The men in the town were now greatly alarmed and dejected, when Mukīm, through some of the Begs, offered to submit, and agreed to surrender Kābul; on which he was introduced by the mediation of Bāki Beg Cheghāniāni, and tendered his allegiance. I did all that I could to dispel his apprehensions, and received him with affability and kindness. It was arranged that he should next day march out with all his soldiers, adherents, effects, and property, and surrender the fortress. As the retainers of Khosrou Shah had not, for a long period, been subjected to discipline, but, on the contrary, had indulged in all kind of injustice and rapine, I appointed Jehāngīr Mirza, and Nāsir Mirza, with some of the principal Begs, and my most trusty servants,* to guard the family of Mukīm, as well as Mukīm himself and his dependants, while they left Kābul with their goods and property; and I appointed Tībah* as his place of residence. Next morning the Mirzas and Begs who had gone to the gate, observing an uproar and mobbing of people, dispatched a man to inform me of the circumstance; adding, ‘Until you come, we shall not be able to put a stop to the commotion.’ I mounted, and having repaired to the spot, allayed the tumult, but not until I had ordered three or four of the rioters to be shot with arrows, and one or two to be cut to pieces. Mukīm and his train then set out, and reached Tībah in quiet and safety.
In the latter end of the month of the latter Rabīa,* by the blessing of Almighty God, I gained possession of Kābul and Ghazni, with the country and provinces dependent on them, without battle or contest.
Description The country of Kābul is situate in the fourth climate, in
the midst of the inhabited part of the world. On the east
it has the Lamghānāt,*
Pershāwer, Hashnaghar,*
and some
of the countries of Hind. On the west it has the mountain
districts, in which are situated Karnūd and Ghūr. This
mountainous tract is at present occupied and inhabited
by the Hazāra and Nūkderi tribes. On the north are the
countries of Kunduz and Anderāb, from which it is separated
by the mountain of Hindū-kūsh. On the south are Fermūl
and Naghz,*
and Bannu and Afghanistān.*
It is a narrow
City of
Kābul.
country, but stretching to a considerable extent. Its
length is in the direction of east and west. It is surrounded
on all sides by hills. The walls of the town extend up a hill.
To the south-west of the town there is a small hill, which is
called Shah-Kābul,*
from the circumstance of a King of
Kābul’s having built a palace on its summit. This hill
begins at the defile of Deveren,*
and reaches all the way
to that of Deh-Yākūb. It may be about a farsang*
in
circumference. The skirts of this hill are entirely covered
with gardens. In the time of my paternal uncle Ulugh
Beg Mirza, Weis Ātkeh*
conducted a stream of water
along the bottom of it; and all the gardens about the hill
are cultivated by means of this stream. Lower down*
the
river there is a place called Kulkīneh,*
in a retired, hidden
situation. Much debauchery has gone on at that place. The
verse of Khwājeh Hāfiz may be parodied and applied to it—
O for the happy times, when, free and uncontroll’d,
We lived in Kulkīneh with no very good fame.
Southward from the town, and to the east of Shah-Kābul, there is a lake* nearly a farsang in circumference. Three springs of water issue from Shah-Kābul, and flow towards the city; two of them are in the vicinity of Kulkīneh. One of these runs by the tomb of Khwājeh Shams, and the other by the Kademgāh* (place of the footsteps) of Khwājeh Khizer. These two places are the favourite resorts of the people of Kābul. The third fountain is opposite to Khwājeh Abd-al-samad, and bears the name of Khwājeh Roushenāi. There is a small ridge which runs out from the hill of Shah-Kābul, and is called Ukābein;* and there is besides another small hill, on which stands the citadel of Kābul. The fortified town lies on the north of the citadel. The citadel is of surprising height, and enjoys an excellent climate, overlooking the large lake, and the three aulengs (or meadows) called Siāh-sang, Sung-kurghān, and Chālāk, which stretch below it. These aulengs present a very beautiful prospect when the plains are green. In the spring,* the north wind blows incessantly; they call it bād e Parwān (the pleasant breeze).* In the north part of the citadel there are houses with windows, which enjoy a delightful atmosphere. Mulla Muhammed Tālib Maamāi* composed the following distich in praise of the citadel of Kābul, under the character of Badia-ez-zemān Mirza*:
(Persian)— Drink wine in the citadel of Kābul, and send round the cup without stopping;
For it is at once a mountain and a sea, a town and a desert.
The people of Hindustān call every country beyond their
own Khorasān, in the same manner as the Arabs term all
except Arabia, Ajem. On the road between Hindustān
and Khorasān, there are two great marts: the one Kābul,
the other Kandahār. Caravans, from Ferghāna, Tūrkestān,
Samarkand, Balkh, Bokhāra, Hissār, and Badakhshān,
all resort to Kābul; while those from Khorasān repair to
Its trade.
Kandahār. This country lies between Hindustān and
Khorasān. It is an excellent and profitable market for
commodities. Were the merchants to carry their goods as
far as Khitā or Rūm,*
they would scarcely get the same
profit on them. Every year, seven, eight, or ten thousand
horses arrive in Kābul. From Hindustān, every year,
fifteen or twenty thousand pieces of cloth are brought by
caravans. The commodities of Hindustān are slaves,*
white clothes, sugar-candy, refined and common sugar,
drugs, and spices. There are many merchants that are
not satisfied with getting thirty or forty for ten.*
The
productions of Khorasān, Rūm, Irāk, and Chīn,*
may all
be found in Kābul, which is the very emporium of Hindustān.
Climate of
Kābul.
Its warm and cold districts are close by each
other. From Kābul you may in a single day go to a place
where snow never falls, and in the space of two astronomical
hours, you may reach a spot where snow lies always,
except now and then when the summer happens to be
peculiarly hot. In the districts dependent on Kābul,
there is great abundance of the fruits both of hot and
cold climates, and they are found in its immediate vicinity.
Produce.
The fruits of the cold districts in Kābul are grapes, pomegranates,
apricots, peaches, pears, apples, quinces, jujubes,*
damsons, almonds, and walnuts; all of which are found in
great abundance. I caused the sour-cherry-tree*
to be
brought here and planted; it produced excellent fruit,
and continues thriving. The fruits it possesses peculiar
to a warm climate are the orange, citron, the amlūk,*
and sugar-cane, which are brought from the Lamghānāt.
I caused the sugar-cane to be brought, and planted it here.
They bring the jilghūzek*
from Nijrau. They have
numbers of bee-hives, but honey is brought only from the
hill-country on the west.*
The rawāsh*
of Kābul is of
excellent quality; its quinces and damask plums are
excellent, as well as its bādrengs.*
There is a species of
grape which they call the water-grape, that is very
delicious; its wines are strong and intoxicating. That
produced on the skirt of the mountain of Khwājeh Khan-Saīd
is celebrated for its potency, though I describe it
only from what I have heard;