John Alfred Gray

“ The Palace was small. It resembled in style a bungalow, such as one sees in India. There was a broad and high verandah supported on carved wooden pillars, a high sloping roof, and large windows on each side of the centre door: the one on the left reaching nearly to the ground.
We drew nearer, everyone making way, and we saw, surrounded by pages and courtiers, that remarkable man who, had he lived a century ago, would in all probability have been, not the petty prince of a half-barren country, but the great conqueror of the East—“Amîr Abdurrahman, Amîr of Afghanistan.” ”

“ We stopped at the Palace, dismounted, and went in to take leave of His Highness, the Prince. When we remounted we were met outside the Palace by Perwana Khan, the Deputy Commander-in-Chief, and Naib Mir Sultan, the Governor of Kabul, each with their attendants, so that with our own crowd of servants, and a guard of sixty soldiers, we made a large cavalcade. A crowd of people on foot accompanied us part of the way, running by the side and in front of the horses. The sun shone brightly; the dresses of the officials—crimson, and purple, and green—were brilliant with gold embroidery. ”

“ Though some tribes are said to be nomadic, predatory, and the poorest and most barbarous of all the races in Afghanistan, those I came in contact with seemed, compared with the Afghans, a hard working peaceful people, unless they were roused by cruelty and oppression; then, indeed, they fought with dogged persistence. They seemed to have a certain simplicity of character which contrasted strongly with the duplicity of the Afghan. Though undersized, they are of great physical strength, and as slaves taken in war, or servants for hire, they seemed to me to do all the hard work in Kabul. ”

“ We English in his service, dazzled by the glamour of his strong personality and charmed by the kindly courtesy of his manner, grew to feel an attachment strong and personal to His Highness; but there were those among us of the more observant who felt, as the years passed, that we were but as “Pawns” on the chess-board of this Prince, to be swept off with an unshrinking hand when a move in the game might need it.
Nevertheless, though life at an Oriental Court offers so little that is congenial to the tastes of an educated Englishman; where, indeed, each man strives to harm his neighbour ”

“ Whether the act was a childlike mimicry of his father or not I cannot say, but it reminded me most strongly of the Amîr. After that when he came for a sitting he was always merry and bright, and I managed to get a really expressive likeness of him. He was dressed in a gold-embroidered military tunic, hussar fashion, trousers, high boots, and a fur busby. On the breast was an emerald surrounded by pearls. The belt was profusely adorned with diamonds, as was his watch chain; and on the busby was a large emerald. His sword hilt and scabbard were of gold. ”

“ The glitter of the gold and silver ornaments on belt, scabbard, and bridle, the blue and gold turbans of the attendants, the black sheepskin busbies of the soldiers, horses caracoling, and the look of bustle and excitement, made an artistic and interesting picture.
We rode by the bank of the Kabul river westward, past the workshops and through the gorge between the Sher Durwaza and Asmai mountains out into the Charhardeh valley. ”

“ For ages it has been a proverb among the natives of India that he who goes to Kabul carries his life in his hand. They say, “Trust a cobra, but never an Afghan;” and there is no denying the fact that the people of Afghanistan have had the credit from time immemorial of being a turbulent nation of highway robbers and murderers. If there were any chance of plunder they spared not even their co-religionists, and, being fanatical Mahomedans, they were particularly “down” on any unfortunate traveller suspected of being a Feringhi and an infidel. ”

“ Then His Highness burst forth. I did not understand his words, but there was no mistaking his manner—the knitted brow, the flashing eye and the low rumble, lashing up to a roar. The storm descended upon the heads of the two Hindustanis. They stood shivering, and from yellow became green. They knew, and I afterwards had frequent opportunities of observing, that in moments like this the Amîr is dangerous; men’s lives tremble in the balance. ”

“ After half an hour or so my tent and baggage turned up.
It was Gur-i-Mar where we camped: we had travelled slowly in the darkness. The Amîr, riding on horseback, arrived with his guard soon after dawn, but it was hours before the stream of pack-horses and camels and elephants had come in.
I had breakfast as soon as the tent was up: cold mutton, biscuit, and tea, and then lay on the ground with a pillow, and went to sleep again. The fever had disappeared. Towards midday it grew frightfully hot, but I did not suffer so much, for my tent was put up in the early morning over cool ground. ”

