The Sun.
London, England, 1849-04-25 00:00:00

Moultan. He would now read, with the permission 01
tie HOMO, some of the correspoedence that
rad taken place upon that impoi tent subject
1 he first letter was from Major Edwerdes, and it con-
ttined this sentence—" I take the liberty of iefarminet
3 ou that the city of Moulten, atter a wish':
serming, has been taken, and I hope to raise te.
fag of old England over the walls of the
citadel before three days are over. In eight-
End-forty hours the citadel may be taken." Insteed.
however, of this anticipation being realised it toslt
three weeks to accomplish that end, and from a
letter addressed to the Governor-General by
General Whist), it appeared that the British
forces had to contend against an army of
36,000 men, and when the citadel was entered
3,000 were still among the ruins, who could only
be dislodged with difficulty. Now this affair, therefore.
Was no trifling enterprise.—(Cheers.) No less than
36,000 shot and shells had been thrown into the citadel.
and so thick was the fire, that the only place which the
Chief of the besieged was able to find shelter was under
a gateway. The Duke of Well.ngton was hear I to 5a%
the other day at the farewell dinner given to Majar-Ge-
teral Sir Charles Napier, that he considered that by the
capture of Moultan, the object of the war was accom-
plished; that it was one of the great events of the cam-
paign, and he hoped the end of it. Nothing was neg-
lected by the Governor-General of India to cif et that
object. He called around him all the available re-
sources at his command. There were, according to the
returns, 26,580 men of all arms engaged in the affeir,
comprising 505 European and 7,328 native officers. Ile
mentioned those circumstances fur the purpose of doing,
all honour to the Indian army. Shere Singh had de-
serted from his alliance, with 5,000 men, and his father,
Chuttur Singh, had also revolted from his duty. Upon
this Shere Singh prepared to resist the British army in
India, found himself at the head of 35,060 men, with,
in the first action 28 guns, afterwards increased to 70.
Lord Gough marched by the banks of the Jhelum,
and fought two actions. Shere Singh was driven from
his position, and was followed by Lord Gough until the
13th of January, on which day was the great battle of
Chillianwallah. The Seikh chief had 75 guns in that
battle, besides a large number of mounted swivels. After
the battle of Chillianwallah, Sher° Singh retreated and
encamped at a short distance from the British troops,
and while in that position he was joined by a body of
Affghans, and by his father Chuttur Singb, and the re-
nowned chief Dost Mahommed, once more unfurled the
green flag against the British power in India, aided by
two of his sons, their united force amounting to 60,000
men, according to the lowest accounts to 50,000. Shere
Singh went in the direction of Lahore, snd was prepar-
ing to cross the river, when he found the pickets of
General Whish were on the opposite bank—tho Gallant
General having anticipated him. The Gallant General's
division had, by a forced march, performed the march of
20 days in 17—(Hear)—thus fortunately reaching the
banks of the river in time to stop Shere Singh
from crossise. He (Sir John Hobhouse) found
also in titie dispatches of Brigadier General
Dundas, that the division made a forced march
of 32 miles in one day—(hear, hear)—that they
marched the next morning at 11 o'clock, to join Lord
Gough's camp, and reached it that night, after a march
of 19 miles, and the next morning they were ready to
take the field; and throughout the 32 mil a of forced
march, which was accomplished under the command of
Captain Barrett, only one soldier was found absent.
The troops, during four clear days on this service, suf-
fered the greatest privations without complaint, and were
unable during a march of 238 miles to cook their meals.
It was due to the gallant men, both European and native,
that he should state those circumstances, the highest
honour being due to them.—(Hear, hear.) The whole
force which reached the camp of Lord Gough prior to
the battle consisted of 25,000 men and 100 pieces of
cannon, of which 20 were 18 -pounders; while the army
Shere Singh numbered 60,000 men. The Right
Bon. Baronet then read a letter, giving a glowing de.
seeption of the battle of Goojerat, and of the great
slaughter to the enemy which took place under the
British fire, the rout they were put to, the confusion
in which they retreated, and the " dropped" effects
which their pursuers in the flight and nteM picked up,
comprising all sorts of things, from guns and silver-
mounted riding-whips to slippers and champagne-bot-
tles, exciting much laughter by the details. He would
not he discharging his duty, Ile continued, if he did not
pay a tribute of just praise to the Addiseombe College,
by the scholars of whom the guns in this great affair
were principally served. One hundred guns in their
hands, kept up a continual fire for three hours from the
batteries, and the fire was considered by the best authori-
ties to be fully equal to that of the guns at Waterloo.
He then proceeded to pay a high tribute to the gallantry
and skill of Major-General Gilbert, to whom great
honour was duo fur his distinguished services in this im-
portant campaign, and directed attention to the gallant
and decisive charge made by the British troops against
the enemy, including the Affghans, on whose mail, when
they found that their swords could not make an impres-
sion, they tried their muskets with astounding effect.
Sir Joseph Thackwoll spoke of the intrepidity with
which the charge was made in the most enthusiastic
terms. He said it was a glorious charge, and
that not only did cavalry and artillery
per-
form their duty to the utmost, but even the flset-
posts which were engaged in taking the troops across
the Chenab, to join Lord Gough, performed a most
signal service. And now he though it his duty to call
the attention of the House to some of those officers en-
gaged in this hazardous service, in addition to Major
Edwardes and Lieutenant Blake, who, when the issue of
the war was doubtful, or be!ore the main army was
