The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1888-03-08

How lord wolsslsy Lost the Vie.
toela Medal.
A building called the Khoo,.h.yd
Null. at Lucknow, Happy Palace, J but
better known q the Mess House. hads
to be taken. After . heavy fire Of Nee
hours from Peel's guns Sir Colin deter
mined to carry it BY storm. Il was .
formidable place; massive in its struct
ure, surrounded BY . ditch IL feet
broad and scarped with masonry. and be.
yond that loop-holed mud wall.
There were draw bridges. but il was
not known whether they were down or
not. Sir Colin gave the command Of
the storming column to Capt. Garnet
Wolseley. of the Ninetieth, with instruc-
lions that in the event Of the draw
bridges being up, and his not being able
to effect an entrance, he was to leave
his men under cover and return and re-
port to him. II was not tho first storm
ing column which Wolseley had led.
Years before he had had that honor in
carrying the stronghold of the Burmese
Chief, Myat-toon, and had been severe
" wounded. BE was more fortunate in
his attack on the Mess House. The
stormers had to run the gantlet of .
very heavy fire from the neighboring
buildings, but they entered the place
with little opposition, as the enemy had
retired, leaving the draw-bridge down.
Calling upon his bugler to sound the
advance" to intimate to Sir Colin his
success, he ran up the steps of the
building and planted the British flag
upon the roof. But no sooner was the
ensign displayed than the enemy opened
fire from every gun which they could
bring to bear, and twice was the flag
struck down, but only to be replaced by
Wolseley, assisted strange coincidence!
by q young officer of the Bengal Ar
tillery, Lieut.. Frederick Roberts, now
Sir F. Roberts, Bart, V. c., G.. G. B.
But there was another building in the
hands Of the enemy, the Notice Mahsl,
pearl of Palaces the last post which
separated the besieged from their de-
liverers. Wolseley's task, as intrusted
to him by SIR Colin Campbell, was &C.
complished by the taking of the Mess
House. He had no instructions to do
more. But there are moments in battle
when opportunities are to be seized in
spite of instructions" and when what
seems rashness in commander is really
the genius which justifies daring. Gar
net Wolseley was not man to bid his
stormers retire under cover and "stand
at ease" while he saw before him a prize
which might be won by bold hearts with
dash. He made rush at the Notice
Mahal. followed with joyful alacrity by
his gallant fellows. The way from the
garden of the Mess House to
the grateway of the Notice Mahal
was swept by the enemy's fire, but
the gateway was reached. It was, how
ever, built up and loopholed, and
through these loopholes a murderous
fire was poured upon the attacking par
ty. Ready in resource and cool, Wolse-
ley sent back an officer with some men
to bring up crowbars and picka1es to
smash through the brickwork. This
was done, but it was hard fight to get
the enemy's fire under, and the stormers
lost many brave fellows. At length.
however, an aperture was made in the
wall, and through this Wolseley and
his men scrambled into the courtyard
of the palace. Fighting hand to hand
they drove the enemy from room to
room and from yard to yard toward the
river, on the banks Of which the Notice
Mahal was built. Here the fugitives
threw themselves into the water and
sought escape in swimming across. It
was when the men were returning with
the tools which he had sent for to batter
down the gateway that Wolseley fairly
earned the cross by gallant act Of dar
ing. Private Andrews, who had been his
servant in the Crimea, ran from under
shelter to show his comrades the way
across. He was Immediately shot
through the body from one of the loop
holes and fell. Wolseley saw this and
rushed to his assistance. Raising him up
he bore him back in his arms to place of
safety, under shower of bullets, by one
of which Andrews was again wounded.
Now Woolseley had gained the Notice
Mahal, but he had not gained Sir Co..
ms goodwill. The old chief was furi-
GUS at an officer exceeding his instruc-
tons, and Wolseley was advised to keep
out of his way until his ire cooled But
the erst leader of the stormers of
Ciudal- Rodrigo was not likely to be
long angry with a kindred spirit whose
disobedient daring must have recalled
to him the memory of his own fiery
courage, when youth and hope were his
only fortune. He gave Capt. Garnet
Wolseley "wigging" for presuming to
take the Notice Mahal without orders,
and mentioned him in his dispatches for
the courage and ability he had display
ed, but he was not named for the V.
C.-The United Service Magazine.