The Sun.
London, England, 1858-03-10 00:00:00

LITMATuRE.,

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A Will and a Way. By the Hon. Henry Coke,
author of " High ai.d Low," dtc., S. Hurst
and Blackett.
The reader will find in these volumes a variety of
entertainment. There are several persons met
with in• the narrative, one or two of whom are
remarkably well sketched. Mr. Hai rod, senior, for
instance, is a master-piece in his peculiar style of
low cunning and subtle adroitness. With the
stigma of a suppositions crime attaching itself to
his name, he contrived to influence every one
around him, fur while impossible to respect him,
some feared him for his penetration, some admired
his skill, and others were enraged by his self-pos-
session and assurance. As is frequently the case
with such men, his failure was at home, he could
not be a head to his family, and his son, in every
moral attribute his superior, scorned his inter-
ference, and was impervious to his artful contri-
vances. Meriel Sigismund, the heroine, is a de-
cided character. There is nothing in her of the
meek damsel whom a word can sway or a look
direct, nor of the enthusiastic maiden whom the
feelings of her heart can propel hither and thither
without rule or guidance. Miss Sigismund was
resolute and self-possessed, and her demeanour,
joined to her lover's unfortunate position, compro-
mised by his father's false statements, which every
one thought veracious, combined to create some
very awkward situations, and give rise to sundry
dilemmas, which are here traced for our perusal
in a vivacious and captivating manner. Raven is
the originality of the story : he is interesting, and
what is seen of him attracts our attention, from his
being so real and genuine in his actions and
motives. We first meet with him in Spain, where
the chief incidents of his career occurred, which
are, from their nature, in unison with that land of
wild romance. The mystery that hangs over the
position of Meriel is of itself sufficient to excite
curiosity, and is at the very last unravelled in a
skilful style. Some of the minor characters
introduced display a considerable knowledge
of men and manners, and a keea insight
into the foibles and prejudices of different
classes. There are also to be noticed some adven-
tures, which were rather misadventures to those
concerned, among which may be mentioned the
night rencontre at Granstein, which resulted in the
luckless Fabian being seized as a suspicious indivi-
dual, while he was endeavouring to gain some au-
thentic information regarding events of great con -
sequence to his peace of mind. The bigotry of Mr.
Pilgrim is, it is to be feared, the type of too many,
who are actuated by no real devotion, but are in-
fluenced by prejudice and Gant. The family of the
Sandfords is also well described, and some of its
members play an important part in the story.
Finally, the work may be regarded as possessing
something out of the common in its construction

and a sparkling and brilliant style enlivens and
ornaments its pages.

