AFGHANISTAN

95

trade of the country which would be given by the
removal of ridiculous imposts, and the introduction of
‘acilities for transport, there is no reason why the
Afghanistan of the future should not pay its own way,
and even if it could never become the financial success
‘hat Egypt has been in our hands, at least it may cease
to be a drain on the heavily-taxed resources of India.
The ethnography of Afghanistan is a subject which
cannot be altogether disregarded in dealing with the

Fig. 21.—Northern Frontier—Tribal Distribution.

origin of our Indian population. It is one of the very
deepest interest, demanding a far wider knowledge of the
ancient conditions of Central Asian occupation, and a
more scholarly application of that knowledge than has
ever yet been given to it.
We have seen that the population of Baluchistan
may be regarded in very general terms as ancient
Persian overlaid by Arabic immigration. That of
Afghanistan may similarly be reduced to an ancient
Persian (or Tajak) stock overlaid by Afghan, Turk,