The Press.
London, England, 1858-12-11 00:00:00

THE PRESS, DECEMBER 11, 1858.

eons employed amount to 65,886 f. If to this latter sum
be added all the other expenses of the working, it will
be found that this mine costs the Slate 51,2241. more
gum it brings in. In order to explain such extraordi-
nary results, it must be mentioned that among the charges
made for the collection of the different branches of the
pow io reveille may be found the most singular items—
sack, for instance, as muses for the collectors, special
funds allotted to the Pope, allowances to the bishop,
and even snuff for the Capuchin friars. This is what is
called administration in the Papal States.

These facts, its seems to us, speak for themselves.
They complete the picture we have drawn.
While the illustrations which precede them show
us Rome setting at nought the highest principles
of morality and the holiest convictions of religion,
they place her before us as deliberately violating
the commonest dictates of honesty. If (returning
to the Theology of Boccaccio) they do not supply
an argument forcible enough to convert a Jew,
they would seem at least sufficient—and more
than sufficient—to pervert a Puseyite.

History of the Afghans. By J. P. Ferrier.
Translated from the Original Unpublished

Manuscript by Captain William Jesse. Lon-
don : Murray.
Tuts book was promised to the public in 1856,
when the account of General Ferrier's travels
in the East was published. Those who have not
read that interesting book will be glad to be
informed who General Ferrier is, and what has
been the course and object of his travels. The
General is a hard, practical, French soldier, who
after serving in Algiers, and making his way
upward trom the ranks to the position of
Marechal de Logis, went about the year 1840,
in company with other French officers, to drill
and organize the army of Persia. In Persia he
remained for three years with the rank of
adjutant-general, until, according to his own
account, the influence f Russia at the Court of
the Shah prevailed to procure his dismissal.
From 1843 to 1845 he lived in France, and then
set out for Lahore, having been attracted to
the service of Runjeet Singh. He took the
route from Bagdad to Herat, and from this town
endeavoured to reach India by Ralkh and Cahn]
Unsuccessful in this attempt, he turned westward
and made his way through the wild and unex-
plored Hazarah country towards Gour. Again
he failed, and was compelled to return to Herat.
Once more, however, strong in the Oriental
faith that a man cannot die till his hour comes,
he made for India through Southern Afghanistan,
by Girishk and Candahar. At this latter town
he was so unfortunate as to arrive simultaneously
with the cholera. The visitation of the pesti-
lence was attributed by the inhabitants to the
presence of the infidel. He was attacked in his
house by the mob, and, though protected by the
authorities, bad the greatest difficulty in defend-
ing himself, and making his way out of the town
alive. Few travellers of the present age have
escaped with life out of so many perils. Few
have been able to describe such thrilling
adventures as the night-march of Ferrier along
the banks of the Helmund ; his skirmish with the
savage Belooches among the tamarisk bushes.
A most simple and unaffected narrator, he wins
the confidence of the reader more than most
travellers • and hence, when his style, in spite of
becomes graphic and pictorial, the brief
splendour which lights up the homely narrative
of the following passage has a more impressive
brilliance than a far more laboured description
would have in a more artificial narrative :

The danger was as great in foilowirg the line of route
we bad come as in taking a direct course to that town ; in
the latter case we should not have fotind either food or
provisions ; we determined therefore to keep close to the
river, the sides of which being wooled offered us greater
security. Concealed by the underwood, we could see
without being seen by the Belooches, whose encampments
we carefully avoided, and sometimes made a considerable
circuit to do so. When a faint streak of light in the
horizon announced the approach of day, we mounted our
b°ll4l, adsancing cautiously amongst the willows,
tamarisks, and mimosas, having the Helmand on oar
right, and leaving on our left the silent and sterile deserts
of Seistan. The waning moon's reflected light was shed
over its red and shining sands, which seemed like one
immense furnace, and the noise of our horses' feet was lost
in the sound of the gurgling river, or the gush of waters
against some rock which, with several wooded islets,
obstructed the rapid current, or where, at some shallower
part, it rippled over the gravelly bed beneath. But for
the broken waters a profound stillness reigned around :
no sound was heard, and no signs of an enemy being
discernible our anxieties had almost ceased, when on a
sudden a covey of partridges, comfortably ensconced in the

bushes for the night, rove with their loud whirr, and gave
a slight and not agreeable sensation to our nerves. For
the moment we thought the 13elooches were before tti, and
crack, creek, went the guns, the report of which roused the
jackals and deer from their retreats, and started a troop of
wild asses that were in front of us off across the country
at their best speed.

