網頁圖片
PDF
ePub 版

CHAPTER XI.

BOKHARA.

BOKHARIA-FRONTIERS-AREA-POPULATION-THE

OOZBEGS AND THEIR

PECULIARITIES-THE TAJEEKS-OTHER RACES-RUSSIAN SLAVES-THE KOHIK, OR ZARAFSHAN VALLEY OF SHUHR-I-SUBZ-NATURAL PRODUCTIONS-MANUFACTURES-TRADE-M. DE NEGRI'S MISSION -JOURNEY

FROM ORENBERG TO BOKHARA-THE KHAN-SYSTEM OF ADMINISTRATION-MANNERS AND CUSTOMS-REVENUES-MILITARY FORCES.

PRIOR to the rapid advance of the Russians towards the south-east the Khanat of Bokhara was bounded on the north by the Sea of Aral, the Syr Darya or Jaxartes, and the mountains of Ferghana, or Khokan. On the south it extended to the Stony Girdle of the earth' that separates Afghanistan from Central Asia: to the eastward it was bordered by the high table-land of Pameer: while on the west it was divided from Khiva by the Desert of Khwarezm. It is justly observed, however, by M. Khanikof that the boundaries of Bokhara have never been a fixed quantity, but have expanded or contracted according to the strength or weakness of the reigning prince. 'The security of the frontiers,' he adds, 'is only relative; for it is very doubtful whether they would prove a sufficient barrier against an army organized according to European tactics, pushed on at the right season, with its movements properly regulated.'

All doubts on that point have long since been dissipated by the facility with which the Russians have pursued their career of triumph. The ancient States of Asia seem, one and all, to

dissolve at the slightest touch, just as a corpse that has been long buried is often disinterred looking as fresh and perfect as on the day when it was first hidden away out of sight, but straightway crumbles into dust if a finger be laid upon it, or even if the air move over the surface of the deceitful image.

The widest divergence marks the estimates of the area and population given by different writers. According to M. Khanikof, the superficial area of the Khanat is about 5600 geographical square miles, but Baron Meyendorf is not satisfied with less than 10,000 marine leagues, while another Russian authority reduces it to 23,000 square miles. Still greater is the difficulty of reconciling the widely-varying statements as to the exact bearings of the country. Baron Meyendorf places it between 37° and 41° North latitude, and 61° and 66° 30′ East longitude; M. Khanikof, between 37° and 43° N. and 80° and 88o E., which must surely be a misprint for 60° and 68°; while Sir Alexander Burnes asserts that it lies between 36° and 45° N., and 61° and 67° E.

On the subject of population, again, opinions are equally at variance. The last-named traveller fixes it at about one million: Dr Wolff reports 1,200,000 souls, of whom 200,000 are Persians the authors of 'The Russians in Central Asia' exactly treble this calculation; and M. Khanikof believes that there may be in all some two and a half millions of inhabitants; but Baron Meyendorf is more precise, and gives a grand total of 2,478,000. There are, he says-his mission to Bokhara took place in 1820-1,500,000 Oozbegs, 650,000 Tajeeks, 200,000 Toorkomans, 50,000 Arabs, 40,000 Persians, 20,000 Kalmuks, 6000 Kirghiz and Karakalpaks, 4000 Jews, 4000 Afghans, 2000 Lesghians, and 2000 Gipsies-the last-named being divided into three tribes, chiefly engaged in horse-dealing.

The Oozbegs, whose name signifies one who is his own lord or master, are said to be descended from Oozbeg Khan, whose

ancestor, Sheibani Khan, was a brother of the great Batou, grandson of Chinghiz Khan, and conqueror of Russia, Poland, Silesia, and Hungary. They first obtained a footing to the south of the Syr Darya at the close of the fifteenth century, and by their encroachments on his paternal territories the gallant and genial Baber was driven from the mountains of Ferghana to found an empire and a dynasty in India. It was not, however, until the reign of Shah Mourad, commonly called Beggie Jan, that the Oozbegs came to be recognized as the dominant class in the Khanat of Bokhara.

