‘GAZETTEER OF PERSIA VOL. I Comprising the Provinces of ASTARÁBÁD, SHÁHRUD-BÚSTAN, KHÚRÁSÁN, AND SÍSTÁN’ [‎47v] (99/722)

collect for his personal expenses only the small sum of 4,000 tumans=
Es. 16,000 per annum. Of this, 300 tumans is raised from the town
dues on shops, sale of cattle, horses, &e.; the balance is collected rateably
from the free villages, i.e., those assigned to dependants.
Four thousand tumans is the nominal sum assessed yearly, hut Napier was
given to understand that more than this is occasionally exacted, the excess
usually falling on villages not inhabited by the chiefs tribesmen. A tri
bute of horses and usually of a sum of 1,000 tumans or more, in gold coins,
is paid yearly to the Shah. At this cost, and on the conditions above
noted, the whole of the lands of Bivjnurd are occupied by the Shahdillu.
Under a better system, and with increased security, they would be capable of
returning a fair revenue to the Shah/s Government; and the service for which
the tribe is paid, and for which it enjoys such great privileges, would pro
bably be performed at a less cost by troops of the regular army.
Since the days of the Ilkhani The paramount chief of certain tribes in south west Iran. Jafar Kuli Khan, the Goklan tribe has
been under the direct management of JBujnurd, and the influence of the
Saham-ud-Daula procured him an accession of authority.
The tribute, or revenue, due by the tribe is collected by a deputy of the
Ilkhani The paramount chief of certain tribes in south west Iran. , who sits at Sangar, the chief settlement. The cavalry of the
tribe are also under his orders, and he has authority to coerce and punish.
— [Napier.)
BUJNTJRD—Lat. 37° 29'183" Long. 57° 20'45" ; Elev. 3,446'(Am).
A town in Northern Khurasan, picturesquely situated on a small and beau
tiful plain covered with cultivation, sprinkled with gardens and trees, and
surrounded by mountains of every variety and description. The town may
be described as a square, situated about two miles from the hills to the
north, built round a mound in the north side, on which is situated the
Ilkhanfs residence, called the “arg.” The place is surrounded on all sides by
a very decent wall, which includes a great deal more ground than is taken up
by the town ; so that on the south and west sides there are large open spaces
almost entirely unoccupied, and these are shut off from the inhabited portion
by inner walls; and on the west there is a third wall, which runs in a meaning
less way from the Bagh-i-Khan to the south, between the outer and inner
walls above-mentioned. There are four gates—the Kibla on the north, Ku-
chan on the east, Mashhad on the south, and the Gurgan on the west. The
citadel is built on a mound about 150 yards square, 100 yards from the
north gate, and the ground slopes from it down to the south. The town is
said to contain 1,500 houses, all of mud with flat roofs. These are chiefly
inhabited by Shahdillu; but there are also a few families of Zafaranlu, poli
tical refugees, and of Tajiks and Turks, driven by the famine from other dis
tricts. There are four main streets : one enters at the Kibla gate, and winds
round the western face of the citadel, and then goes south to the Mashhad
gate; another, entering at the Kuchan gate, runs irregularly to the west, and
has its exit at the Gurgan gate. Down part of the street leading to the
“arg^ is a stream of water and some trees are planted, gdvinff it a cheer
ful shade.
.The town, though surrounded by triple defences, is not capable of offering
any resistance; as the walls are much out of repair, the water-supply can
be cut off, and the place is commanded by high ground to the north.
The only manufactures of Bujnurd are copper pots, and striped silks and