THE CITY OF HERAT.

Dunstan Times, Issue 1205, 3 April 1885, Page 3

THE CITY OF HERAT.

l/i 184.1 M.ij >r Pottui.-er. reported to the S ipverne Q-weriio of In iia oolh> defence .iffle.it an 10110-viTi - •

tWro'inile • by a fair expanse .if country where alternating cornfields, vineyards, and gardens varied the richness and "beau‘y of tub scene .where -little- fortified villages studded the plain, and the 'bright wate-s of small running streams lightened the plea a .nt landscape, lay the city of Herat. The beauty of the place was without the walls ; within, all was dirt and desolation. Strongly fortified on every side by a wet ditch and a solid outer will with five gates, each defended by a s nad outwork, the city presented bub few claims to tho ad miration of the traveller

Such to the eve of an ordinary traveller was the .aspect of the city and its environs at the time when Mahomed Shvb was marching on Herat. To the mini of the military o .server both the position and the construction of the place were suggestive of much inte esting spe ulation. Situated at that point of the great mountain range which alone presents fac lities to tne transport of a train of heavy artilery, Herat has, with no impropriety of designation, been described as the “Sites of India.” Within the limits of the Heratee territory all the great roads leading on India converge. At other points between Herat and Cabnl, a body of troops unencumbered with guns, or having only a light field artillery, might make good its passage, if not actively opposed, across the stupendous mountain ranges of the HindooKoosh ; but it is only by the Herat route that a really formidable well-equipned army could make its way upon the Indian frontier from the regions on the northwest. Both the nature of the country and its resources are such as to favour the sue cess of the invader. All the material nec essary for the organisation of a gr at army and the formation of its depots are to bo found in the neighbourhood of Herat. The extraordinary fertility of the plain has fairly entitled it to be called the granary of Central Asia. Its mines supply lead, iron, and sulpher ; the surface of the country in almost every direction is 1 laden with saltpetre ; the willow and poplar trees, which furnish the best charcoal, flourish in all parts of the country, whilst from the p .pala' ion might bo drawn hardy and docile soldiers to recruit the ranks of an invading army. Upon the possession of such country would depend in no small measure the success of operations undertaken for the invasion or the defence of Hindostao.”

When Major Pottinger wrote this, nearly 45 years ago, Herat had just undergone a a siege by the Persians, who, though instigated and assisted by the Russians, were defeated by the Afghans.