PAROPAMISUS or HINDOO KOOSH. 
41 
the opinion that they are of Jewish descent, and base their theory 
on several peculiarities, which seem at first sight to favour their 
views, such as the form of features, especially the nose; the practice 
of certain customs once thought peculiar to the Jews, e.g.^ the 
ceremony of the scapegoat, punishment by stoning, &c. Saul, 
the son of Kish, is regarded by the Afghans themselves as their 
ancestor, though much weight cannot attach to this tradition, which 
is probably of comparatively modern date, and borrowed from the 
Arabs. Mountstuart Elphinstone, on the other hand, basing his 
opinion chiefly on the language, regards them as of Perso-Aryan 
origin, and his authority carries the greatest weight ; in fact all, or 
nearly all, ethnologists subscribe to this view. It is curious that 
the Povindahs, the most mercantile clans among the Afghans, seem 
to be among those who approach most distinctly to the Jewish type 
of features, while in the portraits of Duranis, Ghilzais, Momunds, 
and other military and pastoral tribes, there does not appear to 
be anything Semitic. 
