The age-herald., 1901-11-17

half doctors-who are the only practi- tioners of the art of medicine in Afghan istan. They treat ailments in the simple and heroic way made sacred by their an- cient predecessors, and when their pow erful drugs fail they resort to prayer. They did not know what ailed the Ameer. but they declined to the belief that 1t was mixture of evil spirits and dis temper, and they treated him according ly. Their attempts to drive out the dis temper consisted largely of violent purges and much leeching and bleeding, and when these failed they adopted the ex- pedient of plunging his feet into ice cold water. This was unfortunate, for Abdur Rahman in reality had 6 most pernicious form of gout, and cold water applied outwardly merely increased the infiam- nation and made him wrathful as only a black and bearded Afgan King can be.
 The Sultan's advisers, on the other hand. prevailed on her to place faith in European medicine. And after long per- suasion she won the consent of the Ameers c1nfidants, and one night when all expected that the King surely would die in a paroxysm of pain. they sent for Dr.. John Alfred Gray of London, who then was a resident in Cabul. Dr. Gray saw at glance that his condition was serious. He thought then that 1t was serious only as it concerned the sufferer, but in a few seconds he learned that the Ameer's condition was serious to his doc tor also, for friendly courier whs pered to him the pleasing intelligence that his life depended on that of his pa- tient.
 ITO be brief" says Dr. Gray, "I gave his highness diaphoretics with salicy- late of potash, which I made fresh for every dose. His highness after the Mo- hammedan custom, uttered a short pray CT before he took the first dose. I did hn aadt bod ,Aet aaffG fGfa tory effect in relieving the pain and pro- ducing sleep. The improvement being so obvious 1t was interesting to note the delight of all. from Prince to page boy. But toward the end of the week gradu- ally dropped the use of salicyate on &C., count of the depressing effect and one night there was some return of pain
 There was person at the court-a and he seized this opportunity of whisper and he seized this oportunity of whisper ing to the Ameer what he could that would prejudice me with his highness. I was informed in the morning, five days after I took the case in hand that my treatment would be suspended for the present. The hakims were reinstated.' Y At this time the Sultana was taken i'll and the page boy Malek called Dr. Gray to attend her. It was a great honor, and he was and probably is the only white man who ever has seen her. She heard his story of the Hakims and showed him how he had been superseded. and gave him certain remarkable advice as to how to checkmate his enemy. the Hin dustani gentleman.
 The result was that Dr. Gray went boldly into the Ameer's apartments and announced that he intended to shoot and kill the person who was his enemy and had robbed him of the favor of the ruler The Hindustani got out of the way. The doctors influence was restored, the Ameer made a tedious recovery. and at last Dr. Gray was permitted to return home
 Pince Habib Ullah now holds the arsen- al and the kingdom-inc:uding the treas