The Sun.
London, England, 1857-10-23 00:00:00

OCTOBER 23, 185'7.

THE INDIAN MUTINIES.

A few mournful words passed ; the trembling lip of
'the heart-broken loving father, and the black,
Choked-up grief of the distracted mother, soon
ended our conversation. They have fortunately
been living at Calcutta for some time, or they
would have also fallen in the bloody massacre.
They will quit the country immediately, and pro-
ceed either home or to Australia—probably to the
oaffurairpsosmitiaoyn naottthbee uprneascecnetptmabolme.et.l
latter place. A few words on the general aspect of
e )gal army--horse,
ThisT h eisteehOalcet exactly
the B
f tot, and artillery—about
100,000 men, are in arms against the S ate, ex-
cepting about regimentske f &Toys wlea have
been disarmed by European troops at the muzzle of
the cannon. Delhi is still in
pos.equon of the re-
bels • so is the kingdom of Otide ; so are all the
north-west provinces of India, with the exception
of a few spots, such as the forts of Allahabad, Agt a,
and a few entrenched towns along the course of rise
Ganges. Gen. Havelock, who commands the All t-
habad column, is the only man up to this moment
who has won a battle. He fought and won at Fut-
tebpore, ditto at Paudco Nuddy, ditto at Cawn-
pore, ditto in several places iu Oude, where at
length he was repulsed and obliged to recross the
Ganges, and is now at Cawnpore, -encamped with
Gen. Neill, on the plain of the massacre, having
not more than about 1,000 or 1,500 soldiers in all
fit for work, and 500 in hospital. Gen. Havelock
lost, from all causes, at the rate of 100 men for
every 12 miles be advanced into Oude. This could..
not continue, and he was consequently obliged to
retreat gloriou-ly, after gaining nine
.battles and
capturing 70 pieces of cannon. It is hoped that
by the time this is posted, the Bih, Gen. Havelock
will be reinfl reed by one or two more regiment-,
and that he will push on again for Lucknow,
which garrison there is a European regiment and
some hundreds of men, women, and children, closely
besieged for more than three months. Reports have
now arrived that Lucknow is lost ; that in the last
extremity their garrison, rather titan undergo a i e-
hearsal of Cawnpore, blew themselves up. This
is
not believed, and is, I hope, untrue, but still there
is great anxiety for the people in the 'temporary
fort in Lucknow. Much misapprehension is likele
to prevail at home, ou account of the way in wirch
things ate reported here by the press. For nab no,
163 names are given of those massacred at Uawn -
pore, which weuld lead one to believe th at that was
the whole number. It is net so. These 163 at e
the persons taken hack from the b ate and coolly
hotchered-in el tail afterwards. Ti,e total !lumber
killed is about 800, bet no one can tell
many have bet-nip frem the critntry of %%horn rl,ere
was no knowledge. Aie.ther batch was massacred
at Cawnpore before the final massacre.. A party et
refuges, who were c ming down the river from
Futtelighur, 150 in all, were taken and shot on the
parade ground. Another mistake is 'Corn mi dot', Etna
the 'limes is deluded by it. It is supposed that the
people of the country do not sympathise with the
Sepoys, nor join in their bloody deeds. This ought
to be corrected, for every hand is uplifted against
the man who has a white face. Those villagers
who used to throw themselves at my feet in May,
came out in June with swords and guns, and all
sorts of weapons, to take away my life. I dare not
go into the quietest district without a guard of sol-
diers, nor sleep without a sentry at my door.
The European inhabitants of India are disgusted
and sick of the old system of government in this
country. There is an infatuation over govet ntn ent
Allahabad, Aug. 13. which blinds it to all reas in. Even in this hour of
Although the postal communication is cut off on blood and terror they are appointing Mahomedaus
every side of us, I write on chance of being able to and natives to magisterial post-, giving them power
post this myself in Calcutta, where I hope to be in even to disarm British-born subjects, or pet them iu
two or three weeks hence. The only means we new the common gabl among native murderers for six or
have of sending letters is by return steamers down twelve months. In fact the Council at Calcutta
the Ganges. With one of these steamers, now in seems to run upon a precipice, and the sooner it
the river, I intend to proceed in a day or two. As tumblesdown, everyone says, the bett-r. Ihave sud-
the vessel carries two pieces of cannon and some denly and unconsciously run Mee politics, but 1 ewe.
