claim to these hereditary honours, what was my surprise to find that
there were _six other_ personages established, to the satisfaction
of the people, in like honours. The chiefs that extend eastward of
Durwaz, and occupy the provinces of Koolab, Shughnan, and Wakhan,
north of the Oxus, claim the same descent. The chief of Budukhshan
received in modern times the same honours as have been ascribed to
him by the Venetian traveller. He has the title of Shah and Malik,
or King, and his children that of Shahzadu; but this ancient house
has been subverted within these twelve years by the Meer of Koondooz,
and Budukhshan is now held by a Toork family. To the eastward of
Budukhshan, and extending to Cashmere, lie the hill states of Chitral,
Gilgit, and Iskardo, where the claims to a Grecian descent are
likewise conceded to each of the princes. The first of these has the
title of Shah Kuttore. The present ruler is of small stature, and, in
these countries, has as great a celebrity for his long beard as the
Shah of Persia. The chief of Iskardo occupies a singular fortress on
the Indus, which he has the hardihood to assert was constructed in
the days of Alexander himself. The country borders on Little Tibet,
or Baltee. Nor is this the ultimate limit of the tradition, for
the soldiers of the Toonganee tribe, who are sent from the western
provinces of Chinese Tartary, and garrison Yarkund and the neighbouring
cities, claim also a Grecian origin. They, however, seek, with greater
modesty, a descent from the soldiers of Alexander’s army, and not from
the conqueror himself.
~Examination of these claims.~
Such is a correct list of the reputed descendants of Alexander, and
it is in some degree confirmatory of their claim, that the whole of
these princes are Tajiks, who were the inhabitants of this country
before it was overrun by Toorkee or Tartar tribes. But how shall we
reconcile these accounts with the histories that have travelled down to
our times, whence we learn that the son of Philip did not even leave
an heir to inherit his gigantic conquests, much less a numerous list
of colonies, which have survived a lapse of more than 2000 years in
a distant quarter of Asia? Whether their descent is viewed as true or
fabulous, the people themselves acknowledge the hereditary dignity of
the princes; and they, in their turn, claim every royal honour, and
refuse to give their children in marriage to other tribes. These Tajiks
being now converted to Islam, view Alexander as a prophet; and to the
distinction which they derive from his warlike achievements, they add
the honour of being related to one of the inspired messengers of the
Deity. I have had opportunities of conversing with some members of
the Budukhshan family, but there was nothing in form or feature which
favoured their Grecian lineage. They are fair-complexioned, and not
unlike the Persian of modern times; while there is the most decided
contrast between them and the Toorks and Uzbeks.
~Conjectures regarding them.~
We learn from the historians of Alexander’s expedition, that he
warred in the kingdom of Bactriana. The city of Balkh, which lies
in the vicinity of these territories, is readily fixed upon as the
Bactra of the Greek monarchs. Setting aside every local identity, the
modern inhabitants state, that the country between Balkh and Cabool
had the name of “Bakhtur Zumeen,” or the Bakhtur country, in which we
recognise Bactria. The fact renders it by no means improbable, that
a Grecian colony had some time or other existed in the country. It
may, therefore, be supposed, that the Grecian dynasty, which succeeded
Alexander in his empire, ascended the valley of the Oxus, the fertility
of which would attract them. They would have been conducted at Iskardo
into Baltee, or Little Tibet, and the neighbourhood of Cashmere; and we
may perhaps account for the early civilisation of that beautiful valley
in such a migration of Grecian colonists. The introduction of the
religion of Mahommed into every country seems to have been fatal to its
historical annals; and I doubt not that any traces which here existed
of the Macedonian inroad, or of the Seleucidæ, their successors,
were effaced in that great revolution. I have already observed, that
the countries on the upper course of the Oxus seem to have lain out
of the channel of Tartar invasion, and I infer, from their language
and connection with Persia, that they followed the destinies of that
country, which would be favourable to their having been conquered by
Alexander. If we cannot bring ourselves to concede to these moderns
the illustrious lineage of Alexander of Macedon, we must yet receive
their tradition as the most concurring proof of his having overrun
these countries; and, till some well-grounded arguments can be brought
forward to the contrary, I cannot, for my own part, deny their title to
the honours which they claim. I received the information from several
natives of the country; and, as they entertained no doubt of its being
genuine and authentic, I have contented myself with recording that
which will enable others to enlarge and speculate upon it.
CHAP. V.
ON THE SOURCES OF THE INDUS.
~Interest attached to the sources of the Indus.~
The sources of the different great rivers of the world have at all
times excited the particular attention of mankind. Of none has our
information been more conflicting and obscure than the upper course
of the Indus. I record the following particulars relating to this
most interesting geographical subject, the result of my intercourse
with the people of the neighbouring countries. My enquiries have been
materially assisted by the labours of Lieutenant Macartney, though a
wide difference will be found between the heads of the Indus, as now
described, and their delineation in that officer’s map. Great, however,
is the aid which one derives from the records of a preceding enquirer.
The papers of Mr. Moorcroft ought to furnish us with some information
on this point; but they are still unpublished, and his journey,
though it extended nearer to the scene than that of any other modern
traveller, was yet distant from the source of the Indus.
~Received opinions.~
~Errors.~
The following are our present and received opinions regarding the
source of the Indus. The river of Ladak, joined by the Shyook, falls
into the Indus at Draus, and these united streams form the great river
which runs north of Cashmere, and is joined by the Aboo Seen before
passing Attok. The town of Leh, or Ladak, is placed above the parallel
of 37° N. latitude, and Draus lies nearly half way between it and the
city of Cashmere. This account differs materially from the information
which I have received. The river of Ladak, and the Shyook, instead of
existing as two minor tributaries of the Indus, form of themselves
that great river; the one rising near the lake of Mansurour, and the
other in the mountains of Karakorum. They unite N.W. of Ladak, and
pass through the country of Little Tibet, or Baltee, and a snowy range
separates them from Cashmere. Ladak lies nearly eastward of Cashmere,
which places it three degrees of latitude below the parallel given to
it by Mr. Macartney; and Draus is on the road to Ladak.[24] No such
junction as is given in the map takes place at Draus, and the rivulet
that passes that village, instead of forming a portion of the waters
of the Indus, runs among the mountains of Cashmere, and joins the
Jelum, or Hydaspes, at Moozufferabad, as it leaves the valley. This
fact is mentioned in a note in Mr. Elphinstone’s book, on the authority
of a journal of Meer Izzut Oollah, which he received after his own
account was written. It may have been owing to this last circumstance
that he overlooked the inconsistency of Izzut Oollah’s statement
with the existence of Mr. Macartney’s eastern branch of the Indus.
Mr. Elphinstone, indeed, observes, that Izzut Oollah did not see the
junction of that branch with the river of Ladak; but he accounts for
it by supposing the confluence to lie to the south of the place called
Draus in Izzut Oollah’s route. If that route be protracted, however,
it will show that the river of Ladak could not well have passed to the
south of Draus without falling into the course of the Kishun Gunga; and
that, even if the junction had taken place to the south of Draus, both
rivers must still have been crossed (either united or separately) by
Izzut Oollah before he reached Draus.
It is evident, therefore, that the rivers do not meet at or to the
south of Draus; and, as Izzut Oollah went from Draus to the river of
Ladak, and accompanied that river to the town from which it takes
its name, without seeing the junction of any other river from the
east, his account may be regarded as a confirmation of the fact which
I have stated, that no such eastern branch exists. It is worthy of
observation, that Mr. Macartney’s account of the eastern branch of the
Indus appears to have been only communicated by one person.
