KIRGHESE CHIEF AND FAMILY.
"In return for this tax, and provided the new subject in Central Asia behaves himself, he has the protection of a powerful government. The Russian Government has its faults, but it is immeasurably superior to the old way in which these countries were ruled.
"By the religion of the Moslem might makes right, and this was the foundation of the governmental system of the Kirghese and Turcoman tribes, together with the khanates previously mentioned. Robbery was a recognized means of making a living; not robbery by detail, as practised by highwaymen and burglars, but wholesale robbery in which entire tribes were concerned. Many thousands of people lived by raiding, and the raidwas as legitimate a way of acquiring property as selling goods in a shop and making a profit on them."
CARAVAN IN RUSSIAN TERRITORY.
Frank and Fred made an exclamation of surprise as the Doctor continued:
"The Kirghese who occupy the region immediately south of the Altai Mountains, and are still found on the southern confines of the Baraba Steppe, are broken into many independent tribes; they are nomadic in their habits, wandering from place to place in search of pasturage for their immense flocks and herds. In winter they frequent the valleys among the outlying hills of the Altai Mountains, and in summer descend upon the plains. Many of the tribes live altogether on the plains, and their range covers many thousands of square miles.
"Quarrels were numerous among them, chiefly growing out of disputes about pasturage or water, and these are the quarrels in which the Russians interfered, both in the interest of humanity and the spread of their power. Frequently these disputes led to raids for purposes of plunder; quite as frequently one tribe would make a raid on another with which it was at peace for the sole object of robbery.
"Attacks were generally made at night, and if they were successful the robbers would drive off the flocks and herds of the tribe assailed. Men, women, and children were taken to be sold into slavery in the markets of Khiva and Bokhara, or kept among their captors. These slaves were treated with the greatest cruelty; they were severely beaten for the slightest offence or failure to perform what had been ordered, were poorly fed, and often compelled to wear chains. They were generally maimed for life, by means of a horse-hair run through the heel, in order to prevent their escape from captivity.
"All this business was brought to an end by the Russians when they occupied the Kirghese country. They compelled the tribes to live peacefully with each other, and if any dispute arose about water or pasturage it was referred to the Russian commander of the district for adjustment. If one tribe made a raid on another it was compelled to give up the stolen property, and furthermore a heavy fine was levied upon the raiders—half going to the Russian Government and half to the injured tribe. The Russians generally made the fine heavy enough to furnish a percentage for the officers who took the trouble to adjust the differences.
"Russian goods were introduced among these nomadic people, markets were opened, and every facility was offered for the increase of commerce. Long caravans were constantly in motion between Orenburg, Sempolatinsk, and other points in Russian territory, and Khiva, Bokhara, and Samarcand, far to the east. They traversed the Kirghese and Turcoman country, and wherever they went they found a material difference in the matter of safety, whether the territory was under Russian rule or remained independent. If the latter, the caravans were constantly liable to attack and plunder; if the former, they were invariably free from molestation.
"The capture of Bokhara, Samarcand, and Khiva reduced the slave-markets of the Turcoman raiders, but by no means put an end to their plundering expeditions. The independent Turcomans were estimated to be about a million in number, divided into several tribes, who sometimes warred upon each other, but constantly upon the Persians and other peaceable people. In the wars between Khiva and Bokhara, Samarcand andKokan, they took sides with those who would pay the most for their services.
KIRGHESE RAID ON A HOSTILE TRIBE.
"Down to very recently the whole of Northern Persia was subject to Turcoman raids, and agriculture was carried on under great difficulties.[7]The raids were sometimes carried up to within a hundred miles of Teheran, or about five hundred miles inside the Persian boundary. They were organized months beforehand, and sometimes as many as five or six thousandmen were engaged in a single enterprise. A raid was called a 'chapow' by the Persians; in the Turcoman language it was an 'alaman.'
"A Turcoman leader would announce his intention of making an alaman, but the route was always kept secret through fear of betrayal. The Turcomans are splendid horsemen, and while organizing an expedition they put their steeds under a system of training to enable them to make long and swift marches whenever occasion required. When everything was ready the party started; it travelled slowly until it reached the Persian frontier, and was often weeks on the way.
