The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-11-30
LUCKNOW, INDIA.
The First of a Series of Round the
World Sermons by Or. TaImage.
The Noted Divine Tells of the Horrible
Sepoy Rebellion. as He Learned the
Story From a Survivor of That
Memorable Siege.


text chosen was Deuteronomy xx, 10:
when thou shalt besiege a city a
long time in making war against it
to take it, thou shalt not destroy the
trees thereof by forcing an AK against
them
The awfulest thing in war is besiege-
ment, for to the work of deadly weap-
ons it adds hunger and starvation and
plague. Besiegement is sometimes
necessary, but my text commands
mercy even in that. The fruit trees
must be spared because they afford
food for man. Thou shalt not de-
stroy the trees thereof by forcing
an ak against them" But in my re-
cent journey round the world | found
at Lucknow, India. the remains of
the most merciless besiegement of
the ages, and proceed to tell you that
story for four great reasons-to show
YOU what horrid thing war is and to
make you all advocates for peace, to
show YOU what genuine Christian char
acter is under bombardment. to put a
coronation on Christian courage. and
to show YOU how splendidly good peo-
pie die.
As our train glided into the dimly
lighted station / asked the guard. is
this Lucknow" and he answered,
Lucknow. at the pronunciation of
which proper name strong emotions
rushed through body, mind and soul.
The word is a synonym of suffering,
of cruelty. of heroism. of horror such
as is suggested by hardly any other
word. We have for 81 years been read
ing of the agonies there endured and
tbe daring deeds there witnessed. 1t
was my great desire to have some one
who had witnessed the scenes trans
acted in Lucknow in 1867 conduct us
over the place. We found just the
man. He was a young soldier at the
time the greatest mutiny of the ages
broke out. and he was put with others
inside the residency. which was
cluster of buildings making
fortress in which the representatives
of the English government lived and
which was to be the scene of an endur-
ance and bombardment the story of
which poetry and painting and history
and secular and sacred eloquence have
been trying to depict. Our escort not
only had a good memory of what had
happened, but had talent enough to re-
hearse the tragedy.
In the early part of 1857 all over In
dia the natives were ready to break out
in rebellion against all foreigners and
especially against the civil and mill
tary representatives of the English
government.
A half dozen causes are mentioned
for the feeling of discomfort and insur-
rection that was evinced throughout
India. The most of these cases were
mere pretexts. Creased cartridges
were no doubt an eXaspera-
ton. The grease ordered by the
English government to be used
on these cartridges were taken from
COWS or pigs. and grease tothe Hindoos
is unclean. and to bite these cartridges
at the loading of the guns would be an
offense to the Hindoo's religion. The
leaders of the Hindoos said that these
creased cartridges were only part of an
attempt by the English government to
make the natives give up their religion;
hence unbounded indignation was
aroused.
Another cause of the mutiny was
that another large province in India
had been annexed to the British en-
pire. and thousands of officials in the
employ of the king of that province
were thrown out of position. and they
were all ready for trouble-making.
Another cause was said to be the
ax-o,.aiSnA nv some
English officials in India.
The simple fact was that the natives
of Indian were conquered race, and
the English were the conquerors. For
100 wears the British scepter had been
waved over India. and the Indians
wanted to break that scepter. There
never had been any love or sympathy
between the natives of India and the
Europeans There is none now.
Before the time of the great mutiny
the English government rislled much
power in the hands of the natives. Too
many of them manned the forts. Too
many of them were in governmental
employ. And now the time had come
for wide outbreak. The natives haC
persuaded themselves that they coulC
send the English government flying
and to accomplish it dagger and sword
and firearms and mutilation anC
slaughter must do their worst
1t was evident in Lucknow that the
natives were about to rise and put tC
death all the Europeans they could lay
their hands on. and into the residencN
the Christian population OF Lucknow
hastened for defense from the tigers IL
human form which were growing fol
their victims. The occupants of th'
r-esidencv. or fort. were-military an(
non-combatants. men. women anC
,children-in number about 1852.
| suggest in one sentence some of th'
chief woes to which they were sub
jected when | say that these peopl'
were in the residency five months with
out a single change of clothing: som'
of the time the heat at 120 and l3O de
rrees: the place black with flies ant
all a-squirm with vermin: firing OF tn
enemy upon them ceasing neither da.
nor night: the hospital crowded witt
the dying: smallpox. scurvy. chol
era, adding their work to tha
of shot and shell: women brough
up in all comfort and never hay
ing known want crowded and sacri
Siced in a cellar where nine childrel
were born: less and less food: no waite
except that which was brought from
well under the enemy's fire. so tha
the water obtained was at the price c
blood: the stencil of the dead horse
added TO the effiuvia of corpses. and a
waiting for the moment when the arm
of 10000 shrieking Hindoo devils shoul
break in upon the garrison of the res
dencv. now reduced by wounds an