ive alliance
with the British Government; the interposition of Lord Northbrook's
Government on behalf of Yakub Khan;[1] the recent proceedings in
Khelat,[2] which the Amir thought were bringing us objectionably near
Kandahar; the transmission of presents through Afghanistan, to his
vassal, the Mir of Wakhan, without the Amir's permission;[3] and,
above all, the conviction that our policy was exclusively directed to
the furtherance of British interests without any thought for those of
Afghanistan.

As regarded the proposed Mission to Kabul, the Envoy said that His
Highness objected to it for many reasons. Owing to local fanaticism,
he could not insure its safety, and it seemed probable that, though of
a temporary nature to begin with, it might only be the thin end of the
wedge, ending in the establishment of a permanent Resident, as at the
courts of the Native Rulers in India. Furthermore, the Amir conceived
that, if he consented to this Mission, the Russians would insist upon
their right to send a similar one, and finally, he feared a British
Envoy might bring his influence to bear in favour of the release of
his son, Yakub Khan, with whom his relations were as strained as ever.

In answer, the Viceroy enumerated the concessions he was prepared to
make, and the conditions upon which alone he would consent to them;
and this answer the agent was directed to communicate to the Amir.

The concessions were as follows:

(1) That the friends and enemies of either State should be those of
the other.

(2) That, in the event of unprovoked aggression upon Afghanistan
from without, assistance should be afforded in men, money, and arms;
and also that to strengthen the Amir against such aggression, the
British Government was willing to fortify Herat and other points on
the frontier, and, if desired, to lend officers to discipline the
army.

(3) That Abdulla Jan should be recognized as the Amir's successor to
the exclusion of any other aspirant; and that the question of
material aid in support of such recognition should be discussed by
the Plenipotentiaries.

(4) That a yearly subsidy should be paid to the Amir on the
following conditions:

That he should refrain from external aggression or provocation of
his neighbours, and from entering into external relations without
our knowledge.

That he should decline all communication with Russia, and refer
her agents to us.

T