IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA
PROVINCIAL SERIES
NORTH-WEST FRONTIER
r~ ' PROVINCE
SUPERINTENDENT OF GOVERNMENT PRINTING
CALCUTTA
1908
Price Rs. 2-8, or 3^. 9^.]
OXFORD : HORACE HART
PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY
SEP i? 1968
PREFACE
THE articles contained in this volume were originally
drafted by Mr. H. A. Rose, I.C.S., and were afterwards
examined by the District and Political Officers concerned.
In preparing the Provincial article valuable assistance was
received from heads of departments. Mr. E. B. Howell, I.C.S.,
who was in charge of the final revision, has added later
statistics and much interesting information, especially in the
articles on Tribal Areas.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE 1-125
PHYSICAL ASPECTS . •. 1-12
Position and boundaries ...... i
Natural features and scenery i
Mountain systems . . ... . . 3
Rivers ......... 4
Geology 4
Crystalline, igneous, and metamorphic rocks . . 4
Tanawals ........ 5
Basic dikes 5
The Attock slate series 5
Mesozoic, Tertiary, and post-Tertiary rocks to the south 5
Infra- Trias (Devonian ?) 5
Trias ......... 6
Jurassics ..." . . . . 6
Cretaceous 6
Nummulitic (eocene) ...... 7
Post-Tertiary and recent ..... 7
Flora 8
Fauna . . . . . . * ; • • 10
Climate and temperature . . . . . . ir
Rainfall ......... n
HISTORY 12-26
The Persians ........ 12
The Greeks . . . . . . . . 13
The Bactrians . . . . . . . . 13
The Kushans . . . . . . . . 14
Later Kushans and White Huns .... 14
The Muhammadans . . . . . . . 15
The Ghorids . . . . . . . . 15
Timur . . . . . > . . . . 16
The Afghans . 16
The Mughals ........ 16
Tribal rebellions . . . . . . . 17
Decay of Mughal power . . . . . . 1 8
The Sikhs . . . . , ... 18
The British 19
The Mutiny 19
Expeditions against frontier tribes . ' . . . 20
l849~57 • ' 20
8 . . . . . . . 20
TABLE OF CONTENTS v
PAGE
Second Afghan War, 1878-80 . . . . 21
Expeditions, 1878-97 . . . . . . 21
Pathan revolt, 1897 22
In Tochi . . . . . . . . 22
In Swat . 22
The Mohmands 23
Tirah ........ 23
Punitive operations . . . . . . 24
1898-1902 , . 25
Durand line 25
Formation of the North-West Frontier Province . 26
ARCHAEOLOGY 26-28
Buddhist remains . . . . . . . 27
Later buildings . . . . . . . 28
POPULATION 28-37
Census statistics . . . . . . . 28
Density . 28
Towns and villages 28
Growth of population 29
Age statistics ........ 29
Vital statistics . . . . . . . . 29
Diseases ......... 30
Epidemics 30
Infant mortality. Sex statistics .... 30
Statistics of civil condition ..... 30
Language .... ... 31
Castes and tribes . . » . . . . 32
The Pathans 32
Awans, &c. . . . . . . 33
Religions. . . . 33
Christian missions 34
Occupations . . . . . . . . 34
Food .... ... 34
Dress .... 35
Dwellings .... . . 35
Disposal of dead ...... 36
Amusements .... . 36
Names and titles ..... 36
Religious titles • 37
AGRICULTURE 37~45
Soils and general agricultural conditions . . 37
Harvests 38
Rotation of crops ... • • • 39
Ploughing, harvesting, &c 39
vi TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
Population supported by agriculture .... 39
Wheat . . . ... . . . 40
Barley 40
Gram 40
Maize 40
Spiked millet . . . 40
Great millet , . . 41
Rice . . . 41
Pulses . . . ..... . . 41
Cotton . . . . .... . ... 41
Oilseeds 4 . . 41
Total produce . . . . . . > . 41
Fruit . . . . . .. . . 41
Loans . . . ... . . . 42
Indebtedness . . . ... ..... 43
Cattle . . 43
Sheep and goats . . 43
Camels . . . 43
Horses and donkeys . . ,-« . . . . 43
Irrigation ...-»". 43
Canal revenue . . . . . . . , . . . 45
System of water distribution . . . . . . . . 45
RENTS, WAGES, AND PRICES . .. .. . . . 45-48
Rents . . . . . , . k 45
Wages . . . .. . . . . . 46
Prices 47
Material condition of the people . . . , . 47
FORESTS * . . 48
MINES AND MINERALS . r '.. ... . . 49-50
Salt. . . . . ., . . .. . 49
Other minerals . ; . ... v J . 49
ARTS AND MANUFACTURES . . . . . . 50-52
Cotton . . . . ..... . 50
Afrldi waxcloth , . . 50
Wool ,. ... 50
Silk ; . . 50
Embroidery 51
Jewellery .. . 51
Iron-work . . . . . .i. . 51
Brass- and copper-work . . . 51
Pottery . . . .*. . . . 51
Wood-work . . . . . 52
leather-work . . .,.-.. . . .. 52
Factories .... 52
TABLE OF CONTENTS vii
PAGE
COMMERCE AND TRADE 52-54
Trade routes 52
Imports from across the border . . . . 53
Exports across the border ...... 54
Trade with other Provinces and States in India . . 54
MEANS OF COMMUNICATION ...... 54-56
Railways 54
Roads 55
Means of conveyance . . . . . 55
Rivers . . . 56
Post Office 56
FAMINE 56
ADMINISTRATION . . 57~59
Administrative divisions 58
Political Agencies, &c. . . . . . . 59
Frontier chieftainships 59
LEGISLATION AND JUSTICE . . . . . . 59-61
Customary law. ....... 59
Legislation . . . . . . . • 59
Administration of justice ...... 60
Civil courts ........ .60
Criminal courts .60
Revenue courts . . . . . . . 61
Trans-border territories . . . . . . 61
Registration . . . . *" . . . 61
FINANCE . . . 6r
LAND REVENUE 62-64
Tenures 62
Redistribution of land . . . .-.,."•• 62
Settlement 63
Alienations . . . . . . . 64
MISCELLANEOUS REVENUE 64-67
Salt 64
Excise ... 65
Liquors and drugs . . . . . » 66
Hemp drugs • 66
Method of vend 66
Excise revenue . . . . . . :. 66
Stamps and income tax . . . . • '• • 67
LOCAL AND MUNICIPAL : v • . 67-68
Village communities . . . . . . . 67
Municipal administration 67
District boards ....... 68
PUBLIC WORKS 68
ARMY 69
viii' TABLE OF CONTENTS
PACE
POLICE 69-72
Proportion of police to area and population . . 70
Rural police . , . . . . . 70
Municipal, cantonment, ferry, and railway police . 7 r
Cognizable crime . . . • . . . 71
Border military police . . . . . . 71
MII.ITIA AND LEVY CORPS . . . . . 72-73
Militia 72
ChitrSli Scouts . . . . .' . . . 72
Levy Corps 73
JAILS . -73
EDUCATION 74-76
Present organization . . . . . . . 74
Collegiate education . . . . . . . 74
Secondary education ...... 74
Primary education (male) 75
Female education . . .-''"•'• . . 75
Muhammadan education . ... . . 75
Statistics . . 75
MEDICAL 76-77
Hospitals and dispensaries . . . . . 76
Lunatic asylums . . . . . . . 76
Vaccination . 76
SURVEYS 77
BIBLIOGRAPHY 77
STATISTICS 79~93
Table I. General Genealogy of the Pathan Tribes . 79
„ II. Expeditions undertaken against Frontier
Tribes since the Annexation of the Punjab 80
„ III. Temperature ...... 83
IV. Rainfall 83
„ V, Distribution of Population, 1901 . . . 84
„ VI. Statistics of Agriculture . . .85
„ VII. Trade with other Provinces (including the
Punjab) and States in India ... 86
„ VIlA. Trade with Countries outside India . . 87
„ VIII. Statistics of Criminal Justice , . . 87
„ IX. Statistics of Civil Justice .... 87
„ X. Revenue and Expenditure .... 88
,, XL Income and Expenditure of Municipalities 89
,, XII. Income and Expenditure of District Boards 90
„ XIII. Police Statistics 91
„ XIV. Education Finance ..... 92
„ XIVA. Colleges, Schools, and Scholars . * . 92
„ XV. Medical Statistics . . ... • » 93
TABLE OF CONTENTS ix
PAGE
MOUNTAINS 94-109
HIMALAYAS, THE ...... 94-107
Name 94
Extent of range 94
Political distribution ...... 94
Divisions of range . . . . . . 95
Scenery ........ 96
Snow-line ........ 96
Rivers 97
Highest peaks . . . . . . . 97
Valleys and lakes 97
Geology 98
Age and origin of the range .... 98
The Siwalik series 99
Unfossiliferous rocks of Outer Himalayas . . 100
The crystalline axis . . . . . .100
Fossiliferous rocks of the Tibetan zone . . 101
Economic minerals . . . . . .102
Botany. . . . . . . . .102
Fauna ......... 103
People 104
Agriculture . . . . . . . .105
Forests . . 106
Means of communication . . . . .106
Bibliography . . . . . . .107
BLACK MOUNTAIN 107
MAHABAN . . ; 108
SAMANA RANGE . . . , . . . 108
RIVERS . . . . . . . . . 109-120
INDUS 109-116
Course in Tibet and Kashmir . . . .109
In the Punjab and the North- West Frontier Pro-
vince .no
In Sind ...-.; 112
The Indus delta , . . 112
Changes in the river course . . '• . -. '. :» 113
Inundations and irrigation . . . . . 114
Principal canals . . . . . . .114
Navigation . . . . ..;.'« . 115
Fish . . . ......,, . . 116
SWAT 116
KABUL "7
BARA 118
KURRAM ,-II9
x TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
TOCHI .119
GUMAL , . . . . ... . . 119
CANALS . 120-122
SWAT RIVER . . ;• • . 120
KABUL RIVER . , . ... . . . 121
HISTORIC AREAS ... ... . . . 122-125
AMB . . . . . ... . . 122
DBRAJAT . . . . . .. .... . 122
GANDHARA 124
PAKHLI . . . . ... . . .124
UNO ...» 125
HAZARA DISTRICT . 126-143
Boundaries, configuration, and hill and river systems . 126
Geology . . 127
Botany 127
Fauna . . . . . . . . . .127
Climate and temperature . . . . . .128
Rainfall . . . .128
History » 128
Archaeology . . . . - . .129
The people . 129
Castes and occupations .130
Christian missions . 131
General agricultural conditions . . . . . 131
Chief agricultural statistics and principal crops . . 131
Improvements in agricultural practice . . . 132
Cattle, ponies, and sheep . . . -. . . 132
Irrigation . . .... ." . . 132
Forests . . . . . . . . . 132
Mines and minerals . . . . ... - . . 133
Arts and manufactures . . . ' . . . 134
Commerce and trade . . . , . . 134
Means of communication . . .... . 134
Famine . . . . ... . . 134
District subdivisions and staff ... . . . 135
Civil and criminal justice . . . . . . 135
Land revenue administration . . . . . 135
Local and municipal . . . . . . . 136
Police and jails . . . . . . .136
Education 136
Hospitals and dispensaries . .. . .. . 137
Vaccination . . . . .-.,-. . 137
Bibliography 137
ABBOTTABAD TAHSIL . . . -. . 137
TABLE OF CONTENTS xi
PAGE
HARIPUR TAHS!L 137
MANSEHRA TAHSIL 137
TANAWAL . . . . . . . 138
ABBOTTABAD TOWN 139
AGROR ......... 139
BAFFA . . . 140
BARA GALI 141
CHANGLA GALI 141
DUNGA GALI . . . . . . . , . . 141
GHOHA DAKKA . . . . . . 141
HARIPUR TOWN 141
KAGAN ......... 142
KALABAGH . . . . ... . . 142
KHAIRA GALI . . 142
KHANSPUR 142
MANSEHRA TOWN ..„-.. 142
NATHIA GALI 143
NAWASHAHR . . . .... . . 143
OGHI . ..' .: « 143
THANDIANI 143
PESHAWAR DISTRICT ...... 143-167
Boundaries, configuration, and hill and river systems . 143
Geology 145
Botany ......... 145
Fauna ......... 146
Climate and temperature . . . . . .146
Rainfall . . . . ... . . 146
History and archaeology . . . , .. . '. * • . 146
The people . . . ... .. .. . 149
Castes and occupations . . . . . .150
Christian missions . . ... .... • . . . 151
General agricultural conditions . . . . .151
Chief agricultural statistics and principal crops . . 151
Improvements in agricultural practice . . . 152
Cattle, ponies, and sheep . . . . « 152
Irrigation « 152
Forests 152
Mines and minerals . . . . - . • » . . 153
Arts and manufactures . .. .. •. •. . 153
Commerce and trade . . . .'-• .153
Communications . • .-« • • • *54
District subdivisions and staff 154
Civil and criminal justice . . . . ' t 154
Land revenue administration . . . ••••i55
xii TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
Local and municipal . . . . . . 156
Police and jails 156
Education . . . . . . . . 157
Hospitals and dispensaries 157
Vaccination . . . . . . . .157
Bibliography .157
PESHAWAR TAHSIL 158
CHARSADDA TAHS!L 158
YUSUFZAI 158
MARDAN TAHSIL . . ..... 159
SWABI TAHSIL 160
NAUSHAHRA TAHSIL .160
ABAZAI 160
CHARSADDA TOWN . . 161
CHERAT • . . .161
HASHTNAGAR .' . . 162
MACKESON, FORT . . . . . . .162
MARDAN TOWN . . . . . . .163
MICHNI 163
NAUSHAHRA TOWN .163
PESHAWAR CITY 164
PRANG , . . . . . . . . 166
SHABKADAR 167
TANGI 167
KOHAT DISTRICT ....... 167-182
Boundaries, configuration, and hill and river systems . 167
Geology . . . . . . . . .168
Botany . . . . .. . . . - . . 168
Fauna . . . . . . . .169
Climate and temperature . . • . . .169
History . . . . . . « . .169
The people . . . ... . 171
Castes and occupations . . .''.'* . 172
General agricultural conditions . . . . . 172
Chief agricultural statistics and principal crops . . 173
Improvements in agricultural practice . . 173
Cattle, ponies, and sheep . . . . . .174
Irrigation. ... . . . . . . 174
Forests . . . . . . ... .174
Mines and minerals . . . . . . .174
Arts and manufactures . ... . . 175
Commerce and trade . . . . . 175
Communications . . . . . •• • •• <75
Famine ... ........ 175
TABLE OF CONTENTS xiii
PAGE
District subdivisions and staff 175
Civil and criminal justice . . . . . .176
Land revenue administration . . . . .176
Local and municipal 177
Police and jails . 177
Education .178
Hospitals and dispensaries . . . . .178
Vaccination 178
Bibliography .178
KOHAT TAHSIL 178
TERI TAHSIL 179
THAL SUBDIVISION 179
HANGU TAHSIL . . . . . . » 179
HANGU VILLAGE » . 180
KOHAT TOWN 180
KOHAT SALT QUARRIES . . . ... .180
LOCKHART, FORT . . . •, . . . . ' . 181
SARAGARHI . . . . ., . ••' 181
THAL VILLAGE . . . . . . 181
BANNU DISTRICT . . . '. • . . . 182-195
Boundaries, configuration, and hill and river systems . 182
Geology . . . . . . • . . 183
Botany 183
Fauna . . . . . . . . .183
Climate and temperature 183
Rainfall 184
History • •• ' * • .184
Archaeology . . . . . . . . 185
The people . . „ • . * ; . . 186
Castes and occupations . . . . . .186
Christian missions . . ... . f. 187
General agricultural conditions . . . . 187
Chief agricultural statistics and principal crops . ... 188
Improvements in agricultural practice . . .188
Cattle, ponies, and sheep . . . ; . . 188
Irrigation . . . . ,' . •, 189
Forests . . . » . . ^ . . . 189
Minerals . . .. . .. . ,189
Arts and manufactures . . . . . .189
Commerce . 189
Communications . . . . . . .» 189
Famine . . . . ..... . 190
District subdivisions and staff . .' . . , 190
Civil and criminal justice . * • „• • '• J9Q
xiv TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
Land revenue administration 191
Local and municipal . • • . . . .192
Police and jails . . . . . . .192
Education 192
Hospitals and dispensaries . • . . . . 193
Vaccination . . . • . . . . 193
Bibliography . . , , . . . 193
BANNU TAHS!L . . . . ••. . . 193
MARWAT TAHSIL . . . . . . .193
BANNU TOWN (or Edwardesabad) . . . .193
LAKKI . 194
AKRA . . 194
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT .... 195-209
Boundaries, configuration, and hill and river systems. 195
Geology . . . 196
Botany ' 197
Fauna . . . 197
Climate and temperature . . . . . 197
Rainfall 197
History * 197
The people . . . . . . . .199
Castes and occupations . . . ... 199
Christian missions . . . . . . .200
General agricultural conditions . . . . .200
Chief agricultural statistics and principal crops . . 200
Improvements in agricultural practice , . .200
Cattle, ponies, and sheep 201
Irrigation ... 201
Forests 201
Minerals . . . . . . . . . 202
Arts and manufactures . : . . . , 202
Commerce and trade . . . . . . 202
Communications ,...,,. 202
Famine ......... 202
District subdivisions and staff . . . . . 203
Civil and criminal justice ...... 203
Land revenue administration • . . . . 203
Local and municipal ...... 204
Police and jails 204
Education ........ 204
Hospitals and dispensaries . . . . . 204
Vaccination tf . . 205
Bibliography . . . . . . . .205
DERA ISMAIL KHAN TAHS!L , . . . . 205
TABLE OF CONTENTS xv
PAGE
KULACHI TAHSIL 205
TANK TAHS!L 205
DERA ISMAIL KHAN TOWN 207
KAFIRKOT 208
KULACHI TOWN 208
SHEIKH BUDIN 208
TANK TOWN 209
DIR, SWAT, AND CHITRAL , 210-223
CHITRAL STATE 210-215
Boundaries, configuration, and hill and river systems. 210
History 210
The people 213
General agricultural conditions . . , . 214
Manufactures and trade . . . . .214
Administration . . . . ' , . .214
Justice . . . . . .'.,'•". 214
Revenue « . .214
CHITRAL TOWN . . . ... ' . 214
MASTUJ , . . . . • f • . . 215
DIR . . . • . . . , 215
SWAT STATE . . . . . . • -A . 216
MALAKAND . . . . . . . .221
CHAKDARRA 221
BAJAUR , 222
UTMAN KHEL 222
BUNER 223-225
AMBELA , 224
MOHMAND COUNTRY 225-227
KHYBER . . 227-236
Situation . . .... . . , , 227
Description . ....... , . 227
History . . . .',.,.-,. 228
British expeditions . ... . , . 229
First Afghan War . . . . . .229
Second Afghan War . .... . 230
Khyber Political Agency . . ... . .231
The Afridis . . . .... . » 231
British control . . . ,. ... * 232
Outbreak of 1897 . . . . . . . 232
AFRIDIS . ... .... . j- . 232
JAMRUD . , . . 233
LANDI KOTAL . . ... . . . . 233
TIRAH . . . . , , . • . 233
BAZAR . . . « 236
ORAKZAI . , . . , , » . ,' 236
xvi TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
KURRAM AGENCY 236-243
Boundaries, configuration, and hill and river systems . 236
History 238
The people . - . . . . . . 240
General agricultural conditions ..... 240
Means of communication . . . . . .241
Administrative divisions and staff . . . .241
Civil and criminal justice . . . . . .241
Land revenue administration 242
Police and jails . 242
Education . . . . . . 243
Hospitals and dispensaries ' . ... . . 243
Vaccination ........ 243
PARACHINAR . .... . . . 243
SADDA 243
WAZIRISTAN, NORTHERN . . . . . . 243-248
BOYA . ... . . . . . 245
IDAK , . . 245
MIRAM SHAH . . .... . . 245
MAIZAR . " . 245
DAUR . . . 246
WAZIRISTAN, SOUTHERN 248-257
Boundaries, configuration, and hill and river systems . 248
Flora .....:. . 249
Fauna . . . . . .... . 249
Climate . . . . . . . . 249
History ......... 250
The people . . . . . 251
Tribal customs . . . . . . . 252
Agriculture ... .252
Mines and minerals . . . .... . 252
Arts and manufactures .. ... . . . 252
Commerce and trade . . . . . . 253
WANA . . . ... « . .253
GOMAL PASS . . . . . . . . 253
MAHSUDS 253
BHITTANNI . . 255
JANDOLA . 256
SHIRANI COUNTRY . 256
TAKHT-I-SULAIMAN 257
INDEX ' . . . 259-280
MAP . at end
PROVINCIAL GAZETTEERS
OF INDIA
NORTH-WEST FRONTIER
PROVINCE
North-West Frontier Province. — The North- West Fron- Position
tier Province lies between 31° 4' and 36° 57' N. and 69° *&'
and 74° 7" E. Its extreme length between these parallels is
408 miles, and its extreme breadth between these meridians
279 miles. The approximate area is 38,665 square miles, of
which only 13,193 are British territory, the remainder being
held by the tribes under the political control of the Agent to
the Governor-General. As its name denotes, the Province
is situated on the north-west frontier of the Indian Empire.
On the north it is shut off from the Pamirs by the mountains
of the Hindu Kush. To the south it is bounded by Baluchistan
and the Dera Ghazi Khan District of the Punjab ; on the east
by the territories of the Maharaja of Kashmir and by the
Punjab ; on the west by Afghanistan.
The territory falls into three main geographical divisions : Natural
the Cis-Indus District of Hazara ; the comparatively narrow aena^u"
strip between the Indus and the hills constituting the Districts scenery,
of Peshawar, Kohat, Barinu, and Dera Ismail Khan ; and the
rugged mountainous regions on the north and west between
those Districts and the borders of Afghanistan.
Hazara District forms a wedge extending north-eastwards
far into the Outer Himalayan range, and tapering to a narrow
point at the head of the Kagan valley. The mountain chains
which enclose the Kagan defile sweep southwards into the
broader portion of the District, throwing off well-wooded spurs
which break up the country into numerous isolated glens.
Towards the base of the wedge, on the confines of the Attock
District of the Punjab, the hills open out and fertile plains
take the place of the terraced hill-sides and forests of the
northern uplands. The tract between the Indus and the hills
2 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
comprises four minor natural divisions, each of which forms
a separate District. The most northern is the Peshawar valley,
a lacustrine basin encircled by hills. To the south of Peshawar
lies Kohat, a rugged table-land broken by low ranges of hills
and separated from Peshawar by the Jowaki range. South of
Kohat again is Bannu, in the broad basin of the Kurram river
and completely surrounded by low ranges. The District of
Dera Ismail Khan stretches south of Bannu, a vast expanse
of barren plain enclosed between the Sulaiman range on the
west and the Indus on the east, and tapering to a blunt point
at its southern extremity.
The regions between these Districts and the Afghan frontier
are equally varied, but wilder and more rugged in character.
The hills are loftier, often rising into ranges of great height,
and the intervening valleys are narrower and more inaccessible.
On the north, vast territories between the Hindu Kush and
the border of Peshawar District form the Political Agency of
Dlr, Swat, and Chitral. Of these territories, Chitral, the most
northern, is a region of deep valleys and lofty ranges, for the
most part bare and treeless. Farther south lie the thickly
wooded hills of Dlr and Bajaur, and the fertile valleys of the
Panjkora and Swat rivers. South-west of this Agency are the
Mohmand hills, a rough and rocky tract with little cultivation.
Farther south comes the narrow gorge of the Khyber Pass,
leading westwards from Jamrud on the Peshawar border into
Afghanistan. South of the pass lies Tirah, the maze of
mountains and valleys held by the Afridi and Orakzai tribes,
and bordered on the western extremity of its northern border
by the Safed Koh. Farther west this range still forms the
border of the Province, and flanks the Kurram valley in the
Political Asency of that name. This fertile valley stretches
south-eastwards from the great peak of Sikaram, in which the
Safed Koh culminates, and the Peiwar Kotal pass to the
western extremity of the Miranzai valley in Kohat. South
of Kurram lies Waziristan, a confused mass of hills, intersected
on the north by the Tochi valley and on the south by the
gorges that descend to the Wana plain. The hills are for
the most part barren and treeless, but on some of the higher
ranges, such as Shawal and Pir Ghal, fine forests are found.
The valleys also broaden out into plains, and form fertile and
well-irrigated dales. Such are Daur, as the lowlands of the
Tochi valley are called, and Kaithu in Northern Waziristan,
and the Wana plain and the valley below Kaniguram in the
south. The Wazir hills are divided into two Political Agencies :
PHYSICAL ASPECTS 3
Northern Waziristan, with its head-quarters in the Tochi valley ;
and Southern Waziristan, with its head-quarters at Wana. In
the latter Agency the Wazir hills merge into the Sulaiman
range, the highest point of which is the far-famed Takht-i-
Sulaiman in the lower Shirani country, a political dependency
of Dera Ismail Khan District. The precipitous Takht presents
the grandest scenery on the frontier, and forms an impassable
barrier between the North-VVest Frontier Province and
Baluchistan.
Hazara District lies on the east bank of the Indus among Mountain
the confused mass of mountains formed by the meeting of the syste
Outer and Mid-Himalayan ranges. From this mass the two
mountain walls, which enclose Kagan, run in unbroken lines
to where they meet at the Babusar pass (13,589 feet). West
of the Indus the mighty range of the Hindu Koh, usually
called the Hindu Kush, or Indian Caucasus, runs almost due
east and west along the north-eastern and northern frontiers
of the Province, and at its north-eastern corner meets a con-
tinuation of the Outer Himalayan chain which crosses the
Indus above the Kagan valley. From this chain minor ranges
descend in a north-westerly direction, traversing Bajaur and
Swat, until they meet the curved range of hills which connects
the Mid-Himalaya with the Safed Koh and encircles the
Peshawar valley on the north.
From the Dorah pass on the Hindu Kush a long broken
line of mountains runs almost due south, dividing the Province
from Kafiristan, and farther south from other parts of Afghan-
istan. It is pierced at Arnawai by the Chitral river, which
runs thence, under the name of the Kunar, parallel with it in
Afghan territory. Thus the Hindu Kush and the two ranges
which run southward from it enclose the Dlr, Swat, and Chitral
Agency, the whole intervening space being filled by the minor
ranges which descend from them. The western line is again
pierced after its junction with the Kunar by the Kabul river,
south of which it merges in the Khyber hills, which form the
eastern extremity of the Safed Koh.
The Safed Koh also runs almost due east and west, forming
the watershed between the Kabul and Kurram rivers. East-
wards minor ranges descend from its southern slopes to the
Indus. The Sulaiman range runs up the western border of
the Province to meet the Safed Koh, and also throws out
a series of parallel spurs to the east. These traverse the whole
of Kohat District. The Sheikh Budin range, the southern,
extremity of the Salt Range, forms the boundary between.
B 2
NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Rivers.
Geology.
Crystal-
line, ig-
neous, and
meta-
morphic
rocks.
Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan, and merges eventually in the
Sulaiman range.
With the exception of the Kunhtr river in Hazara which
flows down the Kagan valley into the Jhelum, the whole
territory drains into the Indus. That river divides the Province
from Chilas for some miles, and then enters it north of the
Black Mountain. Farther south it separates Hu/.fira from the
Gadun territory and Peshawar, and thence forms the eastern
boundary of the Province to its southern extremity, only the
Isa Khel tahsll of the Mianwali District of the Punjab lying
on its western bank. -Its whole course is to the south with
a westerly trend, and it forms the great natural waterway of the
Province. Into it flow the mountain streams of Hazara, the
Unar, Siran, Dor, and Harroh, on the eastern bank ; but these
are insignificant compared with its western tributaries, of which
the chief are the Landai and Kurram. The former joins it at
Attock and the latter below Isa Khel.
The Landai, by which name the Kabul and Swat rivers
are called below their junction, drains Kohistan, Swat, Dlr,
Chitral, Tirah, and Peshawar District ; but these vast territories
have but a small rainfall, and, as much of the water is used
for irrigation, it is nowhere a great river. Its principal tribu-
taries are the Chitral, which rises in the Hindu Kush ; the
Swat, which rises in the hills north-east of Buner, and after
receiving the waters of the Panjkora joins the Kabul river at
Nisatta in Peshawar District ; and the Bara, which drains
Tirah and falls into the Kabul east of Peshawar city.
The Kurram, rising in Afghan territory on the southern
slopes of the Safed Koh, passes through the Kurram valley
and the lower Wazlr hills into Bannu District. Three miles
below Lakki it is joined by the Tochi or Gamblla, which drains
Northern Wazlrist§.n.
The geology of the North-West Frontier Province exhibits
considerable diversity. The northern portion of Hazara and
the hills on the north-north-east border of Peshawar are built
up of crystalline, igneous, and metamorphic rocks, comprising
chiefly a massive micaceous gneissose granite (sometimes con-
taining schorl and garnets), as bands or sills among thin-
bedded mica-schists and phyllites, much entangled with each
other, and laid out in parallel flexure waves one behind the
other. The axis of the folding of this zone is about north-east
to south-west. In Hazara a probably younger set of less
metamorphosed sedimentary strata borders this zone on the
south, consisting of a group of arenaceous and calcareous
PHYSICAL ASPECTS 5
rocks known as the Tanawals, which are infra-Trias in part. Tanawals.
It seems probable that the granite is older than the Trias and
possibly than the infra-Trias. All these formations are some-
what sparsely invaded by a plexus of basic dike rocks (dolerites) Basic dikes,
of still later age.
The middle portion of HazSra is mainly composed of a very The Attock
great, highly inclined, and irregularly cleaved slate series, some- s
times graphitic, and very occasionally calcareous, in thin bands.
It is probably very ancient (certainly older than the infra-
Trias), from which it is separated by a striking unconformity.
No fossils are known in it, and its base has never been recog-
nized. The series outcrops in a westerly direction to Attock,
where it is well exposed in the river section ; and from there it
continues to form the north half of the Cherat hills, and parts
at least of the Peshawar valley near Naushahra. The slates and
crystalline limestone (marble) near Attock and Naushahra
are worked with some success for building and ornamental
purposes. The prevailing strike direction of the slates is
east-north-east to west-south-west. The slate zone is bounded
on the south by a sinuous line of faulting with overthrust, from
near the axis of the Cherat hills to the Jhelum near its junction
with the Kunhar river.
South and south-east of the great fault line (as well as in the Mesozoic,
form of outliers in parts of the slate zone) comes a great set of ^
younger formations, stretching in gentle undulations right Tertiary
through the rest of Hazara and Peshawar, and the whole of rPcks toL
T_ , - the south.
Kohat, Bannu, and Dera Ismail Khan. These younger forma-
tions are mainly higher Mesozoic, Tertiary, and post-Tertiary,
but they also include limited outcrops and sub-zones of infra-
Trias (Devonian?), Permian, and Trias. With these younger
formations begin much irregularity and sinuous winding of the
strike, which coincides with the direction of the bare rock
ridges, and also with what may most aptly be called the curling
crests of the rock waves and undulations. These, by means of
devious S-shaped curves, settle down to a north and south strike
in Dera Ismail Khan District at the foot of the Sulaiman range.
The curved direction of the crests of the folds expresses the
buckling caused by the meeting along this portion of the
earth's surface of the Himalayan, Hindu Kush, and other more
western systems of crust movement, setting in from three sides
against the old and rigid gneissic rocks of Peninsular India.
The so-called infra-Trias of Hazara, which consists of a basal Infra-
conglomerate followed by purple sandstones, shales, and r^^0,
2,000 feet of dolomitic limestone, quite unfossiliferous, andnian?).
6 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
coming beneath the Trias, has only a restricted occurrence
near Abbottabad at the base of the outliers of younger rocks.
Its age may be Devonian1, and it is not known elsewhere.
Carboniferous strata are not certainly known in this Province.
The Permo-Carboniferous formation exposed in strips along the
axes of folds in the Sheikh Budln and Khisor ranges 2 consists
of a glacial boulder-bed with striated and faceted blocks at the
base, followed by 500 feet of magnesian and white limestone
with sandstones and earthy beds, containing Productus Spiri-
fer> Belkrophon.) corals, &c. In Hazara the Permo-Carboni-
ferous may be represented by a felsite and hematitic breccia,
found unconformably overlying the infra-Trias (Devonian ?).
Trias. The Sheikh Budln and Khisor ranges also expose a con-
tinuous section, without any physical break, up through the
Trias, containing Ceratites, and corresponding with the Trias
of the Salt Range of the Punjab. In Hazara the Trias, repre-
sented by a massive dark-grey limestone containing Megalodon
and Dicerocardiuniy and resembling that of Kashmir, marks the
beginning of a generally continuous zoological sequence up-
wards through the Jurassics, Cretaceous, and Nummulitics.
Jurassics. The Sheikh Budln and Khisor Jurassics follow the Trias,
and consist of thin-bedded, light buff-coloured limestones,
sandstones, and clays, which have been supposed to be con-
nected, palaeontologically, with those of Cutch. Elsewhere, in
the Tochi valley and Peshawar and the Sulaiman range, they
probably occur, but have not been worked out. In Hazara
they have in part a Himalayan facies and embrace black,
slightly micaceous Spiti shales (30-100 feet), with ferruginous
concretions, containing an abundance of typical upper Jurassic
forms, e.g. Oppelia acucincta, Perisphinctes frequens, Belem-
nites geradi, Inoeerdmus, Cuculaea, and Pecten.
Creta- The Cretaceous rocks of the southern Districts8 follow
ceons. above the doubtful Jurassics, and are represented by the
belemnite bed, probably of neocomian age. In Hazara 100 feet
of Giumal sandstone, exactly resembling its Himalayan name-
sake, and coming above the Spiti shales in all sections, is also
of the same age; and above it appears a very thin band of
orange-coloured limestone, crowded with characteristic fossils
of the middle Cretaceous (cenomanian) and equivalent to the
1 Lieutenant-General McMahon, Geological Magazine, vol. ix, pp. 3-8
and 49-58, 1902 ; also vol. x, p. 52, 1903.
2 A. B. Wynne, Memoirs, Geological Survey of India, vol. xvii, article a.
* T. D. La Touche, Records, Geological Survey of India, vol. xxvi, pt. iii ;
and F. H. Smith, Records, Geological Survey of India t vol. xxviii, pt. iii.
PHYSICAL ASPECTS 7
Utatur group of Southern India, e.g. Acanthoceras mantelli,
A. navicv/aris, A. rototnagensis, Schlaenbachia inflata, together
with Anisoceras, Andyloceras, Baculites, Terebratula, Echino-
conus, and Micraster. Similar rocks are known from the
Samana country.
The grey, concretionary, and black-hearted hill Nummulitic Nummu-
limestone and its subordinate shaley bands form a thick and
solid basement bed for the rest of the Tertiary system, which
attains to a very great thickness and importance all round the
north-west frontier of India. From 1,000 to 1,500 feet of
Nummulitic limestone and shales, followed by 9,000 feet of
fresh-water deposits of Murree sandstone and Siwalik sand-
stones and conglomerates, are bent into long and gentle undu-
lations, and, neglecting the narrow strips of older rocks, cover
90 per cent, of the country to the south of the slate zone and
its reversed boundary fault. Near the base of the Nummulitic
limestone in Hazara is a variegated sandstone band with coaly
matter, the probable equivalent of the Dandot coal of the
Salt Range and that of Jammu. As a source of fuel the
Hazara band has yet to be proved to be of any great value. In
the Kohat salt region * the Nummulitics appear in a long series
of inliers, forming ridges from east to west, and with marvel-
lously developed masses of rock-salt, gypsum, and red clay or
marls as cores to the anticlinal flexures of these ridges. Mineral
oil, found near Mughal Kot, has been described as issuing
from the Nummulitic sandstones near their base 2. The fossils
of this great formation still require working out in detail, to
bring them into zonal relation with what has been done in
Sind and Baluchistan. While the Nummulitic limestone gene-
rally occurs in anticlinal arches and ridges of rock, the Siwalik
series, composed in its lower part of soft grey sandstone and
shales, forms lower-lying country flanking the slopes of the
hills, and trough-like synclinals in the valleys. Miocene plant
remains are known from the Murree sandstones, and mamma-
lian remains have been gathered here and there from the
Siwalik conglomerate, which ranges up to the pliocene in age.
The post-Tertiary and recent conglomerates, sands, and Post-Ter-
alluvial clays, sometimes reaching 300 feet in thickness, occupy
large areas in the Province, and have grown out of the condi-
tions that caused the Siwalik series. Nearly all the surface of
the flat valleys, bordering the present river-beds, and the talus
1 A. B. Wynne, Memoirs, Geological Survey of India, vol. xi, pt. ii.
4 T. H. Holland and T. D. La Touche, Records, Geological Survey of
India, vol. xxiv, pt. ii, and vol. xxv, pt. iv (a notes).
8 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
slopes at the foot of the scarps are composed of them. Evi-
dence of old glacial moraines is found at about 6,000 feet in
the Kunhar valley, and probably at many other intermediate
levels in Kigan between that and the melting-point of the
glaciers of to-day.
Flora. The flora of the plains which occupy the south-east of the
Province is practically the same as that of the adjoining por-
tion of the Punjab, its main constituent being shrub jungle with
a secondary element of trees and herbs. Among the more
common plants of this region are : Flacourtia sapida and F.
sepiaria, several species of Grewia, Zizyphus nummularia,
Acacia Jacquemontii and A. leucophloea, Alhagi camelorum,
Crotolaria Burhia, Prosopis spicigera, several species of Tama-
rix, Nerium odorum, Rhazya stricta, Calotropis procera, Peri-
ploca aphylla, Tecoma undulata, Lycium europaeum, Withania
coagulans and W. somnifera, Nannorhops Ritchieana, Fagonia,
Tributes, Peganum Harmala, Calligonum polygonoides, Poly-
gonum aviculare and P. plebeium, Rumex vesicarius, Crozo-
phora plicata, species of Aristida, Anthistiria, Cenchrus,
and Pennisetum.
The arid and stony hills of Wazlristan to the west only
afford a foothold to a few brave species like Peganum Harmala,
Calotropis, Rumex vesicarius, Crozophora plicata, Capparis
aphylla, &c.
Farther north in the Kurram valley the meagre vegetation
consists of such plants as Acacia modesta, Tecoma undulata,
Sageretia Brandrethiana, Gymnosporia spinosa, Zizyphus vul-
garis, Withania coagulans, Periploca aphylla, Nannorhops
Ritchieana, and several species of Grewia. On the banks of
the Kurram grow species of Tamarix, Dalbergia Sissoo, Nerium
odorum, Zizyphus Jujuba and Z. oxyphylla, with cultivated
examples of mulberry, willow, and mm. Higher up the Kurram
Platanus, Celtis, Ebenus stellata, and walnut appear, while the
vegetation characteristic of the Punjab becomes less and less
conspicuous. Myrtle is also met with here. At altitudes over
2,000 feet Sophora mollis, Daphne oleoides, and Cotoneaster
nummularia become prominent features, and up to about
10,000 feet constitute the greater proportion of the vegetation.
Other species becoming more common with the rise in altitude
are Convolvulus lanuginosus, Onosma echioides, Salvia Moor-
croftiana, Astragalus polyacantha, and Otostegia limbata.
The plains north of the Kurram support several species of
Astragalus, Onobrychis, Othonnopsis intermedia, Stachys parvi-
flora, Gypsophila Stewartii, Thymus Serpyllum, Convolvulus
PHYSICAL ASPECTS 9
lanuginosus, Isatis tinctoria, Salvia glutinosa and S. rhytidea,
as well as those species already mentioned as forming the
greater part of the vegetation above 2,000 feet.
On the Safed Koh range, except on its southern aspect,
flourish Quercus flex, Cotoneaster bacillaris, Buddleia, Des-
modium tiliaefolium, Jasminum officinale andy. revolutum, Loni-
cera quinquelocularis, Abelia triflora, Viburnum cotinifolium,
Rhamnus purpureus and R. dahuricus, Rosa Webbiana and
R. moschata, Smilax vaginata, Hedera Helix, Indigofera
Gerardiana, Plectranthus rugosus, and Perowskia atrip lidfolia.
On the southern slopes of the Safed Koh grow Pistacia inte-
gerrima and P. cabulica, Rhamnus persicus, Rhus Cotinus,
Syringa persica, Caragana brevispina, Morina persica, Daphne,
Sophora, and Cotoneaster. The vegetation of the Safed Koh
above 10,000 feet consists of species of Silene, Primula, Gera-
nium impatiens, Pedicularis, Myrtillus, Lonicera sericea, Iso-
Pyrum, Polypodium, Aconitum, and Botrychium. Pinus excelsa
and Abies Webbiana grow up to 11,000 feet, beyond which
altitude the vegetation is composed of bushes of Salix, Rhodo-
dendron, Ribes, Juniperus, Rheum Moorcroftianum, and Poly-
gonum rumidfolium.
North of the Kabul river the hills which enclose the Swat,
Dir, Chitral, and other valleys show a curiously mixed flora.
In the lower, confined and consequently hot, valleys such as
the Swat and Panjkora flourish quite a number of weeds which
one would expect to find only in the plains of India. Among
such may be mentioned : Cleome viscosa, Tribulus terrestris,
Crotalaria albida, Indigofera pulchella, Aeschynomene indica,
Desmodium podocarpum, Luffa echinata, Datura Stramonium,
Solanum nigrum, Sesamum indicum, Didiptera Roxburghiana,
Vitex Negundo, Plectranthus rugosus, Anisomeles ovata, Xan-
thium Strumarium, Sphenodea zeylanica, Boerhaavia repens,
Celosia argentea, Digera arvensis, and Aerua tomentosa, &c.
At higher elevations of about 5,000 to 6,000 feet there are arid
tracts resembling the uplands of Baluchistan and supporting
a similar vegetation, mainly composed of such plants as Ber-
beris Lysium, Malcolmia, Iris Stocksii, Capparis spinosa, Silene
afghanica, Tamarix gallica, Myricaria germanica, Peganum
Harmala, Sageretia Brandrethiana, Pistada, Alhagi camelo-
rum, Sophora mollis, Rosa Beggeriana, Spinada brahuica,
Cotoneaster badllaris, Myrrhis, Periploca aphylla, Paracaryum
asperum, Daphne oleoides, Salix babylonica, Ixiolirion mon-
tanum, Fritillaria imperialis, and Tulipa chrysantha. At
higher altitudes of 6,000 feet and upwards the flora resembles
io NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
that of Kashmir, with the addition of a sprinkling of Central
Asiatic and European species. As typical of these higher
altitudes may be mentioned several species of Clematis, Thalic-
frum, Anemone, Ranunculus, Aquilegia, Delphinium, Actaea
spicata, and Paeonia anomala. Corydalis, Arabis, and Sisym-
brium are each represented by several species. There are three
species of Viola. Silene, Cerastium, Stellaria, Geranium im-
patient, Prunus, Spiraea, Rubus, Potentilla, Rosa, Pyrus,
Crataegus, Sedum, Epilobium, Bupleurum, Pimpinella, An-
thriscus, Sonchus, Viburnum, Galium, Asperula, Valeriana,
Campanula, Primula, Androsace, Fraxinus, Gentiana, Veronica,
Pedicularis, Origanum, Nepeta, Rheum, Ulmus, Quercus,
Juniperus, Abies, Pinus, Allium, Gagea, Juncus, Koeleria, Poa,
and Secale are all genera representative of the flora of the
higher altitudes. Picea Morinda, Abies Webbiana, and Pinus
excelsa form forests at higher levels. The prevailing oak is
Quercus Ilex. Ferns, chiefly belonging to the genera Adian-
tum, Pteris, Asplenium, and Nephrodium, are not uncommon ;
there are, besides, not a few mosses *.
Fauna. Tigers used to be common in the Indus valley, but are now
quite extinct in the Province ; leopards, hyenas, wolves,
jackals, and foxes are the chief carnivora. The black, and
occasionally the red or brown, bear is found in Hazara, and
monkeys are rare except in that District. The hog deer is
found in the Indus valley, the gural, musk deer, barking deer,
and ibex in Hazara, and the 'ravine deer' (Indian gazelle),
mdrkhor, and urial in the western hills. Wild hog are found
chiefly in the Indus valley.
A large variety of birds, including the Argus and other
pheasants and numerous kinds of partridge, are found in
Hazara. In the rest of the Province the chikor, slsl, grey
and black partridge, sand-grouse, quail, the demoiselle crane,
lesser bustards, geese, duck, and snipe are the chief game
birds. Bustards, plovers, pigeons, sand-pipers, and coots are
also found. The eagle and lammergeyer are not uncommon,
and there are many varieties of falcons, hawks, and harriers,
some of which are tamed for hawking. The sparrow tribe
includes fly-catchers, orioles, thrushes, mynas, chats, swallows,
larks, tits, and finches.
Many varieties of fish are caught in the Indus, the most
1 J. L. Stewart, Punjab Plants (1869); J. E. T. Aitchison, 'On the
Flora of the Kurram Valley,' Journal of the I.innean Society, vols. xviii
and xix; J. F. Duthie, 'The Botany of the Chitral Relief Expedition,'
Records, Botanical Survey of India, vol. i, No. ix.
PHYSICAL ASPECTS n
important being the mahseer and rohu. Of snakes, the cobra,
karait (Echis cannata), and Russell's viper are found, besides
other species.
The North- West Frontier Province, stretching southward Climate
from the Baroghil pass in the Hindu Kush, covers nearly and tem"
, /• 7 • j •»«••! • • i perature.
six degrees of latitude. Mainly a mountainous region, but
including the Peshawar valley and the broad riverain tract
of the Indus in Dera Ismail Khan District, its climatic
conditions are extremely diversified, the latter District being
one of the hottest areas in the Indian continent, while over
the mountain region to the north the weather is temperate in
summer and intensely cold in winter. The air is generally
dry, and hence the daily and annual ranges of temperature
are frequently very large.
The Province has two wet seasons : one, the monsoon, Rainfall,
when moisture is brought up by the winds from the Arabian
Sea and the Bay of Bengal ; the other in winter, when storms
from Mesopotamia, Persia, and the Caspian districts bring
widespread rain and snowfall. Both sources of supply are
precarious, and not infrequently either the winter or summer
rainfall fails almost entirely.
In Chitral, the extreme north of the Province, the rainfall
conditions are those of the temperate zone. The summer
rainfall at Chitral is light, averaging only 4 inches for the
six months May to October, out of which nearly 3 inches
fall in the first and last months, while for the rest of the
year the rainfall averages 13 inches. Farther south, in the
neighbourhood of Peshawar, the amounts received in the two
seasons are approximately equal ; while in the Himalayan Dis-
trict of Hazara and in Kohat, Bannu, and Dera Ismail Khan
the summer rainfall is distinctly heavier than that of the winter.
The area of lightest annual rainfall is the riverain District of
Dera Ismail Khan (9 inches) and the heaviest that of Hazara,
Abbottabad having a total annual fall of 45 inches. In the
central parts of the Province (including Peshawar) the annual
fall ranges from 10 to 25 inches, while in the north, at Chitral,
it is about 17 inches. The winter rains ordinarily fall in the
four months January to April, while the summer rainfall,
except in Chitral, is mainly confined to July and August, the
falls in the other months barely averaging half an inch.
During the winter months the wind ordinarily blows from
a westerly direction and the weather is fine, with cold nights ;
but at intervals the sky clouds over, the wind changes to the
southward, the temperature, particularly at night, rises, and
1 2 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
a storm advances from the west. During its passage the wind
is high, and rain and snow fall. After the passage of the
storm the weather clears rapidly ; a north-westerly wind,
chilled by its passage over the snow-clad hills, sets in, and
the night temperature falls considerably below freezing-point,
even at the plains stations of Peshawar and Dera Ismail Khan,
while at the hill stations the frost on these occasions is very
severe. These changes occur at intervals throughout the
winter till the end of March. During April and May strong,
hot, westerly winds are experienced, the temperature rises
quickly, and though storms of the cold-weather type are not
unknown during these months, they are now accompanied by
lightning and thunder. Towards the end of June the westerly
winds die down, the weather becomes close, damp, and steamy,
and spasmodic advances of monsoon winds occur, giving occa-
sional heavy downpours of rain, more particularly in Hazara
District. These conditions last, varying according to the
strength and extent of the monsoon current in different years,
until the middle of September. After that the weather clears,
the temperature falls, and the finest and most settled months
in the years are usually October and November, when in most
parts of the area there is very little rain. The days are hot ;
but the mornings, evenings, and nights are cool and pleasant.
Hailstorms of great violence are common in the late spring
and early autumn.
The thermometer rises during the hottest part of the year
to between 100° and 106° at Cherat; to between 114° and
120° at Peshawar; to between 115° and 122° at Dera Ismail
Khan; to between 104° and io8°at Chitral; and to between
97° and 100° at Parachinar. Slight frost is recorded almost
every year in the plains, while intense frost is experienced on
the hills. At Chitral in 1897 the thermometer fell to 5-4°, and
the annual range of temperature at that station was close on
100°. At Parachinar the minimum temperature was 11-8° in
1900, while at Peshawar and Dera Ismail Khan it fell to about
28° in 1902, and the annual range at these two stations was
about 90°. The lowest temperature recorded was minus 13° at
Wana in January, 1905.
History. The key to the history of the North-West Frontier Province
sians * ^es 'n l^e recognition of the fact that the valley of Peshawar
was always more closely connected politically with Eastern
Iran (the ancient Ariana and modern Afghanistan) than with
India, though in pre-Muhammadan times its population was
mainly Indian by race.
HISTORY 13
Early history finds the Iranians dominating the whole Indus
valley. At some date later than 516 B.C. Darius Hystaspes
sent Skylax, a Greek seaman of Karyanda, to explore the
course of the river, and subsequently subdued the races
dwelling west of the Indus and north of Kabul. Gandhara,
the modem District of Peshawar, was incorporated in a
Persian satrapy, and the Assakenoi, with the tribes further
north on the Indus, formed a special satrapy, that of the
Indians. Both satrapies sent troops for Xerxes' invasion of
Greece.
In the spring of 327 B.C. Alexander the Great crossed the The
Indian Caucasus (Hindu Kush) and advanced to Nicaea, Greeks,
where he was joined by Omphis, king of Taxila, and other
chiefs. Thence he dispatched part of his force through the
valley of the Kabul river, while he himself advanced into
Bajaur and Swat with his light troops. Craterus was ordered
to fortify and repeople Arigaion, probably in Bajaur, which its
inhabitants had burnt and deserted. Having defeated the
Aspasians, from whom he took 40,000 prisoners and 230,000
oxen, Alexander crossed the Gouraios (Panjkora) and entered
the territory of the Assakenoi and laid siege to Massaga, which
he took by storm. Ora and Bazira (? Bazar) soon fell. The
people of Bazira fled to the rock Aornos, but Alexander made
Embolima (?Amb) his basis, and thence attacked the rock,
which was captured after a desperate resistance. Meanwhile,
Peukelaotis (in Hashtnagar, 17 miles north-west of Peshawar)
had submitted, and Nicanor, a Macedonian, was appointed
satrap of the country west of the Indus. Alexander then
crossed that river at Ohind or, according to some writers,
lower down near Attock. Nicanor was succeeded as satrap by
Philippus, who was, however, assassinated by his Greek
mercenaries soon after Alexander left India, and Eudamos and
Taxiles were then entrusted with the country west of the
Indus. After Alexander's death in 323 B.C. Porus obtained
possession of the Lower Indus valley, but was treacherously
murdered by Eudamos in 317. Eudamos then left India;
and with his departure the Macedonian power collapsed, and
Sandrocottus (Chandragupta), the founder of the Mauryan
dynasty, made himself master of the province. His grandson
Asoka made Buddhism the dominant religion in Gandhara
and in Pakhli, the modern Hazara, as the rock-inscriptions at
Shahbazgarhi and Mansehra show.
After Asoka's death the Mauryan empire fell to pieces, just The Bac-
as in the west the Seleucid power was waning. The Greek tnans>
1 4 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
princes of Bactria seized the opportunity for declaring their
independence, and Demetrius conquered part of Northern
India (f. 190 B.C.). His absence led to a revolt by Eucra-
tides, who seized on Bactria proper and finally defeated
Demetrius in his eastern possessions. Eucratides was, however,
murdered (c. 156 B.C.), and the country became subject to a
number of petty rulers, of whom little is known but the names
laboriously gathered from their coins. The Bactrian dynasty
was attacked from the west by the Parthians and from the
north (about 139 B.C.) by the Sakas, a Central Asian tribe.
Local Greek rulers still exercised a feeble and precarious power
along the borderland, but the last vestige of Greek dominion
was extinguished by the Yueh-chi.
The Ku- This race of nomads had driven the Sakas before them from
the highlands of Central Asia, and were themselves forced
southwards by the Hiung-nu. One section, known as the
Kushan, took the lead, and its chief Kadphises I seized vast
territories extending south to the Kabul valley. His son
Kadphises II conquered North-Western India, which he
governed through his generals. His immediate successors were
the kings Kanishka, Huvishka, and Vasushka or Vasudeva, of
whom the first reigned over a territory which extended as far
east as Benares and as far south as MalwS, comprising also
Bactria and the Kabul valley. Their dates are still a matter of
dispute, but it is beyond question that they reigned early in the
Christian era. To this period may be ascribed the fine statues
and bas-reliefs found in Gandhara (Peshawar) and Udyana
(Buner).
Later Kn- Under Huvishka's successor, Vasushka, the dominions of the
White Kushan kings shrank to the Indus valley and the modern
Huns. Afghanistan ; and their dynasty was supplanted by Ki-to-lo,
the chief of a Yueh-chi tribe which had remained in Bactria,
but was forced to move to the south of the Hindu Kush
by the invasion of the Yuan Yuan. The subjects of Ki-to-lo's
successors who ruled in the valley of Peshawar are known to
the Chinese annalists as the Little Yueh-chi. Their rule,
however, did not endure, for they were subdued by the
Ephthalites (Ye-ta-i-li-to or Ye-tha), who established a vast
empire from Chinese Turkistan to Persia, including the Kabul
valley. Known to the Byzantines as the White Huns, they
waged war against the Sassanid dynasty of Persia. Under
Toramana and Mihirakula they held Northern India, ruling
at Sagala, which may be Sialkot in the Punjab. Mihirakula
penetrated far into India, but about 528 was defeated by a
HISTORY 15
confederacy of Indian princes under Yasodharman, and was
driven back to the Punjab and Indus valley.
There were two distinct streams of Muhammadan invasion The Mu-
towards India. The earlier had resulted in the conquest of|jamma"
Khorasan ; but, though Kabul had been assailed as early as
655 and made tributary in 683, it regained its independence
before 700, and the stream of invasion was deflected towards
Multan and Sind. Ghazni was only taken in 870, and in 902
we find the Kashmir forces deposing the rebellious ruler of
Udabhandapura (Ohind) and giving his kingdom to Toramana,
son of Lalliya, with the title of Komaluka — the Kamalu of
Muhammadan historians. In 974 Pirin, the slave-governor of
Ghazni, repulsed a force sent from India to seize that strong-
hold ; and in 977 Sabuktagln, his successor, became virtually
independent and founded the dynasty of the Ghaznivids. In
986 he raided the Indian frontier, and in 988 defeated Jaipal
with his allies at Laghman, and soon after possessed himself
of the country up to the Indus, placing a governor of his own
at Peshawar. Mahmud, Sabuktagm's son, having secured the
throne of Ghazni, again defeated Jaipal in his first raid into
India (1001), and in a second expedition defeated Anandpal
(1006), both near Peshawar. He also (1024 and 1025) raided
the Afghans, a name that now appears for the first time as that
of a people living in the hills between Ghazni and the Sulaiman
range. The present territories of the North-West Frontier
Province, excluding Hazara, thus formed part of the Ghaznivid
empire. In 1179 Muhammad of Ghor took Peshawar, The
capturing Lahore from Khusru Malik two years later. After Ghorids.
Muhammad was assassinated (1206), his able general, Taj-ud-
dln Yalduz, established himself at Ghazni, the Kurram valley
being his real stronghold, until he was driven into Hindustan
by the Khwarizmis (1215). The latter were in turn over-
whelmed by the Mongols in 1221, when Jalal-ud-dln Khwarizmi,
defeated on the Indus by Chingiz Khan, retreated into the
Sind-Sagar Doab, leaving Peshawar and other provinces to be
ravaged by the Mongols. Yet in 1224 we find Jalal-ud-din
able to appoint Saif-ud-din Hasan, the Karlugh, in charge
of Ghazni. To this territory Saif-ud-din added Karman
(Kurram) and Banian (Bannu), and eventually became inde-
pendent (1236). In the same year Altamsh set out on an
expedition against Banian, but was compelled by illness to
return to Delhi. After his death Saif-ud-din attacked Multan
only to be repulsed by the feudatory of Uch, and three years
later (1239) the Mongols drove him out of Ghazni and Kurram,
1 6 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Tlmur.
The
Afghans.
The
Mughals.
but he still held Banian. In his third attempt to take MultSn,
he was, however, killed (1249), whereupon his son Nasir-ud-dm
Muhammad became a feudatory of the Mongols, retaining
Banian. Eleven years later (1260) we find him endeavouring
to effect an alliance between his daughter and a son of Ghiyas-
ud-din Balban, and to reconcile the Mongol sovereign with the
court of Delhi. By this time the Karlughs had established
themselves in the hills.
In 1398 Tlmur set out from Samarkand to invade India.
After subduing Kator, now Chitral, he made his devastating
inroad into the Punjab, returning via Bannu in March, 1399.
His expedition established a Mongol overlordship in the
province, and he is said to have confirmed his Karlugh regent
in the possession of Hazara. The descendants of Tlmur held
the province as a dependency of Kandahar, and Shaikh All
Beg, governor of Kabul under Shah Rukh, made his power
felt even in the Punjab. But with the decay of the Timurid
dynasty their hold on the province relaxed.
Meanwhile the Afghans were rising to power. Implacably
hostile to the Mongols, they now appear as a political factor.
At the close of the fourteenth century they were firmly es-
tablished in their present seats south of Kohat, and in 1451
Bahlol Lodi's accession to the throne of Delhi gave them a
dominant position in Northern India. Somewhat later Babar's
uncle, Mirza Ulugh Beg of Kabul, expelled the Khashi
(Khakhai) Afghans from his kingdom, and compelled them to
move eastwards into Peshawar, Swat, and Bajaur. After Babar
had seized Kabul he made his first raid into India in 1505,
marching down the Khyber, through Kohat, Bannu, Isa Khel,
and the Derajat, returning by the Sakhi Sarwar pass. About
1518 he invaded Bajaur and Swat, but was recalled by an
attack on Badakhshan.
In 1519 Babar's aid was invoked by the Gigianis against
the Umr Khel Dilazaks (both Pathan tribes), and his victory
at Panlpat in 1526 gave him control of the province. On his
death in 1530 Mirza Kamran became a feudatory of Kabul.
By his aid the Ghwaria Khel Afghans overthrew the Dilazaks
who were loyal to Humayun, and thus obtained control over
Peshawar; but about 1550 Khan Kaju, at the head of a great
confederation of Khashi Pathan tribes, defeated the Ghwaria
Khel at Shaikh Tapur. Humayun, however, had now over-
thrown Kamran, and in 1552 he entered Peshawar, which he
garrisoned strongly, so that Kh5.ii Kaju laid siege to it in vain.
Nevertheless the Mughal hold on these territories was weak
HISTORY 17
and often precarious. On Humayun's death in 1556 Kabul
became the apanage of Mirza Muhammad Hakim, Akbar's
brother, and in 1564 he was driven back on Peshawar by the
ruler of Badakhshan, and had to be reinstated by imperial
troops. Driven out of Kabul again two years later, he showed
his ingratitude by invading the Punjab ; but eventually Akbar
forgave him, visited Kabul, and restored his authority. When
Mirza Hakim died (1585), Akbar's Rajput general, Kunwar
Man Singh, occupied Peshawar and Kabul, where the imperial
rule was re-established, Man Singh becoming governor of the
province of Kabul.
In 1586, however, the Mohmands and others revolted under Tribal
Jalala, the Roshania heretic, and invested Peshawar. Man rebellions.
Singh, turning to attack them, found the Khyber closed and
was repulsed, but subsequently joined Akbar's forces. Mean-
while, the Yusufzai and Mandaur Afghans had also fallen
under the spell of the Roshania heresy, and about 1587 Zain
Khan, Kokaltash, was dispatched into Swat and Bajaur to
suppress them. The expedition resulted in the disastrous
defeat of the Mughals, Birbal, Akbar's favourite, being killed. ,
In 1592 the Afghans invested Peshawar, but Zain Khan
relieved the fortress, and in 1593 overran Tirah, Swat, and
Bajaur. The Roshanias, however, were still far from subdued.
Tirah was their great stronghold, and about 1620 a large
Mughal force met with a grave defeat in attempting to enter
that country by the Sampagha pass. Six years later Ihdad,
the Roshania leader, was killed; but Jahanglr's death in 1627
was the signal for a general Afghan revolt, and the Roshanias
laid siege to Peshawar in 1630, but distrusting their Afghan
allies retreated to Tirah. Mughal authority was thus restored,
and Tirah was invaded and pacified by the imperial troops
in an arduous campaign. Shah Jahan, however, attempted to
govern the Afghans despotically and caused great discontent.
Nevertheless Raja Jagat Singh held Kohat and Kurram, and
thus kept open the communications with Kabul. In 1660
Tirah had to be pacified again, and in 1667 the Yusufzai and
Mandaur Afghans were strong enough to cross the Indus, and
were only defeated near Attock. In 1672 Muhammad Amm
Khan, Subahdar of Kabul, attempted to force the Khyber, and
lost his whole army, 40,000 men, with baggage and materiel.
Other disasters followed. At Gandab in 1673 the Afrldis
defeated a second Mughal army, and in 1674 they defeated
a third force at Khapash and drove it into Bajaur. These
reverses brought Aurangzeb in person to Hasan Abdal, whence
1 8 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
he dispatched a force to Kohat, while a second army forced
the Khyber. Aurangzeb appears to have adopted a conciliatory
policy towards the Afghans, some of whom now received fiefs
from the emperor. This policy and their internal dissensions
kept the country in a state of anarchy, but prevented any
concerted Afghan rising against the Mughals.
Decay of Nevertheless the Afghans overran the Pakhli district of
Hazara early in the eighteenth century and the Mughal power
rapidly declined, until in 1738 Nadir Shah defeated Nazir
Shah, the Mughal governor of Kabul, but allowed him as
feudatory to retain that province, which included Peshawar
and Ghazni. Of Nadir Shah's successors Ahmad Shah Dur-
rani indeed established something more nearly approaching
a settled government in the Peshawar valley than had been
known for years, but with the advent of Tlmur Shah anarchy
returned once more. On the death of Timur Shah his throne
was contested with varying fortunes by his sons, whose dissen-
sions gave ample opportunity to the local chieftains th/oughout
the province of establishing complete independence. Peshawar
ultimately fell to the Barakzai family; Dera Ismail Khan to
the Sadozais.
The Sikhs. The Sikh invasions began in 1818, and from that date to the
annexation by the British the Sikhs under Ranjit Singh were
steadily making themselves masters of the country. In 1818
Dera Ismail Khan surrendered to a Sikh army, and five years
later the Sikhs harried the Marwat plain of Bannu. In 1836
all authority was taken from the Nawabs of Dera Ismail Khan
and a Sikh Kardar appointed in their place. But it was not till
after the first Sikh War that the fort of Bannu was built and
the Bannuchis brought under the direct control of the Lahore
Darbar by Herbert Edwardes. In 1834, two years after the
great Sikh victory over the Afghans at Naushahra, the famous
general Hari Singh took possession of Peshawar fort, and at
the same time Kohat and Teri were temporarily occupied by
Sikh garrisons. These, however, were speedily withdrawn ;
and the death of Hari Singh in battle with the Afghans near
Jamrud in 1837 brought home to Ranjit Singh, now nearing
the close of his career, the difficulty of administering his
frontier acquisitions. On his death the Sikh policy was
changed. Turbulent and exposed tracts, like Hashtnagar and
Mlranzai, were made over injdgir to the local chieftains, who
enjoyed an almost complete independence, and a vigorous ad-
ministration was attempted only in the more easily controlled
areas. Of the Sikh governors, the best remembered is General
HISTORY 19
Avitabile, who was in charge of Peshawar District from 1838
to 1842.
By the proclamation of March 29, 1849, tne frontier The
territory was annexed by the British. For a short time the Briush-
Districts of Peshawar, Kohat, and Hazara were under the
direct control of the Board of Administration at Lahore, but
about 1850 they were formed into a regular Division under
a Commissioner. Dera Ismail Khan and Bannu, under one
Deputy-Commissioner, formed part of the Leiah Division till
1 86 1, when two Deputy-Commissioners were appointed and
both Districts were included in the Derajat Division, an
arrangement which was maintained until the formation of the
North-West Frontier Province. The internal administration
differed in no way from the rest of the Punjab. But to main-
tain the peace of the border a special force — the Punjab Fron-
tier Force — was raised under the direct orders of the Board.
It consisted at first of 5 regiments of cavalry, the corps of
Guides, 5 regiments of infantry, 3 light field batteries, 2 gar-
rison batteries, 2 companies of sappers and miners, and the
Sind camel corps. Various changes were made in the compo-
sition of the force, which at length, in 1886, was removed from
the control of the Punjab Government and amalgamated with
the regular army.
The attitude of the people during the Mutiny is the highest The
tribute that can be paid to the success of the internal adminis- Mutiny-
tration. In the history of the frontier the interest of that
period of stress centred at Peshawar. The Hindustani regi-
ments at Dera Ismail Khan and Kohat were disarmed without
difficulty, and troops and levies were hurried away to strengthen
the garrison of Peshawar or join the British forces cis-Indus.
The situation in Peshawar was very different. The District
contained a large Hindustani force, which proved mutinous to
the core. It was thought possible that the Amir of Kabul
might pour an army through the Khyber. For one crime or
another almost every powerful tribe beyond the border was
under a blockade. When the news of the outbreak reached
Peshawar, a council of war was at once held and measures
adopted to meet the situation. The same night the Guides
started on their memorable march to Delhi. On May 2 1 the
55th Native Infantry rose at Mardan. The majority made
good their escape across the Indus, only to perish after
fearful privations at the hands of the hill-men of the Hazara
border. On May 22, warned by this example, the authorities
of Peshawar disarmed the 24th, 27th, and 5ist Native Infantry,
C 2
20 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
with the result that Pathans not only of Peshawar, but also
from across the border, came flocking in to join the newly
raised levies. The next few months were not without incident,
though the crisis was past. When the Mutiny was finally sup-
pressed, it was clear that the frontier Districts had proved to
the British Government a source of strength rather than of
danger.
Expcdi- A complete list of all expeditions undertaken against the
against frontier tribes is given in an appendix. During the nine years
frontier between annexation and the outbreak of the Mutiny, on no
t^bes' » IGSS tnan seventeen occasions was the dispatch of troops
against the tribesmen necessary. But the operations were
simply of importance as being measures required for the estab-
lishment of a strong rule and a peaceful border, in countries
which had never before known law and order.
l857~78- Of all the frontier tribes only a few Yusufzai villages within
the British border took advantage of the difficulties of 1857.
They were speedily punished, Narinji, the centre of disturb-
ance, being stormed and razed to the ground. In the next
year the misbehaviour of the Khudu Khel, roused by emis-
saries from the Hindustani fanatics, compelled an invasion of
their country, from which the fanatical colony was expelled.
In 1859-60 operations were undertaken in the country of the
Kabul Wazlrs between Thai and Bannu ; and in 1860 the
Mahsud country was overrun, in punishment for a long series
of outrages, culminating in an attempt to plunder and burn the
border town of Tank. The tribe, however, did not submit, and
after the withdrawal of the troops was put under blockade.
Different sections of the tribe, and from 1877 onwards the
whole of it, remained under embargo, on account of repeated
violations of British territory, almost without intermission,
until the next expedition was undertaken in 1881.
In 1863 took place the Ambela campaign. Repeated
robberies in British territory had led to a blockade on the
Yusufzai border, and blockade in turn had caused the de-
nunciation of the infidel and the proclamation of jihad in all
the high places between Swat and the Hazara border. Swat it-
self was at this time controlled by the famous Akhund, who had
had experience of the strength of the Government, and whose
inclinations were consequently for peace, especially as a religious
rivalry prevailed between him and the head of the fanatical
colony. Even in Swat, however, intense excitement was rife.
The object of the expedition was to root out the colony of
Hindustani fanatics which since 1858 had been located in the
HISTORY 21
Barandu valley, and was recognized as a permanent source of
danger and disturbance. The troops gained the crest of the
Ambela pass leading to the Chamla valley, and thence advanced
to Malka, when they encountered unexpected opposition from
the Bunerwals whose country lies immediately north of Chamla.
The Akhund was no longer able to stem the tide, and joined
the enemy's camp, followed by standards from all the tribes of
Swat, Dir, Bajaur, and by contingents from the Utman Khel
and the Mohmands as well as by some British subjects. For
more than a month the British force, though raised by
successive 'additions to a strength of more than 9,000 men,
could not do more than hold its ground. But with the passage
of time the coalition of the enemy began to fall asunder, and
on the repulse with heavy slaughter of the last of a long series
of attacks the object of the expedition was achieved. The
Bunerwals agreed to destroy Malka and drive out the fanatics,
and exclude them from their country for ever. From 1863 to
1893 the fanatics wandered to and fro in the Chagarzai,
Hasanzai, and Madda Khel (Yusufzai) country ; and since
1893 they have lived mainly in the Amazai territory in Buner,
but they have lost most of their political importance. Other
operations in this period do not require detailed mention ; but
the Black Mountain expedition of 1868, in which the British
force numbered nearly 15,000 men (including the reserve), was
noteworthy, more perhaps from the audacious provocation
given, the strength of the force used, and the difficulty of the
country traversed, than from the stubbornness of the enemy or
the permanence of the results secured.
An account of the second Afghan War will be found in the Second
article on AFGHANISTAN. Its importance lay chiefly in the ^fgh*n
imperial issues involved, but it marks an important stage in the 1878-80.
relations of the British with the frontier tribes. By the Treaty
of Gandamak (May, 1879) tne Amir Yakub Khan renounced
his claim to authority over the Khyber and Mohmand passes,
the tribes flanking the main routes into India, the Kurram
valley as far as the Shutargardan pass, and the districts of
Pishm and Sibi in Baluchistan.
Between the outbreak of the second Afghan War and the Expedi-
Pathan revolt of 1897 there were sixteen expeditions against
_ ..
the frontier tribes. Of these eight took place before peace
was concluded with Kabul, and were in the nature of punish-
ment inflicted on the clans. The expedition of 1881 against
the Mahsuds was more noteworthy, and produced comparative
peace on this part of the border for five years. Between 1888
2 2 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
and 1892, the HazSra border was disturbed almost continuously,
and large expeditions were dispatched against the Isazai clans
of the Black Mountain, and their neighbours, the Cis-Indus
SwStis, Alatis, and Parari Saiyids. Little resistance was offered
to the troops, and the expeditions were completely successful.
The first and second Miranzai expeditions of 1891 were
directed against the Orakzai tribes living along the crest of the
Samana. There was little fighting, but the expedition resulted
in the occupation of posts along that range ; and, except in
1897, there has been no trouble since then on the Orakzai
border.
In 1894 the deputation of the Commissioner of the Derajat
to demarcate the border between Waziristan and Afghan
territory, and the invitation extended by the Ahmadzai of Wana
to the Government to occupy their country, led to an attack
by the Mahsuds, under the leadership of the Mulla Powinda,
on the Commissioner's escort, in the Wana plain. An expedi-
tion followed, which effected the submission of the tribe.
Since 1894 Wana has been occupied, and parts of Southern
Waziristan have been administered by the Political officer in
charge. An account of the Chitral expedition of 1895 will be
found in the article on CHITRAL.
Pathanre- The summer of 1897 found the border in an inflammable
volt, 1897. condition. Exaggerated accounts had been circulated of the
successes gained by the Turkish armies in their war against
Greece, while the growth of a fanatical spirit was fostered by
the Mullas, and by the belief that aid would be forthcoming
from Kabul. Apart from these reasons for religious excite-
ment, the operations taken to demarcate the new Durand line,
referred to below, and the occupation of the Samana range,
the Kurram valley, Daur, and WSna, the passage of British
troops through various tracts, and administrative grievances,
such as the tax on Kohat salt, added to the discontent of the
tribesmen. The prevalent excitement first sprang into flame
In Tochi. in Tochi. An unexpected visit from the Political officer, ac-
companied by an unusually strong escort, on June 10, to the
village of Maizar, of which the inhabitants were already in
disgrace for the murder of a Hindu, caused the explosion.
After being hospitably entertained, the troops were treacherously
attacked. All the British military officers were killed or
wounded, but the escort, with the Political officer, withdrew in
good order to Datta Khel.
In Swat. The news spread rapidly and everywhere formed the text
of fanatical harangues by Mullas, and in particular by a Buner-
HIS TOR Y 23
wal of Upper Swat named Sad-ullah, whose eccentricities
had earned him the name of the Mulla Mastan (' mad '). On
July 26, followed only by a few boys, one of whom he pro-
claimed king of Delhi, he started from Landakai, a village
about 6 miles above Chakdarra on the south bank of the Swat
river. The tribesmen flocked after him, and by evening, with
ever-increasing numbers, the gathering approached the Mala-
kand. A sudden attack was made on the Malakand and
Chakdarra simultaneously. The numbers, which at first had
barely reached 1,000 men, were rapidly swollen to 12,000 at
the Malakand and 8,000 at Chakdarra. Heavy fighting con-
tinued at both places, until the Malakand was relieved on
August i and Chakdarra on the 2nd. The assailants then
drew off with a loss of not less than 3,000 men, while the
British losses had amounted to 33 killed and 188 wounded.
On the relief of Chakdarra the gathering quickly dispersed, and
the task of punishment and prevention of further combination
was taken in hand at once.
The next to rise were the Mohmands. Animated by the The Moh-
discourses of Najm-ud-dm, the Adda Mulla, a gathering ofmands-
about 5,000 armed men from all sections (except the Tarakzai)
advanced on August 7 into the Peshawar valley, and attacked
the village of Shankargarh, in which there is a large Hindu
element, and the adjoining police post of Shabkadar. Troops
were dispatched from Peshawar, and the tribesmen were
driven back into the hills.
Meanwhile, throughout Afridi and Orakzai Tlrah the excite- Tirah.
ment had been growing; and frequent rumours reached
Peshawar, Kohat, and Kurram of the reconciliation of inter-
tribal feuds and the gathering of clans for jihad, at the bidding
of Mulla Saiyid Akbar, Aka Khel Afridi. The trouble began
with desultory firing by the Orakzai at the troops on the
Samana on August 15. By the 23rd and 24th the whole of
the posts in the Khyber, held only by the Khyber Rifles, whose
British officers had been withdrawn, fell before a strong com-
bination of Afrldis. By the end of the month the Orakzai and
Afridis had collected 15,000 men, all the posts on the Samana
were closely invested, Shinawari (a police post at the juncture
of Upper and Lower Miranzai) had fallen, and Hangu was
threatened. The siege of the Samana posts continued till
September 14, when Fort Lockhart and Fort Cavagnari
(Gulistan) were relieved, the small post of Saragarhi having
fallen on September 1 2. On the approach of the relief force the
enemy withdrew from the Samana ridge into the Khanki valley.
24 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Punitive These unprovoked attacks, which had not been without
operations. success> involved active military operations as a punishment
and a deterrent. The operations began with the dispatch of
two brigades (7,000 men) to Datta Khel in the Tochi valley,
which caused the submission of the Madda Khel, who agreed
to give up seventeen ringleaders, make compensation for the
property taken at Maizar, and pay a fine. The final sub-
mission was, however, not concluded till 1901, after further
operations.
In Swat a quicker settlement was made. Before the end of
the year Upper Swat, Bajaur, Chamla, and the Utman Khel
country had been penetrated by British troops, and the fines
imposed had been realized. In January, 1898, an expedition
was sent through Buner, fines were realized from the Khudu
Khel and Gaduns of the Yusufzai border, and the Mulla
Mastan was expelled by political pressure from Dir and
Swat. The Malakand Field Force consisted of three
brigades with the usual complement of divisional troops, in
all 10,000 men.
The punishment of the Mohmands was effected by two
brigades (7,000 men) advancing from Peshawar, in co-operation
with two others detached from the Malakand Field Force.
Difficulties were encountered in the advance of the latter,
during which the affair at Inayat Kila took place ; but before the
end of October the Mohmands had been punished, and the
Adda Mulla fled to Afghanistan. On his departure a fine was
paid by the tribe and weapons were surrendered.
Tirah was invaded from Miranzai by the route passing from
Shinwari over the Chagru Kotal, between the cliffs of Dargai
and the Samana Sukh. The army consisted of two divisions,
under Sir W. Lockhart, supported by columns at Peshawar and
in the Kurram. The advance began on October 18, and on
the 2ist was fought the severe action of Dargai, in which the
British loss was 38 killed and 191 wounded. The troops then
penetrated to Maidan and Bara. By December 20, the
Orakzai had completely fulfilled their obligations, but the Afridis,
who had as yet received little punishment, held out. Their
territories were, therefore, still further harried ; but the de-
mands of the Government were not complied with till April,
1898, and the posts in the Khyber were held by regular troops
till December, 1899, when they were made over to the Khyber
Rifles. About 30,000 men were employed in the Tirah cam-
paign, which had taken place in a difficult and unknown
country, with an enemy who gave the troops no rest and pressed
HISTORY 25
close on the heels of every retirement, while cleverly avoiding
resistance in strength to an advance.
Since the conclusion of peace with the Afridis in 1898, the 1898-
border from the Kurram northwards has been undisturbed. "
In Wazlristan the period has also been marked by increasing
tranquillity, but on three occasions troops have been required.
On December i, 1900, the Mahsuds, whose behaviour had
been very unsatisfactory, were put under strict blockade. As
the tribe continued its depredations, their country was harried
during the winter of 1901-2 by constant incursions of lightly
equipped columns. In the spring the fines imposed were paid,
stolen rifles were surrendered, and security was given for the
fulfilment of the other terms demanded. Since this settlement
the behaviour of the Mahsuds, as a tribe, has been conspicu-
ously good, though three British officers were murdered by
individuals in 1904-5.
In 1901 troops were marched through theMaddaKhel country,
in North Wazlristan, to enforce complete compliance with the
terms imposed in 1897. The operations were successful.
In the autumn of 1902 an incursion was made into the
Kabul Khel country from Thai, Idak, and Bannu. There was
little fighting except with a band of outlaws at Gumatti, but
severe punishment was inflicted on the tribe, with excellent
results.
By the terms of the Treaty of Gandamak, the limits of the Durand
Afghan sphere of influence were set back along the main lines •
between India and Kabul to the western ends of the Khyber
Pass and the Kurram valley, but north and south of these
routes no boundary was fixed. At intervals during their history
some measure of control had been exercised over the Pathan
tribes from Kabul, and the more important of them, such as
the Afridis and Mohmands, had been in receipt of allowances
from the Amir for keeping open the passes. But practically
they had been independent, and their main object has always
been to remain so. In 1893 the Amir consented to a precise
fixing of boundaries, and a mission, under Sir Mortimer Durand,
proceeded to Kabul to discuss the question. An agreement
was signed definitely fixing 'the line which the Government
of India and the Amir have agreed to regard as the frontier of
Afghanistan from Chandak (in the valley of the Kunar river,
12 miles north of Asmar) to the Persian border.' Commissions
were next issued to demarcate the boundary. The Asmar
Commission (1894) demarcated from the Bashgal valley on the
borders of Kafiristan to Nawa Kotal, a point on the confines
2 6 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Formation
of the
North-
West
Frontier
Province.
Archae-
ology.
of Bajaur and the Mohmand country. This delimitation was
accepted by both governments ; but south of the NawS Kotal
no demarcation was made, owing to disagreement, the Amir
being unwilling to admit the boundary framed by the Durand
agreement in the Mohmand territory. Between the Kabul
river and Sikarim (Safed Koh) no demarcation was attempted.
But in the same year (1894) boundary stones were set up on
the Kurram border, and orders were issued for demarcation
from the Kurram to the Gomal river, which led to the Mahsud
expedition already mentioned. In 1895 this demarcation was
carried out, after which no further work on the boundary has
been undertaken.
From annexation till 1901 the Pathan frontier was under
the control of the Punjab Government. Various schemes had
been propounded for an alteration of this arrangement, with
the double object of securing closer and more immediate con-
trol and supervision of the frontier by the Supreme Government,
and of making such alterations in the personnel and duties of
frontier officials as would tend to the establishment of improved
relations between the local British representatives and the
independent tribesmen. Of these schemes the most notable
was that formulated by Lord Lytton in 1877, which was laid
aside on the outbreak of the second Afghan War in the follow-
ing year. The question was raised again, in consequence of
the experiences of 1897 ; and after mature discussion and
deliberation a scheme was formulated by which the Districts of
Hazara, Peshawar, and Kohat, together with the Trans-Indus
portions of Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan, and the Political
Agencies in the Khyber, the Kurram, the Tochi, and Wana
were removed from the control of the Punjab Administration.
To these areas was added the political charge of Dlr, Swat, and
Chitral, the Political Agent of which had never been subor-
dinate to the Punjab. The new Province was constituted in
1901, under a Chief Commissioner and Agent to the Governor-
General, with head-quarters at Peshawar, in direct communication
with the Government of India in the Foreign Department. In
political questions there is no intermediary between the Chief
Commissioner and the local officer — an arrangement designed
to secure both prompt disposal of references and the utilization
of the expert knowledge of frontier conditions for which the
head of the administration is selected.
The northern portion of what is now the North-West Frontier
Province corresponds fairly closely with the ancient kingdoms
of Udyana (Swat) and Gandhara (Peshawar), while Kurram
ARCHAEOLOGY 27
has been identified with the Ki Kiangha of Hiuen Tsiang, and
Bannu with the country called by him Falana, probably a
Chinese transcription of a Sanskrit form Varna or Barna.
Objects of archaeological interest are not uncommon in all
these regions, and may be divided into two main categories :
those which date from the era before the Muhammadan con-
quest (1000), and those of more recent origin. The former are
generically described as Buddhist or Graeco-Buddhist. Con-
sisting of well-graded roads, rock-inscriptions for the preservation
of royal edicts, massive buildings, and sculptures of an almost
Hellenic elegance, they form an unmistakable record of the
high degree of many-sided civilization to which the people
had attained before the advent of Islam. The antiquities of
the Muhammadan era, on the other hand, with the exception
of a building in Peshawar city known as the Gorkhatri, which
takes its name from a Hindu shrine, consist chiefly of mosques,
tombs, and shrines, buildings of an exclusively religious nature,
which evince no marked culture in the builders.
Of ancient roads the best known are to be found on the Buddhist
Kohat, Malakand, and Shahkot passes, where they are still used remalns-
for the passage of pack-animals. Ruined structures of a massive
type of architecture, some of which have been recognized as
forts, others as monasteries and stitpas, exist at many places.
Of these the most famous are the ruins on Mount Ban] in
Gadun territory (identified by Dr. Stein as the famous place of
Buddhist pilgrimage, the scene of Buddha's body offering) ;
those at Charsadda, Naogram, Jamal Garhi, Kharaki, Takht-i-
Bahai, Sahri Bahlol, Tiralai in Peshawar District, Adh-i-Samudh
near Kohat, the Akra mound in Bannu, and Kafir Kot in Dera
Ismail Khan. From the sites in Peshawar District, and to the
north of it, many valuable finds of coins, inscriptions, and
sculptures have been made at different times ; and from the
evidence afforded by these, such knowledge as we have of the
ancient kingdoms of Udyana and Gandhara and their dynasties
is largely derived. Perhaps the most valuable relics of all from
this point of view are the famous Kharoshthi rock-inscriptions
at Shahbazgarhi in Peshawar District and Mansehra in Hazara.
These have been deciphered as slightly variant versions of
a series of edicts published about 250 B.C. under the orders of
king Asoka, the grandson of Chandragupta, or Sandrocottus,
the renowned antagonist of Seleucus, Alexander's general. Pre-
Muhammadan buildings, still extant in other parts of the
Province, such as Adh-i-Samudh and Kafir Kot, have not been
equally distinguished by such finds. They appear to be of
28 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
I^ter
buildings.
Popula-
tion.
Census
statistics.
Density.
Towns and
villages.
more recent construction than the remains in the northern
regions, and to have been used more exclusively for defensive
purposes.
Among later buildings mention has already been made of the
Gorkhatri, once a place of Hindu pilgrimage, to which reference
is made in Babar's Memoirs. The present building was erected
as a resthouse for travellers under the orders of Nur Mahal,
queen of the emperor Jahanglr. The Gorkhatri, once the
residence of General Avitabile, who governed Peshawar in the
days of Sikh rule, is now used as a tahsll office. Besides this
and the mosque named after Muhabbat Khan, a Mughal
governor of Peshawar, and the country seat of AH Mardan Khan
Durrani, now in the middle of cantonments and used as the
District treasury, neither Peshawar nor any other District of the
Province can boast of any buildings of later date than the
eleventh century possessing either architectural pretensions
or historical interest.
The population of the Province as enumerated in 1901 was
2, 1 25,480 ; but this figure includes merely the population of
the five British Districts, the Kurram Agency, and the Shirani
country, only the military posts in the remaining territories
having been enumerated. In 1903 a Census was taken in the
Tochi valley, which was found to contain a resident population
of 24,670. It may be estimated that the whole Province has
a population of nearly four millions.
In the administered Districts the density of the population
per square mile rose to 152 in 1901 from 148 in 1891. The
fertile valley of Peshawar supports 330 persons to the square
mile, Dera Ismail Khan being the most sparsely populated
District with 74, while the Kurram Agency has only 42.
Of the population enumerated in 1901, 269,905 lived in
towns and 1,855,575 in rural areas. The Province contains
one city, Peshawar, its capital (population, 95,147, including
21,804 in cantonments), and four towns with more than 10,000
inhabitants : namely, Dera Ismail Khan (31,737), Kohat
(30,762^ Bannu (14,291), and Charsadda (20,235). The first
three include large cantonments. The Province has 15 smaller
towns and 3,348 villages, 1,067 °f which contain over 500
inhabitants each. The insecurity of life and property in former
days compelled the people to build large villages and fortify
them strongly, but there is now a marked tendency to found
new homesteads which gradually grow into hamlets. This is
specially noticeable in Hazara and Kohat. Across the adminis-
trative border almost every family has its walled homestead,
POPULATION 29
and the villages often consist of a number of towers or hamlets
fortified against one another as much as against external
enemies.
During the ten years 1891-1901 the population in the Growth of
British Districts rose from 1,857,504 to 2,041,493, an increase P°Pula-
of 9-9 per cent. Since 1881 there has been an increase of
30-2 per cent. Precise comparison with the figures of 1868
and 1855 is not possible, but the increase since the latter year
has undoubtedly been very great, especially in Peshawar. In
the decade 1891-1901 the increase of the population was
almost entirely in the rural areas, the tendency being for the
smaller towns to remain stationary or even to decrease. Pesh-
awar city, however, increased from 84,191 to 95,147. The
population of the Province is still largely immigrant, though
less so than formerly. More than 241,000 immigrants, of
whom 76,000 came from Afghanistan, were enumerated in
1901, but against these have to be set off 87,000 emigrants.
