FOOTNOTES:

FOOTNOTES:[42]General Dacres was at Constantinople sick.[43]General Simpson's despatch of September 9, 1855, specially alludes to this report, which, he says, was agreed to and acted on.[44]Names of artillery officers killed: Brig.-General Strangways, Major Townsend; Captains Oldfield, Fitzroy, Childers, Dew, A. Gordon, and Snow; Lieutenants Cockerell, Walsham, Luce, Mitchell, and Asst.-Commissary Hayter.

[42]General Dacres was at Constantinople sick.

[43]General Simpson's despatch of September 9, 1855, specially alludes to this report, which, he says, was agreed to and acted on.

[44]Names of artillery officers killed: Brig.-General Strangways, Major Townsend; Captains Oldfield, Fitzroy, Childers, Dew, A. Gordon, and Snow; Lieutenants Cockerell, Walsham, Luce, Mitchell, and Asst.-Commissary Hayter.

THE INDIAN MUTINY

In the early part of 1857 I was stationed at Cork Harbour in command of a few men on Spike Island, a period of tranquillity after all the anxieties of the great Crimean war. The tranquillity, however, was not destined to last very long. One day towards the end of May I crossed the harbour to call on a gentleman in the neighbourhood who had just returned from Cork, and on my asking if there was any news, he said that a remarkable telegram had been received from India that a native regiment at Meerut had killed its English officers and was marching on Delhi. That was the first news of the great Mutiny. It also stated that the natives in parts of India were passing chew-patties from village to village. What was a chew-patty? Nobody could tell us. It turned out to be a sort of pancake; but why the natives should specially pass round pancakes, and presumably eat them, as a signal of rebellion no one could explain. Week after week the news became more serious, and troopsof all arms were sent off in large numbers round the Cape. Towards the end of July, being in London, I received information that the Duke of Cambridge had appointed me Assistant Adjutant-General of the batteries of Royal Artillery, then on their voyage; and about the middle of August I leftviâEgypt. There was, of course, no Suez canal in those days, and the railway from Alexandria only went as far as Cairo.

Generals Dupuis and Windham, and many other officers, were of the party; and from Cairo we had to cross the desert (about ninety miles) in uncomfortable carriages like bathing machines. There was no steamer at Suez, and we were detained a week at that dismal village of the desert, receiving occasional news that matters were becoming worse and worse in India. The only hotel was crowded with English officers, with little to eat and not a drop of water except what was brought in skins on camels from the Nile, nearly 100 miles away. At last, however, the 'Bentinck' arrived, carried us slowly down the Red Sea, with the thermometer at 96 degrees; in a week we were at Aden, thermometer still rising, and ten days afterwards at Galle. At Madras we heard of the fall of Delhi, and on October 5 our long voyage in the 'Bentinck' came to an end, and we steamed up the Hoogly to Calcutta. Several years afterwards, when inspecting the defences of the river with Sir William Mansfield, the Commander-in-Chief, we came across the wreck of the 'Bentinck' lying in a field at some distance from shore, and found that a short time previously she had been caught by a tidal wave called 'a great bore,' and was thrown up high and dry in the field. In the course of my career I have occasionally met a great bore, but never to be so completely stranded as was the case with the old steamer.

Matters were in a somewhat critical condition on our arrival at Calcutta, for although the fall of Delhi had given a severe blow to the mutineers, still we had no force of much strength to take the field; and the garrison of Lucknow under Outram and Havelock, with many women and children, were entirely surrounded, mere scraps of intelligence only arriving from them occasionally. I had several interviews with Sir Colin Campbell, who was very anxious to collect a sufficient force for the relief of Lucknow. During October troops of all arms arrived in quick succession after a three months' voyage round the Cape, but the great difficulty was transport. The railway extended to Raneegunge, 120 miles up country, but beyond that point our means only enabled us to push forward about 100 men a day, either in bullock carts or by march. Another difficulty was the provision of horses for theartillery. In fact, the whole of Central India from Delhi to Lucknow was practically in the possession of the mutineers, who fortunately had no generals to lead them, and were content for the most part to hover about and pillage as they could. Slowly, however, as our forces in a long thin line marched upwards towards Allahabad and Cawnpore, the tide began to turn, and on October 27 the Commander-in-Chief left Calcutta for the North.

The general conditions of the Mutiny campaign formed, indeed, a striking contrast to those of the Crimean war. In the latter case, the allied armies—English, French, Sardinian, and Turkish—amounting to nearly 200,000 men, had been virtually shut up in a corner, and compelled to fight a series of battles on the same ground, in order to gain possession of the Russian stronghold. In the present instance the circumstances were all the other way. A vast continent was in a great measure over-run, and its munitions and military stores were temporarily in the hands of a great mutinous army, more or less in sympathy with the inhabitants; whilst the English troops in small scattered detachments, often hundreds of miles apart, were fighting a succession of battles, with their communications precarious, and for the moment without the power of concentration.

To a stranger landing in India for the first time, knowing nothing of the language or the customs ofthe people, more especially in the middle of a revolution, there were many minor personal perplexities, especially about servants. Their very titles were embarrassing. Bearers, kitmagars, dhobies, durzees, bheesties, chuprassies, punkah-wallahs, hookahbadars, syces, and others. What were their duties? That was the point. Because in India, as we soon found, one man will only do his own mite of work, and scorns the idea of making himself generally useful. Any attempt to enlarge the sphere of their duties would lead, so we were told, to loss of caste. There were, of course, exceptional cases, such as that of the native servant who, on being asked by a new-comer as to his caste, replied, 'Same caste as master, drink brandy sahib.' Owing to the great influx of officers from home, all in a hurry to be off, servants were especially difficult to find. I was fortunate enough to get an old fellow whose name was Buktum Hassan to take care of me. He could not speak a word of English, and slept away his time on a mat outside my door. I believe he was a bearer, and a Hindoo, but he would not come near me at dinner time. Subsequently I procured another servant, who condescended to wait on me at dinner, but I was cautioned not on any account to eat ham in his presence. Curry and rice he did not object to. Two Sepoys, also, were appropriated for my service as orderlies. They were tall, dark, spare men, and all day waitedpatiently in the corridor in uniform, strictly buttoned up, with belts and boots. The first evening they said something, which being interpreted was that they wished to go home: they then proceeded to take off all their clothes, except a loin cloth, made them up into a bundle, and leaving them in a corner of my room, marched happily away.

