 tion. To its north, at thirty-two miles, is another bridge of the same 
 name over the same stream ; it is on the direct route from Shahrud to 
 Sabzwar by Juwen ; this route has long been deserted owing to the risks 
 from Toorkmans. To the north of the bridge where we crossed, the 
 country is very broken and ravine-cut, and overrun by hills ; to the 
 south it spreads out in a vast desert, white with salts ; in the distance on 
 it are seen isolated hills. The borders of the desert here are covered with 
 a thick growth of Salsola and Salicornia, and a species of tamarisk 
 called tdgh ; it is a different tree or bush to the tdghaz of Seistan, though 
 of allied species ; it affords good fuel. 
 
 Beyond Pul Abresham the road leads over some low slaty ridges 
 where they run on to the desert, and then crosses a wide st jny hollow 
 up to Abbasabad. In one hour and ten minutes we came to a collection 
 of three or four springs in a hollow to the right, and in forty-five minutes 
 more arrived at Abbasabad, and camped under the serai. The serai 
 and village rise in tiers up the slope of a high ridge of slate which over- 
 looks the desert to the south. There are some small mulberry and fruit 
 gardens here, and good karez streams; but there is very little corn 
 cultivation. 
 
 16^ May. Abbasabad to Myandusht, 22 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... SP.M., 8 P.M., 25-40 7 A.M., 25'32 
 
 Therm. ... 60 64 
 
 Route westerly. From Abbasabad we skirted the desert for a short 
 distance, and then entered on a very rough hill skirt of low slaty ridges, 
 here and there thrown up into little mamelons. In one hour and twenty 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 113 
 
 minutes we entered the Dahna Alhae between rugged hills of bare trap 
 rock. The defile winds by an easy ascent between close-set hills of no 
 great height ; in it we met a caravan of about eighty camels, with an 
 escort similar to our own, on the way to Meshed. 
 
 We cleared the pass in twenty-five minutes, and in five minutes 
 more came to the Alhae Serai, fast going to ruin. There is a small village 
 here of fifty houses, but it only contains seven poverty-stricken families ; 
 around it are a few mulberry and oeleagnus trees, and there is a good 
 little karez close by. Beyond this the road goes over an open but very 
 broken country, thrown into innumerable tumuli or mamelons. In 
 thirty-five minutes we came to a small gap in a low ridge of amygdaloid 
 trap, and then continued our route over similar country to that previously 
 traversed, and at length reached an open gravelly plain, in the centre 
 of which stands Myandusht Serai. We reached the serai in two hours 
 and twenty-five minutes from the gap, and camped near it. En route 
 we were overtaken by a smart thunder-storm from the hills to the south ; 
 the wind blew high, raising clouds of dust, presently settled by the rain. 
 Around camp the surface is covered with rhubarb in flower and assa- 
 fcetida and a variety of pasture herbs ; the vegetation on the line of 
 march consists mainly of the ghicli, tdgh, and wild almond, salsola, 
 salicornia, artemisia, wild rue, rhubarb, assafoetida, &c. This tract is 
 always frequented by Toorkman raiders, who conceal themselves in the 
 inequalities of the surface; their horses subsist on the pasture above 
 described. 
 
 There is no village here, but the serai is fortified and contains 
 thirty resident families : a new serai is in course of construction close 
 by. There is no cultivation here; water is from a karez stream of 
 limited size. The residents here derive all their supplies from Myanmay. 
 
 \lth May. Myandasht to Myanmay, 24 miles. 
 
 ^. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 25*86 8. P.M., 25'90 7 A.M., 
 
 Therm. ... 58 56 
 
 Weather cloudy and stormy ; thunder-storm with hail in afternoon, 
 and steady rain at sunset. 
 
 Route westerly over very broken country similar to that traversed 
 yesterday. The country slopes to the north, in which direction it drains 
 to the Jajarm valley. In two hours and forty minutes we came to a deep 
 gully, called Dahna Zydar; it is pointed out as one of the favourite routes 
 by which the Toorkmans come from the Jajarm valley. It was here that 
 Meer Alum, son of Kahmdil of Kandahar, was killed in 1857, whilst on 
 his way to Tehran. By some accounts he was killed in an encounter with 
 a party of Toorkmans, but the Afghans say he was murdered by agents 
 of Sultan Ahmed of Herat. He is described as a very intelligent and 
 promising young noble of 24 years of age, and is said to have acquired 
 a good knowledge of English. 
 
 In one hour and forty minutes from the gully we reached the Zydar 
 fort, on the edge of a wide pebbly ravine coming down from a deep 
 gully in the hills to the south. This fort is garrisoned by fifty Sarbdz 
 
EECOED OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 who live here with their families. On a high peak to the south across the 
 gully is a look-out tower held by a party of four or five Sarbdz } who 
 watch the Jajarm valley and approaches to Myanmay. 
 
 Beyond Zydar fort, where are some oeleagnus trees and a karez, but 
 no gardens nor cultivation, the road hugs the hills bounding the valley 
 or plain to the south. The great plain here called Kavir is covered with 
 pasture, and dotted here and there with Toorkman towers ; it stretches 
 away for many miles to the north, in which direction it is separated from 
 Jajarm by a range of hills running east and west ; the plain slopes from 
 both sides to its centre, and drains east to the Juwen valley, which is 
 two days' journey hence; the length of the plain or valley lies south- 
 west and north-east. 
 
 In one hour and thirty- five minutes from Zydar fort we arrived at 
 Myanmay, and camped a little beyond the village, at the foot of a high 
 hill, on which are said to be the ruins of an ancient Gabe city. The 
 road from Zydar is very rough aud stony ; at first it winds over and 
 between low mounds of clay and slate, and then over rocks of sandstone 
 and limestone. 
 
 Myanmay is a flourishing village, surrounded by mulberry and 
 celeagnus trees, and a wide circle of corn-fields, irrigated from several hill- 
 streams. There is a good serai here, and abundance of water. In the 
 valley are a number of fortified villages and gardens ; they extend for 
 sixteen miles to the east of this in close proximity to each other. To the 
 west of the valley is a lofty snow-clad mountain called Alburz. The 
 elevation of Myanmay is 3,560 feet above the sea. 
 
 18^ May. Myanmay to Shahrud, 41 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 8 p M., 25'00 7 A.M., 24'98 
 
 Therm. ... 67 68 
 
 Route west by north over the wide plain of Myanmay, by a good 
 road running parallel to the hills on our left. At the foot of the hills is a 
 succession of villages and orchards up to Armyan, six farsakhs, or 24 miles, 
 from Myanmay, and half way to Shahrud. Single travellers and small 
 parties take the route by Armyan for safety's sake. 
 
 In one hour from Myanmay we crossed a good karez stream, and in 
 one hour and thirty minutes more came to a roadside abambdr close to 
 a low ridge that extends across the plain from south-west to north-east. 
 Cresting this ridge we passed on to a very uneven country intersected by 
 ravines and hollows, and covered with pasture similar to that noted in yes- 
 terday's march. To the north it is bounded by a high range of mountains 
 which to the west rise into a snow-clad mass called Koh Khawar ; it 
 looks down upon Bostam at its base. To the east this chain is continuous 
 with that of Calat north of Meshed. The whole range is called Alburz, 
 and separates Khorassan from Mazandaram ; its most prominent points 
 are Aladagh north of Maziuan in the Burdjimd district, and Hazar 
 Masjid north of Meshed near Calati Nadiri. 
 
 In one hour and a half from the dlambdr ridge we came to the 
 deserted serai of Farashabad, also called Ilahmatabad. In fifty-five 
 minutes from this, still over broken country, we came to an abambdr^ and 
 halted to rest the cattle and breakfast. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 115 
 
 Beyond this the route is due west over an open plain, gently slop- 
 ing towards Shahrud, seen in the distance at the foot of a hill separating 
 it from Bostam. In two hours and five minutes we came to the ruins of 
 Khyrabad, amidst which are corn-fields and a few occupied huts ; they 
 are watered from a small karez. In thirty minutes more we came to a 
 thin and very muddy stream from the village and gardens of Badasht a 
 little to our left, then rising gently we in twenty minutes more came to 
 a large karez stream fringed with sin jit trees, and crossing it entered on 
 a hard stony hill skirt, which we traversed up to Shahrud ; we passed 
 amongst its extensive gardens (all walled) to an open space near the 
 post-house, and there camped. Time from the karez, one hour and 
 twenty minutes. 
 
 Weather fine, and mid-day sun hot. Our cattle much exhausted by 
 the march. Our infantry escort, who marched and rode their asses 
 turn iu turn, came in quite fresh. 
 
 \Wi to 23>r/ J%.Halt at Shahrud. 
 
 Bar. Mean. ... 3 P.M., 24*96 8 P.M., 25'04 7 A.M., 25'05 
 Therm. Mean. ... 77 68 57 
 
 Shahrud contains about 650 houses, buried in the midst of vineyards 
 and gardens, and lies at the foot of a spur of the Khawar hill that sepa- 
 rates it from Bostam ; it is watered by a good perennial stream which 
 flows through its midst from the hill above ; it also waters the following 
 villages on the plain, viz., Badasht, Dazij, Jafarabad, Yiinusabad, Husen- 
 abad, Ardyan, Mughan, Gala Nan, Ghoryan, and Calata Khan. Shahrud 
 is the chief town of the district, which extends from Abbasabad on the 
 east to Dih Mullah on the west, between the hills. The district contains 
 fifty or sixty villages. The governor resides at Bostam in an adjoining 
 valley or glen four miles to the north. 
 
 The gardens here produce the vine, almond, peach, plum, celeagnus, 
 mulberry, and fig, but not the pomegranate ; the fields produce wheat, 
 barley, and millet, cotton and tobacco ; silk is largely produced in the 
 district. This place has suffered little in the famine, supplies having 
 come in from Astarabad. 
 
 Shahrud is in telegraphic communication with Tehran and Astara- 
 bad. There are three good serais here and a post-house. There is also 
 a Russian commercial company's agency here ; it is conducted by two 
 Russians and two Russian Armenians, who reside together in the town ; 
 they buy up silk and cotton for the Moscow market ; they have been 
 here for about twelve years or more. 
 
 Both commercially and politically Shahrud is an important place. 
 It is situated at the entrance to the pass leading to Astarabad and Maz- 
 anderan generally the Caspian Gatesbetween the lofty snow-topped 
 mountains of Shahkoh and Shahwar or Khawar. The north slopes of 
 these mountains are described as thickly wooded with forest trees, and 
 to abound in wild goat (fakka, m. buz, f.), wild sleep (koch, m. mesh, f.), 
 and the stag (gawaz]. The leopard and bear are common on the hill, and 
 sometimes the lion is met with ; the last is said to be common on 
 the Aladtigh mountains. 
 
11C RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Shahrud is the entrepot of the trade between Tehran and the coun- 
 tries to the east and north -east, and as a strategical position com- 
 mands the routes in those directions. From this point start off four or 
 five different routes to Meshed, Herat, Ghayn, and Seistan ; through the 
 districts of Turshiz, Tabbas, and Ghayn to Seistan ; by Sabzwkr to the 
 same route; by Nishabor through Turbat Hydarito Tubbiis and onwards; 
 or by Sarjam, and Turbat Shekh Jam to Ghoryan or Khaf or Herat ; by 
 Jajarm and Kochan to Meshed ; by Juwen and Burdjnurd to Nishabor, 
 and thence onwards as above. 
 
 Shahrud produces excellent grapes and melons, and the shoes made 
 here are noted for their superiority. The situation is picturesque, and 
 the climate agreeable, except in winter, when snow covers the ground for 
 a month or more. Four miles to the north is a similar little town, 
 Bostam ; it contains about 500 houses, and is surrounded by gardens and 
 vineyards. It contains the tomb of Imam Bayizid, a sacred shrine 
 visited by pilgrims ; it is an unpretending pile of loose stones, the saint 
 having " willed" that no mausoleum should be built over his remains. 
 Near the shrine is the grave of the late Sardar Mahomed Azim Khan, 
 Barukzai, for a short time Ameer of Afghanistan. He died here of dysen- 
 tery or cholera about July 1869 on his way to Tehran after his defeat at 
 Ghuznee by the Ameer Sher Ali Khan, in the beginning of the year. 
 
 Shahrud is 4,490 feet above the sea. The weather during our stay 
 here has been cloudy, cold, and more or less showery and windy. 
 
 24//S May. Shahrud to Dih Mullah, 16 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 25'83 8 P.M., 25 88 3 A.M., 25'90 
 Therm. ... 70 65 69 
 
 Route south-south-west by a well-beaten track over a stony hill 
 skirt. A line of telegraph follows the road, which is a good deal cut by 
 surface drainage. To our right is a range of bare hills, rising into a snow- 
 topped peak called Shah Koh, and behind it to the north is seen a 
 similar snowy mass, called Shah war ; on its southern slopes are thick 
 clusters of cypress and arbor vitse trees; in the nooks along the foot of 
 the hills are numerous springs and little hamlets. To our left lies the 
 Shahrud valley sloping to the south-west, where it is separated from the 
 Salt Desert by a water-worn and furrowed range of red clay hills ; it is 
 dotted with numerous gardens and villages. In two hours and eight 
 minutes we passed the last of them, called Kharyan, and entered on a 
 stony desert tract sloping to the south-west (in which direction it joins 
 the desert), and in one hour and forty-five minutes arrived at Dih 
 Mullah, where we camped in a garden. There is a good serai here, and 
 abundance of water from karez streams. To the south, beyond two 
 small hamlets, is a great arm of the Salt Desert ; to its south is the 
 Jandac range of hills, a high peak of which is pointed out as Akwand. 
 Jandac is 80 miles distant, and is said to contain twelve villages ; the 
 date-palm grows here. To the west lies the great hill-girt plain of 
 Damghan covered with gardens and villages. 
 
 Weather fir?; high wind all dav from north-west. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 117 
 
 25/7; May. Dili Mullah to Damghan, 26 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... SP.M., 25-80 8 P.M., 2575 3 A.M., 25'75 
 
 Therm. ... 86 60 50 
 
 Eoute south-west over an even alluvial tract bare of vegetation ; to 
 the rig-lit it slopes up to a stony hill skirt, and to the left it slopes down to 
 the Salt Desert, or Kavtr. In one hour and forty minutes, passing a 
 small hamlet off to the left of the road, we came to Cadirabad on the 
 right of it. From this onwards we passed a succession of villages and 
 gardens on each side of our route, but very limited corn cultivation ; the 
 gardens are now in full foliage, and give the villages a look of prosperity 
 which is very false. Most of the villages are half empty, and the poor 
 occupants starving ; no children are to be seen, and a melancholy silence 
 and gloom prevails over the people. 
 
 "We passed the following villages to the left of our route, tf/., 
 bad, Hajiabad, Husenabad (1), Imamabad, Mihmandost, Ibrahimabad 
 Husenabad (2), Bustijan, Varinejan, Mayan, &c., and to the right the fol- 
 lowing, viz., Bakh, Tagh, Gaz, and two or three others. In two hours and 
 five minutes from Cadirabad we came to a large tumulus and the remains 
 of walls, &c., near Bakh ; for the past hour and a half, all the way from 
 Mihmandost, we had passed low tumuli and indistinct traces of walls and 
 domes; this is the site of the ancient city of Dumghan, supposed to 
 have been destroyed by the Arabs, who founded the present town in its 
 stead. 
 
 In one hour and a half from the Bakh tumulus we arrived at the 
 gardens of Dumghan ; passing through them and the town, we in ten 
 minutes reached a serai on its further side and camped near it. In the 
 town are some conspicuous domes and ruins of the early Arab period ; 
 they are much decayed, and mark the sites of former mosques and 
 mausoleums. There is a very poor covered bazar here ; half the houses 
 appear deserted and in ruins ; of one thousand families before the famine | 
 only two hundred now remain. There is a telegraph station here. 
 
 26/& May. Dumghan to Khusha, 23 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3. P.M., 25-25 8 P.M., 25'20 3 A.M., 25'22 
 Therm. ... 85 67 56 
 
 Route south-west by west, by a good road parallel at about two miles 
 to the hills on our right ; to the left lies a great arm of the desert, to the 
 south of which is seen a range of hills. Soil a firm gravel. 
 
 In two hours and fifteen minutes we came to Aliabad on our right, 
 and beyond it, on our left, passed Sherashyan and Bakhshabad, and in 
 twenty-five minutes more came to Doulatabad, a curious little place with 
 triple walls of fortification. Further on, passing Ismailabad on the right 
 and Sayyidabad on the left, we in fifty minutes came to Amirabad, also on 
 the left. Up to this point from Dumghan about thirty villages are seen 
 on the plain ; all are fortified and surrounded by fruit gardens and corn 
 and cotton fields. Beyond this point the road curves to the south-west 
 and leads across a desert stony plain between hills ; its surface is thinly 
 covered with wild rue and salt worts of different kinds. In one hour 
 and forty minutes from Amirabad we came to the Khusha serai and post- 
 
118 RECOB.D OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 house, and camped. There is no village nor cultivation here, but a 
 deserted little fort stands on the plain close by ; water is good but in 
 limited quantity from an open pool and a cistern. 
 
 27^ May. Khasha to Ahuan Serai, 24 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P.M., 23'30 8 P.M., 2327 3 A.M., 23'25 
 Therm. ... 66 . 56 50 
 
 Night air chilly. Route south-south-west by south, by a good, hard- 
 gravelly road, over a gently rising desert waste with hills on either side. 
 As we advance pasture becomes plentiful; mostly the ghich, and rue with 
 salsolacae of three or four species, and numerous labiate plants, but no 
 artemisia; the common caper spurge and the prickly astragulus are 
 common. In two hours and fifty-five minutes we came to a small sandy 
 and gravelly ravine ; beyond it, rising gently, we in one hour and fifteen 
 minutes came to the crest of a low ridge. Here the aneroid figured 24'03, 
 giving the approximate elevation above the sea at 5,600 feet, and the 
 rise above Khasha at 1,325 feet. 
 
 Beyond this the road turns south-west by west, and passing over 
 several undulations, follows the bed of a sandy ravine, and leaving this 
 to the left, rises up to the crest of a ridge that overlooks a small circular 
 hollow which drains by a wide gully to the north. At the crest the 
 aneroid figured 23'35, giving its elevation above the sea at 6,380 feet, 
 and above Khasha at 2,105 feet. From the ridge there is a short 
 descent to the hollow, in which is situated Ahuan Serai ; we reached it in 
 one hour and fifteen minutes from the first ridge, and camped on 
 rising ground above it. Elevation above the sea, 6,460 feet. 
 
 Throughout the march we saw neither village nor water. There 
 is a good supply of water here from an open pool and dbambdr close to 
 the serai and post-house. To the north, at some distance, is a high snow- 
 topped mountain, and all around are hills of lesser size. 
 
 28^ May. Ahuan to Samnan, 24 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 2 P.M., 25'41 8 P.M., 25'42 7 A.M., 25'50 
 Therm. ... 91 75 75 
 
 Route south -south- west by a gradual rise up to a low ridge, which 
 we crested in thirty minutes ; then crossing some undulations, in five 
 minutes more we came to a second ridge and watershed. Here the 
 aneroid figured 23'00, giving its elevation above the sea at 6,750 feet, 
 and above Ahuan Serai about 300 feet. 
 