brought upon the field. performed services which abun-
dantly entitled them to the gratitude of their country;
and those they performed alone, altogether unaided, ex-
cept by their own energy, and the moral influence which
their courage invested them with.—(clear, hear.) And
amongst them he would first speak of Captain J. Hamil-
ton. He was deputed to be the chief leader of the ope-
rations preceding the passage of the Chenab. For a
space of two months, by his own energy, he succeeded
in keeping the body of the enemy in check, and prevent-
ing them from effecting a junction with the main body.
The intrepid bearing of this officer, in the midst of dif-
ficulties of no ordinary kind, was highlyculogized by many
distinguished officers who witnessed it, antl was spoken
of in a dispatch in the warmest language, stating as
the result of his exertions that the Ilazereh territory was
in our hands. Ile now came to the exploits of another
officer, if possible, almost as extraordinary. He alluded
to Lieutenant Herbert. On the Ist of December he was
detached against Attock, where he found a force of 800
of the Mahominedan population, of whom he took the
command. his troops became mutinous, and in a dis-
patch of the 19tb of December he stated that it was not
physical force which deterrt d him from making the
attack, but the defection of his own troops by daily de-
sertions. His situation, indeed, was a most arduous one.
Surrounded by 8,000 or 10,000 of the enemy continually
bearing upon a " watched fort," as he called it, he held
it notwithstanding until the 2d of January, when, having
assembled the leaders of this small force, and informed
them of the situation of affairs, he escaped from the fort
in a boat upon the Indus, but only for a short time, as the
event proves, and he was now unfortunately in confine-
ment. Another officer had distinguished himselfgreatly on
the frontier, near the Bunnoo territory, and cleared it of
the enemy entirely. Those were instances of the peculiar
advantages offered by the English service, that at a com-
paratively early age young officers placed in situations
of great responsibility, and thrown entirely upon their
own resources, might show themselves equal to the
emergency, and perform this duty with a promptitude
and judgment generally expected from mature age and
long experience.—(Hear, hear.) And whilst mention-
jug those who had been spared, they must not forget
those who, in this campaign, had fought their last
battle.—(Hear.) They must not forget to do honour to
such names as those of Cureton, Fitzgerald, and many
others which he might mention, who had fallen on the
field, but whose memory would long survive them; and
also, although they had not lived to enjoy a share of the
triumph, hail still left behind them a high example,
Which would be a benefit to their country, and a glory
to their families.—(Cheers.) With one of these officers
he had become acquainted at Sandhurst, and ho was a
distant relation of himself. He remembered that his
gallant friend came to him one day, and joyfully pro-
ducing the order to join his father in India, exclaimed—
" I know few will envy me now." lie went to India,
arrived in time to cover his father's corpse, and was
himself slain. It was not for him to say, how rejoiced
they were to know that the gallant Commander-in-
Chief had closed a long and honourable career with this
great and decisive victory. He had received from a
gracious sovereign and a grateful Parliament rewards
which would hold him, and deservedly so, to his
country, as a brave and accomplished soldier, every way
worthy of the honours and distinctions that had been
bestowed upon him ; and ho was sure that amongst all
those honours, and all those distinctions, there was no
honour and there was no distinction which he would
snore prize than the thanks of the representatives of that
people to whose military glory he had added so much,
and to whose dominion he had contributed another claim
to security.---(Great cheering.) lie would now no
longer detain the House, but would conclude by observ-
ing that the East Tndia Company had given their vote
of thanks to these distinguished officers,and that, doubt-
less, the House of Commons would be unanimous in
signifying their grateful sense and ready recognition of
their services in India.—(Cheers.) He concluded with
Moving the resolutions.
The Marquis of GRANBY then rose to second the
motion; and begged to express most sincerely his cor-
dial concurrence in the eulogium which had just been
Passed upon the brave officers, to whose prudence and
valour their country owed so much.—(Hear, hear.)
eeSir R. PEEL—I trust the House will permit me--
(Mach cheering)—to express the cordial satisfaction
with which I shall give my vote for the proposal of the
ti▪
ght
Hun, Gentleman.—(Renewed cheers.) I should
have presumed to add my voice to that of the Right
fou'irn- Gentleman on this occasion, if it were not that on
previous occasions I have been a party to proceed-
ingl by which the merits of Lord Gough have bean
brought under the consideration of the Commons House
f Parliament, for his services in the Chinese war, for
the
whenbal hadttle of Feroz ?shah, for the battle of Sobraon,
the the satis.raetion of announcing to the House
distinctionsGough
conferred by her Majesty upon Lord
House
for his glorious achievements, and asking the
and to perform that duty which they so readily
▪ cordially discharged, of marking their sense of
"his services by a pecuniary provision.--(Cries of
art hear.") It was with the utrn2st satisfaction that I
sae,
that that noble soldier hail closedl of
a long; career
svictory and of glory by an achievement worthy of his
0 finer exploits.—(Cheers.) He has now, I believe, for
,oirerars served the Crown of the United Kingdom as a
(Hear.) If at the earlier period of this cam-
.l3aign there were any doubts as to the ultimate result,
?IL those doubts I never shared.—(lloar hear.) I felt
the utmost confidence that in its result 'that c
:ievn_ldiazound to the honour of Lord Gough, and would
7aeuee security to the British dominion its India,—
‘"4 I's.) I do rejoice at the glorious termination of