Neither the immigrants nor the emigrants are more than
sojourners who spend the winter months away from their
homes, trading, pasturing, or in less reputable employment.
After annexation the Districts of the Province were to a large
extent colonized by settlers from the tribal territories beyond
the border and from Afghanistan. The stream of immigration
from these sources is now weakening, the descendants of the
first settlers having occupied most of the cultivable area.
Thus the population of the Districts is far more stable than it
was a generation or two ago.
The age returns of the Province are even more untrust- Age
worthy than in other parts of India. At the Census of 1901 statistlcs-
the mean age of the population was 23-8 for males and 23 for
females. These figures are low according to European standards
and below the corresponding figures in the Punjab, but the
age return is probably too inaccurate for any conclusions to be
drawn. The mean age of Muhammadans is lower than that of
Hindus, a fact explained by the larger number of children
among the former. The number of children under ten is
high, being 3,032 (compared with 2,653 in the Punjab) in
every 10,000 of the population.
The registration of births and deaths is defective, perhaps Vital
on account of the alleged reluctance of Pathans to register the statistics-
birth of a girl. Vital statistics are collected by the police in
rural tracts, and by municipal officials in municipalities. The
table on the next page shows the principal vital statistics for
the Province.
30 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Deaths per 1,000 from
Year.
Population
under re-
gistration.
Ratio of
registered
births per
1,000.
Ratio of
registered
deaths per
1,000.
Cholera.
Small-
po«.
Fever.
Bowel
com-
plaints.
1881
r, 590,637
"•73
19.04
0-0 1
2-07
'3-°5
0-56
1891
1,790,401
33-37
26.04
2-19
0.40
19-33
0.29
1901
2,046,109
29-5
19-2
O-o6
0-47
'4-3
0.19
1904
!> 99<>»744
34-9
28-6
o-oo
0.8
22-3
0-3
Diseases. Malarial fever is rife in the autumn months in all the
Districts and in the valleys across the border. The virulent
type which resembles cholera and is known as Peshawar fever
still occurs in that District, though it is less prevalent than
formerly. Autumnal fever frequently assumes a malignant form
in Dera Ismail Khan. Diseases of the lungs, though less fatal
than fever, often cause heavy mortality in the winter months.
Small-pox is not responsible for many deaths. Stone is com-
mon throughout the Province. Goitre affects those who drink
water from the hill streams, and guinea-worm those who use
tank-water. Eye-affections are peculiarly common in the hot,
dry Districts of Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan.
Epidemics. Typhus in epidemic form has visited Peshawar nine times
in the past fifteen years. Cholera is an occasional visitant.
Until the spring of 1906 the Province remained free from
plague except for a few imported cases. The disease then
appeared in a virulent form, but its ravages were confined to
a small area of the plains portion of Hazara District. The
Trans-Indus Districts and Agencies have so far escaped
altogether.
The recorded rates of infant mortality (156 males and
121 females per 1,000 births in 1901) would compare favour-
ably with those in the Punjab if the registration were not
defective. Although female infanticide is not suspected, the
births reported show a marked excess of males over females,
120 boys being born to too girls. This is attributed by some
to the reluctance of Pathans to report the birth of a girl.
Of the 2,125,480 persons enumerated in 1901, 1,159,306 or
54-5 per cent, were males and 966,174 or 45-5 females. In
other words, there were 834 females to every 1,000 males. In
1891 the ratio was 843.
Among Muhammadans marriage is a civil contract. Among
Hindus it is in theory a sacrament and the tie is dissolved
only by death, and in the wife's case not even by death ; but in
the frontier Districts there is much laxity in practice. Women
Infant
mortality.
Sex
statistics.
Statistics
of civil
condition.
POPULATION
here do not occupy a high position ; but custom, which is
preferred to Muhammadan law by the courts in all cases where
the parties are agriculturists, gives to widows and unmarried
daughters in the presence of male heirs a right of maintenance
only, and in their absence a life interest. A wife is almost
invariably purchased, her price being determined by her looks.
Infant marriage is unknown among the Muhammadan tribes
on the frontier. Divorce for infidelity is not uncommon ; but
a Pathan, as a rule, considers it due to his honour to kill both
the unfaithful wife and her paramour, though in certain cir-
cumstances he will be content with lopping the foot of the
latter. Across the border divorcees and widows are not
infrequently sold by the husband, or by his heir as the case
may be, a Pathan's mother being a realizable asset. There is
no prejudice against widow remarriage. The following table
gives statistics of civil condition as recorded in 1891 and
1901 : —
Civil
condition.
1891.
1901.
Persons.
Males.
Females.
Persons.
Males.
Females.
Unmarried
Married
Widowed .
971,097
74' >483
144,924
587,889
373»789
45,965
383,208
367,694
98>959
I,IOO,6o8
851,385
159,968
667,635
432,372
51,505
432,973
419,013
108,463
The figures show that social conditions have changed little
since 1891. Marriage is less general than in the Punjab, a
natural result of the avoidance of early marriage.
The dominant language of the Province is Pashtu, which Language,
belongs to the Iranian branch of the Aryan family of speech.
It has two main dialects : a hard or north-eastern (Pakhto), and
a soft or south-western (Pashto). The dividing line of these
two dialects runs westwards from Thai through Kohat District
almost to the Indus, but then turns northward, and the speech
of the Akhora Khattaks is the soft Pashtu. Thus, Pakhto is
spoken in Bajaur, Swat, and Buner, and by the Yusufzai, Ban-
gash Orakzai, Afrldi, and Mohmand Pathans, while the Khat-
taks, Wazlrs, Marwats, and various minor tribes in the south
speak Pashto. It has been asserted that this division of the
language corresponds roughly with the tribal systems of the
Pathans, those who speak the hard or north-eastern Pakhto
having a tendency to an oligarchic form of government, while
the Pashto-speaking branch is intensely democratic in organi-
zation.
The classical dialect is that of the Yusufzai, in which the
3 2 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
earliest Pashtu works were composed. It is the purest and
clearest form of the language. The sub-dialects of the Utman
Khel tribe, of Bajaur, and of the Afrldis and Orakzai differ but
little from it, though each has its own accent, and there are
local differences in vocabulary. The Wazirs have several patois,
which are probably less removed from the speech of the
original Pathans than the present standard dialect of Peshawar,
and they have retained many words still found in Punjabi.
Round Kanigoram in Waziristan, Bargista, or Ormurl, an
independent Iranian language, is spoken by the Ormurs. The
conquered strata of the population on the frontier speak Indian
dialects, called Hindkl in the north and Jatkl or the Jat speech
in the south, while Gujari is spoken by many of the Gujars,
who are numerous in the hills of Hazara and to the north of
Peshawar. In the Swat Kohistan, Garhwi and Torwali are
spoken ; and the Bashkaris of the upper portion of the Panjkora
Kohistan speak Bashkari, which is said to be the same as
Garhwi. Of these two dialects little is as yet known.
The following table gives the chief figures returned for
languages in the territories enumerated in 1891 and 1901 : —
Language spoken.
Persons.
Pashtu ....
1891.
1,005,195
1901.
1,142,869
58l,7>3
300.587
53,021
i6,775
Western Punjabi .
Punjabi ....
Gujari ....
Western Hindkl .
173,412
649,449
ISi^I
Castes and The population contains several ethnological strata, repre-
senting the deposits formed by different streams of immigration
or invasion. Most numerous and important are the Pathans
(Pakhtana), who regard themselves as the dominant class, and
form the majority of the agricultural population in Peshawar,
Kohat, and Bannu, while beyond the administrative border
they are in exclusive possession from Chitral to the Gomal.
In Hazara, Gujars and other tribes of Indian origin predomi-
nate, while Dera Ismail Khan is inhabited mainly by Jats.
Pathan is not now a racial term, whatever its original signifi-
cance may have been. It now denotes status, and is said in
Swat and Dir to describe one who possesses a share in the
tribal estate and who has therefore a voice in the village and
tribal councils. One who has lost his share is called a fakir,
forfeits the name of Pathan, and has no voice in the councils.
The Pathan tribes are mainly of Iranian origin, but many of
The
Pathans.
POPULATION 33
their sections are affiliated clans of Hindkl or indigenous
descent, others of Saiyid (Arabian), and a few possibly of
Turkish origin. The Pathans in the settled Districts and
Kurram numbered 883,779, or more than two-fifths of the
population, in 1901.
Next in numerical importance come the Awans or vassals Awans, &c.
with 241,000, mainly in Hazara and the Peshawar valley. The
Gujars number 108,000, of whom 92,000 are in Hazara. They
are also numerous in Dir, Swat, and Bajaur, where they speak
Pashtu, though on the borders of Dir and Asmar they retain
their Indian speech. Other less numerous tribes are the
Jats (81,000), mostly in Dera Ismail Khan, Saiyids (77,000),
Tanaolis (62,000, immigrants from TANAWAL), Malliars
(27,000), Dhunds (25,000), Balochs (24,000), Rajputs (20,000),
Shaikhs (19,000), Kharrals (16,000), Mughals (14,000), Ku-
reshis (14,000), Ba.ghba.ns (12,000), Parachas (n,ooo), Kassabs
(7,000), Sureras (7,000), and Gakhars (6,000). Of Hindu
castes, the Aroras (69,000), Khattrls (34,000), and Brahmans
(15,000) are important. In tribal territory, besides the tribes
already alluded to, the Torwal and Garhwi reside in the
higher ranges of Swat and the Bashkari in the Panjkora hills.
In Jandol and Maidan are various other tribes of Kafir descent
converted to Islam, and now reckoned as Pathans.
Of the artisan classes the most numerous are the Tarkhans
or carpenters (40,000), some of whom are rising under British
rule to the status of a professional class as trained engineers.
Next to them in numerical strength are the Julahas (weavers,
38,000), then come the Lohars (blacksmiths, 27,000), Mochis
(leather-workers and shoemakers, 23,000), Kumhars (potters
and brick-burners, 20,000), Sonars (goldsmiths), and Telis
(oil-pressers, 10,000). The Kashmiris (wool-weavers and
general labourers) number 25,000. Of the menial classes, the
Nais (barbers) stand first numerically with 24,000. Next to
them come the scavengers, 22,000 in all. Other menial classes
are the Dhobis and Chhimbas (washermen, 17,000), and the
Mirasls or Bums (village minstrels, 11,000).
The predominance of Islam may be gauged by the fact that Religions.
r>957i777 persons, or 92 percent, of the population enumerated
in 1901, were returned as Muhammadans. In the tribal areas
not enumerated its importance is still more marked, though
Hindu traders are found even in the wildest tracts and receive
ample toleration from their Muhammadan overlords. Tlrah
has a colony of Sikhs. The Muhammadans are mainly Sunnis,
less than one per cent, confessing the Shiah tenets, though the
34 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Christian
missions.
Occupa-
tions.
Food.
Tuiis and some of the Bangash tribes in Kurram are avowed
Shiahs, as are many of the Orakzai Pathans in Tirah, and the
sect is also found in Kohat and the Shirani country. The
Shiahs are chiefly distinguished by the reverence they pay to
Saiyids as descendants of All, while among the Sunnis Mullas
or priests exercise supreme influence. Fanaticism is violent
throughout the Province. As preached by the Mullas, Islam is
a religion of gloom, songs and dancing being condemned by
them, while a sombre fanaticism, compatible with a degraded
morality, is inculcated. Shrines abound and are objects of
pilgrimages, fairs being held at each on specified days. The
shrines are of saints who have obtained a reputation for
miraculous powers or spiritual excellence. They are so
numerous that few possess special eminence, but those of
the Akhund of Swat and of the Pir Baba in Buner attract
pilgrims from all parts of the Muhammadan world. At most
shrines bodily ailments may be cured or other advantages
obtained.
Of the total population of the Province only 5,273 (including
533 natives), or 0-25 per cent., were returned as Christians in
1901. The Church Missionary Society has flourishing stations
at Peshawar and Bannu, with outposts in Mardan and Tank.
The medical work of the mission is most beneficial, and people
come from great distances to be treated by the mission doctors.
The Province lies in the Anglican diocese of Lahore. It is
all included in the Roman Catholic prefecture of Kashmir
and Kafiristan, excepting Dera Ismail Khan District, which lies
in the diocese of Lahore.
The majority of the people of the Province are agriculturists.
In 1901, 64^ per cent, of the population was returned as
dependent on agriculture. This high percentage illustrates
the backward condition of industry, only 14-2 per cent, being
returned as employed in the preparation and supply of material
substances, and 2-3 per cent, in commerce. The artisans
are cotton-weavers (39,000), leather-workers (29,000), black-
smiths and carpenters (26,000), and potters (12,000). Other
classes are mainly employed in the large cantonments.
The food of the peasant has improved considerably since
annexation. Two meals a day are usual, one at 10 A.M., and
the other, the principal meal, at 8 P.M., or earlier in winter.
The early breakfast of the Punjab is seldom taken except in
Hazara, and even there consists only of food left from the
previous evening. The townsfolk as a rule eat wheaten bread.
In summer the well-to-do countryman consumes a mixture of
POPULATION 35
wheat and barley cakes, vegetables, pot-herbs, wild fruit, and
milk in various forms. In winter, maize and millet are the
staple diet, as they are said to be more warming, but a more
obvious reason is the fact that they are harvested in the
autumn. In the irrigated tracts the people live better, eating
khichri, a mixture of rice, pulse, and vegetables, and a kind of
hot porridge. The poorer peasants, however, sell their rice
and wheat, and use the cheaper millet. All Pathans eat meat
when they can afford it. The Pathan is generally abstemious,
and outside the towns the use of opium and spirits is regarded
as disreputable. Smoking is universal, despite the efforts of
rhe Mullas to put a stop to it.
The dress of the peasant consists of a turban, a loose shirt Dress,
or tunic, baggy trousers, tied round the waist by a running
string, and two or three shawls or a Swati blanket wrapped
round the waist or placed on the head as a protection against
the sun. In Wazlristan the shirts or tunics worn by the men,
though indescribably filthy, are often elaborately embroidered
round the neck and down the back. Waistcoats are worn not
uncommonly. A leather belt is always worn on a journey by
those who have arms to put in it. In parts of the southern
Districts among the Jats the trousers are replaced by a loin-
cloth, and a sheet is thrown over the shoulders. Women wear
an upper garment forming a bodice and skirt in one piece,
dark blue in colour with a red border, and a yoke. Under-
neath are worn baggy trousers, and above is a shawl. Sandals
of grass or leather or shoes of the ordinary Punjab type are
worn by both sexes. Under Muhammadan rule a Hindu was
not allowed to wear a turban, and a skull-cap is still his head-
dress. In winter Pathans wear a postln or sheep-skin coat
with the wool inside. In the south the hair is generally allowed
to grow long and sometimes to curl into ringlets. In Pesha-
war the Pathan shaves his head. The hair of the women is
elaborately braided.
A house generally consists of a single room about 25 by 12 Dwellings,
feet, built of the material most easily obtainable. In Kohat
and parts of Hazara rough stone cemented with mud is used,
with coarse slate for the roof. Elsewhere the walls are made
of mud mixed with straw or of grass wattles. Wooden rafters
support the roof, which is of mud and flat. The internal
arrangements are very simple. The grain-safe is the principal
piece of furniture ; and two or three beds, a low stool or two,
some spindles, and baskets for wool and clothes complete the
list. "Hospitality is a characteristic of the Pathan, and every
D 2
36 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
village has its guesthouse, maintained by the headman or a few
of the leading villagers. An unlimited supply of beds, blankets,
and food is the mark of a true Pathan headman, and to a great
extent his influence depends on his extravagance in enter-
taining. An ordinary guest receives bread and some con-
diments, but for an honoured guest a fowl and for a powerful
chief a sheep or goat is killed. The guesthouse is also used as
a village club where residents and visitors assemble to smoke
and talk, and the bachelors of the village sleep there, as
Pathan custom does not allow them to sleep at home after
reaching man's estate. As elsewhere, the Muhammadans in
Disposal this Province bury their dead. Hindus burn them, but it is
not usual to carry the ashes to the Ganges.
Amuse- Most Pathans are fond of field sports, such as hawking,
tlts' hunting with dogs, and shooting. Frequently they combine
with these the more exciting pleasures of highway robbery,
cattle-lifting, and burglary. In parts of Kohat a favourite
pastime is to beat the low jungles at night with blazing torches,
so that any hares or partridges that may be disturbed are
dazzled and secured. In the north fighting rams and quails
afford great amusement, and young men play a wrestling game
rather like cock-fighting. Farther south tent-pegging is the
national game, and on every occasion of rejoicing all who own
horses assemble for the sport. In default of a wooden peg an
old grass sandal will serve. Ainda, a kind of prisoner's base,
is played keenly in Bannu, though not perhaps to the same
extent as in the adjoining Punjab Districts. Everybody is fond
of music, singing, and dancing, and the half-Gregorian style of
music affected by the minstrels is not unpleasing. It is claimed
for them that they distinguish intervals too subtle for the
European ear to appreciate, though they know nothing of
harmony, and consider European music mere noise. The
recitations of the minstrels are sometimes epic in character, but
love-songs and burlesques are favourite subjects also. Some of
the latter are witty and do not spare British officials. Often,
however, both recitation and gesture are obscene. Muham-
madans picnic and feast on the two Id festivals, and Hindus
celebrate the Baisakhi in April and the Dasehra in October.
In Peshawar a fair called the Jhanda Mela is held in the
early spring in honour of Sakhi Sarwar, a Hindu saint, who
is held in equal honour by Hindus and Muhammadans.
Names and Natives, whether Muhammadan or Hindu, have generally
titles. two nameS) though sometimes one is considered sufficient.
In common speech names are contracted ; thus Fateh-ud-dm
AGRICULTURE 37
will be Fattu to his comrades, and Fazl Ilahi will become
Fazlu. Where two men in the village have the same name,
the tribal name is often added, and if they also belong to the
same tribe their fathers' names are added to distinguish them.
A son never receives his father's name. Honorific titles are
considered very important. These are of two classes: those
conferred or formally recognized by Government, such as
Raja, Wazir, Sardar, Rai Bahadur, or Rai Sahib for Hindus,
and Raja, Nawab, Mirza, Mir, Mian, Khan Sahib, or Khan
Bahadur for Muhammadans ; and, secondly, those which have
a customary validity in native society, and are therefore used
as a matter of courtesy by Europeans in conversation or official
communications. These include Pandit, Misra, Bhai, Bawa,
Lala, and Sodhi (Hindus), and Arbab, Khan, Kazi, Maulvi,
Munshi, Mirza, and Malik (Muhammadans). Khan, which
literally means ' lord,' is adopted as a matter of course by every
Pathan, like Mr. in English, and is suggestive of the Pathan
attitude to other tribes. Two Muhammadan gentlemen in
Hazara hold the title of Raja by licence from Government, and
the whole tribe of the Gakhars put Raja before their names.
In this Province, as elsewhere, a man's name is an unmis-
takable indication of his religion ; but there are instances of
Hindu families who use the distinctively Muhammadan title
of Khan, while the reverse process is exemplified in the
Gakhars, who are Muhammadans to a man.
In the spiritual hierarchy titles are of even greater impor- Religious
tance. Saiyid is a title given only to descendants of the Prophet, titles.
Next in order is Mian, one who is descended from a saint of
old time and of more than local or tribal celebrity. Kureshis
rank as Mians. Next come Akhundzadas or Pirzadas, de-
scendants of holy men having local or tribal repute. Last come
the Sahibzadas, descendants of Mullas or priests who had
acquired a reputation for sanctity. Yet these religious classes
need not necessarily occupy themselves with religion, and
their profession or character affects their status only to a slight
extent in popular esteem.
The settled Districts of the Province form two main tracts, Agriculture,
which differ markedly in their agricultural conditions. The Soils and
first lies east of the Indus, and consists of the sub-Himalayan f^Jni-
Uistrict of Hazara, where the soil, deep and rich in the plain tural con-
tracts, but shallow and stony in the hills, receives sufficient J
rainfall. Here a good spring crop is assured in the plains,
except on the rare occasions when the winter rains fail ; but
the autumn harvest is inferior to that of the lower hills, where
38 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
it forms the chief crop, while the higher altitudes above 5,000
feet hardly produce any harvest in the spring. The other tract,
west of the Indus, maybe further subdivided into stony uplands
and level plains. In both tracts the rainfall, which averages
less than 20 inches in the year, is uncertain in amount and
uneven in distribution, and both depend largely on irrigation.
The plains comprise the Peshawar valley, the Bannu and
Marwat plains of Bannu District, and that of Dera Ismail
Khan ; but the soils vary greatly. A light, porous surface soil,
more or less intermixed with sand and underlain by strong
retentive clay, is found in Peshawar, while a sandy gravel pre-
dominates in Bannu, and sand in the Marwat valleys. In Dera
Ismail Khan, the daman, or ' skirt of the hills ' has a clayey
. soil, and is fringed with a strip of alluvial loam along the Indus.
Wherever irrigation is applied, the rich silt deposits tend to
make the soil deep and stiff, with a large admixture of clay.
Cultivation depends more on facilities for irrigation than on the
intrinsic fertility of the soil. The Peshawar and Bannu valleys
are well irrigated and are, therefore, highly cultivated ; in
Marwat, which depends mainly on the rainfall, the harvests
are precarious ; and in the daman the crops depend on the
embankments, which hold up the surface water, or, in the
riverain strip, on wells and floods from the Indus and the
fertilizing floods brought down by hill torrents. In the hills
the best cultivation is found in the valleys of Kohat, which
generally contain a good clean loam, singularly retentive
of moisture, and therefore well able to resist drought. Else-
where the hill soils are thin and poor, and the harvest is
entirely dependent on well-timed rainfall.
Harvests. There are two harvests : the kharif or autumn, sown from
May to August, and reaped between early September and the
close of the year ; and the rabi or spring harvest, sown from
October to January and mostly reaped in April or May. Extra
spring crops, chiefly tobacco, melons, &c., are cut in June.
Sugar and cotton are classed as belonging to the autumn
harvest, but are on the ground for nearly a year.
The systems of cultivation vary greatly, as might be expected
where conditions are so diverse. In Hazara the main factor is
the elevation, the cold mountain ranges producing little but
autumn crops, while in the plains the rabi is the chief harvest.
In highly irrigated tracts, whether in the plains or in the
fertile valleys of Kohat, the cultivator's main object is to make
the most of the water at his disposal, and the best lands are
cropped twice a year for years together. Even inferior lands
AGRICULTURE 39
often bear two successive crops, followed by a year's fallow ;
but, in the parts of Dera Ismail Khan watered by embank-
ments, where land is very abundant, the people prefer to leave
the land fallow for two years out of three.
Rotations are to some extent followed, the idea being, as Rotation
in Bannu, to follow such crops as wheat, cotton, tobacco, or of cr°Ps-
turmeric, which are considered exhausting, by clover, maize,
barley, or some other recuperative crop the residue of which is
ploughed into the soil. When the crop depends on rain, the
system pursued is largely determined by the character of the
soil, and -by the rainfall of each season ; some lands are
cropped only once every three or four years, others are cropped
continuously until exhaustion compels a fallow, and one year
the cultivation will be all for autumn, the next all for spring
crops. Cultivation in the Indus riverain is equally variable,
as it depends on the floods.
The tillage of the Province is not of a high order. This is Ploughing,
due in part to the now obsolescent custom, formerly universal |*arvestlng>
in all Pathan tribes, of a periodical redistribution of holdings.
Further, the Pathan is notoriously lazy, and half a century of
settled government has not altogether dispelled the demoraliza-
tion caused by the anarchy that prevailed before annexation.
In the lighter soils the seed is often sown at the first ploughing,
but other soils are usually tilled from three to six times, accord-
ing to the crop. The plough, drawn by cattle, resembles that
used in other parts of Northern India ; but a large heart-
shaped iron spade is often used in the heavy clay soils by the
Bannuchis and in Daur, either to break up the clods before
ploughing or instead of the plough. Seed is usually sown
broadcast. Weeding is seldom attempted. Manure is used
near villages, its use being limited only by the amount avail-
able. In Marwat, Yusufzai, and the Khattak and Miranzai
tracts in Kohat, cultivators often cut the stalk close to the ear,
leaving the straw to rot on the ground, while elsewhere it is
utilized for fodder. Grain is trodden out by oxen, and winnow-
ing is done by hand with fans. The agricultural implements
in use are of an ancient type, but the iron sugar-mill has
almost entirely replaced the old wooden press.
In 1901, 1,363,000 persons, or 64-5 per cent, of the popu- Population
lation, were returned as supported by agriculture, and of these f°pported
418,000, or 31 per cent., were actual workers. Of the latter, culture.
216,000 were peasant proprietors, including cultivating owners
or mortgagees, and 168,000 were cultivating tenants, only
28,000 being non-cultivating owners or tenants. Agricultural
40 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
labourers numbered only 15,000 actual workers, most of the
agricultural work being done by the cultivators themselves
(who are often able to assist one another when harvest time
falls differently in different places), and by village menials,
tanners, sweepers and the like, who in addition to their proper
calling obtain a great portion of their income from harvest
wages paid in kind.
"Wheat. Wheat is the chief crop of the spring harvest. It is sown
usually in the latter half of October and November, but sowing
may begin as early as the middle of September or as late as the
middle of January. The harvest is gathered in May and June.
Wheat ordinarily covers 1,094 square miles, though in good
years, such as 1891, 1898, and 1904, it was sown in more than
1,406 square miles. About one-third of the crop is irrigated.
The average yield per acre is on irrigated land from i\ cwt.
to i-| ton, and on unirrigated land from 3^ cwt. to 5 cwt.
Barley. Barley is next in importance. It ordinarily occupies more
than 313 square miles, though in good years, such as 1891
and 1898, it covers double that area, and in a year of scarcity,
like 1902, sinks to 156 square miles. Although sown rather
later than wheat, it is the first crop to ripen in the spring,
and harvesting begins as early as April. About two-fifths
of the crop is usually grown in irrigated land. The yield
per acre is slightly less than that of wheat.
Gram. Gram, which ordinarily covers about 188 square miles, is
sown at about the same time as wheat and barley, and reaped
as a rule after the latter and before the former. It is grown
chiefly in Bannu, which returns nearly two-thirds of the total
area covered by this crop. From 4 to 5 cwt. per acre is a
good return.
Maize. Maize, the chief crop of the autumn harvest, generally covers
about 625 square miles, coming next to wheat. It is sown in
July or August, or occasionally as early as April, and is
harvested from the middle of September to the end of Novem-
ber. More than half the crop is usually grown on irrigated
land, Hazara being the only District in which it is largely pro-
duced without irrigation. Peshawar and Hazara claim most
of the out-turn, and it is practically unknown in Dera Ismail
Khan. An acre of irrigated land will give from 10 to 14 cwt.
of maize, while unirrigated land seldom produces more than
5 cwt.
Spiked The area under spiked millet or bajra (Pennisetum typhoideum)
is ordinarily about 3 1 3 square miles, though in bad years, such
as 1892 and 1900, it is less than half as much. June and July
AGRICULTURE 41
are the best months for sowing, though it may be sown as early
as April, and it is mostly reaped in October and November.
Dera Ismail Khan and Kohat are the chief Districts for bajra,
which is rarely irrigated. From 3 to 7 cwt. per acre, according
as the land is with or without irrigation, is the usual yield of
bdjra and also of jowdr.
Great millet or jowdr (Sorghum vulgare) occupies usually Great
about 109 square miles. In good years, such as 1891 and millet-
1893, it rose to 156 square miles, while in 1902, a bad year, it
fell to 63. It is chiefly grown in Peshawar, where very little
spiked millet is grown. Less than a quarter of the crop is
irrigated. The sowing and harvest times are the same as
those for spiked millet. The crop is often grown for fodder,
and is then sown very thickly and known as chari.
Rice is but little cultivated, covering only 49 square miles Rice,
on an average, chiefly in Hazara, Peshawar, Kurram, and
Tochi. It is confined to irrigated land, and yields 8 to 10
cwt. per acre.
Besides gram many varieties of pulses are grown, usually Pulses,
mixed with other crops. Of these the chief are mash
(Phaseolus radiatus), mung (P. mungo), and moth (P. aconiti-
folius) in autumn, and masur (Ervum Lens) in spring. Mung
and mash ordinarily cover 31 square miles, though in 1893
they were sown in about twice that area, and the other pulses
occupied 109 square miles.
Cotton, mostly produced in Peshawar and Dera Ismail Cotton.
Khan Districts, is sown on about 50 square miles, rising in
good years, such as 1891 and 1896, to 109, and falling in bad
years, such as 1892 and 1902, to 3 square miles. The seeds
are used as fodder.
The oil-crops chiefly grown are til (Sesamum indicum) and Oilseeds,
rapeseed. They ordinarily cover about 1 20 square miles, but
in good years, such as 1891 and 1893, the area increases to
more than double.
As recently estimated, the total production of food-grains Total
in an average year in the Province amounts to about 539,000 Pro"uce>
tons, and the total consumption, including fodder, grain,
and wastage, to 552,000 tons. The excess of consump-
tion over production, however, is partly due to the large
number of temporary immigrants, and men in Government
service.
The total area under fruit orchards is estimated at 4,000 Fruit,
acres, of which 2, 700 acres are situated in Peshawar District.
The chief kinds of fruit are grapes, peaches, Orleans plums
42 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
(alucha), quinces, pears, figs, pomegranates, water-melons,
loquats, and dates. Mulberries grow wild almost everywhere.
Most of the produce is consumed locally ; but dates from Dera
Ismail Khan find a market in Multan and other neighbouring
Districts, while apricots from Hazara and grapes from Kohat
are sent as far as Rawalpindi and sometimes Lahore. The
only District which exports fruit in considerable quantities is
Peshawar. The system of fruit cultivation is crude, though
an occasional attempt has been made to introduce improved
varieties. Pomegranate is the fruit most extensively cultivated,
and the Peshawar pomegranate is now considered to be
superior in quality even to that of Jalalabad. The principal
varieties of grapes are beddna (' seedless ') white and beddna
black with round berries, and husaini with long oval berries.
The annual export of fresh fruits from Peshawar is estimated
in maunds at : pomegranates, 37,500 ; quinces and pears,
37>5°° ; grapes, 4,500 ; peaches, 4,500 ; Orleans plums, 1,500 ;
total, 85,500 maunds (3,130 tons). Pomegranates are sent to
the whole of India and as far as Rangoon ; quinces are chiefly
consumed in the Punjab, while pears go to Rangoon ; the
export of grapes and peaches is generally limited to Northern
India, a small quantity only being sent to Calcutta, as they do
not keep longer than about five days ; for the same reason,
plums are mostly exported to the Punjab, only selected fruit
being dispatched to Calcutta. A considerable portion of the
fruit imported from across the frontier comes to Peshawar ;
this largely consists of dried fruits (almonds, raisins, nuts and
the like), but also includes musk-melons, grapes, and pome-
granates. A special fruit van, booked every day from Peshawar
to Howrah during the busy months of September, October,
and November, in the height of the pomegranate, quince,
and pear season, carries about 5,000 maunds a month.
Loans. In but few tracts, outside the Indus valley, are conditions
suitable for sinking irrigation wells ; but loans are largely taken
for the construction and repair of the dams, by means of which
the surface water from the hills is utilized for irrigation.
Advances for seed and bullocks after the monsoon rains are
usually in great demand. Between 1891 and 1900 about
Rs. 19,000 was lent annually under the Land Improvement
Loans Act, and the advances amounted to Rs. 10,000 in
1900-1 and Rs. 39,61 1 in 1903-4. The loans bear interest at
6£ per cent, per annum, the borrower's holding being hypothe-
cated as security. Under the Agriculturists' Loans Act about
Rs. 40,000 was advanced annually from 1891 to 1900;
AGRICULTURE 43
Rs. 50,000 was lent in 1900-1 and Rs. 49,347 in 1903-4.
These loans are made on the borrower's personal security.
Throughout the Province the amount of agricultural indebted- Indebted-
ness is considerable, but in Kohat the Pathan proprietary ness-
bodies are strong enough to prevent their lands from passing
to outsiders. In the other Districts there is some danger that
the agricultural tribes may be expropriated, and the Punjab
Land Alienation Act has been extended to them (excluding
Peshawar) in a modified form. Creditors are nearly always
Hindus of the trading classes, and the rate of interest on
loans may be anything from 12 per cent, upwards.
The Province possesses no noteworthy breed of cattle, Cattle,
except the Peshawar buffalo, which is used for burden and will
carry to market as much as 10 to 15 maunds of agricultural
produce. The other local breeds are small and weak, but as
there is not much well-irrigation strong cattle are not required.
When needed, they are generally imported from the Punjab.
Sheep and goats are bred in every District, but large num- Sheep
bers are also brought from across the border for the winter and S°ats-
grazing. The two chief breeds of sheep are the ordinary thin-
tailed variety of the Punjab, and the dumba or fat-tailed.
Sheep and goats are kept for their wool and hair and the
profits from the sale of the young, and there is a large market
for mutton in the cantonments.
Camels are largely used for transport, but are not bred Camels,
except in Kohat District.
No District has any special reputation for its horses, though Horses and
horse-breeding is encouraged by the supply of stallions kept by donkeys-
the Imperial Remount department in Hazara and by the Dis-
trict boards in the remaining Districts. The best animals are im-
ported from beyond the border. Donkeys are much used for
local transport ; and the Remount department keeps donkey
stallions for mule-breeding in Hazara, where the nature of the
country renders the use of mule transport indispensable.
Of the total cultivated area, 72 per cent, is dependent on Irrigation,
the rainfall, 25 per cent, is irrigated by canals, 2 per cent, is
irrigated by perennial streams or inundated by river floods, and
less than one per cent, is irrigated by wells. The present
canal systems utilize the waters of the Kabul, Swat, and Bara
rivers in Peshawar District, of the Kurram in the Kurram
Agency and Bannu, of the Tochi in Daur and Bannu, and of
the minor affluents of the Indus in the remaining Districts.
The Indus itself has not as yet afforded any great supply for
irrigation ; but a scheme for an inundation canal on its western
44 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
bank at Paharpur in Dera Ismail Khan District, which would
command nearly 94 square miles, is under preparation.
Work will also shortly begin on a bolder project, that of
bringing a canal from the SwSt river by a tunnel under the
Malakand pass into the eastern portion of Peshawar District.
When completed this will supply, besides the independent
villages of Sam Ranizai, from which a water-rate will be levied,
an area of nearly 300 square miles in the north-eastern portion
of the District, for which the existing Swat River Canal does
not suffice.
The demand for irrigation is greatest in the arid plains of
Dera Ismail Khan and Bannu. In the former District there is
considerable irrigation from the creeks of the Indus, and from
hill torrents and perennial streams, but no large canal has been
made. Bannu is in parts very highly irrigated, 30 per cent, of
the cultivation in that District being protected by canals. In
the Daur tract of Northern Waziristan the whole of the culti-
vated area is irrigated. Nearly all the cultivation in the Kurram
valley is watered from the Kurram river and the snow-fed
streams which descend from the eastern slopes of the Safed
Koh. In Kohat the Kohat Toi and perennial streams irrigate
considerable areas, but the broken character of the District
forbids any large schemes. Hazara possesses an ample rainfall,
and its hill tracts are to a great extent independent of canals ;
but its plains and open valleys receive an abundant and
fertilizing irrigation from the perennial streams, the Kunhar,
Siran, Dor, and Harroh. The District in which irrigation has
been most fully utilized is Peshawar. Wells are confined to
the Swabi tahsll of Peshawar, the Indus riverain in Dera
Ismail Khan, and parts of Kohat. The physical conditions
of the Province preclude any great extension of well irrigation.
Before annexation canals had been dug in Peshawar, Bannu,
Daur and elsewhere. In Peshawar several small canals were
constructed under Mughal or Durrani rule. Most of these are
still in working order, and they are included among the
scheduled canals which are managed by the Deputy-Commis-
sioner. The total area irrigated from this source is about
203 square miles, paying a net assessment of nearly 6 lakhs.
The SWAT RIVER CANAL, which irrigates about 250 square
miles in the table-land east of the Swat and Kabul rivers, was
completed in 1885. The KABUL RIVER CANAL, which irrigates
78 square miles in the Peshawar and Naushahra tahsils, was
completed in 1893. Both the Kabul and Swat Canals are the
property of the Government. The Bara is a scheduled canal,
RENTS 45
but its weir and upper distributaries were constructed and are
managed by the Irrigation department. Besides these canals,
the Michni, Dilazak, and Shabkadar branch were constructed
by the District board of Peshawar in 1896.
The numerous canals in the Districts south of Peshawar are
all private, none being owned by the Government, though they
are to a certain extent controlled by the Deputy-Commissioners
on behalf of the people, with the aid of a small establishment
paid from a cess levied in the area irrigated. All these canals
are perennial.
Those ' canals which are under departmental control are
classed as ' major ' works. The total outlay on them up to
1903-4 was 56 lakhs, and the average receipts have been
it per cent, on the capital outlay. Other canals are classed
as ' minor ' works. The total expenditure on these has been
5 lakhs, and the return 1 1 per cent, on the sum expended.
No canal revenue, beyond a small cess to cover the expenses Canal
of management, is levied on the private canals, but the lands revenue-
irrigated by them are assessed to land revenue at irrigated
rates. Water-rates are paid on the canals owned by the Govern-
ment or the Peshawar District board, the rate usually varying
according to the crop grown.
Rights in water are as valuable as rights in land, though the System of
two rights are now sometimes distinct when the supply of the
water is very abundant. The distribution of the available
water-supply is governed by ancient customs, often of great
intricacy when the supply is scanty. Its ultimate distribution
among individual co-sharers is usually determined by lot.
Under native rule the State took all, or nearly all, the Rents,
produce of the land which was not required for the subsistence wag65'
. . . prices.
of the cultivators, in tracts where such exactions were possible? Rents.
such as the Peshawar valley and the Haripur plain in Hazara.
In outlying areas, such as the northern glens of Hazara, the
remote valleys of Kohat, and the Bannu Marwat plain, the
revenue could, however, be collected only by an annual mili.
tary expedition; and, as this was not always feasible, the
practice arose of farming out large tracts to the local chiefs for
a cash revenue, the amount of which usually depended on the
chiefs strength and the expediency of conciliating him. This
chief similarly took all he could from the actual cultivators. In
these circumstances there was no room for a landlord inter-
mediate between the cultivator and the state or local chief;
and it is only since the value of land has risen under the
milder British assessments that anything in the shape of a
46 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
margin leviable as rent has been in any general way available
for the owners of land.
The assessment on rent-paying lands, which under native
rulers was usually taken direct from the cultivator in kind, is
now always collected from the owner in cash, and the latter
recovers from the tenant, in kind or in cash, an amount which
ordinarily runs to at least three times the value of the assess-
ment. The usual practice is to take rent in kind at a share of
the produce, and produce rents are paid in 57 per cent, of the
rented area of the Province ; but where the crops grown are
difficult to divide, and in the neighbourhood of towns, or on
land held by occupancy tenants, it is not unusual to find
rents paid in cash. The exact rate at which a rent in kind is
paid is largely a matter of custom, and such rents, while vary-
ing considerably from soil to soil, do not change much from
time to time. Cash-rents, on the other hand, have necessarily
increased with the rise in the prices of agricultural produce,
and the average incidence of such rents was Rs. 3-4-7 per acre
in 1901-2.
As more than 48 per cent, of the land is cultivated by the
owners themselves, and a fair portion of the rest by owners
who pay rent only to co-sharers, the tenant class in the North-
West Frontier Province, as in the Punjab, is neither so large
nor so distinctively marked as in the rest of Northern India,
and the law affords much less elaborate protection to the tenant
than is usual in the United Provinces or Bengal. A limited
number of the tenant class, amounting to 22-5 per cent, of the
whole, has been marked off by the legislature on certain
historical grounds as entitled to rights of occupancy ; and the
rents of this class, if paid in cash, cannot be enhanced to a
rate exceeding the land revenue by more than 12^ to 75
per cent, (according to circumstances). In the case of the
remaining tenants who hold at will, no limit is fixed to the dis-
cretion of the landlord in the matter of enhancement ; but the
procedure to be followed in ejectment, and the grant of com-
pensation for improvements legally executed, is provided for by
the law in respect of both classses of tenants. Rent in kind
is usually one-half the produce or more on irrigated and one-
third or less on unirrigated land, the tendency being for rents
to rise on the former.
Wages. With normal prices, the sum required for the food of a
labouring family may be taken at about Rs. 4^ a month, and
to this Rs. \\ a month must be added for a reasonable amount
of furniture, clothing, and other necessaries. The ordinary un-
WAGES AND PRICES 47
skilled labourer, therefore, requires about Rs. 6 a month, or its
value, and this may be taken as the ordinary rate now prevail-
ing. The labourer in a town is usually paid entirely in cash ;
in the country he is paid either wholly or partially in kind.
The agricultural labourer consumes a little more food than the
town labourer; but whereas the latter has house-rent to pay,
the former is generally housed by his employer. The cultivator
who rents but does not own land, lives at a standard of comfort
very little higher than the landless labourer. As his expendi-
ture, like his income, is almost entirely in grain, and a large
part of his food and clothing is produced by himself or his
family, it is difficult to estimate his receipts in money ; but it
would probably be correct to say that, when the ordinary day
labourer of the Province receives Rs. 6 a month, the income
of the cultivator after paying his rent would be represented by
something like Rs. 7 or Rs. 8, while if the cultivator were also
an owner of land, his average income, after payment of Govern-
ment dues, might be put at Rs. 10, or more. Skilled labourers,
such as blacksmiths or masons, get about Rs. 16 a month or its
equivalent, and carpenters still more. A clerk receiving between
Rs. 20 and Rs. 30 has to maintain a better style of dress and
living than men with the same income who work with their
hands. Wages are now twice or thrice as high as they were
under Sikh rule, and there has been a progressive rise in
recent years. So far as the labourer's food is concerned, its
money value has increased 30 to 35 per cent, since 1880, while
the other items of his expenditure have decreased in price ; and
it would probably be correct to say that during the same period
the labourers' wages have risen some 20 to 25 per cent. With
artisans the increase has been larger, or from 2510 30 per cent.
During the decade 1891-1901 the extension of railways, roads,
and cantonments greatly increased the demand for skilled, and
to a less extent for unskilled, labour. Wages in consequence
have risen more than the cost of living. At harvest time
labour from the Punjab and independent territory is required.
No official statistics are maintained regarding the prices of Prices,
any but agricultural staples. The rise of prices is best studied
in the retail figures, which are available in greater complete-
ness than the others. The table on the next page shows rates,
in seers per rupee, at the principal centres.
From these it will be seen that the rise in the price of agri- Material
cultural produce has been steady and almost universal, varying coition
from nearly 40 per cent, in the price of wheat, the most people,
important crop, during the last twenty-three years at Dera
48 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Ismail Khan, to less than 5 per cent, in the case of gram at
Peshawar during the same period. The price of land has
steadily risen meanwhile ; and there is no reason why the agri-
cultural population, among whom the standard of comfort has
enormously improved, especially in Peshawar, should not have
their full share in the prosperity of the country, but for their
inveterate propensity to improvidence and extravagance, to
say nothing of litigation and crime, which has caused so
much land in Peshawar to pass into the hands of the money-
lending mortgagee.
Percentage of
area under
crops in 1903-4.
Peshawar.
Dera Ismail Khan.
Average for
ten years ending
'9<>3-
Average for
ten years ending
'903 •
1880.
1890.
1900.
1880.
1890.
1900.
Wheat .
Gram
Jowar
Bajra
Kohati salt
38-4
6-7
3-°
8-3
*9-l3
20-06
27'37
23.69
18-69
21-13
28-06
22-06
16-69
1 8-00
zi-43
16-25
29-62
15.16
19-11
21-69
16-47
17-36
24-87
27-81
36-81
24-87
18-69
25-25
27.62
24-56
'7-75
21-43
22-18
18-50
24-62
"5-35
19-84
26-87
20-89
15-67
Forests. The operations of the Forest department are confined to
the 'reserved' forests in Hazara, which have an area of 235
square miles, and that District forms the only forest division
in the Province. It is in charge of a Deputy-Conservator,
under the control of the Revenue Commissioner, but the Con-
servator of Forests, Punjab, exercises a general professional
superintendence over the management of the forests. The
financial results of the department are shown below : —
1880-1 to
1880-90
(average).
1890-1 to
1899-1900
(average).
1900-1.
1903-4-
Revenue
Expenditure
Surplus
Rs.
78,000
60,000
Rs.
87,000
62,000
Rs.
89,000
53,000
Rs.
83,000
53,000
18,000
25,000
36,000
31,000
The revenue is principally derived from sales of deodar. The
village forests of Hazara are also important, and the Deputy-
Commissioner is entrusted with their administration. Hazara
likewise contains military reserves, 8 square miles in area. In
Kohat 74 square miles of unclassed forest and Government
waste are controlled by the Deputy-Commissioner, and there
is a small forest area in Peshawar in which the people have
rights jointly with Government. The other two Districts
MINES AND MINERALS 49
contain a few scattered rakhs, but these consist chiefly of
scrub and form grazing-grounds rather than forests. The
chief trees in the Hazara forests are deodar, Pinus excelsa, blue
pine, Scotch fir, wild cherry, ilex, sycamore, horse-chestnut,
walnut, and yew ; while in the other Districts the shisham
(Dalbergia Sissoo)^ mulberry, willow, Melia sempervirens, Acacia
modesta, tamarisk, olive, and poplar are most common. The
dwarf-palm grows largely in the lower hills, and is much used
for making mats and other articles. Beyond the administrative
border the Waziristan hills contain some fine forests, as do the
upper slopes of the Safed Koh in Kurram, and the highest
ranges in Chitral. All these forests, however, are as yet almost
unexplored.
The only mineral product of commercial importance in the Mines and
Province is rock-salt, which is obtained from the Jatta, Malgln, ^j"6
Bahadur Khel, and Karak quarries in Kohat District. The
average output during the six years ending 1903 was 2,640 tons.
Saltpetre is manufactured in most Districts from the nitrous
earth found on village sites. In 1903-4 there were three
refineries in the Province, which produced about 150 tons of
refined saltpetre and 25 cwt. of impure salt (sitta).
Associated with the Kohat salt are layers of gypsum and Other
alum shale, but they are at present of no commercial impor- mmerals-
tance. Marble is worked in Peshawar District near Naushahra
and opposite Attock. Limestone and sandstone are abundant,
and are locally used for building. There are petroleum springs
at Panoba in Kohat, and in one or two other places in the
Province, but the amount of oil yielded is insignificant. Under
Sikh rule, sulphur was worked near Nakband in Kohat District,
but the pits are now closed. It is also found with gypsum in
the Sulaiman range. Gold occurs in minute quantities in the
sands of the Indus and Kabul rivers. Traces of lignite have
been observed in Hazara and in the Sheikh Budm range, and
probably exist in other parts of the Province. The lignite in
Hazara is regularly worked and made into briquettes for local
use, but the out-turn does not exceed 1,055 cwt- annually.
Coal of a fairly good description has also been recently found,
in considerable quantities, along the eastern border of Bannu
and Kohat Districts in the Maidan range which separates
them from the Punjab District of Mianwali. Iron is found in
the Yusufzai hills, where there are signs of old workings, and
workings still exist in Waziristan. Red hematite ore is also
found at Bakot in Hazara District. From Bajaur fused or
hammered iron of good quality is imported into Peshawar.
50 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Arts and
manu-
factures.
Cotton.
Afiidi
waxcloth.
Wool.
Silk.
The metal is said to be abundant at Baroul in Dlr, but is no
longer worked. Antimony has been found with iron at Bakot,
and a very good ore is also imported from Bajaur. The
Mehtar of Chitral has derived a considerable income in recent
years from the sale of orpiment, but the mine now shows
signs of exhaustion.
Coarse cotton fabrics are woven by hand in every part of
the Province, but there is no export, as the amount made is in-
sufficient for home consumption. Beautiful longcloths or khes
are made in Dera Ismail Khan, Kohat, and Peshawar. Finer
fabrics are generally woven for lungis (turbans), mostly in grey
or dark blue, with richly worked end-pieces in bands of gold
thread (tild) or coloured silk ; and in Hazara fine stripes and
checks are produced.
A very interesting production of Peshawar is a cotton fabric
decorated with a substance called roghan, a preparation of
oil obtained from the wild safflower (Carthamus oxyacantha\
by the Afridis, whence the material is generally known as
Afridi waxcloth. The roghan is applied in a plastic condition
to the fabric by means of an iron style on the lines of the
required pattern. It is then pressed into the cloth with the
moistened tip of the finger, when it sets and firmly adheres to
the texture. Various colours are used, and the composition
is often dusted over before drying with powdered mica, thus
giving the pattern a silvery gloss.
Peshawar and Dera Ismail Khan produce wool of fair quality,
but the only woollen goods woven are blankets, the best of
which are made in Swat for export. Woollen camel-bags are
also woven. Felted namdas are used as coverings for animals,
for keeping ice, and for saddle-pads, the better qualities having
coloured designs inserted. Hazara and Kohat export namdas on
a large scale, the largest serving as carpets. Among the Wazlrs
on the Bannu border a kind of woollen dart is made, with a bold
design and some artistic merit. The Marwats of Bannu Dis-
trict also make woollen-pile rugs, locally known as nakhais.
Silk-spinning and weaving are fairly important industries at
Kohat and Peshawar, where silk turbans (lungis) are woven,
and a few other silk fabrics are made in the latter city. At
both places, turbans are more commonly made of fine cotton,
ornamented with stripes and bars of silk and gold thread. The
Kohat lungl is richly ornamented with coloured silk bars and
stripes at the ends, something like the familiar Algerian stripes.
The pattern is known as the Bangash lungl, and, like the check
of a Scottish tartan, is distinctive of a particular khel or clan.
ARTS AND MANUFACTURES 51
The stitch peculiar to frontier embroideries is that known as Em-
herring-bone, and is the most characteristic feature of the
indigenous embroideries of India. In every District wraps,
known as phulkdris, are embroidered with silk, those of Hazara
being of special excellence. White drawn embroidery (chikan
doz] is made in Peshawar, and some of the patterns worked on
fine muslin are of exquisite fineness and beauty. It is chiefly
applied to the veils (burkas) worn by Muhammadan ladies,
and to quilts or soznis.
The ornaments worn on the frontier are few and simple, Jewellery,
and differ little from those in other parts of Northern India.
At Peshawar massive necklets of characteristic patterns, and
bangles forming a single curved roll with open-work perfora-
tions, are made. In Hazara silver is wrought into necklaces
and other articles, plates are cut out in the form of a cartouche,
made convex and roughly embossed and engraved, the ground
being filled in with imitation enamel in green and red. Per-
sonal ornaments are sometimes crudely enamelled in blue and
yellow, while occasionally the pattern is emphasized by being
roughly gilt.
Before the introduction of British rule, swords and match- Iron-work,
locks were made in almost every part of the frontier, and
Peshawar still produces sword-blades and knives, while the
manufacture of firearms, once an important industry, now
flourishes in the Kohat Pass.
Copper-ware, tinned for Muhammadan domestic use, is one Brass and
of the specialities of Peshawar. It is all hammered work, the c°PPer-
r work,
patterns being engraved and often loaded with lac. Trays, dishes,
ewers with basins, and wine-bowls are the usual objects ; and
the workmen, unlike those of Kashmir who work in the same
style, have not attempted adaptations to European uses. The
Persian character and feeling of the ornament is much more
striking than in Kashmir work, the chasing is simpler and
bolder, and the forms are often identical with Persian originals,
which in their turn were copied from Tatar vessels. Very
little brass-ware is made, its use being mainly confined to
Hindus, who are not numerous in the Province.
At Peshawar glazed earthenware or faience is manufactured Pottery,
for native use. The reddish earth body or paste is coated
with a dressing of white earth, forming the slip or engobe. It
is then dipped into a glaze, of which the basis is lead oxide.
Rude patterns in manganese are outlined on the unburnt
glaze, and filled in with oxide of copper, the result being green
leaves, outlined in brown, on a dirty greenish white. Besides
£ 2
5 2 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Wood-
work.
Leather-
work.
Factories.
Commerce
and trade.
Trade
routes.
glazed ware, earthen vessels decorated with fleeting water-
coloured painting or in coarsely pencilled parti-coloured
patterns, and glass phials and bottles are made at Peshawar.
Hazara and Bannu produce a very good quality of unglazed
earthenware.
Boats are built in some numbers in Peshawar District ; and
the carpentry of the city is above the average, a speciality being
pinjra, a kind of lattice-work, in walnut and other woods, in
which the tracery consists of small laths, arranged in geome-
trical patterns with their edges displayed. The charm of this
work lies in the fact that each small piece is fitted to the other
by means of a minute joint, no glue being used. The lac
turnery, carried on at Dera Ismail Khan, is of considerable
artistic merit, and is applied to larger articles than is usual in
this class of work, the small round tables being" well-known.
The general tone of colour is subdued and almost sombre, red,
black, and dark green, relieved by a little grey, being the
principal colours, with ornaments in amalgam, which have the
effect of dull silvery lines. The pattern is always inscribed
with a style, and in certain parts the lines are filled with
amalgam. Ivory and camel-bone ornaments in the shape of
knobs, studs, and flowers are liberally employed. The lac-ware
of Bannu is bolder in design, and of some merit, though in
technique it is inferior to that of Dera Ismail Khan. The
chdrpais or beds of the Wazlrs are so contrived that they can
be used as chairs in the daytime.
The tanners of the frontier make richly embroidered leathern
belts, with powder flasks, bullet cases, flint and steel pouches,
and other accoutrements attached. They also make sheep-
skin coats or postlns (inferior to those imported), water-bottles,
mule trunks, and a certain amount of saddlery. The shoes
have a great reputation, and articles in embossed leather are
produced at the same place.
Organized industries are still in their infancy ; and the only
factories are one at Peshawar for ginning and cleaning cotton,
and ice factories at Bannu and Kohat.
The Frontier Province, with a territory for the most part
sparsely inhabited, and without manufactures or a considerable
surplus of agricultural products, owes its commercial importance
to the fact that it lies across the great trade-routes which con-
nect trans-border tribal territories and the marts of Afghanistan
and Central Asia with India. These routes are determined
mainly by geographical and, to some extent by political, con-
ditions. The imports from Buner and Bajaur come through
COMMERCE AND TRADE 53
Naushahra. Most of this traffic still comes over the Malakand
Pass, but the pacification of the country is leading to a more
general use of the shorter routes, via the Shahkot and Murad
passes and the Totai road. Commerce with Tlrah passes
through Peshawar and Kohat. The trade of Afghanistan
comes down wholly through those two Districts and the Tochi
and Gomal valleys. The bulk of it is carried on with Peshawar
by the Khyber Pass, which is open for traffic two days a week
under the protection of the Khyber Rifles. Some of the trade
also crosses the Peiwar Kotal into the Kurram valley and
thence down to Kohat. Next in importance is the Gomal
route, which has been steadily increasing in popularity since
the pacification which followed the Mahsiid blockade of
1901-2. The Chuhar Khel Dhana and Vihowa Kharr routes,
once important, are being abandoned by the nomad tribes
of Afghanistan for the more developed route by rail through
Baluchistan, and now only supply local needs in the country
east of Kalat-i-Ghilzai and Ghazni. The trade is borne on
camels which travel in caravans ; and the owners, the Powindas,
or nomad merchants, generally pass through the Province,
without breaking bulk, to Lahore, Amritsar, and Multan, or,
if they can afford the journey, to Calcutta and Bombay.
Peshawar city carries on a considerable trade with Afghanistan,
but is too remote from the lower provinces of India to form an
entrepot for the Central Asian trade, and an attempt made in
1869 to establish a fair there failed. The trade with Bokhara,
once important and lucrative, has steadily declined under the
double system of transit and customs dues levied by the Amir
of Afghanistan and the Russians, who have included Bokhara
in their customs system. Such of the trade as still survives
is being diverted to the Batoum-Bombay sea route.
The trade which is carried along these routes is registered at
convenient places near the entrances to the passes traversed by
the caravans.
From Buner are imported sheep, goats, grain, pulses, hides Imports
and skins, and^j. From Bajaur come similar products, with (h°ms
cordage and mats, oils, timber, and wool. From Tlrah are border,
imported cordage, ropes, raw fibre, fruit, vegetables and nuts,
hides and skins, leather, mats, and timber. The imports from
Kabul are chiefly sheep and goats, fruit, nuts and vegetables,
wheat, asafoetida and other drugs, hides and skins, mats, ghi,
timber, silk, and wool. The trade has-greatly increased since
1901, when the severe restrictions imposed on it by the late
Amir, Abdur Rahman, were partially removed.
54 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Exports
across the
border.
The chief exports across the border are cotton piece-goods,
twist and yarn, salt, sugar, tea, tobacco, hardware, metals,
leather, dyeing materials, silver, and coin.
Statistics of the trans-border trade are given in the table on
page 87. It will be observed that in 1903-4 the value of
exports exceeded that of imports by Rs. 44,12,000, and that
the excess of treasure exported amounted to Rs. 2,64,000.
The value in 1903-4 of the trade carried on with the prin-
cipal territories, as far as this is registered, is shown below, in
thousands of rupees. The trade with Kabul includes that with
Central Asia; and that with Bajaur includes the large and
increasing commerce with Swat, Chitral, and the countries
east of the Hindu Kush.
Afghani-
stan.
Tlrah.
Bajaur.
Buner.
Imports from .
29,84
3>96
33>»8
1,97
Exports to
5M8
4,73
55.91
3,6i
Trade with
other
Provinces
and States
of India.
Means of
communi-
cation.
Railways.
The table on p. 86 shows the rail-borne trade with other
Provinces and States in India, and that with Kashmir, which is
entirely by road through Hazara District. Cotton piece-goods,
metals, tea, and woollen goods are the principal imports ; hides,
skins, apparel (chiefly furs), and tobacco are the principal
exports. The general conditions of the trade with Kashmir
resemble those of the trans-border trade, in that there is a con-
siderable excess of exports. Ghl is the chief import and piece-
goods are the main export. Statistics of the goods carried down
the Indus are not available.
The Province is traversed by the North-Western Railway
system of the Punjab, which gives communication at three
points. The Attock bridge conducts the main line over the
Indus to Peshawar, 1,520 miles from Calcutta, and a broad-
gauge extension, 12 miles in length, runs to Fort Jamrud at
the mouth of the Khyber Pass. From Naushahra cantonment
a narrow-gauge branch runs via Mardan to Dargai at the foot
of the Malakand Pass. The second point of connexion is at
Khushalgarh, also on the Indus, 53 miles south of Attock.
Here the river is crossed by a bridge of boats, which forms a
link between the Mari-Attock branch of the North-Western
Railway and the narrow-gauge line to Kohat and Thai ; but a
railway bridge is now being built across the Indus, and on its
completion the Khushalgarh-Kohat-Thal line will be converted
to the broad-gauge. Farther south there is no railway in the
Province, but Dera Ismail Khan is connected with Darya
MEANS OF COMMUNICATION 55
Khan on the Sind-Sagar branch of the North-Western Railway
by a bridge of boats during the cold season. The only line
open in 1891 was that from the Attock bridge to Peshawar,
44 miles in length. In 1904 the total length of railways open
was 1 88 miles.
The railway system is supplemented by several important Roads,
roads. The grand trunk road runs beside the railway from
Attock to Peshawar, and thence through the Khyber to Landi
Kotal. A metalled road, 234 miles long, passes from Peshawar,
through Kohat and Bannu, to Dera Ismail Khan, traversing
the whole length of the Province. A similar road connects
Khushalgarh with Kohat and Thai, a distance of 96 miles.
From Thai a partially metalled road runs up the Kurram valley
to Parachinar (57 miles), whence a trade route leads over the
Peiwar and Shutargardan Passes to Kabul. The roads from
Bannu to Datta Khel up the Tochi valley (64 miles), and from
Dera Ismail Khan to Murtaza via Tank (60 miles), are also
metalled. The latter is being extended to Wana (57 miles),
which lies a little north of the Gomal. The cis-Indus District
of Hazara is entered by a road (metalled) from Hassan Abdal
on the North-Western Railway in the Attock District of the
Punjab to Abbottabad (44 miles), whence it runs through Garh
Hablbullah to Domel in Kashmir.
All the metalled roads thus lie in the settled Districts, or
in the administered parts of trans-border territories, and are
entirely a creation of British rule. In 1890-1 the total
length was only 294 miles, but in 1900-1 it had risen to 448
and in 1904 to 524 miles. Apart from these, and excluding
the metalled roads within cantonment and municipal limits,
the Province possessed, in 1900-1, 4,208 miles of unmetalled
road ; but these are often mere camel tracks, with bridges of
boats over the deeper streams in the hot season. Roads are
maintained from Imperial revenues, municipal, cantonment,
and District funds.
Mail tongas ply between Hassan Abdal and Abbottabad ; Means of
Peshawar and Kohat ; Thai and Parachinar ; Kohat and Bannu,
and thence to both Datta Khel and to Dera Ismail Khan ; and
from the last place to Tank and Murtaza. Cherat and Sheikh
Budin also enjoy a tonga service in summer time. Bullock-
carts, ekkas, and light two-wheeled traps are used on the
metalled and on some of the better unmetalled roads ; but the
great mass of the traffic is carried on pack-animals, camels
being mainly employed, though buffaloes and donkeys are
also used.
56 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Rivers. The navigable rivers of the Province are the Indus, Swat, and
Kabul. The bulk of the traffic is on the Indus, on which
there is a regular trade down-stream to Multan and Sind, the
boats being generally broken up or sold at the end of their
voyage to save the expense of towing them up-stream. As has
been said, the Indus is crossed by the Attock bridge and at
Khushalgarh and Dera Ismail Khan by bridges of boats. At
the latter place a steam ferry replaces the bridge in the hot
season. Passengers have often to wade up to their necks through
subsidiary channels to reach the steamer, which only plies across
the main channel. Elsewhere the ordinary country ferry-boat
is used, or the rivers are crossed by means of inflated skins,
the possession of which without a licence is prohibited by law,
owing to the facilities they afford to criminals.
Post The territories under the administration of the Chief Com-
missioner of the North- West Frontier Province form a part of
the postal circle in charge of the Postmaster-General, Punjab
and North-West Frontier Province. There are only two postal
divisions in the Province, which is included with Kashmir in
a single telegraph division. The figures below show the postal
business of the Province in 1 903-4 : —
Number of post offices and letter boxes . 574
Number of miles of postal communication . 2,088
Total number of postal articles delivered : —
Letters 3,73o,37a
Postcards 3,609,970
Packets 473,082
Parcels 91,910
Newspapers . . . . . . 428,584
Value of stamps sold to the public . . Rs. 216,810
Value of money orders issued . . . Rs. 4,601,827
,, „ ,, paid .... Rs. 2,967,848
Famine. Though parts of the Province are liable to drought and
occasional scarcity, famine conditions have never been recorded
in any part of it. Most of the cultivated area enjoys good
rainfall or irrigation, or both. The pressure of the population
on the soil is comparatively light ; the people are enterprising
and usually have other resources besides agriculture. These
include service in the army, the local militia corps, the civil and
border military police, employment by railway and steamship
companies as navvies and stokers, and trade, especially in
Kohat salt, and in forest produce in Hazara.
In Hazara the holdings are, generally speaking, fairly large ;
and the rainfall is so copious that during the last twenty years
there has never been any serious failure of the crops, except in
ADMINISTRA TION 5 7
one or two isolated tracts. Peshawar District as a whole is
practically secure from drought, except in part of the Peshawar
tahsil, where the holdings are comparatively small, and the
irrigation from the Bara river somewhat precarious, and in
parts of the Naushahra and Mardan tahstls, where cultivation is
wholly dependent on the rainfall ; but even in the insecure
parts of these two tahslls the people trade in wool and salt, and
are not wholly dependent on cultivation. In Bannu a con-
siderable portion of the cultivated area is irrigated and secure ;
and though the people of the unirrigated tracts are sometimes
compelled to tide over a season of scarcity by migrating with
their cattle to more favoured parts of their own or neighbour-
ing Districts, the average rainfall though small is sufficient
for the light but fertile soil, the surplus of one good harvest
covers the deficiencies of many, and a succession of bad
harvests is seldom experienced. In Kohat the rainfall is fairly
constant, part of the area is irrigated and practically secure,
and the salt-mines and forests in the barren tracts provide
those who are most liable to feel the pinch of scarcity with
the means of earning a livelihood as carriers of salt and wood.
In Dera Ismail Khan the rainfall is scanty and capricious ; but
the Indus valley is never actually confronted with scarcity, and
the people in the daman tract, whose revenue is in ordinary
years trifling as compared with the crop harvested, migrate in
seasons of scarcity to the Indus valley, and when seasonable
rain falls return to their own villages and recoup themselves
by bilmper crops. Many of these tribes, being of Powinda
origin, are also able to eke out a livelihood by trading down
country. The whole of the Province is thus fairly secure from
famine, and no relief is usually necessary beyond suspensions
and remissions of land revenue.
The North-West Frontier Province comprises both British Adminis-
Districts and also the tribal areas under the political control of tratlon-
the British Government which stretch northward and westward
towards Afghanistan. In 1901 it was constituted a separate
administration, and placed under the control of a Chief Com-
missioner, who is also, in the political areas, Agent to the
Governor-General of India. Lieutenant-Colonel Sir H. A.
Deane was appointed to this office, which he still holds. His
staff consists of members of the Indian Civil Service, military
officers of the Political department of the Government of
India and the Punjab Commission, members of the Provincial
and Subordinate Civil Services, Police officers, and officers
specially recruited for the departments requiring special know-
5 8 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Adminis-
trative
divisions.
ledge. The direct administrative functions of government are
performed by the Chief Commissioner through a Revenue
Commissioner (who is also Revenue and Financial Secre-
tary to the Chief Commissioner, Director of Land Records
and Agriculture, Commissioner of Excise, Superintendent of
Stamps, Registrar-General, Inspector-General of Registration
and Registrar of Joint-Stock Companies, and as regards Courts
of Wards also fulfils the functions of the Financial Commissioner
and Commissioner in the Punjab), a Secretary, an Assistant
Secretary, a Staff officer for militia and border military police,
and a Personal Assistant. The following are the heads of
departments : the Administrative Medical Officer (also in
charge of jails and sanitation) ; the Inspector-General of
Education and Archaeological Surveyor ; and the Inspector-
General of Police. The Officer commanding Royal Engineers
is head of the Public Works department, but the canals in
Peshawar District are under the Irrigation department of the
Punjab. The Accountant-General of the Punjab exercises
control over the finances of the Province.
The British territory in the Province is divided into five Dis-
tricts, of which the largest, Dera Ismail Khan, has an area
of 3,401 square miles, and the smallest, Bannu, 1,676 square
miles. Particulars regarding each District will be found in
the table on p. 84.
Each District is under a Deputy-Commissioner, and is
divided into sub-collectorates, called tahstls, from 2 to 5 in
number. A tahsll is in charge of a tahsllddr, who is invested
with criminal, civil, and revenue powers, and is assisted by
a naib-tahslldar, who exercises only criminal and revenue
powers. Subordinate to each tahsilddr are 2 or 3 field
kdnungos or revenue officials, each of whom supervises from
13 to 19 patwaris or accountants. A patwdri maintains the
revenue records of 4 or 5 villages. Every village has one
or more village headmen who collect the revenue, and chaukl-
dars or village watchmen. Yusufzai, Mardan, and the Nau-
shahra tahsll in Peshawar, and the tahslls of Thai in Kohat
and Tank in Dera Ismail Khan, form subdivisions, each in
charge of an Assistant or Extra Assistant Commissioner.
Peshawar city is also in charge of a subdivisional officer.
The District is the unit for police, medical, and educational
administration ; and the ordinary staff of each includes a
District Superintendent of police, a Civil Surgeon, who is
also Superintendent of the District jail, and a District In-
spector of schools. The Province forms a single educational
LEGISLATION AND JUSTICE 59
circle, and only possesses one forest division, that of Hazara,
which comprises the District of that name and is in charge
of a Deputy-Conservator under the Revenue Commissioner.
There are four divisions of the Roads and Buildings branch
of the Public Works department, each under an Executive
Engineer, and one division (Peshawar) of the Irrigation branch
in charge of an Executive Engineer, who is subordinate to the
Superintending Engineer, Jhelum Circle, Punjab, and under
the control of the Chief Engineer, Irrigation branch, Punjab.
The territories lying north and west of the British Districts Political
are divided into five Political Agencies — Dir, Swat, and Chit- Agencies,
ral ; the Khyber ; the Kurram ; and Northern and Southern
Wazlristan — each under a Political Agent. The principal Frontier
frontier chieftainship under the political control of the Agent c^.ieftain-
to the Governor-General in the North- West Frontier Province
is Chitral, which is included in the Dir, Swat, and Chitral
Agency. Other chieftainships in this Agency are the Khan-
ates of Dir and Nawagai (comprising most of Bajaur). Both
of these are divided into numerous minor Khanates, held
on a kind of feudal tenure by relatives of the chief Khans.
The title of Nawab has recently been conferred on the Khan
of Dir. In the remaining tribal territories nothing approaching
an organized state can be said to exist.
Under the North-West Frontier Province Law and Justice Legislation
Regulation of 1901, custom governs all questions regarding and justice,
succession, betrothal, marriage, divorce, the separate property iaw>
of women, dower, wills, gifts, partitions, family relations such
as adoption and guardianship, and religious usages and institu-
tions, provided that the custom be not contrary to justice,
equity, or good conscience. In these matters the Muham-
madan or Hindu law is applied only in the absence of special
custom.
The Legislative Council created for the Punjab in 1897 Legisla-
had jurisdiction over the British Districts of the North-West tion-
Frontier Province, until by the constitution of the latter as
a separate administration in 1901 its jurisdiction was with-
drawn, and the Province now has no Council. The following
are the chief legislative measures affecting the Province which
have been passed since 1880 : —
Acts of the Governor-General in (Legislative} Council.
The District Boards Act, XX of 1 883.
The Punjab Municipal Acts, XIII of 1884 and XX of 1891.
The Punjab Tenancy and Land Revenue Acts, XVI and XVII of 1889.
The Punjab Land Alienation Act, XIII of 1900, as modified by Regula-
tion I of 1904.
60 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Adminis-
tration of
justice.
Civil
courts.
Criminal
courts.
Regulations of the Governor-General in (Executive) Council.
The Frontier Crimes Regulation, III of 1901.
The Frontier Murderous Outrages Regulation, IV of 1901.
The North- West Frontier Province Law and Justice Regulation, VII of
1901, which embodies certain provisions of the Punjab Courts Act, XVIII
of 1884 (as amended by Acts XIII of 1888, XIX of 1895, and XXV of 1899).
Acts of the Punjab Legislative Council.
The Punjab Limitation Act, I of 1900.
The Punjab Municipal Amendment Act, III of 1900.
The Punjab Riverain Boundaries Act, I of 1899.
The Punjab Descent of Jagirs Act, IV of 1900.
The administration of justice in the British Districts was
not affected by their transfer from the Punjab, except that the
supreme court in both civil and criminal matters is now that
of the Judicial Commissioner, which has taken the place of the
Chief Court of the Punjab. Subordinate to him are the two
Divisional and Sessions Judges of Peshawar and the Derajat.
As Divisional Judges these officers decide most of the appeals
in civil suits from the courts of first instance. As Sessions
Judges they try sessions cases, with the aid of assessors, and
hear criminal appeals. Thus the Divisional and Sessions
Judges in this Province fulfil the functions of District and
Sessions Judges in the Regulation Provinces. Appeals in
minor civil suits from the Munsifs' courts are heard by the
District Judge, whose court is also the principal court of
original civil jurisdiction in the District. The Divisional and
District Courts are established under Regulation VII of 1901,
which also provides for the appointment of Subordinate Judges
(exercising unlimited civil jurisdiction) and Munsifs. The
latter are of three grades, the jurisdiction of a first-grade
Munsif being limited to suits not exceeding Rs. 1,000 in value.
Two Munsifs are also invested with the powers of a Small
Cause Court, under Act IX of 1887.
The criminal courts are those established under the Code of
Criminal Procedure. The Deputy-Commissioner is ex-offlcio
District-Magistrate, and as such is ordinarily empowered to try
all offences not punishable with death, and to inflict sentences
of seven years' imprisonment. Additional District and sub-
divisional magistrates are usually invested with these powers.
Assistant and Extra Assistant Commissioners are, when
qualified, appointed magistrates of the first class. Tahsllddrs
generally have second and naib-tahstlddrs third-class powers.
Honorary magistrates, sitting singly or as benches, also exercise
first or second, but more commonly third-class magisterial
FINANCE 61
powers in Districts or smaller local jurisdictions. In all
Districts an offender may be tried by a council of elders under
the Frontier Crimes Regulation, and the Deputy-Commissioner
may pass any sentence of imprisonment not exceeding fourteen
years in accordance with the findings of the council. Sentences
exceeding seven years require the confirmation of the Chief
Commissioner, who has also revisional jurisdiction in all cases
under the Frontier Crimes Regulation.
The revenue courts established under the Punjab Tenancy Revenue
Act are . those of the Revenue Commissioner, Collector courts-
(Deputy-Commissioner), and Assistant Collectors of the first
and second grades. These courts decide all suits regarding
tenant-right, rents, and divers cognate matters in which the
civil courts have no jurisdiction. Appeals from the Assistant
Collectors ordinarily lie to the Collector, and from him to the
Revenue Commissioner with certain limitations.
As regards the territories beyond the border, with certain Trans-
modifications, the provisions of the Indian Penal and Criminal |>on?er .
Procedure Codes, and of the Frontier Crimes and Murderous
Outrages Regulations, have been extended to the administered
portions of the Political Agencies of Dir, Swat, and Chitral,
the Khyber, the Kurram, Northern and Southern Wazlristan,
and also to the Shirani country under the provisions of
the Foreign Jurisdiction and Extradition Act. The Political
Agents in Northern and Southern Wazlristan and the Kurram
exercise all the powers of a District Magistrate and Court of
Session in respect of offences punishable under the Indian
Penal Code, the functions of a High Court as regards appeal,
reference, and revision being exercised by the Judicial
Commissioner.
The Registration agency is chiefly official. All Deputy- Registra-
Commissioners are registrars and all tahsilddrs are sub- t*on-
registrars under the Act; but there are also five non-official
sub-registrars, who are remunerated by a percentage on the
fees collected. In 1903 the Province had 28 registering
officers and 9,996 documents were registered. General
control over registration is exercised by the Revenue Com-
missioner.
The revenue and expenditure of the North-West Frontier Finance.
Province are wholly Imperial, and separate figures for its
finances are only available since 1902-3 (see the table on p. 88).
Speaking generally, the receipts from irrigation have largely
increased within the past few years in Peshawar, the only
District in which they are separated from the land revenue
6z NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Land
revenue.
Tenures.
Redistri-
bution of
land.
receipts. The land revenue was below the average in 1902-3,
a year unfavourable for agriculture. The receipts under this
head will be enhanced on the completion of the reassessments
now in progress in several Districts. Other heads of receipt
show a steady tendency to increase. The expenditure of the
new Province, with its growing requirements, also tends to rise.
The large excess of expenditure over income is due to the
geographical position and political importance of the Province,
considerations of imperial policy calling for special outlay
under Political (which includes subsidies to tribes, maintenance
of frontier militias and tribal levies), police, general adminis-
tration, and civil public works.
The character of the land tenures in the settled Districts of
the North-West Frontier Province generally resembles those of
the PUNJAB, and only such as present peculiar local features
will be here described. Among the Pathans, who own the
largest amount of land in the Province, the original occupation
of the land may be described as a tribal tenure, a tribe holding
a tract of land which was divided into tappas or lots each held
by a main subdivision of the tribe ; these lots were again
divided into blocks, each held by a section (khel) of the
subdivision ; these blocks were yet again divided into ' sides '
(kandi or taraf), held by sub-sections of the khel, generally
branches of what was originally a single family; and finally
each kandi was subdivided into shares (bakhra}, each held by
an individual proprietor. The bakhra did not, however, form
a single compact plot of land, for, to ensure equality, every
kandi was divided into wands according to the nature of the
soil and the facilities for irrigation, and a bakhra comprised one
or more fields in each wand. These fields usually ran the
whole length of the wand, and as population increased the
fields became so narrow that their cultivation was difficult.
This, combined with the development of well and canal culti-
vation, has forced the people to abandon the old system
of division, and the old practice of a periodical redistribution of
holdings (vesft).
A characteristic of the Pathan tenure was the periodical
redistribution (vesK) of the land among not only the individual
members of a section, but even among the various sections of
the tribes as a whole. This redistribution was made by lot,
if the majority desired it. The shares on which the original
partition was made were in some cases maintained, but in
others every male and in others again every male and female
of the tribe received an equal share. The last method was
LAND REVENUE 63
followed in a remarkably complete form in the Marwat (Bannu
District) and T§nk (Dera Ismail Khan) tahslls, in which
a khulla or ' mouth ' vesh was made, every man, woman, and
child receiving a share. The period for which a vesh was made
was rarely less than five or more than, fifteen or twenty years.
Even as late as 1904 a redistribution of two large estates in
Marwat, based on the existing number of ' mouths,' was
allowed, but in many other cases it was held that the custom
had become obsolete. The system prevailed more or less in
every District except Hazara, and among every tribe save the
Wazirs. Traces of it still linger in Upper Miranzai (Kohat
District) and Yusufzai (Peshawar) ; but they are rapidly dis-
appearing, and the tribal shares are now only maintained as
a basis for the distribution of water for irrigation, or for the
partition of land still held in common. In the unadministered
territories, however, the system survives. For example in
Buner, and among the Isazai clans, the land and houses held
by each clan are still divided among the adult males. In Swat
the vesh, which originally extended to the whole valley, so that
a tribesman had to change land, house, and village periodi-
cally, is now limited to the village and the land within its
limits.
The method and standard of assessments in the British Settle-
Districts of the Province are the same as in the PUNJAB, but in ment>
some, for political reasons, the assessments are lighter. Thus
in Peshawar the demand is only 52 per cent, of the estimated
half ' net assets.' In Dera Ismail Khan the recent settlement
fixed a demand of 71 per cent., and in Kohat from 70 to
75 per cent., of half 'net assets;' In Hazara and Bannu Dis-
tricts, now under re-assessment, the term of the old settlements
was thirty years, and the existing demand is extremely light.
The term is twenty years in Peshawar, and that period has
been fixed provisionally for the latest revisions in Kohat and
Dera Ismail Khan. As a rule, the demand is fixed for the term
of settlement ; but owing to the uncertainty of the seasons and
the precarious returns from cultivation, fluctuating assessments
have been introduced in parts of Dera Ismail Khan, and it
is proposed to extend the system to Marwat (Bannu). Else-
where fixed cash assessments work satisfactorily.
Of the Agencies only KURRAM and the Tochi valley
(Northern Waziristan) pay land revenue to the British Govern-
ment. The former was summarily assessed in 1894 for a
period of ten years, and is now being reassessed. On the
occupation of the Tochi valley in 1895 the Daurs undertook to
64 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Aliena-
tions.
Miscella-
neous
revenue.
Salt.
pay Government a tithe of the gross produce, and pending
a settlement this was commuted into an annual payment of
Rs. 8,000 in cash. A regular settlement has now resulted in
a demand of Rs. 3,600.
The Punjab Alienation of Land Act (XIII of 1900) has been
extended to Hazara, Dera Ismail Khan, and Bannu ; but it is
not proposed to apply it to the purely Pathan Districts of
Peshawar and Kohat, in which the feeling of personal and
individual ownership is strong, 'and interference with free-
dom of transfer would be resented. In independent territory
absolute free trade in land has been the rule from time
immemorial.
Salt is obtained from the Kohat salt quarries. Under Sikh
rule these were farmed to local chiefs. At annexation light
duties were imposed, allowances being made to the Khan of
Teri and other chiefs to secure their co-operation in the new
arrangements, and a preventive line was established on the
Indus to prevent the export of Kohat salt to the Cis-Indus
territory. In 1883 the duty was raised to 8 annas per local
maund (io2^| lb.). In 1896 the duty was increased to Rs. 2 per
local maimd, and the preventive line was withdrawn, but the
prohibition against the export of this salt to Cis-Indus territory
was maintained. The management of the quarries, which was
formerly in the hands of the Punjab Government, was trans-
ferred to the Northern India Salt Revenue department in 1 899.
The Deputy-Commissioner of Kohat District is ex offirio
Deputy-Commissioner of Salt Revenue.
Kohat salt is greyish to black in colour, but of good
quality, chemical analysis showing that it possesses from 87 to
94 per cent, of chloride of sodium. Traders purchase the salt
they require direct from the miners under the supervision of the
officers of the Salt department. Since 1903 the duty has been
Rs. 1-8 per maund of 82 lb. The quarries are at Jatta,
Malgin, Bahadur Khel, and Kharak. A little Cis-Indus rock-
salt is imported, but practically all the salt consumed in the
Province is obtained from the local source. About half the
salt produced in the Kohat quarries is exported to Afghanistan,
Tirah, Buner, and the Dir, Swat, and Chitral Agency. The
registered export to Afghanistan amounted in 1903-4 to 1,285
tons, compared with 564 in 1901-2.
Details of the quantities of salt sold for consumption within
the Districts which lie west of the Indus in this Province and
the Punjab, and of the revenue derived therefrom are given
in the table on the next page.
MISCELLANEOUS REVENUE
Quantity of
salt sola at
the mines in
Kohat Dis-
Imported
from Cis-
Indus mines
Exported
beyond the
Province.
Salt placed
for consump-
tion in the
area de-
Gross reve-
nue realized,
exclusive of
miscellane-
trict in tons.
scribed.
ous receipts.
Rs.
1880-1 to 1889-90
(average) .
20,614
Figures not
available.
Figures not
available.
Figures not
available.
1,79,624
1890-1 to 1899-1900
(average)
20,372
»
»>
»>
3,55,878
1900-1 .
16,01 1
IOO
9»9I3
6,285
7,°i»5i°
1903-4 .
16,464
325
8,563
8,183
6,73,965
The incidence of consumption per head was ii-n Ib. in
1898-9, 7-01 Ib. in 1900-1, and 7-43 Ib. in 1903-4.
The people being mainly Muhammadan generally abstain Excise,
from the use of intoxicating liquors, but not from drugs.
Opium and charas are consumed in considerable quantities in
Peshawar and the tribal territories which adjoin that District,
their place being taken by bhang in the two southern Districts
of the Province. The use of spirituous liquor is virtually con-
fined to the Hindu townspeople and the immigrant popula-
tion of the cantonments. The consumption of intoxicants is,
however, low as compared with the Punjab, being in 1903-4
only 10-61 gallons of Indian spirit, 1-45 seers of opium, and
4-43 seers of hemp drugs for every 1,000 of the population in
the British Districts. Whether the consumption is increasing
or not it is impossible to say, as the population from which
consumers are mostly drawn is to a large extent immigrant
and varies in numbers. The incidence of consumption during
the triennium ending 1903-4 shows a slight downward
tendency.
Prior to annexation, the poppy was cultivated only to a
limited extent in the frontier Districts, and its cultivation was
gradually interdicted until, at the time of the formation of the
Province in 1901, it had entirely ceased. The opium con-
sumed now comes entirely from outside. The annual con-
sumption is small, amounting to only 60 or 70 maunds a year,
and of this 24 maunds are allotted to the Province out of the
200 maunds of Bengal opium which the Benares Agency
supplies annually to the Punjab. The latter is sold retail
at Rs. 1 6 a seer, of which sum Rs. 7-8 is credited to the
Province. Malwa opium is imported direct from Ajmer and
pays duty at the rate of Rs. 4 per seer, while some Kashmir
and Afghan opium is admitted on payment of half that duty.
Opium is produced in the Punjab, and opium which has already
paid duty in that Province is admitted free of duty. The
66 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Province could be easily supplied with almost all the opium it
needs from the Jalalabad valley of Afghanistan, but that source
of supply is uncertain owing to the unsettled excise policy of
the Amir.
Liquors Country spirit is prepared in two Government distilleries, at
*' Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan, which supply Bannu and Dera
Ismail Khan Districts, Peshawar, Hazara, and Kohat Districts
being supplied from the Rosa Distillery near Shahjahanpur
(United Provinces), or by wholesale vendors and private dis-
tilleries in the Punjab, whence free transport of spirit is allowed.
The demand for spirit in Peshawar District is considerable,
amounting to about 10,000 gallons a year. This is due to the
large consumption in the city.
There are no breweries in the Province, the Murree Brewery
Company supplying the British troops in the garrisons at
Peshawar, Cherat, and Naushahra, and the detachments which
spend the summer in the Hazara hills.
Hemp The hemp plant grows spontaneously in Hazara, and along
the low hills which skirt the other Districts ; but most of the
bhang used comes from the Punjab, the drug being placed in
bond on arrival until the duty (Rs. 4 a maund) has been paid.
The consumption of bhang in the Districts of Bannu and Dera
Ismail Khan is considerable. Charas produced in Central
Asia is imported from the Punjab under bond. On the
removal from bonded warehouses, duty is levied at the rate of
Rs. 6 a seer. A certain amount of inferior charas from
Bokhara is probably smuggled via the Malakand into the
Peshawar valley through Chitral, and to prevent this the Mehtar
of Chitral was required in 1904 to impose a prohibitive duty of
Rs. 7 a seer on all charas transported through his territories.
Method The number and location of shops for the retail vend of
liquor, opium, and drugs in each District are determined each
year by the Deputy-Commissioner and the licences are publicly
auctioned. Licences for the sale of imported liquors and
beer may be granted at fixed fees to respectable merchants
in cantonments and to hotel-keepers and refreshment-rooms.
In the Agencies the Opium and Excise Acts are not in force,
but arrangements have been made under executive authority in
the Kurram and Tochi for the control of the sale of liquors and
drugs. In the Kurram two shops have been licensed and in
the Tochi seven, the licences for which realized Rs. 3,940 in
J9°3~4- The Dauris are notorious for their excessive use of
Excise
revenue. The total excise revenue in 1903-4 amounted to 2 lakhs.
LOCAL AND MUNICIPAL 67
Of this sum, Rs. 34,000 was realized on account of opium,
Rs. 84,000 on account of country-made spirits and fermented
liquors, Rs. 25,000 on account of imported spirits, Rs. 41,000
on account of charas, and Rs. 9,000 on account of bhang.
The net revenue from sales of stamps in 1903-4 was 2-3 Stamps
lakhs in the case of judicial stamps, and 1-4 lakhs in the case
of non-judicial. In the same year Rs. 99,000 was collected on
account of income tax from 1,823 persons. The incidence of
the tax per assessee was Rs. 42, and 87 persons paid tax out
of every 1,000 of the population.
