The Press. — London, England, 1858-02-06 00:00:00

128 THE PRESS, FEBRUARY 6, 1858. rooms as full of the modern ki nd--dinner,tes, and breakfast services, and flower vases richly gilt and figured, belonging to the King of Oude, with the royal arms in the centre of the plates, Sze. These were evidently of English manu facture. I secured a few of those, hut china is not a safe thing to carry about in a march, and I doubt much whether it will survive to the end of the campaign. The rooms were so full that you could not take a step without smashing something under foot, and before the prize• agent came down you never saw such a wreck of vases, soup tureens, dishes, plates, ,cups and saucers, as was presented there. He tells of some curious escapes : You would scarcely credit the many wonderful escapes that people had. One man had his pillow torn in two while asleep by a round shot, which came through the wall of his sleeping room, without being hurt. Another round shot came into a room where several officers were sitting down at dinner, went betweeu them down the length of the table without touching anybody, and out at the other side. Another shot, after having taken eff a leg of one of the party, grazed an officer's sleeve, leaving its bloody mark behind it. It was not at all an unusual sight—a hat and coat perforated, or a pistol and a sword indented by a bullet. The wonder was, that after going through such fire as we did so many escaped, and not that so many were hit. God was with us, and he saved us.. . I sent in an application yesterday, according to form, for compensatioo for my horse shot under me on the ,:sth of September. What an escape that was for me I The round shot must have entered the poor brute's shoulder just in front of my left leg, and come nut behind my right. A little more—half another step in advance of my horse, and both my legs would have beer, carred off! What a mer ciful Providence there is in everything! Then, again, when the bullet passed through my riding boots without hurting me, another eighth of an inch and my bone would have been crushed. Often men have been knocked over right and lett or in front of me, sometimes while con versing with them or being engaged in the same service, and yet I have been miraculously saved. I heard of a wondetful escape this morning at breakfast. Brigadier Russell was riding about, when an ISlb. round shot struck the collar of his coat, carried it away, and his shirt collar and neckerchief, without inflicting further damage than a contusion. He was knocked down of course senseless, bat I believe is now all right again. He describes the general feeling of the villagers of Oude, so far as they can be accepted, to be in favour of our rule and against the rebels : My duties consist principally in talking to the ryots— villagers around—and endeavouring to persuade them to continue their avocations as usual, under our protection, and not desert their homes and villages from fear of us or our enemies. They say they wish to return, and feel quite safe under us, but that the sepoys and budruashes ( bad characters, not sepoys, who take up arms against us in different towns and villages) seize them and their goods by force, and detain them for taking their corn, &c., to us for sale, with threats of death and torture. Those I have spoken to, lay all their losses at the doors of the sepoys. At least so they declare before me, but I don't believe in their sincerity altogeiher. If they really wished to return and reopen dealings with us, and du as they say, confide in the strength of our protection, what is to prevent them ? When all returned they would be comparatively safe; but they are timid creatures, and until they see a force large enough to back our promises, will not venture to run away from their oppressors, in case of reverses on our side. Writing from the fort of Jellalahad, which we hold as an advanced post, he remarks : The crops, I am glad to see, are getting on very well, and cultivation is going on in must places, so I do not think there will be such a dearth as many anticipate. It is as much, or indeed far more, for the interest of all classes of the natives to preserve their crops, as fur ours At present there is hardly an enemy to be seen for miles round this place ; but villagers are picking their crops and attending to cultivation. They are returning by degrees to their burnt and plundered homes, and 1 never lose an opportunity in my morring walks through the neighbour ing villages to encourage them to return and reopen their bazaars, assuring them they will be well treated, and will receive the value of the articles they sell. They believe in our just dealing, I think. Their experience of us proves that we pay for what we get, and that Government sanctions no frauds in pillaging, and that if any complaint of wrong be brought before the proper authorities it will always be attended to. . . . In many cases we have been unavoidably obliged to burn and destroy villages en route of the army, and as unavoidably in such cases innocent and guilty both suffer; fir instance, any village concealing the enemy, providing supplies to the enemy, or where re sistance has been made to our troops, is sacrificed. Upon the whole, only one inference can be drawn from all this, and that is that the villagers are at the best passive, and supply either party with provisions and information as the case may be. The manner in which the gallant Neill met his death may not be generally known. He was riding through a narrow street urging on the troops, when he halted for a moment under a portico to listen to the shout of the 78th Highlanders as they gained the Residency. At this moment an officer passed by faint with his exertions. Neill pulled out a flask and handed it to him. While he was thus engaged a eunuch leaning over from the portico discharged his matchlock into the gallant hero's skull; he fell dead at once, the most daring, dashing spirit in the army. Among the