1843.] of the Panjab and Affghanistan. G13 



houses. The headmen are Bakar and Turabaz. The number of fighting 



men amount to 700. They are friends of the Zeemukhts or Tortta- 



reens, and enemies of the Khattaks. To the east is Naryab, to the 



west Tal, to the north the hills, and to the south the Khattaks. 



At this place, the Persian Meerza was nearly getting into a scrape, 



from which I was only Justin time to extricate him ; 

 Indiscretion of . 



Meerza. having first recourse to admonishing him harshly. 



He had accepted the invitation of a mistress of one of the houses in the 

 village to supper, after having written out for her a charm she re- 

 quested, and I found him making himself quite at home in her house, 

 and the intimacy gradually growing to an indiscreet extent. 



19th Mohurrum. — Proceeded six kos to Tal, known also as Badah- 



khel, which contains a square mud fort, having one of 



the bastions full to bear artillery. The cultivation partly 



depends on the Kuram river, which takes its rise in the Sufedkoh 



mountains, and passes through Kuram, Tal, Cohaut, 

 Kuram river. ° 



Bannoo, and Murwat ; and partly on a spring to 



the north, called Sangroyah. There are seven hundred houses of Mus- 



selmans, thirty five Hindoos, and twelve shops. There is a great 



horse and mule market here. There is a very large cave in the 



Zeemukht hill, which has never been explored, which has a draught 



of air always issuing from it, which makes a noise like the turning 



of mill-stones. Near this, there is also an impression on the rock 



of the palm of a hand, of which there are so many known in Khora- 



san as " Panjah-i-Shah," and looked upon as the impression of the 



„ .,.*/,, hand of Hazrat Aly, There are flint rocks near, 



Tanjah-i-Shah. J 



on which are two shrines, one of Peer Shah, the 



other of Peer Umar Shah ; also an antimony mine of inferior quality, 



which however is exported to Multan. There are two Hindoo 



Antimony. * 



merchants at Tal. Better flint is to be procured, of a 

 black colour, at a kos further off; which however, is difficult of access 

 on account of the Wuzeeree robbers. The headmen of Tal are Bha- 

 hawadeen and Duranee, Badahkhel Bangashees. The fighting men 

 amount to 600. They are friends of the men of Naryab, Kahee, and 

 Kuram, and enemies of the Khattaks and Zeemukhts. To the east 

 is the road to Dar Samand, to the west the road to Kuram, to the north 

 the hills, and to the south the Kuram river. The inhabitants are 



