The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-12-14
IN QUEER AFGHANISTAN.

| AT least one country still imposes
the death penalty on those protesting
the Christian religion, we learn from
preliminary report OF Consul Henry
| D. Baker on the 'fTrade and Industries
of Afghanistan. - Mr.. Baker, who is on
! special commercial service in India. Wis
/ tied Afghan bazaars on the frontiers at
Now Chaman in Baluchistan and at
Peshawar In the northwest frontier
province. and obtained information from
business houses in Bombay and Kara
chi which have dealings in Afghanis
tan. The report which will appear in
six issues of the Daily Consular and
Trade Reports, shows that there may
| be 2 market Of limited character fo1
American goods in Afghanistan with
the government and the people; but in
asmuch as trade with the outside world
is so unimportant, we find the com
ments of Mr.. Baker on other subjects
more interesting.
Afghanistan is the buffer state be
| tween British India aud the Russian
| possessions in Asia, with an erea of
about 250,000 square miles and popu'
lation Of probably about 100000 Mo
hammedans. With the exception OF
Tibet, it is the largest closed country
of the world, and for political reasons
neither Russia nor India has seen fiji
TO enforce an "open door" policy.
"The strange anachronism is here
presented of nation in the twentieth
century which forbids the entrance
into It's territory of the foreign mission.
aries either OF religion or Of commerce.
and which makes the profession Of
Christianity among It's subjects punish
able by DEATH says Mr.. Baker.
In both q political and commercial
sense Afghanistan acts as buffer be
tween Russia and British territory, Ex,
cept for the gap across Afghanistan of
about 500 miles between present rail
way termini at Kushkinsld post in Rus
Sian Turkestan and New Chaman in
British Balucbistan, there would be q
! complete connection between the rail
way systems OF Europe and British In,
dia Despite the tightly closed door
trade with the outside world Is increas-
ing, notable Improvements are being
projected, and American and European
| ideas, fashions and articles Of com
merce are invading the country. Per
haps the time is not distant when the
| light Of civilization will pour into thi:
benighted region and mako impossible
a law which inflictS death upon any
one protesting other than the state re
ligion Of Mohammedanisn.
Citizens or subjects of any foreign
nation who wish to enter Afghanista1
must obtain special permit, or fir
man. from the amir, who is an absolute
ruler. No Europeans OF Americans are
permitted to cross the Afghan frontier
from British Indian or Baluchistar
without obtaining tho permission Of the
British government. About the only
instances In which Europeans or Ameri-
cans have been allowed to travel into
Afghanistan Is when machinery or other
articles have been required by the amir
his government, or special medical as
sistance needed at the court.
At present there are said to be
but six Europeans and two American.
residing In the country. Among the
very few European persons who have
for any length of time sojourned In
Afghanistan within recent years are
Mr., z. T. Thornton, who established q
government leather and shoe factory al
Kabul, and wrote, in 1909, book emit
tied "Leaves From an Afghan Scrap
book; DR.. J.. A. Gray, who was pri
vate physician TO the late amir and
wrote, in 1901, book entitled "My
Residence at the Court OF the Amir
and Mrs. Kate DAILY, physician to the
amir's hRrem, who gave to the world
in 1905, her book, eight Years Among
the Afghans." The best authority con
cerning the frontier tribesman OF AT
ghanistsn was the late Dr. T. L. Pen
nell, an English medical missionary
who died OF blood poisoning contracted
from patient. His book. "Amone
the Wild Tribes OF the Afghan From
tier" contains much accurate and in
teresting data.
On both tho British aud Russian
frontiers Of Afghsnistan mutual visit,
on the part of the military men is for
hidden by tho Afghanistan government
About a wear ago the colonel OF the
British regiment AZ New Chamau. two
! miles from the Afghanistan boundary