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PERSONAL ADVENTURES 



DUBING THE 



INDIAN REBELLION 



ROHILCUND, FUTTEHGHUR, AND OUDE. 



BY WILLIA^ EDWABDS, ESQ., B.C.S., 

JUDOS OF BBNABBS, AND LATB MAGISTRATE AND COLLECTOR 
OF BUDAON IN ROHILCUND. 



SECOND EDITION. 



LONDON: 

SMITH, ELDER AND CO., 65, COBNHILL. 

1858. 



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PREFACE. 



The following Narrative, drawn up as opportunity- 
offered, under circumstances of great personal 
danger and considerable anxiety, was transmitted 
to my family in England, the day after I had 
providentially succeeded with my companions in 
escaping into Cawnptore, and joining the force 
under the late General Havelock, From that 
time until April last, when, from the failure of my 
health, I was forced to leave India, I had no 
opportunity of reverting to the subject of my 
escape. 

Since my return, last month, I have had 
leisure to look the Diary over, and have been 

513416 



IV PKEFACE. 

induced to offer it for publication, under the 
impression that, at a time like the present, 
when public attention is so much occupied with 
the Indian Rebellion, the events it relates, 
although of a purely personal nature, may not 
be without interest. 

W. EDWARDS, 

Bengal CivU Service^ 
Judge of Benares. 

June24t, 1858. 



PERSONAL ADVENTURES 



DURING THE 



INDIAN REBELLION IN ROHILCUND, 
FUTTEHGHUR, AND OUDE. 



KUSSOUBAH, LEFT BANK OF THE RaMOUNOAH, ABOUT 
TWELYB MILES N.B. OF FUTTEHGHUB, JuLY 27tH, 

1857. 

This day, for the first time since the first of 
June, I have writing materials at my disposal. 
I shall therefore endeavour to record, as correctly 
as I can from memory, a narrative of the events 
that have occurred to me since that sad day, the 
first of June, when it pleased God that I should 
become a wanderer and a fugitive. I must pre- 
mise that shortly after the outbreak and massacre 
at Meerut, about the 19th May, so far as I can 
recollect, the spirit of disorder began to show 
itself in the Budaon district in Rohilcuiid, of 

1 



2 COMMENCEMENT OF DISOBDEBS. 

which I was magistrate and coUeetor — the infec- 
tion haying spread from the tracts on the right 
bank of the Ganges, which were by that time in 
open rebellion. Bands of marauders sprang up, 
as it were by magic, and commenced plundering 
on the roads, and sacking and burning villages. 

I became alarmed for the safety of my wife and 
child, and despatched them to a place of security, 
Nynee Tal, which station they reached safely; 
but they did not start one moment too soon, for 
they passed through Bareilly, after that station had 
b«en deserted by all the Eurc^an ladies and chil- 
dren, and just the day week before the mutiny and 
massacre occurred there. Since the 28th of May 
' I have heard nothing of them, and it is now very 
doubtful whether I m^y ever do so, or see them 
again in this world. 

As soon as the disturbance began I doubled 
the police force in my district, horse and foot, 
on my own responsibility; but notwithstanding 
my endeavours to maintain the peace, the dis- 
orders daily increased. In the Etah district 
across the Ganges, inunediately opposite to 
Bodaon^ they had reached a most alarming 
height; all our communications had been cut off 
with Agra, Calcutta, and the South ; the runners 



naUSONAL BANOBS. 9 

bexng unable to conrey the mails along the diief 
lines of road* In the district of Mcxcadabad, imme- 
diatelj adjoining Bodaon to the norths the sepcys 
of the raiment broke open the jail and let out a 
great number of the prison^s. 

I was informed of this fact by a short note from 
Campbell, the joint magistrate, telling me to look 
ont for mysdf, as among the liberated conviets, 
was a not(»doi]a villain^ Nujjoo Kban^, who was 
under sentence of transportation for life for an 
atten^ to murder Courts joint magistrate of 
Budaon, and in which he r^ry nearly succeeded, 
having maimed him for life. I had succeeded in 
apprehending this miscteant, who had duded our 
police force for more than two years, and in brii^* 
ing him to justice; he was ccmsequently laghly 
exasperated with me, and, as Campbell ii^ormed 
me, had started at o^ce towards my statbn with 
the intention of murdering me* 

This intdligence did not tend much to improre 

my position, which already was by no means a 

pleasant one. I was the sole European officer 

in charge of the district^ with a lawless popu* 

lation of nearly 1,100,000 souk The entire 

* Kigjoo Khan hat lince become a nM. leader of note, 
and Ms capture has just been reported by the force now at 
Moradabad in Bohilcund under Brigadier Jones. 



4 HEETING OF MOHAMMEDANS. 

management and responsibility rested on me ; for 
my sole assistant was a Mohammedan deputy- 
collector, who only joined the station early in 
the month, and I could, of course, devolve no 
duty upon him. The nearest European officers 
were at Bareilly, some thirty miles distant from 
Budaon. 

On Monday, the 25th of May, I received certain 
information that the Mohammedans of the town 
of Budaon, who were on that day assembled for 
prayers on occasion of the Ede festival, were to 
rise at noon and create a riot, which would pro- 
bably have resulted in the plunder and destruction 
of the place. I at once summoned the most 
influential inhabitants of that persuasion to meet 
me at my house. They immediately came, 
many of them very fierce and insolent, and all in 
a most excited state. Soon after they were seated, 
and I had commenced talking with them, I saw 
Wuzeer Singh, a Sikh peon, and one of my 
personal guards, come up quietly behind me, with 
my revolver in his belt and my gun in his hand, 
and station himself immediately behind my chair. 
In the tumult and excitement, and where all were 
armed, his entrance was unnoticed, but his quiet 
and determined demeanour made me for the first 



WUZEEB SINGH. 5 

time feel an assurance that he was a man I could 
depend upon in any diflGiculty or danger. This 
Wuzeer Singh, whose tried fidelity, courage, and 
devotion make me regard him as Paul did Onesi- 
mus, *^not now so much as a servant as a brother 
beloved," deserves some notice from me here. 

He is an inhabitant of Nowsherah near Umritzur 
in the Punjaub, and was originally a sepoy, belong- 
ing to the Sikh company of the 29th Regiment 
of N. I. (the corps which mutinied at Shajehanpore 
.and murdered all its ofl&cers and all the Europeans 
in the church at that place). While on detach- 
ment duty at Saharunpore, some years previous, 
he was converted to Christianity by the Protestant 
Missionaries at that place; but was never bap- 
tized.* In December, 1856, he came to Budaon 
from Sliahjehanpore, where his regiment was quar- 
tered, with the rest of his company, to form the 
guard over my treasury. There happened to be 
several native Christians at Budaon, and he at- 
tended service with them every Sunday at my 
house. When the detachment was relieved, and 
returned to head-quarters in April 1857, Wuzeer 

* Wuzeer Singh was baptized at Benares on the 16th of 
last March hy the Bev. James Kennedy. He has received a 
life pension from the Goyemment of India for his faithful 
senrices during the rebellion. 



6 PLOT raUSTRATED. 

Singh^ wishing to join himself to this company of 
Christians^ retired from the regiment, and came 
back to Budaon early in May, when I gave him 
service as an orderly on my personal guard as 
magistrate; he was therefore only a few days 
with me before the occurrences to which I have 
alluded took place, at the Ede Festival. His 
devotion then and subsequently, therefore, does 
him the more honour, springing as it did from 
a sense of duty to his immediate superior, and not 
from any feelings of attachment to a master, 
after a service extending over a long period of 
time. 

To return to my visitors. By degrees they 
calmed down, and by leading them into conver- 
sation, and reasoning with them, and above all 
playing off one party against another — ^knowing 
as I did that a bitter animosity existed between 
several of them — ^I managed to occupy their 
attention until the time fixed for the rising had 
passed. * The plots, which I do not doubt were 
premeditated, were for the time defeated, and 
the day, to my infinite relief (ah ! what a long 
one it was 1) passed off quietly. I think I never 
wished more in my life for some one of my own 
countrymen to talk to, than during these miserable 



A WELCOME AEBITAL. 7 

days between the 20th and 27th of May. I had 
every reason to distrust the sepoys forming my 
Treasury Guard, who belonged to the 68th Regi- 
ment N. L, at Bareilly ; and it was by no means 
comfortable to sit in the close vicinity of these 
gentlemen, who at any moment might lH*eak out 
into open mutiny and murder me. My police 
were little more to be depended on, imd I 
felt my isolation greatly. It was, therefore, 
with no small joy, that while sitting at my 
solitary dinner on the 27 th May, I saw my 
cousin Alfired Phillips, magistrate of Etah, ride 
up to the hbtise, escorted by about a dozen horse* 
men, some belonging to diflTerent regiments of 
irregular horse, others common police sowars. 

He gave a most deplorable account of the state 
of things in his district, and had himself, vfiih his 
men, had an affair with a body of rebels in the 
town of Ehasgunj, in which he killed no less than 
three men with his own hand. He had come 
across the Ganges, with the view of ,g<»ng to 
Bareilly to procure some military aid to put down 
the disturbances. I was forced to disabuse him 
of this hope, informing him that I had already 
myself more than once applied for aid in vain, as 
none could be spared. 



8 QOOB TIDIKOS. 

Up to the SOth^ matters went on from bad 
to worse, the disorder being considerably aggra- 
vated by the impossibility of my leaving the 
station to proceed to the immediate scene of 
disturbance, as I had no o£Scer to whom I could 
make over charge of the treasury. On the after- 
noon of Saturday the 30th, I learnt that the 
important town of Bhilsea was about to be 
attacked by the rebels, and I at once sent off an 
express to the commissioner at Bareilly, entreating 
him to send me some aid, as my police, the old 
establishment as well as the new levies, were 
quite unable to meet the crisis, or at all events 
would n6t exert themselves. 

On Sunday, May 31st, I assembled, for the last 
time probably on earth, my litde congregation 
at Buaaon. Just as I closed the Hindustani 
service in the afternoon, a man rushed in with 
a note from Etah for Phillips, written by one 
of his native oflScers, saying that Bramley, the 
joint magistrate of Futtehghur, was to be at 
Puttealee, the head-quarters of the Etah district, 
the next day, with two regiments to restore the 
peace. 

We were both overjoyed at this intelligence and 
were full of plans, how Phillips should first punish 



MUTINY AT BAKBILLT. 9 

the rebels in his district, and then come over to 
aid me, in setting mine in order. 

Shortly after, about 9 p.m., I received from the 
Commissioner an express, in reply to my earnest 
appeal for aid, informing me that a company of 
native infantry, under a European oflScer, was to 
start on that day from Bareilly to my assistance. 
I at once took measures for sending out carts to 
bring in the men the last half of the way, so that 
they might be moved at once to Bhilsea, the point 
threatened ; and thus arrive there fresh and un- 
fatigued. I next sent oflF a horseman with a note 
to the commanding oflScer of the detachment in- 
forming him of these arrangements, and begging 
him to press on as speedily as possible. I then 
retired to rest, happy and thankful. Phillips, 
equally happy in the prospect of having assistance 
suited to the emergency, was to start at three in 
the morning to return to Etah. 

About half-past two I got up in order to wake 
him, when just as I was leaving my room, a 
chuprassee rushed up to me, saying that the horse- 
man I had sent off to meet the detachment had 
just returned, with the terrible intelligence that 
the road from Bareilly up to within eight miles 
of Budaon was covered with convicts escaped 



10 DI8ASTB0US INTELUaiHCE. 

from gaol — the sepoys forming the Bareilly gar- 
rison having on Smiday forenoon broken oat into 
open mutiny^ massacred the Europeans^ fired the 
station^ and broken open the great central gaol^ 
which contained nearly foar thousand of the most 
desperate characters in India. He further stated 
that a detachment of the mutineers were in fall 
march to Budaon, to join the treasury guard there, 
and plunder and burn Ae station. This was, 
indeed, terrible news, and the excited mann^ of 
the sowar, and the condition of his panting 
horse, showed that the tale was too true, and 
that he had ridden for his life to give me the intel- 
ligence. 

I at once woke up Phillips and conmiunicated 
to him the disastrous intelligence. He called for 
his horse and followers, and in ten minutes after 
dashed off at full gallop, in order to get to the 
Ghauts across the Ganges before the convicts or 
mutineers could reach it and prevent his return to 
the scene of his duty. I most bitterly regret that 
I did not follow his example, and thus make my 
escape from Budaon, where I could do no good, 
and endeavour to reach the hills, which I th^i 
might have succeeded in doing. I thought it, 
however, my duty not to desert my post, but stick 



PJlECAUnONS. 11 

to the ship as long as she floatecL I went into my 
room and prayed earnestly that Grod would [arotect 
and guide me^ and enable me to do my duty. I 
then sunmoned my kotwal^ and arranged with 
him as best we could, for maintaining as long 
as poesiUe th^ peace aiid the safety of the town. 
My great object was to prevent the gangs of 
escaped convicts, the most desperate characters 
in the country, firom entering the place ; and in 
this I was happily successfdL It was, however, 
quite hopeless to expect to defend the station 
against the mutineers; who, on their arrival, 
would be at once joined by the 100 men forming 
the Treasury Gtiard. I could, thwefore, only hc^, 
and it scarcely amounted to a hope, to keep things 
quiet until the mutineers might arrive from 
Bardlly. 

About 10 A.1L, I was joined by Mr. Donald and 
Son, indigo planters in the district ; who, having 
had their lives threatened at their residence in 
Ooghannee, had come into the station {or pro- 
tection. Mr. Gibson, a patrol in the Customs 
Department — temporarily on duty in the interior 
of the district, also s<mght safety in my house— -as 
did Mr. Stewart, one of my clerks, with his wife 
and family. They were imder the impression that 



12 CAUSES OF DISTUBBANCES. 

I could protect them, whereas the fact was, that 
the number of Europeans congregated together, 
"by attractmg attention, seriously increased our 
mutual danger, and at the same time greatly im- 
peded my movements. 

I was satisfied that as long as I was alone I 
could provide for my own safety, having numbers 
of friends in the district able and anxious to pro- 
tect and shelter me ; but tjiey were unwilling in 
any way to compromise their own safety by grant- 
ing an asylum to the others : more especially as 
some of the party were at feud with the people of 
the district, in consequence of having purchased 
estates, sold under harsh curcumstances, by de- 
crees of our civil courts. 

To the large number of these sales during the 
past twelve or fifteen years, and the operation of 
our revenue system, which has had the result of 
desti'oying the gentry of the country and breaking 
up the village communities, I attribute solely the 
disorganization of this and the neighbouring dis- 
tricts in these provinces. 

By fraud or cliicanery, a vast number of the 
estates of families of rank and influence have been 
alienated, either wholly or in part, and have been 
purchased by new men— chiefly traders or Govern- 



mmmmmg^mmmmmsmm 



ALIENATED ESTATES. 13 

ment oflScials — ^without character or influence over 
their tenantry. These men, in a vast majority of 
instances, were also absentees, fearing or disliking 
to reside on their purchases, where they were looked 
upon as interlopers and unwelcome intruders. The 
ancient proprietary of these alienated estates were 
again living as tenantry on the lands once theirs ; 
by no means reconciled to their change of posi- 
tion, but maintaining their hereditary hold as 
strong as ever over the sympathies and affections 
of the agricultural body, who were ready and 
willing to join their feudal superiors in any attempt 
to recover their lost position and regain possession 
of their estates. The ancient landed proprietary 
body of the Budaon district were thus still in 
existence, but in the position of tenants,' not 
proprietors. None of the men who had succeeded 
them as landowners were possessed of sufficient 
influence or power to give me any aid in main- 
taining the public tranquillity. On the contrary, 
the very first people who came in to me, im- 
ploring aid, were this new proprietary body, to 
whom I had a right to look for vigorous and 
efficient efforts in the maintenance of order. On 
the other hand, those who really could control 
the vast masses of the rural population were 



14 WABiriKGS UNHEEDEBb 

interested in bringing about a state of disturbance 
and general anarchy. 

For more than a year previous to the out- 
break^ I had been publicly representing to 
superior authority the great abuse of the power 
of the civil courts^ and the reckless manner 
in which they decreed the sale of rights and 
interests connected with the soil in satisfaction 
of petty debts^ and the dangerous dislocation 
of society which was in consequence being pro- 
duced. I then pointed out that^ although the old 
families were being displaced fast, we could 
not destroy the memory of the past, or dis- 
solve the ancient connection betwe^i them and 
their people ; and I said distinctly, that in event of 
any insurrection occurring, we should find tiiis 
great and influential body, throu^ whom we can 
alone hope to control and keep under the millions 
forming the rural classes, ranged against us on 
the side of the enemy, with tiheir hereditary re- 
tainers and followers rallying around them, in spite 
of our attempts to separate their interests. My 
warnings were unheeded, and I was treated as 
an alarmist, who, having hitherto only served 
in the political department of the state, and 
being totally inexperienced in revenue matters. 



THE CHUFATIES. 15 

could giye no sound opinio]^ on the sulgect Litde 
did I think at the time^ that mj fears ai^ fore- 
bodings were so soon to be realized. 

The leaders and promoters of this great rebel- 
lion, whoev^ they may have be^i^ knew well ibe 
inflammable condition, &om these causes, of the 
rural society in the North- Western Province, and 
they therefore sent among them the chupaties, as 
a kiinl of fiery cross, to call them to action. 
These cakes ^ passed wit^ the most amazing 
rapidity over ^e length and breadth of the 
land. Where they came from originally it is 
impossible to say, but I believe Barrackpore 
was the starting point, where large masses of 
mutinous sepoys were congregated. The ehapaties 
entered my district frcon tiie adjoining one of 
Shajdbanpore ; a village watchman of that {dace 
giving to the watdunan of the nearest Budaon 
village two of the cakes, with an injuncticm to 
make six fresh ones, retain two for his own, and 
give the others to the watchman of the next vil- 
lage, who would follow the same course, and con*> 
tinue the manufacture and distributitm. I truly 
believe that ^e rural population of all classes, ^ 
among whom these cakes spread, were as ^norant 
as I was myself of their real object ; but it was 



16 CAUSES OP DISCONTENT. 

clear they were a secret sign to be on the alert, 
and the minds of the people were through them 
kept watchful and excited. As soon as the dis- 
turbances broke out at Meerut and Delhi, tlie 
cakes explained themselyes, and the people at once 
perceived what was expected of them. 

