The Sun.
London, England, 1858-09-18 00:00:00

LITERATUR.E.

BOOKS ON INDIA.
The Journal of an English Officer in India. By
Major North, 60th Rifles. Hurst and Blackett.
The increasing number of books on Indian sub-
jects must have struck the attention of most
readers. Whether they consist of political discui-
sions on the past or future government of the em-
pire, or of personal adventures and exploits against
the enemy, or narratives of hairbreadth escapes
from the mutineers, or records of the weary days
and nights of a protracted siege, their number, and
the readiness with which they find readers, prove
that the topic of India and Anglo-Indian life has
not yet become tedious. The feelings excited by
the terrible events of last year were too deep to be
quickly exhausted. The families and friends of
those who had striven and suffered in the mutiny
were naturally eager to read, not only their own
narratives, but the descriptions of others, and those
who had no means of gathering details from private
sources, were anxious to trace in the daily records
of eye-witnesses the gradual development of the
plot, and the particulars of the outbreak.
The " Journal of an English Officer" is one
most worthy of the attention of the reader.
Major North was Aide-de-Camp to the gallant
Havelock, and his work is the first authentic
record of the progress of his band of heroes, from
its formation as the Allahabad moveable column in
June, 1857, to its arrival at Lueknow. He joined
the 78th Highlanders as a volunteer, having been
fortunately prevented from joining a regiment en
route for Cawnpore, and was subsequently appointed
Aide-de-Camp to the General. His work is written
in a clear, straightforward manner, and though he
claims indulgence on account of ill health; and the
circumstances under which _it was written, none is
needed. The chief facts of the advance to Lucknow
are familar to most readers ; the filling up of details
does not bring us much striking novelty, but
heightens the general interest. Major North
speaks in the highest terms of the general and
the soldiers, and speaks especially of the
admiration felt throughout the little band for the
macrnaminity of Sir James Outram. He attributes
their successes entirely to the spirit and determi-
nation which animated all, from the general to the
private. The long fasts and privations of every
kind, added to their great and continued exertions
in marching, and the heat of the season, are
constantly alluded to, and, indeed, the men who
achieved what they did, under such disadvantages,
must be considered as having encountered an
allied host of foes at. once.. Thus he writes on the
15th of July:—
"During twelve hours our troops had been under arms
and twice engaged, and their endurance tested to the utter-
most. The scorching sun glared down its unpitying- rays
upon their arms, which glittered with intolerable radiance,
till the brain reeled and the eye-balls ached with the inten-
sity of that dazzling sheen.
" Yet their indomitable energy rose superior to every
trial—instinct with the dignity of manhood, they uttered
no complaint, but bore on nobly. Night had again closed,
when their long fast was terminated by a meal."
And again, a few days later, at Cawnpore—
" July 19th.—The heavy and frequent rain incident
during this monsoon weather make writing a matter of
difficulty. The ploughed ground beneath one's feet is a
regular swamp. Water, water everywhere I
A dry jacket has been a luxury unknown to us for
many days. We cannot find a dry corner wherein to sleep,
while the number of frogs which luxuriate in this humid
atmosphere is astonishing. They are great, unsightly,
bloated-looking creatures ; I have not made up my mind
whether the large black frogs, streaked and fretted with
dun colour, or the dingy yellow, variegated with black, are
the most disagreeable. My presence does not seem to dis-
compose them in the least. They either flounder about in
the little pools on my floor to their heart's content, or rest
panting on the saturated earth ; their round, shining eyes
fixed on me at times, as if fascinated. Dysentery and
cholera continue to increase. It is lamentable to see our
fine fellows smitten by those dire scourges, to which the
peculiar state of the atmosphere, superadded to fatigue and
privation, predisposes them. The long fasts, too, which we
have been obliged to endure, ...must encroach on bodily
strength. Our last was of 21 -hours' duration, viz., from
noon on the 16th July till 9 a.m. the following day. During
this interval not a man in our force had any refreshment,
and at the end of these 21 hours the meal served to them
was of the most meagre description. Still there was not a
murmur in their ranks."

Later on, in alluding to the anxiety felt by the
medical men at the rapid progress of disease, he
observes that it is not surprising as the extraordinary
exposure to which the troops were subjected, at a
season particularly trying to Europeans, would
have naturally predisposed them to sickness, even
had they the shelter of a tent, or the comfort of a
bed after their weary marches ; while the scanty
supply of food of an indifferent kind was
ill-
adapted to enable them to resist the evil influence.
It is pleasant to' nd an officer writing in such cor-
dial terms of those around him, and his work fully
maintains the high reputation enjoyed by every
individual in Havelock's little army.

