The Sun.
London, England, 1857-11-30 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDr'

two mails of last month '
canes the progress r"
reported to you, it is be-
.e. the wrk of now
fairly beaun, J.
° • ..,, under the ciorcumstances retribution,,
of neces-
aity B°lll(47,ehat tardy. The enemy at Delhi, beaten
and oroken, but very far from annihilated, fell
back before our advancing columns as day after day
and after street they planted a sure foot upon
the revolted city, and when at last our success was
complete the rebel hordes were already far on their
way m search of other strongholds or fresh centres
of insurrection. The movements of their main
body were no rapid, and the start it had got so con-
siderable:, that it escaped without further damage
than '.'t had met with during the assault of the city,
and- consequently its punishment is for the present
deferred. If, however, there has not yet occurred,
and was not to be looked for, suoh a meeting in tie
fair open plain between the British army and the
whole mass of escaped and unpunished mutineers
as would annihilate the rebellion in North-Western
India, still our prospects continue to brighten, and
we have not failed to receive one or two more
instalments of that debt of vengeance, the full pay-
ment of which we so eagerly and as we believe right-
fully long for. Pt body of rebels has been routed in
the field with no slight loss. Outram and Havelock
maintain themselves at Lucknow. Reinforcements
are fast arriving at Calcutta from England, and are
being poured up the country. The districts imme-
diately surrounding the recovered capital of the
North-West are settling down into order. The
Punjab is tranquil ; the Madras Presidency un-
disturbed ; while that of Bombay is troubled only
by the movements of the aboriginal hill tribes of
Gujerat and Kandeish. Thus much of good news
have I to tell you, clear almost from any shade of
ill, for the days of suffering and of humiliation are
ended, and British supremacy, for a while rudely
shaken, is reasserting itself with irresistible majesty.
" I proceed to survey more in detail the present
position of affairs in the various provinces of our
Indian empire, and, following the old track, halt first
at Delhi. When I wrote last I told you that General
Wilson's despatches to the Governor-General were
on their way down from the captured city to Cal-
cutta by way of the Punjab and Bombay. A day
or two afterwards the officer who had charge of
them arrived here, and was at once forwarded on to
the seat of the Supreme Government. But, in
the meantime, as soon appeared, a native messen-
ger, or cossid, to whom another despatch, written
after the assault, but before the final capture of
the place, was intrusted, had succeeded, where an
Englishman unless very stronglyescorted must have
failed in penetrating the disturbed districts be-
tween Delhi and Cawnpore. Thus the news of the
first successes at Delhi appeared in an authoritative
form at Calcutta as early as the Bth of last month,
and the Gazette containing the despatch reached
you, I imagine, by last mail. It is, there-
fore, only by way of reminder and recapitulation
that I now mention that after six days of open
trenches the assault was delivered by four (not, as
I previously thought, three) columns and a reserve
that the first column, under Brigadier Nichol
son, with 950 men of the 75th, Ist Bengal Fusi-
leers, and 2d Pnnjab Infantry, carried the breach
on the proper right of the Cashmere ; that the
second, led by Brigadier Jones, with 850 men from
the Bth, 2d Bengal Fusiliers, and 4th Sikhs, stormed
that on the proper left of the Water Bastion ; that
the advance of both these bodies of assailants was
covered by the 60th Rifles,—men of whose conduct
throughout the siege every letter I have seen or
heard of from the camp speaks in terms of the high-
est admiration ; that Colonel Campbell, of the 52d,
with the third column of 200 of his own regiment
and 750 Punjauhees and Goorkhas, forced an en-
trance at the Cashmere-gate, so gallantly blown
open by Lieutenants Salkeld and Home, of the En-
gineers, as I wrote in my last ; that the reserve,
under Brigadier Longfield, 1,500 strong, entered
subsequently at the various points of assault, and
enabled the three other columns to clear the walls
and to push on into the city ; and that the fourth
column, of Goorkhas, the Guides, and the Jummoo
Contingent, under Major Reid, assaulted, but with-
out success, the Kishengunge suburb, covering -the
Lahore-gate of the city. The total of killed and
wounded on this day in the whole force was con-
siderably above what I had believed it to be,
amounting to no less a figure than 1,145. Of this
the European loss was 8 ufficern and 162 wen
killed, 52 officers and 510 men wounded, and 10
men missing. Of the natives 103 were killed and
310 wounded. Regarding the progress of the as-
saulting force between the 14th and the 20th, 1
have nothing to add to the details contained in
my last letter, except in confirmation of the
slight amount of loss sustained on the days elle-
ceeding that of the assault, which, as I heard front
one present, hardly rose above five men a day.
