Untitled

They rode for eight hours, and reckoned that they had made some fifty miles. They gave the horses a good feed and lay down until daylight, for they were now at the foot of the Kojuk, a gorge so steep and difficult that it could not be passed at night. Just as they were starting, three tribesmen rode up, and in the name of the local chief demanded two gold tomauns, one for each horse and rider, as tribute for a free passage. As the money was paid without question, they rode off without giving further trouble. The passage was long and difficult, and in many cases they had to lead their horses. Once through, they allowed the animals another hour's rest and a feed, and then mounting, rode on briskly again. A few miles farther on they halted in a clump of trees, and slept until nightfall, and then rode another twenty miles. As speed was of less consequence than keeping their horses in fair condition, they turned off at a little stream, followed it for half a mile up, and then halted in a dip through which it ran. Here there was good grass for the horses. They remained for the rest of that day, and until within three hours of daybreak next morning. As Angus had calculated, they saw at sunrise the mud fort and town of Quettah standing on its rocky eminence. They made a detour, and came down upon the road again round the town, and then rode briskly down the Shawl valley. The country round was rich and fertile, and dotted with villages, orchards, and vineyards. They stopped late in the afternoon at a village near the entrance to the pass. Two armed men came out from a hut as they drew up. The leader said, "Our chief is master of the pass, travellers find it wise to pay for right of passage."

"That we are ready to do," Angus said. "But does your chief guarantee that we shall go unmolested down to Dadur?"

"The chief cannot guarantee that, he can only guarantee you from hurt or damage from his people. He is lord of the eastern side of the pass, but there are others—men of no account, and who own no chief—among the mountains to the west. They sometimes waylay travellers. Our chief punishes them when he can do so; but it is seldom that he is able to catch them. He does all that he can, for he wishes well to traders and others who pass along, for when ill happens to them others are afraid to pass, and he loses his tribute. When a large caravan comes up, and is able to pay handsomely, he furnishes an escort of twenty men or more; but he will not send less than twenty, for a smaller party might not be able to defend the caravan, and he would suffer loss of honour from failing to give protection to those to whom he guaranteed it."

"We cannot afford to pay for an escort of twenty men, and have but little to be robbed of, for you see we carry no merchandise, having disposed of what we bought at Herat and Candahar, and sent the proceeds by sure hands back to Persia."

As their attire gave no signs of their being men of substance, the tribesman said: "In that case you will only have to pay one tomaun each; that is the price for a man and horse, and the same for each camel- or horse-load of goods; that is the regular toll."

"That we can pay. As to the brigands you speak of, we must take our chance."

He handed the money to the man, who in return gave him a little white-and-red flag, which he was to show should he encounter any of his tribesmen. They stopped here all day, and purchased food for their journey.

"I should think it would be a very good thing, Azim," Angus said in the afternoon, "if we could engage a guide. We might break our necks making our way down here in the dark. I will speak to those two fellows. I suppose they are on duty here, and cannot go themselves, but there may be others of the tribe in the village; or, if not, some of the people here may be accustomed to going down the pass with caravans."

Angus went to the hut occupied by the two tribesmen and called them out. "We are intending to travel at night," he said, after offering them a packet of tobacco. "In that way we may escape being seen by these brigands."

"It will be almost impossible for you to go at night—quite impossible without a guide."

"That is what we came to you about. Are there any of your tribe who would act as a guide for us? How long would it take us?"

"It would take you four nights' journey. You could do it in two stages if your horses are sure-footed and you travelled in the day, but at night it would take four at least. How much would you be willing to pay?"

"How much would be charged?" Angus said quietly.

"You should have two men," the man answered, "two men who know the pass well. Yakoob and I could go with you. We have been here six days, and two others will come to take our places and collect tolls to-morrow, so we shall be free. We know every foot of the pass, having travelled up and down it scores of times. We cannot guarantee your safety, but you would have a better chance with us than with others. We will take you into Dadur. We do not promise to fight; when twenty attack four, fighting is foolish. We have our horses; there are parts where the pass opens out and the bottom is level."

"Well, how much would you charge?"

The two men talked together in an undertone, and then the one who had before spoken turned again to Angus. "We would take you for three gold pieces each."