.1 Personal Narrative of the Siege of Lucknow. By
L. Runtz Rees, one of the surviving Defenders.
Longman.
The Defence of Lucknow. A Diary by a Staff-
Officer. Smith, Elder, and Co.
The defence of Lucknow is now a part of his-
tory. The privations endured by the garrison, the
terrible dangers to which they were exposed, the
apparent hopelessness of their position, and the
brilliant military achievements of their rescuers, all
combine to render the narrative of the siege and the
relief one of the most thrilling in the whole history
of the Indian war. The many noble lives that were
freely given in their aid, the numbers of the de-
voted band who perished by the guns of the enemy
and the horrors of want and disease combined,
or, sadder still, succumbed just when their pros-
pects were brightening, cast a mournful shadow
over the r ecord ; and what the survivors endured
in that long siokness of hope deferred, perhaps only
themselves can know. But through it all the un-
daunted English spirit kept its place, and as their
numbers decreased, as the little band grew smaller
daily, each only felt that more dpended on
himself—
" Groom fought like noble, squire like knight,
As fearlessly and well."
The official report of Brigadier Inglis excited uni-
versal interest, and fuller accounts are now offered to
the public, by some of those who have witnessed
and shared the struggle. The first of the volumes
before us is by Mr. Rees, a civilian, who, in his
preface, very needlessly apologises for having "with
a pen se little skilled in autoorship, and a hand
still less accustomed to a sword, ventured to appear
as an author and a soldier ;" and he expresses
himself as more surprised at his own boldness in
"facing the public in type than at having faced
the enemy in the trenches." He tells us that " a
Calcutta merchant, attached to the Martiniere Col-
lege at Lucknow, unexpectedly found himself en-
tangled in the meshes of the siege of that city, and
having been by force of circumstances obliged to
take his part in the defence, he recorded from time
to time the events in which he was concerned, and
those which passed before hire." Ris narrative
extends during the whole length of the siege, from
its commencement to its relief by Sir Colin Camp-
bell. He gives a full account of all the introduo
tory proceclingg, the battle of Chinhutt, the begin-
ning of the siege, kc., and has been assisted by the
notes of some of the others, especially of Lady
Inglis. The following extract gives some idea of
their prolonged suspense :
"August 3d.—Heavy rain. The enemy's fire slackens.
Nine Europeans bailed to-day, among them, Oswin
Brown, who died of cholera—the gentleman who, on my
last trip to Lucknow, had treated ma so hospitably at
Bunnee, where he was toll-gatherer. He was the son
of Colonel Brown. Cholera, indeed, is making many
awful ravages, but particularly among the children.
" August .sth.—We hear firing of cannon in the city.
Can it be our long expected friends ? Is it possible that
our reinforcements have at length arrived, and have
actually penetrated into the city ? God grant it be so.
We all think so, and are frantic with joy ; we shake
hands with each other as if our deliverance were already
at hand, and congratulate each other, and run to the
tops of houses, regardless of danger, to see them coming.
Bet we perceive nought but smoke ; and now it ceases,
and we hear the sound of cannon in cantonments. Have
they veered round, and will they come across the iron
bridge, after fording the river at Constantia ? This
must be so I How otherwise can we account for their
guns being heard in two different quarters ? This night
we sleep little, for we are full of suspense and anxiety,
arid yet fearful, lest our hope be turned into disappoint-
merit. They Neil come to-night or early to-morrow
morning without fail.
" August 6th.—What bitter, bitter, disappointment !
We have a solution of yesterday's fire in the city, but it
is one which makes our hearts sink with despair. The
enemy are the first to give it us. At some parts of our
entrenchments the insurgents are so near that we cam
hear them talking distinctly. At the school-houses and
the brigade mess, almost every night might be heard
the sounds of revelry, music and dancing, in Johannes'
house, not twelve yards away from us, and separating
us only by a street from the insurgents. At one of
these places or at the Bailey-guard, I do not know
which, some of the rebellious sepoys, having no doubt
witnessed our delight, and guessed the cause of our
shout and `hurrahs,' were not slow in undeceiving us,
by taunting us with So you think your reinforcements '
have come, do you ? reinforcements forsooth ? why we
have beaten them long ago' (this we knew to be a lie),
and we have crowned our king. The rule of the
Feringhees is over, and we'll soon be in your Bailey-
guard."'
What their feelings must have been when they
really witnessed the coming succour, it is more
easy to imagine than describe.—
" The immense enthusiasm with which they were
greeted, defies description. As their hurrah and ours
rang my ears, I was nigh bursting with joy. The tears
started involuntarily into my eyes, and I felt—no
it is impossible to describe in words that sudden
sentiment of relief, that mingled feeling of hope and
pleasure, that came over me. The criminal condemned
to death, and, just when he;is about to be launched into
eternity, is reprieved and pardoned, or the shipwrecked
sailor, whose hold on the wreck is relaxing, and is just
rescued, can alone form an a 'equate idea of our feelings.
We felt not only happy, happy beyond imagination, and
grateful to that God of Mercy who, by our noble deli•
verers, General, Havelock and Outran, and their gal-
lant troops, had thus snatched us from imminent death ;
but we also Mt proud of the defence we had made, and
the success with which, with such fearful odds to contend
against, we bad preserved, not only our own lives, but
the honour and lives of the women and children en-
trusted to our keeping.
" As our deliverers poured in, they continued to greet
us with loud hurrahs ; and, as each garrison heard it,
we sent up one fearful shout to heaven, "Hurrah ;" it
was not " God help us"—it was the first rallying cry of
a despairing host. Thank God, we then gazed upon
new faces of our countrymen. We ran up to them,
officers and men without distinction, and shook them
by the hands, how cordially who can describe I The
shrill tones of the Highlanders' bagpipes, now piereed
our ears. Not the most beautiful music ever was
more welcome, more joy-bringing. And these brave
men themselves, many of them bloody and exhausted,
forgot the loss of their comrades, the pain of their wounds,
the fatigue of overcoming the fearful obstacles they had
combated for cur sakes, in the pleasure of having accom-
plished our relief."
The following passage describes the difficulties
with which the gallant band had to conten,clsa:o-Ft
of
"On the 25th, early in the morning,
the
assault
the city was determined on by General
Lucknow is encircled by a deep canal, dry in the hot
season, but at that time—during the rains—swollen
considerably. Its banks are precipitous and steep.
Had the enemy broken up the bridges leading over it,
the difficulties to be overc.)nse would have increased
But they probably trusted in the
a hundred-fold.
rd a 'stance they had determined to make. At the bridge
of the Charbagh ' (four gardens), at the outskirts of
the town, they found the enemy's guns planted in great
number behind a strong palisade, ready to receive
them. They did dreadful execution ; but nothing