Of the captured city we only hear that it remains
a scene of solitude and desolation. The British
head-quatters were still in the Palace, General
Penny commanding in place of General Wilson, who
as I mentioned in a postcript to my last letter, had
resigned the command in consequence of failing
health, and who has since gone up to the hills on
leave to recruit. In the same building, or pile of
buildings, remained many of the wounded officers
removed thither upon its capture. Strange, yet
full of meaning, seemed the heading of aletter which
I read a few days ago reporting the progress towards
recovery of one among the sufferers, a very valuable
officer, Capt. Rosser, of the Carabineers—' Palace,
Delhi.' Simply, and as a mere matter of course,
was given the place of writing of the letter, the
locality of the hospital of the wounded English
officers. To that it had come at last through long
years of imperial splendour, of squalid dependence,
of debauchery and intrigue, of rebellion, and of
despair. This was the end of 'Mountains of Light
and peacock thrones, and marble and ivory and
gold. ' Mane, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin.'
" Deserted as it was by its mutir ous garrison and
by the vast majority of its inhabitants, itiwas un-
necessary to detain the whole British force within
the city. Much of it might be employed to prevent
disturbances in other dire,;tions or to pursue the
rebels in their flight to the southward. Thus in
early days after the fall of the place the 52d Light
Infantry marched off for the Punjab, probably to
be stationed at Lahore or Mooltan, and to con-
tribute to the preservation of peace in the district
lying between the two cities. `But even before the
departure of this corps for the north troops were
out, as I mentioned iu my last, to the southward.
You may remember that our information regarding
the movements of the pursuing column or columns
was at that time somewhat vague and conflicting.
It soon appeared, however, that Brigadier Showers
had taken the right, Colonel Greathed the left bank
of the Jumna. The party commanded by the for-
mer officer was at first but a small one, and was em-
ployed for a special purpose. Moving outof the camp
on or about the 26th of September, it proceeded to
the tomb of the Emperor Humayoon, where Hod-
son had previously captured and shot the three
princes, and the neighbourhood of the Kootub
Miner, which was swarming with the loose,
,dis-
orderly rabble that had escaped from the city. At '
the tomb he was fortunate enough to capture two
more sons of the King, whose names are given as
Mirza Mendoo and Mirza Bukhto war Shah. These
notable prisoners were tried by a military com-
mission at Delhi and sentenced to death. Th-y
wi. re to be shot on the 13th of last month. The
King, moreover, is to be tried by a Military Com-
mission ; his life will be safe if it has been assured
to him before his surrender or capture, as I wrote
in my last. Shortly after this first successful raid
a larger force, consisting of the 2d Fusiliers, 13t
Punjab Infantry, and Kumaon Battalion, with the
Carabineers, Gnidev, and other Irregular Horse,
and a field battery, was assembled for service under
the Brigadier. On the Ist of October it left the
camp, and proceeded into the district of Gooraga,.n
immediately in the south-west of Delhi. At th-
chtief town of that district a promient rebel, named
Buktour Singh, was taken and hanged. Moving
on to Rewaree it occupied the fort with its maga-
zines and guns abandoned by Tooley Ram, a rebel
leader, on its approach. In the neighbourhood
of, and still retaining his hold upon their strong-
hold, and engaged in scouring and pacifying the
country, with the intention ultimately, perhaps, of,
bringing to a reckoning the Nawab Jhuj hur, ourin-
telligence at present leaves the Brigadier. Return
ing to Delhi and turning our atteution to the noith-