The Sun.
London, England, 1841-07-03 00:00:00

MORNING SUN.

OVERLAND MAIL.
The following are additional extracts from the papers re-
ceived by the overland mail :
SlhuE OF CHIRGONG, IN BUNDLEKUND.
This appears to have been a very smart and well contested
affair ; the enemy fought gallantly, and although our detach-
ment was a pretty strong one, our victory was not very easy.
I.
It, appears that the force, consisting of the infantry of the
Bundlekund Legion (900), three companies of the Gwahor
Contingent (180), one company of the 13th Native Infantry
(85), the cavalry of the .Bundlekund Legion (400), two
9-pounders and one howitzer of the contingent, and two
6-pounders of the Legion, marched from Jhansi on the even-
ing of the 9th ult. to a place called Maiapore, three miles to
the southward of Chirgong. On the 10th the camp moved to
Nuri, about the same distance to the north-west, and before
day break of the 11th the whale force moved upon Chir-
gong. About daybreak our advance came upon the enemy, 50
horse and 250 foot ; but as our troops formed and advanced
with the utmost steadiness the enemy fell back upon the
village of Cherona, and after firing it, retreated to Chirgong.
Our camp then was moved up from Nuri to occupy the ground
in, the rear of the village, and a squadron, under Lieutenant
Werner of the Bundlekund Cavalry, sent out to reconnoitre.
'When about parallel with the fort, the reconnoitring party
was saluted by a smart fire from sume five or six guns, which
did not very much execution, one horse only having been
wounded, though Lieutenant Werner himself very narrowly
escaped, a shot having struck the ground close to him. With-
out. any further damage the squadron regained the main force,
and the enemy opened, with some vigour, upon our camp.
Some round shot passed through two or three of our tents,
and wounded some of our men. Ou this a nine-pounder and
howitzer were run up, and a sandbag battery hastily erected
at about 800 yards from the fort, on which our guns opened
with good effect, and in less than half an hour nearly silenced
the enemy's fire. Our tents were then struck and sent to
the rear, out of range of the enemy's guns. Pickets were
posted at different points, and the day's work was closed.
On the 12th nothing was done. On the 13th a
party of grasscutters having been sent out for forage, a party
of the enemy endeavoured to cut them off on their return to
camp. Lieutenant Werner was sent out with a troop to
the support of the camp followers, but when advancing upon
a body of the enemy, about one hundred in number, who
had been annoying him with their matchlocks, just as he
was about to give the word to " charge," he was asto-
nished by a shower of rockets, which put the horses in
confusion. He soon rallied the troop, but the enemy had
retreated behind the stockades, from which they opened a
galing fire, whilst another party took him in flank from a
village called Puhari. Nothing was to be done but to retreat,
which was fortunately done without any loss either of man
or horse. On the 14th and 15th nothing was done. On the
16th reinforcements arrived from Cawnpere, three companies
of the 52d Native Infantry, a troop of the Bth Cavalry under
Captain Barbor, and the battering train (two 18-pounders and
two mortars) under Captain Pepper. On the morning of the
7th, the mortars were got into battery, and on the evening of
the same day the heavy guns were placed also. Next morning
the ordnance set to work in earnest, and twice the town was
fired by the shells, but each time the flames were got
under. The enemy returned our fire, but not with much
effect, though tolerably well directed. Our practice
is described as having told well on the citadel, and
the town was towards the evening again ignited, but
the blaze was soon subdued. On the 19th, it having been
judged that a stockaded garden to the right of the fort would
furnish the best position for our breaching batteries, Captain
Jamieson, of the 52d, with a detachment of three companies
of infantry and a squadron of horse, went out, at two o'clock in
the, morning, to get possession of it ; but, owing to the thick
darkness of the night, the party separated, missed their way,
and were able to do nothing. On the 20th, an hour before
daybreak, the same detachment moved out again, and carried
the garden in gallant style, after a meat determined resist-
ance. it appears that when, about 100 yards from the ditch
of the stockade, four rounds of shrapnel were fired from
the, howitzer to clear the garden, but there was no symptom of
an enemy. The companies were then advanced to move back
the brambles, and clear a passage for the troops. Some of
our men had just given over their muskets to set to work un-
encumbered, when a tremendous discharge of stinkpots and
rockets fell among the detachment, and put them in confusion.
They could scarcely be rallied, before a galling fire from two
hundred matchlocks was poured upon them, which disabled
many of our men, and would have done more ex-
ecution but for the previous discharge, which prostrated
many of them. Our men, it is said behaved admirably—they
soon rallied, formed, and fired a volley, which was succeeded
by a pretty brisk exchange of compliments. By this time the
6-pounders which had been sent for arrived, together with a
company of the 13th Native Infantry. The guns were planted
at the two northern extremities of the garden, and played
prettily along the trenches, sweeping them with grape ; the
infantry then, with a loud cheer, rushed into the garden by a
small aperture, in the west face. The enemy did not stay to re-
ceive them, but retreated into the town as our troops entered.
The stockaded garden being thus in our possession, the
detachment threw up a temporary work before them, com-
posed of sandbags and cotton. bales, to cover them from the
severe fire of the enemy, which lasted. till three o'clock. Our
ordnance here played beautifully—raked the whole face from
which the enemy were assailing us, and, indeed, were the
salvation of the detachment. A sharp fire was kept up from
the town till nine o'clock, and at midnight the place was eva-
cuated. It appears that the force was not strong enough in
the cavalry arm to surround the fort and cut off the retreat of
the enemy. The town when taken presented a sad picture of
desolation; not a soul was to be seen in it, and the ravages of
fire were everywhere visible. A large powder magazine was
exploded after our people had got into the town, but we do not
know if it occasioned any loss. In the affair of the 20th three
of our men were killed and 82 wounded, many of whom are
not expected to recover. The Jaghcerdar has made off to
Tehree, and the Jagheer been formally resumed.

EXTRAORDINARY SUICIDE OF CAPTAIN COX.
Captain George Hamilton Cox, Secretary of the Fire In-
surance Company, who had formed an injudicious connexion
with an actress of Calcutta, had, for the last two or three days,
been observed to be labouring under great depression of spirits
in consequence of his wife and children being daily expected
from England. He went to the theatre, from which he re-
turned to his lodgings at the Bengal Club about nine o'clock,
and then, with the greatest deliberation, blew out his brains
with a pistol, litetally shattering to pieces the whole of his
head.
After his return• it appears he wrote a letter to the Coroner,
one-to the editor of the Ehglishman, and a third to the actress
we have. spoken of, and then, sending his servants out of the
rola', seated himself in a chair, which he adjusted in a corner
of the closet, with a brace of loaded pistols in his hand, and
shot himself through the head with one of them. One pistol
was found still loaded on the chair beside the corpse, which
remained in a recumbent posture, and the other was picked
asp on the ground near the chair.
An inquest was held on the body of Captain Cox, at which
the following letters, written by the deceased immediately
before his death, were read :