mask for political intrigue, the Amír argued that a great power which sought his friendship would be ready to grant him some favour in return. Burnes believed that his latest instructions from Lord Auckland had placed 'a vast latitude' in his hands. He had received many proofs of the Amír's sincerity, and been flattered by the frank and cordial bearing of a prince whom he justly regarded as the foremost Afghán of his day. Burnes saw in Dost Muhammad the 'one strong man in a blatant land,' the ruler whose masterful sway over an unruly people gave sure pledge of his power to guard the main outworks of our Indian Empire towards the west. So firm was his belief in the Amír's assurances, that he took upon himself to offer the Kandahár chiefs three lakhs of rupees if they would cease from further dealings with the Court of Teherán.
If the forward policy preached at this time from London and Teherán was the only way to counteract Russian intrigues, Lord Auckland's Government ought to have smiled upon their agent's mode of strengthening the Amír's hands against Persia at no great cost to the Indian Treasury. A strong government beyond the Kháibar would have formed an efficient barrier against Russian diplomacy and Persian arms. A little more of the pressure which had just been applied to the 'old man of Lahore,' would have induced him to yield up his costly and troublesome conquest of Pesháwar, if not to the Amír of Kábul, at any rate to the Amír's brother, Sultán Muhammad. Lord
