The Sun.
London, England, 1858-09-03 00:00:00

less than 1,000 souls in the entrenchment, including
women, children, and men of all classes and ranks,
and the rebels outside were ten times that number ;
of this number 5,000 to 6,000 were regular disci-
plined men from the ranks of the native army, one
portion composed of the Nana's men, and the rest
were budmashes of the town and villages, whom
prospect of plunder had attracted into the station.
All the public and private property outside the
garrison was looted. The conveyances belonging
to the gentlemen of the station were taken and
made use of by the heads and leaders of the
insurrection. The ranks of majors, colonels, and
generals were supplied by the senior non-com-
missioned officers of the mutinous army. With
all their endeavours and firing they . found that
they could not much harm the garrison. They
then attempted to take the place by storm, but as
many times as they tried they were repulsed with
a considerable loss. With all their firing very few
men were killed in the entrenchment, and those few
not while they were doing sentry duty, but while
drawing water from the fatal well in the entrench-
ment, which was in a most exposed part of the
garrison. It was about this time that the old
havildar, whom General Wheeler had confined on
suspicion, and who was in the garrison, was killed
by the bursting of a shell. A lady was also killed
in the same way. But accidents like these were so
rare that I scarcely remember beyond one or two
instances in which lives were lost. When any one
was killed it was the practice to stiteh him in a bag
and remove him at a late part of the night to a blind
well which was close by. The accidents that too
frequently occurred were while drawing water out
of the well. After one or two deaths took place at
the well people commenced sending little children
to draw water, thinking they would not be fired
at ; but the mild Hindoos and refined Mahomme-
dans are not the men to spare a dog belonging to a
Christian, and much more children. Many children
were killed and wounded at the well while drawing
water. Perhaps twelve days or a fortnight had
not elapsed since we had entered the entrench-
ment, when the roof of it, which was built of straw.
caught fire by a shell and was burnt down. Just
after this occurrence the soldiers one night, having
consulted together, sallied out of the garrison dis-
luised in black, and utterly spoilt one of the bat-
teries which the rebels had constructed on the four
sides of the garrison, spiked as many guns as they
could lay their hands upon, and would have as-
suredly done more, but the General, having heard
of it, disapproved the bold attempt, and immedi-
ately- ordered the bugle to sound, when they all re-
turned into the garrison. It is a remarkable fact
that during the whole period of our stay in the
garrison not more than 30 soldiers were killed. To
the best of my knowledge, there were lots of pro-
visions in the garrison, and if the General had only
held out for 12 days or a fortnight more the whole
of the garrison would have been relieved by Gen.
Havelock, who arrived at Cawnpore just twelve
days after the massacre. But no ; it was fated
otherwise. On the 26th of June, Jacoby, or Jaco-
bite, the watchmaker's sister-in-law, who was left
behind and was in the hands of the rebels, came
with a letter from Nana Sahib, offering terms of
peace. Her brother-in-law and sister were in the
garrison. She swore Nana was sincere in his pro-
fessions, and the General, as the drowning man
grasps at a straw, swallowed down everything: as
Gospel truth. The whole garrison "was against
surrendering, and bitterly' opposed the General
when he seemed inclined to accept the offer. The
soldiers became mad to hear that the General was
going to accept the offer. They broke their guns
in a rage, and openly exhibited every sign of in-
subordination, but to no purpose. Fhe General
accepted the terms, in the teeth of universal oppo-
sition. Mrs. 'Wheeler herself opposed him, and
begged of him not to do this, but to no purpose.
He was firm and inflexible. The Nana had been
his friend, and he could not see the reason why he
could not trust him. The General wrote a warm
letter of friendship and sent it off by Jacoby's sister-
in-law. A little while after the miscreant Nana
arrived, and was immediately conducted to the
General. Whatever was proposed at that moment
the General agreed to, provided he was only allowed
with the beleaguered garrison to depart in peace.
