The Sun.
London, England, 1840-02-17 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY. FEBRUARY 17, 1840.

LITERATURE

CO UR T AND CAMP OF RUNIEET SING.
album, London, 1840.
The name of Runjeet Sin;, a sagacious an I intelli-
gent Indian Prince, who died last January from the
effects of a severe and protracted indisposition, brought
on by his inveterate affection for strong waters, has, of
late years, been much before the public ; and-the pre-
sent volume furnishes us with some entertaining parti-
culars respecting his domestic habits, as witnessed by
the Hon. Captain Osborne, who, in May 183 S, was
sent on a mission to Lahore by the Governor-General
of India," for the purpose," as he observes in his pre-
face, " of endeavouring to place our alliance with Run-
jeet Sing on a more secure and decided footing than had
hitherto been the case." This mission was highly suc-
cessful ; but its progress was often retarded by the dis-
trust and jealousy of the Indian Monarch, and it was
while waiting at Lahore for his final answer to the Go-
vernor-General's propositions, that the author kept the
ancelotical diary_ which forms the volume before us.
Speaking incidentally of the Cachernirian dancing girls,
whom Runjeet Sing was very fond of having about his
Court, Captain Osborne tells this curious anecdote :
" One of these girls, called the Lotus, is rather a cele-
brated character at the Court of Lahore. Runjeet Sing
received her with the tribute from Cachemire about two
years ago, when she was said to have been very beautiful.
He fell violently in love with her, and fancied that his
affection was as violently returned. One evening, in the
course of conversation with M. Ventura, an Italian officer
in his service, when the girl was dancing before them, he
made some remark on her attachment to him, which he
declared was purely disinterested, and too strong to be
shaken by any offers of advantage or affection she might
receive from other quarters. Ventura was incredulous ;
and Runjeet Sing, highly indignant at this doubt of his
powers of attraction, defied him to seduce her, and pro-
mised to put no obstacles in his way, further than stipulat-
ing that she should be placed in the customary seclusion of
his zenana. After several poli:e speeches on the part of
Ventura upon the impropriety of his attempting to rival
his Sovereign, the challenge was accepted, and the young
lady immediately transferred to the royal seraglio, with
every precaution to ensure her safety. Scarce had eight
and forty hours elapsed, ere the hoary old lion of Lahore
was rowed from his happy dreams of love and affection by
the intelligence that his guards were faithless, his Harem
violated, and himself deserted ; and that the lovely Lotus
had, nothing loth, beeit transplanted from her royal lover's
garden to the Italian's, where she was then blooming in all
her native beauty ! Runjeet Sing bore her desertion with
great equanimity ; and in a short time she returned to her
allegiance, and is now enrolled in his corps of Amazons."
Runjeet Sing, being a martyr to ill-health, was con-
stantly consulting the physician attached to the Eng-
lish mission, but almost invariably neglected his advice.
" His medicine, however," we are told, " was always
given to some of his favourite chiefs, who were forced
to swallow it in his presonce, and wore then shut up
that his Majesty might judge' of its effects !" A few
days previous to his departure from Lahore, Captain
Osborne was favoured with a sight of that matchless
diamond—the finest in the world—which is called tha
" Mountain of Light," and of which Runjeet Sing was
deservedly proud. "It certainly is," says the Gallant
Author, " a most magnificent diamond, about an inch
and a half in length, and upwards of an inch in breadth,
and stands out from the setting about half an inch ; it
is in the shape of an egg, and is set in a bracelet be-
tween two very handsome diamonds about half its size.
It is valued at three millior s sterling, is very brilliant,
and without a flaw of any kind." We sum .up our
briefnotice of this volume, by saying that it is of a
lively, sketchy character, full of anecdote, and illus-
trated with several plates.

NINA SFORZA.
Saunders and 01leg, London, 1840.

The prime villain and moi,ing principle of this tra-
gedy is one Ugone Spinola, the head of a noble house in
Genoa, whose fortunes, however, have been blasted by
the rival house of Doria. To this family, accordingly,
Spinola vows undying hatred ; and we find him in the
earlier scenes of the play, domiciled under the roof of
liaphael Doria, a dissipated, thoughtless youth, who,
deceived by his plausible exterior, ranks him among his
intimate friends. Driven from his home at Genoa by
his father, on account of his irregularities, Doria sets out
with Spinola and some other am:minter, to Venice,'
where he takes up his above at the house of Sforza, with
whose daughter, Nina, he very soon after falls despe-
rately in love ; and the sudden death of his father
enabling him to return home, he marries Nina, who
immediately accompanies him to Genoa. Spinola now
commences his machinations against the young wedded
pair, and taking advantage of Doria's transient flirts•
tati.an with an artful Florentine lady, persuades Nina
that he has become indifferent to her affection, and so
works upon her feelings, that in a moment of despera-
tion she quits her husband's house, and poisons herself
in an adjoining wood. Here she is found in a dying
state, by Doria, who, also overpowered by anguish,
puts an end to his existence, but not before he has dis-
covered the treachery of Spinola, who indeed has
openly confessed his hatred to him, and• its cause. It
will be seen from this hasty sketch, that there is
little novelty in the plot of Nina Sforza ; some
of the leading characters are, however, well de-
fined, especially that of Nina, in which there
is infinite purity and tenderness. The language of the
play is vigorous throughout, and in the last scene be-
tween Doria and Spinola is highly impassioned. As a
first attempt, we consider Nina Sforza very creditable
to the skill and genius of i!s author.