"It is a large sum," Angus said; "but as I hear in the village that it is not safe to go unless with a large caravan, and that it might be three weeks or a month before a sufficiently large number of travellers arrive, we will pay you that."

"It is a bargain, then," the man said. "We had best start at four o'clock; the descent here is very steep, and it is not overlooked from the hills to the west. Therefore, we can go down there by daylight, and then rest our horses for an hour and move forward again when it is quite dark. You had better buy four black blankets, to cut up and tie round the horses' feet, so that when we are passing the bad points, where the brigands generally lurk, no noise will be made in climbing over the boulders or slipping on smooth rocks. It will be necessary, of course, to get food for us all and for the horses."

"I will buy that to-morrow," Angus said. "I suppose it would be of no use taking torches?"

"You might take some," the man said. "In some places the rocks are so steep that no one could look down from above, and at these points there are no caves where the thieves would be hiding, and we should certainly get on a good deal faster with torches."

"I will take some then. Have you ever been through by night before?"

The man shook his head. "We have not. It is seldom attempted; but it is because you are willing to travel so that we are ready to accompany you, for the brigands would expect no one at that time, and will most likely be asleep."

"Then, if we are attacked we must be taken prisoners?"

"No," the man said; "there are many places where the hills can be ascended by men who know them. Should we be attacked near one of these spots we must leave our horses and fly; that is what we should do, and what I should advise you to do also. A man's life is worth more than a horse and saddle. Of course in the daytime there would be no escape in that way, for they would bring us down with their matchlocks; but at night we could elude them, and if they did follow us we could defend ourselves, taking shelter and shooting them as they came up."

"Well, it is a satisfaction, anyhow," Angus said, "that there would be a chance for us. Our horses are good beasts, but we value our lives more."

"I think they are honest fellows," he went on after telling Azim the substance of his conversation with the tribesmen. "They say that the Afghans have a treacherous disposition, but I believe these men can be trusted to keep their engagements. They did not exaggerate the difficulties of the journey as some would have done, nor did they pretend that they would join in a hopeless fight. In fact, although of course the actual difficulties of the journey would be very much greater in the dark than in daylight, they evidently considered that the danger from the other tribesmen would be by no means great."

It was, however, a terrible journey, and Angus felt that without the guidance of the tribesmen it would have been an impossible one. They knew exactly where the river was fordable, and on which side the pass was most free from great boulders and obstruction, and where torches could be safely used. But at times progress was terribly slow, their horses having to pick their way among rocks and boulders, and taking more than an hour to cover a mile. At other times they were able to go at a brisk walk, and even break into a trot. Whenever they neared spots where the caves frequented by the robbers were situated, the horses' feet were muffled, and they were led with the greatest care. It was indeed comparatively seldom that the riders mounted; where it was dangerous to have torches, they walked along by the side of their horses, allowing the animals to pick their own way, which they were able to do better than they could have done if led.

The horses Angus had bought having made the ascent of the pass were to some extent accustomed to the work, and not having to carry the weight of the riders were able, save in exceptional places, to get along more easily than Angus and Azim were able to do. Both of these had many falls, and would have had many more had not their guides at such times stood close beside them and rendered them assistance, often warning them of obstacles of which they themselves were unable to make out the faintest outline.

Several times they saw the glow of fires burning in the caverns. At such points the strictest silence was observed. They had purchased Afghan shoes at the village, and round these had wound strips of thick woollen stuff like felt, so that their steps were as noiseless as those of the horses. The stirrups were fastened over the animals' backs so as to avoid contact with rocks; and any slight sound that might be made was to a great extent drowned by the murmur and rattle of the rapid stream.

