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11 all lose themselves in the sands before reaching the Oxus. In ancient and mediæval ages Bactria had a fine system of irrigation, and was one of the richest parts of Central Asia. The Mongol depredations of the thirteenth century and later on Tamerlane's incursions wiped out all these irrigation works, and since then it has not fully regained its past fertility, and is therefore very sparsely populated. (2) The Hindu Kush Region: This constitutes a mountainous mass, difficult of access, mostly barren and uninhabited. This massive range, which takes its source from the Pamirs, melts away in fingers that spread fanwise north, south and west over the face of the country as far as the Shibar and Bamian passes. The average height is over 15,000 feet, and the peaks, which are covered with eternal snow, rise to 18,000 feet and over. The stupendous heights of these mountains, the magnificence of their lofty summits, the solemn and undisturbed solitude that reigns amidst these eternal snows, fill the mind with awe and admiration. (3) The Hilly Region of Badakhshan: This lies to the north-east, on the left bank of the Oxus. Here the mountains are generally covered with forests, and the intervening valleys are mostly fertile and well-watered. (4) Kabulistan: This is the most convenient term for the series of high alluvial plains which, lying between 5,000 and 6,000 feet above sea-level, occupy the region round Kabul. These plains are well-watered by the Kabul and its numerous tributaries. They constitute the richest and most densely settled part of Afghanistan, with a bracing climate except where there are marshes. (5) The Central Block of Hazarajat: This is a vast table-land extending from Herat to Kabul and from Ghazni to Bamian. It is a high, bleak, and intensely inhospitable country, where snow lies for the greater part of the year, and where little or no fruit