The Sun.
London, England, 1860-01-17 00:00:00

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(From kfr. Russell's Diary in India.)
Whilst I am waiting about it, I may as well re-
' late an incident in connection with one of the Named
chief advisers, which I mentioned to the Governor-
General, who appeared much struck with it. After
the repulse of the allies in their assault on Sebasth-
pet, 18th June, an event closely followed by the
death of Lord Raglan, and a cessation of any opera-
tions, except such as were connected with a re-
newed assault upon the place, I went down for a
few days to Constantinople, and, whilst stopping at
Alissirie's saw, on several occasions, a handsome
slim young man, of dark olive complexion, dressed
in an- Oriental costume which was new to me, and
covered with rings and fim.rv. He spoke French
and English, dined at the table (note, an 3, as fir as
I.could make out, was an Indian prince, who was
on his way back from the prosecution of an unsuc-
cessful claim against the East India Company is
London. He had made the acquaintance of-Mr.
Boyne, veho was going out to the Crimea as the
superintendent of Sir J. Paxton's Army Works
Corps, and by that gentleman he was introduced to
me one fine summer's evening, as we were smoking
on the roof of the hotel. I did not remember his
name, but I recollect that he expressed great anxiety
about a passage to the, Crimea, " as," said he, "
want to see this famous city, and those great Roos-
tums,theßussians,who have beaten French and Eng-
lish together." Indeed, he added that he was going
to Calcutta, when the news of the defeat of June
18th reached him at Malta, and he was so excited
by it that he resolved to no to Constantinople, and
endeavour thence to get, a passage to.Balaklava.
In the course of, conversation he. boasted a good
deal of his,,puccess ioiondon society, and used the
names OT people of rank very freely, which, Com-
bined with the tone of his remarks, induced me to
regard him with suspicion, mingled, I confess, with
.dislike. He not only mentioned his tonnes fortunes,
but expressedd-a very' decided opinion that, unless
women were restrained, as they were in the East,
" like moths in candlelight, they will fly and get
burned." I never saw or heard anything more of
him until some weeks afterwards, when a gentle-
man rode up to my hut at Cathcart's-hill, and 'sent
me in a note from Mr. Doyne, asking me to assist
his friend Azimoola Khan in visiting the trenches,
and on going out I recognised the Indian prince. I
had his horse put up, and walked to the general's
hut to get a pass for him. The sun was within an
hour of setting, and the Russian batteries had just
opened, as was their custom, to welcome our reliefs
and working-parties, so that shot came bounding
up towards the hill where our friends were stand-
ing, and a shell burst in the air at apparently
near proximity to his post. Some delay took place
ere I could get the pass, and when I went with it

1 found Azimoola :had retreated inside the ceme-
tery, and was looking with marked interest at the
fire of the Russian nuns. I told him what he was
to do, and regretted my inability to accompany him,
as I was going out to dinner at a mess in the Light
Division. Oh,' said he, this is a beautiful place
to see from ; I can see everything, and as it is late
I will ask you to come some other day, and will
watch here till it is time to go home.' lie said
laughingly, I think you will never take that strong
place;' and in reply to me, when I asked him to
come to dine with me at my friend's, where I was
sure he would be welcome, he said, with a kind of
sneer, ' Thank you, but recollect I am a good Ma-
homedan !' But,' said I, ' you dined at Missirie's?'
Oh, yes ; I was joking. lam nut such a fool as to
believe in these foolish thing ;. lam of no religion.'
When I came home that night I found he was asleep
in my camp-bed, and my servant told ire he had
enjoyed my stores very freely. In the morning he
was up and off ere I was awake. On my tabl3 I
found a piece of paper—' Azimoola Khan presents
his compliments to Russell, Esquire, and begs to
thank him most truly for his kind attentions, for
which I am most obliged.'
This fellow, as we ail know, was the Nana's secre-
tary, and chief adviser in the massacres at Cawnpore.
Now, is it not curious enough that he should have
felt such an interest to see, with his own eyes, how
matters were going on in the Crimea? It would not
be strange in a European to evince such curiosity,
but in au Asiatic of the non-military caste it certainly
is. lle saw the British army in estate of some depres-
sion, and he formed, as I have since heard, a very un-
favourable opinion of its morale and physique, in
comparison with that of the French. Let us remem-
ber that soon after his arrival in India he accom-
panied Nana Sahib to Lucknow, where they re•
mained for some time, and are thought by those
who recollect -their tone and dememaoar to have
exhibited considerable insolence and hauteur t4iz
wards the Europeans they met. Afterwards the
worthy couple, on the pretence of a pilgrimage to
the hills—a Hindoo and MUSE Oman joined in a holy
excursion !—visited the military stations all along
the main trunk-road, and went as far as Umballah.
It has been suggested that their object in going to
Simla was to tamper with the Goorkha regiment
stationed in the hills ; but that, finding on their
arrival at Umballah a portion of the regiment were
in cantonments, they were unable to effect their pur-
poses with these men, and desisted from their pro-
posed journey on the plea of the cold weather. That
the Nana's demeanour towards us should have un-
dergone a change at this time is not at all wonderful;
for he had learned the irrevocable determination of
the authorities to refuse what he—and, let me add,
the majority of the millions of Ilindoos who
knew the circumstances—considered to be his just
rights as adopted heir of the ex-Peishwa of
the Mahrattas. When the great villany was planned
is not now ascertainable ; but it must be remarked,
as a piece of evidence in some degree adverse to the
supposition that Nana Sahib had successfully tam-
pered with the troops at Cawnpore, that the latter
did not evince any design of making him their
leader, nor did they hold any communication with
him on their revolt, and that they wore all march-
ing off for Delhi when he and his creatures went
to their camp, and by his representations, promises,
and actual disbursements, induced them to go back
and assault Wheeler in his feeble intrenchmcnts.