 From this point the road descends quickly along the course of a 
 dry, pebbly, and gravelly ravine, occasionally rising over low undula- 
 tions abutting upon it from the heights on either side. In one hour 
 and thirty minutes we came to the ruins of a little fort on the left of 
 the ravine, which here passes through a small hollow or basin. Beyond 
 this the road turns off to the right, west-south-west, and, crossing 
 some ups and downs, comes to the Chashma Khurram, a spring covered 
 over by a masonry platform in a deep little gully, draining to the 
 ravine just left. We reached this in ten minutes, and then ascending 
 by a steep and narrow and stony path, entered on an undulating tract 
 of low ridges and hollows. In twelve minutes more we reached the crest 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 119 
 
 of a watershed ; here the aneroid figured 24'00, giving the elevation 
 5,600 feet above the sea. From this ridge we got a clear view of the 
 Samnan plain, with its town and gardens and scattered villages. 
 
 The descent from this is by a very difficult and narrow path down 
 the bed of a winding gully or water-cut on the hard surface of a sheet 
 of conglomerate rock, through which here and there cropped up blue 
 slate. The gully was mostly dry, but here and there were moist spots 
 from oozing springs; the gully leads onto a wide stony hill skirt, 
 which slopes down to the plain. 
 
 The wide tract of low hills now passed form a barrier between the 
 valleys or plains of Damghau and Samnan ; the tract is some 2,500 feet 
 above the level of the plains on either side, and about twenty miles 
 wide ; it is formed by emanations from the Alburz range projecting 
 southwards to join a parallel range of inferior height on the borders of 
 the great salt desert of Kashan. The higher ridges are bare and rugged, 
 but the lower are clothed with pasture, mainly salsolacea and rue, and 
 artemisia, &c., and in the gullies the tamarisk. Most of the ridges are of 
 water-worn marl and fissile slate, and some of conglomerate and lime- 
 stone. 
 
 Following the long slope of the hill skirt along the line of telegraph, 
 we gradually entered on the plain, and in two hours from the ridge 
 came to a roadside dbambdr. Here the road turns a point to the west 
 and leads across a wide, stony, parched, and sterile plain (girt on all 
 sides by distant hills), up to Samnan, where we camped. Time from 
 the dbambdr, one hour and five minutes. 
 
 29^ May. Halt at Samnan. Elevation 4,030 feet above the sea. 
 
 Bar. ... 3 P. M.. 25'38 8 P.M., 25'46 3 A.M., 25'50 
 
 Therm. ... ' 91 72 64 
 
 The plain of Samnan wears a parched and uninviting look, and 
 suggests great heat in summer. Samnan and its gardens near the hills 
 to!he north are, with a few widely-scattered villages, the only green 
 spots on a bare, arid, desert waste, which to the south is much broken into 
 ridges and ravines. Samnan is a telegraph station ; the town has a 
 flourishing look, and is plentifully supplied with water from several good 
 karez streams. Weather cloudy, hot, windy, and dusty. At sunset rain 
 fell, and was followed by a strong north-west wind till nightfall. 
 
 30^ May.* Samnan to Lasjird, 22 miles. 
 
 Bar. 2 P.M., 25'27 8 P.M., 25'22 1 A.M., 25'27 
 
 Therm. ... 48 71 68 
 
 Route westerly. We cleared the town and its walled gardens and 
 corn-fields in forty minutes, and then entered on a wide, stony, undu- 
 lating desert tract, a good deal cut by superficial water-runs from 
 the marly hills on the north, towards the low land on the south. In one 
 hour and forty minutes we came to a dry dbambar, and in one hour and 
 twenty-five minutes more to the village of Surkhab, which with its 
 gardens is situated in a depression of the plain. We passed through the 
 village in ten minutes, and then crossing a low-lying clayey tract, rose on 
 to a stony desert ; this we crossed up to Lasjird, where we camped. Time 
 
120 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 from Surkhab, one hour and forty-six minutes. A warm sunny day. 
 A violent storm of wind, dust, and rain at sunset. 
 
 Lasjird is a remarkable village, and quite different to any other we 
 have seen in the country. It consists of a double-storied quadrangle, 
 perched on an isolated square mound ; at the south-east angle the quad- 
 rangle is open for a space of thirty feet or so ; each storey is furnished 
 with a projecting balcony along the whole side of each face; on to these 
 balconies open the doors of the several chambers ; through the opening in 
 the south-east angle, balconies are seen to project from the inner sides 
 as on the outer ; the scarped sides of the mound are marked by a row 
 of apertures from which drains run down the sides of the mound ; they 
 are all open. 
 
 On the plain to the north is a long stretch of walled gardens, and 
 to the south at some distance is a low ridge of clay hills. There is a 
 serai here, also a post-house on the plain near the Lasjird mound. The 
 water here is slightly brackish. 
 
 3lst May. Lasjird to Dili Namak, 25 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... Noon, 26-45 8 P.M., 26'44 1 A.M., 26'43 
 
 Therm. ... 91 86 78 
 
 Route west-south-west across some karez streams down to a rough 
 ridge tract of low clay hillocks ; we crossed this by a narrow winding 
 path between high banks of red marl, and emerged on to a wide hill 
 skirt of spongy saline soil ; here the route turns west. In fifty minuses 
 we crossed a dry ravine, and in thirty minutes more came to a small 
 masonry bridge over a second deep and narrow ravine with a thin 
 stream ; a little further on we came to a second bridge over a larger 
 ravine in which flows a noisy little hill torrent, and ten minutes later 
 crossed a third stone bridge across a small dry ravine; beyond this we 
 entered on a stony desert hill skirt that slopes up to water- worn clay hills 
 about two miles to our right. To the left the land falls rapidly to low 
 clay mounds on the edge of the desert, which is here white with salts, 
 an I thinly sprinkled with tamarisk, salicornia, ghieli, camel-thorn, and 
 other plants. 
 
 In one hour and fifteen minutes more we passed a stone fort and 
 serai and an dbambdr ; the two first are deserted, and in the serai we 
 found three human skeletons. At fifteen minutes further on we crossed 
 a deep but easy ravine, and at twenty minutes more a larger and wider 
 one with a muddy saline bed ; it is overlooked by a round tower on an 
 eminence on its left bank where it joins the desert. Boyond this we 
 traversed a low-lying desert tract; the soil is spongy and stony, and in 
 wet weather would be deep in mire. In two hours and twenty minutes 
 we came to Dili Namak, and passing its dilapidated fort and good serai, 
 camped on the plain five minutes further on. 
 
 Dili Namak is a collection of fifty poor huts round a dilapidated fort 
 on a mound. There are three karez streams here, but the water of all 
 of them is very brackish from salt. A violent west wind blew all day, 
 and threatend the stability of our camp ; we therefore struck our tents 
 and took refuge in the serai. The air is loaded with driving sand and 
 salt, most trying to the eyes; sun hot. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 
 
 I si June. Dili Namak to Cashlac, 24 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 10A.M., 26-52 8 P.M., 26 45 1 A.M., 26'42 
 
 Therm. ... 80 76 69 
 
 A warm night, with strong north -west gusts of wind and dust. 
 High wind all day, and no sun. 
 
 Route west-south-west, over a rough, stony, and water-cut desert 
 tract for four or five miles, then west over a level alluvial tract, white with 
 salts, and thinly covered with tamarisk, mimosa, camel-thorn, indigofera, 
 salsolacea, and similar plants. In two hours and thirty-five minutes we 
 came to the Padish village, 100 houses; beyond this, passing through 
 corn-fields, and leaving three villages to the right and five to the left 
 of the road, in thirty-five minutes came to Arazan, 150 houses: this is 
 a telegraph station. 
 
 From this the road goes over stony ground west-north-west towards 
 the hills, crosses a succession of streams, branches of the Hubla or 
 Alvard rivulet, which flow from Ferozkoh on our right to the long line 
 of villages and corn-fields on our left. At the foot of the hills the road 
 turns west-south-west for four miles to Cashlac, where we took shelter 
 in the serai, the wind being too high to admit of our pitching tents. 
 Time from Arazan, two hours and fifteen minutes. 
 
 From Padih to Cashlac the plain is occupied -by a long line of 
 twenty to twenty-five villages with their wide area of corn-fields, all 
 watered by the Hubla river, which spreads over the country in several 
 little streams flowing on hard pebbly bottoms ; along the foot of tlui 
 Ferozkoh hills are six or eight other villages and gardens. All these 
 villages from Padih to Cashlac are in the Khur buiuc of the great, 
 Veramin plain. This district produces much corn, and is reckoned one 
 of the granaries of Tehran. It certainly has a larger extent of corn 
 cultivation than any place we have yet seen in Persia. 
 
 Znd June. Cashlac to Ay wan i Kyf, 21 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 10 A.M., 2576 8 P.M., 25'64 7 A.M., 25'60 
 Therm. ... 84 80 76 
 
 Route west- north- west across cultivation for a mile or so, and then 
 on to a gravelly pasture tract gently sloping up to the hills in our front. 
 In one hour and fifty minutes we entered the Sardarrah defile of the 
 Kohi Tiiz through a low ridge of red marly hills that end on the plain 
 a few miles to the left. These hills are an emanation to the south-west 
 from the Ferozkoh range, and separate Khar from Veramin. The defile 
 is easy, with low water-worn clay hills on either side ; they are close- 
 set, except in the centre of the defile, where they diverge and enclose an 
 open basin. In thirty minutes we carne to the ruins of a small mud fort 
 in the centre of this basin, and in forty-five minutes more emerged from 
 the defile on to a wide plateau. Our route through the defile was along- 
 its salt-encrusted water-course, which flows north and south through the 
 central basin ; it has a thin stream of no depth, which we crossed 
 several times en route. 
 
 The plateau to its north is green with pasture, and near the defilo 
 has a good strip of corn cultivation. We crossed it north-west, skirting- 
 
122 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 low hills to our right, over which to the north is seen the snowy peak of 
 Demavand, and in one hour and fifty minutes came to a deep and rough 
 boulder-strewn ravine, on the further bank of which stands Aywani Kyf ; 
 we crossed it, and in thirteen minutes more camped on high gravelly 
 undulations to the north of the village and its gardens. 
 
 Weather fine, with north-west breezes. 
 
 3rd June. Halt at Aywani Kyf. 
 
 Bar. ... 2 P.M., 25'65 8 P.M., 2570 A.M. 2575 
 
 Therm. ... 88 75 66 
 
 Aywani Kyf is a flourishing village of 300 houses round a fort ; 
 it is surrounded by gardens and vineyards, watered from a strong karez 
 stream brought down from the wide gully to the north, in which runs 
 the great ravine already mentioned. To the south-west the country 
 slopes down to the wide plain of Veramin ; to the north-west in the 
 distance is seen the snowy Shamran mountain north of Tehran. The 
 elevation here is 3,760 feet above the sea, and 840 feet above Cashlac. 
 
 bih June. Aywani Kyf to Khatunabad, 27 miles. 
 
 Bar. ... 10 A.M., 2610 7 P.M., 25'98 2 A.M., 
 
 Therm. ... 82 77 
 
 Route west-north-west by a good gravelly road over the Veramin 
 plain, skirting a hill range to the right, over which towers the conical snow- 
 set peak of Demarand. In three hours and twenty-five minutes we 
 came to a bifurcation of the road ; that to the right hugs the hills, the 
 other goes on across the plain. We followed the latter, and in thirty, 
 five minutes, after crossing some small streams, came to Sharifabad on 
 the right of the road, and in thirty minutes more to Khasran on the 
 left. Beyond this we crossed the wide pebbly bed of the Jajrtid river, 
 and in an hour and a half came to Khatunabad, where we camped at 
 the serai. 
 
 The Jajriid river flows broadcast over a wide pebbly surface in 
 twelve or fourteen little streams that irrigate the villages on the plain 
 to the left of our route. There are about twenty-five villages on the 
 plain between Aywani Kyf and Khatunabad ; all are surrounded by 
 vineyards and gardens in full foliage, and look the picture of prosperity, 
 but inside they are desolate, and the abode of misery, starvation, and 
 death. 
 
 About two miles south of Khatunabad is Hissar Amir, and near it 
 are the ruins of a mud fort and extensive town called Veramin. 
 
 th June 1872. Khatunabad to Tehran, 18 miles. (Gulack.) 
 
 Bar. ... Noon, 24'69 8 P.M., 24'68 7 A.M., 24'68 
 Therm. ... 77 73 70 
 
 Route north-west by a winding road amongst villages, corn- 
 fields, and gardens. In two hours we came to Mahmudabad at the 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 123 
 
 foot of some bare rocky hills. Beyond this, following a stony hill skirt, 
 we crossed a small ridge from the Sherabanu hill, on which are seen 
 some ruins of ancient appearance ; and passing Ammabad, in one hour 
 and fifteen minutes came to Takyabad. From this the road leads 
 through the ruins of Rhages, or Ray ; in their midst stands the town 
 of Shah Abdool Azim with its domed shrine and rich gardens. Beyond 
 this the road goes north over undulating ground, and in one hour and 
 twenty minutes brought us to the Shah Abdool Azim gate of the city of 
 Tehran. 
 
 Entering the gateway, we crossed a wide open space between the 
 new (unfinished) and old fortifications, passed through the main bazars, 
 and Casri Shah, or " King's Palace," quarters, to the telegraph office, and 
 further into the Residency of the British Legation, which we reached 
 in one hour. From this we went on out of the north gate in the new 
 fortifications, and passing along a mean avenue of young poplars and 
 willows for a few miles, rose into a stony upland that slopes up to the 
 foot of the snow-topped Alburz mountain, along the base of which are 
 scattered several picturesque villages and gardens. Amongst them is 
 the British settlement of Gulahek, which we reached in one hour and 
 thirty minutes from the British Legation Residency. Tehran stands 
 on the Veramin, plain 7 or 8 miles south of the Alburz mountain, the 
 top of which is at this time thinly coated with snow. Beyond it, to the 
 north-east, rises the lofty crater-topped peak of Demarand, a magnifi- _ 
 cent cone deeply covered with snow. Tehran has recently been sur- 
 rounded by new fortified walls and a deep and wide ditch ; the walls and 
 ramparts are in a very incomplete state ; they enclose a wide area (at 
 present for the most part unoccupied) outside the old walls. 
 
 The city, in common with the rest of the country, has suffered from 
 famine for nearly three years, and has lost a large portion of its popu- 
 lation. At this time famine-fever of the typhoid form is raging in the 
 city and surrounding villages. The daily mortality in the city during 
 the past week is estimated at over two hundred souls. Immense num- 
 bers, who have flocked to the capital from the adjacent country for work 
 and food, have found neither, and have miserably perished here. 
 
 The harvest is now being cut in the vicinity of the capital, and 
 it is reckoned the 'soreness of the famine will soon be removed. But 
 thousands of the population whom we have seen on the line of march 
 must die in the coming winter, and before, for they are so reduced and 
 diseased as to be past recovery, even had they the means of purchasing 
 the food now within their reach. 
 
 The most serious injury inflicted by the famine is the almost com- 
 plete destruction of the infant population ; few children under twelve 
 years of age were seen in all our route to Tehran, and in many villages 
 no children at all were left. It is estimated roughly that Persia has 
 lost a million and a half of her population by this famine, and will not 
 recover her former prosperity for the next thirty years. 
 
124 EECORD OP THE MARCH OF 
 
 GEOGRAPHICAL LIMITS. 
 
 These are considered under the heads of "Physical" and "Political." 
 / Physical. The natural limits of the country now known as Seistan 
 are far more extensive fHan its varying- and uncertain and undefined 
 political boundaries. Within them are comprised nearly all of the 
 soutjaern^half _of the existing* kingdom of Afghanistan ; that is to say, 
 the term Seistan, in its full and natural application, includes all that 
 varied and extensive region which is drained by the several rivers that, 
 converging 1 together, discharge their waters into the lake which forms 
 the most characteristic feature of the country. 
 
 1- The region thus indicated has well-defined natural boundaries, which, 
 as will appear further on, were recognised by the ancient Arabian geo- 
 graphers as the limits of the country known in their time under the 
 name of Sijistan, or Sigistan. These boundaries are the following : 
 
 3 To the north the watershed of the KphjJBaba range, from the valley of 
 Cabul to that of Herat, the northern drainage of this range is carried 
 off by the rivers of Herat (Hurree Rood) and Merv (Murghab or Abi 
 Merv), and the southern by the Helmund, Furrah Rood audHaroot Rood. 
 
 y To the east, the boundary is formed by those western emanations from 
 ^ ne Sufed Koh , which form the watershed of the Logar and Ghuznee basins, 
 andlvhich, projecting southwards, join tjie^Khwaja Amran range, and 
 the watershed between the drainage carried off by the Gomul and 
 i rivers on the one side, and the Tarnak and Lora rivers on the 
 otHer, that is, by the Indus and Helmund respectively. This range, 
 after joining the Khwaja Amran at the Toba peak, projects south by 
 Tokatii and SariBholan to Chihltan (described in the route march), whence 
 it is prolonged westward by Nooshky and Kharan to the mountain range, 
 bounding the Seistan desert to the south, the Mushti ran^e. 
 
 ? To the south the boundary is formed by the Mushti range (mush in 
 Beloochee is equivalent to kok in Persian) and the Surhud (or boundary) 
 mountains ; the former separate the Seistan desert from Beloochistan, and 
 the latter, the Zarrah basin of Seistan, from Mekran. 
 
 & To the west the boundary is formed by the Neh Bundan range and 
 the Dash ti Naummedj this latter is a desert waste that extends north 
 and south from Kerman to Meshed, and forms a natural boundary 
 between Afghanistan and Persia. 
 
 ^ The physical aspect of the region comprised within these limits is 
 of course very varied, but the main features of the country are suffi- 
 ciejitly distinct to be .classed under the three heads of highlands, lowlands, 
 and deserts. The highla'nds comprise the northern portions of the terri- 
 tory and its eastern borders, the lowlands the central tracts, and the 
 deserts the southern portion and western borders. The drainage of the 
 highlands flows through the lowlands and accumulates in the basin 
 occupying their western portion, and from this finds an exit to the 
 Zarrah hollow or lacustrine depression when in excess ; this last also 
 receives what drainage there may be from the sandy deserts forming the 
 southern portions of this region. 
 
 3 It is beyond the scope of this report to enter into a description of the 
 whole of this region ; our attention, therefore, will be confined to thi t 
 
THE MISSION TO SKISTAN. 125 
 
 portion o it occupied by the actual basin in which its rivers meet and 
 discharge their contents, and to which in the present day the name 
 of Seistan may be held to be Timited. 5ut before proceeding to the 
 description of this limited area, we may refer briefly to the past political 
 limits of the great territory above defined, and of which it forms but a 
 small part. 
 
 Political. I have been able to find very little regarding the ancient 
 political limits of the country above defined as Seistan. We learn from 
 the historians of Alexander's Asiatic conquests that it was known to the 
 Greeks by the name of Drangia, and that it formed the western portion 
 of the more extensive country designated Drangiana, after its principal 
 river the Drangius. This country included Paropamisus (the modern 
 Hazarah country) to the north, and Arachosia (the modern Ghuznee dis- 
 trict) to the east, though seemingly as distinct provinces. 
 
 Drangia was bounded on the north by Aria (Herat), on the south 
 by Gedrosia (Mekran), on the west by Carmania Deserta (Kerman 
 desert), and on the east by Arachosia (Ghuznee). Its ancient inhabitants 
 were the Darandce and Butrti, j and according to Ptolemy it contained ten 
 considerable cities, of which Ariaspe and Proptnasia were the most 
 famous. None of these names are now traceable, except perhaps Ariaspe 
 in the ruins of Sari-asp on the Tarnak, east of Candahar, or in Ispi 
 amongst the Surhud hills south of Zarrah. 
 