The greater portion of the batteries from England having arrived, General Dupuis and his staff followed the Commander-in-Chief up country on November 12. The journey to Benares occupied five days, and from Raneegunge we were conveyed in dawk gharries about eighty miles a day, passing on the road every few hours detachments of troops of all arms, hurrying forward, some in bullock carts, some on the march. Portions of the road, especially near the river Soane, were unsafe from the vicinity of straggling parties of mutineers, and we had to be protected occasionally by an escort.

Remaining a few hours in a bungalow outside Benares, we found time to pay a hurried visit to this celebrated city. As an instance of the precarious nature of our long line of communications, it may be mentioned that although its inhabitants were in a restless, disaffected condition, the garrison only consisted of a weak company of infantry and two field guns. On the morning after our arrival I was informed that 'the elephant was at the door,'in readiness to take us into the city. It had no howdah, so we climbed up and sat on a large stuffed mattress. The environs consisted of tombs, temples, ruins, mosques, and gardens. The streets were crammed with people, and with little Brahminy bulls wandering about; in some parts the elephant was too wide for the narrow, tortuous passages, so that we had to dismount and walk. In one Hindoo temple which we visited, a fanatic, or possibly a lunatic, was seated in a niche. He was quite naked and covered with dust, but, oddly enough, had a fuschia flower lying on the top of his shaven head. He sat perfectly mute and still, and took no apparent notice of anybody, so that it was impossible to ascertain what object he expected to accomplish by so sedentary and monotonous an existence.

We were rather a large party at the hotel bungalow, some being officers newly arrived and others who had served for years in the country, and who were very good natured in giving us information. Colonel David Wood, of the Horse Artillery, was one of the newcomers, and had a habit occasionally of assuming ignorance on minor points which perhaps was not always genuine. During dinner he turned gravely to one of the old Indian officers and said, 'Can you tell me, what is a dhobie?' They all laughed, and it was explained that a dhobie was a man who washed your clothes. Wood, still quite grave, said: 'Oh, thataccounts for the difficulty. I told mine to clean my horse, and he refused. I will discharge him tomorrow.' The old Indian officer, however, assured him that a dhobie was absolutely necessary. Wood replied that he never required washing on active service. 'You must surely have your shirts washed,' was the rejoinder. 'Not at all,' said Wood. 'I always wear a flannel shirt in the field, and as soon as it gets dirty or worn out I throw it away and put on another.'

THE BATTLES AT CAWNPORE

On November 19 we reached Allahabad, an interesting old fortress at the junction of the Ganges and Jumna; but important events were taking place, and we hurried on and reached Cawnpore on the 21st. On our arrival we found that Sir Colin Campbell, with nearly all the troops available, had left a few days previously for Lucknow, and that serious fighting had taken place there on the 16th and 17th; but the communications were subsequently interrupted by the mutineers in Oude, and for some days no further information could be obtained as to the progress of affairs. It was a critical period of the campaign. As already explained, the garrison of Lucknow, with many women and children, fifty miles distant, had been entirely shut up and surrounded by multitudes of mutineers for weeks past, and was running short of provisions, so that its relief had become a very urgent necessity. On the other hand, the great bulk of our troops, anxious as they were to reach the scene, owing to want of means ofrapid conveyance, were still moving up in driblets along the 600 miles of road from Calcutta to Cawnpore. So that when the Commander-in-Chief had crossed the Ganges on his adventurous march to Lucknow, he was only able to take with him about 6,000 infantry and a moderate force of cavalry and artillery.

But that was not all. Cawnpore, his only base, was in a precarious, defenceless condition, and when Sir Colin had left and placed Windham in command of it, there were only 450 infantry remaining for its protection. The defences of Cawnpore were insignificant. A small incomplete earthwork had been made on the bank of the river with a view to protect the bridge of boats, and lying all round it were the ruins of burnt bungalows and a general scene of confusion and desolation; and beyond again, at a few hundred yards, stood the large city, composed, as usual, of a wilderness of narrow tortuous streets, and devoid of any external defences. So that it was not a favourable position to hold, even had a considerable force been available. The difficulties and dangers of the situation were indeed obvious. No sooner had the Commander-in-Chief crossed the Ganges and marched in one direction, than the Gwalior contingent—a well trained force which, joined by other mutineers, amounted to about 25,000 men—with a powerful artillery of 40 guns, fieldand heavy, was reported as advancing in several columns from Calpee forty-six miles distant on the other side.

The instructions given to General Windham were as follows. The force at his command for the time was estimated at about 500 men; and the detachments of troops as they arrived up country were to be sent on to Sir Colin Campbell at Lucknow. Windham was directed to strengthen the entrenchment, and also to watch carefully the movements of the Gwalior contingent; and should it indicate an intention of advancing, he was to make as great a show as possible by encamping his small detachments conspicuously outside the city, leaving a guard in the earthwork. If he should be seriously threatened, he was to communicate with the Commander-in-Chief as to detaining some of the troops arriving, to assist in the defence. From a military point of view, it is evident that, whilst Sir Colin's position was somewhat critical, that of Windham was far more so. The general, however, lost no time in carrying out his orders. The entrenchment was extended and strengthened with a few guns, and its glacis cleared. The troops were encamped outside; but whether this rather transparent artifice would have much moral effect on the enemy may be doubted, especially as they had ample means of obtaining correct information from their friends in Cawnpore. On the other hand,it was very difficult to procure accurate accounts of the movements of the Gwalior force. In the absence of cavalry, native spies were the only resource; but some of these were caught and mutilated by the enemy; besides which, under the circumstances of the general disaffection, their fidelity could not in all cases be relied on.

The duty of obtaining intelligence was entrusted to Captain Bruce, commonly called 'the intelligent Bruce,' an excellent officer who was also a magistrate. As all the prisons had been destroyed, the only punishments available for criminal natives were hanging and flogging, and in this horrible occupation he was engaged every day. He held his court in the open air in the yard of a ruined bungalow, surrounded by thedêbrisof smashed furniture. Amongst others, he captured a native of rank, a friend of Nana Sahib's, and on threatening him with death, the native reluctantly gave information which led to the discovery of about £10,000 in money and a quantity of jewellery, &c., which had been looted and hidden away. I paid one or two visits to the bungalow, which had been the scene of the massacre, a few months previously, of the English women and children by Nana Sahib. The well into which their bodies were thrown had been filled up and closed; but on the walls of the house were still remaining some half-obliterated writing and stains of blood,and in the bushes of the garden, fragments of children's clothing.

