Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-10-03 00:00:00

NITJ OOR JE WAR RIMS STORY.

The writer of the following is described as one of our
spies. He belongs to the Ist Native Infantry, and is said
to be a most intelligent man :
When the ,mutiny broke out at Cawnpore he was with
three companies of his regiment, the first, or Gillis
Pultun, a<t'Banda. On the breaking out of the Sepoys at
13anda Nujoor Jewarree saved the fife of a Mr. Duncan
and his wife (Mr. Duncan was a writer, and instructed
this man in English), by concealing them n his hut, and
afterwards reporting to the Rajah that they were willing
to turn Alussulmans. -For this the Sepoy fell into ill
odour with his comrades, and when the mutineers marched
into Cawnpore the Nena took away from him all he had—
about 300 rs.—and confined him with four more Sepoys in
the same house with the Europeans. At the fight of
Futtehpore he was released by the Nena, went back to
the Gundee Nuddee, and thence came over to the English.
His account of the Neua's treacherous, attack on tho
boats, and the escape and recapture of one of the boats,
is as follows :

" When the Nena's guns opened on the boat in which
Wheeler Sahib, the General, was (it has now been fully
ascertained from servants and others who were with the
English party, that General Wheeler was not dead before
the massacre, but was put wounded on board the boats)
he cut its cable and dropped down the river., Some little
way down the boat got stuck near the shore. The
infantry and guns came up and opened fire. The _large
gun they could not manage, not knowing how to work the
elevating screw, and did not use it. With the small gun
they fired grape tied up i❑ bags, and the infantry fired
with their muskets. This went on all day. It did not
hurt the Sahib log much. They returned the fire with

_heir rifles from -the boat, and wounded several of tte
Sepeys on the bank, who therefore drew off towards
evening. The Sepoys procured a very big boat, into
which they all got, and dropped down the river upon the
Sahib's boats. _Then the Sahibs fired again wish their
rifles, and wounded more Sepoys, in the boat, and they
drew off andleft them. At night name a great rush of
water in the river, which floated off the Sahib's boat, end
they passed on down the river, but owing to 'the storm
and the dark night, 'they only proceeded three or four
koss. In the meantime intelligence of the Sahib's defence
had reached the 'Nena, and he sent off that night three
more companies of the native regiment (Ist Oade In-
fent ry) and surrounded the Sahib's boat, and brought them
back to Cawnpore. Then came out of the boat 60 Sahibs
and 25 mem-Sehibs, and 4 children—one boy and 3 half-
grown girls. The Nena then ordered the mem-Sahibs to be
separated from the Sahibs to be shot by the Gillis Pultun
(Ist Bengal Native Infantry); but they said, We will
not shoot Wheeler Sahib, who has made our Pultun's
name great, and whose son is our quartermaster; neither
will we kill the Sahib-log. Put them in prison.' Then
said the Nadire Pultun, What word is this? Put them
in prison; we will kill the male.' Se the Sahib log were
seated On the ground, and two companies of the Nadite
Pultun placed themselves over against them, with their
muskets ready to fire. Then said one of the seem-Sahibs,'
—the doctor's wife she was, I don't know his name, but he
was either superintending-surgeon or medical storekeeper
I wilt not leave my husband;, if he must die .will die
with him.' So she ran and sat down behind her husband,
claspingelim round the waist. Directly she said this the
other mem-Sahibs said, 'We will also die with our
husbands;' and they all went and sat down beside their
husbands. Then the husbands said, Go back,' but they
would not. Whereupon the Nena ordered his soldiers,
and they going in pulled them forcibly away. seizeng
them by the arm ; but they could not pull away the
'doctor's wife, who there remained. Then, just as
the Sepoys were going to fire, the padre. (chaplain)
called out to the Nena and requested leave to read
prayers before they died.. The Nena granted it. The
padre's bonds were unloosed so far as to enable him to
take a small book out of his pocket, from which he read ;
but all this time one of the Sahib-logs, who.was shot in
the arm and the leg, kept crying out to the Sepoys. If
you mean to kill us; why don't you set about it quickly
and get the work done? Why delay ?' After the padre
had read a few prayers he shut the book, and the Sahib-
log shook hands all round. Then the Sepoys fired ' Ooe
Sepoy rolled one way, one another, as they sat ; but they
were not dead, only wounded ; so they went in and
finished them off with swords. After this the whole of
the women and children (that is, including those taken
out of other boats), to the number of 122, were taken
away to the yellow house, which was your hospital. This
was the Bithoor Rajah's house in the civil lines, where' I
and four more Sepoys
.were confined, and where I had the
opportunity of talking to the Srgeant-major's wife. After
this, when we (Sepoys) were taken down with the Nena
to Futtehpore, the women and children were taken away
to the house where they were afterwards murdered.

' Were any of our women dishonoured by the Nona or his
people ?' Nune that I know of, excepting in the case or
General Wheeler's youngest daughter,and about this I am
not certain. This was her circumstance. As they were
taking the mem Sahibs out of the boat a towar (cavalry
man) took her away with him to his house. She went
quietly; but at night she rose and got hold of the sowar's
sword. He was asleep ; his wife, his son, and his mother•
in-law were sleeping in the house with him. She lolled
them all with the sword, and then she went and threw
11( rself down the well beside the house. In the morning,
whin people came and found the dead in the house. the
cry was, 'Who has done this?' Then a neighbour said
that in the night he had seen some one go and throw her.
sell into the well. They went and looked, and there was
Missee Baba, dead and swollen."
Our correspondent adds :
_ _

I have seen the fearful slaughter-house, and also saw
one of the Ist Nstive Infantry men, according to order,
wash up part of the blood which stains the fhor before
hanging. The quantities of dresses, clogged thickly with
blood, children's frocks, frills, and ladies under clothing
of all kinds, also boys' trousers, leaves of Bibles, and of
one book in particular, which seemed to be strewed over
the whole place, called 'Preparation for Death,' also
broken daguerrotype cases only, lots of them, and hair,
some nearly a yard long ; bonnets all bloody, and one or
two stifles. I picked up a bit of paper with on it, Ned's
hair, with love,' and opened and found a little bit tied up
with riband. The first fellows that went in, I believe, saw
the bodies with their arms and legs sticking out through
the ground. They had all been thrown in a heap in the
well.''