"Passing the frontier, the hard work of the campaign began. The region selected for the raid was reached as soon as possible; then the invading force was divided into small parties, and each had a particular village assigned to it. Their movements were made so as to catch the people at work in the fields, and capture the cattle before they could be driven into a place of safety. Not only the cattle, but all the men, women, and children that could be seized were taken. The old and useless were slaughtered without mercy; the young or able-bodied were carried off, to be sold into slavery. A wealthy Persian was held for a heavy ransom, but a poor man had no chance of redemption.
"The plundering was kept up as long as there was anything to steal, and then the expedition returned to its own territory. Sometimes in a single raid as many as a hundred thousand horses, sheep, goats, and other animals were captured, and a thousand or more people were carried into slavery."
Frank asked if the Persian Government made no provision for the protection of its people.
"Very little," replied the Doctor; "the Persian troops were in the cities and large towns, which the Turcomans never attacked, and as there was no telegraph through the country, the raiders almost invariably got to a safe distance before a pursuit could be started. Very often the Persian officials on the frontier connived at the raids, and the people were forced to rely upon themselves for protection."
"In what way could they do anything against the robbers?" was the very natural query that followed this statement.
"Their villages are built of mud, and may be called forts," the Doctor replied. "The walls are from twenty to thirty feet thick, and about forty in height; they form a quadrangle, or circle, where cattle can be driven at night, and there is only a single door-way, too low to permit the passage of a man on horseback. The raiders never stop to besiege a place; all their work is done by a sudden dash, and the Turcoman would neverthink of dismounting to pass the low door-way. Inside there is a stone door which may be closed to prevent ingress; it is thick and strong, and once inside of their mud village the people are safe.
LASGIRD—A FORTIFIED VILLAGE IN NORTHERN PERSIA.
"Here is a picture of one of these villages," said the Doctor; "it is called Lasgird, and is about a hundred miles east of the capital of Persia. You will observe that there is a double tier of dwellings on the top of the circular wall; the enclosed space accommodates the cattle and other live-stock of the village, and is also utilized for the storage of grain. On the outside, near the top, there is a balcony made of projecting timbers covered with branches of trees; it has no outer railing, and must be a very unsafe place for a promenade. Inside of such a retreat the people had nothing to fear, as the Turcomans have no artillery and did not care to stay long enough to batter down the walls."
Fred remarked that it must be difficult for those at work in the fields at any distance to get to the village before they were overtaken by the raiders on their swift horses.
TOWER OF REFUGE.
"So it is," was the reply, "and to further protect themselves they had towers of refuge in their fields, where they could run in case of danger. Some of the towers had ladders on the outside which were drawn up asthe Turcomans approached, while others were entered by narrow door-ways similar to those of the villages. On the hills there were signal-towers where watchmen were stationed; when the dust of an approaching alaman was seen, the watchmen gave warning and the people fled for safety."
"What a life to lead!" said one of the youths. "Always apprehensive of danger, and never knowing when the murderous Turcomans might come!"
"It was much like the life of the early settlers of New England," said the Doctor, "when the Indians were liable to come at any moment, and the men carried their guns to church on Sunday. The same condition of things has continued until quite recently on our western frontier, and still exists in a few places in Texas and New Mexico. But the difference is that in our country it never lasted for many years in any one place, while in Persia the situation was the same for centuries.
"These Turcoman thieves hampered agriculture in the way I have described, and they also restricted commerce by plundering the caravans. Merchants travelled with an armed escort and in large numbers. Even this did not save them from attack, as a great caravan was unwieldy, and often the robbers would dart in and seize a few camels laden with merchandise while the escort was so far away in another part of the line that it could not rush to attack the marauders until they had finished their work and departed. And remember that for centuries trade has followed this dangerous route!
"A curious thing about these raids is that the departure of a plunderingexpedition was always accompanied by religious ceremonies. The Mollahs, or Moslem priests, gave their blessing to the thieves, and prayed for Allah's favor upon the enterprise. When the party returned laden with plunder, and driving slaves and stolen cattle in great number, the same priests offered prayers in thanks for Allah's blessing, and a portion of the proceeds of the expedition was set apart for the cause of religion."
