Suleyman Khan Afshar. The
governor of Astarabad
November 29th, 1874. Astrabad, 25 miles.
― Marched from Katul to Astrabad. The road, lying for the most part through an
open plain, within sight of the Yomut “obahs,” is considered very dangerous,
notwithstanding, that the Yomuts are subject, and living, and cultivating
within reach of the capital of the province. That the country was really
insecure was evident, for the villagers moved about in large parties, well armed,
and the ploughmen were at work with their rifles on their backs. The Yomuts
are, in fact, masters of the country; their nominal allegiance is gained at the
cost of the unfortunate peasantry. Any attempt to coerce them, if made in
sufficient force, would be answered by their retirement beyond the Atrak into
Russian territory, a course to which the Persian authorities are very loth to
drive them. A guard of fifty men, fairly mounted and armed, escorted me to
Nowdeh, whence a fresh guard took me to Astrabad. The road lay for the most
part through a magnificent park-like plain, extending from the foot of the
hills to the Gurgan River, distant 8 to 10 miles. The villages, few and far
between, are surrounded by a good stretch of rice and wheat cultivation, and,
in place of the mud wall of Khorassan, are defended by wet ditches, backed by
tall hedges of thorn and brier; the clusters of thatched cane huts, buried in a
luxuriant vegetation, give them a tropical aspect, and there is little, save
the fine men and the fine cattle in the farmyards, to distinguish many of them
from the forest hamlets of Bengal or the Deccan. After seven or eight
successive crops, with a yield of from fifty to seventy fold, a single season’s
fallow is allowed, and nothing is ever returned to the land in the shape of
manure. A good deal of cotton, of very fine quality, is raised for the Russian
market. On approaching the town I was received by a party sent by the Governor
to meet me, and conducted to one of the best houses in the town, secured for me
by the British Agent. A telegram from the Minister of Foreign Affairs had
procured for me a good reception.
Kazi
Syud Ahmad, whom I had sent to wait for me, has rejoined me, having improved
most zealously the opportunities of gaining information of interest as to the
state of the country and people that his stay in the town had given him. Having
been taken no notice of by the authorities on his arrival, he was able to
communicate more freely with the people than would otherwise have been possible.
His knowledge of both the European and the native mode of treatment of the
ordinary ailments of the country also opened many doors to him.
The
Sahib-i-Ikhtiar, Governor of Astrabad, Suleyman Khan Afshar, visited me in the
afternoon. He is an elderly man, who has served the Government in different
capacities for many years, and stands high in favour with the Shah. He
previously held the government of Kermanshah. Astrabad is considered a most
difficult and responsible post.
G. C. Napier, Kazi Syud Ahmad — Extracts from a Diary
of a Tour in Khorassan, and Notes on the Eastern Alburz Tract. With Notes on
the Yomut Tribe (1876)
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