Much more fully than the Kalmucks proper Radloff describes the Altaians or Altaian Mountain-Kalmucks. Slaves not being mentioned, and it being stated in many places that the menial work is done by servants and by the poor who are fed by the rich[482], it is certain that slavery does not exist. The word “slave” occurs in one place only, viz. in the mourning-song of the widow, who complains that “now she wears a leathern dress like base slaves; now she eats coarse food like slaves”[483]. If we have not here to deal with an inaccurate translation, this mourning-song might be a reminiscence of formerly existing slavery. Slavery would then have disappeared spontaneously, not through Russian influence, for the Altaians have maintained their position in the mountain-valleys of the South-west Altai, least accessible to Russian colonization. So we may safely consider the Altaians as a savage tribe keeping no slaves.
Radloff’s notes on the Teleuts, Tatars on the Kondoma and Abakan Tatars are too short to draw any safe inference from[484].
Many Central Asiatic tribes have been described by Vambéry. The description of each of them fills many pages, but the information we get about social facts is rather incomplete. Therefore, though in most of his descriptions slavery is not [[131]]mentioned, we may not infer that it does not exist. The positive cases have of course more value.
The Usbegs, according to Vambéry, till their land aided by Persian slaves[485]. No more details being given, we may put this down as a positive case, though not a clear one.
The Kara Kalpaks, in the beginning of the 18th century, were given to slave-stealing[486], whether for their own use or for sale does not appear.
The Turkomans, according to Vambéry, sell foreigners as slaves[487]. In another book the same author tells us that in their internal wars they made slaves; and he speaks of their keeping female slaves[488]. Stein and Weil make no mention of slavery[489]. Letourneau, referring to Burnes, remarks: “The Persian captives are for the Turkomans a source of large profit; but the captors do not as a rule keep them for themselves, except sometimes the women, of whom they make concubines or wives”[490]. So we may safely infer that slavery does not exist here.
The Mongols have hired herdsmen who tend their camels[491]. Whether they have any slaves does not appear.
Ujfalvy informs us that among the Tadjiks of Hissar slavery was recently abolished by an order from Bokhara[492].
According to the same writer “all Galtchas are free; for slavery does not exist and has never existed in their inaccessible valleys”[493].
The Kurds of Eriwan probably have no slaves. They keep hired herdsmen. All members of the community, rich and poor, enjoy the same rights[494].