Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-08-25
BACKED BY RUSSIA
Veteran English Officer Analyses the
Uprising in India.
MAY SET ALL EUROPE ABLAZE
He Thinks It Will Take Time to
Suppress the Revolt.
ECHOES OF SEPOY REBELLION

To one person at least in this city, Col.
Frank F. Hilder, the present rising of ma
tives against British rule in India has a
deeper significance than it has to the or
binary individual. Col. Hilder was for
merly a British officer in the Indian army.
and while there commanded detachment
of cavalry in Havelock's relief expedition
on the march to Lucknow. His service
continued throughout the SeDoy rebellion
and he afterward served four years on the
Afghan frontier, fighting the very tribes
which are now in rebellion.
Col. Hilder thinks that the influence be-
hind the present rising is the porte. The
Afrid:s pronounced as if the is were esq
have been melted to religious war by
MOhammedan priests, and these priests
have received their instructions in turn
from the Turkish government. Turkey has
denied this. but Col. Hilder has little faith
in a denial or any other statement the
Turkish government makes In fact, Mo-
hammedan literature has been captured,
and this he considers first-class evidence
that somebody other than the Afridis has
been melting them to revolt The Afrid:s
are densely ignorant and even of that book
Of books of the Mohammedan, the Koran,
they know only few verses by heart. con-
Sequently some one with education is re-
sponsible for the printed literature. On
for the present disturbance rests on the
shoulders of the Ameer of Afghanistan and
through him on the Sultan of Turkey.
Russia the Real Disturber.
Going deeper, however, Col. Hilder says
that Russia is really the power that has
the most interests at stake. Russia has
advanced her outposts to such an extent
that only the little Independent state of
Merv is between her and Afghanistan on
the north. while the northeast corner of
the ameer's territories separates the Brit
ish and the Russians by only a narrow
strip. The policy of the British is to keep
Afghanistan Independent buffer state.
while, OH the other hand, Russia is steadily
trying to encroach on Afghanistan terri
tory. Now, if the advance of the Russian
outpostS becomes so extended as to threat
en- Britain in India, then the British in
their turn will endeavor to take the
ameer's territories away from him. In the
meantime, diplomacy is working to keep
the peace, but these inroadS of the ameer's
kinsmen make the situation so delicate
that if the present rate of progress is kept
up these inroads of the Afridis on the
south of Afghanistan and the advance of
the Russians on the north will be the
torch that will set Europe in blaze
AS straw showing how the wind blows
1t may be pointed out that the army of the
ameer is now being drilled by both En-
glish army officers and Russians. whereas
in former years the English had it all their
own way, there were no Russians about,
and the ameer was looked upon as an ally
OF England. The ameer can put in the
field about 65, 600 men fairly well drilled
and armed for the most part with Enfield
and Martini-Henry rifles. They also have
some field guns, regular uniforms. and
ABOUT th!rty-fve thousand of them COM
pose tne standing army. the rest being
paid irregulars England has no use for
A1ghanistan, 1t being an inhospitabIe
country. Russia wants the territory,
tnoush only means to an end.
me newspaper reports state that the
Using OF the AfrtdiS was a revolt against
British rule, but strictly speaking this is
not the case, the British have never
tried to exercise much control over the
Afrfdis and other tribesmen. preferrine tn
let them remain independent since thew
occupy mountainous region of no use.
but which serves buffer.
While Col. Hilder thinks, of course, the
rising will be put down by the British
troops within a few months. vet he saws
that 1t Is his experience that the British will
have some desperate fighting before they
do 1t. Tie Afridis. the Orakzais and the
other tribes living, as they do, in the
mountains, have any amount of endur-
ance and are tall, stalwart soldiers. They
are many of them very dark with bushy
black boards. and are armed with the
''tulwar" and long rifle.
SepOy rs Soldier.
The Sepoy during the great rebellion
stood fire like a veteran, but he was al
ways afraid of a bayonet charge; not so
these trihesmen. The "tulwar" is sword. a
trifle shorter than our present cavalry saber
shaped somewhat in the resemblance of a
scimiter. though heavier at the back, and
terrible weapon in any kind of an en-
counter. When they have used their long
rifles until it is of no advantage to fire
them any longer, and they are taught to
shoot them from boyhood, they take 20
the tulwar, and with this they meet the
advancing line of bayonets by slipping in
under the points of the bayonets and slash
ing the legs and bodies of their foes
While, of course, they will not refuse TO
meet the bayonet in this way, yet they
prefer to fight behind stone walls, where
they can get the full effect of their terrible
precision with the rife. Col. Hflder says
he has known an Afridi to lie down be-
hind small rock which no more than half
covered him. and yet in the course of an
hour. all Of the time OF which he was en-
gagged in firing. to scoop himself out
trench with his left elbow which would
completely screen him.
Unlike other mountain tribes, they are
excellent horsemen, but in their raids on
British possessions they generally come
down on foot. The newspaper reports
have stated that the Afridis have mustered
100000 men, but this must include all the
tribes at present fighting. as according to
Col. Hilder the Afridis can only muster
about 10000 fighting men. and the others
are not so strong. The British have on
the field $4,000 troops. made up of British
regiments and native regiments the latter
composed mainly of Gourkas, also noun
taineers, and Sfkhs.
What the object of the tribesmen can be-
except that the power behind the throne
wishes to annoy the British, is not known.
They are Mohammedans. and the larger
portion Of the Indians are Hirdoos So
that it Is practically impossible for them
to start another widespread rebellion This,
ard, in fact, every other circumstance con-
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