The Geographical Journal (Journal of the Royal Geographical Society): Volume IX, No. 4 [‎207v] (85/172)

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THE SOUTHERN BORDERLANDS OF AFGHANISTAN.
the vast plain which fringes the Baluchistan desert. As far as this
point from Domandi, the tribes concerned on both sides of our houndary-
line had been Pathan and Afghan tribes. Beyond this point the tribes
on both sides are Baluches and Brahuis. Before going further, I must
say a few words about a very curious physical feature in this neighbour
hood which may be of interest to you. To explain it, I must refer to a
severe earthquake shock which, on December 20, 1892, was felt over
a large area of Baluchistan, during which the railway line between
Quetta and Chaman, at a place near the Chaman end of the great Khojak
tunnel, but fortunately outside that tunnel, was very curiously damaged.
The rails were distorted, and, to put the matter briefly, the distance
between Chaman and Quetta was lessened by no less than 2$ feet. A
fissure in the ground was found to run across the railway line at this
place, and this fissure, running along a depression in the ground along
the foot of the Khwaja Arman range, was then traced to a short distance
on either side of the railway line.
It so happened that, when our boundary work made us more care
fully examine this country, we found that a well-marked line of depres
sion or indentation in the ground was traceable at the edge of the plain
near Murghachaman, some 18 miles north of Chaman. Following this
line, or, as I may call it, this earthquake crack, we found it to run some
18 miles in a well-defined line to the very place where the earthquake
fissure had damaged the railway line in 1892. Thence it ran on,
gradually ascending diagonally the slopes of the Khwaja Amran range
until it actually cut the crest of the main range near its highest peak.
Descending again into the Spintizha valley, it began again to ascend
diagonally the slopes of a continuation of the Khwaja Amran range.
Cutting this range in a similar manner, it descended to the Lora river,
and, crossing that river, ran along the whole length of the foot of the
Sarlat range to Nushki. Beyond this point we were unable to follow it.
The total length of this wonderful earthquake crack, which we carefully
surveyed, was no less than 120 miles. It is a well-defined broad line of
deep indentation, in places as clearly defined as a deep railway cutting.
Along the whole course of it are to be found springs of water, cropping
up here and there. Both from the presence of water and from its form
ing a short cut across mountain spurs, this crack is largely used as a
thoroughfare. We found that the old greybeards of the tribes residing
in the neighbourhood all knew of its existence. They told us that
during their lifetime, on some three occasions after severe earthquake
shocks, deep fissures had appeared along this line, and that they had
had similar accounts handed down to them by their fathers. After
one of these occurrences, the water-supply of the springs along the crack
had, they said, largely increased. I have roughly marked the position
of this crack on the sketch-map. I may note that if the tunnel
through the Khwaja Amran range had been bored, as first proposed.