8 TIIE STTNDAY OREGONIAX. PORTLAND. JANUARY 4, 1914. The Afghans Arc in the Market for All Sorts of Novelties and Utensils- TVieir Uf-to-Date Potentate and His Luxurious Ease. HENRY D. BAKER, a trade explorer for the Department of Commerce, has Just returned from Afghani stan with a wonderful story of that strange country and the opportunities it affords for American trade. "With an area of 250,000 square mile, and a population of 5,000,000, all Mohamme dans, it is (except Thibet) the largest "closed country" in the world. It is not possible for a citizen or sub ject of any foreign nation to enter Afghanistan without a special permit from the Amir, who is the absolute ruler. The only way for anybody to get in is to interest the Amir personally in the object of his visit by no means an easy thing to accomplish. No com ' merclal traveler can get in unless the Amir can be induced to give favorable attention to Jiis particular line of busi ness. Here we have, the strange anachro nism of a nation, in the 20th century, which forbids the entrance .of foreign missionaries, either of commerce or re ligion, and which makes the profession of Christianity among its subjects pun ishable by death. Geographically, it makes a gap of 500 miles, which, if crossed, would complete the connection between the railroad systems of Eu rope and British India. About the only instances in which Europeans or Americans have ever been allowed to travel into Afghanistan were when machinery or other artlol.s have been required by the Amir or his gov . ernment, or special medical assistance needed at the court. Nevertheless, the trade of Afghani stan with the outside world is increas ing, and European and American ideas, fashions, and articles of commerce are invading the country. It is practicable for our manufacturers and exporters to get a good part of their business by entering into negotiations with the agents of the Afghan government in India (at Bombay and Peshawar), or by placing their goods in the bazaars of towns close to the frontier. The Afghan government and the Amir personally often make large purchases of foreign goods. They always payj cash In advance when ordering, and the goods are delivered to their agents in India, who assume responsibility for their safe transportation and delivery. The Afghan government receives from the British authorities a subsidy of $600,000 a. year, against which checks are drawn by the agents to pay for such supplies. Hablb Ullah Khan, whose full title is Amir of Afghanistan and its Depend encies, and Light of the Nation of the Faith, is now about 42 years old. He has a liking for almost any sort of novelties and will buy the most ex-, pensive things if they happen to meet his fancy. He is very fond of motor ing, and owns 58 automobiles. Recently he purchased in Bombay a number of motor trucks, for use In carrying goods between Peshawar and Kabul, his capi tal, but the roads are so bad that the vehicles cannot be used. Improvement of the roads 13 In progress, however, and meanwhile elephants are employed for carrying machinery. The Amir makes use of some import ed American roll-top desks and Ameri can typewriters in his palaces and gov ernment oiTices. He is a good photog rapher, and gives much time to this art, especially to enlarging pictures. Any new games appeal to him strongly, in asmuch as .he is very fond of sports of all kinds. The court plays golf, cricket and polo. The Queen. Ulya Hazarat Slraj-ul-Khawatsen, Is said to be the most advanced woman in Afghanistan. In deciding on purchases, the Amir is guided chiefly by the illustrations he linds -in trade catalogues. Such pur chases are arranged usually through the court interpreter, Azlm-ula-khan, who, it is said, buys nothing unless he gets a substantial rake-oft. The only newspaper published in the country is a court Journal, printed at Kabul. Some months ago Mr. Baker addressed to Azim-Ula Khan an in quiry as to whether American manu facturers and exporters could arrange for advertisements and pictures in his newspaper, so as to show what they could do to contribute to the comfort and happiness of His Majesty and the people of Afghanistan. As yet, how ever, he has received no reply. In no way has the introduction of foreign ideas been more marked of late than in the setting of European fash ions of dress for the country by the royal court and nobility at Kabul. Bar ring hats, the costume of the court, and In fact of all the leading people of Afghanistan, is now entirely European, for women as well as men. Collars, shirts, boots and shoes, stockings, cor sets, etc., are imported from India and England. A representative of a Bombay tailor ing house early this year visited Kabul at the invitation of the Amir, and sold 130.000 worth of clothes to the ladies and gentlemen of the court. The latter were not permitted to be personally seen or measured, but the measure ments were furnished. The ladies se lected their own dresses from pictures of the latest Paris fashions, which were submitted to them. After the new cos tumes had been delivered, His Majesty gave a