In Budaon the mass of the population rose in a 
body, and the entire district became a scene of an- 
archy and confusion. The ancient proprietary body 
took the opportunity of murdering or expelling the 
auction purchasers, and resumed possession of their 
hereditary estates. The danger now is, that this 
vast mass of our subjects, who are numbered by 
tens of thousands, and who are the real thews 
and sinews of the country, will never consent to 
the restoration of a Government to power which 
they consider treated them with harshness ; whose 
system tended to depress and dispossess them, and 
whose first measures after the return of tranquillity 
they consider must be to put back the auction 
purchasers and evict them. I feel convinced that 
no amount of force will restore us to power, unless 
at the same time some measures be taken for 
undoing the evils of the past, and coming to som^ 
compromise, by which the old families may be re- 
instated, and their sympathies and interests enlisted 



^?" 



SEEKING PBOTEOTIOK. 17 

on our behalf, while those of the auction purchasers 
are also duly cared for. I am fully satisfied that 
the rural classes would never have joined in 
rebelling with the 8ejk)ys, whom they hated, had 
not these causes of discontent already existed. 
They evinced no sympathy whatever about the 
cartridges, or flour said to be made of human 
bones, and could not then have been acted upon 
by any cry of their religion being in danger. 
It is questions involving their rights and interests 
in the soil and hereditary holdings, invariably 
termed by them as "jan se azeSz," ^^ dearer 
than life^ which excite them to a dangerous 
degree. 

To return to my narrative of events on the 
fatal 1st of June. About noon, I collected all 
my guests into the drawing-room, and we all 
joined in hearty prayers to God for His mercy 
and protection in our desperate circumstance^. 
I trust that we were heard; but what has been 
the fate of all those present, except myself, I know 
not. I then earnestly advised the two Donalds, 
Mr. Gibson, and the Stewarts, to leave me and 
make for the hills> while there was yet time, 
pointing out that our safety was far more en- 
dangered by remaining together and attracting 

2 



18 TBEACHBSOirS OOUNSEL. 

attenticm than by separating. My own duty 
was clear, to remain at my post as long as any 
semblance <^ order could be maintained; they 
w^re under no such obligation, and bad c»]ly to 
consult their own safety. All my arguments 
and entreaties, however, w©re in yain. They 
were quite paralysed, and seemed to feel that 
tbeir only hope was in sticking close to the 
magistrate for protection. The day, which was 
a very hot one, wore on most gloomily. Every 
moment reports of one complexion or another 
were being 'brought to me of risings in the 
town, the defection of individuals in the police, 
and of the near approach of a large body of 
mutineers from Bareilly to murder me, plunder 
the treasury, and break open the gaoL 

About 4 P.M., the native c^cer of the sepoy 
guard over the teeasury, composed of one hundred 
men of the 68th Native Infantry, which corps had 
mutinied at Bareilly the previous day, came to 
report all right I took him aside, and inquired 
the real state of affairs. He denied, with the 
most solemn oaths any person of his persuasicm 
could take, all knowledge of ^e Bareilly mutiny; 
asserting that no intimation had come to the 
guard from tlieir comrades at Bareilly, and that^ 



FAIXffnnL WABKING. 19 

8s^ lor^ as Gk>lonel Troup lired, he wa» eatiSt' 
dent the regim^it woold r^nam loyaL He ihem. 
informed me that &e guard were mndbt alamed 
in consequence of the excited state of the to^wm, 
fearing they might be j^tacked by overwhekniBg 
numbers o£ budmashes^ who would then sad£ the 
treasury^ and he begged me eamesdy ta co«ie 
down and j<Hn the goard^ who would ikerdbj 
be quite reassured. The man's earnest aaid 
respectM manner quite ^ceiyed n^ : I thot^t, 
if ever any one spoke truth it is this perscm. 
X at once^ ther^re, expressed my wiHingness to 
go^ and tcM him to starts and I would fo&cfw 
pres^itly* I then ordered my buggy, and was 
about stepping into it to drive off, when Wmeep 
Singh came and implortd me not to go^ say- 
ing he knew these fi^ows well and that ibey 
meant mischief. I took M& adrice, and sent off 
my buggy. 

I regard this incident with deep thankfulness 
as one of the many marked interposj^kos ef 
Almighty care in prcservii^ my life, whidi hove 
occurred within the past two months. Had I 
placed myself in the handa of the guard, &ey 
would at once haye murdered me; for I sul<- 
aequently ascertsdned that a messenger from the 



20 OPEN HUTINT* 

regiment at Bareilly had reached the guard about 
four in the mornings to inform them of what 
had occurred there^ and prepare them for the 
advance of a bodj of mutineers to Budaon in 
the evening. The guard waited for my expected 
arrival at the kntcherry for above an hour and a 
half^ and then^ finding that I was not coming, 
they would be restrained no longer, but broke 
out into open mutiny* A party of them might 
easily have been sent to my house to seize and 
destroy me, but not a man would consent to 
leave the immediate neighbourhood of the trea- 
sury, lest the plundering should commence in 
their absence, and they should lose their share 
of the spoil. 

Their first act was to break open the gaol 
distant about 100 yards from the treasury, and 
release some 300 prisoners who were confined 
within. A tumultuous noise and shouting about 
6 P. H. announced to me that the work of 
destruction had begun; at the -same moment 
information was brought me that the mutineers 
from Bareilly were entering the station, and that 
all my police had thrown away their badges and 
joined them. The released prisoners then came 
shouting and yelling close up to my house. I 



A TIHELT BETBEAT. ^1 

felt my work was then over; that the ship had 
sunk under me, and that it was now time to try 
and provide for my own safety. My horse, a 
small grey Cabul galloway, belonging to my wife 
and constantly ridden by her, on whose speed 
and endurance I knew I could depend, had been 
standing all day saddled ; I at once mounted him, 
and rode slowly away from the house, followed 
by the Messrs. Donald and Gibson. 

The town, then full of mutineers, lay between 
us and the road to Moradabad, by which I had 
hoped to escape to the hiUs ; I was, therefore, 
anxious to give the mutineers time to get to the 
treasury, which I. knew would be their first 
point, and then endeavour to make a circuit 
roimd and thus fall into the Moradabad road. 
When I had gone some hundred yards from the 
house, I was met by the chief of Shikooporah, a 
Mohammedan gentleman of family and influence, 
who used frequently to visit me. He dissuaded 
me from attempting to get round the town, as 
the roads were crowded with sepoys and released 
convicts. He begged me to come and take 
refuge in his house, about three miles off, and 
in a different direction from that I had intended 
taking. This I readily consented to do, as I 



2St A 8CSXE OF mnsDmi. 

hofed. £hat I could i^main concealed wilii him 
m]^ the mntineecs'had abandoned the statkm; 
whok I would htaye retmned^ and eadeayoured 
to rearame my dulses and restore some degree 
of ord^« The sh^h, at liie same time, said 
he wcmld grant an asylum to me akme, bat not 
to tie odiem of my puty. I, howev^, thought 
I might be aHe to indiace him to abamlan this 
resolution, and retain us aU, and I th^^fore 
took no notice at the time. We then tamed 
and accompanied &e Bl^ikh. We had to r^nm 
past my hoase, and, tl>ough scarcely ten minutes 
had elapsed since leaving it, I found the work 
of plundering it had dready commenced, and 
that my own chuprasses were busily employed 
approprialing my prc^erty. The £rst man I saw 
was <me of my own orderlies, and who had been 
a &vourite of mine, with my dre®-sword on him* 
Of course I was in no position to resent his 
OQBaduct, or even notice it 

I was now oWiged to leave pow Mr. Stewart, 
my cfcrk and his family. They were m sad 
de^ess, for they had neglected my warning in 
die mormng to effect fhieir escape wbi^ it was 
piMffidUe, and now it was a^arently too late; 
their only conveyance being a buggy, wfaick 



jL BSTS08PE0T. 23 

could proceed only bj regular roads^ and these 
were all blocked up by the mutineers and rebels. 
There was nothing for them but to hide in the 
fields; and all I could do for themj in my own 
desperate circumstances^ was to consign them to 
the care of an influentianl man in the city^ who 
had just come up to see how it £Ekred with me. 
He promised to look aflber them^ and I hope has 
done so ; what has become of them^ however^ I 
know not^ but as they were East Indians and 
nearly as dark as the natives^ I trust they managed 
to escape, and are now alive. 

My heart was indeed heavy in finally leaving 
that peaceful happy hcone, where, for the past 
eighteen months, we had enjoyed much rational 
happiness and bl^tsed tranquilliiy. Whan I look 
back to that time in my present circumstances 
of peril, it appears like the days of heaven upon 
the earth. One of my private servants, an 
Afghan named Sooltan Mahommed Khan, accom- 
panied me, and also Wuzeer Singh; who alone, of 
all the public establishment at Budacm, remained 
faithful to his salt. I had with me one change 
of clothes, which I entrusted to my gro<»n ; but 
he disappeared immediately, and I never saw him 
again, so I was reduced to those on my back. I 



24 A DISAPFOIliTMENT. 

took with me also a little Testament^ and darling 
May's purse, intended for my birthday presents, 
find which had just reached me &om home : these, 
with my watch and revolver, and 150 rupees 
divided between Sooltan Mahomed and Wuzeer 
Singh, who carried them round their waist, were 
all the worldly goods I possessed ; and with them 
I went forth for the first time in my life without 
a home or a roof to cover me, and, like the 
patriarch, not knowing whither I went. 

We waded the Yar WuflPadar river, which ran 
just below my house; and, after about an hour's 
riding, reached Shikooporah, without notice or 
molestation. Scarcely had we dismounted from 
our horses and entered the walled court, than 
one of the sheikh's brothers came up to me, and 
respectfully stated that it would be impossible 
for us to remain with safety there, as our numbers 
would certainly attract attention, and bring down 
upon us the mutineers ; we must therefore at once 
leave, and go on to a village of his, about eighteen 
nules distant on the left bank of the Ganges. I 
was deeply mortified at this, and the consequent 
frustration of my hope of being able to lie close until 
the mutineers should decamp, and then return to 
the station. I, therefore, remonstrated strongly with 



AN ESCAPE.— GOOD HDINGS. 25 

the chief on his want of hospitality; tut he re-» 
mained quite firm, assuring me that while he was 
quite ready to shelter me alone^ he would not 
grant an asylum to my companions. As they 
would not leave me, and I would not desert them, 
there was nothing for it but to comply with the 
sheikh's wishes, and start for the village further 
on. Fortunate it was for me that I did so. 

I humbly regard this as another marked inter- 
position of a merciftJ God to save my life; for 
shortly after we left Shikooporah, a body of Irre- 
gular Horse, who had accompanied the infantry 
portion of the mutineers from Bareilly (an event 
wholly unexpected by me, as the corps to which 
they belonged was considered staunch and loyal,) 
beat up my temporary hiding place, and would 
have assuredly murdered me had they found me 
there, as they expected. 

Knssorah, 28th July. 

I resume my writing, but with a lighter heart ; 
for this morning, blessed be God, I have received 
tidings on which I can depend (the first since the 
25th of May) of the safety of my beloved wife and 
child at Nynee Tal. Information was brought 
to me in the morning by some of the people in 
this village, (in which we are now living, under 



26 xas joffifflKHafiB's hews. 

the protection of Hurdeo BukA, an influential 
zftmindar of Oade^) that a stranger had arrived in 
the night and was making inquiries for me. He was 
sui^cted to be a spy from ihe rebels at Futteh- 
^ur or disewhere, and his movements were Wing 
closely watched. I told my informant that I 
thought no harm could come of this man being 
brought b^ore me. He was accordingly sum- 
moned^ and turned out to be a cos^on E^ahar^ or 
palkee bearer. I was in native dress, and he did 
not seem at first to recognise me; but at last said, 
** You are the sahib I have often seen in kutcheny 
at BudacHi. I am a servant of Missur B^enath's, 
the Bareilly banker, and he has sent me to ascer- 
tarn if Ihe report whidi had reached him that you 
were alive, and in hiding, is true, and to inform 
you (if I could find you) that the 'mem sahib' 
and ^ the child are both well at Nynee Tal, and 
quite safe, and want for nothing, as my master has 
taken care to have them supplied with necessary 
funds.'' Oh, what a load was lifted off my heart 
by the tidings. 

This is the first messeng^ who has reached us 
from the outer world since the 13th of June. Ho 
informs me that pooa* Mr. Stewart, my clerk, and 
his &mily, are as yet safe and in hiding near 



jL BSnnUf JLITIEB. 27 

Badaoa ; that TShan Bah^dluir Khan is in power 
at Bareilly, and haa assumed the Goyemm^Lit of 
Rohikond. That poor Hay, Boberlaon, and 
Baikes, were among those massacred at Bareilly 
on die 31st of May, and that he had hioiself seen 
their dead bodies dragged through the city ; but 
that several Europeans had escaped to Nynee Tal, 
among them the Commissioner Alexandpir and 
Colondi Troup. 

The messenger, whose name was Ehan Singh, 
had been ten days coming from Bareilly, owing to 
ihe inimdati<ms, the rains being peculiarly heavy — 
a most fortunate Ihing for us, as it prevents bands 
of mutineers and rebels wandering about the 
country. He informs us that our troops are at 
Delhi, and all is going on well there ; that there 
is daily fighting, and that Agra and Meerat are 
still safe. Khan Singh wished at once to return 
to his master with the news respeclang me, and I 
gave him a little letter, enclosed in a quill, for my 
wife, which he promised to convey safely to Nynee 
TaL I have great hopes that he will be able to do 
so, as the piece of quill is not an inch long, and 
can be easily hidden in the mouth in case of 
challenge. He left us on his return in the evening. 

I must now resume the narrative of my firo^ 



28 THE sheikh's fbotegtiok. 

ceedlngs on the night of 1st June, after leaving 
Shikooporah. We were accompanied by one of 
the sheikhs, and travelled through by-ways and 
fields, leaving the high road at some distance to 
our left, in case of pursuit We passed through a 
number of villages, literally swarming with men 
armed with swords, and iron bound lathees. They 
were silent and not disrespectful, seeing us accom* 
panied by the sheikh, whose tenantry they all 
were. He was, however, obliged to take the 
precaution to send men ahead to each village as 
we approached it, to prepare the people for our 
coming, and prevent any attack upon us. As 
we travelled on I looked back and saw a bright 
gleam of light in the sky, which I knew full 
Well was from the burning bungalows in poor 
Budaon; all the property I possessed adding to 
the blaze. 

We reached our destination about 12 p.m. It 
was a miserable village called Kukorah, but 
containing one better sort of house, in which 
the sheikh resided when he visited the place on 
business. We were sent up to the roof of this 
house, to pass the night ; and there commenced my 
sleeping in the open air, which, with one or two 
exceptions, I have been forced to do ever since. 



CBOSSIKG THE GANGES^ 29 

Before going to rest we all joined in prayer, 
thanking God for having so mercifully preserved 
us hitherto, and conunending ourselves to His 
merciful protection for the futiure. Although 
weary and worn out with the events of the past 
24 hours, I scarcely closed an eye. About 4 
A,M. we were awoke by order of the sheikh, 
who recommended, indeed insisted, on our at once 
crossing the Ganges, to a place called Eadir- 
chonk in the Etah district, where we would be, 
he declared, quite safe ; which we could not hope 
to be much longer in his village, as the Irregular 
Cavalry would soon be on our track* I consented, 
thinking that by joining Phillips and Bramley at 
Puttealee, I might get aid from them, and return 
to Budaon, to attempt to restore order. I was, 
however, doomed to bitter disappointment, as the 
sequel will show. 

We took leave of the sheikh about 5 A. M., 
and rode to the bank of the Ganges, where 
we found a boat and crossed to the opposite 
side. The right bank was lined with a large 
concourse of people, assembled to attack and 
plunder some neighbouring village.* The crowd 

* These assemblages of several Tillages to attack some large 
one the people call **Piikars,'* and it is quite astonishing how 



30 A BOBT OY KAJUlUNOS. 

hailed ns^ and fired two or three shots at the 
toot, as we went down the centre of the stream ; 
but the balls never came near ns^ and did no 
harm. We landed unmolested about a mile 
bdow this mob^ and rode on to Kadir Chonk, a 
iminoQS old fort^ about two miles inland* The 
owner^ a Mahomedan gentleman of some inflaence^ 
received ns very kindly^ and assigned ns a room^ 
where we were sheltered from the heat^ by this 
time become intense. His retainers^ folly axmed> 
were all assembled about the premises for the pro- 
tection of the place^ as a large body of marauders 
were assembled in the neighbourhood — others than 
these we saw on the river bank — and threatening 
an attack. At this time^ as far as I could 
judge, this man was very well affected towards 
our Government, and was in high spirits; in- 
formation having just reached him, that Phillips, 
who was at Puttealee, only eight miles off, 
had been joined by Bramley, with a large body 
of horse, and that they would at once commence 
restoring order in the district This was most 
cheering news for me. I sent off a messenger 

soon multitudes collect for this lawless purpose, and how com- 
pletely they do their work, almost rooting up^ at it were, tiie 
place attacked. 



A DOUBTFUL 6UABD. 31 

at once to Phfllips^ informing him of the Biidaon 
disaster^ and saying we would join him in the 
cycling. Abont 5 P.M. a reply was brought, and 
disheartening enongfa it was ; saying that Bramley 
had, only brought a few horsemen with him, and 
recommending me to join them immediately, as 
it was their intention to make at once for Agnu 
We thought it as well not to communicate this 
news to our host, and we left him immediately; 
reaching Puttealee about 7. 

I found Bramley and Phillips in very low 
spirits; and no wonder, for they informed me 
that news had just reached them that the body 
of horse which had been sent to thdbr aid, con^ 
sisting of Oude Locals [from Lucknow, had the 
day before murdered their officers on the line 
of march, and proceeded in a body to Delhi; 
and that the guard with themselyes, composed 
of sixty men from their homes on leave from 
different regiments, were not to be depended on, 
but were supposed to be in league with the Oude 
mutineers, and might rise and murder us at any 
moment. 

We remaned the 3rd and 4th at Puttealee with 
these fellows all aroimd us, and very anxious. On 
the 5th, we got rid of the greater number of the 



32 CAUSES OF THE MUTINT. 

troopers, by sending them nominally to guard a 
tehseeldaree^ some twenty miles off, in which 
there was a considerable sum of Goyemment 
money. We heard afterwards, that immediately 
on reaching the place, these fellows seized the 
money, and then went off; some to their homes, 
some to join the mutineers. 

