Of the moral attributes of the Afridis few people have found much to say in praise. Mackeson wrote of them: “The Afridis are a most avaricious race, desperately fond of money. Their fidelity is measured by the length of the purse of the seducer, and they transfer their obedience and support from one party to another of their own clansmen, according to the comparative liberality of the donation.” Elphinstone, generally ready enough to record anything good of Afghans, said of the Afridis: “On the whole they are the greatest robbers among the Afghans, and, I imagine, have no faith or sense of honour; for I never heard of anybody hiring an escort of Khaiberis to secure his passage through their country—a step which always ensures a traveller’s safety in the lands of any other tribe.” MacGregor considers this estimate harsh, but that furnished by the same authority is hardly more flattering: “A ruthless, cowardly robber—a cold-blooded treacherous murderer; brought up from his earliest childhood amid scenes of appalling treachery and merciless revenge, nothing has changed him; as he has lived—a shameless, cruel savage—so he dies. And it would seem that, notwithstanding his long intercourse with us, and the fact that large numbers have been and are in our service, and must have learnt in some way what faith, justice and mercy mean, yet the Afridi is no better than in the days of his father.” Against these adverse testimonies, however, there is the opinion of Sir Robert Warburton, who spent eighteen years in their midst and who wrote of them: “The Afridi lad from his earliest childhood is taught by the circumstances of his existence and life to distrust all mankind, and very often his near relations, heirs to his small plot of land by inheritance, are his deadliest enemies. Distrust of all mankind, and readiness to strike the first blow for the safety of his own life, have therefore become the maxims of the Afridi. If you can overcome this mistrust, and be kind in words to him, he will repay you by great devotion, and he will put up with any punishment you like to give him except abuse. It took me years to get through this thick crust of mistrust, but what was the after-result? For upwards of fifteen years I went about unarmed amongst these people. My camp, wherever it happened to be pitched, was always guarded and protected by them. The deadliest enemies of the Khyber range, with a long record of blood-feuds, dropped those feuds for the time being when in my camp. Property was always safe.... Time after time have the Afridi elders and jirgahs supported me even against their own Maliks.” [Sidenote: Warburton’s Opinion]