with, that the country had now no leaders, and must of necessity be split up into a number of opposing factions, he, without a moments hesitation, seized the opportunity, and in spite of the heavy snow on the pass, 10,000 feet in height, which separated him from Chitral, marched with 3,000 men into that country.

The Chitralis at first opposed this Pathan force. They had always looked upon the Pathans as their hereditary enemies, and had on many previous occasions resisted invasions by them. Had they now had any leader to keep them together, and to encourage them, the Chitralis would have been able to repulse the invaders. Could the British have supported them in their resistance, as Lieutenant Gurdon did with a few men in one of the preliminary skirmishes, they would have gained heart, and, with the spirit which they are capable of showing when once they are fairly aroused, would have beaten back Umra Khan's men; but Amir-ul-Mulk, their would-be leader, was incapable of exercising authority. He had not been recognised by the British officers as Mehtar, and it was doubtful whether he ever would be; and his hope lay therefore more with Umra Khan than with the British, and the British officers were unable to support the Chitralis in a quarrel of their own with this neighbouring chief without the direct instructions of their Government.

The resistance of the Chitralis therefore collapsed, Umra Khan succeeded in capturing Kila Drosh, the principal fort on the southern frontier of Chitral, and this he immediately commenced to strengthen, so as to form of it a firm "pied-à-terre" on Chitral territory. And just as affairs had taken this unfavourable turn, just when the Chitralis were divided and leaderless, when their country had an invader in its midst, once more appears upon the scene that evil spirit of Chitral and persevering aspirant for its throne, Sher Afzul. Scarcely more than two years previously he had killed one Mehtar, ruled the country for a month, and then been ousted by the elder brother, and now, after a further sojourn of two years in Afghan territory, in a confinement which the Amir of Kabul had most solemnly declared to the Government of India would be permanent, so that he might never again be allowed to disturb the peace of Chitral, he was allowed to escape from Afghan territory and join Umra Khan at Drosh in the latter half of February.

Mr. Robertson did not receive reliable information of his arrival in Chitral territory until the 24th of February, when he at once entered into communication with him. On the 27th of February, Mr. Robertson received from Sher Afzul a demand that he should go back to Mastuj at once. Sher Afzul promised to be friends with the Government on the same terms as previous Mehtars of Chitral, that is to say, that he was to receive subsidies from the Government, but that no British officer should reside in the country. But his promise was coupled with the threat that if his terms were not accepted, Umra Khan would at once advance. The two princes had, in fact, made an alliance, the basis of which was really hostility to the British Government. They were to induce or force the British officers from Chitral territory, and after that had been effected, they could then decide who should rule the country, one thing only being certain, that whoever should be the nominal Mehtar, Umra Khan would be the ruler practically. Mr. Robertson replied to Sher Afzul that the Maharajah of Kashmir was the Suzerain of Chitral, and that neither Umra Khan nor any one else could impose a Mehtar on Chitral without the permission of the Government; he added that Sher Afzul was wanting in respect to the Government of India, that he was informing the Government of Sher Afzul's demands, and would communicate their instructions to him, and that if in the meantime he attempted any overt act of hostility, he must take the consequences on his own head.

At the end of February, the Chitralis were still holding a position a dozen miles below Chitral, and Umra Khan was rapidly completing his preparations for the defence of Kila Drosh against an attack from the Chitralis, which he believed to be imminent. A few Chitralis of the lower class had gone over to Sher Afzul, but the principal men, though suspected of being partisans of Sher Afzul, did not openly defect. Suddenly, however, they now changed their minds and went over in a body to Sher Afzul. In that versatile and impulsive way so characteristic of them, they turned completely round, and, in place of joining the British and opposing Umra Khan, they now, under the impression that Umra Khan was the stronger, because the nearer power, and that the British were the weaker, because the more distant, joined the Pathan chief, and came surging on in a wave towards the fort of Chitral, which Mr. Robertson, with the escort of 400 men, which he had brought with him, had now occupied.

Amir-ul-Mulk had been deposed and was under the custody of the British officers, and Mr. Robertson had formally recognised Shuja-ul-Mulk, an intelligent, trustworthy little boy, nine or ten years old, as provisional Mehtar of Chitral, pending the orders of the Government of India.

On the 3rd of March, the combined Chitrali and Pathan forces appeared before Chitral, an action took place in which one British officer was mortally wounded, and another severely wounded, in which a General and a Major and twenty-one non-commissioned officers and sepoys of the Kashmir Infantry were killed, and twenty-eight wounded. The British force was then shut up within the walls of the fort, and no further news of them reached the Government of India for many weeks to come.

Information of the serious turn which affairs had taken in Chitral was received by the Government on the 7th of March, and they immediately decided that preliminary arrangements should be undertaken, in order to be prepared if necessary to operate against Umra Khan from the direction of Peshawur. It was believed that the garrison in the Chitral fort could resist an attack from Umra Khan and Sher Afzul's forces, and hold out as long as their ammunition and supplies lasted; but as communications were all interrupted, and as retreat was cut off, it appeared imperative that no effort should be spared to effect their relief by the end of April, if the investment was not otherwise removed before that date. On the 14th of March, in order that Umra Khan might have distinct notice of the decision to which the Government of India had thus come, a final letter of admonition was sent to him recounting the various warnings given to him against interfering with Chitral affairs, mentioning his various acts of aggression, directing him to at once quit Chitral territory, and telling him that if by the 1st of April he had not withdrawn, the Government of India would compel him to do so. The letter went on to say that the Government were making fresh preparations to send forward their forces for that purpose, and that he would only have himself to blame for any evil results that might fall upon him. At the same time a proclamation in the following terms was issued :—

To all the people of Swat and the people in Bajaur who do not side with Umra Khan.

Be it known to you, and any other persons concerned, that—

Umra Khan, the Chief of Jandul, in spite of his often repeated assurances of friendship to the British Government, and regardless of frequent warnings to refrain from interfering with the affairs of Chitral, which is a protected state under the suzerainty of Kashmir, has forcibly entered the Chitral valley, and attacked the Chitrali people.

The Government of India