The Sun.
London, England, 1842-04-18 00:00:00

A FFGHANISTAN.

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O U*NII.III4XES OF APFGHAPTISTAIV.

1. The boundaries are difficult to be fixed : no definite
ll* of demarcation existing, either politically or na-
!orally, and constant warfare between the frontier tribes
eallsing a continual fluctuation. Affghanistan, in the era
of its
greatest prosperity, extended to sixteen degrees of
longitude from Sirhind, about 150 miles from Delhi to
Afeslied, and about the same distance from the Caspian
s In breadth it extended from the Oxus to the Per-
-51411 Gulf, a space of 910 miles ; but its territories have
Sovereign
greatly reduced by war, and the authority of the.
• °vereign irregularly acknowledged. In defining the
;)reregttlar limits of this diminished 'kingdom it should
t Pl)einised that, from the east of Bengal, in lon. 90 deg.
2,lierat in lat. 62 deg., a vast chain of mountains,
which tower above the level of perpetual snow, extends
44(litr_the names of the'Himalaya, Hindoo Coosh, and
o
aropamisus. The country of the Affghans is bounded
the north by this great mountain-wall, which, from
Cashmere, the eastern limit of Affghanistan, takes a south-.
west direction as far ag the snowy peak of Hindoo
r"osh, nearly north of Caubul,- from which the whole
tnge derives its name. From this peak, the same
r
'ultin, with a lower declination, extends westward,
under the name of the Paropamisan Mountains, 350
miles to Herat, and-thus completes the northern boun-
,rY to Afikhanistan. On the east, the Indus is the
boundary g
so log as the riper continues near the hills,
which is as far as lat. 32 deg. 20 min. The plain on the
western bank of the river to the south of this is inha-
bited, not by the Affghans, but by the Belooehees, an in-
. "Pendent tribe, and intervenes between the Affghan
rrritory and the river. The Soliman Mountains, there-
2re, which area branch from the Hindoo Coosh, running
th-south-east along the course of the Indus, with their
Z_Nordinate ranges, and the plain immediately at their
r°se, 4re included in the country of the Affghans, and
tp,l4:here its eastern boundary. In lat. 29 deg. north,
"ere the Soliman Mountains terminate, this plain
:tends westward, and has new boundaries. On the
:tends
it has hills which stretch east and west,
atlls right angles to the Solilnan range, and those
term the southern boundary of Affghanistan, sepa-
rating it from the low and hot plain of Cutch Gundawa
Seweestan, on the south. The southern frontier of
tea Affghan country is extremely irregular. Before
; 4ehing the table-land of Khelat, in long. 66 deg. east, it
te:.l,edes towards the north, and extends west as far as the
IZert, which separates it on the north-west from Persia.
-4 Affghans have no general name for their country
;It that of Affghanistan, which was probably first ern-
tlied in Persia. It is frequently used in books, and is
„AUnknown to the inhabitants. It is sometimes known
tiler the appellation of the kingdom of Caubul.

