The Afghan Question.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume II, Issue 182, 14 August 1888, Page 3

The Afghan Question.

MR STEAD INTERVIEWS GENERA ANNENKOFF. PARTITION OF AFGHANISTAN. When’ at St Petersburg Mr Stead, of the Pall Mall Gazette, had an interview with General Annenkoff, who is known as the Russian Lesseps. PERSONAL TRAITS. General Annenkoff is very like Lord Wolseley in size, age, and personal appear, ance. He speaks English very well, interlarding it now and then with French. He wore his General’s uniform, spurs included, which must be a bore to an active engineer. All the gendarmes who do duty as police at the railway stations wear spurs in Russia, an arrangement that was probably devised as a melancholy satire upon the speed (!) of the Russian railways. General Annenkoff is a man of energy and decision, a kind of Napoleon of railway making. There are not many men of his initial velocity in the world, and in Russia there are hardly any. General Ignatieff is in politics what General Annenkoff is in engineering, and they have nearly 120,000,000 of their fellow subjects to serve as foils.

THE RUSSIAN POLICY. • The conversation was mainly on the Russian policy in Central Asia. The General said : “ lam the best friend that England has, I assure you. Our interests in Central Asia are exactly the same, and the more business there is done the better. There is no opposition of interests between us. For we are so different. But, ” said General Annenkoff to me with emphasis, “we must partition Afghanistan. Of that there is no doubt. I had Captain Yate and Mr Peacock staying with me at Tchardjui for some days, and we discussed the question.” “No, thanks,” said I: “personally I have no objection if you take the whole, but I object very much to take any for ourselves. At London they object equally to allow you to take it or to take it themselves.” “But why not ?” “ Because we have been twice in Afghanistan, and each time we were glad to get out. We have no wish to go a third time. Once bit twice shy ; we have been twice bit.” “ But that is all nonsense. You will have to go, whether you like it or not. And why not ? You are already in Beloochiston ; it is all the same. Yon have your railway at Quetta. You push it on to Pishin, You will soon bavo to make it run to Candahar. It is all simple and easy. Then from Can. dahar to the Russian frontier there will be only two stages. I can make the branch to Herat from. Merv. You will join us there with your line, coming from Candahar, and then the thing is done. And when the railway is made there will be no more quarrels between England and Russia in Central Asia.” . “ Russia,” said I “ has many railway junc* tion with Austrian railways, but the junctions do not preclude differences between Vienna and St Petersburg.’ 1 “ Because between Austria and Russia there are the questions of the Balkan outstanding to divide the Governments; but what, is there in Asia between England and Russia? Nothing. There are no questions left when once the railway is made. That abolishes the only difficulties; those of a frontier defended by Asiatics, not by Europeans. Believe me the railway is the tie that will link the two empires in friendship.”

“ For you it would be convenient; but for us I do not see the advantage.” General Annenkoff continued briskly : “It will come, it will come. Why object to our making the line to Herat ? It is quite simple, and you will’come and join us there. See,” said he, handing me several photographs of the works in progress along the Pishin-Sibi line, “ these were taken on the spot by my friend, a Russian, who is there examining the progress you are making.” “ With the knowledge of our authorities?” “Certainly. Why not?”