The village community, characteristic of some parts of India, Local and
is not indigenous among Pathans. Its place as a social unit is, yuiage^
to some extent, taken by the tribe, which is held together by communi-
the ties of kindred and a common ancestry, real or imaginary. ties-
So strong was the communal instinct in the tribes, that by the
practice called vesA, traces of which still exist in Swat and other
independent territories (as among the ancient Greeks, Gauls,
and Germans), all lands, water-rights, and even houses owned
by any one tribe were periodically redistributed. Before annex-
ation different branches of a tribe, or even different tribes, lived
together for mutual protection ; but such aggregations were not
properly speaking village communities, for the headmen of one
Jtandi or sub-section acknowledged no responsibility for, and
claimed no authority over, the members of another kandi. As
a result of British rule, something resembling the village
community, in which the village headmen are jointly responsible
for the whole, has been evolved ; but the tribal division into
kandis remains very marked.
The history of local self-government in this Province before Municipal
its separation will be found in the article on the PUNJAB. No ad™inis-
tration.
municipalities were constituted under Act XXVI of 1850; but
between 1867 and 1873 Haripur and Kulachi, and all the
District head-quarters, except Kohat, were made municipalities
under Act XV of 1867. By 1883, Act IV of 1873 had been
extended to these, as well as to Kohat and five of the smaller
towns, raising the number of municipalities to twelve. These
were reconstituted under Act XIII of 1884, and again under
Act XX of 1891, excepting the municipalities of Shankargarh
and Paharpur, which were abolished. The Province now
possesses ten municipalities, which, in 1904, contained 162
appointed members, and 50 sitting ex-officio. Of these, 5 1 were
officials and only 23 Europeans. The total population within
municipal limits in 1901 was 186,375, of whom 73,343 were
enumerated in Peshawar, Dera Ismail Khan and Kohat being
F 2
68 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
the only other municipalities with a population exceeding
10,000. In 1893, the town of Tank was declared a 'notified
area' under the Act of 1891, and in 1903 the small sanitaria
of Dunga Gali and Nathia Gali (the summer head-quarters of
the Provincial Administration) were similarly constituted. The
table on p. 89 gives the chief items of municipal income
and expenditure. The incidence of taxation in 1903—4 was
Rs. 2, and that of income Rs. 2-10-9, Per head of the popula-
tion within municipal limits. Octroi is the chief source of
income ; and Haripur, Abbottabad, and Peshawar are the only
municipalities in which other forms of taxation are in force.
District Each of the five Districts of the Province has a District
s' board, constituted under Act XX of 1883. The members are
all appointed by the Chief Commissioner. In the Haripur and
Abbottabad tahslls of Hazara District the elective system
was in force till 1903, when it was abolished. The total num-
ber of members in 1904 was 216, of whom 49 were appointed
ex-officio and 167 nominated. The two local boards of Bannu
and Marwat, which existed when the Province was first con-
stituted, were abolished in 1904.
The income of a District board is mainly derived from the
local rate, a consolidated cess of Rs. 1 0-6-8 per cent, on the
land revenue. The expenditure is chiefly on education, the
maintenance of dispensaries, vaccination, roads and resthouses,
arboriculture, ferries, cattle-pounds, horse-breeding, and horse
and cattle fairs. The greater part of the income being ear-
marked, there is little room for local initiative ; and, as in the
Punjab, the District boards are chiefly useful as consultative
bodies.
Public All public works, except canals and railways, are in charge
of the Commanding Royal Engineer, North-West Frontier
Province, an officer of the Military Works department, who is
also ex-officio Secretary to the Chief Commissioner. The
revenue administration and maintenance of the Swat River and
Kabul River Canals and the maintenance of the Bara River
Canal are in charge of the Chief Engineer, Irrigation branch,
Punjab, who is also ex-officio Secretary to the Chief Commis-
sioner. The canals are directly managed by an Executive
Engineer with head-quarters at Mardan, whose division is
included in the circle of the Superintending Engineer, Jhelum
Circle, Punjab. The Swat River Canal was opened in 1885.
It was primarily constructed as a protective work, but has
proved very remunerative, and irrigated a maximum area of
about 250 square miles in 1903-4. The Kabul River Canal
ARMY 69
commenced irrigation in 1893, and in 1903-4 irrigated about
45 square miles. The Hazar Khani branch, an extension of
this canal, is under construction, and in connexion with it
a scheme for electric power for Peshawar cantonment has
been designed.
The total strength of the British and native army stationed Army,
within the Province on June i, 1903, was as follows: British,
2,946; native, 19,991; total 22,937. The Province is gar-
risoned by the Peshawar and part of the Rawalpindi divisions,
and by three independent brigades, of the Northern Command.
The military stations in 1904 were : — in the Peshawar division,
Chakdarra, Chitral, Dargai, Drosh, Jamrud, Malakand, Mardan,
Naushahra, and Peshawar ; in the Rawalpindi division, Abbott-
abad ; in the Kohat brigade, Fort Lockhart, Hangu, Kohat,
and Thai ; in the Derajat brigade, Dera Ismail Khan, Dra-
zinda, Jandola, Jatta, and Zam ; and Bannu brigade, Bannu.
All these stations are garrisoned by native infantry and, if in
the plains, by native cavalry also. British infantry regiments
are cantoned at Peshawar and Naushahra, British artillery at
Peshawar, and native artillery (mountain batteries) at most
of the other stations. Sappers and miners are stationed at
Peshawar and Drosh.
Up to 1886 a special military force entitled the Punjab
Frontier Force, which was under the direct orders of the
Government of the Punjab, maintained the peace of the border.
In 1886 this force was transferred to the control of the Com-
mander-in-Chief, and its regiments are no longer restricted to
service on the frontier. The cavalry regiments are the 2ist
Prince Albert Victor's Own, the 22nd, 23rd, 25th, and Guides
Cavalry. The infantry regiments, which rank as light infantry,
are the Guides Infantry, the 5ist, 52nd, 53rd and 54th Sikhs,
the 55th Coke's Rifles, 56th Infantry, 57th Wilde's Rifles, 581!)
Vaughan's Rifles, 59th Scinde Rifles, and 5th Gurkha Rifles.
Prior to 1899, the garrisons on the north-west frontier were
largely scattered in isolated outposts, rendering concentration
at any threatened point difficult. Since then a number of out-
lying garrisons have been withdrawn, their posts being handed
over to militia and border military police, the total strength of
which forces is just under 10,000 men, Under this scheme
Naushahra has become a large cantonment, and mobile
columns are kept always ready at Peshawar, Mardan, Nau-
shahra, Kohat, Bannu, and Dera Ismail Khan.
The administration of the civil police force in the settled Police.
Districts of the North- West Frontier Province is now vested in
70 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
an Inspector-General. The force in each District is under
a Superintendent, who works under the general control of the
Deputy-Commissioner (District Magistrate). Three Assistant
Superintendents are also posted to Peshawar District.
After the annexation of the Punjab, the police duties in the
Trans-Indus Districts were carried out by a force known as the
Peshawar and Derajat mounted and foot levies or political
contingent, which was under the control of the Deputy-Com-
missioner in each District. This force consisted of local tribes-
men nominated by their chiefs, and its cost included subsidies
to them. Just as in recent years the disciplined and orderly
militia corps have been evolved from tribal levies, so this
political contingent, in its civil aspect, was gradually trans-
formed into a regular police force, while in its tribal aspect it
has now been supplanted by the border military police. In
1863 the contingent was brought under the general police
system of the Punjab, and placed for purposes of inspection
under the Inspector-General of Police. In 1870 the Police
Act was applied partially, and in 1889 it was applied in its
entirety. The constables and subordinate officers of the civil
police now form a Provincial service, but the gazetted officers
are borne on the cadre of the Punjab police and receive pro-
motion and acting allowances in the list of that Province.
Proportion The strength of the force within the five British Districts of
of police tne province is 3,0x36 sergeants and constables, giving an
popula- average of one man to 4-4 square miles and to 700 persons,
tion. The unit of administration is the thdna or police station, under
a sub-inspector, and road-posts and outposts are established
where necessary. Nearly four-fifths of the force are armed
with bored-out Martini-Henry rifles and bayonets. Every
constable is also provided with a sword and baton. In regard
to recruitment, the Police department has to compete with the
army and militia, which offer better pay and prospects. It
inevitably results that the best material is not attracted to the
force. The training of constables is carried on in the Districts
in which they are enlisted, but the superior grades are eligible
for training in the Police school at Phillaur in the Punjab.
Crime is watched by a special branch at head-quarters in
charge of an Assistant Superintendent, but there is no
separate force of detective police. Trained recorders of finger
impressions are maintained in each District, but the central
bureau used is that at Phillaur.
Rural The village watchmen or chauklddrs are appointed by the
police. District Magistrate, on the recommendation of the village
POLICE
headmen. They provide their own arms, and are paid in kind
by the proprietary body of the village to which they belong at
the rate of Rs. 3 per month. Their duties are similar to those
in other Provinces, but they are regarded as acting under the
control of the village headmen, and as jointly responsible with
the latter for the reporting of crime. In executive duties they
are under the orders of the tahsildar, but in all matters relating
to the prevention and detection of crime and the collection
of information they report to the police.
In the Jarge towns municipal funds contribute towards the Municipal,
up-keep of the local police, and in cantonments special police Can*on-
are paid partly from Local funds ; in some Districts ferry police Ferry, and
are paid by the District boards. All these, however, are under Railway
Police
the control of the Superintendent of Police of the District. The
Railway police form part of the general system of the Punjab
Railway police, and are under the control of that Government.
No tribes have been registered under the Criminal Tribes Act.
Statistics of cognizable crime (that is, offences for which the Cognizable
police may arrest without a magistrate's warrant) are shown cnme-
below : —
Number of cases.
IQO2.
1903.
Reported
Decided in the courts
Ending in acquittal or discharge
Ending in conviction .
6,692
4,785
• 823
3,532
6,267
4,676
773
3,487
In the earlier days of the occupation of the frontier, the Border
British sphere of influence was limited entirely to the plains. Military
Little was known of the tribes living in the hill country across
the border, and hardly any control was exercised over them.
It was not even until a comparatively recent date that the
question was finally decided as to whether many of these tribes
came under Afghan or British jurisdiction. To guard against
the constant incursions and raids of these tribesmen into
British territory, the border military police was created out of
what was known as the old frontier militia. The force was
originally organized purely on the silladdri system. The lead-
ing Khans and headmen living within the border received
allowances, in return for which they produced a certain number
of horse or footmen. The system naturally led to grave abuses.
Vacancies were left unfilled : horsemen were without horses ;
and boys and old men, equally incapable of work, were nomi-
nated as foot-soldiers. The silladdri system was in consequence
abolished, and the border military police is now on the same
7 2 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Militia
and Levy
Corps.
Militia.
Chitrali
Scouts.
footing as any other force as regards pay and enlistment. The
duties remain the same, but the advance of British occupation
across the border and the creation of the new militia corps
have contributed further to the peace of the border.
The border military police corps under the control of the
Deputy-Commissioner in each District is commanded by an
Assistant Commissioner, usually a military officer in civil employ-
ment, except in Kohat, where the commandant is an officer of
police. The men are armed with Martini-Henry rifles, and are
employed in garrisoning posts distributed along the administra-
tive border, with a reserve at each head-quarters. The strength
of the five corps is 2,061 men, of whom 289 are mounted.
When the Agencies across the administrative border were
first occupied, they were garrisoned entirely by regular troops ;
but levies were raised from among the local tribesmen to
convoy travellers, collect information, and act as a means of
communication between the Political officers and the tribes.
From these levies have been raised the present militia corps,
which contain an equal proportion of men living on either side
of the administrative border, and thus combine the advantages
of local levies with the steadying element of outside influences.
In all the Agencies except Dir, Swat, and Chitral, the levy
corps have been disbanded, and the policy is being carried out
of relieving the regular troops of the onerous and expensive
work of garrisoning trans-border outposts. Chitral, Drosh,
Chakdarra, the Malakand, Drazinda in the Shirani country,
and Jandola in Southern Waziristan are now the only posts in
the Agencies at which a garrison of regular troops is main-
tained. These corps are officered by British military officers,
seconded for a period of five years from their regiments.
Their armament is the Martini-Henry rifle, Mark II. Although
strictly speaking a border military police corps, the Samana
Rifles are generally counted in Kohat District with militia
corps; their armament and equipment are the same as those
of the militia corps, but their British officers belong to the
Punjab police. The total strength of the militia corps is
6,033 men, of whom 336 are mounted.
The experiment has also been lately tried of raising in
Chitral a corps of scouts organized on the old feudal system
of the country, with the Mehtar of Chitral as honorary com-
mandant. The object is the creation of "a body of trained
marksmen to defend the passes into Chitral in the event of
invasion. The corps has two British military officers, and the
scheme contemplates the training of 1,200 men. The force
JAILS
73
is organized on an entirely different system from the militia
corps, as its members are only called out for training in
batches for two months in the year, and when not under
training return to ordinary civil life. They are armed with
•303 rifles.
With the exception of the Bhittani Levies in Dera Ismail Levy
Khan District, whose absorption in the Southern Wazlristan ^orPs
Militia is under contemplation, the only levy corps still existing
are those in the Dir, Swat, and Chitral Agency. The Dir
levies are, armed with rifles supplied by Government, but are
under the orders of the Nawab of Dir. The principal respon-
sibilities of this force are the security of communications,
mail escorts, and the maintenance of order on the Chak-
darra-Chitral road.
The Jail department is under the control of the Administra- Jails,
tive Medical Officer of the Province. The number of jails (5)
has remained unchanged since 1881. Those at Peshawar and
Abbottabad are in charge of the Civil Surgeon of the District,
while the others, at Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, and Kohat, are
in charge of the military medical officers who hold collateral
medical charge of the Districts. These are all District jails,
and there are no Central or subsidiary jails, long-term prisoners
being transferred to Cis-Indus jails, while the large judicial
lock-ups at Mardan in Peshawar District and at Teri and
Hangu in Kohat fulfil the requirements of subsidiary jails.
The following table gives the chief statistics of jails for
a series of years : —
1881.
1891.
IQOI.
1904.
Number of District jails.
Number of subsidiary jails
(lock-ops) ....
Average daily population : —
(a) Male
(3) Female
Total
Rate of jail mortality per 1,000
Expenditure on jail main-
tenance . . . Rs.
Cost per prisoner . . Rs.
Profits on jail manufactures Rs.
Earnings per prisoner . Rs.
5
I
5
2
5
2
5
3
1,649
63
M59
*5
1,191
43
M33
47
1,712
1,214
1,234
1,280
70-68
1,10,982
64-13-2
20,418
15-9-a
35-54
81,498
67-2-1
10,486
10-12-5
12-16
91,048
73-12-6
7,457
8-13-0
14.84
87,786
68-9-4
7,084
7-10-0
The daily average number of prisoners in 1881 and the
three preceding years was abnormally high, a result of the
7 4 WOR TH- WES T FRONTIER PRO VINCE
succession of bad harvests which began in the autumn of 1877,
and the drain of food-grains from the Province for the armies
serving in Afghanistan. The unrest on the frontier also
caused large numbers of persons to be sentenced to imprison-
ment in default of security for good behaviour. The steady
decrease in mortality is largely due to the immunity from
typhus fever enjoyed by prisoners of recent years. This
disease was endemic in the Frontier Districts and more
especially in the Peshawar valley, and caused as many as 58
deaths in the Peshawar jail in 1881. Dysentery and pneu-
monia have also ceased to be so fatal as they were twenty
years ago. The expenditure incurred on measures to improve
the condition of jail life, together with the higher prices of
food-grains and other articles, accounts for the steady rise in
the daily average cost of maintenance per head during recent
years. The earnings in 1881 were unusually large, a result of
the employment of prisoners at Peshawar on the railway then
under construction in the vicinity of the jail, while the drop in
the earnings of 1901, as compared with those of 1891, is due
to alterations in the method of account. The chief industries
carried on in the jails are paper-making, lithographic printing,
weaving, and oil-pressing. Most of the out-turn is supplied to
Government departments.
Present As now constituted, the inspecting staff of the Educational
tio8naniZa dePartment in the North-West Frontier Province consists of
an Inspector-General of Education, a Personal Assistant, and
4 District Inspectors. Most Districts have a District Inspector,
but Kohat, Bannu, and Daur in Northern Wazlristan are in
charge of one District Inspector. The schools of the Kurram
valley are inspected twice a year by the head master of the
municipal high school at Kohat.
The Province possesses no University of its own, and its
only college is affiliated to the Punjab University at Lahore.
The number of matriculations was 15 in 1891, 98 in 1901,
and 71 in 1903.
Collegiate The only college in the Province is the Edwardes Church
education. \fjssjon College at Peshawar, opened in 1900-1. Seven of its
scholars passed the Intermediate examination of the Punjab
University in 1903.
Secondary The school curriculum is the same as that in force in the
education. Punjab. At the close of 1903-4 the Province possessed 25
secondary schools, of which 15 were Anglo-vernacular (8 main-
tained by local bodies, 4 aided, and 3 unaided), and 10
vernacular schools, all maintained by local bodies. These
EDUCATION 75
schools contained 1,421 pupils, excluding pupils in their
primary departments.
At the close of 1903-4 the Province possessed 172 primary Primary
schools for boys, of which 145 were maintained by local education
bodies, 21 (mostly indigenous) were aided, and 6 unaided.
These and the primary departments of the secondary schools
contained 11,959 pupils.
The Province possesses 8 girls' schools, namely : 4 maintained Female
by local bodies, 3 aided, and one unaided. These contained educatlon-
578 pupils in 1903-4, in addition to which 1,721 girls were
receiving, instruction in private schools, and 21 in boys'
schools, so that 2,316 girls in all were under instruction.
These comprised 1,381 Muhammadans, 781 Hindus, 153 Sikhs,
and one native Christian. The municipal girls' schools at
Dera Ismail Khan and Kohat admit Muhammadan girls only,
and Urdu is the medium of instruction. The other public
schools are attended almost entirely by Hindus and Sikhs, and
Gurmukhi or Hindi is taught in them. Dera Ismail Khan
District returns the largest number of girl pupils (258), Hazara
103, Kohat 85, Bannu and Peshawar 64 girls each.
In 1903-4 only no per 1,000 of the number of Muham- Muham-
madan boys of school-going age attended schools of all kinds,
and only 9,045 Muhammadans attended public schools for
boys. Relatively the Muhammadan community is, in this
Province, far behind the Hindus and Sikhs, from an educational
standpoint. It is, however, progressing and, though progress is
slow, there are signs of awakening in Hazara and Kohat Districts.
Muhammadan education is specially encouraged by the award
of 9 high and 13 middle-school Victoria scholarships annually ;
and to foster it among the border tribes 5 stipends are awarded
to Wazir and Shirani boys, and 4 to Dauri boys, and two
stipends have recently been granted to Mohmand Pathan boys
in Peshawar District. Special schools for Muhammadans are
maintained at Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, and Abbottabad.
All these are elementary, but Peshawar possesses an Islam iya
Anglo-vernacular high and an Anglo-vernacular middle school.
In 1903-4 there were 206 public and 744 private schools, in Statistics,
which 26,439 pupils of both sexes were being educated. ^
This number is equivalent to 8 per cent of the children of
school-going age in the administered portion of the Province.
The total expenditure amounted to Rs. 1,91,000. The num-
ber of girls in receipt of instruction was 2,326, of whom less
than half were Muhammadans.
Only one newspaper is published in the North- West Frontier
76 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Medical.
Hospitals
and dis-
pensaries.
Lunatic
asylums.
Vaccina-
tion.
Province, the Tuhfa-i-Sarhadd, a weekly Urdu journal issued
by the Bannu Mission and devoted to missionary enterprise.
The Medical department is under an Administrative Medi-
cal Officer. Two of the five British Districts and three of the
Political Agencies are in charge of whole-time civil surgeons.
Military medical officers are in collateral charge of the other
Districts and Agencies. A Military assistant surgeon is in
medical charge of the Khyber. Assistant surgeons are in sub-
ordinate charge of hospitals and dispensaries at the head-quar-
ters of Districts and subdivisions. Minor dispensaries are in
charge of Hospital Assistants of different grades. There are
female dispensaries at Peshawar and Kohat, under female
medical subordinates. The supply of Hospital Assistants is
obtained chiefly from the Lahore medical school.
Of the 39 hospitals and dispensaries 17 are maintained
wholly, and one is aided, by Government. The others are
maintained from Local and municipal funds. In 1904 there
were 345 beds for males and 130 for females. The most impor-
tant institution is the Egerton Hospital at Peshawar, with
accommodation for 42 male and 12 female in-patients. It is
maintained from Local and municipal funds. An institution
for the relief of lepers at Bala Plr's Ziarat, at Balakot, Hazara
District, is supported by private subscriptions and to some
extent by Local funds. The Church Missionary Society
provides a large share of the medical relief available in the
Province. It maintains the Duchess of Connaught Hospital
for women at Peshawar, and hospitals or dispensaries at
Peshawar, Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, and Tank. These
institutions are not included in the statistics attached to this
article. In 1901 they treated 1,139 in-patients and 36,960
out-patients, and in 1904 2,527 in-patients and 59,593 out-
patients. The number of operations performed was 3,588 in
1902 and 4,330 in 1904.
There is no lunatic asylum in the Province, and patients are
sent to the Punjab.
The Administrative Medical Officer is in charge of the
Vaccination department. There are two divisional Inspectors
for the Province, whose duties also include the checking of the
registers of births and deaths. Each District has a native
supervisor and a varying number of vaccinators supervised by
the civil surgeon. The Kurram and Tochi Agencies have
each one vaccinator. Small-pox is very common among the
Pathans, especially across the border. Vaccination is popular,
but its extension is seriously interfered with by inoculation, an
BIBLIOGRAPHY 77
art practised by certain families and handed down from father
to son. At the same time these practitioners are not bigoted
adherents of their system ; and excellent results have been
obtained in Yusufzai and neighbouring tracts by inducing
them to learn vaccination, and then sending them back to
their tribes not as inoculators but as vaccinators.
Surveys in the North- West Frontier Province have been Surveys,
the work of two distinct agencies, the Survey department and
the local Revenue establishment. Peshawar was surveyed by
officers of the Survey department between 1863 and 1870,
and Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan between 1874 and 1878 ;
Hazara between 1865 and 1869, and again partially in 1888-92 ;
Kohat was topographically surveyed on the one-inch-to-the-
mile scale in the years 1880-3.
In independent territory surveys have until the last two
years been possible only when an expedition was in progress.
Geographical reconnaissances based on triangulation were
carried out in Chitral, Dlr, and Swat in 1885, 1892, 1893,
1895, and 1901, and maps on the quarter-inch scale have been
prepared. The more important passes in Chitral were again
surveyed in 1904-5. In 1897-8 Bajaur and Buner, with part
of Swat and the Mohmand and Mamund countries, were
roughly surveyed on the half-inch scale. A survey of the
Khyber and part of the Tirah on the one-inch scale was
carried out in 1878-9, and survey operations in the latter
country were extended during 1897-8. The settlement maps
of Peshawar were revised in 1890-4 ; those of Hazara, Kohat,
Dera Ismail Khan, and Bannu are either still under revision
or have been recently brought up to date. Reconnaissance
maps of the Kurram valley on the quarter-inch scale were made
in 1878-80, and the valley was again surveyed on the one-inch
scale in 1894 and 1898. The cultivated area is now again
under survey, in connexion with the settlement operations.
Waziristan has been the scene of desultory operations when-
ever occasion offered since 1860, and maps of the whole
country on the half and quarter-inch scales exist, most of the
work having been done since 1894. Survey operations are
again in progress.
Further information concerning the North- West Frontier Biblio-
Province will be found in the Punjab Border and General SraPhy-
Administration Reports for the years from 1851-2 to 1900-1,
and in the annual Provincial Reports which have been pub-
lished since 1901 ; in the Punjab Census Reports of 1871,
1 88 1, 1891, and in the Punjab and North- West Frontier
78 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Province Census Report of 1901. Among the standard
works on subjects connected with the North-West Frontier
Province may be mentioned : H. W. Bellew : Punjab frontier
(1868). — Maxwell : Buddhist Explorations in the Peshawar
District (1882). — Cole : Memorandum on Ancient Monuments
in Yusafzai (1883). — M. A. Stein : Archaeological Tour in
the Buner Country (1898). — Major H. B. Edwardes : A
Year on the Punjab Frontier, 1848-9 (1851). — R. Bosworth
Smith : Life of Lord Lawrence (1901). — Lady Edwardes : Life
and Letters of Major- General Sir H. B. Edwardes (1886). —
Captain L. J. Trotter: Life of John Nicholson (1905). — Lord
Roberts: Forty-one Years in India (1902). — H. W. Bellew:
Grammar and Dictionary of the Pashtu Language (1901). —
J. Darmesteter : Chants Populaires des Afghans (Paris,
1888-90). — J. G. Lorimer : Grammar and Vocabulary of
Waziri Pashtu (1902). — Paget and Mason : Record of Expe-
ditions against the North-West Frontier Tribes (1849-85). —
The Pathan Revolt 0/1897 (Lahore).
TABLES
79
9 «iw'B a •«
i~iiifi
S S
a 1
4
I
rt.«
BieS»
rt « rt 2 1
#l
S<i
•ill
3fi1
.S3
— d— -J3
Srt
8o NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
TABLE II
EXPEDITIONS UNDERTAKEN AGAINST FRONTIER TRIBES SINCE
THE ANNEXATION OF THE PUNJAB
Year.
Tribes against
which undertaken.
Name of Commander.
Number of troops
employed *.
Total
British
casual-
ties.
1849
Villages of British
Lieutenant-Colonel J.
3,300
5«
and independent
Bradshaw, C.B.
Baeza (Swat).
1850
Kohat Pass Afridis .
Brigadier Sir Colin
3,200
94
Campbell, K.C.B.,
(accompanied by
the Commander-
in-Chief, General
Sir C. J. Napier,
G.C.B.).
1851
Villages of British
Captain J. Coke
2,500
5
Miranzai.
(including 655
levies).
1851-8
Mohmands
Brigadier Sir Colin
1,597
9
Campbell, K.C.B.
1852
Mohmands (Affair
»> >»
600
10
at Panjpao).
N
Ravizai .
» 11
3,270
40
»
Utman Khel .
, 1 ,1
3,200
18
t>
Umarzai ( Ahmadzai)
Major J. Nicholson .
1,500
28
Wazlrs.
1852-3
Hasanzai
Lieutenant - Colonel
3,800
18
F. Mackeson, C.B.
(including Kashmir
troops, levies, and
police, but exclud-
ing the reserve).
1853
Hindustani Fanatics
» )>
2,000
Nil
(including Kashmir
troops).
»
Shiranis .
Brigadier J. S. Hodg-
2,795
Nil
son.
»
Bori Afridis
Colonel S. B. Boileau
i,740
39
1854
Michni Mohmands .
Colonel S. J. Cotton
1,782
»7
1855
Aka Khel Afridis .
Lieutenant-Colonel J.
1,500
34
H. Craigie, C.B.
i»
Villages of British
Brigadier N.B.Cham-
3,766
15
Miranzai.
berlain.
ft
Rabia Khel Orakzais
>> »
2,457
"5
1856
Turis . . >
,» > ,
4,896
8
^including 150
levies) .
1857
British villages onthe
Major J. L. Vaughan
400
5
Yusufzai border.
In attack on Shaikh
Jana.
990
26
(including 140
levies) in the first
attack on Narinji.
',625
9
(including 323 le-
vies) in the second
attack on Narinji.
* The numbers given in this column are in some cases only approximate, it being impossible
in these cases to discover from the records the exact number of troops employed.
TABLES
81
TABLE II (continued}
EXPEDITIONS UNDERTAKEN AGAINST FRONTIER TRIBES SINCE
THE ANNEXATION OF THE PUNJAB
Year.
Tribes against
which undertaken.
Name of Commander.
Number of troops
employed *.
Total
British
casual-
ties.
1859
KhuduKhel and Hin-
Major-General Sir S.
4.877
35
dustani Fanatics.
J. Cotton, K.C.B.
1859-60
Kabul KhelWazIrs.
Brigadier-General Sir
.5,372
20
N. B. Chamberlain,
(including 1,456
C.B.
police and levies).
i860
Mans fids .
» »>
6,796
36l
(including 1,600
levies).
1863
Hindustani Fanatics
Brigadier-General Sir
9,000
908
N. B. Chamberlain,
K.C.B., and sub-
sequently Major-
General J. Garvok.
1864
Mobmands
Colonel A. Mac-
i, 80 1
*9
donell, C.B.
1868
Bizoti Orakzai .
Major L. B. Jones .
970
55
(including 240
police and levies).
»
Black Mountain
Major-General A. T.
12,544
98t
Tribes.
Wilde, C.B., C.S.I.
(exclusive of a re-
serve of 2,218).
1869
Bizoti Orakzai .
Lieutenant - Colonel
2,080
36
C. P. Keyes, C.B.
(including 419
police and levies).
1872
Dauris .
Brigadier-General C.
1,826
6
P. Keyes, C.B.
1877
Jowaki Afridis
Colonel D. Mocatta .
1,750
ii
(exclusive of
levies).
1877-8
» •
Brigadier-GeneralsC.
7,400
61
P. Keyes, C.B., and
C. C. G. Ross, C.B.
1878
Utman Khel .
Captain W. Battye .
280
8
»>
Ranizai .
Major R. B. P. P.
860
Nil
Campbell.
n
Utman Khel .
Lieutenant - Colonel
875
i
F. H. Jenkins.
»
Zakka Khel Afridis.
Lieutenant - Colonel
2,500
ii
F.F. Maude, V.C.,
C.B.
i>
Powindas, Sulaiman
Colonel H. F. M.
640
13
Khel, and others.
Boisragon.
1879
Zakka Khel Afridis.
Lieutenant - Colonel
3,75°
18
F. F. Maude, V.C.,
C.B.
»
Mohmands (Affair
CaptainO'M.Creagh,
600
24
at Kara Dakka).
and subsequently
Major J. R. Dyce.
»
Zaimukhts
Brigadier-General J.
3,226
5
A.Tytler,V.C.,C.B.
82
NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
TABLE II (continued}
EXPEDITIONS UNDERTAKEN AGAINST FRONTIER TRIBES SINCE
THE ANNEXATION OF THE PUNJAB
Year.
Tribes against
which undertaken.
Name of Commander.
Number of troops
employed •.
Total
British
casual-
ties.
1880
Mohmands .
Brigadier-General J.
3,300
5
Duma. C.B., and
Colonel T. W. R.
Boisragon.
»
Bhittannis
Lieutenant - Colonel
721
5
P. C. Rynd.
»
Kabul Khel (Utman-
Brigadier-General J.
800
Nil
zai) Wazirs.
J. H. Gordon, C.B.
1881
Mahsuds
Brigad ier- GeneralsT.
8,531
33
G. Kennedy, C.B.,
and J. J. H. Gor-
don, C.B.
1888
Ilasanzai, Akozai,
Major-General J. W.
",554
Parari Saiyids and
McQueen, C.B.,
Tikariwal.
A.-D.-C.
1890
Kidderzai Section of
General Sir G. S.
i,75ot
i
Largha Shiranis.
White,V.C.,G.C.B.
1891
Hasanzai and Akozai
Major-General W. K.
7,300
48
Elles, C.B.
M
Orakzai .
Major-General Sir
7,38i
95
W. S. A. Lockhart,
K.C.B., C.S.I.
1892
Isazai Clans .
i) »
5,997
Nil
1894-5
Mahsuds
,» M
10,631
23
1896
Umra Khan of Jan-
Major-General Sir R.
14,900
123
dol (Chitral Relief
C. Low, K.C.B.
Force).
l897
i.i) Swatis and Ut-
Major - General Sir
8,071
S3*
man Khel.
Bindon Blood,
K.C.B.
(2) Bunerwal and
Charalawal.
H
Darwesh Khel Wazirs
...
...
»
Mohmands . .
Major-General E. R.
6,458
30
Elles, C.B.
1897-8
Darwesh Khel Wazirs
Major-General G.
7,262
17
Corrie-Bird, C.B.
M
Afrldis and Orakzai .
Major-General Sir
40,000
1,019
W. S. A. Lockhart,
K.C.B. K.C.S.I.
I900-I
Mahsuds .
General W. Hill,
13,448
136
C. B., from De-
cember i, 1900,
to August, 1901.
Thereafter Briga-
dier-General Den-
ning, D.S.O.
1902
Kabul Khel (Utman-
Major-General Sir C.
2,880
21
zai) Wazirs.
C. Egerton, K.C.B.,
D.S.O.
* The numbers given in this column are in some cases only approximate, it being impossible
in these cases to discover from the records the exact number of troops employed.
f Number of Punjab columns only: two other columns, operating from Baluchistan, took
part in the expedition.
TABLES
w
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November.
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range.
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FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Q
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W
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-
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TABLES
TABLE VI
STATISTICS OF AGRICULTURE, NORTH-WEST FRONTIER
PROVINCE
(In square miles)
1887-8 to
1889-90
(average).
1890-1 to
1899-1900
(average).
1900-1.
1903-4.
Total area ....
12,441
12,821
I3,232
13,280
Total uncultivated area .
8,766
8,873
9,017
9,040
Cultivable, but not cultivated .
3,3l6
3,534
3,401
2,981
Uncultivable ....
5)45°
5,339
5,616
6,059
Total cultivated area
3,675
3,948
4,214
4,239
Irrigated from canals
544
660
673
814
„ „ wells and canals
i
6
5
3
„ „ wells
91
84
85
89
„ „ other sources
360
235
274
127
Total irrigated area .
996
985
1,038
1,033
Unirrigated area, including in-
undated ....
2,680
2,963
3,i77
3,206
Principal Crops.
Rice
49
49
49
5i
Wheat
1,072
1,170
I»359
1,411
Other food-grains and pulses .
1,638
1,628
i,893
1,805
Oilseeds
i'3
128
189
117
Sugar-cane . ...
26
29
34
43
Cotton
61
65
55
48
• 351
•481
•^.80
OO*
•046
.02?
T-"y
• OO7
•089
•w«o
• OT C
V\JJ
•••3P
•O2O
><J1i)
.01 e.
•oo?
Tobacco .....
5
8
• Wl J)
12
wuv?
10
Miscellaneous ....
76
in
J35
1 86
Total area cropped .
3,042
3,189
3,727
3,670
Area double-cropped
4°5
435
605
86 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
TABLE VII
TRADE OF THE NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE WITH
OTHER PROVINCES (INCLUDING THE PUNJAB) AND STATES
IN INDIA
(In thousands of rupees)
Imports.
By rail.
By road
(with Kash-
mir only).
1903-4-
1903-4.
Horses, ponies, and mules ....
2
Cattle
...
7i
Sheep and goats
...
2
Cotton, raw
39
...
a 08
Cotton piece-goods ......
o>yu
40,78
m
Charas ........
2
Dyes .
||;
...
Fruits
2>39
Ghi
*3,77
Grain and pulses
6,53
8
Hides and skins
35
2»33
Metals and manufacture of metals .
9,55
Oils
* *»w
2,63
Oilseeds
38
"36
Opium ........
5
Provisions .......
5>39
...
Salt
4
Spices
i,°5
...
Sugar
4,99
...
Tea
6,30
.. .
Wood
48
...
Wool, raw
Piece-goods and shawls
13
Other wool, manufactured .....
4.5°
x>34
All other articles
56,17
8
Total
1,43,89
21,12
•7 86
/>ovj
TABLES
TABLE VII A
TRADE OF THE NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE WITH
COUNTRIES OUTSIDE INDIA
(In thousands of rupees)
1890-1.
1900-1 1903-4.
Including trade
with Kabul
through Dera
GhaziKhSn.
Excluding trade with Kabul
through Dera Ghazi Khan.
Imports.
Total (excluding treasure) .
Treasure ....
Total
Exports.
Total (excluding treasure) .
Treasure ....
Total
37,33
7
62,51
65,81
3,»4
37,39
62,51
68,95
63,27
39
1,02,38
93
1,09,93
5,78
63,66
1,03,31
i,i5,7i
TABLE VIII
STATISTICS OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE, NORTH-WEST
FRONTIER PROVINCE
Particulars.
1901.
1904.
Percentage
of con-
victions in
1904.
Number of persons tried : —
(a) For offences against person
and property . . .
I3,9la
11,074
34.I
(K) For other offences against the
Indian Penal Code .
3,825
3,070
39-o
(f) For offences against special
and local laws
Total
18,696
13,643
66.5
36,433
37,787
46.6
TABLE IX
STATISTICS OF CIVIL JUSTICE, NORTH-WEST
FRONTIER PROVINCE
Particulars.
1901.
1904.
Suits for money and movable property . .
14,870
16,877
4108
Rent suits *
Other Revenue Court cases * ....
5
3,125
Total
J9,5i4
34,205
* Figures for 1901 not available.
88 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
TABLE X
REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE OF THE NORTH-WEST
FRONTIER PROVINCE
(In thousands of rupees)
1002-3.
1903-4-
Revenue.
Opening balance ' .
1,42
i,38
Land revenue
16,71
17,74
Salt
6,84
6,74
Stamps
3,8y
3,86
Excise .........
I,93
2,04
Provincial rates
3,45
2,40
Assessed taxes
1,14
1,00
Forests .-
1,01
1,02
Registration. » . ,.
Irrigation
31
6,96
30
6,86
Other sources
6,19
5,7°
Total revenue . "• . i
48,43
47,66
Expenditure.
Charges in respect of collection (principally Land
Revenue and Forest)
8,20
8,61
Salt
73
79
Salaries and expenses of Civil Departments : —
General administration
2,45
2,59
Law and justice
5,83
5,83
Police
10,68
10,56
Education
80
89
Medical
i, ii
1,10
Other heads
1,82
1,83
Pensions and miscellaneous charges . . .
2,53
2,86
Irrigation
1,49
2,13
Public works
20,34
22,03*
Political
20,97
23,2?t
Total expenditure.
76,95
82,49
Closing balance . •
i,38
1,46
* Of the Rs. 22,03 expended on Public Works, 4'ai was the cost of buildings, the
balance of communications. The most important buildings were the head-quarter
offices (2' 1 6 lakhs). Amongst communications the chief works were the Murtaza-
Wana road (3*63 lakhs), roads in the Khyber Agency (a'l lakhs), the cart-road from
Kohat to Peshawar (i'3i), Khannana Bridge O'M, Dora Bridge 0*84 lakh.
t Of the Rs. 33,27,000 devoted to Political expenditure nearly 15 lakhs is on
account of the up-keep of Militia, Levy Corps (including the Chitral Scouts, but not
the Border Military Police of the British Districts), 4 lakhs represents the cost of the
five Political Agents and their establishments, while 3 lakhs is annually distributed as
subsidies to Frontier tribes. The remainder is made up of miscellaneous items, such
as rewards for intelligence, entertainment of envoys, allowances to refugees, secret
sen-ice, &c.
TABLES
89
TABLE XI
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE OF MUNICIPALITIES,
NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Particulars.
Average
for ten years
1890-1 to
1890-1900.
1900-1.
IQ03-4-
Income.
Rs.
Rs.
Rs.
Octroi
2,82,592
3,40,1s1
3,65,966
Tax on houses and lands
1,360
1,467
i,437
Other taxes
3,271
2,024
3,663
Loans
I4>173
...
Rents and other sources .
91,044
1,10,033
I»27,453
Total income
3,92,440
4,53,675
4,98,519
Expenditure.
Administration and collection of taxes
47>I9*
49,744
52,437
Public safety .....
69,791
76,797
92,156
Water-supply and drainage : —
(<z) Capital
34,247
11,212
25,048
(£) Maintenance
11,381
18,053
22,607
Conservancy ...
47,118
60,833
66,043
Hospitals and dispensaries
Public works .
28,774
32,375
35,560
36,349
50,574
53,6i5
Education ...
38,978
49,893
56,515
Other heads ...
76,959
74,217
1,27,410
Total expenditure .
3,86,814
4,12,658
5,46,405
90 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
TABLE XII
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE OF DISTRICT BOARDS,
NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Particulars.
North-West Frontier Pro-
vinces, including the Dis-
trict of Mianwali in the
Punjab.
North-West
Frontier Pro-
vince as now
constituted.
Average for
ten years
1890-1 to
1899-1900.
Year
1900-1.
Year
I903-4-
Income from —
Provincial rates
Interest
Education ....
Medical .....
Scientific, &c.
Miscellaneous.
Civil works ....
Cattle pounds
Total income .
Expenditure on —
Refunds
General administration .
Education ....
Medical
Scientific, &c.
Miscellaneous
Civil works . ...
Total expenditure
Rs.
2,04,874
15
1,955
i,937
2,813
53,574
4,223
907
Rs.
2,16,080
H3
4,701
2,601
3,553
74,058
10,096
1,251
Rs.
1 .54,737
3,833
2,243
2,116
55,19!
7,i5i
723
2,70,298
3,12,483
2,25,994
228
11,856
Bi»«3
34,242
9,683
89,510
72,572
a
17,069
60,767
4«>,i95
13,049
1,00,905
77,865
273
15,660
53,6io
30,967
12,258
54,196
65,644
2,69,304
3,09,852
2,32,608
TABLES
TABLE XIII
POLICE STATISTICS, NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
1902.
1903.
Provincial and Ferry Police.
District and Assistant Superintendents "• .
12
a
12
g
Q,
°4
*
3°7
i a
Municipal Police.
6
Sergeants .......
44
43
Cantonment Police.
Inspectors .
Deputy-Inspectors
Sergeants . .....
Constables .
Military Police.
Commandants and Sub-Commandants
Native Officers
Non-commissioned Officers and men . .
Rural Police.
Chaukiddrs
Total expenditure on Police . . Rs.
I
I
21
IS?
5
49
2,301
361,765
i
i
21
I87
5
49
2,301
1,068,020
1 Includes officers of the Satnana Rifles.
2 Includes mounted constables.
92 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
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TABLES
93
TABLE XV
MEDICAL STATISTICS, NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
1881.
1891.
ipor1.
1903.
Hospitals, &c.
Number of civil hospitals and dis-
pensaries
'5
21
29
39
Average daily number of: —
(a) In-door patients .
J75
188
243
274
(£) Out-door patients
965
^445
2,431
2,795
Income from : —
(a) Government payments Rs.
15,222
6,687
T 3,465
28,644
(£) Local and municipal pay-
ments . . . Rs.
(c) Fees, endowments, and other
20,915
35, °48
60,496
62,542
sources . . . Rs.
1,440
870
M52
4,228
Expenditure on : —
(a) Establishments . . Rs.
(£) Medicines, diet, buildings,
21,630
24,588
36,439
47,483
&c. . . . Rs.
15,423
18,017
39,724
46,362
Vaccination.
Population among whom vaccina-
\
tion was carried on .
Number of successful operations
1 Figures
1,835,557
54,862
1,928,487
52,262
2,072,326
82,576
Ratio per i ,000 of population .
Total expenditure on vaccination Rs.
i not
available
30
8,156
27
",439
11,644
Cost per successful case . . As.
/
2-5
3-2
2-3
Eight Government dispensaries situated in Political Agencies sent in no returns in 1901.
MOUNTAINS, RIVERS, CANALS, AND
HISTORIC AREAS
Name..
Extent of
range.
Political
distribu-
tion.
Himalayas, The. — A system of stupendous mountain
ranges, lying along the northern frontiers of the Indian
Empire, and containing some of the highest peaks in the
world. Literally, the name is equivalent to 'the abode of
snow ' (from the Sanskrit hima, t frost,' and a/aya, ' dwelling-
place '). To the early geographers the mountains were known
as Imaus or Himaus and Hemodas; and there is reason to
believe that these names were applied to the western and
eastern parts respectively, the sources of the Ganges being
taken as the dividing line. ' Hemodas ' represents the San-
skrit Himavata (Prakrit Hemota), meaning 'snowy.' The
Greeks who accompanied Alexander styled the mountains the
Indian Caucasus.
Modern writers have sometimes included in the system the
Muztagh range, and its extension the Karakoram ; but it is
now generally agreed that the Indus should be considered the
north-western limit. From the great peak of Nanga Parbat in
Kashmir, the Himalayas stretch eastward for twenty degrees of
longitude, in a curve which has been compared to the blade
of a scimitar, the edge facing the plains of India. Barely one-
third of this vast range of mountains is known with any degree
of accuracy. The Indian Survey department is primarily en-
gaged in supplying administrative needs ; and although every
effort is made in fulfilling this duty to collect information of
purely scientific interest, much still remains to be done.
A brief abstract of our knowledge of the Himalayas may be
given by shortly describing the political divisions of India
which include them. On the extreme north-west, more than
half of the State of KASHMIR AND JAMMU lies in the Him-
alayas, and this portion has been described in some detail
by Drew in Jammu and Kashmir Territories^ and by Sir W.
Lawrence in The Valley of Kashmir. The next section,
appertaining to the Punjab and forming the British District of
Kangra and the group of feudatories known as the Simla Hill
States, is better known. East of this lies the Kumaun Divi-
sion of the United Provinces, attached to which is the Tehrl
MOUNTAINS 95
State. This portion has been surveyed in detail, owing to the
requirements of the revenue administration, and is also familiar
from the careful accounts of travellers. For 500 miles the
State of Nepal occupies the mountains, and is to the present
day almost a terra incognita, owing to the acquiescence by the
British Government in the policy of exclusion adopted by its
rulers. Our knowledge of the topography of this portion of the
Himalayas is limited to the information obtained during the
operations of 1816, materials collected by British officials resi-
dent at Katmandu, notably B. H. Hodgson, and the accounts
of native- explorers. The eastern border of Nepal is formed by
the State of Sikkim and the Bengal District of Darjeeling,
which have been graphically described by Sir Joseph Hooker
and more recently by Mr. Douglas Freshfield. A small wedge
of Tibetan territory, known as the Chumbi Valley, separates
Sikkim from Bhutan, which latter has seldom been visited by
Europeans. East of Bhutan the Himalayas are inhabited
by savage tribes, with whom no intercourse is possible except
in the shape of punitive expeditions following raids on the
plains. Thus a stretch of nearly 400 miles in the eastern
portion of the range is imperfectly known.
In the western part of the Himalayas, which, as has been Divisions
shown, has been more completely examined than elsewhere, the of range-
system may be divided into three portions. The central or
main axis is the highest, which, starting at Nanga Parbat on the
north-west, follows the general direction of the range. Though
it contains numerous lofty peaks, including Nanda Devi, the
highest mountain in British India, it is not a true water-
shed. North of it lies another range, here forming the
boundary between India and Tibet, which shuts off the valley
of the Indus, and thus may be described as a real water-
parting. From the central axis, and usually from the peaks in
it, spurs diverge, with a general south-easterly or south-westerly
direction, but actually winding to a considerable extent.
These spurs, which may be called the Outer Himalayas, cease
with some abruptness at their southern extremities, so that the
general elevation is 8,000 or 9,000 feet a few miles from the
plains. Separated from the Outer Himalayas by elevated
valleys or duns is a lower range known as the SIWALIKS, which
is well marked between the Beas and the Ganges, reappears
to the south of central Kumaun, and is believed to exist in
Nepal. Although the general character of the Himalayas in
Nepal is less accurately known, there is reason to suppose that
it approximates to that of the western ranges.
96 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Scenery. Within the limits of this great mountain chain all varieties
of scenery can be obtained, except the placid charm of level
country. Luxuriant vegetation clothes the outer slopes, gradu-
ally giving place to more sombre forests. As higher elevations
are reached, the very desolation of the landscape affects the
imagination even more than the beautiful scenery left behind.
It is not surprising that these massive peaks are venerated by
the Hindus, and are intimately connected with their religion,
as giving rise to some of the most sacred rivers, as well as
on account of legendary associations. A recent writer has
vividly described the impressions of a traveller through the
foreground of a journey to the snows in Sikkim l : —
'He sees at one glance the shadowy valleys from which
shining mist-columns rise at noon against a luminous sky, the
forest ridges, stretching fold behind fold in softly undulating
lines — dotted by the white specks which mark the situation of
Buddhist monasteries — to the glacier-draped pinnacles and
precipices of the snowy range. He passes from the zone of
tree-ferns, bamboos, orange-groves, and dal forest, through an
endless colonnade of tall-stemmed magnolias, oaks, and chestnut
trees, fringed with delicate orchids and festooned by long
convolvuluses, to the region of gigantic pines, junipers, firs,
and larches. Down each ravine sparkles a brimming torrent,
making the ferns and flowers nod as it dashes past them.
Superb butterflies, black and blue, or flashes of rainbow colours
that turn at pleasure into exact imitations of dead leaves, the
fairies of this lavish transformation scene of Nature, sail in and
out between the sunlight and the gloom. The mountaineer
pushes on by a track half buried between the red twisted stems
of tree-rhododendrons, hung with long waving lichens, till he
emerges at last on open sky and the upper pastures — the Alps
of the Himalaya — fields of flowers : of gentians and edelweiss
and poppies, which blossom beneath the shining store-
houses of snow that encompass the ice-mailed and fluted
shoulders of the giants of the range. If there are mountains
in the world which combine as many beauties as the Sikkim
Himalayas, no traveller has as yet discovered and described
them for us.'
Snow-line. The line of perpetual snow varies from 15,000 to 16,000 feet
on the southern exposures. In winter, snow generally falls at
elevations above 5,000 feet in the west, while falls at 2,500 feet
were twice recorded in Kumaun during the last century.
Glaciers extend below the region of perpetual snow, descend-
ing to 12,000 or 13,000 feet in Kulu and Lahul, and even
lower in Kumaun, while in Sikkim they are about 2,000 feet
1 D. W. Freshfield in The Geographical Journal, vol. xix, p. 453.
MOUNTAINS 97
higher. On the vast store-house thus formed largely depends
the prosperity of Northern India, for the great rivers which
derive their water from the Himalayas have a perpetual supply
which may diminish in years of drought, but cannot fail
absolutely to feed the system of canals drawn from them.
While all five rivers from which the Punjab derives its Rivera,
name rise in the Himalayas, the Sutlej alone has its source
beyond the northern range, near the head-waters of the Indus
and Tsan-po. In the next section are found the sources of
the Jumna, Ganges, and Kali or Sarda high up in the central
snowy range, while the Kauriala or Karnali, known lower
down in its course as the Gogra, rises in Tibet, beyond the
northern watershed. The chief rivers of Nepal, the Gandak
and Kosi, each with seven main affluents, have their birth in
the Himalayas, which here supply a number of smaller streams
merging in the larger rivers soon after they reach the plains.
Little is known of the upper courses of the northern tributaries
of the Brahmaputra in Assam ; but it seems probable that the
Dihang, which has been taken as the eastern boundary of the
Himalayas, is the channel connecting the Tsan-po and the
Brahmaputra.
Passing from east to west the principal peaks are Nanga Highest
Parbat (26,182) in Kashmir; a peak in Spiti (Kangra District) Pea^s-
exceeding 23,000 feet, besides three over 20,000 ; Nanda
Devi (25,661), Trisul (23,382), Panch Chulhl (22,673), and
Nanda Kot (22,538)^1 the United Provinces; Mount Everest
(29,002)^ Devalagiri (26,826), Gosainthan (26,305) and Kin-
chinjunga (28,146), with several smaller peaks, in Nepal; and
Dongkya (23,190), with a few rising above 20,000, in Sikkim.
The most considerable stretch of level ground is the Valleys
beautiful Kashmir Valley, through which flows the Jhelum. aad lakes-
In length about 84 miles, it has a breadth varying from 20 to
25 miles. Elsewhere steep ridges and comparatively narrow
gorges are the rule, the chief exception being the Valley of
Nepal, which is an undulating plain about 20 miles from north
to south, and 12 to 14 miles in width. Near the city of
Snnagar is the Dal Lake, described as one of the most pictur-
esque in the world. Though measuring only 4 miles by 2^, its
situation among the mountains, and the natural beauty of its
banks, combined with the endeavours of the Mughal emperors
to embellish it, unite to form a scene of great attraction.
Some miles away is the larger expanse of water known as the
Wular Lake, which ordinarily covers 12^ square miles, but in
years of flood expands to over 100. A number of smaller
98 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
lakes, some of considerable beauty, are situated in the outer
ranges in Naini Tal District. In 1903 the GOHNA LAKE, in
Garhwal District, was formed by the subsidence of a steep
hill, rising 4,000 feet above the level of a stream which it
blocked.
Geology1. The geological features of the Himalayas can be conveniently
grouped into three classes, roughly corresponding to the three
main orographical zones : (i) the Tibetan highland zone,
(2) the zone of snowy peaks and Outer Himalayas, and (3) the
Sub-Himalayas.
In the Tibetan highlands there is a fine display of marine
fossiliferous rocks, ranging in age from Lower Palaeozoic to
Tertiary. In the zone of the snowy peaks granites and crystal-
line schists are displayed, fringed by a mantle of unfossiliferous
rocks of old, but generally unknown, age, forming the lower
hills or Outer Himalayas, while in the Sub-Himalayas the
rocks are practically all of Tertiary age, and are derived from
the waste of the highlands to the north.
Age and The disposition of these rocks indicates the existence of
thePan a ranSe °^ some sort since Lower Palaeozoic times, and shows
that the present southern boundary of the marine strata on the
northern side of the crystalline axis is not far from the original
shore of the ocean in which these strata were laid down. The
older unfossiliferous rocks of the Lower Himalayas on the
southern side of the main crystalline axis are more nearly in
agreement with the rocks which have been preserved without
disturbance in the Indian Peninsula; and even remains of the
great Gondwana river-formations which include our valuable
deposits of coal are found in the Darjeeling area, involved in
the folding movements which in later geological times raised
the Himalayas to be the greatest among the mountain ranges
of the world. The Himalayas were thus marked out in very
early times, but the main folding took place in the Tertiary
era. The great outflow of the Deccan trap was followed by
a depression of the area to the north and west, the sea in
eocene times spreading itself over Rajputana and the Indus
valley, covering the Punjab to the foot of the Outer Himalayas
as far east as the Ganges, at the same time invading on the
east the area now occupied by Assam. Then followed a rise
of the land and consequent retreat of the sea, the fresh-water
deposits which covered the eocene marine strata being involved
in the movement as fast as they were formed, until the Sub-
Himalayan zone river-deposits, no older than the pliocene,
1 By T. H. Holland, Geological Survey of India.
MOUNTAINS 99
became tilted up and even overturned in the great foldings of
the strata. This final rise of the Himalayan range in late
Tertiary times was accompanied by the movements which
gave rise to the Arakan Yoma and the Naga hills on
the east, and the hills of Baluchistan and Afghanistan on
the west.
The rise of the Himalayan range may be regarded as a great
buckle in the earth's crust, which raised the great Central
Asian plateau in late Tertiary times, folding over in the Baikal
region on the north against the solid mass of Siberia, and
curling over as a great wave on the south against the firmly
resisting mass of the Indian Peninsula.
As an index to the magnitude of this movement within the
Tertiary era, we find the marine fossil foraminifer, Nummulites,
which lived in eocene times in the ocean, now at elevations of
20,000 feet above sea-level in Zaskar. With the rise of the
Himalayan belt, there occurred a depression at its southern
foot, into which the alluvial material brought down from the
hills has been dropped by the rivers. In miocene times,
when presumably the Himalayas did not possess their present
elevation, the rivers deposited fine sands and clays in this area;
and as the elevatory process went on, these deposits became
tilted up, while the rivers, attaining greater velocity with their
increased gradient, brought down coarser material and formed
conglomerates in pliocene times. These also became elevated
and cut into by their own rivers, which are still working along
their old courses, bringing down boulders to be deposited at
the foot of the hills and carrying out the finer material farther
over the Indo-Gangetic plain.
The series of rocks which have thus been formed by the The
rivers, and afterwards raised to form the Sub-Himalayas, are
known as the Siwalik series. They are divisible into three
stages. In the lowest and oldest, distinguished as the Nahan
stage, the rocks are fine sandstones and red clays without any
pebbles. In the middle stage, strings of pebbles are found
with the sandstones, and these become more abundant towards
the top, until we reach the conglomerates of the upper stage.
Along the whole length of the Himalayas these Siwalik rocks
are cut off from the older rock systems of the higher hills by
a great reversed fault, which started in early Siwalik times and
developed as the folding movements raised the mountains and
involved in its rise the deposits formed along the foot of the
range. The Siwalik strata never extended north of this great
boundary fault, but the continued rise of the mountains affected
H 2
ioo NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Unfossil-
iferous
rocks of
Outer
Himala-
yas.
The crys-
talline
axis.
these deposits, and raised them up to form the outermost zone
of hills.
The upper stage of the Siwalik series is famous on account
of the rich collection of fossil vertebrates which it contains.
Among these there are forms related to the miocene mammals
of Europe, some of which, like the hippopotamus, are now
unknown in India but have relatives in Africa. Many of the
mammals now characteristic of India were represented by
individuals of much greater size and variety of species in
Siwalik times.
The unfossiliferous rocks which form the Outer Himalayas
are of unknown age, and may possibly belong in part to the
unfossiliferous rocks of the Peninsula, like the Vindhyans and
the Cuddapahs. Conspicuous among these rocks are the
dolomitic limestones of Jaunsar and Kumaun, the probable
equivalents of the similar rocks far away to the east at Buxa
in the Duars. With these a series of purple quartzites and
basic lava-flow is often associated. In the Simla area the un-
fossiliferous rocks have been traced out with considerable
detail; and it has been shown that quartzites, like those of
Jaunsar and Kumaun, are overlaid by a system of rocks which
has been referred to the carbonaceous system on account of
the black carbonaceous slates which it includes. The only
example known of pre-Tertiary fossiliferous rocks south of the
snowy range in the Himalayas occurs in south-west Garhwal,
where there are a few fragmentary remains of mesozoic fossils
of marine origin.
The granite rocks, which form the core of the snowy range
and in places occur also in the Lower Himalayas, are igneous
rocks which may have been intruded at different periods in the
history of the range. They are fringed with crystalline schists,
in which a progressive metamorphism is shown from the edge
of granitic rock outwards, and in the inner zone the granitic
material and the pre-existing sedimentary rock have become
so intimately mixed that a typical banded gneiss is produced.
The resemblance of these gneisses to the well-known gneisses
of Archaean age in the Peninsula and in other parts of the
world led earlier observers to suppose that the gneissose rocks
of the Central Himalayas formed an Archaean core, against
which the sediments were subsequently laid down. But as we
now know for certain that both granites, such as we have in the
Himalayas, and banded gneisses may 'be much younger, even
Tertiary in age, the mere composition and structure give no
clue to the age of the crystalline axis. The position of the
MOUNTAINS 10 1
granite rock is probably dependent on the development of low-
pressure areas during the process of folding, and there is thus
a prima facie reason for supposing that much of the igneous
material became injected during the Tertiary period. With
the younger intrusions, however, there are probably remains of
injections which occurred during the more ancient movements,
and there may even be traces of the very ancient Archaean
gneisses; for we know that pebbles of gneisses occur in the
Cambrian conglomerates of the Tibetan zone, and these imply
the existence of gneissose rocks exposed to the atmosphere in
neighbouring highlands. The gneissose granite of the Central
Himalayas must have consolidated under great pressure, with
a thick superincumbent envelope of sedimentary strata; and
their exposure to the atmosphere thus implies a long period of
effectual erosion by weathering agents, which have cut down
the softer sediments more easily and left the more resisting
masses of crystalline rocks to form the highest peaks in the
range. Excellent illustrations of the relationship of the
gneissose granites to the rocks into which they have been
intruded are displayed in the Dhaola Dhar in Kulu, in the Chor
Peak in Garhwal, and in the Darjeeling region east of Nepal.
Beyond the snowy range in the Tibetan zone we have a Fossil-
remarkable display of fossiliferous rocks, which alone would iferous
, , TT. ir , rocks of
have been enough to make the Himalayas famous in the the Tibe-
geological world. The boundary between Tibetan territory tan zone,
and Spiti and Kumaun has been the area most exhaustively
studied by the Geological Survey. The rocks exposed in this
zone include deposits which range in age from Cambrian to
Tertiary. The oldest fossiliferous system, distinguished as the
Haimanta ('snow-covered') system, includes some 3,000 feet
of the usual sedimentary types, with fragmentary fossils which
indicate Cambrian and Silurian affinities. Above this system
there are representatives of the Devonian and Carboniferous
of Europe, followed by a conglomerate which marks a great
stratigraphical break at the beginning of Permian times in
Northern India. Above the conglomerate comes one of the
most remarkably complete succession of sediments known,
ranging from Permian, without a sign of disturbance in the
process of sedimentation, throughout the whole Mesozoic
epoch to the beginning of Tertiary times. The highly fos-
siliferous character of some of the formations in this great pile
of strata, like the Productus shales and the Spiti shales, has
made this area classic ground to the palaeontologist.
The great Eurasian sea distinguished by the name 'Thetys,'
102 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Economic
minerals.
Botany.
which spread over this area throughout the Palaeozoic and
Mesozoic times, became driven back by the physical revolution
which began early in Tertiary times, when the folding move-
ments gave rise to the modern Himalayas. As relics of this
ocean have been discovered in Burma and China it will not be
surprising to find, when the ground is more thoroughly ex-
plored, that highly fossiliferous rocks are preserved also in the
Tibetan zone beyond the snowy ranges of Nepal and Sikkim.
Of the minerals of value, graphite has been recorded in the
Kumaun Division; coal occurs frequently amongst the Num-
mulitic (eocene) rocks of the foot-hills and the Gondwana strata
of Darjeeling District ; bitumen has been found in small
quantities in Kumaun ; stibnite, a sulphide of antimony,
occurs associated with ores of zinc and lead in well-defined
lodes in Lahul; gold is obtained in most of the rivers, and
affords a small and precarious living for a few washers ; copper
occurs very widely disseminated and sometimes forms distinct
lodes of value in the slaty series south of the snowy range, as
in the Kulu, Kumaun, and Darjeeling areas ; ferruginous
schists sometimes rich in iron occur under similar geological
conditions, as in Kangra and Kumaun ; sapphires of considerable
value have been obtained in Zaskar and turquoises from the
central highlands ; salt is being mined in quantity from near
the boundary of the Tertiary and older rocks in the State of
Mandi ; borax and salt are obtained from lakes beyond the
Tibetan border ; slate-quarrying is a flourishing industry along
the southern slopes of the Dhaola Dhar in Kangra District ;
mica of poor quality is extracted from the pegmatites of Kulu ;
and a few other minerals of little value, besides building-stones,
are obtained in various places. A small trade is developed,
too, by selling the fossils from the Spiti shales as sacred objects.
The general features of the great variety in vegetation have
been illustrated in the quotation from Mr. Freshfield's descrip-
tion of Sikkim. These variations are naturally due to an
increase in elevation, and to the decrease in rainfall and
humidity passing from south to north, and from east to west.
The tropical zone of dense forest extends up to about 6,500 feet
in the east, and 5,000 feet in the west. In the Eastern
Himalayas orchids are numerically the predominant order of
flowering plants ; while in Kumaun about 62 species, both
epiphytic and terrestrial, have been found. A temperate zone
succeeds, ranging to about 12,000 feet, in which oaks, pines,
and tree-rhododendrons are conspicuous, with chestnut, maple,
magnolia, and laurel in the east. Where rain and mist are not
MOUNTAINS 103
excessive, as for example in Kulu and Kumaun, European
fruit trees (apples, pears, apricots, and peaches) have been
naturalized very successfully, and an important crop of potatoes
is obtained in the west Above about 12,000 feet the forests
become thinner. Birch and willow mixed with dwarf rhodo-
dendrons continue for a time, till the open pasture land is
reached, which is richly adorned in the summer months with
brilliant Alpine species of flowers. Contrasting the western
with the eastern section we find that the former is far less rich,
though it has been better explored, while there is a preponder-
ance of European species. A fuller account of the botanical
features of the Himalayas will be found in Vol. I, chap. iv.
To obtain a general idea of the fauna of the Himalayas it is Fauna,
sufficient to consider the whole system as divided into two
tracts : namely, the area in the lower hills where forests can
flourish, and the area above the forests. The main charac-
teristics of these tracts have been summarized by the late
Dr. W. T. Blanford1. In the forest area the fauna differs
markedly from that of the Indian Peninsula stretching away
from the base of the hills. It does not contain the so-called
Aryan element of mammals, birds, and reptiles which are related
to Ethiopian and Holarctic genera, and to the pliocene Siwalik
fauna, nor does it include the Dravidian element of reptiles
and batrachians. On the other hand, it includes the follow-
ing animals which do not occur in the Peninsula — Mammals :
the families Simiidae, Procyonidae, Talpidae, and Spalacidae,
and the sub-family Gymnurinae, besides numerous genera, such
as Prionodon, Helictis, Arcfonyx, Atherura, Nemorhaedus, and
Cemas. Birds : the families Eurylaemidae, Indicatoridae, and
Heliornithidae, and the sub-family Paradoxornithinae. Reptiles :
Platysternidae and Anguidae. Batrachians : Dyscophidae,
Hylidae, Pelobatidae, and Salamandridae. Compared with
the Peninsula, the fauna of the forest area is poor in reptiles
and batrachians.
' It also contains but few peculiar genera of mammals and
birds, and almost all the peculiar types that do occur have
Holarctic affinities. The Oriental element in the fauna is
very richly represented in the Eastern Himalayas and gradu-
ally diminishes to the westward, until in Kashmir and farther
west it ceases to be the principal constituent. These facts are
consistent with the theory that the Oriental constituent of the
Himalayan fauna, or the greater portion of it, has migrated
into the mountains from the eastward at a comparatively
1 ' The Distribution of Vertebrate Animals in India, Ceylon and Burma,'
Proceedings, Royal Society, vol. Ixvii, p. 484.
104 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
recent period. It is an important fact that this migration
appears to have been from Assam and not from the Penin-
sula of India.'
Dr. Blanford suggested that the explanation was to be found
in the conditions of the glacial epoch. When the spread of
snow and ice took place, the tropical fauna, which may at that
time have resembled more closely that of the Peninsula, was
forced to retreat to the base of the mountains or perished.
At such a time the refuge afforded by the Assam Valley and
the hill ranges south of it, with their damp, sheltered, forest-
clad valleys, would be more secure than the open plains of
Northern India and the drier hills of the country south
of these. As the cold epoch passed away, the Oriental fauna
re-entered the Himalayas from the east.
Above the forests the Himalayas belong to the Tibetan
sub-region of the Holarctic region, and the fauna differs from
that of the Indo-Malay region, 44 per cent, of the genera
recorded from the Tibetan tract not being found in the Indo-
Malay region. During the glacial epoch the Holarctic forms
apparently survived in great numbers.
People. Owing to the rugged nature of the country, which makes
travelling difficult and does not invite immigrants, the
inhabitants of the Himalayas present a variety of ethnical
types which can hardly be summarized briefly. Two common
features extending over a large area may be referred to. From
Ladakh in Kashmir to Bhutan are found races of Indo-
Chinese type, speaking dialects akin to Tibetan and profess-
ing Buddhism. In the west these features are confined to the
higher ranges ; but in Sikkim, Darjeeling, and Bhutan they are
found much nearer the plains of India. Excluding Burma,
this tract of the Himalayas is the only portion of India in
which Buddhism is a living religion. As in Tibet, it is largely
tinged by the older animistic beliefs of the people. Although
the Muhammadans made various determined efforts to conquer
the hills, they were generally unsuccessful, yielding rather to
the difficulties of transport and climate than to the forces
brought against them by the scanty though brave population
of the hills. In the twelfth century a Tartar horde invaded
Kashmir, but succumbed to the rigours of the snowy passes.
Subsequently a Tibetan soldier of fortune seized the supreme
power and embraced Islam. Late in the fourteenth century
the Muhammadan ruler of the country, Sultan Sikandar,
pressed his religion by force on the people, and in the pro-
vince of Kashmir proper 94 per cent, of the total are now
MOUNTAINS 105
Muhammadans. Baltistan is also inhabited chiefly by
Muhammadans, but the proportion is much less in Jammu,
and beyond the Kashmir State Islam has few followers.
Hinduism becomes an important religion in Jammu, and is
predominant in the southern portions of the Himalayas within
the Punjab and the United Provinces. It is the religion of
the ruling dynasty in Nepal, where, however, Buddhism is
of almost equal strength. East of Nepal Hindus are few.
Where Hinduism prevails, the language in common use,
known as Pahari, presents a strong likeness to the languages
of Rajputana, thus confirming the traditions of the higher
classes that their ancestors migrated from the plains of India.
In Nepal the languages spoken are more varied, and Newari,
the ancient state language, is akin to Tibetan. The Mongolian
element in the population is strongly marked in the east, but
towards the west has been pushed back into the higher portion
of the ranges. In Kumaun are found a few shy people living
in the recesses of the jungles, and having little intercourse with
their more civilized neighbours. Tribes which appear to be
akin to these are found in Nepal, but little is known about
them. North of Assam the people are of Tibeto-Burman
origin, and are styled, passing from west to east, the Akas,
Daflas, Miris, and Abors, the last name signifying 'unknown
savages.' Colonel Ualton has described these people in his
Ethnology of Bengal.
From the commercial point of view the agricultural products Agricul-
of the Himalayas, with few exceptions, are of little importance. ture-
The chief food-grains cultivated are, in the outer ranges, rice,
wheat, barley, marud, and amaranth. In the hot, moist valleys,
chillies, turmeric, and ginger are grown. At higher levels
potatoes have become an important crop in Kumaun ; and, as
already mentioned, in Kulu and Kumaun European fruits
have been successfully naturalized, including apples, pears,
cherries, and strawberries. Two crops are obtained in the
lower hills ; but cultivation is attended by enormous difficulties,
owing to the necessity of terracing and clearing land of stones,
while irrigation is only practicable by long channels winding
along the hill-sides from the nearest suitable stream or spring.
As the snowy ranges are approached wheat and buckwheat,
grown during the summer months, are the principal crops, and
only one harvest in the year can be obtained. Tea gardens
were successfully established in Kumaun during the first half
of the nineteenth century, but the most important gardens are
now situated in Kangra and Darjeeling. In the latter District
io6 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
cinchona is grown for the manufacture of quinine and cinchona
febrifuge.
Forests. The most valuable forests are found in the Outer Himalayas,
yielding a number of timber trees, among which may be men-
tioned sd/, shlsham (Dalbergia Sissoo), and fun (Cedrela Toona).
Higher up are found the deodar and various kinds of pine,
which are also extracted wherever means of transport can be
devised. In the Eastern Himalayas wild rubber is collected
by the hill tribes already mentioned, and brought for sale to
the Districts of the Assam Valley.
Means of Communications within the hills are naturally difficult. Rail-
nwu- ways have hitherto been constructed only to three places in the
outer hills : Jammu in the Kashmir State, Simla in the Punjab,
and Darjeeling in Bengal. Owing to the steepness of the hill-
sides and the instability of the strata composing them, these
lines have been costly to build and maintain. A more ambi-
tious project is now being carried out to connect the Kashmir
Valley with the plains, motive power being supplied by elec-
tricity to be generated by the Jhelum river. The principal
road practicable for wheeled traffic is also in Kashmir, leading
from Rawalpindi in the plains through Murree and Baramula
to Srmagar. Other cart-roads have been made connecting
with the plains the hill stations of Dharmsala, Simla, Chak-
rata, Mussoorie, Dalhousie, Nairn Tal, and Ranlkhet. In the
interior the roads are merely bridle paths. The great rivers
flowing in deep gorges are crossed by suspension bridges made
of the rudest materials. The sides consist of canes and twisted
fibres, and the footway may be a single bamboo laid on hori-
zontal canes supported by ropes attached to the sides. These
frail constructions, oscillating from side to side under the tread
of the traveller, are crossed with perfect confidence by the
natives, even when bearing heavy loads. On the more fre-
quented paths, such as the pilgrim road from Hardwar up the
valley of the Ganges to the holy shrines of Badrinath and
Kedarnath, more substantial bridges have been constructed
by Government, and the roads are regularly repaired. Sheep
and, in the higher tracts, yaks and crosses between the yak
and ordinary cattle are used as beasts of burden. The trade
with Tibet is carried over lofty passes, the difficulties of which
have not yet been ameliorated by engineers. Among these
the following may be mentioned: the Kangwa La (15,500
feet) on the Hindustan-Tibet road through Simla ; the Mana
(18,000 feet), Niti (16,570 feet), and Balcha Dhura in Garhwal ;
the Anta Dhura (17,270 feet), Lampiya Dhura (18,000 feet),
MOUNTAINS 107
and Lipu Lekh (16,750) in Almora; and the Jelep La
(14,390) in Sikkim.
[More detailed information about the various portions ofBiblio-
the Himalayas will be found in the articles on the political
divisions referred to above. An admirable summary of the
orography of the Himalayas is contained in Lieut. -Col. H. H.
Godwin Austen's presidential address to the Geographical
Section of the British Association in 1883 (Proceedings, Royal
Geographical Society, 1883, p. 610; and 1884, pp. 83 and
112, with a map). Fuller accounts of the botany, geology,
and fauna are given in E. F. Atkinson's Gazetteer of the
Himalayan Districts in the North- Western [United] Provinces,
3 vols. (1882-6). See also General Strachey's 'Narrative of a
Journey to Manasarowar,' Geographical Journal, vol. xv, p. 150.
More recent works are the Kangra District Gazetteer (Lahore,
1899) ; C. A. Sherring, Western Tibet and the British Border-
land (1906) ; and D. W. Freshfield, Round Kangchenjunga
(1903), which contains a full bibliography for the Eastern
Himalayas. An account of the Himalayas by officers of the
Survey of India and the Geological department is under
preparation.]
Black Mountain. — A mountain range on the north-western
border of Hazara District, North-West Frontier Province, lying
between 34° 32' and 34° 50' N. and 72° 48' and 72° 58' E.
Bounded on the east by Agror and on the south by Tanawal,
the range has a length of 25 to 30 miles from north to south
and an elevation of 8,000 feet above sea-level. The Indus
washes its northern extremity and thence turns due south.
Between the river and the crest of the range the western slopes
are occupied by Yusufzai Pathans. The rest of the range is
held by Swatis, or tribes who have been gradually driven from
Swat by the Yusufzai. The Black Mountain forms a long,
narrow ridge, with higher peaks at intervals and occasional
deep passes. Numerous spurs project from its sides, forming
narrow gorges in which lie the villages of the tribes. The
upper parts of the ridge and spurs are covered with thick
forests of pine, oak, sycamore, horse-chestnut, and wild cherry \
but the slopes are stony and barren. In 1851 the Hasanzai
sept of the Yusufzai murdered two officers of the British
Customs (Salt) department within the borders of Tanawal.
Punishment for this outrage was inflicted by an expedition
under Colonel Mackeson, which destroyed a number of tribal
strongholds. In 1868 the Yusufzai, instigated by the Khan of
Agror, who resented the establishment of the police post at
io8 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Oghi in the Agror valley, attacked that post in force, but were
repulsed. Further attacks on the troops of the Khan of
Tanawal, who remained loyal, followed, and soon culminated
in a general advance of the Black Mountain tribes against the
British position. This was repulsed, but not until twenty-one
British villages had been burnt, and a second expedition under
General Wilde had overrun the Black Mountain and secured
the full submission of the tribes. In consequence of raids
committed in the Agror valley by the Hasanzai and Alcazai
aided by the Madda Khel, a blockade was commenced in
the year 1888. While more stringent measures were being
organized, Major Battye and Captain Urmston and some
sepoys of the 5th Gurkhas were surprised and killed by Gujar
dependants of the Akazai. Hashim All, the head of the
Hasanzai and Akazai, was suspected of having instigated the
crime. An expedition was sent in the same year, with the result
that the tribes paid the fines imposed upon them, and agreed
to the removal of Hashim All from the Black Mountain and
the appointment in his place of his near relative and enemy
Ibrahim Khan. In 1890 the tribe opposed the march of
troops along the crest of the Black Mountain, and an expedition
was sent against them in the spring of 1891. Immediately after
the withdrawal of the troops, the Hindustanis (see AMBELA)
and Madda Khel broke their agreement with Government by
permitting the return of Hashim All. A second expedition was
dispatched in 1892, which resulted in the complete pacification
of the Black Mountain border.
Mahaban ('Great Forest'). — A mountain in independent
territory, bordering on the Hazara and Peshawar Districts of
the North- West Frontier Province, at the eastern end of a spur
of the Ham range. It is situated on the right bank of the
Indus, and rises to a height of 7,400 feet above the sea. The
southern side of the hill is thickly wooded and is inhabited by
Gaduns ; the north side is peopled by the Amazai Pathans.
For many years Mahaban had been identified with the site of
Aornos, a strong fortress taken by Alexander. After visiting
the place in 1904, Dr. Stein pointed out that it differs com-
pletely from the description given of Aornos. (See paragraph on
Archaeology in BUNER.)
Samana Range. — A rugged range of hills in the North-
West Frontier Province, running east and west about 33° 34' N.
and between 70° 56' and 71° 51' E., and separating the
Mlranzai valley in the Thai subdivision of Kohat District from
the Khanki valley of Tlrah. The range has an elevation of
RIVERS 109
5,000 to 6,500 feet; and its crest is held by a line of forts,
including FORT LOCKHART, SARAGARHI, and FORT CAVAGNARI
or GULISTAN.
Indus (Sanskrit, Sindhu ; Greek, Sinthos ; Latin, Sindus). —
The great river of North-Western India. The Indus rises in
Tibet, and then flows through Kashmir, the Frontier Province,
and the Punjab, and after a final course through Sind falls into
the Arabian Sea in 23° 58' N. and 67° 30' E. The drainage
basin of the Indus is estimated at 372,700 square miles, and
its total length at a little over 1,800 miles. The towns
of importance on or near its banks in British territory are,
beginning from the south : Karachi, Kotri, Hyderabad, Sehwan,
Sukkur, Rohri, Mithankot, Dera Ghazi Khan, Dera Ismail
Khan, Mianwali, Kalabagh, Khushalgarh, and Attock.
The first section of the course of the Indus lies outside Course in
British territory, and must be briefly dealt with here. The
river rises, as above stated, in Tibet (32° N. and 81° E.) behind
the great mountain wall of the Himalayas, which forms the
northern boundary of India, and is said to spring from the
north side of the sacred Kailas mountain (22,000 feet),
the Elysium of ancient Sanskrit literature. Issuing from the
ring of lofty mountains about Lake Manasarowar, whence also
the Sutlej, the Brahmaputra, and the Kauriala spring, it flows
north-west for about 160 miles under the name of Singh-ka-bab,
until it receives the Ghar river on its south-western bank.
A short distance below the junction of the Ghar, the Indus,
which is supposed to have an elevation of 17,000 feet at its
source, enters the south-eastern corner of Kashmir at an Kashmir,
elevation of 13,800 feet, flowing slowly over a long flat of
alluvium. Following a steady north-by-west course it skirts
Leh at a height of 10,500 feet and drops to 8,000 feet in
Baltistan, just before it receives the waters of the Shyok river.
At Leh it is joined by the Zaskar river, and is crossed by the
great trade route into Central Asia via the Karakoram Pass.
Early travellers like Dr. Thomson and Mr. Blane have described
this portion of the Indus. The former found numerous hot
springs, some of them with a temperature of 1 74° and exhaling
a sulphurous gas. Still flowing north, but more westerly,
through Kashmir territory, it passes near Skardu in Baltistan,
and reaches the Haramosh mountain (24,300 feet) in about
34° 50' N. and 74° 30' E. Here it takes a turn southwards
at an acute angle, and passing beneath the Hattu Plr, at an
elevation of 4,000 feet, enters Kohistan in the Dir, Swat, and
Chitral Agency near Gur. The steepness of its fall varies,
1 1 o NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
In the
Punjab
and the
Frontier
Province.
now becoming greater, now less. This inequality of slope has
been connected with the changes that occurred in the glacial
period from the damming of the river by huge glaciers and the
formation of great thicknesses of lacustrine deposit. The Indus
has been the cause of serious and disastrous floods ; the rapid
stream dashes down gorges and wild mountain valleys ; and
in its lower and more level course it is swept by terrific blasts.
Even in summer, when it is said to dwindle down to a fordable
depth during the night, it may during the course of the day
swell into an impassable torrent from the melting of the snows
on the adjoining heights. Opposite Skardu in Baltistan it is,
even in the depth of winter, a grand stream, often more than
500 feet wide and 9 or 10 feet in depth. After leaving Gur,
it flows for about 120 miles south-west through the wilds
of Kohistan, until it enters the North- West Frontier Province
(350 25' N. and 73° 51' E.), near Darband, at the western base
of the Mahaban mountain. The only point to which special
allusion can be made in the long section of its course beyond
British territory is the wonderful gorge by which the river
bursts through the western ranges of the Himalayas. This
gorge is near Skardu, and is said to be 14,000 feet in sheer
descent.
The Indus, on entering the Hazara District of the North-
West Frontier Province, 812 miles from its source, is about
too yards wide in August, navigable by rafts, but of no great
depth, and studded with sandbanks and islands. It is fordable
in many places during the cold season ; but floods or freshets
are sudden, and Ranjit Singh is said to have lost a force,
variously stated at from 1,200 to 7,000 horsemen, in crossing
the river. Even the large and solid ferry-boats which ply
upon it are sometimes swept away. Almost opposite Attock
it receives the KABUL river, which brings down the waters
of Afghanistan. The two rivers have about an equal volume ;
both are very swift, and broken up with rocks. Their junction
during floods is the scene of a wild confusion of waters. The
Kabul river is navigable for about 40 miles above the con-
fluence, but a rapid just above it renders the Indus impracticable.
Attock, the limit of the upward navigation of the Indus, forms
the first important point on the river within British territory.
By this time it has flowed upwards of 860 miles, or nearly one-
half of its total length, its further course to the sea being about
940 miles. It has fallen from an elevation of 17,000 feet at
its source in Tibet to about 2,000 feet, the height of Attock
being 2,079 feet- In tne hot season, opposite the fort, its
RIVERS in
velocity is 13 miles an hour; and in the cold season, 5 to
7 miles. The rise of ordinary floods is from 5 to 7 feet in
twenty-four hours, and the maximum is 50 feet above cold-
season level. Its width varies greatly with the season — at
one time being more than 250 yards, at another less than 100.
The Indus is crossed at Attock by the railway bridge opened
in 1883, a bridge of boats, and a ferry. The main trunk road
to Peshawar also crosses the river by a subway on the railway
bridge.
After leaving Attock, the Indus flows almost due south,
forming the western boundary of the Punjab, parallel to the
Sulaiman Hills. The great north road from Bannu to Sind
runs for several hundred miles parallel with its western bank ;
and from Attock to Mahmud Kot the Mari-Attock, Mari, and
Sind-Sagar branches of the North- Western Railway run along
its eastern bank. Twelve miles below Attock the Indus receives
the waters of the Haroh, a rapid stream which, rising in the
Murree hiils as the Dhand, meets the Karral coming down
from the Mochpuri peak, and rushes through steep banks for
a total course of 90 miles. At Makhad, the Sohan brings in
all the drainage of Rawalpindi and Jhelum Districts that is
not taken by the Jhelum river. The Indus forms the eastern
border of the two frontier Districts of Dera Ismail Khan in the
North-West Frontier Province and Dera Ghazi Khan in the
Punjab with the Sind-Sagar Doab on its eastern bank, and
only a narrow strip of British territory between it and the hill
tribes of the Sulaiman ranges on the west. Just above Mithan-
kot, in the south of Dera Ghazi Khan District, it receives the
accumulated waters of the Punjab. Between the Indus and
the Jumna flow the five great streams from which the Punjab
(Panj-ab, literally ' The five waters ') takes its name. These
are the JHELUM, the CHENAB, the RAVI, the BEAS, and the
SUTLEJ. After various junctions these unite to form the river
PANJNAD, literally ' The five streams,' which marks for a short
space the boundary between British territory and the Bahawalpur
State, and unites with the Indus near Mithankot, about 490 miles
from the sea. In the cold season the breadth of the Indus
above the confluence is about 600 yards, its velocity 5 miles
an hour, its depth from 12 to 15 feet, and its estimated dis-
charge 10,000 to 25,000 cubic feet per second. During flood-
times the breadth sometimes increases to 5 miles, and the
discharge to 1,000,000 cubic feet per second. The dimensions
of the Panjnad above the point of junction are somewhat less
than those of the Indus during the cold season, but during the
1 1 2 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
monsoon floods they are almost as large. The whole course
of the Indus through the Punjab is broken by islands and
sandbanks ; but beautiful scenery is afforded along its banks,
which abound with the date, acacia, pomegranate, and other
trees.
In Sind. Mithankot has an elevation of only 258 feet above the level
of the sea. From Mithankot the Indus forms the boundary
between the Punjab and Bahawalpur State, until, near Kash-
mor, it enters Sind in 28° 26' N. and 69° 47' E. From Bukkur
(in Sind) to the sea the river is known familiarly among the
Sindls as the Darya ('the river'). Pliny writes of Indus incotis
Sindus appellatus. It first touches Sind close to Kashmor
town in the Upper Sind Frontier District, separating it from
the Bahawalpur State and Sukkur District. Formerly in years
of high inundation its floods reached Jacobabad, finding their
way thence into the Manchhar Lake. To prevent this, the
Kashmor embankment, which is the largest in Sind, was
erected. Leaving Kashmor the river crosses Sukkur, divides
Larkana and Karachi from the Khairpur State and Hyderabad
District, finally emptying itself by many mouths into the
Arabian Sea near Karachi after a south-western course of
450 miles through Sind. It ranges in 'width from 480 to
i, 600 yards, the average during the low season being 680 yards.
During the floods it is in places more than a mile wide. Its
depth varies from 4 to 24 feet. The water, derived from the
snows of the Himalayas, is of a dirty brown colour, and slightly
charged with saline ingredients, carbonate of soda, and nitrate
of potash. Its velocity in the freshets averages 8 miles per
hour; at ordinary times 4 miles. The discharge per second
varies between a minimum of 19,000 and a maximum of
820,000 cubic feet. On an average the temperature of the
water is 10° lower than that of the air. Near the station
of Sukkur and again at Kotri the river is spanned by a fine
railway bridge. The Sukkur bridge was opened in 1889, and
resembles the Forth Bridge in having a central girder with
a span of 200 feet, supported at the ends of two cantilever
arms, each 310 feet long. The Indus begins to rise in March,
attains its maximum depth and width in August, and subsides
in September. The maximum rise registered at Kotri, near
Hyderabad, was 22 feet 7 inches in 1894. There are many
other gauges on the river.
The Indus The delta of the Indus covers an area of about 3,000 square
miles, and extends along the coast-line for 125 miles. It is
almost a perfect level, and nearly destitute of timber, the
RIVERS 113
tamarisk and mangrove alone supplying fuel. In these respects
the delta is similar to that of the Nile, but dissimilar to that
of the Ganges. The marshy portions contain good pastur-
age, and rice grows luxuriantly wherever cultivation is pos-
sible; but the soil generally is not fertile, being a mixture of
sand and clay. In the Shahbandar tdluka are immense de-
posits of salt. The climate of the delta is cool and bracing in
the winter months, hot in the summer, and during the floods
most unhealthy.
