ity having been required to yield him fealty, the Affghan
Chiefs present tendered their homage. The troops were marched back to
their lines immediately after, and a Durbar concluded the ceremonies of
the day.

It must not be imagined that during all this time our ever watchful
enemies had abated their vigilance or lost any opportunity of annoying
us. They did not dare to attack the camp, itself, precautionary measures
having been adopted to prevent their near approach, by stationing
inlying and outlying pickets round it. We were compelled, however, to
send our camels to graze at some distance from the encampment, and the
soldiers in charge of them were frequently surprised and driven in. On
one occasion a party of the 13th Light Infantry, consisting of a
serjeant and six privates, who had been entrusted with the care of from
fifteen to eighteen camels, fell asleep on their posts, being overcome
by the excessive heat, and the Affghans, stealing upon them whilst in
this state, put one man to death, and severely wounded two others, the
whole of the camels of course falling into their hands. The serjeant
escaped but was broken for neglect of duty.

Shortly after this occurrence, two of the marauders fell into our hands.
In order to put an end to, or diminish these vexatious losses it was
determined to make a terrible example of the prisoners, in the hope that
it would have some effect upon their companions. They were accordingly
tried by a court martial, composed of native officers, and sentenced to
be blown from the mouth of a gun. Having been led into the market-place
at Candahar, they were ordered to draw lots as to who should first
undergo this dreadful doom. The younger of the prisoners, a stripling of
about nineteen years of age, whose firm and gallant bearing excited
universal sympathy and admiration, responded to this command by at once
embracing the mouth of the gun from which he was instantly blown to
atoms. His companion, a grey-headed man, upwards of sixty years of age,
sat looking on, unmoved at this terrible scene, and coolly smoking his
hookah. On being ordered to take his place at the gun he did not exhibit
the least appearance of fear, and just as the match was about being
applied, the officer in command arrested it and directed the prisoner to
be taken away, the Shah influenced, it is said, by the entreaties of Sir
Alexander Burnes, having granted his pardon. This unexpected release
from the very jaws of