If it was intended that the Afghans should be used as a means of checking Russian aggression, it would no doubt be better that they were well supplied with the best modern arms; but on the other hand, there is always the chance of such arms being used against the English, for the Afghans look upon all who are not of their own country and religion as enemies, and it is unlikely that any existing treaty would be considered or have the effect of making them hesitate to take advantage of an occasion which gave them an opportunity for extending their country, or of benefiting themselves otherwise. When the border tribes rose and necessitated the Tirah campaign, the late Amir had some thousands of transport animals collected near Kabul, at the back of the mountains, and though a rising on his frontier no doubt necessitated precautionary measures in case his own interests were menaced, yet, had the British been driven beyond the Indus as was expected, and which was reported in the bazars as accomplished shortly after the rising started, the temptation to retake the Peshawar district would perhaps have been a powerful one, for that district is always claimed as part of the Afghan territory which was stolen from them by the British. Generally the sympathies of the people lie towards the justice and equality of the British rule, and this is due mostly to the stories related of the freedom of life in India by the people who have lived there; but the authorities deal severely with those who show a liking for the English, and as they fear to let any information of their doings reach the British Government, a spy truly or falsely convicted of reporting to the English is an offender, who is summarily and finally dealt with. The British agent in Kabul, and those with him, are little better than prisoners, for they see no one, and cannot themselves mix with the people, and have to confine their peregrinations to the boundaries of Kabul. All who are found visiting the British agent are imprisoned, and many hundreds have been killed merely on suspicion of giving him reports of the doings of the Government; and an Afghan spy, ostensibly doing a trade as a tea-seller, is stationed on the road opposite the gate of the agent’s house (the house lies a little back from the road) for the purpose of noting those who go there, and if any man passes even within a few yards of the gate, he is reported to the Kotwal; but the fear of the people of being seen anywhere near the house is now such that all give it a wide berth in passing by, and no man who values his life would dare to be seen talking to any of the agent’s men whom he met in the bazar.