August 5th.—Sent off another letter to the officer commanding the relieving force, of which we could gain no intelligence; though we conjecture the advance of our force had been arrested by the enemy at the bridge of Bunnee. Heavy showers during the day. Musket-proof shutters were completed for the embrasure of the 18-pounders to the left of the hospital. Many of the convalescent patients removed to the Thug Gaol Barracks, which gave them a slight change, and created more room in the hospital. Efforts made to clear some of the drains, and reduce the stench which pervades the garrison. At sunset the enemy were seen at a distance in some force, with drums and fifes playing, marching from the direction of the river towards the Cawnpore road. Soon after, they threw many shells into us, and continued to do so for some time. About 8P.M.all became tolerably quiet.
August 6th.—The enemy fired several shots, from a 24-pounder, at the Residency, one of which unfortunately fractured the arm of Ensign Studdy of the 32nd Foot, as he sat down to breakfast; rendering amputation necessary. This gun caused us great annoyance, from its calibre, and firing so frequently as it did into the Residency. Unfortunately its distance from our position, and its situation in the midst of buildings, rendered it impossible to take it by the bayonet; neither could our gunners see it, so that to shell it was our only resource.
Less firing than usual. The enemy again ascended into the upper story of Johannes' house, and from thence caused much annoyance to the position of the brigade mess, where the cooking went on. They succeeded in killing a sweeper. Terrible heat; Brigadier Inglis suffered from its effects. Various rumours afloat in the garrison; some of which seemed to have originated either with a servant of Mr. Gubbins, or some member of his post. The Residency is at last to be entirely vacated by the officers of the 32nd and others now resident there. Last night was spent in earthing in the magazine, as several shotshad lately gone unpleasantly near, A carcase came into the Begum Kotee in the afternoon, into the room in which Lieutenant James (wounded), Mr. Lawrence (wounded), and Ensign Keir (sick), were lying; it set some of the things in the room on fire, but was speedily extinguished without injury to any one. Much bugling, drumming, and firing towards evening. After dark the enemy fired heavily from their guns in front of the Residency. Our engineers and a working party were busy all this night at Innes' house, making a battery for an 18-pounder, to be moved down in order to endeavour to silence a 24-pounder of the enemy's, which had been doing much mischief by firing through the church and Residency. About 9P.M.a sepoy of the 1st Oude Irregular Infantry, who took out a letter to the officer commanding the relieving force, came in; he stated that he had delivered it, and that he had received a letter in reply which he had lost in coming in to us. Half-an-hour later, another man, a sepoy of the 48th, who had been sent into the town two days previously to try and gain intelligence, returned, and stated he had been confinedseveral days by the enemy; and he in a great measure corroborated the statement of the sepoy of the 1st Oude Irregular Infantry: this loss of the letter was a great mortification to us, as it might have explained what was at this time inexplicable—the retirement towards Cawnpore of General Havelock's force, after apparently the greatest success on this side the Ganges.