The long halts during the daytime were made at points, carefully chosen by the guides, at the foot of precipitous rocks. Fragments that had fallen from above formed a bank at a short distance from the foot, the greater part of the rocks having bounded outwards with the impetus of their fall. Between the bank and the cliff there was a depression partly filled with splinters of rock. It was, however, considerably lower than the bank, and the men and horses stationed in it were hid alike from observation from above and from the eye of those passing along the valley. Here they slept on beds composed of their saddles and rugs laid on the rough stones, their guides by turn keeping watch. As a whole they got on faster than the guides had anticipated, and were fairly down at the mouth of the pass at daybreak on the fourth morning after their start. Here the tribesmen received their pay, Angus adding another pound to the amount agreed on, for the care and assistance given. They waited two days at Dadur to allow their horses rest. Here they were fortunate in finding two men well acquainted with the road. They had so far guided a party who were proceeding up the pass to Quettah, and as they were now returning, were glad enough to accept the offer of a couple of pounds to act as guides across the desert. In accordance with their advice two rough ponies were bought to carry water-skins and provisions, while smaller skins were to be taken on their own horses, as the country to be traversed was for a considerable distance a waterless desert. Even this part of the journey would not be accomplished without danger, for the Belooches of the district were to a man plunderers, and cared nothing for the authority of the Khan of Khelat. The distance from Dadur to Shikarpore is nearly a hundred and fifty miles across a flat and dreary country, almost unpopulated; but as they were unencumbered by baggage, and carried sufficient water for their wants and those of their horses, it was performed in seven days. At Rojhan they came upon Captain Thompson, who was in command of a party which had gone forward to examine the state of the water-supply, and if necessary to sink more wells. He was surprised when a young Persian trader addressed him in English, and informed him that he had just come through from Herat. This was quite enough to assure a warm welcome, and the officer put him up for the night in his own tent and made him in all respects comfortable.

After hearing something of the siege of Herat, and of his journey, he asked anxiously as to the water-supply in the villages on the way to Dadur. On hearing that few of them were much better supplied than Rojhan he threw up his hands in despair.

"Two or three thousand natives ought to have been engaged," he said, "and a couple of hundred set to work to dig deep wells in these villages. A hundred wells would be little enough for the army, its horses and baggage animals, and its native followers. Even when they are dug the water runs into them slowly. I have sent down my report from here. There are only three wells, one of which Sir Alexander Burnes sank when he was here a week ago; the others contain such bad water as to be quite unfit for human use. I am really frightened at the thought of what will take place before the army gets to Dadur. However, I hear that they will not advance for another month, and that some very energetic steps will be made to secure a water-supply before they come along."

On the following day Angus passed several working parties who were engaged under the superintendence of Major Leech, assistant to Sir Alexander Burnes—for Captain Burnes had been knighted as a reward for his services in Cabul. With the exception of these parties they scarcely encountered a human being on the way down, except in the miserable little villages which were situated where the soil permitted the cultivation of a scanty crop, which was for the most part cut when green and sold to passing travellers. Angus was heartily glad when Shikarpore came in sight. He had learned from Captain Thompson that Shah Soojah had arrived there with a native army which he had raised, that the Bengal army under General Cotton, which had marched down by the Indus, was expected to arrive there in a day or two, and that the Bombay army under Sir John Keane was but a few days behind.

Upon entering the town he was glad to see British uniforms in the street, and addressing in English the first officer he met, he found that the division of General Cotton had arrived two days before.

"I have just come from Herat," Angus said. "I left there after the siege was raised. I have some despatches from Lieutenant Pottinger, which should be given either to Colonel Pottinger or to Sir Alexander Burnes."

"Burnes is here. I think that Colonel Pottinger is at Sukkar, he was there a few days ago; you will find Burnes at the head-quarters. He is the political officer and so forth of the army; but Macnaghten is envoy and commissioner to Soojah, and generally at the head of all political business."

The army was encamped round the town, and Angus had no difficulty in finding the quarters of Sir Alexander Burnes. Dismounting a short distance away, he left Azim to look after the horses and went towards the tent. He was stopped by a sentry, who on learning that he wished to see Sir Alexander, called an attendant. The latter, coming up, took Angus's name in, and reappearing at the entrance almost immediately, signed to him to enter.

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CHAPTER VII

IN THE SERVICE

"I am glad to see you, Mr. Campbell," Sir Alexander Burnes said as the lad entered his tent. "Colonel Pottinger was asking me only three or four days ago to keep a look-out for you. He had received a letter from his nephew saying that you were going to travel down via Candahar, and that he was afraid that you would not manage to get through. I myself received a letter from Lieutenant Pottinger speaking very highly of services that you had rendered, and I understand that both he and Mr. M'Neill, our minister in Persia, spoke very favourably of you in their despatches to the Governor-general. How have you got through?"