The Indus formerly flowed down the middle of the THAL. Changes in
Basira, a -village in the centre of the Muzaffargarh Thai, was
called Bet Basira ; and at Shahgarh, near the southern end
of the Thai, a long lake is still extant which once formed the
Indus bed. In 1800 the river at the apex of the delta divided
into two main streams, known as the Baghlar and Slta; but
in 1837 it had entirely deserted the former channel. The
Khedewari passage also, which before 1819 was the highway
of water traffic to Shahbandar, was in that year closed by an
earthquake. In 1837 the Kakaiwari, which had then increased
from a shallow creek to a river with an average width at low
water of 770 yards, was recognized as the highway ; but before
1867 this also was completely blocked. In 1897 the river
suddenly cut 3 miles inland, north of Rohri, destroying the
cultivated fields and the Mando-Dahiro road. Tando Nijabat
on the right bank and Mithani on the left have been swept
away four times and rebuilt farther off. For the present the
Hajamro, which before 1 845 was navigable only by the smallest
boats, is the main estuary of the Indus. The shape of the
Hajamro is that of a funnel, with the mouth to the sea ; on
the east side of the entrance is a beacon 95 feet high, visible
for 2 miles ; and two well-manned pilot boats lie inside the bar
to point out the difficulties of navigation.
The following facts illustrate further the shifting nature of
the Indus. In 1845 Ghorabari, then the chief commercial
town of the delta, was on the river bank ; but in 1 848 the river
deserted its bed. The town of Keti was built on the new
bank. The new bank overflowed a few years later, and a second
Keti had to be built farther off. At present one of the chief
obstructions to navigation is a series of rocks between Tatta
and Bhiman-jo-pura, which, in 1846, were 8 miles inland.
In 1863 a thousand acres of the Dhareja forest were swept
away. The rapidity and extent of the destructive action in
constant progress in the delta may be estimated from the fact
that travellers have counted by the reports as many as thirteen
ii4 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Inunda-
tions and
irrigation.
Principal
canals.
bank slips in a minute. In some places the elephant grass
(Typha elephantind) does good service by driving its roots very
deeply (often 9 feet) into the ground, and thereby holding
it together.
The entire course of the Indus in British territory, from
Attock to the sea, lies within the zone of deficient rainfall, the
annual average being nowhere higher than 10 inches. Cultiva-
tion, therefore, is absolutely dependent upon artificial irrigation,
almost to as great an extent as in the typical example of Egypt.
But the Indus is a less manageable river than the Nile. Its
main channel is constantly shifting ; at only three places —
Sukkur, Jerruck, and Kotri — are the river banks permanent;
and during the season of flood the melted snows of the
Himalayas come down in an impetuous torrent which no
embankment can restrain. From time immemorial this annual
inundation, which is to Sind what the monsoons are to other
parts of India, has been utilized as far as possible by an
industrious peasantry, who lead the water over their fields by
countless artificial channels. Many such channels, constructed
in the days of native rule, extend 30 and even 40 miles from
the river bank. Recently the systematic schemes of British
engineers have added numerous perennial canals, such as
the Jamrao, constructed on scientific principles. The first
recorded inundation of the Indus took place in 1833 ; another
occurred in 1841 on a much larger scale. This flood was said
to have been caused by the bursting of a glacier which formed
over an accumulation of water in the Nubra Tso, into which
there was a regular and steady flow from the surrounding
hills. Eventually, the glacier was burst asunder by the pressure,
and the released floods poured down the Shyok valley, carrying
everything before them. There was another great flood in
August, 1858, when the river rose 90 feet in a few hours, and
the greater part of the private property in Naushahra canton-
ment was destroyed. Lower down in its course considerable
damage has been caused in DERA GHAZI KHAN DISTRICT,
where protective works were undertaken. Of recent years the
Indus has been embanked from above Kashmor to the mouth
of the Begari canal, a distance of more than 50 miles. The
embankment has proved a great protection to the North- Western
Railway, which here runs at right angles to the river.
A full account of irrigation in SIND will be found in the
article on that Province. It must suffice in this place to give
a list of the principal works, following the Indus downwards
from the Punjab. The country has recently been surveyed
KIVEXS 115
with a view to a canal being led from Kalabagh down the
Sind-Sagar Doab, but the difficulties in the way are at present
considerable. The waters of the river are first utilized on
a large scale in the INDUS INUNDATION CANALS, which water
a narrow strip between the Indus and the Sulaiman mountains.
The canals in this tract have an aggregate length of 690 miles,
of which 1 08 have been constructed under British rule. In
Muzaffargarh District the MUZAFFARGARH CANALS take off from
the Indus and Chenab, and in the Native State of Bahawalpur
the Chenab and Sutlej, as well as the Indus, contribute to
render cultivation possible. In Sind the following are the
chief canal systems : — on the right or west bank, the Desert,
Unar Wah, Began, Sukkur, Ghar, and Western Nara; on the
left or east, the Nara Supply Channel, Mahi Wah, JAMRAO,
a branch of the Eastern Nara, and the EASTERN NARA with
many distributaries, the principal being the Mithrao and Pinjari.
Other important canals are the Fuleli with two mouths, the
Nasrat, and the Dad. The total area irrigated by canals from
the Indus in 1903-4 was : — in the Punjab, 714 square miles ; in
Sind, 4,925 square miles.
As a channel of navigation, the Indus has disappointed the Naviga-
expectations that were at one time formed. Before British tlon'
arms had conquered Sind and the Punjab, it was hoped that
the fabled wealth of Central Asia might be brought by this
course down to the sea. But, even so far as local traffic is
concerned, experience has proved in this case, as with most
other Indian rivers, that the cheapness of water communication
cannot compete with the superior speed and certainty of rail-
ways. Since the opening of the Indus Valley State Railway
(now included in the North-Western system) in the autumn
of 1878, navigation on the Indus, whether by steamer or by
native boat, has greatly fallen off. The general character
of the Indus trade may be inferred from the statistics of imports
and exports into the PUNJAB by ' rail and river,' which refer
only to traffic borne in part or wholly on the Indus. The
original 'Indus flotilla,' which was broken up in 1862, placed
its first steamer on the river in 1835. In 1859 a company
established another Indus flotilla in connexion with the Sind
Railway, with which it was formally amalgamated in 1870, the
joint head-quarters being removed to Lahore. The railway
flotilla was abolished in 1882-3. These were not the only
flotilla experiments on the Indus. In 1856 the Oriental Inland
Steam Company obtained a yearly subsidy of Rs. 50,000 from
Government ; but, as the river current proved too powerful for
I 2
n6 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
its steamers, the company stopped the traffic, and eventually
collapsed.
For the conservancy of the lower part of the river, Act I
of 1863 (Bombay) provides for the registration of vessels, and
the levy of pilotage fees by an officer called the Conservator
and Registrar of the Indus, the sum realized being expended
on the improvement of navigation l. A special export board,
known as the Indus Commission, was constituted in 1901.
The boats of the Indus are the dundo and zaurak, both
cargo-boats, the kauntal, or ferry-boats, and the dundi, or
fishing-boats. The cargo-boats are sometimes of 60 tons
burden, and when laden draw 4 feet of water. The state
barges or jhamptis of the Sind Mlrs were built of teak, four-
masted, and sometimes required crews of thirty men.
Fish. Fish abound. At the mouths, the salt-water varieties include
the Clupea neowhii, a species of herring largely consumed along
the coast and in the delta. The chief of the fresh-water varieties
are the palla, placed by Dr. Day under the Clupeidae, and
nearly allied to, if not identical with, the hilsa of the Ganges ;
and the dambhro. The local consumption and also the export
of dried palla are very large. Otters, turtles, porpoises,
water-snakes,- and crocodiles, of both the blunt-nosed and
sharp-nosed species, are numerous.
[Notes on the Indus River (Karachi, 1901).]
Swat River (Sanskrit, Suvastu ; Greek, Souastos or
Souastgnf}. — A river of the North- West Frontier Province,
formed by the junction at Kalan in Swat Kohistan of the
Gabral and the Ushu. The former rises on the east of the
Badugai pass, and the latter comes down from the higher hills
of Bashkar to the north. From Kalan the Swat river flows
almost due south for about 68 miles, but at Manglaur turns
abruptly to the south-west and west for 24 miles until it is
joined by the Panjkora. The united waters then sweep in a
great curve south-westwards to Abazai in Peshawar District,
where they emerge to the north of the Mohmand hills into the
Peshawar valley. Here the river spreads south-east in several
streams over the plain, joining the Kabul river at Nisatta after
a total course of about 400 miles. Fed by glaciers and snow,
it has a considerable volume in the summer months, but
shrinks after the middle of September, until at midwinter it
is almost everywhere fordable. In Peshawar District the
SWAT RIVER CANAL takes off from the river, and a scheme for
1 The Indus Conservancy department and fees levied for its up-keep were
abolished in March, 1906.
RIVERS 117
tunnelling under the Malakand Pass and bringing its waters
to the eastern part of Yusufzai is under consideration.
Kabul River. — A river of North-Western India, which rises
in Afghanistan near the Unai pass, about 40 miles west of
Kabul city, in 34° 21' N. and 68° 20' E. In its upper course
it is joined by many small tributaries from the southern slopes
of the Laghman range. It is at first an inconsiderable stream,
being fordable as far as Kabul city. At a short distance
beyond this it receives the Logar from the south, and thence-
forward becomes a rapid river with a considerable volume of
water. About 40 miles below Kabul city, it receives from the
north the Panjshir; 15 miles farther on, the Tagao; 20 miles
below, the united streams of the Alingar and Alishang ; and a
few miles above Jalalabad, the Surkhab from the south. Just
below Jalalabad it is joined by the Kunar from the north.
After these accessions, the Kabul becomes a large river, no-
where fordable. Flowing with great force, it hugs the north
side of the Jalalabad valley until it enters the Mohmand hills,
when it presses towards the north base of the Khyber range,
and is confined between hills until it enters British territory
near the Michni Fort. Here it divides into two branches, the
Adezai on the north and the Naguman on the south.
The Adezai, or Hajizai, is at present the main stream. It
divides the tahslls of Peshawar and Charsadda for 20 miles,
and after a farther course of 10 miles through the latter tahsil,
rejoins the Naguman at Nisatta, after receiving the waters of
the SWAT. The Naguman, formerly the main stream, throws
off the Budhni, a small branch which supplies the Jui Shaikh
canal, and after receiving the drainage of the Khyber hills,
turns north and joins the Shah Alam, itself a chord of the
Naguman. That stream has a course of 20 miles before it
reaches Nisatta, and below that place the joint stream is
known as the Landai or 'short' river. The Landai flows
between low banks for its first 12 miles, but below Nau-
shahra it has cut a deep channel and its lower reaches are
rocky. After a course of 36 miles, it falls into the Indus at
Attock. Thus the total course of the Kabul river is about
316 miles.
From its source to Jalalabad, the river is of no value except
for irrigation, which it also affords in the Frontier Province
(see KABUL RIVER CANAL) ; from Jalalabad to Dobandi, it
affords safe, and generally rapid, descent down-stream by
means of rafts of inflated skins. This mode of travelling is
frequently resorted to, as it saves ten marches which may be
u8 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
traversed in twelve hours when the river is in flood. The
boatmen of Lalpura, Jalalabad, and Kunar are a peculiar race,
keeping much to themselves, and are known under the generic
title of nildbi. From Dobandi (or Nisatta) to Attock, the
Kabul is navigable for boats of 40 or 50 tons.
Between Kabul city and Jalalabad, the river is fordable in
places ; but after it has been swelled by the waters of the
Logar, the fords are not always practicable; both at Sarobi
(opposite Naglu) and at Jalalabad there are alternative fords
and ferries. The precarious nature of the Jalalabad ford was
illustrated by a catastrophe which occurred in March, 1879,
when an officer and forty-six non-commissioned officers and
men of the loth Hussars were drowned while attempting a
passage in the dark. The principal ferries between Dobandi
and Attock are from Nisatta to Khalll Bandah, and from New
to Old Naushahra, The railway from Naushahra to Dargai
crosses the river, and there is a bridge of boats at the same site,
while another has recently been constructed at Lalpura below
Jalalabad. Permanent bridges cross the river in Kabul city.
Bara River. — A small river in the North-West Frontier
Province, which rises in the highlands of Tlrah, and flows
eastward between the Safed Koh and its offshoot the Surghar
range on the north and the Torghar or Zia-ud-din range, which
divides it from the Mastura valley, on the south. In Tlrah the
Bara valley is closely confined between these lofty, rugged, and
pine-clad ranges ; but it is thickly dotted with fortified home-
steads, and the passage by the British force in 1897 was most
arduous. Entering Peshawar District near Fort Bara, a few
miles south-west of Peshawar city, the Bara takes a north-
easterly course and falls into the Kabul river after a total
length of 100 miles. The water-supply of Peshawar is drawn
from this river by a closed masonry flume taking off 2 miles
above the fort. The river has cut its way through the soft soil
of the Peshawar valley to a considerable depth and now runs
far below the level of the surrounding country, but from time
immemorial it has been used for irrigation on both banks.
The supply of water is, however, small, not exceeding 158 cubic
feet per second as a rule, though after rain in the Tirah hills it
is greatly increased, and the stream then brings down a reddish
silt which is extremely fertilizing. In 1898 a weir was con-
structed near the Afrldi village of Urn Gudr at a cost of
Rs. 20,000. The Bara canal, taking off here on the north
bank, has two branches named after the tribes whose lands
they command : the Khalll or Sangu, which cost Rs. 23,500 ;
K1VERS 119
and the Mohmand or Shaikh&n, which cost Rs. 20,600. These
branches were so designed as not to interfere with the ancient
watercourses, over which they were carried by means of
aqueducts. Both branches run through tunnels in conglomerate
rock immediately above the weir, the Sangu tunnel being
i, 600 feet in length and the Shaikhan 710 feet. The head-
works are protected by a blockhouse. The canal is managed
by the Deputy-Commissioner under the Peshawar Canal
Regulation of 1898. Irrigated 57 square miles in 1903-4.
Kurram River. — A river in the North-West Frontier
Province, which rises at the base of the Rokian defile in
Afghanistan and, after traversing the Khost district of that
State, enters the country of the Turis or the Kurram Valley
proper near Kharlachi, 40 miles from its source. It then flows
south-east for about 55 miles, through the whole length of the
Political Agency of Kurram, till it reaches Thai in Kohat
District. Here it turns southward through the country of the
Kabul Khel Wazlrs, and after receiving the Kaitu river, which
drains the Afghan district of Khost, it enters Bannu. Traversing
that District with a south-easterly course it cuts its way through
a narrow gorge, known as Darra Tang, in the hills that encircle
Bannu District, into the Isa Khel plain, and falls into the Indus
opposite Mianwali. In its course through the Kurram Valley
it is mainly fed by streams from the Safed Koh, the chief of
which are the Kirman and Kurmana.
Tochi River (or Gambila). — A river in the North-West
Frontier Province, which rises in Afghanistan and flows through
the Northern Waziristan Agency and Bannu District. Its
course through Northern Waziristan is due east, through the
valley of Upper and Lower Daur. Thence it debouches on
the Bannu plain and, running south-east for most of its course,
curves eastward again and falls into the Kurram, east of Lakki.
It irrigates considerable areas in both Daur and Bannu District ;
but owing to the increase in cultivation in Daur since the
British occupation of the valley in 1895, there has been a great
decline in the Bannu irrigation. The total length of the river
is between 100 and 150 miles.
Gumal. — A river on the north-west frontier of India, which
rises near Sarwandi on the Koh Nak range in Afghanistan, and
flowing south-east enters British territory at Domandi, where
it is joined by the Kundar. It runs thence eastward till it
reaches Murtaza in Dera Ismail Khan District. Between
Domandi and Murtaza the Gumal receives the waters of the
Wana Toi (north bank) at Toi Khula, and the Zhob (south
120 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
bank) at Khajuri Kach. From Domandi to Khajuri it is the
boundary between the North-West Frontier Province and
Baluchistan (Zhob Agency). The channel of the Gumal
passes to the Indus a few miles south of Dera Ismail Khan
cantonment; but, except in times of flood, all the water is
used for irrigation in Dera Ismail Khan District and does
not reach the Indus.
Swat River Canal. — A perennial irrigation work in the
Peshawar District of the North-West Frontier Province, taking
off from the right bank of the Swat river at Abazai, and
irrigating about 155,000 acres. The place of a weir is taken
by a natural reef stretching across the river below the head
regulator. The regulator has seven openings of 6 feet each,
and is protected at each end by fortified blockhouses, forming
one of the chain of frontier posts garrisoned by the border
military police. The main channel has a width of 31 feet and
a depth when full of 7-35 feet; it can carry a supply of 865
cubic feet per second. In a total length of 22\ miles there
are no less than 21 drainage works, which carry under or over
the canal the water of the numerous mountain torrents that
intersect its course. These are for the most part crossed by
massive stone aqueducts, and the canal banks for some dis-
tance above and below these crossings are of a great height.
About 1 86 miles of distributary channels have been aligned
on the watersheds between the torrents, the most important
being the trans-Kalpani distributary, which has a discharge of
94 cubic feet per second and a length of nearly 14^ miles, and
in which there are fourteen drainage works of importance.
The tract commanded by the canal is that portion of the
dry, sparsely populated Yusufzai plain which is bounded on
the north by the canal itself, on the west and south by the
Swat and Kabul rivers, and on the east by the Mokam nullah,
a tributary of the Kalpani. The country rises so rapidly on
the north of the canal up to the foot of the hills that it cannot
be brought under command. The canal tract itself is cut up
by innumerable nullahs running generally from north to south,
and carrying the drainage from the hills on the north to the
Swat and Kabul rivers on the west and south. The great cost
of the canal was due to the difficulty of taking it across these
channels, some of which are of great size.
The main canal was opened in 1885, and the trans-Kalpani
distributary in 1899. The Naushahra minor, a channel irri-
gating two grass farms near Naushahra, was constructed in
1901. The area irrigated in both harvests during the three
CANALS 121
years ending 1901-2 averaged 161,000 acres, and 'in 1903-4 it
was 159,000 acres. The total capital expenditure to the end
of March, 1904, was 41-4 lakhs. The canal was originally
sanctioned as a protective work, no profit being anticipated
owing to the high cost of construction. The whole accumu-
lated interest charges were, however, paid off in fifteen years,
and the net revenue in 1903-4 (Rs. 4,57,000) exceeded
10 per cent, on the capital expended. The canal has thus
become a remunerative investment to Government, besides
contributing in no small degree to the peace of the border. It
fails, however, to touch the part of Yusufzai between the main
channel and the border hills to the north where water is badly
needed, and it is accordingly proposed to drive a tunnel
through the Malakand range and tap the Swat river near
Chakdarra. As the river is fed from the snows, it attains its
greatest volume in the summer months, and thus water would
be abundant just at the time it is most needed. A canal
would be made from Dargai, with branches running west to
Abazai, the head of the parent canal, and south-east to the
Indus at Pehur and the Kabul river at Jahanglra. These
branches would practically command all of Peshawar District
north of the Swat and Kabul rivers which is not already canal-
irrigated — an area of about 600 square miles.
Kabul River Canal. — A perennial irrigation work in the
Peshawar District of the North-West Frontier Province. It is
a revival of an old Mughal canal, and takes off from the right
bank of the Kabul river at the village of Warsak on the border
of British territory, about 3 miles up-stream from Michni fort.
The main line is 20 feet in width at the off-take, and can carry
more than 300 cubic feet a second. It crosses the watershed
of the country, passing over thirty-six drainage channels of
greater or less size, and running close to Peshawar terminates
at the fortieth mile near Naushahra. The distributaries in-
clude four branches, with a total length of 19 miles, the largest
being the Kuror branch, 9^ miles long. A small private canal
is situated near the canal head. The tract commanded is
a long narrow strip of irregular width, bounded on the south
and west by the canal itself, and on the north and east, for the
upper two-thirds of its length, by the low-lying ground irrigated
by old proprietary canals, of which the Jui Shaikh is the most
important ; while for the lower third of its length the Kabul
river is the boundary.
The area now commanded exceeds 30,000 acres. It is at
present considerably interspersed with that irrigated by the Jui
122 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Shaikh and other private canals, as well as by the Bara river
works ; but there seems every prospect of the greater portion of
all this area ultimately coming under the canal. Irrigation is
chiefly for the autumn harvest, and the area of crops actually
irrigated during the three years ending 1902 averaged 30,173
acres; in 1903-4 it was 27,800 acres. The canal was opened
in 1893, the Kuror branch being added subsequently. The
capital cost up to March, 1904, was Rs. 6,45,000, and the net
income in 1903-4 was Rs. 90,800, giving a return of nearly 24
per cent. On October i, 1903, the revenue management of
this canal was taken over by the Irrigation department. An
extension called the Hazar Khani branch is now under con-
struction.
Amb. — Village in independent TANAWAL, North-West
Frontier Province, situated in 34° 18' N. and 72° 55' E., on
the western bank of the Indus. The ruler of the territoiy
takes his title as Nawab of Amb from this place, where he
resides in winter.
Derajat. — The local name of the level plain between the
Indus and the Sulaiman range, lying between 29° 30' and 34°
15' N. and 69° 15' and 72' E., in the Punjab and North-West
Frontier Province. The tract includes, and derives its name
from, the three Deras : DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Dera Fateh Khan,
and DERA GHAZI KHAN. It extends north to the Sheikh
Budin range, which divides it from the Marwat plain, and
south to the town of Jampur, having thus a length of 325
miles. Its breadth averages 50 miles. The Derajat owes its
existence as a historical area to the Baloch immigration in the
fifteenth century. Sultan Husain, the Langah sovereign of
Multan, being unable to hold his trans-Indus possessions,
called in Baloch mercenaries, and assigned these territories
to Malik Sohrab Dodai in jdgir. Sohrab's sons, Ismail and
Fateh Khan, founded the two deras or settlements named
after them ; while Haji Khan, the head of the old Mirani tribe
of the Balochs, who had also entered the service of the Langahs,
assumed independence in the reign of Mahmud, Sultan Husain's
grandson, and founded Dera Ghazi Khan, naming it after his
son and successor. When Haji Khan died in 1494, the tract
was a deserted waste but contained a few isolated towns.
The Miranis soon came into conflict with the Nahars, who
ruled the country on the Indus to the south, the boundary
between the rival powers lying north of Rajanpur ; but the
Miranis also held some territory east of the Indus in the
modern District of Muzaffargarh. On Babar's conquest of
HISTORIC AREAS 123
Northern India in 1526 the Miranis submitted to him, and at
his death the Derajat became a dependency of his son Kamran,
the ruler of Kabul. Under Humayun the Baloch immigration
increased, and they gradually pushed the Nahars farther south.
All the Baloch tribes acknowledged the overlordship of the
Mirani Nawabs, who ruled for about fifteen generations at
Dera Ghazi Khan, taking alternately the style of ' Haji ' and
'Ghazi Khan.' At Dera Ismail Khan ruled the Hot Baloch
chiefs, who bore the title of Ismail Khan from father to son
and also held Darya Khan and Bhakkar, east of the Indus.
Early in the eighteenth century the Miranis lost their suprem-
acy, being overwhelmed by the Kalhoras of Sind ; and when
in 1739 Nadir Shah acquired all the territory west of the
Indus, he made the Mirani Wazir, Mahmud Khan Gujar,
governor in Dera Ghazi Khan under the Kalhora chief, who
also became his vassal. Under Ahmad Shah Durrani the
Kalhoras and the Miranis, now in a state of decadence, con-
tended for possession of Dera Ghazi , Khan, but Mahmud
Khan Gujar appears to have been its real governor. He was
succeeded by his nephew, who was killed in 1779, and the
Durranis then appointed governors direct for a period of thirty-
two years. Meanwhile the last of the Hot chiefs of Dera
Ismail Khan had been deposed in 1770, and his territories
also were administered from Kabul. In 1794 Humayun Shah
attempted to deprive Zaman Shah Durrani of his kingdom,
but he was defeated and fell into the hands of Muhammad
Khan Saddozai, governor of the Sind-Sagar Doab. As a
reward for this capture, Zaman Shah bestowed the province of
Dera Ismail Khan on Nawab Muhammad Khan, who governed
it from Mankera by deputy. His son-in-law, Hafiz Ahmad
Khan, surrendered at Mankera to Ranjit Singh in 1821, and
at the same time tribute was imposed by the Sikhs on the
chiefs of Tank (Sarwar Khan) and Sagar. Dera Fateh Khan
was also occupied ; but Dera Ismail Khan, to which Hafiz
Ahmad Khan was permitted to retire on the fall of Mankera,
remained independent till 1836, when Nao Nihal Singh de-
posed Muhammad Khan, the son of Hafiz Ahmad Khan, and
appointed Diwan Lakhi Mai to be Kardar. Diwan Lakhi
Mai held this post till his death in 1843, and was succeeded
by his son Diwan Daulat Rai, who enjoyed the support of the
Multani Pathan Sardars. He was bitterly opposed by Malik
Fateh Khan Tiwana, who had also procured a nomination as
Kardar from the Sikh Durbar. These rivals contended for
supremacy with varying success until 1847, when the Diwan
124 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
then in possession was deposed on the recommendation of
Sir H. Edwardes, who appointed General Van Cortlandt to
be Kardar. The Derajat passed to the British in 1849, and
is now divided between the Districts of Dera Ghazi Khan
in the Punjab and Dera Ismail Khan in the North-West
Frontier Province.
Gandhara (the Gandaria of the Greeks). — The ancient
name for the tract on the north-west frontier of India which
comprised the whole lower valley of the Kabul river, the
ancient Kophene or Kubha, from the Kau or Alingar river
near 70° E. to the Indus, and from the Safed Koh and Kohat
range on the south to the borders of the Swat valley on the
north. It thus included the modern District of Peshawar,
with part of Kohat, the Mohmand country, Swat, Bajaur,
and Buner, and at one period even embraced within its limits
the great city of Takshasila, east of the Indus. Its length
was 170 miles from west to east at its greatest, and 100 miles
from north to south. Its people were known to Herodotus,
Hekataios, Ptolemy, and Strabo as Gandarioi or Gandarae,
and furnished a contingent to Darius in his invasion of Greece.
Gandhara was included in the Arachosian satrapy of the
Achaemenid kings of Persia. At different times Pushkalavati
(the Peukelaotis of the Greeks), Purushapura (Peshawar), and
Udabhandapura (UNO) formed its capital. The province
between the Swat and Indus rivers, corresponding to the
modern Yusufzai country, was known as Udyana or Ujjana,
and to the Greeks as Suastene. At times it formed a separate
principality. Gandhara was a great seat of the Buddhist reli-
gion and Graeco-Bactrian culture in the centuries after Alex-
ander's invasion, until about A. D. 515 Mihirakula, the Hun,
overran Udyana and Kashmir and oppressed the Buddhists.
Of the Chinese pilgrims who visited Gandhara, Fa Hian
found (c. 404) 500 monasteries and the people devoted to the
Buddhist faith ; in the seventh century Hiuen Tsiang laments
its decline ; while fully 100 years later (757-64) U-K'ong
still found 300 monasteries and princes who were zealous
patrons of the monks. Gandhara has given its name to
the Graeco-Buddhist sculpture found so abundantly in this
region.
Pakhli. — An ancient sarkdr or district of the Mughal
subah of the Punjab, now included in the Hazara District
of the North-West Frontier Province. Pakhli roughly cor-
responds with the ancient Urasa, the *Ap<ra or Ofapaa which
Ptolemy places between the Bidaspes (Jhelum) and the Indus.
HISTORIC AREAS 125
Its king was named Arsakes in the time of Alexander. Hiuen
Tsiang found it tributary to Kashmir. In the Kashmir chro-
nicle, called the Rajatarangini, it appears, now as a separate
kingdom, now as tributary to that State. In it lay Agror, the
ancient Atyugrapura. In Babar's time this tract was held by
the Khakha and Bambha tribes, whose chiefs had been the
ancient rulers of the country east of the Indus, but had been
driven out by the Gibari Sultans of Bajaur and Swat ; and the
tract derives its name from Pakhli, one of these conquerors.
In the Ain-i-Akbari it is described as bounded on the east by
Kashmir, on the south by the country of the Gakhars, on the
west by Attock, and on the north by Kator (Chitral). Under
Durrani rule Saadat Khan was chosen as chief of Pakhli, then
a dependency of Kashmir. He founded the fort of Garhi
Saadat Khan, which was the head-quarters of Azad Khan's
rebellion against Timur Shah. Early in the nineteenth cen-
tury Pakhli comprised three districts : Mansehra in the south
and south-east, Shinkiari (subdivided into Kandhi and Maidan)
in the north-east, and Bhir-Kand in the centre. The valleys
of Kagan, Bhogarmang, and Agror were dependent on it.
Und (Hind, Ohind, Waihind}. — Village in the North- West
Frontier Province, situated in 34° 2' N. and 72° 27' E., 15 miles
above Attock, on the west bank of the Indus, just beyond
the north-east corner of Peshawar District. It marks the site
of the ancient Indian Udaka or Uda-bhandapura, the U-to-
kia-han-ch'a of the Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsiang, once the
capital of the Turki and Hindu Shahi dynasties, which ruled
the Kabul valley and Gandhara immediately before the
Muhammadan invasion. Hiuen Tsiang in the seventh cen-
tury A. D. describes it as a rich city, 4 miles in circumference.
The hard- won victory by which Mahmud of Ghazni opened
his way into the Punjab was fought before Waihind, the name
by which the place was known to Alberuni and the Muham-
madan historians. It remained a place of some importance
after this event, for Govinda-khana, ruler of the Indus region
and Gandhara, was expelled from it by Shahab-ud-dln, king of
Kashmir, in the fourteenth century.
DISTRICTS, ETC.
Bonn- Hazara District. — Northernmost District of the North-
darks con- West Frontier Province, and the only territory of that
figuration, . *
and hill Province east of the Indus. It lies between 33 44' and
and river 35° IO' N. and 72° 33' and 74° 6' E., with an area of 2,858,
systems* •
or, including Tanawal, 3,062 square miles. The District con-
sists of a long tongue of British territory running north and
south for 1 20 miles. The southern base is 56 miles in width,
and the centre 40, while the Kagan valley, in the north-east, is
only about 15 miles broad. On the north the Kagan range
separates the District from Chilas, a dependency of Kashmir ;
and on the east the range which borders the left bank of the
Kunhar river and the river Jhelum separates it from Kashmir,
Punch, and the Punjab District of Rawalpindi ; north-west lie
the Black Mountain and the lofty ranges which overhang the
eastern bank of the Indus ; and on the south is the Attock
District of the Punjab. Thus the District lies like a wedge of
British territory driven in between Kashmir on the east and
the independent hills on the west.
Hazara presents every gradation of scenery, altitude, and
climate. The valley of the Harroh, only 1,500 feet above the
sea-level, merges into the Hazara plain, an area of 200 square
miles, with a mean elevation of 2,500 feet. Higher again is
the Orash plain, where Abbottabad lies between 4,000 and
5,000 feet above the sea. Lastly the Kagan valley, com-
prising one-third of the total area, is a sparsely populated
mountain glen, shut in by parallel ranges of hills which rise to
17,000 feet above the sea. Never more than 15 miles apart,
these ranges throw out spurs across the valley, leaving only
a narrow central gorge through which the Kunhar river forces
an outlet to the Jhelum.
The scenery is picturesque and ever-changing. Distant
snowy ranges to the north ; the higher mountains of Hazara,
clothed with pines, oaks, and other forest trees, the lower
ranges covered with grass and brushwood ; cultivation appear-
ing on every available spot, from the small terraces cut with
great labour in the hill-sides to the rich irrigation of the
HAZARA DISTRICT 127
Haripur and Pakhli plains ; water in every form, from
the swift torrents of the Kunhar and Jhelum and the strong
deep stream of the Indus, to the silent lakes of the Kagan
valley — all these suggest Kashmir and offer a vivid contrast
to the arid plains of Northern India.
Hazara may be described geologically as a section of the Geology,
earth's crust coming well within the area of Himalayan dis-
turbance, although the trend of the hill-ranges is altered from
north-west — south-east to north-east — south-west. It is divi-
sible into four distinct zones or belts of formations separated
from one another by faults with overthrust, and each zone
exhibits more plication or metamorphism as the higher and
more north-westerly regions are approached. The first, to the
north-west, is composed of metamorphic schists and sills of
gneissose granite, and includes most of the country north-
west of Abbottabad and the Dor valley. The second zone is
composed of a great and ancient slate series, with outliers
of younger rocks in the high, isolated hill-groups north-east
of Abbottabad. The next in order, together with the outliers
of that just described, comprise a great series of marine
deposits beginning with a marked unconformity and basal
conglomerate, and extending from the infra-Trias (Devonian ?)
up to Nummulitic, the rocks being mostly limestones or
dolomitic limestones with subordinate shales and sandstones.
In this series the Trias and Nummulitic are well developed,
while the Jura cretaceous strata are comparatively thin. Last
of all are the Upper Tertiary zone of Murree sandstone and
the lower and upper Siwalik sandstones and conglomerates to
the south, stretching away into the Rawalpindi plateau.
A coaly layer is found below the Nummulitic limestone in
the Dor and neighbourhood. It is much crushed, uncertain
in thickness, and mixed with much clay. Its value (if any)
requires proving1.
The trees of the District are described below under forests. Botany.
Generally speaking the flora is extremely varied, in the south
embracing most varieties commonly found in the plains of
Northern India, and in the hills including every type of Alpine
vegetation until the extreme limit of growth is reached.
Leopards and black bears are found in all the hill tracts ; Fauna,
hyenas are common in the lower hills, and wolves are occa-
sionally seen. Foxes, hill martens, porcupines, hedgehogs,
mongooses, and burrowing rats are common throughout the
1 C. S. Middlemiss. Memoirs, Geological Survey of India, vol. xxvi.
1 2 8 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Climate
and tem-
perature.
Rainfall.
History.
District. Ibex and musk deer are found in Kagan. Game
birds are not nymerous. Various kinds of pheasant are found
at elevations from 5,000 to 12,000 feet, and partridges and
the commoner water-fowl abound lower down. Mahseer are
plentiful in the Indus and Jhelum and in the lower reaches
of the Harroh and Siran.
The climate is as varied as the scenery. The hot season
in the south vies with that in the adjoining Districts of Rawal-
pindi and Attock. In the central plateaux the heat of summer
is materially less, and the winter proportionately severe. The
line of perpetual snow is between 14,000 and 15,000 feet above
sea-level. The climate is, however, healthy, and well suited to
Europeans. Malarial fevers in the spring and autumn, and
various affections of the lungs in winter, are the chief diseases.
The rainfall is abundant, varying from 30 inches in the south
to 50 inches or more in Abbottabad and the neighbouring hill
stations. The heaviest fall in the last twenty years was
79 inches at Abbottabad in 1893-4, and the lightest 15 inches
at Haripur in 1891-2.
The origin of the name Hazara is obscure. It has been
identified with Abisara, the country of Abisares, the chief of
the Indian mountaineers at the time of Alexander's invasion.
Dr. Stein regards it as derived from Urasa, the ancient name
of PAKHLI ; but a possible derivation is from Hazara-i-Karlugh,
or the Karlugh legion, which was settled in this tract by Timur
after his invasion of India. Little is known of the history of
the tract before the Durranis. The name indeed occurs in
the Ain-i-Akbariy and is mentioned by Firishta. From these
writings we gather that the Hazara plain formed part of the
Attock governorship, while other parts of the modern District
were held by the same Gakhars who played so prominent
a part in the history of Rawalpindi. When the Mughal
dynasty declined and the Afghan peoples from across the
Indus grew more aggressive, they found Hazara an easy prey ;
Gakhar rule had grown weak, and the old families of the
Giijars, Kharrals, and Dhunds were losing their vitality.
In 1752, Hazara passed definitely under the sway of Ahmad
Shah Durrani. The District formed the most convenient route
to Kashmir and also a useful recruiting area. Hence the
Durrapis were at pains to repress disorder, but troubled
themselves little about the internal administration or even the
revenue payments of the tract. By the beginning of the nine-
teenth century the Durranis had grown weak and Hazara pro-
portionately unruly. Sikh rule, however, was not established
HAZARA DISTRICT 129
without preliminary defeats. In 1818 Ranjit Singh formally
annexed Hazara; but in 1820 his generals were defeated, and
again in 1821 Amar Singh was defeated and slain on the
Harroh. Sardar Hari Singh, the governor of Kashmir, was
now sent to Hazara ; but it took him three more years to sub-
due the warlike mountaineers of -the outer hills, and it was not
till 1836 that the Gakhars of Khanpur were finally subdued.
The governorship of Hazara was at this time no sinecure.
In 1845, the disorganization of the Sikh rule at Lahore
tempted the people to rise once more, and so successful were
they that Diwan Mulraj, governor of Hazara, retired to Hassan
Abdal in 1846. The people assembled at Haripur and tried
to restore former conditions. Meanwhile, the first Sikh War
had come to an end, and Hazara was made over to Raja Gulab
Singh, together with Kashmir. In 1847 tne Raja gave back
Hazara to the Lahore Darbar in exchange for land near Jammu,
and Major James Abbott was sent to settle the country. By
fair assessments, by liberality to the chiefs, and by a display of
vigour and firmness when occasion required it, he completely
pacified Hazara in less than a year. During the second Sikh
War Major Abbott maintained his position single-handed in
the hills, cut off by the Sikh army from all assistance. During
the Mutiny the District was under another strong man, Major
Becher, and no disturbances of importance took place. Since
1857, the Black Mountain has been the only focus of dis-
turbance, but the expeditions of 1868, 1888, 1891, and 1892
seem to have effectually quieted the country.
The archaeological remains so far discovered in Hazara are Archaeo-
not numerous, but one is of great interest and importance. logy'
This is an inscription on three boulders near the base of the
Bareri Hill close to Mansehra, containing the first thirteen
of the fourteen rock edicts of Asoka (third century B.C.).
There are one or two traces of stiipas in other parts of the
District. Coins of the Graeco-Bactrians, of Azes (first century
B.C.), of Augustus, of the nameless king who called himself
c Soter Megas,' of the early Kushan kings, and of the Hindu
Shahis have been discovered in Pakhli. Traces of ancient
forts or villages, remains probably of the Hindu dynasties
which governed Hazara under its former name Urasa (the
modern Rash or Orash) before the Muhammadan occupation,
are found here and there.
Hazara District contains 4 towns and 914 villages. Its The
population at each of the last four enumerations was : (1868) people.
367,218, (1881) 407,075, (1891) 516,288, and (1901) 560,288.
130 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
The principal statistics of population in 1901 are shown
below : —
Tahsil.
Area in square
miles.
Number of
Population.
Population per
square mile.
Percentage of
variation in
population be-
tween 1891
and 1901.
Number of
persons able
to read and
write.
4
(2
!
>
Abbottabad .
Haripur.
Mansehra •-.
Total
Tanawal
Grand total
r5
657
1,486
3
I
I
359
3"
344
194,632
151-638
182,396
273
338
I34
+ 10.7
+ 6.1
+ 10.3
3,535
4,7 * 5
2,104
2,858
4
914
528,666
I85
10,354
304
...
31,622
155
5i6
3,062
560,388
184
+ 8.5
10,870
Castes and
occupa-
tions.
Population has increased by 8-5 per cent, during the last
decade, the increase being greatest in the Abbottabad tahsil
and least in that of Haripur. It is divided into three tahsils :
Abbottabad, Haripur, and Mansehra. The head-quarters of
these tahsils are at the places from which each is named. The
towns are the municipalities of ABBOTTABAD (the head-quarters
of the District), HARIPUR, NAWASHAHR, and BAFFA. The
District also contains the hill stations of NATHIA GALI with
DUNGA GALI (the former being the summer head-quarters of
the Local Government), CHANGLA GALI, and THANDIANI ; and
the hill cantonments of Bara Gali, Kala Bagh, Khaira Gali,
and Ghora Dakka. Muhammadans number 533,000, or more
than 95 per cent, of the total; Hindus 23,000; and Sikhs 4,000.
The language spoken is chiefly a dialect of Western Punjabi,
known locally as Hindkl. Pashtu is spoken on the Black
Mountain border, and the Gujars have a dialect of their own
called Gujari.
In Hazara, Pathans are not the predominant race. They
number only 55,000, while the Gujars, who profess to be
aborigines, number 92,000, and the Awans 91,000. Tanaolis
(59,000), though not Pathans, are closely allied to them by
custom and tradition. Dhunds, another aboriginal tribe, num-
ber 25,000, Swatis 33,000, and Kharrals 16,000. The Saiyids,
(23,000) exercise great influence over the other Muhammadans.
Of the trading classes, Khattns number 13,0.00 and Aroras
only 4,000. Brahmans number 5,000. Of the artisan classes,
the Julahas (weavers, 16,000), Tarkhans (carpenters, 11,000),
Mochis (shoemakers and leather-workers, 9,000), and Lohars
(blacksmiths, 9,000) are the most important. The Kashmiris,
who live mainly by woollen industries, number 15,000. The
HAZARA DISTRICT
chief menial classes are the Nais (barbers, 7,000) and Musallis
(sweepers, 3,000). About 2,000 persons returned themselves as
Turks, descendants of the Turkomans who came with Timur
in 1391. Agriculture supports 72 per cent, of the population.
The Church Missionary Society opened a branch at Abbott-
abad in 1899, and the Peshawar branch of the society has an
outpost at Harlpur. In 1901, the District contained 17 native
Christians.
The level portion of the District enjoys a seasonable and
constant rainfall of about 30 inches ; the soil is superior to
that of, the hill tracts and more easily cultivated, and the spring
harvest is accordingly superior. The best-irrigated and ma-
nured lands are equal to the most fertile in the Punjab, and
the harvests are more certain than in the adjacent District of
Rawalpindi. The low dry hills have a climate and rainfall
similar to that of the plains, but the soil is much poorer. In
the temperate hills and high land in the middle of the District
the rainfall averages 47 inches, and snow falls occasionally ;
the autumn crop is here the more valuable, but a fair propor-
tion of spring crops are raised. The mountain tracts have an
excessive rainfall and a severe winter ; so that there is but little
spring harvest. The soil in the open portion of the District is
deep and rich, the detritus of the surrounding hills being lodged
in the basin-like depressions below; the highlands have a shal-
low and stony covering, compensated for by the abundant
manure obtained from the flocks of sheep and cattle among
the mountain pastures. The spring harvest, which in 1903-4
formed 41 per cent, of the total crops harvested, is sown in the
higher hills in October, and lower down in November and
December; the autumn crops are sown in the hills in June
and July, while in the lower lands seed-time varies from April
to August with the nature of the crop.
The District is held chiefly on the patttddri and bhaiya-
chdra tenures, zaminddri lands covering about 339 square miles.
The following table shows the main statistics of cultivation in
1903-4, areas being in square miles : —
Christian
missions.
General
agricul-
tural con-
ditions.
Chief agri-
cultural
statistics
and princi-
pal crops.
Tahsil.
Total.
Cultivated.
Irrigated.
Forests.
Abbottabad
Harlpur .
Mansehra
Total
£15
657
1,486
207
231
199
33
'9
75
39
121
2,858
637
52
335
Maize covers the largest area, being grown on 273 square
K 2
132 NORTH- \VEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
miles in 1903-4. Wheat (171) comes next in importance,
followed by barley (78).
Improve- The cultivated area has increased by 10 per cent, since the
^cul"1 settlement in 1874. The chief field for extension lies on the
tural hill-sides, large areas of which can be brought under cultivation
practice, by terracing ; but until the pressure of the population on the
soil becomes much heavier than it is at present, there is little
prospect of any considerable progress in this direction.
Nothing has been done to improve the quality of the crops
grown. The potato was introduced shortly after annexation,
and is now largely cultivated. A sum of Rs. 14,700 is out-
standing up to date on account of loans to agriculturists, and
Rs. 4,856 was advanced during 1903-4 for this purpose.
Cattle, Cattle are most numerous in the hilly portions of the Dis-
ponies, and trict. T^e breed is small, and the cows are poor milkers, but
sheep.
the introduction of bulls from Hissar has done a good deal to
improve the quality of the stock. Sheep and goats are grazed
in the District in large numbers, chiefly by Gujars ; the larger
flocks migrate at different seasons of the year between Kagan
and Lower Hazara or Rawalpindi. The sheep are of the
ordinary thin-tailed breed, and attempts to cross them with
English stock and to introduce merino sheep are being made.
Sheep and goats are largely exported to the cantonments and
towns in Peshawar, Rawalpindi, and Jhelum. The local breed
of horses is small ; the Civil Veterinary department maintains
seven horse and twenty-one donkey stallions, and one horse
and two pony stallions are kept by the District board. The
Abbottabad and Mansehra tahslls possess a large number of
mules. A few camels are kept in Lower Hazara.
Irrigation. The area irrigated in 1903-4 was 52 square miles, or 8 per
cent, of the cultivated area. Of this, only 1-4 square miles
were supplied by wells, 377 in number, which are confined to
the Indus bank and the plain round Harlpur. They are built
for the most part of boulder masonry, and are worked by bul-
locks with Persian wheels. The chief method of supply is by
cuts from the Harroh, Dor, and Siran rivers and minor hill
streams. The undulating formation of the valleys, and ravines
which intersect them, make any considerable extension of
irrigation very difficult.
Forests. The two main classes of forests in Hazara District are :
the 'reserved' forests, in which only few rights of user are
admitted, although the villagers are entitled to a share in the
price of the trees felled for sale ; and the village forests, in
which Government retains a similar share, but which are other-
HAZARA DISTRICT 133
wise practically left to the charge of the villagers, subject
to the control of the Deputy-Commissioner.
The 'reserved' forests, which are situated mainly in the
north and east, cover 235 square miles, and yield annually
about 80,000 and 40,000 cubic feet of deodar and other tim-
ber, respectively. The Jhelum and its tributaries convey the
timber not used locally. The most important forests, which
lie between altitudes of 5,000 and 10,000 feet, contain deodar,
blue pine, silver fir, spruce, and Quercus incana, dilatata, and
semecarpifolia. In the Gali range, where deodar is now scarce,
trees of hardwood species are abundant, whereas in the drier
Kagan range and in the Upper Siran valley pure deodar
forests are not uncommon, but the variety of species is smaller.
Between 10,000 feet and the limit of tree growth at about
12,500 feet, the spruce and silver fir are the most common. In
the south some hardwood forests of poor quality are of impor-
tance for the supply of firewood, and at elevations between
3,000 and 6,000 feet there is a considerable extent of forest
in which Pinus longifolia predominates. Forest fires, which
formerly did much damage, are now becoming less frequent.
Working-plans have been prepared and will shortly come into
force for all the ' reserved ' forests which are controlled by the
Forest officer in charge of the division. In 1903-4 the forests
yielded a revenue of Rs. 83,000.
The village forests are not so strictly preserved. Those of
the Harlpur tahsll and parts of Abbottabad, including Tana-
wal, produce only fuel ; but in the northern parts of the latter
tahsll and in Mansehra the forests contain coniferous and
deciduous trees, which increase in value as the forests become
less accessible. These village forests are controlled, under the
Hazara Forest Regulation of 1893, by the Deputy-Commis-
sioner through the village headmen, on the principle that the
villagers, while taking without restriction all that they require
for their own needs, shall not be permitted to sell timber or
firewood cut from them.
Of the 1,700 square miles of waste land in the District, only
200 are clad with timber-producing trees, 200 more forming
fuel reserves. About 200 square miles have been demarcated
as village forests, to check denudation and to prevent waste,
while securing the produce to the villagers for the satisfaction
of their needs.
As already mentioned, coal exists in the District, but has Mines and
not been worked. Limestone, building stone, and gypsum are min?rals-
abundant, and coarse slate is found in places. Antimony and
i34 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Arts and
manufac-
tures.
Commerce
and trade.
Means of
communi-
cation.
Famine.
oxide of lead have been observed, and iron occurs in consider-
able quantities, but is little worked.
The industries of Hazara are of only local importance. The
principal manufacture consists of coarse cotton cloth and cotton
strips for use as turbans. In the northern glens blankets
are largely made from sheep's wool. The domestic art of
embroidering silk on cotton cloth attains a higher degree of
excellence than in any other part of the Province or the Pun-
jab, and jewellery of silver and enamel is produced. Water-
mills are used to a considerable extent for grinding flour and
husking rice.
Cotton piece-goods, indigo, salt, tobacco, and iron are im-
ported from Rawalpindi and the south, and a large proportion
goes through to Kashmir and Bajaur, whence the chief imports
are wood, fibres, and ghl. Grain, chiefly maize, is exported to
the dry tracts west of Rawalpindi, to the Khattak country
across the Indus, and to Peshawar; a large part is bought
direct from the agriculturists by Khattak merchants who bring
their own bullocks to carry it away. Ghl is exported chiefly
to Peshawar, and sheep and goats are sent to Peshawar
and Rawalpindi.
No railways pass through the District. It contains 90 miles
of metalled roads under the Public Works department, and
1,157 miles of unmetalled roads, of which 406 are under the
Public Works department and the rest are managed by the
District board. The principal route is the metalled road from
Hassan Abdal in Attock on the North-Western Railway, which
passes through Abbottabad and Mansehra to Srinagar in
Kashmir, crossing the Kunhar, Kishanganga, and Jhelum rivers
by iron suspension bridges. Another route, not passable for
wheeled traffic, connects Abbottabad with the hill station of
Murree. Both routes run through mountainous country, but
are kept in excellent repair, though the latter is in winter
blocked with snow. A third road, from Hazro to Harlpur and
Abbottabad, is chiefly used by Pathan traders from Peshawar.
A tonga and bullock train service connects Hassan Abdal
on the North-Western Railway with Abbottabad. The Kunhar
is crossed by several wooden bridges.
Hazara suffered great scarcity in the memorable and wide-
spread famine of 1783, which affected it with the same severity
as the remainder of Northern India. During the decade 1861
to 1870, which was a period of dearth in the plains Districts,
the harvests of Hazara produced an excellent yield, and the
high price of grain for exportation gave large profits to the
HAZARA DISTRICT 135
peasantry, besides affording an incentive to increased cultiva-
tion. In 1877-8, Hazara again experienced scarcity; but in
1879-80 the yield was abundant, and high prices ruled during
the continuance of the Afghan War. The District was not
seriously affected by the famines of 1896-7 and 1899-1900.
The District is divided for administrative purposes into District
three tahslls — Abbottabad, Haripur, and Mansehra — each s? ri~
under a tahslldar and nalb-tahsildar. The Deputy-Commis- staff.
sioner, besides holding executive charge of the District, is
Political officer in charge of the tribes of the adjacent inde-
pendent territory. He has under him a District Judge who is
usually also Additional District Magistrate, an Assistant Com-
missioner who commands the border military police, and two
Extra Assistant Commissioners, one of whom is in charge of
the District Treasury. The Forest division is in charge of a
Deputy-Conservator.
The Deputy-Commissioner as District Magistrate is respon- Civil jus-
sible for criminal justice, and civil judicial work is under the ti(re and
District Judge. Both officers are supervised by the Divisional
and Sessions Judge of the Peshawar Civil Division. The Dis-
trict Munsif sits at Abbottabad. Crime in Hazara is very
light for a frontier District.
Sikh rule in Hazara began in 1818. As in the Punjab Land
generally, the only limit to the rapacity of the karddrs was the revenue-
fear of imperilling future realizations, but up to this limit they
exacted the uttermost farthing. Some parts of Hazara were
too barren or too inaccessible to be worth squeezing, and it
may be doubted whether the Sikhs actually collected more
than one-third of the total grain produce. When Major
Abbott made the first summary settlement of Hazara in
1847-8, he took one-third as the fair share of Government.
Records and measurements he neither found nor made, but he
assessed each village after comparison of what it had paid with
its degree of impoverishment. The Sikh demand was reduced
by 16 per cent. In 1852 Major Abbott made a second sum-
mary settlement, which was in effect a redistribution of the
first, and was less by Rs. 3,000 than his original demand of
Rs. 2,06,000. The fact that the first assessment was easily
paid is evidence of its equity, while the fact that it was reim-
posed, after a fall in prices quite unprecedented in both
suddenness and extent, points to the improvement which
must have taken place in the cultivation and the general cir-
cumstance of the District.
The assessment of 1852 remained in force for twenty years,
136 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
and a regular settlement was carried out between 1868 and
1874. The prosperity of the District had advanced rapidly,
and the demand was increased by 34 per cent, to 3 lakhs.
The District again came under settlement in 1901, when a
similar rise in prosperity had to be taken into account. The
new demand shows an increase of Rs. 20,400, or 7 per cent,
over the demand for 1903-4.
The total collections of revenue in the District and those
of land revenue alone are shown below, in thousands of
rupees : —
1880-1.
1890-1.
1900-1.
"903-4-
Land revenue
Total revenue
2,33
2,90
3,26
3,io
3.34*
5,35*
2,40
3,»9
* Including collections from the Attock iahsil, which then formed part of the
District.
Local and The District contains five municipalities, HARIPUR, AB-
municipal. BOTTABAD, BAFFA, MANSEHRA, and NAWASHAHR; and a
'notified area,' NATHIA and DUNGA GALIS. Outside these
municipal areas, local affairs are managed by the District
board, all the members of which are appointed. Its income,
derived mainly from a cess on the land revenue, amounted
in 1903-4 to Rs. 29,500; and the expenditure was about the
same, the principal item being education.
Police and The regular police force consists of 487 of all ranks, of
whom 42 are cantonment and municipal police. The force
is controlled by a Superintendent. The village watchmen
number 471. There are 16 police-stations, one outpost, and
12 road-posts. The District jail at head-quarters has accom-
modation for 114 prisoners. The border military police, num-
bering 250, are under the control of the Deputy-Commissioner
exercised through the commandant, an Assistant Commis-
sioner, and are distinct from the District police.
Education. Only 2-4 of the District population could read and write
in 1901, the proportion of males being 4-35, and of females
i per cent. Education is most advanced among Hindus and
Sikhs. The number of pupils under instruction was 872
(in public schools alone) in 1880-1, 8,006 in 1890-1, 5,264 in
1902-3, and 5,439 in 1903-4. In the last year there were 6
secondary and 33 primary (public) schools, and 18 advanced
and 165 elementary (private) schools, with 103 female
pupils in the public and 161 in the private schools. The
District is very backward in education. Only 6 per cent, of
HAZARA DISTRICT 137
children of a school-going age are receiving instruction. Some
progress, however,, is being made, and there are two Anglo-
vernacular high schools at Abbottabad. The total expendi-
ture on education in 1903-4 was Rs. 24,000, of which the
District fund contributed Rs. 8,000, municipalities Rs. 6,000,
and fees Rs. 4,000.
The District possesses five dispensaries, at which 83,264 cases Hospitals
were treated in 1904, including 1,266 in-patients, and 2,698 ai
operations were performed. The expenditure was Rs. 11,500,
the greater part of which was contributed by Local funds.
In 1903-4 the number of persons successfully vaccinated Vaccina-
was 10,574, or 19-5 per 1,000 of the population. tion-
[.District Gazetteer, 1875 (under revision).]
Abbottabad Tahsil. — Tahsll of Hazara District, North-
West Frontier Province, lying between 33° 49' and 34° 22' N.
and 72° 55' and 73° 31' E., with an area of 715 square miles.
It is bounded on the east by the Jhelum, which divides it from
Punch arid the Punjab District of Rawalpindi ; and it comprises
part of the mountain valleys drained by the Dor and Harroh
rivers, together with the hill country eastward. The hill-sides
to the north and north-east are covered with timber forest. The
population was 194,632 in 1901, compared with 175,735 in
1891. It contains the towns of ABBOTTABAD (population
7,764), the tahsll and District head-quarters, and NAWASHAHR
(4,114); and 359 villages. The land revenue and cesses
amounted in 1903—4 to Rs. 97,000.
Haripur Tahsil. — Tahsil of Hazara District, North-West
Frontier Province, lying between 33° 44' and 34° 18' N. and
72° 33' and 73° 14' E., with an area of 657 square miles. It is
bounded on the north-west by the Indus. The tahsll consists
of a sloping plain, from 1,500 to 3,000 feet high, through which
the Siran and Harroh flow. Low hills are dotted here and there
over the plain. The population was 151,638 in 1901, compared
with 142,856 in 1891. It contains the town of HARIPUR (popu-
lation, 5,578), the head-quarters, and 311 villages. The land
revenue and cesses amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 1,72,000.
Mansehra Tahsil (Mdnsahra). — Tahsll of Hazara District,
North-West Frontier Province, lying between 34° 14' and
35° 10' N. and 72° 55' and 74° 6' E., with an area of 1,486
square miles. Shaped like a cone, the tahsll runs in a north-
easterly direction, comprising the deep glen of Kagan and the
mountain ranges on either hand. The population was 182,396
in 1901, compared with 165,312 in 1891. The tahsll con-
tains the town of BAFFA (population, 7,029) and 244 villages,
138 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
including the large village of Mansehra, its head-quarters. The
land revenue and cesses amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 1,03,000.
The AGROR valley is situated in this tahsll.
Tanawal (Tundwat). — A tract of mountainous territory
in the extreme north-west corner of Hazara District, North-
West Frontier Province, lying on the east of the Indus, between
34° 15' and 34° 23' N. and 72° 52' and 73° 10' E. The Siran
river flows through it from north to south. In the latter part
of Akbar's reign Tanawal was overrun by the Yusufzai Pathans,
and it is still partly peopled by Afghans; but it became
nominally a dependency of Kashmir under the Durranis. Its
real rulers, however, were the Tanawalis, a tribe of Mughal
descent divided into two septs, the Pul-al and Hando-al or
Hind-wal. The former held the tract east of the Siran; and its
chief founded Blr when the Mughal power was decaying, but
internal dissensions led to the intervention of the governor of
Kashmir. Meanwhile, the Hind-wal sept had gained power
and its chief Nawab Khan defied the Durranis, but met his
death at the hands of Sardar Azim Khan in 1818. His son,
Painda Khan, played a considerable part in the history of his
time and vigorously opposed the Sikhs, but lost all his territory
except the tract round Amb. On his death in 1840 his son,
Jahandad Khan, recovered part of it through the favour of
Gulab Singh of Kashmir and the British Government. Thus
the present semi-independent estate comprises the territory
formerly held by the Hind-wal Tanawalis. It has an area of
204 square miles, with a population (1901) of 31,622. It is
bounded on the north by the Black Mountain, on the west by
the Indus, on the south by the Haripur and Abbottabad
tahsllS) and on the east by the Mansehra tahsll of Hazara
District. It belongs partly to Nawab Sir Muhammad Akram
Khan, K. C.S.I., chief of Amb, and partly to Ata Muhammad
Khan, Khan of Phulra. Since the annexation of Hazara, the
administration of Tanawal has been practically in the hands
of these chiefs, their authority being legally defined by
Regulation II of 1900, by which civil, criminal, and revenue
administration is vested in them, the only exceptions being
offences against the state and murder. Both the chief of Amb
and the Khan of Phulra are Tanawalis of the Hind-wal section,
the former being a grandson of Painda Khan, and the latter
a great-grandson of Madad Khan, younger brother of Painda
Khan.
The title of Nawab was bestowed on Muhammad Akram
Khan in 1868, partly as a reward for his father's services in the
HAZARA DISTRICT 139
Mutiny, and partly in recognition of his personal courage and
loyalty in the Hazara expedition of 1868. At the same time
he received a cash allowance of Rs. 500 a month, which he has
enjoyed ever since. In 1871 he became a C.S.L, and in 1889
a K. C.S.I. He also enjoys a jdglr of the annual value of
Rs. 9,000 in the Haripur tahsll of Hazara District. Amb, the
place from which he takes his title, is situated on the western
bank of the Indus, in his independent territory, and is a winter
residence, his summer head-quarters being at Shergarh near
the eastern extremity of Upper Tanawal.
Abbottabad Town. — Head-quarters of Hazara District,
and also of the Abbottabad tahsll^ North-West Frontier
Province, situated in 34° 9' N. and 73° 13' E. Population
(1901), 7,764. The head-quarters of the District were fixed
here in 1853, and the new cantonment was named after
Major James Abbott, first Deputy-Commissioner of Hazara,
1847-53. The town is picturesquely situated at the southern
corner of the Rash (Orash) plain, 4,120 feet above the sea.
The garrison consists of 4 battalions of native infantry
(Gurkhas) and 4 native mountain batteries. The municipality
was created in 1867. The income during the ten years ending
1902-3 averaged Rs. 14,900, and the expenditure Rs. 14,000.
In 1903-4 the income was Rs. 22,300, chiefly derived from octroi,
and the expenditure Rs. 18,100. The receipts and expenditure
of cantonment funds during the ten years ending 1902-3
averaged Rs. 7,300. The chief public institutions are the
Albert Victor unaided Anglo-vernacular high school, a munici-
pal Anglo-vernacular high school, and a Government dispensary.
Agror. — Frontier valley in the Mansehra tahsll of Hazara
District, North-West Frontier Province, lying between 34° 29'
and 34° 35' N. and 72° 58' and 75° 9' E. It consists of three
mountain glens, 10 miles in length and 6 in breadth. The
lower portions contain a mass of luxuriant cultivation, thickly
dotted with villages, hamlets, and groves, and surrounded by
dark pine-clad heights, whose depressions occasionally disclose
the snowy peaks of the main range in the distance. These
valleys are alike in their nature; they have no strictly level
spaces, but consist rather of terraced flats which descend from
the hills. Water is abundant and perennial, so that failure of
crops seldom occurs. The population chiefly consists of Swatis
and Gujars, and was returned in 1901 at 16,983. Islam is the
almost universal creed. Agror is the ancient Atyugrapura of
the Rajatarangini and the 'ifidyovpot town in Ovup<ra mentioned
by Ptolemy. From the time of Tlmur until the beginning of
140 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
the eighteenth century the Agror valley was held by a family
of Karlugh Turks. These were expelled in 1703 by a Saiyid
named Jalal Baba, and the conquered country was divided
among the Swatis, one Ahmad Sad-ud-din, who died in 1783,
rising to the position of Khan of Agror. The Nawab of Amb
took the valley in 1834, but in 1841 it was restored by the
Sikhs to Ata Muhammad, a descendant of Sad-ud-dln. At
annexation Ata Muhammad was recognized as chief of Agror,
and the defence and management of this part of the frontier
was originally left to him ; but the arrangement did not work
satisfactorily. An expedition had to be sent in 1852 to avenge
the murder of two officers of the Salt department; and in
consequence of the unsatisfactory attitude of the chief and of
repeated complaints by the cultivators, it was resolved in 1868
to place a police station in Agror and to bring the valley more
directly under the administration of Government. This incensed
the Khan, at whose instigation the newly built police station
was burnt by a raid of the Black Mountain tribes. An expedition
was dispatched, and Ata Muhammad was deported to Lahore
for a time, but in 1870 reinstated in his chieftainship. His son
and successor, AH Gauhar, was removed from the valley in
1888 in consequence of his abetting raids into British territory.
In order to maintain the peace of the border, expeditions
were dispatched against the Black Mountain tribes in 1888,
1891, and 1892; and there has since been no disturbance.
The Agror Valley Regulation (1891) declared the rights of
the Khan of Agror forfeit to Government.
The land revenue of the valley was assessed by the Sikhs
at Rs. 1,515. This demand was continued on annexation,
and raised to Rs. 3,315 in 1853 and Rs. 4,000 in the regular
settlement, in which the engagement was made with the
Khan. The settlement was revised in 1901, and the present
demand is Rs. 13,300.
The sole manufacture of the valley is cotton cloth, and
trade is purely local, except for a small export of grain.
The chief place in the valley is the village of Oghi, the
head-quarters of the Hazara border military police.
Baffa. — Town in the Mansehra tahsll of Hazara District,
North- West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 26' N. and
73° 13' E., on the right bank of the Siran river in the northern
corner of the Pakhli plain. Population (1901), 7,029. This
is the principal mart of Northern Hazara and of the neigh-
bouring independent tracts. The municipality was created
in 1873. The income during the ten years ending 1902-3
HAZARA DISTRICT 141
averaged Rs. 4,500 and the expenditure Rs. 4,600. In
1903-4 the income was Rs. 5,300, chiefly derived from octroi,
and the expenditure was Rs. 4,700. A vernacular middle school
is maintained by the municipality and the District board.
Bara Gali. — Small cantonment in Hazara District, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 10° N. and 73° 30' E.,
on the road between Abbottabad and Murree, 15 miles from
Abbottabad and 25 from Murree. During the summer months
it is occupied by one of the British mountain batteries which
are stationed at Rawalpindi in the winter.
Changla Gali. — Small hill station in the Abbottabad tahsil
of Hazara District, North- West Frontier Province, situated in
34° o' N. and 73° 23' E., on the road from Murree to Abbott-
abad. It is the head-quarters of the Northern Command
School of Musketry.
Dunga Gali — Small sanitarium in the Abbottabad tahsil
of Hazara District, North-West Frontier Province, situated
in 34° 6' N. and 73° 25' E. A few houses are scattered over
the southern slopes of the Makshpuri hill, belonging to
Europeans who visit the place during the summer. Dunga
Gali contains an hotel, a post office, and a small church.
Together with NATHIA GALI it forms a ' notified area.'
Ghora Dakka. — Small cantonment in Hazara District,
North-West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 2' N. and
73° 25' E., on the road between Dunga Gali and Murree,
3 miles from the former and 1 5 from the latter place. During
the summer months it is occupied by a detachment of
British infantry.
Haripur Town. — Head-quarters of the Haripur tahsil of
Hazara District, North-West Frontier Province, situated in
34° N. and 72° 57' E., on the left bank of the Dor river, and
on the road from Hassan Abdal to Abbottabad. Population
(1901), 5,578. Haripur was founded about 1822 by Sardar
Harl Singh, the Sikh governor of Hazara, and on annexation
became the head-quarters of the District, but was abandoned
in favour of Abbottabad in 1853. An obelisk marks the grave
of Colonel Canara, a European officer of the Sikh artillery,
who fell in 1848 defending his guns single-handed against
the insurgents under Chattar Singh. The municipality was
constituted in 1867. The income and expenditure during
the ten years ending 1902-3 averaged Rs. 17,800. In 1903-4
the income and expenditure were Rs. 19,100 and Rs. 20,100
respectively. The town possesses a dispensary and a muni-
cipal middle school.
M2 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Kagan (Khagati). — Mountain valley in Hazara District,
North-West Frontier Province, penetrating far into the heart
of the Himalayan system, and surrounded by Kashmir terri-
tory on every side except the south. The valley has an area
of 800 square miles, and is 60 miles in length, with an average
breadth of 15 miles. Lofty ranges shut it in on either hand,
their summits rising to a height of 17,000 feet. Transverse
spurs intersect the valley, which is inhabited by a sparse
population. Kagan comprises twenty-two rakhs or forest
aad grazing Reserves, with a total area of 90 square miles,
while the area of ' reserved ' and unreserved forest is 45 7 square
miles. The rights of cutting grass and grazing cattle are leased
out annually. The Forest department only fells timber, which
is launched into the river Kunhar, caught at different timber
depdts, and rafted to Jhelum. The river Kunhar forces its
way through a narrow central gorge to join the Jhelum after
draining the entire valley. The Kagan valley forms the
northernmost extension of British India, and stretches far up
into the mountain region. Its open mouth turns towards
the main body of Hazara District. The inhabitants consist
almost entirely of Muhammadan Swatis and Gujars. Kagan
village is situated in 34° 46' N. and 75° 34' E.
Kalabagh. — Small cantonment in Hazara District, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 6' N. and 73° 25' E.,
on the road between Abbottabad and Murree. During the
summer months it is occupied by one of the British mountain
batteries which are stationed at Rawalpindi in the winter.
Khaira Gali. — Small cantonment in Hazara District, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 33° 55' N. and 73° 20' E.,
on the road between Abbottabad and Murree. During the
summer months it is occupied by one of the British mountain
batteries which are stationed at Rawalpindi in the winter.
• Khanspur. — Part of the Ghora Dakka cantonment in Hazara
District, North-West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 2' N.
and 73° 30' E. During the summer months it is occupied
by a detachment of British infantry.
Mansehra Town (Mansahra), — Head-quarters of the tahsil
of the same name, Hazara District, North-West Frontier
Province, situated in 34° 20' N. and 73° 13' E., on the right
bank of an affluent of the Siran, north of Abbottabad, and on
the main road from Kala-kl-Sarai to the Kashmir border.
Population (1901), 5,087. A few resident Khattrl traders do
a considerable business in grain and country produce. The
chief institutions are an Anglo- vernacular middle school
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 143
maintained by the District board, and a Government dis-
pensary. Near the town are two rocks on which are inscribed
in the Kharoshthi character thirteen of the edicts of Asoka.
Nathia Gali. — Hill station in the Abbottabad tahsll of
Hazara District, North-West Frontier Province, and summer
head-quarters of the Chief Commissioner, situated in 34° 5' N.
and 73° 58' E., on the road from Murree to Abbottabad, about
half-way between each place. Together with Dunga Gali it
constitutes a ' notified area ' under the Punjab Municipalities
Act, 1891, of which the income in 1903-4 was Rs. 3,000,
chiefly - derived from a house tax. The expenditure was
Rs. 1,900.
Nawashahr. — Town in the Abbottabad tahsll of Hazara
District, North- West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 10' N.
and 73° 16' E., about 3 miles east of Abbottabad. Population
(1901), 4,114. Before the foundation of Abbottabad, it was
the chief town of the Rash plain. The municipality was
created in 1867. During the ten years ending 1902-3 the
income averaged Rs. 2,600, and the expenditure Rs. 2,500.
In 1903-4 the income was Rs. 2,700, chiefly derived from
octroi, and the expenditure was Rs. 2,800.
Oghi (Ught). — Chief place in the Agror valley, Hazara
District, North-West Frontier Province, and head-quarters
of the Hazara border military police. There is a Govern-
ment dispensary.
Thandiani. — Small hill sanitarium in the Abbottabad tahsll
of Hazara District, North-West Frontier Province, situated in
34° 15' N. and 73° 22' E. It was established for the con-
venience of officers stationed at the neighbouring cantonment
of Abbottabad, and contains some European houses and
a small bazar, which are occupied only during the summer
months.
Peshawar District. — District in the North-West Frontier Bonn-
Province, and the most north-western of the regularly ad- ^
ministered Districts in the Indian Empire. It lies between and hill
33° 43' and 34° 32' N. and 71° 22' and 72° 45' E., with an and river
area of 2,611 square miles. It is bounded on the east by the
Indus, which separates it from the Punjab District of Attock
and from Hazara. On all other sides it is encircled by moun-
tains, at the foot of which, except on the south-east, the
administrative border runs. These hills are inhabited by
independent tribes, whose territories lie in the following order,
beginning from the north-east corner, where the boundary leaves
the river. The Utmanzai, Gadun, Khudu Khel, and Salarzai
144 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
clans are hamsayas of the BunerwSls ; north of Mardan lies
a small piece of Utman Khel country, west of which is Sam
Ranizai sloping up to the Malakand Pass ; beyond Sam Ranizai
comes the main Utman Khel country, which stretches as far
as Abazai on the Swat river ; the country between the Swat
and Kabul rivers belongs to the Burhan Khel, Halimzai, and
Tarakzai Mohmands ; from the Kabul river to Jamrud at the
mouth of the Khyber Pass is Mullagori country ; the hills
between the Khyber and the Kohat Pass are the abode of the
Malikdin and Aka Khel Afrldis ; on both sides of the Kohat
Pass live the tribes known as the Pass Afridis, beyond whom
on the south side of the District live the Jowakis, whose
territory runs nearly as far as Cherat. East of Cherat the
range is inhabited by Khattaks, and forms, except for the
Khwarra and Zira forest on the banks of the Indus, part of
Kohat District. To the north-east great spurs, separated
by intricate lateral valleys, run into the District, the Mora,
Shakot, and Malakand Passes leading through them into Swat.
From the north-west outlying ranges of the Hindu Kush run
down the western border, loftily isolated peaks to the north
merging in the confused and precipitous heights on the south
bank of the Kabul river. South of the Khyber, the range
sinks to a mean level of 4,000 feet, and at the point where
the Kohat Pass leads out of the District turns sharp to the
east, and runs along the south border of the District to
the Indus. On this side the highest points are Cherat, with
an elevation of nearly 4,500 feet, and the Ghaibana Sir,
5,136 feet above sea-level. The shape of the District is an
almost perfect ellipse, the greatest length of which is 86
miles, its greatest width being 54 miles.
Viewed from a height it appears a vast plateau, whose vivid
expanse of green is in abrupt contrast with the grey precipitous
slopes of the hills which rise sharply from its edge ; but its true
formation is that of a huge basin into which flow the waters
from the surrounding hills. This basin is drained by the
Kabul river, which traverses the valley eastwards from its
debouchure through a deep ravine north of the Khyber Pass
until it falls into the Indus above Attock. Throughout its
course the Kabul is joined by countless tributaries, of which
the principal is the Swat ; and before they unite below Prang
(Charsadda), about 24 miles from the hills, these two rivers
cover the central part of the western plain with a perfect
network of streams, as each divides into several channels.
The Bara, flowing from the south-west, also enters the Kabul
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 145
near its junction with the Swat ; and the united stream, now
known as the Landai, or 'short river,' flows for 12 miles in a
wide bed as far as Naushahra, and thence for 24 miles in
a deep channel to the Indus. Other streams are the Budni, a
branch of the Kabul; and the Kalpam or Chalpani, the
' deceitful water,' which, rising beyond the Mora pass, receives
the drainage of the Yusufzai plain and falls into the Landai
below Naushahra.
Peshawar has not been geologically surveyed, but the Geology l.
general structure of the District appears to be a continuation
westwards of that of Hazara. Judging from partial traverses
and from information of various kinds, one may say that its
northern portions, including the hills on the northern border,
are composed, like Hazara, of metamorphic schists and
gneissose rocks. Much of the flat plain of Peshawar and
Naushahra and the northern slopes of the Cherat hills consist
of a great slate series with minor limestone and marble bands,
some of which are worked for ornamental purposes. South of
the axis of the Cherat range, the rest of the District is appa-
rently composed of a medley of folded representatives of the
Jura Cretaceous and Nummulitic formation. They consist of
limestones, shales, and sandstones of marine origin, the general
strike of the rock bands being east and west across the Indus
in the direction of Hazara and Rawalpindi. Much of the
valley of Peshawar is covered by surface gravels and alluvium,
the deposit of the streams joining the Kabul river on its way
to the Indus.
The District, wherever irrigated, abounds in trees, of Botany,
which the mulberry, shisham, willow, tamarisk, and tallow-
tree are the most common. In the drier parts scrub jungle
grows freely, but trees are scarce, the palosi or her being the
most frequent. The more common plants are Flacourtia
sapida, F. sepiaria, several species of Grewia, Zizyphus num-
mularia, Acacia Jacquemontii, A. leucophloea, Alhagi camelo-
rum, Crotalaria JBurhia, Prosopis spicigera, several species of
Tamarix, Ncrium odorum, Rhazya stricta, Calotropis procera,
Periploca aphylla, Tecoma undulata, Lycium europaeum,
Withania coagulans, W. somnifera, Nannorhops Ritchieana,
Fagonia, Tribulus, Peganum Harmala, Calligonum polygonoides^
Polygonum aviculare, P. plebejum, Rumex vesicarius, Chrozo-
phora plicata, species of Aristida, Anthistiria, Cenchrus, and
Pennisetum.
1 W. Waagen, ' Section along the Indus from the Peshawar Valley to the
Salt Range,' Records, Geological Survey of India, vol. xvii, part iii.
146 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Fauna.
Climate
and tem-
perature.
Rainfall.
History
and
archaeo-
logy.
The fauna is meagre. Mdrkhor are found on the Pajja
spurs which jut out from the hills north of Mardan, and
occasionally near Cherat, where uridl are also seen. Wolves
and hyenas are now not numerous, but leopards are still met
with, though rarely. The game birds are those of the Northern
Punjab ; and though hawking and snaring are favourite amuse-
ments of the people and many possess firearms, wild-fowl of
all the migratory aquatic species, including sometimes wild
swans, abound in the winter. Non-migratory species are
decreasing as cultivation extends. The Peshawar Vale Hunt
maintains an excellent pack of hounds, the only one in
Northern India, and affords capital sport to the large garrison
of Peshawar. There is fishing in many of the streams near
the hills.
The best time of the year is the spring, February to April
being the months when the air, though cold, is bracing.
December and January are the coldest months, and the
temperature sometimes falls below 30° and the nights are
intensely cold. During the hot season, from May to July, the
air is full of dust-haze. Dust-storms are frequent, but though
thunderstorms occur on the surrounding hills, rain seldom
falls in the plains. This season is, however, healthy, in
contrast to the next months, August to October, when the
hot-season rains fall and the air is stagnant and oppressive.
After a fall of rain the atmosphere becomes steamy and fever
is common. In November the days are hot owing to the
clear atmosphere, but the nights are cold. Showers are usual
during winter. Inflammatory diseases of the lungs and bowels
and malarial fever are prevalent at this season. The principal
disease from which the valley, and especially the western half
of it, suffers is malarial fever, which in years of heavy rainfall
assumes a very deadly form, death often supervening in a
few hours.
The annual rainfall varies from n inches at Charsadda
to 17^ at Mardan. Of the total at Mardan, u inches fall in
tne summer and 6^ in the winter. The heaviest rainfall
during the last twenty years was 35 inches at Mardan in
1882-3, and the lightest 3 inches at Katlang in 1883-4.
The ancient Hindu name for the valley of Peshawar as it
appears in Sanskrit literature is GANDHARA, corresponding to
the Gandarites of Strabo and the country of the Gandarae
described by Ptolemy, though Arrian speaks of the people
who held the valley against Alexander as Assakenoi. Its
capital, Peukelaotis (or Pushkalavati), is mentioned by Arrian
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 147
as a large and populous city, captured by Hephaistion, the
general of Alexander, after the death of its chieftain Astes.
The site of Pushkalavati has been identified with Charsadda,
where extensive mounds of ancient debris are still to be seen.
The Peshawar and Kabul valleys were ceded by Seleucus to
Chandragupta in 303 B.C., and the rock edicts of Asoka at
Mansehra and Shahbazgarhi show that Buddhism had become
the state religion fifty years later. The Peshawar valley was
annexed by the Graeco-Bactrian king Eucratides in the second
century, and about the beginning of the Christian era fell
under the rule of the Kushans. It is to the intercourse
between the Greeks and the Buddhists of this part of India
that we owe that school of art known as Graeco-Buddhist, and
this in turn served as the source of much that is fundamental
in the ecclesiastical art of Tibet, China, and Farther Asia
generally. For it was in this District that the Mahayana
school of Buddhism arose, and from it that it spread over the
Asiatic continent. Buddhism was still the dominant religion
when Fa Hian passed through in the fifth century A.D. Sung
Yun, who visited Peshawar in 520, mentions that the Ephtha-
lite king of Gandhara was at war with the king of Kabul, but
at the time of Hiuen Tsiang's visit in 630 Gandhara was a
dependency of Kabul. Buddhism was then falling into decay.
Until the middle of the seventh century, epigraphic evidence
shows that the population remained entirely Indian, and
Hinduized rulers of Indo-Scythian and Turkish descent re-
tained possession of Peshawar itself and of the Hashtnagar
and Yusufzai plains. They were succeeded by the so-called
Hindu Shahis of Kabul or Ohind. In 979 one of these,
Jaipal, advanced from Peshawar to attack Sabuktagin, governor
of Khorasan under the titular sway of the Samani princes, but
peace was effected and he retired. Nine years later Jaipal
was utterly defeated at Laghman, and Sabuktagin took "pos-
session of Peshawar, which he garrisoned with 10,000 horse.
On his death in 998, his son Mahmud succeeded to his
dominions, and, throwing off his nominal allegiance to the
Samani dynasty, assumed the title of Sultan in 999. In 1006
Mahmud again invaded the Punjab ; and on his return JaipaTs
son and successor, Anandpal, attempted to intercept him, but
was defeated near Peshawar and driven into Kashmir. But
he was able to organize further resistance, for in 1009 he again
encountered Mahmud, probably at Bhatinda, on the Indus,
where he met with his final overthrow. The Ghaznivid
monarchy in turn fell before Muhammad of Ghor in nSi;
L 2
148 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
and after his death in 1206 the provincial governors declared
their independence, making the Indus their western boundary,
so that the Peshawar valley was again cut off from the eastern
kingdom. In 1221 the Mongols under Chingiz Khan estab-
lished a loose supremacy over it. About the close of the
fifteenth century, a great tide of Afghan immigration flowed
into the District. Before Timur's invasion the Dilazaks had
been settled in the Peshawar valley, in alliance with the
Shalmanis, a Tajik race, subjects of the rulers of Swat. The
Khakhai (Khashi) Pathans, a body of roving adventurers, who
first come into notice in the time of Tlmur, were treacherously
expelled from Kabul by his descendant Ulugh Beg, whereupon
they entered the Peshawar valley in three main clans — the
Yusufzai, Gigianis, and Muhammadzai — and obtained per-
mission from the Dilazaks to settle on a portion of their waste
lands. But the new immigrants soon picked a quarrel with
their hosts, whom they attacked.
In 1519 Babar, with the aid of the Dilazaks, inflicted severe
punishment on the Yusufzai clans to the north of the District,
but before his death (1530) they had regained their inde-
pendence, and the Dilazaks even dared to burn his fort at
Peshawar. The fort was rebuilt in 1553 by Babar's successor,
Humayun, after defeating his brother Mirza Kamran, who had
been supported against Humayun by the Ghorai Khel tribes
(Khallls, Daudzai, and Mohmands) now first heard of in con-
nexion with Peshawar. After his victory Humayun returned
to Hindustan. On his departure the Ghorai Khel entered
into alliance with the Khakhai Khel, and their united forces
routed the Dilazaks and drove them out of the District across
the Indus. The Ghorai Khel and Khakhai Khel then divided
the valley and settled in the portions of it still occupied by
them, no later tribal immigration occurring to dispossess
them.
The Khallls and a branch of the Mohmands took the south-
west corner of the District ; to the north of them settled the
Daudzai ; the remaining Mohmands for the most part stayed
in the hills, but settlers gradually took possession of the triangle
of land between the hills and the Swat and Kabul rivers ;
the east portion of the District fell to the Khakhai Khel :
namely, to the Gigianis and Muhammadzai, Hashtnagar;
and to the Yusufzai and Mandanrs, Mardan and Swabi and
the hill country adjoining.
In the next century the Mandanrs were driven from the hills
by the Yusufzai, and concentrated in the east portion of the
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 149
Peshawar valley, whence they in turn expelled the Yusufzai.
Peshawar was included in the Mughal empire during the reigns
of Akbar, Jahangir, and Shah Jahan ; but under Aurangzeb
a national insurrection was successful in freeing the Pathan
tribes from the Mughal supremacy.
In 1 738 the District fell into the hands of Nadir Shah ;
and, under his successors, Peshawar was often the seat of the
Durrani court. On the death of Timur Shah in 1793, Peshawar
shared the general disorganization of the Afghan kingdom ;
and the Sikhs, who were then in the first fierce outburst of
revenge upon their Muhammadan enemies, advanced into the
valley in 1818, and overran the whole country to the foot
of the hills. In 1823, Azim Khan made a last desperate
attempt to turn the tide of Sikh victories, and marched upon
Peshawar from Kabul ; but he was utterly defeated by Ranjit
Singh, and the whole District lay at the mercy of the conquerors.
The Sikhs, however, did not take actual possession of the land,
contenting themselves with the exaction of a tribute, whose
punctual payment they ensured or accelerated by frequent
devastating raids. After a period of renewed struggle and
intrigue, Peshawar was reoccupied in 1834 by the Sikhs, who
appointed General Avitabile as governor, and ruled with their
usual fiscal severity.
In 1848 the Peshawar valley came into the possession of the
British, and was occupied almost without opposition from either
within or without the border. During the Mutiny the Hindu-
stani regiments stationed at Peshawar showed signs of disaf-
fection, and were accordingly disarmed with some little difficulty
in May, 1857. But the 55th Native Infantry, stationed at
Naushahra and Hoti Mardan, rose in open rebellion ; and
on a force being dispatched against them, marched off towards
the Swat hills across the frontier. Nicholson was soon in
pursuit, and scattered the rebels with a loss of 120 killed and
150 prisoners. The remainder sought refuge in the hills and
defiles across the border, but were hunted down by the clans,
till they perished of hunger or exposure, or were brought in
as prisoners, and hanged or blown away from cannon. This
stern but necessary example prevented any further act of
rebellion in the District.
Peshawar District contains 7 towns and 793 villages. The The
population at each of the last three enumerations was : (1881) Pe°Ple-
599,452, (1891) 711,795, and (i9°0 788,7°7- It increased
by nearly n per cent, during the last decade, the increase
being greatest in the Mardan tahsll, and least in that of Nau-
150 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
shahra. The District is divided into five tahslh, the chief
statistics of which are given in the following table : —
Tahsil.
h
Number of
I*
is
b
§i
'5 £
•«^- .
Si^S
^ '5 ts c ••
•-JK-a
0 J3 C
*i$t
oi
1
\-
1
&"
a
lo
1|
,£?
S.2^3 fc-o
P fi B E S
SS|B§
||8»
5SS.2
Peshawar .
45 i
I
259
248,060
550
+ 9-7
1
Charsadda
380
3
168
142,756
3/6
+ 7-4
Marxian
610
i
130
137,215
225
+ 20-5
^31,247
Swabi
467
94
144,513
309
+ 10.6
Naushahra
703
2
142
116,163
166
+ 7-3
)
District total
2,611
7
793
788,707
302
+ 10-8
3', 247
The head-quarters of each tahsll is at the place from which
it is named. The chief towns are the municipality of PESHAWAR,
the administrative head-quarters of the District and capital of
the Province, NAUSHAHRA, CHARSADDA, TANGI, and MARDAN.
Muhammadans number 732,870, or more than 92 per cent,
of the total ; Hindus 40,183 ; and Sikhs 11,318. The language
of the people is Pashtu.
Castes and Peshawar is as much the home of the Pathans as Kabul,
occupa- an(j hence we finci tnat Of tne totaj population of the District
tions.
402,000, or 51 per cent., are Pathans. They are almost entirely
dependent on agriculture. Their distribution is as above
described. The Khattaks are the principal tribe in the Nau-
shahra tahsll. Among these fanatical Pathans, the Saiyids,
descendants of the Prophet, who occupy a position of great
influence, number 24,000. In the popular phraseology of the
District, all tribes who are not Pathans are Hindkis, the most
numerous being the A wans (111,000). They are found only
in the Peshawar and Naushahra tahslls, and besides being very
fair cultivators are petty traders as well. Gujars (16,000) and
Baghbans (9,000) are other Hindkl agriculturists. These
tribes are all Muhammadans. Of the trading classes, Aroras
(17,000) and Khattrls (13,000) are the most important, and
the Parachas (carriers and pedlars, 7,000) come next. Of
the artisan classes, the Julahas (weavers, 19,000), Tarkhans
(carpenters, 16,000), Lohars (blacksmiths, 8,000), Kumhars
(potters, 8,000), and Mochls (shoemakers and leather-workers,
5,000) are the most numerous. The Kashmiris, immigrants
from Kashmir, number 9,000. Of the menial classes, the most
important are the Nais (barbers, 9,000), Dhobis (washermen,
8,000), and Chuhras and Musallis (sweepers, 8,000). The
PESHAWAR DISTRICT
MirSsis (4,000), village minstrels and bards, and Ghulams
(300), who are chiefly engaged in domestic service and appear
only in this District, are also worth mentioning. Agriculture
supports 60 per cent, of the total.
The Church Missionary Society established its mission to Christian
the Afghans at Peshawar in 1855, and now has branches at misslons-
Naushahra and Mardan. It organized a medical mission in
1884, and in 1894 founded the Duchess of Connaught Hospital.
