Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1899-11-16
The GORGE OF SHAME
A story Of Indian Retaliation

Of caution. for the tale is grewsome
] 1t is a story from life, "Reminiscences
of the early colonial days, and forms
Q one of a series of tales illustrating thu
march of British power in the East
Indian empire. The Waziris are tribs
inhabiting Afghanstan. which was
transferred to the British in 1894.
In their manner of dealing with the
woman question the Waziris are old
fashioned. With them, above all peo-
plies, chastity is the virtue of woman,
courage of the man. There is no place
among them for the wanton or the
coward; and the expression of public
opinion seems to be founded on some
such maxim as 1.-THE dead sin no
more"
Ludlow, the doctor, Gordon, my sub
altern, and myself were sitting outside
scrubby dinners Of the country, and
Bakshan Khan. who had been invited
10 share our chcroots, was smoking
with us Ludlow had spent a l3-hour
day tramping after elusive Markhor, in
i IN the course Of which he had climbed
4 10 1000 feet above the sea level, and.
tough as he was, was very tired. lie
/ showed no wish to tell us of his sport.
! which had been confined 10 fleeting
/ glimpses of distant Markhor; but.
somewhat YEARLY, he told us that he
had come across the bones Of woman
IL. - . Il. %
bowlder at the mouth Of a very ugly
gorge; bones curiously shattered
skull, arms, legs, ribs, not bone whole.
tud the sepoys who were acting as his
shikarris had spat on the bones and
covered them again, and would tell him
nothing, only that the gorge was called
1.-The Gorge Of shame
| looked at the Bakshan Khan he
blew a slow cloud Of smoke from his
mouth and said: Years ago" We
pulled ourselves together to listen, for
we always listened TO Bakshan Khan.
and he told US the story Of Grierson.
Years ago. when the post was first
held by the English, there was sahib
in command named Grierson. Perhaps
il was Is, perhaps 90 years ago. what
is time TO ms who only know day and
night, summer aud winter?" lie was
brave man, bu reckless He loved
women too we'll lie also drank and
smoked very much. but was never a
bit weaker for H. In those DAYS the
caravans passing down had to fight for
IL an the way along the Waziri border.
and il WIS out in the broad bed Of the
kueh. where the rivers meet. that They
lay safest under the rifles of the little
post, as il then was-only one-third as
big as IL is now, and not half as many
men in il, Often the party at the post
used to sally out 70 fire on raiders, and
more often wounded traders used Ia
drop in al the post TO be healed Of gun
shot, sword and spear wounds The /
days were by no means duh To a man /
of Grierson's nature a life of hard liv. 4
ing, fighting, drinking and no woman 4
to cheer him was but fuel to fire.
Grierson was not a sentimentalist /
Many men who mean and do no wrong .
TO women are not sentimentalists, and /
they do not usually make the worst /
husbands. One day there had been |
dash on a caravan at early dawn and 4
a pursuit. Grierson had succeeded in
overtaldng and shooting Mahsud
Waziri, who bore away girl on his
camel, and She lay fainting from it,
fall, for il dropped dead, shot at the
same time as its master. Grierson went
to her aid and found her beautiful.
He brought her back to the caravan.
made terms and was married to her
by the Mohammedan law, and for the
handsome price Of thousand rupees
IN money and kind Ii was a difficult
matter to arrange but IN those DAYS.
even more than now, might was right.
and who could say nay to man who
could Stay as well as protect2 II il had
pleased Grierson to have her abducted
for him the price would have been less;
and, suspicious as all saages are. the
caravan Of Zillah Khel Waziris saw that
they stood a good chance OF a greater
security If one Of heir women was the
wife Of one of their protectors. Be
NUTS thf Sill Wis OF no consequence. |
She was an orphan. and the Malik had
he legal right 10 dispose Of her. Her
relations we're few and poor -Four
guns, - rounds Of ammunition. a GUN
and substantial sum IN cash, TO saw
iothing Of the influence and security.
vas good price for ~tocherIess las
'ie. 50 Grierson got bis way and his
wife. Now She was bis wife II English
aw, though he did not know il; but
@ do him Justice, he meant honestly
~ her, and treated her kindly and well. ,
At last there came day when the old ,
yame Of trailing the tail Of nv coat" .
vas played by the government Of India.
officially this is known as testing the
emper Of the tribes" and il is done
y sending parties more or less armed
o visit various tribes in friendly
way. The tribes have the same OBJ
ections to being called upon in a
friendly way-with gun in yout hand !
that Englishmen have. They also pet
iarmed. then they begin to shoot out
! tunk, whereupon they are said 10
e uncertain" an expedition go,.s
orth. and a little more red min, :.