The Press.
London, England, 1857-11-28 00:00:00

THE PRESS, NOVEMBER 28,1857.

duties which need not be inserted here. Whenever
a regiment of European cavalry marches, a portion
of native soldiers is ordered to accompany it.
With regard to trusting the native cavalry, they
have on many occasions done good service. India
never can forget the native regular cavalry (6th
Regiment) at Seetahuldie; they were few in number
and were outnumbered beyond all measure, but they
did wonders, and with their leaders, Fitzgerald and
Smith, were the admiration of all India. Again, the oth
Cavalry, under Colonel W. Pattie, were said to have
turned the day in our favour by their splendid charge
at Meeannee. It is true that there are instances of
the native cavalry not advancing, but there have
been very plausible reasons assigned in palliation.
Even the European cavalry have sometimes hung
back in former as well as in later times. Mix them
together, Europeans and natives, and you will find that
they will always charge. I would therefore have at
least half natives, if not more, with each regiment.
If there are six troops in each regiment, let two of
them be Europeans, armed with revolvers, and arm the
four native troops with common pistols ; in other
respects they should he alike. When well led, no
soldiers fight better than the native cavalry ; the two
mixed would cause emulation, and with Europeans
leading there would be nothing to apprehend.
The regiments of European infantry require
perhaps in a greater degree the aid of native troops
to take certain duties which it would be imprudent
to impose on Europeans. It is therefore evident
that some native armed men—either Burgundauzes,
Chuprassies, Nugeets, police, irregular corps, or
native troops of the line—must be stationed wherever
there are European troops and accompany those
troops on the line of march.
The question then is, which of these different
classes will be the best? To be efficient, any one of
them must enter the service on the same terms on
which a sepoy is enlisted, for general service any-
where by sea or land ; they must be subject to the
same drill, the same discipline ; they must carry
arms, and they should be under the control of Euro-
pean officers. They should also be strictly military,
i.e., under the orders of the commander-in-chief.
I maintain that no better system can be adopted
than t) recruit from among the natives of the
country, but with a very different feeling as to caste
than has hitherto prevailed. There are some men
who, from their known occupation, it might perhaps
be as well not to enlist, but Christiana should be
admittei as well as any other class. With regard to
the formation of regiments of infantry, I would
suggest that each regiment should be composed of
two flank companies of Europeans, and eight
companies of natives,—the Europeans to have the
Enfield rifle, and the natives to be armed as formerly
with the firearms called " Brown Bess." Every
officer to be armed with a revolver, to be worn as a part
of his accoutrements. The two European companies
the- -k match for the

100 strong each would be more than a
eight companies of sepoys without their officers ;
this has been abundantly proved in the late conflicts
under Neill, Havelock, Wilson, and Eyre. Without
European officers, the sepoys seldom show pluck.
There are seventy-four regiments of the line in
Bengal, 1,000 strong each, making a total of 74,000
native soldiers; deduct two companies from each, and
you have a reduction of 14,800 sepoys, leaving 59,200.
But it is not necessary perhaps to have so many.
Reduce the total, then, of the regular regiments of
Bengal to fifty, at 800 each, which would amount to
40,000, and the number of Europeans at two
companies to each regiment would amount in the
whole to 10,000 men. If 40,000 men (natives) are
considered too many, strike off two companies from
each, wh;ch will leave only 600 natives to each regi-
ment, or a total of 32,000 natives with 10,000 Euro-
peans. Each regiment would then have eight
companies, of which two would be European and six
native—eight being the best number of companies
for manoeuvring.
If desirable (as it seems to be), the same system
can be pursued at Bombay and Madras.
Suppose, then, that 800 be the established number
of natives for each regiment, and that the number of
regiments be reduced, Bengal to 50, Madras 30, and
Bombay to 18, the three Presidencies would stand
thus :

Natives. Enropeane.
Bengal.... 50 Regiments 40,000 .... 10,000
Madras 30 Ditto
Bombay .. is Ditto ..... 14,000 .... 3,800

75,000 19,000
The regiments of Europeans (Queen's or Com-
pany's) which, in additiun to the above, would re-
main as heretofore, would of course be stationed by
the local authorities according to the wants of the
service. The number required deserves the most
serious consideration of the Government.
__

It may perhaps be urged that these Europeans
mixed with natives would be scattered over the
country, and if required to act as one body they
would be ill prepared ; but this need not be the case.
If that excellent t,ybtem of collecting troops for
brigade exercise be carried out in India, as it should

be, the flank companies would have ample practice
to enable them to act in a body if so required.
Major Mansell, a very smart officer of the st3ril Foot
(some time in 1809-10), had to form a light infantry
regiment at Cawnpore ; accordingly the light com-
panies from some eight or ten regiments at various
stations were directed to assemble at that station.
These companies were very improperly placed under
the command of an officer in the royal service. He
could not speak a word of the language ; but on
parade the men understood him because the word of
command is always given in English, and the
bugle sounds were well known. Mansell was a
very good officer, and much liked. In a very short
time he had an admirable regiment of light in-
fantry.
I understand that when Sir Archibald Campbell
ordered out some native regiments against stockades
in the vicinity of Prome, in Burmah, in 1825, the
deputy-quartermaster-general (the late Major Jack-
son) urged the general to send a party of Europeans
with each regiment to lead the storming parties.
The general declined, and the result was rather
disastrous.

