The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1878-12-14 00:00:00

LORD ABERDARE AND THE
PERMISSIVE BILL.

On Wednesday night a local representative meeting of
friends and supporters of the United Kingdom Alliance
was held at Cardiff. Among other letters, one from Lord
Aberdare to Mr. Pedier, local secretary, was read as
follows :

"I regret that I cannot accept your invitation
to take part in the meetings of the United King-
dom Alliance at Cardiff on December 10. While
I have the warmest sympathy with the motives
of that Society I am so convinced that the me-
thods they take to attain their object are not only
impracticable, but by diverting public attention and
much moral power from the pursuit of less ambitious,
but more useful measures, work positive mischief to
the cause which all lovers of temperance have at heart.
I am very glad to hear that an effort is being made to
establish coffee taverns at Cardiff. I know no town
where such au enterprise would be more likely to be
successful, and certainly few towns are more in want of
some healthy counter attractions to public drinking
places,—/ sfli Sir, Your obedient servant, ABERDA RE.

Unluckyt—A barometrical
Frenchman, who
SUSCEPTIBLE TO Tint vir.----:7-------
umbrella is owned by all " -11
finds his property an admirable weall;
totallyi nsufficiapt protection! rom theer-guage' but a
. while
ournrh that
is mane of some Wood so susoeptibleaotei;nrhe stick
changes as to necozne a Perieot nygrorage: atmospheric
damp, and rainy weather, the stick swans Bo' 411115 in
theowner Cann° t Milt up the umbrella
the wood resumes its normal condition, and a'. days
e um.
bailie can be used at will.

THE AFGHAN WAR.

THE AMEER'S REPLY.

The following telegram has been sent to the papers from
the India Office for publication :
(" Telegram from the Viceroy of India to the Secretary of
State, December 8.)

"The following is the text of the Ameer's reply,
dated November 19, to my u 1 timatum

" Be it known to your Excellency that I received
and read from beginning to end the friendly letter
which your Excellency has sent in reply to the letter
I despatched by Nawab Gholam Hussesn Khan.
"'With regard to the expressions used by your
Excellency in the beginning of your letter, referring
to the friendly character of the Mission and the good-
will of the British Government, I leave it to your
Excellency, whose wisdom and justice are universally
admitted to decide whether any reliance can be placed
upon goodwill if evidenced by words only; but if, on
the other hand, goodwill really consists of deeds and
actions' then it has not been manifested by the various
wishes that have been expressed and the proposals
that have been made by British officials during the
last few years to officials of this God-granted Govern-
ment—proposals, which, from their nature, it was im-
possible for them to comply with.

" ' One of these proposals referred to nay undutiful
son, the ill•starred wretch Mahomed Yakoob Khan,
and was contained in a letter addressed by the offi-
cials of the British Government to the British agent
then residing at Cabul. It was written in that letter
that if "the said Yakoob Khan be released and set at
liberty, our friendship with the Afghanistan Govern-
ment will be firmly cemented, but that otherwise it
will not."

" ' There are several other grounds of complaint of
a similar nature, which contain no evidence of good-
will, but which, on the contrary, were effective in in-
creasing the aversion and apprehension already
entertained by the subjects of this God-granted
Government.

" ' With regard to my refusal to receive the British
Mission, your Excellency has stated that it would
appear from my conduct that I was actuated by feel-
ings of direct hostility towards the British Govern-
ment. I assure your Excellency that, on the contrary,
the officials of this God-granted Government, in
repulsing the Mission, were not influenced by any
hostile or inimical feelings towards the British Go-
vernment, nor did they intend that any insult or
affront should be offered; but they were afraid that
the independence of this Government might be
affected by the arrival of the Mission, and that the
friendship which has now existed between the two
Governments for several years might be annihilated.
"'A. paragraph in your Excellency's letter corro-
borated the statements which they have made to this
Government. The feelings of apprehension which
were aroused in the minds of the people of Afghani-
stan by the mere announcement of the intention of
the British Government to send a Mission to Cabul
before the Mission itself had actually started or
arrived at Peshawur have subsequently been fully
justified by the statement in your Excellency's letter,
that I should be held responsible for any injury that
might befall the tribes who acted as guides to the
Mission, and that I should be called upon to pay com-
pensation for any loss they might have suffered, and
that if at any time those tribes should meet with ill-
treatment at my hands, the British Government will
at once take steps to protect them.

