icult to extricate himself
without still further sacrificing his honour.

An instance of this occurred in December, 1898. The mission school
athletic sports were in progress in the mission compound, and the
political officers of the Tochi and Wano were engaged not far off
in a jirgah of the representatives of the Mahsud and Darwesh Khel
sections of the Wazirs. Suddenly the cry was raised, "The Wazirs have
attacked us!" and for a short time all was confusion. Wazirs were seen
rushing pell-mell into school, bungalow, and other buildings, and a
great part of the spectators who had gathered to see the sports fled
in confusion. It transpired, however, that, so far from the Wazirs
desiring to do us any injury, they were the Mahsuds in flight from
the Darwesh Khels, who were hot in pursuit, chasing them even into the
mission buildings where they had sought refuge. The council had been
proceeding satisfactorily, and with apparently amicable relations on
both sides, when a Darwesh Khel malik, in the excitement of debate,
gesticulated too close to the seat of the Political Officer. A Mahsud
orderly, thinking he was disrespectful to the officer, pushed him back
with needless force, so that the malik slipped and fell. The Darwesh
Khels round him at once set on the orderly, saying he had done it of
malice prepense, and began to beat him. In another moment the whole
assembly were frantically attacking each other; but the Mahsuds,
being very decidedly in the minority, found safety in flight, and,
our mission compound being the nearest rallying-place, had come down
upon us in this unceremonious manner, with the Darwesh Khels in hot
pursuit. Fortunately, no serious injury resulted, and both parties
were soon laughing at their own foolish hot-headedness.

Bluff is a very prominent characteristic of the Afghan, and this makes
him appear more formidable than he really is to those who are not
acquainted with his character. He is also a great bully and exults in
cruelty, so that he becomes a veritable tyrant to those who have fallen
into his power or are overawed by his bluff. At the same time, he has
a profound reverence for the personification of power or brute force,
and becomes a loyal and devoted follower of those whom he believes to
be his superiors. It is often asked of me whether I carry a revolver
or other arms when travelling about among these wild tribes. For a
missionary to do so would not only be fatal to his chance of success,