Mixing Europeans and natives is by no means a
new idea—it has long been adopted in the horse
artillery, where one troop of a brigade was composed
of natives, the remainder of Europeans. In the foot
artillery the Europeans and the natives were con•
stantly on duty in the same battery, though not in
the same battalion. In Affghanistan, the 13th Light
Infantry (Queen's) were long associated with the
35th Regiment of Native Infantry, especially at Jel•
lalabad ; they became much attached to each other,
and gave proofs of their regard for each other on
many occasions. The same may be said of the 93rd
Foot (Queen's), who were mixed up with the 26th
Native Infantry when entering the Khyber Pass from
Peshawur in 1842. They are said to have cheered
each other in the advance, and the two regiments
ever after showed a strong attachment for each
other.

Uniting Europeans and natives in the same regi-
ment would he beneficial in more ways than one ;
and there can be no doubt that had the system of
mixing them together obtained previous to the late
outbreak, the result would have been very different.
But surely, whatever reorganisation may take place,
or under any circumstances, it is to be hoped that
the European officers will never again be left so
utterly at the mercy of any natives, whatever their
caste may be.
Irregular corps may be cheaper, and they cer-
tainly so far have an advantage over our regular
regiments that they have fewer officers to murder,
but, on the other hand, there are fewer officers to
lead them in a charge.
It is said that there are 30,000 Sikhs embodied to
be formed into regiments. There is no admixture
of other castes. We know what a turbulent set the
Sikh soldiers were, even under Runjeet Singh. It
will not be politic to retain such a body wholly Sikhs.
They are warlike, and have lately done us good ser-
vice ; so did the sepoys formerly. It was not un-
usual in the Sikh army for the men to rise against
their officers : would any one guarantee that they
would not do so with our officers? It will be prudent
to run no risk. We have already suffered severely
for placing too much confidence in those who had
faithfully served us from their youth, and had always
been well treated.
N.

THE DELHI PRINCES.
TO THE EDITOR OF " THE PRESS."

Sir,--I have cut the inclosed paragraph, relating to
the capture and death of the Delhi Princes, out of this
day's Times. It being given without comment of any
kind, it may be presumed that the Times, as well as
the journal from which it is copied, views with ap-
proval, or at any rate without disapprobation, the
reported conduct of Captain Hodgson. But as lam
sure that there is not an officer or a gentleman in the
three kingdoms who will not deem such a mode of
entrapping these Princes (however guilty they may
have been) to be utterly infamous, and the killing
them with his own hand, while seated in their
carriage, the act of an assassin, I do hope that
some inquiry may be made into the matter, with a
view of ascertaining whether there really be any
truth in the statement or not.

If there be not, it is due to the character of Cap-
tain Hodgson that it should be authoritatively contra-
dicted ; while if there be, it is equally due to the
character of the nation that its uniform should he
stripped from the back of one by whom, in that case,
it has been so disgraced. One way or other the
question must be set at rest. For it is shameful that
Captain Hodgson should be allowed to lie under such
a stigma if unmerited ; and equally shameful that
the country, while declaiming with justice against the
treachery and atrocities of the sepoys, should be

1153

thought for an instant by the people of Europe to
countenance acts of treachery and atrocity in its own
officers quite as infamous as theirs.—l have the
honour to remain, air, your most obedient servant,
A FIELD OFFICER.
Tuesday, November, 24th, 1857.

THE DELHI PRINCES.—We have been favoured
with the following extracts from the letter of a 3 wing
officer to his friends in England. It is dated Dog-
shaie, a place about forty miles from Delhi, the 20th
of September last :—" A few days ago Captain Hodg-
son (of ours) went out and captured the King, and
brought him in a prisoner. He is at present con-
fined in his own palace. A few days later be went
out again, and came up with the King's sons and
grandson. He had only 100 native horsemen of his
own regiment with him, and the enemy about 10,000,
3,000 of whom were fully armed sepoys. Hodgson
saw it was of no use attacking them, so he sent an
emissary to tell the Princes that the game was up
with them, and that they had better surrender, whioh
they did after some time, and came up to Hodgson,
who immediately surrounded the carriage with his
men. He sent for their arms, and, after hesitating
some time these also were given up, with seven ele-
phants and lots of stores. On reaching the gaol
Hodgson ordered the Princes out of the vehicle ; they,
imagining all was right for themselves, began
(native-like) to talk, and say they hoped there might
be an inquiry into their conduct. Hodgson said
' cheeproks' (be quiet), and ordered them to take off
all their fine clothes. When this was done he said,
Now get in again,' and ordered the driver to pro-
ceed. lie then beckoned to one of his men, and
asked for a carbine, and with his own hand shot
each and all of the three Princes. He then took their
bodies into the city, and laid them out for inspection
in front of the Kotswallie, where these wretches had
laid out their victims during the massacre. There
are lees upon lacs of treasure and prize property in
the city, and if the city itself was put up for ransom
it would fetch upwards of fifty lacs.—Ayrshire
Express.