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CHAPTER XV.

Parade of all Troops in Sherpur-Strength of the Garrison-The Commencement of the December Operations-General Macpherson's Brigade at Aoshahr-General Baker's Flank March upon Maidan-The Jehad preached by Mushk-i-Alam-Strength of Mahomed Jan's Force-The Plan of Operations-Defeat of the Kohistanis at Kila Karez-General Macpherson starts for Argandeh-General Massy's March up the Chardeh Valley with the Guns and Cavalry--First Sight of Mahomed Jan's ArmyUnexpected Strength of the Afghans-The Action of December 11th in Chardeh -Loss of Four Guns and Repulse of the Cavalry-Defence of the Dehmazung Gorge by 200 of the 72nd Highlanders-Recovery of the Guns by Colonel Macgregor -Macpherson's Arrival at Debmazung-Attack on the Sherderwaza Picquet.

SHERPUR, 9th December. GENERAL BAKER'S Brigade returned to Sherpur a few days ago, and the result of his visit to Maidan is now visible in the large stacks of bhoosa and the bags of grain near the Commissariat Gate. Sir Michael Kennedy, Director-General of Transport, with a small party of officers has arrived from India on inspection duty and is now a guest of Sir Frederick Roberts. The ex-Amir is now well on his way to India, and the troops sent to strengthen the posts between Cabul and Jugdulluck have returned to quarters. So far no attempt has been made by the tribes on the Peshawur Road to rescue Yakub Khan, but there is much latent fanaticism about Cabul, and the moollahs, who always gave us so much trouble, may seize upon the deportation of the sovereign as a rallying-cry.

Yesterday a parade of all the available troops in garrison was held on the large maidan which lies to the north of the Bemaru hills, and extends to the borders of the narrow Wazirabad Lake at the foot of the southern Kohistan hills. No better place for a review of even 20,000 men could be desired, as the ground is very level, and is covered with short grass, which prevents dust accumulating. The nominal object of the parade was to present four men of the 72nd Highlanders with medals for distinguished

A Parade of Troops.

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service at the storming of the Peiwar Kotal last December.* There were 4,710 men and twenty guns on the ground. The guns were twelve 9-pounders, belonging to F-A and G-3, and eight 7-pounders of the Mountain Batteries. The following table shows only the troops paraded; it was necessary, for the safety of the cantonment and the valuable stores now collected within its walls, that a strong guard should remain in Sherpur, and 100 men were detached from each infantry regiment for this work. In-lying picquets were posted, signallers with heliographic apparatus placed on the Bemaru Heights and over the Commissariat Gate (that nearest the city), and, to prevent any incendiarism being attempted, orders were given to refuse admission to all the Hazara coolies employed on the quarters until the parade was over. Our bhoosa stacks and wood-piles are so nearly completed now, that we cannot afford to let them be burnt down.

The following is the full strength of the troops drawn up for the Lieutenant-General's inspection :

KURRAM DIVISION, CABUL FIELD FORCE.

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* These were Sergeant-Instructor of Musketry Salmond, Sergeant Cox, Private McIveen

Total

and Private Bonar.

To these have to be added the Staff, which was made up as follows:

Commanding Cavalry Brigade Brigadier-General Massy; Brigade-Major-Lieutenant Brabazon: Orderly Officer-Lieutenant Hearsey.

Commanding 1st Infantry Brigade-- Brigadier-General Macpherson; Brigade-Major-Captain Guinness; Orderly OfficerCaptain Macgregor.

Commanding 2nd Infantry Brigade-Brigadier-General Baker; Brigade-Major-Captain Farwell; Orderly Officer-Lieutenant

Kane.

Commanding Royal Artillery-Lieutenant-Colonel Gordon; Officiating Adjutant-Lieutenant Allsopp.

The parade went off very successfully, and seemed to impress Sirdar Wali Mahomed Khan, Daoud Shah (the late Commanderin-Chief of the Afghan army), and other persons of importance who were present.

We mix work and play a good deal at Cabul: for scarcely had the parade ended than the more serious business of sending out a brigade into the Chardeh Valley was begun. In the afternoon the following troops, under the command of Brigadier-General Macpherson, left the cantonment and marched to Aoshahr, five miles due west of Sherpur:

6 companies 67th Foot;

7 companies 5th Ghoorkas;

550 of the 3rd Sikhs;

4 guns F-A, Royal Horse Artillery ;

4 guns No. 1 Mountain Battery;

1 squadron 9th Lancers;

2 squadrons 14th Bengal Lancers.

