THE MURGHAB VALLEY
[Illustration: THE RUSSIAN COSSACK ON THE AFGHAN BORDER]
The river Murghab, which, with the Kashan and the Kushk streams, waters
the Merv oasis and then disappears in the sands of the Kara Kum desert,
rises in the mass of mountains connecting the eastern extremities of
the Safed Koh and Tir Band-i Turkestan ranges. It flows in a westerly
direction through the great valley separating these mountain chains
and, after receiving the waters of numerous tributaries, turns towards
the north-west to pass the Afghan fortress of Bala Murghab and the
post of Karawal Khana. At this latter point it receives the waters of
the Kaisar affluent. Continuing in a north-westerly direction it flows
past Maruchak, lying on the right bank, where a short distance below it
is joined by the Kashan stream. Pendjeh and Ak Tepe are both situated
upon the left bank. At Ak Tepe the Kushk river, which rises in the
Paropamisus range, unites with it and from this point the Murghab runs
in a due northerly direction past Yulatan to Merv, thence running dry
in the desert.
Within Russian territory the Murghab river irrigates exclusively
the Merv district, and its length within the Trans-Caspian province
is about 400 versts. If its numerous bends were taken into account
the length of the stream would be 850 versts. The Kushk river waters
Russian territory for a distance of 100 versts, from the Russo-Afghan
frontier to its confluence with the Murghab; the Kashan for 60 versts.
The width of the Murghab at the Kaushut-Khan-Band, 28 versts above the
town of Merv, is about 23 sagenes; but at Merv itself it narrows to
12 sagenes. Its mean depth is 7 feet. The rise of the water begins in
the middle of March and the fall finishes three months later. Between
June and the middle of October the level of the river is determined by
the rain-fall and snow in the neighbouring mountains. About June, when
the river has fallen, the population experiences the want of the water
which is necessary for the autumn crop of cotton. In years of drought,
when the dearth of water is felt much earlier--during the period of the
ripening of the crops, in fact--the population are obliged to abandon
the greater portion of their harvest.
The country through which these rivers flow is, in the main, a mixture
of desert waste and cultivated strip, with rising uplands carpeted in
spring by bright flowers and hidden in winter by heavy snows. Roads
meander along the valleys, sometimes by means of rocks and boulders
crossing and recrossing the stream many times in short stretches or, at
others, wandering far away from the waterside to traverse the broken
spurs of hills. Where signs of cultivation exist, there are indications
that the population has regained confidence in the Russian domination
of the district. Fields and irrigation canals have been cleaned and
restored; the sparkle of the little rills is reflected in the brilliant
sunshine.
[Illustration: TAMARISK SCRUB IN THE RIVER VALLEY]
From the broad uplands of the watershed, from where to the river bed
below there is in general a tedious scramble across a confusion of
stones and brushwood, the tumbled masses of the rounded slopes are
seen to sink into long undulating sweeps. Where the Kushk and Murghab
valleys become entangled, a line of sand cliffs disappears in one
direction into the haze of the Kara Kum and merges in another with
the Karabyl plateau. In the distance the river, spreading itself over
a labyrinth of canals, passes through a rapid succession of changing
scenes, until, in the broad arid wastes of the Kara Kum, its waters are
finally and completely lost. South-west of Bala Murghab the valley
narrows to the dimensions and rugged outlines of a defile. Through this
the river rolls, tumbling with thunderous clamour, towards Pendjeh
oasis, where it acquires a breadth of 1 to 3 miles. At Pul-i-Khisti,
identical with Tash Kepri and a little above the Russian settlement
of Takhta Bazaar, the stream is joined by the waters of the Kushk
rivulet, when it is not consumed in irrigation. From this point the
united rivers flow onward to the oases of Yulatan and Merv, passing
through a broad flat valley, 2 miles in width, bounded on either side
by sandstone heights. In this stage the river is slow running, deep and
difficult to cross, and possessing but few fords. Its average breadth
varies between 40 and 70 yards and the most prominent feature is its
extreme sinuosity. Beyond Bala Murghab the river valley is contained
on the left bank by an undulating chain of low hills, high rocky
gorges enclosing the right. At this point the sides are steep, with a
possible height of 24 feet and a surface growth of shrubs and willows.
A narrow, level strip, tufted with scattered grasses, lies between the
water’s edge and the hills on the left bank. The river itself flows in
a single channel, clinging rather closely to the left of the valley. It
possesses a mean breadth of 70 yards and a maximum current of 5 miles.
The depth of the ford is between 3 to 4 feet.
The valleys which debouch upon the river are quite spacious and contain
small plots of cultivated ground, with here and there a village.
