Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-01-24

liRe OF communication 20 the Caspian
would be open 10 attack in d.nk aud
resr. Their, again, the neutrality, II not
the sctual support, both OF Persia and
| AfghsDistsn muss be secured, otherwise
the line of march, tx.ending for hundreds
OF miles and gradually growing weaker,
| would be hsrasJed sad cut. As the ex-
petition must be accompanied by siege
| trslns. munitions, etc, transport would
be found crest fflculty. especially IS,
| from absence OF rusds, pack animals
| ~Ould Chi. hY be required fnr consider
| able part OF the )urrey. F:om our own
| experience we know that Afghanistsn,
owing to its mountains, deserts, ded.es
| and general deficiency Of resources, is 8
most difficult country TO penetrate snd TO
hold. Persis, as thestre Of operstians,
Is IN some senses worse. As General
Saker, in bis "CloudS 10 the East" point
ed out, "The whole eastern center Of
Persia is VISIT salt plsin, upcultiv.ted
and uninhabited, and which, from its
want OF water, csn only be passed BY
small caravans q csmels on q few ro,ds,
where breckish wells exist,and even then
with great difficulty"
Large depots and fortified positions
would be essential all along the route,
so that q Russian army of invasion, by the
time 1t reached the Iudus-supposing L.
ever got thers-wOuld hsYe shrunk to
very small dimensions, sud vet would
then be only st the real commencement Of
its enterprise. A modern army on the
march, especially when 1t ex lends TO 2do0
miles, does not gather strength and
volume like SNOWFALL. Then there are
other matters to be considered. Are we
to assume that E 1glsnd would have no
allies and no power OF Initiation? and
that her generals and soldiers are so
devoid Of courage and enterprise, and are
msde OF such poor stuff that they would
oe Incapable Of striking blow St those
enfeebied battalIonS ss they emerged
from the mountain passes aud dehCuched
Oh the desert plains OF Sc'ende2
TIE late l. brd Brsc nstield happily
summed up the si,u3tion in few words
in 1873. He said: ''Her Msi-sty's gov
ernment are by no means apprehensiye OF
an invasion Of Iudie by our northwestern
frontier. The base of operations Of any
possible foe Is go remote, the communica-
tons are so dlf1i;ult, the aspect of the
country is so for0ldding, that we do not
believe. under these circumstances, an
invasion OF our northwestern frontier Is
preclcaOIe.
Notwithstanding the exaggerated Ian
gusge which is so often used in regard to
Russia's supposed designs, still the ad-
vance Of her troops from the south of the
C,spian and the construction Of railway
along the foot of the mountains which
form the northern boundary Of Persia
ale points worthy OF careful considera-
ton. They may not be Esn ultimate
source Of danger TO ourselves, but 20
some extent they alter previous condi-
tons, and have rendered it necessary
not only TO reconsider relative positions
CT Rassis and England in the east, but
also 10 d. tine with more precision than
| heretofore, the northwestern boundaries
Of the intervening kingdom of AfgRinis:
tan. The country from the Caspian to-
ward Nerve, which has recently fallen
| into the hands Of Russia, Is the home Of
the Tekke-Turcomsns. 1t Is a narrow
| out in some psrts cultivated tract,
watered by small streams, which, h)wing
from the Persian mountains, are ulti-
matelY lost by absorption in the great
| desert 30 the north.