"I had very little difficulty, sir, except that I was detained at Candahar, and had to effect my escape secretly." And he gave a short account of his journey, and the manner in which he had escaped from Candahar and avoided recapture.

"You managed it very cleverly, Mr. Campbell. I will take you in at once to Macnaghten, who is supreme here, for Shah Soojah is at present little more than a puppet. I have no doubt that he will be very glad to learn what is the feeling throughout the country as to Shah Soojah. I may tell you in confidence that I am convinced that a terrible blunder has been made in taking up his cause. I was, as you no doubt know, several months at Cabul, and I am convinced that Dost Mahomed was sincere in his desire for our friendship, and that he can support himself against his brothers at Candahar, who have, as we know, been intriguing with Persia and Russia. I have all along urged the Indian Government to give him warm support and to enter into a firm alliance with him. However, the Governor-general and his advisers have taken the other view, and I have only to do my best to carry out their orders, although I have strongly represented my own opinion.

"I do not think that Government has any idea of the difficulties to be encountered. So far as fighting goes there is no doubt whatever that the Afghans cannot stand against us, but the operation of feeding the troops and animals will be a troublesome one indeed. The heat will increase every day, and even the march up to Quettah will present enormous difficulties, as you who have just descended the pass will readily understand; but the great problem will not be how to place Shah Soojah on the throne but how to maintain him there. I tell you this because Macnaghten, who really knows nothing of the matter, is extremely sanguine. I warn you that it will be as well that you should not express any strong opinion against the enterprise. It is determined upon, and will be carried out, and without in any way shaking his opinion you would only set him against you and might seriously injure your own prospects. As it is, he has much to irritate him. There have already been serious troubles with the Ameers of Scinde, who have been treated in a very high-handed manner instead of being conciliated in every possible way. This alone has vastly added to the difficulty, by rendering it almost impossible to obtain carriage or provisions.

"Then he differs greatly from General Cotton, who, since his arrival here two days ago, has shown himself an officer who has an immense opinion of his own dignity. As general in command he declines to take any orders, or indeed to listen to any advice, from Macnaghten. This is certainly not Macnaghten's fault, who, although, as I consider, mistaken in his opinions, is very conciliating in his manner, and would willingly avoid all friction, which can but be disadvantageous to the enterprise on which he has set his heart. Cotton's transport is really insufficient for his own army; Shah Soojah has hardly any transport at all. Cotton cares not in the slightest about the Shah or the Shah's army, and, to say the truth, they are of no great value.

"Macnaghten, however, attaches, and reasonably from his point of view, great importance to the fact that Shah Soojah should appear as arriving to claim his throne as an independent prince with his own army, supported by his allies the British, and not as a mere puppet forced upon the Afghans by British bayonets; and he is therefore most anxious that he and his force should occupy as prominent a position as possible. It is as well for me to give you these hints as to the situation before you see Macnaghten, and to warn you against speaking to him strongly of any hostile opinions as to Shah Soojah's chances that you may have gathered on your journey. When a man has an open mind it is well to give him both sides of the case, but when he has pledged his reputation and thrown himself heart and soul into one side of the case it is worse than useless to endeavour to turn him, especially when the die is cast and the day for drawing back is past. If my opinion, gathered from nine months' residence in Cabul and almost daily interviews with Dost Mahomed, has been altogether unheeded, certainly yours, gathered in a passing trip through the country, would have no effect whatever beyond setting him against you."

"Thank you, sir, I will be careful; and indeed my opinion would in any case be of little value. I certainly conversed a good deal with the natives on my way from Herat to Candahar, but at that city I spoke only to Persian merchants, and had no intercourse whatever on my way down, except with my guides in the Bolan passes."

"Well we will call on him now," Sir Alexander Burnes said, taking his cap.

Mr. Macnaghten's tent was next to his own, and he at once took Angus in with him.

"I have come, Mr. Macnaghten, to introduce to you Mr. Angus Campbell, who has just come down through Candahar from Herat. His name was, I know, very favourably mentioned both by Lieutenant Pottinger and Mr. M'Neill. He has brought down letters of introduction to me and Colonel Pottinger."

