Scrapbook of newspaper cuttings about Afghanistan [‎78v] (160/312)

| perhaps a more important cause thun all
in tho growing relations between S heke
j A li and the Power which professes to have
! no interest in his concerns. The effect of those
j relations is to be seen in the Russian alliance which
the A meeb is known to have long urged on the
i S ultan . It may be said—as is said on behalf of
| Russia in a telegram we print this morning—that
j S hebe A li has pursued his own policy. But, in
j spite of this ingenuous disclaimer, sensible men will
1 continue to have their own opinion as to the effect
on his mind of interviews with the Russian envoys,
official and unofficial, who have succeeded one
another at his Court. At any rate, whatever
motives have influenced his policy, he seems
now to have chosen his course, and his insolent
rejection of Sir S eville C hamberlain's proffered
mission is an earnest of what this is to be. A last
attempt has been made to bring him, by
| friendly means, to a truer sense of his own
I interests. It has failed for the moment. But if he
j thinks that the matter is likely to end where it is,
I he will soon find that he has either grossly deceived
! himself or been grievously misled by others.
RUSSIA AND AFGHANISTAN.
BBKLIN, O ct . 2.
The North German Gazette of this evening publishes a
significant letter from St. Petersburg in which the present
situation aB regards Kutsiaand Afghanistan is discussed as
follows ;—
j " The keynote of Russian policy is that she wishes
, to gain tranquillity on the basis of the Treaty of
i Berlin. Even ajuongJ the military party, a purely
defen»ive policy is advocaced. It is, then, per
fectly clear tnut Kussia, under these circumstanceB
ted from these points of view, will neither pre
pare for nor gecond any enterprise in conjunction
with Aighaniitan. That Asiatic tpectatorsdurirg (he war
in the iSaat were very attentive observers of the
overt antagonism between Russia and England who can be
surprised .' it is also a fact that Russia, quite as much as
England, allowed this antagonism to show itself with great
| pi» uness by her military reconnniss ,nces. It may
| perhaps now be thought that it would have been better
, in tiie in-erest ot both parties not to have done
i this, but what has actually happened caimot be immedia-
j tely forgotten, and spectators like Khere Ali, who are by
| no means harmless, uave pursued their own policy."
The letter concludes with a reiteration of its opening
sentences What we really want is to gain tranquillity
on the bases of the Treaty of JBerlin—tjanquillity both :fc
home and abroad. Russia has to collect her forces in the
quiet works of peace."
THE PEOPLE OF AFGHANISTAN.
( P bom oub C obbespondent.)
BERLIN, S ept . 30.
I subjoin another extract from the records of the j
Russian Military Department touching the popula- !
tion of Afghanistan :—
" Afghanistan includes an area of 10 ,000 geographical
square miles,with about 6,000,000 inhabitants. The sparsity
of its population may be concluded from the fact that Ger
many on the same area supports over 40,000,000 people*
The population of the various provinces will be seen in the
following ;—
" I.—O abulistan.
" 1. Oabul.—District of Djellalabad, Cabul, Gazni,
and Kuram, 900,000 inhabitants.
" 2. Kafiristan (semi-independent).—District of Konar,
100,000 inhabitants ; principality of Kashgar, 60,000 ;
Badjour, 50,000 ; Navasai, 10,000 ; and Dir, 100,000; Ligue
Utman Kheilei, 50,000 ; Ligue Momund, 75,000 ; district
of Swat, 210,000 ; Bunir, 326,000 ; and Khyber, 100,000 ;
Northern Cabul, 1,000,000.
" II.—H esab.
" 1. Province of Hesar.—District of Yokikhohir, 10,000
inhabitants ; Desandshi, 10,000 ; Ser'Djeng, 15,000.
" 2. Province of Pusht-kug.—District of Dekudi, 10,000
inhabitants j Bolgor and Kydelav, 150,000.
" III.—K hobasan.
" 1. Province of Kandahar.—District of Ferra, 130,000
inhabitants ; Kandahar, Hirisk, and Kelat Gildsbi,
900,000.
" 2. Province of Herat.—District of Gurian, 100,000
inhabitants ; Sabsor, 80,000; Bakna, 32,000 ; Kerrukh,
20,000 ; Obe, 12,000 ; Herat, 60,000.
" 3. Herat Dependencies.—District of Kale No, Mur-
gab, and Pindshe (Hissare tribe), 145,000 inhabitants ;
Tivere, 64,000 ; Deria Dere, 25,000 ; Djevedje, 8,000 ;
Rades, 25,000. Firus Kugi Tribe.—Dersi, 10,000 ; Kutche,
10,000 ; Tchektoheran, 20,000 ; and Doulet Yar, 13,000.
" IV — T ubkestan (semi-independent.)
" Khanate of Maimene, 100,000 inhabitants ; Andkui
and Shibberyan, 60,000; Aktche, 10,000 ; Balkh and
Seri Put, 64,000 ; Khulm, 300,000; Kundus, with dis
tricts of Talishen and Khasret Isman, 400,000 ; Badak-
shan —.
" V.—S eistan, 280,000.
" All these figures are only approximate.
" More important than the territorial division is that of
races and tribes. There are nine distinct races in the
country—Afghans, Tadshiks, Kizilbashi, Hesari, Usbeks,
Hindoos, Djat, KaflBrs, and Arabs.
" The Afghans, or Patan, or Pushtu, who are the domL
Hating race, are about 3,000,000 strong. They are divided
into five tribes or 405 clans (kheil), the clans being sub
divided into numerous families. 277 clans call themselves
Afghans, the remaining 128 preferring the patronymic of
Pakhtan. All boast of deriving their descent from the Ten
Tribes of Israel, a claim not altogether substantiated, but
in favour of which a good deal of evidence has been
alleged.
