The Press.
London, England, 1857-07-04 00:00:00

THE MUTINY IN THE INDIAN ARMY.

TnE anticipation that the mutiny of the native troops
at Barrackpore would be followed by a general revolt of
the native regiments in the Bengal Presidency, which
would shake the fidelity of the native troops through-
out India, has been fearfully fulfilled. The telegraphic
intelligence a fortnight since briefly told us that the
3rd Cavalry at Meerut were in open mutiny, and that
their cantonments were burning. The report, and
worse, has this week received ample confirmation.
The entire native force at Meerut, consisting of the
3rd Cavalry, the 11th and 20th Regiments of Native
Infantry, and the Sappers and Miners, on the 10th
!Slay openly revolted, shot down their officers, and
taking the road to Delhi—distant about forty miles—
were there joined by the garrison of the city, consist-
ing of the 3sth, 34th, and 74th Regiments of Native
Infantry, and a strong body of the Native Artillery.
The city was of course at their mercy. In a few
hours those English men, women, and children who
could not escape were brutally murdered, the bank
was broken into and robbed, the living representa-
tive of the Mogul dynasty—the son of the late
Emperor—was proclaimed King of India, and a
revolution in Delhi was accomplished. But the
object of the mutineers was not complete without
the seizure of the arsenal. The small guard under
Lieutenant Willoughby bravely defended themselves
for a short time against overwhelming numbers.
They were at length beaten in, the gates of the
arsenal were forced, and as the rebel sepoys swarmed
in by hundreds the gallant Willoughby blew up both
them and the arsenal, escaping himself with but
slight injuries, and ultimately reaching friendly
shelter in the neighbourhood of Delhi.
The intelligence of the serious nature of the revolt
spread over India hke lightning. At every station where
native troops were collected symptoms of restlessness
and reports of open mutiny were rife. Happily, as
yet. neither have been confirmed. At Agra, Lucknow,
and Calcutta, and even far up in the Punjaub, the effect
of the revolt at Delhi was perceptible, and every
precaution had been taken by the authorities to
secure tranquillity ; but with so small an English
force as we have at present in India, and with such
vast elements of discontent as exist in the native
army, and indeed in the native mind throughout, it
is impossible to predict the limits of this mutinous
movement of the native army. However, at present
the revolt appears confined to the army and to the
rabble of the revolted districts.

The details received from India are very full, and
several private letters bring before us vividly the
terrible scenes at Meerut and Delhi. From one of
the I 2ch May, dated Meerut, we extract the following
account of the Meerut mutiny :

On Sunday the 10th, between five and six o'clock in the
evening, I was in my bungalow, in rear of the lines of the
11th Native Infantry, where i have resided since my
arrival at the station, when, as I was dressing, preparatory
to going out for a ride with Colonel Finnts, of the I 1 th
Native Infantry, my attention was attracted to my servants
and those in the neighbouring compounds going down
towards the front of our inclosuree, and looking steadily
into the lines of the 11th, whence a buzzing murmuring
noise proceeded, such as I have often heard in cases of
fire, or some such alarm. Of this I took little notice, but
went down to my gate, still dressing, and the noise still
increasing, 1 returned to the bungalow, put on my uniform,
and again went out. I had scarcely got to the gate, when
I heard the popping sound of firearms, which 1 knew at
once were loaded with ball cartridge, and a European non•
commissioned Lfficer came running with others towards
me from the 1 lth lines, sating, For God'a sake, sir, leave !
come to your bungalow, change that dress, and fly !" I
walked into my bungalow, and was doffing my uniform,
the bullets by that time flying out of the 11th lines into
my compound, when the head:tar-major of the 1 lth rushed
into the room, terrified and breathless, and exclaimed,
"Fly, sahib,—fly at once! the regiments are in open
mutiny, and tiring on their officers, and Colonel Finnis
has just been shot in my arum." It was evidently becom•
ing serious. I came out, and ordered my horse to be
saddled end brought up, my servants still begging of me to
fly for my life. I mounted. The lines of the 6th Dragoon
Guards ICarabineersi lie to the north of my bungalow,
separated by a rugged and barren plain, cut up by nullahs
and ravines, upon which, ruling out of the back part of
my compound, I descended. A Briton does not like
actually "running away" under any circumstances, and 1
was riding slowly.through the uneven ground, when the
havidar major before mentioned exclaimed, " You, sahib,
are mounted and can make haste, ride to the European
cavalry lines, and give the alarm." Good ; I galloped off,
crossed the difficult ground all right, got into the cavalry
lines, and made for the colonel's house, which lie bad just
left, and found him in the barrack lines on horseback,
ordering the Dragoons to saddle, arm, and mount without
a moment's delay. Here I shall leave the Dragoons and
myself, and return to the Native Infantry parade•ground,
and the cnnmencenient of the mutiny and massacres.
About five o'clock the `....0th Native Infantry and the nrd
Light Cavalry rushed from their lines, armed and furious ;
the former regiment firing off their muskets, approaching
the 11th Native Infantry, and calling upon them to arm,
come out, anl join them. I believe the 11th hesitated at
first—cause unknown ; but presently they too armed and
rushed out, and the mutinous fuel took flame. About this
time Colonel Finnis and several other officers of the lltb