A fine old Resseldar of Liptrot's Horse re- 
mained with us, and about twenty troopers, upon 
whose fidelity he said we could depend* I had 
frequent commimication with this old officer 
(who, by the way, is now, I hear, in high 
favour with the Nawab of Futtehghur, and com- 
manding some of his troops,) as to the causes of 
disaffection in the native army. He never men- 
tioned the cartridges, or fear of outrages on their 
religion, as the causes, but ascribed them to the 
great dissatisfaction which existed at the acts of 
the Government, in the curtailment of furloughs, 
and other privileges, the levy, en route to their 
homes, from sepoys of tolls at ghauts, and in 
Government seraiees, from which payments they 
were formerly exempt, being treated as a privileged 
class: also the distance they had to serve from 
their homes. 

On the afternoon of the 5th, an anonymous note 



FBEFABATIONS FOB STABTING. 33 

was brought to Phillips^ stating that 200 mutinous 
sepoys were at a place some ten miles off, who 
intended coming to attack Puttealee the next 
morning, as they heard the district officers were 
assembled there, and had much treasure with 
them. This intelligence determined us at once to 
start for Agra* and preparations were made for 
leaving as soon as the moon rose, at 10 F.H. 

I received, about the same time, a communica- 
tion purporting to be from some of my friends in 
Budaon, stating that the mutineers had decamped 
from thence with the treasure, after firing the 
place and destroying all the buildings, and had 
gone back to BareiUy, and urging me strongly 
to return, as there was no longer any danger. 
I despatched a reply, saying that I was quite 
willing to do so, provided they would send me a 
sufficient force for my protection to the bank of 
the Ganges to conduct me to Budaon ; and stating 
that I would remain at Puttealee till I heard it had 
arrived. I sent by the messenger also a note 
to my wife at Nynee Tal, telling her what had 
occurred, and that I was safe thus far. 

Phillips and Bramley, however, both urged me 
so strongly not to return to Budaon, but to accom- 
pany them, that I acceded to their representa- 

3 



84 A laOET HABOH WJSSL £fiOOBT. 

tions, and gssve up mj iBtention. We set cS; 4im 
sowars with the old xessaldsrs led, a nmnber of 
half-armed Aakoors followed next^ and we our- 
selves broQght ap the roar. We feared that the 
sowars might prove tireacheroos <n the way and 
attack ns, so the thakoors were interposed between 
ns and them, in order that if tlfey did ehai^ge 
down upon us thej must first pass through tkat 
bodji and we should thus have warning of their 
intentions. We marched about four uniles, wh^a 
we thought that what we fisared had ac^iailj 
occurred^ and that we were at once to be attacked, 
for there was a sudden halt and a great nmse and 
rushing about in Ihe front It was caused by 
one of the sowar's horses, a mad, vicious Inrute, 
which^ having Ihrown his rider, came charging 
down upon us, and galloped back and £[»*watds 
through the body <^ foot and horse, until he was 
stopped by a severe spear wound administered by 
a sowar whose horse he was attacking. 

We marched without any other interruption all 
ni^t^ only halting cmce or twice to rest the men 
and horses. As the morning dawned we found 
ourselves in the n^hbouriiood of a small fort, 
about five miles from the Grand Trunk iE&oad. 
Those inside threatened to fire upon us unless 



ALABMING^ INTE£IiIQ£]IG£. 3S 

wehdtedand told ivito weirere. The kiialidiGr 
was ene of ottr cfwn zemindars; amd itffcer a parlej 
with Brsankfy, with whom foitoBatdiy he w«i 
prerieuslj ftcqiiaifited^ he a&)Wed ms *bo «irtar 
the place and rest, wMe we sent otft for infiny 
msdon as to the road heing clear in our tiws^ 
towards Mynpoory, for which place we were 
marchzng* 

The messenger dei^^aftched for tJiis purpose socn 
retiomed wi& the Yerj aisKrming inteMig^ice l^at 
there was a body of dratineers^ horse ami feot» on 
iJieir wisty to Delhi, haitmg in onr imme^ate 
vkhS^, and completely Mocking np the road in 
tmr front We immeSately consulted tc^etter 
on whsft coarse to porsne; the zemindar insisting 
4m 0ar at <mce remoyii]^ from Ms fert, winch he 
£»red wodhl be attacked by the mnlSneers, as 
soon as ftey heard of our being in it 

We at £brst thon^t of mriccng an attempt to 
cross 1^ road in front of lins body, tmstii^ to ihe 
speed of onr "horses to escape, if we were pnaanied. 
On c(msnlt8tio8B, howe^^^ this plan appeared too 
ha a ar do BS, and we deiermnBed to retrace oitr steps 
and remain in same Tillage in the rear, vm&l 
m^t fell^ wh^fn we migkt Iiope to einde ihsse 
troops, and escape past them ito Agra through 



36 A NiLBBQW ESCAPE. 

Mynpoory. As we approached the vUlage where 
we thus intended remaining, we thought it best to 
'send on a sowar to see if the place was clear ; we 
ourselves halting in a small grove about a mile 
off, where we were hidden from observation. It 
was very fortunate that we took this precaution, 
for our messenger presently returned, telling us 
the village was occupied by 200 mutinous sepoys ; 
the very party who we heard intended beating up 
our quarters at Futtealee, and who, changing 
iheir intention, had moved on in this direction. 

This intelligence caused us entirely to alter our 
{)lans, and, striking through the jungles and by 
•by-paths, to return to Puttealee. The sowars 
urider the ressaldar had by this time become very 
insolent in their bearing ; probably in consequence 
of our having already dismissed our thakoor 
guards of infantry, who were quite knocked up 
with the night march. It became very desirable 
therefore to get rid of these fellows; Braudey 
accordingly called up the old ressaldar and told 
him we no longer required his services, or those 
of his men, and that they might return to 
Furruckabad, whence they had come, or go any- 
where else they liked. The attitude of these 
fellows became at this moment most threatening; 



A HOSHTAKA Sl^OT*. 37 

they seemed just wavering as to whether they 
would charge down upon and destroy us, or go 
off and leave us. They consulted together for a 
moment — one of breathless suspense to us^-and 
then, to our great relief, suddenly turned about 
and rode off. We now went on, changing our 
direction as soon as we lost sight of the sowars, 
with the view of preventing their afterwards fol- 
lowing oTox movements. 

We marched from six o'clock in the morning 
until the afternoon, when, completely exhausted 
by the terrific heat and dust, we came upon a 
small hamlet There an old soldier, a pensioner 
of our Government, who had served in Afghan- 
istan,, greatly commiserated our position, and in 
answer to our request for water brought us milk 
and chupatties, which were most acceptable in our 
fainting state. We rested here for an hoiur, and 
on going away I offered the old man a little money 
in return for his hospitality. He flatly refused to 
receive it, saying, with apparently real sorrow, 
" You are in far greater need than I am now, who 
have a home, whereas you are wanderers in the 
lungles; but if ever your raj is restored, remember 
me, and the little service I have been able to 
render you." 



aft ji wBkmm Qti i3SM£Airaoisi. 



Wepcmwdtoibao^aBdAeiLkfi; ImiL SttlL 
gou^ tlm>i]|^ Om jwngler we xeaAei. Puttcakey 
tkorongMj tbed mt^iHt u^ht&ll, kLTizMg been bl 
the MMUile contiMumsl^ abee ten &e pierioiia: 
iBgkt; BHHre thaa twetrty hoiirs^ Here Btamk^r 
aod I^ilEpft detcxHiknd to lialt «HQe day aaid rest 
tbekr li«rse% wai Aen make a firesdi attenipt to 



At this time we were under tiie imfHreiaioiL tfaait 
cos aafsfy was best ^aoitilted bj separating from 
eadt odier, iaatead e£ httfkkg toge&er; and as 

I cooU net timaAon the peraona wiio accc«ipaiiied 
me,, hat £bk at the same time I had mo i%hft to 
add to Bramlqr and. FliBIips's rkk hj^ imposing 
onrsdi^fpea xipea them, I detanmoed to leave tin 
latter t* ge air to Agnt by theiBfieiyeSy and wilJt 
mj party to endearv^oiir i» ge/t back to BodaKm, and 
if possiUe pasb my way tfarcragE that distciet to 
the hflla. Tko twa Messrs. Donald, Mr. QjiifiOB,. 
and mysdl^ therefore started frem Puttealee about 

II AJL, of the 7lli June, to return toEadir Ghmge. 
Ph31ip8y,a8 I wa& leairk^ him,. aaid in m^ Hunrkeda 
manner, ^ I fed certain and nanfidrBt tiiat we shaU 
meet again,'* that I ftit quite ckeered about him 
and myseR 

We passed unmolested through multitudes of 



commcT QV ms yiLLAQEBa. 39 

f wha wwe crosaisg the road, laden widi tiio 
jdnnder of some large village tkey had attacked 
and sacked during the night The mea of all the 
vdlliage& throv^ which we passed weax coUeeted 
in bodii» at the entrance of each, and> while quiie 
xeapedSal^ crowded round, ns, asking eagerly, 
^ When will your raj return? When will your 
xaj return? — in ten days or Mean days? We 
ace worn out and tired wkk this contiimal watd^> 
ing and being on the alert in case of bei^g 
attacked, and we long for peace and quiet again.'^ 

We reached Kadir GuBfs^ about four in the 
afternoon, and were civilly, but very coldly, 
recdved by die zemindar, our host id two days 
previous. Since tbrai he had heard of the mutiny 
ait Bareifly, and the omduct of the regim^it 
coming i^ to Bramle/er aid, and the kitel%ence 
had a marked dSdct on }m demeanour. He, how- 
ever, said he would secure a boat to take ourselves 
and our horses to the Kiadaon side of the river. 

Shortly after we were seated, there was an 
aknn of ut atta^, and a general rusk of all 
the retainers to ike tower where the stand was to 
be trade ; after about an hour's anxious waitings 
mt^Hgenee was brought that the body of men 
who had been threatenii^ the attack had gone off 



40 THE BIVSICT IM SEABCH OF ME. 

to plunder some other place in the neighbourhood* 
They passed, in number several thousands, within 
half a mile of us. 

As we were sitting inside the house, and just 
about to start to cross the river, a traveller from 
the Budaon side entered the court outside, and 
from which he could not be seen. He was 
asked the news, and gave a dismal account of 
the state of the roads along which he had passed ;. 
all the villages having been plundered, and many 
burnt. He then said that a large body of horse 
was the day before at Kukorah (the village we had 
slept in on the 1st of June, and the place we were 
then bound for,) searching for the Collector 
(myself), and that they were now in a village oppo- 
site "Kadir Gunge.'' This news determined me 
to remain where I was until the next day, in order 
to get some information if possible from Budaon as 
to the state of the district, and whether I could 
pass through it with any chance of safety. I 
accordingly sent off a note to a person I con- 
sidered'staunch in the town, and requested him to 
write an immediate reply. This I hoped would 
have reached us by the next morning, but no 
messenger returned. Wearily the day passed on 
until evening, when our host who had been much 



"T" '""^ 



A aBUDGma host* 41 

displeased at our Femaining so long with him^ and 
had scarcely given ns any food, came to say that 
the boat was ready to convey ns to the other side 
of the Ganges, and that we must start at once* 

There was no help for it, so we monnted and rode 
off; but on reaching the Granges we fonnd that the 
boat provided for ns was too small to contain any 
one of our horses, and that we therefore could not 
cross. We in vain endeavoured to get another ; 
and, much depressed, were at last forced to betake 
ourselves again to the zemindar. He was very 
rude on our arrival, but was at length pacified. 
He strongly urged us to abandon all thoughts of 
crossing the river into Budaon and to go on to 
Furruckabad ; which place was sixty miles off, the 
road pretty clear, and the station still safe. He 
told us the reason why he felt certain that no 
mutiny had occurred there ^as yet was, that several 
of his people were prisoners in the gaol at that 
place, and ha^ it been broken open, they would 
surely have come back to their homes in this 
village ere that time. 

We were perfectly helpless, and determined 
to follow his advice. Doing so, has brought me 
indeed to this place of misery ; but had I crossed 
into Budaon what might not have been my fate? 



4i PLQS S0 IS&JQH UX £IFE. 

B jjflDa&'a mcifieogery Ekui Sin^i, mfenMBd 
me littft ike k±ter wzittai to Putoalee to iadsuse 
mataietorxLtaBvad^, wasa tikkof thesepop 
togeime'iittQlJMirlumds; They liadtliere&re- sea* 
ib& hotaemesa ta tbe htisjk of &e nyer^ in ei^ec- 
ta&at of nrf erossmgy tO' sirait mj anrirsii and 
deE^r»7 IB& on landing. Tlie j had beat gs&i&j 
exasperated against me^aod detenaiiied to hsswe 
mj fi&> in eonaBqagmm q£ fi&dii^ anlj one IdUi 
and a. half in mj treassrj iaatead of aeiren, as 
&e}r were led ta axpect; thej knew that the 
^sSdeoej was caaiaed Igr mj harring refosed to 
receiye their money from the 25eoundars> aa I 
knew it woaH, in. all probaibililrpy fall into tibe 
handa of the nm^bineefs. 

The zemindar gacre us two ho^^Bsusi &r gnidei^ 
who condiictetd ns tfaroagh sevcxal yiUagea whexe 
we were nnmoleBtttL At length, ahout midni^» 
I saw the guide wha was immediaitelj in fnont of 
me stop sHiddenl J and make a sign to ns to halt 
We accordin^y ^ so^ and comiiig cluae np to na 
he silently pointed out a laae^ body of men^ 
afifttcendy between two and tiisree hundred, lying 
m a hdlbw amoiig a £aw trees, a fittle to eas lefiL 
We thon^Eb th^ were alL aahqa^ and that we 
ooaid esc£^ their notice, w^^ all at onoe th^ 



ro8eupaftoBe]iMHLaadGaiaatovarcbii&. It was 
m^ vfia attaDptiag ta flyj^fiir we dioold dieai haiw 
kstoQC gnideSyMkwe wem maonted aadldie^ireBe 
on £x)£; flo we atocMl £EMiKL I told tke guide to go 
i(xw9iA to laeet tbemyaafllexplauLwlte we w«xu 
He wa& a sharp Miow, &r I heaed him iamie- 
diately saying we w^3& '^ SaUbs^" g^g to ma^ 
aad InnBg baek SK^ae teoepa wha w^e comi]^ vp 
from Furruckabad to restore order. The villagi^s 
seemed %iiite satiefied with flus iafonnaiioii^ aad 
kft. mk pass. Thef w^re Ijizig out abcHit a mile 
from their vilkge^ aa an adYaaced picquet, in 
expectadan of aA attadi^ by one of those ^ PukarsT 
I haye already spokea of> witk whifih they were 
tbreatfflUML They were modi {leased to hear 
that there waa a prospect of aider heiag reat<u*ed 
hy troops, and it was boL fcr wi to mndeceire 
them.. After leavmg theiu^ we passed throng 
the village, which was &1L of ntea; but thejr 
mefier noticed <ff atepped na, as we had beea 
allowed to pass threap their picqoets. 

About 2 o'dock AJi^ the guides left us, hayiiig 
put us in die stra^ht ipad. to £utteh^uu!> and 
we traveled on by iOiraelY^su Just as the moaning 
^bKimed,^ we w&e mueh surprised to see aa 
encanqtment about a mile to the right of the road; 



44 Jl ItOBLE TEHSEELDAB. 

apparently of a considerable body of men, from 
the number of tents, and their being disposed in 
regular lines. There were, however, no sentries, 
nor any signs of life, and we passed unchallenged. 
After travelling the entire night, with only one 
halt of ten minutes to water the horses, we arrived 
about 8 A.IL at a considerable Puthan village 
called Kaim Gxmj where there was a Government 
tehseeldaree. 

We rode into the enclosure and summoned 
the tehseeldar, who appeared after a considerable 
delay ; he was a fraH old man, but, as we after- 
wards discovered, with a noble heart; for, under 
Providence, he was the chief instrument in saving 
our lives at this place. By the time he came 
a considerable crowd had assembled round us, 
and the tehseeldar seemed anxious to get us to 
leave the tehseeldaree and go with him to the 
residence of Tar Nawab ^* Ahmed Zur IQian,'' 
a native gentleman of influence and the chief 
proprietor in the place ; who, he said, would 
be happy to receive us, and who could protect 
us, as his house was situated within a walled 
garden. We accordingly removed to this place, 
distant about a mile from the tehseeldaree, and 
were at once led into the garden, and told 



AN INTOZIOATED BULLY- 45 

to remain there until the Nawab conld himself 
receive ns. We sat down under the shade of 
the trees ; for the heat was by this time intense. 
Presently the NawaVs brother, attended by three 
followers, all armed with double-barrelled vguns, 
came to look at us. He was quite intoxicated 
with opium, and very insolent and excited In his 
manner. He questioned us as to who we were, 
and on my telling him that I was the Collector of 
Budaon, and that the others were indigo planters 
and a Customs patrol, he turned to me and said, 
" You I know, and will protect you, as you are a 
Government ofl&cer ; as for these fellows I know 
nothing of them, and will have nothing to do 
with them." I thought it highly probable, that, 
infuriated as he was with drugs, he might shoot 
down my companions at once, and they them- 
selves quite expected he would fire on them. 
Fortunately, however, at this juncture the Nawab 
himself appeared, and the brother was at once 
taken away. 

The Nawab was kind and polite in his demean- 
our, but seemed most reluctant to allow us to 
enter his house. After much demur he admitted 
us, on my representing that we were greatly 
fatigued, and suffering much from the heat of 



4C A OtyCWBBOCB ITAWAB. 

tlie maif as the trees afforded tts no snfBcieiit 
tbelter. I told Imn we liad no ^ish to remnn 
with Mm, hnt were mest desirous to press on to 
Fntteh^nr, mA hoped he would get ns a hoaft 
to take onrBrfres and horses down the river to 
that j^bboe. He professed his reacUness to he^ ns, 
8sid sent off a messenger to tibe Nawah DooSlah^ 
a relation (tf Ms (living at a place abont eight 
miles off near Ihe Gassges, called ^mnshabad), 
who, we were assured, woold ord^ a hoat to he 
in i?ea(KnesB for ns hy the aftenioon. We were 
then conducted to the top <^ the house, and scmie 
food given to us. My two servants were not 
allowed to Accompany us, but reioained with the 
horses in Ihe court-yard bdow. 

As we were estii^ our breakftst, a messenger 
xsame in and whisp^ed son^thing to the Nawftb> 
who was sitting with us. The commuuicatiop 
produced an immediate change in his demeanour ; 
he TosQy saying we must at once 4^art 'for Sbum- 
shabad, where the Nawab Doollah would reoer^ 
us, and that he would himself formdi vm with 
an escort of five horsemen uHdar the orders 
of one of his relatives, by name Mooltan Kfam ; 
a fine powerful Pathan between forty and Mby 
years of age, iwrho was also sitting with us. 