"I know your name well, sir," Macnaghten said. "Mr. M'Neill told us that you had been in his service, and had gone to Herat on a mission to induce Shah Kamran to hold out to the last, and that when the siege was raised you had started from there with the intention of journeying down through Afghanistan into Scinde, in hopes of obtaining employment in some capacity where your knowledge of Persian and Arabic would be of service. I also understand, by Lieutenant Pottinger's last despatch, that you have learned Pushtoo. The Governor-general was very favourably impressed with these reports, and authorized me to employ you at once as one of the junior assistants. I should think, Sir Alexander, that you can employ Mr. Campbell to greater advantage than I can, as the work of making the arrangements for the advance of the army is in your hands."

"I shall be very glad of an addition to my staff, for as we get on I foresee that the three officers who now assist me will be altogether insufficient; and the high terms in which Mr. M'Neill and Lieutenant Pottinger have written about him, and the fact that he has been able to travel about the country unsuspected, shows his fitness for such work."

"You must understand, Mr. Campbell," Macnaghten said, "I cannot guarantee that the position will be a permanent one, as all such appointments in the service must be confirmed by the Court of Directors; but I shall at once acquaint Lord Auckland of your arrival here and of your nomination, and I have no doubt that he will himself confirm it so far as this expedition continues, and will strongly recommend the Court of Directors that your appointment to the service shall be a permanent one, in view of your exceptional knowledge of Persian and Pushtoo."

"I thank you very much indeed, sir, and will do my best to merit your good opinion."

As Angus left the tent with Sir Alexander Burnes he said: "I am indeed obliged to you, sir. I had hoped that I might obtain an appointment of some sort, but I never hoped for one like this. It is the work, too, of all others that I should like, and you may rely on me to carry out your orders to the full extent of my power."

"I have no doubt you will, Mr. Campbell. I am glad to have one of my officers speak Pushtoo, for although both in Scinde and Afghanistan Persian is the language most spoken by the upper classes, it is of no use with the peasants. In the work of digging wells, bargaining for fodder for the horses, and so forth, Pushtoo will be very useful, for although it differs from the language of the Belooches, it is near enough for them to understand it; and, of course, when we are once through the Bolan it is the language of all the countrymen."

"May I ask what dress it will be proper for me to wear?"

"As it is a civil appointment you will not wear uniform, but either the ordinary civilian dress, or, if you like, a dress of oriental character. I generally dress so, and it certainly has its advantages, and favourably predisposes chiefs you may have to visit. A British uniform they understand, but a purely civilian dress is too simple for them, and does not convey any sense of importance."

"Very well, sir; I am glad that you have decided so. I have no civilian clothes with me, and should find it very difficult, if not impossible, to get them here."

"Your appointment will be a thousand rupees a month, so long as the campaign lasts; after that it would, of course, depend upon the future employment you might have. If you would like to draw a month's pay in advance you can do so."

"No, thank you, sir; I am fairly provided with money."

"I have four officers employed on similar duty, Mr. Campbell, I will introduce you to them at once; and you will, of course, mess with our party."

Major Leech, the chief assistant, was away on duty, but the other three officers were at once sent for. "Captain Jones, Captain Arbuthnot, and Lieutenant Macgregor, I wish to introduce to you Mr. Campbell, whom I have just appointed as one of my political assistants. He has distinguished himself greatly under Lieutenant Pottinger throughout the siege of Herat, and was previously an assistant to Mr. M'Neill, our ambassador at the court of Persia. He speaks Persian, Arabic, and Pushtoo, and has been specially recommended to the Governor-general by Mr. M'Neill and Pottinger. He has now made his way from Herat through Candahar, and the fact that he has done so safely shows that he knows how to use these languages to advantage."

As Lieutenant Pottinger's gallant defence of Herat was the theme of general admiration throughout India, Angus could not have had a better introduction, and he was warmly received by the three officers, who at once took him away with them.

"You will share my tent with me," Lieutenant Macgregor said. "I am alone at present. You have a horse, of course, and a servant, I suppose?"

"I have a very fair horse, and an excellent servant, who is a young fellow, a Persian, the son of a door-keeper at the embassy. He was with me through the siege, and I found him invaluable. He is a strong fellow, and has plenty of courage and shrewdness; I should never have got away out of Candahar had it not been for his assistance.