 Paropamisus was bounded by Aria on the west, by Buctria (Balkh) 
 on the north, Cabul on the east, and by Arachosia on the south. Its 
 ancient inhabitants were the Bolita, Aristophili t Ambanta, Pariefte, and 
 Parsil, and its chief cities were Ortospanum and Naulibis. 
 
 Arachosia was bounded on the north by Paropamisus j by the Indus 
 on the east ; by Gedrosia on the south ; and by Drangia on the west. Its 
 ancient inhabitants were the Arimaspe or Margyct&, afterwards called the 
 Energeta, the Sydri, Bopluta, and Eortce ; and according to Ptolemy they 
 had thirteen cities, of which the chief, A rachotus, on the lake of the 
 same name (the present Abistada, south of Ghuznee), was built by Semi- 
 ramis, who called it Cophes ; Alexandria (the ancient Candahar) built by 
 Alexander; and Arbaca, supposed to name after the Parthian king Arbaces y 
 were other cities of this province. 
 
 The Drangiana thus formed by Drangia, Paropamisus, and Arachosia 
 is the same country as that described by Ibu Haukal in the time of 
 Mahmood of Ghuznee as Sijistan and Zabulistan, which together com- 
 prised the whole of that varied region drained by the several rivers 
 emptying into the Hamoon. Both names are applied to the whole 
 region, which is also known as Nimroz ; but this last name is more 
 generally limited to the lowland and desert portion of the country, 
 whilst Zabulistan, which included Candahar, more especially represents 
 the northern highland tracts, and Sijistdn the lowland. Further, 
 Sijistan is spoken of as being in Zabulistan, yet it is described as 
 comprising the districts of Ghor and Ghuznee on the north, those of 
 Sibi, Shal, and Mustoong on the east, the sandy desert on the south, and 
 the districts of Ghayn and Neh on the west. 
 
 From these limits assigned to Sijistan, or Sigistan, or Seistan, by Ibn 
 Haukal, it is clear that the whole country drained by the several rivers 
 emptying into the Hamoon was included under that name, and recognired 
 
126 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 as a distinct country or province. How long the integrity of the country 
 thus limited was maintained is uncertain, but it would appear that no 
 change occurred till the rise of the Ghoride dynasty in succession to that 
 of Ghuznee. The Ghorides were succeeded by the Saljukis, and they in 
 turn by the Mughals under Changhiz. During this period, from the be- 
 ginning of the twelfth to that of the thirteenth century, the political 
 boundaries of Seistan varied with the fortunes of the Persian empire. 
 At the time of Timoor's invasion in 1383 A.D., it appears the name 
 Seistan was restricted to the lowland portion only of the region to which 
 it previously applied, that is, to the basin or plain through which flowed 
 the rivers converging to the Hamoon. 
 
 Later still, in the time of the Saffavis, the application of the name 
 Seistan underwent a yet further restriction, and became limited to the 
 basin of the Hamoon only ; that is, to the country lying between Ghayn 
 on the west and Bust on the east, and between Furrah on the north and 
 Surhud on the south. 
 
 On the death of Nadir, and the establishment of the Dooranee empire, 
 the Seistan of the Saffavis became incorporated in the new kingdom of 
 Afghanistan, of which, in common with the rest of the country formerly 
 included under that name and Zabulistan, it formed a natural integral 
 part. In 1751 A.D., Shah Ahmed, founder of the Dooranee empire, 
 espoused the daughter of Mallik Suleiman, Kayani, the hereditary prince 
 of Seistan, and, adding the district to the province of Herat, placed it 
 under the government of his son, Timoor Mirza. 
 
 On the ensuing decline of the Dooranee empire, and during the struggles 
 for the throne between the sons of Shah Timoor, Seistan became more or 
 less independent under local chiefs (as will be described in detail when 
 treating the history of the country), and at the same time more restricted 
 in its limits. These, at this period, were the Neh Bundan range on 
 the west (it has different names in its different parts ; thus near Zarrah 
 the hills are called Koh Palang, near Bundan and Neh they are called 
 Koh Bundan, north of this Koh Atushkhana, and north of this again 
 round to Furrah the range, with some gaps, is continued under the name 
 of Koh Gala Kah) ; Furrah on the north ; the Khosh river, Shandu 
 ravine, and Bust fort on the east ; and the Godi Zarrah, or Zarrah hollow, 
 and Surhud mountains to the south. Such were the limits of the Seis- 
 tan district during the early portion of the present century, and such 
 they continued up to the time of the British occupation of Afghanistan. 
 After the British evacuation and the restoration of the Cabul Ameer, the 
 country remained for some years divided into the three independent 
 governments of Cabul, Candahar, and Herat. During this period the 
 struggle for the possession of Seistan was renewed between the chiefs of 
 Candahar and Herat. Finally, in 1845, Sirdar Kohndil Khan took 
 possession of the Gurmsel from Bust to Roodbar, and annexed it to Can- 
 dahar, thus reducing the eastern limit of Seistan to the Khosh Rood, 
 Shandu, and Roodbar. 
 
 On the death of Kohndil in 1855, his brother, the Ameer Dost 
 Mahomed, takes Candahar. On this the Persians redouble their intrigues 
 at Herat, and extend their attention more particularly to Seistan ; after 
 a long course of intrigues they finally, in 1865, invade the country and 
 establish themselves securely in it ; and, after a succession of gradual 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 127 
 
 encroachments, they now possess all that portion of the district south 
 of the Naizar and up to the Helmund in its course northward from 
 Bandar. 
 
 In Seistan itself there is another area of very limited extent, to 
 which the name of the district or province or country is applied par 
 excellence ; its boundaries are constant, and remain unaffected by politi- 
 cal vicissitudes ; it is confined to the actual basin of the Hamoon and the 
 delta of the Helmund. Its boundaries are as follow : To the north the 
 Naizar, to the west the Sarshela, to the south the cliffs of the Zarrah 
 desert, and to the east the river Helmund ; the frontier towns are Koh 
 Khoja, Zerkoh, Sekoha, Dashtah, Burj Alum, Jahanabad, and Jellalabad ; 
 and the area of the whole is less than 1,500 square miles. 
 
 PHYSICAL FEATURES. 
 
 The natural aspect of the country that is, of that portion of Seis- 
 tan which, as before mentioned, is limited to the actual basin of the 
 Hamoon indicates the former existence, at some remote period, of a lake 
 which covered with its waters the whole area of the basin now bounded 
 by the cliffs of the desert towards the east, and the hill ranges of Fur- 
 rah, Neh Bundan, and Surhud on the north-west and south respectively. 
 The northern portion of this area that is., the portion immediately in the 
 vicinity of the deltas of the several rivers disembogeing into the lake 
 has been raised to a higher level than the southern portion of the area 
 by the deposit at the mouths of the rivers of the solid matter brought 
 down by their streams. In other words, the former lake must have been 
 one of very still water, whilst the force of the rivers entering it along 
 its northern borders only sufficed to carry their detritus a short distance 
 beyond their points of disemboguement. All the rivers discharging into 
 the lake entered its basin along the north and north-east borders, and 
 hence it is that the deposits from their streams only affected the north- 
 ern portion of the general lacustrine hollow, whilst the more distant 
 southern portion was left, on the drying up of the lake, a much deeper 
 hollow than any other portion of its area. 
 
 This northern and raised area is still from two to five hundred 
 feet below the level of the desert cliffs that bound it, and which 
 at some former period formed the shores of the lake ; and it is from fifty 
 or sixty to two hundred feet above the level of the beds of the rivers 
 now flowing into the existing Hamoon. The banks of some of the now 
 deserted channels (deserted and dry except in seasons of extraordinary 
 flood) of the delta of the Helmund are where we saw them between 
 Gabri Hajee and Boorj Alum, more than two hundred feet hig-h, whilst 
 those of the Furrah Hood below Lash are less than thirty feet high. 
 
 The tract thus raised by depositions in the bed of the former lake 
 is now the inhabited district of Seistan, and contains the Hanaoon, a great 
 sedge-grown swamp, the last relic of the lake itself. To the south 
 of the Hamoon and inhabited tract of Seistan is the Zarrah hollow. It 
 extends for about one hundred miles to the Sarhadd mountains. 
 We did not visit this tract. It is called by the natives Godi Zarrah, or the 
 hollow of Zarrah, and is described as a wide and circular depression 
 sloping gently up to the bounding hills and desert cliffs. It receives the 
 
128 11ECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 drainage of these in its central and deepest hollow, which, except in 
 seasons of drought, is more or less marshy. It is connected along the 
 western border of the area with the existing Hamoon by the Sarshela, 
 a great drainage gully through which runs the superfluous flood of the 
 Hamoon. ^ 
 
 The lake which formerly filled this great basin must have dried up 
 previous to the historical period, and could only have existed under very 
 different conditions of the country from which its remnant is now fed. 
 The mountains at that period must have had more snow, and the rivers 
 larger floods, than they have now. The desiccation of the lake was pro- 
 bably a very gradual process, effected by evaporation and absorption, for 
 there is no outlet by which the waters could have escaped, nor does the 
 country present any indication of a violent disruption of the surface 
 through which the pent-up waters could have found an outlet. 
 
 From whatever causes or by whatever means the lake may have dis- 
 appeared, it seems certain that it has not existed during the present his- 
 torical period, except as a vast marsh or reed-grown lagoon, occupying 
 the northern portion of the great lacustrine basin. And it also seems 
 certain that the present state of the basin is little altered, if at all, in its 
 main features from what it was in the early times of its first occupation 
 by man. These deductions follow from the fact that the most populous 
 and ancient cities of the former kingdom or principality of Seistan occu- 
 pied what was once the bed of the lake, elevated above the rest of its 
 depressed area by the depositions of its feeding streams. This is evidenced 
 by the existence at the present day of their ruins ; the sites of these are 
 not on the borders of the desert cliffs which formed the shores of the lake, 
 but on the desiccated bed of the lake itself, and mostly along the borders 
 of the existing swamp, or on the alluvial banks of the rivers feeding it. 
 
 These streams are mostly clear and flow on pebbly bottoms, With 
 the exception of the Helmund, they are all more or less, except in the tem- 
 porary flood season, exhausted for purposes of irrigation long before they can 
 reach the swamp fed by their floods. The floods are produced by the action 
 of the summer heat and rains on the snows of the mountains in which 
 the rivers take their rise; they last for two or three months and suffice to 
 fill the present lagoon, or hdmoon ; in extraordinary seasons of flood the 
 lagoon overflows into the Sarshela and thence to the Zarrah hollow. 
 Usually the evaporation is sufficient to prevent an overflow, which, it is 
 
 has not occurred for many years, whilst during the past three or four 
 they have not occurred at all, and in consequence the lagoon has dried up 
 entirely, except at the two spots where the rivers disembogue into its 
 basin. There__are ^^Jw^_great_poiois, one at^ac^end of the lagoon; that 
 at its northTeasFend is the largest, and is formed by the junction of the 
 deltas of the Helmund and Khosh rivers ; that at its north-west end is 
 smaller, and is formed by the junction of the deltas of the Furrah and 
 Hartit rivers ; between these pools or little lakes, which are always clear, 
 though fringed with a wide belt of reed-grown swamp, is a long strip of 
 swamp and lagoon, covered with a very dense and almost impenetrable 
 growth of tali reeds and bulrushes. It is called Naizar or " reed-bed/' 
 and curves round for several miles to the south-east and south-west up 
 the delta of the Helmund and down the course of the Sarshela respec- 
 tively, but more in the_Jatter ^direction, where, in the rnicfslTof a wide 
 circle of reeds and swamp, stands the isolated rock called Koh Khojah. 
 
 ey 
 "^entir 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 129 
 
 ft K*< 6 
 
 "Within the arc thus formed by the Naizar and the two fidmoons on 
 the north, and delta of the Helmund on the east, and the Sarshela on 
 the west, lies the populous little district of Seistan. Along its south-east 
 border are some old and deserted channels of the Helmund delta, and 
 further west of these is a wide uninhabited waste that stretches away 
 south to the Zarrah hollow. It is traYersedby thjQr^fimainsof ancient 
 canals taken from the Helmund near Cala Fath and Roodbar, and is 
 marked here and there by the ruins of ancient cities. 
 
 Seistan itself, within the above limits, is traversed by the Kohuk or 
 Mddari Ab canal, which has been recently restored and excavated by the 
 Persians. It carries a large volume of water from a weir thrown across 
 the Helmund at Kohuk, and in fact diverts the river; for, except in 
 seasons of flood, little of the river passes beyond the weir, its bed 
 below this up to the hdmoon formed by it and the Khosh river being 
 mostly dry. From the Mddari Ab proceed branch canals, and from 
 these again smaller branches, and by them the whole district is irrigated 
 and fertilised, at least to the south of the Koh Khojah. In some parts 
 here the canals run through the wide deserted channels of the Helmund 
 delta between high banks of earth, the natural level of the surface being 
 too low. 
 
 In its general aspect Seistan is a plain country with a gently un- & 
 dulating surface. Towards the hill ranges bounding it on the north- ' 
 west and south, the ground rises and merges into the hill skirts, or, as on 
 the east, lies flat at the base of high cliffs of firm clay, which form the 
 limit of elevated desert tracts where they abut upon the Seistan basin. 
 Its soil is a light, porous, and sandy alluvium, and has the reputation of 
 being remarkably fertile. 
 
 The south-east portion of the country is traversed by the lower 
 course of the Helmund. The river here flows nearly due north after leav- 
 ing the Gurrnsel valley at Bundar; its stream in ordinary flood is between 
 two and three hundred yards wide. But the river bed is very much wider, 
 and, winding from side to side, forms long reaches of coarse gravel, 
 pebbles, and sand bounded by high alluvial banks. In the river bed are 
 thick belts of tamarisk and willow jungle, and these often divide the 
 stream into two or three separate channels. In seasons of high flood the 
 river, it is said, fills its wide bed from side to side ; but this accumulation 
 is gradual, is generally speedily got rid of by evaporation and by disper- 
 sion over the hdmoon or " lake/' by which term the great swampy reed- 
 grown lagoon above described is designated. 
 
 The south-west border is traversed from north to south by the 
 Sarshela, a wide and deep gully that drains the overflow of the Hdmoon to 
 the Zarrah hollow or depression. Between the Helmund and the Sarshela 
 on the west is the wide plain of Seistan, and between the river and the 
 desert cliffs to the east is a wide expanse of alluvium that extends north- 
 east up the valley of the Khosh river ; it is bounded on the north by 
 desert cliffs that extend west to the valley of the Furrah river, where 
 they limit the Hokat basin to the east ; beyond this there is another 
 wide expanse of desert between the Hokat basin and the Neh Bunddn 
 hills ; its cliffs gradually fall in elevation and form the north-west limit 
 of the Seistan hamoon, or that portion of it distinguished as the Furrah 
 hamoon, 
 
130 RECORD OF THE MARCH OP 
 
 CLIMATE, SOIL, AND PRODUCTIONS. 
 
 Climate. The four seasons are very unequally represented in Seistan. 
 There is a maximum of hot weather and a minimum of cold, both are 
 severe of their kind, and the transition from the one to the other is very 
 short and sudden. 
 
 Winter may be said to commence in December and end in February. 
 During this season snow rarely falls on the plain, though it did this 
 year, an unusually severe one throughout these latitudes, and lasted four 
 or five days to the depth of a span. But hard frosts prevail, and the 
 thermometer sinks to zero, or a few degrees above that point, in the depth 
 of the season. A keen and strong north wind often blows during this 
 season and renders the moisture-laden atmosphere peculiarly raw and 
 inclement. This is notwithstanding considered the healthiest season of 
 the year, and to the well-fed and well- clad must prove salubrious and 
 invigorating ; but to the poor it is allowed to be a very trying season ; 
 amongst them rheumatism and chest diseases are common, as also is 
 opthalmia. 
 
 Spring is a very short season here, and generally inclement, owing 
 to the prevalence of a cold north wind. It may be said to commence 
 with March and end about the middle of the following month. Slight 
 rains occur during this period, and the alternations between the night 
 and day temperatures are described as sudden and great. 
 
 Summer is the longest of the seasons, and lasts from the middle of 
 April to the end of September. During this period the heat is de- 
 scribed as excessive, and the atmosphere oppressive and relaxing. Eairi 
 seldom falls on the plain, but storms occur on the mountains bordering 
 it. Sand-storms, accompanied by considerable electric disturbance, are of 
 frequent occurrence, and during greater portion of the season a persis- 
 tent north wind blows over the country. It blows during one hundred 
 and twenty days, and is from this circumstance called bddi sud o bist; it 
 commences very regularly two months after the vernal equinox, and 
 continues more or less constantly night and day from about the 15th 
 May to the 13th September. This wind is utilised to work wind-mills 
 all over the district (their construction is described in the route march), 
 but is described as very injurious to the growing crops, and destructive 
 to the growth of trees that are not protected from its strong blast by 
 walls. From another point of view, this wind may be considered as the 
 redeemer of the country ; but for its periodical and prolonged persistence 
 the whole Seistan basin would soon be a vast pestiferous swamp inhaling 
 malaria enough to poison the air and render the country uninhabitable. 
 
 Without entering into speculations as to what influence this wind, 
 supposing it to have existed periodically then as now, may have exerted 
 in the conversion of the Seistan basin from a vast sheet of water to a bare 
 sandy plain, it is sufficient to know that it is today the great cause of 
 the evaporation that controls the growth of the Hamoon, protects Seistan 
 from inundation, and, by dissipating the malaria engendered by its 
 swamps, converts the country from a poisonous marsh to a habitable 
 abode. 
 
 During June, July, and August, the rivers converging to the Hamoon 
 are in full flood. Much of their water is diverted for purposes of irriga- 
 tion, and much is evaporated en route ; the rest spreads in a wide and 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 131 
 
 thin sheet over the surface of the Hamoon ; here it is rapidly evaporated 
 by the north wind and blown across to the great sandy desert between 
 Seistan and Beloochistan, and with, it goes the malaria produced by the 
 action of a hot sun on some hundred square miles of stagnant putrid 
 marsh. As soon as this wind ceases, the periodical floods having already 
 subsided, malaria spreads over the district, and accompanying it is a 
 plague of flies and musquitoes. 
 
 This is the unhealthy season, and it extends into the autumn. 
 Fevers are now very rife and frequently prove fatal. Two kinds are 
 recognised, viz., ordinary intermittents, running a long course, and pro- 
 ducing enlargement of the spleen, general ancemia, and abdominal 
 dropsy in due course ; and bilious remittents, running a short course 
 characterised by sudden and extreme exhaustion, jaundice, delirium, 
 dysentery, and death in a fortnight or less. 
 
 The first are met with at all seasons, but prevail epidemically in the 
 autumn. The others are most common in winter and spring, and some- 
 times occur epidemically during the autumn months. The prevalence 
 of these fevers has left a noticeable impression upon the natives of the 
 country. I observed amongst those who frequented our camps that many 
 were anoemic and dropsical, and I thought, too, that a cachectic look 
 pervaded the general population. 
 
 Autumn may be said to last from October to December. It is 
 described as an unhealthy season, with hot days and cold nights, and 
 occasional rains, generally brought up by a warm south wind. This 
 description of the climate of Seistan is the result of enquiries made by 
 myself amongst residents of the country. 
 