garden party to the members of his harem, at which the attractive new dress creations were displayed: but this social function was screened from the observation of outsiders by sheets of canvas. There has been of late considerable importation of electrical supplies, espe cially in connection with a hydru-elec trie plant near Kabul, which is being constructed by an American engineer named Jewett, formerly of Schenectady, N. Y. It will transmit 40,000 volts from a waterfall 120 feet high, to the capital, 40 miles away, and will . cost 1600,000 when completed. Many obstacles have had to be overcome, the project being greatly delayed by the transporting machinery, phants. The water power will be used to fur- nlsh cheap electric energy for oper ating the - Government gun factory, a shoe factory, a projected woolen mill and Aher industries of Kabul; also to illuminate the royal palace, residences of leading citizens, government offices and streets. The installation is likely to bring about a demand for electric stoves and other appliances for the dwellings of the nobility. The boot and shoe ' factors', estab lished in 1906, is devoted chiefly to the manufacture of shoes for the army. being capable of turning- out 400 pairs of boots per day. It was built and equipped by Europeans, as were like wise the ordnance factory and arsenal. which have a capacity of 150 rifles, two large guns and 20,000 rounds of am munition per week. These military manufacturing works employ 1500 na tives, under 100 Mohammedan artifi cers who were trained in the factories and workshops of India. There is also a mint capable of turn ing out 20,000 coins a day, a 'candle factory with a capacity of 100,000 can dles per diem, and workshops for brassware, tinware, teapots, daggers and sword handles. All of these shops belong to the government. The. kidney fat of every sheep and goat killed in the kingdom is a perquisite of the Amir, who uses it in a factory of his own for the manufacture of soap. Thus it will be seen that Afghanistan is getting to be, in some respects at all events, quite up to date. The only telephone in the country connects Kabul with Jellalabad, 100 miles away the latter being the place of royal residence in "Winter. This is a private line belonging to the Amir, who is said to be now considering the installation of a Marconi wireless system between Kabul and Kandahar. The former city has a .population of about 180.000, while Kandahar claims 80,000. Purchases of 'foreign goods made by the Afghan government are largely for military purposes, the Amir having a standing army of 100,000 men. The population of the country includes many half-wild tribes,, among which there are ferocious hereditary blood feuds. Lawlessness and a spirit of rob bery are rampant, so that nobody thinks of going anywhere without arms. The tribesmen are so anxious to possess rifles and ammunition that such articles, when smuggled or stolen, are literally worth their weight in silver. The British government forbids the, sale of them to Afghans, thoilgh the Amir is allowed to import for his army whatever he cares to pay for. The Afghan government at Kabul has a department for filing catalogues of foreign manufactures under the card index system. Ru'stemjl A. Du bash, the Amir's purchasing agent at Bombay (17 Church Gate street), would like to receive American catalogues of various articles, especially such as may not yet be known to the Amir or other leading people of the country, Good illustrations are the best means of attracting attention to such articles. Inasmuch as very few Afghans can read English. The official court lan guage is Persian, and the American typewriters in use have Persian letters substituted for English characters. The Bombay agent says that there ought to be a good market for shirt lngs, lamps, simple kinds of tools and hardware, barbwlre fencing, gardrn implements, cigars, cigarettes and hot lis . . . :MmmSm elties. Barbed wire is used very. ex tensively for defensive ' purposes all over the country, especially "where there is danger of attack from the half Wild tribesmen. Cheap locks, clocks and ' watches are wanted. American sewing machines are used in the tailor shops. The Amir, his government and the nobility are rather careless about the prices they pay, but for the mass of the people things must be relatively cheap. Some American grand pianos have been carried across the border with great difficulty and expense. In one Instance a leading Afghan noble man had all the lower part of his piano cut off, as he found it more convenient to play while squatting on the floor. The Amir and officials of the court smoke the besj, imported cigars and cigarettes. Second-hand or cast-off uniforms of other countries are one of the most im portant ' imports of Afghanistan. It does not matter whether they have be longed to soldiers, policemen, postmen, railroad men or hotel porters. All are available. The staff of a frontier reg iment not long ago accepted an invita tion To the officers' mess at the Russian post just across the border. In due course the guests arrived, in