Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1880-08-23

eastern part Of the citadel, on the north
east side of the city, but they are liable
to attack from the city as well as from
the eastern side. and assuredly would
hardly be capable of resisting deter
mined night assault The real peril of
the position is. first, the danger to which
the commissariat ''godown" is exposed
and, secondly, the extent of the citadel
which is about $50 yards deep by 500 |
in length.
The British commanders in Afghan
istan and the authorities in India have |
not been slow to see that if Gen. Prim- |
rose and his command are to be saved |
from capture, and capture would mean
death for every man of them, as the
Afg keep no prisoners, the siege
must be raised by relieving armies. One
army of relief is already we'll on its
way to Candahar. General Roberts,
with 10000 men, set out from Cabul
on the 9Th of August. The distance
| from Cabul to Candahar is 200 miles,
but the marches are through difficult
passes, and it is not expected that, at
best, he can reach the beleaguered cita-
del before the first of September. The
second army of relief, under General
Phayre, numbers 5000 men, and is ex-
| pected to start from Quettah in few
days. Candahar can be reached from
| Quettah in a fortnight, but the road lies
through narrow passes, and over forty
miles of barren desert. where the dam
gers from attacks of hostile hill tribes
will be very great. Finally, when these
dangers have been avoided or overcome,
the Quettah army will find itself de-
bouching on the Khusab Plain, a swampy
stretch of land about twenty miles from
Candahar, which can be easily inundat-
ed so as to cut off the advance. The
supplies of the Candahar garrison are
not more than enough to sustain it to
the end of September. It's water sup
ply, always prime factor in siege,
is from two streams which can be cut
off from the outside, leaving the garri-
son only three wells inside to draw
from.
The situation is desperate, and there
is the added possibility that the people
of Candahar may rise and join.the Herat
chief, in which case it is extremely
, doubtful if the most heroic resistance
: could hold the citadel until the bayo-
nets from Quettah and Cabul come in
sight. This leaves out of the reckoning
! the ability of Ayoob Kahn to meet the
t advancing relief armies half way, and
. defeat them in detail, by the aid of the
| tribes through those territory they have
, to march. And that is quite within
: the range of possibility. We need not
be surprised, therefore. to hear ghast
e ly tale of slaughter from Afghanistan al
e any moment. And If Kushk-i-Nakhud
q is followed by another and greater re
f verse to British arms at Candahar, the
o whole country will rise on the invaders
t and the fame of defiance to British au
Y thority lighted on the northern frontier
of India may spread south, and blaze
all over the great dependency.
The Marquis of Harrington, in pre-
senting the Indian budget the othe
: night to the Commons, dwelt with tn
: emphasis of a partisan upon the cost 0
the advance on Afghan, by way of ex
Il tolling the retreat which was sounded
J when the Liberals took office. But, un
u less the heroism of the little garrison a
e Candahar, and the promptness of the re
) lieving armies. can extricate the Glad
y stone Ministry from its fearful respon
y sibility, the British taxpayer is in
fair way to learn that the policy of re
l. treat is far more cestly. both in life AM
r, treasure. than the policy of aggression
d -Iraveller.
IL The of Malt Rittars incraasas the flash and mr.