The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-06-13
VICTORIA CROSS WINNERS.
RUDrARD KIPLIvG TELLS a STRING
OF STORIES OF BRAVERY.
the Ono Meaning OF the observation-disclosures,
OF vaiorous Conduct In thc undian pautinl
Some Heroes or Little wars with aAvares.
From the Youths componson.

The history OF the Victoria Cross has been told
90 often that II IL only necessary 10 say that the
order WAS created by royal warrant on Jan. 20,
1856, In the year OF the peace with Russia, when
the new racing Cunard steamer Persia was max
Ing thirteen knots an hour between England
and America
Any officer or man OF the army, navy. reserve,
or volunteer forces, from q Duke to q negro, can
wear on his left breast the little bronze Maltese
cross with the crowned lion atop and the inscrip-
ton For Valour " below, II he has only per
formed some signal act OF valor" or devotion
10 his country "in the presence OF the enemy"
Nothing else makes any difference, for II In ex-
plicitly laid down In the warrant that "noither
rank. nor long service, nor wounds, nor any
other circumstance whatsoever. save the merit
OF conspicuous bravery. shall be held TO ostab-
lish a sufficient claim to the order"
There arc many kinds Of bravery, and II you
look through the records Of the All men, living
and dead, that have held the cross, out Of the
100000 or so who can compete for II, you will
find every imaginable variety Of heroism.
There is bravery in the early morning when Il
takes great courage merely to leave the warm
blankets; on foot and on horse; empty or fed,
sick or we'll; GOODNESS of brain that thinks out q
plan at dawn ana holds to IL all through the
long. murderous day; bravery Of mind that
forces the crazy body TO sit still and do nothing
except show a good example; sheer reckless. re-
joicing strength that hacks through . crowd of
amazed mon and comes out grinning on tho
other side; enduring spirit that wears through
q long siege. never losing heart or manners or
temper; quick, flashing bravery that heavo. the
eraitsnsnshiP that camps alone before Tho
s Nipes oat e T,ns P liyi Gns s S,sHihi nit ana m''n0a'''i.'
Within tho last forty years England has dealt
s y foolish %tdha hill il feif in p q place called sifFi%.
who were misled into declaring war-they al,
6 6inlii $ macy Sf t hs0f nor SheMan' indian nHSr; ' %fron Miea.
Afrccdi, .Pathan, Biluch, the Arab of East Afri;
ca. and the Sudanese of the north country. and
ovcry variety OF climate and almost every verie-
hand scrimmaRe, except, of course. the ordered
movements OF continental armies and the siege
1t is rather the fashion to look down on these
little wars and call them military promenades
much more than poison your wells. rush your
camp. ambuscade you, kill you with his climate,
m fsat yS oq a sSay to SSaEEii %a aed Eaph 9si a9c yS snd Sue
thhesse rough.and.tpmbie affairs that many Of the
acts OF bravery in the Crimea and the Indian
enemy were concerned-no one could wish for
and the "RaiH metbat our own War ONCE helped
the enemy with ignorant management and
dian empire seemed to be crumbling like a sand
bank in flood, and wherever there were three or
four Englishmen they had to kill or be killed till
No one talks of the mutiny in India to-day, but
sometimes a mild old gentleman who plays
lady will tell tales that make you think. But 1t
is not even good to think Of the mutiny. Hun.
nobody near to see. for tho average Of work wa!
high. For instance-these are cases of decorated
% nS% sto %s ons sh iSre up times m sa as the fSSs'T 1isE q II his sa lie
to get cattle for the besieged. Later he OK.
month afterward put out another fire. Then he
led twelve men to capture two guns that were
S Mse s 6 the p sssiid1sn0I fa;I Res Ct dsy he ]sspt tsFsd
days later he captured another gun. and finished
up by capturing a fourth. So he got his cross,
OF mutineers broke into his part of the world. up
miles, stormed tho fort they had. taken refuge
In Them hna f theps % SanIu a lance or w eoTp , e wsG s sSe1;
wards rose to be Lieutenant-Colonel He was az
saRaHrsn 3 h hana q IN a % erery ' iis hi T tSat n cam 6s0 sio lnI
through nearly seventy consecutive days.
or phe nb shsrs si we sIme ew Se sT"shef them wh0 t ea' Issaf In,
vate of persuasive powers and cheerful dis
Burning house with nine Companions while tht
mutineers were firing in at the windows. H
u e ~ II oDCuuy ~ I'll 0Il1 IL
the end all ten were saved. He was q man wort
knowing.
Highlanders. a private who rose to be Major
General. In one attack he killed eleven me
VIII FRd his SSl e Wss nS spd m sasy s ai fought, than tw
troopers who rode to the rescue of their Colone
Sgi Cd Kind tx tn Sfs feet do snd t sy % %a1t snve T bes
angry, for the three of them killed all the NUT
~necrs-about fifty.
W MILAN va Hall, , wh9 &, With y aot t%S o ct tSs nf Fnsts
river with the Naval Brigade from Calcutta I
work big guns. They worked them so well tbs
detl, for no one Is quite SO crazy reckless as
West Indian negro when. he Is really excited,
who with sixty horsemen charged 1000 NUT
neers and broke them up. And 30 the Ia
Three Bengal civilian government office,
were, | believe, the only strict non.combatan'
OF Lucknow" Ravanagh's adventures in di
guise, OF Ross Mangle,s heroism after the fir
and Gfty-six loyal natives barricaded themselv'
and OF McDonnels cool-headedness in the retro
by themselves. Almost any one can fight We
on the winning side; but the men who can pat
some sort OF shape are to be respected.
Army chaplains and doctors are officially su
posed to he are not really
but about twenty years after the mutiny a cha
lain was decorated under circumstances tn
do not think he quite cared for tho publicit
He was "a rogimental chaplain-we have ono
more TO each white regiment. and in action TIT
generally stay with the doctor-,and he seems
have drifted up close to a cavalry charge. for
helped II wounded man of the Ninth Lancers In
an ambulance. He was going about his busine
when he found two more troopers who hi
tumbled into a Watcrcourse all mixed up wi
their horses. and n knot of Afghans were hurr
ing to attend to them.
The record says that he rescued both men, b
the tale. as | heard it unoficially, declares tn
he found n revolver somewhere with which
did excellent work, while the troopers we
struggling out OF the ditch. This seems We
Possible. for Afghans do not leave disabled IN
Without the strongest sort of hint, and l knc
that In nine cases out OF ten II you want a
herent account Of what happened In nm actl
you had better ask the chaplain or the Rom
Catholic priest.
but II i very difficult to get details. ha
met perhaps n dozen or 50 OF V. C.'s, and
every case they explained that they did the III
thing that came to hand without worrying abo
alternatives. One man headed u charge into
nlss OF !Afghans, who are very good fighters