"Sir Alexander has advised me to get an Eastern dress, as I cannot wear uniform; and I must see about that at once, for this Persian dress would in any case have been out of place, and my journey down the Bolan has ruined it altogether. But in the first place, I shall be obliged if you will tell me where my two horses are to be put up."

"Your horse will be picketed with ours in our tents; our servants' horses are in the line behind them. Is that your man over there with the two horses? I will send an orderly to tell him to take them over and picket them. Now, I suppose you want something to eat? We had tiffin an hour ago, but the servants can get something for you."

"Thank you; I will go down into the town. I had something before mounting this morning, and I own I should not care about going into the mess-tent till I have got something to wear a little more respectable than these clothes."

"Oh, that is nonsense. Besides, you need not go into the mess-tent. I will order them to warm something up at once, and to bring it into my tent. We are all wanting to hear more about Herat. The official despatches only give us bare facts."

For the next two hours Angus was fully occupied in relating his experiences of the siege to the three officers; after that he went down with Azim to the town. There he bought for himself a dress such as would be worn by a native of some rank—a white turban, a blue tunic opening at the breast and showing a white cambric shirt, several white robes, and loose white linen trousers tightened in at the ankle. He bought a good supply of under-linen and a couple of pairs of native riding-boots. For Azim he bought clothes appropriate to a retainer of a Mohammedan gentleman. As he was unable to procure a camp bed of European make, he bought a native charpoy, which could be taken to pieces and conveniently carried. He had found that his fellow-officers had each three native servants—a butler or body servant, a syce for their riding horses, and a man who looked after and led on the line of march two baggage animals. He had no difficulty in engaging a syce, and let the question of the baggage animals stand over until next day.

Azim would, of course, act as his personal servant. The lad, who had during the past year become imbued with the spirit of adventure, was delighted to hear that his master was to accompany the army. He had, during his stay in Herat, picked up the language, and could converse in it as fluently as Angus himself was able to do; and although he had no pleasant recollections of the journey from Candahar, he felt sure that it would be a very different affair when accompanying a British army. He expressed as much to his master, who said:

"I should not make so sure of that, Azim. We had no great difficulty in obtaining provisions for ourselves, but it will be a very different thing with an army of thousands of men, with an even larger number of camp followers and five or six thousand camels. Except just round one of those little villages, we did not see a blade of grass from the time we left the Shawl valley, and how the animals will exist till we get up to Quettah I have no idea. Once there no doubt we shall do fairly well, but we shall have a very bad time on the journey, unless I am mistaken. If I had the management of affairs, I should send off at once the whole of the camels with a sufficient escort as far as Dadur. There they should leave the provisions and forage they took up, and return here to accompany the army with a further supply. No doubt it would cause a month's delay, but it would be better to do that than to lose half our baggage animals and to risk famine for the troops."

"I believe," Captain Arbuthnot said when Angus joined the others, "that ten days' supply are ready at Dadur, and twenty days' supply at Quettah."

"Certainly there were no supplies at Dadur when I came through, but I know nothing about Quettah," Angus said; "still I think that if any supplies of consequence had been collected there I should have heard about it from the men who guided us through the pass."

"There were no troops there, then?"

"No, not the slightest sign of them, nor did we pass any on the march down from Candahar; but of course the Khan of Khelat may have collected a great force of Belooches, and if he did so, he would naturally keep them at Khelat until he heard that the army was approaching, as it would be an immense deal of trouble to victual them in the pass."

"I know that Mr. Macnaghten received news which induced him to believe that a large force would be likely to march down from Candahar, and that the attitude of the princes was altogether hostile. It is on account of that news that we are going to advance in two or three days' time, instead of waiting for another three weeks for a larger stock of supplies to be collected. It was but ten days ago that the commissary-general sent off four thousand camels to bring up supplies from the rear. However, they will be useful for the Bombay column which is coming up, as it is arranged that we shall collect transport and supplies for them.

