Letter No.596 of 1870 from Colonel Sir William Lockyer Merewether, The Commissioner in Sind, Commissioner's Office, Kurrachee [Karāchi] to His Excellency the Right Honorable Sir William Robert Seymour Vesey Fitzgerald, Governor and President in Council, Bombay [‎138v] (28/34)

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not meet with my approval. To style such at
tacks is simply to abandon all idea of subordina
tion, and it is with great astonishment I find
ari officer of Colonel Phayre's long standing in
the army should venture on making use of such
an expression. It has nowhere been stated
that Colonel Phayre addressed the Khan in an
improper manner. Had he done so, it would
have been immediately noticed. His letters to
me about the Khan are not a very dift'erent
matter—they are the chief question in point—
and as being most unjust to that Sovereign, as
well as showing intentions towards him con
trary to those approved by Government, they
called for my marked disapproval. The quota
tion from Sir Henry Green's, Sir Bartle Frere's,
and Lord Elphinstone's letters, all refer to a
totally different state of affairs from the present.
And I can scarcely conceive they are adduced
as reason for following a different line of con
duct to what I have demonstrated, as the only
one which should now be adopted towards His
Highness the Khan.
55. This is hardly to be brought about, by
preventing the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. reporting freely,
and certainly does not appear likely to be ad
vanced by the attitude towards the Khan Co
lonel Phayre has shown throughout he himself
would assume,
56. I distinctly maintain that there is nothino-
* o
that has occurred on the Frontier since Colonel
Phayre came to it in August 1868, to show
that secret, and persevering thwarting has been
adopted by the Khan. All the latter s proceedings
have been most open, and frank, and there has
been nothing in this way to point that lie de
served the imputations which Colonel Phayre
that I court the fullest possible Investigation
into everything. I have in this letter showed
pretty clearly what the tone regarding Khelat
affairs was before I arrived, and in all my letters
to the Khan, it will be seen that I have been
studiously courteous, because I always felt that
he knew no better, and that I might lead a
man of his stamp by kindness and manage
ment. My official letters however to Govern
ment about the Khan are a very different matter,
even in those, however, I have never used such
strong language as found in the letters pro
duced in this correspondence. Indeed, I believe
that Major Henry Green addressed his letter
dated 30th April 18G0 to the Khan during your
own incumbency at Jacobabad as Political Su
perintendent, and if so, the whole records scarce
ly show more complete interference than that
letter does. I never spoke to the Khan in such
terms as the following—" A British Officer is not
" placed in my position merely for the purpose
<£ of protecting you against injury from your
" own subjects caused by your own mis-govern-
*' ment. The friendship of one individual is of
" little service to the British Government, but
" that of a contented and well governed country
" is of the utmost service." Sir Bartle Frere and
Lord Elphinstone also both wrote about the
Khan as a " worthless character," and really in
the face of all this evidence now before us, very
little can be said in his favor, and therefore the
greater the necessity of managing him with
great care.
55. My sole object in all that I have done
has been to force the Khelat Government to
report everything fully, and bring it to the test of
the light. There never can be real improve
ment and progress in a country, so long as acts
of oppression, injustice, or discontent remain
concealed.
56. Another point that I determined to op
pose directly I found it out—first in the case of
the Sirdars Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. on their march to Khelat; then
Political Superintend- with regard to my last year's
ent's report No. 1838, . • i ., r
dated 29th December arrangements with the Mur-
rees and Boogtees, and fi
nally in many instances brought forward in this
correspondence, is, as General Jacob has