This movement is due to the gatherings in Koh-Daman and Maidan. The efforts of old Mushk-i-Alam, the Ghazni moollah, to raise a jehad have been so far successful, that Mahomed Jan has 5,000 men with him between Argandeh and Beni-Badam, on the Ghazni Boad. This would not have been of much consequence were it not that pressure had been brought to bear upon the local villagers, who were bringing in grain and bhoosa. In the Logar

Beginning of December Troubles.

187

Valley our Governor has been defied and the supplies which were pouring in from that district have almost entirely ceased. We still want about 15,000 maunds of wheat and 50,000 maunds of bhoosa, and as we are anxious to get it all in before the snow falls, it has been determined to attack the tribal bands and once more open the road. If our supplies were collected, we should probably have left Mahomed Jan alone until he had got a large force together, and then have gone out to meet him. General Macpherson has halted to-day at Aoshahr, as a plan has been carefully prepared by which it is hoped Mahomed Jan's "army" will be forced to fight. In the carrying out of this plan, two separate forces will be employed-the second brigade, under General Baker, being now at Charasia with secret orders. This force is made up as follows, and is a " flying column" in the true sense of the word :

450 of the 92nd Highlanders;

450 of the 5th Punjab Infantry;

5 troops of the 5th Punjab Cavalry;

4 guns of No. 2 Mountain Battery;

7th company Sappers and Miners (detachment with guncotton).

General Macpherson will to-morrow march up the Chardeh Valley and endeavour to get between the enemy and the road leading to the Unai Pass, so as to cut off their retreat towards Bamian. General Baker, moving in sympathy with the Chardeh Force, will leave Charasia and make a feint of going up the Logar Valley. This intention will be openly proclaimed; but, after leaving Charasia a few miles in rear, he will turn sharply to the south-west and throw himself across the Ghazni Road below BeniBadam, cutting off Mahomed Jan's retreat to Ghazni. The 5,000 men said to have assembled would then be practically encompassed about, and, being unable to run away, they would probably make a stout resistance. If General Macpherson can only keep them in play and get well above them in the Bamian direction, blinding them to the movements of the other column, we shall at last be able to punish the Ardal Pultan right smartly. Our information leads us to expect that Mahomed Jan will fight. He

14th

certainly held on to the heights above Cabul, even after we had
reached Beni Hissar on October 7th; and, perhaps, his courage
may be equal to again resisting us.
The detachment of so many
men has, of course, weakened the garrison of Sherpur, and the
Guides, Cavalry, and Infantry have been ordered up from Jugdul-
luck in consequence. They will probably arrive in a day or two.
The Kohistanis have not ventured to display further hostility to
us, but Mir Butcha still keeps about him a gathering of discon-
tented men, and may try to join Mahomed Jan at Maidan. Amid
all this tribal disturbance it is satisfactory to know that the Ghil-
zais, Lughmanis, Shinwaris, and Afridis on our line of communi-
cations with India are still quiet whether suspiciously so, I cannot
say. Beyond the cutting of the telegraph wire between Dakka and
Jellalabad occasionally, they seem to be on their best behaviour.

11th December.

The strategical move of two columns out of our cantonment here, to disperse Mahomed Jan's force, has had a most unexpected result. The enemy have beaten us at our own game-has outmanœuvred us-and, instead of Mahomed Jan being a fugitive, he is calmly occupying the peaks to the south of the Bala Hissar Ridge, and his standards are flying in sight of Cabul and all the country round. We have been complaining of want of excitement here lately, but to-day has given us more than our fill. I explained in my last letter that Brigadier Macpherson moved out, on Monday, to Kila Aoshahr, just through the Cabul gorge and at the eastern end of the Chardeh Valley; while Brigadier Baker, on the following day, marched to Charasia, and intended cutting off Mahomed Jan's retreat, on the Ghazni Road, at Maidan. Yesterday the force under General Macpherson left Kila Aoshahr at dawn; four guns of F-A, Boyal Horse Artillery, with an escort of two squadrons of cavalry, drawn from the 9th Lancers and the 14th Bengal Lancers, remaining on the camping-ground, with orders to check the retreat of the enemy if they turned towards Cabul. The infantry, with four mountain guns and a squadron of the 14th Bengal Lancers, under Colonel Ross, took the Kohistan Road, and finally gained the Surkh Kotal-a ridge running down from the Pughman Range, and dividing Chardeh from the Koh

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