From the Black Mountain to Waziristan: Being an account of the border countries and the more turbulent of the tribes controlled by the north-west frontier province, and of our military relations with them in the pastWylly, H. C. (Harold Carmichael)
History
From the Black Mountain to Waziristan: Being an account of the border countries and the more turbulent of the tribes controlled by the north-west frontier province, and of our military relations with them in the past
As a result of this measure some of the Utman Khel villages showed
themselves most anxious to effect a satisfactory settlement with
Government; others, however—those of Zirak and Pakhai—remained recusant,
and consequently, while the submission of the repentant villages was
accepted, it was decided to coerce the remainder. On the 20th March,
therefore, Lieutenant-Colonel Jenkins left Mardan for the Utman Khel
border with a force composed of four guns of the Hazara Mountain
Battery, 245 sabres and 453 bayonets of the Guides. The Zirak villages
were first dealt with. The force entered the hills as day was breaking,
and experienced no opposition at the first village, Tarakai, but moving
on from here entered a valley formed by the Sulala range of hills and
divided into two parts by the Tor Tam hill; on the near side of this
hill were the remaining Zirak villages, and on the other were those of
Pakhai. The first village was found to be deserted, but our troops were
fired on from the others; the enemy were, however, easily dispersed and
the remaining Zirak villages cleared. Leaving now the Guides cavalry in
occupation, Colonel Jenkins secured possession of the Tor Tam hill with
the infantry and guns without any serious opposition, and thence had the
Pakhai villages at his mercy. The Zirak and Pakhai headmen were now
called upon to submit, which they did after the usual hesitation, and
agreed to pay the fines demanded of them. The force then withdrew from
the valley unmolested, and bivouacked that night at the Jhinda outpost
of the Swat canal works, having marched over forty miles since noon of
the previous day. Mardan was again reached on the 22nd.
[Sidenote: Punitive Measures]
During 1882 there was a slight revival of trouble in connection with the
canal works, but thenceforward the Utman Khels gave us no cause for
complaint until 1895, when some divisions opposed General Low’s
advance[68] at the passage of the Swat River; they also shared in other
attacks upon us during the operations of that spring, but no punitive
measures were taken against them for these signs of hostility. In 1897
again large numbers of Utman Khels took part in the attacks on the
Malakand; some assisted their old enemies the Mohmands in the fighting
about Shabkadar; and others again of the divisions which live on the
further bank of the Swat River helped in the assaults on Chakdara, and
later tried to seize the bridge over the Panjkora, but were forestalled
by General Meiklejohn.
The trans-frontier Utman Khels thereafter only broke out once, joining
the Mamunds in the attack on General Jeffreys’ camp described in Chapter
VII., but, on the whole, they remained quiet while our troops were in
Bajaur, and even helped to keep open the lines of communications where
these passed near their border.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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