nates, and thé groves, are stocked with our singing birds,'
nightingales, blackbirds*-thrushes, and .doves.. The"pears
and apples óf Kabül are celebrated, and the. seasons said to
be there delightful. Kabdl itself is more than six hundred
feet above the level of the sea. The eastern parts of Affgbn-
istan consist of plains intersected by abrupt chains of hills,
the western chiefly of downs and table-lands, in jnany parts
bleak and cold.
In such a country we might expect to find the people
very different from the nations of southern Hindustan. We
are informed that the Affgh&n men are of robust make,
lean, strong, and muscular, with high noses and prominent
cheek' bones, and long "faces. Their hair and /beards .are
mostly black/ sometimes brown, but rarely red.# We shall
find that some clans are characteristically red-haired. Mr.
Fraser describes the Patan, or Affghhn soldiers whom .hè
saw, as having rod hair and blue eyes'® Mr. .Elphinstbne^
says, that the eastern Affghans have generally dark cotm
plexions approaching to that of the “ HindoostaneeS^’ while
thosè of the west are of higher colour, with an appearaücê
of health ; but among them, he says, as among the: eastern
Affghans, men as dark as the Indians, and others as fair as
Europeans, are to be met with in the same neighbourhood;
the fair being the most common inf the Vest' and. the dark
in the east. This difference he attributes to climat'etb In
describing a tribe of Affghans near Defft, the same writer
says, “ The number of children was considerable; - 'they
were mostly fair and handsome. The girls had aquiline ho&es,
fine faces, and Jewish features. The men were generally
dark, though some were quite fair. One young man had
exactly the colour, features, and appearance of an Irish
hay-maker.” He ,probably means a sanguine complexion.
The preceeding description applies to the Affghhn nation
in general. They are divided into a great number of tribes,
which, although they speak one language and constitute
one race, differ considerably from each other. Their several
abodes are pointed out, and their respective characters are
* Elpbinstone’s Account of Kabtil.
t Fraser’s Travels in the Himmalaya, cited above.
describq#by Mr. Elphihstone. The folio Vug is a brief
abstracted hiskc&OunttfV
tr-p; '-Wribe's of NoffWemiern Affgh&ns,' dr Berdiirani.
The tribes* of - the northeastern part of Affghhnistan,
«between the range%tbf Hindu-Khush, the Indus,’ the Salt
range-, and the* range ofbSbiim*E®?| are comprehended under
the name- of \Berdurani. They-- consist 1 of the tribes of
EusofzyhGtMu Khail> TurkQlanSK'hyberi, tribes of the'
plain of Peshawar, of Band usTn,?and KKattak. <
• Tff^Betdurhhi diffe^J from, othei^Affghans in having
more Indian refinement, through. i^eieQursejiwith India, in
i§he wars of Ghazna and Kabul. The Berduranfepossess the
» 1 1 valleys and forests under the 8 olimhn/mountains
and those of Hindu-KMsh; The 4ngh summits are occu-:
pied by the Kafirs, or Siah Poslv. The climate is various*-:,
in parts cold like ithat. of Alpineb mountains in the
plains! of'Peshawar.
A very principal branch of thg Berduranf, are the Eusofzyi,
Ian-agricultural tribe who wandered into tbeirpresent abode,
w as-dt is.Reported,' about three! c©p|turie^ago. Theineriginal
'dwelling was near Persia, on the,borders of the great, Salt
Desert.;,;'^e. territory which they' nowjpcci|p^:iS; equal in
extent to, all England.
Thej Eusofzyi display the Affgh&n character most completely;
developed. “ Living among, the conquered people?
I of other Affghhn tribes, like tho'-Spartaris«,among the Hek>fsy
and enjoying (entire independency ev&ry Eusofzyi is „filled
with his own dignity and importance*. Tfeeir, pride appears
in the seclusion of their women, in the gravity of;their
rnanners, and in the .terms in which they speak off helBSj^yeS''
and their tribe, not allowing the Doorannees top be
their equals. Their independence' and frequent quarrels
render them suspicious and repulsive.”
The Epsofzyi are generally stout men, but their form
and complexion, vary. “ In those whqse, appearance is
most characteristic/of the tribe|||sayS J ^ r . Elphinstone,
“ one is struck with their fair complexions, grey eyes, and