SIOHS OF TBSlXmSBT. ^t 

Befo]?e taking leave &£ Mm^ the iKawab re^pHied 
me to ^ve lum a certificate ibat be liad tse^tad. 
us wdl and ^en -qb an esboft. Tins demmj. 
Ib almost i&vanabiy a^ prelude to treachery, aa 
persons to whom imch docnioents are granted 
always ooiuddar their possession most diear them 
feom all Uffliie, wl»tever may happen to die 
graHters. I was ^ coarse ferced to ^e "the 
ceilificate. As we rode out -of the gateway^ 
Mooltan Khan whispered to me, ^^It is as well 
for us to go iuaross the fields, and avoid aU 
villages : " and he at once stnv^ ciff at a rapid 
gallop. 

After riding for fl3)oiit four miles, we halted, 
to allow the riding csonels on which Mr. Gibson 
and Wnzeer Singh were mounted, to come up; 
tiiey witii Mr. Donald, seaior, who was on horse- 
back, having &llen ccmsderaUy behind. On 
lidii^ np, Mr. Dostald said to me, ^^I have 
beard something which wiU make yonr blood 
oxtrdle. Wnzeer Singh iidTorms me, he over- 
beard the Nawab's people and tmr escort, before 
leaving £aieem Gkoige, say lihat we were all 
to be killed as soon as we ^embarked <m board 
Ae boaf I rode np to Mr. tS-ibson's camel and 
questioned Wnzeer Singh, who assured me iihat 



48 NAWAB DOOLLiiH. 

he believed^ from what he had heard, it was theu* 
deliberate intention to murder us alL Of course 
I was much shocked; but what could we do? I 
merely said, in reply to Mr. Donald, that we 
were helpless, and must now go on with our 
escort, showing no doubt of their fidelity, and 
trust in God to protect us. After halting about ten 
minutes, we again set off at a gallop, Mooltan Elian 
leading, and shortly after arrived at the Nawab 
Doollah's. There we were received with great 
civility by the NawaVs head man, a Hindoo, who 
was sitting transacting business in an open veran- 
dah, surrounded by a nimiber of people. 

Several messages immediately passed between 
the Nawab and this official, who at last went to 
speak to his master, in the interior of the house. I 
took the opportunity to send him my compliments, 
hoping that he was well, and would see and assist 
us in procuring a boat to take us to Futtehghur. 
The man soon returned, saying the Nawab w;ould 
not see us (which I thought a very bad sign); 
but that we, should have a boat as soon as it could 
be prepared. He then i*ecommended my sending 
intimation of our coming to the kotwal of Futteh- 
ghur, and he wrote a purwannah, or order, for me 
to sign, and I pulled off my signet ring to seal it. 



TliiELY WARNING. 49 

Some of the party asked to be allowed to look 
at the ring, which was handed round the circle, 
duly Inspected, and civilly returned to me. It 
required a great effort to maintain a composed aiid 
cheerful demeanour all this time ; but we contrived 
to do so, and to converse with those present. After 
sitting about an hour, we were invited to adjourn 
to a bungalow of the Nawab's, built and furnished 
in the European style, to have some refreshment 
before starting ih the boat. The Hindoo Kardar, 
Multan Khan, and our escort, accompanied us to 
this bungalow, and sat down with us. I ate, fortu- 
nately for me, some hard eggs, which sustained me 
well during the next eighteen hours. 

I was about to lie down, and try to get some 
rest, for I was sorely fatigued, when my suspicions 
were aroused by Multan Khan coming up and 
saying, ^' I pity you from my heart." I asked him 
why? He was explaining that no boat had been 
prepared for us, and that we could never hope to 
reach Futtehghur alive, from the state of the 
villages and roads, when Mr. Donald, junior, who 
was standing at the window, called out to me in 
much alarm, that there was a crowd of armed 
men collecting round the house, and pouring into 
the compound. The Kardar, almost at the same 

4 



50 A PSIILOUB ffl^RJAXION. 

moment^ came up to me 8&yiDg« ^^ You must all 
leave this place «t once; jon will be all kiUed if 
you remain any IxmgdT. Batursi whaice you came, 
and stidc to the sowars who accconpanied you 
&om Kaibem Gnnj.'' Our horses wezeinunedialdy 
ordered and we moonted. As I rode imt of the 
caodbsore, I looked immd for my two servantSy 
but ike crowd was by this time so gteat that I 
cookl not see th^ou My seccmd hoise, xiddoa up 
to this time by my A%han searvsait, was i^anding 
at the door^ and we b^ged Mr. Gibson to 
mount him; but he being an indifepCTit harseman 
declined, and then got on his cameL Up to this 
time^ the crowd did not meddle with us, aiad 
opened a way for ns to pass through. 

Mr. Donald, junior, and I wexte xiding in front, 
aoDompanied by Multan iOian, and had advanced 
about ^X) yards &om the house, when we ob- 
served « body of hisrsemen drawn up across the 
ready in a grove immediately in our f rml^ and 
wadtiag t&T XS& MUtan Kkm puUed up his 
hocB^j and bade as 9t once return to the house, 
as the only dumoe 4»i savuig our lives; for he 
said tiuyt ndther himself nor any of his men would 
advance with us aac^ier yard. It was out of the' 
questkm to atteu^t to get through this body by 



A KASBOW ESCAPE. 51 

our four uAyen, and so we tvmed back to tlie 
house, 

I wap some way in front, and riding along by 
tlie wall of the enclosure in which the house 
was sttnated, and not fiir from the gate, when 
the mob opened fire upon us, with savage 
shouts and yelhu How I escaped I know not, 
for the bullets were rapping into the wall all 
about me ; but my horse, becoming very restive 
under the fire, plunged so much that they could 
neither hit him nor myselfi Turning round to see 
what was going on behind me, I saw Mr. Donald, 
s^or, without his hat, trying to get out of the 
crowd, and a number o£ men rushing in up(m 
Mr. GKbson and atriking at him with swords and 
8tieks. 

I now noticed Multah Khan and our escort gal- 
lop^ cffy leaving us to our fate. My only chance 
was to attempt to r^in than; so I called out 
to Mr. Donald, senior, to follow me, aiKl drawing 
my revolver, put my horse right at the erowd 
as hard as Z could ga They <ypened for me right 
and 1^ and I passed close to po<xr Mr. Gibscm: 
I shall never f<nrget his lo€& of agcmy, as he 
was ineffectually trying to defend himself from 
the ruffians who were swarming round him* 



52 ESCAPE OF MB. DONALD AND SON. 

I could render him no aid^ and was only enabled 
to save myself through the activity and strength 
of my horse. Once or twice I was on the point 
of shooting some of the fellows, but refrained; 
thinking that threatening them with my pistol was 
more likely to deter them, as when once a barrel 
was discharged they might close in upon me, 
fancying that I could no longer hurt them. 

I soon got clear of the mob, and joined Multan 
Khan and the escort, who had by this time halted. 
Mr. Donald, senior, followed me almost imme- 
diately: his horse was severely wounded by a 
matchlock ball in the near hiad leg ; but he was 
himself untouched. His son also rode up soon 
after; he had escaped unwounded, by riding 
through the town, and jumping his horse over a 
-ravine where the fellows could not follow him. A 
man also joined us mounted on my second |^horse, 
a difficult animal to manage ; he threw his rider 
almost immediately, then bolted, and was, as I 
imagined, lost 

Multan Khan and the others seemed by no 
means pleased that we had escaped, and were 
very threatening in their demeanour. I rode up 
to the former, and putting my hand' on his 
shoulder, said to him — ^^ Have you a family and 



ABaUHENTUM AD HOMINEM. 53 

little children ? '* He answered by a nod. *^ And 
are they not dependant on you for their bread ? ^ 
I asked. He replied "Yes." "Well," I said, 
" so have I, and I am confident you are not the 
man to take my life and destroy their means of 
support" He looked at me for a moment, and 
then said, *' I will save your life if I can ; follow 
me." He immediately turned and set off at a 
gallop, and we followed him. 

One of the sowars, a scoimdrel belonging to the 
Mehidpore Contingent, and mounted on a poor 
horse, rode alongside of me, and said, " Give me 
your horse ; mine is good enough for you." I put 
him off by some civil answer ; but he was much 
enraged at my refusal, and remonstrated with 
Multan Khan for not at once murdering us. 
Finding he could not persuade him or the other 
sowars to attack us, he struck off to a village 
through which we were to pass, in order to raise 
the villagers to intercept and murder us. Thia 
caused Multan Elhan to take a long circuit through 
the fields to avoid the village. 

We reached Kaieem Gunj about 4 p.m., and 
were at once told to ascend to the roof of the house 
and show ourselves to no one. We were almost 
immediately informed that poor Mr. Gibson, 



54 HtBDEB OF MB. GIBSON. 

who had been with us a few hours before, had 
been cut in pieces by the mob. The Nawab 
visited us soon after our arrival, and sfeemed 
heartily sorry for what had occurred; attributing 
the attack made upon us, and very justly, to the 
treachery of the Nawab '^Doolah** of Shumshabad. 
He then plainly told us, that he could afford us 
no protection; that the people believed that we 
were covered with rings and jewels, and that the 
very children would tear us in pieces, if they saw 
us, to plunder us. I told him that we had nothing 
with i;s. But he said the story that I had pro- 
duct my signet ring to seal the purwannah at 
Shumshabad had got about, and they believed we 
were covered with jewels, and that nothing would 
persuade them to the contrary. He said he could 
only consent to keep us in his house until night- 
fall, when we must quit it. I told him I would 
try and return by the way I had come, to my 
own district, where I thought friends would pro- 
tect me. The Nawab said this was impossible, as 
I should be cut to pieces within the first mile. 

I then said that we would try and make for 
Puttehghur. The Nawab allowed this was our' 
best plan, but he at Ae same time declared his 
inability to get a guide to conduct us; alleging as 



HaAJXKSBmSQ ANB FmATBB. 55 


the reason^ that news had beeit receiyed of the 

total destruction of our armj before Delhi, and 
the death of the Commmder-m-Chief ; who had 
poboned himsdf, though we gafve out he had died 
of clK>1era. I represei^ed that without a guide we 
must perish by the way ; Imt he was immoveaUe, 
saying he could not help ns, for no one would 
a»ssent to aid or ccHidact us. Mr. Donald^ 
senior's, horse was reported quite unable to move, 
from his wound, and it was quite neceanury to 
supply his place. After much trouble, the Nawab 
procured for him in the Bazsstr, hr fifty rupees, a 
miserable pony, quite unsuitable for so heavy a 
man to travel with at any pace. 

After the Nawab left us, we all three joined 
in prayCT, thanking God for our preservatfon in 
the midst of such grieat danger, and attreadug 
Him mercifully to open a do(^ of escape for 
us, or if not, to prepare us for Himseli I ften 
sent for the old teteeel<to', who had befriended 
us in the morning, and am his coming pointed 
out to him 1}ie hopelesmess oi our ever reachk^ 
Futtdighur if we had to ke^ to tibe main road 
and pass through ihe villages, and iJmt thare* 
fore we must have a guide to lead us throi^ 
by-p«fes jrad fields. I be^ed him eanwsfly to go^ 



56 WELCOME INTELLIGEKCE. 

to the Nawab and try and induce him to give us 
at least one horseman as a guide. He consented 
to go, but expressed himself very hopeless of a 
favourable result ; saying, if he succeeded he would 
come back again, but if he failed he would not 
return, as it would be only painful for him to part 
from us again. I then took off my watch and 
ring, as I had little or no hope of surviving, and 
made them over to him, to give to the first Euro- 
pean officer He might meet, for conveyance to my 
family ; he then left me. 

My two poor companions had been fast asleep 
during this conference, and I now lay down 
myself, and fell into a light slumber, in which 
I continued for about an hour; when I was 
awoke by the voice of the Nawab saying, ** He 
is asleep ; don't let us rouse him : he is in need 
of rest" With inexpressible delight, I then 
heard the old lame tehseeldar shuffling up and 
saying, ** It is never too soon to waken up a man 
if you have good news for him." I started up 
and called them both in, when the Nawab told me 
he had prevailed on two trusty men, connections 
of his own, to convey us safely to Futtehgur, and 
that we must start in two hours thereafter. He 
also gave me the satbfactory intelligence that my 



DISGUISES AND ESCORT. 57 

second horse had been recovered, and was in the 
Stable and of coarse available for Mr. Donald, senior. 

He and the tehseeldar then left me, enjoining me 
to lie down and sleep, and promising to come back 
soon with native clothes in which to disguise us* 
They returned at the appointed time, accompanied 
by our friend Multan Khan. I then roused up 
my companions, and we were dressed in the 
Nawab's clothes ; every article of our own dress, 
down to our boots, being burnt in our presence, 
to destroy all traces of us in the house. I only 
contrived to save my Testament and my darling 
May's purse ; from which, however, I had to cut 
off the silver rings and tassels, lest they should 
attract notice. I put these, with my ring and 
watch, which the old tehseeldar returned to me, in 
my waist-belt* The Testament I have still with 
me, and it has been my solace in many an hour ot 
anguish and peril ; but alas, the purse I dropped on 
the road and never saw again. I weep now when 
I think of that loss, and am not ashamed to say so ; 
for sorrow and anxiety such as ours make the 
heart very ready to overflow at any remembrance 
of those we love, and whom it is probable we may 
never again meet in this life. 

When all were ready, and our turbans, the 



^8 **EXCHAH6B HO BOBBBBT." 

most difficult part of our costttme to arrange, 
pnt on, we descended to tbe coinrtyard and there 
found our horses and the two guides ready* I 
mounted, but fomid to mj dismay that my own 
saddle (an excellent Wilkinson and Eidd) had 
heen remored, and replaced by a miseraUe 
article without any stuffing, which I feared might 
seriously injure my horse's back and render him 
nnserviceable. A glance at <me of the guides, 
a fine tall man mounted on a good looking bay 
mare, showed me that he had q>propriated it; 
but it was no time for remark, &r less remon- 
strance. The Nawab diraaissed us very kindly, 
saying to me, ** You make a very good Pathan in 
this dress; but mind, never venture to speak, or 
you will be at oncfe discovered ; the other two may 
speak, for they are country bom, and have the 
native accent'' 

We rode slowly, and in profound silence, 
through the town of Eaieem Ghmj, in which no 
one was stirring. Immediately on getting beycmd 
it, the guide on the bay mare set off at a gallop, 
and led ua through fields and through by-lanes 
for several miles without a halt We had not 
proceeded very far when my little horse, who 
notwithstanding my having scarcely been off his 



ART IN ABRANGCia THX TURBAN. 59 

back for the past week, was pulling hard, ran me 
under the branch of a tree, and knocked off the 
turban which had been arranged with so much 
care. I was hopeless of being able to put it on 
again, as none but a native can do this, and that 
odIj after the education of jears ; but happOy I 
caught one end of it as it fell to the ground, and, 
tying a knot in my curb rein and taking it in my 
teeth, managed to guide my horse, while I c<m- 
trived to replace my turban; though not in a 
way to escape detection, had we been stepped and 
examined. 

After going about eight miles "We halted to 
breathe our horses, and I took the opportunity of 
hayii^ scHne talk with our guide. He turned out 
to be a trooper of Cox's troop of Horse Artillery, 
on leave at his home in Kaie^n Grtmj* He assured 
me that 6,000 rupees would not have induced him 
to guide us, or give us any aid, had it not been 
for the earnest solicitations of his near relation 
the Nawab, to which he at last yielded. He was a 
splendid horseman, and had many a %ht with the 
mare, a most vicious brute; which I watdied with 
intense and breathless interest, as on ihe result my 
safety mainly depended* Fear tibe first few miles 
she went on withotit a dbeck, but afterwards, and 



60 A KACE FOE LIFE, 

when it was highly important for us to go at speed, 
the brute would suddenly stop, rear and plunge, 
and do everything to get rid of her rider ; but it 
was of no use. He stuck to the saddle as if he 
was glued to it, and at last he would force her on. 

After riding about two hours, we approached 
two villages close to each other, and between 
which we had to pass. The one on the right 
was in flames, and surrounded by a band of 
marauders, who were busily engaged in plunder- 
ing it As we came on at full speed, the fellows 
caught sight of us, when within about a mile of 
the village. They raised a tremendous shout, 
and commenced rushing to a point where they 
hoped to be able to cut us off. Then we did 
ride for our lives; our guide leading us with 
admirable decision and sagacity. It was a most 
exciting race for about fifteen minutes. The 
shouts and yells of these miscreants, and the noise 
of the flaming villages, excited our horses to such 
a degree that they needed no urging to do their 
b^st? Both mine behaved nobly: Jan Bay carry- 
ing his fourteen stone rider as if he was a feather, 
and my own little Cabulee tearing along and 
clearing every obstacle as if he enjoyed the fun. 

The excitement was so great, that I quite forgot 



ALL SAFE AT FUBBUKABAD. 61 

the danger for the moment; although for some 
tune it was doubtful, whether we should clear the 
mob or not : we just succeeded in doing so, with 
about two hundred yards to spare; and I shall 
never forget the yell of rage the fellows raised 
when they saw they had missed their prey. Happily 
they had no firearms, ajid we were therefore quite 
safe from them, after we had once got beyond 
them. Had Donald been mounted on the miserable 
pony he purchased, instead of my horse, we must 
all have perished ; as he never could have gone the 
pace, and we, of course, could not have deserted 
him : we must all have been cut to pieces. The 
recovery of my horse, and his being available for 
Donald to mount, when I thought him lost for 
ever, was but one of the many instances of Ood's 
merciful interference on our behalf to preserve 
our lives which I have thankftdly to acknowledge. 
About 4 A.M., as morning dawned, we neared 
Furrukabad, having ridden about twenty-four 
miles. Our guide pulled up at a Faqueer's hut 
for a drink of water, asking at the same time the 
news. In the grey morning light the Faqueer 
did not recognise us as Europeans, and told 
our conductor that all was as yet quiet in 
Furrukabad, the regiment still standing; that 



62 OUB rJJTHFCL i^DXDES* 

tiie station had been deserted by ibe Enropeans^ 
but the CoUdctor^ Sahib ProbTn, was still at his 
post; and that tte previous day a portioEn of the 
regiment had put down a serioiis mutiny in the 
gaol, killing many prisoners who were txying to 
make their escape. We were much comfbrted by 
this intelligence, and rode on with our guard to 
the public serai^in the town, where we dismounted 
without attracting any notaee^and walked our own 
horses about, mUaye fashion, to cod them* Our 
guide than left us, and went to the kotwallee f(Mr 
news, but socm returned bringing a chuprassee with 
him to omduct us to the Collector's house. We re- 
mounted, our guides continuing with us for a short 
way: suddenly they left us, and I have never 
seen or heud of ibem onee. K^ht well did 
they do their duty to us; and I will do my best 
to requite them, if my life is spared iluough these 
troubles. 

