the peasant is very highly cultivated; but the barren rocks soon hem
in the narrow valley, and as you approach nearer and nearer you
find your enchanting gardens transformed into a dreary and desolate
defile,--this succession of small plots of fertile ground, alternating
with short rugged passes, extends to Julrez, ten miles beyond Koteah
Shroof; which latter place is an insignificant fort, situated in the
centre of one of the little green spots so pleasingly varying this
part of the country.

At Koteah Shroof we gained the banks of the Cabul river, a placid
flowing stream, and as the neighbourhood of our camp did not offer any
features of peculiar interest, I determined to try my luck in fishing;
but first I had to tax my ingenuity for implements, as I had neither
rod, line, nor net. A willow stick and a bit of string was all I could
command; and yet my primitive apparatus was very successful, for the
fish also were primitive, affording me ample sport and taking the bait
with extraordinary eagerness. My occupation attracted the attention of
a few peasants who gathered round me, and stood wondering what potent
charm attached to the string could entice the fish from their native
element. I endeavoured to explain the marvel, but was utterly
unsuccessful; indeed, the peasants did not accept my explanation,
which they evidently considered as a fabrication invented to deceive
them and conceal my supernatural powers. The inhabitants of these
valleys seemed a simple and inoffensive race, and, as in Europe, their
respectful demeanour became more conspicuous as we increased our
distance from the capital.

With regard to the state of cultivation of this valley--in which it
resembles others generally throughout Affghanistan--wherever there is
soil enough to hold the seed, the Affgh[=a]n husbandman appears to