“ Are these rapid rises and falls to be looked upon as the consequence or are they the cause of the moral condition of the Afghan? The question is an important one, if we are looking forward to a civilized Afghanistan.
Does an Afghan in power, knowing the certainty of a fall, deserved or undeserved, say to himself,
“I have authority now, but sooner or later somebody will undermine me in the Amîr’s regard. I had better make the most of my power while it lasts: get all I can out of other people, and enjoy myself. The evil day may be long deferred.” ”

“ The Nimla valley is, however, an oasis in the desert. In it there is a very beautiful garden enclosed within a high wall. It was made by Shah Jehangir about 1610 A.D., and has been repaired by the present Amîr. One can see the garden a great way off, the deep green of its cypress trees being a striking piece of colour among the blue greys and reds of the mountainous barren landscape. ”

“ Here we left our horses. Entering the gateway we walked across the gardens, the guard unceremoniously clearing out of our way the clerks, pages, and petitioners who were walking along the paths. We saw in front of us the ramparts, moat, and bridges of the Palace. The flame-shaped battlements of the walls, and the decorated gateway set in a semicircular recess flanked by bastions, had a quaint Oriental appearance.
On the wall over the gateway was a small cupola sheltering what appeared to be a telescope, but may have been a machine gun. ”

“ I pictured a lovely creature, like an Arab, with a small head, slender limbs, and broad chest. Judge of my surprise when I beheld a black shaggy pony, all mane and tail. I thought within myself: “They are playing it low down upon the stranger within their gates.”
But, at a sign from the Amîr, the head-groom mounted and off the pony started. He did not gallop, canter, trot, nor walk: he simply “skated” over the ground at terrific speed. They said he could keep the pace up for thirty miles without stopping, and could travel from Mazar to Kabul in four days! ”

“ One must remember that this educational system of civilizing is being carried on among a race of men who have been known hitherto simply as fighters and robbers, semi-savages, and who, unlike so many of the races of India, have shown but little if any sign that they were capable of being converted into useful producers.
When I say, finally, that the Amîr offers prizes, and of considerable value, for the best or most original work produced either in the shops or elsewhere, it will be easily understood how much he has at heart the desire to advance his people in knowledge and civilization. ”

“ In the whole country the arboreal distribution is peculiar. The forests are confined entirely to the main ranges of mountains and their immediate offshoots. The more distant prolongations are bare and rocky. I remember once in travelling from Turkestan to Kabul, everyone stopped and stared, for there on a mountain a solitary tree could be seen; it looked most extraordinary. In the valleys there are poplars and willows, which have been planted by the peasants for use afterwards as roofing beams, and there are orchards of fruit-trees, but I never saw a forest, a wood, nor even a spinney. ”

“ The Kaffir Pages had grey tunics and trousers and soft grey felt hats. The Princes and their suite therefore were European in dress.
The thirty soldiers formed a ring round the musicians; the drums beat a sort of slow march, and the dancers walked slowly round singing a chant in falsetto—one-half sang a verse, the other half answered. Presently the pipes began their shrill wailing, and the dancers moved faster, with a step something like a mazurka. Quicker and quicker grew the music, and quicker and quicker the dance: turbans and shoes were tossed off without a pause. ”

“ The Amîr’s new rupee is stamped on one side with a decorative representation of a musjid with a three-stepped pulpit inside. At early dawn, and at four other times during the day, the priest mounts the minaret, and, standing upright, with his thumbs in his ears and his hands spread out, he utters in a penetrating falsetto voice the call of the faithful to prayer, “Allah akbar! Allah akbar, Mahomed Ressul Allah!” and so on. “God is great, God is great, Mahomed is the Prophet of God. Come to Prayers, Prayers are better than sleep. Come to [94] salvation, God is great. There is no god but God.” ”

“ From my narrative may have been gathered some idea of the steps that the Amîr has taken to civilize his people and advance them in prosperity. Highway robbery and murder are no longer common in the country; nor is murder or theft in the town. Englishmen—Feringhis—have been, for the last six or seven years, travelling constantly between Kabul and Peshawur, and never has there been the slightest attempt to injure or annoy them. Indeed, for myself I may say that at every halting-place when the villagers brought their sick for me to attend to, I went among them freely, unarmed and unguarded. ”