Unfortunately, while the banks of the river are fertile the valleys
themselves are exceedingly unhealthy--a low fever, pathologically
identical in the two districts of Murghab and Kushk, permeating them.
Although the great majority of the inhabitants avow themselves immune
from the disease, they are averse to settling in the valleys. A feature
of the river is the abruptness with which the broad open spaces are
changed to narrow gorges of no remarkable height. This trait in the
character of an otherwise respectable inland river compresses so great
a volume of water into so small a channel that its passage is attended
with risk. It is not until the spreading expanses of the Pendjeh,
Yulatan and Merv oases have exhausted it that the stream is crossed
with convenience. At Bala Murghab, where the current is very strong and
the depth uncertain, deep holes in the bottom and masses of protruding
rocks, added to the hidden dangers from quicksands, make the task of
fording an intricate proceeding. There are two fords at this point, and
a similar number are in use at Maruchak, Karawal Khana and Pendjeh,
while the Russians have restored many stone bridges which formerly
existed in the Kushk valley near the junction of the Murghab and Kushk
rivers, at Maruchak and Bala Murghab. The liability of the two rivers
to sudden floods renders all fords uncertain and insecure, particularly
in the lower stretches between Pendjeh and Merv. More often than not
necessity dictates the prudence of stripping to the skin, when the
native, a prayer to Allah on his lips and his possessions strapped
in a bundle on his head, flounders through the water to arrive damp,
disconsolate and very scared on the opposite side. Nevertheless, the
best fords are found usually where the stream flows swiftly through a
narrow bed. At such a crossing there is a firm bottom and foothold is
readily secured.
Many contrivances are used to cross the rivers of High Asia. Where the
current is sluggish an inflated goatskin is employed. This system is in
vogue on the Oxus and, in lesser degree, on the Helmund, where rafts of
bushes are preferred. Along the Murghab the indifferent nature of the
fords and the swiftness of the current in the narrow channels of the
river make the use of a boat, drawn along a hawser, more suited to the
needs of the occasion. Fords on the Murghab are not so frequent as on
the Oxus.
The Kushk Valley extends in Russian and Afghan territory some 14 miles.
It possesses an average breadth of three-quarters of a mile. Its hills,
low and rounded, are a conglomerate of clay and red sand, but bare of
trees and with their faces dotted with mud-cabins. An extensive system
of irrigation is fed by the river and there is much cultivation on
the tops and sides of the hills. The produce of the fields is only
sufficient for the immediate wants of the native settlers, although
the Russians hope, now a garrison has been established at Kushkinski
Post, that the demands of the troops will spur the villagers to greater
agricultural activity. In Afghan territory the valley is the habitat
of the Jamshidis, who, quiet and tractable, reveal few wants and even
fewer interests. Excessive irrigation has done so much to spread the
fever that the population throughout the valley has been dwindling
gradually. There are now less than 4000 families in the entire valley,
years of peace and prosperity seeming to accentuate the restlessness
which underlies the nature of all nomadic people. A weekly bazaar is
held at Kushkinski Post; similar gatherings taking place at Afghan
Kushk, Bala Murghab, Maruchak and in the Pendjeh oasis at Takhta
Bazaar. Salt, rice, soap, carpets and horses are all brought to the
markets, while the Russians encourage the native merchants under their
protection to display stocks of Russian sugar, matches and cotton
prints. Silks from Meshed and Bokhara are also in evidence, but nothing
of any English or Indian origin. French, American and German products
are barred no less rigorously, although German matches and French sugar
occasionally escape the specific ostracism which applies to British
manufactures.
In the Kushk valley the fertility of the land is dependent upon
the flooding of the river by the spring rains. As a consequence an
ever-present feeling of irritation exists in the lower parts of the
Kushk valley against the Afghan villagers, who control the head waters
of the river and divert it to their own fields. This difficulty
prevails along the entire line of the frontier in this region, the
demarcation of the boundary between the two races leaving the heads
of the canals in Afghan territory. There are many exceptions to the
misfortune, and, so far as possible, the division is arranged in a
spirit of mutual ownership, although the natives, on the Russian side
of the frontier, have no claim to compensation if there should be an
insufficient quantity. With a river like the Kushk, which possesses
an irregular volume, the difficulty is much greater than in the case
of the Murghab or even the Hari Rud. Water means to these primitive
peoples life and existence; and, as cultivation is only rendered
possible by most assiduous irrigation, the task of conserving the
supply involves incessant labour. Although agricultural activity
prevails principally in the Murghab and Kushk district there are a few
cultivated places in the Kashan valley. It would be useless to make
any comparison between the former valleys and the Kashan. The Kashan
valley contains a small strip, level, well watered and about half a
mile in width, through which percolates a narrow stream. In spite of
its culturable soil the Kashan district is not frequently inhabited,
as in the extreme hot weather the Kashan river is exhausted by the
claims made upon it for purposes of irrigation; below Robat-i-Kashan,
except during the spring floods, there is no trace of water. A similar
condition of affairs characterises its companion stream the Kushk; at
the point of union with the Murghab it is frequently reduced to a mere
trickle. None the less during the spring rains each of these rivers is
liable to sudden floods. Prior to the advent of the railway at Tanur
Sangi there were but few settlements in the valley. There was one at
Karawal Khana on the right bank of the Murghab and 12 miles south
of Maruchak, while the next of any consequence was at Bala Murghab,
upon the same bank and more than 20 miles away from Maruchak. At the
time when the Anglo-Russian Commission was adjusting the line of the
Russo-Afghan frontier in this region, the absence of habitation and
human settlement of any kind was most marked. Time has brought a change.