FRAMEWORK OF TURCOMAN TENT.
"Then they must be of a different religion from the Persians," Fred observed, "as they would not be likely to make war upon people of their own faith."
THE TENT COVERED.
"Unfortunately for your theory, that was not the case," the Doctor answered. "Persians and Turcomans are all Moslems; they have different sects, just as have the adherents of the Christian religion, but in a general way they may be said to be of the same faith. Moslems make war upon each other with very little hesitation; the only thing in which they appear to be united is in their hatred of all other religions than their own."
"I suppose they have not received travellers with any courtesy," saidFrank. "Do they permit foreigners to visit their country and study its character?"
INTERIOR OF TENT.
"Not at all," was the reply, "if they can prevent it, and they are not at all particular about the mode of prevention. Of course, since the country was occupied by Russia there has been a change in this respect, and under Russian protection a stranger may travel there with comparative safety.
"In former times most of the Europeans who ventured into Turkestan (the collective name for the countries of Central Asia) paid the penalty of their temerity with their lives. Russians, Englishmen, Germans, and others perished, and not one explorer in ten returned to tell the story of his travels. Two English ambassadors, Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly, ventured into Bokhara about 1840, and were murdered, the former after four years' imprisonment, and the latter after a twelvemonth.
"Stoddart was repeatedly tortured, and finally was promised his freedom if he would embrace the Moslem religion. To save his life he consented, and went through the required ceremony; the Emir of Bokhara continued to torture him, and finally ordered the heads of both Conolly and Stoddart to be cut off in the public square of Bokhara.
"Stoddart was executed first, and then the Emir offered Conolly his freedom if he would become a Moslem. 'No,' said he, 'I prefer to die. Stoddart became a Moslem and you have killed him. Go on with your work.' The Emir nodded to the executioner, and the work of execution was completed.
"Wood, another Englishman, who went to Bokhara to ascertain whathad become of Stoddart and Conolly, was imprisoned for some time, and narrowly escaped with his life. A more fortunate explorer was Arminius Vámbéry, a Hungarian, who travelled through Central Asia disguised as a dervish from Constantinople. At the very outset of his journey he was obliged to wait for three-quarters of a year in Teheran before he could find the right kind of party to travel with. In his character of dervish he associated with pilgrims like himself, who wished to visit the Moslem shrines of Bokhara and Samarcand. They were twenty-four in number, and nearly all of them were distinguished for their poverty. They intended to beg their way through the country and back again; Vámbéry had a little money, which he carefully concealed, as it would not be in accordance with his assumed character of dervish to be known to have any ready cash.
VÁMBÉRY'S RECEPTION BY TURCOMAN CHIEF ON THE CASPIAN SHORE.
"From Teheran they went north to the Turcoman country, which then extended westward to the shores of the Caspian Sea. On landing, theywere greeted by the Turcoman chief who ruled in that district; he was very hospitable, and entertained them for a whole month merely for the sake of having visitors.
"In a caravan of Turcoman horsemen they journeyed to Khiva, crossing a desert region where for days they had only the water they carried on their saddles. They fell short of water, and while their suffering was severe they were relieved by the chief of the caravan, who had an extra store concealed in his baggage. As he doled it out to the pilgrims he said it had always been his custom to carry an extra supply of water while crossing the desert, and distribute it when most needed. But this same man had proposed a few days before to leave Vámbéry to perish in the desert, on the mere suspicion that he was a European in disguise.
"Vámbéry gives an excellent description of the Turcoman character, which has been fully confirmed by other travellers, and later by the Russian conquerors of Turkestan. They are honest in their dealings with each other, and often display much tenderness; at the same time they are the most brutal of slave-masters and man-stealers, and capable of the severest cruelty. Vámbéry says that one day a Turcoman said it was a sin to destroy a basket in the desert, because it had once been the seat of a man on a camel; the same man denied a drop of water to a slave whom he had fed on salt-fish for two days, and his delight at the suffering of his victim was equal to that of a countryman over the antics of a clown at a circus.
