The Sun.
London, England, 1858-11-15 00:00:00

THE BRITISH ARMY IN INDIA.

(From the Times' Special Correspondent.)
VALLEY OF CHUMBA, HIMALAYAS, Ocr. 1
I am on my -way to Simla, which I hope to reach
in a, few days, and thence I shall proceeu by way
of Ag-ra and Meerut to join the Head-quarters
Camp, -which will be formed at Allahabad on the
10th, so that I may accompany the troops in their
march into Oude, and witness the opening of the
cold weather campaign in that turbulent and re-
fractory province. It is most probable that the
troops assembled at Allahabad will cross the river
at that place, and commence operations at Soraon
and Pertabghur. You will receive from Bombay
and Calcutta much more recent intelligence than I
can communicate for some time to come, but no very
important events are likely to arise till after the
date- of my arrival at Allahabad. " Likely,"
however, is a word singularly inapplicable to the
course of events in India. At the present moment
we have received news up here which I cannot but
regard as sinister and ominous. The 10th Punjab
Infantry are reported to have marched off with all
their arms for Dera Ismael Khan, in the hope of
inducing.some of their countrymen to join in an
nsurrectionary movement. Should this be an
isolated instance of disaffection on the part of the
many Sikh battalions in our pay, arising from some
sudden pique or the influence of evil counsels, there
is little to fear. If it should be an overt act of a
great conspiracy—which appears to me most im-
probable—it is impossible to exaggerate the dan-
ger. Our empire in India is, indeed, in desperate
case should the Sikhs, who are now fighting our
battles in every district where an enemy to our
rule can be found, turn traitors ere the mass of the
reinforcements from England can 'reach us. There
is reason to believe that mischief has been brewing
at Dera Ismail Khan since the discovery of the plot
which occasioned such excitement in the North-
Wegtern Provinces a few weeks ago. It
would appear as if Brigadier Chamberlain's
investigations into the origin of-this plot had
led him to the knowledge of facts which he
considered of a dangerous character, for it is
only within the last few days that a column, con-
sisting of Blount's troop of Horse Artillery, a wing
of the 7th Fusileers, a squadron of the 7th Dragoon
Guards, and some 300 Sikh infant 7, marched from
Lahore to strengthen the place, which is mainly im-
portant because it commands the Indus (on the
right bank of which it is situated), and, further,
that it contains the mtgazine of the whole of the
Punjab Irregular Force. All over India the Sikh
nation and the Punjabees, composed of Hindoos and
Mahomedans, are giving evidence of their courage
and devotion to our rule. Each day we hear of
actions in which Sikh police and Punjab regiments
have defeated the rebels, and it would be deplorable
indeed if we were suddenly forced to withhold our
confidence from these gallant soldiers, and to exer-
cise that surveillance over them which is requisite
in the case of mercenaries who may become enemies
at any moment. There is no use in disguising the
fact that the great number of those Punjabee bat-
talions excited serious apprehensions in the minds
of many who were, however, forced to admit their
existence to be a necessary evil. Our Frankensteins
had created a monster pn whose fidelity and devo-
tion we must rely in hope and trustfulness, whose
services were great as his strength. Those who are
acquainted with Lord Clyde's views will admit that
he was among those who shared in the apprehen-
sions so justly causedby our forced reliance on such
a gathering of Oriental races—the most warlike of
the East—who had many traditions of recent glory
and the memories of late defeat ; the knowledge of
Affghanistan' of the passes of Cabool, fresh in their
minds, great lust of gold, and all the fickleness and
subtlety of the Asiatic. It is remembered that
those fierce soldiers even at Delhi were fond of re-
calling the stories of the great battles in which they
in vain sought to destroy the supremacy of our arms,
and that they were in rude jocosity wont to say—
"We fought against you 10 years ago and you
beat us ; now we are fighting for you •, in 10 years
more or less we may once more be fighting against
you." During the late campaign they fought side
by side with our best troops, and were foremost
in many of our most desperate assaults. In a
former letter I have told you of their strength,
which cann* be less now than 80,000 horse and ,
foot. It would be unjust in the very highest de-
gree to assume now that any considerable portion,
or even any appreciable portion, of these troops are
disaffected, but the Delhi regiment is known to
have been troublesome on several occasions. The
Sikhs of one corps have notoriously, conspired
against us, and the question, which might arise,
" What would you do in case all the Punjabees re-
volted ?" is one to which, as matter of pure hypo-
thesis, we should be prepared with an answer. In
the Dora Jet, of which Dera Ismail Khan may be
regarded as the capital, there are,unfortunatcly the
three Punjab frontier batteries organised by Lord
Dalhousie, consisting of 18 pieces of artillery in
very complete order ; that this is the only force of
guns actually in their hands. The strength of
Europeans in the Punjab is about eight battalions
of infantry, one regiment of cavalry, and some 54
field guns ; but further south the country is almost
denuded of British soldiers. In any case we shall
require to manage the Sikhs with great tact, par-
ticularly when the time comes for reducing the bat-
talions under arms to a peace establishment. lam
told that an occurrence at Umballa the -other day
gave great offence to these irascible warriors. The
Rajah of Putteeala's wife presented him with a son,
on which there were great rejoicings, and the sounds
of the salute fired on the occasion alarmed the offi-
cer on duty at Umballa, who thought that the Sikhs
had risen, and in that belief turned out the Euro-
pean guard, marched them to the posts occupied by
detachments of a Punjabee regiment, and forced
thern'to deliver up their arms. At the moment I
write. a telegraphic despatch has been received by
one of my companions, Colonel Tombs, dated
Meerut, Sept. 26, informing him that half of his
troop has been ordered to Delhi, and requiring him
to go down to Meerut without a moment's delay.
The Oth Lancers are on their way from Umballa
down country, and their presence will probably in-
sure the safety of the main trunk road for the time.
Specific news -I
have none, except ofsuch small signi-
ficance that it would possess no interest for the Eng-
lish public. The Queen has not yet been proclaimed.
Tantia Topee and the Nana Sahib are still free. No
details of General Mitchell's great success over the
former have yet reached us, but we knovi that all
the guns so injudiciously left at Jalra Patin' have
been recaptured, and that the enemy are once more
" in utter disorder, and thoroughly dispirited."
Much of this success is no doubt due to the fore-
sight of Sir R. Hamilton, whose talents and ability
have been strikingly displayed during all the
operations in Central India