Tanur Sangi is now one of the termini of the Murghab valley railway.
Barracks for the troops who are occupying the post have been built on
the heights of the valley, the dense vegetation has been burnt off
and a system of drainage applied to the neighbouring swamps. For the
moment the Maruchak district, extending equally within Russian and
Afghan territory, is pregnant with prospects and the advent of the
Russians there has been followed by an influx of native settlers. Upon
the Afghan side of the river there are similar indications, by reason
of the arrival of the levies who garrison the Afghan forts at Bala
Murghab, Maruchak, Kala Nao and elsewhere.
[Illustration: BOKHARAN TRADERS AT PENDJEH]
The river is the dividing-point between Russian and Afghan possessions
at Maruchak for 15 miles. Still it is interesting to note that the
natural frontier between Maruchak and Pendjeh is at the northern end of
the Maruchak valley, where the hills, closing in upon the river on both
sides, separate the Maruchak acres from those of the Pendjeh oasis.
Formerly, too, the Murghab flowed down the northern end of the Maruchak
valley, washing the western face. It has now changed its course and,
sweeping from west to east, washes the eastern aspect. This deviation
had an important bearing upon the findings of the Anglo-Russian
Commission. Under their correct and literal interpretation of the
protocol the Russians were debarred from exercising any claim over
the waters of canals employed for irrigation, provided their heads were
in Afghan territory. By the change in the direction of the Murghab the
head of the waters supplying the Pendjeh oasis, which proceed from the
Band-i-Nadir canal on the left bank of the Murghab, was placed within
Afghan territory. A modification of the situation was urged; finally
the boundary was made to pass from Zulfikar on the Hari Rud to the
Kushk and from the head of the canal in the Kashan valley to the head
of the Band-i-Nadir on the Murghab, due west of Maruchak instead of to
a point north of it. This re-adjustment permitted control of the head
waters of the Band-i-Nadir to revert to Russia.
[Illustration: THE RUSSO-AFGHAN BOUNDARY]
The Afghan fortress of Maruchak has experienced a varying fortune, the
vicissitudes of which once brought it to ruin and caused its defences
to be abandoned. Since then the advance of the Russians has thrown
it into prominence again. Its walls have been restored, although it
can never serve any other purpose than that of a frontier post of
observation. The fortress is in the shape of a square of which the
outer walls, measuring some 600 yards, rise 20 feet from the side of a
moat. The main entrance faces the river on the west. Other entrances
of less importance are placed at the north-east and south-east angles.
In the centre, rising from a circular mound some 40 feet in height
with a diameter of 250 yards, is an inner fortress. Quarters for the
troops have been constructed along the eastern wall where there is now
accommodation for 1000 men. Gun towers stand at the four corners of the
main wall and an infantry platform runs round the inner face of the
square, a few feet below the parapet. At an angle of the inner fortress
and slightly higher than the fortress itself is the citadel, some 80
yards square, where a last stand would be made. The walls and bastions
of this are about 15 feet high and gun platforms have been constructed
at the corners.
Bala Murghab, a sister fortress, is smaller than Maruchak and lies
about 46 miles south-east of Pendjeh. The principal work consists of a
fort 120 yards square, situated on a mound itself 30 feet in height;
the walls of the fort rise a further 15 feet. An underground passage
from it leads to the river and there are quarters for 200 cavalry,
300 infantry and one battery of artillery, besides storehouses and a
magazine. The interior of the fort in its present size does not afford
accommodation for the existing garrison, all of whom are Irregulars
with the exception of the officers. The larger proportion of the
mounted men have their lines outside the walls. On a mound, which
hitherto has marked the ruins of an ancient citadel, a more commodious
fort has been constructed. It stands at the bend of the river, covering
Robat-i-Ishmail and protecting the entrance to the Mangan defile. Its
dimensions provide for a square of 200 yards, with walls 25 feet in
height and an inner defence work standing some 50 feet higher.