" The five great tribes are j—
" I.— A fghans.
*• Batanai, 25 clans ; Mattai or Gilsai, 52 clans ; Gur-
gushtai, 95 clans ; Sarabanai, 105 clans.
" ii.— P akhtan.
" Karalanai, 128 clans. Total, 405 clans.
'* Though spread over the whole country, the bulk of the
Afghan population live in the eastern and south-eastern
provinces, being inveterate mountaineers, and preferring
the lofty hills on the Indian frontier to any more profitable
and convenient residence. Of those living in the adjoining
valleys some are in the habit of nomadizing on British ter
ritory part of the year.
"In the north-east, the principal clans are the following:
—The Shinvar, in the Valley of the Kame, a tributary of
the Kabul, are almost entirely independent. The Tarka-
lanai, in the south-western basin of the river Pendjkor, are
divided into the three principalities of Badjour, Birakhul,
and Navasai, and sending 10,000 armed men into the field,
may be estimated at 80,000 souls. The numerous clan of
the Yusufzae, residing in the corner formed by the junction
nf the Oabul and Indus rivers, is divided into many
families. Of these the Khvadazai occupy the greater part V-
of the Pendjkor valley, forming the principality of Dir,
which has 62 villages, capable of turning out 20,000 rifle
men. The Khvadazai also live on the right bank of the
River Swat, where they have 54 villages, and muster 17,000
rifles. The left bank of the River Swat is held by the
Baizai, another branch of the Yussufzi divided into the
Ranizai (52 villages and 12,000 rifles), and the Babuzi (70
villages, 18,000 rifles). Both these branches are governed
by separate Khans. Between therRivers Kame and Swat,
on the left bank of the Kabul Darya, there are the less im
portant subdivisions of the Gandjianaii, Darudzai, Moha-
medzai, and Halilai. The Utman Kheilei, in the lower
part of the same valley, form a fraternity having the com
mand of 10,000 rifles. The| Upper Momunds, south of
Badjonr and the Utman Kheil league, extend as far as the •
Kabul Darya, and on the right bank of the river come
up to the Khyber hills. They have 25,000 families and two
Khans. The British territory south-east of these, between
Indus, Kabul Darya, and the hills,is inhabited by different
branches of the Yusufzae, about 150,000 strong, with 30,000
rifles. North of this outlying tribe, in the more or less in
dependent district of Bunair, we have the Malezai and
Mandezai branches of the Yussufzi. They are subdivided
into the Salarzae, Djidasai, Ashaisai, Hehelsai, Nurzai,
Shumlai, Khudo Kheil, Jadun, Otmanzai, and Amazai.
Part of the Douletzai live in the same neighbourhood. The
whole population of Bunair is distributed over 111 villages,
and can turn out up to 65,000 armed men.
" South of the Kabul Darya in Oabulistan and the Pend-
jab hills, lining the Indus Valley, the Taxnokhi muster
6,000 rifles. The Afridi, the most numerous of the border
tribes, spending the greater part of the year on the Oabul
hills, and descending only in summer into the Indus
Valley, glory in the possession of 15,000 armed men-
To them belong the Khyber and Shinvari people, famous
for their martial and savage characteristics. Protected by
the Khyber hills, they are entirely independent and receive
from 10,000 to 20,000 rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf. a year from the Cabul Go
vernment as a consideration for allowing caravans to pass.
Some 30 years ago there were counted some 20,000 rifles in
and near the Khyber Pass. The Khyber men are divided
into many sections, each of them having a separate Khan
and refusing to acknowledge any superior authority.
Among the more prominent branches of the Afridi, the
Jawaki, the Zaka-Khel, the Galli, and the Adam Kheil
deserve to be mentioned. The Lower Momund (12,000
armed men) occupy the south-western corner of the district
of Peshawur. The strip of land separating the British
districts of Peshawur and Kohat takes its name from the
Khattak, who, notwithstanding their 15,000 rifles, lead a
pacific agricultural life. The Orakzai inhabit the Ganga
valley south-west of Kohat, and the Tirak Valley. "West
of them there are the Bangash, in the valley pf
the Miranzai and part of the Kuram Valley, within thb
boundaries of Cabul. South of the Kuram valley, between
the districts of Bannu and Tak, the country is infested by \
the robber tribes of the Batani (5,000 rifles), living partly
on English, partly on Cabul territory. The Soliman hills
(Takhti Suliman, Anglicb the Throne of Solomon), in the
south-eastern extremity of Afghanistan, harbours the
three martial brotherhoods of the Shirani, Ushterani, and
Kazrani. The Shirani, 10,000 rifles, make constant inroads
into the valleys, and up to the pacification of the country
by the English were the terror of the whole region. They
live in the direction of Deri Ismail Khan. The Kazrani
have about 5,000 rifles and are less warlike.
" West of these, and still included in the Cabul fron
tiers, there is the extensive district of Dour, reaching from
the river Gomel to the river Kuram, and inhabited by the
Vezir people, divided into the three branches of the Makh-
sud, the Vezir in the south, the Derveshkel in the centre,
and the Kabulkel in the north. The Vezir are a powerful
and independent race, mostly nomads, leading a pastoral
life, staying in the hills in summer ; the winter entices
them down to the Indus Valley. Their principal centres
are the towns of Kanagcram and Makeen. The upper |
valley of the Kuram is inhabited by the Turi and Jaji,
of the Pakhtan division of the people. Further down the
valley we meet with a portion of the Zuimucht, whose
principal mass reside south-west. The mountainous dis-
trict of Khost, south of the Kuram, is the property of
small hill tribes—the Driplara, the Drikuti, Mattun, Gur-
( bus, Torzai, and others.
V