 Soil. The soil of Seistan is generally light, porous, and sandy, and 
 in many parts appears to be a recent deposit from floods. In the south- 
 ern portion of the basin the surface soil is a firm clay, impermeable, and 
 thickly strewed with smooth round pebbles of a dark colour. It is an 
 uninhabited waste on which are traceable the lines of ancient canals 
 and the ruins of former cities. In the northern portions of the basin 
 the soil is light, spongy, and highly charged with salines, which here and 
 there whiten the surface with their efflorescence. In some tracts here 
 the soil is a desiccated clay, and in others a coarse gravel ; the latter 
 on the more elevated wastes skirting the hills. The best soil is in the 
 central portion of the basin south of the Hamoon, and on the alluvial 
 tracts skirting the desert cliffs on the east. It is light and sandy, 
 and described as exceedingly fertile under proper irrigation. 
 
 Productions. Vegetable. The natural productions of Seistan under 
 this head are limited in variety, and not very profuse in growth, except 
 in special localities. The representative plants of the country are the 
 tamarisk, the willow, and the mimosa, various species of salsola, and 
 the reed and bulrush. 
 
 The tamarisk is of two kinds, the gliaz and taghaz. The^te forms 
 thick forest belts in the river bed, and on the borders of the Hamoon north 
 of Koh Khojah ; its timber is hard and used for ploughshares. There is 
 a dwarf variety which grows in moist, sandy, and saline tracts, and in 
 the river bed ; its long twigs are used for basket-work, and the wicker 
 frames of the temporary huts or movable booths called palds. The 
 taghaz is a pretty tree, grows on dry sandy wastes, has a light, soft, 
 
132 RECORD OF THE MARCH OP 
 
 and white wood, and is used as a main source of fuel ; the wood burns 
 well and without much smoke, but with a slight aromatic odour. 
 
 The willow grows with the tamarisk in thick jungle strips along 
 the river bed. There are three kinds, the weeping willow (majnuri), the 
 musk willow (bed mishJc} , and a third with broad coarse leaves and thick 
 trunk (padcla] . With the willow is often found the Euphrates poplar and 
 the Arabian acacia. 
 
 A dwarf variety of the sensitive mimosa (cJmghalc} is found on 
 arid gravelly wastes, and supplies excellent pasture for camels and flocks. 
 In similar situations is found the common zizyphus, of which there 
 are three or four varieties, all thick, shrubby, and thorny bushes, 
 greedily browsed by camels and goats, &c. Along the banks of small 
 irrigation cuts is found the barberry, a very hard, thorny bush, producing 
 sour, worthless fruit, called here sagangurak, or " dog's grape," and the 
 bush zir. 
 
 The herbal growth on the general surface is made up of various 
 species of salsola, such as caroxylon, salicornia, suoda, anabasis, &c., which 
 are mostly scattered loosely over the ground ; in some localities however, as 
 on the saline valley of the Harut Rood, where it approaches the Ha moon, 
 the caroxylon forms an impenetrable jungle eight or ten feet high; the 
 salicornia, too, here grows plentifully. Other plants on the general surface 
 are the Syrian rue (sipand] and wormwood (talkha); the former is very 
 generally used as a f umigatory to avert " evil eye/' and the latter is 
 used as a tonic medicine and vermifuge. 
 
 On the more elevated tracts skirting the hills are found the wild 
 almond, a large species of oak-leaved carthamus, the assafbetida, of 
 which there are two kinds used as a pot-herb, the yellow-flowered 
 cygophyllum (ghicJi}, the hedysarum, or " camel's thorn " (zoz Pukkhto, 
 Ichar shuturi Persian), a variety of the indigofera, some with yellow, 
 others with lilac flowers, several species of astragalus, and a great 
 variety of other leguminous herbs, with orchids, tulips, and other 
 bulbous plants in great variety. 
 
 The reeds and bulrushes are confined to the Hamoon and the adjacent 
 swamps, and here form the characteristic vegetation of Central Seistan. 
 They are also met with along the course of the irrigation canals. There 
 are several kinds of reeds of the species Arundo and Andropogon ; the 
 young shoots are pastured by cattle, and the dry stalks are used for 
 thatching the temporary huts of the nomad Belooch. A variety of 
 arundo, here called kerta, is used as fodder for horses and cattle; it 
 grows on the river banks, and along the course of the canals. The 
 bulrush, here called tut, is mostly confined to the swamps of the Hamoon ; 
 it is used to make the ttiti, or " bulrush cradles/' on which the Hamoon, 
 &c., are crossed ; the wicker of the flanges of the wind-mills is also made 
 of this material ; its young shoots are pastured by cattle, and for this 
 purpose the old stems are got rid of by fire every spring. These reeds 
 and bulrushes cover many square miles of country, and conceal vast 
 tracts of swamp and bog in the northern part of the Seistan basin. 
 
 Animal. The wild animals of Seistan are the pig, the wolf, 
 jackal, hyena, and about the hill skirts the wild ass, fox, and wild 
 cat, or lynx. The hare, too, is here found, and occasionally the leopard. 
 Ravine deer are common all over the country. The pig are found in the 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 133 
 
 swamps of the Hamoon and in the tamarisk jungle in the river bed ; they 
 are hunted by the natives with dogs trained to the sport, but the 
 flesh is not eaten. 
 
 Of birds we observed many species and found them in vast num- 
 bers. Two kinds of bustard were seen, and three kinds of land-grouse ; 
 plovers, peewits, snipes and snippets in great variety, and water-fowl 
 in endless numbers and of every kind ; cranes and herons, coolan and 
 rice-birds, swans and pelicans, geese and ducks, cormorants, grebe, and 
 other divers. Waders and water-fowl swarm during the cold weather upon 
 every pool ; mews, gulls, terns, and other similar birds hover around, 
 and the noise they create is deafening. The swan, here called cu or ghu t 
 is shot for its feathers, which fetch a high price at Candahar; the 
 pelican or cotdn is also shot for its feathers, and the oil distilled from its 
 fat, which is used in medicine for the discursion of indolent tumours and 
 rheumatic pains. The wild ducks are snared for their feathers and shot 
 for the sport. The swamps and stagnant pools, many of which are 
 putrid with a black miry bottom, are alive with slugs, snails, mussels, 
 beetles, and other water insects ; but neither fish nor frogs are found 
 in them, except in those with clear water. These swamps breed myriads 
 of musquitoes and gnats and midges, and a white fly that stings. They 
 are in greatest force in April and May, after which they are dispersed 
 by the north wind ; neither man nor beast can exist in their neighbour- 
 hood when they are in full force. In the swampy tracts musquitoes and 
 gnats swarm during most of the year. Buffaloes cannot live in the 
 country owing to this plague, and horses and kine frequently die from 
 the effects of their attacks and those of the white fly not from the 
 stings of one or two, but from continued attacks by myriads of them 
 on the under parts of the body where the skin is unprotected by hair. 
 
 Snakes, lizards, iguanas, scorpions, and other reptiles, with tortoises 
 and hedgehogs, are common on the gravelly desert wastes, and are met 
 with in all parts of the district. Fish are found in the rivers, but of 
 no great size and in no great quantity. Some netted in the Helmund 
 were found to be small barbel by Major Smith. 
 
 Mineral.'^, heard of no mineral products in Seistan. Saltpetre is 
 obtainable in large quantity in Hokat, south of Furrah, in which latter 
 place it is extensively prepared for exportation to Candahar and Herat. 
 Barilla could be manufactured largely from the caroxylon and other 
 salsolaccea that cover many square miles of country in the north-west 
 portion of the district. 
 
 ANTIQUITIES AND EUINS. 
 
 The ruins of Seistan form quite a characteristic feature of the country, 
 and, as the mute emblems of its former prosperity and grandeur, excite 
 the curiosity and interest of the traveller. Unfortunately circumstances 
 proved adverse to our gratifying the one or satisfying the other, and 
 the finest and most extensive of the ruins were left unexplored or 
 unseen by us. 
 
 In Seistan was the home of the renowned Zal, the father of Roostum. 
 Here was the capital of Caicobad, the founder of the Cayaui dynasty, 
 and the theatre of some of Roostum's most celebrated exploits, ending 
 
134 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 with the repulsion of Afrasyab from Seistan in the reign of Caikhusran, 
 and the bestowal of Ghor and Hari (Herat) to his grandson Borzu, and 
 of Cabul, Zabulistan, and Nimroz (Seistan) to himself. 
 
 We saw the ruins of Caicobad, and what is said to represent the 
 palace of Caikhusran in their midst ; also the ruins of Cala-i-Madari 
 Padshah, said to have been the former residence of the queen -mother. 
 The ruins of Caicobad cover a great extent of ground on the left bank of 
 the Helmund, about twenty-eight miles west of Roodbar, and are decidedly 
 the most ancient ruins we have seen, and differ in character from the 
 others it was our fortune to visit in Seistan. The ruins of the fort 
 assigned to the residence of the " King's mother" are situated away 
 from the river bank, and some twelve miles to the east of Caicobad ; 
 they appear to be of a more recent date, and differ in character, notably 
 in containing a mosque, from those of Caicobad. 
 
 Still further eastward, about six miles east of Roodbar, are the ruins 
 of Karbasah or Garshasp ; they appear very old, but not so completely 
 decayed as those of Caicobad. Judging from the name, they may possi- 
 bly represent the residence of Garshasp, the grandson of Jamshed by 
 a princess of Seistan, and the great-grandfather of Zal. These ruins, like 
 those of Caicobad, now merely present the traces of walls, built of very 
 durable bricks of raw clay and straw ; here and there the walls rise 
 to the height of ten or twelve feet, and show the form and dimensions 
 of the buildings ; these differ from the others to be described in the 
 absence of dome roofs, and were, it would appear, originally roofed with 
 beams of timber. 
 
 At Roodbar, and proceeding westward from it, are the traces of a 
 very ancient and capacious canal called Karshasp after the last of the 
 Peshdadian kings, who was deposed by Zal to make way for the rise 
 of the Cayani family in the person of Caicobad, with whom Zal occupied 
 the post of Wuzeer. 
 
 On the death of Cai Khusran, the capital, it appears, was removed 
 from Seistan to Persia under Lohrasp and his successors Gushtasp (Darius 
 Hystaspes) and Bahman Ardishir Dirazdast (Artaxerxes Longimanus) , 
 whilst Seistan remained in possession of Roostum. On his death, 
 Bahman invades the country and takes it from Feramorz and Banti 
 Caishab, the son and daughter respectively of Roostum. Seistan is subse- 
 quently recovered from Bahman, who is slain and succeeded by Darab 
 (Darius). He and his successor, Darab the Second (Darius Codomanus), 
 war with the Greeks, and the latter is ultimately slain in the pursuit by 
 Alexander, who (330 B. C.) marches through Seistan and up the Gur nisei, 
 at that time occupied by the peaceful and industrious Agriaspoe or 
 Energetce. 
 
 After the Alexandrian period follows the Sassanian line of kings. 
 They reign over Persia from A.D. 226 to A.D. 651, when the dynasty ends 
 with the death of Yezdigird. During the latter years of his reign, the 
 Arabs under Abu Ubed invade Persia and overrun the country. During 
 their rule under the Caliphs of Baghdad, Seistan was conquered and occu- 
 pied by Sad bin Wacas ; this was soon after the commencement of the 
 Arab invasion. 
 
 From this period we may reckon the destruction of the Cayanian 
 cities, and the foundation of Arab ones in their stead. The Arab rule 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 135 
 
 lasted two centuries, and during this period many large cities were reared 
 in the area of the Seistan basin, which was, it would seem, considered an 
 important strategic position, commanding as it does all the country to the 
 north- east and south. 
 
 On the downfall of the Arab power, Seistan is seized (A.D. 868) by 
 the potter Yakoob bin Lais. He quickly possesses himself of Herat and 
 Kerman on one side, and Cabul on the other, and extending his conquests 
 up to Nishabor, establishes the Sufari (or potter) dynasty, with the seat 
 of government in Seistan. His capital is not known, but the ruins of - 
 Doshak are supposed to mark its site. Kinnear supposes the ancient 
 Zarang of Ptolemy on the Helmund to be the same as Doshak. We did 
 not see these ruins ; they are described as covering a great extent of sur- 
 face, and in their midst is the modern town of Jellalabad, the former 
 residence of the Cayani Chief, Bahram Khan. 
 
 The Sufari dynasty ended A.D. 901 with the death of Ameer bin 
 Lais, the brother and successor of Yakoob ; but his grandson Tahir, and 
 after him other princes of the Lais family, continued to hold the country 
 under the Samanis, who, with the Dilemis, divided the Persian empire 
 during the century intervening between the fall of the Sufari dynasty 
 and the rise of that of Ghuznee. In A.D. 1003, Mahmood of Ghuznee 
 conquered Seistan from Calif, the last prince of the Lais family. 
 
 During the time of Mahmood, Seistan, as described by Ibn Haukal, 
 was a most populous and productive country ; from Bust to the Zarrah 
 lake it was covered with cities and intersected with canals like the land 
 of Egypt. * The Ghaznivides were followed by the Ghorides, and they by 
 the Saljuki Tartars. Then came the Moghuls, A.D. 1202, under Chan- 
 ghiz. During all this period Seistan experienced many vicissitudes, but 
 still remained populous and flourishing till the time of Timoor Lang. 
 In 1383 A.D. this " scourge of God" invaded Seistan, and, according to 
 local tradition, was here wounded in the ankle by an arrow-shot by 
 a Seistanee ; the injury produced a permanent lameness, whence he acquired 
 the soubriquet (lang), or lame. In revenge for the opposition he met with 
 here, Timoor ravaged the country for four years, massacred its people with 
 the most ruthless cruelty, sacked and razed its cities and forts, destroyed 
 its canals, and did not quit the country till he had reduced it to a heap 
 of ruins. 
 
 Seistan has never recovered from the havoc and destruction of this 
 invasion, and most of the great ruins now covering its surface may be 
 reckoned to date from this period. Timoor's son, Shah Rukh, when he 
 succeeded to the throne, attempted to restore the country to its former 
 state of prosperity, but without success. Gala Fath and one or two other 
 cities, it is said, were partially restored by him, but the country generally 
 remained depopulated and its cities in ruins. The great ruins that now 
 mark the extent of Timoor's destructive rage are those of Pulki, Cala* 
 Fath (subsequently again destroyed by Nadir), Nadali, Chukunsoor, 
 Zahidan, Dahshakh or Doshak, Peshawuran and Sumur. All these are in 
 that portion of the basin north of Roodbar ; there are, it is said, many 
 others in the southern portion of the basin, in the direction of Traku 
 and Zarrah. 
 
 * Rev. J. Williams' Life of Alexander the Great. 
 
136 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 From the foregoing account, the particulars of which have been 
 mainly derived from Malcolm's History of Persia, it will be observed 
 that most of the Seistan ruins date from the period of Timoor's inva- 
 sion, and that they were of Arab origin. 
 
 Our opportunities did not allow of a full exploration of the ruins 
 of this country, but from what I could gather on the spot, I am inclined 
 to believe that the early Peshdadian and Cayanian ruins are to be found 
 on the lower course of the Helmund, and in the southern portion of the 
 Seistan basin towards the Zarrah hollow, whilst those of the Arab period 
 are to be found mostly, if not altogether, in the northern part of the 
 basin, in the vicinity of the Hamoon, and the deltas of the rivers discharg- 
 ing into it. The ancient canals, embankments, and weirs all appear to 
 belong to a period prior to the Arab conquest. 
 
 The Arab period ruins are characterised by strong forts, large 
 mosques, and extensive colleges. The buildings were all roofed by lofty 
 cupolas, small domes, and narrow arches ; upon the walls in some of the 
 buildings are found Arabic letters in the old Cufic character ; amongst the 
 debris are bits of pottery, glazed ware, and glass, and a profusion of 
 baked bricks. The coins found in the possession of villagers belong to 
 the Sassanian and early Arab period ; a few seals and signets of the 
 latter period were also met with. An ancient Cayanian document (sup- 
 posed to be such) was said to exist in the possession of a Cayani family 
 in Banjar, but on this point no precise information was obtained. 
 
 HISTORY, ANCIENT AND MODERN. 
 
 Ancient. A brief sketch of the ancient history of Seistan has been 
 given in the preceding section devoted to a mention of the antiquities of 
 the country. Here it will suffice to observe that this region in ancient 
 times formed a very important portion of the Persian empires of Cyrus 
 and Darius. After the Alexandrian period it was included in the empire 
 of the Sassanian sovereigns, and on the termination of their dynasty 
 came under the rule of the Arabian Caliphs. On the downfall of the Arab 
 rule it rose to independence for a brief period under the founder of the 
 Sufari dynasty, Yakoob bin Lais ; but by his successors it was held as a 
 tributary government under the Caliphs of Baghdad, until the rise of 
 the Ghaznivides, when the country was conquered from Culif, the last 
 prince of the Lais family, by Mahmood, and annexed to his own empire, 
 of which Ghuznee was the capital. 
 
 During the period of the Ghoride sovereigns, who followed the 
 Ghaznivides, Seistan remained separated from Persia ; but during the 
 succeeding dynasty of the Saljuki Tatars it fell under their rule as a 
 Persian province. The Moghuls came next. In their time, Persia was 
 divided amongst independent local chiefs till the whole country is sv'- 
 dued by Changhiz, 1221 A. D. During this period Seistan, it appears, 
 was held as a tributary government under the Moghul sovereigns, the 
 successors of Changhiz in Persia. 
 
 The Moghuls are followed by the Timoorides, 1383 A.D., when 
 Timoor invades Seistan, and subsequently conquers all Persia. This 
 dynasty closes 1468 A.D., when the Turkman Azan Husen deposes 
 Sultan Husen and possesses himself of Persia. From this time to the 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 137 
 
 rise of the Saffavi dynasty, 1502 A.D., Seistan was an independent 
 principality under a local chief, as were the other provinces of the 
 Persian Empire. Shah Ismail, the founder of the Saffavi dynasty, re- 
 duced the independent chiefs in succession and consolidated the empire 
 of the Saffavis by the conquest of Khorassan and Seistan. This latter, 
 it would seem at this period, comprised all the country up to Ghuznee 
 and the watershed of the Cabul valley, for this was the frontier line 
 of Shah Ismail's empire, whilst Seistan was its most easterly province. 
 And such continued to be the eastern frontier of the Saffavi empire 
 (notwithstanding- fluctuations in the possession of Candahar, finally 
 recovered to Persia from the Moghul Emperor Shah Jehan in the reign, 
 of Abbas the Second) up to the time of Shah Sultan Husein, the last 
 sovereign of this dynasty. 
 
 Modern. From the period of the establishment of the Saffavi rule 
 over Persia, at the commencement of the sixteenth century, the history 
 of Seistan is a continuous record as a province of the Persian empire, 
 under the rule of its hereditary chiefs of the Cayani family ; their rule, 
 it appears, was limited to the basin of the Hamoon only, the district of 
 Gurmsel being under the authority of a separate Governor. 
 
 The events following the rebellion of the Ghilzais, and the establish- 
 ment of Candahar as a separate kingdom under their able chief, Meer 
 Wais, first bring the history of Seistan to prominent notice. On the 
 defeat of the two successive Persian armies sent for the reduction of 
 Candahar, the provinces of Seistan and Herat rebel, and, with the whole 
 of Khorassan, throw off the Persian yoke and become independent under 
 local chiefs. 
 
