6'20 ANNtJAL REGISTER, 1816. 



each face, and two in the northern 

 one ; but on the whole it is very 

 contemptiblis as a fortification. 



From eacii gare Bazar.-; lead to the 

 " Char Soobh," or niiirket-place, 

 in the centre of the town, which 

 are spacious and well lined with 

 shop!) ; the piincipal one extends 

 from the south gate to the Gnnje 

 Bazar, or cattle market, in front 

 of the citadel, and is covered in 

 with a vaulted roof of the whole 

 length. These streets and the 

 Char Soobh are so filled with tiie 

 crowd of people on Thursday (the 

 Bazar day), as to be almost im- 

 passable. On either side as you 

 go along are large spacious Su- 

 raes, where the merchants have 

 their Kothees, or factories; the 

 city is well supplied with water, 

 every Surae having a IIouz, or 

 cistern, indejiendent of the public 

 ones on cither side the Bazar 

 streets. The meanest building in 

 apj)earance, is tlie residence of the 

 prince, of which you see no more 

 than a common gate-way, over 

 which is a wretched building, and 

 in front an open square, with gal- 

 leries in the centre, for the Nu- 

 kurah Khana, or kettle-drums. 



Tlie Musjide Jooma, or Fri- 

 days !Mosque, was once a grand 

 building, comprisinganarca eight 

 hundred yards square, but this is 

 fast going to decay. Tiie private 

 buildings in Heerat are Ijy no 

 means in this state, for no city 

 has less groimd unoccujiicd, and 

 nine, for its extent, can boast of 

 .1 greater population. Heerat and 

 its suburbs are computed to con- 

 tain above one hmidred tliousand 

 inhabitants, of whom ten thou- 

 sand are Uffghans, the rest are 

 Moghuls, a few Jews, and six 

 hundred Hindoos. The Hindoos 



are here highly respected, and 

 alone possess capital The go- 

 vernment is sensible of their va- 

 lue, and they have in consequence 

 nmch influence. They live in the 

 best Suraes, and have gardens 

 outside, but do not venture to 

 bring their families with them to 

 this city. 



Heerat is a city of more trade 

 than perhaps any other in Asia 

 under a native government ; it is 

 called by distinction the Bunder, 

 or port, and is the emporium be- 

 tween Kai)ool, Kandahar, Hin- 

 doostan, Kashmcer, and Persia, 

 Bagdad, &c From the four for- 

 mer it receives shawls, indigo, su- 

 gar, chintz, muslin, bafta, kin- 

 cob, hides, and leather, wliich are 

 exported to Musliid, Yezd, Teh- 

 raun, Bagdad, and Kii'man ; re- 

 ceiving in return, dollars, tea, 

 sugar-candy, china ware, broad- 

 cloth, chintz, silk, copper, pep- 

 per, and all kinds of spices, dates, 

 sha\vls, numuds, and carpets. 

 The liides which are imported 

 from Hindoostan return a profit 

 of one hundred per cent, nett ; 

 indeed the whole trade is uncom- 

 monly advantageous to any one 

 possessing capital. The currency 

 here is that of Midimood Shahee 

 rupees, but accounts are kept in 

 Kureem Khanee, at one hundred 

 and twenty-five per hundred Muh- 

 rnood .Sliahees. 



The staples of Heerat arc silk, 

 saffron, and assafoetida, which are 

 exported to Hindoostan ; the silk 

 cloths are not equal to the manu- 

 facture of Persia. The gardens 

 are fidl of mulberry trees reared 

 solely for the sake of the silk- 

 worm, and all the plains and hills 

 round Heerat, particularly to the 

 westward, produce assafoetida. It 



grows 



