At the Court of the Amîr: A NarrativeGray, John Alfred
History
At the Court of the Amîr: A Narrative
Gray, John Alfred
'Abd al-Rahman Khan, Amir of Afghanistan, -1901; Afghanistan -- History
The Durbar in Haibuk. “Rustom’s throne.” The ancient caves. The
wounded Governor: Kabul dentistry. The Amîr and the sketches:
His Highness’ joke. Another Durbar: the Amîr’s prescription. The
erring Hakim. Courtesy of His Highness. “Microbes.” Illness.
Elephant riding. A grateful peasant. Dangerous passes. The Durbar
at Shush-Bûrjah: the hot river. Accidents on the “Tooth-Breaker.”
Akrab-Abad. The quarrel of the cooks: the result. The camp of the
camels. A pet dog. Pushed over the edge. Evil results of “temper.”
Kindness of Amîr. A cheap banquet. Coal. Arrival of Englishmen.
Durbar at Kalai Kasi. The Amîr again as a physician. Approach to
Kabul. Reception by the Princes. The “High garden.” The Pavilion.
Malek the Page. Arrival of the Amîr: greeting of the Princes. The
Reception. Arrival at the Workshops. Hospitality.
We remained in Haibuk for nearly a fortnight, the army being camped
on the mountain. I sat all day in the stifling tent drinking iced
water and reading Shakespeare. At intervals during the day, sick and
injured people were brought and I attended to them. But those wretched
“microbes” that I had swallowed in my fever on the plains began to work
their wicked will on me, and I became ill.
[Sidenote: Durbar in Haibuk.]
Four days after we arrived His Highness held a Durbar. After I had seen
my patients I mounted the bay and rode through the town to where His
Highness was sitting. This was in a rather large garden attached to a
house. There were some big trees and a good many flowers in the garden.
Among the latter, I remember noticing the “Fleur de Lys,” or French
lily. A pond or tank, supplied by an irrigation channel, was in the
garden, and near it sat His Highness on a couch covered with silk and
cloth of gold. The couch was shaded by a large red and white awning.
The Courtiers and Pages stood near, and all around were cornfields. I
had taken with me a catalogue of revolvers from a London firm (Colt’s)
that His Highness had asked me, with the help of the Armenian, to
translate. When he had examined the translation he spoke of the city of
Haibuk, and explained how he intended to fortify it, and how the water
supply would be ensured. He told me there was a remarkable ancient
monument near Haibuk, and some ancient caves of considerable interest.
He advised my riding out to see them, as they were not very far from
the town. Lunch was brought, and afterwards His Highness gave me a
plateful of nectarines as big as peaches.
I rode out the next day with the Armenian and some others, to see the
ancient monument.
[Sidenote: Rustom’s Throne.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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