RECEIVING PAYMENT FOR HUMAN HEADS—KHIVA.
"Some of the tribes, in their wars with each other, cut off the heads of those whom they slay in battle, and bring them home as trophies; Vámbéry happened to be present in Khiva when, one day, the Khan's treasurer was paying for human heads. As each warrior came forward he emptied his sack on the ground, and an accountant made note of the number of skulls and the name of their owner.
TURCOMAN TROPHY—A RUSSIAN HEAD.
"The payment was not in money, but in robes of honor, which were of different colors, according to the number of slain to each warrior's credit. Some received the robe of forty heads, others the robe of twenty, and others that of ten, five, or four. It was like the different degrees of the decorations awarded by the rulers of the nations of Europe, or the rewards of merit issued by a school-teacher to diligent and well-behaved pupils.
"Another time Vámbéry was in the public square of Khiva when about three hundred prisoners of war were brought in. They were separated into two divisions, those who had not reached their fortieth year, and were to be sold as slaves or given as presents, being placed in one category. They were chained together and led away, and then the old men were brought forward for punishment; and what do you suppose it was?
"These gray-bearded old men were tied hand and foot and placed flat on their backs on the ground. Then their eyes were gouged out, the executioner kneeling on the breast of each to perform his dreadful work. Each time when he finished with a victim he deliberately wiped his knife on the latter's flowing beard. Vámbéry says the scene will make him shudder as long as he lives, and no wonder.
"And yet he found the people of Khiva full of pious charity. The same khan who had ordered this cruel treatment of prisoners of war, loaded the supposed dervish and his companions with presents, and showed them every kindness. When Vámbéry left in the direction of Bokhara, he was mounted on a good donkey, and had plenty of clothing, provisions, and money, which had been given him by the faithful.
"Vámbéry says he one day asked a robber who was noted for piety, how he could sell his brother religionists into slavery. The robber replied that the holy book, the Koran, was certainly more precious than man, and yet it was bought or sold for a few small coins. He added that Joseph, the son of Jacob, was a prophet, but was sold into slavery without being any the worse for it. His argument was forcible, and the stranger concluded it was best not to oppose it."
Frank asked how the women of the Turcoman tribes were treated by their lords and masters.
"Women among the Turcomans have an inferior position, as in all Moslem countries," the Doctor replied. "They are far more the slaves of their husbands than their equals; sometimes they are treated with great kindness, but more frequently their lives are full of hardship. They perform most of the labor of the camp and village, the men being chiefly occupied with the care of the flocks and herds, making expeditions for the sake of plunder, or warring on neighboring tribes.
"Husbands sell their wives as they sell cattle or sheep, and the poor creatures have no redress for their wrongs. A husband buys his wife from her parents, and she has very little voice in the transaction; the price is generally based upon the social standing of the parties, and the ability of the purchaser to pay for the property. Among nearly all the nomad tribes of Turkestan the marriage ceremony includes a race for the bride; the game is calledKökbüri(green wolf), and is decidedly interesting.
KÖKBÜRI—A RACE FOR A BRIDE.
"The girl is mounted on a swift horse, and carries the carcass of a lamb before her on the saddle. She is given a certain start in advance of the bridegroom and his friends; they follow on horseback, and unless the bridegroom can take the lamb from her hands during the race the match is 'off.' She makes a show of resistance, and generally leads the party along distance, but the affair having been negotiated beforehand, is pretty sure to end in the surrender of the lamb. In some tribes the girl must be lifted from the saddle by the bridegroom, who carries her on his own horse back to the point of starting.
"There is this difference in the treatment of the women of Turkestan and those of most other Moslem countries," the Doctor continued, "that they are not required to cover their faces. In Turkey, Egypt, and Arabia the Moslem woman who leaves her face uncovered commits an act of great impropriety, but this is not the case in Turkestan. Many of the women are quite pretty in their youth, but their good looks do not last long. The men are of good height and figure, and their manners are grave and dignified. The hair and beard are dark, and the complexion may be set down as a light shade of brown."
Frank asked how many tribes and people were included in Turkestan or Central Asia, and how great was the population.