~Description of the two great branches which form the Indus.~
That the river of Ladak has its source near the lake of Mansurour has
been satisfactorily established by Moorcroft. The course of this branch
of the Indus is, therefore, of great length; but the volume of water
has been described to me as very small, though it receives several
tributaries. The Shyook, on the other hand, is said to be a vast river,
formed of many small ones, and discharges the water and melted snows
of the Kara Korum mountains. Three days’ journey from Ladak, on the
route to Yarkund, it is crossed at a breadth of 1000 yards in March;
but widely spread and fordable. This is considered by the natives as
the great trunk of the Indus, and its source, to the N.E. of Ladak,
is, consequently, that of the Indus. The united streams of the river
of Ladak and Shyook pass south of the territories of Iskardo, Gilgit,
and Chitral. They are then joined by the Aboo Seen, as described by Mr.
Elphinstone, and at Attok, by the river of Cabool, here called the
Lundee, which falls into the Indus, close upon the fortress, and not
some miles higher up.
~Western branch of the Indus.~
The sources of this river, commonly called the River of Cabool, are
nearly as remote as those to the eastward, which we have now described.
The River of Cabool actually rises near Ghuzni; but, in its course
eastward of Jullalabad, is joined by a great river that has been called
the Kameh, though it is unknown to the natives by such a name. This
river is traced to the same source as the Oxus; where it is said to
spring from a glacier.[25] That it rises in the same neighbourhood as
the Oxus, I have been also informed; but that river (as I have stated
when speaking of it) flows from the plain of Pamere, near Lake Sirikol,
and not from the ranges of mountains which support that elevated
region. This great western branch of the Indus, therefore, rises under
a much higher parallel of latitude than the Shyook.
~Cashgar; erroneous opinions regarding it.~
The country, which is enclosed by these different branches of the
Indus, has been called Kashkaur, or Cashghar, in our late maps;
which Mr. Elphinstone warns the reader not to confuse with Cashgar,
near Yarkund. At Peshawur, I certainly heard of a small mountainous
district, near Deer and Gunjoom, called Cashgar, and which is well
known for its coarse blankets; but the name has been applied to a
far greater extent of country than is even known to the natives of
Peshawur. North of Hindoo Koosh, in Koondooz, and the borders of
Budukhshan, I could find no person who was acquainted with any country
under the name of Cashgaur, but that of Yarkund. They spoke of Chitral
and Gilgit, which form part of it, according to the modern nomenclature
of our maps, but knew nothing of the southern Cashgar as a separate
territory; doubtless from the smallness of the district and its remote
position[26]. Since the whole of the information contained in this
chapter rests on the authority of others, the credence to which it is
entitled must be well weighed. I have the information from people who
had seen these rivers and countries, and I have given the facts, after
due corroboration and enquiry.
CHAP. VI.
NOTICE ON YARKUND, AND ITS INTERCOURSE WITH PEKIN, BOKHARA, AND TIBET.
~Chinese provinces of Yarkund.~
Yarkund is one of the frontier positions of the Chinese empire towards
the west, and a five months’ journey of a caravan from the seat of
government, Pekin. The productions of China are transmitted to this
province, and sold to the natives of Bokhara and Tibet, who are
permitted to frequent certain fixed markets; of which the greatest is
Yarkund. No Chinese crosses the frontiers; and the trade into Bokhara
is carried on by Mahommedans, who visit Yarkund for that purpose. The
same vigilance to prevent the ingress of foreigners is here exhibited
as upon the sea-coast. In my communications with the Uzbeks of Bokhara,
I heard much of the Chinese peculiarities, and I had an opportunity of
travelling with a tea caravan from Yarkund; which leads me to believe
that a notice of this country, imperfect as it must be, will not be
uninteresting.
~Sketch of its history.~
Yarkund, with the adjacent province of Cashgar, formed the principality
of a Mahommedan ruler, known by the name of the Khoju of Cashgar, a
family of religious influence, who once exercised great authority.
The people of these parts superstitiously believed its members to be
invulnerable in battle, and able to use extraordinary means for the
discomfiture of their enemies, and yet think it impossible for any
one to prosper who injures a Khoju. Dissensions, however, arose in
this family about eighty years since, and they called on the Chinese
government, or the “Khitais,” (so they are here named,) as a mediator,
which, as not unfrequently happens, acted the part of conqueror.
Since that time, the Chinese have retained the whole of their lands;
not, however, without many endeavours, both by war and conspiracy, on
the part of the dethroned family, at restoration. The last of these
attempts occurred about five years since, aided by the Uzbeks of Kokan;
but the Chinese assembled an army from their most distant provinces,
and, advancing into that country, captured the rebellious Khoju, and
sent him in a cage, or covered cart, to Pekin. The Khan of Kokan,
though he was defeated, has since arrogated to himself the title of
“Ghazee,” from having warred with infidels. On the first overthrow of
this family, some of the Khojus fled to Budukhshan, and the chief of
that province put them to death: for which _good office_ the Chinese
sent him a yearly present, till within these five or six years,
when his country was seized by the Meer of Koondooz. The bigotted
Mahommedans attribute the misfortunes of the Budukhshan family to the
injuries offered to the Khoju of Cashgar. While such opinions prevail,
the members of it must continue to be disagreeable neighbours to the
Chinese.
~Mode of government under the Chinese.~
The period which has elapsed since the capture of Yarkund has no way
diminished the precautions of the Chinese government. Yarkund is still
considered but an outpost, and the communication between it and Pekin
maintained in a most characteristic manner. The government of all the
cities is left in the hands of Mahommedans, and there are not above
5000 Chinese in Yarkund. The garrisons are recruited from boys of
fourteen and fifteen, who are sent back after about as long a period
of service. These soldiers are drawn from the tribe of Toonganee, who
claim relationship to the army of Alexander: they are Mahommedans,
from the adjacent provinces, but dress as Chinese. They are never
permitted to marry, or bring their families within fifteen marches of
the country, and are regarded as troops on foreign employ. The natives
of the country rule, under the superintendence of the Chinese officers.
The governor of Yarkund, who has the title of Hakim Beg, is subject to
Cashgar; and he, again, is under the Junjoom of Eela, a large city,
forty marches north of Yarkund. The principal places in these frontiers
are, Eela, Yarkund, Cashgar, Aksoo, Karasoo, Yengi hissar, &c. Eela
is said to have a population of 75,000 souls. Yarkund ranks next in
importance, and has 50,000; while Cashgar is smaller than both. Yarkund
stands on a river, in a fertile plain, which is rich in fruit and
grain. It is surrounded on all sides but the east by hills, where the
river flows. The climate is dry and agreeable; snow seldom falls, and
even rain is scarce.
~Communication with Pekin.~
The mode of communication with Pekin, or, as it is called, Bajeen,
and their eastern provinces, is carried on with an arrangement and
expedition purely Chinese. The usual journey exceeds the period of
five months; but an express may be sent in thirty-five days. Under
great emergency, it is conveyed in twenty, and even fifteen days.
“Oortungs,” or stages, where there are relays of horses, are erected
every eight or ten miles, and one messenger is not even permitted to
exchange a word with another. At each of these stages there are piles
of wood, which are directed to be set fire to on the intelligence of
arising or invasion of the Mahommedans; and by this means intelligence
has been sent from Yarkund to Pekin in six days. I have heard that
fire-balloons are used instead of piles of wood; but I believe that
in the latter we have the more simple and correct version of the tale.
It was on this intimation that the last Chinese army was marched into
Kokan; and it is said to have been assembled from all the cities of
the empire, and amounted to 70,000 men. The military appearance of
this body is said to have been truly singular. A great portion of the
soldiers were armed with large matchlocks, each of which was borne by
two persons.
~People of Yarkund.~
The Chinese of Yarkund interfere but little with the affairs of the
country, and leaving it and its trade to the Mahommedan portion of the
population, the authorities levy a duty of one in thirty; and their
commercial regulations are just and equitable. The word of a Chinese is
not doubted, nor does the tea ever differ in quality from the sample.