swivel guns there is little fear of her capture by the not help telling you of the general feeling as well as
rebels, who can at most give us a volley from their of the state of this unfortunate country. Lord
muskets as we glide down the rapid current (tun- Ellebborotigh Lathe only man who thinks of saving
ning at some six or eight miles an hour). The can- us from utter annihilation. May he succeed in his
non of the rebels commands the river above us, but efforts to rouse the dormant club at Leadenhall-
at present the stream is free below, so that I hope street. A letter has come in from the borders of Oude
to add a postscript to this after my arrival in the just now. It says the garrison has provisions suffi-
"Cty of Palaces." Igo there for change of scene cient for some time, but; they are so decimated by
and for a new outfitfor the "cold weather" campaign, sickness and death that they have offered terms to
to which I look forward with impatience. I hope to the rebel le4iegers, which the latter. refused
be here again about the middle of Oct., but the namely, to save the women, and d liver up all the
chances of life in India have become so much dimi- men in garrison as hostages or prisoners. The
nished it is bard to say what may happen before the bloody rebels have refused these terms—they must
present letter comes to an end. He who was yciter- have all or none to glut their vengeance on. 1
day stalwart and full of life I have but an hour ago will take upa, this d sheet beferethe mail le tries, and
laid in his grave. Every day has its victims ; those give you all the particulars that maycome till then.
who escaped the massacre at Allababad on June 6 Sept. 6.—Since writing the foregoing I received
have quickly followed one another to the grave, Tom's letter of the 14tti July, and my brother's of
either by cholera, fever, or excitement. Deprived the 17th, but not the newspapers yet. lam happy
of houses or shelter, the Christian population took to hear that all friends are well, and that the couu-
refuge in the fort, but the pestilential atmosphe; e try sympathises with us in the ordeal through which
of the fort (situate in the low swampy ground at we are pas ing. Iwillsendaloi.ofnewspapershome
the junction of the Ganges and Jumua) killed more by this mail, from which much mat be learned, but
in one night than the united murders of the sepoys still, for want of a connected narrative, and whole
and the 3,000 prisoners whom they liberated trim lists of the massacres, they will give only afaintidea
our gaol. I must say something about the terrible of the re .1 state of things. Nothing new has trans-
night of June 6. We took refuge in the fort—that is pi red from the besieged arrisou of Lucknow. The
to say, all that were not murdered; and it is worth govertunent cannot communicats with that
no-
remark, that in the lists of names which daily ap happy place, nor can the poor fellows inside .end
pear from every part of the scene of rebellion, the out any authentic intelligence. Their condition
list is not headed killed and wounded, but " the tol- must be frightful, in the heart of a native city, ere
lowing have escaped." Then we took refuge in the compassed for miles around by fanatical wolves,
fort, where animal food was not procurable. For thirsting for their blood. The mortality from sick.
three days we lived on biscuits and some t, a. Af-er ness alone' especially among the women and coil-
this our cannon opened fire on the city, and we dren, must be great, and I fear that, even if Gene-
made a few sallies under cover of the guns. After rah Havelock's reinforced column °in force its
six days Gen. Neill took command of the garrison, it will find but a small fraction of then:ar.lso, ar:?Z'
He infused some of his own bold spirit into the The few paragraphs of intelligence rtgirding Luck-
handful of soldiers and volunteers who held the now, recently given to the public, cannot, I fear,
feet We advanced into the city, but without the be much depended upon, for man! of Flee retorts
general, and were repulsed with some loss—only are supplied by natives, and turn nit false. Such, '
seven men aad two officers killed and wouteled. for instance, was the report two mete hi ago of the
Next day we mounted mortars and howitzers on fall of Delhi, for which salutes welt fired from tee
the ramparts, and pitched shells into the heart of ramparts of our forts, exposing us to the ridicule
the city close to the headquarters of the rebel chief. of the natives. If Delhi fall shorty, it may give j
Finding our fire too hot he shifted his position, a turn to affairs, kit recent accoures are not more
abandoning the cannon taken from us on the 6th, encouraging than those received several weeks ago.
which we then captured and brought back to the You wilt, in all probability, hear frau Delhi before
fort. This was providential, for the cholera broke I can, for the news from that city nust travel far
forth inside with such violence that one week would and twist in many a direction before it reaches us.
