724 Sketch of the Physical Geography of Seistan. [No. 103. 



herds, one walking quietly behind the other. A troop is seen approach- 

 ing; on reaching the edge of the water the white line is perceived, and the 

 leader afraid to cross it, turns, and followed by the rest walks trembling 

 along side of it till the spot is reached where the hunter lies concealed. 

 This is an anxious moment ; the deer pauses as if to consult with his bre- 

 thren. Frequently the marksman in his eagerness moves, a stone falls 

 down from the parapet, and the startled herd scamper off to the desert 

 again ; but they must soon return. As the poor animal which has been 

 once scared returns half dead with fear and thirst to the dangerous spot, 

 you can hear its heart beating. Slowly, and step by step, frequently stop- 

 ping and looking round, it at length has neared the water : it stoops to 

 drink : the muzzle of the gun is within a few inches of its head : before one 

 sip has been taken, a bullet has pierced its brain. 



Wild asses are not common in that part of the desert I traversed ; they 

 are said to be found in great numbers, in herds of two or three hundred, 

 on the plains west of Seistan. 



The soil of Seistan is celebrated for its richness, and many incredible 

 stories were told me of its productiveness. From this ferti- 

 lity it might be supposed that Seistan was a garden, — it is 

 a desert rather. With the exception of wheat, cotton (the plant of 

 which is not half the height of the Indian one, but which bears a large 

 pod) and in some places rice, and a little ill flavoured tobacco, and a few of 

 the coarser grains, bajra, &c. almost the only plants found there are grasses 

 and water-melons. The latter are singularly fine and large, and of several 

 kinds ; there are no artificial grasses, no vegetables, nor flowers. The larg- 

 est tree is a sickly pomegranate. If a Seistani is asked " why don't you 

 make gardens?" he will answer, "We don't know how." Were the people 

 less ignorant and lazy, their country would produce every plant which 

 grows in Candahar or Persia, besides probably sugar-cane, and many of 

 the productions of Hindoostan ; there is no reason why trees should not 

 flourish here. The Gurmsehl was equally destitute of them a few years 

 ago, but some 1200 young mulberry trees were imported there by a chief, 

 and the country is now well stocked with them. 



The climate of Seistan is decidedly unfavourable to human life, and the 

 small proportion of old men struck us forcibly. Fever and 

 ague is the prevailing disease, as might be expected from 

 the immense quantity of stagnant water, to which is superadded the 

 bad eff'ects of hot days and generally cold nights. From the constant high 

 wind and the dust it raises, mixed with particles of salt, or from general ill 

 health, consequent on malaria, one man in five throughout the country 

 has diseased eyes. Nature indeed, as respects comfort, has little favoured 