THE PRESS, JULY 4, 1857.

Native Infantry came upon the parade, and commenced
haranguing the sepoys, and attempted to pacify them and
bring them to order, when the colonel's horse was wounded
by a bullet tired by the 20th. On this he saw that the
matter was more serious than he had wished to believe ;
and, one of his officers asking him if he should ride off to
the brigade•major, ask fur aid, and give the alarm, he con-
sented. This is the last time he was seen alive by Euro.
peen eyes, for immediately afterwards he was shot in the
back by a sepoy of the 20th, fell from his horse, and was
actually riddled with balls. About this time the other
officers of the llth, seeing that their presence among the
mutineers was perfectly useless, and the bullets flying
about them in all directions, retreated from the lines, and
sought safety mostly in the direction of the Carabineer
lines, to which I must now retransfer the narrative. It
took us a long time, in my opinion, to get ready, and it
was dark before the Drsvons were prepared to start in a
body, while by this titre flames began to ascend in all
directions from the lines, and the officers' bungalows of
the 3rd Cavalry and the Ilth and 20th Native Infantry,
from public buildings, messhouses, private residences, and,
in fact, every edifice or thing that came within reach of
the torch and the fury of the mutineers and of the bazaar
canaille, who in considerable numbers, I believe, joined in
their terrific orgies. On all sides shop• up into the heavens
great pinnacles of waving fire of all hues and colours,
according to the nature of the fuel that fed them, huge
volumes of awoke rolling sullenly off in the sultry night
air, and the crackling and roar of the conflagration min
gin; with the shouts and riot of the mutineers.

The Dragoons and Rifles pursued the mutineers
for a short di,tance, and, having made the circuit
of the lines, appear to have returned to head-
quarters. This correspondent continues :

