THE/LAND OF CONTRASTS 9-

From Bannu through Kohat stretch the lands of the Khat-
taks. Hardworking and industrious, the^ are engaged in.
agricultural pursuits or find employment in the salt trade.
In Bannu dwell the Bannuchis and the Marwats, " the-
most mixed and the most hybrid " of the Pathan tribes, a.
"mongrel" race who represent the "ebb and flow of
might, right, possession and spoliation ".* The flat and.
dreary wastes of Dera Ismail Khan are peopled chiefly
by Jats, the Pathan element forming only about one-third
of the total population. Similarly in the Hazara District.
the bulk of the population is non-Pathan, being composed,
of Punjabi Muslims, Gakhars, Syeds etc.

With a few exceptions the tribesmen are all Moham-
medans of the orthodox Sunni sect, that is to say, they
recognize all the successors of Mohammad and accept not
only the Quran but also the Hadis or traditional sayings-
not embodied in the Quran.

The language of the Pathans is known as Pushtu or
Pukhtu. It has a close affinity to Sanskrit from which it
is derived. It boasts of a well developed literature and
has produced^ some remarkable mystic and patriotic-
poetry, the best known writers being Khushal Khattakr
the warrior poet (1630 A. D. -1660 A. D.) and the great,
mystic Abdur Rehman Baba. The Pathans are great-
lovers of their language and feel most happy when,
addressed in their mother-tongue.

During the British period the internal administration
of the tribes used to be conducted through the Malik&
(tribal chiefs) and the Jirga system. Jirga means as-
sembly of elders. The more democratic a tribe the wider
the Jirga. Full Jirga therefore means nothing less than:
a gathering of every adult male. It has been remarked
that the tribal Jirga, particularly in the Agency areas--
served as the school for diplomacy par excellence to young:
British officers.

The system of * border protection' followed by the
British was that of entrusting as much as possible of

* Collin Da vies: The Problem of the North-West Frontier, p. 66L