Events were now hurrying on to a climax. General Windham, a few days after the departure of Sir Colin, sent a message informing him of the rapid approach of the Gwalior contingent, and obtained authority to detain some of the new arrivals, so that by November 26, when the first battle occurred, he had about 1,700 men and 10 guns drawn by bullocks at his disposal. But of these, four companies of infantry and a few artillerymen had to be left on guard in the entrenchments, so that his movable field force was still very limited. In the meantime, however, the road to Lucknow became closed, and for several days after November 19 no information whatever was received. On the night of the 23rd a tiny note, rolled up and concealed in a quill (which was the method commonly adopted), was brought in by a native from Lucknow. It proved to be from a commissariat officer, who asked for more provisions at once, but said he could give no opinion on military matters, except that they were complicated. The native who brought the note received 50 rupees (£5).

On the other side the mutineers from Calpee were now rapidly approaching in distinct divisions, and had arrived at several villages within a few miles of Cawnpore, and General Windham felt he could nolonger remain inactive. On the 24th he advanced his camp a few miles along the Calpee road up to the Ganges canal, which runs across the country, and when its bridges were guarded it served as a wide wet ditch along his front. The Gwalior contingent, however, began to assume the offensive, and spies reported the advance of their main body from Akbarpore to Suchonlee, and that their leading division was on the Pandoo river, only three miles from the British camp. At daybreak on November 26 our men were under arms, and Windham, with ten men of the 9th Lancers and a few sowars, went forward to reconnoitre, and, finding that the mutineers were on the move, led forward his troops at once to the attack. His force consisted of about 1,200 men, being detachments of the 34th, 82nd, 88th, and Rifle Brigade. He also had eight guns, all drawn by bullocks; four manned by natives from Madras, the others by a few gunners of the Royal and Bengal Artillery and some Sikhs—a sort of improvised battery got up for the occasion. The British troops advanced cheerfully to the attack. When these reached the enemy's position, which was on the other side of the almost dry bed of the Pandoo river, the mutineers opened fire from some heavy guns, and poured in several rounds of grape, as we neared them. Our artillery at once replied. Nothing, however, could restrain the eagerness of our men, who came on with a rush, cheering as they went, crossed the river,and captured the position. The enemy retreated in haste, leaving three guns and some ammunition waggons in our hands. We followed them for some distance, and Windham, having halted for a couple of hours to rest his men, then withdrew, as he had intended, to his original position outside Cawnpore, taking the captured guns with him. The mutineers were evidently in considerable strength, and, notwithstanding their defeat, followed us at a distance as we withdrew. Our loss was rather severe, considering the rapidity with which the attack had been carried out. One young officer, Captain Day of the 88th, was killed, being struck by a round shot and knocked down a well.

Our total casualties were:—

General Windham on his return at length received the long desired letter from Lucknow. It was a short note from General Mansfield, chief of the Staff, saying that all was well and they were coming back at once to Cawnpore.

cawnpore

Plan of Cawnpore to illustrate Battle of 27th. Nov. 1857.

November 27 proved to be a very eventful day. Our small field force, as I have explained, was encamped outside the city, not far from the point where the great trunk road crossed that from Cawnpore to Calpee. General Windham naturally hoped that thesuccessful blow he had delivered on the previous day would at all events so far tend to discourage the mutineers as to delay their movements and give time for the return of the Commander-in-Chief. The position, however, was critical. Whilst desirous of presenting a bold front and of protecting the city, it was evident not only that our force was insufficient, but that the right flank towards the Ganges was open to attack and liable to be turned. At daylight the troops were again under arms, and part of the 34th and 82nd regiments, with four Madras guns, weredetached to the flank, to watch the road from Bithoor. Two 24-pounder heavy guns on travelling carriages, each drawn by a string of bullocks and manned by seamen of the 'Shannon,' under Lieutenant Hay, R.N., were brought out from the entrenchment to strengthen the position in front. Lieutenant Hay had a difficult duty to perform. In the first place, his guns were very heavy for field work; and the draught animals, though obedient to native drivers, were so timid that if an English soldier or sailor approached, they at once began to bolt, and became unmanageable. I remember discussing the matter with him in the morning, and suggested that in the event of a fight he should, if possible, bring his guns into action on the high road, as if he were to leave it, and get into heavy ground and were pressed, he might be in difficulties. He quite concurred, and during the battle, which lasted all day, he acted accordingly, and performed excellent service, he himself being twice wounded.[45]

About 10A.M.a cannonade suddenly commenced away on the right, followed shortly afterwards by a similar demonstration in front. The mutineers were evidently determined to make a simultaneous attack on both points, and although for the time they held back their infantry, their artillery fire was very severe andcontinuous. Windham, conceiving that the flank attack might prove the more dangerous of the two, proceeded there himself in the first instance, but on his return to the front an hour afterwards, found that matters were becoming serious. Not only was the fire incessant, but there were indications that our left as well as our right was threatened—in fact, the enemy were in great strength (in a semicircle) all round us. The battle continued for several hours without signs of abatement, our ammunition was running short, and the bullock drivers began to desert.

Under these circumstances General Windham directed his troops to fall back a short distance, until they found a temporary shelter under cover of some mounds and remains of old brick kilns just outside the city. It seemed now that the position might be held. Still anxious about the right flank, late in the afternoon he sent an aide-de-camp to obtain information, and shortly afterwards directed me to ride through the streets and ascertain the state of affairs. Whilst threading the narrow lanes, I suddenly met the aide-de-camp coming back in haste, who informed me that the mutineers were in possession of the lower parts of the town and had just fired a volley at him. At this moment Windham himself joined us. Whilst deliberating on the critical position, two companies of the Rifle Brigade also appeared on the scene, as if they had dropped from the clouds. Theyhad been marching all day up the trunk road, hearing firing in various directions, but unable to find anyone to give them information. Windham said a few words to them, and, placing himself at their head, away they went cheering, and soon cleared the streets of the enemy. It was, however, becoming dusk, and the general, feeling that it was impossible to remain in the exposed position outside the city, especially as his troops were exhausted and the ammunition running short, sent me to General Dupuis, who was for the moment in command at the front, with orders to withdraw the whole force and return to the entrenchment on the Ganges, as otherwise the position might be lost and the bridge of boats destroyed. The retirement through the streets was conducted without haste and in good order, and was not interfered with by the enemy. It was rather remarkable that although so closely hemmed in by the mutineers, they did not at first take the precaution of cutting the telegraph wires, so that messages were sent to Lord Canning at Calcutta of the results of each day's fighting. During the evening General Windham held a consultation with the senior officers with a view to a night attack on the mutineers, but in the absence of reliable information as to their position the idea was relinquished.