 Herat was at this time seized and raised into an independent prin- 
 cipality by Asadoollah Khan, the Abdalf Chief of Hazarah. Whilst the 
 Persian army is operating in this quarter, Meer Mahmood Ghilzai, the 
 son of Meer Wais, taking advantage of the opportunity, advances from 
 Candahar with twenty thousand Afghans, and in 1720 invades Kerman 
 by the route through Seistan, from the ruler of which latter, Mullik 
 Mahmod, Cayani, he receives no opposition. The Afghans being- 
 repelled from Kerman, make a disorderly and disastrous retreat to Canda- 
 har through the desert tracts of southern Seistau and the Gurmsel, where 
 they are plundered and harassed by the nomad Belooch. But Meer Mah- 
 mood, nothing daunted by this disaster, at once recruits a fresh army, 
 and in the following year again advances through Seistan and Kerman 
 to the conquest of Persia. His second expedition proves successful, and 
 on the 23rd October 1722 he receives the surrender of the throne and 
 crown of the last of the Saffavi kings at the Persian capital ; the Shah 
 Husein is at once imprisoned in Ispahan, and the Ghilzai establishes 
 himself in his new conquest. 
 
 Whilst the Afghans under Meer Mahmood are prosecuting their 
 successes in Persia, the Ghilzar's namesake, Mullik Mahmood, Cayani, the 
 hereditary prince of Seistan, is busy on an enterprise of his own ; and 
 such was the unsettled state of the times and disturbed state of the 
 countries, that he very speedily possessed himself of all Khorassan up to 
 Subzwar in the north. And now, fearful of the dominance of the Afghans, 
 the Cayani turns against the Ghilzai, and enters the field as his rival for 
 the possession of the crumbling edifice of the Persian empire ; he marches 
 
138 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 hastily to the relief of the capital besieged by the Afghan army, but on 
 arrival at Gulnabad is bought off by the Ghilzai Chief, who gives him in 
 perpetuity, as an independent principality, the whole of Seistan up to 
 Bust, and all Khorassan south of Herat. 
 
 Satisfied with this concession, the Cayani retires to his principality, 
 whilst the Ghilzai urges on the mad career which in a few .short years 
 ends his life, and leads to the expulsion of the Afghans from Persia a 
 few years later under Nadir Culi, Afshar. 
 
 This noted freebooter, taking up the cause of Persia, joined Tamasp 
 in 1726, and was at once employed to subjugate Meshed and the rebel- 
 lious provinces of Khorassan and Seistan. Meshed and Herat are 
 speedily wrested from their Abdali captors, and all Khorassan and Seistan 
 are subjugated. In the latter province the hereditary Chief, Mullik 
 Mahmood. Cayani, offering resistance, is captured and executed, and his 
 brother, Mullik Husein, set in his place. He soon rebels, and Nadir then 
 appoints his nephew Ali Culi to the government of the district, with a 
 strong force for its reduction. 
 
 On the expulsion of the Afghans from Persia in 1729-30, Tamasp, 
 the son of Shah Husein, succeeds to the throne, and rewards the great 
 services of his powerful general, Nadir Culi, with, in free gift, the eastern 
 half of his kingdom, comprising the provinces of Mazanderan, Khoras- 
 san, Seistan, and Kerman. He at the same time presents him with a 
 jewelled crown and the title of Sultan. These provinces were at the 
 time in a state of revolt against Persia, and more or less independent 
 under local chiefs. Nadir at once enters upon their subjugation ; Herat 
 and Furrah early submit to his authority, but not so Seistan. Here the 
 Cayani chief, Mullik Husein, abandoning the capital, Gala Fath, retired to 
 his stronghold on the Koh Khojah in the Hamoon, and held out against a 
 a siege of seven years. Nadir's troops, having in this interval overrun 
 the district and thoroughly devastated the country, were then forced by 
 famine to abandon the siege. But Nadir at this time assuming the 
 style and title of royalty, substitutes the Sunni for the SMa doctrine, 
 ^and forthwith sets out for the settlement of Seistan, and the subjugation 
 of his Afghan rival at Candahar, where Meer Husein, Ghilzai, the brother 
 of Meer Mahmood, reigned as an independent king. His route was 
 through Khorassan by the route of Ghaynatand Bandan; from the latter, 
 crossing the Tabarkan pass of the Bundan range, his army descended by 
 the Uchgan defile, and entered on the Seistan plain south of the Hamoon. 
 By this route he avoided the swamps and irrigation canals which would 
 have obstructed his progress had he entered the country from t;he side of 
 Hokat. Here being joined by his nephew Ali Culi, the military gover- 
 nor of the district, and receiving the submission of its hereditary Chief, 
 Mullik Husein, Nadir destroys all the principal fortresses of the country, 
 and then pushes on against Meer Husein, Ghilzai, at Candahar. On his 
 march through Gurmsel, he dismantles the forts en route, and destroys 
 the fortress of Bust, A.D. 1738. Ali Culi meanwhile holds Seistan with 
 a strong force. 
 
 On Nadir's return from the conquest of India, he enters on that of 
 Balkh ; after the successful completion of this enterprise he is engaged 
 by disturbances on the western frontiers of Persia ; these occupy him 
 trill 174.5, and now breaks out the general rebellion in all his Persian 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 139 
 
 provinces, produced by his oppression of the Sheea population. At this 
 time Ali Culi, the military governor of Seistan, following- the general 
 example, also rebels, and Nadir, as soon as he is freed from more pressing 
 dangers, marches against him, but is assassinated en route at Khaborhan 
 in June 1747 by Sheea conspirators. 
 
 His nephew, Ali Culi, now hurries up from Seistan with the troops 
 under his command, and on arrival at Meshed is acknowledged King 
 of Persia under the title of Adil Shah. 
 
 In the confusion following Nadir's death, Ahmed Khan, Suddozai, 
 seized Candahar and established the Afghan monarchy or Pooranee 
 empire. He was an Afghan noble, and chief ot' the Suudozai branch of 
 e Abdali tribe; he took service with Nadir in 1737 at the head of a 
 contingent of 10,000 of his own clansmen, and accompanied him in his 
 expeditions to Hindustan and Turkistan; at the time of Nadir's assassi- 
 nation he was at Meshed, but hastily retiring with his troops he sur- 
 prized Candahar, and with the aid of the Afghan and Belooch nobles es- 
 tablished the independent kingdom of Afghanistan ; at the close of the 
 year 1747 he was crowned king of Afghanistan with the title of Shah 
 Ahmed, Duri Durran, " pearl of pearls/' 
 
 The first years of Shah Ahmed's reign were occupied in consoli- 
 dating his authority over the new kingdom of Afghanistan, and in ex- 
 tending the limits of the Dooranee empire towards Hindustan on the one 
 side, and Iran on the other. In the spring of 1751, on his return from 
 the conquest of India, Shah Ahmed set out on the conquest of Kho- 
 rassan, which, since the death of Nadir, had remained in a state of com- 
 plete anarchy, and divided amongst a host of petty local chiefs. On his 
 way to this frontier the Afghan monarch received the submission of 
 Mullik Suleiman Cayani, the hereditary chief of Seistan, and cemented the 
 allegiance by taking his daughter in marriage. 
 
 By the close of the following year, Shah Ahmed had completed the 
 conquest of Khorassan as a part of the Afghan kingdom, had established 
 Meshed as an independent principality under Afghan protection, and 
 had fixed the frontier of his kingdom along the line of Chinaran, 
 Pulabresham, Turbat Hydari, Tun and Tabbas, Ghayn and Neh. 
 
 Frojn tlnVtime the history of Seistan is^linked with that of Af- 
 ghanistan, of which country it forms, both geographically and politically, 
 an integral part. In the settlement of his kingdom, Shah AhmecT joined 
 Seistan and Herat together as one provincial government, and appointed 
 his son, TimoorMirza, Governor at Herat; the Cayani Chief Mullik Sulei- 
 man ruling his own district in subordination to the Governor at Herat. 
 This arrangement does not seem to have worked satisfactorily; differences 
 soon arose amongst the different tribes occupying the district, and the 
 Sarbandis and Shahrekis became restive under the authority of the 
 Cayani, instigated to this course, it is said, by Timoor's Governor of 
 Hokat, Muhamad Zuman Khan, Populzai, whose head-quarters were in 
 the fortress of Lash. Timoor, on succeeding to the throne in 1773, de- 
 posed the Cayani Chief, and in his place appointed Meer Beg Shahreki 
 Governor of Seistan. This choice did not prove a happy one ; the 
 Shahreki Governor soon became very unpopular through his attempts to 
 suppress the growing influence of the Sarbandis (an account of these 
 tribes is given in the following section), and four years later 
 
140 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 was killed in a faction fight at Roodbar. On this Shah Timoor restored 
 the Government of the district to the Cayani family in the person of 
 Mullik Bahram, the son of the previously deposed Mullik Suleiman, but 
 in subordination to the Governor of Hokat, Muhamad Zaman Khan, 
 who was now appointed to the charge of the whole district of Seistan, in- 
 cluding Ghayn and Neh, under their respective local chiefs of Arab 
 descent, as part of the Herat province. 
 
 Shah Timoor, on succeeding to the throne at Candahar, whence he 
 soon after removed his capital to Cabul, had installed his son Mahmood 
 Mirza at Herat as Governor of the province, which at this period com- 
 prised the districts of Turbatain, Tun and Tabbas, Ghayn, Neh, and Seistan. 
 But he did not succeed in keeping matters quiet in Seistan, nor in adjust- 
 ing the conflicting interests of its rival chiefs, who, owing to the distance 
 of the capital and the weakness of Mahmood's rule on the frontier daily 
 grew bolder on the advancement of their ambitious designs against the 
 Cayani lands and authority. In this course, it is said, they were 
 encouraged by the Populzai Governor of the district, Mahomed Zaman, 
 regarding whose secret designs of self-aggrandizement there were already 
 grave suspicions. At length the Shahrekis rebel against Mullik Bahrain, 
 and seize some Cayani villages. Timoor then sends Barkhurdar Khan, 
 Achukzai, with a force to reduce them ; this he does with great slaughter 
 in the battles of Mykhana and Kandurah, about 1785. Mullik Bahram, 
 by way of strengthening himself, now invites a party of the Nahroe 
 Beleoch to Seistan, and settles them under their chief Alum Khan at Boorj 
 Alum and Gala Nan as military colonists; but, notwithstanding this 
 accession of force, his influence steadily declines, owing mainly to dissen- 
 sions in his own family, and the Sarbandis and Shahrekis gradually en- 
 croach upon the Cayani lands, as will be shown in the next section. 
 
 On the death of Shah Timoor in 1793, Afghanistan is convulsed by 
 the contest for the throne amongst his sons. Zaman is at once raised to 
 the throne at Cabul by the Barukzai Chief, Payandah Khan, He quickly 
 seizes Candahar from Hoomayoon, and proceeds against Herat, whence 
 Mahmood issues to oppose him. They meet at Ghorek ; Mahmood is 
 defeated and escapes to Persia, whilst Zaman seizing Herat instals his 
 son Kaisur Mirza in the fortress, and, by way of reward for his ready 
 partizanship and allegiance, appoints the Populzai Mahomed Zaman 
 his Wuzeer and Governor of Khorassan. 
 
 During the anarchy that now possessed Afghanistan, Seistan became 
 divided amongst its local chiefs, who attached themselves, according to 
 their varying interests, either to the Government of Candahar or that of 
 Herat. Thus the Nurzais under Meer Alum Khan at Chakansur, and the 
 Sarbandis under Meer Khan at Sekoha sided with the Candahar ruler, 
 whilst the Cayanis, under Mullik Bahram at Jellalabad, the Nahroes under 
 Meer Alum at Boorj Alum, and the Shahrekis under Meer Hashim at 
 Dashtak sided with the Herat Government. Meanwhile, in Seistan, they 
 were constantly at feud with each other, and encroaching on the lands of 
 the weaker party, the Cayanis. 
 
 In 1800, Mahmood, returning from Persia with the support of the 
 Cajar King, Fath AH Shah, succeeds in gaining the throne. At Ghayn 
 he is joined by its Arab chief, Meer AH Khan ; in Seistan he is welcomed 
 by the Cayani Chief, Mullik Bahram, and the Nurzai Chief, Meer Alum 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 141 
 
 Khan. With their aid he takes possession of the country, and to strengthen 
 the Cayani alliance and influence takes Bahrain's daughter to wife for 
 his own son Kamran. In Seistan Mahmood is joined by Fath Khan, 
 Barukzai of Nadali near Girishk, by Meer Khan, Sarbandi of Sekoha, by 
 Meer Hashim, Shahreki of Dashtak, and by the nomad Belooch under Khan 
 Jahan Khan, Sangurani. With the contingents furnished by these 
 adherents, and the guiding skill of Fath Khan, Mahmood takes Kandahar, 
 and pushing on to Cabul is there set on the throne by Fath Khan, who 
 becomes his Wuzeer. 
 
 Mahmood is dethroned and imprisoned three years later by Shah 
 Shooja, and Fath Khan joins Kamran at Candahar, but he being ousted by 
 Kaisur, retires to Furrah, and Fath Khan, failing to obtain service with 
 Shah Shooja, returns to Nadali. Seistan meanwhile is left much to itself, 
 and the contentions of its local chiefs, until Mahmood's restoration to the 
 throne by Fath Khan in 1809, when a new element of discord is granted 
 permanent location in the country, 
 
 At this time Fath Khan, who had long been jealous of the growing 
 influence of his territorial neighbour, Meer Alum Khan, the chief of the 
 Niirzai Afghans, settled at Chakansur, Khosh, and Kaddah, seized a favor- 
 able opportunity, and, on the pretext of a quarrel about a mistress, 
 murdered him at Jagdalah near Jellalabad of Cabul, and gave his domain 
 to Khan Jahan Khan, Sangurani, the chief of the nomad Belooch who 
 for some generations had frequented the lower course of the Helmund for 
 the sake of its pastures. 
 
 In revenge for Fath Khan's conduct, Abdoollah Khan, the father of 
 the murdered Meer Alum, joined by Yahya Khan, Bamizai and Salih 
 Muhammad Ishakzai seizes Candahar; Shah Shooja hastens to join them, 
 but is opposed by Fath Khan, and Saleh Mahomed deserting to the 
 side of Fath Khan, Shooja retreats to Rawul Pindi, and the Nurzais 
 disperse, Kamran is installed at Candahar, and Saleh Mahomed 
 joins Mahmood, by whom he is quickly raised to favor under the title 
 of Shah Pasand Khan, and granted the district of Hokat in perpetual 
 fief. Herat at this time is held by Feroz, the brother of Mahmad. 
 
 During the next few years Seistan acknowledges the suzerainty of 
 Mahmood, and its chiefs, with their contingents, join the army of his 
 Wuzeer in those operations against the Persians on the Herat frontier, 
 which end in his degradation, mutilation, and final murder. The murder 
 of Fath Khan in 1818 by Kamran plunged the country into fresh anarchy 
 and drove Mahmood from the throne, and made way for the rise of the 
 Barukzais to sovereignty. 
 
 Mahmood and Kamran retire to Herat, whence they expel Feroz. 
 In these troubles Furrah and Seistan revolt to Candahar; in 1824 Kamran 
 marches to recover them ; he fails before Furrah and retires on Hokat ; 
 from this he subdues Seistan, collects revenue, places his own agents in 
 the district, and gives the daughter of Mahomed Ruza, Sarbandi of 
 Seikoha, in marriage to Syd Mahomed, the son of Yar Mahomed, 
 Mahmood's former Governor of Furrah, and subsequently Kamran's 
 Wuzeer, murderer, and successor at Herat. 
 
 Whilst in Seistan on this occasion, Kamran married the daughter of 
 the late Nasir Khan, brother, and successor of Malik Bahrain, Cayani, 
 and established Jellalooddeen Khan, the son of the latter, as chief of th(> 
 
142 EECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 family at Jellalabad. From this he was ousted in later years by Meer 
 Hashim, Shahreki, of Dashtak, and took refuge with Kamran at Herat, 
 by whom he was restored absut 1833. He was again expelled from Seistan 
 by Mahomed Ruza, Sarbandi, and Ali Khan, Sangurani, and retiring 
 to Herat was once more reinstated by Kamran, but not being able to 
 maintain his position he left the country in 1839, and for a while found 
 an asylum with the Chief of Ghayn ; he then again returned to the 
 country in very needy circumstances, and shortly after died in obscurity. 
 Jellalooddeen was a very dissipated man, and the main cause of the later 
 misfortunes of the Cayani family. In early life he quarrelled with his 
 father, Mullik Bahram, and married the daughter of Khan Jahan Khan, 
 Sangurani Belooch, to whom he gave Biring Hissar, which the Belooch 
 enlarged and restored and named Jahanabad. 
 
 Having made these arrangements in Seistan, and left his agents for 
 the collection of revenue in Kimah under charge of his old adherent 
 Meer Hashim, Shahreki, Kamran returned to Herat there to meet fresh 
 troubles ; with him he carried away from Seistan a very early illuminated 
 copy of the Koran, and some very ancient Cayani records written in a 
 language now unknown in the country. 
 
 During the next few years, the Seistan chiefs regularly furnish their 
 quota of troops for the defence of the Herat frontier against Persian 
 assaults, and in 1833 pay revenue to the Wuzeer, Yar Mahomed, who 
 comes down to collect it and settle the district. In the subsequent siege 
 of Herat the Seistan contingent take part in the defence against the 
 Persians. On the conclusion of the siege, and the succeeding British in- 
 vasion of Afghanistan, the affairs of Seistan are neglected for more 
 momentous matters, and the local chiefs become practically independent. 
 
 At this time Kohndil Khan, the chief of Candahar, in pursuance 
 of his intrigues with the Court of Persia, quits his capital (1839) and 
 proceeds via Seistan, where he receives the submission of Mahomed 
 Ruza, Sarbandi, of Sekoha, to the Persian capital. On the evacuation of 
 Afghanistan by the British, Kohndil recovers Candahar from Sufdar 
 Jung. On his way from Persia through Seistan, he is there joined by the 
 Sarbandi, Shahreki, and Nahroe chiefs, with their respective contingents 
 under Lrutf Ali and Ali Khan, son and brother respectively of Muham- 
 mud Ruza, Sarbandi, and Meer Mehdi, son of Meer Hashim Shahreki, and 
 Dost Mahomed, Nahroe. These troops are dismissed at Candahar, 
 but Ali Khan, and subsequently Shureef Khan, brother of Dost Maho- 
 med, Nahroe, take service with Kohndil at Candahar. 
 
 In the following year (1845), Kohndil annexes Gurmsel up to 
 Roodbar to Candahar, and enters into an agreement with the Sarbandi 
 Chief, by which the latter acknowledges dependence on Candahar. Follow- 
 ing this, Kohndil sends his brother Mehrdil to Seistan for the collection 
 of revenue, the reconstruction of the Traku canal, and the arrangement 
 of a marriage between the Sarbandi Chiefs daughter, and one of his own 
 sons. But before these arrangements could be completed Mahomed 
 Ruza dies in 1848 ; he is succeeded by his son Lutf Ali in the icterest of 
 Yar Mahomed at Herat, for whom, with the aid of the Governor of 
 Furrah, he captures Chakansur, and holds the rest of the country. On 
 this Yar Mahomed appoints his own officers in Seistan, ?;^.,Surfuraz Khan, 
 Ishakzai, with Lutf Ali at Sekoha, Moostafa Khan, Ishakzai, at Boorj 
 Aloom, Mardan Khan, Nurzai, at Dushtak, Mahmood Khan, Nurzai, 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 143 
 
 at Kimak, and others, and supports them with a detachment of Herat 
 troops. 
 