1 MOUNTAINS AND ASPECT or
APPGHANISTAN.
Offghanistan, to the west of the Soliman Mountains,
t '', ich form an eastern barrier, may be described gene-
' ta`,lY as a table-land, lying higher than most of the
4 ighbouring countries. The title of table-land, how-
, ,er, applied to Affghanistan, must not be understood in
pin
other sense than that it is raised above the level of
h bin surrounding. regions ; for so far from its being a
Vin, it is of the most diversified surface, being every-
heretlth ainntde"heicgtheedstwirtahngeleliinsscooif-emreodliwntiathinss,nowwhicaht di-
rge 4ilsge in different directions from the main ridge of
ito 'Woo Coosh. This grand mountainous chain is a
14ntiouation of the great Himalaya ridge, which it rivals
tae grandeur and elevation ; from the elevated plains
fgoeY are seen on the north in four distinct ranges. The
f 3°llB, and souse of its peaks rise to the height of 20,493
litit
i :fet, being conspicuous from Bactria, from the borders
ii. ladia,_ and from placesn "TeaTrtary, at the amazing
til,st4nce V. 250 miles. stupendous heights of
14:.,5e mountains," says Elphinstone, " the magnificence
!I,,i'iovariety of their lofty summits, the various nations by
tit to they are seen, and who seem to be brought toge-
14,.7 I)/ this common object, and the awful and undis-
14r,e solitude which reigns amid their eternal snows.
:11„ the mind with an admiration and astonishment which
k;„l4oguage can express." Of this complicated mass of
li4llntains, the ridges branch off southward, in irregular
to ", to the distance of 60 or 70 miles, when they decline
ive a. lower level, and these ridges are separated by inter-
10ing valleys, each of which is watered by a river flow-
'kg down the southern declivity of the Hindoo Coosh
ki:nntiiins into Caubul, which, after an easterly course
L,..• ng the base of the mountains, of about 350 miles,
IQ'S the great In*. These valleys, or glens, all open
140 tri the south into the great Valley of Caubul ; the
natry lower down is fertile and delicious. The narrow
Ft:d alluvial plain at the bottom, through which the river
43, is highly productive. The valley of the river
o,,nt, which may be taken as a sample of all the others,
,V,gs two harvests, and produces most sorts of grain,
I ltn mulberries, fruits, and planes.
14 4restward from the Indus, about 150 miles, an im-
ittlise curve or angle projects southward from the' mom-
-4 barrier of the country into the interior, to the dis-
tkl,Lee of 70 miles, when the snowy mountain abruptly
c'eads into the ow and hot plain of Jellalabad. The
rthen resumes its westerly course, forming the
°!ttstan, or high lands of Caubul, a well-watered and
it:trill country. The Paropamisan chain bounds this
4;4,47 on the west, and forms a range of mountains,
'
1... en afford a habitation to some wandering and preda-
p:lY tribes. This description applies to that portion of
IlitiotitrY from east to west, which extends southward
at 100 or 150 miles from the Hindoo Coosh monn-
-111,4,*
rage
this the aspect of the country is varied
ille of the Soliman mountains, which, coin-
to/I,'cing with Suffaid Coh, or the White Mountains, so
led ..--
iN trom the snow with which they are covered at all
it,'nns, extends south south-west, almost parallel to the
oiNe of the Indus. These mountains decline towards
(it west by lower ridges, which run nearly in the same
ec, tion as the main ridge ; while other ridges branch off
iiiward toward the Indus. The height of these mountains
',really inferior to that of the Hindoo Coosh, but it is still
Sh,•4t,, as they are covered with snow to the end of spring,
;ken, in the latitude of 31 degrees, gives a considerable
tot tade. Pe fond the Soliman ridges on the west, the
4hntitry consists, for the moit part, of high and bleak
tkst. s, interspersed with moderate hills : in some places
htstrt and ill-cultivated, bare and open, better fitted for
kid than the plough, and inhabited by migratory
110,8 of shepherds. The tract, however, watered by the
round about Candahar it is fruitful and cultivated; to the
It n"' nevertheless, where it recedes from Helmund, it is
'roplete desert.
11,11 It OVINCES OF APPONANISTAN.
hie, country is divided into 27 provinces, in 18 of
ofef, the ro) al authority prevails, and the King's
,111„41'8, the haukims and sirdars, constantly reside.
14;4'. are Herat, Furrah, Candahar, Ghuznee, Caubul,
hrilnean and Ghorebund, Jellalabad, Lughman, Pesha-
k, sera Ismael Khan, Dera Ghauzi Khan, Shikar-
kL,,,C.gewee, Scinde, Cashmere, Chuch Hazareh, Leia,
114440ultan. Several of these provinces, owing to the
kheetion of the country, have since aspired to inde-
Nrcenee ; and in the other nine the royal authority
pries little weight.
titlO' European name of Affghan, signifying " loud
1, 1
1 th4g," is a nick-name given to the people of Caubul
;liLtii," surrounding tribes. The native name is Pusht-
,qie ;.„ .Dialects of the Pushtoo language are spoken by
illii,.l'toes which are the most numerous, viz. the Cankers,
% h4e,,',, and Kheibers ; the people of Caubul speak
''' Persian and Pushtoo.