The chief officers of the staff were temporarilyaccommodated in a bungalow outside the Fort; and late at night Windham came in and stated that one of the heavy naval 24-pounders had been upset somewhere in the streets during our retreat and had been left behind, and he requested me to go out and if possible recover it, giving mecarte blancheto make any arrangements necessary for the purpose. It was rather like looking for a needle in a bundle of hay. I went to the entrenchment, obtained the assistance of some seamen under Midshipman Garvey[46]and a guard of 50 infantry, and, with a cart containing a triangle-gyn and the necessary tackle, we prepared to start. Most fortunately at the last moment we found one of the native bullock drivers, who said he knew the position of the lost gun, and on a promise of a few rupees agreed to conduct us to the spot; and so under his friendly guidance we marched off into the darkness. Our friendly native, however, instead of entering the city, led us for a considerable distance through its outskirts, along the banks of the Ganges canal, and some doubts arose as to whether he was not wilfully misleading and taking us into the enemy's camp. However, there was nothing for it but to go on, and at length, becoming very excited, he turned sharply into the town, and after wandering through some ofthe narrow lanes, sure enough there was the gun lying upset against a small shop, with its wheel sunk in a narrow, deep, perpendicular drain. There were planks lying about, and indications that the enemy had been trying to extricate it. Small parties of the infantry were immediately placed at the corners of the adjacent streets, so as to isolate us from sudden attack. Their orders were to keep perfectly silent, but should an attempt be made to force their position they were to fire a volley and charge. As time was precious, and as mounting a gyn with its tackle, &c., in the dark would cause delay, it was decided to try and pull the gun out of its awkward position by main force; and, the seamen having fastened a rope to the trail and working with a will, the attempt succeeded, and so, withdrawing the infantry, we marched back to the fort in triumph. The coolie got his rupees and every man a glass of grog, and thus all ended well. On returning very late to the bungalow, the staff were all lying about asleep on the floor in the various rooms. The only one who woke was Colonel Charles Woodford, of the Rifles, to whom I mentioned our successful adventure. Poor fellow! he was out at daylight the next morning, engaged in the severe contest which took place, and was killed in capturing some guns from the mutineers in the open plain.

The fighting was incessant. On the morning ofthe 28th it re-commenced on both sides of the city simultaneously, and for the third day in succession. Away on the left in the open plain, near the ruins of the 'old Dragoon lines,' the Rifles, with part of the 82nd and a battery, after a hard contested fight drove back the mutineers in a brilliant manner and captured two 18-pounder guns. On the right, along the Bithoor road, a second battle was going on at the same time, and continued all day. Brigadier Carthew, with parts of the 34th and 82nd regiments and the Madras battery, held a position somewhat in advance, between the city and the Ganges, and was attacked with overwhelming numbers, but maintained the position until sunset. Carthew was supported by a part of the 64th, commanded by Colonel Wilson, who during the day, in endeavouring to capture some of the enemy's guns, was killed, together with three of his officers and many men. Our losses during the three days' fighting were 9 officers killed, and upwards of 300 officers and men killed and wounded.

garrison

THE GARRISON OF LUCKNOW RETURNING TO CAWNPORE, NOVEMBER 1857

I have thus related as shortly and clearly as possible the general features of the battles round Cawnpore, at the end of November, as they came under my notice; because, in my opinion, much injustice was done at the time to General Windham, who was a brave soldier and an excellent leader, and whose difficulties were by no means understood and appreciated. General Windham, in anticipation of thereturn of Sir Colin Campbell from Lucknow, had sent him several messages, pointing out the serious nature of the attack on Cawnpore; and on the evening of the 28th the Commander-in-Chief at length arrived, and with the chief part of his force encamped on the other side of the Ganges. What with the women and children, the wounded (amounting in all to 2,000 people), and the usual accumulations of camp equipage and stores which are inseparable from an Indian army in the field, his line of march extended for about twenty miles; and when the strings of elephants, camels, bullock waggons, palanquins, &c., began to cross the bridge of boats the following day, the scene was more like the emptying of Noah's ark than anything else.

The mutineers, who had now full possession of the city and its suburbs, brought some heavy guns to bear on the bridge, and struck the boats several times. However, on November 29 and 30 the whole force crossed the Ganges from Oude and encamped outside Cawnpore, near the 'old Dragoon lines.' Although all pressing danger was at an end on the return of Sir Colin's force, still the Commander-in-Chief had to proceed with considerable caution. His great anxiety, before assuming the offensive, was to provide for the safety of the women, children, and wounded. On December 3 they were sent under convoy down the road to Allahabad, and theCommander-in-Chief at length was free to act against the mutineers, who, in the meantime, had harassed the camp by occasional demonstrations and artillery fire. Although the enemy were in full possession of Cawnpore, their main position was on the plain outside, and the Ganges canal between us acted as a wet ditch along their front. Sir Colin Campbell computed their numbers as about 25,000 men with 36 guns.

On the morning of December 6 the British camp was struck, and about noon the whole force, consisting of 5,000 infantry, 600 cavalry, and 35 guns, advanced across the open to the attack. The cavalry and horse artillery made a detour to the left, so as to pass over the canal by a bridge a mile and a half distant, and threaten the enemy's flank. The brigades of infantry supported by the artillery, advanced steadily in line across the plain, but were somewhat delayed at the Ganges canal owing to there being but one bridge within reach. This obstacle and the necessary crowding once overcome, they rapidly regained their formation, and, spreading out like a fan, soon drove the enemy back, and ran into their main camp at 1P.M., Sir Colin, fine old soldier as he was, riding in front with his helmet off, cheering on his panting troops. The mutineers were disorganised, the retreat became a rout, and they fled in all directions, being pursued by Sir Colin and staff with the cavalry and horse artillery up to the fourteenth mile-stone along theCalpee road, every gun and ammunition waggon which had gone in that direction falling into our hands. Heartily tired, we returned and bivouacked that night in the plain outside Cawnpore. I could not help admiring the toughness of old Sir Colin, who rolled himself up in a blanket, lay down to sleep in a hole in a field, and seemed to enjoy it. The following day Brigadier-General Hope Grant, with the cavalry and horse artillery, followed up such of the mutineers as had retreated by the Bithoor road, caught them just as they were about to cross the Ganges, capturing the remainder of their guns without any casualties on our side. That was the end of the Gwalior contingent as a fighting force.

