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WAZIRISTAN
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WAZIRISTAN , a See also:section of the See also:mountain See also:tract in the See also:North-See also:West Frontier See also:Province of See also:India, lying between the Tochi See also:river on the north and the See also:Gomal river on the See also:south. The whole of Waziristan lies within the See also:British See also:sphere of See also:influence, the boundary with See also:Afghanistan having been demarcated in 1894. It forms two See also:political agencies, but only a portion, consisting of the Tochi valley, with an See also:area of about 700 sq. m. and a See also:population (1903) of 24,670, is directly administered. See also:Northern Waziristan has an area of about 2310 sq. m., and See also:southern Waziristan an area of about 2734 sq. m. The Tochi and the Gomal See also:rivers enclose Waziristan, their affluents rising to the west of that See also:country in the upland valleys of Shawal and Birmal, and flowing north and south to a junction with the See also:main streams. Between the two rivers stretches the central dominating range of Waziristan from north-See also:east to south-west, geologically connected with the See also:great See also:limestone ranges of the Suliman hills to the south, and dominated by the great peaks of Shuidar (See also:Sheikh Haidar) and Pirghal, both of them between 11,o0o and 12,000 ft. above the See also:sea, and hardly inferior to the Khaisargarh See also:peak of the Takht-i-Suliman. From these peaks westwards a view is obtained across the grass slopes and See also:cedar See also:woods of Birmal and Shawal (lying thousands of feet below) to the See also:long, serrated ridges of the central See also:watershed which shuts off the plains of See also:Ghazni. To the eastward several lines of drainage strike away for the See also:Indus, breaking through parallel folds and flexures of the mountains, of which the conformation is here distinctly observable, although not so marked as it is south of the Gomal. These lines of drainage are, as usual, the main avenues of approach to the interior of the country. They are the Khaisora and the Shakdu on the north, which, uniting, join the Tochi south of See also:Bannu, and the Tank Zam (which is also called Khaisor near its See also:head) on the south. The two former See also:lead from the frontier to Rasmak and Makin, villages of some See also:local importance, situated on the slopes of Shuidar; and the latter leads to Kaniguram, the Waziri See also:capital, and the centre of a considerable See also:iron See also:trade. Kaniguram lies at the See also:foot of the Pirghal mountain. Amongst the mountains of Waziristan there is much See also:fine scenery and a delightful See also:climate. Thick forests of ilex clothe many of the spurs, which reach down to the grassy deodarcovered uplands of Birmal on the west; and the spreading See also:poplar attains magnificent dimensions amongst the flats and plateaus of the eastern slopes. The indigenous trade of the country is inconsiderable, although Waziri iron is much esteemed. The agricultural products are poor, and the See also:general See also:appearance of the See also:priest-ridden See also:people is significant of the endurance of many hardships, even of chronic See also:starvation. The most notable product of the country is the Waziri breed of horses and donkeys. The latter especially deserve to See also:rank as the best of their See also:kind on the See also:Indian frontier, if not in all India. The See also:geological formation of Waziristan is the same as that of the contiguous frontier. See also:Recent subaqueous deposits have been disturbed by a central upheaval of limestone; the See also:lower hills are soft in See also:composition and easily See also:weather-worn, the slopes are rounded, and large masses of detritus have collected in the See also:nullah beds and raised their level. Through these deposits heavy See also:rain-floods have forced their way with many bends and curves to the plains, enclosing within each See also:curve a " warn " or " raghza," which slopes gradually to the hills and affords the only available space for See also:irrigation and See also:agriculture. A " warn " is a gently sloping open space, generally raised but slightly above the river level. A " raghza " differs from a " warn " in being on a higher level and often beyond the reach of irrigation. Pasture is found abundantly in the hills, but cultivation only on the See also:borders of the main streams. Passing up and down these main See also:water-courses, there is an appearance of great fertility and See also:wealth, which is entirely due to these thriving strips of verdure, their restricted and narrow limits being hardly visible from the river beds. From above, when viewed from the flanking ridges, the vast