The Sun.
London, England, 1859-02-22 00:00:00

THE CAMPAIGN IN O UDE.

CAMP NE AR BANKEE, JAN. 3.
It was late in the afternoon of the 29th when our
spies returned, and stated that the Nana, Bainie
Madhoo, and a large number of desperate rebels,
with six or seven guns, were assembled near Ban-
kee, on the south side (right bank) of the Raptee,
near the Nepaulese frontier, the Begum, with
another army, beiig on the left bank, about eight
miles from them. Lord Clyde at once resolved to
attempt to surprise the enemy by a night march.
The mere chance of capturing Nana Sahib, killing
and dispersing some of the desperadoes around him
before the old year closed, seemed to justify an
undertaking which was esteemed hopeless by those
most conversant with Indian warfare. References

to the great uncertainty attendant upon endeavours
to catch weazels in a dormant state were largely
applied to the project. The enemy were 23 miles
away, the nights were pitch dark, there were no
roads whatever, the guides were not to be depended
upon, the rebels would be informed the moment we
stirred—these were all points duly considerred and
commented upon in a spirit not very favourable by
the two or three people who knew of Lord Clyde's
determination that evening. As it was impossible
to keep quite secret the fact that we were going to
move—inasmuch as men must eat and food must

be prepared, and camels and elephants brought
in from grazing—the story was successfully pro-
pagated that we were going to Bingha.) Now,
although the matter did not in the least affect the
success of the enterprise, I am bound to say that in
the camp bazaars it was stated an hour after Lord
Clyde had decided on his movements that we were
going to march that night to Bankee. The Chief of
the Staff, the Special Commissioner, the Quarter-
master-General, the Adjutant-General, Major Nor-
man, all were dubious of the chances of success.
But Lord Clyde was resolved to try. He instructed
Captain Fitzgerald to collect as many elephants as
possible, and to have them ready at dark. General
orders were issued in the evening warning the
regiments available for the expedition to parade in
front of their respective lines at eight o'clock p.m.,
and there await further orders, The heavy guns
were left in charge of a detachment of her Majesty's
20th, and the baggage, with a small guard, was
placed under the care of Major Kirby, her Majesty's
94th Regiment, acting on the Quartermaster-Ge-
neral's staff, with orders to move off and follow
the columns next morning at daybreak. It was
distinctly announced that no officer should be per-
mitted to march who did not receive an invitation
or orders to do so ; and, of course, the secrecy of the
expedition leading to the conclusion that a great
object was in view, the officers riot invited were up
to seven o'clock in a state of considerable irritation
and excitement. Nearly every, one about head-
quarters, except those all-knowing wily politicals
who pull the strings which set so many legs
and arms working, and the heads of departments,
were in utter ignorance of the object or direction of
the night march. I question much if colonel or
brigadier was acquainted with the course till the
stars of Heaven told them they were steering north-
wards. Now, it is a most difficult matter to orga-
nise an expedition in the night in an unknown
country. One man may make his way towards a
certain point guided by local knowledge, a compass,
and the stars, but the direction of elephants, camels,
and guns over rice-fields, rice swamps, forests,
ditches, rivers unknown, is a very different matter.
Even the more in front out of a camp attnight in
column of march is more difficult than the words
seem to express. If, in the Duke's opinion, there
were a few generals who could get a large corps
into Hyde-park, but few or none who could get
them out again in broad daylight, it may be ima-
gined that it is by no means so simple as it would
appear to the uninitiated to got infantry, cavalry,
and guns in proper order, all in direct column of
route, out on the open in a pitch dark night. Our
little expedition consisted of the 7th Hussars, head-
quarters of the Carabineers, Ist Punjaub Cavalry,
a troop of the Royal Horse Artillery (six guns), the
Rifle Brigade, a detachment of her Majesty's 20th,
and a wing of the Belooch Battalion. As Captain
Fitzgerald collected 150 elephants, it was arranged
that one half of the force should be mounted—five
on each of these unwieldy locomotives—the other
half marching till the halts took place, when they
relieved their comrades from the trouble ofjourney-
ing aloft, and the elephant cavalry became infan-
try till the next half. There were some spare
elephants in case of accidents. Lord Clyde, with
his shoulder bandaged up, was, much against his
will, obliged to go in a dooly. The mess dinners,
an hour earlier than usual, were full of conjecture ;
but it was generally supposed we were going to
aid Grant in some conjectured difficulty. About
7.30 p.m. the officers of head-quarters were in-
formed that whoever wished might join the head
of the column. At 8 o'clock the regiments were
formed up in front of their camps, and at 8.30 they
were marched off, with the usual advance guard,
into the darkness. Not a light was to be seen save
the glare of the watch-fires ; but soon there appeared
before us, like a light in some wintry sea, one steady
flame. A lantern had been mounted on the back
of an elephant which followed the guides, and had
the honour of being the leader of the enp.etligon.
The men were in high spirits. WraPPe4 In their
greatcoats, those social fives smoked, chatted _ and
_
laughed in their peripatetic clubs till the cold and
monotony of the night march d too much for
ove
Link
men alto
flaring the most loquacious Hibernian.prre put forwaid to
flaring torches after a time were
fields, ditches,
cast a light on the pitfalls, the heavy
and wells which lay in our course. A delay of
nearly, an hour occurred soon after we left the
cam in getting the columns into proper order.
Just pto illustrate the difficulties
of a night march
in this sort of country where no officer knows
where he is going, I may mention that the Madras
Light Cavalry, a most efficient set of men, were
unwittingly left behind. They were formed up in
their proper place, but by some accident the Captain,
Macgregor, did not receive the order to move off
with the rest of the column, and after a long halt
in the cold, he rode off to see what had become of
the rest. He could not find them. He then
marched off his troop, circled round the camp—saw
no trace of the column—came back—marched again,
and after an ineffectual search returned to camp at
midnight till next morning, which his squadron
proved a more useful and desirable escort and aid
to Major Kirby in his march with the baggage and
tents. The column, once started, moved off in a
straight line to Bankee. Elephants crashing in
one leading line through cates, over. swampy grass,
through doll-fields, can outuntrch cavalry or infan-