PICTORIAL SHAKSPEAME—PART XVI.
C. Knight, Lonlon, 1840.
The present Part contains the entire tragedy of
Othello, accompanied by terse, explanatory notes,
clearing up all that is deubtful and obscure in the
text, and here and there suggesting an ingenious read-
ing. The embellishments, as usual, are excellent.

A LEGEND OF FLO.hENCE.
Moron London, 1840.
•

The chief character in this tragic play—namely,
Francesco Ago!anti, is as shrewdly conceived as it is
forcibly executed ; nothing indeed can surpass the skill
with which its subtler and minuter touches are deve-
loped, or the caustic but bitter sarcasm implied in
that maudlin anxiety to appear respectable in the
world's eye which influences Agolanti's every ao.
tion, and tones down to the true hypocritical whine
his most malignant and envenomed speeches.
Mr. Hunt has drawn this character with more sternness
and vigour than we thought he possesseA ; and by so
doing, has placed in fine relief that high-smiled, uncom-
plaining victim, Ginevra, who, hoaeless of mitigating her
" respectable" husband's systematic brutality by a gentle
and considerate course of conduct, has no other
resource left than the grave, to which, at the
opening of the. play, she is represented as fast hasten-
ing. The little that this most unhappy creature has to
say—for she is by no means one who deals in exuberant
speech—is full of the truest pathos, nod strikes at once
to the heart. But it is 11:..‘r unworthy husband that has
most tasked the author's skill in portraiture. On this
" respectable " sample of humanity is lavished all his
power of analysis ; and the result is, a character as
abject, crawling, and petty, even in its vi!lany, as it is
possible to conceive. Yet it can scarcely be called
dramatic, for it wants the bold, striking features of
the drama, and is, besides, utterly destitute of
interest. As regards the dialogue of the play, it is full
of touches of feeling and fancy, which arc not too
ostentatiously thrust under the reader's notice, but are
always in their proper place.

LORD BROUGHAM
(From theliendal Mercury.)

We mentioned in our last that an address had been pre-
sented to Lord Brougham by the members of the Mechanics'
News-room in this town, thanking him for his cgaduct
during the present session of Parliament. The following
is the reply which has been received from that Noble-
man :

" London, Feb. sth, 1840.
Sir,—l have had the honour of receiving your letter,
and I beg, through yen, to return my bcst thanks to my
esteemed county-men, for the very acceptable honour con-
ferred upon me.

" My affection for the Working Classes of the People
never can end but with my life and I very heartily wish
that it, were in my power to be of any more use to them, in
oblaking the objects of their just des'res and expectations.
" On my return to England, from which I am obliged
to be absent for the next six or eight weeks,—l shall al-
ways be found at my post in Parliament, and I am sure
they will never find me slow to lend whatever held I can
to the well considered impro‘ement of oar institutions,
when attempted by just and lawful moans.
I am, Sir, your obedient Servant,
" BROUGHAM.
" To Mr. Jas. 'pedding, Mechanics' News-room, Kendal."
.1.1••••••••••••••,•••••••,••

INDIA, AND THE COURT AND CAMP OF
RUNJEET SING.—ThiSVOIIIMe, by the Hon. G. W. Osborne,
the son of Lord Godolphin, the result of a mission to the King
of Lahore, is one of the most interesting, and, at the same time,
one of the most important that has appeared for a long time.
" It is full," says the Times," of curious details; and describes
the means by which the late Runjeet Sing contrived to raise
himself to the command of a powerful kingdom; it developes
his public and private life—his character and peculiarities—his
virtues apd his vices ; the political relations and power of the
Sikh state—its resources—its importance as an ally to the
British Government in India, in the event of an invasion
from Russia or Persia; it pourtrays many of the almost incre-
dible conventions and customs of the Sikh people, a nation of
whom little is known brlond their geographical locality,
affording more insight into the real character of the natives of a
vast division of India than is to be met with in the voluminous
and cumbrous descriptions of vocessed trAveliera,”

CAPTURE OF KELAT.

