Affghans, heavily armed, gradually drew near, and seemed to be forming a circle round the spot. This was noticed by Captain Laurence, who suggested that, as the conference was of a secret nature, they should be ordered to a distance. Akbar Khan answered that it was of no importance, for that they were all in the secret. Presently, however, he grasped the left hand of the Envoy, while Sultan Jan seized his right; and a fierce struggle ensuing, Akbar Khan drew a pistol and shot Sir William dead. This cruel action appears to have been prompted by the dread of his escape, and the excitement of the moment, for it would have been better policy to secure him as a hostage. The body, however, was instantly seized by the fanatic Ghazees, who cut it in pieces, and exposed the head to the people in the great bazaar. Captain Trevor also fell into their hands, and was murdered on the spot; but other chiefs caused Laurence and Mackenzie to mount on horseback, and conveyed them to Cabul, protecting them even at the hazard of their own lives. They were there thrown into a fort, where the multitude made furious attempts to break in and put them to death. The troops forming the Envoy's escort, only sixteen in number, ran away as soon as danger became apparent, with the exception of one man, who was immediately cut down.
After this dreadful scene, it might have been expected that all the generous feelings of the troops would have been roused; that they would have been impelled to some deed of decisive and desperate valour; but we are informed by Lieutenant Eyre[1] that the intelligence, "instead of rousing our leaders to instant action, seemed to paralyse their faculties; and although it was evident that our Envoy had been basely entrapped, if not actually murdered before our very gate, and though even now crowds of Affghans, horse and foot, were seen passing and re-passing to and fro in hostile array between Mahommed's fort and the place of meeting, not a gun
- ↑ "Military Operations at Cabul."
