Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1894-12-12
REV DIR. TAl,MAGE.
THE BROOkLYN DININE'S SUN
DAY SERMON.
Subject; "Siege of Lucknow"

forcing an ax against them" -Deuterono
| my Xxx, 10.
The awiulest thing in war Is besiegement
forto tho work OF deadly weapons 1t add
hunger and starvation and plague. Besiege
ment is sometimes necessary, but my tex
commands mercy even In that. The frul
trees must be spared because they afford
food for man. 'Thou shalt not destroy thu
trees thereof by forcing an ax agnins
them" But In my recent journey round tn
world found ut Lucknow. India, the remains
of tho most merciess besiegement OF thu
ages, and proceed 10 tell you that story for
four great reasons to show you what hor
rid thing war Is and to make you all advo
Gates for peace, TO show you what genuine
Christian character is under bombnrlment
10 put a coronation on Christian courage
and to show you how splendIdly COOL people
die
As our train glidei into the dimly lighted
station | asked the guard, us this Luck
now" and he answered, Lucknow, at the
pronunciation Of which proper name strons
emotions rushed through body, mind anC
/ soul.
The word is synonym OF suffering, o.
cruelty, of heroism, OF horror such as Is sug'
gested by hardly any other worl. We have
agonios there endured and the daring deeds
there witnessed. 1t was my great desire to
have some one who had witnessed thu
scenes transacted in Lucknow In 1857 con-
duct US over the place. We found just the
man. He was young soldier at the time
the greatest mutiny Of the ages broke out,
and he was put with Others inside the
resldency, which was a cluster OF buildings
makinga fortress in which the representa-
tives Of the English GOvercmcnt lived ant
| which was to DO the scene of nm endurance
and a bonbardment the story of which
poetry and painting and history and secular
and sacred eloquence have been trying to de.
pict. Our escort not only had II goo
memory of what had happened, but had
talent enough to rehearsp the tragedy
In the early part OF 1857 all over India the
natives were really to break out in rebellion
against all foreigners and especially against
the civil and military representatives. OF tht
English Government.
A half dozen causes are mentioned for tho
feeling of discomfort and instruction that
was cvinced throughout India. The most
of these causes were mere preteSts. Crease
cartridges were no doubt IN evaporation
The grease ordered by the English Govern
ment to be usel on these cartridges wa
taken from COWS or pigs, and grease to thu
Hindoos is uncIcan, and to bite these CIR
tridges at the loading OF the guns would b.
I'M oifense to the Hinloo religion. Tn,
leaders of the Hindoos said that thes
creased cartridges was only part of m At
tempt by tho English Government TO max
the natives give up their religion hence, un
bounded indignation was aroused
Another cause Of the mutiny was that an
other large province Of India hal been an
neXed to the British empire, and thousan i
OF officials in the employ OF the King OF that
province were thrown out OF position, an
they were all ready for trouble making.
Another cause was sud to be the bad gov.
eminent exercised by some English officials
in India.
The simple fact was that the natives OF In
dia were Il conquered race, AMI tho Englis.
were the conQuerors. For 100 years th
British scepter mad been wavei over India
and the Indians wanted to break that scep
ter. There never had been any love or sym
patty between the natives of India AMI TIT
Europeans There is none now.
Before the time OF the great mutiny tn
English Government rlsked much power il
the hands of the natives. Too many of ther
manned the forts Too many OF them wer
In tho Governmental employ. And now tn
time had come for n wide outbreak. Tn
natives had persu lded themseves that they
could send the English Government flying
and to accomplish it dagger AMI sword an
firearms and mutilation and slaughter mus
do their worst
1t was evident In Lucknow that the M
tives were about to rise and put to death al
the Europeans they could lay their hand
on and into the rpsidency the Christian pop
ulation of Lucknow hastened for deiens
from the tigers in human form which wer
growing for their victims The occupant
Of the resdency, or fort, were military an
non-combatants, men, women and childre
lin number about 1862.
/ suggest in ono sentence some of tn
chief woes TO which they were subjecte
when | say that these people were in tn
resdency five months without singl
change of clothing some OF the time thu
heat at 100 and 1870 degrees the place blacl
with flies and all a-squirp with vermin
firing of the enemy upon them ceasin
neither day nor night the hospital crowde
with the dying smallpox, scurvy, cholera
adding their work o that OF shot and shell
women brought up in all comfort and neve
having known want, crowded and sacri
feed in II cellar where nnO chldre
were born less and less foo | no water ex
cept that which was brought from wei
under the enemy's fire, so that the water Oh
tanned was ut thep price of blooi the stencil
ofthe dead horses added to the ellluvia o
corpses. and all waiting for tho momen
when the army OF 80, 900 shrieking Hinioc
devils should break In upon the garrison o
the residency, now reduced by wounds an.
sickness and death to 07G men, women AMI
chill iren.
lru1l 81, " I ,nil -
ing, and let us be ut the residency before thu
sun becomes too hot" At Z o'clock in tn
morning we left our hotel in Lucknow, an,
/ said to our oblising, gentlemanly escort
"Please take us along the road by whcl
Havelock and Outram came to the relief o
the residency." That was the way we went
There was Il solemn stiffness rs we up
preached the gate of the residency. Bat
tered and torn is the masonry OF the en-
trance. Signature of shot and punctuatio
OF cannon ball all up ani down and every
where.
Here 10 the left" said our escort, "ar
the remains OF u building the first floor O
which in other days had been used as q ban
quoting hall, but then was used rs q hos
pital. At this part the amputatlons too
place, and all such patients died. The hes
was so great and the food so insufficient
that the poor fellows could not recove
from the loss oibood. They all died. Ampr
tations were performed without chloroforn
All the anaestheics were exhausted.
fracture tina. in other climates and III
der other circumstances would have come
easy convaescence here proved fatal. Yon
der was DR.. Fayrer's house, who was SUI
geon of the place and Is now Queen Victol
las doctor. This upper room was the off
GERS room, and there Sir Henry Lawrence
our dear commander, was wounded. Will
he sat there 4 shell struck the room, an
some one suggested that he hal bette
leave the room, but he smiled and sale
lightning never strikes twice In tn
same place Hardly had he said th
when another shell tore off his thigh, an h
was carried dying into DR.. Fayrer's hous
on tho other side OF the road. Sir Henri
Lawrence had been In poor health for
long time before the mutiny. He had bee
in the Indian service for years. and no ha
started for England to recover his healtl
but getting as far as Bombay the Englis
Government requested him to remain
least awhile, for no could not DO spare
in such dangerous times. He came here
Lucknow, and foreseeing tho siege OF tn
residency had filled many Of the rooms wit
grain, without which the residency woul
have been obliged to surren Ter. There wei
also taken by him into this residencY rio
and sugar and charcoal aud fodder for Il
oxen and hay for tho ho 'es. Blu. now,
the time when all the people were lookir
to him for wisdom and courage, Sir Hem
Is dying"
Our escort describes the scene, uniqu
tender, beautiful and overpowering, an
while stood on the very spot where II
signs and groans OF the besieged and laceri
ted and broken hearted met the whiz OF bu
let's, and the demonac hiss OF bursting shel
and the roar OF batteries, my escort gave n
the particulars.
As soon as Sir Henry was told that i
had not many hours no live he asked Il
chaplain to administer to him the holy con
munion. He felt particularly anxious Il
| the snfatr of tho ,unman in tho rasIdnnn