- IF, indeed, the safety of India depended on the
ability of the servants of the Government, or on the
courage of our own race, I should have little fear of
any contingency that might arise now or at any
future period, but it must be remembered that,
great as may be the British porter in India, it is
great only so long as its exercise is consonant
with the feelings of the people of India ; for I
hold that, weak as those myriad millions are in
physical resources, in moral courage, in mental
vigour, and in true independence of spirit, it would
be quite beyond our strength to hold India by
armed force. Were it possible to do so, it would be
financially impossible, and even as it is the cost of
the military operations which have taken place will
astound the nation when the bill is presented for
payment. We must learn—and I fear the lesson has
not yet been taught, and that it will be unwillingly
learnt by many—to conciliate the affections, as I

believe we have gained the respect, of the people.
Respect for our rule may be independent of regard
for ourselves. The manifestation of a hostile and
contemptuous spirit engendered in the late contest,
" the study of revenge—immortal hate," must be
counteracted by all powersthc of government. How
can we expect the gospel t oprevail in India so long
aseve set at defiance
mercy
all its precepts of charity,
orgiveness, and ? What hope can there be
of convincingtr,hirre.rY nativesc of the purity, morality,
and heavenly origin of the Christian faith as long as
isi
the Indian pressbreathing fire and sword against
the people of Indiabecause it does not, and reviling the Government
xipeia omit a dragonade against the
Hindoo and the tuked.an ? There are some
thin
there who seem to that we, the 'English in
India,.are the bearers ofthe Ark of the Covenant,
and that our mission is to smitet the Canaanite hip
and thigh from the morning; onotht e setting of the
inti. ; to go forth and spare
hurl down
his faith;
has
idol, and to force every Nall' to
43 idol to overthrow--to abjure
tifaith .; but
Heaven has not given us power for'
nor did we come into the land proclalivnietri'olgt.isoomutirissesli,°.nes'
the chosen pcOple of the Lord, who
Vie heathen of his inheritance. Others there
whose brains have been affected by Thomas Carlyle
and and who preach a Puritan crusade, who believe tlia;
Oliver Cromwell was the true type of an Indian
kgifilator, and. who would apply to all. our subjects
the same receipts which had such singular SUCCCS3 in
converting the pz.ople of Ireland at Drogheda and
el,;0 where from Roman Catholicism.to the faith of
VI:, Old T,stainent.. But these are theorists who are
only mischievous in so Ihr as their hallucinations
may bo taken by the people as exponents of the
feelings and policy of the English Government.
Let us proclaim to the people of 'lndia that we are
a Christian people,. but let us not act as if we were
ancient Jews. Let us tell them that we are deter-