We reached FxDbyn*is house about S ajl, and 
as we entered, and received his hearty welocane, 
none of us could speak, fiom emotion; it took us 
some nunutes ore we could exjdbun to him bom 
whence we had come, and what had occurred to 
us by the way. 

Probyn th^i gave us an account of matters at 



STATE or IIHINGS AT FUTZSHaEUB. 63 

Futtdi^mr and ekewhece in lufi nelg^ibourliood; 
whicli was £ur from cheering. He infonned us 
jtfaat the lOih Begini^it N« L5 which Ibrmed the 
Fottdighiir garrison^ had already broken ont 
into op^i mutiny, and threatened its officers, but 
had bev^ temporarily broug^ back to its duty, 
and was th^i apparently staunch; though in his 
opinion not to be depended on. The European 
rend^its, with die ezceptacm of the c^ficers of 
the 10th [Regiment and Major Bobertaon, in 
change of the gun-carriage manufactory, had, in 
consequence of the state of the r^m^it, left 
Futtehghur ; some of them had proceeded in boats 
to €awnp(»!e, and others, including Frobyn's wife 
and children, were at a fort across the Ganges, in 
Oude, bdoBging to a zemindar of coniiderable 
influ^^ce named Hnrdeo Bukih, who had o&red 
to protect them. 

Frobyn urged us vesty slron^y to join this 
party: we w«re, however^. mocA desirous of pro- 
ceeding down to Cawnpcu^ by hoat; and this 
plim we should no doubt lutve fellowedj but 
(most providentially fer ms) inteUigence, which 
iiH[>eated to be Authentic, reached Probyn during 
the day that the troops there bad mutinied^ 
bun^ the cantoqm^ts, and Attacked the Euro* 



64 SOJOURN AT FUTTEHGHUB. 

peans. We then wished to make for Agra ; but 
Probyn declared this impracticable, from the state 
of the roads, and the large bodies of mutineers 
passing up towards Delhi There was nothing for 
it, therefore, but to follow Probyn's advice; and 
happily, for me at least, it was that I did so. 

We remained this day, the 9th of June, at Fut- 
tehghur. While there. Colonel Smith, command- 
ing the 10th N.I., and Major Vibart, of the 2nd 
Light Cavalry, called upon me ; the ktter, when 
on his way to join his own regiment at Cawn- 
pore, had volunteered to remain with Colonel 
Smith, who gladly availed himself of the offer. 
Major Vibart had commanded the party of the 
10th N. I. who the day before quelled the riot in 
the gaol; and he had received on that occasion 
a severe contusion under the left eye, from a 
brickbat thrown by one of the prisoners^ Both he 
and Smith seemed very sanguine that the regiment 
would remain faithful; more especially as news 
had just been received of a successftd action 
against the mutineers near Delhi, by the Meerut 
troops under General Wilson. 

We remained at Futtehghur until the after- 
noon of the 10th, when we crossed the Ganges 
and joined the party at Dhurumpore, Hurdeo 



> ABBIYAL AT DHURtJHFOBE. 65 

Buksh's fort The heat was most intense ; the smi 
blistering mj hands into a mass of pulp^ but 
doing me no farther harm. We found a large 
assemblage of people congregated in the fort; 
among them the Judge of Futtehghur, Thomhill, 
the Rev. Mr. Fisher^ and my former assistant at 
Budaon^ Robert Louis^ with their wives and 
children. This party had been already some 
days at Dhurumpore, and were very much dis- 
satisfied with their position. I must say I thought 
very justly ; for the fort was in so dilapidated 
a condition^ that successfully to defend it against 
any organized attack of the mutineers was quite 
hopeless. The accounts they had heard of the 
10th N. I. putting down the outbreak at the 
gaol and returning to their duty, led them to 
believe that there was no longer any danger to be 
apprehended from the regiment, which would now 
continue staunch. They accordingly determined 
to abandon Dhurumpore, and return in a body 
to Futtehghur, notwithstanding Probyn's repeated 
remonstrances against the step, and his assurances 
from the information he possessed, that the 
regiment was not to be depended on, and only 
remained true to its duty until such time as they 
found it convenient to mutiny; which depended 

5 



66 nimBO BtiKSB; 

OS the moremfaaJt& of (^ber mTitizK>iis ccarps wi& 
-wittmi th^ w^e in daflj eocrespcMBdencQ; 

Prcbyn himself^ and his (mnlj, consia^iaig of 
liis wife and &iir diildren, determined to remain 
tUKler Hnrdeo Bciksh's proteetbn ;] an act wbidi 
the partj leaving ccmsidered one of great and 
foolhardy rashness. I at first intended to accom- 
panj them hack to Fnttel^ur^ along wilh 
the two Donalds, who were also returning; whoa 
a sndden thought strnck n^ that I had hettor 
stay with Probyn^ and I asked Hnrdeo Boksh's 
ag^it if his master had any objection to my 
dobg so. He at osice> on behalf of his master^ 
b^ged that I would remain. The party left 
Dhnrumpore the night gf the 11th and reached 
Fntteh^nr next morning. 

On the 12th I recdred letters firom Ijonia aad 
Vibart begging ns to jdn them, aspiring ns that 
the raiment was qnite stannch, and that we were 
in much danger at DhnrniEqpore^ as Hnrdeo Buksh 
would certainly Ml jss, if any pressure was put 
npon him. I showed these communications ta 
Probyn^ who expressed complete confideifece in 
Hurdeo Buksh, and none whaterer in iim 
fidelity of the 10th. His prognosticatkms; proved 
correct;, showmg the accuracy of tihe informa- 



A WBLCOMK ASBIYAL. 67 

tkm on which he had been acting thronghouL 
Had Colonel Smith and the other o£Scers oi tbe 
lOth^ as well as the others attached to the station, 
listened to his advice^ the fort of Futtefaghar 
wonld, early in May, haye been provisioned aiHl 
garrisoned by pensioners, and others to be 
depended on; and so all the calamities whidh 
subsequently occurred would, in all probabfliiy, 
have been averted. Providence, however, ordered 
it otherwise. 

About 10 P.M. on the evening of the 13th, as I 
was lying half asleep, I was aroused by hearing 
a familiar and welcome voice saying, ^'Tdl the 
Sahib, Wuzeer Singh has come;" I at once 
jumped up and called him in, right glad to have 
him again with me. He informed me that on 
bdng separated firom me in the crowd sA Shum- 
shabad, and seeing me ride off, he had no hope of 
rejoining me; he had» therrfore, to ensure his 
own safety, concealed himself among the bushes 
in the garden. There he remained during the 
attack made upon us till the crowd dispersed^ 
and was lucky enough to escape notice. He saw 
poor Mr. Gibson cut to i»tees, and his body 
lying at the gateway, where it remained until 
the evening; crowds of the villagers coming up 



68 wuzEEB singe's escape. 

to look at it; yelling round it, and exhibiting the 
greatest demonstrations of joy at the sight — as 
he expressed it ^^ rejoicing as they do at a 
marriage." « At nightfall two sweepers dragged 
off the body and threw it on a dunghill, where it 
was devoured by the dogs. He also saw the 
poor man's riding camel taken in triumph into the 
inner court of the Nawab Doolah's house, to 
be exhibited to him. Wuzeer Singh lay close 
the whole of that night, and the next day, until 
evening; when he was discovered by a man, who, 
however, did not give information, but pitying him 
brought him a little food, and told him that I had 
not been killed, but had escaped into Futtehghur. 
At nightfall Wuzeer Singh left his place of 
concealment, and, in consequence of this intelli- 
gence, made his way to Futtehghur during the 
night Reaching it early in the morning he 
searched for me in vain through the cantonments. 
At last hearing that some Europeans were still at 
Dhurumpore, he made his way across the Ganges, 
in hopes of finding me among them ; in which he 
was successful, as I have already described. He 
brought with him the whole of the money with 
which I had entrusted him on starting from 
Budaon; as also my gun, which he had con- 



Mumnr oe the fobty-fibst and tbnth n. l 69 

trived to carry off safe from the midst of the 
enemy. 

For two days after the return of the Europeans 
to Futtehghur, all went well, and the 10th did 
their duty as usual. 

Suddenly the 41st N. L, which had been 
quartered at Seetapore in Oude, having mu- 
tinied and massacred the Europeans there, and 
marched towards Futtehghur, were reported to 
have arrived on the bank of the Ganges, opposite 
Furruckabad. On this intelligence reaching the 
10th, it at once rose in mutiny. Fortunately 
this occurred early in t\e morning of the 14th of 
June ; and as the Europeans, who had taken the 
precaution since [their return of sleeping in 
the fort, had not then left it, they escaped being 
massacred. 

The first act of the regiment was to march 
to the Nawab, lay the colours of the regiment at 
his feet, offer him their services, and fire a salute 
in his honour. The first intimation we received of 
what was going on was the firing of this salute ; 
which, as it consisted of 30 or 40 guns, fired very 
irregularly, native fashion, we imagined must be 
an attack on the fort We. saw at once, from 
the consternation excited thereby among Hurdeo 



70 0IIKS PIOINDQBD AlTD IfOUNTEB. 

Buksh's people, that there was not much to be 
expected from them, should the mutineers make 
an J attack npcoi Dhnmmpoze. 

During the day [we recieyed Tery conflicting 
reports from Futtehghur: at one lime, that 
the 41st were not gcang near the town, but 
strai^t <m to Delhi, and that the 10th had 
sent them word that if the j adyunced nearer 
than the bridge, thej would attack them. We 
were then told to keep quite close within a 
room to avoid being seen, and to admit no 
one. While sitting there, we were disturbed 
by a knocking and dig^g at one of the outer 
walls of dus room, whidi ccmtinued many hours. 
The ndse suddenly ceased, and on going out 
in the evs^iiiig, as we were permitted to do, 
were much surprised to see that a fine IS^^ponnder 
gun had been dug out of tiie wall; where it 
had be^i concealed since the proclanuKtion issued 
last year by the Resident at Lucknow to the 
Talookdars of Oode requiring them to give up 
mil their ordnanca A 24-pounder was at the 
same time produced from a field, where it had 
been concealed about fifiy yards from a Neem 
tree, wiiich marked its positicm. The wheels and 
other p(»*tions of ^ carriages of these guns were 



coiofonc^i m ^the van. 71 

^led up from weUs^ whece diejliad beoi luddeiu 
Four other gam <^ diffiaieiit calU^res were 
bioaght in from die chief viUages in the nei^i- 
boorhood, where they had been concealed; and 
all six were mouiited and in positum in the courts 
jmrd ready for aervioe by night£dL We heard 
that there were many more guns which could be 
produced if need be. 

Tlie gons were Jiot biongfat into positicm sooner 
than they were xe(|iiired; for suddenly^ about 
8 p. u,, there was a great commotion in the fort> 
and messengers despatched in fiery haste in 
different directi(ms to collect the chiefs feudal 
retainers; the akrm having been given that a 
large body of mutineers had crossed the Ganges^ 
and were marching towards Dhurumpore to seiae 
tiie two Collectors (as Probyn and myself were 
called), and plunder the fort In an iad*edibly 
short space of time j»ariy one thousand peopk, all 
mnrad wiih some wei^xm or another, had, in 
answer to iheir Ghiers summons, assembled at 
1^ residence, ready to do their best to oppose 
the expected enemy. Tli» gon&, with these 
retainers m die rear, were drawn up just outside 
^ gate id the fort; and there Probyn and I 
joned Hurdeo Buksh. We were far from bdqg 



72 OBDEBED TO LEAVE DHUBUMPOBE. 

favonrablj r^arded by his people, who looked 
upon OS as the proximate cause of the mutineers 
advancing on Dhurumpore : the latter having been 
attracted by the report, quite false though very 
generally believed, that Probyn had removed to 
Hurdeo Buksh's care several lakhs of the Govern- 
ment treasure ; which they, of course, wished to 
appropriate. 

Scarcely had we joined Hurdeo Buksh, when 
he intimated to us that we must at once leave 
Dhurumpore, and proceed to a small village 
across the Bamgunga, three miles off, where 
some connections of his own would receive 
and conceal us. This move he declared would 
not only ensure our safety, but his own also; 
as he said he should then be able, if the 
mutineers did actually come to Dhurumpore, to 
show them the interior of the fort and convince 
them we were not within. Probyn and I 
demurred greatly to this plan at first Probyn 
said to me, ** It is better to die fighting where we 
are, for if we once leave Dhurumpore we shall 
have our throats cut in half an hour.** I saw, 
however, that Hurdeo Buksh was in earnest, and 
that he would on no account permit us to remain 
longer with him. I therefore went up to him. 



WE LEAVE DHURUHFOBE. 73 

and seizing his right hand, said that we would 
at once go, if he would pledge his honour as a 
Rajpoot for our safety. This he at once did, 
and that most heartily, saying — ^^^My blood first 
shall be shed before a hair of your heads are 
touched: after I am gone, of course, my power 
is at an end, I can help you no longer." 

I knew of old that when a Rajpoot Chief once 
gave his right hand and pledged his honour, his 
word might be fully depended on; and I told 
Probyn and his wife that I thought we ought to 
lose no time in moving off and doing as Hurdeo 
Buksh desired us. We accordingly gathered 
together our bedding and a few things for' the 
four children, and started : Mrs. Probyn carrying 
one child, I the baby, Wuzeer Singh a third 
as well as my gun, and Probyn's servant the 
fourth child. Probyn himself carried his three 
guns and ammunition. How thankful did I feel 
at that moment that my wife and child were, 
as I hoped, safe in the hills, and that I had to 
face alone these alarms and perils. 

We had to walk for about a mile till we 
reached the ferry of the Ramgunga, where we 
were detained for a long time waiting for a boat 
At last it came, and we crossed about midnight 



74 jutimrjLL ^kx ^xmsowRKM. 

Afiier wmlking about two miks <m we feacbed 
ibe village of ^EjasBowrab," and w^^ very idviUy 
received by the Tbako(»rSy wbo were undies of 
Hnrdeo Boksh; but of an infeckir rank^ as 
tbeir mother had never been mamed to ibeir 
filths. 

We were led throa^ seve9:al endosures to 
aa imier one where thoo were cattle penned^ 
a mare with her So$l, and several goats. Thk, 
we were told, was to be assigned as cor qaart^rs : 
dome of the animals wene cleared out lor ns, 
the rest, we were pronused, would be r^noved 
next mornii^. We found it impossible to sle^ 
fiom the excitement^ the filth of the place, and 
tiie effluvia of the animals, and wore veiy miser- 
able and dqiressed. In the morning we contrived 
to make oursdves more OHnfcrtable, our four- 
footed compani(ms having been sent out to grasEe. 

We were informed diat a body of sqpoys, two 
hcmdred and fifiy strong, bdong^ to the 10th 
Native Infantry, had actually crossed the Ganges 
the night before, giving out that their intention 
was to attack and {Jhmder I&urumpore, and seize 
and murder us. This body advanced to within 
ashort distance of the place, when they suddenly 
struck off towards Lucknow. They had with 



DESTBUC31DH OF ▲ PQfiSQON 07 THE XENTH K. L 75 

than three Jaldis of Iz^easure, ivdiidi &ey liad 
4»SBtrived to reiiKnre fit)m Enttelighiir withcHit 
tine knowledge of their comrades, yrho were 
decerml by &ear Btory iJhat they were CHily 
goii^to Dlmmmpore and would rejoin tiiem next 
day. 

Hvrdeo Biiksh's pec^le mshed to attack axsd 
guilder this party; but he very wisdiy wcmid 
not peraiit them, because, as he subseqi:»nt}y 
told lis, he ^feared that if osoce his pec^le got 
the taste of jdunder, he would never after be abte 
to restrain Aem.'' Thk party aecordiiigly passed 
tfaffou^ his estate perfectly tmmolested; but as 
soon as they crossed his bolder diey were attacked 
by the villagers of the next Talooqaa, plundered, 
and destroyed. They were acoxnpnied by an 
tsfficer of the lOtli Native Jnfioitry, whom they 
liad pr(»ni6ed to <x»iT«y safely into Lucknow; and 
on beii^ attacked by the villagers lliey d^red 
lius officer to leave lliem, as lliey said it wt& on 
h^ account they vrexe attacked. This he ^ was 
forced to do ; and after wandering about for scane 
tbne, as we afterwards learned, he received a sun- 
stroke while crossing a stream, and was carried 
in a dying state inio a village, where he sbortiy 
after expired. 



76 HEAYT CAlilffONADINa HEABD. 

We remained perfectly undisturbed at Kus- 
sowrah up to Sunday the 20th of June ; when 
we [were startled, about 4 p.Hm by hearing heavy 
guns open. At first we hoped it might be 
a salute, but soon recognised that peculiar 
sound of shotted guns so different from that 
enutted by blank cartridges; which, as well as 
the rapid and continued fire, convinced us that 
it was an attack on the fort. We were able 
also to distinguish replying guns. The fire 
slackened for a short time during the heat of 
the day, but towards evening became very heavy ; 
it continued so all night and next morning 
until midday, when it again slackened ; but only 
to recommence, as on the previous, day, with 
increased fury. There was one very heavy gun 
which was discharged every five or ten minutes 
during the whole time, and we always encouraged 
ourselves by imaginimg that this was one of those 
in the fort; which we earnestly trusted was on 
each discharge doing much execution among the 
enemy. 

Our anxiety during these miserable hours was 
well nigh overwhelming; forced as we were to 
remain inactive, and unable to aid in any way 
our poor beleaguered countrymen and women. 



COKIXICTING EEP0BT3. 77 

Probyn, on the commencement of the firing, 
sent a message to Hurdeo Bnksh (for we were 
prohibited from going to him, and he never came 
near ns), entreating him to send a body of his men 
to assist our people, and assuring him that in 
the event of their attacking the mutineers they 
would be handsomely rewarded. Hurdeo Buksh, 
however, sent a reply that it was quite impossible' 
for him to do so; as his people, although quite 
willing to peril their lives in our defence, and 
in repelling any attack on Dhurumpore, would 
not consent to' cross the Ganges, or act against the 
mutineers. 

