The Press.
London, England, 1857-08-29 00:00:00

THE PRESS, AUGUST 29, 1857.

The mounted officer, a jemadar, who commanded this
troop, and who was one of the principal instigators of the
affair, here broke out, " It is not good ; it is all false ! "
Abbott drew his pistol, and would have shot him as he
stool, for speaking in rank is equivalent to open mutiny ;
but the general turned to him and said, " Captain Abbott,
I desire that you will not fire on your own men." So
Abbott put up his pistol and went on with his harangue.
After another minute the jemadar broke out again, " It is
not true ; it is all false. Brothers all, prime and fire !"
Upon this, with a clash, out came all their pistols ; and,
had they fired, we six must have fallen, as we were not five
yards from them. My pistol, a revolver, was in my hand
in a moment, and as 1 was next to the jemadar I feel con-
fident I could have shot him before he had time to raise
his. But a panic seized them, and they bolted towards
their lines, and we rode back behind the guns. Wool-
comhe had dismounted, and was pointing a gun at them
himself ; the portfire was lighted, and one word only was
wanted to blow every soul of them to the four winds, and
thus strike a decisive and terrible blow, which would never
have been forgotten ; but the word was not given. The
general allowed them to get to their horses, and then, as
they stood in a group mounting, some 260 yards off, Wool-
combe ran to another gun, armed and pointed it, and losing
his patience at not being ordered to fire, sung out, " May I
fire, sir? " If any answer was returned, certainly no order
was given ; and the rascals got to their horses and were up
on them and away in a moment. Then came the order to
fire just as they were getting under cover of some build-
ings; some twenty-nine shots were fired at them, but
without effect, only killing some few horses and a poor
Ghorawallah. The dragoons were then ordered to charge,
as the mutineers had by this time cleared their lines, and
were drawn up in a line on a plain to our right, out of shot
of the guns. Forward went the 14th at a gallop, and the
men of the Ist waited in line till the 14th were tolerably
near them, and then broke up, and each man turned his
horse's head and dispersed in every possible different
direction. The dragoons caught and cut down some half-
dozen, and the rest got away.

The mutineers of ,Indore, after plundering the
town, upon being remonstrated with, declared it was
all for " deen " 'faith). Hulkar, according to the
letter of " 0 meid Singh " ( one of his Ministers) to the
officials at Mairas, was completely helpless, but he
behaved well to the English residents and their
friends :

The mutineers dictated their own terms to the Maha-
rajah, and, not satisfied with receiving all they wanted,
they proposed to him the hard terms of cutting off and
sending to them the heads of a few poor Europeans and
Christians to whom he had given protection in his own
palace. together with those of his advisers who were in
the British or " Kafir's " interest. Of these, unfortunately,
I was one, and Ratuchucier, Kooman, and Gunish. and
von can conceive his Highness's situation; but he firmly
denied to yie dto any such terms. He said he would as
long as he lived never consent to give up his European
proteges, dead or alive, nor those of his courtiers, and
though he knew his troops had deserted he would yet die
manfully if they did not cease plundering. The rascally
mutineers had also philosophers and historians among
them ; they reminded the Maharajah of his illustrious
ancestor Jeswunt Rao Holkar, that he ought yet to take
the " batuho " upon his shoulders and proceed to Delhi
with them ; that the star of the British in the East had
set, owing to their pride and faithlessness, and his High-
ness must not prove himself to be a coward. But to all
this harangue his Highness made proper answers. He
said he had no strength of his forefathers, that he did not
think rapine ant the murder of poor women and children
a part of any religion, and that he could not, therefore,
make a fit companion to them. He then came home,
and the plundering in the town ceased. On the evening
of the 4th they plundered the British Treasury to the
extent of ten lacs, and with about six of the guns which
i had been given over to the mutineers marched on towards
Dewar.
Omeid Singh concludes :
The authorities were told months before there was
danger, yet they could do nothing. I am yet alive, but
momentarily expect my head to be cut off, owing to old
enmities and being known to be in the British interest.
Pray do came out soon or Malwa is gone ; your presence
is equal to five regiments. I can't write more.—l am,
your obedient servant, ONIEID SINGH.
P.S. Should I survive this row I will write again, hut
there remains very little hope ; his Highness's troops are
completely disorganised and disaffected. Major Timmins
has gone again from Mahilpore, and Mr. Keating from
Mundlaisir. The delay in General Woodburn 's arrival has
been serious.

A correspondent of one of our contemporaries
draws attention to the position of Nagpore :
Having observed that one of your correspondents, in
allusion to the Indian army, speaks of the misfortune of
leaving the great arsenal of Northern India without a
guard of Eon-means, I venture to trouble you with another
case in point within my own knowledge, where the arsenal
is intrusted to native guards. I refer to it rather to show
the great danger we have recently incurred from leaving
the Nagpore force denuded of a European corps since 1848,
although, as any one may see, it is a central and most im-
portant position, while the city of Nagpore, after the
annexation at the death of the Rajah, has been in a disaf•
fected state. The arsenal, containing guns, arms, and
ammunition, with large military stores of every descrip-
tion, is established eleven miles from our force at
Kamptee, at Seetabuldee, within hail of the city said to
have a population of 80,000, some of the most influential
of whom have been known to be constantly intriguing