all the full-dress grandeur of second-hand rail way uniforms. The officer commanding the detachment exhibited on the collar of his tunic the mystic words "Ticket Collector"; his subordinate, a subal tern, was content with the less exalted label of "Guard." The reason why of the circumstance was that the Anilr, through his agent in Bombay, had ac quired a large quantity of discarded clothing at one of the annual sales of condemned stores. Afghanistan is not a member of the International Postal Union, and so the sending of lexers and parcels to any body in that country is attended with uncertainty. They have to be addressed In care of the Afghan postamster at Peshawar, India, who forwards them. Letters are dispatched by runners. To remit funds would be unsafe, and on this account the few foreigners em ployed by the Amir, who receive large salaries, have their pay deposited to their credit at banks in India. New Chaman, close to t,he Afghan boundary, is one of the chief trade centers and an Important British mili tary post. There Is kept In stock, for immediate use in case of mHitary emer gency, over 80 miles, of track and other railroad equipment, so that a com plete line to Kandahar could be laid with great speed should circumstances require. New Chaman is under martial law at all times, on account of fre quent murders and robberies of arms and ammunition, and nobody Is allowed to walk the streets at night without a lantern and the countersign. Most of the houses in Afghanistan are of sun-baked mud bricks with a wooden skeleton. Over the top poles are laid, and on these are placed rush .mats, which are spread with six Inches of mud. Into the mud, while drying, are stuck short wooden pipes, to serve as rain-spouts. Along the walls of the rooms run mud shelves. Glass is a great luxury, being obtained from India, and glazed windows are only for the well-to-do. The average man of the middle class wears ' pajamas, shoes without socks, an embroidered shirt, which falls near ly to the knees, and a loose robe. This is sometimes supplemented .by a waist coat of velvet or cloth, quilted and embroideerd with gold thread. The na tional headdress Is a .conical cap with the turban wrapped around it; The hillman wears a loose garment reaching to the knees and caught at the waist by a. band of many folds, in which pistols' and knives are tucked. His nether limbs are clad in baggy cotton drawers. One or more heavy cotton shawls are worn around the shoulders, and the footgear consists of leather sandals with high-curving toes. The women of all classes wear bloom ers and slippers. .The faces are veiled by a linen -band across the eyes, in which are small squares of drawn work to allow them 'to see. Those of the poorer class wear cotton bloomers and cotton tunics.' The ladies have round, close-fitting caps, and their hair, ar ranged in tiny braids, is caught in a black silk bag that hangs below the waist.' From the top of the head de secends a gra'ceful festoon of muslin or chiffon. In Afghanistan every able-bodied man is considered a fighting man, and is subject at any time to the call of the Amir for military" service. Kabul (high up in the mountains) being very cold in the Winter time, the Amir and his court depart in Autumn to - Jellalabad. andi there remain until Spring. Jellalabad is situated in a valley where the climate is so warm as to permit the raising of oranges and su gar cane. Native to the country is a very curi ous fat-tailed sheep. It's huge tail contains a mass of fat upon which the animal draws for nourishment in "Win ter, when fodder is scarce. These sheep furnish the principal meat diet of the people. Their wool and skins not only provide warm apparel, but supply the mala article of commercial export. The grease of the tail, is used as a substitute for butter. . Barring sheep, the source of great est wealth to the country is the fruit industry. In some districts fruit, fresh and dried, forms the staple diet of a large part of the population. Raisins, pomegranates, almonds, pistachio nuts, grapes of kinds notable for their keep ing quality, and melons are largely exported. Most famous of all Afghan fruits is a sweet Winter melon called "carda," which keeps four or five months. It has been introduced suc cessfully into the United States and is now. grown extensively in California and shipped In large quantities to the Eastern States. The only medicinal remedies used by the natives to any extent are purga tives. Nearly every Afghan thinks it necessary to be purged or bled, or both, every Spring. The native doctors and the "mullahs," or priests, are violently opposed to the introduction of foreign ON THE TIPPING HABIT . (COJITIJ1UED FROM PAGE THREE.) make us walk the plank afterwards. Then h bore away, sou" by sou'east, for the kitchen, where he dropped an chor and sharpened his boarding irons. In the meantime, while we awaited the return of the Pirate King,-our friend Hep was busy tipping. . Every time he took a cigarette from his case' four eager waiters would dash forward with lighted matches and Hep, desiring to show no . partiality, would slip a coin to each of the Mexican guer. illas. One shark of a waiter swam around in the offing . and every time Hep's serviette dropped from his knees to the floor the shark would retrieve it and as he came to the surface with the servi ette in his teeth. Hep would pat his head and reward him cheerfully. It was one continuous orgie of tip ping until finally we left the Prunes Palace with Captain Kldd gloating over the pieces of eight which Hep had given him and singing to himself, "Oh, h a bottle of rum on a dead man's chest!" Street- Scene. 