extent of See also: In See also:con-sequence of his See also:isolation the Waziri has become See also:independent, self-reliant and democratic in sentiment. Through the in-accessibility of his own country to lowlanders, combined with the proximity of open and fertile tracts inhabited by races of inferior stamina, he has developed into a confirmed raider; and the passage through his country of mountain footpaths, connecting India with Afghanistan, has made him by frequent opportunity a hereditary highwayman as well. The See also:women enjoy more freedom than amongst most Pathan tribes, and are frequently unfaithful. The See also:ordinary See also:punishment of See also:adultery is to put the woman to See also:death, and to cut off See also:half the right foot of the See also:man. Amongst Waziris also, as amongst other Pathans, the See also:blood-See also:feud is a See also:national institution. The Waziris, who number some 40,000 fighting men altogether, are divided into two main sections, the Darwesh Khel (30,000) and the Mahsuds (8000), with two smaller sections. The Darwesh Khel, the more settled and civilized of the two, inhabit the lower hills bordering on See also:Kohat and Bannu districts, and the ground lying on both sides of the Kurram river, between Thal on the north and the Tochi Valley on the south. The Mahsuds, who inhabit the tract of country lying between the Tochi Valley on the north and the Gomal river on the south, have earned for themselves an evil name as the most confirmed raiders on the border; but they are a plucky race, as active over the hills as the Afridis, and next to them the best-armed large tribe on the frontier. The Mahsud country, especially that See also:part within reach of British posts, is more difficult even than See also:Tirah. To the south and east it is girt by an intricate See also:belt of uninhabited, generally waterless hills and ravines. To the north a See also:zone of Darwesh Khel territory, not less than 20 M. in width, hillyand difficult, separates the Mahsuds from the Tochf. The Tochi Valley is inhabited by a degraded Pathan tribe, known as Dauris, who have voluntarily placed themselves under British See also:protection since 1895. In dealing with the Mahsuds it must be remembered that from See also:Wana to Tank, from Tank to Bannu, and from Bannu to Datta Khel, or for a distance of over 200 m., British territory is open to Mahsud depredations. This length of frontier is equal to the whole Thal-Kohat-See also:Peshawar-Malakand See also:line, covering the eight or ten tribes that took part in the frontier risings of 1897. So that the Mahsuds should really be compared with the whole of those ten tribes, and not with any single one. British expeditions were needed against various sections of the Waziris in 1852, 1859, 1860, 1880, 1881, 1894, 1897 and 1902. The success of See also:Sir See also:Robert See also:Sandeman in subduing the See also:wild tribes of See also:Baluchistan had led to a similar See also:attempt to open up Waziristan to British civilization; but the Pathan is much more democratic and much less subject to the influence of his maliks than is the Baluchi to the authority of his chiefs; and the policy finally See also:broke down in 1894, when the Waziris made a See also:night attack upon the See also:camp of the British Delimitation See also:Commission at Wana. The Commission had been appointed to See also:settle the boundary with the Afghans, and the Waziris regarded it as the final See also:threat to their See also:independence. The attack was delivered with such determination that the tribesmen penetrated into the centre of the camp, and it was only with the greatest difficulty that friend could be distinguished from foe. A large force of 11,000 British troops subsequently traversed the tribal country, destroyed their towers and dictated terms, one of which was that the Tochi Valley should be occupied by British garrisons. But still there was trouble, which led to the Tochi expedition of 1897; and, in spite of the further lessons taught the Waziris in two expeditions in 1902, the attempt to " Sandemanise " Waziristan was given up by See also:Lord Curzon. The British garrisons in the Tochi and Gomal valleys were withdrawn, and two See also:corps of tribal See also:militia, from 1300 to 1500 strong, were gradually formed to replace the British troops. See See also:Grammar and Vocabulary of Waziri Pashto, by J. G. Lorimer (See also:Calcutta, 1902); See also:Paget and See also:Mason's Frontier Expeditions (1884); Mahsud Waziri Operations (1902), See also:Blue-See also:book.
WAllAN, a small hillside See also:town, 6o m. N.W. by N. of See also:Fez, See also:Morocco. It has a considerable trade with the country See also:round, and manufactures a coarse See also: Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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