It is scarcely possible to discuss General Fer-
rier's new book without at the same time dis-
cussing his former one. The subject of both is
the same, and they ought to be studied in con-
junction, for, indeed, the latter can scarcely be
understood, much less appreciated, without the
former. Captain Jesse says—" The style of the
" author is rather severe, and there are several
" portions of the present work in which there
" was an opening for much touching writing and
" for appeals to the highest and best feelings of
" our nature." This is awkwardly expressed,
and reminds us of Sergeant Buzfuz's "One of
" the purest emotions of our imperfect nature,
" gentlemen." But what Captain Jesse means
is very true, namely, that the "History of the
Afghans" is deficient in description and vivid
detail—that it leaves the imagination unsatisfied
—that the picture of Afghanistan and the
Afghans which it presents wants distinctness and
animation. What we miss is, not fine writing,
not pathos, not rhetoric, but such a skilful selec-
tion and arrangement of facts as shall enable the
reader to grasp and comprehend all that is dis-
tinctive and characteristic of Afghanistan and
the Afghans. Such skill as this is no doubt
difficult to be acquired ; the want of it is espe-
cially pardonable in General Ferrier, in whom
the literary character is quite subordinate to the
military and political. It is, notwithstanding, a
skill which General Ferrier's undertaking spe-
cially demanded, and which alone could have
saved his book from being in a certain degree dry
and repulsive. Dry and repulsive in a certain
degree we suppose his book must consent to be
regarded by the majority. Of its value and im-
portance there can be no doubt ; and to any one
who has time to study it closely, and the oppor-
tunity of comparing it with the "Caravan Jour-
neys," it will prove highly interesting.
We are of course quite incompetent to criticise
tho accuracy of' General Perrier so a hit:Kt/Ilan.
Afghanistan is a country upon which few men
living have much information. The greater part
of his narrative we must take on credit; the very
homely and unvarnished character of it is our
best guarantee of its general accuracy, and in the
favourable testimony of Sir Henry Rawlinson
to the General's former work we have almost all
the external authentication which the case admits
of. One reasonable suspicion may indeed cross
the reader's mind. The General does not say
much about his authorities. These are principally
Persian MSS. which he has met with in Afghan-
istan itself. We should like to be informed how
far these chronicles are trustworthy. As the
General is silent upon this question, we, of course,
do not know whether or no he has made it a
subject of careful examination, but the very fact
that he is silent about it disposes us to doubt
whether he has been sufficiently alive to its im-
portance. Manifestly born for action and busi-
ness, neither learned nor scientific, he is not un-
likely to retain some of that superstitious reve-
rence for books which is seldom cured except by
constant familiarity with them. He may be dis-
posed to accept whatever he finds recorded, unless
he can show it to be impossible, and may be in-
sensible to those considerations which invalidate

the authority of a historian altogether, and which
render his most plausible statements as uncertain
as those which are most palpably improbable.
He may, in short, as is commonly the case with
amateur historians, have neglected to consider the
laws of historical evidence. Shrewd men are apt
to be confident that their shrewdness will suffice
them in the estimate of evidence, but any
lawyer will assure them that this is a matter in
which a special training is indispensable. The
name of Afghanistan at once suggests to an
Englishman that disastrous winter of 1841, that
terrible Khyber Pass, the time and place of a
calamity such as has rarely befallen the English
in the East. Subsequent triumphs and reverses
have blunted our impression of that calamity, but
what single disaster which has happened to us
can be compared to the loss of .5,000 men from
cold, hunger, and the muskets of the enemy, in a
single defile ? Our policy in Persia and Afghan-
istan is discussed by General Ferrier with much
care and, on the whole, with much fairness.

