The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-02-13
KHATTAKS ARE LIKE CELTS 0F
 BRITISH ARMY
Dandies of Indian Army, Reck- less, Generous, Improvi-
 dent and MercuriaI.

British Headquarters in Mesopo- tamia, Feb. 12-The Khattaks are the dandies of the Indian army. They are like the Celts of the British army, reckless, generous, improVident, mer- curial, altogether a friendly and re- sponsive sort of people, but with the queer kink that one finds in all Pa thans, that primitive sensitive point of honor or shame which puzzles the psychologist.
 The Khattaks kept their spirits up all through the hot weather. They are too lively sometimes. As soon as the drum and oboe sound they start cat-calling and make their work fly. The Khattaks are as responsive to the oboe as the Highlanders to the bagpipe, but they are more demon strative. It is a good thing to be near when the Khattak. Rifles leave camp. At the first sound of the drum and oboe they break into a wild treble shriek, tailing off, perhaps, with the balbala, the Pathan imitation of the gurgling of the camel.
 These tribesmep are easily excit- ed seldom >dispirited, and if so, only for a short time. Their eagerness is sometimes a positive danger, during an attack. At Sheik Saad it was diff ficult to hold the Khattak company back while the regiment on their left was coming up; they were all for go- ing ahead and breaking the line: and in the end it was a premature sortie of the Khattaks that precipitated the assault
 Old Shere Khan, a typical Khattak, the other day killed right inside the regimental lines rival for his wife's affections, anad he could not have done anything else. The mans of fense carried it's own sentence in the minds of all decent-thinking Khat- talks. Before the deed the subadar- major begged the adjutant to get the rival, Sher Gull, well away before the night; otherwise, he said, there would be trouble, but the adjutant could not look into the case until the next morn ing. In the meantime, to safeguard Sher Gull, he told the subador to see that twenty stout men slept around his bed.
 The subadar made it fifty, but to no avail. At one in the morning of the adjutant was called out quietly to see the remains of Sher Gul. His head was lying on the edge of the bed, a hatchet imbeded in the skull. He had been killed with fifty men sleep ing round him. They had all slept like the dead, and nobody had heard the blow. There was no evidence against Shere Khan whatever; public opinion was on his side.
 '.Zam, Fam and Zar"-land, women and gold-according to the Persian proverb, are at the bottom of all out rage, and with nine Khattaks out of ten, it is Zan.
 The Khattaks thinks no end of his personal appearance. He dresses to kill, and loves to go and parade in the bazaar in his gala kit. He will spend hours over his toilet, peering without a trace of elf-consciousness, though his neighbors may be almost as interested in the performance as he. Then, with his hair neatly oiled and traim to the level of the lobe of his ear, he will stride forth in his flowery waistcoat of plum color or maroon velvet with golden braid, spotless white baggy trousers, a flow CT behind his ear, red handkerchief in his pocket, cane in his hand, and for headgear, a high Kohat 1ungiplack with yellow and crimson ends, and a kula covered with gold.
 Every Khattak is bit of blood In his country a shoWy exterior betok- ems the gallant in both senses of the word. A woman of parts will not look at a man unless he has served in the army or is at least something of a buccaneer.