The Press.
London, England, 1857-07-18 00:00:00

THE MUTINY IN THE BENGAL ARMY.

THE intelligence by this last mail is incontestably
most serious. The dates extend to June 15,
Bombay ; and June 7, Calcutta. The mutiny, as we
anticipated last week, has spread to Alyghur, Myn-
poorie, Etawah, Lucknow, and Ferozepore, and
upwards of thirty regiments of the Bengal army
were in open revolt or had " disappeared" from their
colours. Delhi had not been captured; disaffection
is beginning in Burmah ; the Madras army is
doubtful; and the panic throughout India at the
state of affairs was so serious that the funds
had fallen rapidly from the last dates, Govern-
ment securities were " almost unsaleable," the
native capitalists were everywhere withdrawing from
the banks large sums of money and secretly hoard-
ing them, and every day was disclosing proofs in
support of the great tact that the mutiny was pro.
meditated, that it was one active, uniform, and ex•
tended plan of sedition and revolt, that it was well
known that it had been leng organising with
secrecy and skill, that it was rapidly spreading, and
that Central India to be preserved must be recon-
quered.
To commence cur summary of events with the
heart of the insurrection, Delhi, it appears that a
strong European force had moved down from
Umballab, under the command of General Anson,
and had arrived at Kurnaul by the 20th May, when the
commander in-chief was attacked by cholera, and
died in a few hours on the 27th. Sir Henry Barnard
immediately assumed the temporary command,
and moved forward upon Delhi cu the 30th. The
advanced guard from Meerut, under Brigadier
Wilson, consisting of the Carabineers, 00th Rifles,
and Artillery, took up a position at the village
of Ghazee-ooti deen-nugger, where the road to Delhi
crosses the little river of Hindun by a suspension
bridge, some fifteen miles from the capital. That
same afternoon the rebels, no doubt perceiving
themselves being surrounded, and anxious to secure
a retreat in case of need, came out of Delhi in force,
with five guns on the further side of the stream,
and opened fire upon the English position. A
smart engagement followed. The brigadier took his
artillery and dragoons across the river by a ford,
while the rifles passed the bridge. They attacked
at once in front and flank; the mutineers were
doubled up and, with the loss of all their guns,
driven hack, part into a burning village, which they
the:nsel ',es had fired, and where they perished
miserably, and part into the open plain, where they
were cut up by the sabres of the dragoons. Un-
daunted by this severe check, they returned to the
attack on the following day, and were again repulsed.
On the Ist of June the brigadier, whose loss on the
first day hail been about forty killed and wounded
(that on the second is as yet unknown), was rein-
forced, and no further attempt had been made to
contest his possession of the bridge and ford. In a
week's time the main body of the British troops bad
arrived in the neighbourhood, and on the morning of
the Bth a junction seems to have been effected
between the Meerut force in advance and that of
Brigadier Halifax, probably by the passage of the
.lumna at Bhagput. The combined force advanced
to Badulla Seraje, where the rebels had intrenched
themselves oit growl highly favourable to them,