Cavalry Brigade.—General Palliser—1st Punjab Cavalry, 2nd Punjab Cavalry.
Artillery.—11-11 R.A., and G-4 R.A.
With camp-followers and servants there were about 20,000 men in the Division. Sir Donald Stewart waited until Sir Frederick Roberts had entered the Upper Logar Valley and heliographic communication had ceased before giving the order to evacuate Sherpur. The troops were all under canvas ready to file out at a moment’s notice. The following extract from a letter written by a trustworthy correspondent will give an exact idea of the actual evacuation:—
“Butkhak, 11th August.
“Late in the evening of the 10th instant arrangements were finally concluded for an interview between His Highness the Amir Abdur Rahman Khan and the British representatives in Cabul. Whether a meeting could be arranged was doubtful, I understand, up to nearly nine o’clock; and if it had not taken place, Sir Donald Stewart would have had to forego the pleasure of seeing the Amir whom his efforts have done so much towards placing on the throne of Cabul. But good fortune favoured Sir Donald. The camp of the Amir had been moved during the morning of the 10th to Deh Gopak, a small secluded village about three miles from, and within easy sight of, the Sherpur cantonments. Prior to this, the camp had been at Kila Murad Beg, six miles from Cabul, and on the other side of the first low range of hills beyond the lake. His Highness did not, however, arrive at Deh Gopak till eight o’clock in the evening; and here he was agreeably surprised to find Sirdar Mahomed Afzul Khan waiting for him. This distinguished gentleman, who, it will be remembered, was the leading member of the Mission to Turkistan at the beginning of negotiations with Abdur Rahman, had been fitly selected as the bearer of the Government presents to the Amir. They consisted of a handsome grey English horse, a rifle, a pair of pistols and a gold watch. The Sirdar arrived at Deh Gopak about six o’clock, and had to wait two hours before the Amir arrived. He was greatly pleased with the presents; insisted on the Sirdar’s dining with him; presented him with a Kashmir shawl and a few other articles of dress; and on dismissing him sent a message to the effect that he would be glad to meet the British officers at seven o’clock the following morning. It will thus be seen that the Amir has got the better of the absurd suspicions which not only made him backward in dealing with us, but actually led him to throw away the food near which a stranger had merely passed, from fear of being poisoned.
“Before the return of Mahomed Afzul Khan, a tent had been pitched within a couple of hundred yards of the cantonment walls, in anticipation of the Amir’s consent to come in; so that though the interview was not decided upon till so late, there was no bustle or confusion. Sir Donald Stewart and the Chief Political Officer had moved under canvas in the centre of the cantonments, and as all tents and baggage had to be ready to start by 5 A.M.;, there was a weary period of waiting in the open air, under a sun sufficiently warm even at six o’clock. At a few minutes before seven the escort of Guides’ Cavalry rode up; the General mounted, and followed by a string of some thirty or forty officers approached the tent, which was in a field about twenty paces from the roadside. As soon as the British party got outside the Head-quarters’ Gate, the Amir and his followers were seen coming from the opposite direction. Half a mile in his rear on the side of a hill were a large number of his troops, both cavalry and infantry; but the number of followers with His Highness was hardly more than sixty; and only two of his sepoys were on sentry at the tent itself. The two parties met exactly in front of the path leading to the tent. Abdur Rahman had with him Sirdar Yusuf Khan. Sir Donald Stewart was accompanied by Mr. Lepel Griffin, all the rest standing at some few yards’ distance. The Chief Political Officer introduced the Amir to the Lieutenant-General as they met; and then walked towards the tent, followed by all the British officers present. There were not more than five chairs. His Highness occupied the centre seat: on his right were Sir Donald Stewart and General Hills; on his left Mr. Griffin. The conversation was conducted in Persian by Mr. Griffin on behalf of the Lieutenant-General, His Highness having little or no command of Hindustani. After the usual formalities were concluded several officers were introduced to the Amir; amongst others were the three Brigadiers under Major-General Hills; Colonel Lockart (Chief of the Staff), Dr. Smith (Chief Medical Officer), Colonel Fryer, Major Morgan, Major Lance, and others. His Highness was dressed in a drab suit of striped cloth, with his ‘continuations’ tucked into long black boots; a black Astrakan cap, in which a diamond star glittered, covered his head; his arms consisted of a revolver only, which he carried in an ordinary waist-belt. Though still nervous, I thought he was less so than on the former occasions when I saw him; and all who observed him were greatly pleased at his appearance. In the course of conversation he said that his whole heart was full of gratitude to the British, and he begged that his best thanks might be conveyed to His Excellency the Viceroy. The interview was public throughout; no business was entered into (indeed it is said that all matters of business were concluded at Mr. Griffin’s last meeting with the Amir); and we took our leave in less than a quarter of an hour, His Highness shaking hands with all who cared to wish him good-bye and good-luck.
“The Amir deputed his right-hand man, Sirdar Yusuf Khan, to accompany the General out of Cabul, himself returning almost at once to Deh Gopak. The British officials did not return to the cantonment, but went by the road along the outer wall, out by Siah Sung, and thence by the main road to Butkhak. As we rode along we could see the forts on Bemaru already occupied by small parties of the Amir’s infantry. The Asmai fort had been occupied the night before as soon as our own picquets left it; the big fort on Siah Sung was occupied during the day, as were the Sherderwaza and other forts. The Bala Hissar was taken over by General Gholam Hyder Khan, with one regiment of infantry and about a hundred cavalry. Sherpur itself was garrisoned by the Haz Danari, a celebrated Turkistan cavalry regiment, and 500 khasidars, a force scarcely strong enough to defend any single corner of the huge cantonment. The Amir on his way back to his camp at Deh Gopak was preceded by a band of music, and on his arrival there received a salute of thirty-one guns. Considerable enthusiasm was evinced among his followers; for, incredible as it may appear, there were many of them who believed that the Amir would be made a prisoner by us, even up to the last moment of the interview. Had anything happened to him, they knew well what would be their fate with any new-comer who might be chosen, and they feared any mishap to the man with whom they had thrown in their lot.
“Up to the present the Amir has not made his entry into Cabul. His nine years’ residence in Russian territory has in no way removed or lessened his Oriental superstition; and he left the choice of an auspicious hour and day to the astrologers, of whom he has several attached to his court. The chief of these has named eleven o’clock on Sunday next for the public entry, and has decreed that no luck can attend the occasion unless His Highness wears an emerald ring. One is accordingly being prepared, and the words ‘Amir Abdur Rahman, 1297,’ are to be engraved on it. Meantime Sirdar Yusuf Khan is still carrying on his duties as the Governor of Cabul. He has established picquets on all the approaches to the city, and the passport system is again in full swing. All went perfectly well the first day of our absence, and if His Highness prove wise and conciliatory, his reign at Cabul may, with the support already given him, possibly be longer than that of either of the last two Amirs. This letter, however, purports to be an account of our evacuation of Cabul, and I must keep to my subject, and not concern myself with either the present, past, or future politics of Afghanistan.
“The three brigades arrived at Butkhak to-day, after a dusty march, before noon. The first march has been got over without a single accident of any description, and too great praise cannot be bestowed on Sir Donald Stewart, on the Chief Political Officer, and on the officers and troops themselves for the excellent result of their exertions. The country is perfectly quiet, though there are plenty of marauders ready to drop on any unfortunate straggler. Accompanying us to India are a few of the Cabul Sirdars, including Wali Mahomed Khan and Tahir Khan. Several Hindu merchants from the city have also grasped the opportunity of our march to proceed unmolested to India, as well as two Khokandi pilgrims travelling to Mecca.”