 Kohndil, then, on his part sends his brother Mehrdil with an army 
 of six thousand men to oust Lutf Ali, and establish Ali Khan in the 
 government in place of his deceased brother, Mahomed Ruza. On the 
 approach of this force, the Seistan Chiefs come forward and join it against 
 Lutf Ali and Yar Mahomed's officers. Thus Dost Mahomed, Nahroe, 
 joins Mehrdil, with whom is Sultan Ali, the son of Kohndil, at Landi, 
 Ibrahim Khan of Chakanstir at Malabhan, and the other Belooch Chiefs, 
 Imam Khan and Kamal Khan, at Roodbar. The force then captures 
 Lutf Ali in Sekoha, deprives him of sight, places Ali Khan at Sekoha 
 in charge of Seistan on the part of Kohndil, and returns to Candahar. 
 
 Yar Mahomed now in turn marches against Ali Khan to recon- 
 quer Seistan ; but on arrival at Lash he is suddenly taken ill, and hurrying 
 back to Herat dies on the road there, 1851. Kohndil on this at once 
 sets out for Herat, and is joined at Furrah by the whole of the Seistan 
 contingent; but Syd Mahomed, the son of Yar Mahomed, calls in 
 the aid of the Persians at Meshed ; they at once throw a garrison into 
 Herat, and Kohndil, forestalled, returns to Candahar, dismissing the 
 Seistan troops at Furrah. 
 
 After this Ali Khan intrigues with the Persians with the object of 
 freeing himself from the Afghan rule ; and Kohndil about the same 
 time sends his son Sultan Ali to the Court of Persia with offers of 
 allegiance to the Shah, on condition of his being supported in the Govern- 
 ment of Candahar and Seistan. Meanwhile, Ali Khan, declaring himself 
 independent, Kohndil marches to coerce him, and from Gurmsel (Shah- 
 malan) sends forward Barkhurdar Khan, Barukkzai, to receive his sub- 
 mission and collect the revenue. He is not well received, and then 
 Syud Noor Mahomed Shah is sent forward ; Ali Khan then submits 
 and delivers a thousand kkarwars of grain to Barkhurdar Khan, as the 
 revenue of Seistan. 
 
 About this time the Persian Government apply to Kohndil to 
 restrain the Seistanees from plundering on the Haftadrah, and demand 
 restitution of plundered property. Consequently, Kohndil appoints his 
 son, Sultan Ali, returning from Teheran, to the Government of Seistan. 
 He recovers the lost property, and it is restored to Khan Baba Khan, 
 the Persian Governor of Kerman, by Syud Noor Mahomed Shah, who 
 is at this time, 1854, deputed as KohndiPs Envoy to the Persian Shah. 
 
 KohndiFs object in sending this Envoy was to effect a negotiation with 
 the Court of Persia, by which he would be supported in the Government 
 of Candahar and Seistan and Herat as an independent chief within 
 his own limits, on condition of his acknowledging the suzerainty of the 
 Cajar Shah, coining and praying in his name (the khutba), paying tri- 
 bute, and furnishing troops when required for the defence of the empire. 
 In fact Kohndil offered to hold all this country for Persia in return for 
 the support of the Persian Government against his rivals in Afghanistan. 
 His Envoy had hardly reached the Persian capital when, in August 1855, 
 Kohndil died at Candahar. 
 
 The Ameer Dost Mahomed Khan, who had long been anxiously 
 endeavouring to counteract the intrigues of the Persian Court on the 
 western frontiers of his country, and been watching every opportunity 
 
144 RECORD OF THE MARCH OP 
 
 for the consolidation of its several provinces under his sole authority, now 
 marched to Candahar, and in November annexed it to the Cabul Gov- 
 ernment, sending KohndiPs brother, Rahmdil Khan, a political prisoner 
 to the capital. The other members of KohndiPs family escape to 
 Gurmsel and Seistan, and thence proceed to Meshed and Teheran, where 
 they find a ready asylum with the Persians. 
 
 In Seistan at this time Ali Khan held Sekoha and the Sarbandi 
 lands under the Persian flag, which, on the return of his Envoy, Mirza 
 Mahomed Kurreem, from the Persian Court, he had hoisted on his fort. 
 Ou the flight of KohndiPs family from Candahar, he received his son, 
 Sultan Ali, who had recently returned from his deputation to the Court 
 of Persia, with the title of Moozuffer-ood-dowlah, and a supply of muskets 
 and cash for the equipment of troops at Candahar in the Persian interest, 
 and assisted him and others on their way to Persia. Meanwhile, the 
 Dost at Candahar was meditating an advance on Herat, which, since 
 the death of Yar Mahomed, had fallen completely under the control of 
 Persia ; but being discouraged by the Indian Government, he foregoes 
 the intention, and Herat is taken possession of in the following year by 
 the Persians. This act of hostility led to war with the British Govern- 
 ment, and the Treaty of Paris of March 1857. 
 
 At the same time that the Persians besieged Herat, they, with the 
 consent of Sirdar Ahmed Khan, Ishakzai, of Lash, a disaffected Afghan 
 noble, who had for many years been in correspondence with the Persian 
 Court, and was now considered a dependant of the Persian Government, 
 occupied Hokat with a military force, and placed Persian garrisons in 
 its most important forts, viz. y in Lash, Jowain, Durg, aud Tujk. From 
 this, during the course of the siege, the Persians, with the aid of Ali 
 Khan, of Seistan, and Meer Alum Khan, of Ghayn, both formerly Afghan 
 subjects, make an unsuccessful attempt to capture Furrah; but they 
 succeed in acquiring a perfect influence over all that portion of Seistan 
 to the west of the Helmund ; and on the conclusion of the war they, in 
 direct opposition to the terms of the treaty of peace, continued to hold 
 possession of Hokat as Persian territory, in common with the rest of 
 Seistan, to which they advanced their claim as a portion of the Saffavi 
 empire ; until, on the repeated demands of the Cabul Ameer, and the 
 remonstrances of the British Government, they finally withdrew their 
 troops from the country, and left Sirdar Ahmed Khan in charge as their 
 Governor, taking with them his son Shumsooddeen as hostage. 
 
 On the withdrawal of the Persian troops from Hokat, Ali Khan of 
 Seistan accompanied the camp, and proceeded to Teheran ; here' he was 
 received with distinguished favor at the Court, and contracted an alli- 
 ance with the royal family by marrying the daughter of Prince Bahram, 
 a cousin of the Shah. In the spring of 1858 he returned to Seistan 
 with the Persian princess and a small military escort (500 horsemen), 
 and brought with him also a Persian drill instructor, and a supply of 
 800 muskets, for the instruction and equipment of troops to be raised in 
 Seistan in the service of Persia. 
 
 The new regime introduced by Ali Khan alarmed the people, who 
 now found themselves handed over to Persian rule without their know- 
 ledge or consent ; and their discontent was aggravated by the haughty 
 conduct of Persian officials introduced amongst them. Ali Khan was 
 
THE MISSION TO SETSTAN. 145 
 
 looked upon as the cause of all their grievances ; and the Sarbandis con- 
 spired together for his execution and the expulsion of the Persians from 
 Seisian. The conspiracy was headed by Taj Mahomed Khan (now a 
 prisoner at Teheran), the brother of the blinded Lutf Ali, and nephew 
 of Ali Khan, the Persian protege ; he was joined by the heads of the 
 several Sarbandi clans, viz., by Mahomed Khan, Agh Jan Khan, 
 Mahomed Ali Khan, Mahomed Ameen Khan (prisoner at Teheran), 
 Meer Jaffir Khan, Yuzbashi Hasan, and others ; they raise the whole Sar- 
 bandi tribe in revolt and make a night attack upon Sekoha ; Ali Khan 
 is encountered in his bed-room and slain by Taj Mahomed ; and the 
 Persian princess in the scuffle and confusion is slightly wounded, acci- 
 dentally, in the arm. 
 
 In the confusion of the attack, the drill instructor, Shureef Salih 
 Mahomed, whom Ali Khan had brought with him from Teheran, 
 escapes, and takes refuge with Sirdar Ahmed Khan of Lash, who at the 
 time happens to be camped near Sekoha. He rescues the Persian princess, 
 and after a while sends her to Neh, where she is subsequently joined by 
 the Sarteep, and escorted home by troops from Meshed. On the death 
 of Ali Khan, the Government is assumed by Taj Mahomed, who 
 forthwith sends Envoys to the Shah deprecating his wrath, and pleading 
 excuses for his conduct. 
 
 The Persian Government, whilst returning assurances of forgiveness", 
 prepare to send an avenging force to Seistan ; they are restrained from 
 sending troops into the country by the British Government on the 
 grounds of such action violating the Treaty of Paris. After this the Per- 
 sian Government recognizes Taj Mahomed in the place of Ali Khan. 
 
 He, however, rules independently till 1862, when, on the advance 
 of Ameer Dost Mahomad Khan against Herat, he sends his brother, 
 Kohndil as Envoy to the Court of Persia, with his tender of allegiance to 
 the Cajar Shah. 
 
 The Persian Government at the same time laying claim to Seistan 
 as Persian territory make urgent representations to the British Govern- 
 ment of their alarm at the forward movement of the Ameer o Cabul, 
 complain of repeated violations of the frontier by his subjects, and 
 press for some restraint on his designs against Seistan. After a long 
 correspondence, the Persian Government is informed by Lord John 
 Russell, 5th November 1863, that Seistan being disputed territory it 
 was left to the Shah to make good his claims by force of arms. 
 
 The Ameer Dost Mahomed Khan, having recovered Herat to the 
 Cabul Government, died under its walls on 9th June 1863. He is 
 succeeded by his son Shere Ali Khan, who a couple of days later sets out 
 for Cabul. Then follows the contest for the throne between the brothers 
 Afzul and Azim on the one side and Shere Ali on the other. In this 
 interval Kohndil, the Envoy of Taj Mahomed to the Court of Persia, 
 returns from Teheran, accompanied by the former drill instructor, Surteep 
 Salih Mahomed, and ample funds. The Surteep by liberal donations 
 conciliates the chiefs and disarms their fears ; he attempts also to effect a 
 reconciliation between Ibrahim Khan and Taj Mahomed, the Sangurani 
 and Sarbandi, Chiefs of Chakansur and Sekoha, respectively, with the 
 view to the former's acceptance of Persian suzerainty and support in 
 
146 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 subordination to the authority of the latter ; but failing in his endea- 
 vours to this end he abruptly leaves the country with ominous threats of 
 the Shah's wrath. 
 
 On the departure of the Persian Surteef the Sarbandi Chiefs Taj 
 Mahomed and- Kahndil jointly depute Sahrab Beg as Envoy to Sirdar 
 Mahomed Anieen Khan at Candahar, warning him of the Persian 
 intrigues and designs on Seistan, and complaining of desertion and neg- 
 lect of their interests by their Afghan rulers ; they assure him of their 
 contentment under the Afghan rule, and declare that they have no 
 common interest with Persia. Further, they clearly point out their own 
 inability to resist Persia, and the certainty of their succumbing to her 
 power and influence unless supported by Afghanistan, of which they form 
 a part. 
 
 The weight of these arguments was fully admitted, but owing to 
 the troubles then distracting the country no aid could be sent to the 
 Seistanees. Ahmed Khan, Kakar, was, however, sent with their return- 
 ing Envoy to reassure the people, distribute khilluts amongst the chiefs, 
 and to ascertain the real state of affairs. 
 
 But the Seistanees (Sarbandi) getting no real aid, and seeing the anar- 
 chy prevailing all over the country, for Ameer Shere Ali was at this time 
 (February 1865) marching against his rebel brother Mahomed Ameen 
 at Candahar, and, fearing the resentment of the Surteep and wrath of 
 the Persian Government, again depute Kohndil to Teheran. He is there 
 detained as a hostage, and dies a couple of years later in his exile. 
 
 In the following spring, at the time that Ameer Shere Ali sets out 
 from Candahar to recover Cabul from Mahomed Azim, the Persians 
 send an army under Moozuffer-ood-dowlah (Sultan Ali, the son of Sirdar 
 Kohndil Khan of Candahar) to Seistan. He is accompanied by Meer 
 Alum Khan, Governor of Ghayn. They take possession of the country, 
 and send Taj Mahomed prisoner to Teheran, where he still is. In his 
 place they raise Shureef Khan, Nahroe, of Boorj Alum, as representive 
 chief of Seistan, and he sends his son as hostage to Teheran. The 
 Persians then secure their position in the country and build a fort at 
 Nasirabad, the former residence of Mullik Nasir, Cayani. 
 
 Up to this point the Persian operations in Seistan were confined to 
 their dealings with the Sarbandi Chief and the territory held by his 
 tribe ; but since their occupation of the country they have steadily 
 encroached upon the neighbouring lands, and at this time hold all the 
 country up to the Helmund, and recently crossing it have taken posses- 
 sion of some places on its right bank. They are now endeavouring to 
 gain over the lands of the Belooch Chief of Chakansur, and the Afghan 
 Chief of Lash, both of whom have hitherto resisted their encroachments 
 in the hopes of support from Cabul. 
 
 During the seven years of their occupation of the country, the 
 Persians have effected great improvements in the material prosperity of 
 Seistan. They have introduced a strong government, and enforced order 
 amongst the people under their rule ; they have built a fort at Nasira- 
 bad, and enclosed the village within wide fortifications, to admit of its 
 future growth into a town or city ; they have restored and enlarged the 
 Kohuk canal ; repaired and rebuilt the weir which diverts the Helmund 
 into its channel ; excavated several new canals, and covered the country 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 147 
 
 south of the Hamoon with an intricate network of irrigation streams 
 by which the soil is fertilized and rendered productive in a most simple 
 and systematic manner. They have introduced twenty thousand colonists 
 from the famine-struck districts of Khorassan, and have settled about 
 four thousand families, transported from the adjoining districts of Hokat 
 and Khosh, within their newly-acquired territory ; they have placed 
 garrisons of from ten to fifty men in most of the villages of the district, 
 and hold the whole country with a force of about three thousand Persian 
 infantry, eight hundred Khorassan horse, and ten pieces of cannon. 
 
 INHABITANTS AND LANGUAGE. 
 
 Seistan is occupied by several distinct tribes, who have acquired a 
 location in the country at different periods. Their relative strength and 
 position in the country has varied with the political vicissitudes of the 
 empires and kingdoms of which it has successively formed a province ; 
 but the ancient line of Cayani rulers, it appears, maintained the 
 dominance until the fall of the Persian empire and the rise of the 
 Afghan power. At this period a new order of political relations 
 was established amongst the states of Central Asia previously owing 
 allegiance to the Persian throne. In the revolutions and anarchy 
 distinguishing this period, Seistan did not escape its share of participa- 
 tion in the general confusion and struggle for power, in the person 
 of its hereditary chief, Mullik Mahmood. His successes were but short- 
 lived and terminated in his death at the hands of Nadir. After 
 this commenced the rapid decline of his family's influence in" Seistan, 
 and the gradual growth of that of the other tribes settled in their__ 
 hereditary possessions. During the troubles attending the transfer 
 of the Government from the Suddozais to the Barukzais in Afgbanis- 
 tan, the tribal chiefs of Seistan were left much to their own devices. 
 Each strove against the other for supremacy ; each formed alliances 
 with his neighbour, and strengthened them by inter-marriages ; and each, 
 on the first promising opportunity, broke this compact and encroached 
 on his neighbour's lands. The constant feuds and hostilities waged 
 against each other by the rival chiefs of Seistan led to the introduction 
 of fresh settlers as military colonists ; these soon, owing to the disturb- 
 ed state of the times, established themselves as possessors in their own 
 right of the country allotted to them as mercenaries. Thus came to 
 pass the division of Seistan amongst different tribes with antagonistic in- 
 terests and adverse tendencies ; and in this fact is to be found the expla- 
 nation of the perpetual disorder reigning in the country, and the rel"" 
 ance of some on Candahar and others on Herat tor support, as well as 
 of the facility with which a neighbouring power has been able to invade 
 and take possession of the country, which, from the troubles besetting it" 
 on every side, was powerless to resist, but freely open to intrigue. 
 
 The proof of this will be seen in the following account of the people 
 now inhabiting Seistan, or rather of those inhabiting it at the time of the 
 Persian invasion. 
 
 The inhabitants of Seistan, at the present day, exclusive of the 
 Persian invaders, consist of the following tribes, viz., Cayani, Seistani, 
 Sarbandi, Shahreki, Nahroe Belooch, Sangurau Belooch, and Tawc Belooch. 
 
148 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 In the Hokat district (claimed as part of Seistan) are the Ishakzai Afghans, 
 and on the Shandoo border of Khosh (also claimed as part of Seistan) are 
 the Nurzai Afghans. The two last require no notice in this paper. 
 
 Cdydni. The Cayanis are the representatives of the ancient kings 
 of Persia, and they were the ruling race in Seistan until the time of 
 Nadir. Under the Saifavi kings of Persia they ruled Seistan as the 
 hereditary chiefs of the country. In the reign of Abbas the First, the 
 Cayaui Chief, Mullik Hamza, built a fort and established his residence 
 amongst the ruins of the ancient city now known after the name of the 
 last of its Cayani tenants, as Cala Fath. His tomb, we were told, still 
 exists in the ruins of his former city. His successors at Cala Fath were 
 the Mulliks or Chiefs, Jellalooddeen, Nasrat, Fazl Ali and Fath Ali after 
 whom the ruins are named. Mullik Fath Air's nephew, Mullik Mahmood, 
 at the time o the Afghan invasion of Persia, conquered all Khorassan 
 up to Subzwar, and for a brief period held independent possession of 
 Meshed. He was subsequently captured in Nadir's first campaign 
 against Seistan, and executed for his stubborn resistance. Mullik Fath 
 Ali and his brother Jafar at this time abandoned Cala Fath and took 
 refuge in the Koh Khojah stronghold. Here they held out successfully 
 against a long sieg6 by Nadir's troops, and in the meantime Mahmood's 
 brother, Mullik Husein, was appointed chief of Seistan. He, however, soon 
 rebelled and joined his family in their stronghold. Nadir then appointed 
 his own nephew, Ali Culi military governor of the province, and sup- 
 ported him with a strong contingent. The Cayanis', however, held out in 
 their island stronghold for upwards of seven years, after which Ali Cull 
 raised the siege owing to the pressure of famine amongst his troops, for, 
 during his military operations, he destroyed the fort at Cala Fath and 
 completely devastated the country. Subsequently, on Nadir's second 
 campaign in Seistan on his way to Candahar, Mullik Husein tendered his 
 submission, and was pardoned. He was succeeded by his son Mullik 
 Suleiman, who was ruler of Seistan at the time Shah Ahmed rose to the 
 throne of Afghanistan. He at onee tendered allegiance to the new 
 monarch, and was by him recognized as the hereditary chief of Seistan, 
 and Shah Ahmed strengthened the bond of alliance by taking his daughter 
 to wife. 
 