have annihilated us all had we been obliged to re- Sept. 9.—The Government delayel the mail two
main. After coming out one of my first visits was days in hopes of better news, but tone has dome,
to the burnt ruins of to late residence. Pic ure to except a meseage from Gen. eill, horn Cawnpore, I
yourself how I drooped forward on the pommel of to the effect that in the neighbourheed of Delbi we
my saddle to peep into the long room where I left had a hard attack from the rebt ls, whom we repulsed
behind so many friends, in photograph, on the at the point of thebay net, and took 12 guns. Thisis
evening of the 6th. Could I only see, even on paper, good, but has little to do with the rebel garrison itself
the countenances of my old friends I would feel at iesidethe walls, where theyareingreal u mutters, and
home again ; but no, the walls were naked, and my holding their gronhd. We ere simply oi the defensive
friends shared in the common ruin and were lost in at Delhi, for all the sorties are made by the rebels
the heaps of ashes which occupied the place of my t against us, and in. one of these they fought for
household goods. I could not help thinking ofJob nearly 12 hours I hope we shall shorly bear of an
when he said,- "Naked was I born," for I had no assault on the rebels and that they stall at length
clothing left except the small kit I took in my flight yield 10 the force id the pointed. etoel. Nothing
to the fort. You will, no doubt, read long ac- else seems to daunt them. Their tictics are
iru-
counts of the terrors of this, the greatest and most proving and their numbers extending. so that you
sanguinary rebellion ever known. You will read need not wonder that our troops have been so long
of the hardships and sufferings of poor fugitives, kept at bay. The Government has itself given
,up
men, women, and children, who are hunte like some of our finest districts within the past fort-
wolves or foxes from one cover to another but I night, and no sooner did our people. vacate than
defy any production of pen or pencil ever to give the standard of the reliels was hotted, and the
an idea of the actual sufferings of those who escaped Prophet proclaimed. But we are all it good spirits,
by flight. Some, finding refuge in the tops of large the day of retribution will come, what our 'army,
trees, were shot down like rooks ; others, who lay if not decimated by climate or cripplel by the old
in holes and caverns, were drawn forth and put to government of India, will str;ke terra into the na-
a slow death by lopping off first a leg, then an arm, tive heart. lam here correct by a cavalry colonel,
then the nose, then bursting out the eyes ,• aft r who sits near me, that my estimate of the numl,er
which the further operations of the brutal mur- of the rebels is too low. He says the; the Bengal
derers cannot be described. Some persons have army of all sorts is about 200,000, instead of
escaped altogether, but so worn out by starvation 100,000, as stated above.
and fatigue that death must shortly terminate You will read of the Bombay mutiny—the 27th
their lingering existence. The Cawnpore tragedy, N.l.—also of the mutiny or sulk of tie Ma iras
adverted to in a former letter to some of my friends Cavalry, who refused to come here, unless on their
has been verified. There were in that bloody camp own terms anti dictation. Government did not
between 700 and 1,000 persons, including soldiers, take the men, but sent us the horses2 which, of the
civilians, and women. The daily fire of the enemy's two, are the best set of animals. There they go
cannon had so demolished the breastworks and now, about 590 of them, mounted by men of the
weakened the garrison, that father resistance was Laud Transport Corps—a good substitute for black
in vain. The cries of the women prevailed against brutes. I leave here by steamer on the 12th for
the brave general—Sir H. Wheeler—who com- Allahabad, which is now the head-quarters and
mended. He capitulated with the enemy, on con- grand basis for the operations of the army. I hope
dition of being allowed to come down here to Alla- to go up with the troops to Cawnpore, or near
habad in safety by the river boats. The deceitful thereto, shortly. I felt rather dull here since My
Hindoo, Nana Sahib, gave a guarantee, bushaving arrival ; but like an old hunter to the music of ihe
found his prey in frail boat-, under his masked can- pack, I hope to pick up again when. lam within
non, he opened fire, and destroyed all except 163 heering, but out of the range, of the cannot.
persons, principally ladies and.children, whom he p,or Byrne !—reeking life by flight trove
Ahaha-
took back again, but, alas only
to massacre in a bad he fell into the jaws of death, °posed wide
more bloody manner. Two persons who escape by the privations and sufferings he snip zed on his
from the boats are yet alive, so that authentic ac- passage. I paid a some ful visit to his grave,
counts of the whole affair will be published,i _and but was di=gustad to find that I could no erect
seves me any further reference to so me an lo.ly
_a even a tablet to mark the place in which At. lies with-
yof my personal friends out paying the clergyman 90/. for leave to do so in the
subject, in which so many
burial ground. My own health is good, although I
and companions are leading
II re I am to add
P.S.--Calcutta, Sept. 4. e. the have endured something during he mouths of June,
my first sheet, written at Allahabad July, and August. The thermometer in the fort at
postscript to
Since then I have pessed over Allahabad was 11.8 degrees in the shade from the
on the lath ult.