"Therefore the decision has been taken to march at once, so that we can ascend the pass before the enemy send a sufficient force to hold it against us. No doubt the report that we were not going to leave here for another three weeks has been sent up to Candahar. The Prince is sure to have agents and spies here. We ought to be at the foot of the Bolan before it is known in Candahar that we have started. As to Khelat, the Khan has sent in assurances of his friendship, and I expect he will make himself safe by assuming neutrality; but the Belooches are a warlike people, and born plunderers, and his authority is very slight, except in Khelat and the district near it. We are sure to have trouble with the mountaineers, but beyond having to protect the convoy strongly, I do not suppose we shall have serious fighting with them. I expect that we shall be sent off to-morrow or next day to Khelat and Quettah, perhaps one of us may even go to Candahar. I know that Mr. Macnaghten thinks that possibly the princes may not take an active part on Dost Mahomed's side. Everyone knows that they have no great love for their brother; which is not surprising, for he, who is the youngest of the family, has managed to secure the sovereignty. Besides, they would see that if they took up arms in his favour the whole brunt of the fighting would fall upon them, for Cabul could render them no real assistance. They are very shifty gentlemen, and though they may make a show of force at first, it would probably be only for the purpose of securing advantageous terms for themselves."

"I saw them when I was at Candahar," Angus said, "and they, or at least one of them, questioned me closely; but supposing me to be a Persian just arrived from Herat, he naturally said nothing about a British invasion. His great anxiety was to know what the intentions and power of Russia and Persia were. No doubt the plans that were formed were entirely disconcerted by the Shah's retreat from before Herat. I saw no signs whatever of any gatherings of the Afghans, nor was the subject ever alluded to in the conversations I had with traders at the place where I lodged."

At this moment a native officer came in and said that Sir Alexander desired to see Captains Arbuthnot and Jones. As they buckled on their swords the latter said: "You have told us about Herat, Mr. Campbell, and this evening I hope you will tell us about your journey down."

When the officers returned Angus found that Arbuthnot was not mistaken as to the probable work they would have to perform, for he was to accompany Major Todd the next morning with an escort of cavalry for Khelat. They were to see the Khan and arrange with him for supplies to be sent to Dadur. Captain Jones was to remain there to see that his promises were carried out, and Arbuthnot, unless he learned that a force from Candahar had arrived at Quettah, was to go on there and see to the collection of grain and cattle.

"A squadron of cavalry is going forward to-morrow morning, Campbell. Four hundred labourers are going with it, and you are to be in special charge of half of them. Of course, they will have eight or ten headmen, but they will want looking after all the same. They are to dig wells at Burshoree; the other half, under you, Macgregor, are to do the same thing at Meerpoor. It is a thousand pities it was not done before, for the army is to begin its advance the day after to-morrow. However, you will gain a couple of days on them, and that is something. If you meet Major Leech, who is at work improving the roads, you will, of course, report yourself to him, and he will doubtless be able to advise you as to the best place for the wells."

Angus heard the news with much satisfaction. In the first place it meant active work, and in the second it would save him from the slow and toilsome march of the army, which would, he felt sure, be accompanied with enormous hardship. The four officers dined together. Sir A. Burnes was not present, as he was dining with General Cotton and Mr. Macnaghten. After dinner Angus related his adventure at Candahar; how he evaded pursuit, and his passage through the pass. He had hardly finished when he was sent for to the general's tent.

"I have just been telling General Cotton, Mr. Campbell," said Mr. Macnaghten, "that you arrived this morning from Candahar. He wishes to learn as much as you can tell him of the state of the pass at present, and of the country between Dadur and this place. I told him that I had not been able to find time to question you on these points."

"In the first place," the general said, "what is the state of the Bolan?"

"As I only travelled during the night I cannot tell you very much about it. The river is not high, and there is no difficulty whatever on that score. The ground is generally extremely rough, and covered not only with rounded boulders, but by rocks that will prove very trying to the feet of the animals. We bandaged very thickly the hoofs of our horses to deaden the sound, and so saved them from being lamed, which they otherwise would certainly have been. The bandages were of felt, and these were completely cut to pieces the first night. After that we cut up one of the water-skins I had with me, and we covered the felt with the leather, but even this was cut to pieces, and had to be renewed the next night. Although this is the general character of the pass, there are places at which, by skirting the foot of the hills at points where the pass opens out—and the hills are not precipitous, although everywhere steep—it is possible for mounted men to go along at a fast walk, the stones being much smaller, and like, I should think, what I have heard of a sea-beach, though I never saw one, at least that I can remember."