Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1894-12-12

| anu klSSbU MN DelDTD lIcS ciIl'ui niIH
out. The chaplain offered Il prayer, Tnen
they removed the great hero amid the rat
Ting hail OF the guns AMI put him down
among other soldiers buried ut tho same
time" All OF which state for the benUllt
of those who would have US believe that thb
Christian religion Is fit only for women In
tho eighties nm | children under seven. There
was glory enough In that departure to halo
Chrstendom.
''Therc," said our escort, "Bo5 the
Mailer did the work ''Who was Boz tho
Nailer?' sob, he was tho African who sat
at that point, and waen any one four men
ventured across tho road he would drop
him by rifle ball. Bob was sure marks
man. The only way to get across the roal
for water from tho well was to wait until
his gun nashel and then instantly cross
before he hal time to load. The only way
wa could get rid OF him was by digging IL
mine under the house whera he was
hidden. When the house was blown up,
Bob the Mailer went with It," sal to him,
"Had you made up your minis what you
! and the other sufferers would do in case the
ficnds actually broke in?' "Od, yes !" said
my escort. ''Wo had it all planned, for tho
probability was every hour for nearly llvS
months that they would break in. You must
remember 1t was 1907 against GOOOO, an !
| for tho latter part OF the time 1t was
900 against CT, 900, and the residency and
tho earthworks arounl it were not put up
FOR sucN an attack. 1t was only from the
mercy OF Col that We w1r5 not massacrod
soon after the besiegement. We were re-
solved not to allow ourselves TO got into the
hands OF those desperddoey. You must re-
member that we and all the women had
heard Of the butchery ut Cawnpur, and we
| knew what defeat meant. III unable TO hold
| pnt nn lnnU,np \vO1ll huNn blown
selves up and all gone out Of life together"
''Show me" said, "thG rooms where tho
women and children staid during those
awful months Then we crossed over and
went down into the cellar Of the resiiency.
| With u shudder of horror indescrlbable en-
tered the cellars where G22 women and chill
dren had been crowded until the whole floor
was full | know the exact number, for
counted their names on the roll. As one OF
the ladies wrote In her diary--speaking OF
these women she said "They lay upon the
floor fitting into each other like bits in Il
puzzle Wives had obtained from their
husbands tho promise that the hus-
bands would shoot them rather than let
them fall into the han Is OF these desper-
ADDE'S. Tho women within tho rcsidency
were kept on the smallest allowances that
would maintain life No opportunity OF
privacy. The death angel and the birth
angel touched wings rs they passed. Flies,
mosquitoes, vermin In full possession OF tho
place, and these women in momentary pX-
pectntion that the enragod sayages woIld
rush upon them, in violence of which cluJ
and sword and torch an throat cutting
would be the mider forms.
Our escort told us again and again of tho
bravery of these women. They did not de-
spair. They encouraged the soIdiery They
waited on the wounded and dying in tho
hospital. They gave up their stockings for
holders Of the grap9shot They solacel
each other when their children died. When
, u husband or father fell, such prayers OF
sympathy were offered as only women en-
offer. They endured without complaint.
They prepared their own children for burial.
They were inspired for the men who stood
at their posts iightin. till they dropped.
Our escort told us that again aud again
news had come that Hlyelock and Outram
were Oh the why to fetch these baseged
ones out o. their wretchednes They had
received a letter from Haveock rolled up in
quill and carrie in the mouth of dis
gulsed messenger Il letter telling them that
he was on the way, but the next news was
that Havelock had been compelled TO re-
treat. 1t was constant vlcillaton between
hope and despair. But one day they heard
the guns OF relief sounding nearer and
nearer. j u III llC llOlScS VI iIuChuOW WtIC
iortresses filled with armed miscreants, and
every step OF Haveock and his army was
contested--irng IRON hous9tops, firing
from windows, Gring from doorways.
asked our friend il he thought that the
world famous story OF Il Scotch lass in her
delrium hearing the Scotch bagpipes ad-
vancing with the Scotch regiment was a true
story. He said he did not know but that it
was true. Without this mans telin, me [
knew from my own observation that de-
lirium sometimes quickens some OF the fac
ulties and | rather think the Scotch lass in
her deliriu :. was the first to hear tho bag
pipes. 1 decline to believe that class OF
people who would like to kill all the poetry
of tho world AMI Danish all the fine sem
timent. They tell us that Whit
tiers poem about Barbara Freitchie was
founded ON Il deuson, and that Longfellow's
poems immortalized things that never oc-
Cured. Tho Scotch lass did hear tho slo-
gan. almost heard 1t myself rs | stoo in
side the resdency while my escort told OF
the coming OF the Scventy-eglth Highland
Regiment.
"Were you present when Iavolock emo
in2" / asked for could suppress the ques-
ton no longer. His answer came
II was not at the moment present, but
with some other young fellows | saw SOL
dsrs dancing while two highland pip9r5
played. and said, What is all this excite.
ment| Then we cano up and saw that
lIavelock was in, and 0utram was ill., AMI
the regiments were pouring ill.,
! "Show us where they came in l eX-
claimed for knew that they did not enter
through the gate OF the residency, that be.
ing banked up inside to keep the murderer5
out. "Here it Is, answered my escort.
"Here 1t is-thc cmbrasurc through which
they came"
We walked up to the spot. II is now a
broken down pile OF bricks dozen yards
from the gate. Long grass now, but then Il
blood spattered, bullet Sc uttered opgnin; in
the wall
As we stood there, athou III the scene was
thirty-seven years ago. | saw them come in
--Havelock pale aud sick, but triumphant,
and Outram, whom all the equestrian statue.
in Calcutta and Europe cannot too grandly
nr resent .,on ,,n,,,odynt soi,,o INV 90.
cort. oh" he said ''that is impossible to
tell. The earth was removed from the gate,
and soon all the army OF relief entered, and
some OF us hughel !. and some cried, and
some prayed, AMI some danced. Hghlan-
ders so dust covered and enough blood and
wounds on their faces to make them I'M
recognizable snatched the babes out OF
their mothers arms and kissed them and
passed the babies along for other sol-
diers to kiss, and the wounded men
crawled out OF the hospital to join in tho
cheering, and it was wild jubilee until, the
first excitement passed. the story of how
many OF the advancing army had been
slain on the way began 10 have fearful
effect and the story of suffering that hal
been endured inside the fort, an the an
nouncement to children that they were
iatherless, AMI to wives that they wpre
widows, submerged the shouts of joy with
wailing Of agony.
"But were you not embarrassed by the ar
rival OF Havelock and 400 men who brought
no food with them" He answered "Oi
course VIC were put on smaller rations inn
mediately in order that they might share
with us, but we knew that the coming OF his
reinforcement would help us to hold tho
place until further relief should come. Had
not this first relief arrived as 1t did In day
or two at most and perhaps in any hour the
besiegers would have broken in, and our end
would have come The Sepoys had dug six
mines under the residency AMI would soon
have exploded ALL"
After we had obtained few bullets that
had been picked out Of the wall, an piecs
OF the bombshell, wa walked around the elo-
quent ruins and put our hands into the scars
of the shattered masonry AMI explored the
cemetery inside the fort. where hundreds OF
the dead soldiers await the coming OF the
Lord OF Hosts at tho last day, and wo
could endure no more. My nerves were
all a-tremble, and my emotions were
wrung out, and l said "Let us co." 1
had seen the residency ut Lucknow the
day before with beloved missionary,
and he told me many interesting facts con-
corning tho besicgement OF that place, but
this morning had seen it in company with
,t,n. Nl..N