1841.] the N. W. Frontier Trade with Afghanistan. 253 



A Cabool merchant, (to give an example,) purchases at Calcutta 10 

 maunds of black pepper, which he is told is sea-imported, and therefore 

 not liable to further interference any where within the Company's 

 territories. He brings this pepper to the North-west frontier line 

 of customs unaccompanied by a rowannah, when, as a matter of 

 course, it is seized. The owner urges that he purchased it at Calcutta 

 as a sea-import, and the customs' officer demands proof, which is not 

 forthcoming. The consequence is, that the goods are detained, and 

 the case is reported to the Sudder office, which is often distant a 

 hundred miles from the scene of action. The merchant defending 

 the case urges the same plea, and the native appraiser, who cannot 

 possibly know the difference, is asked his opinion as to whether the 

 article is sea-imported, or country produce. In nine cases out of ten he 

 declares it to be the latter, when the custom collector desirous of 

 discriminating between zeal to Government and justice to the trader, 

 determines upon sending samples of the goods to the custom master 

 at Calcutta: meanwhile, the merchant is told that his property 

 must remain under attachment, or he must deposit a sufficient sum 

 of money to meet a demand for single duty. This latter alternative 

 he gladly accepts, considering any sacrifice better than further detent- 

 ion, which usually swells out to fifteen or twenty days. 



The samples are, in due course, submitted to the English appraiser 

 in Calcutta, who, possibly knowing nothing of country produce, or 

 at least of the particular produce in question, pronounces the samples 

 to be sea-imported ; consequently, the inland custom collector re- 

 solves to release the pepper ; but the owner is no where to be found, 

 and his money remains in deposit for three months, when, according 

 to the rules of the department, it reverts to Government. 



Subsequently the owner on his return trip to the provinces calls to 

 know the fate of his money, and he is told that although the pepper 

 was proved to have been sea-imported, the duty was carried to credit, 

 as he did not claim it within the prescribed period of three months. 



The above will shew, without further comments, how materially 

 this branch of commerce is retarded, (and without help) by the 

 frontier customs.* 



* I have reason to believe, that this inconvenience is in course of remedy. 



ft 



