THE UMBALLA DURBAR.
[BY AN EYE-WITNESS.]
THE commencement of Lord Mayo's Indian career has been auspicious. Sir John Lawrence passed the last months of his Viceroyalty under a cloud of impending famine. Prices were rising ; the new crops were burned up ; a financial deficit had, for the third year, to be announced during a period of profound peace ; a wild tribe was burning our tea factories on the eastern border, and the policy which the old Viceroy had clung to with all his iron will upon the Punjab frontier had produced no visible result. Whatever a dauntless front and a rare knowledge of the country could do, he accomplished ; but the heavens were against him, and all that could be hoped for was, by a heavy expenditure of public money, to stimulate the distribution of the existing stores of grain, and so to equalize the pressure over the whole of India, and prevent it from reaching, in any particular province, the point at which scarcity amounts to starvation. But scarcely had Earl Mayo landed than rain came, the country turned from a vast brick. field into a greensward, the peasantry more slowly realized the fact that they were not all to die during the approaching summer, and the vernacular papers, hitting the popular feeling, surnamed the new Viceroy Mayo the Lucky. Soon afterwards, the Finance Minister, by a dexterous stroke, made good the deficit, raising the taxation under the guise of equalizing its incidence, and the selfish clamour of those whom he forced to bear their fair share of the national burdens fell flat upon a rural population happy in its deliverance from famine. Meanwhile, the commotions on the eastern frontier subsided as mysteriously as they had sprung up. The marauding chieftain was reported to be dead ; his mother declared she was sorry he had done so much mischief, and sent in presents of fresh-laid eggs and chickens. The expedition, therefore, came abruptly to an end after several weeks' excellent snipeshooting. Some heroic blood was shed by the marsh leeches, and the troops returned covered with honourable mosquito-bites, and laden with captive multitudes of cocks and hens. Calcutta had a week's laughter over the matter, but after all, the frontier had become quiet with the least expenditure of money or men, and this is the most that can be hoped for in our present state of ignorance about these wild tribes.
Meanwhile, in the extreme north-west, Sir John Lawrence's frontier policy was bearing tardy fruit. Opinions may differ as to the extreme caution which marked that policy, but there can be no doubt that its effect has been to convince the Princes of Central Asia that a British alliance is a thing to be courted and earnestly sought after, not to be cheaply offered to the first corner. The Amir or King of Cabool, the greatest of the potentates who
remain between the Russian and the English dominions in the East, has for some time been trying to make up his mind on the point. Sir John Lawrence's immovable reticence had taught him that if he was ever to receive more from us than casual and somewhat contemptuous assistance in money, he must make a hearty and bond fide advance. It is an object to us to raise up and maiatain a breakwater between our frontier and the Russian provinces, but it is much more an object to the King of Cabool to be selected and supported for that purpose. More than once he has been on the point of coining to India to obtain a treaty. His arrival would have been the fruition of the policy on which Sir John Lawrence had staked his fame, and it was believed that last year the Viceroy lingered at Simla, expecting to hear of the Amir's setting out, and was willing to march to the British frontier to meet him. But the actual meeting was destined to form part of that legacy of good government and reputation which Sir John Lawrence bequeathed to his successor. On the 27th of March, Lord Mayo, on his route to Simla, and without going a step out of his way, found the King of Cabool waiting for him at a military station in the Punjab, and held what will be known in history as the Umballa Durbar.
The meeting took place near the centre of a magnificent plain, about ten miles in circumference, intersected towards the southern extremity by the railway and Grand Trunk road, dotted towards the other end with ,great wells for the troops, worked by bullocks and the old-fashioned Persian wheel ; the Himalayas rising in the far distant background, and walling out the heavens and the earth on the north. The southern half was surrounded by the camps of the regiments assembled for the ceremony, the eastern side being lined with the trim new barracks, which will do more than all the Army apothecaries to solve the question as to how English troops may be enabled to stand the Indian climate. About three hundred yards to the north of a road, running east and west across the centre of the plain, was pitched the Viceregal pavilion. From this a broad street of tents stretched southwards, on either side were lesser streets and lanes of canvas, and to the right and left of these the Viceroy's bodyguard, and a mixed multitude of mounted messengers, tent-builders, sutlers, and hangers-on, of various races and costumes. To the right of the Viceregal camp was the Lieutenant-Governor of the Punjab's, on the left that of the Commander-in-Chief, both arranged on the same plan of a grand central street, flanked by lesser alleys on either side. Seen from a distance, the whole looked like a vast white city, laid out in parallel streets, with high-pointed roofs ; tall flagstaffs displaying the British banner before the doors of the English chiefs; in one quarter a little forest of bright lanceheads with fluttering pennons belonging to the bodyguard ; in another the 'Viceregal elephants, about fifty in number, towering with their housings of scarlet and cloth of gold above the tents ; everywhere the ,glitter of the sentry's bayonet ; staff officers in cocked-hat and cockade galloping up and down ; and military groups in red and buff and tartan, mingled with dark green riflemen and civilians in their diplomatic blue and gold.
