File 1880/1904 Pt 2 'Perso-Afghan Frontier: - The Undemarcated portion. Afghan encroachments.' [‎106v] (217/240)

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' 7. The task of finding a frontier line acceptable to both parties would be
much more difficult on the third and fourth
Claims on the third and fourth sections. sections than on the first and second.
While the Kain authorities would probably only desire a line running from
R ob at -i - Turk th e end of General Maclean's line—slightly to the east of Kul
Birinj, Yazdan, Shorao, and Gulwarda to the “Shelah ” on the Tag-i-Nammadi,,
the central Government would be more lihey to rely on the line shown cn the
Indian surveys or on the line on the Persian map in the Karguzari at Meshed.
On the latter map the line runs straight from Robat-i-Turk to Siah Koh.
The Afghans have erected small posts, locally called “ chaunis,” at Chah
Leilah and Atashkhun, the position of which is shown on the accompanying map,
and are also reported to have built posts at Robat-i-Shah Baluch and Musabad,
wlich are shown on the old maps. They would certainly claim a grazing radius
of at least a farsalch to the west of these posts,
8 . Besides the above-mentioned posts, which are all on the third and fourth
sections, the Afghans have also erected
Afghan posts. posts at Naibasta, Sheb-i-Yak, Sehehahi,
Imamzaid, Dahana-i-Doab and Godar-i-Gabrak in the second and third sections.
The only posts in these sections of which the exact position is known are the first
two, but all of them are well behind any line that is likely to be claimed by the
Persians.
9 , The state of the third and fourth sections is extremely unsatisfactory,
chiefly owing to the resentment shown by
State of third and fourth sections. ^ a g a inst the Customs employes,
and the habit of the local authorities anti the Customs Department of employing
renegade Afghans and leaving them without supervision.
The two principal cases which have occurred lately and which drew from the
Director-General of Customs in Khorasan, his letter No. 5246 of the 8th March
to His Britannic Majesty’s Consul-General, forwarded by the latter to the Secre
tary to the Government of India in the Foregin Department under cover of his
No. 51 of the 16th March 1906, are instances in point.
In an interview on April 27th, M. Molitor withdrew his contentions that the
Afghans are entirely to blame for these murders, and admitted that, not only were
vendettas common on this frontier, but were inevitable as long as renegade
Afghans were placed in positions of responsibility with armed men under them.
He^ also admitted that the lack of supervision of Customs posts had resulted
in very serious exactions.
M. Molitor’s change of position was chiefly due to a report which he had just
received from M. Caesari, parts of which he read to me.
M. Caesari’s accounts of the Awaz murder was as follows :—
Saiyid Kashamsham Khan, a Kandahari refugee, the Customs Mirza’ for
Bamrud and Awaz, had for some time been carrying on a feud with Ataullah Khan,
Hakim of Anardarrah, and had succeeded, under cover of Customs woik, in
accounting for seven of his men—two of them slain with his own hand.
Ataullah Khan, finding himself unable to get the better of his enemy, offered
Ghulam Rasul, Passport Officer of Kain, another Afghan refugee, 300 tomans 10,000 Persian dinars, or a gold coin of that value.
to do the job for him.
Ghulam Rasul had a small house specially constructed near Awaz for the
purpose, and invited Saiyid Kashamsham Khan to stay with him there. He came
accompanied by Mosbim Khan, another Customs employe from Birjand. The
second night Ghulam Rasul’s hired assassins, led by Zal Beg Khan, Sarliaddar
of Kain, broke in and shot the Saiyid dead. His companion recognized Zal who
thereupon hacked him to pieces to destroy evidence.
Another Mirza was sent to Awaz, but Ghulam Rasul frightened him away
with stories of Afghan villanies, and then, with his three brothers, instituted
a private Customs passport and quarantine service from Awaz to Raza. To
impress the Afglans more Ghulam Rasul gave out that he was a servant of the
British. This adventure brought the enterprising family an income cf seme 200
tomans 10,000 Persian dinars, or a gold coin of that value. monthly.