1215

He has indeed no doubt whatever of our
ambition and of our fixed intention to extend our
conquests as far as we may find ourselves able;
but we must not be very angry with a French-
man for failing to perceive the somewhat subtle
distinction we draw between the ambition of con-
quest and the necessity of conquest. The
practical difference is not considerable whether
we avow ourselves ambitious, or speciously
maintain, with the leading journal, that the
empire which ceases to increase commences to
diminish. But when we are charged with cruelty
the old Chasseur d'Afrique fires up. We present
to our readers the doctrine current in Algiers
upon this matter:—
I
am far from constituting myself the apologist of these
seventies ; but I have seen war in Asia and in Africa, and
know, unhappily by experience, that it is impossible to
conduct it as in Europe, where, in the majority of States,
the rights of individuals are respected. In vain may we
declaim against bloodshed ; we shall never be able to
convert the battle-field into a drawing-room, where all
parties are bent upon the interchange of civilities. When
I hear it said, "how many thousands of Circassians the
Russian Soldiers have slain," or "the French have bathed
in the blood of the Arabs ! " or " the English have sacri-
ficed myriads of Hindoos to their cupidity ; " when I hear
it Raid that the troops of these nations " are the scum of
the earth—wretches who have outraged all laws, human

and divine," I cannot refrain from cursing the people who
say so—men, or rather not men, who possess the miserable
courage to speak in favour of barbarians, while they can
find only an accusing voice when they speak of the
soldiers of their country. Unhappy madmen that ye are !
do ye not know that each enemies take your clemency
for weakness, your forbearance for fear?—that they have
no gratitude but to the God of Islam, who withholds the
infidel arm that would have killed them—that their re-
ligion enjoins them to massacre without pity or remorse?
The remedy lies precisely in that in which you see the
evil. War has its severities, and they are great, therefore
it ought not to be undertaken but for sound and legitimate
reasons; that is saying enough, and I have not failed to
admit that I never approved the one undertaken by the
English against the Afghans. But the acts of a Govern-
ment are not to be confounded with those of its soldiers ;
to the former all reprobation—to the latter, for their
many sufferings and hardships, a few encouraging words is
no more than their due. It is easy to forget them in the
lazy tranquillity of the closet—it is easy to judge of facts,
and in a very humane point of view, when sitting by the
fire in a well stuffed easy chair ; bat those who endure the
misery—who, as the reward of mercy shown in the beat of
rpceive a Rviord-tbrust or a bullet in the breast—who
have submitted to tortures worse a hundred time, than
death, and who then see themselves calumniated and
slandered by those who ought, on the contrary, to have
exalted their deeds—ask them what they think of your
system ? Ask the mmy English, French, and Russian
generals, wearied to death with warring against Mussul-
mans, or consult the writings of others, and they will tell
you what is the fruit of ;or imprudent comments. You
destroy the energy of national spirit, and set bounds to
nothing but the prosperity of your country ; had I any
authority over you, you wretched scribblers, 1 would order
you no other punishment than to practisa the ger.erusity
that you preach win) so much volubility. Go, bear the
musket for a couple of years only in Algeria, at Tiflis, or
Calcutta, and when you return let us resume the conver-
sation.

Of all the nations which have a central
government and a political unity the Afghans
would seem to be about the rudest. It is diffi-
cult to understand what influences preserve this
unity. According to the General's account, they
have no sense of honour or honesty; no subtlety
or acuteness of intellect ; and not only no love
of order, but the most ardent passion for dis-
order and destruction. It is only to destroy
and pull down, we are told, that the Afghan
lives. At home he is idle and torpid, and his life
becomes a burden to him ; but mount him on
horseback, and give him a chance of robbery and
plunder, adding murder for a relish, he will
awake, his eye will kindle, " his hand will
" grasp convulsively the hilt of his sabre, and he
" will press his sinewy legs against his horses
" sides until the animal can scarcely draw his
"breath." With this appetite for disorder, with
no confidence in each other, with no love,
patriotism, or honour, in short, with no centri-
petal force at work, it seems inconceivable not
only that political unity can continue, but that
society, even in its most degraded form, can
subsist at all, and not rather dissolve and perish
in a frenzy of c0001x..,:m.. Perhaps we may
suspect that, with that vivid impression of the
baseness and badness of uncivilized man which
General Ferrier appears to possess, he has
coloured the picture somewhat too darkly.
History has never yet presented an example of a
society without virtue : virtue is the uniting
principle ; vice tends to disruption and isolation.
Where there is union and confederation there.
history seems to teach, must be a measure of
virtue. There must be " honour among thieves."

