THE AFGHAN SECRET CORRESPONDENCE.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VIII, Issue 1291, 7 April 1881, Page 2

THE AFGHAN SECRET CORRESPONDENCE.

Wkixinq bit February 11th, the London •correspondent of the Argun says : — The Afghan question • haß been revived amongst ns this Week in a now, form. The determination , of the Government to withdraw from Candahar has been'fo'r some time announced and canvassed. Lord Lytton is not disposed quietly to accept this complete reversal of his policy. Accordingly he moved the other evening for the production of the. secret correspondence found during .the occupation of Cabul, on which he partly rests his justification; «hd which has also an important bearing in -.relation to the future. TJKbrG'QVerhmeni speeded, (to his request,, but before tho/pupefs could be laid on the table of tho 'House they wore published '''by the.' enterprising Standard. They, have excited much interest. Whsitevor^their political raluo, they exhibit RnssiaM diplomacy in a vory unfavorable light. " The dates are im portant. It is necessary, in reading them, to remember that tho Berlin Conference assembled in June, .1878. Tho imminence of war had been previously indicated by the bringing of Sepoy troops to Malta. Russia not unnaturally was preparing for a diversion by which our Indian forces might be held in check.- It is noir asserted that three columns of 20,000 men had been formed in Turkestan for advance southward towards Afghanistan. The presence of a Russian* mission in Cabul, for some months after the signature of tho Berlin Treaty, was well known, and the explanations oi Russia on this point wore accepted by Lord Beaconstiefd's Government as satisfactory. The mission was saidrto bo one of courtesy, 'temporary, and to be withdrawn as soon as possible, , But it is now plain that the Russian Government was. committed by its agents, and had to seek some/means to'cWer Its retreat. TUe fetters'; published are from General: vp^&ajitmann and Major-Genernl Stolietelf ' t'i> fehere AH, fwWi certain missives slsq from that potentate. General Stolieieff was (te^ puted to act as agent • iv J!iiii©,.*Jßl?», : when the European issue was, still uncertain. . Much sarcasm has beeh directed against Lord Lytton's Orientalisms of tho earthern " [)ipkin" and the " two iron pots " ; but the Russian General ihust be pronounced his superior in magniloquence of style. Stolieteff visited the Ameer in Cabul, and after his return wrote to the Afghan Foreign Minister. The following, letter — I quote in part—bears date October, 1878. It is not possible it can have been written without. . knowledge of the Berlin Treaty :— " The great Emperor' is a. true' friend --of the . Afneerjs; ajpd of Afghanistan, and his Majesty, will do whatever he may think necessary. Of course you have not forgotten what I told you, that the affairs of kingdoms are .like a. country which has many mountains, valleys, and rivers." One who sits ort fi high- mountain can see these things well. By the power and order of God there is no empire equal .to thqt.pf -our great Emperor. May God make' f his life' long. Therefore, whatever our Government advises you, you shouUl give car to it. I tell you the truth, that our Government is- as wiso as n serpent and as harmless as a dovo. There are many things which you cannot understand, but our Government understands them all. It often happens that a thing which is unpleasant at first is regarded a3 a blessing afterwards. IX ow, my kind friend, , I inform you that the enemy of your famous religion wants to make peace with you through the Kaisar (Sultan) of Turkey. Therefore you should look to your brothers who live on the other side of the rivar. If God stirs them up, and* gives tho qword of fight into their hands, -then go oh the name of God (Bismilla)-; otherwise you should be as a serpent ;' make peace openly, and in secret prepare for war ; and when God reveals His order to you, declare yourself. It will be well when tho envoy of your enemy wants to enter the country if you send an able emissary, possessing the tongue of a serpent and full of deceit, to tho enemy's country, so that he may with sweet words perplex the enenty'stinind,. and induce him to givo up the intention of fighting with you." Such is the pith of the Russian advice. Other letters follow, several from Shore AH protesting ugainst the English mission, asking Russian aid. General Stolieteff meantime had gone back to Eurppe. In December, 1878, Shore Ali proposed' to go himself to Sfeo Peters--burg. He issued a firman to certain of his nobles, and himself quotes as. 1 Jf%yin*rbjleired - from Stcilioteff, " who was with "the Emperor in Livadia," the following letter : — "The Emperor considers you as a brother, and you also, who are on -theother flido of the water, must display , the same sense of friendship and brother! hood. The English Government is ' anxious to come to terms with you through the intervention of the Sultan, , and wishes you to take his advice and counsel; but the Emperor's desire \i& that you should not admit the English into your country ; and, like last year, you are to treat them with deceit and deception until tho present cold season passes away, then the Almighty's wMI be

made manifest to you, that is to say the [Russian) Government having repeated, the* Bjsmillah, most assuredly will come . to your-; assistance. In short, you are to rest assured-dliat. affairs will end well. K God permits', we will convene a Government meeting at St. Pctqraburff,that is t ) say, a Congress, w.h;cK mean's an assemblage qf powers. We will then open an official" discussion with the English Government, and eithor by force of words and diplomatic action we will entirely cut off all English -convvi munication with interference witih Afghanistan for ever, or else events will ond in a mighty and important war. By the help of God, by spring not a 83»mj>t6m or vestige of trouble or cliasatLsfaction.wfiHajemaiu iij Afghanistan. " Thp. characteristic features' of th,e correspondence are best seen in these extracts* There is also apprehended a a copy of a treaty said to be negotiated by Stolieteff with jjhere AH — an imperfect copy, however, and written down from memo/y/ Whatever different interpretations may "be put upon the' language of who found him-s«lf-*n a position front which he, was compelled to recede by the force of facts, there oary no jpuger be a shadow ofr doubt as to the Hu'ssian ' design, neither can there be much question as to. ..the wisdom of the; 'ssrpflu^ " djß; .played^ by these agents.