The Ethnology of India. 148 
a man at once feel, when he gets among them, that he is out of India. 
A BHuropean will really more amalgamate with a Pathan in a week than 
with a thorough Indian in seven years. 
The Pathans are decidedly high-Arian in feature; and if their 
features are less universally very high and chiselled than those seen in 
the northern hills, they have on the other hand more of a broad, robust, 
ruddly, manly look, and the people are in fact a hardier and bolder 
people. About Cabul they are fair, but some of the tribes in the 
lower and hotter hills and valleys adjoining India have somewhat 
dark skins. ough, simple, and frank as these people generally look, 
they are in fact by no means simple. I believe that some of the 
more isolated tribes, Wazeerees, &c., have more simple virtue, but the 
great majority of the Afghans, partly probably by nature and more 
in consequence of long dealing with many nations (holding as they 
do the portals of India), have the reputation of being a very astute, 
intrigruing, ambitious, avaricious, and crafty people. Great allowance 
must, however, he made for their situation and temptations. One 
cannot but feel that so energetic and fine a race, living in a country 
so poor, but the highway of so many nations, must of necessity learn 
to live a good deal on their neighbours. I am told by officers on the 
frontier, that in point of bold unblushing lying, a Hindu is a mere 
child to a Pathan. I suppose this habit comes from long living by 
their wits. The character of faithfulness, however, is in the main 
injurious to the Pathans. They are distrusted as mercenaries. It is 
felt that if they are always ready to do any work when it is made 
worth their while, they are also people of a calculating disposition, 
who are very likely to turn, when the advantages preponderate in 
favour of another policy; ag the Persians found to their cost in the 
last century, when they too much availed: themselves of the services 
of the Afghans. At present they are very popular in our native 
army, and certainly make capital soldiers. But they are fickle and 
uncertain, and seldom serve long without a break. A man gets a 
message to say that it is absolutely necessary that he should come 
home and murder his uncle, and off he goes with or without leave. 
They come back, however. It is a thing to be understood that the 
Ameer of Cabul pretends to no authority whatever over the Hastern 
Aighan tribes. They are avowedly politically quite independent, 