Ganges, arriving here on the 10th to the 30th of June. Put your foot in water
1,000 miles of the
opposition, nor did her at that, clitt'nkwhat it is to breathe into your
26th. The steamer met no
an
t except at the dead bodies of lungs a fluid of the same degree. The rain in July,
passengers fire a sho ,
floating b dozensand to h. hcooled the air, but treops in
up t is, as
the Hindoos (capital sport) while y
d
sport was, however ' camp have suffered unparallele hardships. I ac-
turneddown the holy stream. Our
of the bodies
companied General Havelock's column in his fits
into grief by recognising some 0
among the blacks. At march from Allahabad to awnpore, and then only
of our countrymen floating
childdid rightly soldier s sufferings, s
mangled body of a poor white I
estimate a sThe
Mirzapore the
formed by the steamer rain fell in torren.s and the tr..
was stopped in the eddyop-, wet to the
to mention, skin, were obliged to encamp •
while at anchor. I cannot here omit in a swamp without
lying down on a
I hope you bedsteads,
for my brother's information, to whom piece of oiled, canvas.
that Mrs. The general himself was just
will forward this when read by you, as badly off. He is a
Se ers of F t h-small with
u te man,
Carshore, the daughter of Mr.groy hair and lively •
energetic
Y East," was manner. What he
and authoress of "Songs of the does, be does t a once ; there is
pore,
une as also her husband no indecision, no fumbling—he most cruelly murdered ing ing—he forms his column
in the most fiendish into shape in a
and children. The latter were,_second, an ct had he only cavalry and
limb in the sight of their horse artillery, I think h
manner, torn limb from for
it
he would drive his men
must believe it,through
expiring mother. You s a stone wall ; but I have seen those con-
oyers here yes-
true. I called on Mr. and Mrs. , founded bullocks which draw his cannon become
terday, but did not wish
to introduce the subject frantic, •
rushing at the drivers and scattering. all
of their daughter's death, until they —without '
a i around in Confusion. The rebels have horses—
tear, for their tears were exhausted—spoke first. Government horses--to their guns, and can do

The following letter is from a Mofussil station in
Lower Bengal : .

"August, 1857.
"Long ere now you will have had the heart-
rending intelligence of the massacres of Delhi and
Cawnpore, as well as the scenes of slaughter, and
bloodshed throughout this side of India. You will,
I fear, have had very distressing news from Cawn-
pore, not only of the loss of friends but also of
money ; for I think your partner and his family
lived there—and although I have not heard the
name mentioned, I have heard of few or none who
escaped. You know how happy I should be to see
you again, and most sincerely do I hope any of our
disasters here -may not bring you evil. I cannot
help thinking, however, that you will come, for you
do not wrap yourself up when energetic measures
are necessary. . . . I have reasons to thank God
that we are in perfect peace in this part of the world
—but at the station of —, about 25 mites from
us, a plot was discovered (fortunately in time) by
which the lives of every European in the station
would have been sacrificed. The conspirators.were
promptly seized, tried by our present summary
process, and the ringleader hanged in the Bazaar
the following morning, his carcase being allowed to
awing in the wind for 24 hours, the remainder of he
fellows being transported for 14 years. This is as
it should be, and were there a little more energy and
determination shown by the government official.;
who are trusted with unlimited power of life and
deith, we should have had leis to mourn for now.
As it is, cowardly pusillanimity is shown by almost
every member of the government from Halliday
downwards, and the feeling of indignation against
the service generally runs so high that was then e
an European community strong enough in C.4lcu,ta
I feel certain that the government would be de-
posed, and a committee of public safety appointed
to look aft er the safety of the European inhabitants.
Surely, the fearful scenes of massacre and shedding
of innocent blood which have been enacted by these
black barbarians (and all from the impotency of our
rulers) will arouse the feelings of England in our
behalf, and induce them to rescue us from the
chance of a repetition of such scenes.
" My blood runs cold as I think of the fearful
atrocities ; and, however unholy vengeance is, it is
the natural cry of every unsophisticated heart.
" To-day letters give us good news from General
Havelock's force, who have routed Nana Sahib's
forces with great slaughter, taking some 30 guns,
and as he is on his way to the relief of Lucknow we '
are looking anxiously for further advances. He is
the man to command and to despatch, and had we
a few more like him and Chamberlain in command
before Delhi we should have f ?red better. Forte-
nately the Commander-in-Chief, Anson, General
Barnard, and General Wheeler have been taken
away to make room for younger and more reso-
lute men. Poor Sir Henry Lawrence is deeply
regretted by all. Had we Dalhousie at the
head of affairs, we should have no difficulties
from such red-tapists as B—, P—, dn., for at
a crisis like the present we want a statesman like
the marquis, who could and did act with vigour,
regardless of forms, where they not only seemed to
defeat the ends of justice, but rendered justice im-
possible from delay.

The following interesting letter has appeared in
;he teeman's Journal :