The Mahommedans of Yarkund amount to about 12,000 families. They are
Toorks, and speak a dialect of Toorkee that is perfectly intelligible
to the natives of Bokhara. The country people are sometimes called
Moghuls by those who live in cities; and from this may have originated
our vague name of Mongolia. There are Calmuk Tartars settled around
Eela and Yarkund, who have a singular custom to distinguish their
chiefs and grandees, by fixing deer’s horns on their skull-caps. The
size and beauty of the antlers mark the dignity, and are the red
ribbons of a Calmuk Tartar. The laxity of their females, I am assured,
entitles them to the honour of wearing such an ornament. The Chinese
employ Calmuks in the protection of their frontier. The Mahommedans
of Yarkund appear to differ from their brethren elsewhere, for the
fair sex have a power and influence not known in other places. They
take the seat of honour in a room, associate freely with the men,
and do not veil; they wear high-heeled boots, richly ornamented;
their head-dress is described as very handsome, being a high tiara of
cloth; the features of the fair ones themselves are said to be most
beautiful. When a Bokhara merchant visits Yarkund, he marries one of
these beauties during his sojourn in the city; and the pair separate,
as they joined, quite as a matter of convenience, when he leaves the
country. Their wives are as cheap as beautiful, and purchased at a
premium of two or three tillas (twelve or eighteen rupees); and the
merchants, long after leaving the country, sing the praises of the fair
ones of Yarkund. I could not discover what had given rise to their
appearing without veils and being invested with such influence; but
I congratulate them on two such infringements of Mahommedan usage.
Besides the native Chinese, who frequent Yarkund, I am informed
that Christian merchants, probably Armenians, also visit it from the
eastward: they dress as Chinese.
~Intercourse with Tibet.~
The intercourse from Tibet and Bokhara is carried on by regulations
that are truly energetic. The natives of these countries are not
permitted to proceed beyond Yarkund and the neighbouring towns, and,
as they enter the Chinese dominions, are placed under certain persons,
who have a knowledge of the countries from which they come, and made
responsible for their behaviour. So thoroughly organised is this system
of police, that it is said to be impossible to elude its vigilance. A
native who was suspected in these countries, and was afterwards in my
service, remained in confinement for three months, and was at length
dismissed by the route he had come, but not till a likeness of him had
been first taken. Several copies of the picture were despatched to
the frontier towns, with these instructions:--“If this man enters the
country, his head is the Emperor’s, his property is yours.” I need not
add, that he has never since sought to extend his acquaintance in the
Chinese provinces of Yarkund.
~Country between Yarkund and Tibet.~
I had a most interesting account of the country lying between Yarkund
and Ladak, in Tibet, from a native who had travelled there, and which
will convey any but favourable notions of this channel of commerce,
frequented, as it appears partially to be. The traveller set out from
Ladak in March, and reached Yarkund in sixty days, after encountering
a series of disasters and difficulties from a storm that arose in
passing the mountains of Kara Korum. The number of actual marches
does not exceed twenty-eight, but seven whole days were occupied in
crossing Kara Korum; which is described as a low ridge, at the eighth
march. Such was the violence of the north wind, and the drifting of
the snow, that for some days the party only made a progress of a
hundred yards. Though Kara Korum is not a high range of mountains, it
must be elevated, since a difficulty of breathing was experienced;
also vomiting, giddiness, and loss of appetite. For all these tea was
considered a specific. The storm abated, and enabled the travellers
to proceed; but eight of their ponies had died, and the whole party
must soon have perished, for the animals had ate up the straw of
their saddles and cushions before regaining the inhabited country,
which commenced at the eighteenth march from Ladak. There they met a
few huts, inhabited by the Wakhanees, of whom I have before spoken.
They carried every supply for themselves and their horses. At the
seventeenth march the travellers encountered a defile among hills
which extended for five or six miles, and is called Yengi Dabban. The
road led entirely over ice, which was notched into steps before they
could proceed. On returning to Ladak in June, the ice had entirely
disappeared: even Kara Korum was free from snow. This is singular, as
it must be higher than Hindoo Koosh, which is covered by eternal snow.
To the south of Kara Korum all the rivers join the Shyook; and it is
evident, therefore, that that ridge, low as it actually appears, is
the highest part of the range. North of it the water flows into the
river of Yarkund, and the road follows these defiles, and, in one short
distance, is said to cross a rivulet three hundred and sixty times. The
last passage is called “Khilastan,” from being relieved of its further
inconvenience. The greater part of this country is destitute of fixed
inhabitants, but the wandering Kirghizzes frequent it with their flocks
during summer; this road is then passed in twenty days. The number
of horses which perish on this line of route is great; and it is not
an unusual thing for an owner to pick up his goods next year on the
spot where they were left. There are no robbers: the wild horse is the
solitary inhabitant of this wilderness.
~Communications of Yarkund with Bokhara.~
~Notice of Kokan.~
The intercourse between Bokhara and Yarkund is carried on by two
routes, leading through the valleys of the Sir, or Jaxartes, and the
Oxus. The first of these routes passes by Kokan, the ancient Ferghana,
and is always passable but in the three summer months, when it is
flooded by melted snow. There are two places on this route where the
traveller experiences a difficulty of breathing. The disturbances with
the exiled Khoju and the Uzbeks of Kokan have of late years closed this
route to caravans; but it is the best line of communication between
Yarkund and Toorkistan. The route by the plain of Pamere and the valley
of the Oxus, through Budukhshan and Balkh, is more circuitous, and
likewise less accessible. I have described both these lines of route,
when speaking of the commerce of Bokhara; I have only, therefore,
to make a brief mention of Kokan, which is the paternal kingdom of
Baber. It is ruled by an Uzbek Khan, of the tribe of Yooz, who claims
a lineage from that Emperor. It is a much smaller territory than
Bokhara, and its power is now on the decline: it is celebrated for its
silk. The capital of the country is Kokan, which is an open town on
the Sir, about half the size of Bokhara, and the largest place in that
neighbourhood. The ancient capital is Marghilan: Indejan is, however,
a town of considerable note; and the Chinese of Yarkund denominate all
natives who come from the west, Indejanees. The inhabitants of Kokan
wear skull-caps instead of turbans. The Khan of Kokan keeps up an
intercourse with Russia and Constantinople; but there is no friendly
feeling towards the rulers of Yarkund.
CHAP. VII.
ON THE MOUNTAINS OF HINDOO KOOSH.
~Hindoo Koosh; range so called.~
~Errors regarding it.~
When the great range of the Himalaya, which forms the northern boundary
of Hindoostan, crosses the Indus, it loses the designation by which it
has been familiarly known from the frontiers of China. It also changes
its course, and, running west, expends its greatest height in the
lofty peak of Hindoo Koosh, from which it dwindles into comparative
insignificance. The elevation of the peak appropriately affixes the
name of Hindoo Koosh to this portion of the range; but this general
term is unknown to the people. A road which leads across the shoulder
of this mountain is also called the “pass of Hindoo Koosh.” The part
which I am now about to describe lies between Cabool and Balkh, and is
that which we traversed in our journey to Bokhara. In the plains of
the Punjab we had had a magnificent view of the stupendous mountains
which separate Cashmere from the plains; and it is to them that the
natives affix the name of Himalaya, without confining it to the
mountains beyond that celebrated valley. On crossing the Indus, we
found ourselves much nearer this great range, now termed Hindoo Koosh,
than is represented in our maps. In the valley of the Cabool River, it
seemed to overhang the road which we passed; an error which originates
from the city of Cabool being placed in too low a parallel of latitude
by fifteen minutes: nor was I prepared to find from these same maps
that we had surmounted “the everlasting snows” of Hindoo Koosh before
reaching Bameean, since, by every delineation, they were yet half
a degree beyond us. Such, however, was the fact, since the rivulet
of Bameean is a tributary of the Oxus, and the country there slopes
towards the north. There are certainly mountains beyond Bameean; but we
have no longer the towering tops of the Himalaya. One broad depressed
belt extends to Balkh; and it is this belt that the Arabian geographers
denominated the “Stony Girdle” of the earth. The only part of these
mountains covered with perpetual snow, is the Koh-i-Baba, that lies
between Cabool and Bameean; the range is afterwards lost in a maze of
lower hills, towards Herat.