 Mullik Suleiman was the last of the Cayani Chiefs who exercised any 
 influence or authority in Seistan. The power of this family had been 
 alreadv greatly curtailed by Nadir, who introduced the Sarbandis and 
 settled them on the lands south of the Hamoon about Sekoha. Their 
 increasing .influence still further lessened that of the Cayani ; and in the 
 time of Suleiman's son and successor Mullik Bahram, it was completely 
 broken, partly owing to the disturbed character of the times, but main- 
 ly to the family dissensions that at this period estranged Bahram from 
 his son Jellalooddeen, and brother Nasir. In the struggle for the Afghan 
 throne following on the death of Shah Timoor, Mullik Bahram espoused 
 the cause of Mahmood and, on his arrival in Seistan in 1800, gave his 
 daughter in marriage to the Suddozai's son Kamran. On Bahrain's death, 
 Kamran befriended his son Jellalooddeen, but the enmity of his own family, 
 and the hostility of Hashim Khan, Shahreki, twice drove him from Seistan, 
 and ultimately forced him to take refuge with the Chief of Ghayn. 
 Finally, after a life of dissipation and recklessness, he returned to Seistan 
 in a beggared condition, and died in obscurity, it is said, in 1849. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 
 
 149 
 
 Since bis time the Cayanis have entirely lost their position in Seistan, and 
 with it their lands ; they now hardly exceed a hundred families in the 
 country, and these are scattered about in the different villages taken 
 from them by the Sarbandis and Shahrekis on th death of Mullik Bahrain. 
 The subjoined tabulated statement shows the villages held by the Cayanis 
 in the time of Mullik Suleiman, and their possessors in the present day ; 
 and serves to illustrate what they have lost during the past hundred 
 years. The only surviving members of Mullik Bahrain's family in Seistan 
 are the sons of his two sons, Jellalooddeen and Hamza. Jellalooddeenleft a 
 son, Nasir, and he left a son, Azim, who is now with the Persian Governor 
 in Nasirabad. Hamza left three sons, viz., Abbas in Jellalabad, Goolzar in 
 Bahramabad, and Mullik in Bunjar. None of them are of any note in the 
 country. 
 
 List of Cayani villages and their present possessors. 
 
 Villages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Present possessors. 
 
 Jelalabad ... ... 
 Boorj Afghan ... 
 Bun "jar ... ... . . 
 
 500 
 100 
 400 
 
 Sarbandi and Dihcan. 
 Dihcan and Afghan, 
 and Cayani. 
 
 Shy tan 
 Bolay 
 
 250 
 100 
 
 and 
 and Dihcan. 
 
 Bolay ... 
 Casimabad 
 Iskil 
 Zahidan 
 Khadang . . ... 
 Boghbar . . 
 Kechgan 
 Afzalabad 
 Isasirabad (fort) 
 (town) 
 
 100 
 200 
 100 
 800 
 100 
 400 
 100 
 80 
 120 
 100 
 
 and 
 , and Kalantari. 
 Kalantari. 
 Sarbandi and Dihcan. 
 Dihcan and mixed tribes. 
 Ditto ditto. 
 Sarbandi and mixed tribes. 
 Mixed tribes and Sarbandi. 
 Cayani and Persians. 
 Sarbandi and Dihcan. 
 
 The Vihcdn in the above list are all Sarbandi subjects (rdyat) or 
 tenants. The Afghans in Boorj Afghan are Tokhi Ghilzais, and only num- 
 ber some twenty families ; they are subordinate to the Sarbandi, but are not 
 subjects ; they hold their lands in their own right. The Kalantari are a 
 section of the Dihcdn subordinate to the Sarbandi. The Cayani are mostly 
 collected together in Nasirabad, the residence of the last chief, Mullik Nasir, 
 the brother of Mullik Bahram. Their fort has been taken possession of by 
 the Persians, and rebuilt and enlarged ; the adjoining village of the same 
 name has also been surrounded by extensive fortified walls ; and the site 
 has been fixed as the seat of ^Government of the Persians. At the 
 present day the Persian liead-quarters at ISlasirabad are known in Seistan 
 as the Shuhr or " city" par excellence. The Persian Governor of the 
 district, Meer Alum Khan, of Ghayn, resides here, with a garrison of I 
 about five hundred infantry, two hundred cavalry and ten or twelve I 
 pieces of cannon. 
 
 The Cayani families in Bunjar are reckoned at less than thirty, and 
 there are individual families distributed amongst the other villages in the 
 above list. 
 
150 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Seistan ee. This tribe is said to represent the aboriginal inhabi- 
 tants of the country, but in reality it is a mixture of all sorts 
 of tribes and races, thrown here at different periods by the waves of 
 conquest or revolution. With the exception of the Kalantari section 
 (who perhaps may represent the aboriginals) , they have no possession 
 in the soil, but are the subjects or tenants of the possessing 1 tribes. 
 They are divided into innumerable sections, according to origin or occupa- 
 tion, and are collectively known under the term dihcdn or (t villager/' 
 Their position in the country is that of serfs, their families and property 
 being very much at the disposal of the lord of the tribe amongst whom 
 they are settled, whilst their liberty is completely so. They constitute 
 the bulk of the population, and are distributed amongst the village 
 communities all over the district ; but it is difficult to arrive at even an 
 approximate calculation of their numbers. I am inclined to believe that 
 they collectively outnumber all the other tribes put together. They 
 perform all the agricultural work of the country, and furnish all its 
 handicraftsmen and artizans, such as carpenters, weavers, cobblers, 
 smiths, barbers, musicians, labourers, &c. Some of them are employed as 
 shepherds, and others as fowlers, huntsmen, and fishermen, &c., whilst 
 all are bound to take up arms in defence of the tribe amongst whom 
 they live, and, it is said, they have proved very brave and faith- 
 ful adherents. 
 
 Amongst the Seistanees or Dihcans are found Turk, Tatar, Uzbak, 
 Curd, Moghul and Arab families, together with the Tajik and Parsiwan 
 and stray families of the Afghan, Pathan, Hazarah, Brahoee and Belooch. 
 The first category were probably introduced by the Arab conquerors and 
 the invasions of Changhiz and Timoor. The Tajik and Parsiwan, who 
 are also found in all parts of Afghanistan and Beloochistan, may re- 
 present the early Persian inhabitants of the country, whilst the last 
 named are recent immigrants exiled from their own tribes by blood-feuds 
 or other reverses of fortune. 
 
 In early times the Seistanees were a more influential and numerous 
 element in the polity of Seistan than they are at the present day. 
 Timoor, during his four years devastation of this country, completely 
 broke their power. He is said to have transported seven thousand of their 
 families of the Kikha section to Mazendaran, and the Sarbandis and 
 Shahrekis bodily to Hamadan. Some of the principal divisions of the 
 Seistanees or Dihcans at the present day are the Kikha, Bozi, Sayyad, 
 Panjaka, Sargazi, Sangbori, Sangcholi, Shekhlangi, Caracouf, Cazzaq, 
 Bamari, Camar, Khamarr, Bahrai, Jawri, Khushdad, Mahmudzai, &c., 
 also Baghwan, Chaman, Jolah, Chaupan, &c. 
 
 Sarbandi. This tribe with the Shahrekis anciently divided Seistan 
 with the Cayanis, and were at that time connected with the Brahooes ; all 
 three were collectively styled Nakhai, and are said to have come into the 
 country with the invasion of Changhiz. They were driven out of the 
 country and scattered by Timoor. The Sarbandi at that time were lo- 
 cated on the Koh Lakshakh south of the Zarrah hollow, and on the tract 
 of country east of Ramrood; they were transported by Timoor to Burujard 
 near Hamadan and there settled at Shahrwan and Sarband. In the time 
 of Timoor's son, Shah Rukh., some of their families returned to Seistan, but 
 were lost amongst the general population. The present tribe of Sarbandi 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 151 
 
 were brought to Seistan, and settled in Sekoha and on the lands south 
 of the Koh Khojah by Nadir about a hundred and forty years ago, under 
 their then chief, Meer Cambar, who established himself in the fort of 
 Sekoha or the " three hills." Meer Cambar was succeeded by his son 
 Meer Kochak ; he by his grandson Mahomed Ruza ; he by his son Meer 
 Khan, who was the Sarbandi Chief in Seistah at the time of Shah Timoors 
 death. 
 
 In the troubles then falling upon Afghanistan he became indepen- 
 dent for a while, but on Mahmood's arrival in Seistan to bid for the throne 
 he joined him with his contingent of troops. In home politics he allied 
 with the Sangnaiani Belooch, and in the struggles at this period distract- 
 ing Afghanistan sided with Candahar. He took advantage of the dis- 
 sensions in the Cayani family to annex much of their land and several 
 villages ; in this course he was followed by his son and successor Maho- 
 med Ruza. This chief was on good terms with Kohndil, Khan of Can- 
 dahar, but mostly maintained an independent position in Seistan, of which 
 he became the most powerful chief. He was a party with Kohndil in all 
 the intrigues at that time on foot with Persia ; and his brother AH Khan, 
 on KohndiPs return from Teheran in 1844 took service with him at Canda- 
 har. 
 
 Mahomed Ruza died in 1848 and was succeeded at Sekoha by his 
 son Lutf Ali. This chief threw off the alliance with Candahar, and seized 
 all Seistan, including the Belooch possessions at Chakansur, for Yar Ma- 
 homed at Herat. The Belooch, in alliance with the Sarbandi, had 
 hitherto been dependents of Candahar in their relations beyond Seistan. 
 On this revolt of Lutf Ali, consequently the Candahar Chief sent an army 
 against him, -he was captured and deprived of sight, and his uncle, Ali 
 Khan, was established at Sekoha as Sarbandi Chief in the interest of 
 Candahar. 
 
 Yar Mahomed now in turn marched against Ali Khan, and to re- 
 establish his own party in the country ; he was seized with illness just as 
 he reached the Seistan frontier, and hurrying home died two marches short 
 of Herat in 1851. After this Ali Khan, disgusted with his uncertain 
 position between the rival chiefs of .Candahar and Herat, and suspicious 
 of the intrigues of Kohndil with the Persian Court, himself sent an 
 Envoy to the Shah, soliciting recognition and support as a Persian subject. 
 His messenger was received favorably and the Persian flag and presents 
 sent in return. Ali Khan at once hoisted the flag on his fort at Sekoha 
 and declared himself for Persia. The rest of his history has been given 
 in the preceding section. 
 
 SincB the Persian occupation o the country, the Sarbandi influence 
 in Seistan has disappeared, and the chief members of the ruling family 
 have been deported to Teheran as prisoners and hostages. The numbers 
 of the Sarbandi tribe now in Seistan are reckoned at ten thousand families, 
 inclusive of their subjects or dihcdns. It is difficult to arrive at any ap- 
 proximation to the true number of Sarbandi families exclusive of their 
 subjects, for they are all mixed up together in the several village com- 
 munities. The latter however, it is admitted, are by far the moet numerous. 
 I am inclined to fix the Sarbandis in Seistan at less than four thousand 
 families. 
 
152 
 
 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Their original settlements in the country are given in the following 
 list ; but they have since the time of Nadir taken possession of almost all 
 the Cayani territory west of the Helmund, as has been shewn in the pre- 
 ceding pages. 
 
 List of Sarbandi villages in Seistan. 
 
 ViUages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Villages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Sekoha ... 
 
 800 
 
 Huseinabad 
 
 300 
 
 Pushtj Dasht 
 
 80 
 
 Burj Haji 
 
 150 
 
 v Warmal 
 
 200 
 
 Bahramabad 
 
 200 
 
 Sadki 
 
 200 
 
 Ibrahimabad 
 
 100 
 
 Doulatabad 
 
 100 
 
 Changi Murghan 
 
 120 
 
 Chilling 
 Doday ... ... 
 
 400 
 300 
 
 And a few other") 
 hamlets together 3 
 
 450 
 ^cTrf// 
 
 According to a local tradition I heard in Seistan, the Sarbandi are 
 descended from one Gudurz, a Gabr or Zoroastrian. The account I have 
 given above was furnished to me by a very intelligent and venerable 
 Shahreki named Haji Abdoollah, whose family had been chief at Pulki in 
 olden times, but were now exiles in Kerman. 
 
 Shahreki. This tribe is supposed anciently to have been connected 
 with the Sarbandi and Brahooe tribes under the collective designation 
 Nakhdi. They are also said to have been the ancient inhabitants of 
 Seistan with the Cayanfs, and to have been at that time Gabrs or " fire- 
 worshippers.'" By local tradition they are said to be descended from a 
 Gabr chief named Mullik Ajdaha ; he opposed the Arabian AH, and being 
 defeated by a remarkable act of prowess (Ali is said to have seized him 
 by the waist and with one hand to have tossed him in the air as he rushed 
 to attack him), was at once converted to Islam. In ancient times their 
 seat was with the Sarbandi at Koh Lakhshakh and the country south of 
 the Zarrah hollow as far west as Ramrood. They were driven from Seistan 
 by Timoor, and settled at Shahrwan near Burujurd with the Sarbandi, 
 who were at the same time deported to Sarbandi ; and from these places 
 it is that they derive their present names. Prior to this period they 
 were known as Mammassani, Nakhai or Mahomed Hassani Nughai. 
 During and after Shah R/nkh's time they gradually returned to Seistan 
 and the adjoining countries. They now number less than ten thousand 
 families who are much scattered in Seistan, Ghayn, Kerman and Lar. 
 
 In Seistan the Shahreki number about twelve hundred families dis- 
 tributed with their subjects or dihcdn in the following villages, some of 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 
 
 153 
 
 which they have annexed from the Cayanis and some of which they have 
 since lost to the Nahroe Belooch. 
 
 List of SJiahreki villages in Seistan. 
 
 Villages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Villages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Dashta 
 Kimak 
 Wasilan 
 Pulki 
 
 Kanah 
 Shitak 
 
 600 
 350 
 200 
 300 
 300 
 500 
 
 Laff 
 Jazinak 
 Boorj Sarband... 
 Khammak 
 Cabri ... 
 Zyarat gah and a ... 
 
 200 
 400 
 30 
 200 
 200 
 100 
 
 Tiflak 
 
 300 
 ^TV^ 
 
 few other hamlets. ... 
 
 ^250^ 
 %&> 
 
 Tiflak and Kimak are now in possession of the Nahroe Belooch. 
 Dashtak is the residence of the tribal chief. In the time of Nadir 
 the Shahreki Chief was Meer Shikar ; he was succeeded by his son 
 Meer Beg. This chief rebelled against the Cayani ruler of Seistan, 
 Mullik Suleiman, at the instigation of the Popalzai ruler of Hokat, and 
 was, through his influence with Shah Timoor, appointed Governor of the 
 country in the stead of the Cayani, who was now deposed. Meer Beg 
 did not prove a popular ruler, and was killed in a faction fight with the 
 Belooch at Roodbar after four years' government of Seistan. After this 
 Timoor restored the government of the country to the Cayani family, 
 in the person of Mullik Bahram, son of Suleman. But the feud between 
 the Shahreki and Cayani continued, and Meer Beg's son and successor 
 Meer Hashim, was an active enemy of the Cayani ; he took Wasilan, 
 from Bahram, and after his death twice expelled his son Jellalooddeen 
 from the country, though he was reinstated by Kamran; yet the Shahreki 
 were always loyal adherents to the cause of Mahmood and Kamran, 
 and 'in their political leanings always depended for support upon Herat. 
 
 At the time of KohndiFs return from Teheran to recover Candahar, 
 Meer Hashim's son, Meer Mehdi joined him with the Shahreki contingent 
 in common with the rest of the Seistan chiefs. But he soon again 
 returned to the allegiance to Herat, and on the death of Mahomed 
 Ruza, Sarbandi, joined his son. and successor Lutf Ali in holding the 
 country for Yar Mahomed. Finally, in the attack on Ali Khan, 
 Lutf Ali's successor, the Shahreki sided against the Persian interest; 
 and on the occupation of Seistan by the Persians, Meer Mehdi's brother 
 and successor, Mahomed Ali, was deported prisoner to Teheran. Meer 
 Mehdi died prior to the Persian invasion, and left a son Calb Ali, who 
 resides in Zahidan. Mahomed Ali had three sons, viz., Hashim Khan, 
 residing in Dashtak, and Ali Ruza and Bahram, both deceased. 
 
 Nahroe Belooch. This tribe was brought into Seistan and located 
 at Boorj Alum and Kimuck by Mullik Bahram Cayani, in the beginning 
 of this century under their chief Alum Khan. His family and followers 
 in the time of his father, Mirza Khan, were nomads roving on the 
 Koh Nahro north of Bampiir. In the time of Alum Khan they used 
 to frequent the southern tracts of Seistan and the Helmund bank for 
 the sake of pasture for their camels and flacks. 
 
 u 
 
154 
 
 RECORD OF THE MARCH G V F 
 
 Mullik Bahrain attached them to himself as military mercenaries, 
 and, to protect himself from the encroachments of the Sarbandi, planted 
 them at Bi-orj Alum, Gala Nan, Kimuck, &c. The Nahroe, however, 
 soon established themselves on an independent footing on the lands given 
 to them, and maintained their position by marriage alliances with their 
 neighbours. With the Cayani and Shahreki they were dependents of 
 Herat; but on Kohndil's return from Persia they joined him, and on 
 Ali Khan's establishment at Sekoha threw in their lot with him. Alum 
 Khan, Nahroe, left four sons, viz., Dost Mahomed, Shureef, Sherdil, and 
 Azim. Dost Mahomed succeeded his father at Boorj Alum, and on his 
 death in 1857 left a son, Darvesh; he did not succeed his father, but 
 his uncle Shureef, who had, since his return from service with Meer Afzul 
 Khan at Candahar, become a staunch partizan of Persia, now assumed 
 the chiefship. On the invasion of the country by the Persians a few years 
 later he was the first to join them, and has since been raised by them 
 to the position of chief of Seistan. Some years ago he sent his son, 
 Mahomed Ali, as a hostage to Teheran ; he returned to his father 
 completely Persianized shortly before our arrival in Seistan, but on our 
 departure he deserted his family and went over to the Ameer Shere Ali 
 Khan at Cabul. Darvesh Khan, the son of Dost Mahomed resides 
 in Boorj Alum, and though dissatisfied with the course of events takes 
 no part in the politics of his country; his brother Sherdil resides in 
 Kimuck, and has joined the Persian interest. Previous to the Persian 
 invasion the Nahroe were Sunni Muhammadans, but, following the 
 lead of their chief Shureef Khan, they now profess to be Sheea. Shureef 
 Khan resides in Gala Now, and his three other sons live in Shareefabad. 
 
 Owing to the Persian support, the Nahroe are now the most power- 
 ful tribe in Seistan as regards influence, though numerically they are 
 the weakest. The whole tribe hardly exceeds four hundred families, and 
 their subjects or dihcdn probably amount to twelve hundred more. 
 Their villages are the following : 
 
 * 
 
 List of Nahroe villages in Seistan. 
 
 Villages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Villages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Boorj Alum 
 
 400 
 
 Abbas Ali 
 
 50 
 
 Cala Now 
 
 500 
 
 G6d 
 
 80 
 
 Shareefabad 
 
 350 
 
 and a few others ... ... 
 
 200 
 
 *. 
 