The loss of the British troops on the 6th was about 100, and 37 guns[47]in all were taken, besides quantities of munitions and stores.

The following is a translation of a Hindostani document issued by the Gwalior contingent, and found on the field of battle outside Cawnpore:

'Cawnpore. By order of the great rajah—the leader.[48]May his shadow never be less. Let all thelords of the manor and the rajahs of this country know that a dromedary rider, for the purpose of finding out all about the roads, and defiles, and ferries, is about to be sent, in consequence of the departure of the Gwalior contingent towards Cawnpore; that no person is to molest or hurt in any way the above-mentioned dromedary rider; and let them, in fact, assist him to the best of their power.... It is written on the 3rd of the month of Suffer, and it corresponds with 1274 of the year of the Flight.'

FOOTNOTES:[45]This gallant officer was killed in action two years subsequently, in the New Zealand war, where he had command of the 'Harrier.'[46]This young officer was subsequently killed at Lucknow, in March 1858.[47]Guns captured from the Gwalior contingent—By General Windham, November 263" " " " 282Battle of December 617By Sir Hope Grant15—Total37[48]Probably the Nana Sahib.

[45]This gallant officer was killed in action two years subsequently, in the New Zealand war, where he had command of the 'Harrier.'

[46]This young officer was subsequently killed at Lucknow, in March 1858.

[47]Guns captured from the Gwalior contingent—By General Windham, November 263" " " " 282Battle of December 617By Sir Hope Grant15—Total37

[47]Guns captured from the Gwalior contingent—

[48]Probably the Nana Sahib.

CAUSES OF THE MUTINY AND POLICY OF LORD CANNING

The fall of Delhi in September, the relief of Lucknow in November, and the severe conflicts round Cawnpore, had shattered, as it were, the main force of the Mutiny; and although during 1858 active military measures were carried out in various parts of the country, still in reality the great crisis was past. The absence on the part of the natives of any men of military genius to lead them, the want of mutual confidence amongst their widely dispersed forces, and their tendency to marauding expeditions rather than to combined operations, all led to their final defeat in detail. On the other hand, the vigour of our movements, and the large reserves of men, arms, and munitions brought from England, at length restored our shaken power, and enabled us gradually, but firmly, to re-establish our authority throughout the numerous provinces under our rule.

Owing to the wide distribution of the large force of artillery which had arrived from home, it was considered necessary, for administrative purposes, that General Dupuis and his staff should return to the seat of Government at Calcutta; and therefore, after the battles at Cawnpore in November and December, I took no further active part in operations in the field. Residence in India, however, was full of interest at that time, when the causes of the revolution, together with the military changes which ensued, were matters of constant discussion and consideration. The idea that the serving out of greased cartridges to the native soldiery was a dominant factor in the crisis is of course a mere exaggeration of a minor ultimate detail. It may possibly have been the final exciting cause, in the same way that a lucifer match suddenly lighted in a powder magazine may lead to a great explosion; but the causes which conduced to the revolution had been accumulating long before 1857, and were partly political, partly military; and it will be interesting to quote briefly the opinions of various statesmen and high authorities who took part in and studied the history of our conquests, and who traced the results caused by our gradual absorption of the kingdoms, principalities, and provinces into which, until our advent, the vast peninsula of India was divided.

Sir John Malcolm, in his 'Political History of India,' in 1826, wrote: 'The great empire which England has established in the East will be the theme of wonder to succeeding ages. That a small island inthe Atlantic should have conquered and held the vast continent of India as a subject province, is in itself a fact which can never be stated without exciting astonishment. But that astonishment will be increased when it is added that this great conquest was made, not by the collective force of the nation, but by a company of merchants, who, originally vested with a charter of exclusive commerce and with the privilege and right to protect their property by arms, in a few years actually found themselves called upon to act in the character of sovereigns over extended dominions before they had ceased to be the mercantile directors of petty factories.'[49]Sir John goes on to show that our rapid progress was due in a great measure to two leading causes: one, that coming originally as unpretending traders, we disarmed suspicion, and were, indeed, welcomed by the natives; the other, that the gradual rise of our power was coincident with the decline of the Mogul empire.

General Sir Thomas Munro—an officer who entered the Madras service of the East India Company as a cadet in 1780, and who by his genius and statesmanlike qualities rose to be Governor of that Presidency—writing in 1817 to the Governor General on the effects of our policy, said: 'The strength ofthe British Government enables it to put down every rebellion, to repel foreign invasion, and to give to its subjects a degree of protection which those of no native power enjoy. Its laws and institutions also afford them a security from domestic oppression unknown in those States; but these advantages are dearly bought. They are purchased by the sacrifice of independence of national character, and of whatever renders a people respectable. The natives of the British provinces may without fear pursue their different occupations as traders, meerassidars, or husbandmen, and enjoy the fruits of their labours in tranquillity; but none of them can aspire to anything beyond this mere animal state of thriving in peace, none of them can look forward to any share in the legislation, or civil or military government of their country.'[50]... 'It is from men who either hold, or are eligible to hold, public office that natives take their character; where no such men exist, there can be no energy in any other class of the community. The effect of this state of things is observable in all the British provinces, whose inhabitants are certainly the most abject race in India. No elevation of character can be expected among men who, in the military line, cannot attain to any rank above that of subadar, where they are as much below an ensign as an ensign is below the Commander-in-Chief, andwho in the civil line can hope for nothing beyond some petty judicial or revenue office, in which they may, by corrupt means, make up for their slender salary. The consequence, therefore, of the conquest of India by the British arms would be, in place of raising, to debase the whole people. There is, perhaps, no example of any conquest in which the natives have been so completely excluded from all share of the government of their country as in British India.'