In the meantime, we were receiving the most 
conflicting reports of what was going on at Futteh- 
ghur; one man would come in and say that the 
mutineers could make no impression on the fort, 
and had suflFered so severely from our fire that they 
had determined to abandon the attempt to take the 
place, and proceed to Delhi : scarcely had he left, 
when another of the villagers would cast down our 
hopes by informing us that our people were very 
hardly pressed, and were quite worn out by con- 
tinual ^fighting; that their feet and legs were so 
swollen with the fatigue of standing day and 
night at their posts, that they resembled those 



78 THOBHHECL'a USITBX^ 

of elephants^ wliile their ej&t were stariing firoiD 
tlior sockets for want (^ sle^; th^i ml eager 
meffiseoger would come hi firom Hitrdeo Bnksfa, 
to say that he had sore intdUi^esKse that our 
peojJe were all safe^ and that the 41st Raiment 
were so d^>irited that thi^ were to raise the i»ege 
and move off next moormng: no sooner bad h& 
d^yered his news than we were UM that the 
Nana had <^ered the mi:rtinera*s s lakh of mpees 
(lO/KKM.) if they would carry the place by stoann^ 
and massacre the inmate^ and liiat they were pre- 
paring to escalade that n^t x Matters weit cm in 
this way until the 22nd^ when we prevailed on 
<me (^ Hnrdeo Bnksh's men to try and xtuke his 
way into Fntt^ighnr, and learn how mttttera 
really stood. He went away, promiaing to bring 
ns back news by the following night. 

As we were sitting together on the afternoon 
of the 22nd, listenfa^ to the firing (whidi by thb 
time was incessant), and in the deepest angnif^h of 
mind, Probyn recdyed a note firom our pocnr fiiesid 
Robert Thomhill, the Judge dF Fnttehghur. The 
messei^r who conveyed it had left the fort the 
previous evening ; having eluded the besiegers by 
dropping down from the wall into the Granges aad 
swimming across. The note was written in great 



hasten and under deep dqnresnoiit almost despafar; 
in&nniz^ ns that they had been assuled without 
intearxnisiuitt Sat the past forty-eight hours by the 
41^ Natiye Infantry, who had been reinforced 
by the Mhow Pathans — ^that tbe garrison was com- 
jdetely worn out, and mast all perish, imlesa Gtod 
befriended them, ajoA sent them some speedy aid* 
He implored Probyn to induce Hurdeo Buksh 
to go to their assistance with all the men 1^ ccmld 
muster; guaranteeing him in that case the highest 
rewards uid pensions to all his men who were 
wounded^ and to the famiHes of those who might 
be killed* 

Probyn accordingly again communicated with 
Hurdeo Buksh^ by a messenger; but with no 
better success. We could, therefore, only send 
a reply to that effect to our poor firiends in 
the garrison; and it almost broke ovr hearts to 
have to do so* Probyn advised Thomhill to 
endearour to get the assktance of a body of 
m^i 'in Furruckabad, called ^^Sadhs;" a fight-^ 
ing class of religionists, who were supposed to be 
very hostile to the sepoys and would act against 
th^n* 

In the same afternoon we were Tisited by 
two bankers firom Furruckabad* When they 



80 DOUBTFUL FBIENDS. 

appeared; I said to Probyn that I did not 
like their manner^ and was sure thej were after 
no good, and were spies. He, however, said 
he knew them to be well-wishers.^ They ex- 
pressed the greatest pity for our miserable position, 
shut up in a cowhouse without comforts of any 
kind, and with our lives hanging by a thread ;' 
they assured us of their great anxiety to help 
us in any way we could point out ; and gave us 
very cheering accounts of Futtehghur, saying 
that the mutineers as well as the Mhow men were 
much dispirited, and that there was no danger 
of the garrison falling into their hands. They 
then left us, saying they would send us daily 
intelligence from Furruckabad of wliat was going 
on. 

All this night the fire from both sides was 
incessant, and some persons belonging to the 
village, who had been in the neighbourhood of the 
Ganges during the day, told us, on their return, 
that the musketry fire was also tremendous and 
the loss on both sides very heavy. 

About noon on the 24th, our messenger 
returned. He had contrived to make his way 
into the fort, and had seen and spoken with 
some of those inside. Among them to Thomhill, 



BAD NEWS FROM FUTTEHGHUR. 81 

and Robert Lowis. He had been, he asserted, 
seized by the sepoys, and obKged in self-defence to 
drop a note he was conveying to me from' Lowis, 
and which accordingly we never saw. 

He told us that the case of those within the 
fort was desperate; that, although fighting with the 
most undaunted resolution, human nature could 
not hold out much longer; the entire remaining 
garrison having to remain on the alert night 
and day, and never for an instant leave their 
piosts. Their original number of thirty-two 
fighting men was then considerably reduced; 
Colonel Tucker, Mr, Jones, and an artillery 
sergeant having beeii shot dead at their posts, 
Mr. Phillimore of the 10th wounded, and R. 
Thornhill having accidentally shot himself in the 
right arm. The ladies, women, and children were 
shut up in Major Robertson's house inside the 
fort, where they were pretty safe from cannon 
shot One of them, the wife of the sergeant 
who was killed, had been shot dead; having 
first avenged her husband's death, by killing 
many of the mutineers with a rifle from the 
bastion, where she had taken her stand until 
killed. He told us that Colonel Smith, who 
was an unerring marksman, was killing numbers 



82 CBmcAL STATE <» nrrrBHOsim. 

of the enemy with a pea rifle from his post on 
the wall, wUch he iMver left; and that Yibart^ 
as we might have supposed from his undaunted 
character, was the real commandant <^ the fert, 
and going about among the thickest of the fire, 
direding and encouraging all. Our messenger, 
however, plainly sadd it was all in vain: that 
the drfence could not be much further pro- 
l<mged, as the ammunition of the garrison was 
failing, and the enemy had commenced mining 
the place, and by an explosion on the previous 
day, had considerably injured one of the bastions.. 
The mutineers had twice attempted to storm 
the fort by the breach thus formed; but were 
on both occasions driven bock with heavy loss. 
They were led the second time by one of the 
Mhow Pathans, Multan Khan; to whom I had 
been so greatly indebted a few days previous, 
when the attack t^as made on us at Shmnshabad 
This man was shot dead on the top of the 
breacL 

We were greatly distressed by this account 
of the state of things in Futtehghur, and also 
considerably alarmed for our own safety; as the 
messenger informed us that the two bankers 
who had visited us the previous day, had, on 



recroaah^ the {Ranges, goie $timghi to tibe Kii/wab 
and Subahdar coTrnnandipg the 41st Nathre lb* 
£aJ3Ary9 and iofonaed tbem lliat tibejr bad just 
'^fie€iii the Gdlectors of Fuitehghur and Bndaon^ 
who wece ooni^ed in I^aboor Kossitree Sink's 
bdbpee (hrm-jaxd), on ike eastern side just 
adgointag the road^ whesce a few armed men cookl 
easilj seiee sxid destroy tib^m*" The Hawah and 
Subahdar, on receayii^ tisis intell%enoe, had ^aad 
thsy would taJcie joaeasorei for aeizmg ns^ as soon 
as the fert was lak^i and the troops were at 

Two other miserable nights and days passed 
oyer ns; the cannonade r^witiiming as heaTy as 
on the proTioits (mes* ;&iddenly, about Are in 
tfae morning of (I think) the 29!th Juste, it 
entirelj ceased. W^ at ^nce imagined ith»t the 
besk^ers had is^onmi siaccessfttUy, and we eoald 
mij look at each other in sil^Kt :a3^nish ; feeling 
aisKred that our pooor fdends and ae^pmntanees, 
men, wcmen, and xihildren, weise a.t that moment 
being butchered hjA hlood-ihii^j and asaerciless 



All remained perfectly still iur more than two 
haours. Wuiseer Singh went ont to try asRl gather 
some inteUigenee, hat retmsed nnsuccessfcd^^^e 



84 BAD NEWS FROM rUTTEHGHUR. 

TiMagers being quite as ignorant as we were our- 
selves of what had taken place. 

It is impossible to describe the state of mind we 
were in. Suddenly we were aroused from a kind 
of silent stupor, into which we had fallen, by the 
renewed and quick and irregular firing of heavy 
guns; the sound coming from another quarter than 
hitherto, and ftirther down the river than Futteh- 
ghur. We were listening attentively' to every 
shot, pacing up and down the narrow space allotted 
to us, and not daring to exchange a word with 
each other, when a messenger came in fr6m 
.Hurdeo Buksh. 

This man had been sent to the bank of the Granges 
as soon as the firing ceased, in the early morning, 
to ascertai^i fiie cause, and having delivered the 
intelligence he had gathered to his master, had 
been sent on to tell us the news. Disastrous 
enough it was: during the night the Europeans 
had evacuated the fort and betaken themselves 
to three boats, which had been secured before 
the siege, and anchored under the river in face of 
the fort, ready for embarkation if required. 
They had, of course, hoped to be able to float 
down the stream unnoticed, and to be, before the 
morning broke, beyond the reach of the sepoys' 



FUamYES FIBED UPON. 85 

fire. Much time, however, had been lost in 
getting the women and children into these boats, 
together with the baggage, anununition, and stores ; 
so that they had only got a short way down the 
river when day dawned, and they were observed. 
As soon as they saw they were perceived and the 
alarm given, the boats made for our side of 
the river, and were dropping down the stream 
when the heaviest laden grounded about three 
miles below Futtehghur, and remained immoveably 
fixed, notwithstanding all the efforts of the male 
portion of those on board, who got into the stream, 
to lighten and shove her off. It then became 
necessary to abandon this boat, and to summon 
back the nearest; which was obliged to work up 
stream, in order to take the passengeiB on board. 

It was while engaged in tran^erring the un* 
happy people from the one to the other, that 
the sepoys, having draped four heavy guns 
along the river bank opposite the boats, had 
opened on them. This was the fire which was 
now going on; and, as we feared, with inevitable 
fatal effect to all. 

The messenger had left as the firing was being 
continued, and while the second boat, having taken 
on board its passengers, was endeavouring to drop 



80 AFVUOnSQ miEUJBVBCX, 

down the stream. The oclj c(»asolation he gaye 
US was^ that the boats were out (^ grape range, 
and that the firmg being high, many q£ the 
balls had passed oyer the fogitives and bnried 
themselyes in the sand on Ait bank of the riyer. 
We begged of him to go off for more tidings ', 
which we awaited with anxiety far too deqp 
and terrible to be* described. Men were every 
now and then roshing in with yagoe reports. 
At one time the boats were said to haye sni^; 
at another, they were reported floating down 
the stream unharmed, and beycmd the range of 
the sepoys' gnns. This we hoped was tme, as the 
firing had gradually slackened, and then ceased 
for seyeral hours. 

About four o'clock in the afternoon, howerer, 
we were again aroused by the firing of heavy 
guns, apparently fi*om a good way down the 
river, which lasted for about an hour. We 
remained in a state of the most painful suspense; 
but only the moat conflicting rumours reached 
us, until late at night, when a horseman des^ 
patched to the river by Hurdeo Buksh, returned 
with the awftd intelligence that of the two boats 
which had succeeded in escsLpng from Futteh* 
g^ur, one had grounded near the village of 



FUCOTITES PBOWKXD OB UABUCSED. 87 

Sing^nunpore, and remained immoYeable^ not- 
withstanding every effort to fioat her ; the sepoys, 
who had been watching her movements from the 
h9X3k, had dragged down t?ro guns opposite this 
boat and opened fire upon her. Two boats 
faJl of sepoys came also down the sti^eam, and 
as 9ooa as they were within range <qpened a 
heavy fire of musketry on the unfortunate party ; 
and when tibey had approadied close Plough, 
commenced boarding, under the cover of this fire. 

Th^re was no help left. Of diose in 1^ boat, 
tii^ greater number jumped into the Granges 
and escaped a worse fiite by being eidier shot 
down or drowned; nom» were massacred <m 
board, and three or four ladies w^re taken pri- 
Boaers and conveyed on shore. The o&er boat, 
which was considerably in advance, altjiongh 
attacked at Sii^erampore had contrived to eseape, 
and was reported to have got safely away. It is 
said to have containfid the Lewises and Thombills. 
May God grant thai tha rmnonrs which now 
neach t» of its hanrxng s$£dj reacfaed Allahahad 
maybetrae. . 

This intdyUgcnce was too tecr3)]e for ns to 
bdieve; and yet it was impasnUe evAtAj to 
discredit it We tmsted lliat in ihe monmg 



88 BEPOBTED ESCAPE OF THREE LADIES. 

better news might reach us. In the meantime 
we passed a miserable nighty silent and dejected ; 
alternately sitting down^ and rising up and pacing 
to and fro the small space of the enclosure. 
Earnestly and repeatedly did we three join in 
prayer, that God, in his infinite mercy, would 
shield and protect his poor people, *^who were 
called by his name," and save them out of the 
hands of the enemy, and conduct them to some 
haven of safety. 

The next morning the tidings of the previous 
day were confirmed. Of those who were in the 
last boat, none had escaped, except three of 

the ladies — Mrs. Fitzgerald, Miss , and Mrs. 

Jones, with her little daughter of eight or nine 
years old — who had all been taken to Fur^ 
ruckabad and made over to the Nawab: also 
one man, described to us as a sergeant, who had 
come ashore, desperately wounded, close to one of 
Hurdeo Buksh's villages, and had been imme- 
diately sheltered and cared for by his orders. 
This person we afterwards discovered was Major 
Robertson. All was now silent: the work of 
slaughter was over, and no more firing was heard. 
We were, therefore, left to brood over our own 
position, which now became one of extreme peril 



A PBICE SBT UPON OUB HEADS. 89 

The sepoys of the 41st, the ** Dubyes" as they 
were called, were now disengaged ; and the Nawab, 
acting on the information as to our place of hiding, 
which he had received from the bankers, was 
reported to be about sendmg over a detachment to 
seize us. He sent messengers across to Hurdeo 
Buksh, informing him that the English rule was 
at an end ; that he had killed all belonging to that 
nation, who had been stationed in Futtehghur, 
and demanded from him an advance of a lakh 
of rupees (10,0002.), as his contribution towards 
the expenses of the new raj. The Nawab, 
however, intimated at the same time to Hurdeo 
Buksh, that he was prepared to waive this 
demand, provided he would send him in by 
the evening, the two Collectors' heads — ^Probyn*s 
and my own. The intelligence of this demand 
having been made was soon conveyed to us, and 
we were told that Hurdeo Buksh had thought 
it best to temporize. He had therefore replied 
to the Nawab that he would think about the 
matter, and send an answer afterwards. We felt 
pretty confident that Hurdeo Buksh would not 
give us up ; but we thought it best to do what we 
could for our own safety, and to encourage him 
to oppose the Nawab. We therefore begged of 



90 BISASTBOISB HSWS. 

him to pay ns a visits and we were prohibited from 
geing to see him at Dhurampore. 

After seyeral days* dday, during which we were 
tortured by frequent reports of detachments of 
troops from Futtdighnr being m fall march <m 
Enssowrah to seize ns (which they might eanly 
have done had they been at all enterprisii^), 
Hnrdeo Bnksh visited us late at night He was 
evid^ady in much anxiety about the safety of 
himself and his family; which was aen/o^j com- 
promised in consequence of his havii^ harboured 
us. He told us that^ besides the commonicatum 
already alluded to^ he had receired sundry other 
messages from the Nawab and the two subahdar» 
in command of the mutineers, threat^ung, if he 
did not giye us up, to take very complete revei^ 
upon himself and his peqple. 

He gave us at the same time a very dq>l(»rable 
account of affairs around us; saying that Nana 
Sahib had assumed command of die mutineers at 
Cawnpore, where the En^h had been so com-- 
pl^ly destroyed that not a dog renudned in the 
cantonment ; that Agra was besieged ; diat our 
troops at Delhi had been beaten back, and were 
in a state of si^e on the top of a htfl near 
there; that the troops in Oude had also mutinied, 
and Lucknow was closely invested. 



PBTIDEKCE AND VmBLITT OF HIHEtDBO BUESH. 91 

He^ however^ assured us that he wotdd never 
gire us up to the Nawab ; bul^ vriA. his people^ 
do his best to o^poet any force which mi^t be 
sent against Dhnmmpore from Fnimckabad, fcur 
the ptnpose of seizing ns : at the same time he 
said he thought his wisest coorsie was to temporiae. 
He had^ therefore^ sent a confidential agent to the 
Nawab to saj that ''he was widi him, but as 
he had always, until the annexaticai of Oade> 
been immediately under that Government, he did 
not like to act without previous communicatioii 
with Lucknow; to whidi place he had sent a 
messenger, inferming the new authorities there 
that he had two Collector sahibs with hhn, and 
asking what he should do with th^n. If they 
did not otherwise instruct him, he would then 
make us over to the Nawab; but it was quite 
imperative on him, be£bre doing anything, to 
await the return of his messenger, who might 
be expected in ten or twelve days." The Nawab 
and the subahdars had, Hurdeo Buksh infanr^ 
ruh expressed themselves satisfied with this ex- 
planation. 

In this way he hoped to gain time, until the 
runs, now close at hand, feU; when the Ham* 
gonga and Ganges would rpie in flood, and the 



92 DOUBT AND PEBPLEXITT. 

whole country be inundated^ so that Dhurompore 
and Kussowrah would become islands surrounded 
with water for miles; he might then defy the 
sepoys, as it would be impossible for them to 
bring guns against him, and they would not dare 
to move without artiUery. 

It was nearly morning when Hurdeo Buksh 
left us, not much encouraged by his visit, and in 
a state of great doubt and perplexity. Thp tone 
of the people had, since the fall of Futtehghur, 
much changed towards us : they had become 
insolent, overbearing, and threatening ; clearly 
giving us to know that they wished us no good, 
and that it was only the fear of the *^ Konwur," 
as they termed Hurdeo Buksh, that prevented 
their getting rid of us. A day or two after 
this, we were visited by a connection of Hurdeo 
Buksh called the " Collector Sahib," acccompanied 
by another relation, who we know bore the 
bitterest animosity towards us. We felt that 
their coming boded us no gocJd, and it was with 
much anxiety that we received them and awaited 
their communication. They told us that it was 
quite impossible for Hurdeo Buksh to protect 
us any longer: he had already risked enough 
for us: we must novj therefore, leave his pro- 



OBDEBED TO STABT FOB CAW17F0BE. 93 

tectlon and shift for ourselves. He had^ they 
told os^ sent them to tell us to prepare to start 
in a boat down the Ramgunga for Cawnpore; 
which place they asserted had not yet fidlen^ and 
which we might easily reach. We remonstrated 
against this arrangement^ telling them it was 
quite contrary to Hurdeo Buksh's own senti- 
ments so lately expressed to us by himself. 
They, however, would listen to no expostulations, 
and ordered us to be ready to start by next 
evening, by which time the boat would be pre- 
pared for us. The two old Thakoors of the 
village, who ever since our arrival had been 
miiformly kind and civil to us, as well as Seeta 
Ram, a poor Brahmin who had shown us much 
kindness and sympathy, depriving his own family 
of milk to give it to Probyn's children, en- 
treated us not to proceed in the boat; assuring 
us that if we did so the villagers on the banks 
would murder us before we had gone five miles 
down the stream. We tried to communicate 
with Hurdeo Biiksh; but our messengers were 
not permitted to cross the Ramgunga, which lay 
between us and Dhurumpore : we were, therefore, 
quite helpless, and could only do as we were 
ordered, and prepare ourselves to go to what we 



94 hdbutt of a sibyaht. 

ftlt assured was certain death* So convinced we^e 
lite natives that the expedidon would be fiital to 
uh that Probyn's three senraittB^ hitherto tsaAM, 
refused to accompany him. 

