New Britain herald., 1929-11-26
TAj|KISTAN WINS ITS ADVANCEMENT
Aaatjc State, Smaller Than Alabama, Nov Autonomous"

Washington, D. C, Nov. o.
 "TaiiAistan, which has just been 1 elevated from the status of an Au- tonomous Republic to Federated
 Republic Of the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics, is an area just twelve square miles less than that ot
 Nlabama, occupying tn" eNtrcmc SouIlraStcrn corner Of old Russian Ttrkestan,' says bulletin rom the Na~hjnItou D. C. headquarters of tt"' National Geographic Society.
 9Th" now Republic ia in T Wors, 1o.tion than the proyorbjaI neodl, ir th" iaystack. for ii cannot he found on any but tho most recent maps. The area consists of t bjt of 'iln old provinces of Bol>hara. sam arNand and pujuir of Russian Cen rral Asia.
 Region thc T>arS Forgot
 "A rough outline of TaIiLlstan
 may ho dlaWn by placing the point of q pencil on a map of Asia abont 5o miles due southeast of the city of S9marl<and. A Wayy line drawn due east Of thIs point to the border Of Chinese 'Turkestun is nearly the line ot the northern bonn lary of the Republic, The eastern boundary fol- lows the Chfesc Turkostan border southW5rd to AlghaHietan. The southern boundary follows the northern border of Afghauistan to within @borlt 50 miles oa5t of the city G> TofmnH. The western boundary may bo indicated by q line. slightly buiging toward the east. linking the western ends of the north and south boundaries
 'During the rule of the Tsars, there was little, if any modern de yclopm@nt in Tajikistam This corner of Central Asia was seldom visited h% outsiders except explorers. The highways were merc camel tracks over which moved long caravans, and railroads have not penetrated the region.
 Men and Bo.s Wear Earrings
 'Stalinahad, until recently called lNushambc or Dushambey. is the capital of the Republic, Although the inhabitants of the city have not Jot heard the blast of d steam en- zine whistle, they frequently hear th" roar of airplana motors, for the capital is q stop OH the air routo be- tween Termaz. on the northern bor- der of Atghanistun, and Kagan near the city of Bokharu. X new railroad, however, now is being built from Tcrmcz to Stalinabad, and more than 800 miles of modern highways bid fair to offer the cara van routes serious competition in the more level regions of western Tajikistau'
 "Thore arc about 500, 900 inhabi- tants in the new Republic. Both sexes wear Eoluminous trousers and long coats, but the traveller can dis tjnguish the men by their skull caps, and the women by their bright-coI- ored shawl headcoycrings. At close range the women are more easily singled out by the bracelets. rings. necklaces and the other trinkets 2 rings, not as ornaments, but as charms against evil spirits.
 Cattle Men and Farmers
 Tn the summer, there is an cX- odus of Taiiks from the lower re- gions to the mountains, especially among the cattle herdsmen who seek new pastures, Almost in the shadow of the glaciers Of the I'amirs, travellers find fclt-coycred tents, which are the temporary homes Of the herlsmen. They also come upon small settlements of houses $ feet high. the walls Of which are built with cobhlcs and q little mud. The houses along the dusty streets are similar except that their walls are of clay with d few cobbles. In both regions, the Taiik 1 roofing consists of sapings and l