‘A collection of treaties, engagements and sanads relating to India and neighbouring countries’ [‎189] (512/578)

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V .
AFGHANISTAN—APPENDIX NO. HI—1893.
have never been used for irrigation by the Afghans, and the lands in question are
watered by the Kara Tepe Kalan canal. Hie total length of the Mill canal amounts
to 2 versts and 250 sagenes or 1 mile and 1,167 yards.
2. The second canal proceeding up stream is the Kara Tepe Paiyin canal
marked on the annexed map by the letter B, at present dry and disused. It
formerly took off from the river 4 versts and 280 sagenes or rather more than 3
miles to the south of Boundary Pillar No. 22, and 2 versts and 130 sagenes or
about 1 mile and 886 yards from the Kara Tepe mound and 440 sagenes or nearly
1,027 yards from the present head of the first canal, and ran a course of nearly
3 versts or 2 miles to the west of the Kara Tepe mound. The Afghan represen
tative explained that this canal was closed last year by the Amir’s orders.
3. The third canal is the Kara Tepe Kalan canal marked on the map by letter
B 1. This canal takes off from the Kushk at a distance of 4 versts and about
380 sagenes or 3 miles and 303 yards to the south of Pillar No. 22 and 2 versts
and 230 sagenes or 1 mile and 1,120 yards from the Kara Tepe mound. Run
ning in a northerly direction it passes a small Afghan village situated about half
a verst lower down and thence flows north-west between the Kara Tepe mound
and the hills on the west irrigating some cultivated land on its course. The total
length of this canal amounts to nearly 4 versts or about 2| miles. The area of
the lands irrigated by this canal amounts approximately to 72 deciatines or 194^
acres, of which 50 deciatines or 135 acres are at present occupied by the main
crop marked on the map in yellow. The Afghan representative stated that there
were 22 families of Achakzai Afghans settled at Kara Tepe who cultivate the
lands irrigated by this canal.
4. The fourth canal proceeding on up stream is the Chapgul canal shewn on
the annexed map by the letter C. This canal, which is dry at the present moment,
takes off from the River Kushk at the foot of a scarp on the left bank at a dis
tance of about 1 verst and 470 sagenes or 1 mile and 513 yards from the present
head of the Kara Tepe Kalan canal marked B 1, and 4 versts and 170 sagenes
or about 2 miles and 1,564 yards from the Kara Tepe mound. According to the
explanations given by the Afghans water only enters this canal when the Kushk
River is in flood. The Afghan representative stated that this canal ran dry a
month ago. The Chapgul canal follows a direction almost due north near the
foot of the hills on the left side of the valley for a distance of nearly 3 versts or
2 miles and irrigated during this spring two acres of land. On both sides of the
canal are seen here and there traces of last year’s cultivation, but the Afghan
representative stated that only two families of Alizais were now located near
this canal, the remainder having all moved further up the river. The river bed
was inspected and found to be quite dry for a distance of nearly 3 versts or 2 miles
to the south of the head of the Chapgul canal. The Afghans explain that this
peculiarity of the river can be seen also in several places higher up the \ alley as
far as the town of Kushk and maintained that the river is largely fed by springs
emanating from the marshes along its banks such as those below the head of the
Bliihal Bukht^r canal and those near Kara Tepe.
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