202 
of fire-arms, there is more hope of their 
recovering their former flourishing con- 
dition. 
The Kirghees dislike every occupation, 
except that of the herdsman; there is 
not the least approach towards a per- 
manent agricultural life among them. 
It is true that when a Kirghee has lost 
his herd or flock, he will take to agri- 
culture; he will cultivate a piece of 
ground near some river or lake, irrigate 
it as frequently as may be required, and 
support himself in the interval with 
fishing. But as soon as he finds himself 
enabled, by the produce of his labour, 
to purchase a few heads of cattle, he 
will throw agriculture aside, and resume 
his pristine pastoral state. Indeed the 
steppes which these people inhabit are 
peculiarly unfit for agriculture. The 
unfruitful ground, covered with salt- 
springs, and the total want of food, 
renders any thing like a perpetual settle- 
ment impossible; and any attempt to 
alter the pastoral propensity of the 
Kirghees, would only tend to diminish 
the quantity of their cattle, on which 
their subsistence depends, and with 
which alone their deserts can be inha- 
bited by man. This eternal idleness, 
however, the uniformity of the steppes, 
so wearisome for a man of physical 
strength and enterprizing spirit, envy 
at a neighbour’s prosperity, revenge for 
former offences, rivalship, &c. excite the 
spirit of enterprize of these people, 
which produces the daranta mentioned 
above. 
Leaving his tents and flocks, armed 
with a dagger, lance and bow, mounted 
on his faithful steed, and leading ano- 
ther for a change, the Kirghee gallops 
into the camp of another tribe, seeking 
adventure and fortune by robbery and 
violence. Returning with booty, he 
is saluted a batur (hero) by his tribe, 
he acquires general: respect and con- 
fidence, and the weak seek his protec- 
tion. They obey his command, accom- 
pany him in new enterprizes, and as 
their number increases with success, 
they soon spread desolation together 
with their chief’s fame all around them. 
Those who are plundered and oppressed 
by them, assemble likewise to seek re- 
venge, and recovery of their loss, and 
if they are beaten, they throw them- 
selves in their turn, upon some unsus- 
pecting camp, and indemnify themselves 
as well as they can. Thence the ge- 
neral enmities and hostilities among 
their tribes, which are transferred from 
the father to the son, to the most dis- 
The Kirghees. 
[Ocr, 1, 
tant generation, This is the beginning 
and the end of the daranta. 
The religion of the Kirkhees is in 
general the Mohammedan, of the Sun- 
nite sect ; but, with the exception of a 
few chiefs who have been brought up in 
Chiwa, Bokhara, and other places of 
Central Asia, where the Koran is very 
strictly followed, they are very lax in 
their piety. Since 1785, the Russians 
have occasionally sent them Mullahs 
from among their Tartar, or rather 
Turkish, subjects. These Mullahs are in 
some instances the secretaries of the 
chiefs, and charged with the education 
of their children. But such a desire of 
instruction is extremely partial, and has 
remained so notwithstanding the exer- 
tions of the Russian government, who 
went even so far, at about the same pe- 
riod, as to cause the erection of a mosque 
and two school-houses in the vicinity of 
Orenburg, for the special use of the 
Kirghees. But the mosque, as well as 
the schools, have never been visited by 
them, and the buildings are falling into 
decay, notwithstanding the continuance 
of the salaries to the priests, and school- 
masters then appointed. In spite of 
this general apathy to religion and in- 
struction, the Russian government takes 
it for granted that all the Kirghees are 
Mohammedans, and in cases of any of 
them being appointed a chief, or en- 
gaged in a law suit, they are sworn on 
the Koran, or are exhorted by the Mo- 
hammedan Akhoon; and in 1819, on 
the request of some chiefs, Muhammed- 
Shan, who had long resided at Buchara, 
was nominated Mutti or Kasi of Oren- 
burg for the Alimulinskian horde, The 
present Khan of the little horde is a 
very zealous Mohammedan ; and one of 
his sons, Idiga-Sultan, is very well in- 
formed, and reads and writes the Arabic 
and Turkish with fluency. He is a 
great favourite among the Kirghees, and 
the Russians seem to hope much good 
from his influence among these savages. 
The chief causes of their ignorance 
seem to be idleness and arrogance: one 
of their chiefs being asked, why they 
did not learn to read and write, re- 
plied, “ What use is it troubling our 
heads with such nonsense ? this is the 
business of the Mullahs.” But notwith- 
standing this dislike of studying, they 
are naturally eloquent and very fond of 
poetry. Itis said to be no uncommon 
thing to hear an orator at a public as- 
sembly interrupt himself in an animated 
speech with a song, or a professed 
singer cease his song and introduce a 
piece 