They are described by Mountstuart Elphinstone as of short stature, with a stout, sturdy frame, a broad forehead, high cheekbones, small eyes, a thin reddish beard, black hair, and a clear, ruddy complexion. Their costume consists of a cotton shirt and trousers, a coat or tunic called chappaou, of silken or woollen materials, begirt round the waist with a girdle, and over that a gown of woollen cloth, felt, or posteen. In the winter season some wear a little cap of broad cloth, lined with fur, and fitting close to the head, while others prefer a pointed silk cap, called a kalpak; but the national head-dress is a large, white turban usually worn over a white kalpak. Boots are common to all classes, though the more affluent put on, for house use, a sort of slipper of light shagreen made from horse or donkey hides. Instead of stockings the legs are wound round with bandages. A knife hangs from the girdle, and also a case containing a flint and steel.

The women dress very like the men, even to the boots, except that their garments are somewhat longer. Over the head, too, they tie a silk handkerchief, and often enwrap themselves in a silk or cotton sheet. Ornaments of gold and silver are duly prized, and the hair is plaited in a long tail, after the Chinese fashion.

An Oozbeg breakfast consists of leavened bread a fortnight

old, and tea made from boiled lumps' or cakes of tea-leaves, softened with milk or butter, but more generally with oil from the fat tails of the Dombeh sheep: only the rich indulge in sugar. The ordinary dish for dinner is thick mutton broth, or pillao, with masses of fat conspicuous, and much relished. Horse-flesh is a delicacy reserved for the wealthy.

The favourite beverage is kumeez, a white-looking, sub-acid, intoxicating liquor obtained from mare's milk. It is a homemade preparation, chiefly in use during the last two months of summer, when drunkenness is consequently very prevalent. Bozeh, another description of fermented liquor distilled from different kinds of grain, is much taken by the poorer classes, being considerably cheaper than kumeez. It is of a sour taste, and in appearance somewhat resembles thin water-gruel. As a rule, however, the Oozbegs may be considered a sober and frugal race.

A few of them dwell in houses, but the vast majority cling to the tents of their forefathers. The kibitka is a circular tent, formed of a lattice-work of thin laths, covered with black or grey felt, and hung inside with carpets and shawls. The roof is made with four stout laths bent into a dome-shape, and held together by a wooden hoop over the middle of the tent. This simple contrivance combines the advantages of warmth and light, and is called by the Toorkomans kara-ooee, or Black House. An encampment of twenty to fifty kibitkas is known as an Aoul.

[ocr errors]

The Oozbegs, according to M. Khanikof, are addicted to murder and rapine, being more straightforward in their manners' than the Tajecks, but they like to have on their side both darkness and superiority of numbers. As regards the ceremonies of their religion, they are extremely fanatical, for, except in the larger towns, few of them are able to read or write.

Baron Meyendorf's description of the Oozbeg costume as seen by himself in Bokhara differs in a few respects from Elphinstone's account, which probably referred more particularly to the section of that tribe dwelling to the south of the Amou. The ordinary dress of the Bokhariot, says the Russian Baron, is composed of two long robes of blue and white striped cotton, from fifteen to twenty yards in length. Many Oozbegs, however, wear a pointed cap of red cloth, trimmed with marten. The use of wide white trousers over short, tight drawers is said to be universal. Those who can afford it, indulge in robes of mingled silk and woollen texture, while the great officers of State disport themselves in rich Kashmeer shawls and gorgeous brocades. In the streets the women shroud their figures in long mantillas, or dominos, with the sleeves fastened behind, and wear a black veil to conceal their features. They are given to the use of cosmetics, and some of them are barbarous enough to suspend a ring from the nose. Their nails are tinged with henna, their eyebrows darkened and united with collyrium, and their eyelids touched with soorma from Kabul.

The Tajeeks are probably descended from the ancient Sogdians. They are certainly of the Aryan stock, and strongly resemble Europeans, but they speak the Persian language, They appear to be a tall, handsome race of men, with a fair skin, and black hair and eyes. Their moral character is that of most conquered peoples. They are said to be treacherous, false, insolent, and cowardly. 'Murder is unknown to them,' writes M. Khanikof, not because of its heinous nature, but because they have not sufficient courage to commit it.' They have the bad taste, too, it seems, to prefer Bokhara to St Petersburg, though Sir Alexander Burnes declares that the inhabitants of Central Asia regard the Russian capital as 'a very close approximation in wine and women to the paradise of

« 上一頁繼續 »