Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/715

 JUSTICE — FINANCE — DEFENCE — PRODUCTION 6G3

tory and Bokhara on the west, Persia ; on the south, the British Political Agency of Baluchistan and, on the east, the mountain tribes scattered along the north-western frontier of India, and included within the sphere of British influence in the North -Western Frontier Province. There are five larger and two smaller provinces, in addition to the Province of Kabul, each under a Governor, and each jossessing its own army.

Population about 6,380,500, the dominant race being the Afghans, of whom the leading tribes are the Durranis and the Ghilzais, who amount to about 2,200,000 souls ; then follow other Afghans, and the Tajiks, Hazaras, and Aimaks, and Uzbaks. The languages spoken are Persian and Pushtoo. The predominant religion is Islam. Two newspapers are published in the country, one in Kabul, the capital (population about 150,000), and the other in Jalalabad. Other large towns are Kandahar (population 31,500) and Herat (population 20,000).

Justice. — Justice in criminal cases is administered by Government officials, in civil cases by a Kazi, or judge, who follows the law of the Koran.

Finance. — The revenue of Afghanistan is subject to considerable

fluctuations. The Government share of the produce recoverable is said to

vary from one-third to one-tenth, according to the advantages of irrigation.

The total revenue is estimated at between 12 and 13 million rupees, bat this

.ate is probably too low.

The late Amir received a subsidy from the Indian Government of Rs. 18,50,000 a year, in accordance with the treaty of 1893. But iu accord- ance with paragraph 3 of the Peace Treaty of August 8, 1919, the arrears of the late Amir's subsidy have been confiscated and no subsidy is granted to the present Amir.

Defence. — lu addition to his regular army the Amir's military forces are largely supplemented by local levies of horse and foot. The mounted levies are simply the retainers of great chiefs, or of the latter's wealthier - vassals. The foot levies are now permanently embodied, and as irragulars form an auxiliary to the regular infantry. The mountain batteries are believed to be serviceable. As engineers, the Hazara 'sappers,' who are regularly enrolled, are excellent workmen. The Afghan army is said to number 98,000 men, including 18,000 cavalry and 3£6 guns. The real military strength of Afghanistan lies in the rugged and inhospitable nature of the country, the absence of roads, and in the capacity and aptitude of its inhabitants for guerilla warfare, which have been greatly enhanced of recent years by the wholesale importation of rifles and ammunition from the Gulf.

Production. — Although the greater part of Afghanistan is more or less mountainous, and a good deal of the country is too dry and rocky for successful cultivation, yet there are many fertile plains and valleys, which, with the as- sistance of irrigation from small rivers or wells, yield very satisfactory crops of fruit, vegetables, and cereals. There are four classes of cultivators — 1st, proprietors, who cultivate their own land ; 2nd, tenants, who hire it for a rent in money or for a fixed proportion of the produce ; 3rd, bazgara, who are the same as the mitayers in France ; and 4th, hired labourers. There are two harvests in the year in most parts of Afghanistan. One of these is sown in the end of autumn and reaped in summer, and con- sists of wheat, barley, Ervum Lens, and Cicer ariUinum, with some peas and beans. The other harvest is sown in the end of spring and reaped in autumn. It consists of rice, millet, arzna {Panicum italicum), Indian corn, &c. The castor-oil plant, madder, and the assafcetida plant abound. Fruit, viz. the apple, pear, almond, peach, quince, apricot, plum, cherry, pomegranate, grape, fig, mulberry, is produced in profuse abundance.