The Zanana Mission has a staff of five English ladies, whose
work is partly medical and partly evangelistic and educational.
The Edwardes Collegiate (Mission) School, founded in 1855,
is now a high school with a collegiate department attached.
With the exception of the stony tracts lying immediately General
below the hills, the District displays a remarkable uniformity agricul-
. . , tural con-
of soil : on the surface, light and porous earth with a greater ditions.
or less intermixture of sand ; and below, a substratum of strong
retentive clay. The only varieties of soil are due to variations
in the depth of the surface earth, or in the proportion of sand
mixed with it ; and with irrigation the whole valley is capable,
almost without exception, of producing the richest crops.
Sandy and barren tracts occur in some few localities, but they
are of small extent, and bear an insignificant proportion to the
total area. The spring harvest, which in 1903-4 occupied
70 per cent, of the total area cropped, is sown chiefly from the
end of September to the end of January, mid the autumn
harvest chiefly in June, July, and August, though sugar and
cotton are sown as early as March.
The District is held almost entirely by communities of Chief agri-
small peasant proprietors, large estates covering only about c" V1™1
153 square miles. The following table shows the statistics and princi-
of cultivation in 1903-4, in square miles: — pal crops.
Tahstl.
Total.
Cultivated.
Irrigated.
Cultivable
waste.
Not available
for
cultivation.
Peshawar .
451
203
153
157
91
Charsadda
380
261
175
58
6r
Mardan .
610
409
119
53
148
Swabi
467
317
38
35
"5
Naushahra
7°3
177
47
259
267
Total
2,611
1,367
53 1
562
682
The chief food-crops are wheat (555 square miles), barley
(287), and maize (231). Sugar-cane (32) and cotton (26) are
also of some importance. The neighbourhood of Peshawar
152 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
produces apricots, peaches, pomegranates, quinces, and other
fruits in great abundance ; and 8-62 square miles were under
fruits and vegetables in 1903-4.
Improve- The area cultivated at the settlement of 1895-6 showed an
Us.m increase of 7 per cent, in the previous twenty years, largely due
tural to the extension of canal irrigation in the Naushahra and
practice. Peshawar tahslls. Since 1895-6 there has been a slight decrease
in the cultivated area, which seems to show that the limits
of the resources of the District in this respect have been
reached. Little has yet been done towards improving the
quality of the crops grown. Loans for the construction of wells
and the purchase of plough cattle are readily appreciated by
the people, and during the five years ending 1902-3 an average
of Rs. 9, 100 was advanced. In 1903-4 Rs. 6,460 was advanced
under the Land Improvements Acts, and Rs. 5,420 under the
Agriculturists' Loans Act.
Cattle, Wheeled carriages are common throughout the District,
pomes, and tnough there is much pack traffic mainly carried on bullocks,
which are fine strong animals, much superior to those used in
agriculture. Horses are not extensively reared in the valley.
The Civil Veterinary department maintains a horse and seven
donkey stallions, and the District board three pony and two
donkey stallions. Large flocks of sheep and goats are owned
by the border villages, which have extensive grazing rights on
the stony plains at the foot of the hills.
Irrigation. Of the total cultivated area of the District in 1903-4, 531
square miles or 40 per cent, were irrigated. Of these, 7 1 square
miles were irrigated from wells, 453 from canals, and 7 from
streams and tanks. In addition, 26-5 square miles, or 2 per
cent., are subject to inundation. Well-irrigation is resorted
to in the eastern half of the District wherever the depth of the
spring-level allows. The District contains 6,389 masonry wells
worked with Persian wheels by bullocks, besides 5,121 unbricked
wells, lever wells, and water-lifts. The most important canals
of the District are the SWAT, KABUL, and Bara River Canals.
The two first are under the management of the Canal depart-
ment, the last-named is in charge of the Deputy-Commissioner.
The Michni-Dilazak canal, taking off from the left bank of the
Kabul river, and the Shabkadar branch canal from the right
bank of the Swat river, belong to the District board. The
District also contains a large number of private canals, which
are managed by the Deputy-Commissioner under the Peshawar
Canals Regulation of 1898.
Forests. There is ample historical evidence that in ancient times the
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 153
District was far better wooded than it is now, and the early
Chinese pilgrims often refer to the luxuriant growth of trees
on hill-slopes now practically bare. The only forest at present
is a square mile of military ' reserved ' forest, but large areas
of waste, in which the people and Government are jointly
interested, have been declared ' protected ' forests. Of these
the most important is that known as the Khwarra-Zira forest
in the south-east corner of the District. Fruit gardens and
orchards are numerous, especially near Peshawar city.
The District contains quarries of slate and marble, and Mines and
kankae is found in considerable quantities. Gold is washed mmerals-
in the Indus above Attock and in the Kabul river, but the
yield is very small.
Peshawar is noted for its turbans, woven either of silk or Arts and
of cotton, with silk edges and fringes, and a great deal of cotton ™^°su a
cloth is produced. Cotton fabrics, adorned with coloured wax,
and known as 'Afridi waxcloth,' are now turned out in large
quantities for the European market. The principal woollen
manufactures are felted mats and saddle-cloths, and blankets ;
glazed earthenware of considerable excellence is made, and
a considerable manufacture of ornamental leather- work exists.
Copper-ware is largely turned out. Matting, baskets, and fans
are made of the dwarf-palm.
The main trade of the District passes through the city of Commerce
Peshawar, and though of varied and not uninteresting nature, w
is less extensive than might perhaps have been expected. In
1903-4 the value of the trade as registered was 182-5 lakhs,
of which 68 lakhs were imports. The bulk of Indian commerce
with Northern Afghanistan and the countries beyond (of which
Bokhara is the most important), Dir, Swat, Chitral, Bajaur, and
Buner, passes through Peshawar. The independent tribes
whose territories adjoin the District are also supplied from
it with those commodities which they import. Besides Pesha-
war city, there are bazars in which a certain amount of trade
is done at Naushahra, Kalan, Hoti Mardan, Shankargarh,
Tangi, Charsadda (Prang), and Rustam. The chief exports in
1903-4 were European and Indian cotton piece-goods, raw
cotton, yarn, indigo, turmeric, wheat, leathern articles, manu-
factured articles of brass, copper, and iron, salt, spices, sugar,
tea, tobacco, and silver.
The transactions of the Peshawar market, however, are
insignificant when compared with the stream of through traffic
from the direction of Kabul and Bokhara which passes on, with-
out stopping at Peshawar, into the Punjab and Northern India.
154 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Communi-
cations.
District
subdivi-
sions and
staff.
Civil jus-
tice and
crime.
The main line of the North-Western Railway enters the
District by the Attock bridge over the Indus, and has its
terminus at Peshawar, whence an extension runs to Fort
Jamrud. A branch line also runs from Naushahra through
Mardan to Dargai. The District possesses 157 miles of
metalled roads, of which 40 are Imperial military, 93 Im-
perial civil, 17 belong to the District board, and 7 to
cantonments. There are 672 miles of unmetalled roads (23
Imperial military, 123 Imperial civil, and 516 District board).
The grand trunk road runs parallel with the railway to Pesha-
war and thence to Jamrud at the mouth of the Khyber Pass,
and a metalled road from Naushahra via Mardan crosses the
border from the Malakand Pass into Swat. Other important
roads connect Peshawar with Kohat, with Abazai, with Michni,
with the Bara fort, and with Cherat. The Khyber Pass is the
great highway of the trade with Kabul and Central Asia, and is
guarded two days a week for the passage of caravans. The
Indus, Swat, and Kabul rivers are navigable at all seasons, but
are not much used for traffic. The Indus is crossed by the
Attock railway bridge, which has a subway for wheeled traffic,
and by three ferries. There are four bridges of boats and six
ferries on the Kabul river and its branches, two bridges of
boats and six ferries on the Landai, and three bridges of boats
and twelve ferries on the Swat river and its branches.
The District is divided for administrative purposes into
five tahslls, each under a tahslldar and naib-tahsllddr, except
Peshawar, where there are a tahslldar and two naibs. The
tahslls of Mardan and Swabi form the Yusufzai subdivision, in
charge of an Assistant Commissioner whose head-quarters are
at Mardan, the home of the famous Corps of Guides. This
officer is entrusted, under the orders of the Deputy-Commis-
sioner, with the political supervision of Buner and the Yusufzai
border. European officers with the powers of subdivisional
officers are in charge of Peshawar city, and of the Charsadda
and Naushahra tahslls. The Deputy-Commissioner is further
assisted by an Assistant Commissioner, who is in command
of the border military police. There are also three Extra
Assistant Commissioners, one of whom has charge of the
District treasury. The District Judge and the Assistant
Commissioner at Mardan have the powers of Additional
District Magistrates.
The Deputy-Commissioner as District Magistrate is respon-
sible for the criminal work of the District ; civil judicial work
is under a District Judge, and both are supervised by the
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 155
Divisional and Sessions Judge of the Peshawar Civil Divi-
sion. The Assistant Commissioner, Mardan, has the powers
of a Subordinate Judge, and in his civil capacity is under the
District Judge, as also are two Munsifs, one at head-quarters
and one at Mardan. There is one honorary Munsif at
Peshawar. The Cantonment Magistrate at Peshawar is Small
Cause Court Judge for petty civil cases within cantonment
limits. The criminal work of the District is extremely heavy,
serious crime being very common. The Frontier Crimes Regu-
lation is in force, and many cases are referred to the decision
of councils of elders. Civil litigation is not abnormally fre-
quent. Important disputes between Pathan families of note are,
when possible, settled out of court by councils of elders under
the control of the Deputy-Commissioner. The commonest
type of civil suit is based on the claim of reversionary heirs
to annul alienations of lands made by widows and daughters
of deceased sonless proprietors, as being contrary to custom.
The plain south of the Kabul river and the rich dodb Land
between the Kabul and Swat rivers have always been under r^f"u-e
the control of the central government of the time, while tration.
the Khattak hills and the great plain north of the Swat and
Kabul rivers have generally been independent.
In 1834 the Sikhs finally gained a firm hold on the dodb
and the tract south of the Kabul. They imposed a full
assessment and collected it through the leading men, to
whom considerable grants were made. The Sikh collections
averaged 6^ lakhs from 1836 to 1842, compared with 5§ lakhs
under the Durranis. These figures exclude the revenues of
Yusufzai and Hashtnagar, which are also excluded from the
first summary settlement, made in 1849-50, when the demand
was 10 lakhs. Yusufzai was settled summarily in 1847 and
Hashtnagar in 1850.
In 1855 a new settlement was made for the whole District.
It gave liberal reductions in Peshawar, the dodb, Daudzai,
and Naushahra, where the summary assessment, based on the
Sikh demands, had been very high, while the revenue in
Yusufzai was enhanced. The net result was a demand of less
than 8 lakhs. This assessment was treated as a summary one,
and a regular settlement was carried out between 1869 and
1875, raising the revenue to 8 lakhs. The settlement worked
well, particularly in those villages where a considerable
enhancement was made, the high assessment acting as a
stimulus to increased effort on the part of the cultivators. The
revenue, however, was recovered with the greatest difficulty;
156 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
and the history of the settlement has been described as one
continuous struggle on the part of the tahslldar to recover as
much, and on the part of the landowners to pay as little, of
the revenue demand as possible. This was due to the char-
acter and history of the people, and does not reflect at all on
the pitch of the assessment. The latest revision began in
1892 and was finished in 1896. The chief new factors in the
situation were the opening of the Swat and the Kabul River
Canals, the development of communications in 1882 by means
of the railway, the rise in prices, and the increase in prosperity
due to internal security. Assessed at half the net ' assets ' the
demand would have amounted to 23! lakhs, or Rs. 2-7-7 per
cultivated acre. The revenue actually imposed was slightly
more than 1 1 lakhs, an increase of about 2^ lakhs, or 28 per
cent, on the former demand. Of the total revenue Rs. 1,89,000
is assigned, compared with Rs. 1,76,000 at the regular settle-
ment The incidence per cultivated acre varies from Rs. i-i 1-4
in Charsadda to R. 0-8-8 in Mardan.
Frontier remissions are a special feature of the revenue
administration. A portion of the total assessment of a bor-
der estate is remitted, in consideration of the responsibility of
the proprietors for the watch and ward of the border. The
remissions are continued during the pleasure of Government
on condition of service and good conduct.
The total collections of revenue and of land revenue alone
are shown below, in thousands of rupees : —
1880-1.
1890-1.
1900-1.
•903-4.
Land revenue
6,83
7,"
9,69
10,03
Total revenue • .
9.72
9.72
18,54
16,70
Local and PESHAWAR is the only municipality. Outside this area local
municipal. affajrs are managed by a District board, whose income is
mainly derived from a local rate. In 1903-4 the income of
the board was Rs. 1,15,000, and the expenditure Rs. 1,21,000,
public works forming the largest item.
The regular police numbers 1,265 °f a^ ranks, of whom
210 are cantonment and 277 municipal police. There are
twenty-seven police stations and twenty road-posts. The
police force is under the control of a Superintendent, who is
assisted by three European Assistant Superintendents ; one of
these is in special charge of Peshawar city, while another is
stationed at Mardan.
Police and
jails.
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 157
The border military police numbers 544 men, under a
commandant who is directly subordinate to the Deputy-
Commissioner. They are entirely distinct from the regular
police. The posts are placed at convenient distances along
the frontier, and the duty of the men is to patrol and prevent
raids, to go into the hills as spies and ascertain generally what
is going forward. The system is not in force on the Yusufzai
border, as the tribes on that side give little or no trouble.
The District jail at head-quarters can accommodate 500
prisoners.
Since 1891 the population has actually gone back in literacy, Education,
and in 1901 only 4 per cent. (6-5 males and o-i female) could
read and write. The reason is that indigenous institutions are
decreasing in number every year owing to the lack of support,
while public instruction at the hands of Government has failed
as yet to become popular. The influence of the Mullas,
though less powerful than it used to be, is still sufficient to
prevent the attendance of their co-religionists at Government
schools. The education of women has, however, made some
progress. This is due in a large measure to the exertions of
lady missionaries, who visit the zananas and teach the younger
women to read Urdu, Persian, and even English. The number
of pupils under instruction was 1,833 in 1880-1, 10,655 in
1890-1, 9,242 in 1900-1, and 10,036 in 1903-4. In the
latest year there were 10 secondary and 78 primary (public)
schools, and 30 advanced and 208 elementary (private) schools,
with 64 girls in public and 755 in private institutions.
Peshawar city contains an unaided Arts college and four high
schools. The total expenditure on education in 1903-4 was
Rs. 61,000, to which District funds contributed Rs. 25,000,
the Peshawar municipality Rs. 6,400, and fees Rs. 14,700.
Besides the Egerton Civil Hospital and four dispensaries in Hospitals
Peshawar city, the District has five outlying dispensaries. In an ."
f J . e . r pensanes.
these institutions there are 133 beds for in-patients. In 1904
the number of cases treated was 202,793, including 2,980
in-patients, and 9,290 operations were performed. The income
amounted to Rs. 27,600, which was contributed by municipal
funds and by the District board equally. The Church Mis-
sionary Society maintains a Zanana Hospital, named after the
Duchess of Connaught, which is in charge of a qualified
European lady.
The number of successful vaccinations in 1903—4 was 24,000, Vaccina-
representing 33 per 1,000 of the population.
[J. G. Lorimer, District Gazetteer (1897-8).]
158 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Peshawar Tahsil. — Head-quarters tahsll of Peshawar
District, North- West Frontier Province, lying between 33° 43'
and 34° 13' N. and 71° 22' and 71° 45' E., with an area of
451 square miles. The population was 248,060 in 1901, and
226,113 in 1891. The tahsll consists of two distinct tracts,
the first of which is a low-lying riverain basin, through which
flow the branches of the Kabul river north of Peshawar city.
This tract comprises the old Daudzai tappa^ which is low-
lying and swampy, and that of Khalsa, which also contains
a good deal of marshy ground, especially near Dilazak and
Muhammadzai. The second tract consists of uplands which
rise gradually to the Afridi hills. It comprises the Khalil
and Mohmand tappas, so named from the Pathan tribes which
hold them. The tahsll is intersected by the KABUL RIVER
CANAL. It contains the city and cantonment of PESHAWAR
(95,147), its head-quarters, and 259 villages. The land
revenue and cesses amounted in 1903-4 to a little more than
Rs. 5,00,000.
Charsadda Tahsll.— North-western tahsll of Peshawar
District, North-West Frontier Province, lying between 34° 2'
and 34° 32' N. and 71° 30' and 71° 56' E., with an area of
380 square miles. The population was 142,756 in 1901, and
1,32,917 in 1891. It contains three towns, CHARSADDA and
PRANG (19,354), the head-quarters, and TANGI, (9,095) with
1 68 villages. The land revenue and cesses amounted in
1903—4 to Rs. 3,60,000. The tahsll consists of the dodb and
Hashtnagar tappas or circles. The former lies between the
Adizai branch of the Kabul river and the Swat, and is fertile,
highly cultivated, with numerous villages, and better wooded
than other parts of the District ; even the uplands which run
along the foot of the Mohmand hills for their whole length
are now irrigated by private canals. It is mainly held by
the Gigiani clan and by Mohmands. The Hashtnagar tappa
comprises a strip of plain country with a rich clay soil, which
stretches 10 miles eastward of the Swat, and from the Utman
Khel hills on the north to the Kabul river on the south. It
is held by Muhammadzai Pathans, and in it lies Charsadda,
the head-quarters of the tahsll. This tappa is intersected
by the Swat River Canal.
Yusufzai. — The term Yusufzai, properly speaking, includes
the whole territory held by the Yusufzai tribe of Pathans in
the North-West Frontier Province, which extends beyond
Peshawar District into the Political Agency of Dir, Swat, and
Chitral, and includes the valleys of Panjkora, DIR, BASHKAR,
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 159
SWAT and BUNER. According to the Pathans themselves,
however, YQsufzai applies only to Dir, Swat, and Buner,
including the Chamla valley. Yusufzai is the name adopted
for a subdivision in Peshawar District which comprises the
two tahsils of Mardan and Swabi. In the north of the
subdivision are three main valleys and minor glens almost
surrounded by rugged hills. South of these lies a large plain
separating them from the low ridge called the Sar-i-Maira,
which slopes towards the centre and drains into the Kalpani
and the valley of the Indus to the east of that ridge. It
consists' of the six tappas or minor divisions of Baezai,
Kamalzai, Amazai, Razzar, Utman, and Bolak. The Baezai
tappa formed the battle-ground between the descendants of
Yusuf and Mandan. The Utman Khel and Khattak tribe
were called in on both sides as mercenaries, and ended by
taking possession of the greater part of the Baezai valley
themselves. The celebrated Takht-i-Bhai ruins are in this
tappa. The chief village is Landkhwar. Communication
with Swat is kept up through the Mora Shakot and Malakand
passes. The villages of Mard&n and Hoti are in the Kamalzai
tappa. The Amazai tappa is surrounded on three sides by
hills ; it is often called the Sadhum valley, and is watered by
the Makam river. The chief village is Rustam, at which there
is a police station. The people of the Razzar tappa are all de-
scendants of Mandan. It contains several large villages, and
a police station at Kalu Khan. The chief village of Utman is
Swabi, which contains a tahslll and police station. The Bolak
tappa is entirely Khattak, and does not properly belong to
Yusufzai at all, having been joined to the Swabi tahsil for
administrative reasons. Besides the Makam river, the sub-
division is watered by another considerable stream, the Kal-
pani, which takes its rise in the Mora pass, flows past Mardan
and Hoti, is afterwards joined by the Makam, and finally falls
into the Kabul river opposite Naushahra cantonment. The
soil consists of a fine alluvial deposit, covered in large part
with luxuriant verdure. The SWAT RIVER CANAL, opened in
1885, affords ample irrigation to the greater part of the Mardan
tahsil, and there is a certain amount of irrigation from wells.
Mardan Tahsil.— Tahsil of Peshawar District, North-West
Frontier Province, lying between 34° 5' and 34° 32' N. and
71° 49' and 72° 24' E., in the centre of the part of the District
which lies north of the Kabul river, with an area of 610 square
miles. It comprises the greater portion of the Yusufzai plain,
and with the Swabi tahsil forms the YUSUFZAI subdivision of
i6o NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Peshawar District. The population in 1901 was 137,215,
compared with 113,877 in 1891. It contains the cantonment
of MARDAN (3,572) and 130 villages, including Hoti and
Rustam. The land revenue and cesses amounted in 1903-4
to Rs. 1,76,000.
Swabi Tahsil.— Easternmost tahsll of Peshawar District,
North-West Frontier Province, lying between 33° 54' and
34° 22' N. and 72° 12' and 72° 45' E., with an area of 467
square miles. It forms, with the Mardan tahsll, the Yusufzai
subdivision. It consists of a level plain intersected by two
considerable streams, the Naranji Khwar and Badri, and many
smaller ravines. The population in 1901 was 144,513, com-
pared with 130,687 in 1891. It contains 94 villages, including
Swabi, the head-quarters. The land revenue and cesses
amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 3,00,000. The principal tract in
the tahsll is the Razzar, occupying its north-eastern half, which
is so called after the branch of the Mandanr Pathans which
holds it. The central portion is held by the Sadozai and the
eastern extremity by the Utmanzai, both branches of the
Mandanr. The tahsll was formerly known as Utman Bulak.
Naushahra TahsU. — Tahsll of Peshawar District, North-
West Frontier Province, lying between 33° 47' and 34° 9' N.
and 71° 40' and 72° 15' E., with an area of 703 square miles.
It consists of a small tract of low-lying riverain land on both
sides of the Kabul river, known as the Khalsa tappa, and of
the Khattak pargana which includes the Khwarra-Nllab valley
and is separated from it by the Khattak range. This range
culminates in the Ghaibana Sir (5,136 feet in height) on the
western boundary of the tahsll, and the sanitarium of Cherat
(4,542 feet), whence the range trends to the eastward, gradually
sinking to 2,380 feet at Hodi Sir above the Indus. Half the
tahsll is hilly and very broken country, the main part of its
area consisting of the arid and barren slopes on the north of
the Khattak hills towards Kabul. The north-west corner is
irrigated by the KABUL RIVER CANAL. The population in
1901 was 116,163, compared with 180,201 in 1891. It con-
tains the town of NAUSHAHRA (9,518), the head-quarters, the
hill station of CHERAT, and 142 villages. The land revenue
and cesses amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 1,21,000.
Abazai. — Fort and village in the Charsadda tahsll of Pesha-
war District, North-West Frontier Province, 24 miles north of
Peshawar city, on the left bank of the Swat river, and a mile
from its exit from the hills. The river, here 150 yards wide,
is crossed by a ferry, and is the highest point in British ter-
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 161
ritory where a ferry is stationed. The fort, which lies between
Abazai village and the hills, was constructed in 1852, and has
been very effective in preventing raids by the Utman Khel and
Mohmands on British territory. It was made over to the
border military police in 1894, and is held by 30 men of this
force. Its chief interest now consists in the fact that it is close
to the head-works of the SWAT RIVER CANAL.
Charsadda Town. — Head-quarters of the tahsll of the
same name in Peshawar District, North-West Frontier Province,
situated in 34° 9' N. and 71° 45' E., on the left bank of the
Swat river, 16 miles north-east of Peshawar city. Population
(1901), including Prang, 19,354. A good metalled road con-
nects the town with Nahakki on the road from Peshawar to
Abazai. By this route the distance to Peshawar is 20 miles,
and the road crosses five permanent bridges of boats. Char-
sadda is a large and prosperous town, with a considerable trade,
chiefly in agricultural produce, in the hands of enterprising
Hindus, but Muhammadan agriculturists form the majority
of the population. It has a dispensary and a vernacular
middle school maintained by the District board.
Charsadda is contiguous to the town of Prang; and these
two places were identified by General Cunningham with the
ancient Pushkalavati, capital of the region at the time of
Alexander's invasion, and transliterated as Peukelaus Or Peuke-
laotis by the Greek historians. Its chieftain (Astes), according
to Arrian, was killed in defence of one of his strorigriolds after
a prolonged siege by Hephaistion. Ptolemy fixes its site upon
the eastern bank of the Suastene or Swat. In the seventh
century A. D. Hiuen Tsiang visited the city, which he describes
as being 100 //' (i6f miles) north-east of Peshawar. A stupa,
erected over the spot where Buddha made an alms-offering of
his eyes, formed the great attraction for the Buddhist pilgrim
and his co-religionists. The city, however, had even then
been abandoned as a political capital in favour of Purushapura,
Parashawara, or Peshawar. It probably extended over a large
area, and the entire neighbourhood is covered with vast ruins.
Excavation was carried out in the neighbourhood of Charsadda
for about two months in the spring of 1902-3. Some interest-
ing finds of coins and pottery ornaments, including an engraved
amethyst, were made, and the remains of the ancient Bala Hisar
(Akropolis) were mapped.
Cherat. — Hill sanitarium and cantonment in the Naushahra
tahsll of Peshawar District, North-West Frontier Province,
situated in 33° 50' N. and 71° 54' E., on the west of the
KW.F.P. M
1 62 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Khattak range, 30 miles south-east of Peshawar. Cherat, which
is 4,500 feet above sea-level, was first used as a sanitarium
for troops in 1861, and was declared a cantonment in 1886.
A hospital, a church, and a few bungalows have been built.
The station has a good water-supply, and is throughout the
summer the head-quarters of the Peshawar division command,
and of one of the two British regiments stationed at Peshawar.
A detachment of the other British regiment is also sent here.
The mean temperature in June is 82° at Cherat, compared
with 90° at Peshawar, and the nights are bearable. The hill
commands a view of the whole of the Peshawar valley on one
side, and on the other of a portion of the Khwarra valley in
Peshawar District, and of Kohat District as far as the Indus.
The population, according to the Census of March, 1901, was
only 376 (no Europeans), but in the hot season the garrison
sometimes numbers 1,000 men.
Hashtnagar (' Eight cities '). — Tract in the Charsadda
fahsll of Peshawar District, North-West Frontier Province,
comprising a strip of country that extends 10 miles eastward
from the Swat river, and stretches from the hills on the north
to the Kabul river on the south, between 34° 3' and 34° 25' N.
and 71° 37' and 71° 57' E. It is said to derive its name from
its eight chief villages, which probably occupy the site of the
ancient Peukelaotis or Pushkalavati. General Cunningham,
however, believed the modern term to be a corruption of
Hastinagara, the city of Hasti, the Astes of Arrian. Raverty
gave the old name as Ash'nagar, but he does not explain its
derivation. Before the Yusufzai Afghans settled in the Pesha-
war valley, Hashtnagar was held by the Shalmanis, a Tajik
race, subjects of the Sultan of Swat, and the Hisar of Hashtna-
gar was the capital of a province which extended to the Kalpani.
After Babar's time it became the stronghold of a Muhammadzai
chieftain. The inhabitants are Muhammadzai Pathans. The
area is 303 square miles, and the tract is naturally divided into
two sections : the sholgira, or lowlands, irrigated from the Swat
river ; and the maira, or high plain, which is intersected by the
Swat River Canal. Near the head of the canal is ABAZAI Fort.
Mackeson, Fort. — Formerly an important frontier fort
in Peshawar District, North-West Frontier Province, built to
command the north entrance to the Kohat Pass, from which it
is 3^ miles distant. It consisted of a pentagon, an inner keep,
and a horn-work, with accommodation for 500 troops ; but with
the exception of the keep it was dismantled in 1887, and is
now held by 29 men of the border military police.
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 163
Mardan Town. — Cantonment in Peshawar District, North-
West Frontier Province, and permanent head-quarters of the
Queen's Own Corps of Guides. It is also the head-quarters
of the Mardan tahsll and the Yusufzai subdivision. Popula-
tion (1901), 3,572. The cantonment is situated in 34° 12' N.
and 72° z' E., on the right bank of the Kalpani river,
33 miles north-east of Peshawar and 15 miles north of Nau-
shahra, on the North- Western Railway. The fort was built
by Hodson of the Guides in 1854. The civil lines lie in
the southern part of the cantonment on the Naushahra road,
and contain the Assistant Commissioner's bungalow, court-
house, tahstli, Government dispensary, and other public
offices. An Anglo-vernacular middle school is maintained
by the District board. The village of Hoti, from which the
station is sometimes called Hoti Mardan, lies 2 miles from
the cantonment.
Michni. — Fort in the District and tahsll of Peshawar, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 34° n' N. and 71° 27' E.,
on the left bank of the Kabul river, close to where it issues from
the hills, and 1 5 miles north of Peshawar city. The fort, which
commands an important ferry over the Kabul river, was con-
structed in 1851-2 on account of the numerous raids by
Mohmands from beyond the frontier. Lieutenant Boulnois,
in command of the party constructing the fort, was murdered
here by Mohmands in 1852 ; and in 1873 Major MacDonald,
the commandant of the post, was murdered in its vicinity.
There is no village of Michni, but the Tarakzai Mohmands
have settlements all round, those on the south side of the
river being in British territory. Fort Michni was formerly
under the command of a field officer, subordinate to the
Brigadier-General at Peshawar; but in 1885 it was handed
over to the border military police, who now hold it with a
garrison of twenty men.
Naushahra Town. — Town and cantonment in Peshawar
District, North-West Frontier Province, and head-quarters of
the tahsll and subdivision of the same name, situated in 34° N.
and 72° E., on the North- Western Railway and the grand trunk
road, 27 miles due east of Peshawar. Population (1901),
9,518. The cantonment stretches along the right bank of the
Kabul river on a sandy plain, 3 miles in diameter, and is sur-
rounded by low hills on all sides except the north, which is
open towards the river. The garrison now consists of one
British infantry regiment, two native cavalry and four infantry
regiments, a mountain battery, and a bearer corps, belonging
M 2
x64 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
to the Peshawar division of the Northern Command. The
Kabul river is crossed by a permanent bridge of boats, whence
roads lead to Mardan and Charsadda. The iron road and
railway bridge across the river was opened on December i,
1903. The village of Naushahra Khurd, west of the canton-
ment, and the large village of Naushahra Kalan, on the north
bank of the Kabul, are both outside cantonment limits. The
head-quarters of the Naushahra tahsil, with the police station,
are in the former, 3 miles from the cantonment. The town
contains a Government dispensary and a vernacular middle
school, maintained by the District board.
Peshawar City.— Capital of the North-West Frontier Pro-
vince, and head-quarters of the District and tahsll of the same
name, situated in 34° i' N. and 71° 35' E. The cantonment
is situated on a ridge overlooking the surrounding plain and
the city, which lies near the left bank of the Bara stream,
13^ miles south-east of the junction of the Swat and Kabul
rivers, and 10^ miles from Jamrud fort near the entrance of the
Khyber Pass. It is distant by rail from Calcutta 1,552 miles,
and from Bombay 1,579 miles, and by road from Kabul
190 miles. It is the terminus of the grand trunk road, but
a branch of the North- Western Railway runs on to Jamrud.
The population was 79,982 in 1881, 54,191 in 1891, and
95,147 in 1901, consisting of 68,352 Muhammadans, 18,552
Hindus, 5,144 Sikhs, and 3,063 Christians. Of the total popu-
lation, 21,804 live in cantonments.
Peshawar was in the time of Fa Hian the capital of the Gan-
dhara Province, and is historically important at all later periods.
(See PESHAWAR DISTRICT.) It was famous during the early
centuries of the Christian era as containing the begging-pot of
the Buddha, a holy plpal tree whose branches are said to have
given shade to the Master, and an enormous stupa built by
Kanishka. Buddhist remains still mark its early greatness.
The name is not improbably derived from Parashawara or
Purushapura, the seat of a king named Purush ; and the present
form Peshawar is referred to the emperor Akbar, whose fond-
ness for innovation is said to have led him to change the name,
of whose meaning he was ignorant, to Peshawar, the ' frontier
town.' In 1552 Humayun found the fortress in ruins, but
had it repaired and entrusted it to a governor, who successfully
defended it against the Afghans under Khan Kaju. The town
appears to have been refounded by Balgram, a contemporary
of Akbar, and was much enlarged by General Avitabile, its
governor under the Sikhs. It became the head-quarters of
PESHAWAR DISTRICT 165
a District in 1849, and the capital of the North- West Frontier
Province in 1901.
The modern city has but slight architectural pretensions, the
houses, though lofty, being chiefly built of small bricks or mud,
held together by a wooden framework. It is surrounded by
a mud wall, built by General Avitabile, which is gradually being
replaced by a wall of brick. The city has sixteen gates. The
main street, known as the kissa kahdni, which is entered from
the Kabul gate (re-erected as a memorial to Sir Herbert
Edwardes), is a broad roadway 50 feet in width, consisting of
two double rows of shops, the upper rooms of which are
generally let out as lodgings ; the street is well paved, and at
busy times presents a very picturesque sight The remainder
of the city proper consists of squares and markets, with narrow
and irregular streets and lanes. A masonry canal runs through
the centre of the city, which is, however, only used to carry off
drain-water and sewage. Drinking-water is brought down in
pipes from the water-works, for which the municipal committee
pays a yearly rental. Wells are used only in the hot season to
supply colder water than the pipes afford. The sanitary and
conservancy arrangements are very good, and all the drains are
paved. There are now very few old houses of architectural
importance, most of them having been destroyed at the time
of the capture of the city by the Sikhs from the Durrani's.
Several handsome mosques ornament the city ; and a large
building, known as the Gor Khattri, once a Buddhist monastery,
and subsequently formed into a Hindu temple, is now used as
the tahslll. Just without the wall, on the north-western side,
a quadrilateral fort, the Bala Hisar, crowns a small eminence
completely dominating the city. Its walls of sun-dried brick
rise to a height of 92 feet above the ground, with a fausse-braye
of 30 feet ; bastions stand at each corner and on three of the
faces, while an armament of guns and mortars is mounted above.
South-west of the city, stretching from just outside the walls,
are the suburbs of Bhana Mari and Deri Baghbanan, where
there are gardens noted for their fruit, producing quinces,
pomegranates, plums, limes, peaches, and apples in abundance.
These gardens, especially a public garden called the Wazlr
Bagh, form a favourite pleasure-ground of the people ; north
of the city is another public pleasure-ground, the Shahi Bagh
or ' royal garden.'
Two miles west of the city lie the cantonments, where the
civil offices are also situated. The cantonments were occupied
by British troops soon after annexation in 1848-9. The gar-
i66 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
rison has been much reduced and consists at present of one
battery of field artillery, two regiments of British and three
of native infantry, one regiment of native cavalry, and one
company each of sappers and miners, bearer corps, and
army hospital native corps. The garrison forms part of the
Peshawar military division of the Northern Command, and
the head-quarters of the division are situated here.
The municipality was constituted in 1867. The income and
expenditure during the ten years ending 1902-3 averaged 2-3
and 2-15 lakhs respectively. In 1903-4 the income was 2-8
lakhs, of which more than 2 lakhs were derived from octroi,
while the expenditure amounted to 2-9 lakhs, the chief heads
of charge being conservancy (Rs. 26,000), education (Rs.
12,000), hospitals and dispensaries (Rs. 18,000), public safety
(Rs. 46,000), and administration (Rs. 36,000). The income
and expenditure of cantonment funds during the ten years
ending 1902-3 averaged Rs. 53,000 and Rs. 52,500 respec-
tively; in 1903-4 the income was Rs. 69,000, and the expen-
diture Rs. 70,000.
The main trade of the District passes through the city of
Peshawar. Though of a varied and not uninteresting nature,
it is less extensive than might perhaps have been expected, but
its position makes it important as an entrepot for Central Asia.
The principal foreign markets having dealings with Peshawar
are Kabul and Bokhara. From the former place are imported
raw silk, worsted, cochineal, jalap, asafoetida, saffron, resin,
simples, and fruits, both fresh and dried, principally for re-
exportation to the Punjab and Hindustan, whence are received
in return English piece-goods, cambrics, silk, indigo, sugar, tea,
salt, and spices. Bokhara supplies gold coins, gold and silver
thread and lace, principally for re-exportation to Kashmir,
whence the return trade is shawls. Iron from Bajaur, skins,
fibres and mats made of the dwarf-palm (niazri\ are the only
remaining items of importance coming from beyond the
border.
The city possesses an unaided Arts college attached to the
Mission high school, and four high schools : namely, the muni-
cipal and Edwardes Mission Anglo-vernacular high schools, and
two unaided Anglo-vernacular high schools. It also contains
a civil hospital and four dispensaries. Another institution is
the Martin Lecture Hall and institute, with its reading-room
and library, also maintained by the Peshawar Mission.
Prang. — Town in the Charsadda tahsil of Peshawar Dis-
trict, North-West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 8' N. and
KOHAT DISTRICT 167
71° 49' E., above the junction of the Swat and Kabul rivers,
1 6 miles north-east of Peshawar. It is practically a portion of
the town of CHARSADDA. The population, apart from Charsadda,
in 1901 was 10,235, consisting chiefly of Muhammadzai Pathans.
Shabkadar. — Fort in the Charsadda tahsll of Peshawar
District, North- West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 13' N.
and 71° 34' E., 17 miles north-west of Peshawar city, with
which it is connected by a good road leading to Abazai across
three branches of the Kabul river. Originally built by the
Sikhs, and by them called Shankargarh, the fort lies 2 miles from
the village of Shabkadar; but a town has now sprung up
round it, which is a local centre of trade with the adjoining
Mohmand hills, and which in 1901 had a population of
2»373- The fort is a strong one, and used to be garrisoned by
regular troops; but in 1885 it was made over to the border
military police, who now hold it with 28 men. In August,
1897, it was suddenly attacked by a force of Mohmands, who
succeeded in plundering the town and burning the Hindu
shops and houses, but the small police garrison was able to
hold the fort itself. On August 9 the Mohmands were de-
feated with loss by a small force under General Elles, an
engagement signalized by a brilliant charge of two squadrons
of the 1 3th Duke of Connaught's Lancers.
Tangi. — Town in the Charsadda tahsll of Peshawar Dis-
trict, North-West Frontier Province, situated in 34° 1 7' N. and
71° 42' E., 29 miles north of Peshawar city. Population
(1901), 9,095. The Swat river runs west of the town, and the
Swat River Canal, with the famous Jhindi aqueduct, is about
3 miles off. The inhabitants are Muhammadzai Pathans.
Faction is rife, and the place owes its importance to its
proximity to the independent tribe of Utman Khel, against
whom it has always held its own.
Kohat District. — Central District of the North- West Boun-
Frontier Province, lying between 32° 48' and 33° 45' N. and daries,con-
n / i o / i-> • i f -i figuration.
70 30 and 72 i E., with an area of 2,973 square miles. and hill
The District has the shape of an irregular rhomboid, with one and river
arm stretching north-east towards the Khwarra-Zira forest in sy
Peshawar District. It is bounded on the north by Peshawar
District, and by the hills inhabited by the Jowaki and Pass
Afrldis ; on the north-west by Orakzai Tirah ; on the south-
west by Kabul Khel territory (Wazlristan) ; on the south-east
by Bannu and the Mianwall District of the Punjab ; and
on the east by the Indus. Its greatest length is 104 miles, and
its greatest width 50 miles.
1 68 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
The District consists of a succession of ranges of broken
hills, whose general trend is east and west, and between which
lie open valleys, seldom more than 4 or 5 miles in width.
These ranges are of no great height, though several peaks
attain an altitude of 4,700 or 4,900 feet. As the District is
generally elevated, Hangu to the northward being 2,800 feet
and Kohat, its head-quarters, 1,700 feet above sea-level, the
ranges rise to only inconsiderable heights above the plain.
The general slope is to the east, towards the Indus, but on the
south-west the fall is towards the west into the Kurram river.
The principal streams are the Kohat and Teri Tois (' streams '),
both tributaries of the Indus, and the Shkalai which flows
into the Kurram. The Kohat Toi rises in the Mamozai hills.
It has but a small perennial flow, which disappears before it
reaches the town of Kohat, but the stream reappears some
miles lower down and thence flows continuously to the
Indus. The Teri Toi has little or no perennial flow, and the
Shkalai is also small, though perennial. The most fertile part
is the Hangu tahsil, which comprises the valley of Lower and
Upper Mlranzai. The rest of the District consists of ranges of
hills much broken into spurs, ravines, and valleys, which are
sometimes cultivated, but more often bare and sandy.
Geology. The rocks of the District belong chiefly to the Tertiary
system, and consist of a series of Upper and Middle Tertiary
sandstones with inliers of Nummulitic limestone. The lime-
stones occur chiefly in the north, while sandstone is more
prominent to the south. Below the Nummulitic beds is found
the most important mineral of the District, namely, salt. It
occurs, with bands of gypsum and red clay, below the eocene
rocks at various localities, but is found in greatest quantity at
Bahadur Khel, where rock-salt is seen for a distance of about
8 miles and the thickness exposed exceeds 1,000 feet. The
salt is very pure, and differs remarkably in colour from that of
the SALT RANGE, being usually grey, while that of the latter
area is red or pink. There is no definite evidence as to its age,
which is usually regarded as Lower Tertiary ; but the under-
lying rocks are not exposed, and it has been classed with the
overlying eocene on account of the apparent absence of any
unconformity 1.
Botany. The vegetation is composed chiefly of scrub jungle, with a
secondary element of trees and shrubs. The more common
plants are : Flacourtia sapida, F. sepiaria, several species of
1 Wynne : ' Trans-Indus Salt Region in the Kohat District' Memoirs,
Geologtial Survey of India, vol. xi; part ii.
KOHAT DISTRICT 169
Greu'ia, Zizyphus nummufaria, Acacia Jacquemontii, A. leuco-
fhloea, Alhagi camelorum, Crotalaria Burhia, Prosopis sptcigera,
several species of Tamarix, Nerium odorum, Rhazya stricta,
Calotropis procera, Periploca aphylla, Tecoma undulata, Lycium
europaeum, Withania coagulans, W. somnifera, Nannorhops
Ritchieana, Fagonia^ Tribulus, Peganum Harmala, Calligonum
polygonoides, Polygonum aviculare, P. plebejum, Rumex vesi-
tarius, Chrozophora plicata, and species of Aristida, Anthistiria,
Cenchrus, and Pennisetum.
Game of all kinds is scarce ; leopards are occasionally shot Fatma.
in the hills, and twenty years ago were quite common. There
are practically no deer. Bears occasionally come down from
the Samana Range to Miranzai when the corn is ripe. Chikor
and partridges abound in Miranzai and the Teri tahsll, and
fish are abundant in the Kurram and the Indus.
The District as a whole lies high, and the hot season, though Climate
oppressive, is short, and the spring and autumn months are and *em~
perature.
pleasant. The winter is very cold, and a cutting west wind,
known as the ' Hangu breeze/ blows down the Miranzai valley
to Kohat for weeks together. Owing to the great extremes
of heat and cold pneumonia is common, but malarial fever
is the chief cause of mortality.
The monsoon rains do not usually penetrate as far as Kohat,
and the rainfall is very capricious. The average fall at Kohat
is 1 8 inches, while the greatest fall since 1882 was 48 inches at
Fort Lockhart on the Samana in 1900-1, and the least 5 inches
at Kohat in 1891-2. The distribution of the rain is equally
uncertain ; villages within the distance of a few miles suffer-
ing, some from drought and some from floods, at the same
time.
The first historical mention of the District occurs in the History,
memoirs of the emperor Babar. The District was then, as
now, divided between the Bangash and Khattak branches of
the Pathan race, the Bangash occupying the Miranzai valley,
with the western portion of Kohat proper, while the Khattaks
held the remainder of the eastern territory up to the bank of
the Indus. According to tradition the Bangash were driven
from Gardez in the Ghilzai country, and settled in the Kurram
valley about the fourteenth century. Thence they spread east-
ward, over the Miranzai and Kohat region, fighting for the
ground inch by inch with the Orakzai, whom they cooped up
at last in the frontier hills. The Khattaks are said to have left
their native home in the Sulaiman mountains about the thir-
teenth century and settled in Bannu. Owing to a quarrel with
170 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
the ancestors of the Bannuchis, they migrated northward two
hundred years later and occupied their present domains.
Babar made a raid through the District in 1505, being
attracted by a false hope of plunder, and sacked Kohat
and Hangu. The Mughal emperors were unable to maintain
more than a nominal control over the tract. One of the
Khattak chiefs, Malik Akor, agreed with Akbar to protect the
country south of the Kabul river from depredations, and
received in return a grant of territory with the right of levying
tolls at the Akora ferry. He was thus enabled to assume the
chieftainship of his tribe, and to hand down his authority to
his descendants, who ruled at Akora, among them being the
warrior poet Khushhal Khan.
Kohat became part of the Durrani empire in 1747, but
authority was exercised only through the Bangash and Khattak
chiefs. Early in the nineteenth century, Kohat and Hangu
formed a governorship under Sardar Samad Khan, one of the
Barakzai brotherhood, whose leader, Dost Muhammad, usurped
the throne of Afghanistan. The sons of Sardar Samad Khan
were driven out about 1828 by the Peshawar Sardars, the prin-
cipal of whom was Sultan Muhammad Khan. In the Teri
tahsil, shortly after the establishment of the power of Ahmad
Shah Durrani, it became the custom for a junior member of
the Akora family to rule as sub-chief at Teri. This office
gradually became hereditary, and sub-chiefs ruled the western
Khattaks in complete independence of Akora. The history
of affairs becomes very confused ; the Akora chiefs were
constantly interfering in Teri affairs ; there were generally
two or more rival claimants; the chiefship was constantly
changing hands, and assassinations and rebellion were
matters of everyday occurrence.
The Sikhs, on occupying the country, found themselves
unable to levy revenue from the mountaineers. Ranjlt Singh
placed Sultan Muhammad Khan in a position of importance
at Peshawar, and made him a grant of Kohat, Hangu, and
Teri. One Rasul Khan became chief of Teri, and on his
death in 1843 was succeeded by his adopted son, Khwaja
Muhammad Khan. Meanwhile, Sultan Muhammad Khan
continued to govern the rest of the District through his sons,
though the country was generally in a disturbed state, and the
upper Miranzai villages were practically independent. When
the Sikh troops took up arms at Peshawar on the outbreak of
the second Sikh War, George Lawrence, the British officer
there, took refuge at Kohat; but Sultan Muhammad Khan
KOHAT DISTRICT 171
played him false, and delivered him over as a prisoner to the
Sikhs. At the close of the campaign, Sultan Muhammad
Khan and his adherents retired to Kabul, and the District
with the rest of the Punjab was annexed to the British
dominions. Khwaja Muhammad Khan had taken the British
side and continued to manage the tahsil, which was made a
perpetual j'dgfr. In 1872 Khwaja Muhammad obtained the
title of Nawab and was made a K.C.S.I. He died in 1889
and was succeeded by his son, Khan Bahadur Abdul
Ghafur Khan.
At annexation the western boundary was left undefined;
but in August, 1851, Upper Miranzai was formally annexed by
proclamation, and an expedition was immediately dispatched
up the valley to establish our rule. There was no fighting,
beyond a little skirmishing with the Wazirs near Biland Khel.
The lawless Miranzai tribes, however, had no desire to be
under either British or Afghan rule. They were most insub-
ordinate, paid no revenue and obeyed no orders, while incur-
sions from across the frontier continued to disturb the peace
of the new District. At last, in 1855, a force of 4,000 men
marched into the valley, enforced the revenue settlement, and
punished a recusant village at the foot of the Zaimukht hills.
The people of Miranzai quickly reconciled themselves to
British rule; and during the Mutiny of 1857, no disturbance
of any sort took place in the valley, or in any other part of
the District. In March, 1858, it was finally decided that the
Kurram river was to form the western boundary of the District,
thus excluding the Biland Khel on the opposite bank.
The construction of the road from Kohat to Peshawar was
undertaken immediately after annexation, and at once brought
the British into conflict with the border tribes, while the
construction of the road to Bannu by Bahadur Khel was
also the occasion of outbreaks in which the salt mines were
seized by the insurgents.
Kohat District contains one town and 298 villages. The The
population at the last three enumerations was : (1881) 174,762,
(1891) 195,148, and (1901) 217,865. It increased by 11-5 per
cent, during the last decade, the increase being greatest in
the Kohat tahsll and least in Teri. The increase, though
partly due to the presence of coolies, &c., employed in mak-
ing the Khushalgarh-Kohat Railway, was mainly the result of
increased tranquillity on the border. The District is divided
into three tahsils, the chief statistics of which, in 1901, are
shown on the next page.
172 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
B
Number of
a
Lj
?-s-*S-
•83-8
Tahiti.
srs
•El
rf
•
t
*1
3 <*
|g
rt o .2 v1
Ipl
1
1
1
(£
$
lip
2JL2
Kohat .
811
I
89
79,601
114
+ 13-7
5,343
Teri .
1,616
166
94,363
62
+ 10-4
2,221
Hangu
546
43
43,9° '
87
+ 10-6
1,629
Total
2,973
I
298
217,865
80
+ 11-5
9,°93
The head-quarters of these are at the places from which
each is named. The only town is KOHAT, the administrative
head-quarters of the District. The District also contains the
military outposts of THAL and FORT LOCKHART. The density
of the population is low, and the population is too small in
some villages to cultivate all the land. Muhammadans num-
ber 199,722, or more than 91 per cent, of the total; Hindus
14,480; and Sikhs 3,344. The language commonly spoken
is Pashtu ; the Awans and Hindus talk Hindki, a dialect of
Punjabi, among themselves, but know Pashtu as well.
Castes and The most numerous tribe in the District are the Pathans,
who number 134,000, or 61 per cent, of the total population.
They are divided into two main branches : the Bangash, who
occupy the Miranzai valley with the western portion of the
Kohat tahsll; and the Khattaks, who hold the eastern part of
Kohat and the Teri tahsll up to the Indus. The Khattaks are
inferior as cultivators but make better soldiers than the Ban-
gash. Next in importance to the Pathans come the Awans
(22,000), who live along the banks of the Indus and are pro-
bably immigrants from Rawalpindi District. Saiyids num-
ber 8,000. Of the commercial and money-lending classes the
Aroras (8,000) are the most important, the Khattris number-
ing only 3,000, and Parachas (carriers and pedlars) 2,000.
The Shaikhs, who mostly live by trade, number 3,000. Of
the artisan classes, the Tarkhans (carpenters, 4,000), Lohars
(blacksmiths, 4,000), and Mochis (shoemakers and leather-
workers), Kumhars (potters) and Julahas (weavers), each re-
turning 2,000, are the most important ; and of the menials,
only the Nais (barbers, 3,000) and Chuhras or Kutanas
(sweepers, 2,000) appear in any numerical strength. In 1901
the District contained 145 native Christians, but no mission
has been established. Agriculture supports 68 per cent, of
General the population. ^
agricnl- In the low-lying tracts along the bottom of the main valleys
KOHAT DISTRICT
173
the soil is generally a good loam, fertile and easily worked.
The silt brought down by the mountain torrents is poor and
thin, but the land is as a rule well manured. In the western
portion of the Hangu tahsll there are stretches of a rich dark
loam, which yields good autumn crops in years of seasonable
summer rains. But the predominant soil in the District is
clay, varying from a soft and easily ploughed soil to a hard
one, which is useless without a great deal of water. The clay
is often brick-red in colour, and this, too, is found both soft
and hard. The soft red clay is an excellent soil, holding water
well, and needing no manure if cropped only once a year.
Towards the Indus the level land, which alone can be cul-
tivated, has a thin sandy soil covered in many places almost
entirely with stones ; these help to keep the soil cool, and
without them crops could not live on the thin surface soil.
Agricultural conditions, however, depend chiefly on the
presence or absence of water. The spring crop, which in
1903-4 occupied 58 per cent, of the area harvested, is sown
from October to January ; the autumn crop mainly in June,
July, and August, though cotton and great millet are often
sown in May.
The following table shows the main statistics of cultivation
according to the revenue returns for 1903-4, the areas being
in square miles : —
tural con-
ditions.
Tahsil.
Total.
Cultivated.
Irrigated.
Cultivable
waste.
Not available
for
cultivation.
Kohat
Ten .
Hangu
Total
811
1,616
546
107
300
54
43
3
15
1 86
182
54
518
1,124
437
2»973
461
61
432
2,079
Chief agri-
cultural
statistics
and princi-
pal crops.
The chief food-crops are wheat, covering 173 square miles,
or 44 per cent, of the cultivated area, and bajra, 102 square
miles, or 26 per cent. Smaller areas are occupied by gram (30),
maize (24), barley, pulses, andjowar. Very little rice or cotton
is produced.
The cultivated area has apparently decreased by 3 per cent. Improve-
since the previous settlement, as the lightness of the revenue ^^^i.n
demand afforded no inducement for keeping the poorer soils tural
under the plough, and no improvements have been made in Practlce-
agricultural methods. There is, however, room for expansion
of cultivation, especially in Mlranzai. Advances for the repair
of embankments and watercourses are in some demand, and
174 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Rs. 36,100 was lent during the five years ending 1903-4 under
the Land Improvement Loans Act. During the same period
Rs. 31,500 was advanced under the Agriculturists' Loans Act
for the purchase of seed and bullocks.
Cattle, The cattle bred locally are of poor quality, and animals are
j1^' largely imported from the Punjab. Camels are bred in large
numbers. Both the fat-tailed and ordinary breeds of sheep
are found, and large flocks of goats are kept. The local breed
of horses is fair. Two pony and two donkey stallions are
maintained by the municipality and the District board.
Irrigation. Out of the total cultivated area of 461 square miles, only
6 1 square miles, or 12 per cent., were irrigated in 1903-4.
Of this area, 3-4 square miles were supplied by wells and
53-8 square miles by streams and tanks, in addition to which
4 square miles are subject to inundation from the Indus.
There were 413 masonry wells worked by bullocks with Persian
wheels, and 175 unbricked wells and water-lifts. The most
effective irrigation is from perennial streams ; but agriculture,
especially in Miranzai, is much benefited by the building of
tanks and embankments to hold up rain-water.
Forests. The District contains 74 square miles of unclassed forest
and Government waste under the management of the Deputy-
Commissioner. Parts of the hill tracts are covered with dwarf-
palm (mazn). The District as a whole is not well wooded,
though where water is obtainable road-side avenues have been
planted, in which the mulberry, Persian lilac (bakairi), willow,
and shisham are preponderant. Elsewhere the wild olive, the
palosi (Acacia modesta}, and other species of acacia are the
commonest trees. The summit of the Samana has been
almost denuded of trees, but in sheltered places ilex, walnut,
and Scotch fir are found.
Mines and The salt-producing areas, from which salt has been excavated
niner from time immemorial, occupy a tract about 50 miles long with
a nearly uniform width of 20 miles. The KOHAT SALT QUAR-
RIES at present worked are at Jatta, MalgTn, Kharak, and
Bahadur Khel, of which the last presents perhaps the greatest
amount of exposed rock-salt to be seen in the world. The
average sales of salt for the three years ending 1 903-4 exceeded
15,307 tons. The District contains three petroleum springs,
which would yield perhaps half a gallon a day if the oil was
gathered daily, but it is only occasionally taken. Sulphur is
found in the hills to the south of the Kohat Toi, and limestone
and sandstone all over the District, but they are not regularly
quarried.
KOHAT DISTRICT 175
The District possesses very few handicrafts and no manu- Arts and
factures. Kohat used to be celebrated for its rifles, in which manufac-
tures,
a high degree of excellence was attained, considering the rude
nature of the appliances ; but the industry not being encouraged
has now departed to the independent villages of the Kohat
Pass, where it flourishes. Coarse cotton cloth is made through-
out the District, but not in sufficient quantities to supply even
the local demand. Turbans of excellent texture and colour
are woven of both silk and cotton at Kohat and the adjoining
villages, and coloured felt mats are made ; woollen camel-bags
and leather sandals are also produced. The dwarf-palm is
used to a very large extent for the manufacture of sandals,
ropes, mats, matting, and baskets.
A large and increasing trade with Tirah and Kabul passes Commerce
through the District by the Khushalgarh-Kohat-Thal Railway, and trade-
but the imports and exports apart from this through traffic are
not large. Salt, agricultural produce, and articles made of the
dwarf-palm, which grows plentifully throughout the District,
are the principal exports, and piece-goods and iron the principal
imports. Kohat, Thai, and Naryab are the chief trade centres.
The District is traversed by the 2 feet 6 inches gauge rail- Commmri-
way from Khushalgarh to Thai, opened in 1903. The line at cations-
once came into universal use for the conveyance of passengers
and goods, and has proved an unexpected commercial success.
It is being converted to the broad gauge, which will be opened
on the completion of the bridge over the Indus at Khushalgarh.
Mails and passengers are conveyed by tonga from Peshawar to
Kohat over the Kohat Pass and on to Bannu. There are 179
miles of Imperial metalled roads, and 509 miles of unmetalled
roads. Of the latter, 131 miles are Imperial, and 378 belong
to the District board. Besides the Peshawar-Kohat-Bannu
road, the most important routes are those from Khushalgarh
through Kohat to the Kurram at Thai and from Khushalgarh
to Attock. There is little traffic on the Indus, which has a
very swift current in this District; it is crossed by a bridge of
boats at Khushalgarh, now being replaced by a bridge which
both road and rail will cross.
The District was classed by the Irrigation Commission as Famine,
secure from famine. The crops matured in the famine year of
1899-1900 amounted to 77 per cent, of the normal.
The District is divided for administrative purposes into District
three tahsils* each under a tahsildar and naib-tahsildar. The s^i™-
. . ,. . sions and
Deputy-Commissioner has political control over the trans- staff.
border tribes in adjoining territory: namely, the Jowaki and
176 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Civil jus-
tice and
crime.
Land
revenue.
Pass Afrldis, the Sepaiah Afridis (Sipahs), the Orakzai Zai-
mukhts, the Biland Khel and Kabul Khel Wazlrs. Under
him are two Assistant Commissioners, one of whom is in
charge of the Thai subdivision and exercises political control,
supervised by the Deputy -Commissioner, over the tribes whose
territories lie west of Fort Lockhart on the Samana range.
Two Extra Assistant Commissioners, one of whom is in charge
of the District treasury, complete the District staff. One
member of the staff is sometimes invested with the powers
of an Additional District Magistrate.
The Deputy-Commissioner as District Magistrate is respon-
sible for criminal justice, and in his capacity of District Judge
has charge of the civil judicial work. He is supervised by
the Divisional Judge of the Derajat Civil Division, and has
under him a Subordinate Judge, whose appellate powers
relieve him of most of the civil work, a Munsif at head-
quarters, and an honorary civil judge at Teri. Crime is still
very frequent and serious offences preponderate ; but the
advance in law arjd order during late years, especially since
the Miranzai expedition of 1891, has been considerable.
The early history of Kohat, fiscal as well as political, is
vague and uncertain. Under the Mughals and Afghans leases
were granted in favour of the Khans, but few records remain
to show even the nominal revenue. In 1700 the emperor
Aurangzeb leased Upper and Lower Miranzai to the Khan of
Hangu for Rs. 12,000. In 1810 the Kohat tahsll was leased
for Rs. 33,000. In 1836 Ranjlt Singh assigned the revenue of
the whole of the present District to Sultan Muhammad Khan,
Barakzai, in return for service. This revenue was estimated at
1 1 lakhs.
After annexation four summary settlements were made of
the Kohat and Hangu tahslls, which reduced the demand
from one lakh to Rs. 75,000. In 1874 a regular settlement
of the Kohat and Hangu tahslls was begun, excluding three
tappas which were settled summarily. The rates fixed per acre
varied from Rs. 6-8 on the best irrigated land to 3 annas on
the worst ' dry ' land ; and the total assessment was Rs. 1,08,000
gross, an increase of 18 per cent, on the previous demand. So
large a sum was granted in frontier remissions and other
assignments that the net result to Government was a loss of
Rs. 5,000 in land revenue realizations. The object of the
settlement, however, was not so much to increase the Govern-
ment demand as to give the people a fair record-of-rights. The
increasing peace and security along this part of the border,
KOHAT DISTRICT
177
culminating in the complete tranquillity which has characterized
it since 1898, has worked an agricultural revolution in Upper
Miranzai.
The Teri tahsil, which forms half the District, has a distinct
fiscal history. The Khan of Teri has always paid a quit rent,
which was Rs. 40,000 under the Barakzai rulers, and was fixed
at Rs. 31,000 on annexation. Since then it has been gradually
lowered to Rs. 20,000, at which it now stands. During the
Afghan war the Khan's loyalty to the British exceeded that of
his people, who resented the forced labour then imposed upon
them by -the Khan. Consequently at the close of the war
a veiled rebellion broke out in Teri. It was therefore decided
that the tract should be settled, and a settlement was carried
out in 1891-4, the chief object being to place on a satisfactory
footing the relations between the Khan and the revenue-
payers.
In 1,900 the first regular settlement of Upper Miranzai and
the revision of settlement in the rest of the District was begun.
This was completed in 1905 and resulted in a net increase of
Rs. 59,000 in the revenue demand, which amounted to
Rs. 1,28,000. The rates of the new settlement per acre are :
'dry' land, maximum Rs. 1—12, minimum 3 annas; and 'wet'
land, maximum Rs. 7-12, minimum R. i.
The total collections of revenue and of land revenue alone
have been as follows, in thousands of rupees : —
1880-1.
1890-1.
1900-1.
1903-4-
Land revenue
90
79
85
74
Total revenue
93
90
94
83
The District contains only one municipality,. KOHAT town. Local and
Outside this town, local affairs are managed by a District municiPal-
board, whose income is mainly derived from cesses. The
income in 1903-4 amounted to Rs. 14,100 and the expen-
diture to Rs. 16,300, education forming the largest individual
charge.
The regular police force consists of 527 of all ranks, of Police and
whom 44 are municipal police. The village watchmen number Jails-
265. There are 12 police-stations, 16 road-posts, and 4 out-
posts. The border military police, who are amalgamated with
the local militia (the Samana Rifles) are under a commandant,
assisted by a British adjutant and quartermaster, all of whom
are officers of the regular police force. The control of the
commandant is exercised subject to the orders of the Deputy-
178 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Commissioner. The force, which numbers 1,023 °f a^ ranks,
garrisons 23 posts for maintaining watch and ward on the
border. The District jail at head-quarters can accommodate
nearly 300 prisoners.
Education. Only 4-2 per cent, of the population (7-2 of males and
0-3 of females) could read and write in 1901. The proportion
is markedly higher amongst Sikhs (39-1 per cent.), and
Hindus (29-5), than among the agricultural Muhammadans
(1-6 per cent.). Owing to the difficulties of communication
and the poverty of the District board, education continues to
be very backward, and the percentage of literacy compares
unfavourably with that of the Province generally. The number
of pupils under instruction was 375 in 1880-1, 536 in 1890-1,
90.8 in 1900-1, and 1,260 in 1903-4. In the last year there
were 2 secondary and 28 primary (public) schools, and 55 ele-
mentary (private) schools, the number of girls being 90 in the
public and 230 in the private schools. The total expendi-
ture was Rs. 16,000, of which fees brought in Rs. 2,400, the
District fund contributed Rs. 5,000, the municipality Rs. 6,800,
and Imperial revenues Rs. 2,600.
Besides the civil hospital at Kohat, and a branch in the city
for females, the District possesses two dispensaries, at Hangu
and Teri. The hospitals and dispensaries contain 57 beds.
In 1904, the number of cases treated was 53,499, including
1,106 in-patients, and 2,100 operations were performed. The
income was Rs. 10,800, Government contributing Rs. 3,800
and municipal and District funds Rs. 7,000.
The number of successful vaccinations in 1903-4 was 951,
representing 44 per 1,000 of the population. The Vaccination
Act has been in force in Kohat since 1903.
[District Gazetteer, 1879 (under revision).]
Kohat Tahsil.— Tahsll of Kohat District, North-West
Frontier Province, lying in two portions between 33° 22' and
33° 45' N. and 71° 5' and 71° 40' E., and 33° 3' and 33° 20' N.
and 71° 27' and 71° 46' E., with a total area of Sir square
miles. The tahsll is divided into two parts, separated by an
extension of the Teri tahsll reaching to the foot of the Afrldi
hills, by which the District is bounded on the north. The
western portion, which contains the town and cantonment of
Kohat, consists of the valley of the Kohat Toi, after its issue
from Lower Miranzai and the adjacent hills. The other part
is- a strip of barren and fairly level country along the right
bank of the Indus north of Khushalgarh. The population
in 1901 was 79,601, compared with 69,984 in 1891. It
Hospitals
and dis-
pensaries.
Vaccina-
tion.
KOHAT DISTRICT 179
contains the town of KOHAT (30,762), the tahsll and District
head-quarters, and 89 villages. The land revenue and cesses
amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 90,000.
Teri Tahsil.— Tahsll of Kohat District, North-West
Frontier Province, lying between 32° 48' and 33° 44' N. and
7°° 33' and 72° i' E., with an area of 1,616 square miles. The
population was 94,363 in 1901, and 85,460 in 1891. The
tahsll contains 166 villages, its head-quarters being at a village
of the same name. The land revenue and cesses amounted in
1903-4 to Rs. 95,000. Teri is inhabited by the Khattak tribe
of Pathans, whose present chief, Khan Bahadur Abdul Ghafur
Khan, Khan of Teri, holds the whole tahsll in jaglr at a quit-
rent of Rs. 20,000 in perpetuity, while .as between the Khan
and the zamlnddrs the demand is revised when the term of
each settlement expires. The country, though hilly, is fairly
well cultivated. The Khattaks are a fine race, who make
excellent soldiers ; and though naturally wild and impatient
of control, they are settling down under British rule into
peaceable agriculturists and carriers.
Thai Subdivision. — Subdivision of Kohat District, North-
West Frontier Province, consisting of the HANGU TAHSIL.
The subdivisional officer is also Political officer for the follow-
ing tribes : Orakzai west of Fort Lockhart, Zaimukhts,
Biland Khel and Kabul Khel Wazlrs.
Hangu Tahsil (or Miranzai). — Western tahsll of Kohat
District, North-West Frontier Province, lying between 33° 19'
and 33° 36' N. and 70° 30' and 71° 13' E., with an area of
546 square miles. It consists of the Miranzai valley, which is
inhabited by a tribe of Bangash Pathans, and is divided into
the tappas of Upper and Lower Miranzai. Lower Miranzai
slopes east towards Kohat, the valley being bounded on the
north by the Samana range which separates it from Orakzai
Tirah, and on the south by the low hills of the District, of
which Mir Khweli (4,500) is the highest. Upper Miranzai
slopes west towards the Kurram. On the north are the hills
of the All Khel Orakzai, the Mamuzai, and the Zaimukhts,
and on the south the Khattak hills. Both valleys are watered
by perennial streams and are fertile, while the hills provide
excellent grazing for sheep and goats. Upper or Western
Miranzai was annexed in 1851, but British administration was
not established till 1855. The population of the whole tahsll
in 1901 was 43,901, compared with 39,704 in 1891. It
contains 43 villages, including HANGU, the head-quarters. The
land revenue and cesses amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 36,000.
N 2
i8o NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Hangu Village. — Head-quarters of the tahsll of the same
name in KohSt District, North- West Frontier Province, situated
in 33° 32' N. and 71° 5' E. The officer in charge of the Thai
subdivision has his head-quarters here. The site is a very old
one, and is mentioned by the emperor Babar in his memoirs.
The Khushalgarh-Kohat-Thal branch of the North-Western
Railway has a station at Hangu, 26 miles from Kohat. The
garrison consists of a detachment of native cavalry, the head-
quarters of the Samana Rifles, and (in winter) two guns of
a mountain battery. The village contains a Government
dispensary and a vernacular middle school maintained by the
District board.
Kohat Town. — Head-quarters of the District and tahsll
of the same name, North- West Frontier Province, situated in
33° 35' N- and 71° 26' E., on the Khushalgarh-Thal branch
of the North-Western Railway, 30 miles from Khushalgarh.
Population (1901), 30,762, of whom 19,807 are Muham-
madans, 7,833 Hindus, and 2,832 Sikhs. The population in
the cantonment, included in the above total, was 12,670. The
present town of Kohat has sprung up since annexation. It
lies in an amphitheatre of hills at some distance from the site
of the old town, which is said to have been founded by the
Bangash in the fourteenth century. It is built on undulating
ground with excellent natural drainage. The cantonment and
civil station stand on high ground to the east and north-east of
the native town. The garrison consists ordinarily of a mountain
battery, some frontier garrison artillery, one native cavalry
regiment, and three native infantry regiments. The munici-
pality was constituted in 1873. The income during the ten
years ending 1902-3 averaged Rs. 40,700, and the expenditure
Rs. 36,000. In 1903-4 the income was Rs. 50,500, chiefly
derived from octroi, and the expenditure was Rs. 83,400. This
sum includes an investment of Rs. 30,000 in Government
securities. The receipts and expenditure of cantonment funds
during the ten years ending 1902-3 averaged Rs. 5,600 and
Rs. 5,500 respectively. The chief public institutions are the
Anglo-vernacular high school maintained by the municipality,
a civil hospital, and a female hospital. The town is of no
commercial importance, but has a small manufacture of lungls
or turbans. Rifles used to be made at the neighbouring village
of Jangal Khel, but the industry is now quite extinct.
Kohat Salt Quarries.— The Kohat District of the North-
West Frontier Province possesses important salt quarries at
Jatta (or Jatta Ismail Khel), Malgin, Kharak, and Bahadur
, KOHAT DISTRICT 181
Khel, lying in the east and centre of the District. Bahadur
Khel, on the Bannu border, contains about forty quarries and
Jatta sixteen. At the former place a mass of rock-salt crops
out between two hills, 8 miles long by \ broad, the quarries
worked lying in a small part of this area. Kohat salt is grey
to black in colour, and less esteemed than that of the Salt
Range, though analysis shows it to be of good quality. It is
purchased by traders direct from the miners under the super-
vision of the preventive establishment, which consists of two
superintendents at Bahadur Khel and Jatta, an assistant super-
intendent at Malgin, 5 inspectors, and 334 subordinates.
Numerous outcrops have to be watched. The quantity
excavated in 1903-4 was 16,493 tons, paying a duty of
Rs. 6,73,961. The gross income for the six years ending
1902-3 averaged Rs. 6,63,825. The salt is largely exported
beyond the border and to Afghanistan, but it also supplies
the four Districts of the Province which lie west of the
Indus. The export trade is chiefly in the hands of Ghilzai,
Mohmand, Afridi, and other trans-border traders.
Lockhart, Fort. — Military outpost on the Samana range,
in the .Hangu tahsll of Kohat District, North-West Frontier
Province, and summer head-quarters of the general commanding
the Kohat military district, situated in 33° 33' N. and 70°
55' E., 6,743 feet above the sea-level. The garrison consists
of a native infantry regiment, and in summer a mountain
battery.
Saragarhi. — Village on the crest of the Samana range,
Kohat District, North-West Frontier Province, situated in 33°
55' N. and 70° 45' E. It is held by the Babi Khel, a section
of the Rabia Khel Orakzai. During the Mlranzai expedition
of 1891, the village was destroyed after severe fighting and an
outpost was built. In 1897 this post, then held by 21 men
of the 36th Sikhs, was attacked by several thousand Orakzais,
who overwhelmed the little garrison after a heroic defence and
massacred the Sikhs to a man on September 12. A monument
at Fort Lockhart commemorates the gallantry of the defence,
while other memorials have been erected at Amritsar and
Ferozepore in the Punjab.
Thai Village. — Military outpost in the Hangu tahsll of
Kohat District, North-West Frontier Province, situated in 33°
20' N. and 70° 34' E., on a branch of the North-Western
Railway. Thai is a depot for the through trade with Northern
Afghanistan, which passes along the Kurram valley. It also
does some local trade with the tribesmen of independent
1 82 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
territory adjoining. The village lies on the left bank of the
Kurram river, at the extreme limit of British territory, and
gives its name to a subdivision of the District. The fort
is garrisoned by detachments of native cavalry and infantry
under a British officer. A new border military police post
and civil resthouse were built here in 1905.
Bonn- Bannu District. — One of the four Trans-Indus Districts
figuration1," °* tne North- West Frontier Province, lying between 32° 16'
and hill and 33° 5' N. and 70° 23' and 71° 16' E., with an area of
svst "15° I>^7° scluare miles. The District forms a circular basin,
drained by two rivers from the hills of Waziristan, the Kurram
and the Gambila or Tochi, which unite at Lakki and flow into
the Indus south of Kalabagh. It is shut in on every side by
mountains : on the north by those in the Teri tahsll of Kohat
District ; on the east by the southern extremity of the Maidani
Pahar or Khattak Niazi range and the northern spur of the
Marwat range, which separate the District from the Isa Khel
tahsil of Mianwali District in the Punjab ; on the south-east
and south the Marwat and Bhittanni ranges divide it from
Dera Ismail Khan ; and on the west and north-west lie
Waziristan and independent territory inhabited by the Bhittanni
tribe. These hills nowhere attain any great height. The
highest point of the Maidani range at its centre, near the
hamlet and valley of Maidan, has an altitude of only 4,256 feet.
The Marwat range culminates in Sheikh Budln, the hill which
rises abruptly from its south-west end to a height of 4,516 feet
and forms the summer retreat for this District and Dera Ismail
Khan. From these ranges numerous spurs jut out into the
Bannu plains, but no other hills break their level expanse.
Of the rivers the larger is the Kurram, which, entering the
District at its north-western corner close to Bannu town, runs
at first south-east, then south, and finally winds eastward
through the Darra Tang or ' narrow gorge ' which lies between
the extremities of the Maidani Pahar and Marwat ranges.
The Tochi river enters the District about 6 miles south of the
Kurram and flows in the same direction, gradually drawing
closer to it until their streams unite about 6 or 7 miles west
of the Darra Tang. Between these rivers, and on the left bank
of the Kurram in the upper portion of its course, lie the only
tracts which are perennially irrigated. For the first 10 miles
of its passage through the District the Kurram runs between
banks of stiff clay which rise abruptly to a height of 10 to
30 feet, and its bed is full of stones and boulders ; but lower
down it spreads over long stretches of marsh land. Its flow
BANNU DISTRICT 183
is rapid, but it is highly charged with a rich silt which renders
it most valuable for irrigation.
At the south-east edge the western flanks of the hills bounding Geology.
Mianwali and Dera Ismail Khan Districts expose Tertiary
lower Siwalik soft sandstone, and upper Siwalik conglomerates,
a thickness of which dips regularly under the alluvium and
gravels forming the greater part of the great Bannu plain. On
its western side the border area has been examined along one
line of route only, namely, the Tochi valley1. Here long
ridges striking north and south expose upper and lower
Siwaliks, 'Nummulitic limestone, sandstone and shales, some
mesozoic limestone in the ridge east of Miram Shah, and
a great mass of Tertiary igneous rocks (diorites, gabbros, and
serpentines) west of Muhammad Khel.
In the irrigated portions of the District trees abound of the Botany,
same species as are common in Peshawar ; elsewhere there
is little but thorny shrubs of the same kinds as are found in
Kohat. The more common plants are Reptonia buxifolia^
Dodonaea viscosa, Capparis aphylla, Flacourtia sapida^
F. sepiaria, several species of Grewia, Zizyphus nummularia,
Acacia Jacquemontii, Alhagi camelorum, Crotalaria Burhia,
Prosopis spicigera, several species of Tamarix, Nerium odorum,
Rhazya stricta, Calotropis procera, Periploca aphylla^ Tecoma
undulata, Lycium europaeum, Withania coagulans, W. somnifera,
Nannorhops Ritchieana, Fagonia, Tribulus^ Peganum Harmala,
Calligonum polygonoides, Polygonum aviculare, P. plebejum,
Rumex vesicarius, Chrozophora plicata, and species of Aristida,
Anthistiria, Cenchrus^ and Pennisetum.
Bears occasionally come from Waziristan and leopards Fauna,
still frequent the hills, while hyenas are sometimes found
where there are ravines. Wolves are common, rewards
having been paid for destroying 168 from 1900 to 1904. The
Sulaimani markhor is found on all the higher hills, including
Sheikh Budln. Urial are also to be found in the hills, and
' ravine deer ' (gazelle) in the neighbourhood of Jani Khel.
The general elevation of the plains is about 1,000 feet, and Climate
the temperature would be much the same all over the District .tem"
peratnre.
did not special local causes affect it. Trees, excessive irrigation
round the town, and the closeness of the hills combine to make
Bannu moist and close in the hot season, and to equalize the
temperature throughout the twenty-four hours. The sandy
plain of Marwat is hotter by day and cooler by night, and far
1 F. H. Smith, ' Geology of the Tochi Valley,' Records, Geological Survey
of India, vol. xxviii, part ii.
184 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
more healthy in spite of the intense heat. Fevers are common
from September to November, and respiratory diseases cause
considerable mortality.
Rainfall. The annual rainfall averages 12^ inches, rarely rising above
1 6, but at Bannu in 1891-2 less than 5 inches fell in the year.
The fall is frequently unseasonable.
History. The population of Bannu is, and has been for many centuries,
essentially Afghan. There are, however, remains which tell
of an older Hindu population, and afford proof that the District
came within the pale of the ancient Graeco-Bactrian civilization
of the Punjab. The close of the era of prosperity indicated
by these remains is attributed in local tradition to the ravages
of Mahmud of Ghazni, who is said to have utterly demolished
the ancient Hindu strongholds, leaving no stone standing upon
another. For upwards of a century the country appears to
have lain waste, till at length the Bannu valley was gradually
colonized by immigrants from the western hills, the Bannuwals
or Bannuchis, who still remain, and the Niazai, who subsequently
gave place to the Marwats. The advent of the Marwats is
placed in the reign of Akbar. The Niazai, whom they expelled,
spread across the Khattak-Niazai hills, and colonized the plains
upon both banks of the Indus. The Marwats still hold the
southern portion of the Bannu valley.
At this time, and for two centuries later, the country paid
a nominal allegiance to the Delhi emperors. In 1738 it was
conquered by Nadir Shah, who laid it completely waste.
Ahmad Shah Durrani subsequently led his army three or four
times through the Bannu valley, levying what he could by way
of tribute on each occasion. So stubborn, however, was the
opposition of the inhabitants, that neither conqueror made any
attempt to establish a permanent government. In 1818 the
Nawab of Mankera annexed Marwat, but was speedily forced
to give way to Ranjit Singh, who first crossed the Indus in 1823.
From that year to 1836 the Sikh troops and those of the Nawab
in turn harried the country. In 1838 the valley passed by
cession to the Sikhs. Ranjit Singh lost no time in attempting
to occupy his new territory. Elsewhere in the District he had
met with little opposition ; but in the Bannu valley he was
forced, after several efforts, to fall back upon the expedient
of his predecessors, and to content himself with the periodical
dispatch of a force to levy what he was pleased to term arrears
of revenue : in reality to devastate the country, and carry off
whatever booty could be secured.
Such was the state of affairs when, after the first Sikh
BANNU DISTRICT 185
War, the District was first brought under British influence.
In the winter months of 1847-8, Lieutenant (afterwards Sir
Herbert) Edwardes was dispatched to the frontier as the repre-
sentative of the Lahore Darbar, and accompanied by a Sikh
army under General Van Cortlandt. Arrived in Bannu, he
found a large portion of the District practically independent.
In the Bannu valley every village was a fort, and frequently
at war with its neighbours, while the Wazir tribes on the frontier
were ever seeking opportunities for aggression. Within a few
months Edwardes reduced the country to order, effecting
a peaceful revolution by the force of his personal character,
and without the firing of a single shot. The forts were levelled ;
arrangements were made for the collection of a regular revenue ;
and so effectual were his measures that on the outbreak at
Multan he was able to hurry to the scene of action with a force
of levies from this District, who served loyally throughout the
campaign. The Sikhs in garrison at Edwardesabad mean-
while rose against their officers, and, having murdered them,
marched to join their brethren in arms. A force from the hills
at the same time invaded the District, but was held at bay
by Lieutenant Reynell Taylor, Edwardes's successor. In the
following year the Punjab was annexed, and the District passed
without a blow under British administration. The area covered
by the present District at first belonged to Dera Ismail Khan.
In 1 86 1 the District of Bannu was constituted, comprising the
present District and the Mianwali and Isa Khel tahslls of what
is now the Mianwali District of the Punjab, which were taken
away on the creation of the Frontier Province in 1901. The
even tenor of administration has been at times disturbed by
frontier raids, but no trouble has at any period been given
by the inhabitants of the District itself. During the Mutiny of
1857 the country remained perfectly quiet. The border is
guarded by a chain of outposts, eleven in number.
At Akra and other places in the Bannu valley mounds of Archaeo-
various sizes exist where, amid fragments of burnt brick and
tiles, of broken images and Hindu ornaments, coins occur with
Greek or pseudo-Greek inscriptions. The Akra mound near
Bannu presents features of great antiquarian interest. This
mound, which at its highest point does not rise more than
70 feet above the surrounding plain, has long been excavated
by the inhabitants of the neighbouring villages, who find the
soil of its 'culture stratum,' generally about 2 to 3 feet in
thickness and composed of ashes, rubbish, and bones, to be
possessed of valuable properties as manure. Above this
1 86 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
The
people.
'culture stratum' are layers of earth lighter in colour, and
ranging from 8 to 20 feet in thickness. These probably
represent the debris accumulated during centuries from struc-
tures of clay or sun-dried brick. In these layers are found
plentiful fragments of ancient pottery and hard bricks, as well
as rubble. The coins, terra-cotta figures, and fragments of
small sculptures representing Hindu deities, which have been
unearthed from this mound, point to the period from the first
century B.C. down almost to the advent of the Muhammadan
conquerors as that in which the site was inhabited. There
is a curious resemblance in character and contents between
the layers composing the Akra mound and the ' culture strata '
of the ancient capital of Khotan in Chinese Turkestan.
Bannu District contains 2 towns and 362 villages. The
population at the last three enumerations was: (1881)
182,740, (1891) 204,469, and (1901) 226,776. It increased by
10-9 per cent, during the last decade, the increase being
greater in the Marwat tahsll than in that of Bannu. It is
divided into two tahslls, of which the head-quarters are at the
municipalities of BANNU, the head-quarters of the District,
and LAKKI. Statistics according to the Census of 1901 are
shown below : —
Tahsil.
Area in square
miles.
Number of
Population
(1901).
Population per
square mile.
Percentage of
variation in
population be-
tween 1891
and 1901.
Number of
persons able
to read and
write.
Towns.
Villages.
Bannu .
Marwat .
Total
443
1,198
I
I
2.7
145
130,444
96,332
294
80
+ 8.4
+ *4-5
5,557
3,98°
1,641*
2
362
226,776
138
+ 10-9
9.537
* The difference between this figure and that given on p. 182 is due to the
exclusion here of the non-revenne-paying portion of the administrative District.
Muhammadans number 201,720, or more than 89 per cent,
of the total; Hindus 22,178; and Sikhs 2,673. Pashtu is the
language of the District, but Hindki is also spoken among the
Castes and non-Pathan element. About 129,000 persons, or 56 per cent,
of the population, are Pathans. Of these the most numerous
group is that of the Marwats (52,000), who live mainly in the
tahsll named after them. In person, they are tall and mus-
cular ; in bearing, frank and open. Almost every officer who
has administered the District has left on record a favourable
mention of them. To these the Bannuchis (30,000) form a
painful contrast. They are indubitably of mixed descent, and
BANNU DISTRICT 187
exhibit every Afghan vice, without possessing the compensating
virtues of bravery and self-confidence. They are generally
small in stature and inferior in physique, sallow and wizened in
appearance, and in disposition mean and revengeful. They
are, on the other hand, industrious cultivators, and have been
uniformly quiet and submissive subjects to the British Govern-
ment. The Wazlrs in this District, all Darwesh Khel, number
24,000. They are divided into two great sections, the Utman-
zai and the Ahmadzai. Last come the Bhittannis (2,000), who
live on the border of the District on the southern slopes of
the Gab'ar mountain. In the District itself they are recent
settlers. Besides the Pathan races, the chief of the Hindkis,
as they are called, are the Jats (15,000) and A wans (9,000),
all of whom live by agriculture, as do also the Baghbans
(2,000) and Rajputs (3,000). Saiyids number 12,000. The
Aroras, the only important commercial and money-lending
class, number 15,000; other castes of this class are the
Bhatias and Khattris, numbering 2,000 and 1,000 respectively.
Of the artisan classes, the Tarkhans (carpenters, 5,000), Lohars
(blacksmiths, 4,000), Rangrez (dyers, 3,000), Kumhars (potters,
3,000), Sonars (goldsmiths, 2,000), and Mochls (shoemakers
and leather-workers, 2,000) are the most important ; and of
the menials only the Nais (barbers, 3,000) and Chuhras and
Kutanas (sweepers, 2,000) appear in some strength. Agricul-
ture supports 75 per cent, of the population.
The Church Missionary Society began work in Bannu in Christian
1864, and has a hospital which possesses a wide reputation on missions-
both sides of the frontier. The District contained 63 native
Christians in 1901.
The prevailing soil is a sandy gravel, sometimes degenerating General
into mere sand, as in the Marwat tahsll, and sometimes afford- agricnl-
ing a light and easy cultivation. The central portion of the ditions.
Bannu valley, between the Kurram and the Tochi, is highly
irrigated, and the demands on the soil are incessant. It is
preserved, however, from exhaustion by the use of manure and
the deposits of silt brought down by the Kurram river. Their
fertility being thus renewed, the lands of a great majority of
villages are sown year after year, for two harvests, without
showing signs of deterioration. The rest of the District, with
the exception of the tract between the Bhittanni hills and the
Tochi, is sandy and entirely dependent on the rainfall. Saline
efflorescence is common in parts of the District. The spring
crop, which in 1903-4 occupied 80 per cent, of the area
matured in the year, is sown chiefly from the beginning of
1 88 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
October to the end of January ; the autumn crop from May to
July, though sugar is sown as early as March.
Cultural2"" ^e village tenures of this District as a rule present few
statistics peculiar features, and fall naturally under the standard com-
and princi- munal types recognized throughout the Province. An ex-
pal crops. . .
ception, however, exists in the customs once general and still
surviving in a few Marwat villages, of the periodical redis-
tribution of holdings among the shareholders. This custom is
called the khulla vesh, literally ' mouth division,' and received
official sanction at the last revenue settlement. Cultivation is
chiefly carried on by peasant proprietors, and money-rents
between tenant and landlord are rare. There are no large
proprietors, and the land is minutely subdivided. The follow-
ing table shows the main agricultural statistics in 1903-4,
according to the revenue returns, areas being in square
miles : —
Tahsil.
Total.
Cultivated.
Irrigated.
Cultivable
waste.
Bannu
Marwat
Total
443
1,198
377
5.H
'75
67
54
368
1,641
Six
342
322
Improve-
ments in
agricul-
tural
practice.
Cattle,
ponies,
and sheep.
Wheat is by far the most important crop, covering 334
square miles in 1903-4, or 49 per cent, of the net cultivated
area. Next in importance is gram (158), after which the areas
occupied by individual crops diminish rapidly, but maize (52)
and bajra (41) may be mentioned. Sugar-cane, cotton, and
rice are grown to a small extent.
The area cultivated in 1903-4 had risen by 43 per cent,
above that cultivated at the settlement of 1872-9, the increase
being chiefly due to the more peaceful state of the District.
