112 IN THE DIPLOMATIC SERVICE-XIII 



I have already spoken of the way in which he was placed 

 upon the throne by General AnnenkofL He now came to 

 visit the Czar as his suzerain, and with him came his eld 

 est son and a number of his great men. The satrap him 

 self was a singular combination of splendor and stoicism, 

 wearing a gorgeous dress covered with enormous jewels, 

 and observing the brilliant scenes about him with hardly 

 ever a word. Even when he took his place at the table 

 beside the Empress he was very uncommunicative. Fac 

 ing the imperial table sat his great men; and their em 

 barrassment was evident, one special source of it being 

 clearly their small acquaintance with European table 

 utensils. The Ameer brought to St. Petersburg splendid 

 presents of gold and jewels, after the Oriental fashion, 

 and also the heir to his throne, whom he left as a sort of 

 hostage to be educated at the capital. 



An eminent Russian who was in very close relations 

 with the Ameer gave me some account of this young man. 

 Although he was then perhaps fourteen or fifteen years 

 of age, he was, as regards conduct, a mere baby, bursting 

 out into loud boohooing the first time he was presented 

 to the Emperor, and showing himself very immature in 

 various ways. Curiously enough, when he was taken to 

 the cadet school he was found to be unable to walk for any 

 considerable distance. He had always been made to squat 

 and be carried, and the first thing to be done toward 

 making him a Russian officer was to train him in using 

 his legs. He took an especial fancy to bicycles : in the park 

 attached to the cadet school he became very proficient 

 in the use of them ; and, returning to Bokhara at his first 

 vacation, he took with him, not only a bicycle for himself, 

 but another for his brother. Shortly after his home-com 

 ing, the Ameer and court being assembled, he gave a 

 display of his powers ; but, to his great mortification, the 

 Ameer was disgusted : the idea that the heir to the throne 

 should be seen working his way in this fashion was con 

 trary to all the ideas of that potentate, and he ordered the 

 bicycles to be at once destroyed. But on the young man s 