CVOr

rained, as long as we wield the sovereign power, to
recognise the claims of the Christian faith to
equality and protection, and to secure the freedom
or its professors ; but let us notviolate our faith, our

profes'sions, and our treaties by arming those who
are willing to go forth and preach with the power

and authority of State officials. Let us also give a
heavy blow and great discouragement to those who
seem to have imbibed the worst part of the spirit of
Orientalism, and who speak as if Anglo-':axonism
meant tyranny, despotism, and contempt of right.
I tremble for the effect that may be produced on
those young Englishmen who may arrive durinc,
this frenzy in this country to act as its judges or its
administrators. There are some voices raised,
but they arc little heard in the tumult, against
the insolence, the cruelty, and the folly to which
many of our countrymen have been urged by the
sanguinary excesses of the contest in which they have
been engaged. The " grifrwilinowbe indoctrinated
in a school whose lessons are very . different from
those taught in Anglo-Indian society before the
mutiny and the rebellion. He will hear natives
spoken of almost universally as " niggers" with
prefixes of strong adjectives, referring to the sup-
posed future state of " clarkies" and " pandees." He
will be taught that the height of his ambition should
be "to make a good bag," which is the specific
name used on all occasions for killing a good many
of the enemy—that mercy is " snivelling white
pandyism," and that " potting a pandy" is one of
the highest and purest enjoyments of which Chris-
tians are or ought to be capable. He will learn
that the " nigger" is a being incapable of feeling
either gratitude or affection, that it is preposterous
to speak of him as a fellow man, that he is not
entitled to participate in the equal administration
of justice, that he ought to have a distinct code of
his own, framed, it is to be presumed, on different
principles. and the argionentum baculinum is the
only ratiocinatory process he can appreciate. Of
such doctrines I dread the influences and the con-
sequences, but I can give you chapter and verse,
printed passages from newspapers, for each, and for
much worse, and if called upon I shall do so. In
my next letter—this is now closed in obedience to
cries of " The dak runner is going"—l shall return
to this subject, and to others more pleasing, I hope,
if less important.

THE CA USES-OF THE INDIAN REVOLT.

(From the Delhi Gazette of Sept. 29.)

SEAL OF BAHADUR SHAH BADSHAH GHAZEE MAHAM-
MAD DARA BUKHT, WALI NIAMUT KHALAF, MIRZA
KARIM 171, SUJAH BAHADL'R.
It is well known to all that in this age the people
of Hindostan, botk Hindoos and Mahommedans,
are being ruined under the tyranny and oppression
of the infidel and treacherous English. It is there-
fore the bounden duty of all the wealthy people of
India, especially of those who have any sort of
connexion with any of the Mahommedan Royal
families, and are considered the pastors and masters
of their people, to stake their lives and property
for the wellbeing of the public. With the view of
effecting this general good several Princes belong-
ing to the Royal family of Delhi have dispersed
themselves in the different parts of India, Iran,
Turan, and Affghanistan, and have been long since
'taking measures to compass their favourite end ; and
it is to accomplish this charitable object that one
of the aforesaid Princes has, at the head of an
army of Affghanistan, &c., made his appearance
in India, and I, who am the grandson of Abul
Muzuffer Sarajuddin Bahadur Shah Ghazee, King
of India, having in the course of circuit come here to
extirpate the infidels residing in the eastern part of
the country, and to liberate and protect the poor
helpless people now groaning under their iron rule,
have by the aid of the Majandeen, or religious
fanatics, erected the standard of Mahomed, and
persuaded the orthodox Hindoos who had been
subject to my ancestors, and have been and are still
accessories in the destruction of the English, to
raise the standard of Mahavir.
Several of the Hindoo and Mussulman chiefs,
who have long since quitted their homes for the
preservation of their religion, and have been try-
ing their best to root out the English in India,
have presented themselves to me, and taken part
in the reigning Indian crusade, and it is more than
probable that I shall very shortly receive succours
from the west. Therefore, for the information of
the public, the present Ishtahar, consisting of
several sections, is put in circulation, and it is the
imperative duty of all to take it in their careful
consideration and abide by it. Parties anxious to
participate in the common cause, but having no
means to provide for themselves, shall receive their
daily subsistence from me, and be it known to all
that the ancient works, both of the Hindoos and
the Mahommedans, the writings of the miracle
workers, and the calculations of the astrologers,
Pundits, and Rammals all agree in asserting that
the English will no longer have any footing
in India or elsewhere. Therefore it is incumbent
on all to give up the hope of the continuation of
the British sway, side with me, and deserve the
consideration of the Badshahi, or Imperial Govern-
ment, by their individual exertion in promoting the
common good, and thus attain their respective ends,
otherwise, if this golden opportunity slips away,
they will have to repent of their folly, as is very'
aptly said by a poet in two fine couplets, the drift
whereof is that—" Never let a favourable oppor-
tunity slip, for in the field of opportunity you are
to meet with the ball of fortune ; but if you do not
avail yourself of the opportunity that offers itself
you will have to bite your finger through grief."
No person at the misrepresentation of the well-
wishers of the British Government ought to con-
clude from the present slight inconvenience usually
attendant on revolutions that similar inconveniences
and troubles should continue when the Badshadi
Government is established on a firm basis ; and
parties badly dealt with by any Sepoy or plunderer
should come up and represent their grievances to me,
and receceive redress at my hands ; and for what-
ever property they may lose in the reigning dis-
order they will be recompensed from the public
treasury when the Badshahi Government is well