Little has been done as yet in the way of improving the
quality of the crops grown. The amount of advances out-
standing under the Land Improvement Loans Act at the end
of 1903-4 was Rs. 14,267, while that of advances under the
Agriculturists' Loans Act was Rs. 15,483. The amounts
advanced in 1903-4 under these two Acts were Rs. 300
and Rs. 9,270 respectively. There is a constant demand for
loans to buy plough bullocks.
The quality of the cattle is poor, and the attempt to intro-
duce Hissar bulls into the District was a failure. The buffa-
loes, however, are of an excellent breed. Large numbers of
camels and donkeys are kept in the Marwat tahsil, and of fat-
BANNU DISTRICT 189
tailed sheep in the Bannu tahsll. The Wazlr breed of horses
used to be popular, but is now virtually extinct, though the
District is well adapted for horse-breeding. The District
board maintains 2 horse and 2 donkey stallions.
Of the total area cultivated in 1903-4, 242 square miles, or Irrigation.
30 per cent., were classed as irrigated ; of this, all but 93 acres
irrigated from wells was supplied by canals. The canals take
off from the Kurram and other hill streams, and are mostly the
property of the people themselves, though in some cases the
water belongs to the Government. Many date from an extreme
antiquity.' Babar, writing in 1 505, says : ' the Bangash [Kurram]
river runs through the Bannu territory, and by means of it
chiefly the country is irrigated.' Many centuries of contention
and compromise have evolved a most elaborate system of
irrigation and rights in water, which is now administered by
the Deputy-Commissioner.
The forest lands are quite insignificant, and outside the Forests.
Bannu oasis the District is badly wooded.
Bannu possesses few minerals of commercial value. Rock- Minerals,
salt exists, but is not worked ; and limestone, building stone,
and flint are the only mineral products used. Impure car-
bonate of soda is made from the ashes of the Caroxylon
Griffithii.
Cotton is woven in most villages, but in quantities only Arts and
sufficient for local requirements. The woollen-pile rugs,
locally known as nakhais, and the silk-embroidered phulkdris
of the District have some artistic merit, but are not largely
made. The lac work is inferior in technique to that of Dera
Ismail Khan. Otherwise the District is destitute of any arts
and manufactures, beyond the wares turned out to supply the
everyday wants of the people. The clay used in unglazed
pottery work at Bannu is of a superior quality, and some
of the designs are quaint.
The chief exports are raw cotton, wool, gram, wheat, oil- Commerce,
seeds, millet, and pulses ; and the chief imports are sugar,
piece-goods, indigo, gfa, wood, oil, iron, and tobacco. Bannu
and Lakki are the only centres of commerce. The District
has a surplus of agricultural produce, but depends on the
Punjab for all manufactured articles.
No railway traverses the District, but the North-Western Commoni-
Railway has an out-station at Bannu for forwarding goods. cations-
This town is connected with Dera Ismail Khan and Kohat
by a metalled road under the Military Works department,
on which a line of tongas runs. The road up the Tochi
1 9o NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Famine.
District
subdivi-
sions and
staff.
Civil jus-
tice and
is also metalled and possesses a tonga service. All other
roads are unmetalled and are managed for the most part
by the District board. Some of the roads are little better
than sandy tracks; others, however, passing over firmer soil,
are well defined, having a clayey surface, which is as hard as
iron in dry weather but quickly becomes cut up after heavy
rain. In the Bannu tahsll the roads are much intersected by
irrigation channels and the courses of mountain streams. The
most important are the road between Lakki and Naurang Sarai,
and the frontier road, a mule track connecting the outposts on
the border. There are 81 miles of metalled roads, all under
the Military Works department, and 432 miles of unmetalled
roads, of which 22 miles are Imperial, 91 Provincial, and 319
District.
Though the District was classed by the Irrigation Com-
mission as secure from famine, the Marwat tahsll has recently
been declared insecure. The area matured in the famine year
1899-1900 amounted to 77 per cent, of the average of the
preceding five years.
For administrative purposes the District is divided into
the two tahsils of Bannu and Marwat, each under a tahslldar
and naib-tahsllddr. The Deputy-Commissioner is aided by an
Assistant Commissioner, who holds the office of District Judge
of Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan and also that of additional
District Magistrate of Bannu, an Assistant Commissioner
in charge of the border military police, and two Extra Assis-
tant Commissioners, one of whom is in charge of the District
treasury.
The Deputy-Commissioner, as District Magistrate, and the
District Judge are both supervised in judicial matters by
the Divisional Judge of the Derajat Civil Division. The
District Judge has one Munsif under him and one honorary
Munsif, both at head-quarters. Violent crime used to be the
chief characteristic of the District ; and murder, dacoity, high-
way robbery, and armed burglary were common, being carried
out by the trans-border outlaws with the connivance of the
leading men of the District. The military operations, however,
against the Kabul Khel in November, 1902, which ended in
the surrender of a large number of outlaws, had an excellent
effect in tranquillizing the border, and crime has much
diminished since that year. Rigorous enforcement of the
preventive sections of the Frontier Crimes Regulation and
Penal Code does much to preserve the security of the border.
The inhabitants of Bannu are notoriously litigious, civil cases
BANNU DISTRICT 191
being more frequently instituted than in any other District
on the frontier.
Our knowledge of the Bannu tahsll before annexation Land
is of the vaguest description. The administrative unit, Avenue
political or fiscal, was the tappa, a block of villages whose tration.
limits varied with the authority of its chief. Each tappa
was a little independent state, warring with its neighbours
from time to time and gaining or losing territory as the case
might be. Force was the only method of revenue collection.
When the tax-gatherer, whether Durrani or Sikh, came with
his army -and demanded tribute or revenue, he levied his
demand on the chief man of the tappa, who proceeded to
exact the sum required from such of the landholders as had
not absconded, bribing the Saiyids to help by exempting them
from contributions, and rewarding any one who paid a de-
faulter's share with that defaulter's land. For the first four
years of British rule (1849-53) the revenue was collected
by crop appraisement of each field. In 1852-3 the first
summary settlement was made on the average of these
collections. This was revised, with a slight increase, in 1859.
The first demand was Rs. 1,04,000 and the second Rs. 1,13,000.
Marwat under native rule was administered with a firmer hand.
Under the Durranis the Marwats paid a sum varying from
Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 40,000 as revenue or tribute, generally
exacted at the point of the sword, while under the Nawab
of Mankera or the Sikh rulers of Multan, both of them
uncomfortably near neighbours, a full demand was exacted.
Herbert Edwardes took over Marwat from Malik Fateh Khan
Tiwana, the Sikh lessee, in 1847, and imposed a revenue of
one-fourth of the gross produce in cash. This proportion
was maintained by John Nicholson, who made the first
summary settlement in 1853. The demand was severe •
and large remissions were necessary. The second summary
settlement was made on the same lines in 1858, and pressed
unequally on the people, besides raising the total demand
from 2-2 lakhs to nearly 2-4.
In 1872 the regular settlement of the District began.
Although the actual assessments fell very much below the
standard rate of half the net 'assets,' the new demand
for the two tahstls was 3 lakhs (including cesses), while
the revenue of the preceding year had been 2f lakhs. The
settlement has nowhere pressed severely, but suspensions have
been found necessary in years of scarcity.
The latest revision began in 1903, when it was found that
192 NOR TH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VJNCE
the area under cultivation had increased since settlement
by 43 per cent, and the irrigated area had doubled in Marwat
and increased by 46 per cent, in Bannu, while prices have risen
at least 25 per cent. After allowing for frontier remissions
and considerations of general policy, it is estimated that the
result will be an increase of Rs. 1,17,000, or 47 per cent.,
of which Rs. 1,10,000 will be realized by Government. The
rates of assessment at the last settlement were, per acre : ' dry '
land, R. 0-6-6 (maximum, annas 12; minimum, i anna);
and 'wet' land, R. 0-9-6 (maximum, 15 annas; minimum,
3 annas).
The total collections of revenue and of land revenue alone
have been as follows, in thousands of rupees :—
Land revenue
Total revenue
1880-1".
1890-1*.
1900-1*.
1903-4-
3,o6
4»79
4,37
5,77
4,07
7,'5
3,55
2,59
• These figures are for the old District, including the Miiimvali and Isa Khel tahsils.
Local and The District contains the two municipalities of BANNU
municipal. (Edwardesabad) and LAKKI. Local affairs elsewhere are
managed by the District board. Its income in 1903-4
amounted to Rs. 36,300, chiefly derived from cesses, and its
expenditure to Rs. 33,400, public works forming the largest
item.
Police and The regular police force consists of 410 of all ranks,
jails. of whom 58 are municipal police. The village watchmen
number 334. There are 8 police-stations, 2 outposts, and
7 road-posts. The border military police number 421, under
a commandant who is an Assistant Commissioner. The force
is directly under the orders of the Deputy-Commissioner, and
is chiefly employed on the watch and ward of the border.
The District jail at head-quarters can accommodate about
320 prisoners.
Education. Only 4-1 per cent, of the population were able to read
and write in 1901, the proportion being 7-3 among males, 0-2
among females. The Sikhs, with 53-7 per cent, are by far the
most advanced community. Next come the Hindus (21-8),
while the Muhammadan cultivators are still markedly back-
ward (1-5). The District is, however, making distinct progress
in literacy, and even Wazirs are sometimes met with who
appreciate the value of reading and writing. The spread
of female education, due mainly to the missionaries but partly
also to the Arya SamSj, has been steady.
BANNU DISTRICT _ 193
The number of pupils under instruction was 650 in 1880-1,
5,166* in 1890-1, 7,234* in 1900-1, and 8,447 in 1903-4.
In the latest year the District possessed 3 secondary and
22 primary (public) schools, and 48 advanced and 127 ele-
mentary (private) schools, with 55 girls in the public schools.
The total expenditure on education was Rs. 25,000, of which
Government contributed Rs. 4,700, Local funds Rs. 5,100,
municipal funds Rs. 11,200, and fees Rs. 3,900.
Besides the civil hospital at Bannu, the District possesses Hospitals
one dispensary at Lakki, with 53 beds in all. In 1904*°°
the number of cases treated was 31,888, including 687 in-
patients, and 1,330 operations were performed. The income
was Rs. 7,400, of which Local funds contributed Rs. 1,500
and municipal funds Rs. 5,900.
The number of successful vaccinations in 1903-4 amounted Vaccina-
to 10,424, representing 45 per 1,000 of the population. Vac- lon'
cination is compulsory only in the town of Bannu.
[District Gazetteer, 1877 (under revision).]
Bannu Tahsil.— Tahsll of Bannu District, North-West
Frontier Province, lying between 32° 41' and 33° 5' N. and
70° 22' and 70° 58' E., with an area of 443 square miles.
The tahsil is a green, fertile oasis, well wooded and watered,
and much intersected by water channels. Its population
in 1901 was 130,444, compared with 120,324 in 1891. It
contains the town of BANNU (population, 14,291), the tahsil
and District head-quarters, and 217 villages. The land revenue
and cesses amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 1,62,930.
Marwat Tahsil. — Tahsil of Bannu District, North-West
Frontier Province, lying between 32° 16' and 32° 53' N. and
70° 23' and 71° 16' E., with an area of 1,198 square miles.
The whole tahsil is one large sandy plain. Its population in
1901 was 96,332, compared with 84,145 in 1891. It contains
the town of LAKKI (population, 5,218), the head-quarters,
and 145 villages. The land revenue and cesses amounted
in 1903-4 to Rs. 1,30,000.
Bannu Town (or Edwardesabad). — Head-quarters of the
District and tahsil of Bannu, North-West Frontier Province,
situated in 33° o' N. and 70° 36' E., near the north-west
corner of the District, one mile south of the Kurram river,
79 south of Kohat, and 89 north of Dera Ismail Khan. Popu-
lation (1901), 14,291, including cantonment and civil lines
(4,349). It was founded in 1848 by Lieutenant (afterwards
1 These figures are for the old District, including the Mianwali and
Isa Khel lahsih.
194 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Sir Herbert) Edwardes, who selected the site for political
reasons. The fort, erected at the same time, bore the name
of Dhulipgarh, in honour of the young Maharaja of Lahore ;
and the bazar was also known as Dhullpnagar (Dallpnagar).
A town gradually grew up around the bazar, and many Hindu
traders removed hither from Bazar Ahmad Khan, which had
formed the commercial centre of the Bannu valley prior to
annexation. The Church Missionary Society supports a small
church and a high school founded in 1865. The cantonment
centres in the fort of Dhulipgarh. Its garrison consists of
a mountain battery, a regiment of native cavalry, and two
regiments of infantry. The municipality was constituted in
1867. The municipal receipts and expenditure during the ten
years ending 1903-4 averaged Rs. 46,000. In 1903-4 the in-
come was Rs. 47,000, chiefly derived from octroi, and the ex-
penditure was Rs. 55,000. The receipts and expenditure of
cantonment funds during the ten years ending 1902-3 averaged
Rs. 4,200 and Rs. 3,700. The profuse irrigation and insuffi-
cient drainage of the surrounding fields render Bannu an
unhealthy station. The town has a considerable trade, em-
bracing the whole traffic in local produce of the Bannu valley.
The nearest railway station is at Kohat on the Khushalgarh-
Thal branch of the North- Western Railway, 79 miles distant by
road. A weekly fair collects an average number of 8,000 buyers
and sellers. The chief articles of trade are cloth, live-stock,
wool, cotton, tobacco, and grain. Bannu possesses a dispen-
sary and two high schools, a public library, and a town-hall
known as the Nicholson Memorial.
Lakki. — Head-quarters of the Marwat tahsil, Bannu Dis-
trict, North-West Frontier Province, situated in 32° 36' N. and
70° 56' E. Population (1901), 5,218. In 1844 Fateh Khan
Tiwana, the revenue collector of the Sikh government, built
and garrisoned a fort in the heart of Marwat which he called
Ihsanpur. A town grew up under its walls and became the
capital of Marwat until 1864, when the site was abandoned
and the inhabitants removed to Lakki on the right bank of the
Gambila. The municipality was constituted in 1874. The
income during the ten years ending 1902-3 averaged Rs. 5,200,
and the expenditure Rs. 5,300. In 1903-4 the income was
Rs. 5,500, chiefly derived from octroi, and the expenditure
was Rs. 5,100. The town has a dispensary and a vernacular
middle school maintained by the municipality.
Akra (Akarah). — Ancient site in Bannu District, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 33° N. and 70° 36' E., near
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT 195
Bannu town. It is said to have been the seat of government
of Rustam, son of Zal-i-zar, or 'Zal of the golden locks,' and
a daughter of the Kabul Shah. Rustam's sister, Banu, held it
as her apanage, whence the adjacent territory is said to have
acquired the name of Banu. Engraved gems of Greek or
West Asian provenance, one in the late Mycenaean style, have
been found on the site.
[Furtwangler's Antike Gemmen, ii, pp. 27, 59; and iii, 22,
23, and 25.]
Dera Ismail Khan District. — Southernmost District ofBoun-
the North-West Frontier Province, lying between 31° 15' and fia"r^'tic0°nn"
32° 32' N. and 70° 5' and 71° 22' E., with an area of 3,780 and hill
square miles. The District forms an irregular cone, pointing and river
south, its base or north being formed by the crest of the
Bhittanni and Marwat ranges, its eastern border by the river
Indus, and its western by the Shirani or Sulaiman Hills. Its
southern extremity is barely 20 miles in breadth, and ad-
joins the District of Dera Ghazi Khan in the Punjab. The
Khisor range, also called the Ratta Koh (or 'red mountain'),
penetrates its north-eastern corner for some miles, intervening
between the Indus and the eastern end of the Bhittanni hills,
which here turn to the north-east and run parallel to it. The
rest of the District is divided between the kachi or Indus
riverain and the daman, a great plain stretching between it
and the hills. The daman, or ' skirt of the hills,' is a term ap-
plicable in its strict sense only to the tract inhabited by Pathan
tribes stretching immediately beneath the hills, while the rest
of the plain up to the kachi, which is inhabited by Jats, is the
makkalwad; but the latter term is now disused, and the whole
area from the hills to the kachi is called the daman. It is
a level plain without trees and grass, and except where culti-
vated is unbroken save by a few scattered bushes. In places
even these do not grow, the soil being a firm, hard clay into
which water does not sink readily, though after continuous rain
it is turned into a soft, tenacious mud, and the country becomes
impassable. Such soil is locally called pat. The daman is
intersected by numerous torrents, which flow from the eastern
slopes of the Sulaiman range and form deep fissures in its level
expanse. For the greater part of the year these torrents are
almost dry, carrying but slight streams of clear water which
disappear long before they reach the Indus, but after rain they
become roaring torrents bringing down water discoloured by
heavy silt. But for these streams the daman would be a desert,
but by arresting their flow and spreading them over the barren
O 2
196 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
levels, the cultivators transform the whole face of the country ;
and the richly cultivated fields, with their embankments planted
with tamarisk trees lying against the background of blue hills,
give the tract in places quite a picturesque look. The kachi
or Indus riverain is a narrow strip of alluvial land beneath the
old bank of the Indus, partly overgrown with tamarisk and
poplar jungle and tall saccharum grass.
Geology1. The District has only been visited occasionally by geologists.
The greater portion of its surface is occupied by the recent and
post-Tertiary gravels and alluvium belonging to the Indus
drainage area. On its western boundary in the ShirSni and
Sulaiman Hills, the main formation runs north and south in
one great anticlinal arch or fold with minor secondary folding
eastwards near the plains. The lowest formation seen along
the main axis of the range is probably of Jurassic age, and is
a thick, massive limestone. Above it come the so-called
Belemnite shales of neocomian (?) age. Above these lie im-
mense thicknesses of eocene Nummulitic limestone, sandstone,
and shales, the whole having a resemblance to the Baluchistan
and Sind rocks rather than to those of the country farther
north. Over these are the Siwalik sandstones, shales, and
conglomerates of younger Tertiary age, dipping regularly under
the recent deposits of the Indus valley. On the northern
borders of the District the strike bends sharply round to the
south-east and east-north-east, following the curve of the
Bhittanni, Marwat, and Khisor ranges. Here besides Siwalik
conglomerate and sandstone, the Marwat and Khisor ranges
show the lower Permo-carboniferous boulder-bed of glacial
origin, containing boulders of igneous rock derived by ice
transport from the Mallani series of Rajputana. Above the
boulder-bed come 500 feet of Upper Permian, grey magnesian
and white limestone, with some sandstone and earthy beds
containing Productus limestone fossils like those to the east of
the Indus; also thin-bedded ceratite limestone of the Trias,
and above that 1,500 feet of Jurassic sandstones and lime-
stones, passing into Cretaceous at the top of the Sheikh Budm
hill in the Marwat range. A thin band of Nummulitic lime-
stone underlies the Siwalik sandstones along the north-west
slopes of the Khisor range.
1 C. L. Griesbach, 'Geology of the Takht-i-Sulaiman Range,' Records,
Geological Survey of India, vol. xvii, part iv; and T. D. La Tonche,
' Geology of the Sherani Hills,' Records, Geological Survey of India, vol.
xxvi, partiii ; A. B. Wynne, 'Trans-Indus Salt Range,' Memoirs, Geological
Survey of India, vol. xvii, part iii.
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT 197
The vegetation of the District is composed chiefly of scrub Botany,
jungle with a secondary element of trees and shrubs. The
more common plants are Flacourtia sapida, K sepiaria, several
species of Grewia, Zizyphus nummularia, Acacia Jacquemontii,
A. leucophloea, Alhagi camelorum, Crotalaria JBurhia, Prosopis
spicigera, several species of Tamarix, Nerium odorum, Rhazia
stricta, Calotropis procera, Periploca aphylla, Tecoma undu-
lata, Lycium europaeum, Withania coagulans, W. somntfera,
Nannorhops Ritchieana, Fagonia Tributes, Peganum Harmala,
Calligonum polygonoides, Polygonum avicu/are, P. plebejum,
Rumex vesicarius, Chrozophora plicata, and species of Aristida,
Anthistiria, Cenchrus, and Pennisetum.
Mdrkhor and uridl are found in the hills, and there are Fauna,
a few leopards round Sheikh Budin, and wolves and hyenas
are occasionally seen. Otters are common on the banks of the '
Indus. Among birds the great bustard is rare, but the lesser
bustard is common on the pat. One or two kinds of eagle are
seen in the hills, and the lammergeyer is fairly common on
Sheikh Budin.
The climate is drier than that of either Bannu or Dera Climate
Ghazi Khan, and the maximum temperature seems to have anc* tem~
increased of late years. Thirty years ago the thermometer
never rose above 110°, while the hot season never passes now
without 1 1 6° or even more being registered. The winter is
cold and bracing. The frost is so severe that mango trees
cannot be grown in the open without a covering. The District
on the whole is fairly healthy, though the autumn fever some-
times takes a malignant form.
The annual rainfall is slight, averaging 10 inches at head- Rainfall,
quarters. The greatest fall of late years was 24 inches in 1897-8
at Sheikh Budin, while the least recorded during any one year
was 0-8 inch at Tank in 1888-9.
The earliest traditions current in this remote quarter refer History,
to its colonization by immigrants from the south, who found
the country entirely unoccupied. The Baluchi settlers, under
Malik Sohrab, arrived in the District towards the end of the
fifteenth century. His two sons, Ismail Khan and Fateh Khan,
founded the towns which still bear their names. The Hot
family, as this Baluchi dynasty was termed, in contradis-
tinction to the Mirani house of Dera Ghazi Khan, held sway
over the Upper Derajat for 300 years, with practical inde-
pendence, until reduced to vassalage by Ahmad Shah Durrani
about 1750. In 1794 Shah Zaman, then occupying the Durrani
throne, conferred the government of this dependency, together
198 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
with the title of Nawab, upon Muhammad Khan, an Afghan of
the Sadozai tribe, related to the famous governors of Multan.
Muhammad Khan became master of the whole District to-
gether with a considerable tract to the east of the Indus. He
died in 1815, after a prosperous reign of twenty-two years.
His grandson, Sher Muhammad Khan, succeeded to the
principality, under the guardianship of his father, the late
Nawab's son-in-law. He was soon dispossessed of his terri-
tories east of the Indus by Ranjit Singh, and retired across
the river to Dera Ismail Khan, retaining his dominions in the
Derajat for fifteen years, subject to a quit-rent to the Sikhs,
but otherwise holding the position of a semi-independent
prince. His tribute, however, fell into arrears ; and in 1836,
Nao Nihal Singh crossed the Indus at the head of a Sikh
army, and annexed the District to the territories of Lahore.
The Nawab received for his maintenance an assignment of
revenue, a portion of which is still retained by his descendants,
together with their ancestral title.
Under Sikh rule, the Upper Derajat was farmed out to the
Diwan Lakhi Mai, from whom it passed to his son, Daulat Rai.
British influence first made itself felt in 1847, when Lieutenant
(afterwards Sir Herbert) Edwardes, being dispatched to the
frontier as the representative of the Lahore Darbar, effected a
summary assessment of the land revenue. In the succeeding year,
levies from Dera Ismail Khan and Bannu followed Edwardes
to Multan, and served loyally throughout the war that ended in
the annexation of the Punjab. The District then passed quietly
under British rule. On the first subdivision of the Province
Dera Ismail Khan became the head-quarters of a District,
which also originally included Bannu. In 1861 Bannu was
entrusted to a separate officer, and the southern half of Leiah
District, consisting of the Bhakkar and Leiah tahsils of the
present Mianwali District in the Punjab, was incorporated with
Dera Ismail Khan. In 1857 some traces of a mutinous spirit
appeared among the troops in garrison at the head-quarters
station ; but the promptitude and vigour of the Deputy-Com-
missioner, Captain Coxe, loyally aided by a hasty levy of local
horse, averted the danger without serious difficulty. In 1870
the District attracted for a time a melancholy notoriety through
the death of Sir Henry Durand, Lieutenant-Governor of the
Punjab, who was crushed against an arch and precipitated from
his elephant as he entered a gateway in the town of Tank.
His remains were interred at Dera Ismail Khan. The Bhakkar
and Leiah tahsils and thirty-two villages of the Kulachi tahsll
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT
199
were detached from the District on the formation of the
North-West Frontier Province in 1901.
Dera Ismail Khan District contains 3 towns and 409 villages. The
The population at the last three enumerations was: (1881) Pe°Ple-
203,741, (1891) 229,844, and (1901) 247,857. During the last
decade it increased by 8 per cent., the increase being greatest
in the Tank /a/foz/and least in Kulachi. The District is divided
into three tahslls, the head-quarters of which are at the places
from which each is named. Statistics for 1901 are shown
below : —
Tahsil
e
rt
llj
c~
gl
£
<
Number of
B
_O
rt o
F
Population per
square mile.
Percentage of
variation in
population be-
tween 1891
and 10.01.
Number of
persons able
to read and
write.
Towns.
8
I
>
Dera Ismail Khan
Kulachi
Ta.uk .
Total
1,699
1,509
572
I
I
1
250
81
78
J44,337
55,053
48,467
85
36
85
+ 7-9
+ 5-3
+ 10-8
7,630
2,116
2,368
3,780
3
409
247,857
66
+ 7.8
12,114
The towns are the municipalities of DERA ISMAIL KHAN,
the administrative head-quarters of the District, and KULACHI,
and the ' notified area ' of TANK. Muhammadans number
213,816, or more than 87 per cent, of the total; Hindus 29,434;
and Sikhs (including the garrison) 4,362. The density is very
low. The Indus valley supports a considerable population,
but the daman is very thinly inhabited. Along the foot
of the hills to the west, Pashtu is spoken, elsewhere Jatki,
a mixture of Punjabi and Sindi.
Pathans number 73,000, or less than 30 per cent, of the Castes and
population, an unusually small proportion in a frontier District :
they are returned under 26 subdivisions, no one of which pre-
ponderates as do various clans of the Utmanzai and Ahmadzai
in Bannu : the Marwats (8,000) are the largest group, while
other well-known names are the Sulaiman Khel (5,000) and
the Bhittannis (6,000). The large number of Baluchis (2 1,000)
is significant of the remoteness of Dera Ismail Khan from
Afghanistan proper. Jats, who cluster in the Indus valley,
number 58,000, practically all Muhammadans. Saiyids return
5,000 and A wans 6,000 ; Khokhars, Rajputs, and Arains 3,000
each. Of the commercial and money-lending classes, only the
Aroras, who number 23,000, appear in strength, the Khattrls
returning 2,000 ; Shaikhs, who mostly live by trade, number
5,000. Of the artisan classes, the Mochis (shoemakers and
200 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Christian
missions.
General
agricul-
tural con-
ditions.
Chief agri-
cultural
statistics
and princi-
pal crops.
Improve-
ments in
agricul-
tural
practice.
leather-workers, 5,000), Tarkhans (carpenters, 4,000), and
Kumhars (potters, 3,000), are the most important ; and of the
menials the Chuhras and Kutanas (sweepers, 6,000), Machhis
(fishermen, bakers, and water-carriers, 4,000), and Chhlmbas
and Dhobis (washermen, 4,000). The Mallahs (boatmen,
3,000) and Kaneras (a fishing tribe, 2,000) are also worth
mention. Agriculture supports 50 per cent, of the population.
There were 68 Christians in 1901. The Church Missionary
Society opened a branch at Dera Ismail Khan in 1861. The
Church of England Zanana Mission maintains a dispensary
in Dera Ismail Khan town. The Church Missionary Society
has hospitals at Dera and Tank, and also maintains a high
school at Dera.
The District is naturally divided into five tracts, each
peculiar in the quality of its soil and the nature of its cultiva-
tion. In the daman the soil is a hard clay, and cultivation is
carried on in embanked fields, largely assisted by water from
streams, hill torrents, or from the surface drainage. The
Paniali tract, including the Largi valley and the Paniali Tal,
has a sandy soil with cultivation depending chiefly on rain.
In the hilly lands of the Khisor, Nila Koh, and Bhittanni
ranges the cultivation depends entirely on rain. The kachi or
alluvial land of the Indus is cultivated either by means of wells
or with the aid of the river floods. The fifth tract 'is known
as the Rug-Paharpur tract and in parts resembles the kachi,
but is mainly dependent for irrigation on wells and canals, and
the drainage from the Khisor hills. The spring harvest (which
in 1903—4 accounted for 61 per cent, of the area harvested) is
sown from the middle of September to the middle of January ;
the autumn harvest chiefly in June, July, and August.
The District is held almost entirely on pattidari and bhaiya-
chara tenures, zamtndari lands covering about 250 square
miles, and lands leased from Government about 24-5 square
miles. The staple crops are wheat and bajra, covering 176
and 143 square miles respectively in 1903-4, or 34 and 28 per
cent, of the net area cultivated. Gram and jowdr (7 square
miles each) are grown to a much smaller extent. The table
on the next page gives the main agricultural statistics in
1903-4, areas being in square miles.
The area under cultivation increased only from 754 square
miles in 1877-8 to 787 square miles in 1903-4, showing that
cultivation is practically stationary. Advances under the
Land Improvement Loans Act are but little sought after ;
during the five years ending 1902-3, only Rs. 5,790 was
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT
2OI
advanced under this head ; when taken they are generally
applied to the construction of embankments. During the
same period Rs. 1,03,505 was advanced for the purchase of
bullocks and seed. The sums advanced under the Acts in
1903-4 were respectively Rs. 460 and Rs. 21,000.
Tahsil.
Total.
Cultivated.
Irrigated.
Cultivable
waste.
Area not
available for
cultivation.
Dera Ismail Khan
Kulachi
Tank .'
Total
1,699
!>509
572
416
2OO
171
109
21
103
790
717
203
49
59
20
3,78o
787
233
1,710
128
The District is not adapted to cattle-breeding owing to the Cattle,
deficiency of pasture, and the local breed is small. Buffaloes, po?lej!'
however, are largely kept in the Indus lowlands, where their
milk, and the ghl made from it, play an important part in the
economy of the villagers. Camels are extensively bred in the
daman, and large numbers of Powinda camels, which are
superior to those bred in the District, graze in it during the
cold season. A good many sheep of the fat-tailed breed are
also grazed here. The District possesses many horses, which
are of a fair breed though small. The Civil Veterinary depart-
ment maintains two horse and one donkey stallion, and a pony
stallion is kept by the District board. A veterinary hospital
has recently been opened at Dera Ismail Khan.
Of the total cultivated area in 1903-4, 135-5 square miles, irrigation.
or 4 per cent., were classed as irrigated. Of this area, 11-2
square miles were irrigated by wells and 124-3 square miles by
canals. In addition, 97-1 square miles, or 13 per cent, of the
cultivated area, were subject to inundation. Irrigation from
wells is confined to the kachi tract bordering the Indus. In
1903-4, 833 masonry wells were in use, all worked with Persian
wheels by cattle, besides 75 unbricked and lever wells. The
canals are all private property, and are chiefly cuts which
divert the water of the streams and torrents upon the fields.
An inundation canal from the Indus to irrigate more than
30,000 acres has lately been begun, which is estimated to
cost 7 lakhs.
The forests consist of 6 square miles of military ' reserved ' Forests,
forest, and 137 square miles of unclassed forests under the
Deputy-Commissioner, from which the revenue in 1903-4 was
Rs. 5,440. The District is very poorly wooded, the nearest
202 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
approach to true forest being the tamarisk jungles of the
Indus riverain.
Mineral. The only important mineral product is limestone, which
exists abundantly, but is little utilized commercially. Oil is
found at Mughalkot, where it issues from the sandstones at
the base of the Nummulitic series. The lower hills contain
much gypsum and alum ; naphtha and saltpetre occur in the
Sheikh Budin range.
Arts and The manufactures of the District are not important. Coarse
tures! a cotton cloth is woven in many villages and in Dera Ismail
Khan, where lungis of creditable workmanship are also made.
Turned and lacquered wood- work of remarkable excellence of
design is made at Dera Ismail Khan and Paharpur.
merce and Commercially the District is only of importance as lying
trade. across the routes of the trade carried on between India and
Khorasan by travelling Powinda merchants. The Powinda
caravans for the most part enter it by the Gomal Pass in
October, and, passing into India, return in March and April.
The principal articles carried are silk, cfiaras, gold and silver
thread, and furs from Bokhara, fruits and wool from Ghazni
and Kandahar, and madder, wool, ghl, tobacco, and asafoetida
from Ghazni; the return trade consisting of indigo, cotton
piece-goods, metals, sugar, salt, shoes, and leather. This
trade, however, does not affect the District directly, as the
Powindas very seldom unpack any of their wares within it.
The District imports piece-goods, hides, salt, and metals,
and exports wheat and great millet, the export trade passing
down the Indus to Multan, Sukkur, and Karachi. The
chief centres of local trade are Dera Ismail Khan, Tank,
and Kulachi.
Communi- The Indus and its main branches are navigable, and carry a
)ns' good deal of traffic. The river is crossed at Dera Ismail Khan
by a steam ferry in the hot season, and a bridge of boats in
the winter, and by nine other ferries. The station of Darya
Khan on the North-Western Railway lies in Mianwali District
on the east bank of the Indus, opposite Dera Ismail Khan.
There are 546 miles of roads in the District, of which 109
miles are metalled.
Famine. The District was classed by the Irrigation Commission of
1903 as one of those in which the normal rainfall is so deficient
that cultivation is almost impossible without irrigation, and
which therefore are not considered as liable to famine. The
area of crops that matured in the famine year 1899-1900
amounted to 78 per cent, of the normal.
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT 203
The Deputy-Commissioner is aided by an assistant and three District
Extra Assistant Commissioners. One Assistant Commissioner s^1^
commands the border military police, and an extra Assistant staff.
Commissioner is in charge of the Tank subdivision, while
another Extra Assistant Commissioner holds charge of the Dis-
trict treasury. Each of the three tahsils is under a tahslldar
and naib-tahslldar, and the Tank tahsll forms a subdivision.
Civil judicial work is disposed of by a District Judge, who is Civil jus-
also District Judge of Bannu, where the court is held. Both tl(ie and
crime,
he and the District Magistrate are supervised by the Divisional
and Sessions Judge of the Derajat Civil Division. A Munsif
is stationed at head-quarters. There is little violent crime,
but cattle-stealing, mostly unreported, is an almost universal
practice, especially in the kachi tract.
The revenue history of the several tahsils differs consider- Land
ably. Previous to annexation Tank formed a separate go- revenue-
vernment under Nawab Sarwar Khan, paying i^ to \\ lakhs
revenue. Herbert Edwardes leased the tahsll to the Nawab
for five years at an annual rent of one lakh. The Dera Ismail
Khan and part of the Kulachi tahsils were divided into ten
blocks (talukas) for revenue purposes, in each of which one
of the leading men superintended the collections. In 1848
Edwardes himself assessed all of the Kulachi tahsll which was
not assigned, though very roughly. Summary settlements were
made in 1850-1 in the Dera Ismail Khan and Kulachi tahsils,
and in 1853-4 in Tank, as the Nawab was heavily in arrears and
consequently had been deprived of his lease. All three tahsils
(except the Kulachi taluka) were again settled in 1857 for seven
years. The earlier summary settlement realized 2-4 lakhs, and
that from 1857 to 1862 realized 2-5 lakhs, rising to 2-7 lakhs.
Between 1873 and 1879 a regular settlement was made,
and fluctuating assessments were introduced below the hills
and in the lands liable to floods. The demand amounted to
three lakhs, of which i^ lakhs was fluctuating revenue. A
revised assessment began in 1898. It is intended to extend the
fluctuating system of land revenue to the greater part of the
District. The new settlement is not yet altogether complete ;
but the demand under the head of fixed land revenue has been
reduced to Rs. 35,800, while the greatest amount of land
revenue payable to Government in a favourable year will be
2-88 lakhs, of which rather more than i lakh is assigned. Fixed
rates at the last settlement fluctuated between Rs. 2-3-0
and 4 annas per acre on ' wet ' land. Crop rates varied from
R. i to 8 annas.
204 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
The following table shows total collections of revenue and
those of land revenue alone, in thousands of rupees : —
1880-1".
1890-1".
1900-1.
"903-4-
Land revenue
Total revenue
>,75
5.93
4,64
6,33
2,05
3,43
1,98
2,50
Local and
municipal.
Police and
jails.
* These figures are for the old District, including the Bhakkar and Leiah lahsils.
The District contains two municipalities, DERA ISMAIL
KHAN and KULACHI, and one 'notified area,' TANK. Outside
these areas, local affairs are managed by a District board. Its
income, mainly derived from local rates, amounted in 1903-4
to Rs. 43,400. The expenditure in the same year was
Rs. 41,400, the mail-cart service forming the largest item.
The regular police force consists of 483 of all ranks, of whom
79 are municipal police, 41 mounted men, and 13 trackers.
Village trackers are also frequently employed. There are
8 police-stations, 3 outposts, and 4 road-posts. The border
military police number 607 of all ranks, including 125 mounted
men. They are commanded by an Assistant Commissioner,
directly under the orders of the Deputy-Commissioner, and
occupy fourteen posts, of which six are actually in the Shirani
country, a political apanage of the District, though adminis-
tratively distinct from it. The jail at head-quarters has
accommodation for 497 prisoners.
Education. The average of literacy is high for the North- West Frontier
Province, on account of the large Hindu element in the pop-
ulation. In 1901, 9-3 per cent, males and 1-5 per cent,
females were returned as able to read and write, the proportion
of literate persons of both sexes being 48-6 among Sikhs,
26-6 among Hindus, and 1-5 among Muhammadans, who
form the agricultural population.
The number of pupils under instruction was 893 in 1880-1,
3,244 in 1890-1, and 8,943 in 1903-4. In the latest year
there were 4 secondary and 25 primary (public) schools, and
8 advanced and 99 elementary (private) schools, with 289 girls
in the public and 491 in the private schools. Dera Ismail
Khan town possesses two Anglo-vernacular high schools. Of
the indigenous schools, the Hindu girls' school at Dera Ismail
Khan deserves notice. It was opened in 1881-2, and is main-
tained by the municipality. The total expenditure on educa-
tion in 1903-4 was Rs. 23,400, of which Rs. 6,500 was
contributed by the District funds, Rs. 7,400 by the munici-
palities, and Rs. 6,600 by fees.
Hospitals Besides the Dera Ismail Khan civil hospital, the District
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT 205
contains five outlying dispensaries. In 1904 the number of and dis-
eases treated was 66,633, including 905 in-patients, and 3,088 pen
operations were performed. The income was Rs. 17,600, the
greater part of which came from Local funds.
The number of successful vaccinations in 1903-4 was 8,928, Vaccina-
representing 33 per 1,000 of the population. tlon-
[District Gazetteer, 1878 (under revision).]
Dera Ismail Khan Tahsil. — Head-quarters tahsll of Dera
Ismail Khan District, North- West Frontier Province, lying be-
tween 31° iS'and 32°32XN. and 70° 31' and 71° 22' E., with an
area 0^1,699 square miles. It consists of a bare plain, gene-
rally barren except for a few tamarisks and acacias, but covered
with crops in favourable seasons. Water is so scarce that in
the hot season the people often have to desert their villages
and camp with their cattle by the Indus. The population in
1901 was 144,337^ compared with 133,809 in 1891. The head-
quarters are at DERA ISMAIL KHAN (population, 31,737), and
the tahsll also contains 250 villages. The land revenue
and cesses amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 87,860.
Kulachi Tahsil. — Western tahsll of Dera Ismail Khan
District, North- West Frontier Province, consisting of the coun-
try immediately below the Sulaiman mountains, between 31°
15' and 32° 17' N. and 70° n' and 70° 42' E., with an area
of 1,509 square miles. In appearance the tract bears a generic
resemblance to the Dera Ismail Khan tahsll, except for the
stony plain and the line of barren and unsightly hills which
form its western border. The plain is much cleft by deep
channels which carry off the rain-water from the hills, and
these are utilized for irrigation with great skill. The popula-
tion in 1901 was 55,053, compared with 52,270 in 1891. The
head-quarters are at KULACHI (population, 9,125), and the
tahsll also contains 81 villages. The land revenue and cesses
amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 96,000.
Tank Tahsil. — Subdivision and tahsil of Dera Ismail
Khan District, North-West Frontier Province, lying between
32° and 32° 30' N. and 70° 4' and 70° 43' E., with an area
of 5 7 2 square miles. It is bounded on the west by Wazlristan,
and occupies the north-western corner of the District, at the
foot of the Sulaiman Hills. The country long lay unin-
habited, there being little to tempt any settlers in so barren
a tract ; but it was finally occupied by Pathan tribes from
the western hills. The tahsll was formerly a semi-indepen-
dent State, and its Nawabs belonged to the Kati Khel
section of the Daulat Khel clan, the most powerful of the
206 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
original settlers, who gradually expelled all the rest. The last
Nawab, Shah Nawaz Khan, who died in 1882, is said to have
been twentieth in descent from Daulat Khan, who gave his
name to the tribe. His family first assumed the tribal head-
ship in the person of Katal Khan, great-grandfather of Shah
Nawaz. His son, Sarwar Khan, a remarkable man, devoted
himself throughout a long reign to the amelioration of his ter-
ritory and his tribesmen. Under his* sway the Daulat Khel
changed from a pastoral to an agricultural people, and they still
revere his memory, making his acts and laws the standard of
excellence in government. Sarwar Khan towards the end of
his life found it necessary to tender his submission to the Sikhs,
after their occupation of Dera Ismail Khan, and his tribute was
fixed at Rs. 1 2,000 ; but before his death (1836) it was gradually
enhanced, as the Sikh power consolidated itself, to Rs. 40,000
per annum. Sarwar Khan was succeeded by his son Aladad
Khan ; and at the same time Nao Nihal Singh, who was then
in Bannu, raised the demand to a lakh. Aladad Khan was
unable to meet the demand and fled to the hills, where he
found a refuge among the Mahsuds. Tank was then given in
j'dgir to Nao Nihal Singh ; but Aladad kept up such a constant
guerilla warfare from the hills that the Sikh grantee at last
threw up his possession in disgust. Malik Fateh Khan Tiwana
then for a time seized Tank, but he was ousted by Daulat Rai,
son of Dlwan Lakhi Mai, the Sikh governor ; and it was made
over to three dependants of the Nawabs of Dera, Shah Nawaz
Khan, the son of Aladad (who had died meanwhile), being left
a beggar. In 1846, however, the exiled chief attached himself
to Lieutenant (afterwards Sir Herbert) Edwardes, who procured
his appointment by the Lahore Darbar to the governorship of
Tank. After the annexation of the Punjab, the British Govern-
ment confirmed Shah Nawaz Khan in his post as governor;
and he thenceforward enjoyed a semi-independent position,
retaining a portion of the revenues, and entrusted with the entire
internal administration, as well as with the protection of the
border. The results, however, proved unsatisfactory, as regards
both the peace of the frontier and the conduct of the adminis-
tration. A scheme was accordingly introduced for remodelling
the relations of the State. The Nawab's income was increased,
but he was deprived of all administrative powers, retaining only
those of an honorary magistrate. Tank thus became an ordi-
nary tahsil of Dera Ismail Khan District. It consists of a
naturally dry and uninviting plain, intersected by ravines and
low ranges of stony hills which here and there traverse the
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT 207
plain. By assiduous cultivation, however, it has acquired an
aspect of prosperity and greenness which distinguishes it
strongly from the neighbouring tahsll of Kulachi. The popu-
lation in 1901 was 48,467, compared with 43,725 in 1891.
The head-quarters are at TANK (population, 4,402), and the
tahsll also contains 78 villages. The land revenue and cesses
amounted in 1903-4 to Rs. 67,000.
Dera Ismail Khan Town. — Head-quarters of the District
and tahsll of Dera Ismail Khan, North-West Frontier Province,
situated in 31° 49' N. and 70° 55' E. Population (1901),
31, 737, -of whom 18,662 were Muhammadans, 11,486 Hindus,
and 1,420 Sikhs. Of the total, 3,450 live in the cantonment.
The town lies 4^ miles west of the right bank of the Indus,
200 miles west of Lahore, and 1 20 miles north-west of Multan.
It was founded towards the end of the fifteenth century by
Ismail Khan, a son of the Baloch adventurer Malik Sohrab,
who called the town after his own name. The original town
was swept away by a flood in 1823, and the existing buildings
are all of quite modern construction. It contains two bazars,
the Hindu and Muhammadan population living in separate
quarters. The town stands on a level plain, with a slight fall
to the river, but is badly drained. It is surrounded by a thin
mud wall, with nine gates, enclosing an area of about 500 acres.
The cantonment, which lies south-east of the town, has an area
of 4f square miles, excluding the portion known as Fort
Akalgarh on the north-west side. The civil lines are to the
south. The Derajat Brigade has its winter head-quarters at
Dera Ismail Khan, and the garrison consists of a mountain
battery, a regiment of native cavalry, and three regiments of
native infantry. Detachments from these regiments help to
garrison the outposts of Drazinda, Jandola, and Jatta. The
municipality was constituted in 1867. The income during the
ten years ending 1902-3 averaged Rs. 55,000, and the expendi-
ture Rs. 53,000. The income and expenditure in 1903-4 were
Rs. 55,500 and Rs. 55,800, respectively. The chief source
of income was octroi (Rs. 48,000) ; and the chief items of
expenditure were conservancy (Rs. 8,785), education (Rs. 7,246),
hospitals and dispensaries (Rs. 6,302), public safety (Rs. 7,733),
public works (Rs. 2,143), and administration (Rs. 5,546). The
receipts and expenditure of cantonment funds during the ten
years ending 1902-3 averaged Rs. 2,700 and Rs. 2,800, re-
spectively.
The local trade of Dera Ismail Khan is of second-rate
importance, but some foreign traffic with Khorasan passes
208 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
through it. Powinda caravans of Afghan merchants traverse
the town twice a year on their road to and from India ; and,
with the increasing security of the Gomal route, these caravans
are yearly swelling in numbers. The chief imports are English
and native piece-goods, hides, salt, and fancy wares ; and the
exports, grain, wood, and ght. The local manufactures are
/ungts and lacquered wood-work. The town possesses a civil
hospital, and its chief educational institutions are two aided
Anglo-vernacular high schools, one maintained by the Church
Missionary Society and the other by the Bharatri Sabha,
and an Anglo-vernacular middle school maintained by the
municipality.
Kafirkot. — Ruins in Dera Ismail Khan District, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 32° 30' N. and 71° 21' E.
The site is also known as Til Kafirkot or Raja Sir-kot, and
lies a few miles south of the point where the Kurram river
joins the Indus, upon a spur of the Khisor hills. The remains
consist of extensive lines of bastioned walls built of solid
masonry, enclosing an area filled with the debris of ancient
dwellings. The remains of four small Hindu temples are
relatively well preserved, and their outer faces are decorated
with elaborate carvings of stone. For some details see
A. Cunningham, Archaeological Survey Reports, vol. xiv, 26,
254, and Dr. Stein's Archaeological Survey Report of the North-
West Frontier Province and Baluchistan ( 1 903-5). A similar ruin
of the same name exists at Bilot, about 30 miles due south.
Kulachi Town. — Head-quarters of the tahs'tl of the same
name in Dera Ismail Khan District, North-West Frontier
Province, situated in 31° 56' N. and 70° 28' E., on the north
bank of the Luni torrent, 27 miles west of Dera Ismail Khan.
Population (1901), 9,125. It is rather an aggregation of sixteen
separate hamlets, standing near the union of their lands, than
a regular town. A municipality was created in 1867, and its
income and expenditure during the ten years ending 1902-3
averaged Rs. 6,900. The income in 1903-4 was Rs. 7,200,
chiefly derived from octroi, and the expenditure was Rs. 7,100.
The place formerly carried on a brisk trade with the Wazlrs
of the hills, which declined before annexation, but has since
somewhat revived. Kulachi contains a Government dispensary,
and its principal educational institution is an Anglo-vernacular
middle school maintained by the District board.
Sheikh Budin. — Hill station on the borders of Bannu and
Dera Ismail Khan Districts, North-West Frontier Province,
situated in 32° 18' N. and 70° 49' E., at the extremity of the
DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT 209
Nlla Koh, 40 miles north of Dera Ismail Khan and 64 south
of Bannu, 4,516 feet above sea-level. It was first occupied
as a sanitarium in 1860. Sheikh Budln is now the summer
head-quarters of the Derajat Brigade, and the civil officers
of Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan Districts also spend part
of the hot season here. The sanitarium crowns a bare lime-
stone rock, which rises abruptly from the Marwat range, forming
its highest point. A few stunted wild olives and acacias com-
pose the only vegetation on the shadeless slopes. The heat
is frequently excessive, the thermometer inside a bungalow
ranging - from 83° to 94°, though mitigated from June to
October by a south-west breeze. Water is scarce, and in dry
years has to be fetched from the bottom of the hill.
Tank Town. — Head-quarters of the subdivision and tahsll
of the same name in Dera Ismail Khan District, North-West
Frontier Province, situated in 32° 13' N. and 70° 32' E.
Population (1901), 4,402. It stands on the left bank of
a ravine which issues from the Tank Zam pass, 40 miles north-
west of Dera Ismail Khan. It was founded by Katal Khan,
first Nawab of Tank. A mud wall surrounds the town, 1 2 feet
in height and 7 feet thick, with numerous towers and two or
three gates, but it is in bad repair. The fort, now in ruins,
is an enormous pile of mud about 250 yards square. The
walls, faced with brick, enclose a citadel 40 feet high. Tank
was declared a ' notified area ' in 1893. The municipal income
in 1903-4 was Rs. 11,500, chiefly derived from octroi, and the
expenditure was Rs. 9,100. Timber and^J are brought down
from the hills of Wazlristan in considerable quantities, while
the exports include grain, cloth, tobacco, and other luxuries.
Sir Henry Durand, Lieutenant-Governor of the Punjab, lost
his life here in 1870, from injuries received while passing on
an elephant under a gateway. He was buried at Dera Ismail
Khan. The military garrison has lately been withdrawn, and
the post is now held by border military police.
TRIBAL AREAS, ETC.
Dir, Swat, and Chitral. — A Political Agency in the
North-West Frontier Province, lying between 34° 15' and 37° 8'
N. and 71° 2' and 74° 6' E., and comprising the territories of
Swat, Dir, Bajaur, Sam Ranizai, Utman Khel, and Chitral.
On the north-west and north the Agency is bounded by the
watershed of the Hindu Kush. On the north-east its boundary
runs from Karambar Sar, the most northerly point in Chitral,
along the spur called the Moshabar range, which forms the
watershed between the Gilgit and Chitral rivers. South of the
Shandur pass it follows the watershed of the range which
divides the Swat and Indus valleys. On the south-east the
Agency is bounded by Buner, on the south by Peshawar
District, on the south-west by the Mohmand country, and on
the west by Afghanistan. After the relief of Chitral in 1896
Dir and Swat were formed into a Political Agency, to which
Chitral, formerly under the Gilgit Agency, was added in the
following year. In 1901 the control of the Agency was trans-
ferred from the Foreign Department of the Government of
India to the Chief Commissioner of the North-West Frontier
Province. The head-quarters are at the MALAKAND.
Koun- Chitral State.— A State in the Dir, Swat, and Chitral
figuration1" Agency of the North- West Frontier Province, lying between
and bill ' 35° 15' and 37° 8' N. and 71° 22' and 74° 6' E., with an area
and river Qf aDOut 4^00 square miles. The State derives its name from
the village of Chitral, situated in 35° 51' N. and 71° 50' E.
It comprises the whole of Kashkar Bala or Upper Kashkar,
i. e. the Tirich valley, which runs northward from Tirich Mir
for 60 miles until it joins the Turikho valley : thence the com-
bined streams run south for 40 miles through the Mulkho
valley and join the Kho valley below Mastuj. The Turikho
valley lies north-east and south-west parallel with the Yar
Khun, and has a length of 60 miles.
The boundaries of Chitral are : on the north, the Hindu
Kush range ; on the west, Badakhshan and Kafiristan ; on the
south, Dir; and on the east, the Gilgit Agency, Mastuj, and
Yasln.
History. It is recorded in a Sanskrit inscription carved on a rock
CHITRAL STATE 211
near Barenis in Mastuj that about the year 900 A. D. the
inhabitants of the surrounding country were Buddhists, and
under the sway of Jaipal, king of Kabul. A local legend tells
of attacks on Chitral by Chingiz Khan and his Tartars, but
the history of the country is practically lost before the sixteenth
century. At that time a prince, whose name or title was Rais,
was on the throne, and his first subject was one Sangm All,
a foreigner of unknown origin, who however is said to have
come from Khorasan, by which is meant the hill country
between Ghazni and Kandahar. Sangm All died in 1570,
leaving four sons, two of whom made themselves all-powerful
in the country, ousting the Rais dynasty. From the second
son the present Mehtar's house is descended, while the chief
clans of the Adamzadas take their names from Sangm All's
grandsons. The ruling dynasty has thus maintained itself on
the throne for more than 300 years, during the greater part of
which Chitral, with or without Mastuj, has been constantly at
war with her neighbours — Gilgit, Yasln, the Sikh governor of
Kashmir, the Chilasis, and the Pathan tribes to the south. In
1854 the Maharaja of Kashmir made alliance with Shah Afzal,
Mehtar of Chitral, against Gauhar Aman, the ruler of Yasln
and Mastuj, who was invading Gilgit, a State tributary to
Kashmir. A confused period of war and intrigue followed, in
which the chief event was the unsuccessful invasion of Chitral
in 1868 by the ruler of Badakhshan, acting under pressure
from Kabul. From this Aman-ul-mulk, the youngest son of
Shah Afzal, finally emerged about 1880 as master of Chitral,
Mastuj, Yasln, and Ghizr. The Kashmir Darbar, which with
the approval of the Government of India had been in alliance
with him since 1878, in opposition to the possibility of Afghan
aggression, now formally recognized him and doubled the
subsidy granted to him.
In 1885-6 Chitral was visited by the Lockhart mission;
and in 1889, on the establishment of a Political Agency in
Gilgit, Aman-ul-mulk received a subsidy from the British
Government of Rs. 6,000 per annum. Some rifles were also
given to him. In 1891, this subsidy was increased to Rs.
12,000, on condition that he accepted the advice of Govern-
ment in all matters connected with foreign policy and the
defence of the frontier.
In 1892, Aman-ul-mulk died suddenly. His second son
Afzal-ul-mulk, who happened to be on the spot, seized the
throne. The eldest son, Nizam-ul-mulk, governor of Yasln,
fled to Gilgit. Before Afzal-ul-mulk had fairly embarked on
P 2
2 1 2 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
the necessary extirpation of his other half-brothers, Umra
Khan of Jandol, who was at this time master of DJr, invaded
Chitral territory, and seized the fort and district of Narsat.
Afzal-ul-mulk was about to march against him when his uncle
Sher Afzal, who had been a refugee in Afghanistan, returned
suddenly with a small following. Chitral fort was opened to
him, and in the confusion that followed Afzal-ul-mulk was
murdered. Sher Afzal proclaimed himself Mehtar. Nizam-
ul-mulk was then allowed to re-enter Chitral from Gilgit.
Sher Afzal, believing him to have British support, fled before
him and Nizam-ul-mulk in turn ascended the throne. He
was recognized by Government, and a Political Agency was
established in Chitral.
In January, 1895, Nizam-ul-mulk was murdered at the in-
stigation of his half-brother Amlr-ul-mulk, acting as the tool of
Umra Khan, who was still in occupation of Narsat and had
espoused the cause of Sher Afzal. Amlr-ul-mulk seized the
fort. Umra Khan crossed the Lawarai pass with an army,
giving out that he was conducting a religious war against the
infidels, and asking Amir-ul-mulk to join him. Amir-ul-mulk
was unable or unwilling to comply, and Umra Khan laid siege
to Drosh, which he took after about a month's investment.
Meanwhile, the Political Agent at Gilgit had been sent to
Chitral to report on the situation. With his escort, which by
reinforcements had been brought up to a strength of over 400
men, of whom 300 belonged to the Kashmir Imperial Service
troops, he occupied the fort. All appeared well when sud-
denly Sher Afzal reappeared on the scene. He was supported
by Umra Khan, and was shortly joined by the bulk of the
ruling class, the Adamzadas, with their adherents. Amlr-ul-
mulk made overtures to them and was consequently placed
under restraint in the fort, and Shuja-ul-mulk, a lad of fourteen,
his brother, was provisionally recognized as Mehtar. The
garrison of the fort made an ineffective sortie, and were then
besieged from March 3 till April 19. During the continuance
of the siege two notable successes were gained elsewhere by
the enemy. The first was the treacherous capture at Buni of
two British officers, the destruction of their following, and the
seizure of 40,000 rounds of ammunition. The two officers
were kept as prisoners by Umra Khan at Munda for nearly
a month, and were then released on the approach of the relief
force. The other success was the practical annihilation near
Reshung of a detachment of 100 men of the i4th Sikhs under
Captain Ross. At Chitral, however, the besieged, though in
CHITRAL STATE 213
considerable straits, held out gallantly until the approach of
a small force from Gilgit caused their assailants to withdraw.
A week later (April 26) the advance guard of the main relief
force, which had been dispatched via the Malakand and Dir,
entered Chitral territory over the Lawarai pass. Sher Afzal
was taken prisoner and Umra Khan fled to Afghan territory.
Sher Afzal, Amlr-ul-mulk, and their leading followers were
deported to India, and the selection of Shuja-ul-mulk as
Mehtar was confirmed. Since then Chitral has enjoyed an
unwonted peace. The British garrison, most of which is
statione'd at Drosh, has been reduced to a single regiment
of native infantry, relieved annually by the Swat and Dir
route. Hospitals have been opened at Chitral, Mastuj, and
Drosh. Cultivation has been extended and the Mehtar's
revenue continues to increase, while at the same time his
mental horizon has been much enlarged by his visits to
Calcutta in 1900, to the Delhi Darbar in 1903, and to
Peshawar in 1904.
Mention should here be made of the Chitral levies, 200
strong, who were raised in 1899 for the defence of Lower
Chitral. In 1903 the Chitral Scouts were raised, with the
Mehtar as honorary commandant. Their object is to provide
a wholly irregular force of cragsmen for the defence of the
country in case of invasion. The corps has a total strength of
1,200 men, but all of these are never embodied at one time.
The present inhabitants of Chitral are divided into three The
strata : Adamzadas, Arbabzadas, and fakir miskln (literally, Pe°Ple-
' poor beggars '). The last form the majority of the population
and till the soil, paying the usual tithe in revenue. The
other classes are exempt from taxation. The theory that these
three classes represent successive waves of invaders is probably
correct, but the origin of all three is unknown. The Adamzadas
at least are certainly of Aryan descent ; and the language of the
country, Khowar, is classed with Shma, or the language of
Gilgit, as Indo-Aryan but non-Sanskritic. The total population
numbers about 50,000.
The religion of the people is now Islam, but their conversion
is recent, dating from early in the fourteenth to late in the
sixteenth century, and many primitive beliefs and customs
survive. Most of the people of Lut-kho belong to the Maulai
sect, whose head is the Agha Khan, the chief of the Khoja
community at Bombay. His agents yearly convey to him the
offerings of his adherents. The local religious leaders are the
ptrs, to each of whom is assigned a tract of country, and under
214 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
General
agricul-
tural con-
ditions.
Manufac-
tures and
trade.
Adminis-
tration.
Justice.
Revenue.
whom are khalifas or collectors of offerings. One tenet of the
sect is said to be a belief in metempsychosis. Fanaticism is
markedly absent throughout the country.
All three valleys — the Turikho, Mulkho, and Tirich — are
fertile in the extreme, and are cultivated continuously. The
soil is mostly clay and gravel, and the hill-sides are generally
bare. The chief crops are wheat, barley, Indian corn, and rice.
Iron, copper, and orpiment of superior quality are found in
Kashkar, and are mined, a few villages being almost wholly
employed in the industry. Inferior cotton carpets are made
for local use, and the Chitral daggers and swordhilts are in
great demand in the neighbouring valleys.
The country is divided into eight districts, each under an
atdlik, who collects its revenue and leads its men in war.
Below the atdlik is the charwelo, who has charge of a group
of villages, generally lying in one valley. Each village is under
a baramush or headman, who maintains roads, forts, and
bridges, assisted by a charbu as deputy. The internal ad-
ministration of the country is conducted by the Mehtar, with
as little interference as possible. The foreign policy of the
State is regulated by the Political Agent under the orders of
the British Government.
The precepts of the Muhammadan law are nominally en-
forced and the Mullas have considerable influence, often for
good. Justice, however, is virtually administered at the ruler's
will. Petty cases are decided by the atdlik.
The regular land revenue of the country is realized solely
from the fakir miskin class, who pay a tithe of their agricul-
tural produce and other dues in kind. Shepherds also pay in
kind. In practice these dues are not fixed, and as much as
possible is wrung from the people. Fixed dues are also levied
on the through trade with Badakhshan. The practice of sell-
ing Kho women, proverbial for their beauty, in Peshawar,
Kabul, and Badakhshan, was formerly recognized as a legiti-
mate source of revenue, and made Chitral a great resort of
slave-dealers. Of recent years, however, the market for slaves
has become circumscribed, and the system is now limited
to the sale of girl children to supply the harems of Kabul,
Badakhshan, and a few other territories.
Chitral Town (Chitrar or Kashkar). — Town, or rather
group of villages, forming the capital of the State of Chitral,
North- West Frontier Province, situated in 35° 51' N. and
71° 50' E. Population, about 2,380. It lies on the Chitral
river, and contains a small bazar, recently enlarged, in which
DIR 215
petty traders from Bajaur and Badakhshan drive a fairly brisk
trade. The Assistant Political Agent in Chitral resides here.
Mastuj. — Village, fort, and district subject to Chitral, in the
Dlr, Swat, and Chitral Agency, North-West Frontier Province,
situated in 36° if N. and 72° 33' E. The village lies on the
left bank of the Mastuj river, near its confluence with the
Laspur, at an elevation of 7,800 feet above sea-level. Mastuj
is not, properly speaking, part of Chitral State. It has often
been conquered by Chitral and has at times conquered it. At
present Mastuj is governed by a Mehtarjao, an uncle of the
Mehtar'of Chitral, who is independent of him, though Mastuj
is part of the Chitral Agency. The climate in winter is severe,
owing to the cold winds which blow down the valleys. An in-
scription at Barenis, a neighbouring village on the right bank
of the Mastuj river, shows that Chitral was included in the
kingdom of Jaipal, king of Kabul, about A. D. 900, and that its
inhabitants were then Buddhists. Its history is that of CHITRAL,
and it has a population of about 6,000.
Dir. — One of the territories included in the Dir, Swat, and
Chitral Agency, North-West Frontier Province, lying between
35° 50' and 34° 22' N. and 71° 2" and 72° 30' E. It takes its
name from the village of Dlr, the capital of the Khan, which
lies on the Dlr stream, an affluent of the Panjkora. Politically,
the Dir territory comprises the country drained by the Panj-
kora and its affluents down to the junction of the former river
with the Bajaur or Rud, and also the country east of this from
a point a little above Tirah in Upper Swat down to the Dush
Khel country, following the right bank of the Swat river
throughout. The upper portion of the Panjkora valley down
to its confluence with the Dir is called the Panjkora Kohistan
or Kohistan-i-Malizai, and of this Kohistan or ' highland ' again
the upper portion is called Bashkar and the lower Sherlngal.
The valley of the Dlr is also known as Kashkar. At Chutiatan,
6 miles below Dir, the Panjkora is joined by the Dir and
Baraul rivers, and the valley of the latter now forms a part
of Dir. The Maidan valley, which runs into the Panjkora
10 miles above its junction with the Rud on the right bank,
and the Jandol, which joins the Rud above its confluence with
the Panjkora, are also included in Dlr, as are the Dush Khel
country, between the Swat and Panjkora, and the Talash
valley. The population of Dlr, including all its dependencies,
is probably about 100,000; and its area, including the Dir
Kohistan, of which the boundaries are ill-defined, is about
5,000 to 6,000 square miles.
216 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
The main Panjkora valley is not so wide as that of Swat,
and contains much less alluvial soil ; but it is joined by
numerous rich lateral valleys, and the greater part of the popu-
lation lives in these. The upper slopes of the hills are thickly
wooded, and the Kohistan contains valuable deodar forests.
The rainfall exceeds that of Swat ; but though the upper val-
leys have a pleasant climate, the lower, as in Lower Swat, are
hot in summer and unhealthy in autumn. The history and
trade are dealt with in the article on SWAT.
The Khan of Dlr is the overlord of the country, claiming
and, when in a position to do so, exacting allegiance from the
petty chieftains of the clans, and revenue from the cultivators.
Revenue when taken is always the tenth share of the produce
(ushar) prescribed by Muhammadan law. The country,
wherever agriculture is possible, is cultivated and bears rich
crops ; but the communal system of tenure, with its periodical
redistribution of holdings, causes slovenly methods to be
universal.
Dlr is mainly held by Yusufzai Pathans, its old non-Pathan
inhabitants, the Bashkars, being now confined to the valley of
that name. Both Bashkar and Kashkar have also a consider-
able Gujar population. The language of the Pathans is the
pure Yusufzai Pashtu ; but in the Panjkora Kohistan the
Bashkars speak a dialect of their own resembling the Garhwi
of the Swat Kohistan, and the Gujars still retain their own
language, which resembles Punjabi. The Dlr levies, which
maintain the security of communications, number 390,
including 40 mounted men.
Swat State. — One of the tracts comprised in the Dlr,
Swat, and Chitral Agency, North-West Frontier Province,
lying between 34° 40' and 35° N. and 72° and 74° 6' E. It
forms the valley of the Swat river, which, rising in the lofty
ranges bordering on Chitral, flows south-south-west from its
source to Chakdarra, thence south-west to the Malakand,
thence north-west to its junction with the Panjkora, thence
south-west again till it meets the Ambahar, thence south-east
to Abazai in Peshawar District. Below its junction with the
Panjkora the valley is not, politically speaking, Swat but
Utman Khel. Swat is divided into two distinct tracts : one,
the Swat Kohistan, or mountain country on the upper reaches
of the Swat river and its affluents as far south as Ain ; and
the other, Swat proper, which is further subdivided into Bar
('Upper') and Kuz (' Lower') Swat, the latter extending from
Landakai to Kalangai, a few miles above the junction of the
SWAT STATE 217
SwSt and Panjkora rivers. The area of Swat, including Swat
Kohistan, is about the same as that of Dlr; but the river
valley does not exceed 130 miles in length, with an average
breadth of about 12 miles. The valley contains a series of
rich alluvial tracts, extensively cultivated and extending for
70 miles along the river banks, while in the Kohistan are vast
forests of deodar. Starting from an elevation of 2,000 feet, at
the junction of the Swat and Panjkora, the valley rises rapidly,
and the peaks to the north range from 15,000 to 22,000 feet
in height. The climate of the lower valleys is malarious
and unhealthy, especially in autumn.
The histories of Dlr, Swat, Bajaur, and Utman Khel are
so inextricably intermingled that it has been found impossible
to treat them separately.
The first historical mention of these countries is made by
Arrian, who records that in 326 B.C. Alexander led his army
through Kunar, Bajaur, Swat, and Buner; but his successor,
Seleucus, twenty years later made over these territories to
Chandragupta. The inhabitants were in those days of Indian
origin, Buddhism being the prevailing religion, and they re-
mained thus almost undisturbed under their own kings until
the fifteenth century. They were the ancestors of the non-
Pathan tribes, e.g. Gujars, Torwals, Garhwls, &c., who are
now confined to Bashkar of Dlr, and Swat Kohistan.
The invasion of the Yusufzai and other Pathan tribes of
Khakhai descent, aided by the Utman Khel, then began ; and
by the sixteenth century the Yusufzai were in possession of
Buner, Lower Swat, and the Panjkora valley ; the Gigianis
and Tarkilanris had established themselves in Bajaur, and the
Utman Khel in the country still occupied by them. The
advent of these Pathan invaders introduced the Muhammadan
religion throughout these countries. At this time the emperor
Babar, by a diplomatic marriage with the daughter of Malik
Shah Mansur, the head of the Yusufzai clans, and by force of
arms, established his sovereignty throughout Bajaur (except
Jandol), the Panjkora valley as far as its junction with the
Bajaur, and Lower Swat. Upper Swat, which was still held by
the aboriginal Swatis under Sultan Udais or Wais, tendered a
voluntary submission, claiming protection from the invader,
which Babar gave. In Humayun's reign, however, the advance
was continued, and the Yusufzai overran the Sherlngal portion
of Dlr and Upper Swat as far as Ain, beyond which they have
scarcely advanced to this day. Humayun's yoke was rejected
by them, and even Akbar in 1584 could exact no more than a
ai8 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
nominal submission. Such degree of peace as obtains amongst
independent Pathan tribes was enjoyed by the Yusufzai and
their neighbours, until a fruitful cause of dissension arose in
Dir in the person of a religious reformer named Bazld, called
by his adherents the Pir-i-Roshan, whose chief opponent was
Akhund Darweza Baba, the historian of the Yusufzai. The
heresy of the Pir and the constant depredations of the com-
batants on either side at length compelled interference. Zain
Khan, Kokaltash, was deputed by the governor of Kabul to
bring the tribes to reason, and after five years' fighting and
fort-building he effected in 1595 a thorough conquest of the
country. By 1658, however, in which year Aurangzeb as-
cended the throne, the lesson had been forgotten. The tribes
refused to pay revenue, declared their independence, and
maintained it till the time of Nadir Shah, whose successors,
Ahmad Shah Durrani and Tlmur Shah, kept their hold on
the country. The grasp was not altogether lost by those who
came after, and when Azlm Khan attacked the Sikhs in 1823,
the Yusufzai sent a large contingent with his army. They
were defeated, and Ranjlt Singh entered Peshawar, but did
not essay a farther advance into the northern hills.
In 1829 the colony of Hindustani fanatics which still exists
in Amarzai country was founded by Mir Saiyid Ahmad Shah
of Bareilly. But the austerities enjoined by the Mir were his
undoing. A conspiracy was formed ; his chief followers were
murdered in a single night, and he himself .was hunted down
and killed at Balakot in Hazara in 1831. The primacy then
passed to Abdul Ghafiir, the famous Akhund, who established
himself in 1835 at Saidu in Upper Swat, where he lived until
his death in 1877, the most powerful man in the country.
On the establishment of British rule in the Peshawar valley
(1849), no attempt was made to penetrate into the hill country.
But the raids of the tribesmen in British territory, and the
asylum which they afforded to outlaws and desperadoes, could
not be suffered to pass unnoticed ; and punitive expedi-
tions were sent in 1849 against the Utman Khel, and in 1852
against both this tribe and the inhabitants of Sam Ranizai, the
country between the District border and the Malakand Pass.
Severe punishment was inflicted in the second expedition. The
year of the Mutiny (1857) passed off without disturbance,
a refuge in Swat being actually denied to the mutineers of the
55th Native Infantry by the Akhund, who, however, adopted
this course for reasons of local policy, not from love of the
British Government. In 1863 took place the expedition against
SWAT STATE 219
the Hindustani fanatics resulting in what is known as the
AMBELA campaign, in which the united forces of Swat, Bajaur,
Kunar, and Dir were arrayed under the banner of the Akhund
against the invading force. In 1866, another small expedition
was sent to punish the Utman Khel, after which there was
peace on the border till, in 1878, force had again to be used.
The Guides were sent against the people of Ranizai and the
Utman Khel, with complete success in the restoration of order.
Early in 1877 the Akhund died, and his son, attempting to
succeed to his position, was bitterly opposed by the Khan of
Dir. The whole country as far as Nawagai in Bajaur was
embroiled, and in the confused fighting and tortuous diplomacy
that followed Umra Khan of Jandol, a scion of the royal house
of Bajaur, took a prominent part. Allying himself first with
the Mian Gul, the son of the Akhund, by 1882 he had
conquered and taken from the Khan of Dir nearly half his
country. In 1882, the Mian Gul became jealous and fell out
with Umra Khan, making terms with the Khan of Dir. Umra
Khan's position was rendered more difficult next year by the
arrival in the Utman Khel country of a religious leader, said
to have been sent from Kabul to thwart him, and known as
the Makrani Mulla. His denunciations effected in 1887 a
combination of the whole country-side, including Dir, Nawagai,
Swat, Utman Khel, Salarzai, and Mamund, against Umra Khan.
But the allies were defeated, quarrelled one with another, and
dispersed; and by 1890, the Mulla having fled the country,
Umra Khan was master of the whole of Dir territory, the
Khan (Muhammad Sharif) being in exile in Swat. Ever since
1884 Umra Khan had been coquetting with the British
authorities, in the hope of being furnished with rifles and
ammunition. In 1892 he accepted, in return for a subsidy,
the task of keeping postal communications open with Chitral,
and thereafter began to intrigue on the death of the great
Mehtar Aman-ul-mulk in the affairs of that country. The
Asmar boundary commission in 1894 augmented the cool-
ness between the Government and Umra Khan, which came to
open hostility in the next year (see CHITRAL), and as a result of
his defeat Umra Khan fled in 1896 to Kabul. The Khan
of Dir at once returned to power and entered into agreements
with the Government for keeping the Chitral road open, with-
out toll, as also did the clans of Swat, subsidies being granted
to both. In the year after the Chitral expedition, the Political
Agency of Dir and Swat was constituted, and posts were built
at Chakdarra, in Lower Swat, the Malakand, and Dargai in the
220 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Ranizai country. Chitral was shortly added as an apanage of
the Agency, having been hitherto connected with Gilgit. The
disturbance of the country caused by the events of 1895, the
intrigues of Afghan officials, and the natural animosity of the
religious classes after a period of apparent calm, during which
the title of NawSb was conferred on the Khan of Dlr, led
to the rising of 1897, in which a determined effort was made
by the tribesmen mustered by the Mulla Mastan ('Mad Mulla')
of Swat to storm the posts at Chakdarra and the Malakand.
Their attacks were repulsed, though not without difficulty ;
and in the punitive operations which followed columns were
sent to enforce the submission of the Mamunds in Bajaur, the
Yusufzai of Swat, and the Bunerwals. No action against Dir
was necessary, for the Nawab had been able to restrain his
people from overt hostility.
In 1901 a railway was opened from Naushahra to Dargai
at the foot of the Malakand Pass. Tribal fighting has continued
intermittently, but no event of importance took place in the
Agency after 1897, until the death of the Nawab of Dlr in
1904. His eldest son Aurangzeb (Badshah Khan) has been
recognized as the successor, but the succession is disputed
by Mian Gul Jan, his younger brother.
Swat proper is now peopled by the Akazai branch of the
Yusufzai Pathans (about 150,000 in number), and the Kohistan
by Torwals and GarhwTs (estimated at 20,000). The Yusufzai
comprise various clans. On the left bank of the river lie the
Ranizai and Khan Khel in Lower Swat, and the Sulizai and
Babuzai in Upper Swat. On the right bank are the Shamizai,
Sabujni, Nikbi Khel, and Shamozai in Upper Swat, and in
Lower Swat the Adinzai, Abazai, and Khadakzai clans. All
the clans on the right bank, except the two last named, are
collectively known as the Khwazozai; and all except the
Ranizai on the left are collectively called the Baezai. The
whole valley and the Kohistan are well populated ; but before
1897 the Swati Pathans had not the reputation of being
a fighting race, and owing to the unhealthiness of the valley
their physique is inferior to that of Pathans generally. The
language of the people is the pure Yusufzai Pashtu, except in
the Kohistan where the Torwals and Garhwls speak dialects
of their own, which is said to resemble very closely the
dialect of Hindkl used by the Gujars of Hazara.
The people are by religion Muhammadans of the Sunni
sect, those of the Kohistan, as recent converts, being peculiarly
ignorant and fanatical. The shrine of the great Akhund of
SWAT STATE 221
Swat, at Saidu, is one of the most important in Northern India.
Born of Gujar parents, probably in Upper Swat, Abdul Ghafur
began life as a herd-boy, but soon acquired the titles of Akhund
and Buzurg by his sanctity, and for many years resided at
Saidu, where he exercised an irresistible influence over the
Yusufzai and their neighbours. His grandsons have inherited
some of his spiritual influence. The offerings at the Akhund
shrine and subscriptions received from their followers afford
them a considerable income. A still living religious leader is
the Mulla" Mastan, or ' Mad Mulla ' (also called the sartor or
bare, literally ' black-headed ' fakir), Sad-ullah Khan. By birth
the son of a Bunerwal malik and a great athlete in his youth,
he spent some years at Ajmer and returned to Buner in 1895.
His piety soon made him widely known in the Swat and
Indus Kohistan, and his religious fervour earned him his title
of Mastan.
Malakand. — A pass which crosses the range north of
Peshawar District, North- West Frontier Province, and leads
from Sam Ranizai into the Swat valley, situated in 34° 34' N.
and 71° 57' E. The pass is traversed by an ancient Buddhist
road. Early in the sixteenth century the Yusufzai Pathans
effected their entrance into Swat by the Malakand, and in
1587 Zain Khan, a general of the emperor Akbar, built a fort
here. In 1895 the pass was taken by the Chitral relief force,
and has since been occupied as a military post, near which is
also the head-quarters of the Dir, Swat, and Chitral Political
Agency. On July 26, 1897, the post was suddenly attacked
by a large gathering of Swatis under a fanatical leader, the
Mulla Mastan or ' Mad Mulla.' Tribesmen from Utman Khel
and Upper Swat poured in, raising the numbers to 1 2,000 men.
Fighting continued until August i, when the tribes were
repulsed. Chakdarra, which also was besieged by the tribes-
men, was relieved the next day.
Chakdarra. — A military post to the north-east of the
Malakand Pass, on the south bank of the Swat river, in the
Dir, Swat, and Chitral Agency, North-West Frontier Province,
situated in 34° 44' N. and 72° 8' E. Like the Malakand, it
was fortified by Akbar's general Zain Khan in 1587, in his
attempt to conquer Swat. In 1895 the Chitral relief force
crossed the Swat river at Chakdarra, which was garrisoned and
retained as an outpost on the conclusion of the campaign. In
July, 1897, Chakdarra was besieged by 8,000 tribesmen who
had attacked the Malakand under the Mulla Mastan or ' Mad
Mulla,' but its hard-pressed garrison was relieved on August 2.
2 2 2 NORTH- WEST FRONTIER PRO VINCE
Bajaur.— A tract of country in the Dlr, Swat, and Chitral
Agency, North-West Frontier Province, lying between 34° 25'
and 35° 5' N. and 70° i' and 72° E. It comprises five valleys :
namely, Chaharmung, Babukara, Watalai (or Ut-lai), Rud in
the valley of the Rud river, and the Sur Kamar valley, in
which lies Nawagai. In the last, the Nawagai, Chamarkand,
and Suran ravines unite to form the Kipal, or Ambahar river,
which falls into the Swat some distance below its junction with
the Panjkora. Bajaur is bounded on the north by the Panjkora
river ; on the east by the Utman Khel and Mohmand terri-
tories, the latter also bordering it on the south ; and on the west
by the crest of the eastern watershed of the Kunar river, which
divides it from Afghanistan. Its population probably amounts
to 100,000, and its area to nearly 5,000 square miles. Lying
at a lower elevation than Dlr, Bajaur has a smaller rainfall,
and the snowfall on the range in which the affluents of the
Rud take their rise is also slight. In consequence, the hills
are not well wooded ; and though the Rud, the most impor-
tant of the five valleys, is very fertile, Babukara, Chaharmung,
and Watalai are not so productive. The history of the tract
is dealt with in the article on SWAT.
The Rud valley is peopled by various Path&n tribes, Tarkanri
or Tarkilanri Yusufzai, Mohmands, Safis, Utman Khel and
others. Chaharmung and Babukara are held by the Salarzai,
and Watalai by Mamunds, both sections of the Tarkanri. The
political system, if it can be termed system, is a communal
form of party government, subject to the control of the Khan
of Nawagai, who is nominally the hereditary chief of all Bajaur.
Under him the country is divided into several minor Khanates,
each governed by a chieftain, usually a near relative of the
Khan. But virtually the authority of the chieftains is limited
to the rights to levy tithe, or ushar, when they can enforce its
payment, and to exact military service if the tribesmen choose
to render it. Public, or rather tribal, affairs are managed by
the jirga or assembly of the party in power, and in this
assembly each landowner has a vote.
Utman Khel. — A mountainous tract of country between
the Rud and Amabhar rivers, and thence eastwards between
the Swat river and Peshawar District, as far as the Ranizai
border, in the Dlr, Swat, and Chitral Agency, North-West
Frontier Province, lying between 34° 15' and 34° 50' N. and
71° i' and 71° 50" E. It is bounded on the east by Swat ; on
the south by the Hashtnagar portion of Peshawar District ;
on the west by the Mohmand country ; and on the north
BUNER 223
by Dlr and Bajaur. The tract lies on both banks of the Swat
river, and derives its name from the Utman Khel or tribe of
Afghans who occupied it in the sixteenth century, at the time
of the Yusufzai conquest of the Swat. The tribe is estimated
to number about 40,000, and is divided into many clans, con-
stantly at feud among themselves. Their country, of which
the area is about 3,000 square miles, is a network of bare
hills and ravines, infertile except in some strips along the
southern bank of the Rud. Besides this tract, the Utman
Khel also own a few villages east of Landkhwar between
Peshawar District and Sam Ranizai. The Utman Khel have
frequently given trouble to the British, necessitating punitive
expeditions in 1852, 1878, and 1898.
Buner. — A tract of country lying between 34° 22' and
34° 37' N. and 72° 15' and 72° 48' E., on the north-east
border of Peshawar District, North-West Frontier Province.
Its boundaries are : On the north, Swat Kohistan ; on the
west, Swat and Sam Ranizai ; on the south, dependent tribes
and Peshawar District ; on the east, the Black Mountain and
Hazara District. Political control is exercised by the Deputy-
Commissioner of Peshawar through the Assistant Commissioner
at Mardan. Buner comprises the basin of the Barandu river,
which joins the Indus near Amb. The main valley of the
Barandu is about 10 miles broad, well-cultivated, and level ;
and though the side valleys are narrower and less fertile, they
are better wooded. The aloofness of the inhabitants, arising
from the fact that no trade arteries pierce the country, is very
marked. They are, however, recognized by the clans who live
between Buner and Peshawar District, such as the Gaduns,
Salarzai, Khudu Khel, &c., as the head of their confederacy.
The history of Buner is given in the article dealing with
SWAT. Buner with the neighbouring countries was included
in the ancient kingdom of Udyana, and abounds in archaeo-
logical remains of great interest, which date from the Buddhist
era. The places most interesting from an archaeological view
in Buner, or in the territory of tribes dependent on it, are
Mahaban, Banj, Asgram, Panjkotai, Gumbatai, and Girarai.
Mahaban has been conjecturally identified with Aornos, the
rock besieged by Alexander; but the latest view, that of
Dr. Stein, who visited Mahaban under tribal escort in 1904,
is that the topography of Aornos is inapplicable to Mahaban,
and that the real Aornos, if there be such a place, must be
sought elsewhere. In the same tour Banj was examined ; and
the suggestion has been made that it is the famous place of
224 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Buddhist pilgrimage, at which a shrine was built to commemo-
rate the offering of his body by the Buddha to feed a starving
tigress. The buildings described by the Chinese pilgrims are
now completely in ruins and all sculptures have been removed.
The ruins at Asgram are of some interest, and the place has
been identified with the Asigramma of Ptolemy. Buner proper
was traversed by Dr. Stein in January, 1898, with the force
dispatched for the punishment of the Bunerwals. In the
report then published, reasons were set forth for the identifi-
cation of Panjkotai with the site of the famous Mahawana
monastery described by the Chinese pilgrims, of Gumbatai
(Tursak) with the Mosu monastery and shrine, and of Girarai
with the shrine commemorating Buddha's ransoming of a
dove, also a place of pilgrimage.
Ambela. — A mountain pass in Buner, just beyond the north-
east border of Peshawar District, North- West Frontier Province,
situated in 34° 24' N. and 72° 38' E. The pass gave its name
to the Ambela campaign of 1863. In 1824, one Saiyid Ahmad
Shah of Bareilly, a companion-in-arms of the famous Amir
Kh5n, the Pindari, settled with about forty followers among
the Yusufzai tribes on the Peshawar border. This event
occurred just after Ranjit Singh had gained his great victory
over the Pathans at Naushahra. Driven out of the Peshawar
valley by the Sikhs in 1827, Saiyid Ahmad sought refuge in
Swat, and eventually in Buner, but in 1829 he seized Peshawar.
His Pathan disciples, however, soon tired of his attempted
reforms, and drove him across the Indus to Balakot in Hazara.
There he was attacked by the Sikhs under Sher Singh, and
defeated and slain. His surviving disciples sought a refuge
at Sittana, a village of the Utmanzai Yusufzai. Here under
Saiyid Akbar Shah, spiritual chief of SwSt, the Hindustani
fanatics built a fort and established a colony, which soon
became an asylum for political refugees, escaped criminals,
and deserters from British India. After the annexation of the
Punjab, this colony became a source of anxiety to the Govern-
ment, and in 1853 an invasion of the territory of the Khan
of Amb, a British feudatory, necessitated a punitive expedi-
tion. The fanatics displayed renewed activity in 1857, and in
1858 made a daring attack on the camp of the Assistant Com-
missioner of Mardan, necessitating a second punitive expedition.
The tribes then agreed not to allow the colony to reoccupy
Sittana, and they settled at Malka on the northern side of the
Mahaban mountain. From this settlement they renewed their
depredations, which consisted chiefly in kidnapping Hindu
MOHMAND COUNTRY 225
traders from Hazara, and in 1863 they reoccupied Sittana.
Drastic measures now became unavoidable, and two columns,
one from Peshawar and the other from Hazara, were organized.
The former, under Sir Neville Chamberlain, 9,000 strong,
occupied the Ambela Pass, the object being to march through
the Chamla valley and attack Sittana. The tribes of Buner
and Swat, however, rose en masse and made repeated attacks
on the British positions in the pass. After protracted opera-
tions the pass was secured and the advance into the Chamla
valley carried out ; but the expedition lost 20 officers (16 British
and 4 native) and 219 men killed and 670 wounded. The
object of the expedition was, however, attained. Malka, which
had been made the chief stronghold of the Hindustani fan-
atics, was destroyed by the people of Buner themselves as
a guarantee of their submission, and the colony has never
recovered its former power.
Mohmand Country. — A tract north-west of Peshawar Dis-
trict, North-West Frontier Province, lying between 33° 30' and
34° 40' N. and 70° 30' and 71° 30' E., with an area of about
1,200 square miles. Its boundaries are : on the east and north,
the Swat and Ambhar rivers ; on the west, the Afghan territory
of Kunar; and on the south, the watersheds of the Kabul
river. Those of the Mohmands who live west of the Afghan
boundary are subject to the Amir. The majority of the tribe,
who live between Afghanistan and the border of Peshawar
District, are under the political control of the Deputy-Com-
missioner of Peshawar ; but there is an increasing tendency
to settle in the District, in the doabs between the rivers. The
Mohmand settlers seldom remain, however, during the summer
months, being what is described as Do-Kora (' two homes ').
The tract is naturally divided into the rich alluvial lands along
the Kabul river from Jalalabad to Lalpura, and a network of
hills and valleys from Lalpura eastward. The aspect of the
Mohmand hills is dreary in the extreme, coarse grass, scrub
wood, and dwarf palms being the only vegetation. In summer
the desert tracts radiate an intolerable heat, and water is scarce.
This, coupled with the unhealthiness of the river lowlands,
accounts for the inferiority of the Mohmands to their Afrldi
and Shinwari neighbours in physique, and they are little re-
cruited for the Indian army. The crops are largely dependent
on the rainfall, and, should this fail, considerable distress
ensues. The hills, indeed, cannot support the population.
