The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1875-03-05

which English TolnfOEcementS COMO aE-
rive. Then when possessed of Delhi and
Punjaub he might assume the Captain
Generalship of the rebel armies, and
drive the aecursed Christian dogs forever
from the valley of the Ganges. Azimoo-
lah was successful. On june the Mama
announced that he would commence the
attack. The Sepoys murdered, robbed
and fired everything within their reach
in the native city. As soon as the mutt
neers had begun the assault, no Sepoy
felt secure of his neck and plumber as
long as one Englishman remained on In
diam soil. Azeezum, o courtesan OF
prominence, rode up and down the lines,
haranguing the troops. The sun never
before looked ON SO sad sight as that
crowd of women and children cooped
within small space and exposed during
twenty days and nights to the concen-
trated fire of thousands of muskets and
D score of heavy cannon. By the third
night every door and window had been
beaten in. The shell and ball ranged at
viii through the naked rooms. Women
and children were mangled by grape OF
round shot or crushed beneath falling
brickwork or mutilated by flying spln-
ters. Sir Hugh Wheeler was helpless.
Capt. Moore was in command. No hero
ever won his record of gallant deeds
more nobly from the field of Hastings
to the bloodiest fight of our own times.
He was everywhere. It would be impos-
sible in this brief mention to give the
names of the heroes who sustained the
honor OF their country. One by one the
| cannon were rendered useless. On the
/ eighth evening the thatched barrack was
| in blaze. A night of horror followed.
The guards crouched silent and watchful,
| finger on trigger, while the forms OF
countless foes prowled around through
the outer gloom.
There were two wells, one supplied the
besieged with water, the other was dry.
1t lay two hundred yards from the ram
part Thither every night the slain of
! the previous day were borne. Within the
space of three weeks two hundred and
fifty English people were deposited there.
/ On June 18th reinforcements arrived at
| Cawnpore for the Mana. He poured in
hot shot, and the dismay was frightful.
| On the 23d the Mana made an assault with
| the whole strength of the insurrection.
The English shot down the teams which
| tugged the artillery, burned the bales,
and routed them. That night party of
i Sepoys desired to bury the slain, which
was granted.
And now comes the act of treachery,
which viii cover forever the memory of
Mana Sahib with an unutterable loathing.
| The English had determined to die, and
| fought with desperation that never was
exceeded. Among the rebels, disgust
and disafection gained ground from hour
to hour. On the evening of the 23d,
| Azimoolah called upon Mrs. jacob, o
| prisoner held at ransom of 940, 600, and
| directed her to proceed to Sir Hugh
| Wheeler with the proposition that all
| who were willing to lay down their arms
should receive a safe passage to A1laha-
bad. The offer was unhappily accepted.
In another week they would be washed
| out of their defenses by the annual food.
Their stores had dwindled to less than q
quart per head of almost uneatable native
| food. The choice was between death and
| capitulaton. That evening council of
murder WAS held in the tent of the Mana.
| Only five or six advisers were present, but
they knew to what they had been sum-
moned. In the morning Azimoolah
walked up to within short distance of
the British outposts, and to him went
forth Moore and Whiting and Postmaster
Roche. The Notifications were to be
given up. The troops, such as were left,
were to carry sixty rounds of ammunition
each. Carriages would convey the
wounded, the women and children and
boats, victualled with -four, would be
ready at the landing. Can we imagine
! what passed In that nights Hoolass Singh
punted down the river during the night
some two dozen barges. which were COW
cred with roofs of thatch The Suttee
Chowra Ghaut Is the landing place, a
mile from the intrenchment. At two
hours before daybreak, by the Nana's
orders, five guns and as many hundred
picked assassins were placed In ambush
near an old temple on the bank of the
river. At an early hour all Cawnpore was
astir. Moore went about from group to
group and impressed upon all the neces-
! sity of pushing off as soon as all were on
board and making for the opposite shore.
On elephants, IN palanquins, they set out
on the dusky road to death. Lady
i Wheeler had given her ayah bag of ru-
pees for her fidelity. A Sepoy slashed
her shoulder and took her treasure. But
why go on with the sickening details On
reaching the water bugle was sounded.
leaped into the water, the Sepoys
opened fire on the boats, which the En-
glish returned, but in another moment
the roof of every boat was In flame of
death, ignited by red-hot charcoal. Then
commenced the slaughter. A trooper
rode to the Mana to tell him all was going
well. Mana directed TO keep the women
alive, but kill the males. The order was
carried ont. The women were returned
guarded by Sepoys, each of whom
claimed g fair English girl as his share of
the loot Four Englishmen succeeded
by swimming and floating in escaping the
bullets of the murderers, and by degrees
landed at the estate of Diribijah Singh.
These were Thompson, Delafosse, pri-
vate Murphy and gunner Sullivan.
They were saved, and lived to tell the
story as we tell it now. On June %, the
prison list numbered sixty safibs. twen-