Each of the native chiefs had a camp of his own. As the Durbar was intended to be as specially as possible for the Amir, . any great gathering of the Sikh nobles was avoided, and only half a dozen, the county gentlemen of the neighbourhood so to speak, were invited. One of them rode into camp with a little retinue of 2,500 men, another brought 1,200, and their camps were thronged by travelling merchants, musicians, priests, devotees, and every sort of hanger-on. It was amusing to notice how alert they were to notice and imitate the customs of the English enc.unpmeut. In the morning, no sooner had the English bugles sounded, than there arose on all sides a series of gasping and uncertain trumpetings. When the gun fired at 12 o'clock, each of the Sikh chiefs let off a cannon on his own account ; one of them, who prided himself on a very big piece of ordnance, keeping his discharge to the last, in order to reduce all the rival reports to insignificance.
On Saturday morning, the 27th of March, the 16,000 troops assembled at timbale turned out under the full moon, and at 7,30 a.m. the Viceregal procession passed from the Railway Station, through two miles of armed men, to the camp. Behind rode the civil and military officers of the Government in long array, Sikh chiefs, Afghan nobles, Mussuluaans, and Hindoos, a vast train of Asiatics, speaking a dozen different dialects, and representing the remnants of as many independent nationalities. The Viceregal bodyguard and Hussars led the way. As the cortege passed along the broad street of the Camp the various regiments struck up "God Save the Queen," and the horse artillery fired a royal salute. In front of the Viceregal pavilion stood the Cameron Highlanders, with their bagpipes and colours, a wall of ,green and steel. As they presented arms, Lord Mayo alighted from his horse, Lady Mayo's party stepped down from their carriages, a few native chiefs, arrayed in violet, green, and aalmon-coloured silks, dismounted and were presented, and the first ceremony of the Durbar was over. The second took place at 5 p.m. of the same day. This was the Thurber itself. From the Viceroy's camp to the house which had been fitted up for the Amir the road was lined with horse, foot, and artillery, which presented arms, lowered colours, and struck up music as the royal guest passed. Between the Viceroy's pavi lion and the flagstaff, round which flowering shrubs had been placed, a guard of honour from the 79th Highlanders was drawn up, and picked men in scarlet robes _laced with gold, and holding
gilt or silver clubs in their bands, lined the passage from the door of the tent to the Durbar room. Inside English officers and natives of rank were arranged An two broad semicircles, a clear passage being left from the door to the dais at the other en,Coil which were three chairs of state. As each of the Sikh chiefs alighted under his jealously counted salute from the.artillery, a civilian in full uniform .advanced to the door andled him to his seat. .Sometimes two stepped .forward and brought the guest forward by both hands, and it was amusing to watch the _sheepish look this process gave to men who could transfer provinces of husbandmen into swordsmen by a word. In this way Malin Kotla advanced his huge bulk ; itIppartlaala, faithful in the mutiny ; the head of the loyal house of Pattiala ; Jheend jealous of Nablia, and Nabha jealous of Jheend. At 5 o'clock Lord Mayo entered and took his seat on the throne chair ; a few minutes afterwards the Amir and his little son descended under a royal salute ; the Viceroy .met them at the door, and conducted the father by his hand to the seat of honour on his right, while Sir Donald McLeod placed the boy in a lesser chair on the left.