The country exports little except grass, firewood, dwarf-palm,
and charcoal. But there is a considerable through trade, the
226 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
carrying of which supplements the people's resources. They
also levy dues on the timber rafted down from Kabul. Since
the Khyber Pass was opened, however, the routes through the
Mohmand country have lost much of their importance. The
Mohmands are closely allied to the Yusufzai Pathans. Under
them are two vassal tribes : the Safis, probably Kafirs converted
to Islam, of whom little is known; and the Mullagoris, who
inhabit the country between the Kabul river and the Khyber
Pass. This tribe is a small one and cannot muster more than
500 to 800 fighting-men, but has now for many years maintained
its independence and denies ever having held a position of sub-
ordination to the Mohmands. The Mohmands formed one of
the group of Afghan tribes which, driven eastward by Mongol
inroads between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries, overran
the country west and north of Peshawar District, expelling
or subduing the Hindu and non-Afghan races. Their success
was in great measure due to their possession of hereditary
chiefs or Khans, who kept together forces which have gradually
worn down the resistance of the disunited Shinwaris. The chief
of these is the Khan of Lalpura, but there are several minor
Khans, and one family claims that title as the hereditary
guardian of the sarishta or code of tribal law and custom.
The Khans of Lalpura, at various times, owed allegiance
to Akbar and Shah Jahan, to Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah
Durrani. About 1782, however, Arsala Khan of Lalpura
revolted against Timur Shah Durrani, but was compelled
to submit, and was executed at Peshawar in 1791. Thereafter
the history of the family is one of constant bloodshed. Saadat
Khan, who held the Khanship for forty years, was a faithful
vassal of the Barakzai dynasty of Afghanistan, but in 1864
he was arrested by the Amir for constant aggressions on the
British border and died a prisoner at Kabul. After a period
of anarchy, Akbar Khan was appointed in 1880 by the British
Government. His extravagance and dissipation, however,
greatly diminished his influence, and in 1896 he resigned
his position and now lives at Kabul. In 1896 also the
Utmanzai, Dawezai, Halimzai, Tarakzai, and Pindiali Moh-
mands came under the sole control of the British Government,
and have received allowances from that date. In 1903
allowances were also fixed for the Musa Khel Mitai Moh-
mands. The Mohmands have a great reputation for bravery
among the neighbouring tribes, and can muster about 18,000
fighting-men. They are fairly well armed.
During the early period of British rule the Mohmands gave
KHYBER 227
more trouble than any other frontier tribe, and for many years
their history was a series of wanton outrages in British terri-
tory, culminating in the unprovoked murder of a British officer
in 1873, and followed by the usual punitive expeditions. In
1895 the Mohmands, with no other justification than the Adda
Mulla's fanatical preaching, joined in the resistance to the
Chitral relief force. In 1897, they were among the first
to raise the standard of jihad against the British power, and
attacked SHABKADAR. The Mohmand country was accordingly
invaded from Bajaur by two brigades of the Malakand field
force under Sir Bindon Blood, and from Shabkadar by two.
more under Sir Edmond Elles.
A branch of the tribe has settled in the south-west corner
of Peshawar District, and is now quite separate from the maia
body.
Khyber (Khaibar). — The celebrated pass leading from Situation.
Peshawar District in the North-West Frontier Province into
Afghanistan, the centre of the pass lying in 34° 6' N. and
71° 5' E. The name is also applied to the range of hills
through which the pass runs. The Khyber mountains form,
indeed, the last spurs of the Safed Koh, as that mighty range
sinks down into the valley of the Kabul river. The elevation
of the connecting ridge is 3,400 feet, but it rises to 6,800 feet
in the Tartara peak. On either side of it are the sources of
two small streams, one flowing north-west to the Kabul river,
the other south-south-east towards Jamrud. The beds of these
streams form the Khyber defile.
The Khyber Pass is the great northern route from Afghan- Descrip-
istan into India, while the Kurram and Gomal Passes form tlon>
intermediate communications, and the Bolan Pass is the great
southern passage. The pass begins near Jamrud, 10^ miles
west of Peshawar, and twists through the hills for about
33 miles in a north-westerly direction till it debouches at
Dakka. The most important points en route are All Masjid,
a village and fort 10^ miles from Jamrud; Landi Kotal,
the summit of the pass, 10 miles farther; and Tor Kham,
at which point the pass enters Afghan territory, about 6 miles
beyond Landi Kotal. The plains of Peshawar District stretch
from the eastern mouth of the pass, and those of Jalalabad from
the western. Outside the eastern gate is the remarkable collec-
tion of caves at Kadam, and beyond its western limits are many
interesting remains of Buddhism and of ancient civilization.
The pass lies along the bed of a torrent, chiefly through slate
rocks, and is subject to sudden floods, especially in July,
Q 2
228 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
August, December, and January. The gradient is generally easy,
except at Landi Khana, and the road is in good condition.
The elevation, in feet, at various points of the pass is :
Jamrud, 1,670 ; All Masjid, 2,433 '> Landi Kotal, 3,373 ;
Landi Khana, 2,488 ; Dakka, 1,404. The ascent over the
Landi Khana pass is narrow, rugged, steep, and generally the
most difficult part of the road. Guns could not be drawn
here except by men, and then only after the improvement of
the road ; the descent is a well-made road, and not so difficult.
Just beyond AH Masjid the road passes over a stretch of
uneven and slippery rock, which is extremely difficult for laden
animals. The Khyber can be turned by the Mullagori road,
which enters the hills about 9 miles north of Jamrud, and
either joins the Khyber road or keeps to the north of the
range and emerges at Dakka.
History. The Khyber has always been one of the gateways into
India. Alexander of Macedon probably sent a division under
Hephaistion and Perdiccas through the Khyber, while he him-
self followed the northern bank of the Kabul river, and thence
crossed the Kunar valley into Bajaur and Swat. Mahmud of
Ghazni only once used the Khyber route, when he marched
to encounter Jaipal in the Peshawar valley. The Mughal
emperors Babar and Humayun each traversed it more than
once. Nadir Shah, advancing by it to attack Nasir Khan,
Subahddr of Kabul under the Mughal government, was opposed
by the Pathans; but he led his cavalry through Bazar, took
Nasir Khan completely by surprise, and overthrew him near
Jamrud. Ahmad Shah Durrani and his grandson Shah
Zaman, in their invasions of the Punjab, also followed the
Khyber route on several occasions. The Mughal emperors
attached great importance to the control of the Khyber, but
were singularly unsuccessful in their attempts to keep the
route open. Then, as now, it was held by the Afridi Pathans,
a race implacably hostile to the Mughals.
Jalalabad, first fortified by Humayun in 1552, was further
strengthened by his son Jalal-ud-din Akbar, after whom it was
named ; and the latter emperor so improved the road that
wheeled carriages could traverse it with ease. But even in his
reign the Khyber was infested by the Roshania sectaries, who
wielded great influence over the Afghan tribes ; and the
Rajput general Man Singh had to force the pass in 1586,
when Akbar desired to secure possession of Kabul on the
death of his brother Mirza Muhammad Hakim. In 1672,
under Aurangzeb, the tribes waylaid the Subahddr of Kabul,
KHYBER 229
Muhammad Amln Khan, in the pass, and annihilated his
army of 40,000 men, capturing all his treasure, elephants,
women, and children.
The first British advance into the Khyber was in 1839, British ex-
when Captain Wade was deputed to conduct Shahzada Timur petitions,
to Kabul via Peshawar, while his father Shah Shuja was
escorted thither by the army of the Indus via the Bolan Pass
and Kandahar.
During the first Afghan War the Khyber was the scene of First
many skirmishes with the Afridis and of some disasters to our
troops.' Captain Wade, with from 10,000 to 11,000 of all
arms, including the Sikh contingent, moved from Jamrud on
July 22, 1839, to Gagri; here he halted a day and entrenched
his position ; on July 24 he again marched to Lala China ; on
the 25th he moved to the attack of All Masjid, sending a
column of 600 men and 2 guns, under Lieutenant Mackeson,
to the right and 1 1 companies of infantry, one 6-pounder gun,
and one howitzer to the left; while below a column was placed
to watch the mouth of Shadi Bagadi Gorge. Both columns
drove the enemy before them, the right meeting with some
opposition, and the left getting into a position to shell the fort.
On the 26th all the enemy's outposts were driven in, and on
the 27th they evacuated the fort. The enemy had $a<)jazail-
chis, or musket-men, and were supported by several hundred
Afridis. The British loss was 22 killed and 158 wounded.
After this there was no further opposition.
A strong post was left in All Masjid and a detachment near
Lala China to maintain communication with Peshawar, and a
post of irregulars under Lieutenant Mackeson was placed near
Dakka. The post near Lala China was attacked during the
operations. It was garrisoned by Yusufzai auxiliaries, whose
numbers had been thinned and the survivors worn down
by continued sickness, when the Afridis, estimated at 6,000
strong, attacked their breastwork. They were long kept at
bay, but the marauders were animated by the lust of plunder,
and persevered in their attacks. They were aware that the
devoted garrison had recently received their arrears of pay,
and that a sum of Rs. 12,000 was buried on the spot. Finally,
they carried the weak fieldwork, and put to the sword 400 of
its defenders. They did not keep possession of it, but, after
repeating their vain attempts on All Masjid and the posts in
the valley, retired to their mountains.
When Jalalabad was blockaded, it was proposed to send
a force through the Khyber to its relief, and as a preliminary
23o NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
measure Lieutenant-Colonel Moseley was detached to occupy
All Masjid with two regiments of native infantry. He marched
on the night of January 15, 1842, and reached the place with
little opposition the next morning. Through some mis-
management, however, only a portion of the provisions re-
quisite for the two regiments accompanied them. It became
necessary, therefore, to forward the residue without delay ;
and Brigadier Wilde advanced from Jamrud with the remain-
ing two regiments (the 6oth and 3oth native infantry and
4 Sikh guns). But the appearance of Colonel Moseley's
detachment had alarmed the Afridis, who now rose and,
closing the pass, prepared to resist Brigadier Wilde's entrance.
The Brigadier nevertheless pushed onwards on January 19,
and encountered the enemy at the mouth of the pass ; but,
owing to the uselessness of the Sikh guns and the inadequacy
of his force with so powerful a body of the enemy advanta-
geously placed in his front, his attempt to reach All Masjid
totally failed. The situation of Lieutenant-Colonel Moseley,
shut up in All Masjid, with scarcely any provisions, now
became desperate ; but he was successful in forcing his way
back to Jamrud.
The next occasion on which the Khyber was used as a
great military road was when General Pollock advanced on
April 6, 1842. On his return to India the British army
marched through the Khyber in three divisions. The first,
under General Pollock, passed through with no loss. The
second, under General M'Caskill, was not equally fortunate.
One brigade being overtaken by night left two mountain-train
guns with the rear guard, which was suddenly attacked, and
the guns were taken, but recovered next day. The rear guard
of General Nott's force was also attacked on November 5
and 6 between Landi Khana and Lalabagh, and again on
leaving All Masjid.
Second It was at All Masjid in 1878 that Sir Neville Chamberlain's
wfran friendly mission to the Amir Sher All Khan was stopped and
repelled with threats. An ultimatum was therefore handed to
the Amir's general, Faiz Muhammad, in All Masjid ; and the
day specified having passed without the return of an answer,
Afghanistan was invaded by three British columns, one of
which started from Jamrud at the mouth of the Khyber.
On the second day of the campaign the fortress of All
Masjid was brilliantly captured by the British troops under
General Browne. The successful passage of the Khyber, and
the unopposed occupation, first of Dakka at the western mouth
KHYBER 231
of the pass, and then of Jalalabad in the plains beyond, imme-
diately followed. The treaty which closed the war in May,
1879, left the Khyber tribes for the future under British
control. From that date the history of the Khyber Pass is
bound up with that of the Khyber Political Agency, which
includes Mullagori country north of the Khyber, Tirah of the
Afridis, and the country on both sides of the Khyber Pass.
None of it is administered, but the pass is kept open and is
picketed twice a week for the passage of caravans.
The Khyber Political Agency is bounded on the north Khyber
by the- Kabul river and the Safed Koh ; on the east by
Peshawar District ; on the south by the Aka Khel and Orakzai
countries; and on the west by the Chamkanni and Masuzai
countries, and the Safed Koh. The Khyber Pass between
Jamrud and Landi Kotal originally belonged to the Shinwaris,
Zakka Khel, Kuki Khel, and the Orakzai only. At the time
of the extension of Sikh rule to Jamrud the Orakzai were
ousted by the Afridis, and the only trace of their presence is
a ruined village near Jam. The Sikh rule never extended
beyond Jamrud. When Colonel Mackeson was negotiating
with the Afridis in 1840, the Malikdm Khel Maliks of Chora
forced their way between the Zakka Khel and Kuki Khel, and
established a small village at Katta Kushta near All Masjid.
The Sipah Kambar Khel and Kamrai Khel also, seeing the
advantages of a footing in the Khyber, stepped in, and were
admitted to a share in the Khyber allowance.
After the Sikh War the Afridis took service in large numbers The
in the Indian army, and when the Mutiny of 1857 broke out Afndls>
they did exceedingly well. From 1857 to 1878 the Afridis
were subsidized by the Afghan government, who kept a garrison
of Afghan troops at All Masjid. The Afridis were, however,
never on good terms with the Afghans. They very often
visited the British officers of Peshawar District ; but relations
with them were maintained through the Khalil and Mohmand
Arbabs of Peshawar District, who were generally of an intrigu-
ing disposition, and very seldom did any real service. Their
main object was to keep those tribes in a state of unrest, and
thus enhance their own importance. A year or two before the
second Afghan War Amir Sher All summoned ihejirgas of all
the Afridis and Shinwaris, and distributed about 5,000 rifles to
them. When war broke out, and All Masjid was attacked and
turned, the Afghans and Afridis fled in great disorder, and the
Afghans were robbed of their clothes and rifles by the Afridis
in the Khyber and in Bazar. The Afridis, and especially the
232 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
British
control.
Outbreak
of 1897.
Bazar Zakka Khel, subsequently harassed the passage of the
British troops through the Khyber, and a force was sent against
them in December, 1878.
By the Gandamak Treaty of 1879 between the British and
Amir Yakub Khan, it was agreed that the British Govern-
ment should retain the control of the Khyber Pass ; and, in
pursuance of this agreement, allowances were fixed for the
Afrldis, aggregating Rs. 87,540 per annum. The management
of the pass was entrusted to the tribesmen themselves through
their Maliks, who executed a formal agreement by which they
undertook to guard it with their tribesmen. Some local levies
called jezailchis (which afterwards became the Khyber Rifles),
numbering about 400 men, were also raised for escorting
caravans through the Khyber. These were eventually increased
to 600 strong.
In 1897 disturbances broke out all along the frontier. The
Afrldis remained quiet for some time, but in August they
attacked the Khyber posts and sacked the fortified sarai at
Landi Kotal. They met with opposition from the Khyber
Rifles, but the garrison could not hold out owing to want of
water. To punish the Afrldis for this violation of their engage-
ments, a force was sent into Tirah under Sir W. Lockhart,
and a fine of Rs. 50,000 and 800 breech-loading rifles was
recovered from them by April, 1898. In October of the same
year a fresh settlement was made with the Afrldis, by which
they undertook to have no intercourse with any power except
the British, and to raise no objection to the construction of
railways or roads through the Khyber. On these conditions
the allowances were restored, with a small increase of Rs. 250
for the Kambar Khel. The Khyber Rifles were augmented to
two battalions of 600 each, 50 of the total being mounted, and
were placed under British officers.
Afridis. — A tribe of Pathans inhabiting the mountainous
country south of the KHYBER Pass, which is commonly called
TIRAH. The chief subdivisions of the Afridi tribe are as
follows : —
Section.
Habitat.
Strength (estimated).
Kambar Khel . {
Maidan, Bara Valley .
Kajuri Valley
| 4,500 fighting-men.
Kamrai
Bara Valley
600 „ „
Kuki Khel . . {
Khyber .
All Masjid, Jamrud .
1 4,ooo „ „
Malik Din Khel .
Mardan
5,°°o ,, »»
Sepaiah (Sipah) .
Bara Valley and Ka-
juri Plain
1,200 „ „
Zakka Khel
Khyber, Bazar, and
Bara Valley .
4,5°° »» :»
TIRAH
233
Jamrud. — Fort and cantonment just beyond the border of
Peshawar District, North-West Frontier Province, situated in
34° N. and 71° 2 3' E., at the mouth of the Khyber Pass, 10^ miles
west of Peshawar. Population (1901), 1,848. Jamrud was
first fortified in 1836 by Hari Singh, the Sikh governor of
Peshawar. It is now the head-quarters of the Khyber Rifles,
and is the collecting station for the Khyber tolls, and contains
a considerable sarai. A large mobilization camping-ground
has been selected 3 miles on the Peshawar side of Jamrud, and
arrangements have been made for supplying water to it from
the Bara water-works. Jamrud is connected with Peshawar by
a branch of the North-Western Railway.
Landi Kotal. — A post in the Khyber Pass, North-West
Frontier Province, situated in 34° 6' N. and 71° 8' E., and the
westernmost point on that route occupied by the British
Government. The kotal or pass crosses a small subsidiary
watershed 3,600 feet above sea-level, and thence descends to
the frontier of Afghanistan near Landi Khana. In August,
1897, the post was attacked by the Afridis and carried, despite
a stubborn defence by the Khyber Rifles. The fort is of the
ordinary type, consisting of a keep and an outer fort with
accommodation for 5 British officers and 500 native officers
and men. Since 1899 it, like the other posts in the Khyber,
has been garrisoned by the Khyber Rifles, an irregular corps
of militia recruited from the tribes of the Khyber Agency.
Tirah. — A mountainous tract of unadministered territory in
the North-West Frontier Province, lying between 33° 37' and
34° N. and 70° 30' and 71° 15' E. It is inhabited in the
summer months by all the sections of the Orakzai, two sections
of the Jowaki Afridis, and by the Kulla Khel subsection of the
Asho Khel sections of the Adam Khel Afridis. The name is
also used in an extended sense to include almost the whole
territory except the Bazar and Khyber valleys inhabited by
these tribes, the portions occupied by them in the winter
months being distinguished as Lower Tirah. Tirah thus con-
sists of the country watered by the Mastura, one of the main
branches of the Bara, which flows through the centre of the
country, the Khanki Toi, and the Khurmana — three rivers
which rise within a few miles of Mittughar (12,470 feet), a
point on the Safed Koh in 33° 55' N. and 70° 37" E.
At Mittughar the Safed Koh range splits up into several
branches, between which lie the valleys of Tirah. The prin-
cipal of these are the Rajgal, Maidan, and Waran, inhabited
by Afridis ; and the upper portions of the Mastura and Khanki
234 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Tois and of the Khurm5na Darra, which are occupied by the
Orakzai. Of the various branches of the Safed Koh, the most
northern runs due north from Mittughar for about 16 miles,
and then divides into two spurs. One of these runs northward
and, after throwing out to the east lesser spurs which enclose
and form the Bazar, Khyber, and Shilman valleys, abuts on the
Kabul river. The other, known as Surghar, runs eastward
and, dividing the Bazar and Chura valleys from that of Bara,
ends in the Peshawar valley in the Kajuri plain. A second
branch runs south-east, dividing Afrldi Tirah from the Khur-
mana Darra, and throwing out to the east two spurs, one of
which divides the Rajgal from the Maidan valley, while the
other, which divides Mastura from Maidan in its prolongation
eastwards, ends at Tanda Utman Khel, where it meets the
combined streams of Waran and Mastura. At Srikando, a
depression due north of this range, the valleys of Waran and
Maidan are separated. The main spur known as the Saran
Sar range ends abruptly at the junction of the two branches
at So Toi or Maruani, which is separated from the Kajuri plain
by the Gandah Gallha.
Another range, the Sampagha, after throwing out a large spur
which divides the Khanki Toi from the Khurmana Darra, con-
tinues eastward, separating the Khanki Toi from the Mastura
valley, to the Mazighar peak (7,940 feet), where it turns sharply
to the north to Landukai and then again past Kohat. The
Zawa and Samana range in its eastern extension ends at Shabu
Khel, where it is cleft by the Khanki Toi, which runs east and
west between the Khanki valley on one side and Miranzai on
the other.
The valleys round the sources of the main rivers have an
average elevation of 5,000 to 7,000 feet, and are buried in
snow in winter, but afford abundant pasturage in summer. In
winter, the climate of Tirah is intensely cold, except in the
Bara, Lower Mastura, and Khanki valleys, which become hot
and unhealthy later in the year. Elsewhere the summer climate
is pleasant and healthy. The rainfall exceeds that of Peshawar
and Kohat Districts. That on the Samana averages 2 1 inches
a year, and in the Khanki valley about the same, while in the
Khurmana and Upper Mastura valleys it is greater, and in the
Bara and Lower Mastura less.
The original inhabitants of Tirah were the Tirahis, probably
a Tajik race, who were driven out of the country by the Pir-i-
Roshan, ' the apostle of light ' ; and a remnant of them fled to
Nangrahar. Soon afterwards, in 1619 or 1620, Mahabat Khan,
TIRAH 235
Subahddr of Kabul under the emperor Jahangir, treacherously
massacred 300 Daulatzai Orakzai, who were Roshania converts ;
and, during his absence on a visit to Jahangir at Rohtas,
Ghairat Khan was sent with a large force via Kohat to invade
Tirah. He advanced to the foot of the Sampagha pass, which
was held by the Roshanias under Ihdad and the Daulatzai
under Malik Tor. The Rajputs attacked the former and the
latter were assailed by Ghairat Khan's own troops, but the
Mughal forces were repulsed with great loss. Six years later,
however, Muzaffar Khan, son of Khwaja Abdul Hasan, then
Subahddr of Kabul, marched against Ihdad by the Sugawand
pass and Gardez, and after five or six months' fighting Ihdad
was shot and his head sent to Jahangir. His followers then took
refuge in the Lowaghar; and subsequently Abdul Kadir, Ihdad's
son, and his widow Alai, returned to Tirah. The death of
Jahangir in 1627 was the signal for a general rising of the
Afghans against the Mughal domination. Muzaffar Khan was
attacked on his way from Peshawar to Kabul, and severely
handled by the Orakzai and Afridis, while Abdul Kadir attacked
Peshawar, plundered the city, and invested the citadel. Abdul
Kadir was, however, compelled by the jealousy of the Afghans
to abandon the siege and retire to Tirah, whence he was in-
duced to come into Peshawar. There he died in 1635. The
Mughals sent a fresh expedition against his followers in Tirah ;
and Yusuf, the Afridi, and Asar Mir, the Orakzai chief, were at
length induced to submit, and received lands at Panlpat near
Delhi. Simultaneously operations were undertaken in Kurram.
Yet, in spite of these measures, Mir Yakut, the imperial
Dlwan at Peshawar, was sent to Tirah in 1658 to repress an
Orakzai and Afridi revolt.
Since the decay of the Mughal empire Tirah has been
virtually independent, though owning at times a nominal
allegiance to Kabul. Tirah was first entered by a British force
in 1897, when the Orakzai and Afridis rose in jihad or religious
war against the British. The Orakzai attacked the Samana,
and the Afridis attacked Landi Kotal and the other posts in
the Khyber Pass. These violations of British territory neces-
sitated the dispatch of 34,500 men into Tirah, under the late
Sir William Lockhart. The main body advanced from Shinawari
in the Mlranzai valley over the Chagur Kotal, the precipitous
heights of Dargai near which, being held in force by the enemy,
were gallantly stormed. The troops advanced across the
Khanki and Mastura valleys over the Sampagha and Arhanga
passes to Maidan and Bazar, whence the whole of Tirah was
236 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Bonn-
overrun, returning to Peshawar by the Bara valley in December.
The names of the principal subdivisions of the two main tribes
are given in the articles on AFRIDIS and ORAKZAI.
Bazar. — Valley in the Khyber Political Agency, North-West
Frontier Province, running east and west between the Surghar
range on the south, the Ilacha Ghar or eastern extension of the
Safed Koh on the east, and the Turo Sar range to the north,
between 33° 38' and 35' N. and 70° 37' and 71° E. Its eleva-
tion ranges from 3,000 to 4,000 feet, and that of the enclos-
ing hills from 5,000 to 7,000 feet. The valley is sterile in
the extreme, save where the village lands are irrigated from the
hill streams. The people are Afridis of the notorious Zakka
Khel or clan, the most active thieves on the frontier, against
whom on three occasions punitive expeditions have been sent.
In 1878 their attacks on the line of communications in the
Khyber during the second Afghan War compelled a punitive
expedition. Major Cavagnari led an armed body of Kuki
Khel Afridis, supported by guns, against them, and inflicted
some punishment ; but a regular expedition followed in
December, which effectively chastised them at small cost
of life. Nevertheless the clan continued to give trouble, and
another expedition had to be sent into the valley in 1879, after
which the clan submitted. In 1897 two columns under Sir
William Lockhart entered the valley by the Chora and Ilacha
passes at its eastern extremity, and destroyed the principal
villages.
Orakzai. — A tribe of Pathans inhabiting the north slopes
of the Samana range and the adjoining valleys of TIRAH. The
chief subdivisions of the Orakzai are as follows : —
Strength.
Strength.
Masozai
4.500
Ismailzai
2,OOO
Laskkarzai .
6,50x5
Mishti .
3.000
Alizai .
500
Malla Khel
800
Muhammad Khel
300
Sheikan
3,000
Daulatzai .
2,000
Alikhel
. 3,000
figuration,
and hill
and river
systems.
Kurram Agency (Kuram). — A Political Agency in the
North-West Frontier Province, lying between 3-*° 19' and
0 , VT , . 0 . 0 ' °_ ° . .
34 3 N. and 69 39 and 70 28 E., and compnsmg that
section of the valley of the Kurram river which lies between
the Peiwar Kotal in the west and the borders of Mlranzai in
the east The Agency has an area of about 1,278 square miles,
its maximum length from Thai to the Peiwar Kotal being
72 miles as the crow flies, and its breadth varying from 12 to
24 miles. Bounded on the north by the Safed Koh or ' White
Mountain ' (called in Pashtu the Spin Ghar), which separates
KURRAM AGENCY 237
it from Ningrahar, it adjoins Para-Chamkanni and the country
of the Massozai section of the Orakzai and that of the Zaimusht
tribe on the east, its south-eastern corner abutting on the
Miranzai country of Kohat District. On the south it borders
on Northern Wazlristan ; and on the south-west and west it
is contiguous with the Afghan district of Khost, of which
the Jaji Maidan or plain, the Chamkanni country, and Hariob
Jaji lie on its western extremity.
The principal range in the Agency is the Safed Koh, .the
crest of which forms the watershed between the Surkhab river
or valley of Jalalabad and the Kurram. In this range the
loftiest peak is Sikharam, 15,620 feet above sea-level, which
forms the extreme north-west corner of the Agency. From
it the range runs almost due east, falling to 14,200 feet at
Badni Sar, the peak above Zeran, and to 11,760 feet at the
Agam pass, but rising again to 13,010 feet at the peak above
Khanrai in the north-eastern corner of the Agency. From
Sikharam, a lower range, whose crest forms the western border
of the Agency, and which is crowned by the Peiwar Kotal
or pass, runs southwards, abutting on the Kurram river. On
the south lies a lower and more irregular range, whose crest
forms the boundary of Khost. Its highest peak, Khost
Khoram, rises to 8,536 feet above the sea, but its mean
elevation is only 5,000 feet, the Darwazgai peak being 6,395
feet. From this range descends a spur through whose extremity
the Kurram river appears to have cut a passage opposite
Sadda, and which divides the valley into two parts, Upper
and Lower Kurram. Upper Kurram is thus almost com-
pletely encircled by ranges of hills of very varying height,
except where the Kurram river enters and leaves it. It is
a wide open valley, mostly comprised in the sloping plain
formed by the debris from the southern face of the Safed Koh,
which descends to the Kurram river and is intersected by
numerous streams. In this plain lie Parachinar, the head-
quarters, Shalozan, Kirman, and most of the principal villages
of the Agency. Above Parachinar the valley attains a width
of 15 miles. Lower Kurram is a narrow valley shut in by
broken ranges of comparatively low elevation, though it widens
to the south-east of Balyamln.
The only river in the Agency is the Kurram itself, which
runs closer to its southern than to its northern border, especially
in Upper Kurram. Rising in the hills near Ahmad Khel,
it flows at first south-westward, and then turns sharply to the
east, entering the Agency near Kharlachi and thence flowing
238 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
due east to Kurram Fort. East of that place its trend is some-
what southward ; and at Sadda it turns sharply to the south
until it reaches Maro Khel, whence it curves south-east as far
as Thai, in Kohat District. On the north it is fed by numerous
streams, of which the principal are the Shalozan, Zeran, Kirman,
and Kurmana ; and on the south by several torrents, the
Sarkalla, Minawar, and Taoda Shiga being the chief.
In Lower Kurram the scenery is tireary and barren, only
relieved by the narrow strips of cultivation along the river
banks ; but Upper Kurram is one of the most beautiful valleys
in the Province, the encircling hills being well wooded and
many of the villages picturesque, though the plain is for the
most part as yet uncultivated and bare of trees. The climate
also varies. In the winter even Lower Kurram is very cold
and a bitter wind prevails, while in the summer it is hot and
dry. Upper Kurram is never unpleasantly hot even in summer,
while in winter snow covers the ground for weeks.
History. Legend says that the aborigines of Kurram were deos or
demons who were ruled by their king the Safed Deo until the
kingdom was overcome by two brothers, Shudani and Budani,
from the north. Their descendants held sway for many
centuries in Kurram, until they were in turn overwhelmed by
invaders from the north. The authentic history of Kurram
begins in 1148, when Bahrain Shah of Ghazni, after his defeat
by Saif-ud-din of Ghor, fled to Kurram, whence he returned
and recovered Ghazni. In 1163 Muhammad of Ghor was
placed in charge of Istia and Kasri-Kajuran by Ghiyas-ud-din,
Sultan of Ghor, his brother; and in 1176-7 he conferred
Sankuran (identified by Raverty with the modern Shalozan)
and Kirman on Taj-ud-din Yalduz. It was at Kirman that
Muhammad of Ghor used to halt every year on his way into
India. There too on his last expedition he conferred on
Taj-ud-din the black banner, thereby designating him his
successor, and after his assassination his body was taken back
to Ghazni through Kurram. Kirman remained Taj-ud-dln's
capital for a time, and to it he retreated after his defeat by
Kutb-ud-dm Aibak in 1206. But in 1215 he was driven out
of Kirman by the Sultan Muhammad Khwarizm Shah, who
made over Ghor and Ghazni to his son Jalal-ud-dln Mankbarni.
A few years later the tract was occupied by the Mongols.
In 1235 Saif-ud-din Hasan, Karlugh, gained possession
of Ghazni, Kirman, and Banian (? Bannu), but was driven out
of his territories by the Mongols in 1239. After this Kurram
disappears from history, until in 1552 Humayun, who then
KURRAM AGENCY 239
held Kabul, occupied it before his reconquest of India. Under
Akbar it formed part of the toman of Bangash or the Bangashat,
being known as Upper Bangash to distinguish it from Lower
Bangash, now Kohat District. The Afghans of this tract,
called Karlarni Afghans, were, as a body, disciples of the
Pir-i-Roshan, and hence became known as Roshanias. These
sectaries led the Afghan opposition to Mughal rule, and
Kurram formed one of their chief strongholds. Although they
were suppressed under Jahangir, the Mughals appear to have
had little real control over Kurram, which was nominally
governed, independently of Kabul, by thefaujdars of Bangash
from Kohat. On the break-up of the Mughal empire Kurram
became part of the kingdom of Afghanistan ; but in the mean-
time the Afghan tribes of Bangash had been overcome by
the Turis, a tribe of Turkish origin belonging to the Shiah
sect of Muhammadans, who speak Pashtu and now rank as
Pathans. The Bangash tribes who remain in" the valley are
now hamsayas or clients of the Turis.
After the annexation of Kohat the Turis, in league with
other tribes, repeatedly harassed the Mlranzai border, attacking
the Bangash and Khattak villages in Kohat. In 1854 an
agreement was made with them ; but their raids continued,
though punitive measures were not resorted to, as the tribe
was held to be under the control of the Amir of Afghanistan.
Their raids increased in audacity, and in 1856 a force under
Brigadier-General Neville Chamberlain entered the valley.
Compensation, the payment of which was guaranteed by the
Afghan governor Ghulam Jan, was exacted, the Turis agree-
ing to pay Rs. 8,630. In 1859 the Turis joined the British
expedition against the Kabul Khel Wazirs ; but their feud with
that tribe subsequently gave much trouble, reprisals being
undertaken by Wazirs in British territory for Turi outrages,
and in 1876 serious disturbances arose between the Bangash
of Lower Kurram and the British village of Thai out of
a boundary dispute. In 1877 the Turis were discontented
with the oppressive administration of Shahbaz Khan, governor
of Kurram ; and when the Amir demanded from them a con-
tribution of Rs. 50,000 (a poll-tax of Rs. 5 on every adult
male) and 6,000 recruits for his war against the British, they
revolted and fled to the hills. Attempts to pacify the tribe
were unsuccessful for a time, but the Turis at last agreed to
send a jirga to 'Kabul and pay a benefaction of Rs. 25,000,
while Shahbaz Khan was recalled by the Amir.
In November, 1878, a column under General Roberts
24o NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
entered Kurram from Thai, and occupied Kurram Fort on
the 25th of that month. On December 2 the Afghans were
defeated at the Peiwar Kotal, and on the 26th a British force
marched from Kurram into Khost, which was occupied till
the end of January. The conclusion of peace in May, 1879,
prevented further operations, until in September of that year,
on the reopening of the war, General Roberts' force, which had
remained in occupation of Kurram, again crossed the Shutar-
gardan. The Turis now co-operated with the British expedition
against the Zaimukhts, whose hostility had been marked by
the murder of Lieutenant Kinloch ; and Kurram was held
without further disturbance till its evacuation in October, 1880.
The Turis throughout furnished supplies, their levies were
employed in escorting convoys, and they, with the Bangash,
petitioned that the British should take over the valley and free
them from Afghan rule ; but it was determined to evacuate
the country and the tribe was declared independent. Internal
feuds broke out in a few months, and throughout 1882-4 the
Turis were constantly fighting among themselves, as well as
with the Jajis and Zaimukhts. The administration of the
valley was finally undertaken by the British Government at
the request of the Turis themselves in 1892.
The The Agency contains 166 villages besides Parachinar, its
peop e. head-quarters, and in 1901 it had a population of 54,257.
Administratively, it is divided into Upper and Lower Kurram.
The bulk of the population is Pathan, nearly 44,000, or 81 per
cent., being of that race. The Turis, with nearly 12,000, form
the strongest element among the Pathan tribes; and next to
them are the Bangash (6,000), the Chamkannis, Ghilzai,
Mangals, and Orakzai. The few Hindus are nearly all Aroras,
that caste numbering nearly 2,000. The language of the people
is Pashtu, but Hindkl is spoken by the resident Hindu popula-
tion. Hindkl or Hindko is the Pashtu name for Western
Punjabi as spoken by Hindus and some other people, e.g.
the Peshawar city folk, along the frontier. Agriculture is
virtually the sole occupation of the people, as nothing but
tfce most primitive industries are carried on ; and all but the
barest necessaries of life are imported into the valley. Silk,
for which Kurram was in ancient times famous, is still
produced and manufactured.
General Wherever water is available for irrigation, the soil is highly
productive ; but owing to the absence of a settled government
ditions. and the internal feuds of the people, the cultivable area is not
all under cultivation, and irrigation is only carried on by small
KURRAM AGENCY 241
channels constructed and maintained by a single hamlet or
family. Hitherto the autumn harvest of rice, maize, and oil-
seeds has been the more important, and it pays two-thirds
of the land revenue ; but the spring harvest of wheat, barley,
and clover is of increasing value. Apples, pears, grapes,
cherries, pomegranates, peaches, and a fruit peculiar to the
Kurram and Tlrah, known as the shalil, also grow ; and with
improved communications fruit-growing will probably become
an important industry. Famine is unknown in Kurram.
Kurram is now accessible from Kohat by the Khushalgarh- Means of
Kohat-Thal branch of the North- Western Railway. This does
not enter the Agency, but a good tonga road runs from the
terminus at Thai to Parachinar (54 miles), crossing the Kirman
stream by a fine bridge. From Parachinar the road is un-
metalled and passes via Kharlachi to Hariob. Unmetalled
roads or bridle-paths also lead from Parachinar to Peiwar,
from Kharlachi to Peiwar, from Mir Jamal to Uchadarra, and
from Parachinar to Walai China via Lakka Tigga. All were
constructed in 1893.
For administrative purposes the Agency is divided into Upper Adminis-
and Lower Kurram, each being under a naib-hdkim. stationed V?1.^6
divisions
at Parachinar in Upper, and Sadda in Lower Kurram. The and staff.
naib-hakims are under the control of the Political Agent, who
is also aided by a Revenue Assistant.
The Indian Penal Code, the Criminal Procedure Code, the Civil
Frontier Crimes Regulation, the Frontier Law and Justice
Regulation, and the Murderous Outrages Regulation have
been extended to Kurram, while Turizuna or the customary
law of the Turis is enforced, all cases being settled by the
Political Agent and his Assistants. The Turizuna^ though
unwritten, is well-known to the maliks or heads of tribes, and
they decide what the custom is in any given case. The cases
of a civil character are chiefly for the recovery of loans,
possession of land, declaration of rights to water, questions
of inheritance, possession of women, and disputes relating
to revenue. Murder and violent crime are not very common,
the chief offences being robbery and theft, especially of
cattle, arson, mischief to fruit-trees, and abduction.
The rates of land revenue paid under Afghan rule varied
from one to two rupees per jarib (about half an acre), but
various other taxes were also levied. Thus the governor in
1886 fixed a poll-tax at Rs. 2-8 on menials (barbers and
Dums or minstrels), and at Rs. 3-8 on artisans and adult male
Hindus. Each mill paid Rs. 3-8 a year, and dues were levied
242 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
on all sales of ponies and cattle. These taxes were equal in
amount to the land tax, and the valley was farmed for a total
sum of a lakh.
Land The aim of the British Government was at first to carry on
revenue. the revenue administration as far as possible on the Afghan
system. A summary settlement was made in 1893-4, when
the amount levied by the Afghan governors was ascertained
and distributed in due proportion over individual holdings.
The settlement was sanctioned for ten years ; and including
malikana on crown lands, revenue from mills, and taxes on
artisans' shops (the latter being a substitute for the poll tax),
the demand amounted to Rs. 67,300 (Kabuli). The all-round
rates adopted were (in Kabuli currency) Rs. 3-5-0 per acre of
cultivated land, Rs. 3-8-0 per mill, and Rs. 2-8-0 to Rs. 3
per artisan's shop. Cash payments or remissions of revenue
amounting to about Rs. 19,000 were granted to leading men
for political services or assistance in general administration,
while smaller grants were sanctioned for the up-keep of shrines,
rrosques, temples, and especially mdtim kotdhs or Shiahs'
mourning houses.
No regular measurements were made, but the cultivated
area was estimated roughly at 30,222 acres. A brief and
incomplete record-of-rights was prepared, but some of the
complicated tenures were left undecided, and no arrangements
were made for keeping the record up to date. A few returns
and statements were prescribed for maintaining a check on the
collection of the land revenue and for lapsed assignments.
Thus the revenue administration consisted of the collection of
revenue, reassessment of estates subject to alluvial action, the
maintenance of irrigation embankments, and harvest inspec-
tions in the crown lands. The revenue work is supervised by
the Revenue Assistant, who is also Treasury officer. He is
assisted by a mirdb (who looks after irrigation), 4 patwdris,
and a tahsll accountant. The resettlement of the valley began
in 1904. It involves the conversion of the assessment from
Kabuli into British rupees, and the preparation of a regular
record-of-rights, including definitions of the different kinds of
tenure, pedigree tables, irrigation customs, and maps of the
cultivated land based on accurate measurements, and the
reorganization of the revenue staff. The new demand is
Rs. 71,500 British per annum, which in five years will rise
to Rs. 88,000.
Police and Police duties are performed by the Kurram militia, a force
Jalls- 1,466 strong under a commandant. The lock-up at Parachinar
WAZIRISTAN 243
has accommodation for 100 prisoners, and two lock-ups at
Sadda and Allzai can each accommodate 10 prisoners.
Kurram stands below all the Districts of the North-West Education.
Frontier Province in the literacy of its population, only 1-88
per cent. (987 males and 25 females) being able to read and
write in 1901. It possesses seven indigenous schools, now aided
by grants from Imperial funds, at Parachinar and six of the
principal villages, besides those in the mosques where the
Koran and other religious books in Persian and Arabic are
taught; in the dharmsalas the Hindus and Sikhs also learn
the Granth and other religious books in Gurmukhi. Muham-
madan girls are occasionally taught to read the Koran. The
Bangash Pathans of Shalozan are, however, mostly literate,
and to their enlightenment is attributed the freedom from
superstition which characterizes the rest of the valley.
There are two civil dispensaries, at Parachinar and Allzai, Hospitals
with accommodation for 12 male in-patients, and a female and di?~
. . . . , ... pensanes.
ward for 4 m-patients at the former, besides two military
hospitals. In 1903 the number of cases treated was 16,472, of
which 323 were in-patients. The expenditure was Rs. 4,763,
met from Imperial funds.
A vaccinator is posted at Parachinar, and in 1903-4 Vaccina-
1,708 persons were successfully vaccinated in the Agency.
Parachinar. — Head-quarters of the Kurram Agency, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 33° 52' N. and 70° 4' E.,
117 miles west of Kohat and 16 from the Peiwar Kotal, 3 miles
from the southern slopes of the Safed Koh, in a plain naturally
fertile but hitherto uncultivated owing to the absence of irriga-
tion. Population (1901), 2,847. Parachinar possesses a tem-
perate climate in which English flowers and fruit-trees grow
well. The station was first occupied in 1893, and is now the
head-quarters of the Kurram militia and the residence of
the Political Agent, Kurram. It contains a school, hospitals,
and jail, but has no trade.
Sadda. — Post in the Kurram Agency, North-West Frontier
Province, now garrisoned by a detachment of the Kurram
militia. It lies in 33° 30' N. and 70° 7' E., on the left bank
of the Kurram river. Under Afghan rule Sadda was the
head-quarters of the governor of Kurram.
Waziristan, Northern. — A Political Agency in the North-
West Frontier Province, lying between 32° 45' and 33° 15' N.
and 69° 30' and 70° 40' E., with an area of about 2,310 square
miles. It is bounded on the north and east by the Districts of
Kohat and Bannu, and on the south by the Shaktu stream,
R 2
244 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
from the point where it enters the latter District to Shuidar at
its head. From Shuidar the boundary follows the eastern
watershed of the Shawal valley as far as Drenashtar Sar, and
then runs north-east along the Durand Line to Kohisar in
the country of the Kabul Khel Wazirs and Biland Khel. The
Agency thus comprises four large and fertile valleys : in the
north, the Lower Kurram valley between the Kurram Agency
on the upper reaches of that river and Bannu District; the
Kaitu valley ; DAUR in the valley of the Tochi, the most open
and fertile of the four ; and the Khaisora valley in the south.
Between the Kaitu and Tochi lie the Sheratulla and, north of
Miram Shah, the Dande — two barren plains, each about 30
square miles in area. Another plateau, called the Spereragha,
similar to the Sheratulla but smaller, lies between the Kurram
and the Kaitu. With these exceptions, the valleys are separated
by high barren hills. The loftiest peak is Shuidar (11,000
feet), at the western end of the Khaisora valley. The hills are
generally composed of eocene sandstone and conglomerate,
through which great masses of limestone crop up, and their
surface is covered with crumbling soil, which in flood-time fills
the streams with the silt that fertilizes the valleys. The low-
lands are feverish and unhealthy from August to October, and
in the summer months the people migrate to the Shuidar
highlands, which enjoy a perfect climate. With the exception
of the Daurs of the Daur valley, the people of Northern
Wazlristan all belong to the Darwesh Khel branch of the
Wazirs, who are divided into two main sections, the Utmanzai
and Ahmadzai. Both these sections are subdivided into
numerous clans. The Darwesh Khel are perhaps the least
tractable of the Pathan tribes, and their continued raids on
the Daurs impelled the latter in 1894 to petition the British
Government for protection. In consequence, Daur was taken
over and is now under a form of direct administration, while
the WazTrs are merely under political control. Under the
agreement made with the Amir of Afghanistan in 1893, the
boundary of that State was demarcated in 1894-5 without
open opposition from the Darwesh Khel. Raids in British
territory, however, continued, and in 1897 troops were sent
from Datta Khel to enforce the collection of a fine which had
been imposed on the village of Maizar. The villagers treacher-
ously attacked this force, killing five British officers and men,
and as a punishment their lands were laid waste by a military
expedition. The tribe then submitted, and the Wazirs held
aloof from the subsequent risings on the north-west frontier,
WAZlRISTAN 245
though their raids continued. For some years the tract
between Thai and the Tochi in the Lower Kurram valley
inhabited by the Kabul Khel section of the Utmanzai remained
a veritable Alsatia, in which a number of outlaws from British
territory found a refuge. Finally, in November, 1902, columns
entered it from the Tochi, Bannu, and Thai. The tribesmen
offered but little opposition, but at Gumatti a gang of outlaws
made a desperate resistance. All towers were blown up and
their rebuilding has not been permitted. Large numbers
of outlaws (about 250) surrendered themselves after the opera-
tions, and the country has since been opened by the tribe to
the passage of troops and British officers. Roads have been
made from Thai to Idak in the Tochi and to Bannu. Peace
is now kept in the Tochi valley, the only portion of the Agency
which is administered, by a militia corps of 1,318 men, of
whom 106 are mounted, the regular troops having been with-
drawn in 1904.
Boya. — Village in the Daur valley in the Northern Wazir-
istan Agency, North-West Frontier Province, lying in 32° 5 7' N.
and 69° 57' E., on the right bank of the Tochi river at an
elevation of 3,600 feet. It contains 62 houses of the Boya
Khel Tappizad Dauris, and is garrisoned by the Northern
Waziristan militia.
Idak. — Village in the Daur valley, in the Northern Waziristan
Agency, North- West Frontier Province, lying in 32° 57' N. and
70° 15' E., on the left bank of the Tochi river, 28 miles west
of Bannu. Its inhabitants belong to the Idak subdivision of
the Tappizad Dauris. About \\ miles north-east of the vil-
lage is a post garrisoned by the Northern Waziristan militia.
Miram Shah (Mlrdn ShdK). — Head-quarters of the Northern
Waziristan Agency, North- West Frontier Province, situated in
33° 57' N. and 70' 7' E., in Daur (the Tochi valley), about 57
miles west of Bannu. Its elevation is 3,050 feet above the sea,
and it comprises three or four hamlets. It is now garrisoned
by the Northern Waziristan militia.
Maizar. — Village on the southern bank of the Margha river in
the Madda Khel territory, Northern Waziristan Agency, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 32° 54' N. and 69° 37' E.
On June 10, 1897, the Madda Khels treacherously attacked the
Political officer's escort, and shot down several British officers
and sepoys of the force under the walls of the village. A puni-
tive expedition was dispatched, which exacted a fine of Rs. 10,000,
besides Rs. 9,000 as compensation for the property taken in the
attack, and the surrender of six of the ringleaders.
246 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Daur. — Valley in the Northern Waziristaii Agency, North-
West Frontier Province, lying between 32° 50' and 33° N. and
69° 55' and 70° 25' E. The valley lies on the banks of the
Tochi, extending from the point where that river leaves the
Wazir hills to where it re-enters them near Khajuri, about 15
miles from the western border of Bannu District. Daur is
thus entirely surrounded by the Wazir hills, the highest peak
in it being Vezhda (7,700 feet). Its length is 35 miles and its
breadth averages i^ miles, but it widens to 5 or 6 miles at
its broadest part. The protected area, which extends to the
crests of the hills nearest the river on both banks, measures
about 700 square miles. Like most frontier valleys, it is
divided into Lar or Lower and Bar or Upper Daur, the former
comprising the larger area. The climate is bracing and healthy
in the cold season, but feverish and unhealthy in the hot
months, especially in August and September. The annual
rainfall probably exceeds 15 inches.
Of the ancient history of Daur nothing is known. A mound
near Idak is said to mark the site of its ancient capital. In
1700 Bahadur Shah, then viceroy of Kabul, passed through
the valley on his way from Khost to Bannu after effecting an
arrangement with the tribes ; but on his return in the following
year his forces were repulsed, and he was compelled to pay
heavy sums to secure an unopposed passage. Eventually
Daur fell nominally under Durrani rule ; but it remained
virtually independent till 1893, when by the treaty with the
Amir of Afghanistan it came within the British sphere of
influence, the actual boundary being demarcated in 1895.
While the Demarcation Commissioner was in Daur, the people
petitioned that the whole valley should be taken over by the
British Government, in order to protect them against the raids
of their neighbours, the Wazirs and Mahsuds.
Daur contains about 75 walled hamlets. Its resident popu-
lation in 1903 was 24,670. These are mostly Dauris, a race
of 'gross satyr-like spadesmen,' morally the lowest of the
Afghan races. Other Afghan tribes despise the Dauris, whom
they describe as the progeny of a Bannuchi father and a Dum
or low-caste mother. The Dauris are diligent, hardworking,
and patient cultivators, developed physically by the use of the
spade, the plough being useless in the heavy alluvial soil of
the valley ; but though fanatical, they are unwarlike. Their
neighbours, despite frequent efforts, were never able to oust
them from their valley, though the Wazirs have established
small settlements wherever they could get a foothold, and hold
WAZlRISTAN 247
a large area in proportion to their numbers. Of the resident
population 21,000 are agriculturists and entirely dependent on
the soil, the pressure on which is heavy.
The lands of the valley are extremely rich, and grow heavy
crops of maize, rice, millet, sugar-cane, wheat, and barley.
The growth of trees is only now beginning, but promises well.
Mulberry, chindr, willow, and fruit trees do best. There is
a fairly extensive weaving industry, for which cotton is im-
ported. The cultivated area is 15,262 acres, or about five-
eighths of an acre per head of population. Tenants cultivate
about one-third of this area and pay heavy rents in kind,
two-thirds of the gross produce being the usual amount.
Daur used to be celebrated for its horses, but the breed is
now extinct. Goats and sheep find good grazing in the neigh-
bouring hills, despite their barren appearance.
The system of irrigation is that common in the Afghan hills,
being carried on by means of channels cut from the Tochi
river and its tributary torrents. These watercourses are so
well designed that the cultivated area in Daur proper is hardly
capable of great extension, though flood-channels which would
carry the fertilizing flood-waters of the Tochi to the higher
lands are feasible, and will greatly improve the quality of a
large area.
The principal customers of the Dauris are the surround-
ing Wazir tribes, to whom the surplus produce of the valley
is sold. It has no other trade.
Daur is under the Political Agent, Northern Waziristan, who
is assisted by a tahsllddr and three naib-lahslldars. The Indian
Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure, and also
Regulations III and IV and VII of 1901, are in force in Daur;
but as a rule Muhammadan law modified by local customs is
administered. The principle underlying these customs is the
usual Pathan claim of 'an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a
tooth ' ; but every Dauri has his price, whereby his wounds or
pride may be salved, and for most offences a fixed sum is laid
down by paying which an offender may pacify the party he has
injured. In practice, however, the amount actually paid de-
pends on the strength and influence of the opposing parties,
and the weaker usually goes to the wall. As a rule, a Hindu
or a woman counts as half a man. Intention is not regarded,
only the result, so that accidental homicide incurs all the
penalties of murder. The blood feud flourishes, and is regu-
lated by a short and simple unwritten code. There is a regular
tariff for bodily injuries, and theft is punished by a fine.
248 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Under the terms of their petition of 1895, the Dauris agreed
to pay a tithe of the gross produce to the British Government.
For eight years this tithe was commuted into a payment of
Rs. 8,000, levied by means of a house-tax ; but in 1903 a
revenue settlement of the valley was made, a record-of-rights
being drawn up and the tithe assessed at Rs. 36,000. In
addition, a shop and artisan tax of Rs. 1,500 is levied, raising
the total revenue of the valley to Rs. 3*7,500. This assessment
has been sanctioned for ten years from the autumn of 1903,
with the proviso that if any considerable number of villages
desire to pay in kind, they shall be permitted to do so.
Government schools have been established at Miram Shah,
I dak, Hassu Khel, and Tappi.
Boun- Waziristan, Southern.— A Political Agency in the North-
fia"Xio°nn' West Frontier Province, lying between 31° 55' and 32° 45' N.
and hill ' and 69° 20' and 70° 15' E., with an area of about 2,734 square
and river mjies< it is bordered on the north by the range which
terminates in the Ghalimighar and divides it from Northern
Waziristan, while on the east its boundary runs due south
along a continuation of the Babaghar range to Jandola, whence
it rises to the Girni Sar and then descends to the valley of the
Gomal river above Murtaza. On the south as far as Kajuri
Kach in the Gomal valley it is separated from the Shirani
country by the hills south of the Gomal river, the highest of
which is the famous Takht-i-Sulaiman. West of Kajuri Kach
the Gomal is the boundary between the Agency and the
Baluchistan District of Zhob. On the west it extends to the
Durand Line, demarcated in 1894.
The Agency includes all the country occupied by the Mahsiid
branch of Wazlrs, and, on the west, portions of the country of
the Darwesh Khel Wazlrs. The whole area is mountainous in
the extreme, the chief peaks bejng Shuidar (11,000), Janimela
(8,400), Pir Ghal (n,6oo), Kundighar (8,100), Girni Sar
(5,800), Drenashtar Narai (8,750), Momin (10,800), and
Sarwar Gul (10,700). The last two are in the Marwattai
range which runs along the Afghan border.
The outer spurs of the Wazir hills are to the eye utterly
barren and desolate, though here and there the scanty soil
nourishes a few stunted wild olive and gurgurra bushes. These
hills, however, afford good grazing for goats. The inner hills
with their greater elevation are more thickly wooded with ilex
and pine, and the grassy uplands are dotted in places with wild
flowers. To the south-west the aspect of the country changes
into wide open plains, which from a distance look like rolling
WAZIRISTAN 249
grassy pampas, but are covered with stones and boulders and
scored by waterless ravines. The chief plains are Zarmelan
north-east of Domandi, Wana, and Spin.
The only river worthy of the name in Southern Wazlristan is
the Gomal, which has a strong current, with a depth of 2 to
20 feet, and a width of 20 to 100 yards, even in times of
drought. Entering British territory at Domandi in the south-
west corner of the Agency, it flows almost due east along its
southern border, receiving numerous tributaries on its left
bank, but only one, the Zhob, of any importance on its right.
It then breaks through the Sulaiman range and debouches on
the Derajat plains near Murtaza. The only other perennial
streams are the Tank Zam and its tributary the Shahur, which
drain the whole Mahsud country ; and the Wana Toi, which
rises at the head of the Dhana valley and falls into the Gomal
at Toi Khulla. The others are mere torrents, dangerous after
heavy rainfall, but dry at most seasons of the year.
Ilex, deodar, edible and blue pines are the only timber trees, Flora,
but these grow abundantly on the mountains above 7,000 feet.
The dwarf-palm grows freely in places and is used to make
mats. The seed of the edible pine-cones, walnuts, apricots, and
gurgurra berries are the only common fruits, but on the Spera
range the wild pistachio is found. Grass is abundant on the
higher ranges, and shrubs such as the acacia (palosi) and wild
olive (khawan] in the valleys.
Straight-horned markhor and uridl are to be found in many Fauna,
of the higher hills, and ' ravine deer ' in the valley and in the
Wana plains. The Greek partridge, sist, bustard, and a few
black partridge and pigeon are the chief game birds, and the
coronetted sand-grouse breeds in the Wana plain, where duck
and snipe are also found. A fine breed of sheep dogs, re-
sembling the Scotch collie, is kept by the Wazirs. Bears,
leopards, wolves, and hyenas are found in the more inacces-
sible hills, the two latter only visiting the valleys in winter. The
streams contain mahseer and other kinds of fish.
The climate is dry and in the winter months bracing, but Climate,
from July to September there are constant thunderstorms.
Though the country is beyond the reach of the regular mon-
soon rains, the resulting dampness renders the climate of the
lower valleys, especially the Gomal, enervating and unhealthy.
The autumn is usually rainless until December, when rain or
(above 4,000 feet) snow and hail fall, and in January and
February the snowfall is fairly heavy. The temperature in
spring, even in the lower valleys, is very pleasant; but as
25o NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
summer approaches the heat becomes excessive, being aggra-
vated by the barrenness of the rocky gorges. The water-supply
is scanty. The water of the Gomal is slightly saline, while that
of the Zhob is too brackish to be drunk. The upper ranges
have a pleasant climate ; and such places as the Saruna plateau
near Babaghar, the upper slopes of the Marwatti range, and
notably the beautiful upland valley of Zindawar near Baghar
China, possess every climatic advantage over the lowlands and
valleys in summer.
History. The Mahsuds were formerly notorious as the most inveterate
raiders on the north-west frontier; and in 1860 a long series of
outrages culminated in an attempt to sack the town of Tank in
Dera Ismail Khan District, which was frustrated by Resaldar
Saadat Khan in command of a detachment of the 5th Punjab
Cavalry. This was followed by a punitive expedition under
Brigadier-General Chamberlain which, in the same year, ad-
vanced to Kaniguram and inflicted great loss on the tribe,
but did not secure its submission. The raids continued ; and
though in 1863 the Mahsuds entered into an agreement to
keep the peace it was promptly broken, while in 1878 they
advanced, 2,000 or 3,000 strong, on Tank and burnt the town.
This incident was the signal for an outbreak of violence, in
which several villages were burnt by the lawless tribes on
the border, and which was only suppressed after severe fight-
ing. In 1 88 1 a second punitive expedition invaded the Mahsud
country and again penetrated to Kaniguram, but failed to exact
compliance with the conditions imposed by the British Govern-
ment, and the blockade was continued until hostages were
given and the compensation due from the tribe was gradually
realized by a tax on all their exports into British territory. From
1881 to 1891 the conduct of the Mahsuds was satisfactory; and
in 1889 Sir R. Sandeman succeeded in opening up the Gomal
Pass, nearly Rs. 50,000 in annual allowances being paid to
the Mahsuds in return for their guarding it. The Ahmadzai
Wazlrs of Wana also received allowances. In 1892 the Amir
of Afghanistan made attempts to obtain control of Wazlristan,
and in the summer of that year numerous offences were com-
mitted in British territory. Troops were then advanced to
Jandola and Kajuri Kach ; and the Amir's agents having with-
drawn, affairs settled down again until the garrisons were
reduced, whereupon raiding began again in the Gomal and
Zhob valleys, and in June, 1893, a British official was murdered.
The murderers were surrendered, but two of the maliks who
handed them over were in turn assassinated. During 1893 the
WAZIRISTAN 251
Amir renounced all claims to Wazlristan, and in 1894 a British
Commission was appointed to demarcate the boundary from
Domandi northwards. Meanwhile, the Wazlr outrages had not
ceased, and the British Government resolved to accept the
invitation of Ahmadzai Darwesh Khel of Wana to occupy their
territory, thereby hoping to secure the peace of the Gomal
Pass. Spin and Wana were declared protected areas ; but the
escort encamped at the latter place was attacked by the
Mahsuds under the Mulla Powinda, a religious leader, who
had assumed the title of Bddshdh-l-Taliban^ or 'King of the
Seekers -(after knowledge),' and acquired great influence over
the Mahsuds. A third punitive expedition was dispatched
in the cold season of 1894-5 under Sir W. Lockhart, whose
columns overran the Mahsud country, and severely punished
the sections of the tribes which had been implicated in the
attack on Wana. The boundary with Afghanistan was then
finally demarcated; and in 1896 Southern Wazlristan was con-
stituted a Political Agency under a Political Agent subordinate
to the Commissioner of the Derajat, with head-quarters at
Wana. During 1896-7 affairs were quiet in the Agency, and
it was the only portion of the north-west frontier which did not
share in the general rising of 1897-8. But between July, 1898,
and the end of 1899, numerous outrages occurred and, though
a conciliatory policy was adopted, the outrages continued, until
in 1900 the Mahsuds were strictly blockaded. The British
Government was eventually able to treat with a full tribal jirga
capable of enforcing its decrees on the whole community, and
the terms imposed by Government were accepted by it. The
Darwesh Khel have at no time given trouble, and since the
blockade the Mahsuds have refrained from raiding in British
territory. This has rendered possible the withdrawal of the
regular troops ; and except at Jandola, where there are two
companies of regulars, the only force now maintained for the
safeguarding of the protected area is the Southern Wazlristan
militia, 1,576 strong, including 159 mounted men.
The dominant tribe of Southern Wazlristan is the Wazirs, The
who are divided into two main branches, the Darwesh Khel people,
and the Mahsuds. Migrating from Birmal at the close of the
fourteenth century they occupied Shawal and the Kohat border
north of the Tochi, which river they subsequently crossed, and
from the hill country round Shuidar gradually spread south-
wards to the Gomal. The two branches of the Wazirs are now
at feud. Other elements in the population are the Ghilzai
Powindas, of whom the Dotanni clan has settled at Spin and
252 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
Tribal
customs.
Agricul-
ture.
Mines and
minerals.
Arts and
manufac-
tures.
Wana ; the Hindus ; and the Saiyids and Urmars of Kani-
guram. The Wazlrs speak a very broad dialect of Pashtu, with
curious modifications of the vowels. For instance, ' Hindu ' is
pronounced ' Indi.' Their vocabulary contains a few Punjabi
words thus disguised l.
The Wazlrs do not in theory carry out a blood feud to its
bitter end as do other Pathans, for the death of the offender
generally extinguishes the feud ; but*if he escapes, the life of
a relation may be taken, and as this may be in turn avenged,
the feud tends to become interminable, as it is among the
Afridis. On the other hand, a murder may be compounded,
but only on payment of a heavier sum than is usual among
Pathans, Rs. 650 being the fixed amount. Professional assassins
are often employed to punish a murderer, the hire being from
Rs. 60 to 150, which is also the price of a bride. The people
are by instinct intensely democratic, and any man may rise by
courage and wisdom to the position of malik or leader ; but
these maliks have often little influence and no real authority,
and many who have attempted an untoward assumption of
it have been assassinated.
Though the lands which lie close to the numerous streams
are well cultivated, their extent is insufficient to produce grain
for the whole population. Wheat, barley, rice, maize, and millet
are the chief crops, and these are often cut when green
for fodder, springing up again before the harvest. Potatoes,
introduced fifty years ago, are cultivated around Kaniguram.
The kine are small, black, nimble creatures, and are in
much better condition than is usual in India. Goats are
numerous, as are sheep, all of the fat-tailed variety ; but none
are sold, as they only suffice for local requirements.
A stretch of alluvial land beside a river-bed is called a kach
in Wazlri Pashtu ; and in the valleys and kachs the land is
generally terraced and irrigated by channels cut out of the
hill-side, often with considerable labour and engineering skill.
The chief mineral product is iron, which is found and
smelted in many places, especially in the hills above Makln,
one of the chief strongholds of the Mahsuds.
Iron is made into knives and utensils, and was formerly made
into jazai/s, or matchlocks, at Kaniguram. The artisans are
almost all of the Nazar Khel, a section of the Mahsuds. Mats
and ropes are made of the dwarf-palm by the men, and the
women weave rough cloth from wool and blankets from goats'
1 J. G. Lorimer, Grammar and Vocabulary of Waziii Pashtu, Calcutta,
1902.
WAZIRISTAN 253
hair. The Dotanni Ghilzai Powindas of Dotanni Kot near
Wana are carpenters, goldsmiths, and leather-workers.
Apart from the carrying trade throughout the Gomal valley, Commerce
which is in the hands of the Powindas, the exports of Southern trade.
Wazlristan consist of timber and firewood, mats and ropes,
hides, and ghi, which are carried down by the Wazirs to Tank,
Bannu, and Kalabagh on the Indus, piece-goods, grain, and
raw sugar being brought back in exchange.
Wana. — A wide open valley, containing the Wana post,
the head-quarters of the Southern Wazlristan Agency, North-
West Frontier Province, lying in 37° i8/ N. and 69° 44' E.
The valley is 12 miles long by 8 broad, lying west of the
Mahsud highlands, from which it is separated by the Janimela
group of mountains. The elevation of the valley varies from
5,780 to 4,300 feet, and it forms a stony plain intersected by
many torrents, the principal being the Dhana, which is called
the Wana Toi on entering the plain. Most of the water flow-
ing down these channels is used for irrigation, the land along
the Toi being extensively cultivated and yielding good crops.
The plain is chiefly inhabited by Wazirs, but its former inha-
bitants, the Ghilzai Powindas, still hold the large village of
Dotanni Kot. In 1894 Wana was the scene of the attack by
the Mahsuds under the Mulla Powinda on the British delimit-
ation escort under Brigadier-General A. H. Turner, wjnich
resulted in the repulse of the Mahsuds with a loss of 350
killed and 700 wounded, the British loss being 45 killed and
75 wounded.
Gomal Pass (Gumat). — The route which leads along the
valley of the Gomal river, through the Southern Wazlristan
Agency, North-West Frontier Province, from Murtaza and
Domandi, on the borders of Afghanistan and Baluchistan, to
the Afghan plateau. The Gomal is the oldest of all the trade
routes in this quarter. Down it there pours yearly a succes-
sion of kafilas or caravans led and followed by thousands of
well-armed traders, called Powindas, from Afghanistan to India.
These traders belong to the Ghilzai race, of which the chief
tribes are the Dotannis, Sulaiman Khel, Nasirs, Kharotis,
Jandran, &c.
Mahsuds. — The country of the Mahsuds lies in the south
of Wazlristan, North-West Frontier Province. It is hemmed
in on the north and west by the Utmanzai Darwesh Khels, on
the south-west by the Ahmadzai of Wana, and on the east by
the Bhittannis. On the south of the Mahsud country a tract
on both the north and south side of the Gomal Pass is devoid
254 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
of permanent inhabitants. The permanent neighbours of the
Mahsuds in this direction are the Shiranis, whose country lies
south of the tract referred to. The Mahsud country hardly
comes in contact with British India; all the passes from it
which debouch on to British territory pass through the country
of the Bhittannis. The Gomal Pass is the sole exception to this
rule, and several routes lead from it^ to the Mahsud country.
This pass has always been considered as belonging to the
Mahsuds, though actually it is outside the limits of their country.
The Mahsuds renounced their claim to raid in the pass, and
undertook to keep it safe in consideration of the allowances
and service granted in the beginning of 1890 at Apozai (Fort
Sandeman), which were revised after the attack made by them
on the Delimitation Commission at Wana in November, 1894.
The Mahsud country is a tangled mass of mountains and
hills of every size, shape, and bearing, and is intersected in all
directions by ravines generally flanked through their course
by high hills. At first sight the whole country appears to be
occupied by hills and mountains running irregularly in all
directions, but there are well-defined ranges which protect the
interior of the country by double barriers, and make penetra-
tion into it a matter of extreme difficulty.
The Mahsuds claim descent from Mahsud, son of Mahmud,
son of Khizri, son of Wazir, and are divided into three main
branches : namely, Alizai, Shaman Khel, and Bahlolzai, each
of which is subdivided into countless sections and sub-sections.
The fighting strength of the three branches is estimated at —
Alizai, 4,042 ; Shaman Khel (including Urmars), 2,466 ; and
Bahlolzai, 4,088 : a total of 10,596. Notwithstanding the
differences in their fighting strengths, the three branches
divide the tribal profits and liabilities into three equal shares
among themselves.
The Punjab Government described the Mahsuds in 1881 as
follows : —
' Notorious as the boldest of robbers, they are more worthily
admired for the courage which they show in attack and in
hand-to-hand fighting with the sword. From the early days of
British rule in the Punjab few tribes on the frontier have given
greater or more continuous trouble, and none have been more
daring or more persistent in disturbing the peace of British
territory. It is no exaggeration to say that for the first twenty
years after annexation not a month passed without some
serious crimes, such as cattle-lifting, robbery accompanied by
murder, being committed by armed bands of marauders from
the Mahsud hills.'
BHITTANNI 255
The description is still applicable, though the behaviour of the
tribe has been good since the blockade of 1901.
The redistribution of the allowances granted to the tribe
in 1895, after the close of the Mahsud expedition, was made
with special reference to the reorganization of the whole
scheme of maliks. The principle which underlies the new
arrangement was that the power and influence of a limited
number of leading maliks in the tribe, and more particularly
in their respective sections, should be enhanced by every
possible means, so as in the first place to enable them to
control' their respective sections as effectively as possible, and
secondly to enable Government to deal with a definite number
of tribal representatives. The plan broke down completely,
for Government was unable to protect the maliks, and the
maliks consequently were reluctant to exert such authority as
they had. The state of the border went from bad to worse
between 1895 and 1900, when the tribe was put under strict
blockade. This resulted in the submission of the tribe
in 1901, when a complete redistribution of allowances was
made. The tribe has since restrained its young men from
raiding ; but fanatical murders by Mahsuds, which were pre-
viously unknown, have given them an unenviable notoriety.
Bhittanni. — A tribe inhabiting the borders of Dera Ismail
Khan and Bannu Districts, North-West Frontier Province,
dwelling partly in independent territory and partly in British
India. The Bhittanni country lies between the Derajat and
Mahsud territory. The area occupied by independent Bhit-
tannis is about 15 miles wide and 25 miles long, extending
from Splnghar and Jandola on the west to the foot of the hills
at the Bain pass on the east, and from the Gabarghar on the
north to Girni Sar on the south. Three-fourths of the tribe,
which numbers between 5,000 and 6,000 fighting-men, are at
present revenue-paying British subjects.
The independent Bhittannis are politically controlled by the
Deputy-Commissioner of Dera Ismail Khan. They are the
hereditary enemies of the Mahsuds, although they have more
than once forgone their time-honoured feud, and either com-
bined with, or aided and abetted, their more rapacious neigh-
bours in attacks and raids in British territory. Now, however,
they have practically become identified as a tribe with British
interests, and they furnish valuable material for a company of
the South Wazlristan militia corps.
In appearance the Bhittannis are not so rough as the
Mahsuds, though in physique they closely resemble them :
256 NORTH-WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE
they have discarded the dress of their neighbours of the
Wazlristan highlands for the more civilized apparel of the
daman, and present a much cleaner appearance. Their pro-
nunciation resembles that of the Mahsuds, but they have a
curious trick of misplacing aspirates, which are in general
correctly sounded by their neighbours.
Their country consists, beyond the administrative border,
of rough stony hills scored by deep valleys, along which there
is a little cultivation here and there, where the inhabitants
have been able to lead the rather intermittent water-supply of
the nullahs on to the cultivable lowland by irrigation channels.
The Bhittanni hills are extremely rough and almost devoid
of verdure, their rugged and barren character being probably
due to the denuding action of rain and sun on the friable
soil of these outer ranges.
Jandola (Jandula). — A Bhittanni village on the right-hand
bank of the Tank Zam stream on the borders of the Mahsud
territory in the Southern Wazlristan Political Agency, North-
West Frontier Province, situated in 32° 20' N. and 70° 9' E.
A fortified post close to the village is garrisoned by 2 com-
panies of regulars and 25 cavalry, besides the Bhittanni levies.
Shirani Country. — A tract on the western border of Dera
Ismail Khan District, North-West Frontier Province, lying
between 31° 30' and 32° N. and 69° 45' and 70° 20' E. It is
bordered on the north by Wazlristan, on the west by Balu-
chistan, and on the south by the Usterana Afghans. The
Sulaiman range, running from north to south, divides the
country into two parts, Largha or 'lowland,' and Bargha or
'highland.' The former had a population of 12,371 in 1901,
and is under the political control of the North-West Frontier
Province ; the latter is under that of Baluchistan. The Largha
Shirani country is administered by an Extra Assistant Com-
missioner with head-quarters at Drazinda, acting under the
general supervision of the Deputy-Commissioner of Dera
Ismail Khan. The country is poor, the lowlanders being
dependent on agriculture, while the Bar Shiranis lead a
pastoral life on the higher slopes of the Takht-i-Sulaiman, to
which the flocks and herds of both sections are sent in
summer. The higher hills are covered with forests of the
chilgoza (Pinus gerardiana), in which each section of the tribe
has a recognized share, and the profits from the sale of the
fruit form a considerable item in their income. The Shiranis
are Afghans, and intensely democratic, though each section
has a nominal chief or neka. Tribal cohesion is weak. Before
TAKHT-I-SULAIMAN 257
annexation the Shiranis had been the terror of the frontier,
carrying off cattle and men and women, whom they held to
ransom. They sacked Draband, which was held by a small
Sikh garrison, and by 1848 had laid waste the border for
miles. In 1853 a British expedition sent against the tribe
secured their submission, but in 1890 a force had to be sent
to coerce the Khiddarzai clan.
In 1899 an agreement was concluded with the tribe,
whereby they agreed to pay Rs. 2,000 as revenue, and the
British undertook the internal administration of the country.
This was carried on successfully until 1902, when the Extra
Assistant Commissioner was murdered by a jamaddr in the
Shirani levies. The murderer was joined by thirty or forty
malcontents, mostly from the Khiddarzai section of the Oba
Khel, and for some months evaded a military force in the
higher ranges of the Takht-i-Sulaiman. He finally made good
his escape to Afghanistan with his gang, whence they come
raiding from time to time.
Takht-i-Sulaiman ('Solomon's throne'). — A shrine (zidraf)
on the mountain of the Sulaiman range, North-West Frontier
Province, known as the Kaisargarh or Kasi Ghar, but usually
called by Europeans the Takht-i-Sulaiman, situated in 31° 41' N.
and 70° E., at an elevation of 11,295 feet above the sea-level.
Tradition says that Solomon halted on a ledge some distance
below the crest on the southernmost bluff of the Kaisargarh
to take a last look over India, whence he was carrying off an
Indian bride to Jerusalem. The shrine marks the spot. The
takht, which was attempted by members of Elphinstone's
mission to Kabul in 1809, was first climbed by a European
in 1883.
[T. Holdich, The Indian Borderland^ chap, iv (1901).]
INDEX
A.
Abazai, fort (1852) and village in Pesha-
war District, on the bank of the Swat
river, here 150 yards broad, 160; its
ferry the highest in British territory,
161.
Abbott, Major James, first Deputy-Com-
missioner (1847-53) of Hazara, 139;
his firm and wise rule before and during
the second Sikh War, 129 ; his land set-
tlement, 135.
Abbottabad, well - timbered tahsil of
Hazara District, 137.
Abbottabad town, head - quarters of
Hazara District and tahstl, 1 39, named
after first Deputy-Commissioner, 139 ;
a municipality and a cantonment, 139,
their finance, 1 39.
Abdul Ghafur, the famous Akhund of
Swat (1835-77), or leader of fanatical
sect, 20, 218, 219, 221 ; Ambela cam-
paign against, 20, 21, 224, 225. See
also Akhund.
Adamzadas, one of the two upper classes
or tribes of Chitral, 211, 213, joined
Umra Khan in the siege (1895) of
Chitral, 212.
Administration, 57-61 ; under the control
of a Chief Commissioner, 57, also in
political areas Agent to the Governor-
General of India, 57, 59 ; his staff, and
a list of the high officials of the Pro-
vince, 57, 58; the five Districts, each
under a Deputy-Commissioner and his
staff, 58; subdivisions, each in charge
of an Assistant or Extra Assistant Com-
missioner, 58 ; the sub-collectorates or
tahsils, each in charge of a tahstlddr
and a naib-tahsildar, 58, kdnungos,
patwdris (accountants), village head-
men, chaukidars or village watchmen,
58 ; Political Agencies, 59 ; legislation
and justice, 59-61.
Afghanistan, trade with, 52, 53, through
Peshawar, 153, 166, by Gomal Pass,
53, 208, its increase since (1901)
partial removal of restrictions by the
present Amir, 53.
Afghans, their migration into Peshawar
in the fifteenth century, 148 ; their rise
to power, 16, their dominant position
in Northern India during the rule of
the Lodls at Delhi, 16; their risings
against the Mughals, 16-18, 235, their
subjection (1738) of the Mughal gover-
nor, 1 8 ; Ahmad Shah Durrani ruler
of the Peshawar valley, 18, 149; the
division of the province between the
Barakzais and Sadozais, 18; frontier
settlements with, the Treaty (1879) of
Gandamak, 21, the Durand mission
(1893-5) and line, 25, 26, et passim
under the Political Agencies; the opera-
tions on or about the Khyber, in the
first Afghan War, 229, 230, in the
second War, 230, 231 ; the history of the
Kurram under, 239, 241 ; withdrawal
(1893) from Waziristan, 250, 251.
Afridi waxcloth, a cotton fabric decorated
with the oil of the wild safflower, 50.
Afridis, the, a Pathan tribe, inhabiting
Tirah, the mountainous tract south of
the Khyber, 232, the names, habitats,
and strength of their chief subdivisions,
232 ; took possession of the Khyber
during Sikh rule, 231 ; took service in
the Indian army after Sikh War and
served well in the Mutiny, 231 ; garri-
soned All Masjid (1857-78) for the
Afghans, but were never on good terms
with them, 231 ; spoiled the Afghans
and harassed the British in the second
Afghan War, 231, 232, agreed to keep
the Khyber (1879), 232, attacked (1897)
the posts and were punished, 232, agreed
to the construction of roads and railways
through the Pass, 232.
Age, statistics of, 29, returns untrust-
worthy, 29, lower mean age of Mu-
hammadans than of Hindus due to
their larger number of children, 29.
Agent to the Governor-General, the Chief
Commissioner, 57.
Agha Khan, the chief of the Khoja com-
munity at Bombay, and head of the
Maulai sect, 213, his adherents in Chi-
tral, 213.
Agriculture, 37-47 ; the difference in soil
and character between sub-Himalayan
Hazara and the rest of the Province,
37> 38; the uncertainty of the rainfall
and the large dependence on irrigation
and floods, 38, 39 ; the two sowings
and the two harvests, their seasons and
crops, 38-41 ; fallows and rotation, 38,
39 ; primitive methods of tillage, har-
vesting, threshing, and winnowing, 39 ;
cultivation of fruits, 41, 42 ; statistics
of agriculture, 85 ; cattle, horses, and
sheep, 43. See also under Agricnltnre
in Districts.
Agriculturists : number dependent on
agriculture, 34, 39; 31 per cent, actual
S 2
260
INDEX
cultivators, 39, peasant proprietors more
than half of these, 39, 46 ; agricultural
landless labourers few, 40 ; their loans
and debts, 42, 43; the rise in wages
and in cost of food compared , 46, 48 ;
the rise in the standard of comfort, 48 ;
their extravagance and improvidence^.
Agror, well-watered and fertile frontier
valley in the Mansehra tahsil of Hazara
District, 139, mentioned in the Rdja-
tarangini and by Ptolemy, 139; its
history since Timur, 140; turbulence
since annexation and punitive expedi-
tions, 140; land settlement and revenue,
140.
Ahmad Shah Durrani, his rule in the
Peshawar valley, 1 8.
Akbar the Great, restored the Mughal
power in the Province, 17, the victories
of Man Singh (1585), 17 ; the Roshania
(1586) revolt, 17 ; gave its present name
to Peshawar, 164; his agreement with
a Khattak chief for the protection of
country south of the Kabul river, 1 70 ;
fortified (1587) the Malakand and
Chakdarra, 221.
Akhund, the, religious and political leader
of a colony of Hindustani fanatics, in
and about the Swat country, founded
(1829) by Mir Saiyid Ahmad Shah,
218, 224; his famous successor (1835-
77), Abdul Ghafur, 20, 218, 219, 221,
his policy of neutrality during and
after the Mutiny, 218, compelled to
side against the British in the cam-
paign of Ambela, 20, 21, 219, 224, 225 ;
his shrine at Saidu, 221, his grandsons,
221.
Akra (or Akarah), ancient site and exca-
vated mound with 'culture strata,' as
of Khotan in Chinese Turkestan, near
Bannu town, 185, 186, 194, 195; finds
of Hindu sculpture, engraved gems,
195, bibliography, 195.
Alexander the Great, his campaign in the
Province, 13.
AH Masjid, village and fort in the Khyber
Pass, io| miles from Jamrud, 227, the
difficulty of the road beyond, 228, its
capture by Captain Wade in the first
Afghan War, and subsequent sieges,
229, 230, its evacuation by Moseley,
230, garrisoned by the Afghans (1857-
78), 231 ; its capture (1878) by Browne
in the second Afghan War, 230.
Alienation of land. See Land Alienation
Act.
Aman-ul-mulk, the great Mehtar (1880-
92) of Chitral, 211, 219, his relations
with the Kashmir Darbar and the Go-
vernment of India, 211 ; the political
confusion and fratricides after his death,
til, 312, -419. See also Umra Khan.
Arab, village in independent Tanawal,
whose ruler is Nawab of Amb, K.C.S.I.,
122, 138, 139.
Ambela, mountain pass in Buner, just
beyond north-east border of Peshawar
District, 20, 21, 219, 224, gave its
name to the Ambela campaign (1863),
20, 21, 219, 224, 225.
Amusements : fairs and festivals, 36 ;
hawking and snaring in Peshawar, 146;
the Peshawar Vale Hunt, the hounds
of, 146.
Aqueducts : of Swat River Canal, 1 20 ;
the famous Jhindi aqueduct, 167 ; of
Bara canal, 118, 119.
Archaeology, general view of, 26-28 ; its
objects, (a) roads, rock-inscriptions,
buildings, and sculptures of Buddhist
or Graeco-Buddhist civilization, 27,
(b*) Muhammadan mosques and reli-
gious buildings, 27, 28.
Area, total of Province, of British terri-
tory, and of tribes, i ; of Districts, tah-
sils, and of tracts under political con-
trol of Agent, given under each. Set
also Table of Distribution of Popula-
tion, 84.
Army, the, 69; its strength, British and
Native, 69 ; its distribution, 69, mili-
tary stations of cavalry and infantry,
69 ; stations of artillery, 69, of sappers
and miners, 69 ; transfer (1886) of Pun-
jab Frontier Force to the control of the
Commander-in-Chief, 69 ; concentration
(1899) of garrisons at Naushahra and
formation of mobile columns at six
centres, 69. See also Cantonments,
Forts, Outposts and garrisons.
Aroras, a trading caste, 33, 130, 150.
Artisans, classes of, 33, 130, 150 See
also under Castes and Occupations in
Districts.
Arts and manufactures, 50-52 ; cotton,
wool, silk, 50, embroidery, jewellery,
metal-work, pottery, 51, woodwork,
leather, factories, 52. Set also under
Arts and Manufactures in Districts.
Arya Samaj, their good work in Bannu
for female education, 192.
Asgram (in Buner), identified with Asi-
gramma of Ptolemy, 224.
Asoka, his rock edicts near Mansehra,
27, 129, 143; established Buddhism in
Hazara and Gandhara, 13.
Attock slate, (geological) series in Ha-
zara, 5.
Aurangzeb, his conciliatory policy to-
wards the Afghans, I7» 18.
Avitabile, General, ruler (1838-42) of the
Province under Ranjit Singh, 18, 140;
enlarged and walled Peshawar, 164,
165.
Awans, or vassals, next in number to
INDEX
261
the Pathans, 33; in Hazara, 130. See
also under Castes and Occupations in
Districts.
B.
Babar, his first (1505) raid into India, 16,
his subsequent control of the Province,
16; quoted on the irrigation of the
Bannu territory, 189 ; his diplomatic
marriage with a Yusufzai princess,
217.
Baffa, town in Hazara District, 140, the
principal mart of Northern Hazara and
adjoining independent tracts and a
municipality, 140, 141.
Bajaur, tract of five valleys in Dir, Swat,
and Chitral Agency, 222; its tribes,
communal party government,chieftains,
and supreme Khan, 222 ; history of,
217, 220.
Bangash, a branch of the Pathans, in-
habitants of the Hangu tahsil of Kohat
District, 169, 170, their characteristics,
172.
Banj (in Buner), possibly the place of
the shrine to commemorate Buddha's
offering of his body to feed a starving
tigress, 27, 223, 224.
Bannu District, 182-195, a circular basin
drained by the Kurram and Tochi
rivers, 182 ; the climate of the District
better than that of the town, 183, 194 ;
left desolate by Mahmud of Ghazni,
and gradually colonized by the Ban-
nuchis and Marwats, 184, ravaged by
Nadir Shah (1738), the Durranis, and
Ranjlt Singh, 184, brought under British
influence (1847) by Herbert Edwardes,
185 ; finally (1849) annexed, 185 ; the
Akra mound, 185, 186 ; its sandy soil,
refreshed by silt, manure, and irrigation
(30' per cent.), 187-189 ; metalled tonga
roads from Bannu town to Dera Ismail
Khan and up the Tochi valley, 189,
190, the important mule road, connect-
ing the outposts on the frontier, 190;
the Marwat tahsil declared insecure
from famine, 190, the diminution of
serious crime since the operations (1902)
against the Kabul Khel, 190; the old
revenue system of collecting from tappas,
191 ; the first settlement by Edwardes,
the last in 1903, and rates of assess-
ment, 191, 192 ; education, most ad-
vanced among the Sikhs, but generally
backward, 192, 193; bibliography,
193-
Bannu tahsil, 193, a green, fertile oasis,
in the dodb of the Kurram and Tochi,
187, 193.
Bannu town (or Edwardesabad), head-
quarters of District, a cantonment with
a fort (Dhullj garh), 193, 194, a muni-
cipality and of considerable trade, 194,
79 miles from Kohat railway station,
194; a waterlogged, unhealthy site,
194; named after its founder (1848),
194; the rising (1849) of the Sikh
garrison, 185.
Bannuchis, a tribe of Bannu District, 184;
their evil characteristics, moral and
physical, 186, 187.
Bara River, a small affluent of the Kabul,
rising in Tirah, 118, long used for
irrigation, 1 1 8 ; its weir for the supply
of two modern canals, 118, 119; sup-
plies water to Peshawar city, 118.
Bara (river) canals, their aqueducts and
tunnels, 118, 119.
Bara Gali, small summer cantonment in
Hazara District, 141.
Barandn, river and valley of Buner, 223.
Barley, next in importance to wheat, its
area, irrigation, and yield, 40. See also
under Agriculture in Districts.
Basic dike rocks (dolerites), 5.
Bazar, valley in Khyber Political Agency,
236, inhabited by the thieving Zakka
Khel or clan of the Afridis, 236, puni-
tive expeditions (1879-98) against,236.
Beecher, Major, his firm hold of Hazara
District during the Mutiny, 129.
Bhang, generally imported from the
Punjab, 66, its considerable consump-
tion, 66, restrictions on sale, 66, duty
on, 66, revenue from, 67.
Bhittanni, tribe inhabiting the hilly, bare
country between Derajat and Mahsud
territory, 255, 256, partly under politital
control of Deputy-Commissioner of
Dera Ismail Khan, 255, expedition
(1880) against, 80; lately identified
with British interests and forming a
company of South Waziristan militia,
255 ; their hereditary feud with the
Mahsuds, 255 ; their more civilized
ways, 256.