[Illustration: MESHED TRADERS AT PENDJEH]
Independent of the regular garrison at Herat, there is a levy roll
for the Bala Murghab district of 1000 mounted and dismounted men.
Two hundred of the former are supposed always to be mustered as Bala
Murghab finds details for a number of outlying fatigues, including
pickets at the fords and certain mounted patrols. In the immediate
vicinity of the fort there is a settlement containing several thousand
families. It should be remembered that the garrison at this point is
comprised of Afghan Irregulars, who still retain their old titles and
organisation. Their company strength is 100 and each company is quite
independent of the remaining ones. Five companies form the command
of a Sarhang, whose superior officer is a Sartip. Each company
commander is known as a Sad Bashi; and for every ten men there is a
Dah Bashi. In the regular Afghan army the commissioned ranks are known
by the English equivalent; but in general the military organisation,
whether regular or irregular in men as in _matériel_, is hopeless.
No point in the Murghab region is more important than the Pendjeh oasis
as an agricultural colony. It is principally confined to the limits of
a single valley, some 25 miles in length and 2 miles in breadth. Dotted
about its spreading expanse there are a number of tiny settlements,
containing in all some eight to nine thousand households. The areas
under cultivation do not return sufficient grain to support so large a
population; there is, therefore, a constant migration of Pendjeh Sariks
to the adjacent valleys of Kushk and Maruchak as well as to the more
distant oases of Yulatan and Tejend, where they have become ardent
agriculturists.
The settlers in the Pendjeh valley are divided into five sections.
Although united by tribal ties intercommunal jealousies are responsible
for continuous discord. The richest and most influential section is
that of the Soktis, who occupy the land on the western bank of the
Murghab between Pendjeh, Kuhnah and Sari Yazi, a distance of some 35
miles. The Harzagis settlement, lying on the same bank, extends between
Takhta Bazar and Maruchak; between these two large settlements are the
areas occupied by the Khorassanlis. The two remaining sections, the
Bairach and the Alishah, share the opposite bank.
The occupation of the Pendjeh valley by the Sariks took place about
thirty years ago, when they were turned out of Merv by certain of the
Tekke tribes. At first the Soktis were the sole possessors of the
district; but, as other parties came in detachments from Merv, the
different sections, increasing in numbers and in strength, were able
to enforce upon the earlier arrivals a general division of the valley.
Under existing arrangements the Pendjeh oasis has developed, the advent
of the railway having attracted the attention of the Russians to its
agricultural capacity. There must be now some 75,000 acres under
cultivation, the entire area owing its fertility to the Murghab river,
whose waters are confined by the Band-i-Nadir.
The Yulatan oasis, which is inhabited by those Sarik Turcomans who
moved from the Pendjeh valley, similarly possesses an unfailing
supply of water from the huge dam, Band-i-Kazakli. This is drawn from
the Murghab river by a canal and affords water to 125,000 acres, at a
velocity of 1500 feet per second. The depth of the canal is sufficient
to carry a camel off its legs. Near the site of the dam are the ruins
of the Sultan-i-band, a work far vaster than any of the present day. It
gave 28 feet head of water and made the fields and gardens of Old Merv
the most fertile region upon the globe’s surface. The Sultan-i-band was
destroyed in 1784 by the Amir Murad of Bokhara, an act which completely
ruined the prosperity of Merv. Just a century later the Tsar, to whose
private estates the site of Old Merv belongs, ordered the construction
of an anicut 13 miles up stream. The work was carried out by Colonel
Kashtalinski, superintendent of the State domains at Bairam Ali. It
includes a dam which gives 14 feet head of water and it is connected
with a series of storage basins, feeding a central canal 20 miles long.
This in its turn supplies 35 miles of secondary canals and 105 miles
of distributaries. The cost of these splendid operations was about
£105,000; an expenditure which was declared by an eminent English
authority on irrigation to be one-fifth of what a similar work would
entail in India. It is in contemplation to restore the Sultan-i-band at
an estimated cost of £210,000, by which a further measure of prosperity
will be assured to the locality. The area thus irrigated amounts to
15,000 acres; 5000 of which are under cotton, while 3675 grow wheat and
barley. The whole is let out to Turcomans and Bokharans. The mountains
of cotton waiting for transport by rail in the season are a standing
proof of the excellence of crops, which are said to return but little
short of one hundredfold. The demand for farms within this fertile
area is so great that the natives compete for the privilege of holding
one at a rent in kind amounting to a quarter of the gross produce. In
spite of prohibitions subletting is very rife and one plot frequently
supports several families.