Again in 1818, in a letter to Lord Hastings, he says: 'Our Government will always be respected from the influence of our military power, but it will never be popular while it offers no employment to the natives that can stimulate the ambition of the better class of them. Foreign conquerors have treated the natives with violence and often with great cruelty, but none has treated them with so much scorn as we; none has stigmatised the whole people as unworthy of trust, as incapable of honesty, and as fit to be employed only when we cannot do without them. It seems to be not only ungenerous, but impolitic, to debase the character of a people fallen under our dominion.' Again in 1824: 'With what grace can we talk of our paternal government if we exclude them from every important office, and say, as we did till very lately, that in a country containing 150,000,000 of inhabitants no man but a Europeanshall be trusted with so much authority as to order the punishment of a single stroke of a rattan? Such an interdiction is to pass a sentence of degradation on a whole people for which no benefit can ever compensate. There is no instance in the world of so humiliating a sentence having ever been passed upon any nation....' 'The advocates of improvement do not seem to have perceived the great springs on which it depends; they propose to place no confidence in the natives, to give them no authority, and to exclude them from office as much as possible; but they are ardent in their zeal for enlightening them by the general diffusion of knowledge. No conceit more wild and absurd than this was ever engendered in the darkest ages, for what is in every age and every country the great stimulus to the pursuit of knowledge, but the prospect of fame, or wealth, or power?' ... 'In proportion as we exclude them, we lose our hold upon them; and were the exclusion entire we should have their hatred in place of their attachment, their feeling would be communicated to the whole population and to the native troops, and would excite a spirit of discontent too powerful for us to subdue or resist....' 'It would' (he says) 'certainly be more desirable that we should be expelled from the country altogether than that the result of our system of government should be made a debasement of a whole people.' The above arewise and weighty words, and it would be well perhaps, even in these days, if more heed were taken of these outspoken opinions of Sir Thomas Munro.

There is, however, another and more recent authority, greater perhaps than any; one who, year after year, and not long before the Mutiny, urged that we should give opportunities to the natives, and enable them to rise to power, civil and military; and who predicted that unless this were done our system must collapse, either in a mutiny or in general despair. That authority is Sir Henry Lawrence, who fell at his post in the Residency of Lucknow, killed by the mutineers in the very crisis which he had, as it were, foretold. Writing in 1855[51]he pointed out that the natives had no outlet for their talents and ambition as of old, and said: 'These outlets for restlessness and ability are gone; others are closing. It behoves us therefore now, more than ever, to give legitimate rewards, and as far as practicable employment, to the energetic few, to that leaven that is in every lump—the leaven that may secure our empire, or may disturb, nay even destroy, it.' Again, he says: 'Legitimate outlets for military energy and ability in all ranks and even among all classes must be given. The minds of subadars and resseldars, sepoys and sowars, can no more with safety be for ever cramped, trammelled, and restricted as atpresent than can a twenty-foot embankment restrain the Atlantic. It is simply a question of time. The question is only whether justice is to be gracefully conceded or violently seized. Ten or twenty years must settle the point.'

Leaving for the moment the political results of our conquests in India, it will be well now to consider its military aspects; to trace the formation and services of our native armies, and to watch the signs of their gradual decline both in efficiency and loyalty; and I will again give short quotations from the writings of recognised authorities as conveying clear outlines of this interesting and important subject.

Sir John Malcolm, writing of our early levies, said: 'A jacket of English broadcloth made up in the shape of his own dress, the knowledge of his manual exercise and a few military evolutions, constituted the original Sepoy.' He goes on to tell us that the only English officers were a captain and adjutant per battalion; that the native officers were treated with great kindness and consideration, were often in high command, and that many of the oldest regiments were known by the names of their former native commandants. After dwelling on the efficiency of our original native corps, he points out that their constitution was gradually changed by the increase of European officers, involving alterationsof dress, more rigid rules, and with so-called improvements in discipline, until at length in 1796 they were organised like the king's regiments, with the full complement of officers, and with the expectation of greatly increased efficiency—an expectation which was never fulfilled. He wrote in 1826: 'In the native army, as it is at present constituted, no native can rise to the enjoyment of any military command.' Again, he says, the danger lies in 'confiding too exclusively in our European troops and altogether undervaluing and neglecting our native army. From the day of that fatal error we may date the downfall of our Eastern empire.'

Sir John Kaye, in his history of the Mutiny, says[52]: 'Our first Sepoy levies were raised in the Southern peninsula, where the English and French powers were contending for the dominant influence in that part of the country. They were few in number, and at the outset commonly held in reserve to support our English fighting men. But little by little they proved that they were worthy to be entrusted with higher duties; and once trusted they went boldly to the front. Under native commandants, for the most part Mohammedans or high caste Rajpoot Hindoos, but disciplined and directed by the English captains, their pride was flattered and their energies stimulated by the victories they gained.All the power and all the responsibility, all the honours and rewards, were not then monopolised by the English captains. Large bodies of troops were sometimes despatched on hazardous enterprises, under the independent command of a native leader; and it was not thought an offence to a European soldier to send him to fight under a black commandant. That black commandant was then a great man in spite of his colour. He rode on horseback at the head of his men, and a mounted staff officer, a native adjutant, carried his commands to the subadars of the respective companies. And a brave man or a skilful leader was honoured for his bravery or his skill as much under the folds of a turban as under a round hat.' Again he writes: 'The founders of the native army had conceived the idea of a force recruited from among the people of the country, and commanded for the most part by men of their own race but of a higher social position.... But it was the inevitable tendency of our increasing power in India to oust the native functionary from his seat, or to lift him from his saddle, that the white man might fix himself there, with all the remarkable tenacity of his race.... So it happened in due course that the native officers who had exercised real authority in their battalions, who had enjoyed opportunities of personal distinction, who had felt an honourable pride in their position, were pushedaside by an incursion of English gentlemen who took all the substantive power into their hands. As the degradation of the native officer was thus accomplished, the whole character of the Sepoy army was changed. It ceased to be a profession in which men of high position accustomed to command might satisfy the aspirations and expend the energies of their lives.... Thenceforth, therefore, we dug out the materials for our army from the lower strata of society.' Captain Macan, an officer who had long experience and knew the Sepoys well, gave evidence before a Parliamentary Committee in 1832, and declared that 'in all the higher qualifications of soldiers, in devotedness to the service, cheerfulness under privation, confidence and attachment to their officers, and unhesitating bravery in the field, the native soldier is allowed by all the best informed officers of the service, and by those who have most experience, to have infinitely deteriorated.'

