[45] There were special reasons for the mutual hatred of these two
brothers. One of the Amir's wives was a lady of the royal family of
Sadozai, who, when the decline of that dynasty commenced, had attracted
the attention of Sultan Mohammed Khan, and a correspondence took place
between them. She prepared to leave Kabul to be married to him, when the
Amir, who was also smitten with her charms, forcibly seized her and
compelled her to become his wife. This at once created, and has ever
since maintained, a fatal animosity between the brothers; and Sultan
Mohammed Khan has often been heard to say, that nothing would afford him
greater pleasure, even at breathing his last, than to drink the blood of
the Amir. Such is the nature of the brotherly feeling now existing
between them.--See _Life of Dost Mohammed Khan_, vol. i. p. 222, 223.
[46] _Sale's Brigade in Afghanistan._ By the Rev. G.R. GLEIG.