passengers who arrived at Southamp ton on Tuesday morning, in the India mail.packet Cartsbo l was a widow lady with her two ohildroof Her husband was killed by the mutineers in India. She and others were saved by a friendly rajah, and through his connivance they passed through Oude on their way to Calcutta disguised as a native wed. ding party, and were completely shrouded from view by veils and other coverings, and travelled in a c art, according to the customs of such parties. One of this lady's children was born about the time of her escape. The rajah has since joined the mutineers. He protected the lady and children, as well as other refugees, for some time before he was able to pro. vide for their escape in the disguise they assurnhl. Another of the lady passengers on board the Colombo had a narrow escape. She and her husband, while flying from the upper country, were fired at re peatedly. The driver of the vehicle in which they escaped was killed, and a ball fired at them grazed the lady's finger; but although whole volleys of mus ketry were aimed at them, they received no serious injury. At one time the danger was so imminent that they were obliged to rush out of the vehicle and hide away. She left her husband iu India, fighting. Calcutta is very crowded with refugees, owing to the unwillingness of the wives of officers and others to come to England and leave their husbands iu danger in India. Many of the* ladies are almost forced out of India by their Irolibands. The passengers from Calcutta say that troops are very much wanted in India. Although a large number of soldiers are gone out, they are scattered about, and are at uo part in very great force. . - The. cotillion of the fugitives who are now coming into Calcutta appears to be most deplorable. A lady writing home, December 24th, says : There is a committee of ladies appointed to receive and look after distressed ladies and women from the Mo fussil. We have had ten large houses prepare.' fur them, and they have been constantly full. We have had to supply them with clothing and every requisite for comfort. Many come to Calcutta with only the rata they have on, and some in men's clothes, lent them on their way down. Some of these ladies ore in the most deplorable state of health, with constitutions ruined for life from their suffer- ings. We have hail large supplies of beautiful new cloth ing sent out from England fit distribution among them. The ladies and women from Lucknuw are daily expected, and we have prepared everythiiig for their comfortable reception. The storiea circulating about the garrison during their long and terrible trial ate most extraordinary. The sense of danger was so inten-e that after a titne they became callous to death. For 120 days they were con stantly under fire, and only four days passed without the loss of some of their number. More than half the Frith son were killed. The ladies now write down from Allah abed that the reaction and quiet of their present condition is almost as painful as the siege itself. The torpor of death seems to have crept over them, and all are giving way under it. Young brides of a few weeks are grown into aged, grey-haired widows, not to be recognised by those who saw them a few months ago. It seems that some of the men even, who went through the siege without suffering materially in health, have since sunk from the reaction. A Calcutta correspondent writes, on the 23rd of Dec , mber, that the sufferings of the Lucknow re fugees were especially painlul : I have just seen a letter from a lady delicately born and nurtured, accustomed to the highest society 01 England, who with her children endured the frightful time in Luck now. She writes :—" It was very hard work. I often lay down feeling as if nothing could rouse me again. We were literally starving—sometimes to make the others eat who could not swa►low the nau• eous food set f ire them. Our family allowance latierly was a teacuplul of rice, a few pounds of wheat, a little salt, and six ounces of gun bullock. Nothing was allowed for the children. I lost all sense of fe.r—death was so familiar—it was such rest to many weary souls. It was sad to see the poor children pining and ding, sometimes seven or eight buried in a single night." At a dinner of welcome given by the wealthy na• lives of Bombay to the European soldiers recently landed from England, Lord Elphinstone took the opportunity of reading something in the shape of a lesson to those who confound in one common ,dislike all classes of Indians. He affirmed " that, with very few exceptions, the revolt had been purely military, and that the great body of the people had nothing to do with it ;" that in Oude only had there been anything like a popular adhesion to their cause, whilst in Ruhilcund the feeling had been decidedly in our favour. He added that in Scinde, where those who owed us no good will, whose greatness had been extinguished by us, and whose power bad been re duced or nullified by our successes, the conduct of the mutineers and their associates had been viewed with disgust and indignation ; and he quoted words spoken by Shere Maliomed, one of the ex-Ameers of Scinde, to the effect " that this was not like meeting the English in the field, and that the fiends who murdered women and children deserved the punishment of Sodom and Gomorrah : These expressions Lord Elphitistone dwelt on with pleasure, because lie said he had heard that the professions now made by the natives of Bombay were considered in. sincere and hollow by some who believed that they should have been publioly made at an earlier period, when the symptoms of the re•estsidishment of our rule were less decided than they had sine. lissome. Against snob sew tintlati Lord filphilletollePQßSideTad ti hw duty to protest, river. This plan gave them too much liberty, for, as some chose to indulge in a roll and bath in the shallow water after their voyage, time was lost be fore the drivers could manage to lead them away. It