THE WAR IN 1110ROC;0.

The Times' correspondent, " coached" by Spanish
officers almost as ignorant as himself of military
matters, affects to laugh at the Moors, who cannot
abide the bayonet, who are slow in firing, who wear
dirty white robes, and carry antiquated arms. So
laughed the Italian patricians when Valerian rode
forth to chastise Sapor and the Persians; so
sneered our journalists when English troops were
sent to chastise the despicable Affghans, who
slew us among their passes like sheep. To some
mcn history teaches no lesson, and the past is a
useless blank. The Times may deride the scantily
dressed Moor, with his long cumbrous matchlock,
and his fierce but undisciplined cavalry; but those
who have seen the Moor and Spaniard side by side
can laugh at the sophistries of a prejudiced reporter.
The Moors, as competent observers assure us, are
tall, stalwart, clean-built men, of unimpeachable ts,
courage and great strength. They dress light be-
cause of the burning climate, they are dexterous
swordsmen and good shots. Some of their tribes are
horsemen, fierce and skilful as the old Mamelukes
or the murdered Janissaries—as superior to the ill-
mounted Spaniards as our own Hussars are to our
rustic yeomanry. They inhabit a country without
roads, and which in the rainy season is impassable;
in winter, rains, coming down in deluge rivers, will
torment and cow the Spaniards ; with the summer
heat, a " dins cohors" of fevers will fight against the
invaders, who will find their_ paltry artillery poor
weapons against sun-strokes and the unseen blows
of African malaria. Our readers, too, must remem-
ber that these Spaniards are not the Spaniards of
the Cid, or of Ferdinand and Isabella's reign. They
are the degraded, priest-ridden, demoralised sub-
jects of a modern Messalina, sons of the men who fled
from the French whenever bayonets were crossed
men whom the Iron Duke always spoke of with dis-
ajt li!teTuhse for winning
irnsn,iwn
byeg
gust, as Peterborough had done before : " her offi-
cers the greatest robbers, her soldiers the greatest
cowards"—men who to this
we dol
the victories vt ic
moreovertorie s tremember,
e denybe r
are men not enervated
civilisation's down bed ; they are staunch believers
Morocco less than in Turkey
Deism--in
hommedan innovations ; they fight
iforn at
corruptedhpeui pure
wives, children, and home ; they know the
country and bide their time. Heat and famine will
fight their quarrel, and drive the Spaniard to his
ships. At Gibraltar the Moors have been our true
friends ever since we held that bone of contention.
But for them there have been times during French
sieges when we should have been starved out over
and over again. Let us not imitate repudiating
Spain's ingratitude, and forget our "friends in
need ;" let the Spanish historians leave out all men-
tion of our saving victory of Salamanca, but let us
not forget the friendly Moors and their timely car-
goes of beef. That rock is a sore sight to Spanish
eyes. There may come a day when Moorish beef
' I will again be needed at "Gib," and Tetuan will be
the nearest place to get it. The motive is not
a contemptible one. A man cannot face death
on potted meats, and Moorish oxen will again be
sought. Gibraltar—that fattens on Moorish trade,
that lives on the money of Moorish merchants, and
depends ou Barbary for food—has surely no rea-
son for wishing to see the Spaniards victorious.—
, The Leader and Saturday Analyst.