~Height of the Hindoo Koosh.~
We crossed this stupendous chain of mountains by six successive passes;
and, after a journey of about 260 miles, and thirteen days, debouched,
on the valley of the Oxus, at Khoolloom, which is forty miles eastward
of the ancient city of Balkh. The three first passes lie between
Cabool and Bameean, and two of them were so deeply covered with snow
in the end of May, that we could only travel in the morning, when it
was frozen, and would bear our horses. The three remaining passes north
of Bameean were of lesser altitude, and free from snow. We commenced
our journey at an elevation of 6600 feet[27], which is the height of
the city of Cabool from the sea. We then followed the river of Cabool,
which falls at the rate of fifty feet a mile, and reached its source at
an elevation of 8600 feet; where the snow was first encountered in the
valley. We attained our greatest height at the passes called Hajeeguk
and Kaloo, which were respectively 12,400 and 13,000 feet high, and
covered with snow. None of the other passes exceed an altitude of
9000; and from the last of them, called Kara Koottul, we descended the
bed of a river, at the rate of sixty feet a mile, till we reached the
plains of Toorkistan, where, in Balkh, we had yet an elevation of 2000
feet above the level of the sea. As we issued from the mountains, we
left them rising from the plain in a bold and precipitous line, about
2500 feet high. Their sides, which were bare, black, and polished,
had a most imposing appearance, though they had lost much of their
sublimity and grandeur. They sank beneath the horizon long before we
reached the banks of the Oxus. I am assured that the whole of these
passes of Hindoo Koosh are free from snow before the end of June; and
in our progress across them we had not, therefore, attained the height
of perpetual congelation. I am aware of the interest which is attached
to this point, and it is something towards a conclusion, that here,
at least, it lies beyond an elevation of 13,000 feet. The peaks of
Koh-i-Baba are covered with eternal snow for a considerable distance
beneath their summits: nor can I estimate any of these (for it is only
an estimate) at a greater altitude than 18,000 feet, judging from the
height at which we viewed them. The climate of this elevated zone is
variable: the thermometer in May stood below the freezing point at
sunrise; while, at mid-day, the heat and reflection from the snow were
insufferable. It is said that, at a certain degree of elevation, and in
a low latitude, we may find the climate of more temperate countries:
nor can the fact be for a moment doubted; still, in that elevation the
rays of the sun are most powerful. At the height of 10,000 feet we
found the inhabitants ploughing the ground as the snow left the face of
the mountains; so rapid is vegetation, from the scorching heat, that
they would reap in the beginning of October that which they sowed in
the close of May.
~General features of Hindoo Koosh.~
This portion of Hindoo Koosh is entirely destitute of wood, and, in
many places, of verdure; the range of Koh-i-Baba rises in peaks, but
in all other places they present the appearance of rounded and naked
mountains. In the defiles the road frequently passes at the base of
a mural precipice, rising in a perpendicular height of 2000 and 3000
feet, and exhibits monuments of solemn grandeur, which it is difficult
to describe. About seven years since, near Sarbagh, the shock of an
earthquake precipitated a huge mass of rock into the valley, which
blocked up the river for four days, and rendered the road for a
long time impassable. The watercourses appear to have excavated for
themselves a channel in the lapse of ages; and, to judge from the
stratification of the rocks on either side, these have, at one time,
formed the banks, from the top downwards, of rivulets now depressed
some thousand feet. These walls have a resemblance to cut stone or
brick, rising in horizontal layers above one another. So tortuous
is the defile we traversed, that it forms, as it were, in every
half mile, distinct enclosures, which appear like so many fortified
positions, the view being bounded on every side. One part of the
valley, to which this remark more particularly applies, has the name of
the “Dura-i-zundan,” or the Valley of the Dungeon; and in many parts
the height was such as to exclude the sun at mid-day. I was unable to
take an altitude of the pole star from Bameean to within thirty miles
of the plains of Toorkistan.
~Productions of Hindoo Koosh.~
There are no cedars or pines to adorn Hindoo Koosh, and the only
fuel of the inhabitants is a dry stunted furze, which tenaciously
clings to the soil. Its thorns are disposed like the quills of a
hedge-hog, and it is familiarly known to the people by the name of
the Koollah-i-Huzara, or the Huzara Cap. At an elevation of 7000 feet
we found the asafœtida plant flourishing in great luxuriance. It is
an annual, and grows to the height of eight or ten feet, when it
withers and decays. The milk which exudes is first white, and then
turns yellow, and hardens; in which state it is put in hair bags, and
exported. In the fresh state it has the same abominable smell; yet our
fellow-travellers greedily devoured it. If the odour of the asafœtida
be offensive, the inhabitants are amply compensated by the variety
of aromatic plants which grow in these hills, and scent the air. The
rocks are very bare, but the few plants which protrude from between
the stones are mostly fragrant. The pasture is peculiarly favourable to
sheep from its aromatic qualities. We saw these animals browsing on the
tender plants of asafœtida, which is believed to be highly nutritious.
They rear a barley in this elevated country, which has no husk, and
grows like wheat, but it is barley. The valleys in Hindoo Koosh are
more favoured by nature, and stored with the finest fruit-trees. We
sometimes passed for miles among orchards of apricots, a fruit which
grows on the most elevated regions, and attains the highest perfection.
On descending to Khooloom, we had the cherry, peach, fig, pomegranate,
mulberry, pear, quince, and apple,--all of them on the brink of the
rivulet; for the breadth of the defile never exceeded 200 yards, and
was generally narrower. On the verge of this watercourse I frequently
observed the blackberry bush, the sweet-briar, and the hawthorn. Grass
is most abundant, and I could discover the peppermint and the hemlock
among many other weeds.
~Formation of Hindoo Koosh.~
I shall endeavour to convey some notions of the formation of these
vast mountains. The nature of the valleys is highly favourable to
the researches of the geologist; but I have to claim much indulgence
in treating on a subject of such interest, but (to me, at least) of
considerable difficulty. I cannot introduce it to the notice of the
reader better than in a detailed account of the defile under the pass
of Kaloo, by which we descended to Bameean. It lies between the two
great snowy passes that I have noted, and it is to be observed, runs
at an elevation of 8000 feet. The section which was here laid open
extended for about twenty miles, during which we descended 3000 feet.
The highest hills between Cabool and Hajeeguk appeared to be gneiss,
or granite; and, after we had wound over that pass, they became deeply
impregnated with iron, even to their summits. These were succeeded
by blue slate and quartz. The sides of the defile rose up in steep
slanting precipices of this micaceous schist; but the summit presented
a rugged outline of nodules. From the higher parts of these, huge
blocks of green granite and other stones, said to be shivered by the
cold and frost, had been hurled into the valley. Descending further,
we came to conglomerate limestone, in which were mixed up a variety of
other stones, not unlike gravel or shingle. About eight or ten springs
of water, of the colour of deep rust, were exuding from various parts
of this rock, and tinged its sides as they trickled down. The waters
have a purgative effect, and a metallic taste, and run, I presume, over
a deposit of iron. There is a large spring of the same kind in the
valley, leading to the pass of Hajeeguk. Then followed huge cliffs of
clay of a reddish and purple colour, which were succeeded by ridges of
indurated clay, mixed with harder stones, till we reached Bameean. It
is in this ridge that the great idols and caves are excavated, for it
is easily worked. The vicinity of Bameean is exceedingly rich in the
mineral kingdom. At Fouladut, gold is found; also lapis lazuli; and in
the hills of Istalif, north of Cabool. There are ten or twelve mines
of lead in a defile close to Bameean, which are at present worked.