. .- - --- -• .
THE PRESS, DECEMBER 11
1858. 1215
f•
pus employed amount to 65,886 f. If to this latter sum bushes for the night, rove with their loud whirr, andgave IHe has indeed no doubt whatever of our
be added all the other expenses of the working, it will a slight and not agreeable sensation to our ner' ves. For ambition and of our fixed intention to extend our
be found that this mine costs the State 51,224 f. more the moment wethought the Belooches were before ni, and
gum it brings in. In order to explain such extraordi- crack, crack, went the guns, the report of which roused the conquests as far as we may find ourselves able;
airy results, it must be mentioned that among the charges jackals and deer from their retreats, and started a troop of but we must not be very angry with a French-
made for the collection of the different branches of the wild uses that were in front of us off across the country man for failing to perceive the somewhat subtle
public revenue may be found the most singular items— at their best speed.
distinction we draw between the ambition of con-
sul), for instance, as muses for the collectors, special
funds allotted to the Pope, allowances to the bishop, It is scarcely possible to discuss General Fer- quest and the necessity of conquest. The
and even snuff for the Capuchin friars. This is what is rier's new book without at the same time dis- practical difference is not considerable whether
called administration in the Papal States. cussing his former one. The subject of both is we avow ourselves ambitious, or speciously
These facts, its seems to us, speak for themselves. the same, and they ought to be studied in con- maintain, with the leading journal, that the
They complete the picture we have drawn. junction, for, indeed, the latter can scarcely be empire which ceases to increase commences to
While the illustrations which precede them show understood, much less appreciated, without the diminish. But when we are charged with cruelty
us Rome setting at nought the highest principles former. Captain Jesse says—" The style of the the old Chasseur d'Afrique fires up. We present
of morality and the holiest convictions of religion, " author is rather severe, and there are several to our readers the doctrine current in Algiers
they place her before us as deliberately violating " portions of the present work in which there upon this matter:—
the commonest dictates of honesty. If (returning " was an opening for much touching writing and lam far from constituting myself the apologist of these
to the Theology of Boccaccio) they do not supply " for appeals to the highest and best feelings of severities ; but I have seen war in Asia and in Africa, and
an argument forcible enough to convert a Jew, " our nature." This is awkwardly expressed, know, unhappily by experience, that it is impossible to
they would seem at least sufficient—and more and reminds us of Sergeant Buzfuz's "One of conduct it as in Europe, where, in the majority of States,
" the purest emotions of our imperfect nature, the rights of individuals are respected. I.n vain may we
than sufficient—to pervert a Pose its. declaim against bloodshed ;we shall never be able to .
" gentlemen.' But what Captain Jesse means convert the battle•field into a drawing-room, where all
is very true, namely, that the "History of the parties are bent upon the interchange of civilities. When
History of the Afghans. By J. P. Ferrier. Afghans" is deficient in description and vivid I hear it said, "how many thousands of Cireassians the
Translated from the Original Unpublished detail—that it leaves the imagination unsatisfied R ussian Soldiers have slain," or "the French have bathed
of Af in the blood of the Arabs ! " or " the English have seen-
Manuscript by Captain William Jesse. Lon- —that the picture ghanistan and the fieed myriads of Hindoos to their cupidity ; " when I bear
Afghans which it presents wants distinctness and it Raid that the troops of these nations " are the scum of
don : Murray.
animation. What we miss is, not fine writing, the earth—wretches who have outraged all laws, human
THIS book was promised to the public in 1856, not pathos, not rhetoric, but such a skilful selec- and divine," I cannot refrain from cursing the people who
when the account of General Ferrier's travels tion and arrangement of facts as shall enable the say so—men, or rather not men, who possess the miserable
in the East was published. Those who have not reader to grasp and comprehend all that is dis- cfionodtangnel toans
when they
speakwhile theyof can
e
read that interesting book will be glad to be tinctive and characteristic of Afghanistan and speak
eof
soldiers of their countgry. Unhappy madymenthat ye are !
informed who General Ferrier is, and what has the Afghans. Such skill as this is no doubt do se not know that each enemies take your clemency
been the course and object of his travels. The difficult to be acquired • the want of it is espe- for weakness, your forbearance for fear?—that they have