I then determined wA to take Wnzeer Singh 
with me, but to send him to Nynee TaI widi a 
ftrewell note and my Utde Tertamei^ to my wife, 
to teQ her what had become of me. I aomnioiied 
him iosr dns purpose, and UAd him diat he mcmt 
BOW leave me, as I was going on a joomey wfaidi 
would, in all probahiHty, be &tal to us; that 
I could not idlow him to perish on my aoooront, 
which he would do if he accompanied us, and 
that he most try and reach my wife and tell 
faer aU that had be£aUen me. He expressed l3ie 
greatest relactanoe to learn me, and only con- 
aented to do so at mj earnest and repeated soHci- 
tttionk We then joined in pcay«r together, as 
I aurely tbou^ hr ^ last tone on oardi. 
I implored him never to desert his faith or 
TOvert to idolatry; but, whatever happened, to 
<£Bg to tike Savioor he had imoe acknoidedged. 
lie wept much, and we parted; but, as it 
haiipened, ouly fiir a short lime. In little more 
than an hour he came back into my room, and, 
throwing down the little parcel cm the bed# said 



A BEFBIBTE. 95 

he oonUL not ga: he entreated Ihat I might allow 
him to aecoBipany me^ saying, almost in the words 
<^Bath to Naomi, ^' Where you go I will go, and 
where yoa die I will die also*" So determined 
was he to share my &te, that I was forced to con- 
jsent to his acconq^Minying me. 

We had got our little baggage ready, and were 
{prepared to start, almost resigned to our fate^ 
when Grod in His infinite meity, and in answer 
to our prayers^ interposed to j^event our going. 
When the messenger appeared, about 8 p.m., as 
we thought to summon us to start, he inf(mned us 
that the boat Tpas not quite ready, and that we 
could not moTe that night Thus we were 
repriered for the time, as it were, from cettain 
destruction ; for not one df us expected to see the 
morning light After this, we were allowed to 
remm Ihr a day or two immdiested. 

The Bamgunga having in the meantime con* 
sidmbly nsen^ we were then informed that the 
voyage was in consequence quite safe, and that as 
the boat was ready we most be prepared to depart 
in the evening. Again did the Ti»koors and Seeta 
Bam impl<Nre us to nefase to leave the village; we 
were, however, quite hdpless, and could only obey. 

About 8 o'clock in the evening, I forget the 



96 . OUK COURSE DIVEETBD. 

precise date, we started from the village to embark ; 
Wuzeer Singh and two of Probyn's servants, who 
had on ihis occasion volunteered to accompany 
him, carrying our little baggage, and what 
necessaries for the boat we could collect; Mr. 
and Mrs. Probyn, each carrying a child, and I 
taking the baby, the only one of the children who 
would come to me.' The old Thakoor Kussuree 
came with us to the end of the village, but declined 
going any further; saying, he could not be a 
party to conducting us to what he knew was 
intended for our destruction. 

The road leading to the Ramgunga from the 
village was one mass of mud and water; poor 
Mrs. Probyn was scarcely able to wade through it, 
and we could aflfbrd her but little assistance. We 
had proceeded about half a mile in the direction 
of the boat, when a breathless messenger met us 
from Dhurumpore, telling us to turn back at once, 
and proceed to a village beyond Kussowrah 
instead of to the boat; as the sepoys were in fall 
march from Futtehghur to attack Dhurumpore, 
and that Hurdeo Buksh had gone out to meet 
them with his people. We returned back in 
accordance with these orders; every moment 
expecting to hear the firing commence* 



OUB COUBSE DIVEKTED. 9^ 

We had gone about three miles in the direction 
of the village indicated, when we were overtaken 
by a second messenger from Dhunmipore, order- 
ing us back to the boat ; as .the sepoys> who had 
advanced some way towards Dhurumpore, had 
retreated, and were reported to be re-crossing the 
Ganges. Accordingly we again retraced our steps, 
and stopped half an hour in Kussowrah to rest ; as 
Mrs. Probyn, who had on this, as on every other 
occasion, shown the most patient fortitude, was 
very much exhausted, and her clothes saturated 
with wet and mud. We were not allowed to 
remain long, but were ordered off, as we thought 
finally, to embark in the boat God mercifully, 
however, ordered it otherwise. 

When about half-way between Kussowrah and 
the river, we held a consultation together : it was 
determined as a last resource, that Probyn should 
go on ahead of us, try to get across the river 
to Dhurumpore, and procure an interview with 
Hurdeo Buksh ; as we thought that by so doing, 
he might prevail on him not to expose us to 
a cruel death by sending i;is down the river 
without a guard, and with boatmen who would 
certainly desert us. He started; and Mrs. Probyn, 
the children, Wuzeer Singh, and I, followed, 

7 



98 lOACH BAHOXnrttA* 

imd after maeh iatigae reached tlie bank of the 
San^anga. We were dkma^^ «it finding the 
stream^ instead of bei^ in flood as w^e •expected^ a 
mere thread; so that 1^ Tilli^erg on either bank 
could, -witboat much difficulty^ reach the boat 
with th^ matcUocks as it passed down^ and 
destroy us. No boat, however, was on the bank, 
which was one outss of thick mud. A log of 
wood formshed a seat for Mrs. Probyn, who was 
bj this time much exhausted; and a cloth was 
spread for the children on the driest q>ot we 
could find, where thej slept in their innoceiK^ 
as soundly and securely as if they had been in 
th^beds. 

In this position we remained for about an hour, 
and were ^cpresdng our surprise that Probyn, 
who had crossed the rivOT at the ferry, was so long 
rf rejoining us; when we were hailed by a man, 
who, we saw by the moonUght, was approaching 
us from some distance down the stream. He 
proved to be the cc»mection of Hurdeo Buksh 
who had visited us with the " Collector" some 
days previously, and we Mgued no good from 
his appearance. On this occasion, however, he 
agre^bly disappointed our forebodmgs; for he 
gave us the welcome order to go back to Kus^ 



A BEHARSIABLE DULTYEItANGE. 99 

«owrah, and there await ftirtlier instructions. We 
accordingly set out : I took tmB of the t^dren 
(Leslie) on my back, saai carried in my arms 
my poor little friend the baby: now '^poor" no 
longer; for he is *^ before the thnme df God," who 
has called him to Himself. We met one of ihe 
Thakoors, who lent his arm to Mrs. Probyn : she 
being too much fatigued to proceed without his 
help. We reached our old quarters about 3 A.M., 
soaking wet, and thoroughly worn out ; as we had 
been moving almost cofltinuoudy from 6 r.M. In 
about an hour after our arrival, Probyn joined 
us. He had been ftrtunate enough to see Hurdeo 
Buksh, who was at first displeased at his imex- 
pected appearance; but dfter Probyn had ex- 
plained, was very gracious, and assured him that 
for the present he would abandon all intention of 
sending us down the river. We then joined in 
prayer and thanksgiving to God for His gracious 
interference in our behalf, in thus delivering us 
in so remarkable a manner from this imminent 
danger ; entreating, at the same time. His guid- 
ance and protection for the future. 

After this, several days passed witiiout much 
incident; except that Wuzeer Singh on one 
occasion came in to report that, when strolling 



100 ACrnN IN JEOPAKDY. 

beyond the village, he had met several men whom 
he at once recognised as sepoys, almost naked, 
and in a very miserable plight. He had learnt 
from them that they were deserters from the 
mutineers at Delhi, and when going home with 
their plunder, had been attacked and stripped by 
the villagers near Mynpoorie. They told hint 
things were not prospering with the "mutineers at 
Delhi ; that they had suffered most severely, and 
were heartily sick of it This intelligence was for 
the time cheering; but we were soon depressed 
by the news, brought to us almost simultaneously 
from Dhurumpore, that the Nawab and Subahdars 
were becoming more urgent with Hurdeo Buksh 
to deliver us up, and had repeatedly forwarded 
purwannahs ordering him to destroy us and send 
in our heads. They had even gone so far as to 
send him a firman, purporting to be from the 
Emperor of Delhi, conveying the Imperial order 
for our destruction. 

Hurdeo Buksh sent his brother-in-law, one of 
his most confidential people, to us to explain 
how hardly he was pushed, and how much diffi- 
culty he had in protecting us. He had, therefore, 
come to the conclusion that our safest plan was to 
start for Lucknow, and was accordingly making 



PROSPECT OF ESCAPE. 101 

arrangements for our journey there, and for secur- 
ing protection for us by the way, through certain 
influential talookdars, friends of his. Hurdeo 
Buksh was led to recommend our going to 
Lucknow in consequence of the intelligence 
he had lately received, that the attack on the 
Residency had been signally repulsed, and the 
mutineers withdrawn from the town ; and, as the 
place was well provisioned, and contained plenty of 
ammunition, there was no fear of the garrison being 
unable to hold out: more especially as none of the 
Rajwarrahs, as the chief talookdars are called, 
had as yet joined in the rebellion; but on the 
contrary had stood quite aloof from the sepoys. 

We expressed to the brother-in-law our willing- 
ness, and indeed eagerness, to proceed at once 
to Lucknow, as recommended by Hurdeo Buksh. 
We were ourselves much pleased at the prospect 
of quitting Kussowrah, and finding ourselves once 
more among friends and countrymen. It was 
accordingly arranged that we should start on 
a certain night, as soon as it was dark, for 
Lucknow, by Sandee, which we were to reach in 
four marches. Our horses, which we had not 
seen since the 9th of June, were on the night 
appointed, sent up ftt)m Dhurumpore after dark. 



}Q3 DEI4X MSm ^^APPamXBfENT. 

&r the conveyance of Probyn and myself and 
a palanquin was prepared for Mrs. Prndiyn,. and 
ibe children. To ayoid observation as much as 
possiUe^ Probyn died hia face^ neck^ hands^ and 
feet, a dark brown.. Thi» was considered unne- 
oessary fas me; es^posure to* the sun having 
abeady made me almost as dark aa a natiTe,^so 
I escaped a very disagreeable process*. 

We w^?e sitting all ready to move, and, foe 
the first time in mai^ weeks^ were in something 
approaching; to oheerM spirits,, when rain came 
on; and^ to our bitter disappointment, we w«?e 
told that we could not in amseqiuence start that 
nights The next day we wei*e informed we mui^ 
not move until Hurdeo Buksh came to see 
us. again,, and that the time of his doing so, 
d^^^oded on the return of a messenger he had 
s^it to make some arrai^^nents for us ^i die 
road. We bad to wait four nights in this man- 
n^; feeling, much chagrined by the delay, and 
aecosing HJurdeo Buksh of supineness. On the 
fifth ni^^ he came about nudnight, and was more 
depressed than we had ever be&re seen him; 
he informed us that the lull at Lucknow had 
be^i ovlj tenq^ary ; that the mutineers, having 
been, reinforced, had agaui attacked &e Biesi* 



PBOYIBENXIAI* £B£SEBT^nON. 103 

dfiacj^ asud that fighting was going oa witkoot 
intemussioiiy day and night. He told us that just 
as we were going to start for Lncknow^ on the 
night first fixed for oixr departure^ a rumour 
had reached him of the renewal of hostilities. 
He had accordii^y seized the pretext -of the rain 
&lling to prevait our ^;airting, and had continued 
to detain us^ until he could ascertain the real 
alate <^ affidrs» by sending a messenger to the 
qpot This messenger had only now returned^ and 
confirmed the previous intelligence ; leaving little 
hope that the garrison, could long hold out against 
the multitudes attacking it Our plan of going to 
Lucknow was thus frustrated. Had we started 
as at first intended^ we must have fallen into 
the hands of the mutinea:s> and been massacred^ 
AgaiB^ therefore^ had we to praise God for havii^ 
delivered us &csn the imminent danger into 
which we were blindly rushing. 

Hurdeo Buksh ihean gave us the pleasing 
intelligence that the younger Mr. Jones and 
Mr. Churcher^ two of the Futtehghur party^ had 
escaped out of the boat whkh had been boarded 
near Singerampore by the sepoys, and were then 
concealed ia ooe of his villages. They had been 
hs^ so strictly hidden by the herdsmen among 



104 APPALLINa INTELLIGENCE. 

whom they were, that the fact had only a few 
days before come to his knowledge; and he 
had given orders that they should be provided 
with both food and clothing. 

The most appalling news, he, however, informed 
ns, had reached him from all quarters. There was 
no doubt whatever of the fall of Cawnpore, where 
every European had been destroyed. The party 
who had gone down the river by the first boats 
from Futtehghur, the American missionaries, the 
Monctons, Brierly, &c., had, he heard, been 
attacked and massacred near Bithoor. Agra 
was reported to have fallen, and the Europeans 
destroyed there, while attempting to make 
their way in boats down the Jumna. The 
Bombay army had revolted: and, to crown all, 
there were no signs of aid coming, nor troops 
arriving from any quarter. Under these cir- 
cumstances, he thought our only chance of 
safety was to remove secretly from Kussowrah — 
where the Nawab and sepoys, from the informa- 
tion given them by the bankers, knew we were 
living under his protection, and where we were 
never safe from attack — and go into hiding in 
one of his villages, situated about 20 miles distant 
in a very desolate part of the country, and 



AN UNWELCOME ABBANGEMENT. 105 

immediately on the bank of the Granges. In order 
to maintain secresy as to our position, the Probyns 
should only take one servant with them, while 
Wuzeer Singh should go with me. 

On this proposal being made, I felt confident 
that if once we left Kussowrah and the protection 
of the Thakoors to proceed to the village indi- 
cated, we should be left entirely to the mercy 
of some of Hurdeo Buksh's people; who were 
most anxious to get rid of us, and who would use 
the opportunity of having us in their hands, to 
put us on board a boat, and make us descend 
the river: which would be equivalent to certain 
death. There was not a moment to lose ; for go 
we must, should no other mode of providing for 
us than going to this village be determined on, 
before Hurdeo Buksh left. I whispered to 
Wuzeer Singh, who was kneeling behind me, 
during the interview, '* You hear what the Chief 
says: if we go to the village, we shall be all 
killed ; go out to the Thakoor Kussuree, and tell 
him what has been proposed, and beg of him to 
make some better arrangement for us.** In a few 
minutes he returned, and said, **It is all right: 
as soon as Hurdeo Buksh goes, Kussuree will 
meet him outside, and offer to be responsible 



106 AKOXBIS HiAH PfiOtOfiED. 

&c u% ami ta coneeal ii& ia eae of lua ewu 
Tillages'* 

Soon after* Huidea Baks^ took Us leaye of 
us^ to return tot DIumiinpore. I gaye a s^ 
to Wvzeer Sifigh to f<dlow> and l»ruig us back 
mtoyiffmc% of wkat passed between Hurdeo 
Bnksk and Kossuree. He soon ietumed» looking 
Tery clfeoerful^ and told us that all had been 
arranged as proposed* and tkd^ Huideo Buksh 
was himself coming back to tdl ua of the change 
of {dan* In a few minutes he came in, accom«- 
panied hy Knsauree, acd told us that Knssuree 
thonght he could hide us e&ctuaUy in the jungjL^ 
in a village nearear than tkit on the Ganges; 
we had better go wherever he arranged fi>r us, 
and put ourselves ^itirdy in his hands» This 
we at ooee gladly consented to do; and Hurdeo 
Buk^ leftus^ 

Next day> Kussuree infermed me that he was 
now entirely responsiMe for our sa&ty, and he 
feared he had madertaken more than he could 
perfi»nu I ^icouraged hmi, saying we Mt quite 
confident, and eaery- in our nunds* as Icmg as he 
remained with us. He then told me that it 
would be necessary tox him to go out into the 
jvngle — which extencbd for many miles towards 



IfOiKB or QOHdAXHEfiT* 107 

tbe norih-easty coonmeiieuig twa mUes beyond tib« 
vULage of Ensaawrahr—aiid select a place in which 
we Blight be safely hidden. He proposed that he 
afid Woseer Sing^ i^ould rida out in the after-* 
noon^ for this purpose,, ou my two horses ; which 
had been kept at Kuasowrah ever anea the night 
we were to have started for Lucknow. Of course 
I readily agreed. 

At 4 PJH. they started, and returned about 9 p.h; 
Wttseer Sin^ told me that they had proceeded 
fiuf iato the jungle, which waa very dense, to a 
small village where we were to be concealed, and 
where he was sure, that no <»ie could find jxa^ if 
they searched for a year. 

Kassuree and the other Thakoor, Paorun, came 
early next mommg to explain to me alone, the 
jisam they had foarmed foe our future ccoicealment 
and safety. These were rather staartling. First, 
they insisted that it was quite hopeless to expect 
that our movements could be kept secret, or our 
position concealed, so long as we w^re accom- 
panied by four children. It wae therefore quite 
imperative that the Prdbyns should leave these 
bdikid in the village; where every possible care 
wodid be taken of thenu If, aa was very probable, 
the enemy came to Kussowrah and instituted a 



108 THE PLAN DEEMED IHFBACTICABLE. 

search for ns, they could contrive to hide the 
children; and, if they were discovered, it was 
not probable that the sepoys, finding we were 
gone, wonld injure them. If they did kill them, 
there was, of course, no help for it ; but it was 
their opinion that the chances of safety for the 
children were far greater separated firom their 
parents than remaining with them For ourselves, 
it was arranged that we should be hidden in the 
jungles all day, moving about from place to place 
as occasion might require, and returning if we 
could, at nightfall to the little hamlet, which had 
been prepared for us to sleep in. 

This plan appeared to me most impracticable, 
and I pointed out, that considering the season of 
the year, the rains being close at hand, it was not 
likely that any of us, certainly not Mrs. Probyn, 
could stand the exposure and fatigue of wander- 
ing about all day in the jungle, as they proposed. 
I reminded them that they had always told us 
that Kussowrah would be a secure asylum as 
soon as the rains commenced, as it then became 
an island from the swelling of the rivers ; and this 
must soon occur. Why, then, not let us remain 
for the present quietly where we were, to take 
our chance. 



