The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1885-05-16 00:00:00

ENGLAND, RUSSIA, AND
AFGHANISTAN.

Conflicting statements on the prospect of a pacifi
settlement of the Anglo-Russian difficulty character-
ised the news of Saturday. The Standard said un-
favourable rumours were current regarding the state
of the negotiations with Russia. The principal diffi-
culty has arisen on the question of Herat. The
English Government desire that Russia should come
under a definite treaty obligation neither to advance
on Herat nor occupy any part of Afghanistan. The
Russian Government, on the other hand, declines
to bind itself in any such manner, and it is said that
in this matter the negotiations threaten to come to a
stand.

The St. Petersburg correspondent of the same
journal telegraphed: I have again been favoured
with an interview by the authority whose forecast of
events just before the battle of Tash-kepri has been
so singularly borne out by the subsequent course of
the negotiations. " Well "he exclaimed, "what
did I tell you? It is peace—is it not? And which
side has given in? Russia? Not an inch. It is
England that has surrendered all along the line, in
spite of her unparalleled bluster. Mr. 'Gladstone
carried it so far, indeed, that for a moment I began
to think myself mistaken, and that he really meant
fighting. Who, in truth, could suppose that that
speech was the prelude to retreat? But such was the
fact. Russia has played her game with admirable
skill and patience. She has held out stoutly, but
without any noise or bluster, for all the material ad-
vantages accruing from her shameless aggression. nod
maintained with dignified firmness the cause of her
disobedient general, knowing that her own prestige
was involved. But, with the winning cards in her
hand, she has not hesitated to make an apparent
concession to enable her adversary to cover up an other-
wise too evident retreat. This acceptance of the last
English proposals is a mere blind—a farce played by
both Governments in collusion. The recourse to
arbitration is a golden bridge which Russia was much
too politic to refuse her enemy when driven at last
into a corner. But what does it come to? The
question to be submitted to the King of Denmark, or
whoever else may nriclortako the thaulloas rac of
arbitrator, is simply whether the agreement of the
17th of March was broken or not. Well, the
Russian Government will maintain that General
Komaroff acted in accordance with his instructions—
a theory in support of which the most irrefutable
evidence will be adduced. The blame, if any, it will
take upon itself; but who can bring it home? As a
matter of fact, the only result of the inquiry, if ever
it takes place, will be to show that England and
Russia interpreted differently the meaning and scope
of the agreement, and there the business will end.
. The Penjdeh incident will be allowed to drop, under
cover of the merest pretence of arbitration, and the
frontien will follow very nearly the line claimed by
M. de Giers. Russia will get territorially nearly all
she ever wanted, and musth more than she expected,
and prestige such as no Power has had in Asia since
the days of Timur the Tartar. What England gains,
beyond an additional twopence or threepence in the
pound on the Income-tax, I am unable to tell you."
Another St. Petersburg correspondent says Colonel
Zakrejeffski, General Komaroff's chief of the staff,
makes no secret of his opinion thaf, General Koma-
roff's attack on the 30th March was imperiously
commanded by the circumstances of the case. If the
General had waited for twenty-four hours longer the
position of the Russian detachment would have been
most critical.

Telegrams from St. Petersburg (via Gumbinuen),
dated May 9th, stated: It is somewhat confidently
asserted in Russian military circles that Colonel
Zakszevski, who recently arrived here from the
Afghan frontier districts with despatches from
General Komaroff, also brought a number of docu•
meats in Sir Peter Lumsden's handwriting, which
were intercepted by the Russian advanced posts. It
is alleged that the documents clearly prove that the
British Commissioner being undesirous of a peaceful
settlement of the Anglo-Russian dispute, deliberately
incited the Afghans at Penjdeh to attack the
Russians. It is further stated that copies of these
documents were forwarded to the British Cabinet,
and that Mr. Gladstone, in consequence, induced his
colleagues to consent to the recall of Sir Peter
Lumsden, and to abandon their demand for an
inquiry into Gentral Komaroff's conduct, which,
under the circumstances, would only result in pro-
claiming to the world the perfidy of a British officer.
The story is a curious one.