Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-09-11

| QUEER AND VARIED
Special Cablegram to The Star.
CALCUTTA, September 11.-According to
advices from Cabul, preparations are al
ready in progress for the visit of the ameer
to India in November. The road from
Cabul to Jellalabad. along the Cabul river,
is being repaired for his majestys pas
sage. while troops are being inspected and
new uniforms made for the escort.
1t is announced that the ameer's son,
Inayatullah Khan, and hts sister are short
ly to be married to the daughter and son,
| respectively. of Nasrullah Khan, the ameer's
brother.
The Punjab chief court has passed judg-
ment in an extraordinary case that had
come before it on appeal from the Umballa
sessions court In the town of Jagadri,
, about forty miles from Umballa, there lived
merchant of some position. Like all
Hindus, he was keenIy anxious to have
son; but all the children that his wife
bore were born dead. Last year it seemed
probable that she might aga hope to be
from a religious mendicant in order to be
sure that the expected child should be
born alive. The pogi told the merchant
that If his wife batned In human blood
her child would live This seems to be
very ancient belief; and revolving as it
must have been to Hindu woman, the
anxiety of husband and wife for son
brought them to assent to crime for
which they were tried. boy, Arjan by
name, about eight or nine years of ago, was
kidnapped, and after being kept a prisoner
for thirty hours was strangled. His blood
was collected in brass vessel, and after
certain charms had been repeated the eX-
pectant mother smeared the blood over
her body and so fulfilled the rite. The
boy was soon missed, and the crime came
to light through the confession of the man
who had kidnapped the child and had re-
ceived three rupees for doing To the
western mind the whole affair is marked
by cruel folly; but the common folk of
the Punjab will pass that by, for the mer-
chants wife gave birth to a living infant
while in jail. All Jagadri will believe that
the spells and the rites have proved potent.
X
strange coincidence is reported from
Bombay. Lutchman Pershad. the famous
elephant on which Lord and Lady Curzon
rode in the Delhi durbar elephant process
sion, died at Benares the same day that
Lady Curzon died in London
The vice-regal elephant was about eighty
years old and had been a.ling for some |
time, his condition having been aggra-
waited by injuries he received in a fight |
with another elephant.
1t is interesting to note in this connec-
ton that an outbreak of anthrax has spread |
death among the government elephants in |
Katha district.
Nearly $50 elephants. most of them highly |
trained and very valuable, died within |
few days of the outbreak. the loss being |
eight lakhs Of rupees, or over $250,O00.
The remaining elephants have been dis |
tributed in the district. and it is hoped /
that the outbreak will soon be over.
Reports from Teheran state that the |
shahs rescript for a constitution orders the |
formation of national consultative as
sembly composed of representatives Of all |
classes, from the princes downward. |
. The assembly will advise on important |
state and public affairs. and will propose |
reforms conducive to the welfare of the |
people and the country.
Justice will be administered in accord |
ance with the sacred law. The grand vizier |
is to draw up the rules of procedure for /
the assembly, and these are to be ap- |
proved by the assembly itself.
During the period of excitement nearly |
1900 Persans of all classes took refuge |
in the grounds of the British legation and |
pitched huge tents. each trade or profess
sion being separately represented.
Almost every town in Persia was affected. |
The bazaars were closed with the excep- |
ton of a few European shops. and bust |
ness was at a standstill in the literal sense |
of the word.
The grand vizier. who has just been re- |
moved owing to the clamor of the people, |
still visits the shah. and it is the general |
opinion that he will resume Office directly |
the demonstrators leave the British lega-
ton. The grand viziership is the goal of am |
bition of ministers and government off, |
Gals. They dream of the position as a |
means of becoming rich. For methods of |
extortion. the official who has just been |
retired has put all his predecessors in the |
shade. He was a past master in the art |
of taking brides. and now is worth an i'm |
menSe sum.
At present the minister Of foreign affairs |
is the grand vizier. He is middle-aged |
man of genial appearance, and strikes the |
observer as being most kind and obliging. |
But he has the characteristics OF the ORR |
entail and his ideas are not regulated ac-
cording to European standards. |