There are also ores of copper, tin, and antimony; sulphate of copper
(_neeltota_, _moordarsung_), and sulphur. Asbestos (sung i poom bu,
or cotton stone,) is found at Judraun, north-east of Cabool; and iron
exists in Bajour, north of Peshawur. Travelling north of Bameean, the
same appearances continued till we descended from the first pass, where
cliffs of granite, blackened by the elements, rose up in dusky, but
majestic columns, not unlike basalt. The specimens which had fallen
down proved them to be of the formation which I have named. The two
last passes of Hindoo Koosh presented an entirely different appearance
from what has been yet described: they consisted of a light brown
limestone, I presume, of primary formation, and of great hardness,
exhibiting, when fractured, the sharpest angles. This stone is so
slippery, from the polish which it takes on, that one of the passes
of which it is composed is called the “Tooth-breaker[28],” from this
circumstance. It was in this formation that we met with those steep and
lofty precipices which overhung the valley on our descent; but before
we had reached the plains, they were succeeded by rocks of sandstone.
In one of these, near Heibuk, I observed round and separate stones of
pure flint, imbedded at regular intervals, and running in as distinct
a line as if they had been fixed by art. The flint is extracted for
military purposes. There is also an extensive deposit of sulphur
between these last passes and Hindoo Koosh.
~Mountain of Hindoo Koosh.~
I have hitherto been describing the nature of the country which fell
under my own observation; but I have not spoken of the true mountain of
Hindoo Koosh, which lies about a degree eastward of this route. This
great peak is visible from Cabool, and entirely enveloped in milk-white
snow. I saw it also from Koondooz, on the north, at a distance of 150
miles. Its altitude must be considerable, for the travellers complain
of the difficulty of breathing, and carry sugar and mulberries with
them, to ease their respiration; and the strongest of men suffer from
giddiness and vomiting. Thousands of birds are also found dead on the
snow, for it is believed that they are unable to fly from the violence
of the winds; but it is more probable that they are prevented by the
rarity of the atmosphere: yet birds are used to higher elevations than
men and quadrupeds. They often attempt to walk across; and numbers of
them are ensnared.[29] Beasts of burden suffer as much as man, and many
sink and perish. The greatest silence is preserved in crossing Hindoo
Koosh; and no one speaks loud, or fires a gun, lest the reverberation
cause a fall of snow: such, at least, is the reason assigned; nor
does it appear to be destitute of foundation. But the most singular
phenomenon of nature on Hindoo Koosh appears to be the snow-worm, which
is described to resemble the silk-worm in its mature state. This insect
is only found in the regions of perpetual congelation, and dies on
being removed from the snow. I do not suppose that the existence of the
creature will be doubted, because I have not seen it, since I speak on
the united testimony of many who have passed Hindoo Koosh.
CHAP. VIII.
TOORKMANIA, OR THE COUNTRY OF THE TOORKMUNS.
~Country so called.~
In speaking of the Toorkmuns and their country, I shall adopt the term
of Toorkmania, since it describes that people under a generic name
which is not altogether unknown in Europe, and not likely to lead into
mistakes. Toorkmania, then, is that country lying south of the Oxus
or Toorkistan, stretching from Balkh to the shores of the Caspian,
and filling up the space between that sea and the Aral. On the south
it is bounded by hills, the continuation of Hindoo Koosh, and the
Paropamisus of the ancients. A line drawn from Balkh to Astrabad on
the Caspian,--which two places are nearly in the same parallel of
latitude,--will separate the country of the Toorkmuns from that of the
Afghans and Persians. On the south-eastern shore of the Caspian, where
Toorkmania adjoins Persia, the country is mountainous, and watered by
the rivers of Goorgan and Attruk, which fall into that sea. In all
other places it is a flat and sandy desert, scantily supplied with
water. The streams that flow from the mountains are speedily absorbed
by the sand, and never force their passage to the Oxus. The greatest
of these is the Moorghab or Merve River, and the Tejend, which passes
Shurukhs. This country is destitute of towns and villages; for the
Toorkmuns are an erratic tribe, and wander from one well to another
with their herds and flocks, taking their conical “khirgahs” or huts
along with them, in search of water and pasture.
~Its nature.~
~People.~
The desert of the Toorkmuns is a vast ocean of sand, flat in some
places, and rising in others to mounds, such as are seen on the
sea-shore. It increases in volume towards the Caspian; and in that
vicinity the sand-hills attain a height of sixty and eighty feet.
They appeared to rise from a hard caked surface of clay, which was
observable in several places. There was little difficulty in crossing
these sand-hills; and the wells, though few and far between, offer
their supply of water at no great distance from the surface, seldom
exceeding the depth of forty feet. Such is the desert of the Toorkmuns;
and inhabited by a tribe of people who boast that they neither rest
under the shade of a tree, nor a king. They do not exaggerate, since
a garden is unknown among them; and their desert is not enlivened
by a single tree: neither do they live under a fixed or permanent
ruler. They only acknowledge the patriarchal government of their
“Aksukals” or elders; though now and then, and in limited parts,
subjected to the power of the neighbouring nations. The life of a
Toorkmun is passed in the most reckless plunder of property and human
beings; and his children are brought up from their earliest years to
the same demoralisation. A proverb among them boasts that a Toorkmun
on horseback knows neither his father nor mother; and such a saying
conveys by no means an imperfect view of their compassion, when engaged
in a foray or “chupao.” The Toorkmuns have happily no ruler to guide or
direct their united efforts, which lessens their power and the effects
of their barbarity.
~Origin of the Toorkmuns.~
The Toorkmuns belong to the great family of the Toorkee or Tatar race:
they differ from the Uzbeks, in being exclusively a nomade tribe. The
name of Toorkmun is obscure. Toorkumæ, I am informed, means a wanderer;
and I have been so assured by the Toorkmuns themselves. Toorkmun, it
is also said, is “Toork-manind,” which in Persian means, like a Toork,
from the mixture of races produced by the inhabitants of Toorkmania
seizing on the neighbouring nations. Toork-mun, I am a Toork, may
likewise be assigned as a derivation. Turci and Comani, a mixed
people, seem far-fetched, though nothing which has been here recorded
may prove more satisfactory to some critics, for the mind wanders in
etymology. We however deduce from these that the Toorkmuns are Toorks,
though differing from Uzbeks, and many other tribes denominated Tartars
by Europeans. For the seat of Toorkmun migration, we should certainly
be disposed to look on the countries north-east of Bokhara, the abodes
of Jengis, of Timour, and their Uzbek successors: but the Toorkmuns
themselves believe that they came from Mangusluk, and the north-eastern
shores of the Caspian, till they gradually overran the territories
which our historians have given, in the time of the Roman world, to
the valorous Parthians. I have, indeed, heard a vague and uncertain
tradition among the Toorkmuns, which states them to be the descendants
of garrisons, transplanted from other countries by Alexander the Great.
~Tribes.~
The whole Toorkmun race claim a common lineage, though divided into
different tribes, and conceding to some a greater degree of honour than
to others. The total number of families is rated at 140,000, which I
shall class into the obvious division of eastern and western Toorkmuns,
as follows:--
EASTERN.
Salore (of Shurukhs) 2,000
Saruk (of Merve) 20,000
Ersaree (of the Upper Oxus) 40,000
Tuka (of the Tejend) 40,000
Sakar (of the Oxus) 2,000
-------
104,000
WESTERN.