" ' Had these apprehensions proved groundless, an
had the object of the Mission been really friendly, and
no force or threats of violence used, the Mission would,
as a matter of course, have been allowed a free pas-
sage, as such Missions are customary and of frequent
occurrence between allied States,

" 4 I am now sincerely stating my own feelings when
I say this Government has maintained, and always
will maintain, the former friendship which existed
between the two Governments, and cherishes no feel-
ings of hostility or opposition towards the British
Government

" ' It is also incumbent upon the officials of the
British Government that, out of respect and considera-
tion for the greatness and eminence of their own Go-
vernment, they should not consent to inflict any injury
upon their well-disposed neighbours, or to impose the
burden of grievous trouble upon the shoulders of their
sincere friends; but, on the contrary, they should
exert themselves to maintain the friendly feelings
which have hitherto existed towards this God-granted
Government, in order that the relations between the
two Governments may remain on the same footing as
before; and if, in accordance with the custom of allied
States, the British Government should desire to send
a purely friendly and temporary Mission to this
country, with a small escort, not exceeding twenty or
thirty members, similar to that which attended the
Bunion Mission, this servant of God will not oppose
its progress.'"

In a leader on the Ameer's letter, The Times re-
marks that the Ameer's letter is not such an answer
as can have the slightest influence on the Indian
Government, Although it seems to concede some-
thing, it really evades everything: and while expres-
sing the Ameer's readiness to accept a purely friendly
and temporary Mission, accompanied by a small
escort, it really meets the Viceroy's demand with a
point-blank refusal. The answer would not have
had the slightest effect even if it had reached the
English authorities before the 20th of November;
for the Home Government warned the Viceroy that
if "not clear and categorical," it must be treated as a
refusal. It is neither clear nor categorical, except
in the sense that it does not grant what was demanded.
The Ameer says that he would receive a "purely
friendly and temporary Mission," with a small escort,
not exceeding twenty or thirty members, Whether
It would be " friendly " or not would depend upon
Shere All himself. But he was warned that it
would be permanent. Unless he grants that con-
dition he grants nothing. Scholars may draw
different shades of meaning from the phrases of the
Persian original, but it needs no Oriental learning
to see that they are defiantly insulting. The com-
pliments scarcely hide the haughtiness with which
the Ameer repels the demands of the Indian Govern-
ment, and insinuates that it has been guilty of sys-
tematic bad faith. The spirit of the letter, in fact, is
much more defiant than that of the message which led
to the sending of the Ultimatum. It can leave no
doubt that the writer will yield to nothing but force.
But still more remarkable than the tone of the epistle
is the chief specific charge which he makes against
the British Government. A Western mind might
have expected him to say that his principal grievance
was the occupation of Quettah. He might have
argued that this act was but the first step to an advance
on Candahar, and thus to the conquest of all his country.
But now, as at former times, he chiefly complains
that the Indian Government attempted to befriend
his " undutiful son, the ill-starred wretch, Mahomed
Yakoob Khan." How far the victorious armies will
go largely depends on the temper of the Ameer him-
self. The English Government has not the slightest
wish to dethrone him, or even to weaken his
sovereignty. It has too vivid a memory of the last
Afghan war to repeat the mistake of setting up
another Shah Soojah. If Shere Ali will only submit
with a good grace, he will find himself more firmly
seated than ever on his throne, because he will be
freed from all dread of Russia. But the submission
must be complete. It must be accompanied by
guarantees which will be defined by the British
elovernment, and which will grow with the obstinacy
of the resistance.

The Paris Press is tolerably unanimous in regarding
the tardy letter of Shere Ali as a device to gain time
(says the CorrespondeLt of the Standard). They con-
clude that it would be weak and foolish on the part of
the Anglo-Indian Government to suspend the advance
of the troops on such vague utterances,

The reply of Slnre All to the Anglo-Indian Ulti-
matum, in the opinion of the Nord, offers no basis for
an approaching arrangement, and contains no indica-
tion of submission. The Ameer, it is true, expresses
the desire to resume his old friendly relations with
England, and declares himself ready to receive a small
temporary Mission; but the manner in which he in-
sists on its temporary character lead!' to the conclusion
that he is still opposed to the establishment of perma-
nent agencies,

The Daily Telegraph of Monday published the following
from their Special Correspondent :
ZABAsDAIL JIMA, Dec. 5
Thull, Dec. 7).
The troops are encamped here, four miles from the Pe!war
Kota'.