()1, RIVERS OF ATTGANHISTAN.
tliktit,..sidering the extent of the country, and its inter-
t;" by so many mountains, Affghanistan has few
rivers in comparison. For the greater part of
t4‘ ~ear there is not one but is fordable, except the Indus,
qlk,Zlibut its course, and the majority partake of the
N4rl4ter of mountain torrents, swelling rapidly and
91e off, or they are sometimes all drained away for
N4,,,l:igation of the fields. The greatest of the
Which run- through the west of Affghanistan
Ifers Helmund or Etymander. This river,
liei between the Soliman and Pampa-
S." mountains, rises in the latter, and, running a
14 '-west course of four hundred miles, terminates
Slit lake Seestan. The Urghundaub rises eighty-
kiles north-east of Candahar, and after passing
4 4 a fey miles of that city, joins the' Helmund.
!ri,,llever more than 150 yards broad The Turnuk is
t4tit.s9tary of the Urghundaub, which it joins about 75
klive West of Candahar : it is a rapid torrent, and re-
-I.tkriql. the Urgliessaun,
%1 and other small rivers : notwith-
-4X these additions, its stream rather decreases,
tl4 6 oOnstwaccl in the irrigation of the country, or in
'44.l)4N:bed and barren sands through which it passes.
hrood, which is a larger river than the Urghun-
lke I.Pies the Helmund after a course of 150 miles.
.:,.iirraltrood is a still larger stream ; it has a course
l~kmiles and it is uncertain whether it reaches the
;tittsl &Natio, or is lost in the sands. The Lora, which
the
the south of Affghanistan, has a western course
k11;,41.0e Soliman mountains of 200 miles, where it Is-
*
!r before it reaches the liehnund.
-111741 I'D/DITS AND ITS TRIBUTARIES.
Indus, which forms the eastern boundary of Aff-
is.'tan, may be accounted, from its volume of water,
bbpio e length of its course, which has been traced
4!iles from its mouth, and which has its source
tht„.i}iglier, ()pup of the greatest rivers in the world.
rivers of Affghanistan it alone is navigable,
little use is made of it for this purpose. All the
14(1 ()f this country which take their rise in the
Coosh mountains are tributary to this great
i,,`11 • The Caubul is the drain of all the waters which
'4l4h" .the southern declivity of the Hindoo Coosh
IO titN
Ine• The most important river which it re-
( 144 15 the Kaushkaur, which has its rise beyond the
Coosh range, in the same snowy peak which
tF the sources of the Oxus ;it rushes with
violence into the valley of the Caubul
tr.X.,ll,'hich it joins about 100 miles west of the Indus.
„..`jkt ti,down, the Indus is joined by the Koorum,
ii;,e west. The only river south of this which
its WI the Indus is the Gomul, which, however,
iiatlt.'4'hen it is swollen by the rains, never reaches
4,44,,,eati0n, being generally consumed in the irriga-
At oe country. The Indus is navigable, according
1p,,„
44.-Burnes, from Attock to the sea ; this com-
e •ia distance of about 1,600 miles : the river at this
30 miles broad, and the current three and a half
04,7 hour. The width at Bukkur, where a bridge
h:,,t;.111 '‘le across the stream, is 1,800 feet : the depth 30
Current three miles and 72 yards per hour. It is
itit•ittki to very sudden rises, and has been known to
24Nik,, fall again three feet in a day and a half : the
kikii:,Progress of sailing vessels against the stream is
Per day. During the dry season, the Indus is
N '5 feet.deep below the Punjab, and half a mile
,
trl,-(0. -4.w.ATIKENT OT THE ATTGRANS.
%Villt_°P ACTION IN EMERGENCIES.—The rude and
materials of a free constitution are presented
11,1,114.4Tiw by the political institutions of the Affghans.
‘41,1 in its form of Government, the nation is sup-
-110 h derive its origin from four tribes, which are di-
'l'o t ndsubdivided into inferior clans, until no more
ew-families are included in the last subdivision.
ans, who are the chiefs of these tribes, aro elected