1 a vizier's daughter - Hazara.net

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A VIZIER’S DAUGHTER – A TALE OF THE HAZARA WAR
all Gaur; that he was the most able, none would have thought of
disputing. What easier, then, that to make himself chief? But he need
not even do that, for he need not reveal his designs till the last
moment. If, as he suspected, the Ameer meant to amalgamate the two
countries, he would do it coute que coute; what were the lives of a few
hundred soldiers to him? He would not hesitate to declare war, and, if
war were made, there was but one resu lt possible : the Hazaras would
he massacred and carried off into slaver y, and their country would he
confiscated. The only conceivable plan for saving his people was this
alliance, with the clear understanding, of course, that Gul Begum’s son
should succeed as Sultan of the Hazaras; this must he made quite clear;
that was, in fact, essential, or the Hazaras would no longer be an
independent people, and what could he easier or more suitable?
The only difficult y lay in the fact that he was not the chief and had no
business to place his daughter on the throne. No, he had no right, but
what of right? Had the Ameer any right to intrigue to take a free
country? Certainly he had none, but Ghulam Hossain had some right.
He was himself a Hazara, the grandson of a Hazara chief, and
furthermore, his marrying his daughter to a Kabul prince on condition
that her son should succeed to the sultanate would save many lives,
perhaps the freedom of the whole country. It was all quite justifiable.
But suppose Gul Begum had no children; a distinct difficult y came in
there. What, however, was the use of meeting troubles half way, and of
taking such an unfortunate contingency into account ? Of course she
would have children. Gul Begum, young, healthy, active, supple, -
why, of course she would; that possibilit y need not be taken into
consideration at all. And so, having settled all this in his mind, he went
off to arrange about his ponies for the journey. He would take a
servant, too, and a pack pony. He would not go as a beggar but as a
chief; a chief about to make a political alliance with another, and, he
was bound to own, more powerful chief. And his wife! She had
begrudged him a change of clothes, had thought his old ones good
enough to go to Kabul in! a fine idea that when he was going to make
such an arrangement as would make her the grandmother of the future
Sultan; and he smiled to himself as he passed from one pony to
another, and had their blankets removed , so that he might inspect their
backs; and with such thoughts as these he started at daybreak the
following day but one.
He was wearing the barak leggings Gul Begum had made him; the
leather ones were among his clothes on the pack animal, where, also,
there were the new garments he had required. For two nights no
member of his family had gone to bed.
CHAPTER VI
CUCKOOS AND HEDGE SPARROWS