Bibliography : of the Province, 77, 78 ;
of Himalayas, 107; of the Indus, 116;
of Districts, Hazara, 137, Peshawar,
157, Kohat, 178, Bannu, 193, Dera
Ismail Khan, 205 ; of Akra, 195, Ka-
firkot, 208, Takht-i-Sulaiman, 257.
Birth-rate, statistics of, 30, the marked
excess (120 to 100) of male over female
births, 30.
Bishops, Anglican and Roman Catholic,
of Lahore, 34.
Black Mountain, range on the north-
western border of Hazara, 107, 25 to
30 miles long, 8,000 feet high, 107, its
passes and gorges, 107 ; its turbulent
tribes, 107 ; numerous punitive expedi-
tions against from 1851 101892, 20-22,
80-82, 107, 108, their complete pacifi-
cation, 1 08.
262
INDEX
Boat-building, 52.
Hokhara, steady decline of trade with, due
to transit and customs dues imposed
by Russia and Afghanistan, 53, trade
through Peshawar, 153, 166.
Botany, general view of, 8-10, of the
plains as of the south -east of Punjab,
mainly shrub jungle, 8, of Waziristan
and of the Kurram valley, 8, 9, of the
Safed Koh, 9, of the hills north of the
Kabul river, 9, of higher nnd more
northerly tracts, as of Kashmir, 10; of
Himalayas, 102, 103. See also under
Botany in Districts.
Boundaries, of Province, i ; of Districts
and Regions, see under first paragraph
in each.
Boya, village in the Daur valley with
garrison of Northern Waziristan militia,
245-
Bridges : (railway) over Indus (and sub-
way) at Attock, 54, in, 154, in con-
struction at Khushalgarh, 54, in Sind,
112; (boat) over Kabul river at Nau-
shahra, 164, over Indus at Attock,
Khushalgarh, Dera Ismail Khan, 54,
55> 56, over Kabul river, 118, 154,
164; (road) over Swat river, 154, 161,
over Lanclai, 154; (swing) over gorges
of the Himalayas, 106 ; (iron suspen-
sion) over the Kunhar, Kishanganga,
and Jhelum rivers, on the main Kashmir
road, 134.
Buddha, his offering of his eyes, 161,
of his body, 27, 223, 224. See also
Buddhism.
Buddhism, remains of, 27; Gandhara a
great centre of, and of Graeco-Buddhist
art, 124, 147, the reports of Fa Hian
(c. 404), Hiuen Tsiang, and of U-K'ong,
124, 147; persecuted (A.D. 515) by
Mihirakula, the Hun, 124; remains of,
in Hazara, 27, 129, 143 ; the stnpa and
shrine where Buddha made an alms-offer-
ing of his eyes, at Charsadda, 161, of his
body to a starving tigress, at Banj, 224,
the begging-pot of Buddha, a holy
pipal tree, and Kanishka's enormous
stupa, once at Peshawar, 164 ; the Gor
Khattri,once a monastery, 1 65 ; Buddh-
ism (c. A.D. 900) of Chitral and
Mastfij, Dlr and Swat, 210, 211, 217;
identification of its sites in Buner by
Dr. Stein, 223, 224; remains of, west
of Khyber Pass, 227. See also Asoka.
Buner, tract on north-east border of
Peshawar District, under political con-
trol of Deputy-Commissioner, 223,
comprises the isolated, fertile basin of
the Barnndu river, 223 ; its interesting
archaeological remains investigated
(1898) by Dr. Stein, 223, 224; its
history, 217-220.
C.
Camels, largely used but not bred save in
Kohat District, 43 ; trade caravans of,
53, 202, 208, 253.
Canals, for irrigation, 43-45, 120-122,
their present and proposed areas of
supply, 43-44, of the Indus, 114, 115,
their administration, 58, 68, 69, revenue
and expenditure, 45, 88; canals south
of Pesnawar, private, 45, 189, 201.
See also under Irrigation in Districts.
Canara, Colonel, in Sikh employ, killed
by insurgents at outbreak of second Sikh
War, monument to at Haripur, 141.
Cantonments: Abbottabad, 139, Bara
Gali, 141, Ghora Dakka, 141, Kala-
bagh, 142, Khaira Gali and Khanspur,
142, Dera Ismail Khan, 207, Hangu,
180; Jamrud, 233 ; Kohat, 180; Mar-
dan, 163, Naushahra, 69, 163 ; Pesh-
awar, 164, 165, 166 ; Cherat, 161, 162.
Castes, classes, and tribes, 32,33 ; Pathans,
3*. 33? A wans, Gujars, Jats, &c., 33;
Hindu castes, 33 ; artisan and menial
classes, 33. See also under Castes in
Districts.
Cattle, poor except the Peshawar buffalo,
43. See also under Cattle in Districts.
Cess, consolidated for District boards, 68.
Chakdarra, military post on the Swat
river, 221, garrisoned (1895) by the
Chitral relief force and since retained,
221; its siege (1897) by the 'Mad
Mulla," 221.
Chamberlain, General Sir Neville, com-
mander (1863) m Ambela campaign,
20, 21, 81, 225, and in 1855, I&fi9j and
1860 in frontier expeditions, 80, 81,
239, 250; his friendly mission (1878)
to Amir of Afghanistan repelled at All
Masjid, 230.
Changla Gali, small hill station in Hazara
District, 141 , head-quarters of Northern
Command School of Musketry, 141.
Charas, hemp drug, imported in bond
from Central Asia, 66, also smuggled
from Bokhara through Chitral, 66, re-
strictions on sale, 66, duty on, 66,
revenue from, 67.
Charsadda, tahsll of Peshawar District,
consists of a well-irrigated and fertile
doabt between the Swat and Kabul
rivers, and of the Hashtnagar tappas
or circles, 158.
Charsadda town, on Swat river, head-quar-
ters of tahstl'm Peshawar District, large
and prosperous, 161, connected with
Peshawar by a good road of 20 miles,
with five permanent bridges of boats, 1 6 1 ;
with Prang identified as Pushkalavati,
capital of region in Greek times, 161,
its extensive ruins and finds of coins and
INDEX
263
pottery, 161 ; once a place of pilgrim-
age and of the stnpa commemorating
Buddha's alms-offering of his eyes, 161.
Chaukiddrs, village watchmen or rural
police, their appointment, duties, re-
muneration, and number, 70, 71, 91.
Cherat, hill sanitarium (4,500 feet) and
(summer) cantonment (1886) in Pesha-
war District, 161, good water-supply
and bearable June nights, 162.
Chief Commissioner, the, also Agent to
the Governor-General, 57.
Chinese pilgrims to Gandhara, their re-
ports on the state of Buddhism, 124,
saw well-wooded slopes now bare, 153.
Chitral, State in the Dir.Swat, and Chitral
Agency, 210-215 > comprises three
fertile, well-cultivated valleys, 210,
214; the Mehtar or chief descended
from Sangln All (d. 1570), 211 ; the
great Mehtar, Aman-ul-mulk (1880-
92), his friendly relations with the
British, 211, his death followed by wars,
fratricides, . and revolutions, 211, 212;
the invasion and successes against the
British of Umra Khan, 212, the siege of
the Political Agent at Chitral (1895),
212, raised by a force from Gilgit and
finally relieved by a force from the
south, 213, the dispersion of invaders
and insurgents, 213; its present reduced
garrison, 213; the visits of the Mehtar
to Calcutta (1900), the Delhi Darbar
(1903)1 and to Peshawar (1904), 213;
the languages and uncertain origin of
the three strata of the people, the
lowest only paying taxes and land
revenue, 213, their religion and justice,
Muhammadan, 213, 214; their mineral
industries, 214; administration and
exaction of revenue, 214; medical, 213 ;
the sale of girls to Afghan harems, 214.
Chitral (Chitrar or Kashkar) town, or
group of villages, 214, capital of Chitral
State and seat of the Assistant Political
Resident, 215 ; the siege (1895) of the
fort, 212.
Chitrali Scouts, a feudal militia of marks-
men, under honorary command of the
Mehtar, for the defence of the passes
into Chitral, 72, their strength, period
of service, and armament, 73, 213.
Cholera, an occasional visitant, deaths
per 1,000 from, 30.
Christian missions, flourishing of the
Church Missionary Society, 34, their
good work in female education, 157,
192, the benefits of the medical mission,
34, 76. See also under Christian Mis-
sions in Districts.
Civil courts of justice, 60 ; statistics of,
87.
Civil and military surgeons, 76.
Clerks, income and expenditure of, 47.
Climate and temperature, very diversified,
of hills and plains, n, 12. See also
under same head in Districts.
Coal, its occurrence in Hazara, 7, 127.
College, Edwardes Church Mission (the
only one in the Province), affiliated to
the Punjab University, 74.
Communication, means of,railways, roads,
rivers, post, 54-56 ; of Hazara District
(no railway), 134, Peshawar, 154,
Kohat, 175, Bannu (no railway), 189,
190, Dera Ismail Khan (no railway),
202, Kurram Agency, 241. See also
Railways, Roads, Rivers, Bridges, Fer-
ries, Fords, Passes, Mail tongas.
Conveyance and Carriage, means of:
mail tongas, 55, other means, mainly
pack-camels, 55.
Copper-ware, hammered, and for Muham-
madan use tinned, a speciality of Pesha-
war, 51 ; the Persian character and
feeling of the forms and chasing, 51.
Cotton, grown mostly in Peshawar and
Dera Ismail Khan Districts, 41, its
area varying between 3 and 109 square
miles according to seasonal, 151 ; im-
portation of, 85.
Cotton, industries, 50 ; imports of piece-
goods, 85.
Courts of justice, civil and criminal, 60,
6 1 ; council of elders, 61.
Cretaceous rocks, with characteristic ceno-
manian fossils, 6, 7.
Crime, statistics of cognizable, 71.
Crimes. See under Civil Justice and
Crime in Districts.
Criminal courts of justice, 60, 61 ; sta-
tistics of, 87.
Crops, determined more by irrigation,
floods, and rainfall than' by fertility of
soil, 38, 39 ; rotation of, 39 ; the prin-
cipal, with their season, area, and yield,
40, 41, 85; double crops, 38, 39, their
area, 85. See also under Agriculture
in Districts.
Crystalline, igneous, and metamorphic
rocks, 4.
Cultivation, conditions and state of, in the
settled Districts, 37-39; cultivated,
cultivable, uncultivable, and non-culti-
vated areas of the Province, 85 ; the
total and cultivated areas of each tahsil,
under Chief Agricultural Statistics in
Districts. See also Agriculture, Crops.
Customary law, its wide sphere of appli-
cation, 59, in the Kurram, 241, of the
Danris, 247, of the Wazirs, 252.
D.
Daman, ' skirt of the hills,' a great plain
stretching between the Indus and the
264
INDEX
Sulaiman mountains, 38, 195 ; a natural
desert transformed by irrigation, 195,
196, 200.
Dargai, military station in the Peshawar
division, 69, 219, at the foot of the
Malakand Pass, 220; railway to, from
Naushahra, 54.
Daur, valley of the Tochi river and only
administered portion of the Northern
\Vaziristan Agency, 246, unhealthy in
the hot season, 246; taken over (1895)
at the petition of the inhabitants, 246,
the Danris, a despised Afghan race of
'satyr-like spadesmen,' 246; the great
fertility of the valley, 247, its cotton-
weaving industry, system of rents, irri-
gation, and customary law, 247 ; the
land settlement, with payment in cash
or kind, 247, 248.
Dead, disposal of, as elsewhere, Hindu by
cremation, Muhammadan by burial, 36.
Death-rate, statistics of, 30; infant mor-
tality, 30 ; deaths from principal dis-
eases, 30 ; in jails, 73, 74.
Density of population, 28; statistical
table of, 84. See also under People in
Districts.
Deodar, forest revenue mostly from sale
of, 47.
Dera Ismail Khan District, 195-209;
between the Indus and the western
hills, 195, the daman or 'skirt of the
hills,' cleft and fertilized by the silt of
rain-fed torrents, 195,196,200; geology,
196; fairly healthy, 197; its history
under Baluchi Hots, Durranis, and
Sikhs, 197, 198 ; under Edwardes
(1847) and the British, 198; irrigation
(4 per cent.) mostly by private canals,
201 ; its trade, mainly through, 202 ;
its nearest railway station at Darya
Khan over the river, 202 ; summary and
regular settlements, 203 ; the high
standard of literacy among Sikhs and
Hindus, low among Muhammadans,
204 ; bibliography, 205.
Dera Ismail Khan tahsil, a bare, gene-
rally barren plain, with extreme scarcity
of water in the hot season, 205.
Dera Ismail Khan town, head-quarters of
the District and tahsil, and an extensive
cantonment, 207 ; original town swept
away (1823) by the Indus, 207 ; its two
bazars and separate quarters of Hindus
and Muhammadans, 207 ; winter head-
quarters of Derajat Brigade, 207 ; a
municipality with bad drainage, 207 ;
increasing trade with Khorasan and
Afghanistan by Gomal Pass, 208.
Derajat, local name of the plain between
the Indus and Sulaiman range, 122, in-
cludes the three Deras, 122; the Baloch
immigration in the fifteenth century, 122;
the dynasty of the Miranis for fifteen
generations at Dera Ghazi Khan, 122,
123; overlords of the Baloch feuda-
tories of Kabul, 123; under the Dur-
ranis, 1 23 ; tributary to the Sikhs, 123 ;
annexed (1849) by the British, 1 24 ; the
Derajat Brigade, 69, 207.
Dlr, 215, 216 ; territory in the Dir, Swat,
and Chitral Agency, 215, comprises
the country drained by the Panjkora
down to its junction with the Bajaur,
215; fairly fertile and well cultivated,
216, unhealthy in its lower regions, 216;
its Khan, the overlord of the clan chiefs,
216 ; its tribes and languages, 216 ; the
Dir levies, 216 ; its history, 217-220.
Dlr, Swat, and Chitral Political Agency,
210; formed 1896, Chitral added (1897)
from the Gilgit Agency, 210 ; bounded,
roughly, north, east, and west by the
Hindu Kush,Kashmir,and Afghanistan,
210; head-quarters on the Malakand
Pass, 221.
Dir, Swat, Bajaur, and Utman Khel, their
history, 217-220; their early Buddhism
and Hindu population and kings, 217 ;
the invasions in the fifteenth century of
the Yusufzais, and introduction of
Muhammadanism, 217; their restless-
ness under the Mughals, 217, 218; their
religious dissensions, 17,218; their in-
dependence from the decline of the
Mughals to the time of Nadir Shah,
218; the strong rule of the Akhund,
a religious leader (1835-77), 2O> 2I^>
219 ; the British punitive expedition or
campaign (1863) of Ambela, 20, 21,
219, 224, 225 ; the intrigues and aggres-
sions of Umra Khan of Jandol, 212,
219, the rising (1897) under the ' Mad
Mulla,' 22, 23, 220; the opening (1901)
of a railway from Naushahra to Dargai
at the foot of the Malakand, 54, 220;
subsequent internal disturbances, 220.
Diseases, principal, and the mortality
from, 30 ; in jails, 73, 74.
District, the, unit for police, medical, and
educational measures, 58, the Deputy-
Commissioner of, and his ordinary staff,
58.
District Boards, their finance and sphere
of duty, 68, 90, consultative, not initiat-
ing, bodies, 68. See also under Local
and Municipal Boards in Districts.
Divorce, 31.
Do-Kora ('two homes'), term applied to
Mohmand settlers for a season, 225.
Donkeys, stallions maintained by veteri-
nary department, 132, 152.
Dress and coiffure of men and women,
35 ; Hindus formerly not allowed to
wear turbans, 35 ; the cost of, to wage-
earning classes, 46, 47.
INDEX
265
Dunga Gali, small sanitarium in Hazara
District, 141.
Durand, Sir Henry, fourth Lieutenant-
Govemor of the Punjab, killed (1870)
by an accident at Tank, 198, buried at
Dera Ismail Khan, 198.
Durand, Sir Mortimer, negotiated the
Durand line (1893-5) with Afghan-
istan, 25, 26.
Durranis, rule of, in Peshawar, 18, in
Derajat, 123. See also Afghans.
Dwellings, generally a single room, with
walls and roof often of mud, 35 ; its
furniture, 35 ; the village guest- and
club-house, 36.
Education, its present organization under
an Inspector-General, 74; the Edwardes
Church Mission College at Peshawar,
74 ; primary and secondary (male)
schools, 74, 75 ; female education of
Muhammadan girls by themselves in
Urdu schools, 75, of Hindu and Sikhs
in Hindi or Gnrmukhl, 75 ; Muham-
madan education, backward but pro-
gressing, 75, 192, 204 ; statistics of
schools, public and private, pupils and
finance, 75, 92. See also tinder Educa-
tion in Districts.
Edwardes, Sir Herbert, his pacification
(1847-8) and settlement of the Bannu
valley, and of Dera Ismail Khan, 185,
191, 203; took part (1848) with new
and loyal levies at the siege and storm
of Multan, 185, 198; founded (1848)
Edwardesabad, 194; the Kabul gate at
Peshawar in his memory, 165 ; his
policy in Tank, 206.
Edwardes Church Mission College and
Anglo-vernacular school at Peshawar,
74, 1 66.
Edwardesabad. See Bannu town.
Embroidery, herring-bone, with silk and
on muslin, 51.
Excise, revenue from spirituous liquors and
intoxicant drags, 65-67 ; number and
location of shops for retail of, fixed, 66 ;
auction of licences, 66 ; consumption
per head, 65 ; the control of, in the
Agencies, 66.
Exports, across the border, 54 ; table of
values, 87, the excess of value of exports
over imports, and the excess of exported
over imported treasure, 54 ; to other
Provinces and States of India, 54; of
Peshawar, 153, 166, of Dera Ismail
Khan, 202, 207, 208.
Eye, affections of, common in hot, dry
Districts of Bannu and Dera Ismail
Khan, 30.
F.
Factories, one cotton-ginning and clean-
ing at Peshawar, 52, ice factories at
Bannu and Kohat, 52.
Fairs and festivals, 34, 36.
Fakir, term applied to a Pathan who has
lost his share in the estate and his voice
in the councils of the tribe, 32.
Fakir mi skin (' poor beggars '), the lowest
and only tax-paying class in Chitral
State, 213, 214.
Fallows, 38.
Famine proper never recorded, 56, the
absence of its conditions, want of water
and pressure of population, 56 ; the
several Districts in respect of presence
of rainfall or irrigation or both, 56, 57 ;
resources of the population other than
agriculture, 56, 57 ; Marwat tahsil of
Bannu District declared (1903) insecure
from, 190.
Fault (geological), the great, 5.
Fauna, general view of, 10, n, of large
carnivorous game the tiger now ex-
tinct, 10, deer, mdrkkor, and uridl, 10 ;
game-birds, birds of prey, and others,
10, fish and snakes, 10, 1 1 ; of Him-
alayns, 103, 104. See also tinder Fauna
in Districts.
Female education, 75 5 statistics of, 92.
Ferries : over Indus, steam at Dera Ismail
Khan in hot season, its difficulties, 56,
ordinary boats, 56, in, 116, 154,
202 ; inflated skins, giving facilities to
criminals and so requiring licence, 56 ;
often swept away, no; over Kabul
river, 118, 154, 163, over Swat, 154,
1 60, over Landai, 154.
Festivals and fairs, 34, 36.
Finance, 61-67; revenue and expenditure
wholly Imperial, 61 ; statistics of, since
1902-3, 88 ; large excess of expendi-
ture over income due to requirements
of Imperial policy, 62 ; land revenue,
62-64 » miscellaneous revenue, 64-67.
Fishing, in the Indus, 116, 128, in Hazara,
128, in Peshawar, 146, in Kohat, 169.
Floods, of the Indus, 114, of the Kabul
river, 118, of the Gomal, 120.
Food, of peasants improved since annex-
ation, 34 ; generally vegetarian, from
economy not principle, 35 ; outside of
towns the use of spirits and opium
disreputable, 35 ; vain efforts of Mullas
to stop universal smoking, 35 ; its
price compared with wages, 46, 48.
Food-grains, their total production, 41,
their greater consumption due to
immigrants and Government servants,
41 ; imports of, 53, 86 ; average prices
of (1880-1903) in Peshawar and Dera
Ismail Khan, 48.
266
INDEX
Fords, of the Indus, 110,113; of the
Swat, 116; of the Kabul river, 118,
the catastrophe (1879) at the Jalalabad
ford, 118.
Forests, ' reserved ' and systematically
administered only in Hazara, 48, 132,
133; financial results of, mainly from
sale of deodar, 48 ; other forests,
their general administration and princi-
pal trees, 48, 49, 133; once common
in Peshawar, 152, 153. See also under
Forests and Chief Agricultural Statis-
tics in Districts.
Forts, of the Samana range, 109 ; the
Bala Hisar, outside Peshawar, 165,
Dhulipgarh of Bannu, 194, of Chitral,
212, 213, of Mastuj, 215, Abazai, 161,
162, All Masjid, 228-230, Jamrud,
233, Landi Kotal and other posts in the
Khyber, 233, Kurram, 240, Fort Lock-
hart, 181, Fort Mackeson, 162, Michni,
163, Mardan, 163, Shabkadar, 167 ;
mud fort of Tank, 209.
Fox-hounds, pack of, at Peshawar, 146.
Frontier, settlement of, and control over,
by Treaty of Gandamak, 21, 231, 232 ;
the Durand line (1893-5), 25, 26; bor-
der military police, 71, militia, 72.
Frontier tribes,expeditions against,20-26 ;
a table of, 80-82.
Fruits, cultivation, home consumption,
and exportation of, 41, 42; in the
suburbs of Peshawar, 165, of Kurram
valley, 241. See also Orchards.
G.
Gambila. See Tochi river.
Game, large and small, quadruped,
winged, and finned, 10, n. See also
under Fauna in Districts, Fishing, and
Amusements.
Gandamak, Treaty of (1879), giving the
British the control of the Khyber and
Mohmand Passes, 21,231, 232.
Gandhara (Gandaria of the Greeks), the
ancient name of a tract including Pesha-
war District, the Mohmand country,
Swat, Bajaur, Buner, part of Kohat,
and the great city of Takshasila, 124,
147 ; sent a contingent to Darius in his
invasion of Greece, 124 ; its capitals at
different times, 1 24, 125 ; a great seat of
Buddhist and Graeco-Bactrian culture
till about A. n. 515, 124; the famous
Gandhara school of sculpture, 124.
Gardens. See Fruits and Orchards.
Geology, general view of, 4-8 ; its great
diversity, 4, the older unfossiliferous
formations, 4-5, the later Mesozoic and
Tertiary rocks to the south, 5-7 ; the
salt rocks below the Nummulitic beds,
7, 1 68, post- Tertiary and recent forma-
tions, 7, 8, evidence of old glacial
moraines, 8 ; of the Himalayas, 98-102.
See also under Geology in Districts.
Ghora Dakka, small (summer) canton-
ment in Hazara District, 141.
Gomal or Gumal river, 1 19, rising in
Afghanistan, enters British territory at
Domandi, 119, its tributaries, 119, 120 ;
irrigates Dera Ismail Khan, 120; its
waters do not reach the Indus save in
flood times, 1 20 ; in Southern Wazlr-
ista.ii, 249.
Gomal (or Gumal) Pass, from Dera Ismail
Khan through the Southern Wazlristan
Agency to the Afghan plateau, 253,
254; the oldest and most used of the
trade routes between India and Afghan-
istan, 53, 208, 253, the armed caravans
of the Powindas, 53, 202 ; measures
taken by the British for its protection
by the Mahsuds and themselves, 250,
25*. 254.
Gorkhatri, the, at Peshawar, once a
Buddhist monastery, since a Hindu
temple and residence of Avitabile, and
now a tahsili, 27, 28, 165.
Graeco-Bactrian Kingdom, 13, 14 ; Gan-
dhara a great seat of its culture, 1 24 ;
find of coins in Takhli, 129, in Pesha-
war valley, 147 ; traces of, at Akra in
Bannu District, 185, 186, 195.
Graeco - Buddhist art and civilization,
remains of, 27 ; at Gandhara, 124, 127,
147-
Gram, a spring harvest crop, its area and
yield, 40.
Greeks, the, Alexander's invasion
(327 B. c.), and his successors, 13, 14 ;
Peshawar, the meeting-place of Greek
with Buddhist culture, 146, 147.
Guest-house, in every Pathan village, 36.
Guides, Queen's Own Corps of, stationed
at Mardan, 163.
Guinea-worm, a disease due to drinking
tank-water, 30.
Gujars, the, a tribe professing to be
aborigines, the places of their strength,
33; predominant in Hazara District,
130-
Gumal. See Gomal.
H.
Hangu, tahsil (or Mlranzai) of Kohat Dis-
trict, consisting of the fertile Mlranzai
valley, 179, inhabited by a tribe of the
Bangash Pathans, 179.
Hangu village, head-quarters of tahsil,
and of Thai subdivision, 180, a station
on the Khushalgarh-Thal branch of the
railway, 180, its summer and winter
garrison, 180.
' Hangii breeze,' the, a cutting west wind
blowing down to Kohat, 169.
INDEX
267
Haripnr, tahsll of Hazara District, 137.
HarTpur town, head-quarters oftaAsr/(and
ofDistrict, 1849-53), and a municipality,
141 ; the obelisk over the grave (1848)
of Colonel Canara, 141.
Harvests : kharif or autumn, sown from
May to August, 38, rabi or spring,
sown from October to January, 38 ; the
chief crops of each, 40, 41. See also
under Agriculture of Districts.
Hashtnagar ('eight cities'), a tract of
high plain and lowlands, from the east
of the Swat to the Kabul river, 162 ;
disputed derivation of the name, 162.
Hazara, origin of the name, probably
Urasa, the ancient name of Pakhli,
124, 128, 129.
Hazara District, 126-143 ; the only terri-
tory of the Province east of the Indus,
1 26, a wedge thrust between Kashmir
and the independent hills of the west,
125; its variety of scenery, altitude,
and climate, 126, 128; geology, 127;
plentiful fauna, 127, 128, healthy cli-
mate and abundant rainfall, 128; its
obscure history before the Durranis,
128, its slow subjection by the Sikhs,
129, transferred by exchange to British
after first Sikh War, 129, its firm rule
by Major Abbott (1847) before and
during the second Sikh War, 129, of
Major Beecher during the Mutiny, 129,
final pacification of the Black Moun-
tain, 129; its important archaeology,
129; population, with a table of sta-
tistics, 129, 130; agriculture, 131, 132,
its important 'reserved' and village
forests, 132, 133 ; no railways, the
principal metalled road from Attock
to Kashmir, 134; administration, 135;
land settlement and revenue, the re-
duction of the Sikh demand, 135, 136;
backward education, 136, 137; biblio-
graphy, 137.
Headmen, village, collectors of revenue,
58 ; as responsible officers, a British in-
novation, 67.
Hill stations, Changla Gali, 141, Nathia
Gali, 143, Sheikh Budln, 209. See also
Cantonments, Forts, Sanitaria.
Hills. See Mountains.
Himalayas, the ('abode of snow'), 94-
107; our imperfect knowledge of them,
fassim ; their extent from the Dhang
river on the east to the snows on the
west, 94, 97 ; their political distribu-
tion, 94, 95 ; a series of high ranges
with diverging spurs (Outer Him-
alayas) ending abruptly, 45 ; the final
and lower range of Siwaliks, 95, 99 ;
the true watershed the boundary between
India and Tibet, 95 ; scenery, snow-
line, and protruding glaciers, 96, 97;
highest peaks, 97 ; the source of the
great rivers of the Indo-Gangetic sys-
tem, 97; the valleys of Kashmir and
Nepal, 97, 98 ; geology, 98-102 ; origin
due to a great folding, mainly in Ter-
tiary era, 98, 99; flora, 102, 103;
fauna, 103, 104; tribes, religions, and
languages of people, 104, 105 ; crops
and forests, 105, 106; present and pro-
jected means of communication by rail-
ways, roads, bridle-paths, passes, swing-
ing bridges over great rivers flowing in
deep gorges, 106 ; bibliography, 107.
Hindu Kush or Koh, or Indian Caucasus,
3, separated by the Indus from the
Himalayas proper, 94.
Hindus, number of speakers of Hindi and
kindred dialects, 32, marriage among,
30, cremation of dead, 36, as traders,
33, formerly not allowed to wear tur-
bans, 35, honorific titles of, 37, male
and female education among, 75, 204,
by Pathan customary law among the
Dauris a Hindu counts as half a man,
247.
History of the Province, 12-26 ; its always
closer political relations with Eastern
Iran and Afghanistan than with India, 12;
as two satrapies of the Persian empire,
13; during the Greek invasion and short
occupation, 1 3 ; under the Mauryans and
Asoka, 1 3 ; the Graeco-Bactrian power,
13, 14; under the Kushans, 14, under
the White Huns, 14; part (t. A.D. 1000)
of the Ghaznivid empire, 1 5, under the
Ghorids, 15, Mongol invasions and su-
premacy, 15, 16; Timur's (1398) devas-
tation, 16; the rise of the Afghans to
power, 16; under Babar, Ak bar, and
the Mughal power (1526-1738), 16-18;
the revolts (1586-1660) of the Roshan-
ias, 17; Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah
Durrani, 18; under the Barakzais and
Sadozais, 18; the invasions and con-
quests (1818-49) of the Sikhs, 18;
British annexation (1849) and adminis-
tration, 19; the frontier Districts a
source of strength during the Mutiny,
19, 20 ; the frontier tribes and Afghan-
istan, British relations with as deter-
mined by the Treaty (1879) of Ganda-
mak, 21, and the Durand line (1893-5),
25, 26 ; expeditions against the frontier
tribes (1849-1902), 20-26, a statistical
table of, 80-82; formation (1901) of
the Province, 26.
Hiuen Tsiang, Buddhist pilgrim from
China of the seventh century, laments
decline of Buddhism in Gandhara, 1 24,
161, found Pakhli tributary to Kash-
mir, 125, describes Und, 125; his Ki
Kiangha and Falana identified with
Kunam and Banna, 26, 27.
268
INDEX
Honorific titles, 37.
Horses, donkeys, and mnles, their breed
encouraged by Imperial Remount de-
partment in Hazara and by District
Boards, 43. See also under Cattle,
Ponies, and Sheep in Districts.
Hospitals and Dispensaries, 76, statistics
of, 93. See also under Hospitals and
Dispensaries in Districts.
Hot (Baluchi) dynasty of Upper Derajat
from fifteenth to eighteenth century,
197, founded by Malik Sohrab, 197,
207, the towns founded and named by
his sons Ismail and Fateh Khan, 197,
207.
Huns, the "White, held Northern India,
14, their king Mihirakula defeated
(528) by a confederacy of Indian
princes, 15; his persecution of Buddh-
ism, 124.
I.
Idak, village and garrisoned post in
Northern Waziristan Agency, in the
Daur valley, 345.
Imports, from across the borders, 53, a
table of values, 87 ; from other Pro-
vinces and States of India, 54, a table
of items and values, 86 ; of Peshawar,
153, 166, of Dera Ismail Khan, 202,
207, 208.
Income tax, revenue from, number of
assessees and incidence, 67.
Indus river (Greek, Sinthos ; Latin,
Sindus), the great river of North- West-
ern India, 4, 109-114; its course of i ,800
miles, and the principal towns on its
banks, 109 ; its gorge through the
Himalayas, no; in the North- West
Frontier Province, no; its great tri-
butaries, no, in; its width, depth,
fall, velocity, volume, temperature, and
colour at different places and seasons,
109-112 ; navigable below Attock, no ;
its bridges and ferries, 110-112; its
timberless and generally infertile delta,
112, 113 ; its changed course and shift-
ing channels and estuaries, 113, 114;
its inundations, embankments, and irri-
gation, 113, 114; its principal canals,
114, 115; its difficult navigation and
disappointing traffic, 115, 116; fish,
and boats, 116; bibliography, 116.
Infant mortality, not high, if registration
were full and trustworthy, 30; female
infanticide not suspected, 30.
Infra -Trias (geological), formation of
Hazara, 5, 6.
Inoculation, old hereditary habit of, 77.
Intoxicants (liquors and drugs), the re-
strictions on their free use by limited
manufacture, by duties, by limiting the
number of licensed shops for their sale,
by selling licences, 65, 66, the amount,
slightly decreasing, of their consump-
tion per head, 65 ; general abstinence of
Muhammadans from alcoholic liquors,
not from drugs, 65.
Intoxicating drugs. See Bhang, Charas,
and Opium.
Intoxicating liquors : imported beer, sale
of, 66; country spirits, manufacture
of, in*the Province, 66, importation of,
66, consumption of, 66 ; restrictions
on sale, 66 ; revenue from, 67.
Iron- work, manufacture of sword -blades
and knives at Peshawar and of fire-
arms in Kohat Pass, 51 ; once a com-
mon industry of the frontier, 51.
Irrigation, 43-45, 57 ; of cultivated area
25 per cent, by canals, 2 per cent, by
perennial streams or floods, I per cent,
by wells, 43, 85 ; present and projected
canals and their sources, 43-45, 120-
122 ; areas of, 44, 57 ; system of water
distribution, 45 ; canal revenue and ex-
penditure, 45, 88, the insanitary effects
of excessive, at Bannu, 183; transfor-
mation of the daman desert by, 195,
196, 200.
J.
Jails, 73, 74 ; under Administrative Medi-
cal Officer of Province, 73 ; statistics of
their number, population, earnings, de-
creasing mortality, and increasing cost,
73 ; the causes of the decrease in mor-
tality are also causes of increased cost,
74. See also under Police and Jails in
Districts.
Jamrud, fort and cantonment at mouth of
Khyber Pass, just beyond the border of
Peshawar District, 233, head-quarters
of Khyber Rifles, and the toll station
for the Pass, 233; large mobilization
camping-ground between it and Pesha-
war, 233, its branch railway line, 233.
Jandola (or Jandula), village of the Bhit-
tanni, and fortified post on the border of
the Southern Waziristan Agency, 256.
Jats, practically all Muhammadans, nu-
merous in the Indus Valley, 33, 199.
Jewellery, manufacture of, at Peshawar
and in Hazara, 51.
Jirgas, or councils of elders, 61.
Judicial Commissioner, the, supreme civil
and criminal court of, 60.
Jurassic (geological) formation, 6.
Justice, in the Province, based on custo-
mary law, and in its absence Hindu or
Muhammadan law, 59, its civil and
criminal courts, judges, and magistrates,
60, 6 1 ; in the trans-border territories,
61; in Chitral, 214; in the Kurram
Agency, 241.
INDEX
269
K.
Kabul river, its source in Afghanistan,
117, its tributaries and rapid growth
below Kabul city, 117, reaches British
territory near Michni fort, 117, after a
course of 316 miles joins the Indus at
Attock, 117; useful only for irrigation
to Jalalabad, 117, thence to Dobandi,
navigable by skin-rafts, 117, 1 18, thence
by boats and small ships, 118; its
fords, ferries, and bridges, 118.
Kabul River Canal, a perennial irrigation
work, supplying 30,000 acres, 121, a
revival of, an old Mughal work, 121;
its channels and district of supply, 121 ;
capital cost and profit of 24 per cent.,
122.
Kafirkot (Til Kafirkot, Raja Sir-kot), ex-
tensive ruins of walls and temples in
Ismail Dera Khan District, 208, south
of the junction of the Kurram with the
Indus, 208.
Kagan (or Khagan), mountain valley in
Hazara District, 142, the most northerly
point of British India, 142, surrounded
save at its mouth by the high hills
of Kashmir, 142; its large 'reserved'
forests, and timber rafts down the
Kunhar to Jhelum, 142.
Kalabagh, small (summer) cantonment
in Hazara District, 142.
Khagan. See Kagan.
Khaibar. See Khyber.
Khaira Gali, small (summer) cantonment
in Hazara District, 142.
Khanspur, part of Ghora Dakka (summer)
cantonment in Hazara District, 142.
Khattaks, a Pathan tribe, dominant in the
Deri iahstloi Kohat District, 169, 170 ;
their moral and physical characteristics,
172, 179.
Khattrls, a trading caste, 33, 130, 150.
Khels or clans of Pathan tribes, for
principal see Afridis, Orakzais, Wazlrs,
Yusufzais ; also Expeditions against
Frontier Tribes, 20-25, 80-82.
Khushalgarh, railway bridge over Indus
at, 54. 175-
Khyber (or Khaibar), celebrated Pass
from Peshawar District into Afghan-
istan, now part of the Khyber Political
Agency, 227-232, over the last spurs
of the Safed Koh, 227; 33 miles long
from Jamrud to Dakka, 3,400 feet high,
227 ; its chief points and conditions of
ascent and descent, 227, 228 ; always a
gateway into India, 228, its history,
228, 229 ; first crossed by a British
force (1839) convoying Shah Shuja's
son to Kabul, 229, in the first Afghan
War (1839-42), 229, 230; in the second
Afghan War (1878-80), 230, 231 ; the
Khyber tribes left under British control
by the Treaty (1879) of Gandamak,
33J» 232, the care of the Pass entrusted
to the tribesmen, 232, their treachery
(1897) and punishment, 232, the last
(1898) settlement with the Afridis and
augmentation of Khyber Rifles, 232;
Landi Kotal and other posts in the
Pass, 233 ; the Pass picketed twice a
week for the passage of caravans, 53,
231.
Khyber Political Agency, comprising the
country on both sides of the Pass, Tlrah
and Mallagori, none of it administered,
231 ; now as always held or inhabited
by Afridi Pathans, 228.
Khyber Rifles, the garrison of the Khyber
Pass, 233, their formation and subse-
quent (1898) augmentation and com-
mand by British officers, 232.
Kohat District, 167-182; central of the
Province, 167, a raised plateau, broken
by lines of moderate hills, 168, with
extremes of heat and cold, drought and
flood, 169; its salt beds, 168, 174;
its history under Bangash and Khattak
chiefs through Mughal and Durrani
supremacy, 169, 170, under the Sikhs
and the British, 170, 171; expeditions
against the MIranzai tribes, 171 ; a
recent decrease in the cultivated area,
partly due to lightness of revenue de-
mand and large frontier remissions,
173, 176 ; increasing rail-borne trade
with Tirah and Kabul, 175; railway
and roads, 175; the border military
police, 177, 178; education very back-
ward, 178 ; bibliography, 178.
Kohat tahsil, 178, 179.
Kohat town, head-quarters of District and
tahsil, and cantonment, 180, a munici-
pality, on a branch of the North-
Western Railway, 180.
Kohat Pass, 53, 144, 175; its entrance
commanded by Fort Mackeson, 162.
Kohat salt quarries, many in the District,
49, 180; salt of good quality but of
inferior colour, 168, 181 ; quantity ex-
cavated (1903-4) and average revenue,
18 1 ; large exports, 181 ; the consider-
able preventive staff necessary, 181.
Kohat Toi, small disappearing and re-
appearing affluent of the Indus, 168.
Kulachi, tahsil of Dera Ismail Khan Dis-
trict immediately below the Sulaiman
mountains, 205, a bare plain cleft by
deep water-runs, utilized for irrigation,
205.
Kulachi town, head-quarters of the tahsil ',
an aggregation of separate hamlets,
208, a municipality with a reviving
trade with the Wazlrs, 208.
Kunhar, river of the Kagan valley in
270
INDEX
Hazara, affluent of the Jhelum, 4, 126,
143.
Kurram (or Kuram) Political Agency, a
section of the Kurram valley, 236-243;
the beauty and healthiness of Upper
Kurram, 238, the dreariness and heat
of Lower, 238 ; its legendary and
authentic history to the decline of the
Mughals, 238, 239; the aborigines sup-
planted by the Turis, 239, their raids
and punishment (1854-78), 239, the
fort occupied (1878) and evacuated
1880) by General Roberts, 341 ; its
administration finally (1893) taken over
by the British at the request of the
Turis, 240-243; its natural productive-
ness under irrigation, 240, 241, its in-
creasing crops and fruits, 241 ; its good
road (54 miles) to the railway ter-
minus at Thai, 181, and bridle-paths
constructed in 1893, 241 ; the summary
settlement and the resettlement (1904),
242, the political and religious allow-
ances, 242 ; its generally backward
education, 243 ; military and civil
hospitals for men and women, 243.
Kurram river, rising in Afghanistan, runs
through the Kurram valley proper, 237,
238, Kohat and Bannn Districts, and
falls into the Indus opposite Mianwali,
4, 119, in Bannu District, 182; the
fertilizing value of its irrigation and
silt, 183, 187.
Kurram Pass, 53, 227, twice (1878-9)
forced by General Roberts, 239, 240.
Kushans, the, an early (Scythian) dynasty
of North -Western India, 14, their
famous kings, Kadphises I and II and
Kanishka, 14, their school (Gandhara)
of art, 14, 1 24 ; supplanted by Ki-to-lo,
14; in Peshawar valley, 147.
Labourers, wages and condition of, 47.
Lac turnery and ware, 52.
Lakki, head-quarters of the Marwat tahsil,
Bannn District, 194; displaced (1864)
as capital of Marwat by a Sikh fort and
town built 1844, 194.
Land, rise in value of, 46, 48. See also
Rents.
Land Alienation Act, the (Punjab), ex-
tended to most of the Province, to
prevent land passing to money-lenders,
43, 64, not to purely Pathan Districts
of Peshawar and Kohat, 64.
Land revenue, native methods of assessing
and collecting, 45,46, 158, 191 ; in the
British Districts as in the Punjab,
63 ; in the Agencies, 63, 64. See also
Settlement.
Landai river, formed by the junction of
the Kabul and Swat rivers, 4, drains a
vast but dry area, 4, its size also re-
duced by irrigation, 4, joins the Indus
at Attock, no, 145, its bridges of
boats and ferries, 154.
Landi Kotal, post and fort at the top of
Khyber Pass, 333, taken (1897) by
Afridis, 233.
Language, Iranian PashtQ the dominant,
in its two dialects and their sub-
dialects, 3 1, 3 2, the distribution of their
speakers, 31, 33 ; the dialects of the
conquered strata, 32 ; a table of the
numbers speaking the chief languages,
32. See also under People in Districts.
Lawrence, George, British officer at Pesh-
awar, 170, took refuge in Kohat on
outbreak of second Sikh War, 170,
treacherously surrendered by Sultan to
Sikhs, 171.
Leathern-work, chiefly shooting-belts and
shoes, 52.
Legislation, no Legislative Council in the
Province, 59 ; the chief legislative
measures affecting the Province passed
since 1880, 59.
Lepers, institution for, 76.
Levy Corps, now replaced by Militia (q.v.)
save in Dlr, Swat, and Chitral Agency,
73, their duties and armament, 73.
Liquors. See Intoxicants.
Literacy, statistics of. See under People
and Education hi Districts.
Loans to agriculturists by Government,
42, 43, by money-lenders, 43, 48.
Lockhart, Fort, military outpost on the
Samana range, in Kohat District, 181,
summer head-quarters of general com-
manding military district, 181, the
monuments here and elsewhere to the
gallant Sikhs massacred at Saragarhi
in 1897, 181.
Lockhart, Sir W., his punitive expedition
(1898) against the Afridis of the Khyber
Pass, 232, 235 ; commander in frontier
expedition of 1891 against Orakzais, 83.
Lunatics, no asylum for, in the Province,
76.
M.
Mackeson, Fort, in Peshawar District,
built to command the north entrance to
the Kohat Pass, 162, dismantled (1887)
save the keep, 162.
Magistrates, 60 ; honorary, 6l.
Mahaban (' Great Forest '), a mountain
in independent territory, bordering on
Peshawar and Hazara Districts, 108 ;
its tribes, 108 ; wrongfully identified
with the site of Aornos, taken by
Alexander, 108, 333.
Mahsuds, a branch of the WazTrs, history
and raids of the tribe since 1860, 20-25,
250, 251, 353, 254, 355 ; country of the,
353~255> its difficulty of penetration,
254; the branches of its robber tribe,
254 ; British attempts to organize and
regulate by allowances to its maliks,
255 ; risings of and expeditions against,
20, 32, 25.
Mail tongas, 55.
Maizar, village in Northern Waziristan
Agency, 245, the treachery (1897) and
punishment of the Madda Khels, 22,
244. 245-
Maize, chief crop of autumn harvest, its
area, localities, and return per acre of
irrigated and unirrigated land, 40.
Malakand, ,pass from Sam Ranizai into
the Swat valley, with military post,
221 ; taken (1895) by Chitral relief
force and since occupied, 221, attacked
(1897) by Swatis under ' Mad Mulla,'
221 ; the head-quarters of the Dir,
Swat, and Chitral Agency, 23 1 ; the
railway from Naushahra to Dargai at
its foot, 54, 220; proposed irrigation
tunnel under, 44, 121.
Malaria, its virulent and malignant forms
in ' Peshawar fever ' and in Dera Ismail
Khan, 30, 146 ; mortality from, 30; in
Hazara, 128, in Kohat, 169, in Bannu,
184; in Dera Ismail Khan, 197; of
Lower Swat, as a cause of physical and
moral inferiority, 217, 220, 225.
Malik Sohrab, founder of Hot dynasty of
Upper Derajat, 197, 207.
Maliks, heads of Pathan tribes, 241 ;
the failure of the British to introduce
responsible government by them among
the Mahsuds, 255.
Mansehra, tahsil of Hazara District, 137,
138.
Mansehra town, head-quarters of tahsil,
142, on the main road to the Kashmir
border, 142 ; its trade in grain and
country produce, 142 ; near two rocks
inscribed with thirteen of Asoka's edicts
in Kharoshthl character, 27, 143.
Mardan, tahsil of Peshawar District, 159,
1 60.
Mardan town, head-qnarters of tahsil,
cantonment, and permanent head-
quarters of Queen's Own Corps of
Guides, 163, fort built (1854) by
Hodson, 163.
Markhor, or wild goat, JO.
Marriage, among Muhammadans a civil
contract, among Hindus in theory a
sacrament, 30 ; purchase of wives and
sale of widows, 31 ; divorce and other
penalties of infidelity, 31 ; statistics of
married, unmarried, and widowed men
and women, 31.
Marwat, tahsil, 193 ; manly tribe of
Bannu District, 184, 186 ; range, 182.
Mastuj, village, fort, and district irregu-
larly subject to Chitral, 215, its eleva-
tion of 7,800 feet and severe winters,
215; its Sanskrit rock-inscription, 210,
211.
Material condition of the people, general
improvement in, 47, 48, checked by the
faults and vices of the population, 48.
Matim kotahs, Shiah mourning-houses,
242.
Maulai, sect in Chitral, recognizing head-
ship of the Agha Khan, 213.
Medical department under an Adminis-
trative Medical Officer, 76; civil and
military medical officers, 76 ; hospitals
and dispensaries for men and women,
76 ; vaccination and inoculation, 76,
77 ; statistics of patients, of income
and its sources, of expenditure upon
hospitals and dispensaries, and of the
number, success, and cost of vaccina-
tions, 93. See also under Hospitals
and Dispensaries in Districts.
Mesozoic (geological) formations, 5.
Michni, fort (1851) in District and tahsil
of Peshawar, 163, commands an im-
portant ferry over Kabul river, 163;
murder of Lieutenant Boulnois (1852),
of Major MacDonald (1873) by Moh-
mands, 163 ; since 1885 held by border
military police, 163.
Migration, immigration, and emigration,
29, in times of scarcity, 57.
Militia, local levies from either side of
the border, employed in garrisoning
trans-border outposts, 72, their strength,
armament, and stations, 72.
Millet, spiked (bajrd) and great (jowdr),
their area, localities, and return per
irrigated and unirrigated acre, 41.
Mines and minerals, 49, 50 ; rock-salt
alone of commercial importance, 49 ;
lignite in Hazara, 49 ; coal in the
Maidan range, 49; iron, 49, 50. See
also under Mines and Minerals in
Districts.
Miram Shah, head-quarters (with gar-
rison) of Northern Waziristan Agency,
245-
Miranis, dynasty of, in Derajat, 122, 123.
Mlranzai valleys, 168, 169, tribes of,
169-171, punitive expedition (1855)
against, 171.
Mohmand Country, north-east of Pesha-
war District, partly in British territory,
under political control of Political
Agent, 225-237, its unfavourable and
unhealthy physical aspects, 225 ; the
Mohmands and their vassal tribes, 226 ;
the history of the people and of the
Khans of Lalpura, 226; their unruliness
and outrages, and the necessity of re-
peated punitive expeditions, 33, 34, 163,
167,337. See also Pathan Revolt.
ay*
INDEX
Mongol invasions, 15, 16.
Monsoon, the, II, 12, 169.
Mortality. See Death-rate.
Mountain systems, general view of, 3-4,
principal ranges, 94-109. See also under
Hill System in the several Districts.
Mughals, the: Babar's first (1505) raid
into India, 16 ; his control of the Pro-
vince after his victory (1526) at Panl-
pat, 16 ; subsequent revolts and weaken-
ing of Mughal control till the victories
of Akbar's general, Man Singh, 16, 17,
the risings of the Roshania heretics
against Akbar, Jahanglr, Shah Jahan,
and Aurangzeb, 17, defeats of the im-
perial forces, 1 7, the conciliatory policy
of Aurangzeb, 18; the decline of the
Mnghals, and the subjection (1738) of
their governor to Nadir Shah, 1 8 ;
their inability to keep open the Khyber
Pass due to the hostility of the Afridis,
228.
Muhammadan invasions and supremacy,
15, 16, early (986) of Ghaznivids, 15,
184, later (1179) of Ghorids, 15; the
Mongol invasions and overlordship, 15,
16 ; later of Yusufzais, 317.
Muhammadans, 92 per cent, of popula-
tion, mainly Sunnis, 33 ; their fanatical
Mullas, 34, 35 ; ample toleration of
Hindu traders, 33, names, religions,
and honorific titles among, 37 ; back-
ward state of education among, and
its special encouragement by stipends
and; scholarships, 75, 192, 204 ; female
education among, conducted in Urdu,
75 ; abstain from intoxicating liquors,
not from drugs, 65 ; customary law of,
59, 341, 247.
Mules, breeding of, encouraged, 43.
Mulla Mastan, the 'Mad Mulla,' of
Swat, his early history, 221; incited
(1897) the Pathan Revolt, 22,23, 220.
Mulla, the Adda, 227.
Mulla Powinda, a fanatic leader of the
Mahsuds, 251, 253.
Mullagori road, by which the Khyber can
be turned, 228.
Mullas, fanatical priests of the Snnnis, 34,
35 ; their opposition to education, 157.
Municipalities, their history, composition,
revenue, and expenditure, 67, 68, 89.
See also under Local and Municipal
Boards in Districts.
Music, Pathan, 36.
Mutiny, the ( 1 857) : disarmament of troops
at Dera Ismail Khan and Kohat, 19, at
Peshawar, 19, 149; the rising, pursuit by
Nicholson, and ultimate destruction of
rebels of Mardan, 19, 149 ; the raising
of new levies, 19, 20 ; the Province
a source of strength, 20. See also under
History in Districts.
N.
Nadir Shah's defeat (1738) of the Mughal
governor of Kabul, 18, 184, 218.
Names and titles, 36, 37, a son never
named after his father, 37 ; importance
of honorific titles, official, social, and
especially religious, 37 ; a man's name
a plain indication of his religion, 37.
Nathia Gali, hill station in Hazara Dis-
trict, 143, with Dunga Gali a ' notified
area,' 143.
Naushahra, tahsil of Peshawar District,
1 60.
Naushahra town, head-quarters of tahsil,
and important cantonment, 69, 163, on
the North-Western Railway and the
grand trunk road, 163, the Kabul river
crossed (1903) by railway bridge, iron
road, and bridge of boats, 164, good
roads to Mardan and Charsadda, 164;
the railway to Dargai at the foot of
the Malakand Pass, 54, 220 ; the flood
of 1858, 114.
Nawashahr, municipality in Hazara Dis-
trict, 143.
Newspaper, only one published, a weekly
missionary journal, in Urdu, 75, 76.
Nicholson, General John, the Nicholson
Memorial at Bannu, 194 ; his pursuit
of the rebels of Mardan, 149; raised
new levies, 20; made first summary
settlement of Bannu, 191.
Nilabi, the boatmen of the Kabul river,
118.
North- West Frontier Province, its position,
boundaries, and area, I ; physical as-
pects, I- 1 2 ; the history of the territory
from the empire of Darius Hystaspes
(c. 516 B.C.) till the formation (A.D.
1901) of the new Province, 12-26;
archaeology, 26-28 ; population, 28-
37 ; agriculture, 37-43 ; irrigation, 43-
45; rents, wages, and prices, 45-47 ;
material condition of the people, 47,
48 ; forests, 48, 49 ; mines and minerals,
49, 50 ; arts and manufactures, 50-52 ;
commerce and trade, 52-54 ; means of
communication, 54-56 ; famine, 56, 57 ;
administration, 57-61, 67-69 ; finance,
61-67; army, 69 ; police, 69-74 ; edu-
cation, 74-76 ; medical, 76, 77 ; sur-
veys, 77; bibliography, 77, 78; genea-
logical, historical, and statistical tables,
79-93 ; mountains, rivers, canals, and
historical areas, 94-125; accounts in
detail of its five Districts, 126-209;
tribal areas, &c., 210-257.
' Notified areas ' under Act of 1891, 68.
Nummulitic (eocene) formations, 7 ; the
occurrence of coal and mineral oil in
connexion with them, 7 ; overlie the
Kohat salt, 7, 168.
INDEX
273
O.
Occupations, 34 ; 64^ per cent, of popula-
tion dependent on agriculture, 34. See
also under Castes and Occupations in
Districts.
Octroi, chief source of municipal income,
68.
Oghi (or Ughi), chief place in the Agror
valley, Hazara District, 143, head-
quarters of Hazara border military
police, 143.
Ohind. See Und.
Oilseeds, principally til and rapeseed,
41 ; area of cultivation, 41, 85.
Opium, all imported, from Bengal, Malwa,
Afghanistan, and Kashmir, 65 ; Punjab
duty-paid admitted free, 65 ; price of,
65, consumption, total and per head,
65, revenue from, 67.
Orakzai, Pathan tribe of Samana range
. and Tlrah, 236; its chief subdivisions
and their strength, 236 ; risings and
punitive expeditions against, 22, 23, 80,
81, 82. See also Pathan Revolt.
Orchards and gardens, cultivation of
. fruits in, 41, 42, area of 4,000 acres, 41,
mostly in Peshawar District, 42, 165,
annual exports of fruits from Peshawar,
42 ; a daily fruit van in autumn to
Calcutta, 42; ofKurram, 244.
Outposts and garrisons, military, 72 >
Abazai, 161, 162, Boya, 245,Chakdarra,
221, Malakand, 221, Hangu, 180, Idak,
245, Jandola, 207, 256, Fort Lockhart,
181, Saragarhi, 181, Fort Cavagnari Or
Gulistan, 109, Miram Shah, 245, Oghi,
143, Parachinar, 243, Sadda, 243, Tank,
209, Thai, 181, 182, \Vana, 253, Drosh
in Chitral, 213, Drazinda, 69, 207,
Jatta, 69, 207, Zam, 69 ; the frontier
road connecting the outposts, 190.
See also Cantonments, Forts, Hill
Stations, Sanitaria, Stations (military).
P.
Pakhli, its ancient name of Urasa (Hazara),
124, 128, 129; an ancient sarkar or
district of the Mughal empire, 124,
roughly between the Indus and Jhelum
rivers, 124; in its early history asso-
ciated with Kashmir, 125 ; in Babar's
time, 125; its boundaries in the Ain-
i-Akbarl, 125; under the Durranis,
125; find of Graeco-Bactrian, Kushan,
and other coins, 1 29.
Pakhto. .SV^Pashtu.
Panjkora, river (affluent of Swat) and
valley of Dlr, 215, 216.
Parachinar, head-quarters of the Kurram
Agency and militia, 243, its temperate
climate and natural fertility under irri-
gation, 243.
Pashtu, the dominant speech, 31 ; its main
dialects — hard or north-eastern Pakhto,
soft or south-western Pashto, 31, their
asserted correspondence respectively
with oligarchic and democratic organi-
zation, 31 ; its classical and literary
dialect of the Yusufzai, 31, 32.
Passes, British control of, by Treaty of
Gandamak, 20, 25, 232, by Durand
agreement, 25, 26 ; surveys of, 77 ; as
trade routes, 27, 53; defence of, in
Chitral by scouts, 72,73; over the
Himalayas to Tibet, 106, 107; from
Peshawar into Swat, 144, Lawarai to
Chitral, 213, Mohmand, 21, 225, 226,
Ambela, 224, 225, the Pel war Kotal,
2, 55, 240, the Shutargardan, 21, 55,
239, 240, Kurram, 227, 239, 240,
Kohat to Batmu, 53, 144, 175, Gomal,
253, 254, Malakand, 53, 221, Khyber,
227-232, of the Black Mountain, 107.
Pathan Revolt, the (1897), its religious
and other causes, and spread from
Tochi, through Swat, the Mohmands,
and TTrah, 23, 24 ; its suppression
(1898) and punishment, 24, 82.
Pathans (Pakhtdna), the dominant class,
speaking the dominant language, 32 ; no
longer race but the status of a sharer in
the tribal estate and councils denoted by
the term, 32 ; their distribution, number,
and often mixed origin, 32, 33 ; genea-
logical table of, 79 ; their toleration of
Hindus, 33, abstemiousness, 35, ex-
travagant hospitality, 35, 36, their love
of field sports, robbery, and music, 36,
their club in the guest-house, 36 ; their
natural and acquired laziness as cultiva-
tors, 39; their extravagance, improvi-
dence, litigation, and crime, 48 ; their
ancient systems of tenure and of the
periodical redistribution of land, 62, 63 ;
their claim of eye for eye,' 247 ; their
blood-feuds, 247, 252.
Patwaris, or village accountants, 58.
Peshawar District, 143-167 ; a huge basin,
surrounded by hills save to the east,
and drained by the Kabul river, 143,
1 44 ; the independent tribes of the hills,
143, 144; from May to October dusty,
hot, and oppressive,with deadly malaria,
146, large game scanty, 146 ; its early
history as the meeting-point of Greek
and Buddhist culture, 146, 147, under
Muhammadan, Mongol, and Mughal
supremacies, 147-149, the immigration
of Afghans in the fifteenth century, 148,
under the Durranis and the Sikhs, 149,
under the British (1848) and during
the Mutiny, 149; its great fertility
under irrigation (40 per cent.), 151,
274
INDEX
152; its cotton, woollen, and copper
industries, 153; its internal trade and
more important through trade from
Kabul and Bokhara, 153; its railways,
roads, and rivers, 1 54 ; its heavy criminal
work, 155 ; the land settlements and
revenue, 155, 156, frontier remissions,
156; police, civil and border military,
156, 157 ; standard of literacy (4 per
cent.) lower now than in 1891, 157;
medical, 157 ; bibliography, 157.
Peshawar tahsil, consists of a low-lying
basin of the Kabul river, and of uplands
rising to Afrldi hills, 158; intersected
by Kabul River Canal, 158 ; its head-
quarters the city and cantonment of
Peshawar, 158.
Peshawnr City, capital of the Province,
head-quarters of the District and tahsil,
164-166; its historical importance and
religious associations, 164 ; its con-
nexions by rail with Calcutta and
Bombay, and with Jamrud fort (io|
miles) near the Khyber Pass, 164, by
road (190 miles) with Kabul, 164; its
population of nearly 100,000, over two-
thirds Muhammadans, 164; its large
cantonment, the head-quarters of the
Peshawar military division of the
Northern Command, and its finance,
164, 165, 166; the garrison pack of
hounds, 146; the modern town with
mud (being replaced by brick) walls
and sixteen gates, 165 ; water-works
and good sanitation, 165; handsome
mosques, and the Gor Khattri, once
Buddhist and Hindu, now the tahsili,
165; the strongly fortified and armed
Bala Hisar outside the walls, 165 ; the
public and private gardens of the
suburbs, 165; finance of the munici-
pality, 166 ; public institutions, 166;
trade, 166.
Petroleum springs in Kohat District, 7,
174.
Pinjra, lattice-work made at Peshawar,
52-
Plague, epidemic, its appearance (1906)
in parts, 30.
Police, border military, originally formed
on the silladari system, to guard
against border raids, 71, now a regular
force of horse and foot, on garrison and
patrol duty, 72, 157; its strength, 72.
See also under Police and Jails in Dis-
tricts.
Police, civil, its administration under an
Inspector-General, 69, 70, its history
since annexation, 70 ; its present posi-
tion, strength, armament, and training,
70 ; proportion of, to area and popula-
tion, 70 ; rural, municipal, cantonment,
ferry, and railway police, 70, 71 ;
cognizable crime, statistics of, ^i ;
statistics of and expenditure on, 91.
See also under Police and Jails in Dis-
tricts.
Political Agencies, five, each under a
Political Agent, 59.
Pollock, General, the march of his army
(1842) back to India through the Khy-
ber Pass, 230, the various fortunes of
the three divisions, 230.
Pomegranates, of Peshawar, 42.
Population, total of, nearly four mil-
lions, 28; average density, 152 per
square mile, highest (152) in valley of
Peshawar, lowest (42) in Kurram
Agency, 28 ; its distribution between
towns and rural areas, 28 ; the tendency,
due to the sense of security, to found
new homesteads, 28; growth of, 30
per cent, since 1881, nearly 10 per cent,
between 1891 and 1901, 29; statistics
of age, 29; statistical table of dis-
tribution, &c., of population, 84. See
also under People in Districts.
Post office, two postal divisions, 56;
Province included with Kashmir in a
single telegraph division, 56.
Post-Tertiary and recent (geological) for-
mations, 7, 8.
Pottery, glazed and unglazed for native
use, made at Peshawar, 51, unglazed
in Hazara and Bannn, 52.
Powindas, nomad merchants, armed con-
ductors of. camel carava'ns, pass through
without breaking bulk, 53, 202 ; the
articles of their trade, 202 ; of Gomal
Pass, 208, 253.
Prang, town in Peshawar District, practi-
cally a part of Charsadda (q. v.), 166,
167.
Prices, of agricultural staples and salt,
47, 48, their rise compared with the
greater rise in wages, 47; of opium,
65.
Public works (save canals and railways),
in charge of Commanding Royal En-
gineer of the Province, 68.
Pulses, other than gram, their area of
cultivation, 41 ; average prices of, 48.
Punjab Frontier Force, formerly responsi-
ble for the peace of the border, 19, 69 ;
its transfer (1886), with enlarged sphere
of service, to control of Commander-in-
. Chief, 69 ; the present cavalry and
infantry regiments of the force, 69.
Pushkalavati (Peukelaus or Peukelaotis
of Greek historians), ancient capital of
Gandhara, 1 24 ; identified by Cunning-
ham with Charsadda and Prang (q. v.),
13. 161.
INDEX
275
R.
Railways, 188 miles of, 55 ; the Province
traversed by the North-Western Rail-
way, crossing the Indus at Attock to
Peshawar, 54 ; its three points of com-
munication : from Peshawar a broad-
gauge extension (12 miles) to Fort
Jamrud at the mouth of the Khyber,
54, 154; from Naushahra cantonment a
narrow-gauge branch to Dargai at the
foot of the Malakand Pass, 54, 220 ;
at Khnshalgarh, 53 miles below Attock,
the Mari-Attock branch and a bridge
of boats (soon to be replaced by a
railway bridge) connecting main line
indirectly with narrow-gauge to Kohat
and Thai, 54, 175; indirect communi-
cation of Dera Ismail Khan by a
bridge of boats in the cold season with
Darya Khan, on the Sind-Sagar branch
of the North-Western Railway, 54, 55 ;
railway police, ft. See also under
Means of Communication in Districts.
Rainfall, u; everywhere capricious, but
on an average sufficient, 38, 56, 57 ; 72
per cent, of cultivated area dependent
on , 43 ; lightest (9 inches) in Dera
Ismail Khan District, heaviest (45
inches) in Hazara District, n, 57 ; sta-
tistical table of, 83 ; its variations and
compensations in different tracts, 56, 57.
See also under Rainfall in Districts.
Rapeseed, 41.
Registration, of documents, chiefly by
officials, 6 1.
Religion, 92 per cent. Muhammadans,
mainly Sunnis, 33 ; the gloomy fana-
ticism, compatible with low morality,
preached by the Sunni Mullas or priests,
34, 35 ; religious titles, 37 ; the numer-
ous shrines of pilgrimage with fairs and
cures, 34; Christians, 0-25 per cent.,
34, the Anglican and Roman Catholic
ecclesiastical administration, 34 ; the
influence of fanatics of old, under the
Mughals, 17, recently, 20, 22, 23,
218, 219, 224, 251. See also under
People in Districts, Akhund, Mullas,
Roshanias, Saiyids.
Rents, as surplus over for owner of land,
under native rule, none, 45 ; now the
margin left by milder British assess-
ments and often three times their value,
45, 46; paid in cash and kind, 46;
their regulation in cases with rights of
occupancy, 46 ; the rise in, 46, 48.
Revenue courts, 6l.
Rice, little cultivated, 41, 85; its area,
localities, and return per irrigated acre,
41.
Rivers, 4, 56, 97, 109-120, all part of
the Indus system except the Kunhar of
Hazara, 4, 1 26 ; trade on and convey-
ance over, 56. See also under River
System in the several Districts.
Roads, supplementing railway system, 55,
metalled : the grand trunk to Peshawar
through the Khyber to Landi Kotal, 55 ;
metalled road from Peshawar through
the Province to Ismail Dera Khan, 55 ;
from Khushalgarh to Kohat and Thai,
55 ; from Thai up the Kurram valley
to Parachinar, whence a trade route
over Peiwar and Shutargardan Passes
to Kabul, 55 ; to Datta Khel and
Murtaza, 55 ; the road to Hazara and
thence to Kashmir, starting from Has-
san Abdal Station on the North-Western
Railway, 55 ; other roads, 55 ; their
maintenance, 55 ; the frontier road or
mule track connecting the outposts, 190.
See also under Means of Communication
in Districts.
Roberts (Lord), forced pass and occupied
(1878) Kurram fort, 240, crossed the
Shutargardan Pass, 240.
Roshanias, heretics and rebels ( 1 586-1 676)
against the Mughal empire, 17, 218,
their frequent defeats of the imperial
forces, 17, their leader Jalala, 17, their
stronghold in Tirah, 17 ; in the Khyber
country, 228, repulsed the Mughals
(1620) in Tirah, 235.
Rotation of crops, 38, 39.
Rud river, 222, valley of, part of Bajaur,
its tribes and communal party govern-
ment, 222.
S.
Sadda, post in the Kurram Agency, 243.
Safed Koh (' white mountain ') range, the
watershed between the valley of Jalal-
abad and the Kurram, 237, its line,
spurs, and peaks, 3, 237, its branches
from Mittugarh enclosing the vallejfl of
Tliah, 233, 234, the Khyber Pass on its
last spurs, 227.
Saiyids, reverenced by the Shiahs as
descendants of All, 34 ; Saiyid Ahmad
of Bareilly, his colony (1825) of fanatics
in Swat, 218, 224, defeated and slain
by the Sikhs, 224 ; his successor Saiyid
Akbar Shah, his fort at Malka, 224,
campaigns of 1853, 1858 against, 20,
224, of Ambela (1893), 21, 225.
Salt, industry of, 49, 64 ; the Kohat
quarries, 180, 181 ; its purity and
colour, grey to black, compared with
the red or pink of the Salt Range, 168 ;
its geology, 7, 168 and n.
Salt, revenue from, 64, 65 ; duties on, 64,
preventive line (1849) withdrawn (1896),
export to cis-Indus still prohibited,
64 ; table of large exports beyond
T 2
276
INDEX
the Province, of small imports, and
of gross rtvenue, 65, consumption per
head, 65 ; the preventive establishment,
181.
Samana Range, separating the Mlranzai
and Khanki valleys, 108, its line of
forts, 109.
Samana Rifles, with head-quarters at
Hangu, 1 80.
Sandeman, Sir R., opened (1889) Gomal
Pass, 250.
Sanitaria, in Hazara District, Dunga Gali,
141, 143; Thandiani, 143; in Pesha-
war, Cherat, i6t, 162 ; between Bannu
and Dera Ismail Khan, Sheikh Budin,
208, 209.
Sanitation, municipal expenditure on, 89 ;
good of Peshawar, 165, good natural
of Kohat cantonment, 1 80, bad of Dera
Ismail Khan, 207.
Sappers and miners, stations of, 69.
Saragarhi, village on the crest of Samana
range, Kohat District, held by the
Babi Khel, 181 ; outpost built (1891),
overwhelmed (1897) by Orakzais and
the small Sikh garrison massacred, 181.
Sarwar Khan, progressive Nawab of Tank,
206, his submission to the Sikhs, 206,
his grandson, protected by Edwardes,
made and unmade chief by the British,
206, died 1882, 206.
Scenery, general of Province, 1,2; of Him-
alayas, 96, of the Indus, 109, no, 112,
of Hazara, 126, 127, of Agror, 139, of
Peshawar, 144, of Dera Ismail Khan,
195, 196, of the Mohmand country,
225, of the Khyber, 227, 228, of
Kurr.im Agency, 238, of Southern
Wazlristan, 248, 249, of the country
of the Mahsuds, 254.
Schools, primary and secondary, 74, 75,
Urdu and Hindi, &c., schools, 75, Anglo-
vernacular, 74, 75. See also under
•ducation in Districts.
Self-government, local : by municipalities
of appointed and ex-officio members,
their history and present position, 67,
68 ; revenue and expenditure, 68, 89 ;
by District boards, composed of nomi-
nated members, their sphere, income,
and expenditure, 68, 90. See also
tinder Local and Municipal Boards in
Districts.
Settlement, or assessment of land revenue,
63, in the Districts as in the Punjab, but,
often for political reasons, lighter, 63 ;
frontier remissions, 1 56, 173; the demand
in different Districts between 52 and
75 per cent, of half ' net assets," 63,
the term, generally twenty years. 63 ;
in the Agencies, 63, 64, in Kurram,
241, 242; settlement maps, 77. See
also under Land Revenue in Districts.
Sex, statistics of, 30; the decreasing ratio
(834) of females to (1,000) males, 30.
Shabkadar, fort in Peshawar District, con-
nected by a good road of 17 miles with
Peshawar, 167 ; since 1885 held by
border military police, 167, defeat of
raiding Mohmands (1897), 167.
Shahbazgarhi in Peshawar, Asoka's
KharoshthI rock-inscriptions at, 27.
Sheep (and goats), thin-tailed and fat-
tailed, 43, a large demand for mutton
in the cantonments, 43. See also under
Cattle, Ponies, and Sheep in Districts.
Sheikh Budln,hill (4,516 feet) station and
sanitarium (1860), military and civil,
between Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan
Districts, 208, 209 ; bare, hot, and short
of water, 209.
Sher Afzal, pretender and disturber of
Chitral, finally deported to India,
312, 213.
Shiahs, their very small number, 33, their
re\jerence for Saiyids, the descendants
of All, 34, 130; the endowment by the
British of their matim kotdhs or 'mourn-
ing-houses ' in \VazIristan, 242.
Shirani Country, a poor hilly tract on
the western border of Dera Ismail Khan
District, 256, divided into a lowland
under political control (1899) of
North-Western Frontier Province, and
a highland under that of Baluchistan,
256 ; the intense democracy and robber
raiding habits of the tribe, 256, 257-,
the British agreement with (1899), 257 ;
the murder (1902) of the Extra Assistant
Commissioner, and the escape into
Afghanistan of the murderer and his
gang of malcontents, 257.
Sikhs, the : their invasions and con-
quests from 1818, their great victories
over the Afghans (1823 and 1832), 18,
149 ; their raids and exactions of tribute
(1823-34), J8. 149; the change of Sikh
policy, after the death of Ranjlt Singh,
1 8 ; the rule of General Avitabile
(1838-42), 18, 149; the outbreak (1848)
of the second War at Multan, 185, the
march thither of Edwardes with new
levies, 185; the invasion of Bannu
repelled by Reynell Taylor, 185; their
heroism (1897) at Saragarhi, 181 ; the
most advanced community in Bannu,
192, in Dera Ismail Khan, 204 ; their rule
(and exactions) in Hazara, 1 29, 135 ; in
Peshawar, 149; the inability of Ranjit
Singh to levy revenue in Kohat and Ban-
nu, 170, 184; in Dera Ismail Khan, 198.
Silk-spinning and weaving, important in-
dustries at Peshawar and Kohat, 50,
153, 1.75-
Silladari system of border military police-,
adopted, abused, abolished, 71.
INDEX
277
Small-pox, very common among Pathans,
76, its small mortality, 30; hereditary
art of inoculation for, 76, 77; vaccina-
tion against, 76, 77.
Soils, their character and variety, 37, 38,
their fertility not so important as facili-
ties for their irrigation, 38, 39. See also
under Agriculture in Districts.
Stallions, for improvement of breed of
horses and donkeys, maintained by
Veterinary department, 132, 152.
Stamps, judicial and non-judicial, revenue
from, 67.
Stations, military, a list of, 69. See also
Cantonments, Forts, Hill Stations, Out-
posts and garrisons.
Stein, Dr., on the mistaken identification
of Aornoswith Mahaban, 108, 223; on
the derivation of Hazara, 128; his visit
(1898) to Buner and identification of
several sites of historical or religious
interest, 27, 223, 224.
Stone, a common disease, 30.
Stupas. See Buddhism.
Surveys, conducted independently by local
Revenue establishment and by Survey
department, 77; its progress in settled
and unsettled territory, 77 ; surveys of
the passes, 77.
Swabi, tahsil of Peshawar District, for-
merly known as Utman Bulak, 160.
Swat, 23, 24, 216-221 ; tract in the
DIr, Swat, and Chitral Agency, the
fertile valleys drained by the Swat river,
216, the forests of the upper tract or
Kohistan, 216, the malaria of the lower
tract, its moral and physical effects,
217;* its tribes, clans, languages, and
religion, 220, 221 ; for its history,
religious and other wars, punitive ex-
peditions, &c., against, see under
DIr, Swat, Bajaur, and Utman Khel,
their history. See also Pathan Revolt.
Swat river, formed by junction of the
Gabral and Ushu, 1 16, its course of 400
miles to its junction with the Kabul
river, 1 16 ; fordable in midwinter, 1 16 ;
its canal, 1 20 ; its three bridges of boats
and twelve ferries, 154, 161.
Swat River Canal, a perennial irrigation
work, supplying 155,000 acres, 120;
its natural weir, channels, aqueducts
(167), and district of supply, 120; its
proposed extension, lai; its capital
cost, and unexpected profits, 121.
T.
TahsTls, tahstlddrs, and naib-tahstlddrs,
58.
Takht-i-Sulaiman (' Solomon's throne ') , a
shrine (ziaraf) on the Sulaiman range
(11,295 feet), 3, 257; its legend, 257.
Tanawal (or Tunawal), a mountainous
tract in Hazara District and semi-
independent estate, 138 ; its history
under the Tanawalis, a tribe of Mughal
descent, 138, its present chiefs with large
powers, the Nawab of Amb, K.C.S.I.,
and the Khan of Phulra, 138, 139.
Tanawals, arenaceous and calcareous rocks
in Hazara, partly infra- Trias, 4, 5.
Tangi, town in Peshawar District, near
the Jhindi aqueduct of the Swat River
Canal, 167.
Tank, subdivision and tahsil of Ismail
Dera Khan District, 205 ; a dry plain
intersected by ravines and hills, assidu-
ously and successfully cultivated, 207 ;
once a semi-independent State under
a Nawab of the Daulat Khel, 205 ; the
progressive rule of Sarwar Khan, 206 ;
its submission to the Sikhs and their
exactions, 206 ; the restitution of the
ruling family (1849) in Shah Nawaz
Khan and his deprivation, 206.
Tank town, head-quarters of subdivision
and tahsil, 209; its mud wall and ruined
fort, 209, a ' notified area,' 209, its
trade with Wazlristan, 209; the place of
the death (1870) of Sir Henry Durand,
Lieutenant-Governor of the Punjab, 209.
Tappa, a block or circle of villages, the
old administrative and fiscal unit in
Bannu, 158, 191, the method of col-
lecting revenue from, 191.
Tarkhans, or carpenters, a numerous artisan
class, rising to be a professional class of
trained engineers, 33. See also under
Castes and Occupations in District.
Taylor, Lieutenant Reynejl, Edwardes's
successor in Bannu District, 185, kept
invaders at bay during second Sikh
War, 185.
Temperature, 12, maximum 122° at Dera
Ismail Khan, minimum minus 13° at
Wana in January, 1905, 12; statistical
table of, 83. See also under Climate
and Temperature in Districts.
Tenants (agricultural), paying rent, not
a very large class, 39, 45, 46 ; the ratio1
of rents to assessments and produce,
46; the protection of tenants with rights
of occupancy, 46, and of all in respect
of ejectment and compensation for im-
provements, 46.
Tenures of land, native or Pathan, origi-
nally tribal, 62 ; the divisions and sub-
divisions of the holding of a tribe into
final scattered shares, each of an in-
dividual, 62 ; the periodical (from every
five to twenty years) redistribution
(vesfi) of the land by lot or otherwise,
62, 63; the vesh now becoming obso-
lete, save in the unadministered terri-
tories, 63.
INDEX
Tenures of land, present, generally as in
the Punjab, 63; in Hazara, 131; by
peasant proprietors in Peshawar, 151,
and in Bannn, 188; in Dera Ismail
Khan, 200.
Teri faAsi/, forming half of Kohat Dis-
trict, 1 79; its distinct fiscal history, 1 77 ;
the loyalty of the Khan during the
Afghan War, 171, 177, his reward, 179;
its inhabitants, the Khattaks, 179.
Tertiary (geological) rocks, 5-7.
Thai, subdivision of Kohat District, with
head-quarters at Hangu, 179, 180.
Thai village, military outpost in Kohat
District, on a branch of North- Western
Railway, 181, new police post and
resthouse (1905), 182 ; depot for
through trade by Kurram valley, 181,
241.
Thandiani, small hill sanitarium of
Abbottabad cantonment, 143.
Til, oilseed, 41.
Tillage of soil, primitive and half-hearted,
39-
Timur, his devastation (1398) of the
Punjab, 1 6.
TTrah, a mountainous tract of unadminis-
tered territory, 233-236, 23, 24; its
inhabiting tribes, 233, rivers, valleys,
and branches of the Safed Koh, 233,
234 I high elevation and generally
healthy climate, 234 ; history of re-
sistance to Mughal empire and inde-
pendence since its decay, 235 ; the
punitive expedition (1898) under
Lockhart, 235, 236; increasing rail-
borne trade with, 175. See also Pa-
than Revolt.
Titles, official, social, and religious, of
Muhammadans and Hindus, 37.
Tobacco, area of cultivation, 85 ; its uni-
versal use opposed by Mullas, 35.
Tochi (or Gambila) river, 100-150 miles
long, rising in Afghanistan, falls into
Kurram, 119; much formerly, less
lately, used for irrigation, 1 19 ; in Bannu
District, 182, 187.
Tochi valley, 246, 247 ; the treachery and
rising in the beginning of the Pathan
Revolt, 22, 33.
Tongas (wheeled vehicles), 55.
Towns, one (Peshawar) large, five with
more than 10,000 inhabitants, fifteen
smaller, 28 ; total population of
(269,905), 28, 84.
Trade and Commerce : its importance
due to the Province lying across great
trade-routes, 52; routes to and items
and values of trade with Buner and
Bajaur (including countries east of
the Hindu Kush), TTrah, Afghan-
istan, Central Asia (through Kabul),
Kashmir, and other Provinces and
States of India, 52-54, 153 ; statistical
tables of trade of Province, 86, 87 ;
restrictions on trade witli Bokhara
and Afghanistan, 53 ; main trade
through rather than in or with the
Province, 153 ; of Peshawar, 153,
166, of Dera Ismail Khan, 202, 207,
208. See also under Trade in Dis-
tricts.
Trade cashes and classes, the Aroras and
the Khattris, 33, 130, 150. See also
under Castes and Occupations in Dis-
tricts.
Trade centres of Peshawar, 153, Kohat,
175, Bannu, 189, Dera Ismail Khan,
202.
Treasure, excess of exported over im-
ported, 54, 87.
Trees, principal of forests, 49, 133.
Trias (geological) formation, the begin-
ning of a generally continuous zoolo-
gical sequence, 6.
Tribe, the, the social unitofthe Pathans,67;
its periodical redistribution of propeity
and rights, 62, 63, 67 ; the introduc-
tion of the village community and
responsible headman by the British,
67 ; the tribal customs of the Wazlrs,
252 ; the failure to make the inaliks
responsible representatives of the Mah-
suds, 255.
Tribes, of the Pathans, 32, 33, 79 ; of
the Himalayas, 104, 105 ; of Black
Mountain, 107, 108 ; of Mahaban,
108; of the Peshawar hills, 143, 144;
of the Political Agencies, 210-257 ;
statistical table of tribes against whom
expeditions have been undertaken
(1849-92), 80-82 ; genealogical table
of. Pa than, 79.
Tunnels, irrigation, 119; proposed under
Malakand, 44, 121.
Turis, the dominant tribe of the Kurram
valley, 239, 240 ; the Tiirizfina or
customary law, 241 ; their administra-
tion taken over (1892), at their own
request, by the British, 240.
Typhus fever, frequent recent epidemics
of, 30 ; former ravages of, in jails, 74.
U.
Udyana, ancient kingdom of (Swat), 26 ;
knowledge of, derived mainly from
coins and inscriptions, 27.
Ughi. See Oghi.
Umra Khan of Jandol, his conquest
(1882-90) of Dir, 219, his interference
with Chitral (1895), 212, his final
rupture with the British Government,
open war, and siege of Chitral, 212,
his defeat and flight (1896) to Kabul,
219.
INDEX
279
Und (Hind, Ohind, or Waihind), now a
village, on the west bank of the Indus,
15 miles above Attock, 125, once a rich
and great city, the capital of the rulers
of the Kabul valley and Gandhara be-
fore the Muhammadan invasion, 124,
1 25 ; the place of the victory of Mahmiid
of Ghazni, which opened his way to
the Punjab, 125.
Urial, or wild sheep, 10.
Utman Khel, mountainous tract on both
banks of the Swat in Dlr,Swat, and Chi-
tral Agency, 222; inhabited by quar-
relsome clans of Utman Khel Afghans,
222; pltnitive expeditions against, 24,
82, 222.
V.
Vaccination-, organization of, 76, popular
but interfered with by old hereditary
habit of inoculation, 77 ; successful
transformation of inoculators into vac-
cinators, 77 ; full statistics of, 93.
See also tinder Vaccination in Dis-
tricts.
Vesh (khulla vesh, ' mouth division '),
the Pathan practice (now obsolescent)
of periodical redistribution of the lands,
water-rights, and houses of the tribe,
62, 63, 67, 188; its bad effect upon
cultivation, 39, 216.
Veterinary department, its stallions for
the improvement of horses and don-
keys, in Hazara, 132, in Peshawar,
'52-
Village community, the, not indigenous,
67, introduced by British with respon-
sible headman, 67.
Villages (and rural areas), population of
('^SS.S/S). 28, number of (3,348), 28,
84 ; hitherto and still, beyond adminis-
trative border, fortified against one an-
other and external enemies, 28, 29 ; the
village guest- and club-house, 35, 36;
watchmen, 70, 71, 91, accountant, 58,
headmen, 58, 67.
Vital statistics, defective data of, 29,
method of collection, 29, principal
statistics, 30.
W.
Wages (and income), of landless labourers,
47, of cultivating tenants, 47, of pea-
sant proprietors, 47, of skilled labour,
47, of clerks, 47; have risen more than
prices, 47.
Wana, a wide open valley, containing the
Wana post, the head-quarters of the
Southern Wazlristan Agency, 253 ; its
well-cultivated and irrigated riverain of
the Toi, 253.
Wana, post and head-quarters of the
Southern Wazlristan Agency/253, scene
of Mahsud attack (1894) on British
delimitation escort, 253.
Water-rights, their value and intricacy,
45, 189, water rates or rent, 46, et pas-
sim under Land Revenue; water-supply
to Peshawar, 118, 165; expenditure of
Province on, 89.
Wazirs, the tribe of, their two great sec-
tions, the Darwesh Khel and the Mah-
suds, 251 ; their subdivision into numer-
ous clans, 187, 244, 254; their language
and tribal customs, 251, 252.
Wazlristan, Northern, Political Agency,
with head-quarters at Miram Shah,
243-248 ; its boundaries, hills, and four
large and fertile valleys, 243, 244; none
of it administered save the Tochl or
Daur Valley, 245 ; its inhabitants Dar-
wesh Khel Wazirs, the least tractable
of Pathan tribes, 244 ; raids and puni-
tive expeditions, 244, 245 ; the militia
and its posts, 245.
WazTristan, Southern, Political Agency,
with head-quarters at Wana, constituted
in 1896, 248-253; its boundaries, 248;
the Wazirs, its dominant tribe, 248, 251,
252; its peaks, plateaux, river, and
Gomal Pass, 248-250, flora and con-
siderable fauna, 249, its unwholesome
lower valleys, healthy higher, 249, 250 ;
the history of the Mahsud Wazirs
(1860-1900), a series of raids, punitive
expeditions, and broken agreements,
20-25, 25°» 25 ! > 254, 255 ; its insufficient
agriculture, 252, inconsiderable iron
and other industries and trade, 252,253;
its militia, 251.
Weather, the, at different seasons, 11,12;
at Peshawar, 146. See also under
Climate and Temperature in Districts.
Wells, irrigate less than one per cent, of
cultivated area, 43, 85, their places of
occurrence, 44, their construction and
working, 132.
Wheat, chief crop of spring harvest, its
area, 40, one-third irrigated, 40, its
yield per irrigated and unirrigated acre,
40 ; wheaten bread the rule in towns,
34; average price of, 48. See also
under Agriculture in Districts.
Widows, no prejudice against remarriage
of, 31 ; their number, rights, and lia-
bility to be sold, 31.
Women, low position of, 30 ; purchase of
wives, 31 ; rights of widows and un-
married daughters, 31; divorce, 31;
dress and coiffure of, 35 ; reluctance
to register births of daughters, 29;
female education, Muhammadan and
Hindu, 75, by lady missionaries, 151 ;
hospitals and dispensaries for, 76 ; the
z8o
INDEX
sale of Chitral girls for Afghan harems,
214.
Woodwork : boat-building and carpentry,
53 ; pinjra lattice-work, jointed not
glued, of Peshawar, 52; lac turnery
and lac- ware, 52.
Woollen industries, 50.
Y.
Yusufxai, a subdivision of Peshawar Dis-
trict, comprising the tahsils of Swabi
and Mardan, 1 59 ; properly the whole
territory held by the Yusufzai tribe of
Pathans, 158; their clans, 220; their
speech, the classical and literary dialect
of 1'ashtfi, 31, 32, 320. See also DIr,
Swat, 1 iujaur, and Utmaii Kin 1.
Zakka Khel or clan of Afrldis in the
Bazar valley, 236 ; the most active
thieves^on {he frontier, 236 ; punitive
expeditions against, 81, 82, 236.
Zanana Mission at Peshawar, 151, 157;
at Dera Ismail Khan, 200.
Oxford : HORACE HART, Printer to the University
Imperial Gazetteer of India,
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