VIEW OF THE CITADEL OF KHIVA.
"That is a very difficult question to answer," said the Doctor, "in fact it is impossible to do so exactly. The census-taker is unknown in Central Asia, except in the cities and towns; even there he does not enumerate the whole population, but only the heads of families and the men capable of bearing arms. Turkestan includes all the country between the Caspian Sea and the 110th degree of longitude east, and from Siberia southward to Persia, Afghanistan, and Thibet. Turkestan means 'The land of the Turks.' On the maps it is generally divided into Eastern and Western Turkestan, the former lying partly in the Chinese Empire, and the latter covering the vast plain of the Caspian and Aral seas. The population is variously estimated at from eight to twelve millions. Russia has absorbed nearly all of Western Turkestan, and the Russian officials think they have at least eight millions of people in their new possessions.
"The tribes and provinces are divided and subdivided so that they are not easy to name. Western Turkestan was formerly known as IndependentTartary, and comprises the Turcoman steppes, the khanates of Khiva, Bokhara, Samarcand, and Kokan, together with Balkh and some smaller provinces which are in dispute between Russia and Afghanistan. These disputes have led to quarrels between Russia and England, and quite likely will lead to war at no distant day.
AN OZBEK HEAD.
"The people dwelling in Turkestan are mainly of the Turkish race; their language is Turkish, and the country was the seat of the race that spread its boundaries by a career of conquests, which did not stop until it entered Europe and pressed as far westward as the walls of Vienna. Briefly we may say the inhabitants of Turkestan are Ozbeks or Uzbeks (thedominant race), Turcomans, Kirghese, Karakalpaks, Tajiks, Persians, Kipchaks, and a few Arabs, Hindoos, and Jews. The Ozbeks are the most civilized people of the country, and are mainly settled in the cities and towns; they fill most of the official positions, and their leading families can trace their descent for centuries. The Persians are mostly descended from those who have been stolen by the Turcomans and sold into slavery, and the Arabs, Hindoos, and Jews may be regarded as wanderers who have been drawn there by business or accident.
"I have already told you something of the Kirghese, whose country was the first to be absorbed by Russia. The other people of Turkestan besides those just mentioned are not sufficiently numerous or important to deserve special description. If you wish further particulars, you will find them in Schuyler's 'Turkestan,' Vámbéry's 'Travels in Central Asia,' 'History of Bokhara,' and Shaw's 'High Tartary, Yarkand, and Kashgar.'"
The conversation was interrupted by a gentleman who called to ask if Doctor Bronson and his young friends would like to make a trip to the other side of the Caspian Sea. A steamer was to leave in two or three hours for Mikhailovsk, and the next morning would see them landed in the country where, until quite recently, the Turcomans reigned and robbed at will.
The invitation was promptly accepted, and when the steamer left Baku our friends were among her passengers. What they saw and heard will be told in the next chapter.
MAP SHOWING THE RELATIONS OF RUSSIA AND ENGLAND IN THE EAST.
Our young friends were up early, in their eagerness to see the country of the Turcomans. They found themselves looking at a comparatively flat region, quite in contrast with the chain of the Caucasus, that filled the horizon to the west of Baku, and interposed a formidable barrier between the Caspian and Black seas. The steamer headed into a narrow bay which formed the harbor of Mikhailovsk, the new townwhence the Trans-Caspian Railway takes its departure in the direction of India.
SAND-STORM IN THE DESERT.
Everything indicated the newness of the place. Houses, barracks, piers, railway-station, all were new, and many of the houses were not even finished. Russian soldiers and Russian officers were numerous in the crowd at the landing-place, and there were scores of mujiks busily engaged in handling goods destined for the railway or for the steamers, but they did not by any means have a monopoly of the labor market of Mikhailovsk. Tartars, Kirghese, Turcomans, Persians, and other Asiatics were there in considerable numbers. They appeared to be quite as industrious as the mujiks, and every way as keen to scent a job wherein money was to be earned.