Yamood (of Astrabad and Khiva) 20,000
Goklan (of the Goorgan) 9,000
Ata (of Balkhan) 1,000
Choudur (of Mangusluk) 6,000
-------
36,000
-------
Total of the race 140,000
=======
The most illustrious of all the Toorkmuns is the tribe of Salore; and
then follows the Ata, who are said to be the Syuds of the race, and
descended from the Caliph Osman. The three great tribes, the Yumood,
Goklan, and Tuka are said to have been descended from brothers; but the
last, as sprung from a Persian slave, is considered inferior to the
other two. It would be profitless to dilate on a nameless list of the
subdivisions of these tribes: I may merely instance that of Goklan,
which is classed into nine divisions, that encamp apart from each
other. These are their names:--
1 Ghaee,
2 Karabul Khan,
3 Baeéndur,
4 Kevish,
5 Kyk-soorunlee, or Arkuklee,
6 Aye durwesh,
7 Chakur, or Bugdulee,
8 Yunguk, or Gurkus,
9 Sangreek.
It is said, that the tribe at one time consisted of twenty-four
divisions, to each of which there was a “yooz kyelee,” or commander
of 500; but internal feuds, not yet, or ever likely to be removed,
together with wars on Khiva and Persia, have thinned their number, and
disturbed the patriarchal habits of all the Toorkmun race.
~Language.~
While the Toorkmuns themselves fail to trace their origin from a
country more remote than the shores of the Caspian, they yet assert
that they are the founders of the Ottoman empire. Their dialect appears
to differ from the Osmanlee Turkish; but the following specimens, taken
from the Toorkmuns themselves, may not only serve to refute or confirm
their fatherly claim on the second Rome, but assist investigations upon
other points.
_Specimen of the Dialect of the Toorkmuns._
Man Urkuts.
Woman Ailehee.
Daughter Kiz.
Son Ooglee.
Vizier Kooshbegee.
Bird Lööke.
Sea Durya.
Mountain Dugh.
Earth Yerr.
Wheat Booghdye.
Barley Arfa.
Melon Koon.
Water Soo.
Fire Ote.
Cold (adj.) Souts.
Hot Issee.
Sun Goon.
Moon Arje.
Star Yooldooz.
Sword Ghilich.
Musket Doofung.
Carpet Palus.
Father Ata.
Mother Cija.
Brother Ceneeng.
Sister Ishig.
Eye Gooz.
Nose Boorun.
Teeth Deesh.
Mouth Ughz.
Beard Sukal.
Hair Such.
Foot Eyak.
Hand Ill.
Knee Deez.
White Ak.
Black Kara.
Red Saree.
Ice Booz.
Snow Kar.
Rain Yughish.
Thunder Gok gooburdee.
Heaven Gok.
Lightning Yeldrum.
Horse Al.
Camel Doya.
Cow Sughur.
Goat Guchee.
Sheep Koyaon.
Salt Tooz.
Sand Koom.
Mud Lace.
Milk Sood.
Stone Dash.
Death Sukulat.
Marriage Toee.
I Oozoom.
You Sun.
Sleep Okhee.
Boat Gumee.
Silk Yepuk.
Good Yukhshee.
To lose Yettee.
To kill Oldee.
To swim Soo dooshelee.
To fly Yooz up kedelee.
Wool Yoon.
Cotton Puktu.
Sickness Khastu.
Near Yukeen.
Afar Oozak.
Hunger Ach.
Blood Kan.
Smell Ees.
One Bir.
Two Ikee.
Three Ooch.
Four Toort.
Five Bush.
Six Altee.
Seven Yedee.
Eight Sikkus.
Nine Daghuz.
Ten Ool.
Twenty Eegurnee.
Fifty Illee.
Hundred Yooz.
Thousand Meeng.
~Merve.~
~Sketch of its history.~
Amid the sterile regions of Toorkmania, and between Bokhara and
Persia, lies the once fertile land of Merve, the capital of which is
said to have been built by Alexander. It is better known to European
readers from a celebrated epitaph on one of its kings, often quoted by
moral writers: “You have witnessed the grandeur of Alp Arslan exalted
even to the skies; repair to Merve, and see it buried in the dust.”
Historians are obscure regarding it. It is yet styled, “Merve Shah i
Juhan,” or, Merve, the king of the world; and the natives point to the
ruins of “Merve i mukan,” as the city built by the Greeks. They are
better informed on the deeds of Sultan Sunjur, whose tomb yet remains,
and who reigned upwards of 800 years since. Merve long continued a
dependency of the Persian empire, and here Ismaeel Sefi, the Shah of
Persia, defeated the founder of the Uzbeks, Sheibanee Khan, A.D. 1510.
Under the Persians, Merve rose to a great and opulent country, and the
waters of its river, which before had wasted themselves in the desert,
were distributed by canals and a judicious use of dams throughout the
territory. The soil was enriched; the people were prosperous. _From one
maund reap a hundred_, is a proverb which attests the fecundity of the
earth, the prosperity of the people; a portion of a Persian couplet
bids the members of the “faithful” rejoice to say their afternoon
prayers in the dry and delightful climate of Merve.[30] Here, also, the
wheat-fields furnished the astonishing phenomenon of three succeeding
crops from the same seed, as has been described in the districts of
Andkho and Meimuna. Such was the prosperous condition of Merve under a
well-known chief named Beiram Khan, who was conquered in the year 1787,
by Shah Moorad of Bokhara. That king demolished its castle and canals,
and forcibly marched the greater portion of its inhabitants to people
his capital, where they still exist as a separate community. At a later
period the remnant of its population has been driven into Persia,
and this flourishing land, which presented so beautiful a contrast
to the rest of Toorkmania, now partakes of its sterility, while the
Toorkmun hordes have usurped the place of its once fixed population.
From the ruins of the castle of Merve, the traveller may yet behold
a depopulated circle of thirty miles, studded with deserted villages
and decayed walls. The fields on the verge of the Moorghab alone are
cultivated, and here the Toorkmuns yet rear the finest of wheat,
juwaree, and excellent melons.
~General features of the inhabitants.~
We shall be excused for dwelling upon the beauties of Merve, since
we are still in Toorkmania, and impart an interest to its dreary
solitudes, by describing this once beautiful oasis. From the ancient
city of Balkh to the shores of the Caspian, we have the people, as
well as the country, almost in a state of nature. The Toorkmuns have
neither science nor literature; they are even without mosques, though
not altogether without religion; they are a warlike people, and their
domestic habits fit them for the hour of battle. Their food is simple,
consisting of the milk and flesh of their herds and flocks. Mares’ milk
and “boozu” are unknown south of the Oxus, and the Toorkmuns are even
ignorant of the art of extracting or distilling spirits. A few Jews
from Meshid sometimes wander among them with intoxicating liquors,
which are happily beyond the reach of the poor. The Toorkmuns drink the
milk of the camel, which is a grateful beverage. The inhabitants of
Toorkmania are, perhaps, equal to the irregular cavalry of any nation,
and their horses possess some matchless qualities. Great care is
bestowed upon these noble animals. The subject is interesting, and we
shall close this book with a notice on the horses of Toorkistan.
CHAP. IX.
ON THE INROADS OF THE TARTARS; WITH A NOTICE OF THE TRIBES IN
TOORKISTAN.
~Sketch of the Tartar invasions. Their seats.~
We have been treating of countries which have, in different ages of the
world, sent forth successive hordes to overrun and occupy the fairest
regions of Asia, and our curiosity now leads us to note the present
state and condition of these various tribes of human beings. Attila
and Alaric spread devastation in the empire of the Cæsars. Jengis and
Timour have succeeded them in more modern but equally destructive
inroads. Through these great revolutions we trace the ever-wandering
spirit of the Tartar people; but ere the first of these destroyers
inflicted his calamities on Rome, we could gather the evil propensities
of the race from the histories of Semiramis, Cyrus, and Alexander.
Subsequent to the age of Timour, we have another irruption from the
Uzbek Tartars, though it wasted its strength at the base of Hindoo
Koosh. From the days of Herodotus to the present time, we are presented
with a state of ceaseless change and fluctuation in the countries of
Central Asia. For this great storehouse of emigration we have been
referred to Khitai, the regions of Northern China; but authentic
history fixes it in a site far less remote. Jengis and his bands
issued from the pastoral lands beyond the Jaxartes, which is also the
migration seat of his successors; and may be, therefore, safely fixed
as the cradle of Scythian, Hun, and Tartar inroad.