I must now come to the particulars of the brutal out-
rages and assassinations that marked this infernal out-
break, premising, however, that a sense of delicacy and a
regard for the harassed feelings of surviving friends and
relatives, prevent me frun entering into details, the
relation of which could only gratify a mind fund of horrors
and atrocities. At the very commencement of the etnente
the 3rd Light Cavalry, saddling and mounting their horses,
galloped off to the gaol, and of course, overpowering all
resistance, liberated their eighty-five comrades ; and all the
other prisoners, to the number of about 1,300, apparently.
Returning from this they joined the mutineers of the 2'ith
Native Infantry, and the work of indiscriminate European
massacre began, without regard to rank, age, sex, or em-
ployment, furious and merciless. Veterinary Surgeons
Phillips and Dawson, of ►he 3rd Light Cavalry, and the
wife of the latter, were massacred, and also Lieutenant
M•Nab, of the same regiment, several others of the corps
having miraculous escapes, but the surgeon, Christie,
being wounded. I fear mortally. Of the officers of the
20th Native Infantry, Captain Taylor commanding, Captain
Macdonald, with the wife of the latter, were savagely slain,
with, as in the case of the cavalry officers, numerous
narrow escapes. Of the 11th Native Infantry poor Finnis
was the only officer slain ; but Mrs. Chambers, the wife of
the adjutant, was pitilessly slaughtered in her own bun-
galow, which, as I have told you above, we saw burning ;
and remember, as I have also said above, I refrain from
describing details, merely giving the caanaPies. Among
those not in the military employ of the Government who
perished in this indiscriminate massacre, were Mr.
Tregoar, of the education department, Mrs. Courteney,
the mistress of the hotel, and many women and girls
whose names Ido not know. After all this work was done
and the mutineers had retreated, the remainder of the
night passed away in gloom and doubt, and the conflagra•
Lion, having nothing more to feed upon, was extinguished,
as it were, by the rising beams and more powerful light of
the sun. I mounted my horse and role down from the
Carabineers' lines towar Is my hospital and the Native
Infantry lines, dubious ea to ihe state of affairs, and came
to the charred and blackened huts anti bungalows, all
naked and deserted. On my way down a dhoolee ap•
proached and was passing me, when I stopped the bearers
and asked what they carried? They answered, " the
Colonel sahib." It was poor Finnis's body, which had
just been found where he fell, and was being carried towards
the churchyard.
The horrible atrocities committed at Meerut seem
to have been more the work of the rabble about
the Bazaar than of the sepoys. The Rev. T. C.
Smyth, Chaplain of Meerut, writes :
The inhabitants of the Suddur Bazaar and city committed
atrocities far greater than those of the sepoys, as in the
ease of Captain M'Donald's wife, whom they pursu-d some
distance and frightfully mutilated (though her childien
were happily all saved by the ayahs ), and of Mrs. Chambers,
wife of the Adjutant of the 11th Native Infantry, who was
murdered in her garden during Mr. Chambers' absence on
duty, her clothes having been set on fire before she was shot,
and cut to pieces. About ten o'clock a bungalow, immedi-
ately opposite our house, was set on fire by five troopers of
the 3d Light Cavalry, and an attempt ( though happily nn•
successful) was made to fire the Brigadier's house. After
eleven strong pickets and patrols of the English cavalry,
artillery, and infantry were posted on the road near our
house, hut the firing of houses, &c., continued till close
upon daybreak, principally caused by the neighbouring
vina4errt, after the guarding of the lines. The loss of pro-
perty. and alas ! of life, has been very dreadful. The part
of Meerut in which the insurrection principally ragetL is a
miserable wilderness of ruined houses, and some of the
residents (as was the case with Mr. and Mrs. Breathed,
the Commissioner of the Division) escaped miraculously
from the hands of their pursuers, by hiding themselves in
the gardens and outhouses of their burning burgalows,
and in some c ises by disguising themselves as native
servants. Before the European troops arrived on Sunday
night at the scece of action, fourteen officers and their wives,
together with several soldiers of the artillery and 60th Rifles,
and woolen and children of the military and general mai.

649

dents in the at ition, had been barbarously cut to pieces.
Among other instances of frightful butchery was that cf
Sergeant Law, his wife, and six children, who were living
beyond the precincts of cantonments. The state in which
the father and three of the infints were found defies descrip-
tion. Happily the mother and three other children, though
grievously mangled, crawled about midnight to the
Artillery Hospital, and it is hoped will recover. Mr. Rotton
and I have buried thirty-one of the murdercd, but there are
others whose bodies have not yet been brought in.
The Bengal Hurk.aru continents strongly upon
the indec slim exhibited at the he td -quarters at
Meerut during these frightful scenes •
The most marvellous circumstance is that the European
troops were not sooner brought to the rescue, since they
were in strength more than adequate for the protection of
the station, and might surely have been expected to pre-
vent the greater proportion of the bloodshed. But not
only were thi, atrocities to which we have alluded—and
some of them are of a nature to which the narrators, in
deference to the feelings of surviving friends, scarcely
venture even to allude—committed without check, but
when the insurgents were at length pat to flight, the
pursuit of them by the European troops seems to have
been of a most undecided character, and abandoned for no
apparent cause except that the night was dark, and even
this difficnity did not continue, for the moon rose upon the
scene of desolation.

