THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1911. A GALLANT END.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10483, 21 November 1911, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1911. A GALLANT END.

There is little one can. respect in tine character of the ex-Shah, of Persia., but ho found at feast one man who served him .well, so well that one begins to think that Mohammed Alii may have good qualities for which li(e Ilia's .not been given cnedit. This •man wiaa Ajishad-el-DowMi, whose death was chronicled in a short cahllte Message published a couple of months ago. The Taheraai correspondent of The Times was. with Arshad in. Ms 'last hours, anid gives a very-'interesting description of tine dbrtitude with which he mat his end. Arshad had accompanied tiki exShah into exife, and when the attempt was made to recover thle throne, was his commaudea'-in-chdef. Forty miles from. Teheran, the invading force was. scattered by a Government aarmy of inferior numbers, which, howevier, possessed a Maxim that, wrought havoc with the nerves of the enemy. Arshad was wtounided in the foot and taken prisoner. The who had known Arsllnad in the olid days, saw him when he wa«s brought into the camp at night. In aJI his adventures'east of Belgircidio, and they lha.ye bcoji many, lie caninot recall another sceuie of such, intensely painful dramatic Interest. AIL except Arshad knew tliat lie was to die in the morning, and he himself could have had very little hope for his life, but he and his captors played the game of politeness for two hours. Pride and caution prevented him asking about his fate, so that he sat at his ease, drinking tea and smoking, and conversing with his captors in the cora-

pjimoutaxy terms used in Persia. Behind th-a talkers, stood soilfclieo with rifles; occasionally tiheirte was a soft laugfli at a jest, "and once we all laughed- with ish.ee r relEief, as one might laugh at it-lie portar scene in '■Macbeth,' when an incautious, tribcc-ir.*'!!, in stepping backwards, ifell waist deep, into a; wartw tank." ArsOiad knew his only chance was ir.i. airfcrasing the. sympathy of bus ca.pto.rs, and ho bent all hisCDBiveirsataomvl' powers to that end. But beneath; his appamenit coolness, tluere was- tine nervousness of a main, not mre of Ms fate. Sweat cam)© on his foreihead. as. (he talked, and he lit cigarette after' cigarlette. In t3ue informing tfliey tcto j.i.m he must die. Wdth a isteady hand liie wrote a letter! tfcb' liis wife. Them he made a short .speech, declaring that in, aid he had done he ihad been actuated b? Jove of his country. The firing party cam© up, and hie- faced, it unfettered, without fear. When the rifles were raised he cried, "Long live my country. Fire!" A volley rang out and hie sank to his knees. "Long livte Mphiamtnied AH Shah!" he cried twice—them a second volley was fired, aoiid a'll) was, over. It was a ga.l<llaait end, -bait it w<t» a pity t3iat it was not in; a batten?-cajuse.