The Sun.
London, England, 1847-10-04 00:00:00

OVER LAND MAIL

INDIA.
(From the Times.)
We have received by extraordinary express from
Marseilles our letters in anticipation of the overland
snail of August. The dates thus received are from
Bombay to the 31st, Madras to the 20th, and Calcutta
to the 14th of August.
The wet season was drawing to a close; the rains
had been sufficient and favourable, and there was a
prospect of abundant crops.
Sir Charles Napier had sent in his formal resigna-
tion of the government of Sinde.
In the Punjaub the influence of our Resident with
the Durbar continued on a firm footing.
The Governor-General was to have left Simla on
the 20th of August for the seat of Government, by
way of Lucknow.
Her Majesty's 21st and 50th Regiments are the two
which will come home—the last when relieved by the
18th, at present at Hong-Kong.
Some disturbances had arisen in the Jullundur
Doab. It appears that since our troops have occu-
pied Jullundur the Mussulmans did not avail them-
selves of the right to slaughter cattle until lately,
when a Mussulman butcher set up his trade outside
the city, upon which there was at once a tumultuous
assemblage of the Hindoo community, but they were
ultimately dispersed by a body of troops. Since that
time, up to the latest news—a lapse of about ten
days—murders had been frequent, and the Hindoos
had refused to open their grain shops. The father of
the butcher who offended in this instance was, we
are told, formerly hanged at Jullundur for killing a
cow.

Another episode still more characteristic of India
of old and the half administered native states at the
present day, is mentioned from Nepaul. The deposed
Maharaja of Nepaul had been residing for some
months at Segowley, on our frontier, notoriously
occupied with designs on the life of his enemy, the
actual Prime Minister ; when in the thick of his in-
trigues he himself fell into a trap, has been made
prisoner himself, and nearly all his supporters put to
the sword. The ex-Maharaja was, it appears, led to
believe by the Minister's emissaries that the Nepaul
army would rise in his behalf, were he to make his
appearance near the territory ; and accordingly he
secretly collected a number of his adherents, and pro-
ceeded a short distance into the Nepaul state, ex-
pecting to hear intelligence of the first movement in
his favour. There a " chuppao," or night attack, was
made by a detachment of the Nepaul troops ; the ex-
Raja's followers, to the number of about 500, were
slaughtered, and himself carried off.
News from Bokhara is said to have reached India
in various directions, to the effect that the King
had put to death with his own hands the infamous
Abdool Samud, by striking him on the head with a
small axe, upbraiding him with having instigated
him (the King) to take the lives of Stoddart and
Conolly.
The case of Lieutenant Bird, of the Indian navy,
who had been dismissed with a pension of 1001. a
year, was exciting great sympathy throug ht India.
The following extract from a dispatch, published by
the Superintendent of the Navy, contains the sen-
tence on Lieutenant Bird :
" The Superintendent of the Indian Navy is pleased
to publish the following extract of a dispatch from
the Hon. the Court of Directors, No. 30, dated 26th
May, 1847, for the general information of the ser-
vice.
" 1. The conduct of Lieutenant Bird has already
several times incurred severe reprimand from his su
periors, and has, moreover, been animadverted on in
terms of displeasure in our marine dispatch, No. 50,
of the 31st July, 1844, on the occasion of the steam-
vessel Cleopatra, while under his command, having
been run ashore and severely injured, to the great
hazard of the loss of the ship and the lives of the
crew and passengers. At the close of this dispatch
it is stated—" 'We are induced to refrain from direct-
ing what we should otherwise have felt our duty, the
removal of Lieutenant Bird from the Company's ser-
vice ; but, as regards his future employment, we
leave the question entirely to the Superintendent of
the Indian Navy, in whose direction we have full
confidence."
" 2. The hope of amendment which induced us to
take that lenient course appears to be totally disap-
pointed by the report now made to us, from which
we gather that after the receipt of our dispatch above
adverted to, the Superintendent was induced to place
Lieutenant Bird at Kurrachee, where he has proved
himself unfit to perform the very simple duties re-
quired ; that the public service has bem thereby
much obstructed ; and that the conduct of Lieutenant
Bird has caused great displeasure to the Governor of
Sinde.
3. We cannot permit an officer while on the
effective list of the Indian navy to continue unem-
ployed ; and as it is obvious that there is not a post
to which he can be usefully advanced by your Govern-
ment, we feel it necessary that it be forthwith intimated
to Lieutenant Bird that we have no further occasion
for his services.
" 4. In coming to this conclusion, it is not our in-
tention that Lieutenant Bird should be deprived of
the means of subsistence, and we have resolved to
grant him an allowance of 1001. per annum, to com •
mence from the day when his pay as an officer of our
ndian navy shall cease. "

