The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1885-03-12
RUo.U-AFGIlA0 FGVSuER.
ENGLISH SIDE OF TIE QUESTION:
Noithor side wants War. hat - single
Frontier nrHwl May Commit Them
to iiostiiitlOs-A Description
Uf the Territory,

Discussing tho prospect Of conflict
with Russia upon the question Of the
Afghan boundary, the Pail Mall Gazette
OF a recent date explains rs follows the
points In controversy, In the dabata'
BILE land in which Sir Peter Lumsden
has been spending the ~in!or In making
preliminary surveys and IN establish
ing tho influence OF England among the
Afghan tribes, we are face To face with
more a. less barbarlous tribes, behind
whom stands the empire OF Russia. The
position In which We find ourselves II
indeed alarming. II II essentially false.
Neither Russia nor England want war.
But a single frontier brawl may commit
them 10 hostilities. That matters should
over have got into 30 serious a position
is due, like all our other troubles.
to the ono over mastering determine
ton OF the government To avoid re-
sponsibility. When II was proposed 10
delimit tho Russo-Afghan frontier from
Kholeh-Saleh on tho oxus To some
point about Sarakhs ON the Herr Rud,
Russia suggested that the principles
npon which the frontier should bu
drawn should be defined, and that then
a Joint commission should be dispatched
To- effect precise delimitation of tho
new boundary. Was the frontier 10 bc
drawn ON purely photographic or
economic or stragOtic principles, or was
! IL 20 be based exclusively upon tho
maintenance of the statu quoy These
were broad, general principles which
ought unquestionably 10 have boon sol-
tied by the governments before their
agents were deputod 10 define tho boun-
Diary on tho spot. The English govern
ment objected to decide anything, pro
posing TO leave everything % the joint
boundary commission. That objec-
ton was mistake, and Russia was
quite right in pressing for its reconsider
alton. We refused, and Russia TOOL
ishly gave in. That was blunder
which she committed, with which, OF
course, We can not reproach her, seeing
that she did IL TO oblige us. IL was
agreed that the frontier should be set
tied entirely out of the heads of the
commissioners on the SPOT, and Sir
Peter Lumsden started for the trysling-
place. Unfortunately tho Russian COM
missioner, who was said to have been
specially selected for his good sense and
English sympathios, was so unpatriotic
as TO fall III, aud in the delay thus
caused everything went wrong. The
Afghans, feeling no doubt inspirited by
with his escort, and anxious 10 make
their position as strong ~ possiblepend
ing delimitation, threw some troops into
the Turkomau village of Penjdeh.
From Penjdeh the Russians declared
the Afghans could threaten the Russian
advance post at Sarakhs, and as re-
ply to the Afghan advance, they threw
their troops forward to Pul-l-khatun.
There were great protests on both sides,
and Sir Peter Lumsden waXed very
wroth. AS the situation was becoming
more and more strained every day, the
Russian government dispatched NJ
Lessar TO London to try TO arrange the
principles on which the new frontier
should be drawn. The line suggested
by Russia is based, not on strategic con.
siderations, for the only strategic from
tier, that of the mountains-falls much
uearer Herat, but upon the simple no
cessity of including the pastures
and salt-beds OF the Russian
Turkomans within the Russian from
tier. With M. Lessar's frontier-ol
rather with the principles on which il
is founded-we have no quarrel. III al
the strategic advantages of defensive
frontier are left in the hands of the Ar
ghans-fCr that is what NJ. Lessar de-
clares the Russian government is will
ing to accept as the first principle OF the
new boundary-we see no disadvantage
to England, but quite the reverse, II
agreeing to tho Russian proposal Il
tdraw the new frontier as far to tn,
north of Herat as is consistent with al
lowing the Sailor Turkomans of Sarakhs
the territory essential to their exist
| oppov