was therefore found more convenient and expedi tious to lower each elephant into a barge alongside the ship, and to land him afterwards by hauling the barge the short distance to the shore : When about to be removed from the ship, each animal was brought under the main hatchway, the opening of which had of course been lengthened and widened so as to admit of their descent when they were embarked at Moulmein. Each elephant on board had a mahout, or driver, and a coolie, or servant, for feeding and cleaning him. To these men they had become accustomed, and were greatly subjected to their influence. The elephant's mahout, assisted by the Ballots, arranged a strong canvas sling, or girth, edged with strong rope, round the animal's carcase, and the tickle being adjusted, the huge fellow was slowly raised off his feet, and the ascent was commenced. One of the largest was said to weigh 3 tons 2i cwt. There was no opposi tion to the process of hoisting on the part of the ani mals, with one or two exceptions; indeed, for the most part they appeared anxious each to have his turn as soon as possible, for they had sagacity enough to understand it was the means of quitting the ship. as it had been the means of bringing them into it. There was great excite ment among the crowd on shore when the boatswain's whistle was heard directing the sailors at the capstan to hoist away, and as the fells or hoisting-ropes. which were connected with the main and mizen masts of the ship, became strained and tightened, presently the rough, inert looking mass of the animal's spine and back was seen above the deck ; then bait of the head, with which the animal from time to time prevented himself from being struck against the sides of the hatchway as he swung round on either side; the small sluggish eye, which seemed to be calmly surveying the surrounding scene ; the active proboscis, forming by its constant movements a remark able contrast with the rest of the passive frame; and, finally, after the crane-tackle had been connected, the whole creature came into view, dangling in the air, and sus pended by a couple of ropes which seemed like mere threads compared with the size of the animal which depended from them. He was then swung over the bul warks, and lowered into the batge alongside. It was amusing to observe the quiet way in which the animal avoided the blow when his feet or legs were likely to strike against the side of the ship, and the way in which he assisted in taking off the strain of the ropes and raising himself when being passed over the bulwarks to make his descent into the lighter. One is hardly led to anticipate much adroitness from inch a bulky creature, not merely on account of its size, but also because its dull-looking loose hide conceals, in a great degrt e, that evidence of life and passion which, in the horse, and most other animals, is so strongly marked by starting veins and the rapid mus cular movements of its whole body. As soon as the elephant was in the lighter, the mahout, who bad got down before him, at once jumped on his neck, and the animal immediately yielded himself to the direction of his accus tomed master. Sometimes he would appear a little ner vous, putting his trunk into the water to try its depth, with a view, perhaps, to ascertaining if it were possible to walk ashore ; but generally he began turning over some of the fresh grass placed in the bottom of the boat to divert his attention, and remained quiet until the boat was brought as near the ground of the dockyard as possible. Then at a signal from the mahout, after again leaning over and carefully testing the depth of water with his pro boscis, he slowly raised one huge foot over the boat's side, then the other, and in a few minutes he was on his way to the place where the rest of his companions were picketed. It is generally reported, says the Englishman, that the Nana Sahib has been taken prisoner. He was in disguise, but as he is so well known to many officers, his identity can be readily proved ; the two brothers should be sent down to Cslcutta. Several private letters of extreme interest have arrived by the last mail : we extract a few portions. One. officer, who accompanied Sir Cohn Campbell's force, writing from Alurnbagh, gives the following account of the loot in Lucknow : Our troops, on their entry into Lucknow for the relief, got an immense quantity of loot in the shape of precious stones and stuffs, the crown jewels among others, and a portion of these was secured by same soldiers. However, when it became known, a peremptory order was imme diately published by the general, calling upon men and officers to give up any loot in their possession, in default to subject themselves to trial by court-martial and dis missal from the service. He sail that as the prize-money, he hoped, was eventually to be divided among the troops, it would be unfair in any persons or individuals to appro priate any potion of the plunder, and thus detract from the value of the others' definite shares. The jewels alone are valued at fifty lacs of rupees, equal in English money to fstio,taßli. sterling. Then, in addition to this, were valuable shawls, gold and silver ornaments, ivory, weapons with jewelled handles and splendid scabbards, guns, pistols, tulwars (swords), curiosities of all kinds, and an immense assortment of niiscellane3us articles and china Some of the inferior articles were sold at prize auctions during the siege, and fetched fabulous prices, everybody was so anxious to take away with them some memento of Lucknow. The most valuable things were .taken away under escorts when we retreated, and many will eventually be sold in Calcutta. I have got a few things which, if I can manage to keep till all is quiet, I will send home. I never saw such a collection of china in my life et the largest shops at home as in Lucknow, and of such visite!). pad value. looms after rooms crammed with that splendid old china from large rases to small coffee cups; other