The following is a most graphic, as well as, we be-
believe, accurately minute account of the capture of
Kelat :
" CAMP KELAT, Nov. 16.—0 n our arrival at Quetta
we heard that a small force was to be sent against
Muerah Khan. The 17th and the Bengal 31st, with four
of the Shah's guns, were in orders for the trip under
Colette' Croker, but during the day it was increased by
the Queen's, and two howi'zers from the 3d troop, to go
under the command of Brigadier Baumgerdt. They
were ordered to march on the 3d, and ourselves direct
down the Bolan Pass on the 4th. The General, however,
having altered his mind, and determined to proceed to
Kelat himself, we were required to accompany him ;
so our camels' heads were turned the opposite way,
and off we went, Captain Bean, the political agent,
declaring there would not be a shot fired. Instead
of eight marches, we found it to be eleven good
long ones. When we arrived at a village two
marches from this, Muerab Khan sent to tell us not
to advance, or he would consider it a challenge which
he would accept ; and when we marched as usual the
next morning, although horsemen came out to meet us
end fired upon our advanced guard, still the politicals
could not realise it to themselves that he dared to fight.
On the 13th we had but a seven miles' march to make
to Kelat, and we had no sooner left our ground than a
body of about 100 horsemen showed themselves on our
flank and commenced a fire, of course a very random
and harmless one ; but a few light infantry were sent
to keep them, at all events, at a respectful distance from
the column. They say that some six or seven were
shot, and three of our infantry wounded. After St march
of five miles, we came through a gorge in the hills, and
all at once saw the citadel of Kelat looking most for-
mi.lable. The fort itself was hid behind three small hills ;
but on these hills were crowds of men, who no sooner saw
us than they opened a fire from four or five guns that
they had managed to mount up there : we were
just in their range, but that was all, and no harm
was done. All the horsemen had now collected on
the plain, about 800 yards from us, and presented a
most tempting shot for one of our guns, so Forster was
ordered up to the front, and one round sent them off in
double quick time. The General now halted us, and
scut a couple of companies on some distance to the left,
to clear some gardens, close to which he purposed pitch-
ing our camp, and the next step decided upon was to
dislodge the men from those commanding heights, and I
must say the movement to accomplish this was indeed
most beautiful. He told off two European companies
to each of the two left hills, and three of the 31st against
the third hill, and we (the artillery) were to go up to
within a nice range, and then, under cover of our guns,
the infantry were to advance. The order to advance was
given. Our six guns (Forster's two and the Shah's four)
trotted up to. within 500 yards of there ; the four Euro-
pean companies were coming up behind and clear of
us to the left, and the 31st to the right. Of course
as we trotted up and got into action they blazed away
nobly at us, but in a few minutes we were un-
limbered, and I think I am correct in saying that
with half-a-dozen rounds of sperical case, which burst
beautifully, the hills were all perfectly abandoned, and
the infantry took -possession of them without the ex-
change of a single shot ; however, they pushed on, at
one time with the hopes of dashing into the gate of the
fort before the fugitives could shut it, but they were too
quick for our men ; this got the infantry very close, and
as we limbered up we took our guns over the hills they
had deserted, and got into position about 180 yards from
the fort walls, and commenced a fire upon the defences
of the place ; in the meantime the infantry most gallantly
rushed on to get under a mud wall that ran parallel
to the walls of the fort, and within 30 yards from it.
They had a very long run for it over a perfectly open
field, under a tremendous fire, and the slaughter of our
men was very great ; however, they soon reached it,
and screened themselves. These were two companies
of Europeans, one of each regiment, and this mud wall
was to the left of the gateway a little ; to the right a com-
pany of the Queen's pushed on under cover of some
huts, but not very close to the fort ; they were there
safe, but in advance, about 80 yards, was a ruined
hut, which, could they reach in safety, would protect
them, and they would then be as near the gate as their
comrades. This
.was Rait's company, and presently
first one man peeped round the corner, and saw this
place, and then another, and in another instant off
they went ; but, before reaching the hut, they suffered
severely, an officer and several men shot dead. Now our
position was most perfectly beautiful—the infantry so
close up to the gate ready fora dash in, and lying down
underthe walls. Our position did not afford us a direct ,
fire at the gateway, but a very oblique one, and every
shot at the gate passed over the heads of Rait's company
as we fired, they never moved. The advance of
the 31st was under cover of some hull, not far
behind, also ready to make a push. We now
blazed away at the gate, which did not resist
our shot ; they went through it without knocking
it down. Seeing this, a couple of six-pounders were
sent directly opposite the gate on the plain, and a
couple of shots and down it went. The advance was
sounded, one cheer, and thirty yards took them to the
gate. We now knew all was right, and the infantry
pushed in. In another instant a red coat stood on the
wall over the gate, cheering the men in, and then we
heard the roll of our musketry. It was most glorious.
The Be'oochees fought most desperately, and it we:,
far more severe work than at Ghuzuce. There
open space inside for our men to see their ce:,n,,they
were fired at from people in the hote:es ;
besides, we
hu
ad not 1,000 bayonets altogether • e "'vas no
; .but there they were,
iore hour and fifteen minutes
from the time the Gene-a °
first gave the order to ad-
,na
npeoes.sessTi possession oefitat the fort
P), still remained to be taken, and it
was a most formidable job, being immensely high, with
only one entrance to it by a very narrow, long, wind-
;rig passage, perfectly dark. At first the door could
not be opened ; but when that was effected, as our
menme n ro
urns hi
negd duopwnthsiws orPd" isnagleia' ntdll,e3wr
and if any man did get up the passage, he was cut to
hwoe rken
erwe ptuhles e dr
andy,
pieces at the tap. But what is it that Europeans will
not do ? Even this they accomplished, though it was
defended by all the great men of the country, who had
assembled there, and Muerab Khan himself did, as he
said he would do, die at the door of his Zenana with
his sword in his hand, and nobly they all did it. It
was past four in the evening before the citadel had
fairly surrendered. Many shut themselves up in
houses and kept firing at our men unseen. Among
the killed are . recognised numbers of chic&
and great men, and we have prisoners all
these rascally Governors of Shawl, Dadur, Gun-
dava and different places, who had run away
from their villages. The infantry describe it as being a
much more severe fight than Ghuznee, and we have
every reason to say the same, though our loss is little
or nothing. The garrison is estimated at more than
4,000, though I hear the General in his despatch says
2,000 only ; but it is of no oonsequence, because 2,000
is quite as good as double the number in a fort. The
place itself is miserably weak, but the citadel is very
strong. The , General had no intention of taking it in
hand in the way it was done, but we all agree his ar-
rangements that day were famous. It was merely in-
tended to dislodge the men on the bills, and then com-
mence a regular business, but it was very capital work
to have everything done in such style. To our earprise
thewe prizes,
zeist,ias
grraetahternuamribeehr
opflahcoer,se4
ands we arrs busy aboat
oarnols, sheep, grain,
and'oeautiful shawls, carpets, and
silks, nd
acluliattnltei,titers feagsure. We shall not remain here
greata
more than iwo or three days, and then move strAight
down the Gundava Pass."