Nana agreed to it, and to satisfy him took an oath
that he would see them safely conducted to Allah-
abad. After this the rebels outside rushed into the
garrison. Their number was so great that there
was hardly any place to stand. There could not
have been✓ less than 7,000 to 8,000 armed men sur-
rounding the garrison and occupying every inch of
ground. If they had wanted they could have
crushed us in the garrison without using their
weapons. After this the treasury chest was made
over to the Nana, together with all the ammuni-
tions which were in the garrison. Nana then
ordered the necessary preparations to be made
to leave Cawnpore, he having left the garrison to
go and arrange for boats. Every one packed up
his things, and passed the night with feverish
anxiety. Next morning a Sowar came and informed
the General that there was not a sufficient number
of boats available, and therefore, instead of boxes,
in which every one had packed up his things, a
bundle of clothes could only be allowed to be car-
ried by each man, which wag forthwith prepared,
but, another Sowar coming in after a while com-
municated to the General that, there not being
sufficient room in the boats to stow so many
bundles, it was decided by the Nana Sahib that
they should depart as they were. The General, at
this second message, at once ordered the whole gar-
rison to march out as they were. They were con-
ducted towards the ghaut by the Nana's men, 'Who
took them not by the route in which they had their
battery (for the soldiers would have assuredly
fallen upon their battery and would have turned
their guns against them), but by another passage
altogether. When the garrison reached the ghaut
the men were ordered to go in the boats, to which
they objected, unless the ladies and children were
first accommodated. But the General, being as-
sured that there was no harm in it, that there was
some breakfast prepared for the ladies and chil-
dren, which as soon as they had taken they would
be put in the boats, the General got into a boat,
and then all the men followed his example. As
soon as the main body of the men were thus sepa-
rated from the women and children, they were fired
at, but some of the soldiers having a few rounds of
cartridges which they had taken with them by
stealth, returned the fire, and like so many desperate
bull-dogs, jumped out of the boats, and fought bravely
against the fearful odds as long as their cartridges
lasted. They then threw away their guns and
were cut to pieces. One soldier jumped into a blind
well, but was taken out and massacred by a host of
ruthless barbarians. One boat having caught fire,
was burnt with all its inmates, and any one at-
tempting to escape the fire was made a target-
mark by the armed multitude standing on the
banks. The gentlemen who were left on the bank,
or, at least, those who had not gone into the boat,
were hunted from one place to another like dogs,
and on each man a thousand sabres flashing at a
time, wives and children beseeching the multi-
tude with folded hands and in praying attitude to
spare their husbands and fathers, but to no cur-
pose, the whole of the male portion of the garrison
were barbarously murdered by order of Nana
Soor. My husband, William Murray, Band-Ser-
geant of the 56th Native Infantry, was shot
in the head. My brother met the same fate. His
name was Hero. My two sons Alick and John fell
by tulwar. The women all, high and low, were
stripped in open air, a piece of blue cloth of hardly
three cubits, and less than a cubit in breadth, was
given to each woman, just to cover herself. Then
followed the massacre of the children, and I can,
without any exaggeration, confidently declare that
no less than 300 of the innocent angels were de-
stroyed, as it were by the spell of magic.'
" They were bayonetted, shot, dashed on the
ground, and trampled under foot. One European
boy, of about seven years, having escaped from the
hands of the Sepoys, came running and fell upon
Nana's foot, and begged of him to spare his life and
he would serve him as a mehter. The boy had not
lifted up his head from the foot, before it was cut
off by the express order of the Nana, and he flung
the head away with his foot. My two grandsons,
Robert and Charles, aged five and 12 years re-
spectively, were cut down on the spot. My two
daughters-in-law, Lewsa and Santa, were cut down,
both of whom were pregnant, but the latter;• being
wasvery
ripped far advanced, expectingand
the child
dailycame
to
outbe confined,
no cin f
her
womb, which was cut on the spot. Many were the
heartrending scenes which followed, when mothers
were forced to give up their infants in arms to be
brutally massacred in their presence—but too many
to be related here. I received one sword-cut on
the head by a sowar, who, aiming a second blow,
I guarded with my hand, when I received another
cut on my hand ; after that I received one cut on
my back, which was so severe that I fell down
senseless. I received two cuts more, but I am not
sensible as to when they were inflicted ; after that
what passed lam not aware. When all the peo-
ple were gone away I opened my eyes, and I found
myself lying in the heap of dead bodies fearfully
mangled. I tried to get up, Mit I could not, so I
crawled and went near the water, and I drank
some water. A fishwoman living on the ghaut
having seen me, took pity on me and used to supply
me with gruel and other necessaries which she
could afford, but her mother used to abuse me shame-
fssiu.hoiltiol:por
provided
leidl.used to be lying near the river close to a
bhatta, or the place where brick is baked. I was
t
f
seen afterwards by some sepoys, who threatened to
life
de I
tmtholelle
isithhol
was
et
insupportableenyt werehe he head,
dw welcome odbmut
het u
sttohged;ot,
went away without molesting me. Perhaps they
kit loath to look at me, my sores were §0 fearfully