~Exaggerated numbers.~
~Probabilities of success in modern times.~
We shall not stop to speculate on the probabilities of a country so
thinly peopled sending forth hordes which have been exaggerated by
terror to thousands and hundreds of thousands. With greater reason
shall we attribute the size of these armies to their increasing number,
as they advanced to plunder and victory. A pastoral is but another
name for a migratory nation, and its transfer to a near or distant
country, generally depends upon the ambition or spirit of a few of its
leaders. This state of society is not altered in the paternal seats of
Jengis and Timour, and an invader might pursue, though with limited
success, the same paths of conquest. The volcano may rest for a time
in a quiescent state, but the Tartar, in his erratic life, will ever
sigh for new scenes; but it depends on the Khan if that passion be
gratified. The disciplined valour of Russia would now arrest him on
the west; and European prowess, engrafted on the legions of India,
might there oppose the torrent; but in Turkey, Persia, Cabool, and
China, a horde of Tartars would make the same impression as in former
times. The Tartar inroads have ever been of the most transitory nature.
Neither the empires of Jengis or Timour were consolidated, and the
subjugation of India, afterwards effected by their successors, arose
from fortuitous circumstances, over which their previous inroads had
had little influence.
~Tartar tribes.~
The literary world has long dwelt with an attentive and scrutinizing
eye on the history of the Tartars, exercising, as they ever have, so
great an influence over the destinies of the world. Received opinions
now present to us a vast nation in Northern Asia, classed into three
grand divisions, under the generic name of Tartar. I shall, elsewhere,
record the few facts, which I gathered in the country regarding this
race, but the subject partakes too much of a dissertation to be here
introduced. The intermixture of the Tartars with the more western
nations has brought about many changes, and the Tartar is no longer
disfigured by those unseemly features which inspired disgust. But a
physiognomist will not deduce from the change, that the Toork of the
Oxus differs from his countrymen of Yarkund, the Moghul of modern
writers, and far to the eastward. The Toorks intermarried with the
Tajiks of Mawurool nuhr, much in the same manner as the Seljooks, who
entered Persia, formed alliances in that country; but we cannot on
that account reckon them a separate race, because of their beauty.
The features of the Tartar have not altogether disappeared from the
natives of Toorkistan; and may yet be traced in small eyes, flattened
foreheads, and a scanty beard, though we see nought of the hideous
visages which are described in the records of their inroads. The
well-known couplet[31] of Hafiz, that paints the beautiful Toorkee girl
of Shiraz, near Samarcand, has been celebrated; nor have the fair sex
ever been destitute of charms in these regions, since we learn that
Roxana, whom Alexander married in Transoxiana, was the most beautiful
woman whom the Greeks had seen in Asia, after the wife of Darius. The
inhabitant of the city, however, is more changed than the peasant; and
on the mountains of Hindoo Koosh we had among the Huzaras a much closer
resemblance to the Tartars. Among them there is a singular tribe,
known by the name of Tatar Huzaras, which amount to about a thousand
families, and occupies the space between Hindoo Koosh and Bameean.
Tradition states these people to be descendants of Jengis Khan’s army,
but their name of Tatar deserves remark, since the only other tribe so
denominated by the people themselves is the Nogai on the frontiers of
Russia.
~Uzbek tribes.~
Such is the mutability of men and things in this circle of Tartar
abode, that if you now ask for the race of Zagatye or Chaghtye, the
illustrious descendants of Jengis and the conquerors of Hind, and
find them at all, they exist in the most abject poverty. The kings of
Bokhara did, however, claim a lineage and uninterrupted descent from
it, till a profligate minister snapped the thread by assassination. The
Uzbek ruler of Kokan, the second state in Transoxiana, still asserts
his descent from Baber, whose paternal kingdom of Ferghana he now
inherits. The Uzbeks distinguish themselves by thirty-two tribes, into
which they are said to have been divided in their pastoral seats. The
following list exhibits a few of the principal divisions of the Uzbek
race.
Bokhara. Mungut.
Kokan. Yooz.
Hissar. ----
---- Lakay.
Baeesoon. Kongrad.
Kuwadian. Doormun.
Koondooz. Kutghun.
Khooloom. Moeetun.
Heibuk. Kunglee.
Balkh. Kipchuh.
---- Yaboo.
Maimuna. Meeng.
Orjunje. Kongrad.
~Kalmuks. Kirgizzes. Kuzzaks.~
The roaming propensities of the Tartar occur in every page of his
history, and the example of the Kalmuks, who returned, in our own
age, from the Black Sea to their original seats on the frontiers of
China, exhibits the wonderful facility with which erratic nations alter
their places of abode. The event took place in the latter end of the
last century, and is still remembered by many of the inhabitants of
Toorkistan, who described it to me. The colony advanced with their
herds and flocks; and occupied, it is said, in the _breadth_ of its
advancing column, a journey of no less than three days. It forced its
way through all opposition to the “dusht i Kipchak,” north of the
Jaxartes, and reached the primeval seat of their ancestors at Yarkund
and Eela. The Kalmuks are not Mahommedans, and the “faithful” made war
on them as they passed, and about 1500 Kalmuk slaves were added to the
population of Bokhara; but small was the impression that could be made
on the hundred thousand families, the reputed number of the migrators.
The Kalmuk and Uzbek are said to have sprung from one tribe[32], and
this change of habitation has now mingled it with the Kuzzak[33], a
great tribe that once lay to the eastward of it; and Kalmuks, Kuzzaks,
and Kirgizzes are mingled together. The Kirgiz and Kuzzak appear to be
much the same people, differing only in location. The Kirgizzes whom I
met, had a flat countenance, and closely resembled the Toorkmun. They
inhabit Pameer. The Kuzzaks pass the summer in the southern parts of
Russia, and repair in winter to the neighbourhood of Bokhara, where
they sell their sheep.
~Citizens of Toorkistan.~
We find as great a variety among the citizens of Toorkistan as in the
subdivisions of the Tartars. The aborigines of the country are the
Tajiks or Tats; sometimes, but erroneously, denominated Sart, which
is a nickname given to them by the nomade tribes. The hostile Toorks
from the north subverted the power of this people, in a remote age; as
different dynasties of the same hordes have overwhelmed each other. The
Tajiks are addicted to commerce. Their language is Persian, which has
long been that of the country; for Toorkistan fell under the dominion
of Persia before the age of the Caliphs. In a Persian manuscript which
I procured at Bokhara, I even find that this language was used by order
of the Arabs themselves, in converting the people to Islam. The number
of Persians in Toorkistan is great; since we hold the inhabitants of
Merve in that light, as well as the slaves and their descendants. There
are also Jews, Hindoos, and Armenians. Of the Toorkmuns I have already
spoken; but there is yet another description of Tartars, the Nogais,
who have migrated from Russia, and settled to the number of about a
thousand families in the city of Bokhara.
~Traces of Tartar religion. Speculations.~
The people of Northern Asia worshipped the sun, fire, and the elements
previous to the age of Mahommed; and we are informed, that in the
earlier times of Islam, some of the priests or Magi of Persia fled
from that country beyond the Oxus. I searched much for a trace of the
original or imported worship; the Uzbeks assured me that there were
fire worshippers in the ancient Tartar city of Cazan in Russia; but
the censer of the Greek Padre was probably mistaken for the altar of
the Magi. But the similarity between the creed of the Tartar and the
Persian was curious; and since we find such innumerable hordes issuing
from beyond the Oxus in the ages of authentic history, may we not
derive the creed of Zoroaster or Zeratusht from Scythia or Tartary?
How full of interest is every thing connected with races of man
that have so often changed the destinies of the world. Could we but
follow up that at which we have now glanced, we might gather from the
traditions of the people much that would illustrate early history,
and the secret of these irruptions upon nations both barbarous
and civilised. How much, too, might be traced from the shades of
resemblance between the original tree and the branches which it has
shot forth to stimulate an enquiry that is eminently attractive. I
dismiss it, deploring my own incompetency.