It is an interesting circumstance that the Turcomans, now that they are forbidden to indulge in raiding, have turned their attention to steadyindustry, and promise to make good citizens. Whatever may be their faults, they are not a lazy people; they gave up their raiding habits very unwillingly; but when once convinced that they must live by industry, they seem to have accepted the situation.
TURCOMAN COURT OF JUSTICE.
Mr. Ivanovich, the gentleman who invited our friends to cross the Caspian, was connected with the management of the Trans-Caspian Railway, as the line from Mikhailovsk is called. During the voyage from Baku he gave the youths an account of the building of the railway, and matters connected with it, of which Frank made the following notes:
"The Trans-Caspian Railway," said Mr. Ivanovich, "owes its existence to a military necessity that arose in 1879. When the Russians first occupied the Turcoman country they built fortifications, and settled down to stay. General Skobeleff always claimed that we made a great mistake in doing so; the Government did not think it safe to make a movement directly into the Turcoman country, and consequently several years were occupied in doing what Skobeleff thought should have been done in one. The Turcomans knew nothing about regular warfare, and we might have crushed them in a little while with our trained battalions. But we waited so long that they learned how to fight, partly through our own instruction, and then it required the best of fighting to defeat them.
"It looked at one time as if the Turcomans would altogether prevent us from getting any foothold in their country beyond the shores of the Caspian. Skirmishes almost without number occurred, in which sometimes the Russians and sometimes the Turcomans had the best of the contest.Skobeleff, then a captain, was one of those who landed at Krasnovodsk in 1869. He made more successes in the fighting with the Turcomans than anybody else; but in 1873 he was called away in the campaign against Khiva, and from that time to 1879 nothing of moment was accomplished.
KIRGHESE TOMB.
"In 1878 Tekme Sardar, a Turcoman chief, submitted to the Russians, and was received into their camp at Krasnovodsk. He remained there several months, and then, for some real or fancied injury, fled from the camp, and collected his followers with the determination to make war on the invaders. At a place called Geok Tepé he formed a junction with other chiefs, and established a camp.
"Tekme Sardar had made good use of his eyes during his stay among us. He showed his people how to build forts. About forty thousand Turcomans, with their families, collected at Geok Tepé, and threw up an immense earthwork exactly like the defences built by the Russians. General Lomakin advanced against this earthwork in 1879, and after a series of skirmishes outside the walls he attacked the Turcomans in their stronghold, and was severely repulsed. He retired to the shores of the Caspian, and thus ended the campaign for that year.
CHARGE OF RUSSIAN CAVALRY AGAINST TURCOMANS.
"General Skobeleff was then appointed to the command of the Turcomandistrict, and the Government told him he could have anything he wanted in men or munitions of war.
"The Government had a hundred miles of railway material somewhere on its south-western frontier, which was intended for use in case of the failure of the Berlin Congress. Skobeleff asked for this material, and it was at once transferred to the Caspian. He changed the base of operations from Krasnovodsk to Mikhailovsk, and at once began the construction of the line. The whole movement was made so quietly that hardly anything was known of the work until the track had been laid about half-way to Kizil Arvat, one hundred and forty-four miles from Mikhailovsk.
"Skobeleff could not wait for the completion of the railway. While the road was being constructed he pushed forward to Bami, a strong point in the Akhal oasis, where he built a fort, and gradually collected the materials for the siege of Geok Tepé. When everything was in readiness he advanced and began the siege, which lasted fully a month.
"Perhaps the following figures will interest you: The Russians were between eight and ten thousand strong, of all arms, infantry, cavalry, and artillery. The artillery comprised sixty-nine guns, while the Turcomans had no cannon to oppose them with. When the siege began, Skobeleff found that his cannon made little impression upon the clay walls of the fort, so he ordered his artillery to fire over the walls and into the enclosed space, in order to demoralize the people within as much as possible. In fighting against Asiatics, artillery always has a prominent part. Its moral effect in frightening them is certainly ten times as great as its destructive power.
RUSSIAN ARMY ON THE TURCOMAN STEPPES.