The Atnir is a tall, rough highlander of fifty, with a Jewish countenance, and much shaggy hair about his face. His dress was of the quiet, dust-coloured stuff in which the Affghan nobles delight, almost shabby to look at, but of a fineness that is only made for the royal house of Cabool. A very slight binding of gold lace, so slight as to be almost invisible, formed its only ornament, and his contempt for the costly decorations worn by the Indian nobility found frequent expression. "The men here wear jewels ; with us the women do." A cap of Astrakan fur and plain leather-seabbarded scimetar completed the dress. His manners were cold. Like an Asiatic, he seemed to take little notice of what was going on, but in reality watched everything. On a barrack being shown to him, he said it was as fine as his palace ; but on being told that /100,000, had been paid for it, he added, "How much finer than my palace must be the house of the builder !" There was a curious mixture of roughness and .natural refinement in his sayings and doings. On the Viceroy's remarking that he was glad to be able to review his troops before such a connoisseur, he at once replied, "That it would require a connoisseur to appreciate such troops." But, on the other hand, when introduced to a party of English ladies, he stared at them for a minute, and then turning gravely to the husband of one of them, .researked, " Ah! I see our customs are the same. You also leave the pretty ones at home." The criticism was fortunately altogether inapplicable to the group in question, and so lost its sting. But the roughness of the mountaineer came out most strongly in his followers. . During the Durbar they scratched their persons with genuine highland vigour, and every evening parties,of them eat upon the wall which separated their garden from the Mall catching flier, and commenting upon the beauty and fashion of TJuaballa as it whirled past. As far as the mere spectacle went, the Durbar was a great success. More than one generation of officials has come and gone since the Governor-General of India received a royal and independent guest. On his right, were the Cabool Embassy and theSikh nobles ; on his left, the English -rulers of dependent provinces and the Council which administer the Empire,--Sir Donald McLeod, of the Panjtab ; Sir William Muir, of the North-West; Sir Henry Durand, the Foreign Minister ; Mr. Strachey, Home Minister ; Sir Richard Temple, Minister of Finance ; Sir William Mansfield, Commander-in-Chief in India ; Lord Napier of Magdala, sitting further down as commander-in-Chief in Bombay, and a hundred others whose names, although little known in England, are words of weight in the East. Of the main body of the assemblage it need only be said that they were the flower of that generation of Englishmen which won bark India twelve years ago. The .Darbar opened by Lord Mayo uttering two or three Ben' teitces of amity and congratulation, which soon declined into' miscellaneous conversation. No business could be .done before 01 many people, the English Viceroy had to find all the talk? and drifted into a variety of subjects, such as the difficulty of breed good horses, the tartans of the Scotch clans, and the promising, appearance of the young prince. To a compliment on tins sublet' Le Amir replied, "At -all events, he has the making of a man bout him." The presents consisted of inlaid rifles, priceless ennies,—the gifts of princes to the British Government,—English
ewellery, plate, clocks, in all fifty-one trays, valued at about ten j thousand pounds, and a little stud of Arabian horses, who
whinnied and reared outside the tent, to the delight of the Amir and the discomfiture of the grooms. The return visit took place on Monday morning, March 29, when the Amir sat in a pavilion which the Government had erected for him, and received the Viceroy. The assembly consisted of the same officers and chiefs who had composed the Viceregal Durbar, and it formed a curious testimony to the reliance which the Princes of Central Asia put in British good faith, to see the Afghan King, who had been accustomed to nothing but violence and treachery all his life, surrounded by nothing but British uniforms, and with not a single troop of his own within a , month's march. The conversation on this occasion somewhat hung fire, until it fortunately fell upon the weather, a subject in which both Englishman and Afghan felt equally at home. At the close, the Amir stood up, and with an air of nobility unbuckled his sword and placed it in the Viceroy's hands. The case was plain black leather, the hilt plain ivory, but the blade had been an heirloom for generations in the royal family, and is variously valued at from /700 to /1,500. No other presents were publicly given by the Amir; they would have contrasted painfully with the magnificent gifts of the preceding Saturday, but they were the best that a poor country like Cabool could send. They consisted of furs, woollen fabrics, curious chintzes, mules, and dromedaries. A portion of them, it is said, will be sent home to the South Kensington Museum.
After the public Darbars were over the private meetings began. The exact nature of what followed is not yet known, but it seems -that at first the Amir avoided any expression of opinion, in order to compel the overtures to come from our side. For this Lord Mayo was fully prepared. He had refused to march to the frontier, or indeed to go a step out of his way to meet the Amir, and he now made that potentate understand that if he was to get anything, it must be by distinctly asking for it. The Muir then -changed his position, and from asking nothing, began to ask too much. By degrees an arrangement was come to and accurately defined, but its nature has not yet transpired. It is known, however that no treaty has been granted, and no British troops are to cross the passes to Cabool. But the Amir bitterly and publicly complained that our custom of hastily acknowledging de facto kings was a constant source of rebellion and disaffection in his kingdom. Every pretender fancied that he had only to win a battle and seize the palace in order to be acknowledged as king by the British Government. This, therefore, is to be remedied, and as the Amine the King legally appointed by his father, and also the actual King bystrength of arms, he is henceforth to be acknowledged de facto and de fare, and whichever of his sons he may nominate will be acknowledged by the British Government as his lawful successor. These are the two great points he has gained, points at -which it had scarcely been suspected that the shoe pinched. Any actual assistance in money or arms is to be left to the discretion of the British Government, and the Amir seems to think that with 'his exclusive title fully acknowledged there will not be much need of further aid. He, on the other hand, is to repress Persia, who has been annexing his territories during the late civil wars, to keep the tribes between Afghanistan and the Panjab frontier in -order, and to put in order and keep up the great trade routes to Central Asia. He publicly expresses his absence of any fears of Russia, and so fares has transpired, nothing was said of that power an the negotiations. It is perhaps better that our object should be attained, and a strong, legitimate, and grateful power raised up between the two European rivals in Asia, without any direct reference to the end the British Government had in view.
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