My Escape from the Mutinies in Oude. By a
Wounded Officer. 2 vols. Bentley.
This work is not another of the records of those
who have escaped the hands of the mutineers, and
who have written an account of their personal ex-
periences for the benefit of their friends in England,
and elsewhere : it is a story in the form of an au-
tobiography, whose hero is an officer in the Com-
pany's service. His Indian adventures are not re-
stricted to recent events, but include the battles of
Sobraon, Chillianwallah, &c. A full description of
his flight from Oude accompanied by two other
officers, their narrow escapes, their privations and
sufferings, occupies the greater part of the second
volume, and is no doubt very similar to the suffer-
ings of many unfortunate wanderers. The -gradual
spread of the feelings of discontent and insubordi-
nation, and the general apathy of those in authority,
arc ably drawn. The terrible state of suspense in
which the Europeans remained after hearing of the
outbreak at Meerut is vividly described. With the
sword suspended over their heads, every morning
scarcely hoping to get through the day, every night
anticipating an onslaught before the morning, the
few days before their fears were realised were
scarcely less terrible than their subsequent suffer-
ings. All this—whether really drawn from per-
sonal experience, or gathered from the records of
others—is told with vigour and ability. When the
writer comes to the more domestic part of Ifs narra-
tive he is not so successful. He represents himself
as a very unprepossessing individual, and a tone of
vulgarity mingles with his conversations. The fair
Ella's gaiety, too, often sinks into flipi ars -, and
the other family portraits are scarcely more pleas
ing. Nevertheless, those who wish to gather some
idea of the terrors of an escape from the mutineers,
without reading a serious or solid work, will be
much attracted by these volumes, which will, no
doubt, in consequence of their combination of
reality and fiction, be popular with the general
reader.

Service and Adventure with the Khakee Ressalah
dariv the Mutinies of 1857-58. By R. H.
Wallace Dunlop, B.C.S. Bentley.
At the commencement of the present year the
author of this work had determined on writing a
brief historical sketch of the Meerut mutiny, memor-
able from its position as the first massacre of the
outbreak. He believed that the general history of
the Indian mutiny would hereafter be best written
" by combining such threads of narrative drawn by
separate writers in every district affected by the
revolt." But he was told by a friend that such a
narrative would not be acceptable, as few cared for
learned disquisitions on the causes, local history, and
consequences of the Sepoy revolt—that an account
of personal adventures would be far more acceptable;
and being convinced of the truth of these sugges-
tions, the writer abandoned his intended history,
and offers instead this brief record of his personal
exploits and experiences with the Meerut Volunteer
Horse. He has retained, he tells us, notes and drafts
of his letters, which detailed his own opinions and
actions ; and thus he is able to offer the reader the
description of events and impressions as he recorded
them at the time ; and he justly remarks that many
truths concealed from history are faithfully carried
home by every fortnight's mail. His sketch, he
tells us, "is not written under any delusion that
the writer saw more of adventure than his com-
panions." The scenes he witnessed were the
everyday lot of hundreds of his countrymen, and
on that account possess, as he infers, a general
interest for Englishmen. We must not omit to
mention that the volume is illustrated by numerous
woodcuts, representing the various tribes and na-
tions.

Six Months in British Burniah : or, In(Tia beyond
the Ganges; in 1857. By C. T. Winter. Bentley.

A work on Burmah is something of a novelty in
Indian travellers' tales, and as such very acceptable,
The author specially devoted himself to the study
of the people, their manners, customs, institutions,
and religion. With his sketch-book in hand, he
entered the pagodas and temples, and mingled in
the festivals and gatherings of the people, so far as
a stranger could do. From foreign residents, too,
he obtained much useful knowledge, and having
collected so much interesting material, he naturally
thought, at the present time, some account of the
country and its inhabitants would find readers.
There are many very curious particulars respecting
the people and their traditions, as well as statistical
information concerning the national resources. A
sketch of the British encounters with the Burmese
is also given, and occupies a considerable portion of
the volume. The illustrations of the temples and
pagodas add to the attractions of the work, which
is an acceptable contribution to books of travel, as
it gives information respecting a part of our
Eastern possessions, of which little is known in this
country.