The enemy have retreated in two directions, some of them
moving towards Cabul, others in the direction of delalabad,
casting away their arms, stores, and baggage.
We follow tomorrow. The cold is intense, and snow is
expected; but the health of the whole force, troops and
followers, is excellent, and all are in high spirits.
LAHORE, Dec. 2(2.25 p.m.)
It is rumoured here that Shere All has fled from Cabul to
jakal, on the road towards Bamjain.

The Ameer's letter, the substance of which was published
yesterday, was craftily antedated. Obviously written after
the defeat at All Musjid, the document indicates a per-
sistence in the policy of playing off England against Russia.
Public, and especially native, opinion here places no credit
in the professions Jr present submission of the Ameer, and
holds that the only hope of a lasting settlement lies in the
energetic prosecution of the campaign to a successful ter-
mination. The letter looks like a suggestion coming from
the Russians, and designed to gain time.
Two Russian officers, one doctor, and thirty Cossacks are
still at CAbnl.

General Biddulph telegraphs that he has
_found an open
road to Candahar.

General Roberts is hutting a part of his force at Pe'war.
Large quantities of ammuuition and supplier, found in the
neimhbouring villages, show that the Afghans had intended
to winter a large force at llariab.
All quiet at the Khyber.

The Standard of Monday gives the following, from their
Bpecial Correspondent :

ZABOURDAST TULA (through THIILL), DV:7U, Sunday.
The majority of the troops have now moved forward to
Zabourdast Kila, an Afghan village lying beyond the crest of
the Peiwar Pass, and immediately below the bare bleak
shoulder of Sika gam, the second highest peak of the Weld
Koh.

The view is a superb one. On one side we look back down
the Khurnm Valley; while to the east the peaks of Sufeid
Koh are covered with snow, which is already lying in all the
ravines. Ahead of us is the valley through which we have
to march up to the Shaturgardan Pass, dark with woods
extending in some places far up the mountains. Altogether,
we seem to have gone at a bound from India into Switzer-
land.

It has not as yet begun to snow here, but heavy snow-
clouds are passing overhead, the air is bitterly cold, and it
is evident that winter is at hand. -
Notwithstanding the great and sudden change of tempera-
ture the troops are standing the cold weather admirably.
Yesterday the General and staff, with an escort of cavalry,
rode forward to reconnoitre the ground and examine the
route by which the enemy had fled on Monday. They followed
the road ten miles onward through the village of AU Kneyl.
Everywhere the valley was strewn with cUbris. Pouches and
rifles, packets of ammunition, portions of clothing,
everything, indeed, which the Afghans carried seemed
to have been cast away in their flight. This
was fully confirmed by the villagers, who came out and con-
'Versed freely. They stated that the Afghans came by in a
confused crowd, running at full speed, and evidently believing
that they were pursued. There was no Semblance of order;
the fastest runners came first in twos and threes, then they
came thicker, until a crowd of some thousands of men were
passing thrctugh the village. Some shouted to the inhabit-
ants to fly; but these, emboldened by the news which had

been brought by traders of the good treatment which the
villagers in the valley had reoeived, preferred remaining in
their habitations and running the risk to forsaking all they
possessed in the world.

There are several villages near Ali Kheyl, and the in-
habitants, in order to gain the goodwill of our troops,
revealed numerous hidden stores containing enormous quan-
tities of provisions, with large magazines of ammunition for
Enfield rifles.
It is evident from the vast stores of provisions and ammu-
nition that have been discovered that the Afghans had relied
upon their ability to hold the position, and that these great
supplies were intended to enable them to maintain them-
selves here through the winter, even when the Shaturgardan
was closed by snow behind them.

This fact greatly enhances the importance of the victory
that our troops have gained, as the Afghan plans of defence
will be completely upset by the capture of the position
which they had considered to be impregnable. The import-
ance which the Afghans attached to tne position is also
evidenced by the fact, as told to us by the villagers, that a
large number of Cabulese troops are on their way to reinforce
the defenders of the Peiwar. They were expected to arrive
two days after we made the attack
The fugitives will probably rally on these fresh forces,
and General Roberts expects that the next stand will be
made at Itokean. twenty miles beyond All Kheyl The
villagers tell us that fortifications have been erected at that
place. It is not expected that the same difficulty will be
met with there as at the Peiwar, as the utter demoralisa-
tion of the fugitives, and the capture of the positions in
which they so confidently trusted, cannot but demoralise the
newcomers, while
.those who have fought there would be
wholly unreliable.

No exact details have yet been collected regarding our loss
in Monday's engagement. This morning's approximate
return shows twenty killed, seventy-two wJanded, and two
missing.