AFGHANISTAN. 



tributed, 1,137 ; pages of tracts distributed, 79,- 

 007 ; money received, $55.80. The receipts 

 of the General Tract Society during the year 

 had been $447.15, and its expenditures $455.- 

 08. The larger part of the expense had been 

 incurred for publications, which had been sent 

 to nearly all the Southern States, and to Eng- 

 land, Holland, Italy, and Africa, and, by means 

 of atrents in those places, to all parts of the 

 civilized world. 



The Treasurer of the Educational Society 

 reported that the total value of the property 

 of the Society was $52,259.79, or, deducting 

 for the amount of debts against the same, 

 $44,582.28. The receipts for the year had 

 been $10,499.39. Resolutions were adopted 

 recommending the selection of fifty young 

 men who should become students at Battle 

 Creek College, to prepare for the ministry, 

 those of them who need help to be assisted by 

 loans of money without interest, and of fifty 

 young women to be similarly assisted in pre- 

 paring themselves for missionary work ; and 

 that efforts be made to raise a reserve fund of 

 five thousand dollars for each of these purposes. 

 . The receipts of the Publishing Association 

 for the year had been $233,071.38, and its 

 property was valued, clear of debts, at $99,- 

 112.63. It published three English, one Da- 

 nish, and one Swedish periodical, which, to- 

 gether with the publications of the Californian 

 and Swiss publishing houses, had an aggregate 

 monthly circulation of 67,676 copies. 



The receipts of the Health-Reform Institute 

 for the year had been $135,223.37. Its prop- 

 erty was valued, above all liabilities, at $67,- 

 591.56. There had been 615 patients treated 

 at the Institute, and its gross earnings for the 

 year had been $32,000, and its actual gains 

 $15,000. 



The meeting of the General Sabbath-School 

 Association was the first in its history. The 

 Secretary's report showed that auxiliary asso- 

 ciations had been formed in twelve of the dif- 

 ferent Conferences. Since most of the organi- 

 zations had been so recently formed, their re- 

 ports were brief and incomplete. Twelve of 

 them (Michigan, Iowa, Kansas, Wisconsin, 

 New England, California, Illinois, Missouri, 

 Ohio, Minnesota, Vermont, and Indiana) re- 

 ported 177 schools and 5,851 members. 



AFGHANISTAN. The reports of the in- 

 ternal condition of Afghanistan at the close of 

 1877 indicated that the Ameer was endeavor- 

 ing to combine and consolidate his forces, and 

 to carry out a policy which would eventually 

 reduce the divisions of his state and give it a 

 more compact organization. In those parts of 

 the country where his authority was accepted, 

 he was forming an army on the system of com- 

 pulsory military service, by forcing one man 

 in every twenty to enlist. Where this mea- 

 sure could not be carried out, a poll tax was 

 levied. Difficulty was experienced in getting 

 the recruits to subject themselves to drill, 

 since the new levies, while they professed to 



be willing to go out and fight whenever the 

 jehad should be proclaimed and a part of the 

 country allotted to them to subdue, objected 

 to being brought under the restrictions of a 

 regular soldier's life. In some cases the Ameer 

 induced concurrence with his plans by subsi- 

 dizing the petty chiefs with acceptable gifts. 

 He is reported to have said, on taking leave of 

 some of the minor chiefs who reside near Brit- 

 ish territory : "You should remain outwardly 

 on good terms with the English, and try to get 

 as much money from them as you can. But 

 be sure you do not let them become acquainted 

 with your mountain retreats. Manage to get 

 back the hostages you have given, and bind 

 yourselves only on personal responsibility." In 

 connection with these measures, the Ameer be- 

 gan to rebuild the fort near Ali Musjid, close to 

 the Khyber Pass, and about two marches from 

 Peshawer. In June rumors became prevalent 

 that the Ameer was massing troops on the fron- 

 tier of Afghanistan, and was trying to intrigue 

 with the nobles who were hostile to the pres- 

 ence of the English troops at Kelat and Quet- 

 ta, and who disapproved of the friendliness of 

 the Khan of Kelat toward the British Govern- 

 ment. Evidence of the unfriendly disposition 

 of the Ameer was given by the publication 

 at Constantinople, in July, of a letter which 

 he had addressed to the Sultan of Turkey in 

 January, in which he expressed regret that the 

 English had remained neutral in the Russo- 

 Turkish war ; advised the Sultan that the Rus- 

 sians, while they were as energetic as the Eng- 

 lish, surpassed them in real friendship; de- 

 clared that he was convinced that the Russians 

 were much more honest and sincere than the 

 English; and begged his Majesty "to with- 

 draw from the English alliance and to ap- 

 proach Russia/' 



About the same time it was noticed that the 

 Russian General Kaufmann had, on the 23d of 

 June, taken the command of an expeditionary 

 force to march through Bokhara to the upper 

 basin of the Oxus. The " Moscow Gazette," 

 in an article on the subject, suggested that this 

 movement might be the Russian answer to the 

 British occupation of Cyprus, and showed that 

 the presumed destination of the expedition was 

 hardly more than four hundred versts, or twen- 

 ty days' march, from the British possessions, 

 and added: "England has constantly shown 

 herself jealous of our progress in Asia. She 

 knows that each step we make, each new dip- 

 lomatic or military success we gain, hastens 

 the moment at which Russia will be able to 

 extend and consolidate her influence in the 

 countries bordering on the British possessions. 

 The present time seems very favorable for a 

 continuation of this policy." The expedition 

 was supposed to be aimed at Balkh, a point 

 south of the Oxus, claimed by Shere Ali as ar 

 Afghan province, and lying beyond the line 

 which the Russians had agreed in 1873 that 

 they would not pass. The menace to India 

 which would be involved in a Russian occupa- 