General is a hard, practical, French soldier, who cially pardonable in General Ferrier, in whom no gratitude but to the God of Islam, who withholds the
infidel arm that would have killed them—that their re-
after serving in Algiers, and making his way the literary character is quite subordinate to the lig• ion enjoins them to massacre without pity or remorse?
upward from the ranks to the position of military and political. It is, notwithstanding, a The remedy lies precisely in that in which you see the
Marechal de Logis, went about the year 1840, skill which General Ferrier's undertaking ape- evil. War has its severities, and they are great, therefore
in company with other French officers, to drill cially demanded, and which alone could have it ought not to be undertaken but for sound and legitimate
and organize the army of Persia. In Persia he saved his book from being in a certain degree dry reamsnittlattiatthla
remained for three years with the rank of and repulsive. Dry and repulsive in a certain to
iesv Be
la yai pn pgr oevneodu gt hhe aonnde undertaken it
aven ot fa
hyl e dthtoe
i
English against the Afghans. But the acts of a Govern-
adjutant-general, until, according to his own degree we suppose his book must consent to be ment are not to be confounded with those of its soldiers ;
account, the influence of Russia at the Court of regarded by the majority. Of its value and im- to the former all reprobation—to the latter, for their
the Shah prevailed to procure his dismissal. portance there can be no doubt ; and to any one many sufferings and hardships, a few encouragingh wordsthis
From 1843 to 1845 he lived in France, and then who has time to study it closely, and the oppor- ;taro mtoraren
g thu7inlittheoifrtielleuee.
losehtis
ietaueatosyfotorgjetudtge em
of i nn
From
set out for Lahore, having been attracted to tunity of comparing it with the "Caravan Jour- and in a very lumane point of view, when sitting by the
the service of Runjeet Singh. He took the net's," it will prove highly interesting, fire in a well stuffed easy chair ; bat those who endure the
route from Bagdad to Herat, and from this town We are of course quite incompetent to criticise misery—who, as the reward of mercy shownhinhthe beat
breast—who
endeavoured to reach India 11y Ralkh and Cahul. th's" la
. 71.7 ad
7 "tit
"ttbru•st ore
bu"ethianntd ree ret
ti:eht—twu a no
tho aeouracy of' General Ferries an a hiatus lan.
Unsuccessful in this attempt, he turned westward Afghanistan is a country upon which few men deaavtah,anaintndiweho thoenoraleirees themselves I vaes calumniated and
and made his way through the wild and unex- living have much information. The greater part slandered by those who ought, on the contrary, to have
plored Hazarah country towards Gour. Again of his narrative we must take on credit; the very exalted their deeds—ask them what they think of your
he failed, and was compelled to return to Herat. homely and unvarnished character of it is our system ? Ask the mmy English, French, and Russian
Once more, however, strong in the Oriental best guarantee of its general accuracy, and in the generals,
mansr consultweartad
the to
vidriatti nu
gs with
o f owt ha err: si Iga and tagainst
hey wminusituell
faith that a man cannot die till his hour comes, favourable testimony of Sir Henry Rawlinson you What is the fruit of
~ ;ur imprudent comments. You
he made for India through Southern Afghanistan, to the General's former work we have almost all destroy the energy of nationsl spirit, and set bounds to
by Girishk and Candahar. At this latter town the external authentication which the case admits nothing but the prosperity of your country ; had I any
he was so unfortunate as to arrive simultaneously of. One reasonable suspicion may indeed cross authority over you, you wretched scribblers,
h 1 would order
with the cholera. The visitation of the ti- the reader's mind. The General does not say youthlt naoonotpher
preach
punishmenttmhaonehto
vPolublitli4.t eGogehLeTratiee
lence was attributed by the inhabitants to the much about his authorities. These are principally musket for a couple of years only in Algeria, at Tithe, or
presence of the infidel. He was attacked in his Persian MSS. which he has met with in Afghan- Calcutta, and when you return let us resume the conver•
house by the mob, and, though protected by the istan itself. We should like to be informed how maim.
authorities, had the greatest difficulty in defend- far these chronicles are trustworthy. As the Of all the nations which have a central
ing himself, and making his way out of the town General is silent upon this question, we, of course, government and a political unity the Afghans
alive. Few travellers of the present age have do not know whether or no he has made it a would seem to be about the rudest. It is diffi-
escaped with life out of so many perils. Few subject of careful examination, but the very fact cult to understand what influences preserve this
