It
will therefore be convenient to make a digression into the question of
the supply of arms to the frontier tribes, while a hundred rifles,
probably a representative hundred, are piled in the main street of the
camp at Ghosam.
The perpetual state of intestine war, in which the border peoples live,
naturally creates a keen demand for deadly weapons. A good Martini-Henry
rifle will always command a price in these parts of Rs.400 or about 25
British pounds. As the actual value of such a rifle does not exceed
Rs.50, it is evident that a very large margin of profit accrues to the
enterprising trader. All along the frontier, and from far down into
India, rifles are stolen by expert and cunning thieves. One tribe, the
Ut Khels, who live in the Laghman Valley, have made the traffic in arms
their especial business. Their thieves are the most daring and their
agents the most cunning. Some of their methods are highly ingenious. One
story is worth repeating. A coffin was presented for railway transport.
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