The late Rev. Mr. Gleig, in a remarkable article in the 'Edinburgh Review' in 1853, wrote: 'The original native army consisted chiefly of infantry, who, though drilled after European fashion, worked both in peace and war under chiefs connected with the men by ties of consanguinity and friendship.' He goes on to point out that the English element gradually increased until 1784, when a European subaltern was allotted to commandeach company, and he says: 'Though the subalterns thus disposed of were carefully selected, and the feelings of the subadars spared as much as possible, the native gentleman could no longer disguise from himself or from his men that his shadow was growing less. He supported himself, however, tolerably well till the tide which had begun to set in against him acquired greater force. In 1790, and again in 1796, the European element became still stronger, and then, and not till then, the spirit of the native sank within him. The effect produced by these changes upon the native officers, and ultimately upon the service at large, has been deplorable.' Mr. Gleig's article—written, be it borne in mind, in 1853, shortly before the Mutiny—concludes as follows: 'We have won an enormous empire with the sword, which is growing continually larger. We have established a system of civil administration there which protects the peasant and disgusts all the classes above him.... With a large body of discontented gentry everywhere, and whole clusters of native princes and chiefs interspersed through our dominions, it is idle to say that the continuance of our sovereignty depends from one day to another on anything except the army. Now the army is admitted by all competent judges to be very far in many respects from what it ought to be.'

The extracts which I have quoted of the opinionsof various authorities all appear to point in the same direction, and to prove that both in a political and a military sense the various races under our rule in India were gradually becoming degraded and demoralised, and that these results were observed years before the crisis came, and when our power was, for the time, subverted by the general Mutiny of 1857. Our intentions throughout were doubtless good. We introduced sound laws for the people, though not perhaps always in accordance with their customs and prejudices. We also gave them security of life and property, such as they had not enjoyed for centuries; and to some extent we promoted education and commerce and more general prosperity. These benefits are by no means to be ignored. But, on the other hand, in our advance across the great continent we had dethroned kings, upset hereditary princes, and had removed from positions of authority not only men of high rank, great possessions, and ancient lineage, but also men of vast influence, religious and other, and often of great ability and courage. These all found themselves pushed aside and superseded; whilst the various races of people, Hindoo and Mohammedan, not only perceived that their ancient leaders were gone, but that their new governors were aliens in race, religion, language, and customs. All these considerations cannot be carelessly disregarded. The situation is undoubtedlydifficult. There is, indeed, one solution, and one only, which must ever be kept steadily in view—namely, that men such as I have indicated must gradually be admitted to positions of responsibility and power, both civil and military; that the people of all ranks, classes, and religions may feel that a career is open to them, and that they are to be allowed to participate in the government of their own country. I do not urge that the time has by any means arrived when the natives should be admitted to the public service by competitive examinations. It is not a system adapted to the circumstances. That, however, is comparatively a minor detail; but there are many other and better modes by which they can and ought to be selected for service under the Government.

In the ultimate reorganisation of the native armies after the Mutiny, the number of English officers to each regiment was restricted to six, so that in some degree the influence of native officers was recognised; but the restriction did not amount to much, and the apparently inevitable tendency is to an augmentation of the English element, the present number being eight. It is also to be observed that there is no instance of a native regiment commanded and led entirely by officers of their own race and faith, so that no opening exists for the many brave and loyal chiefs, men of ability and influence, to serve in the army.Whether under such circumstances we can hope to maintain the military virtues of our Indian troops is a grave question on which opinions differ. Judging by the history of the past, by the views of the soldiers and statesmen which I have quoted, and by the culminating experience of the Mutiny, it seems to me that our policy is rather timid and retrograde, and that we can only govern successfully by gradually entrusting power to the natural leaders of the people.

There is yet another consideration, which relates specially to India of the present day. Education and enlightenment are progressing all over the country, not only by means of schools and colleges, but also by the establishment of railways, roads, and river communications, so that the people now move about freely and exchange ideas to a degree formerly unknown. Literature and the press, the telegraph and the post office, are also exercising increasing influence; and these various causes are somewhat rapidly undermining many ancient prejudices and superstitions. All these are, doubtless, beneficial influences in themselves, and are likely to produce great results, but they require watching, as they inevitably will tend to increase the legitimate desire of the people for more self-government. We cannot stand still.

I have heard it said sometimes that such principlesas I advocate would, if carried out, cause to us the loss of the Empire of India; and my reply is, that if such principles arenotcarried out, we shall not only lose India, but shall deserve to do so. Others talk of the people of India as being composed of inferior races. I am not aware that God has created any races of men who are inferior; but at all events in India, we know that centuries ago they were civilised and distinguished in arts and sciences, in government, and in war—long, indeed, before we had become so. We hear a great deal nowadays of the depreciation of the rupee; but in our government of India, unless we act on the principles which I have endeavoured to illustrate, by quotations from the writings of statesmen of the highest authority and experience of India, we may find in the days to come that we have a far more dangerous result to face, and that is the depreciation in the character of the millions under our rule. Sir Henry Lawrence wrote: 'We cannot expect to hold India for ever. Let us so conduct ourselves in our civil and military relations, as, when the connection ceases, it may do so not with convulsions, but with mutual esteem and affection; and that England may then have in India a noble ally, enlightened, and brought into the scale of nations under her guidance and fostering care.'

Finally, before leaving this part of the subject Iwill quote extracts from the noble proclamation issued by the Queen in 1858, on the termination of the Mutiny, and which should ever be considered as the Magna Charta of the people of India: 'We declare it to be our Royal will and pleasure, that none be in any wise favoured, none molested or disquieted, by reason of their religious faith or observances, but that all shall enjoy the equal and impartial protection of the law.... And it is further our will that, so far as may be, our subjects of whatever race or creed be freely and impartially admitted to offices in our service, the duties of which they may be qualified by their education, ability, and integrity duly to discharge.' It is often said that India has been won by the sword, and must be governed by the sword. The first statement is in a great measure true; but to the second, as laying down a principle of government, I demur. No nation can be permanently or successfully governed by the sword.