The following summary of events is taken from the
Bengal Hurkaru of the 14th of August :
" The past week, the brief period which we have
now to review, has furnished us with but few subjects
calling for special notice.
" The most interesting item of intelligence which
we have to communicate relates to the affairs of
Nepaul, and as yet rests on the authority of a solitary
letter, received by us from a correspondent at Moote-
haree, a station near the frontier. According to this
account, the designs of the ex-King and his adherents
have been most signally defeated, and the fallen
monarch is now a captive in the power of the Minister
against whose life he has lately been plotting. But we
will let our correspondent tell the tale in his own
words : _ _ _

A bloody tragedy has just been acted within a
few miles of .Segowley cantonments. The ex-
Maharaja of Nepaul, who was for some - months
residing at the latter place, plotting doubtless to
regain his lost guddee, and who was led to believe
that the Nepaul army would rise in his favour, de-
parted on the 23d ult., for his own territory, accom-
panied by a number of the refugees, and some five
thousand miscalled fighting men, who had been
privately, it is said, collected by some influential
zemindars in the neighbourhood. It would appear
that these men joined him on the frontier, as he left
Segowley with only a few followers. He took up
his residence at a place called Allow, a distance from
the boundary, evidently expecting to hear of a
movement in his favour, as also with the view of
adding to his force of raggamuffins. His dream of
restoration was most disagreeably disturbed by a
chappao, or night attack, by three detachments of
Nepaul soldiers, on the night of the 27th, during
which native report states, 400 or 500 of his followers
were killed, and the ex-Raja carried off to Katman-
doo. He was treated with the greatest respect by
the commandant of the detachment, but, on hisrefus-

. .
ing to accompany the party, he was carried away
forcibly in a palkee, after several vain attempts to
convey him on an elephant. No mercy was shown to
his followers, who were slaughtered forthwith; their
proximity to the boundary alone saved any of
the party, as on the first alarm there was a general
rush into our territory. They made no stand what-
ever, and from all accounts not a Nepaulese soldier
was wounded on the occasion. There can be no
doubt of a ruse having been played off on the ex-
Maharaj a by parties in Nepaul for the purpose of
getting him into their power, and of taking vengeance
at the same time on the refugees for their plots and
attempts on the Prime Minister's life. It was for this
purpose the Raja was led into the belief that the army
was on his side, and enly waited his presence on his
own territory to rise to a man, and replace him on
the guddee. He took the bait, and now that he is in
the power of his enemy, it remains to be seen how
he will be disposed of. Should I gather any further
information in the matter, I will not fail to give it to
you, but for the present you will say this is enough.
" It has already been announced that the British
Resident at Katmandoo had formally recognized the
change of Sovereigns there, and as the old King is
now in the power of the ruling party, we shall pro-
bably hear no more of this revolution of Nepaul.
How long it will be before we have another to record
is, however, another matter.
" There is nothing new from the Punjaub beyond
an intimation that Colonel Lawrence visits Cash-
mere instead of Simla, and that his brother, Mr.
John Lawrence, has already proceeded to Lahore,
to relieve him from the duties of the residency.
" Lahore is reported to be very healthy fur the
season. The relief lately published gives to the gar..
rison a second European regiment.
" We have not yet heard of the capture of Doon-
ghur Singh, and fear we shall not have to report
that event yet awhile. The bold outlaw is still
moving about, scattering dismay over the country
in which ho is exercising his vocation. He lately

threatened to attack a town of some importance ,
called Bhawanie, which is not a hundred miles from
Delhi. To the authorities at the last-named place
application was made for protection, and a force of
cavalry and infantry was immediately sent off toward
the threatened town. We have not yet heard the
result of the expedition, but it is to be feared that if
Doonjee's threat was anything more than an attempt
to throw the authorities oft` his track, it would have
been fulfilled ere the troops could arrive to prevent it.
" The Governor-General leaves Simla in progress
hitherward about the 20th instant. We believe he
purposes paying a visit to Lucknow while on his way
down.

" We have little to report of proceedings in Cal-
cutta for the past week. Government has announced
its intention to establish a Normal Institution, con-
sisting of a Normal School for the training of teachers,
and an Elementary Model School. Such an insti-
tution has long been required and often promised.
The weather continues variable, and much rain has
fallen at intervals. The acccunts from the indigo
districts are still anything but cheering, the crop yet
suffering from excess of moisture.

"We glad to be able to report somewhat more
favourably on commercial matters than we have
lately done. In both imports and exports there has
been a little more activity; money is now less scarce
than it was ; freights have fallen and continue to fall,
and exchange is still on the decline. Two cases be-
fore the Insolvent Court bare lately excited the at-
tention of the mercantile community. In each of
these insolvent firms were proved to have obtained
bills:of lading for goods which were never shipped,
and afterwards to have raised money on bills for
which these fictitious shipping documents were given
as security. The Commissioner pronounced the of-
fence an indictable fraud, and has withheld the dis-
charge of the parties for six months, to afford an op-
portunity for their prosecution by those aggrieved."