'Report of Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Edward Stewart, Bengal Staff Corps, on Special Duty on the Perso-Afghan Frontier.' [‎129r] (13/80)

living in Persia, and had refused to join Ayub Khan, had written to him, begging him
to throw in his lot with the party of Amir Abdur Rahman Khan against Ayub Khan.
To add to these reasons for joining Abdul Kudus Khan, news was received in Herat
about this period of the utter defeat of Ayub Khan by the Amir, near Kandahar, and
that the prince with his army was in full flight. I am not quite certain that the news
of Ayiib Khan’s defeat had reached Tiwarah at the moment of Abdul Kudus Khan’s
arrival there, but the probability is that it had. These reasons were quite sufficient
to induce Abdul Wahab Khan, after a mere show of resistance, to join Abdul Kudus
Khan. Sardar Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. Abdul Kudus Khan, thus reinforced, marched towards Obeh, and at a
place called Hissar, between Tiwarah and Obeh, a serious fight took place between
the troops of Abdul Kudus Khan and some troops who had hurriedly been sent out
from Herat to oppose him. Abdul Salam Khan, a distant cousin and violent partisan
of Ayub Khan, was wounded in eleven places, taken prisoner, and sent to Ishak
Khan in Turkistan, and by him forwarded on to the Amir at Kabul. This man, after
recovering from his wounds, was ordered by the Amir to leave Afghanistan, and arrived
at Mashad while I was there, in August 1882, where he held forth to all who would
listen to him on the atrocities committed by the English in Kabul. His stories were
purely imaginary. He seems to have had a very vivid imagination, and he certainly
gave it rein, and unfortunately was believed in Mashad, even by people who should
have known better.
Though an effort was made to keep the defeat of Ayub Khan secret as long as
possible at Herat, it soon became known, and when, after the fight near Obeh, Abdul
Kudus Khan appeared before Herat, the gates were thrown open and he was invited
to enter. The Loweh Naib, Khu?hdil Khan, with Musa Jan, the young son of Amir
Yakub Khan, fled direct to Mashad, finding that all opposition to Abdul Kudus Khan
was hopeless. Sardar Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. Ayub Khan was near Farrah, on his way to Herat, when he
heard that the town had been captured by his enemies. He collected all the money
he could, and fled, via Anardara, to Gazik and Tabbas Sunikhaneh, two places on the
Afghan border, in the Kaian district of Persia. Here he remained for some time,
until pressure was brought to bear upon him by the Persian Government to move on
to Mashad. He marched up by the frontier road from Tabbas Sunikhaneh to Khaf,
where he arrived on the 17th December.
For a long time the position of Abdul Kudus Khan at Herat was a very dangerous
one. He had no troops beyond one weak regiment of infantry and two guns which
had arrived under Sardar Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. Mohsin Khan from Turkistan, and four troops of irregular
cavalry which had originally started with him from Mazar-i-Sherif. Besides these
troops he had a large body of irregular horsemen supplied him by the Taymuny and
Hazara tribes, but these men were not to be trusted. He had also some Herat!
troops who had deserted to him from Ayub Khan, but the only troops in whom he
could put confidence were those that had come from Turkistan. The very name of
Afghan is hateful to all Heratis, and though the nomads of Herat had helped him to
oust the partisans of Ayub Khan, they were not trustworthy, and if Ayub Khan had
appeared before Herat, it is probable that a large number of Firuz Kuhis and others
would have joined him. The Amir lost a great deal of time before he reinforced
Sardar Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. Abdul Kudus Khan with Afghan troops from Kandahar, and even when they
were sent, there was considerable delay at Farrah, because Sardar Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. Muhammad
Yusuf Khan, the uncle of the Amir, wished to be Governor of Herat, and to go on
there with the troops which he had brought on as far as Farrah, of which place he was
appointed Governor. Sardar Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. Moshin Khan, the brother of Sardar Leader of a tribe or a polity; also refers to a military rank or title given to a commander of an army or division. Ishak Khan, who
had come to Herat from Turkistan, was also disgusted at not being appointed
Governor of Herat, and went off to Kandahar, to try to press his claims on the
Amir. While all this confusion was reigning at Herat, Ayub Khan was living close
to the Persian frontier, and intriguing with his followers on the Afghan side of the
border. When I arrived at Khuf, things were still in a very critical state at Herat,
and it was most urgent that Ayub Khan should be got away to Mashad, and there is
no doubt my presence did considerably hasten the carrying out ol the orders which
had been sent by the Persian Government for-his proceeding to Mai-had, but which
orders Ayub Khan was very much inclined to disobey, and the Persian Governors
of the border were not at all in a hurry to carry out the directions of the central
Government, except in a most leisurely manner.
Abdul Kudus Khan, knowing his weakness, did all in his power to conciliate the
Heratis. He assembled the merchants and traders, and said to them, “ I wish to rule
you justly, and 1 am “ answerable to God that there shall be no oppression.” From
his Herati regiments he weeded out all the old and worn-out men, and enlisted a number
8062 . D