 Kimuck 
 
 400 
 
 
 
 The Nahroe Belooch chiefs are allied by marriage with the Sangurani, 
 Belooch, and Sarbandi. Dost Mahomed married a daughter of Maho- 
 med Ruza, Sarbandi, and his sister was married to Ali Khan, Sangurani 
 Belooch. Alum Khan married a daughter of Ibrahim Khan, Sangurani 
 of Chakansur, the brother of Ali Khan, and the present Shureef Khan, 
 Nahroe, is her son; Shureef Khan's daughter, again, is married to Ali 
 Akbar, the eldest son of Meer Alum of Ghayn, the Persian governor of 
 Seistan. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 155 
 
 Sangurdni, Belooch. This tribe has gained permanent location in 
 Seistan only since the commencement of the present century,, prior to 
 which period they were palas-nishm or " booth dwellers/'' They first 
 came to Gurmsel from Beloochistan at the time that Shah Ahmed estab- 
 lished the Dooranee power. At this period they annually frequented 
 the left bank of the Helmund between Malakhan and Roodbar under 
 their chief Abdooliah Khan. This tract belonged to the Nurzai Afghans, 
 but, having been some years previously devastated by Nadir Shah, was 
 at the time of the Belooch occupation a deserted waste, as it is still at the 
 present day, for the Belooch were mere robber nomads who lived here with 
 their camels and flocks for six or eight months of the year only, in temporary 
 booths or huts made of wicker frames of tamarisk called palds. Abdooliah 
 Khan appears to have been on good terms with the Niirzais ; but 
 his son and successor, Jan Beg, was constantly at feud with them ; 
 he was a noted robber, and for many years intercepted the commu- 
 nication between Candahar and Seistan via Gurmsel. In his time the 
 Sangurani, and their subjects, the Tavvci Belooch, extended their wander- 
 ings along the banks of the Helmund as far as the Chakansur district. 
 Here they took a greater or less part in the struggles at that time going 
 on between the local chiefs of Seistan, and thus came to acquire a sort of 
 position in the country, and changed their migratory life for one in 
 fixed habitations. This they were the more easily enabled to effect, owing 
 to the employment of the Nurzais in the struggle then going on 
 between Timoor's sons for the possession of the throne, and their con- 
 sequent inability to protect their tribal lands from encroachment. 
 
 Jan Beg left three sons, viz., Nuwab, Islam, and Khan Jahan. 
 They were all granted permanent location on the Nurzai territories 
 bordering on Seistan by Mahmood's Wuzeer, Fath Khan, Barukzai, about 
 1810, after he had murdered his rival Meer Alum Khan, the Nurzai chief 
 of Khosh. Nuwab Khan was at this time given the Trako district, 
 Islam that of Roodbar, and Khan Jahan Khan was given the Khosh dis- 
 trict, with Chakansur its chief town, as his head-quarters. Jellalooddeen, 
 the son of Mallik Bahrain, married the daughter of Khan Jahan and 
 gave him, as her price, the village of Hiring Hissar. Khan Jahan re- 
 stored the fort, and on the ruins of the village built a new town named 
 Jahanabad. He was succeeded at Chakansur by his son Ali Khan, who 
 died in 1840 from the excessive abuse of charras or " indian hemp," and 
 he was succeeded by his brother Ibrahim Khan, the present chief. 
 This man is the murderer of Dr. Forbes, and is a coarse barbarian ; he 
 is habitually intoxicated with charras, and from its abuse is subject to 
 temporary fits of madness ; he is, however, a popular chief owing to his 
 hospitality and careless liberality, and enjoys the reputation of being the 
 most successful cattle-lifter in the country. His sister is married to 
 Ahmed Khan, Ishakzai, of Lash ; and Shureef Khan, the present Nahroe 
 chief is his grandson. He maintains an independent position, and has 
 hitherto resisted Persian influence in hopes of support from Cabul, 
 whither he sent his son Khan Jahan to the Ameer's Court ; but this 
 failing him he must succumb to Persia's power. 
 
 Nuwab Khan and Islam Khan each resided in his own fort at 
 Roodbar, where they are about half a mile apart; their subjects occupied 
 the villages of Ishkinak, Khyrabad, Huseinabad, &c., on the opposite 
 side of the river. Nuwab left a son the present Kamal Khan of 
 
156 
 
 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Bundar Traku ; and Islam left a son, the present Imam Khan of Char- 
 boorjak. Both these chiefs are in the Persian interest through force of 
 circumstances, though naturally, being Sunnis, their tendency is towards 
 the Afghans. Both their forts are recent structures, built in the time 
 of Mahomed Ruza, Sarbandi, and recently improved by the Persians. 
 
 The Sangurani here are now a very important tribe, both as 
 regards their influence and their numbers. In their politics they always 
 side with the Candahar Chief, but within their own limits are indepen- 
 dent. The deputation by Ibrahim Khan of his son Khan Jahan to the 
 Court of Shere Ali Khan was the first outward mark of the allegiance of 
 the Belooch to the throne of Cabul. 
 
 The Sangurani and their Tawci subjects, amongst whom are several 
 Tokhi, Taraki, and other Ghilzai families, remnants of the invaders of 
 Persia under Meer Mahmood, occupy the following villages : 
 
 List of Sangurani villages in Seistan. 
 
 Villages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Villages. 
 
 Houses. 
 
 Chakansur 
 
 1,200 
 
 Bundar Kama! Khan ... 
 
 250 
 
 Kbask 
 
 1,000 
 
 Kbyrabad 
 
 200 
 
 Kaddah 
 
 600 
 
 Isbkinak 
 
 200 
 
 Jabanabad 
 
 500 
 
 Huseinabad 
 
 300 
 
 Nadali 
 
 600 
 
 Ilamdar 
 
 150 
 
 Tiflak 
 
 250 
 
 Kbwaja Abmed 
 
 200 
 
 Koodbar 
 
 500 
 
 Nazar Klian ... 
 
 200 
 
 Charboorjak 
 
 400 
 
 Agba Jan 
 
 200 
 
 
 
 And a few others 
 
 600 
 
 
 
 
 "a i /*?r~ 
 
 
 Amongst the above villages are also distributed several scattered 
 families of Nurzai Afghans. 
 
 Taioci Belooch. This tribe corresponds with the dihcdns of the rest 
 of Seistan. The name is supposed to be derived from the Arabic word 
 tawCy a " collar or halter/" in significance of their bondage ; amongst 
 them are representatives of different Belooch and Brahoe tribes, and 
 Mammasanis. They are the dependents only of the Sanguraui and 
 Kahroe Belooch, and under them enjoy a better position than do the 
 dihcan under the Sarbandi, Shahrokiec., that is, they are on a better footing 
 of equality with their masters. They have no possession in the soil except 
 as tenants under the Sangurani possessors or owners, and there are 
 fewer restrictions on their liberty than is the case with the dihcan. They 
 are almost entirely employed as shepherds or agriculturalists ; they 
 know nothing of handicrafts or trades, with the exception of weaving and 
 working the wicker frames of their huts ; the few trades they have need 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 157 
 
 of are followed by members of the dihcdn class, of whom a few are 
 settled in their larger villages. 
 
 Besides the tribes above mentioned, there are a few Hindu families 
 settled in some of the larger villages of Seistan, but they are fast dis- 
 appearing from the country, and we saw none there. 
 
 Language. The common language of Seistan is a corrupt dialect 
 of the colloquial Persian. In it have found place a number of words from 
 the Sindi, Beloochki, Brahoeki, Pukkhto and Turki, and of course Arabic. 
 The nomads generally speak Beloochki or Brahoeki or Pukkhto according 
 to their belonging, but they all more or less understand Persian. On 
 first hearing the Sistanis speak I thought the language was Persian, 
 but on closer attention many strange words were heard ; some I re- 
 cognized as Pukkhto, and others I took to be Beloochki, and Brahoeki, 
 and Sindi or Jatki. 
 
 Opportunity unfortunately did not offer for a full enquiry into the 
 language of the people ; but from what I could gather, it appears that 
 each tribe has a small vocabulary peculiar to itself, and not always 
 understood by the other tribes in the country. Pukkhto is little undre- 
 stood in Seistan, but Persian everywhere. 
 
 I prepared a small vocabulary of Brahoeki and Beloochki on the march 
 to Seistan from natives of the Khelat territory, and on arrival tested it 
 with some Seistanees. In upwards of six hundred words, 1 found a very 
 large proportion were recognized, and where not so, the substitute was 
 generally a Persian, and often a Pukkhto word, and sometimes Arabic. 
 I believe, however, that by a more prolonged stay in the country many 
 foreign words might be discovered that are only used in the domestic 
 circle, and they might prove to be the representatives of the ancient 
 language of the country. The names of localities sometimes bear traces 
 of ancient words ; and the following were noted in Seistan, viz., Biring- 
 kaftdr or " the hyeena hill," Daki dela or " the ridge of the sedge" 
 (Cyperus twberosa], Dam or "the mound," Godi Zarrah or " the 
 Zarrah hollow." The names of many of the villages are suggestive of 
 ancient words the meaning of which is perhaps now lost ; such are 
 Warmal, Chilling, Bolay, Iskil, Khadang, Kechyan, Laff, Shitak, JMadali, 
 Kimak, Chakansur (the fort of Chak?), Kaddah (Pukkhto, " the house"), 
 Ishkinak, &c. These names are probably indicative of some charac- 
 teristic feature of the locality, or of some circumstance appropriate to 
 the name, as in Sekoha or " the three hills," God, or " the hollow;" 
 Wasilan or " the links ;" Pushtidasht or " the desert rear," &c. ; or they 
 commemorate the name of the founder as Boorj, Alum, Jahanabad, &c., 
 all however of recent date. The name Seistan itself is suggestive. 
 Sindistan to Sijistan to Seistan, the land or place of rivers ? 
 
 RELIGION, AND MODE OF LIFE. 
 
 Religion. Tn the ancient times of the Cayani Kings the Seistanees, 
 were gabr or gaur, " fire- worshippers." The only traces of the former 
 existence of this mode of worship that are found in the country were the 
 " fire-altar" coins of the Sassanian Kings, and the names of two locali- 
 ties in the district, viz., a low ridge a mile or two north-west of Kimuck 
 
158 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 called atash gdh or " fire-place," and a hill on the western border of the 
 Seistan basin, called koh atash khana or " the fire-house hill." 
 
 The Mahomedan religion was introduced with the Arabian con- 
 quest, and was probably of the Sunni form ; the Shia doctrine was only 
 established in Persia, of which Seistan then formed a portion, with the 
 rise of the Saffavo dynasty. During the reign of Nadir the latter 
 received a temporary check, from which, however, it soon recovered, 
 and the occupation of Seistan for many years by a Sunni force under 
 his nephew does not seem to have affected the religious profession of 
 the people, who then, as now, appear to have been rather careless in 
 such matters, or at least free from fanaticism. 
 
 At the present day, both sects are nearly equally represented in 
 Seistan, the excess being in favour of the Shia ; but since the Persian 
 occupation the proportions of the two sects have been much altered 
 by conversions to the faith of the invaders. Prior to the Persian 
 invasion, the ahli sunnat or " orthodox sect" included all the Belooch 
 tribes, and the Afghan settlers, together with many individual families 
 amongst the dihcdn ; the ahli tashayyun or " heretic sect" comprised the 
 Sarbandi, Shahreki and Cayani, together with most of the dihcdn tribes. 
 Since the Persian occupation the Nahroe Belooch have bodily gone over 
 to the Shia church, and the other Belooch it is predicted will follow as 
 quickly so soon as they are brought under Persian rule. The above 
 fact well illustrates the slight hold of religious professions upon the 
 Seistanees. 
 
 In truth, though professedly Mahomedans, the Seistanees have 
 very little knowledge of that religion ; as a rule they are extremely 
 ignorant and altogether illiterate ; their beliefs and actions are controlled 
 by gross superstitions, and ancient tribal customs. Signs, omens, and 
 charms carry great weight with them, and when dispensed by a priest 
 command implicit belief, but they are seldom allowed to interfere with 
 self-interest or self-will. In this respect the Seistanee generally, and 
 the Belooch more particularly, is entirely unfettered ; if he have a feud 
 to avenge, traveller to rob, or a drove of cattle to lift, nothing is allow- 
 ed to interfere with the prosecution of his design. 
 
 As a rule the Seistanees (the whole people collectively) are very care- 
 less in the observance of the ordinances of the religion they profess ; the 
 appointed daily prayers are constantly neglected; the creed is unknown 
 to many of the nomad tribes ; circumcision is not practised by many ; 
 disputes are seldom settled according to the Sharlat, owing probably to 
 the paucity and ignorance of their priests, but according to tribal cus- 
 tom by a conclave of the elders. Such is the condition of the bulk of 
 the people; some of the chiefs and other principal families are more 
 or less educated, and to a certain extent civilized, but the rest are utter 
 barbarians, free from all prejudices of caste or religion, and knowing no 
 right but that of might, and the latter they cheerfully recognize, and 
 resignedly submit to when brought home to them. 
 
 Mode of Life. The Seistanees may be divided into two classes accord- 
 ing to their mode of life, viz., agriculturalists and shepherds. The first 
 are all settled in fixed habitations and almost solely employed in the 
 cultivation of the soil and the operations appertaining thereto ; amongst 
 them may be included the artificers and handicraftsmen. As a rule, 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 159 
 
 they are considered less turbulent and warlike than the next class to be 
 described, and physically are an inferior people. Fevers, rheumatism, 
 and opthalmic diseases are very common amongst them, and many are 
 marked by small-pox. In their domestic arrangements they live very 
 simply ; their houses are dome-roofed, and consist of two or three rooms 
 communicating with each other ; the furniture is very scanty and as 
 plain as their usual fare ; a few felts and carpets with a number of red 
 pottery jars for storing grain and other supplies, constitute the contents 
 of the houses of the poor. Their food is mostly wheaten bread, ragouts 
 of mutton flavoured with assafoetida as a vegetable, or curds, and in the 
 proper season melons. The wealthy live differently according to taste 
 and means, and are fond of dressing in rich garment. 
 
 Since the Persian occupation, it is said a great improvement 
 has been effected in the condition of the people ; money has been in- 
 troduced into the country, and the previously existing barter system 
 has almost disappeared; the people are better clad (though in this 
 respect there is yet great room for improvement, for they are not so 
 well protected against the weather as are the Afghan peasantry), 
 and are more now peaceable and industrious than they used to be ; 
 further the area of land now under tillage is reckoned at more than 
 double what it was formerly, whilst order and security has been intro- 
 duced where all was before disorder and insecurity. The mode of life 
 of the Seistanees is in fact undergoing a rapid change, a change which, 
 it must be confessed, is an improvement on the lawlessness previously 
 characterizing it. The bastinado, stocks, and paling-stake, administered 
 by authority, have replaced the sword, dagger, and matchlock, formerly 
 used at personal discretion. The second class of Seistanees above-mentioned, 
 the shepherds, are all nomads living in temporary huts or booths, and 
 shifting their positions according to the requirements of pasture; they 
 lead an outdoor life, and are as wild and hardy as the cattle they tend. 
 They are almost all Belooch and Sarbandi and Shahreki ; they are a very 
 unsettled people, and always at feud with each other or hostilities with 
 their neighbours, and, robbers by nature ; their chief occupation, and 
 the one they enter into with real zest and spirit, is cattle-lifting or 
 caravan-stripping ; and they often combine and raid the neighbouring 
 districts of Persia after the fashion of the Turkmans, carrying off the 
 inhabitants for sale. Candahar has for years been supplied with female 
 slaves, or bond-servants (kauizak) from this source. A number of the 
 dihcan families are natives of Ghayn and Neb. and Kerman, who have 
 been kidnapped and carried off and sold by these marauding Belooch of 
 Seistan. 
 
 These nomad tribes bear a striking resemblance to the wandering 
 Arab about Baghdad in their general appearance and physique. My 
 attention was arrested by the similarity of the two people at opposite 
 extremes of the Persian frontier. Their mode of life is identical, but 
 the nature of their habitations differ ; the Belooch and other nomads in 
 Seistan living in huts or booths of tamarisk wicker and reeds, the Arabs 
 of Baghdad in black hair cloth tent or booths. Both are alike robbers 
 by nature ; both have the same physique, that is to say keen, deep sunk 
 eyes, sharp features, lean frames and hard wiry limbs ; in language they 
 differ entirely but they resemble each other in their ignorance of the reli- 
 gion they profess and their carelessness in the observance of its ordinances. 
 
160 RECORD OF THE MARCH OF 
 
 Another point of difference is in the complexion of the two peoples, 
 those of Seistan being darker as a rule than those of Baghdad. 
 
 I am inclined to believe that the two peoples were originally the 
 same race,, and that the slight differences now separating them are 
 attributable to the effects of conquest and revolution. The Belooch, 
 Sarbandi, and Shahreki, though differing in language and name, have a 
 common physique, which is entirely different from that of the Afghan 
 and the dikcdn of Seistan. They may have come to their present locale 
 at the time of the Arabian conquest, and in the revolutions and changes 
 succeeding the downfall of the Arab power may have become mixed up 
 with other dominant tribes and separated from their original stock. Thus 
 they may have lost their native language and name, and become known 
 by the names given to them by those amongst whom their lot was cast. 
 Their own traditional accounts of their descent are very diverse in detail, 
 but all point to an Arab source. 
 
 In their love of idleness and ease at home the Seistan nomads again 
 resemble the Arab ; their only work is to fight or plunder ; the domestic 
 labours, such as fetching water, collecting fuel, working in the house, 
 weaving, &c., and sometimes ploughing, are all performed by their women, 
 who are in fact, except when young and handsome, used as mere 
 drudges. 
 
 AGRICULTURE AND INDUSTRY. 
 
 Agriculture. The soil of Seistan is very fertile, and, by the extensive 
 system of canal irrigation established by the Persians, the whole area 
 of the basin south of the lake or hdmoon can be brought under cultivation, 
 and reclaimed from the desert waste it has been for centuries past. The 
 area at present under cultivation is^ it is said, double what it was pre- 
 vious to the Persian occupation, and there is room and every facility 
 under a firm Government for its being greatly increased. The command 
 of water is almost unlimited and its management easy. 
 
 The principal crops raised in Seistan are wheat and barley ; both are 
 largely exported. Formerly the revenue to the Afghan Government was 
 paid in grain and cattle, and the markets of Candahar and Furrah used 
 to be supplied with grain from Seistan. During the British occupation of 
 Afghanistan, the army at Candahar was supplied with corn from this 
 country, and recently, during the famine in Persia, the Ghayn district 
 was saved from its horrors by the importations hence. Indian-corn (joar], 
 and millet (bajra) are grown on some of the dry tracts, but not in large 
 quantity, and are consumed at home ; their stalks furnish winter fodder 
 for the cattle. Cotton is grown in small quantity for the manufacture 
 of the coarse cloth called Jcarbds, of which the dress of the common 
 people is made. Rice is grown to a small extent in some parts, as also 
 are tobacco and the common vegetables. Melons are grown every- 
 where, and in the hot weather form the common food of all classes. 
 Since the Persian occupation, vineyards and fruit gardens have been planted 
 at most of the villages. At Kimah we found the vine, apricot, peach, 
 plum, fig, and pomegranate in one enclosure. In a few years these 
 gardens will quite alter the appearance of the country, and vastly in- 
 crease its prosperity. 
 
THE MISSION TO SEISTAN. 161 
 
 Industry. The industrial pursuits of the Seistanees, after tillage of 
 the soil, &c., are confined to the supply of their domestic wants. These 
 occupations are confined to guilds or fraternities amongst the dihcdn 
 class, and are never followed by any of the proprietors of the soil, 
 however poor and needy they may be. Potters, carpenters, weavers, 
 cobblers, smiths, &c., perform all the handicrafts and other services 
 required by their masters, and in return receive corn, or milk, or cloth, 
 or cattle, or sheep, &c., according to the value of the work done. This 
 system of barter still obtains amongst the border villagers, and nomads, 
 but has disappeared from the Persian settlements, whence other changes 
 and improvements are fast spreading over the country to its civilization 
 and development. 
 
THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE 
 STAMPED BELOW 
 
 AN INITIAL PINE OF 25 CENTS 
 
 WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN 
 THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY 
 WILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTH 
 DAY AND TO SI.OO ON THE SEVENTH DAY 
 OVERDUE. 
 
 8 {948 
 
 LD 21-100w-7,'40(6936s) 
 
YC 38592 
 
 511554 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY 
 
^mp-j^r tartar 
 terfc*^ ^ 
 
 IH 
 
 jt $ 
 
 H