THE HORSHAM BANK ROBBERY.--011 Fri-
day night a large quantity of gold and silver was stolen from
the bank situate in West.street, Horsham, under circumstances
of ar. exceedingly. mysterious nature. No disturbance was
heard during the night. At six o'clock on the following morn-
ing, the cleric found that a wooden box, containing upwards of
5,0001. in Bank of England and provincial notes, and also the
sum of 457/. 103. in gold, and 1761. 14s. 10d. in silver, was
gone. A tin cashbox, containing 551. in Bank of England
notes, and SI. 10s. in gold, had been forced open, and gold alone
been abstracted. Upon a table in the kitchen were found the
fragments of a ham, two empty wine bottles, and a brandy
bottle. Upon searching the cellar it was Lund that the thief
or thieves had abstracted two bottles of Moselle wine and one
of champagne brandy from the bin ; as also cheese from the
larder, upon which it appeared they regaled themselves previous
to leaving the house. A cork-screw haft also been fetched
from a closet in the parlour, in which was plate valued at
200/. none of which was missing. The clerk attended before
the
Magistrates, and made a sworn statement, and the affair
still remains buried in mystery, but the investigation is never-
theless actively followed up by Mr. Padwick and Sergeant
Otw ay.
SINGULAR MORTALITY AMONG Cows.--A
novel disease of the most deadly character has lately made its
appearance, and caused some consternation, in the extensive
dames in the neighbourhood of Purfleet. The first part at-
tacked is the tongue, which rapidly becomes so blistered and
swollen as utterly to prevent the animal from taking its food.
Unless the most prompt and skilful means are used to avert its
progress, the disease rapidly extends to the animal's hoofs, which
in a short time absolutely rot off, and certain death is of course
the consequence. This disease, in most cases fatal, is not
known ever to have shown itself before, and is generally attri-
buted to the extraordinary quantity of rain which has fallen
during the last eight months.
NEWCASTLE AND NORTH SHIELDS R AIL-
WAY.—The fourth annual meeting of this Company took
place on Tuesday last, 4th February. From the report it ap-
peared that, during the .ix months the railway has been open,
upwards'of 350,000 passengers had been carried,:and more
than 10,0001. had been taken.—Carlisle Journal.