The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-09-13

Baird Immediately arose and, addressing
his staff, said: Come, gentlemen, we have
no longer any business here" Wellesley
said: oh pray finish your breakfast,
This is all that Wellesley told our author
about this curious incident Some two
years afterward. upon Gen. Harriss re-
turn home, and upon his attending the
Duke of York at one Of his levees AT the
Horse Guards, Harris was asked, quickly
and suddenly by the Duke: Pray Gem
eral Harris, what reason had you for su-
persading General Baird in the command
Of Seringapatam and giving it TO minor
officer?" Harris stammered, and was at
loss for a reply whereupon the Duke
turned his back upon him and began con-
versation with some other officers.
When Col. Wellesley was in command
at Seringapatam, Capt. Elers spent some
three months with him as member OF
his military household. He recalls that
"Col. Wellesley kept plain but good table.
He had very good appetite, and his favor
tie dish was a roast saddle of mutton ana
salad. This dish was placed opposite
to him, and he generally made his dinner
Off it. He was very abstemious with wine;
uTdNh lOuT Ut i've RldSFeS WIN iN'f'~
at dinner and about pint Of caret after
He was very even in his temper, laughing
and joking with those he liked, speaking
in his quick way and dwelling particularly
on the few (at that time) Il uations he had
been placed in before the enemy, the ar
rangen'ents he had made and their for
tunate results, all Of which were applauded
by his staff, who had shared in the glory
and peril. This generally formed the
topic of conversation after dinner, He
was particularly severe upon any neglect
of the COMM. lriat depart ment, and openly
declared that if he commanded an army
he should not hesitate to hang commls-
sary for any dereliction Of duty" We
are told that Welington's dress at this
time consisted of "a long coat, the Uni
form of the Thity-third Regiment. r
cooked hat, white pantaloons, Hessi' n
boots and spurs, and large sabre the
handle solid silver, and the mounting OF
the scabbard of the same metal, but all
gilt He never wore powder. though 1t
was at that time the regulation to do so.
His hair was cropped close. l have heard
him saw he was convinced the wearing
of hair powder was very preJudlclal TO
health. as impeding the perspiration, and
he was doubtless right" We hear good
deal about Wellesley's gallantries; Col
Wellesley had at that time very sus-
cepible heart, particularly toward, l
| am sorry to say, married Indies, and MS
pointed attention to a Mrs. F gave
offence. not to her husband, but to the
Colonel's own aide de camp, who con-
sidered it highly indecorous and immoral
| A GOODNESS took place between the AIDE
de camp and the Colonel, and they did
not speak all The remaining time lived
at Seringapatam, 1t seems that Lazy
Tute, then Mrs. Woodall, to whom also
Wellesley had been very attentive, inter-
| fered in the same officious way IN the
| affair with Mrs F., which the Colonel
did not forget for long afterward, in Eng
| land, when Lady Tuite met him at a large
marty and held out her hand TO shake hands
with him, he put both his hands behind
his back and made her low bow.
Those we're the days when officers and
! soldiers in the East India Company
| service could gain small fortunes by way
| Of prize money and when civilians could
| obtain huge profits from army contracts.
| AT the storming Of Seringapatam, the
wealth captured was enormous, and COM
prised all sorts of property. from every
| cour, in Europe There was splendid
china from the King Of France; there were
! clocks watches, shawls Of immense value,
! trinkets, iewelry from all countries pearls
| rubies, diamonds. emeralds and every
| other precious stone, made up INTO orna-
meuts even solid wedges and bars of pure
gold. A soldier offered Capt. Elers one
| of these bars for bottle Of brandy. Many
of the officers received part of their prize
money in Jewels at a fixed valuation. Not
a few soldiers acquired by plumber what
would have made them independent for
! life, if properly managed. Our author
! heard that one of them, soon after the storm
! was over, staggered about under as many
coined pagodas as he could carry. to the
! amount. it was said, of ten thousand pounds
sterling. A soldier of the Seventy-fourth
Regiment of Foot got the best prize, con-
sisting of two pairs of the Sutan's armlets,
composed of large diamonds OF an oval
shape This man had been confined SICK
in the hospital, and had come off the sick
list lust in time to take part III the storm
| A few DAYS afterward. one DIR. Meln, a
| surgeon. was called out of his tent to speak
to this man, who said TO him: Your honor,
have got some large white stones, and a
black fellow has offered me 800 rupees
for them If you will give me that sum
for them they are yours, Mein was n
liberal but wary Scotchman. He knew
the value of 500 rupees, but he was not
40 sure of the value of these white stones.
After some hesitation, he said: well, it :
like purchasing a ticket in the lottery
will give you your price" Men tied
these valuabes up in a muslin handker-
chief, and wore them next to his skin for
upward of two years. Meer Alum. a
Mahratta prince, offered him an enormous
sum for them. In the end. he realized
enough from the stones to yield him an
income of E2, 900 per annum, which, how
ever, fell far short of what the Prince had
offered him. He was generous enough to
| give the soldier who had sold him the
| stones an annuity of GOO,
While Capt Elers was stat toned al Madras,
near the close of tn" eighteenth century.
he made the acquaintance of . civilian
named James Balfour Az y happened,
the Hon. Basil Couhrane had for many years
held the contract for supplying the navy
with meat, provisions, &c. and made a
| 100 l,,, J..