St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1899-07-01
THE DOGRA SEPOY.
Little Known Bat Exceedingly
Brave Constituent OF the In
dian Array.

vi all tNe MdTIldi RACES vi thS hOA'
who furnish recruits for the ranks of
our native army. the Dogras of the Kan
gra valley are. undoubtedly. the least
known. The gallant little Gurkhas. the
daring and impetuous Pathans and the
grim warrior Sikhs have all world
wide reputation (the man in the street
at home can tell you all about them),
but the Dogras. good and sterling sol
diers though they have proved them
selves to be. have not yet attained
like pinnacle Of fame. And yet our
Dogra sepoys have done us equally gal
liant service. ms the records OF our 'front.'
Ter expeditions amply prove. and on
many a hard fought field have shed
their blood freely for the honor OF the
British Raj. 4 hillman. like the Gurk-
ha, the Dogra also possesses in meas
ure the soldierly qualities of the Sikh
and Pathan, and withal excels all three
in intelligence. The Dogra loves his
fair native hills and valleys as much as
the Pathan tribesman does his rugged
Businesses. and Dogrn sepoys. more
thrifty than their spendthrift Pathan
comrades. save money steadily in order
to return to their homes.
The Dogras are natives of the hIiy
country lying along the base OF the
snowy Himalayas. extending from the
Sutlei in the south to the Chenab in
the north. These hill regions consist
Of a series of parallel ranges divided by
longitudinal valleys. which increase
gradually in elevation as they recede
from the plains and approach the snowy
barrier which forms the northern
boundary. Here every zone of climate
and variety of vegetation are to be met
with. from the scorching heat and eN-
uberant growth of the tropics to barren
heights destitute of verdure and capped
with perpetual snow. The four Dogra
classes which furnish recruits for our
army are the Brahmins. Rajputs. Rath-
ees and Girths. and these four classes
comprise upward of four-tifths o: the
entire population of their hills. IL
might well be imagined that. on service.
the caste prejudices of the D"gras
would create difficulties and tend ma
terially to depreciate their value as
soldiers. This. however. has been
proved not to he the case. for exam
pie, the Dogra, particular rs he is about
his drinking water in cantonments
will on active service cheerfully drink
out of mussuck.
In appearance the DOgra is distinctly
prepossessing. his features being vel
formed. and his complexion. owing te
the temperate climate of his native
hills. decidedly fair. In stature Dogras
seldom exceed medium height. and II
must be admitted that in bodily
strength and vigor they compare un
favorably with the stalward Sikhs ant
Pathans. However. their physique
and strength are quite up to the stand
ard required by our recruiting officers
and as regards their infcriority IL
stature to the latter races, it must b'
remembered that it is not always tat
biggest men who can stand the mos
fatigue and hard work. As ''Wartien
of the Marches" the Dogras have PROVED
!. themselves well worthy of confidence
and the recalcitrant border tribesmel
/ know to their cost that in them the.
| have to deal with foes whose MARTA
instincts are as highly developed a
, their own. and who. moreover. in discl
pline and intelligence are immeasur
/. ably their superiors.
) Dogras also enlist in the Bengal cav
airy regiments. and. as a rule. prov
[ excellent horsemen. \ few years ag
| the experiment of forming class req
ments of Dogras was tried. and tn
E Thirty-seventh and Thirty-eighth Ber
7 gal infantry became the Thirty-sevent
. and Thirty-eighth Dogras. The eN
: pertinent has been wholly successful, a
! the records of both these corps-shor
y though they be-are extremely fin
0 ones. The Thirty-seventh Dogra
: served with credit throughout the Chi
3 raj campaign. while the deeds OF tn
e Thirty-eighth Dogras during the opel
D ations of the Malakand field force al
: still fresh in our memory. Dogras seel
1 more suitable than any other race I
e form into class regiments. and we coul
r well do with few moreregiments c,
9 tirely composed of them. There is
e more loyal and faithful soldier in til
j native army than the DOgra. who's
: motto and watchword may with trut
I be said to be "Semper Fidelis.
News.