AFGHANISTAN. 



3 



ghans. His yoke was hard on the country 

 around Herat. Treasure could only be raised 

 by harsh exactions, and Ayoob's own imperi- 

 ous, jealous, and vindictive character was calcu- 

 lated to raise up many enemies. In March, an 

 insurrection of the neighboring tribes, joined 

 by mutineers from the army, Candahari and 

 Herati soldiery, nearly put an end to his am- 

 bitious plans. His position in the country 

 at large seemed, nevertheless, to 'be growing 

 stronger. The prolonged occupation of Can- 

 dahar by the British visibly injured the pros- 

 pects of Abdurrahman by ranging the patri- 

 otic and religious sentiment of the country on 

 Ayoob's side. The Ameer's rule extended only 

 over Caboolistan, Balkh, and Badakshan, and 

 was not exercised farther west than Gbazni. 



After waiting until April for Abdurrah- 

 man to become strong enough to hold Canda- 

 har, the British authorities sent word to him 

 to bring a force to succeed them. A deputa- 

 tion from Ayoob Khan asking that the city be 

 resigned to him and his pretensions recognized, 

 on the ground that the people were attached to 

 his cause, was dismissed with a refusal. The 

 Ameer dispatched a body of troops, who 

 slowly made their way from Oabool through the 

 unfriendly Durani country. On the 21st, after 

 furnishing the Afghan troops with some artil- 

 lery and small-arms, the last detachment of 

 British soldiers marched out of Candahar, leav- 

 ing the deputed governor of Abdurrahman in 

 command. 



The British did not, however, withdraw to 

 their former boundary, but only to the valley 

 of Pishin, where they remained, guarding the 

 Khojak pass and garrisoning the city of Quetta, 

 quietly looking on during the ensuing struggle 

 between the two claimants for the Afghan 

 throne. The Indian official world insisted upon 

 holding on to this last, poor trophy of the con- 

 quest ; and the army clique and Russophobists 

 never ceased to cry for a return to the " for- 

 ward " policy, for interference between the 

 combatants, and the establishment of a British 

 protectorate in Afghanistan. 



After the evacuation of Candahar the Ameer 

 increased his fighting strength, and posted 

 troops on the Helmand to defend his acquisi- 

 tion. Three of Ayoob's cousins and generals 

 advanced with a small force, hoping to incite 

 the Durani chiefs to rise, but with little suc- 

 cess. A skirmish near Girishk opened hos- 

 tilities on the 30th of June. On the llth an- 

 other engagement took place, resulting in the 

 dispersion of Ayoob's force. In July Ayoob ad- 

 vanced from Herat to the Helmand River with 

 all his forces. Several days were gained by 

 him in pretended negotiations for peace. Gho- 

 lam Hyder, the commander of the Ameer's 

 force on the Helmand, finally crossed the river 

 to attack Ayoob Khan, but only to find that the 

 wily prince had himself forded the Ilelmand 

 and slipped in between him and Candahar. 

 Gholam Hyder recrossed the river at Girishk, 

 and caught up with Ayoob at Karez-i-Atta, six 



miles nearer Candahar, encamped in a strong 

 position on ascending ground. Gholam Hyder 

 attacked him vigorously, and gained some ad- 

 vantage at first ; but the desertion of a regi- 

 ment of Ghilzais and his own bad generalship 

 lost him the day. The Cabooli troops took to 

 flight, and many of them came in and surren- 

 dered to Ayoob. The battle, which was fought 

 July 27th, lasted only an hour ; eighteen guns 

 and a considerable treasure fell into the hands, 

 of Ayoob's general. The Ameer's Governor of 

 Candahar and his staff fled, and Ayoob's forces 

 quietly took possession of the city on the 30th. 

 Gholam Hyder Khan retreated with the rem- 

 nant of his army to Kelat-i-Ghilzai. Here, 

 finding re-enforcements from Cabool, he made a 

 stand. The Ameer's position improved from 

 week to week. Dissensions broke out in Ayoob 

 Khan's army, and many of the Cabooli soldiers 

 who had joined him after the battle at Karez-i- 

 Atta redeserted to Gholam Hyder. The Ameer 

 issued a proclamation to the people of Northern 

 Afghanistan, announcing that he would take 

 the field in person. Mahomed Jan, his former 

 general-in-chief, whom he had long feared and 

 mistrusted, he cast into prison with other sus- 

 pected individuals. Both he and Ayoob Khan 

 had been hampered in their movements by 

 signs of treachery and disaffection in their 

 capitals and among their troops. 



The Duranis did not flock to Ayoob Khan's 

 standard, as he had hoped, upon his appearance 

 in Southern Afghanistan. Before the capture 

 of Candahar had made him master of the coun- 

 try, but few partisans joined his ranks. Here, 

 as at Herat, his rule was felt to be oppressive. 

 His financial straits and military necessities 

 compelled him to make requisitions for arms 

 and supplies and to exact transport service, and 

 his extortions of treasure acted like a blight on 

 commercial traffic. The murder of a popular 

 chief, and other events which excited tribal 

 hatred and revenge, had estranged the Herati 

 more than all his exactions, and were among 

 the main causes of his future disasters. Race 

 feeling, which is one of the deepest passions 

 of the Afghan breast, was aroused in his favor 

 among the Southern Afghans by the appeals 

 made by Abdurrahman to the race pride of 

 the Ghilzai nation in his energetic preparations 

 for a final struggle witli the Ghilzai leader of a 

 Durani horde who disputed his throne. The 

 Duranis of the south, who had held back apa- 

 theticallyat Ayoob Khan's first coming, passion- 

 ately filled with the traditional jealousy of the 

 Ghilzai race, now rallied vigorously around the 

 banner of their national chief. Abdurrahman 

 during his struggle with Ayoob Khan was free- 

 ly provided with British silver. The liberal use 

 of his abundant cash gave him a great advan- 

 tage over Ayoob. Instead of drying up the 

 fountains of commerce, and spreading distress 

 and poverty in his path, his approach brought 

 unexampled prosperity and comfort to every 

 community which he visited. 



Abdurrahman reached Kelat-i-Ghilzai on the 