have been able to describe such thrilling that he is silent about it disposes us to doubt unity. According to the General's account, they
tdventures as the night-march of Ferrier along whether he has been sufficiently alive to its im- have no sense of honour or honesty; no subtlety
the banks of the Helmand ; his skirmish with the portance. Manifestly born for action and busi- or acuteness of intellect ; and not only no love
savage Belooches among the tamarisk bushes. ness, neither learned nor scientific, he is not un- of order, but the most ardent passion for dis-
A most simple and unaffected narrator, he wins likely to retain some of that superstitious reve- order and destruction. It is only to destroy
the confidence of the reader more than most rence for books which is seldom cured except by and pull down, we are told, that the Afghan
travellers; and hence, when his style, in spite of constant familiarity with them. He may be dis- lives. At home he is idle and torpid, and his life
itself, becomes graphic and pictorial, the brief posed to accept whatever he finds recorded, unless becomes a burden to him ; but mount him on
splendour which lights up the homely narrative he can show it to be impossible, and may be in- horseback, and give him a chance of robbery and
of the following passage has a more impressive sensible to those considerations which invalidate plunder, adding murder for a relish, he will
brilliance than a far more laboured description the authority of a historian altogether, and which awake, his eye will kindle, " his hand will
would have in a more artificial narrative : render his most plausible statements as uncertain " grasp convulsively the hilt of his sabre, and he
The danger was as great in foilowirg the line of route as those which are most palpably improbable. " will press his sinewy legs against his horse s
we had come as in taking a direct course to that town ;in He may, in short, as is commonly the case with " sides until the animal can scarcely draw his
the latter case we should not have found either food or amateur historians, have neglected to consider the " breath. " With this appetite for disorder, with
provisions ; we determined therefore to keep close to the
river, the sides of which being wxkled offered us greater laws of historical evidence. Shrewd men are apt no confidence in each other, with no love,
security. Concealed by the underwood, we could see to be confident that their shrewdness will suffice patriotism, or honour, in short, with no centri-
Without being seen by the Belooches, whose encampments them in the estimate of evidence, but any petal force at work, it seems inconceivable not
we carefully avoided, and sometimes made a considerable lawyer will assure them that this is a matter in only that political unity can continue, but that
circuit to do an. When a faint streak of light in the
which a special training is indispensable. The society, even in its most degraded form, can
horizon announced the approach of day, we mounted our
horses, advancing cautiously amongst the willows, name of Afghanistan at once suggests to an subsist at all, and not rather dissolve and perish
tamarisks, and mimosas, having the Helmand on oar Englishman that disastrous winter of 1841, that in a frenzy of ioo,sx:-.5.;.,:5.. Perhaps we may
right, and leaving on our left the (Went and sterile deserts terrible Khyber Pass, the time and place of a suspect that, with that vivid impression of the
of Seistan. The waning moon's reflected light was shed calamity such as has rarely befallen the English baseness and badness of uncivilized man which
over its red and shining sands, which seemed like one the past.
immense furnace, and the noise of our horses' feet was lost in r Subsequent triumphs and reverses General Ferrier appears to possess, he has
in the sound of the gurgling river, or the gush of waters have blunted our impression of that calamity, but coloured the picture somewhat too darkly.
against some rock which, with several wooded islets, what single disaster which has happened to us History has never yet presented an example of a
obstructed the rapid current, or where, at some shallower can be compared to the loss of 5,000 men from society without virtue : virtue is the uniting
pat, it rippled over the gravelly bed beneath. But for
the broken waters a profound stillness reigned around : cold, hunger, and the muskets of the enemy, in a principle ; vice tends to disruption and isolation.
no sound was heard, and no signs of an enemy being single defile ? Our policy in Persia and Afghan- Where there is union and confederation there.
discernible our anxieties had almost ceased, when on a istan is discussed by General Ferrier with much history seems to teach, must be a measure of
sudden a covey of partridges, comfortably ensconced in the care and, on the whole, with much fairness. virtue. There must be " honour among thieve.''
a Alli

