feldom accompanied with bloodshed, nor is it inimical to any sect of strangers. The foreign and native merchants, enjoy at Kabul an ample protection, and maintain their rights with a spirit, rarely feen in a Mahometan country. Capital punishments are feldom inflicted, and though the kinfmen of the Prince have formed frequent confpiracies against the state, his hands are not stained with the blood of his family. Such are the virtues of Timur Shah, which were exemplified in various instances, during my refidence at his capital. The ruling vice of this prince is avarice; from a dread of the fierce and untractable spirit of the Afghans, its effects are not severely felt in the collection of the territorial revenue; but it preffes hard on the foldiery and houshold fervants; on artificers, and on those merchants who unwarily vend their wares to the court without prompt payment. The facts, however defultory, that have been adduced, do not warrant the opinion that Timur Shah is an object of dread to the bordering states, or that he is justly entitled, the comet of the east, who we have been taught to believe, will at fome unexpected moment, shoot across the Indus and the Ganges, and confume even our remote province of Eengal.

THE chief strength of the Afghan prince, I prefume to say, is derived from the weakness and difcord of his neighbours. Were the Sicque chiefs not more apprehensive of a domestic increasing influence, than defirous of fubduing a conftitutional enemy, they would, it may be fairly inferred, speedily extinguish the Afghan

government

government in India; and should the Perfian force be thrown into a body, under the conduct of an able leader, it is not only probable, that the difmembered divifion of Khorafan would revert to its ancient poffeffors, but that the Afghans would again feel a foreign yoke. With an earnest apology for this long letter, I remain,

Yours, &c.

VOL. II.

M

LET

LETTER XIV.

DEAR SIR,

HAVING in vain endeavoured to procure

payment of my defaced bill, I fold it at half price to Bagdafir, my Georgian hoft, who agreed to abide by the chance of obtaining the full amount. God forgive me for doubting the integrity of my Chriftian hoft; but, fome obfcure parts of the negociation, and the exorbitant prices, charged upon fundry articles which I purchased from him, induced me to believe, that he had not played me fair. To throw rafh blame on a man, who had rendered me such effential offices of humanity, and who, is cut off from every help of vindication, were a breach of one of the grand bonds of fociety. Nor had this fufpicion been communicated, did it not lead to fubftantiate an observation I have often made; that a man, though devoted to the ftrict obfervance of the minutest ceremony of his religion, with a mind oftenfibly fixed on objects lying beyond mortality, who, like the Georgian, loudly chants his morning and evening prayers, and on his beads, numbers a long lift of martyred faints, fhall at the M 2 íame

fame time, eagerly grafp at every advantage, which our world holds out to him; nor fhall he give even farthings to the poor. This covering has happily in the civilized world, become threadbare and flimfy, and except in fanatic conventicles, is feldom exhibited with fuccefs.

HAVING made the requifite preparations for my journey, and hired one fide of a camel, on which a pannier was fufpended for my accommodation, I joined a party proceeding to Kandahar.

ON the first September, at Killah Kazzee, the remains of a fort, three furfungs* diftant from Kabul. This being a kafilah of camels, which in Afghanistan and Perfia, are usually driven in the night, that the heat of the day and the effects of thirst, may be less felt, we departed on the evening of the 22d, and early next morning halted on a barren plain, five furfungs. The road lay through scattered hills of a moderate height, and a country thinly cultivated.

Ir is neceffary to inform you, that I now appeared in the character of a Chriftian, conformably to the counfel of Bagdafir, who had confidently affured me that no rifque would be incurred under fuch description; and, he expatiated also on the grievous fin of throwing out any falfe colours on the fcore of religion. But it

* Throughout this quarter of Afghanistan and all the dominion of Perfia, the land measurement is calculated by furfungs, which may be roundly computed, at four English miles. In fome of the ancient authors, this measurement is termed parasang, agreeably to the alphabet of the old Perfic in which the letter F is not contained.

was