CHAPTER VII. FIRST SIEGE OF QANDAHAR, 1649. The province of Qandahar occupies the part of Afghanistan. southern It is a The district of Qandahar: physical aspects, its comparatively level. country, of which the heart is formed by the river Helmand and its tributaries. On the east it is separated from India by the extensive net-work of hills centring round Thal-Chotiali. On the south impassable deserts lie between it and Baluchistan. On the north stretch the hill ranges of Ghazni and Kabul. Westwards, from a little beyond the city of Qandahar up to Isfahan, the country is fairly level, but so very hot and barren that for days and days together not a green herb or blade of grass refreshes the traveller's eye, while the dry sandy soil affords only a scanty supply of brackish water at long intervals. A few forts have been built on the rivers, mainly for military purposes, to guard the fords, to protect caravans, Digitized by Microsoft Ⓡ