CHAP. X.
ON THE HORSES OF TOORKISTAN.
~Toorkmun horse. Its origin.~
The horse attains a noble perfection in Toorkistan and the countries
north of Hindoo Koosh. The climate is favourable to its constitution,
and the inhabitants exhibit the most patient solicitude in its
breeding and food; so that its best qualities are fully developed.
The Toorkman horse is a large and bony animal, more remarkable for
strength and bottom than symmetry and beauty. Its crest is nobly erect,
but the length of body detracts from its appearance in the eye of an
European; nor is its head so small or its coat so sleek as the brood
of Arabia. This want of ornament is amply compensated by its more
substantial virtues, and its utility is its beauty. We are informed
by the historians of Alexander, that the countries on the Oxus were
celebrated for their horses; and their subsequent and close connexion
with Arabia suggests to us the extreme probability of an intermixture
with the blood of that country. Tradition confirms the belief. At
Shibbergaum, near Balkh, the people will yet tell you that their horses
are descended from the famous Ruksh of Roostum, the steed of the
Persian Hercules; from which we readily gather that they are of Persian
descent. Timourlane introduced, from his conquests in China and India,
Persia and Turkey, the finest horses of those distant countries to his
capital of Samarcand and his native and adjacent city of Shuhr Subz.
In this very neighbourhood, we now find, in the hands of the Uzbek
tribe of Karabeer, the most matchless horses of the East. The great
Nadir appears to have imitated Timour; and from India to the confines
of Persia the introduction of many celebrated breeds of horses are
referred to that conqueror. The most famous of these is found in Merve,
though the animal be small. Another, met on the Oxus, known by the name
of Aghubolak, is invariably marked by a dimple on some part of the body.
~Toorkmun mode of rearing horses.~
The peculiar manner in which a Toorkmun rears his horse arrests the
attention, and will, perhaps, account for its stamina and superiority;
since education, whether of the beast or the man, leaves the most
permanent impression. The diet is of the simplest kind, and entirely
free from the spices and sugar, the thirty-two and forty-two “mussalas”
(condiments) of the Indians. Grass is given at stated periods in the
forenoon, evening, and midnight; and, after feeding on it for an hour,
the horse is reined up, and never permitted to nibble and eat, as
in Europe. Dry food is preferred at all times; and if green barley
and juwaree[34] (here called jougan) are given in its stead, the
animal then receives no grain. At other times, a horse has from eight
to nine pounds of barley once a day. Clover and artificial grasses
are cultivated in Bokhara and on the banks of the Oxus, and, when
procurable, always used in a dry state. The stalk of the juwaree, which
is as thick as a walking-stick and contains much saccharine juice, is
a more favourite food. The long interval between the times of baiting
inure these horses to great privation; the supply of water allowed them
is also most scanty. Before a Toorkmun undertakes a foray, or chupao,
he trains, or, to use his own expression, “cools his horse” with as
much patience and care as the most experienced jockey of the turf,
and the animal is sweated down with a nicety which is perhaps unknown
to these characters. After long abstinence from food, the horse is
smartly exercised, and then led to water. If he drinks freely, it is
taken as a sign that his fat has not been sufficiently brought down,
and he is starved and galloped about till he gives this required and
indispensable proof. A Toorkmun waters his horse when heated, and
then scampers about with speed, to mix the water and raise it to the
temperature of the animal’s body! Under this treatment, the flesh of
their horses becomes firm, and their bottom is incredible; I have had
authentic accounts of their performing a journey of six hundred miles
in seven, and even in six days. Speed is at all times looked on as an
inferior quality to bottom. At the marriage festivals, where horseraces
form a part of the amusement, the Toorkmuns decide their matches,
which are generally a few sheep, on a course of twenty or twenty-five
miles. Youths of eight and ten years of age ride the horses; and the
spirit with which these sports are carried on by the Toorkmuns is
not surpassed in any country. The favourite horse afterwards moves
throughout the neighbourhood as if the owner had the encouragement of a
farming association in the deserts of Toorkmania.
~Varieties of the Toorkmun horse. Extent of the trade.~
I have pointed out the seat of the most celebrated horses of
Toorkistan; but the animals which are sometimes sent to India under
the name of Toorkmun horses, are reared about Balkh, and the eastern
parts of Toorkmania, in the districts of Andkhoo and Maimuna, as also
on the banks of the Oxus: they are considered inferior to the horses
of Bokhara, Merve, as also Shurukhs. The price, too, is the best proof
of this assertion; since the eastern horses seldom bring a higher sum
than 100 tillas (650 rupees), and more frequently average less than
half. Among the western Toorkmuns, a horse often sells for 200 tillas,
and there are some in the stables of the King of Bokhara for which
300 tillas have been paid. These horses differ much from the animals
that are sent into India from Candahar and Cabool, which are of an
inferior and distinct breed. They, too, are reared in Toorkistan, but
only used as baggage horses or hacks. Very few of the genuine Toorkmun
horses are ever sent across Hindoo Koosh, since there are no purchasers
but the Afghan chiefs and the Court of Runjeet Sing. It is only the
best description of horse that will yield a profit to the importer.
They cannot be brought to the territories of British India for less
than 1000 or 1200 rupees; and few of the European gentlemen will give
such a price in addition to the small profit asked by the dealer.
Such, at least, is the language of the horse merchants themselves;
and it carries some conviction along with it; since the points of a
Toorkmun horse have not much recommendation in the eyes of an European,
whose taste would appear to be better suited by imports from the
Persian Gulf. In speaking of the horses imported from Toorkistan, Mr.
Elphinstone observed, in the year 1809, that if the studs in India
should succeed, the trade would be annihilated; a prediction which
has been fulfilled; as I learn that the whole remount of the Bengal
cavalry is now furnished from the stud, with some few exceptions for
the horse artillery. The undersized horses which are bred there are
also bought up by officers and natives; and there are now no princes
of sufficient consequence to induce horse merchants to speculate
longer in a losing and foreign trade. The annual tax of fifty or sixty
horses, which the ruler of Lahore imposes on the chief of Peshawur, is
furnished from Toorkmun horses, since Runjeet Sing is fastidious in his
choice. That the value of the Toorkmun horse has not been over-rated
is most certain, since some of them, which were entered into the lists
of the cavalry twenty years ago, are yet good and serviceable animals,
and highly appreciated by cavalry officers. Were it ever contemplated
to seek a further supply of these horses, they could be procured with
every facility at Meshid in Persia, from Shurukhs, and Merve, or by
means of an agent in Cabool. Afghans sent from that city could also
purchase them.
~Characteristics of the Toorkmun horse.~
The breed of the Toorkmun horse is of the purest kind. When the animal
is over-heated, or has performed any great work, nature bursts a vein
for it in the neck,--which I did not at first credit till I had become
an eye-witness of the fact. The Toorkmuns cut their horses; as it is
a popular belief among them that they are then more on the alert, and
undergo greater fatigue, than stallions. The Toorkmuns believe their
horses to be exceedingly nice in hearing; and will often trust to their
steeds for the alarm of an approaching enemy. I was particularly struck
with the fine crests of the Toorkmun horses; and I heard, though I
could not authenticate its truth by observation, that they are often
confined in a stable with no other aperture than a window in the roof,
which teaches the animal to look up, and improves his carriage. The
contrivance seems fitted for such an end. The finer horses of the
Toorkmuns are seldom sold, for their owners may be truly said to have
as much regard for them as their children. It must not, however, be
imagined that all the horses of Toorkistan are equally renowned; for as
almost every person beyond the Oxus has a mount of some kind, a great
portion of them are very inferior animals. In Bokhara there are many
Kuzzak horses, a sturdy and little animal, with a shaggy coat and very
long mane and tail, much and deservedly admired. They are brought from
the deserts between Bokhara and Russia.