BOLAN PASS

bolan pass, an important pass on the baluch frontier, connecting jacobabad and sibi with quetta, which has always occupied an important place in the history of british campaigns in afghanistan. since the treaty of gandamak, which was signed at the close of the first phase of the afghan war in 1879, the bolan route has been brought directly under british control, and it was selected for the first alignment of the sind-pishin railway from the plains to the plateau. from sibi the line runs south-west, skirting the hills to rindli, and originally followed the course of the bolan stream to its head on the plateau. the destructive action of floods, however, led to the abandonment of this alignment, and the railway now follows the mashkaf valley (which debouches into the plains close to sibi), and is carried from near the head of the mashkaf to a junction with the bolan at mach. an alternative route from sibi to quetta was found in the harnai valley to the n.e. of sibi, the line starting in exactly the opposite direction to that of the bolan and entering the hills at nari. the harnai route, although longer, is the one adopted for all ordinary traffic, the bolan loop being reserved for emergencies. at the khundilani gorge of the bolan route conglomerate cliffs enclose the valley rising to a height of 800 ft., and at sir-i-bolan the passage between the limestone rocks hardly admits of three persons riding abreast. the temperature of the pass in summer is very high, whereas in winter, near its head, the cold is extreme, and the ice-cold wind rushing down the narrow outlet becomes destructive to life. since 1877, when the quetta agency was founded, the freedom of the pass from plundering bands of baluch marauders (chiefly marris) has been secured, and it is now as safe as any pass in scotland. (t. h. h.*) bolas (plural of span, _bola_, ball), a south american indian weapon of war and the chase, consisting of balls of stone attached to the ends of a rope of twisted or braided hide or hemp. charles darwin thus describes them in his _voyage of the beagle_: "the _bolas_, or balls, are of two kinds: the simplest, which is used chiefly for catching ostriches, consists of two round stones, covered with leather, and united by a thin, plaited thong, about 8 ft. long. the other kind differs only in having three balls united by thongs to a common centre. the gaucho (native of spanish descent) holds the smallest of the three in his hand, and whirls the other two around his head; then, taking aim, sends them like chain shot revolving through the air. the balls no sooner strike any object, than, winding round it, they cross each other and become firmly hitched." bolas have been used for centuries in the south american pampas and even the forest regions of the rio grande. f. ratzel (_history of mankind_) supposes them to be a form of lasso. the eskimos use a somewhat similar weapon to kill birds. _bolas perdidas_ (i.e. lost) are stones attached to a very short thong, or, in some cases, having none at all.