Amir Abdur Rahman, on one of the occasions when he favoured me with remarks on political affairs, told me he had received a letter from one of his spies in Russia, and he would read it to me. His object in doing so, of course, was not that he wished me to keep the information to myself, but I was leaving for India the following day, and it was a matter the Amir could not very well make the occasion of a letter to the Indian Government. The spy wrote that he had it from a Russian official in high authority that his Government intended, so long as Amir Abdur Rahman lived, to leave Afghanistan untouched, but that after his death they would seize it; and when the Amir had read this to me he remarked that if it was true that such was their intention, although he would be dead when they endeavoured to take his country, it was, nevertheless, a matter of importance to him, for he had for many years been striving to unite and raise his country to such position that it could hold its own among the nations and remain always an independent kingdom, and if at the time of his death his object might not be altogether accomplished, still, what he had done would form a foundation on which it was his greatest desire that his sons and their descendants would build the wall which was to keep the country intact and prevent foreign aggression. On all occasions when Amir Abdur Rahman spoke to me on such matters he showed that he had the good of his country at heart, and at times he even shed tears when he reflected on his failure to imbue the whole of his people with his ambitions, and that all his efforts, even punishing and killing to the extent he had done, failed to induce them to forego those habits which prevented the union and strength he prayed for. On the occasion mentioned above, the Amir threw some light on his aversion to having railways in Afghanistan. He said he had powerful neighbours on both sides of him. Each power was anxious to extend their railways into his country, and, failing that, they were always trying to persuade him to construct them himself for the benefit and improvement of his people. But supposing he did as they wanted and laid railways over his country, then they would point out that unless his system communicated with theirs they would be of little advantage to him, and he himself could see that too. And then if he joined up his railways with one power, the other power would claim a like concession and he would have to give it to risk friction and war, and yet England as his ally would expect to be the only one so favoured. Therefore, he said, it is better that the country should go without railways, however much it loses in its trade and development by so doing.