1216

But, whether coloured too darkly or no, the
General's picture is a striking one. We prefer
quoting from the chapters on Afghan manners
to giving a specimen of our author's narration,
because a picture of manners is always instructive
and interesting, whereas the history of a bar-
barous nation is always more or less dull, as well
as painful, from the want of great characters, and
from the barrenness of all but wickedness inherent
in barbarism :

Their cupidity and avarice are extreme; there is no tie
they would not break, no duty they would not desert, to
gratify their avidity for wealth. This surpasses all that
can be imagined ; it is insatiable, and to satisfy it they are
capable of committing the greatest crimes. For it they
will sacrifice all—their native and independent pride ; even
prostitute the honour of their wives and daughters, whom
they frequently put to death after they have received the
price of their dishonour. Gold in Afghanistan is, more
than anywhere else, the god of the human race ; it stifles
the still small cry of every man's conscience, if, indeed, it
can be admitted that an Afghan has a conscience at all :
it is impossible to rely on their promises, their friendship,
or their fidelity.
They enter into engagements, and bind themselves by
the most solemn oaths to respect them, and, in order to
give them a sacred character, transcribe them on a Koran,
to which they affix their seal. but nevertheless perjure
themselves with an impudence perfectly inconceivable.
Towns and villages by hundreds have surrendered on the
faith of such obligations, stipulating that the lives of the
inhabitants should be spared, and yet the examples are
rare, that, once in the victor's power, they have not been
exterminated. It is extraordinary that, knowing their
own bad faith, they allow themselves to fall into these
snares. The majority of the wars which they wage
against one another generally terminate by one or more
of these massacres. Murder is a game, and they evince
a feeling of vanity when they commit one, and glory in
the perfidy and cruelty which they show in their acts
of deva3tation ; when they can cite an example of a town
which they have depopulated and razed to the ground,
they imagine they have given the grandest idea of their
power and valour; they are, in short, real Hans, and
Attdas are never wanting amongst them.
They submit to the laws only after they have tried
every means to evade them ; they consider it perfectly
lawful in those who are stronger or more powerful than
themselves to plunder them, and consequently they have
no scruple in despoiling those who ate weaker. Accus-
tomed from their childhood to see human blood spilt, to
hear murder not only excused but gloried in, they are
soon familiar with the idea of death, which they confront
with the greatest coolness. It is rare to see them make
war for the simple purpose of defending their nationality,
for this sentiment does not exist, and can be uoustaesca

applicable only to the tribe, its district, or encampment.
Their ideas are of a totally different character ; the hope
of enriching himself by booty, of bathing himself in blood
—these are what from his earliest youth an Afghan pro-
to indulge in, and these are the principles in which
pro-
poses
ap. They hate all Governments which in-
troduce law and order into a country, or enter into treaties
of peace with their neighbours; to do so is in their eyes
an attack upon their rights, which deprives them of pillage,
and consequently the best part of their revenues.
If an Afghan is put to death by his sovereign for maraud.
ing, his countrymen look upon him as a victim; but they
establish between him who exposes his life in combat and
the obscure domestic thief who does not an immense dif-
ference ; the first is in their estimation a brave man,
whereas the other is treated with contempt, banished from
the tribe, and sometimes put to death. At first sight an
Aftian pleases, and this in spite of his rough and savage
PhYsioirnomy and exterior: the fact is, that, when he has
an object in view, and he has something to gain, he knows
how to play, and with great suppleness, the part which
policy dictates ; but if he loses the hope of obtaining any-
thing oat of you, it is easy to see into the details of his
character, and he will stand without scruple unmasked,
and in all the ari litv of his evil nature.

This very disreputable, but very energetic,
character stands in sharp contrast with that of
the Persians, who are clever, eloquent, but
voluptuous, insincere, and treacherous. The
Persian is the Greek described by Juvenal ; the
Afghan is the primitive Roman of the asylum.
This comparison reminds us that a great nation
has arisen, or supposed itself to have arisen,
from a gang of thieves. If a great nation should
ever arise in Afghanistan, its satirists will
certainly have a good right to rebuke the violence
of its noblesse by the classical sarcasm,

Najorum prima' qoisquis fait ills taorum,
♦ut pastor tau, cut Wed (pod dicere Role.

The Ethics of Aristotle. By Sir Alexander
Grant, Bart., M.A., Fellow of Oriel College,
Oxford. In Three Vols. Vol. 11. Containing
the Nicomachean Ethics, With
Notes Critical and Explanatory. London : J.
W. Parker and Son.
1- The Ethics of Aristotle," says Sir Alexander
Grant, " are adapted to form an era in the edu-
" cation of a student. They are the best intro-
" dnction to philosophy. Standing as they do
on an extreme limit and broken verge of ancient