7h &ke Cjly methods of treating diseases. Never theless, vaccination has been intro duced to some extent, and on this ac count smallpox is not nearly so bad as it used to be. A good deal has been accomplished by the medical missions along tho In dian border and by the example of the Amir in buyirvg medical supplies. Over 100,000 Afghan patients annually visit these missions seeking treatment. The Amir has had several European medi cal advisers from time to time one of them a woman, for his harem. Half the babies born in Afghanistan die be fore reaching three years, and no spe cial pains are taken to prevent this frightful mortality. Nevertheless, things are Improving, and one of the most important evidences of advance ing ideas is furnished by three govern ment hospitals now building, which are to be under the management of Mo hammedan doctors trained in India. Hep Insisted upon taking us home in a taxi, sohat he could tip the starter and the chauffeur. We stopped in the drug store at our home corner to mall some letters, and even there Hep found a weighing ma chine and tipped the scales. There are ginks like Hep in every Big Town, going through the night like a cyclone through the sub-treasury, scattering pocket money right and left like so much chaff simply because they want to be looked upon as High Class Sports. And it's hard to follow their act It's rough sledding for the Sensible Lads who are willing to pay for services rendered but balk at the myriad of outstretched pws which line the Path ways of Enjoyment. I was talking to Miff Patterson about It. Miff Invented a machine for removing sunburn from pickles and made a fortune. He has it yet, all except two cents j he paid for a postage stamp which' stuck to his pocketbook some nine years ago. But he has the pocketbook and he still can look at the stamp and consider it an asset. Miff is such a stingy loosener he looks at you with one eye so as not to waste the other. The boys call him "'Putty" because he's the next thing to a pain. If you ask him what time It is he takes off four minutes as his commis sion for telling you. "'Tipping!" said Miff: "What do you mean tipping?" "To give a bit of coin to a waiter or those who do you a service," I ex plained. "Oh!" said Miff: "I've heard about it, but I don't do it. I don't know any waiter well enough to give him money to take home to his wife. She might meet me afterwards and thank me for it and my wife might hear about it that's risky work." "But you can't get good service in the restaurants or hotels unless you do a bit of tipping. How do you man age it?" I inquired. "Easy,"- Miff answered. "I never go to the same hotel twice. I begin at the head of the list and go to them all. By the time I get around to the first one again all the old waiters have grown rich and have gone back to Bulgaria, so I'm safe that's my sys tem." Maybe Hep is right, and'maybe Milt is right. For my part I believe in moderation, betwixt and bechune. What do you think? (Copyright, 1913, by the McClure Newspaper Syndicate. All rights reserved.) An Essay on Health. Wellington (Kan.) Journal. Man drinks whisky, and that clogs the valves; he drinks beer, and that clogs the wheels; he downs lemonade, ginger ale, buttermilk, ice tea, coffee and whatnot, and then wonders why the boilers do not burn. If you should take an ox and put him through a like performance he would be dead in a month. The simplest and plainest laws of health are outraged every day by the average man. . Did Adam smoke? Did Eve wear a corset? Did Solomon chew tobacco Did Ruth chew gum? Did the children of Israel make for a beer garden after crossing the Red Sea? Did Rebecca chew chocolate bonbons and ice cream and call for soda water? Adam was the first man and was made perfect from head to heel. How' long jvould he remain so after eating pie before going to bed? Suppose he had slept in a bedroom 5 by 7, with the windows closed down, the doors shut and two dogs under the bed? Suppose Eve had been laced up in a corset, worn tight shoes, hobble fig leaves and sat up all hours of the night, eating chicken salad and Welsh rareWts and trying to keep on four pounds of dead people's hair? Arvice on Elocution. London Standard. The elocution teacher was instruct ing a scholar who had insisted upon learning a long and rather prosy piece. "When you have finished the recita tion," said the teacher, "bow gracefully and leave the platform on tiptoe." "On tiptoe?" asked the scholar "yes," an swered the teacher, "so as not to awake the audienca." '