fixed.
Section I.—Regarding Zemindars.—lt is evident
that the British Government in making zemindary
settlements have imposed exorbitant jummas, and
have disgraced and ruined several zemindars, by
putting up their estates to public auction for ar-
rears of.rent, insomuch that on the institution of a
suit by a common ryot, a maidservant, or a slave,
the respectable zemindars are summbned in court,
arrested, put in gaol, and disgraced. In litigations
regarding zemindaries the immense value of stamps
and other unnecessary expenses of the Civil Courts,
which are pregnant with all sorts of crooked deal-
ings, and the practice of allowing a case to hang
on for years are all calculated to impoverish the
litigants. Besides this, the coffers of the zemin-
dars are annually taxed with subscriptions for
schools, hospitals, and roads, &c. Such extortions
will have no manner of existence in the
Badshahi Government, but, on the contrary,
the jummas
•will be light, the dignity and
honour of the zemindar safe, and every zemin-
dar will have absolute rule in his own zemin-
dary. The zemidary disputes will he summarily
decided according to the Shurrah and the Shasters.
without any expense, and zemindars who will assist
in the present war with their men and money shall
be excused for ever from paying half the revenue.
Zemindars aiding only with money shall be ex-
empted in perpetuity from paying one-fourth of the
revenue; and should anv zemindar who has been
unjustly deprived of his lands during the English
government personally join the war he will be
restored to his zemindary and excused from paying
one-fourth of the revenue.

Section ll.—Regarding Merchants.—lt is plain
that the infidel and treacherous British Govern-
ment have monopolised the trade of all the fine
and valuable merchandise, such as indigo, cloth,
and other articles of shipping, leaving only the
trade of trifles to the people, and even in this
they are not without their share of the profits,
which they secure by means of Customs and
stamp fees, &c., in money suits, so that the people
have merely a trade in name. Besides this,
the profits of the traders are taxed with postages,
tolls, and subscriptions for schools, &c. Not-
withstanding all these concessions, the merchants
are liable to imprisonment and disgrace at the
instance or complaint of a worthless man. When
the Badshahi Government is established all these
aforesaid fraudulent practices shall be dispensed
with, and the trade of every article without excep-
tion, both by land and water, shall be open to the
native merchants of India, who will have the bene-
fit of the Government steam-vessels and steam-

carriages for the conveyance of their merchandise
gratis ; and:merchants having no capital of their
own shall be assisted from the public treasury. It
is therefore the duty of every merchant to take put
in the war, and aid the Badshahi Government with
his men and money, either secretly or openly, as
may be consistent with his position or interest, and
forspear his allegiance to the British Government.
Section lll.—Regarding Public Servants.—lt is
not a secret thing that under the British Govern-
ment natives employed in the civil and military,
services have. little respect, low pay, and no man-
ner of influence, and all the posts of dignity
and oil. olument in both the eepartments are,
.-exclusively bestowed on Englishmen • for natives
nretahtemi.ni
partl itaioTt their c‘iNarefst,e raftltia.aiNnin having devoted Englishmen;
p o.s
tthoef
subadar, the very height of salary of' 60r. to 70r. per menslellneir; ainpetis:osewiinthtl a
civil services, obtain post of sudder ala, w7thlae
salary of 500 r. a-month, but no influence, a eer
or present. But under the 132.dshahi jg
Government,'
like the posts of colonel, seneral, anda cpiotn. e
sxne
natn,dtehr-e
in-chief, which the English enjoy at
corresponding posts pansadi, ilunj-hazari, haft=
hazari, aaicl sippah, salaries will be given to the
natives in the militaryte S.eurdvineeel._;uadidide,r 1
jialc(eigtel-rsepc
rose t
of colleCtor, .
tart', and
governor,
which the European civil ber-
magistraw