"During the siege the artillery fired from one hundred to five hundred shots daily, and the infantry used from ten thousand to seventy thousand rounds of ammunition in the same time. Skobeleff sunk a mine under the rampart, and exploded more than a ton of gunpowder at a single blast. It made a wide breach, through which the Russian army poured into the fort, with very little opposition on the part of the Turcomans. The latter fled in the direction of Merv, but were pursued by the Russian cavalry. The slaughter is said to have been fearful, and the Russians say that twenty thousand Turcomans perished in the siege and capture of Geok Tepé. During the assault and pursuit the infantry fired 273,804 rounds, the cavalry 12,510, and the artillery 5,864; 224 military rockets were also used.[8]
"Many careful students of the history of Central Asia," continued Mr. Ivanovich, "consider the siege and capture of Geok Tepé the most importantvictory ever achieved by the Russians in Turkestan. It opened the way for the Russian advance to the frontier of India, and carried the boundaries of the Empire southward to those of Persia. In the interest of humanity it was of the greatest importance, as it broke up the system of man-stealing and its attendant cruelties which the Turcomans had practised for centuries. The people of Northern Persia no longer live in constant terror of Turcoman raids; the slave-markets of Central Asia are closed, and doubtless forever."
Frank asked if the English Government was as well pleased with the result of the siege as were the Russians.
Mr. Ivanovich said he did not know exactly how the English regarded the victory, but from the tone of their press and the utterances of British statesmen, he did not think they would have mourned if the Russians had been repulsed. "England," said he, "is jealous of Russian advances in Turkestan. Lord Salisbury believed that the Turcoman barrier against Russia would last his lifetime, and many other English statesmen and officers shared his belief.
"No doubt they were very sorry for the sufferings of the Persians, who were sold into slavery after seeing their homes plundered and their fields devastated, but I question if they were willing, for political reasons, to see the Turcomans wiped out as they were at Geok Tepé. I think I have read much more in the English papers about the loss to English commerce by the Russian occupation of Central Asia than of the gain to humanity by the suppression of the Turcoman raids.
"The interests of British trade are the first consideration of the British statesman. Many thousands of Africans and Asiatics have died by British bullets and sabres that the commerce of England might be extended. Unless I mistake the temper of the British Government, I am afraid that the advisers of the Queen would prefer the old state of things to the new on the Turcoman steppes. The sale of a thousand bales of Manchester cottons in the bazaars of Turkestan is of more consequence to England than the enslavement of a thousand Persians and the desolation of their homes.
"But that is wandering from the subject," said Mr. Ivanovich, with a smile. "I may be prejudiced, but can't help regarding England as a disturber of the peace all over the world, whenever the disturbance will benefit her trade. She doesn't believe in monopoly, except where she can be the monopolist, and for that reason she is jealous of the way we Russians are trying the monopoly business for ourselves. We have the trade of ten millions of Asiatics: no great thing to be sure, but we don't propose tohand it over to England just because she wants it. We have cotton factories and other manufacturing establishments, as England has, and the more markets we can have the better it will be for us."
The gentleman paused, and gave Fred an opportunity to ask if there were any navigable rivers in Turkestan, and, if so, what they were.
WINTER CAMP IN TURCOMANIA.
"There is no navigation worth the name," was the reply. "Central Asia contains only two rivers of any importance—the Oxus and the Jaxartes. The Oxus is sometimes called the Amoo Darya, or Jihoon, and the Jaxartes the Syr Darya. The Oxus is the largest; it rises in the Pamir district, in a lake fifteen thousand feet above the sea, and in the upper part of its course receives several tributary rivers that drain Bokhara and the north-eastern part of Afghanistan. It is about twelve hundred miles long, and flows into the Aral Sea; for the last eight hundred miles of its course it is navigable for small steamboats, but its mouth is divided into so many shallow channels that boats have great difficulty in entering it. The Russians have half a dozen steamers on the Aral Sea, and as many more light-draught steamboats for navigating the Oxus."
"Haven't I read that the Oxus formerly emptied into the Caspian Sea?" said Frank.
"Quite likely you have," said Mr. Ivanovich, "as there is little doubt that such was the case. The old bed of the Oxus can be distinctly traced, and geographers are generally agreed that the river entered the Caspian by three mouths. Ptolemy and Strabo both state distinctly that in their time the Oxus flowed into the Caspian, and formed the principal trade-route between Europe and Asia."
