I
A BDURRAHMÁN , the Durani Khan, to the Ghilzaie Chief wrote he:
" God has made me Amir of the Afghans, but thou on thy hills art free.
" I rule by the sword and signet, I care not to flatter or bribe;
" I take nor fee nor tribute of the noble Ghilzaie tribe;
" Nor pledge nor promise I ask of thee; I pardon, if all men know
" That thy heart has been hard against me, and thy friend has been my foe.
" For the sons of Sher Ali are exiles, their best men broken or fled,
" And those who escaped are homeless, and all whom I found are dead.
" Such is the work of the Merciful, whose will is to smite or to save;
" It is He gives wealth and vengeance, or tears o'er a bloodstained grave.
" Now, while the swords are a moment still, ere ever fresh blood shall run,
" I look for a wise man's counsel, and I would that Afghans were one.
" From Merv, last home of the free-lance, the clansmen are scattering far,
" And the Turkman horses are harnessed to the guns of the Russian Czar.
" So choose thou of all my liegemen, or choose thou of all my host,
" One true man, loyal-hearted, whomever thou trustest most,
" Whom thy tribe has known and honoured, to bring thee in safety and peace;
" Thou shalt ride unscathed to Kabul, and the feud of our lives shall cease. "
II
The Ghilzaie Chief wrote answer — " Our paths are narrow and steep,
" The sun burns fierce in the valleys, and the snow-fed streams run deep;
" The fords of the Kabul river are watched by the Afreedee;
" We harried his folk last springtide, and he keeps good memory.
" High stands thy Kabul citadel, where many have room and rest;
" The Amirs give welcome entry, but they speed not a parting guest;
" So a stranger needs safe escort, and the oath of a valiant friend;
" Whom shall I choose of those I know? whom ask the Amir to send?
" Wilt thou send the Vazir, Noor Ahmed, the man whom the Ghilzaies trust?
" He has long lain lost in a dungeon, his true bold heart is dust.
" Wilt thou send the Jamsheedee Ága, who was called from the western plain?
" He left the black tents of his horsemen, and he led them never again.
" Shall I ask for the Moollah, in Ghuzni to whom all Afghans rise?
" He was bid last year to thy banqueting — his soul is in Paradise.
" Where is the chief Faizulla, to pledge me the word of his clan?
" He is far from his pine-clad highlands, and the vineyards of Kohistan:
" He is gone with the rest — all vanished; he passed through thy citadel gate;
" Will they come now, these I have chosen? I watch for their faces and wait;
" For the night-shade falls over Kabul, and dark is the downward track,
" And the guardian hills ring an echo of voices that warn me back;
" Let the Ghilzaie bide on his mountain, and depart, as thy message has said,
" When but one sure friend the Amir shall send, — when the tombs give up their dead. "
A BDURRAHMÁN , the Durani Khan, to the Ghilzaie Chief wrote he:
" God has made me Amir of the Afghans, but thou on thy hills art free.
" I rule by the sword and signet, I care not to flatter or bribe;
" I take nor fee nor tribute of the noble Ghilzaie tribe;
" Nor pledge nor promise I ask of thee; I pardon, if all men know
" That thy heart has been hard against me, and thy friend has been my foe.
" For the sons of Sher Ali are exiles, their best men broken or fled,
" And those who escaped are homeless, and all whom I found are dead.
" Such is the work of the Merciful, whose will is to smite or to save;
" It is He gives wealth and vengeance, or tears o'er a bloodstained grave.
" Now, while the swords are a moment still, ere ever fresh blood shall run,
" I look for a wise man's counsel, and I would that Afghans were one.
" From Merv, last home of the free-lance, the clansmen are scattering far,
" And the Turkman horses are harnessed to the guns of the Russian Czar.
" So choose thou of all my liegemen, or choose thou of all my host,
" One true man, loyal-hearted, whomever thou trustest most,
" Whom thy tribe has known and honoured, to bring thee in safety and peace;
" Thou shalt ride unscathed to Kabul, and the feud of our lives shall cease. "
II
The Ghilzaie Chief wrote answer — " Our paths are narrow and steep,
" The sun burns fierce in the valleys, and the snow-fed streams run deep;
" The fords of the Kabul river are watched by the Afreedee;
" We harried his folk last springtide, and he keeps good memory.
" High stands thy Kabul citadel, where many have room and rest;
" The Amirs give welcome entry, but they speed not a parting guest;
" So a stranger needs safe escort, and the oath of a valiant friend;
" Whom shall I choose of those I know? whom ask the Amir to send?
" Wilt thou send the Vazir, Noor Ahmed, the man whom the Ghilzaies trust?
" He has long lain lost in a dungeon, his true bold heart is dust.
" Wilt thou send the Jamsheedee Ága, who was called from the western plain?
" He left the black tents of his horsemen, and he led them never again.
" Shall I ask for the Moollah, in Ghuzni to whom all Afghans rise?
" He was bid last year to thy banqueting — his soul is in Paradise.
" Where is the chief Faizulla, to pledge me the word of his clan?
" He is far from his pine-clad highlands, and the vineyards of Kohistan:
" He is gone with the rest — all vanished; he passed through thy citadel gate;
" Will they come now, these I have chosen? I watch for their faces and wait;
" For the night-shade falls over Kabul, and dark is the downward track,
" And the guardian hills ring an echo of voices that warn me back;
" Let the Ghilzaie bide on his mountain, and depart, as thy message has said,
" When but one sure friend the Amir shall send, — when the tombs give up their dead. "