The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1858-04-06 00:00:00

SEPOY ATROCITIES.

A correspondent upon this subject, signing him-
self " The father of one of the Indian sufferera," writes
to the Times on Wednesday :—lt is most painful and
wounding to the feelings of those who have suffered no
cinch' through near relatives mid friends, from this
fearful mutiny in India to read and hear from time to
time that "there have been no mutilations of the vic-
tims of this horrid outbreak by the Sepoya." Now, as
the father of one who has suffered most deeply by this
scourge, having lost her husband at the very outset of
the revolt, shot down almost before her eyes by a set of
infuriated wretches, her house and everything belonging
to her destroyed, and only escaping with life, I must
contradict this mawkish assertion which some are trying
most industriously to spread, "that there are no muti-
lations of the Indian sufferers." My daughter wrote
some time ago "that it will never be known in England
the extent of the sufferings and misery and the fearful
deaths of the victims in India: some had their throats
cut with panes of glass, others fearfully mutilated,
others—women--suffered worse than death." I have
just had • letter from a friend this morning of which I
give you an extract :—" An old friend of ours has her
two oldest friends returned without noses or ears. She
says they are cheerful, but miserable objects, and their
sufferings were acute." This is only one out of many
statements which I have received, sadly confirming the
early letters received from India detailing the horrible
atrocities and mutilations which had been perpetrated
on innocent women and children by our deceitful and
treacherous Sepoys. The fact is, that these atrocities
have been so fearful and revolting that the sufferers
have hidden themselves from public gaze, rather than
let them be known. I hope more of your correspond-
ents will come forward and contradict by counter-state-
ments this anti-mutilation cry. March 26.
And " T.E.H." on Thursday writes further, in refer-
ence to these allegations :—lt is time that those who know
something of the real state of the case should each con-
tribute such facts as have mine under their actual
observation, tending to prove the falsity of thole would-
be philanthropists, who are endeavouring to slur over
the atrocities perpetrated during the Indian revolt with a
view to ahield the dastardly perpetrators from a righteous
punishment. lam myself a sufferer from the Indian
mutiny, having lost five of those nearest and dearest to
me, and only escaping myself by a miracle, having had
to walk upwards of 70 iniles through the Delhi district,
then in no very quiet state, without any covering save
and except a pair of white trouseri. It may, therefore,
perhaps be permitted ine to know something of what was
actually going on. Every one who was in the camp at Ali-
pore 35 miles from Delhi, on the sth of last June, ma
remember the trial of a aemindar for the rape and sub-
sequent mutilation of an English lady escaping from
Delhi. A native woman, instigated by jealousy, laid
information against.him in the first place, and subse-
quently others from the village came forward and proved
the charge. He had found her wandering in the fields
almost exhausted, she, poor girl, having walked nearly
40 miles under • burning sun—thermometerillo deg. in
the sun. He then stripped her and made her sit under
• tree in front of the village for all the villagers to stare
at, and after two hours of this torture, led her away to a
clump of trees, where, after enduring every indignity
which could be heaped upon a woman, she was murdered.
The brute, when brought before the Court, not only did
not deny the charge, but boasted of the manner in which
hehad slain the innocent. There is one case for you worthy
! of being bracketed with the first act of the baba-logue at
Meerut, where the first victim to the mutiny was Mn.
Chambers. A butcher tore her out of her carriage as
she was going to church, and, ripping her up, out her
babe's head off before her dimmed eyes. Many a resident
in Meerut can tell bow another lady, being missed, was
found, by • patrol of the 60th Rifles, stripped and hang-
ing by the punkah ropes in what had been her drawing
room. It is not to be expected that men should come
forward and show the dishonour oast on those most
cherished by the "mild Hindoo," and this is, perhaps,
the reason why it is so difficult to, obtain proof of what
is never doubted in India. Or, perhaps, the sufferers in
most instances did not survive the torture, and we can
hardly expect the natives of Hindostan to come forward
and criminate themselves.—March 31.
_ .

"E. E. C." on Friday says : In the column of your
paper there appeared this morning a letter on the sad
subject of the Sepoy atrocities, signed by "T. E. IL,"
which contains some statements that I feel bound to
contradict. I agree with your correspo ident "that it
is time that those who knew something of the real state
of the case should each contribute such facts as have
come under their actual observation tending to prove
the falsity of those would-be philanthropists who are
endeavouring to slur over those atrocities perpetrated
during the Indian revolt, with • view to shield the
dastardly perpetrators from a righteous punishment."
I admit the expediency and the justice of such a course;
but I must state my conviction that this end or object
which I myself as well as "P. E. H." have in view—
nay, even at heart--will be best attained by our ab-
staining from making any rash or reckless statements,
or mistakes as to names, which might hurt the feelings
of the relatives and friends of the poor victims and
martyrs of the Indian rebellion. Now, Sir, it is not the
fact that "A butcher tore Mrs. Chambers out of her
carriage as she was going to church, and, ripping
her up, cut her baby's head off before her dimmed eyes."
The truth is horrible enough. Mrs. Chambers
was shot immediately upon her attempting to
escape from her own house, then on fire. In addition
to this bullet wound she received three dreadful
sabre cuts on her head and neck. Any single
one of these wounds was sufficient to cause instant
death ; but with the exception of these wounds Mrs.
Chambers did not suffer any protracted pain, torture, or
' indignity. The cruel and cowardly murderer of that
helpless lady was not • Hindoo, but • fierce Mahomme-
dan. The Hindoo Sepoys of the 11th Bengal Native
Infantry (her husband's regiment) did not all mutiny, for
nearly 150 remained loyal to their officers. Ten or
twelve of these Hindoo Sepoys actually assisted in the
capture of the murderer, who was subsequently tried,
condemned, and hung. Some of them (men of high
caste, too) carried Mrs. Chambers' corpse to an adjoin-
ing house, where due preparations were made for her
interment. These facts wore communicated to me by
Captain Chambers, the husband of that unfoltunate
and much-lamented lady. I behave there was another
case of cruel murder on the same day at Meerut closely
resembling that horrible case alluded to by "T. E. H. ;"
but I refrain from mentioning the name, lest I should
hurt the feelings of any of her friends. I dare say that
your correspondent has misapplied the facts and details
of this latter case to the former, but, at all events, he
has been misinformed as to the fads of Mrs. Chambers's
murder; and his want of caution will give pain to that
lady's many relatives in India and England. April 1.