"How came it to change its course?"
TURCOMAN IRRIGATING WHEEL.
"Much of the region traversed by the Oxus is a desert, and the only agriculture possible there is by irrigation. In order to increase the area under cultivation, the Turcomans built dams that turned the Oxus in the direction of a vast plain which contains the Aral Sea. Since the occupation of the country by the Russians, it has been proposed to return the Oxus to its ancient bed, and bring it down to the Caspian. It is not likely that this will be done, as the result would be that the whole lowercourse of the Oxus, where there are many flourishing farms and gardens, would again become a desert waste. Much less water flows through the Oxus than in former times, and the engineers who have studied the question do not think the river would be navigable when returned to its ancient bed.
SCENE AT A FERRY ON THE OXUS.
"The other river of Central Asia, the Jaxartes, or Syr Darya, is smaller than the Oxus, and about eleven hundred miles long. It rises in the Pamir region, and empties, like the Oxus, into the Aral Sea. Its course is generally parallel to the Oxus, and in the same way it fertilizes a large area of what would otherwise be desert. Its volume has greatly diminished in the last few centuries, and is even known to be considerably less than it was sixty or eighty years ago. The Oxus enters the southern end of the Aral Sea, while the Jaxartes comes in considerably farther to the north. The diversion of these two rivers would probably result in drying up the Aral Sea, a shallow body of water two hundred and fifty miles long by half as many wide."
MAP OF THE RUSSO-AFGHAN REGION.
Fred asked if the Caspian was higher or lower than the Aral Sea.
"They are of the same level, or nearly so," was the reply, "thoughsome engineers say the Aral is about one hundred and fifty feet higher than the Caspian, and the indications are that the two seas were formerly connected. The whole plain of Turcomania is thought to have been at one time an inland sea. At its southern extremity the Aral is bordered by an immense marsh, and it is through this marsh that the Oxus discharges its waters.
"Khiva stands near the Oxus, in the midst of beautiful gardens, all nourished by the water from the river. Khiva, Bokhara, Samarcand, and Kokan would become masses of ruins if the Oxus and Jaxartes were dried up, and you may be sure the Russians will give the subject careful consideration before disturbing the course of the waters. Nowhere in the world will you see more careful irrigation than along these rivers, with the possible exception of the Nile valley. All through Central Asia the only possible agriculture is upon the watercourses, or where there are never-failing wells. Canals and irrigation-wheels are everywhere, and you will often see evidences of excellent engineering abilities in the construction of some of the artificial water-ways.
"General Annenkoff, the officer in charge of the construction of the Trans-Caspian Railway, has a scheme for creating a new oasis, capable of supporting two hundred thousand people, near the disputed boundary between Turkestan and Afghanistan. He proposes to turn one of the tributaries of the Oxus for that purpose, and is confident that he can make a fertile area of several hundred square miles by carefully utilizing the water of the stream."
On landing at Mikhailovsk, our friends were introduced to several Russian officers, some of whom had been in America, and who heartily welcomed the trio of travellers from that far-away land. They were invited to the club-house, where they were lodged and cared for; the town did not boast an hotel other than a very indifferent khan, which had all the discomforts of the Orient, with none of its good points.
Frank and Fred endeavored to find the time-table of the railway, with a view to making an excursion into Turkestan. Their inquiries were rewarded with the information that there was no regular time for running the trains, as the business transacted on the line was nearly all of a military character. But a train was to leave in the morning for Kizil Arvat, one hundred and forty-four miles, and if they cared to make the journey they were at liberty to do so.
Finding they would have time to go to Kizil Arvat and return before the departure of the steamer for Baku, they accepted the invitation, which included the Doctor as well as themselves. Early the next morning thetrain rolled out from the station; it consisted of a locomotive and ten or twelve carriages. One carriage contained the officers of a regiment of infantry that filled the remaining vehicles; the regiment was bound for the frontier, where England and Russia have latterly been discussing the question of the boundary, and a discussion of this kind is materially assisted by the presence of soldiers.