As the crisis of the Mutiny gradually passed away, and as the people of the various provinces, though still violently agitated, began to realise that the British authority was being firmly re-established, it became evident to the Viceroy that the time had arrived when the summary powers which had been exercised, and the severe punishments which had been inflicted, all over the country, must be modified, and that a policy of conciliation should graduallyreplace that of stern repression. These views of Lord Canning were, however, by no means in accord with the general sentiments of the European population, and of the Press of Calcutta at the time, and his policy was strongly condemned. This feeling on their part is perhaps not altogether surprising. The terrible scenes which had been enacted in so many parts of the country on the outbreak of the Mutiny—the cruel murders, and the atrocious conduct of the natives, not only to men, but to innocent and defenceless English women and children—all these sad events had naturally roused feelings of intense anger; and the idea of conciliation was repugnant to the minds of the great majority. So much was this the case, that even at the end of 1857 the Europeans of Calcutta and Bengal sent home a petition to the Queen, urging that, owing to the weakness of the Government and in disapproval of the views of the Viceroy, he should be recalled. Lord Canning, however, fully convinced that a policy of vengeance was not only wrong in principle, but impossible, was by no means persuaded or moved from his purpose. Writing to the Queen in September 1858,[53]he said: 'There is a rabid and indiscriminate vindictiveness abroad, even among those who ought to set a better example.' Again, to Lord Granville he wrote: 'Aslong as I have breath in my body, I will pursue no other policy than that I have been following.... I will not govern in anger.... Whilst we are prepared, as the first duty of all, to strike down resistance without mercy wherever it shows itself, we acknowledge that, resistance over, deliberate justice and calm patient reason are to resume their sway; that we are not going, either in anger or from indolence, to punish wholesale, whether by wholesale hangings and burnings, or by the less violent, but not one bit less offensive, course of refusing trust and countenance and favour to a man because he is of a class or a creed.'

The violent opponents of the Viceroy at the time were in the habit of calling him 'Clemency Canning' as a term of reproach. They did not seem to be aware that, under the circumstances, it was the highest honour they could pay him. In my opinion, Lord Canning proved himself to be a wise and courageous Viceroy, and in a period of great difficulty and danger rose superior to the violence of many of those by whom he was surrounded.

When the Mutiny was at an end a thanksgiving service was held in the cathedral at Calcutta, and a special collection made for some charitable purpose to commemorate its termination. There was at that time, and probably is now, a peculiar system of collecting subscriptions at the church services there.It was not the custom to carry money in your pocket. I asked the reason, and was told that the climate was too hot. The consequence was that when a collection was made, the persons who carried round the plates also brought packets of small pieces of paper and bundles of pencils, and each person had to write down and sign the amount of their gift. It was a tedious, but possibly an advantageous, process from a charitable point of view. The following day the collectors went round and called for the amount subscribed. On the occasion in question Lord Canning's secretary informed me that when the collector presented his paper at Government House, the sum inscribed was so large that, imagining there was an error, he took it to the Viceroy, who, however, merely remarked that the occasion was a memorable one, and the amount was paid accordingly. It was for 10,000 rupees (1,000l.). I doubt whether many instances can be given of such a sum having been put into the plate at a church collection.

During my residence at Calcutta I became acquainted with an English official who appeared to possess an extraordinary amount of intuitive knowledge. Whatever the subject discussed, he was always at home, and could lay down the law, and did so. It is not, perhaps, agreeable to find yourself always in a position of ignorance and inferiority. Still, on the whole, society, it may be presumed,benefits. I inquired of an old Indian officer what position this exceptional person held. 'Oh!' he replied, 'that's what in India is called a "sub-janta"—a man who knows everything better than anyone else—be careful not to contradict him.' However, I found that you must have been thirty years in the country and speak all the languages before becoming qualified for the position, so that, fortunately, there are very few sub-jantas to be found.

I occasionally received invitations from natives of rank at Calcutta to be present at family festivities, and the following is a copy of one of them: 'Wedding Party. Cowar Kallykissen Bahadoor presents his respectful compliments to Colonel Adye and requests the favour of his company to a dinner at 7.30P.M., and a nautch and fireworks at 8.30P.M., in honour of his daughter's marriage, on Monday, February 22, at Rajah Badinath Bahadoor's garden house at Cossipore.'

On one occasion I paid a visit to the celebrated Chinese Commissioner Yeh, who was a state prisoner at Calcutta, and lived in a large house in the environs. He was dressed in loose white Chinese clothes, with wooden shoes, and was very polite but extremely cautious. We conversed by means of an interpreter. Nothing would induce Yeh to leave his house, although a carriage and horses were kept for him. My efforts to interest him in various subjectsentirely failed. I asked if he liked the Indian climate, and he replied that he had not turned his thoughts in that direction. I described the bazaars and shops, and recommended him to go out in his carriage and visit them; but he only said he had heard about them, and would send his secretary to make a report. He told me he was much occupied, and on my asking what he did, he replied that he liked to 'sit down.' He was offered books to be translated to him, but remarked that the contents of all the best ones were already in his stomach, so that he did not require them. He died soon afterwards, presumably of indigestion.

In the early part of 1859 another serious and untoward event occurred, in the discontent of the men of the local European forces at many of the large stations all over the country. Hitherto, in each presidency, the artillery and three regiments of infantry consisted of men recruited at home, but who served continuously in India—in fact, a local European army distinct from the Queen's troops. In the years gone by, and during the Mutiny, they had performed great services, and were deservedly held in high esteem. When, however, in 1858 the rule of the old East India Company came to an end, the great majority of these men considered that, as the Queen had assumed direct authority over the local armies, they were entitled either to their discharge, or, at allevents, to a bounty on the transfer of their services to the Crown. Their claims were referred to England for consideration, but were ultimately refused by the Home Government; and, as a consequence, serious disaffection, combined in some cases with violence and a refusal to perform their duties, ensued. It may perhaps be conceded that the curt refusal of their claim was not altogether judicious, but in reality the causes of discontent lay deeper and had been accumulating for some time. The Commander-in-Chief, who was ill at Simla, was much impressed with this unfortunate state of affairs, and was in frequent communication with Lord Canning at Calcutta. Writing in May 1859, he said:[54]'I am irresistibly led to the conclusion that henceforth it will be dangerous to the State to maintain a European local army.... We cannot afford to attend to any other consideration than those of discipline and loyalty, which may be constantly renovated by the periodical return to England of all the regiments in every branch of the service.' The Viceroy was much pressed by some authorities at the time to grant the bounty, notwithstanding the refusal of the Home Government; but to have done so and to have given way to violence would have been a virtual abnegation of authority, and would not in reality have removed the disaffection. In this dilemma, Lord Canning atlength gave a free discharge and passage home to all who wished it, and about 10,000 men then left for England. The cost is said to have been a million sterling. Many of these men, after a short holiday at home, re-enlisted in various Queen's regiments and returned to India. The general result, however, was that ere long the local European troops ceased to exist as a separate force, and became merged in the army of the Empire.

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