The mutineers appear to have arrived at Delbi on
Monday, the 11th of May, and to have gone first
to the cantonment, which is about two miles from the
city. They tilers called upon the native regiments
the 39th, 54th, and 74th, and the Native
Artillery—to join them in resisting the design of the
Government to convert them to Christianity. The
call was immediately responded to, the 38th setting
the example and murdering their officers, and the
rest promptly following. These troops at once en-
tered Delhi, and sacked the British quarters. Some
of the Europeans escaped across the Jumna, and
thirteen were reported to be near Bagput, on the let
bank, protected by the zemindars ; but the rest,
including Sir Theophilus Metcalfe, M. Le Bas, Mr.
Johnstone and his daughter, and many ladies and
children, were brutally murdered. The mutineers
then proceeded to the city, in which are situated
the arsenal, the fort, the King's palace, and the civil
station, and took unresisted possession of the whole
(except the arsenal), murdering all the Europeans
they could catch.

Of the state of Delhi nothing snore is ascertained,
and probably will not be until the place is retaken by
the British troops. It is probable that not a single
European—man, woman, or child—is alive in Delhi
at the present moment.
The most active measures are of course being
taken to suppress this revolt, and it is satisfactory to
know from latest intelligence that the garrison at
Agra and of the neighbouring stations remain stanch
Martial law has been proclaimed in the districts of
Meerut and the Delhi territory, while the most
vigorous proclamations threatened terrible punish-
ments to all who should join the insurgents, but
promised to recompense those who remained
faithful to the Government. At Oude and in
the Punjaub, Sir Henry Lawrence and Sir John Law-
rence, with Major-General Reed, commanding the
Peshawar Division, have taken the most energetic
measures to suppress the first symptoms of in-
subordination. The native troops both at Lahore
and Ferozepore have been disarmed, moveable
columns of British troops have been organised to
traverse the country in all directions, and by these
wise measures it is to be hoped that the revolt will
be confined to Delhi, where by this time possilly
prompt vengeance has overtaken the mutineers:—
The great blow w;11 be delivered from the north ; but by
all the great roads in other directions troops have been
closing in upon the doomed city. The Sirmore battalions
wee at Boolundslinhur, on the east, the Agra Brigade',
strengthened by cavalry and artillery from Gwalior, ad-
vancing irom Muttra on the south, the troops of the Jiit
ihs of Dhurtpore and Ulwar moving up on the west.
From the north west were pouring down the hot,emen of
the Rajahs of Putteeala and Jheend, while the great road
from the hill stations by Kornanl and Meerut lay open for
the march of the commander-in-chief. General Anson
was to leave Umballah, whither he had repaired in haste
from Simla, on the Nth. He had brought with him from
Kassowlie her Majesty's 75th Regiment. At Umballah he
found the oth Lancers, the let European Fusiliers marched
in from Dueshate, the 4th Light Cavalry, the sth and (1:411
Native Infantry, and two troops of ( European) Horse
Artillery. The whole of this force he would, it was ex-
pected, take down with him to Meerut, where he would
find the Carabi.teers, the 69th and a strong force of
artillery, and taking them with him would advance at once
upon Delhi. The city lying upon the further or right
bank of the Jotona, and being connected with the left hank
R bridge of boats only, which the insurgents have doubt-
less destroyed, it is possible that some time may be occu-
pied in conveying the troops across the river. But before
many days are past we shall, I suppose, bear that retrilo:-
tion as signal as merited has been dealt to the insurgent
soldiery.

Calcutta was in a disturbed state. The proclama-
tion of martial law was thought probable, for a paper,
duly signed and sealed, was found in the city on the
18th May, calling on the " faithful " to rise en Inane
and slaughter the Feringhi Caffres ! On the previous

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