The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-11-17
THE new AFGHAN AMER
HOW HE BECAME vERsED IN GOV
EMINENT AS A PRINCE.
Interestfng Personal Traits of Abdur
The Assisted Providence.
London Daily Mail.

London Daily Mail.
II the new Ameer OF Afghanistan does
not turn a model ruler according to Afghan
ideas OF what a model ruler should be, it
will certainly not be for want of training.
He has served a long apprenticeship to
the business. He is Twenty-Five years Of
age, and he played the part of locum
tenens for his father in Kabul while he
went a-fghting, when he must have been
quite a little chap, and when the father
came back he was delighted 10 find how
efficiently he had borne himself. He had,
Il is true. the benefit of the assistance and
advice OF the cOmmander-in-chief and the
deputy commander-in-chief Of the Kabul
forces, and the latter especially had given
very striking proof OF his devotion and
fidelity. When his master. the Ameer-be-
fore be became Ameer-had been hard up,
quite stony-broke, this devoted follower
had actually sold himself into slavery,
trusting to Abdur Rahman's redeeming him
II ever his ship came home. He was a
very safe man. therefore. TO leave in charge
OF the young Governor OF KabuI. 1t was an
extremely stormy time, and there had been
ructions in Kabul.
My son Habibullah Khan" saws the
proud papa. was only a little boy. yet he
did a great thing in going among the SOL
diers and speaking in my behalf TO the
chiefs. He was neither nervous nor afraid"
That was during the campaign against
Ayub. Later on, in 1SSs. when HabibuIlah
was not more than about sixteen. the
Amer went on another expedition, and the
son was acting Governor In place of his
father for two years. Again there was
turbulence IN the CapIral- and an arfannr
TO raise an instruction, one Of the battaI-
ions or the Ameer's own troops breaking
cut in mutiny.
He acted most bravely on this occa-
sion" the father has recorded, riding
alone into the midst OF the rebellious sol
dierS without showing any fear of their
inJurfng him. By this plucky behavior ne
showed the soldiers that he placed conf
dence in them; otherwise he would not have
ventured among them without any body
guard he promised TO listen and consider
their grievances, and he put a stop TO the
mischief. h lad, is must be confessed,
did not show himself quite up 10 our Occi-
dental standard OF government If he had
been properly brought up by some of our
frst-class constitutional statesmen he
would have sworn that the whole shindy
was the work OF agitatOrs, and would have
insisted on making an example of them.
However, his semi-civilized father seemed
to think that as ha had quelled the mu-
tiny and kept the peace he had made a
very good start, and he was very pleased
with him. In other quarters. too, there
had been incipient rebellion which he had
succeeded in quieting down, and so i'm
pressed was the Ameer by the tact and
good sense he had shown that he advanced
him another stage in his confidence.
since that time. says Abdur Rahman
Il authorized him 10 hold the public Dur
bar ia my stead. as 1 have full confidence
I'm his tact and wisdom. L reserve 10 my
self the duties attaching TO foreign af-
fairs. together with the most important