campeign. I rejoice especially at th© nuniercus
peoo's given by the Right Hen. Celetlowan that great
exploits have been performed, not by veterans inured
to the servico, but ley young men, assurnh,g great re-
aed giving examples worthy of the name
t Englishmen.—(ilenewed cheering.) When such
thii,j2,-s are done by the aged, and such examples are set
the oung, I never will despair of the security of our
Lelien (Chi:els.) I trtiq the House will excuse
etc—(llear, hear)—for bearieg tre,;,imoay to the t erviees
of Lord Geogh.—(Hear, hear.) 1 cannot permit his
military services in India to close without taking advan-
tage of a fifth occasion to repeat the satisfaction which
I hare derived from the contemplation of his servicee.—
(Much cheering )
Sir JAMES lIOGG said that the result of the last
battle was doubly gratifying, because it gave them the
assurance of the complete subjection of the enemy, and
also the glory of a brilliant victory. A more complete
one was never fought, either more complete as a victory,
or more comp!iee in its final results. It any evidence
were required by the Roue° upon its completeness, it
was to be found in a letter describing it, which was
written by Lord Gough to a private friend of his, and in
which it was mentioned, amongst other matters, that, to
make goad the tUght, into which the engnement speedily
turned, the Seikhs threw off their native costume to
escape detection. There was now net the slightest
chance that the Seikhs could ever re-assemble in foreei
sufficient to enable them to compete with the British
aptny. Lord Gough would never have applied to the Duke
of \Yellin:von to relieve him of his °aloe if ho had supposed
that anything yet remained to be done. He would now
soon return to his home, and he hoped his life would long
be spared to enjoy the rewards bestowed upon him
by a gracious Sovereign and a grateful country.—(Hear,
hear.) Whilst they were disgusted with the ungenerous
conduct of the Seikhs in return for the kind treatment
they had experienced, it would be gratifying to reflect
upon the steadiness with which the four Seikh regiments
bad adhered to their cause. Subsequently to 1846 it was
Lord Hardinge's policy to enlist the Seikhs under the
Durbar and command them by the British officers, and
he believed that the four regiments so disciplined might
confidently be pronounced as most faithful soldiers. He
was glad to hear of the useful services performed by so
many young teen. No one unacquainted with India
could tell the responsibility of acting in that country
under trying circumstances, far away from friends to
support and encourage them. By the recognition of
their value by the House they would henceforth know
that however distant might be the field of their labours,
or however humble the station in which they were act-
ing, still the eyes of the country were upon them, and
that they would not fail to meet, with the notice of a
grateful Sovereign.—(Hear.)
Sir It. INGLIS said, that whilst thanks and honours
were being lavished on the distinguished officers of whose
great merits he also entertained the highest opinion, the
House ought not to forget how much they were indebted
to a higher power. He would also take the liberty of
referring very briefly to the services cf Sir John Thack-
well, whose exploits, he thought, had not been touched
upon by his Hight Hon. Friend as much as justice re.
quired.

Mr. HUME regretted to say that her Majesty's Go-
vernment had not the power to confer any honours on
the officers of the Indian army but to a limited extent.
He hoped the Government would remedy the effects of
this ill-advised regulation. lle hoped that something
would be done for those who survived those who fell in
these engagements.
Mr. GLAI)STONE said it was an error to suppose
that there was a regulation by which the honour of the
Bath could not be conferred upon the officers of the In-
dian army.
Mr. HUME wished to explain that only 200 officers
could obtain the honour.

Lord JOHN RUSSELL said, if extraordinary con-
duct called for it, the party might be rewarded with the
honour of the Bath, although the honour was limited in
ex tent.

Mr. MANGLES said the officers of the Company were
the officers of the Crown, and ought to be placed upon
an equality with every other branch of the service. lie
was astonished that any apprehension should have been
entertained by the Government of this country of the re-
sult of the campaign.
Lord J. RUSSELL disclaimed having ever entertained
any doubts of the result of the campaign... _

Mr. GHAT rA.N said it was very gratifying to Hon.
Members who came from Ireland, that a vote of thanks
had been given to thQ Noble Lord. The objection to him
was that he was a Tipperary man.
Co DUNNE concurred in the vote, and drew at-
tention to the services of General Thackwell.

Sir. R. PEEL bore testimony to the ability of Lord
Dalhousie's conduct in India.

The resolutions were then agreed to.
Mr. AGLIONI3Y presented a petition from Cocker-
mouth against granting bounties to parties importing
slaves into the West Indies.