“ Wild-fowl shooting in the marshes around Kabul is a favourite pastime.
Sometimes the sportsmen go in a body on horseback, ride into the marsh where it is shallow, disturb the duck and fire into the flight. Sometimes they go singly, conceal themselves and use a decoy. In the plains they stalk the deer or use a body of beaters to drive the game to certain points. In Turkestan, tiger, wild pig—which they shoot—and bear are to be obtained. Duck shooting in the autumn and winter, and hawking in the spring are, perhaps, the sports in which the Royal Family most frequently indulge. ”

“ The Approach to the Kabul Dwelling-house.
Supposing you have to visit a person in the town, you are conducted on horseback along the narrow winding streets. You dismount at a door and stumble into a dark winding passage with your head bent to avoid a bang against an irregular beam, and you go slowly for fear of puddles and holes which you cannot see. You come into the open, and find yourself in a garden with flowers and trees, and a tank or pond in the middle, or in a small courtyard with simply a well. ”

“ I directed the Armenian to write to His Highness and explain that the Engineers had given up their Sabbath to His Highness’s service; had His Highness any objection to their keeping the Mahomedan Sabbath instead of their own.
The Amîr answered that he had not the slightest objection; and he wrote to the Sirdar that it was folly to expect the men to work every day in the week. The Sirdar was a courtly old gentleman, but in the Shops there were constant frictions. He no more understood the nature of an English workman than he understood Physiology or any other Science. ”

“ In the winter people keep themselves warm by means of a charcoal brazier or sandali, which I will describe presently. In the city, the houses being crowded so close to one another, it was to me a source of wonder how the owners could prevent themselves being overlooked. I was informed that if a man standing on the top of his house could see into his neighbour’s enclosure, even into the garden, he was compelled by law to build a wall or screen to cut off his view: a violation of the privacy of a man’s dwelling by looking over the wall is a great offence in Afghanistan. ”

“ That the Amîr thinks so is clear, for he has commenced to raise them by a system of education.
To say that Abdurrahman did not come to the throne by chance is to utter a platitude. There was a work to be done that doubtless he only could do. It was essential that the power of the “Barons,” the great chiefs with rival interests, should be broken and their constant feuds ended; that the country should be united under one head; that there should be respect for authority, and thus a possibility established of drawing the people from the slough of ignorance in which they are wallowing. ”

“ The Armenian enquired if we should like some music, and he sent for a band of pipers. They marched with their bagpipes up and down in front of the tent playing Scotch and Afghan tunes. There were several other bands about the garden—brass bands and native string bands—playing military and native music. There were dancing boys, conjurers, and nautch girls.
The chief men lunched in tents and the crowds of people had a picnic on the grass; pilau and bread being provided for them.
About two the Sultana sent a huge tray of sweetmeats with which we regaled ourselves. ”

“ Here, in the suburbs, are the summer gardens of the richer men. Far away are the mountains, blue in the distance. Mazar lies on a malarious, almost desert plain in Turkestan, nine miles east of the ancient city Balkh, and thirty miles south of the Pata Kesar ferry, on the Oxus river, so that we were near the Russian frontier.
The plain is desert, because of the absence of water. When the snow melts in the warmth of the spring, the plain becomes a blaze of red flowers, wild tulips—poppies, my Interpreter said: but these shrivel up and die in the summer. ”

“ After a few years the man is recalled to Kabul to make out a statement of accounts as regards the revenue and taxes of the province. He cannot do it. Forthwith his ill-gotten wealth is put in the Treasury, his finery, and the shawls and diamonds of his wives, in the Government stores, and he finds himself, as he deserved, a beggar or in jail. The sufferers—the men who have been squeezed—are the peasants and traders. When “gentlemen” behave in this way it is not to be wondered at that the Amîr makes a slave a gentleman. ”

“ In the front of each shop was an awning of rush matting, supported on two poles. The sun shone brilliantly, and in the distance the mountains glimmered shadowy blue in the heated air. The crowds of people, and the shopkeepers, salaamed as the Princes went by. We marched through and on into the Park of Mazar—the Chahar Bagh. The park is about a mile in width each way. We went along the paths under the trees till we [303] reached a large open space, where I found there was to be a wrestling contest. ”