574 Son. G. N. Curzon [May 10, 



successful issue, but whose unanswerable justification is its final 

 success. 



I shall here say nothing of the history of the Amir or of the pre- 

 carious fortunes of his dynasty. He has occupied the throne since 

 placed there by the British in 1880, after the last Afghan war, and 

 during these fifteen years he has ruled the most turbulent people in 

 Asia with a hand that is only imperfectly described as one of iron. 

 I do not imagine that in the world there is a potentate more feared 

 by such of his people as have reason to fear him than is Abdur 

 Rahman Khan. On the other hand, he is generous and just towards 

 those in whom he confides, and over his personal entourage it was 

 obvious that he exercised an influence, one might almost say a fascina- 

 tion, that was supreme. 



In Mohammedan countries, as my hearers will be aware, monogamy 

 is exceptional among private individuals, and is still more rarely 

 practised in courts. Abdur Rahman Khan has had several wives, and 

 his two eldest sons are the offspring of a mother who was not of royal 

 blood. Nevertheless, their seniority and priority of claim have never 

 been seriously contested ; experience and age, and paternal descent, 

 being, as the Amir explained to me, more valid credentials than the 

 genealogical pedigree or the personal attractions of a mother. By 

 his eldest son, Habibulla Khan, the Amir will, humanly speaking, be 

 succeeded. The prince is a young man of twenty-two years of age, 

 of great charm of manner, very generally popular in the country, and 

 of good abilities. He speaks English a little, and has for years been 

 trained by his father in the functions and practice of government. 

 Should the Amir completely recover his health, Habibulla Khan will 

 still endeavour to come to England in a future year. Perhaps, any- 

 how, he may one day come as a reigning sovereign. The second son 

 of the Amir, Prince Nasrullah Khan, who will land on these shores 

 next week, is a young man of about twenty years of age, of refined 

 and studious appearance. The Amir told me that he was the scholar 

 of the family, and is devoted to books. In the subdivision of adminis- 

 trative functions among his sons the Amir has entrusted Nasrullah 

 Khan with the study and superintendence of finance, in which he will 

 one day be the minister and adviser of his elder brother. I need not 

 here speak of the younger sons, of whom there are two or three, still 

 boys. During my stay at Kabul I dined on several occasions with 

 Princes Habibulla and Nasrullah Khan, and I look back with great 

 pleasure upon the long evenings, relieved by interesting conversation 

 upon their family history and personal experiences, which I spent in 

 their company. As strict Mohammedans, the Princes ate from 

 separate dishes, but they were indifferent to the qualms occasioned by 

 the convivial presence of an unbeliever. 



It was after a fortnight spent in intercourse with this capable and 

 remarkable sovereign and his amiable sons, in riding about the capital 

 and its neighbourhood, and in viewing whatever of interest was there 

 to be seen, that by the Amir's invitation I started on my southward 



