free; but there was not
quite enough for all, and the headmen went off to procure what was
required for the ransom of the remainder. Soon after dark, however,
some of the enemy[5] were discovered creeping up the banks of a nulla
at the back of the camp, where the unransomed men were detained under
a guard; the nearest sentry instantly fired, and the piquets all round
took up the firing, thinking that another attack on the camp had
commenced. At the sound of the first shot the prisoners all jumped to
their feet, and calling to each other to escape, attempted to seize
the rifles belonging to the guard, upon which the Native officer in
command (a Pathan like themselves) told them that if they persisted in
trying to escape, they would be shot. His words had no effect, and to
prevent his men being overpowered, he gave the order to fire. Six
of the prisoners were killed and thirteen wounded. It was a most
regrettable affair, but a Court of Inquiry decided that the Native
officer had no option, and completely exonerated the guard from
acting with undue severity. The wounded were, of course, taken to our
hospital, and well cared for by our Doctors.[6]

The remainder of our sojourn in Khost was not marked by any incident
of particular interest. We marched to the end of the valley, and made
a careful survey of it and of the surrounding hills.

The instructions I received with regard to Khost were, to occupy the
valley and dislodge the Afghan administration therefrom. To my great
chagrin, the smallness of my force made it impossible for me to give
effect to these instructions as I could have wished. To have remained
in Khost under the circumstances would have been to court disaster;
the numbers of the enemy were daily increasing, and it would have been
impossible to hold our own. It was, however, of great importance, if
practicable, to retain some control over the valley, a peculiarly
productive district, which, if left alone by us, I feared would become
a centre of dangerous intrigue against any settled government in
Kuram. Accordingly I determined to try how placing Khost in charge of
one of our own Native officials would answer, and I selected for the
position Shahzada Sultan Jan, a Saddozai gentleman of good birth, and
a Sunni Mahomedan in religion, who, I thought, would be a _persona
grata_ to the Khostwals, and, if supported by some Native levies, and
associated in his administrative duties with the chief _maliks_ of
Khost