Afghan Wars 1839-42 and 1878-80 | Page 9

for some
time in Herat, in 1846, states that the city is nothing more than an
immense redoubt, and gives it as his opinion that, as the line of wall is
entirely without flanking defences, the place could not hold out for
twenty days against a European army; and M. Khanikoff, who,
although not a professional soldier, was a very acute observer, further
remarks that the whole interior of the city is dominated from the rising
ground 700 yards distant and covered with solid buildings at the
northeast angle, while the water supply both for the ditch and the city
would be at the mercy of an enemy holding the outside country; the
wells and reservoirs inside the wall, which could then alone be
available--being quite inadequate to the wants of the inhabitants: but on
the other hand, all experience testifies to the defensibility of the
position.
"Not to speak of the siege which Herat sustained at the hands of
Genghiz Khan, of Timur, and of Ahmed Shah, we have only to
remember that in 1837 the Afghans of Herat, under Major Eldred
Pottinger, beat off the continuous attacks, for nearly ten months, of a
Persian army of 35,000 regular troops supported by fifty pieces of
artillery, and in many cases directed and even commanded by Russian
officers. The truth seems to be that Herat, although in its present state
quite unfit to resist a European army, possesses great capabilities of
defence, and might by a skilful adaptation of the resources of modern
science be made almost impregnable. Major Saunders, a British
engineer officer, calculated in 1840 that, at an outlay of L60,000, which
would include the expenses of deepening the ditch, clearing the glacis
and esplanade, providing flanking defences, and repairing the walls
throughout, Herat might be rendered secure against any possible
renewal of the attack by Persia."
The location of this city upon the principal thoroughfare between India,
Persia, and Turkestan gives it a special importance in a military sense.

It is also the principal mart of Western Afghanistan, and comprises
extensive manufactures in wool and leather. The natural fertility of the
country near Herat has been enhanced by irrigation.
"The valley, or julgah (as the Persians say), in which the city lies is rich
in the possession of a river. This valley is about thirty miles long by
sixteen in breadth, exclusive of the ground taken up by the fortress and
the walls. Four of these miles separate the town from the northern and
twelve from the southern hills, while at one quarter of the greater
distance runs the Her-i-Rud or Herat River, which, rising near the
Kuh-i-Baba, pursues a westerly course till, passing the city, it sweeps,
first gradually, then decidedly, to the north, eventually to lose its
identity in the environs of Sarakhs. It is of political as well as of
geographical importance, for it passes between the Persian and Afghan
frontier posts of Kahriz and Kusun respectively, and may be considered
to mark the Perso-Afghan boundary at the Western Paropismus. The
Plain, south of the walls, is watered by a net-work of eight or nine large
and many minor ditches. The aqueducts are stated to be superior to
those of Bokhara, Samarcand, and Ispahan. The grain produced is
abundant-- beyond the requirements of town and suburbs together. The
bread, the water, and the vines have the merit of special excellence. Yet,
with all this wealth of means and material, capable of subsisting an
army of 150,000 men for some time, much of the legacy of past ages is
disregarded and nullified by the supineness of a present generation. The
ruins visible on all sides are not all useless or obsolete works. As one
conclusive instance may be cited the neglected 'Pul-i-Malan.' This
bridge, of twenty-three arches, can scarcely be considered void of
purpose or practical benefit. It is, however, rapidly falling into decay,
and as the river has changed its bed, part of it remains, barren of object,
on dry land. On the rising of the waters this state of things is
inconvenient; for the river, at such time, is no longer fordable, and the
Kandahar caravans, going to and fro, have difficulty in crossing."
[Footnote: Sir F. J. Goldsmid, "Journeys Between Herat and Khiva."]
In 1830 Conolly was of opinion that the city was one of the dirtiest in
the world, being absolutely destitute of drainage; and Vambery,
thirty-three years afterward, when the city was captured by Dost
Mohammed, says the city was largely a heap of rubbish, having
suffered the horrors of a long siege.

The city of Kabul, from which the surrounding territory of Eastern
Afghanistan takes its name, stands in lat. 34 degrees 30' N., and long.
69 degrees 6' E., near the point where the Kabul River is crossed by
three