DISCUSSION WITH THE THA^OOES. 109 

This both Thakoors declared to be impossible, 
as Hurdeo Buksh would not consent to our remain- 
ing any longer in Kussowrah. Had the usual 
rains fallen we might, they said, have done so ; 
but they had hitherto failed, and the place was 
then quite open to attack. They further told 
me that although the village was quite safe from 
attack during the early part of the rains — ^being 
entirely surrounded by water deep enough to 
prevent any one reaching the place except by 
swimming and wading alternately, but not suffi- 
ciently so for boats ; yet, as soon as the rains 
reach their height, a *'sota," or channel, is 
formed, connecting Kussowrah with the Ganges 
and Ramgunga, and navigable for boats, by which 
the sepoys might reach us easily from Futtehghur 
without our receiving any intimation of their in- 
tentions : starting any night at Sunset they might 
be upon us before morning. I then expressed my 
conviction that the Probyns would never consent 
to abandon their children, although .they might 
feel quite convinced that the Thakoors would 
do all in their power to protect and preserve 
their lives. They, in reply, assured me that 
it was quite impossible to save us all, if we 
remained together; while by separating from 



110 ANOUISH OT THE PBOBTNS. 

liie cHldren all might possibly be saved. If, how- 
ever, the children did perish, their loss might be 
r^Mored: ilieir parents might have a second 
family; but they could never get second lives 
if they once lost -those they had. 

Finding the Thakoors immoveable, I said I 
woidd go out and discuss the matter with the 
Probyns, and let them know the result I then . 
infoormed the Probyns of all that had passed. 
They of course declared their determination not 
to part with the children. But then came the 
jreflection, might they not be destroying any little 
chance of safety whicli remained for them by 
detenmning to keep the cfhildren with lihemselves? 
Was it not better to make them over to the 
Thakoors, and to trust that, in the very pro- 
bable event of themselves perishing, the children, 
if saved, would be given up to some of our own 
countrymen as soon as Fnttehghur was recovered? 
The hearts of the poor parents ^were torn with 
aaiguish ; not knowing what course to adopt The 
ayah was then asked if, in the event of "the 
children being left at Kussowrah, she would stay 
with them ; which she flatly refused to do. Mrs. 
Probyn then thought that she might, perhaps, 
be allowed to remain with her children; l)ut 



FINAL BESOLTE. Ill 

Pfobyn said he would never consent to leave her 
bdiind. 

At last it was determined we should all remmt 
together^ and trust to the Almi^ty eare^ which 
had hitherto so graciously watched over us, to 
protect tffi still. We called in the Thakoors, and 
told Ihem of t)ur determimrtion. Th^ pitied us, 
loid did not any longer inrist on our inunediately 
leaving Kussowrah; but said we might remam 
there for the present as there was a good prospect 
of the rains falling soon. 

Eagerly did we wait for their coming, watching 
with the most intense anxiety each cloud as it 
rose; and many a day of fair promise of torrent* 
did we sadly see pass away without a shower. 
Whtti there were no douds in the burning sky 
over our heads, we tried to gather hope fipom the 
flight of the swallows : which the natives told us 
was a sure indication of rain when they flew 
hear the earth. But day after day the rains beM 
off; and there seemed a prospect of their even 
fidlmg altogether. 

The continued drought caused the hearts of the 
Thakoors to fidl, and at last iSiey fairly told us, 
they dare not keep us any ^ger in Kussowrah, 
but that we must start for a village in the jungle 



112 NATIVE SUPEBSTITIONS. 

somewhere to the north ; in which, they said, they 
had arranged to conceal us. That very day, they 
said, had been fixed on by the village astrologer 
as a lucky one for our start, and we were to move 
as soon as the moon rose at night We all packed 
up ready for departure, and had gone in the 
meantime to sleep, when I was woke up by the 
Thakoor Paorun about 11 p.m., saying they had 
only just found out that the moon did not rise 
until three in the morning of the next day to that 
fixed on as lucky, and of which there was only 
one watch then remaining. 

As we could not ourselves leave until the moon 
gave us sufficient light, it was imperative, he said, 
that something belonging to us should be sent on 
in the direction we were going — ^which the astro- 
loger declared would as certainly secure the happy 
influence of the day as proceeding ourselves in 
person. A table-fork, the first thing that came to 
hand, was at once made over to Paorun, with 
which he went off quite satisfied ; he sent it on by 
a bearer a mile on our proposed route, where it 
was with due form, buried. 

At 3 A.M., the Thakoors woke us up, and we 
started. An elephant had been procured for Mrs. 
Probyn, her ayah, and the children. Probyn and 



AGAIN LEAYB KUSSOWRAH. 113 

one servant (the other had absconded the night 
before), and I and Wuzeer Singh walked. When 
we were starting, I missed old Kussaree, and as I 
had great confidence in him, and remembered his 
own repeated advice never to go anywhere if he 
did not accompany us, I waited for him ; he, at 
last, and after sending many messages, joined us, 
but evidently with much reluctance. No sooner 
had we started than the rain came down in tor- 
rents, wetting us through, as also our little bed- 
ding. About a mile in advance of Kussowrah, 
we came on a stream of water so deep that the 
elephant could not wade across and was therefore 
dismissed. We had to be ferried over in a little 
boat, and then to proceed on our feet, each of us 
carrying a child. The path lay over ground 
thick with thorny bushes, which made our pro- 
gress slow and painful. About a mile and a half 
from the stream we came to a large piece of water, 
which we had to wade across. Probyn carried 
his wife over, but with much difficulty, as it was 
deep and the bottom fall of thick slippery mud. 

At last, just as the day was dawning, the rain 
all the while pouring in torrents, we reached 
our destination; a wretched, solitary hamlet of 
four or five houses in the middle of the waste, and 

8 



/ 



114 A MTWaAlLB SHKT.TWB* 

mhabited by only a £ew herdsm^i and thdr 
cattle. The aoene was desolate beycnd descrip- 
fion. As we came up, no one was moyiiig in 
the YiAage, all being yet adeep. One of the 
Thako<»rs roused up the chief man, a wildr 
looking Abeer, who punted out to us a wretched 
horel, which he said was for theProbyns. Itwas 
full a£ cattle, and yery filthy : the mud and dirt 
weceoyer our ankks, and ihe effluvia stifling. 

My heart sank withiu me, as I loc^Led round on 
this desolate, hcqpeless scene. I laid down the 
poor baby <m a charpoy in a little hut, the 
door of which was <^pen, and on which a child 
of (me of the herdunen was fast asleep. "Poet 
Mrs» Probyn, for the first time since our trouUes 
ccMumenced, fairly hroke down, and wept at the 
miseraUe prospect for her childr^a, and herself* 
Pfobyn was much roused, and r^QDLonstrated with 
the Thakoors saying, ''If there is no better 
place for us than this, you had better kill us at 
oti€e,for the duktren cannot live here more thana 
few hours : they must perish." In the meantime 
I had looked toond, to see if any arrangement 
could possibly be msde for sheltering them, ani, 
obserying a litde place on the roof of one of 
tike huts, pointed it out to Wuze^ Singh; he 



OUB PLACB 07 BEiTTOE. 115 

immectiatdy scraoBbled up> and having examined 
it^ ei^ed mi that it was eia^tjf ckaii, aiKi dry^ 
and a palace con^pa^ with the j^bce below. 
I mounted up with his asdistaace, and was orer-* 
jo jed to find a little room^ clean and tmee% and 
with apparently a water-tight ro<£ 

I called out to the Prolans below, and Wiaew 
and I helped tip Mr& FrobjB, and then the 
children ; Probyn followed, ai^ we, eight persons 
in all, estaHisted oursdiTes in thisf little s;>aee, most 
^aidibl to have it to irfidter os, small as it was. 
The Thakoors Biade no objection to onr a{^m>* 
priatii^ &e room, provided we kept stiktlj within 
it and never showed ourselveS' outside ; as tb^ 
feared we might be seea 6som the rool, and cwr 
hiding-j^e discovered. We could <»sly be c^i^ 
tained m this room bjr lying down cm the mud 
tbot, in places fixed 6xt eadi. Obe little co^mer 
wa& assigned to me, ndth^ so broad nor so long 
as the smallest hmt& in a ship's cabiB; where 
I d^[>06ited my Manket and the little bundle 
wMch served me as a-pfflow and coAtainped all my 
worl^y goods i merely a sin^ chaoge of native 
doddng, but quite sufficient; and realty I d<m\ 
know that any one, in l3ie best of eurcumstancef , 
' requires more. Sooi^ after we got into ^m {4aee^ 



116 DISCOlfFOBT AND PBIVATION. 

the Thakoors took leave^ promising often to visit 
lis ; they made over the charge of us to the Aheers, 
enjoining them to let no strangers enter or stop in 
the village on any account, and to maintain perfect 
secresy respecting us. All which they professed 
their readiif ess to do ; asserting that they would 
die for us rather than betray us. 

The rain, which had come down heavily all the 
morning, now ceased, and for several days there 
were only occasional showers. The heat was intense, 
as we were so closely packed together in this little 
room. We could only get out at night; and during 
the day, the only relief we had was to turn on our 
backs, or from one side to the other, or sit up : 
standing or moving about was quite impossible. 
The poor children were in sad misery ; they could 
not be allowed to leave the room, and there was no 
space in it for them to crawl or move about They 
were much more patient than we could have 
expected, and happily, slept much. We were also 
now a good deal pressed for food; all we could 
get being a little milk and chupatties : and not 
the former on Sundays, as the Aheers will on 
no account part with the milk of their cattle on 
that day, but appropriate it for themselves. 
Notwithstanding our miserable circumstances, we 



HARMONY AND THANKFULNESS. 117 

lived with much harmony and in comparative 
peace. Thanks be to the Almighty! whose 
blessing and protection we duly implored together 
morning and evening; finding Him, as He will 
be found by all who seek Him, '* a very present 
help in time of trouble.'' 

Suddenly the rains came down with tremen- 
dous force, and neither Probyn nor I could sleep, 
as we had hitherto done, on the roof of the house 
just outside the door of our room, emerging there- 
from at nights, when it fell dark. The space 
inside had become much circumscribed in con- 
sequence of leakage, one or two places in it having 
become untenable ; I was, therefore, forced to try 
and secure some shelter for myself elsewhere. 
Wuzeer Singh succeeded in renting a cow-house 
for me for two rupees (4«.) a month: a small, 
miserable hovel in which two cows had hitherto 
been stalled. It was, as usual, without any door, 
and having probably not been cleaned out for 
years, was filthy beyond description. I was, 
however, thankful for this shelter, and Wuzeer 
Singh having cleaned it out, and contrived to 
hire a charpoy (native bed) for me, I was, as 
the roof did not leak, made comparatively com- 
fortable. Many an hour of intense agony of 



118 TISITOBS FBOH THE TUXAGE. 

mind^ when I thought of all those dear to ine, 
whom I was probably never to see again, and 
some also of blessed peace, have I spent hi ihzJt 
little room. 

The men of the hamlet used to come and visit 
and talk with me now and then. I had^ no 
means of keeping them out, even if I desired 
it, so they went and came just as they pleased* 
Oie day a relative of the chief man of the 
village, and reskling at another not far off, 
arrived on a visit, and, of course, came to my 
room to have a look at me. He sat down, and 
we entered into conversation. I was surprised 
to find him much more quick and intellig^it 
than the generality of the villagers, who we^re 
rude in the extreme; and found on inquiring 
that he had been a traveller, and had been, with 
his four bullock cart, attached to our conunissariat 
during the first Sutl^e campaign, when he w^it 
as far as Lahore. I inquired if he had be^i 
regularly paid for the duty: he assured me folly 
and liberally, and commenced praising the justness 
and liberality of our Govemmrait; under which, 
as he expressed it, *^the lamb and lion could 
drink at tlie same stream." It immediately siru(& 
me that I could perhaps induce this man to 



A FBIEND IH NEED. 119 

convey a letter to my wife at Nynee Tal; of 
whom on that date, the 17 th July, I had heard 
nothing lat^r than of the 26th May, and concern- 
ing whose safety and that of my child, I was in 
constant and terrible sospense : for could I be sure 
that Nynec Tal had not fallen as well as Bareilly 
and Futtehghur, and the dwellers there, as at the 
other places, fearfully massacred? 

I told the man (whose name was Rohna) the 
misery I was enduring about the " Mem Sahib ^ 
and the "Baba;" that if I knew they were safe 
I could bear anything ; and entreated him to take 
pity upon me, and carry a note from me to my 
wife telling her of my safety, wid to bring me 
back tidings of her. I told him I had scarcely 
any money, and could only give him eight rupees; 
but, if he once reached my wife, I assured him 
she would reward him handsomely. To my great 
delight, he said he felt deeply for me, and would 
certainly do his best to convey the letter to Nynee 
Tal, and bring me back an answer; that he 
would set out the same evening for his home, 
arrange his affairs there, and start from thence 
in the morning, going through Bareilly: he had 
been there before and knew the way. He then 
retired, saying he would be back in an hour to 



120 WBITING UNDER DIFFICULTIES. 

take my letter. I sent Wuzeer Singh, who had 
been present at the interview, after him, to endea- 
vour to find out whether the man was in earnest, or 
merely deceiving me to get the advance of money I 
had offered. He soon came back, saying he thought 
from the man's manner he could be depended on, 
and would certainly undertake the journey,. 

I determined to write two notes, one to my 
wife and another to Missur Byjenath at Bareilly, 
entreating him to aid my messenger in reaching 
Nynee TaL I had but a small scrap of paper 
(half the fly-leaf of Brydges on the 119th Psalm 
which happily we had with us,) on which to write 
both notes. Pen or ink I had none, and only 
the stump of a lead pencil, of which the lead was 
so nearly exhausted that only a little atom 
remained quite loose. I at once commenced my 
writing: in the middle, the little atom of lead 
fell out, and I was in despair. At last, after 
much searching in the dust of the mud floor, 
I found it, and contrived to refix it in its place 
sufficiently to enable me to finish two very brief 
notes, about one inch square ; which was all the 
man could conceal about his person, or would 
consent to take, as it was reported that the rebels 
were in the habit of searching all travellers for 



A CUKIOUS INCIDENT. 121 

letters or papers, and had already killed several 
who were discovered with English letters on them. 

When the notes were ready I got a little milk 
and steeped them in it, to make the writing in- 
delible, and then put them out to dry in the sun 
on a wall just outside my room. In an instant a 
crow pounced on one and carried it off: it was that 
for my wife. I, of course, thought it was gone 
for ever, and felt heart-broken with vexation ; as 
I had no more paper, nor any means or hope 
of getting any, on which to write another note. 
Wuzeer Singh had, unknown to me, seen the 
crow, followed it with one of the herdsmen, and 
after a long chase of about an hour, saw the bird 
drop it, and recovering it brought it back to me 
uninjured. I then despatched my messenger 
with both notes, and many injunctions to be 
deterred by no difficulties, but push his way 
through to Bareilly, where Byjenath would, I was 
certain, aid him in going on.toNynee Tal; up 
to this date I know not whether he has succeeded 
in his mission, but I think from the look of the 
man that he is likely to do so. 

The village, which curiously enough, and surely 
with great truth, is known by the name of "Runje- 
poorah" (the place of affliction), had now become. 



122 THE OOUHTRT INUKBATED. 

by the constant rains and the swelling of the rivers, 
one complete island^ of about one hundred yards 
square. The whole country rounds as far as the 
eye could reach^ except to the norths where there 
was a jungle about three miles off^ was flooded; 
the water being in some places very deep, and 
nowhere under four or four and a half feet When 
I step just immediately out of my own shed to go 
up to the Probyns, where we have our own scanty 
meals, the mud reaches over my ancles. Just 
round the village the water is very deep, and the 
only pasturage is about three miles distant, on 
the high jungle land I have mentioned, which is 
only partially submerged. To reach this pasture 
the cattle and the herdsmen have to go and return 
by swimming, which seems as easy and natural 
a mode of progression to both as travelling on dry 
land. 

Since the waters have gone out over the 
country, our portion is considered so much safer, 
that we are not required to keep ourselves so 
strictly concealed, but are allowed to go on the rorf 
of the house near Probyn's room and walk about 
towards the afternoon. This is a great boon ; and 
here after sunset, when the herdsmen had re- 
turned and the cattle were folded, have we sat 



TALK WITH l^ATIYB HEBDSMBN. 123 

together and talked with them for iKmrs ; they 
asking much about our country, and never ceasing 
in th^ inquiries as to how it is that our Queen's 
husband is not our king, which is a source of tl^ 
most unfeigned surprise in them ; and we inquiring 
of them about their cattle and habits of Ufe, and 
receiYing most curious information. We spent 
smne comparatively pleasant evmngs in this way 
with thk primitive people. We alio much enjoyed 
each evening watching the strange and interesting 
sight of the vast herds of cattle emerging from the 
jungle and swimming off in droves to their di£« 
ferent viUages, to which they seemed to direct thdr 
way with unerring instinct ; the herdsme^i gene- 
rally swimming behind them, and som^imes 
mounted on the stronger animals of the herd. 

As the inundati<m was now at its hei^it, and the 
waters, we knew, would equally surround Kussow- 
rah, we were most anxious to get back to it; as 
we looked back upon our quarters there as palatial, 
compared with Runjepowah. With this view we 
sent sundry messages to the Thakoors; but ndther 
they nor^Hurdeo Buksh made any sign of recog^ 
nition : on the contraxy, they seemed indtned to 
leave us to our fete. They even prohibited a poor 
woman, who used to attend on Mrs. Probyn and 



124 PKIVATIONS OF MRS. PROBYN. 

the children hitherto (and who came every morn- 
ing from Kussowrah, swimming and wading, 
returning in the same manner of an evening,) 
from continuing her services. This caused poor 
Mrs. Probyn more distress and labour than I 
can 4oscribe, or those imagine who were not like 
myself there to witness her troubles : which she 
bore with such patient fortitude, as made me feel 
proud of her as my countrywoman. With the 
exception of this poor woman and her own ayah, 
Mrs. Probyn had not conversed with a female 
since the day in which the party of Europeans left 
Dhurumpore to return to Futtehghur. From 
the Ranees of Hurdeo Buksh, or the wives of the 
Thakoors, influential people, and who had it in 
their power greatly to alleviate her position, and 
supply her with many comforts, she not only 
received no act of kindness, but no expression 
of sympathy whatever. To add to her already 
overwhelming sorrows, the poor little baby, a fine 
child (who, as well as the others, had up to the 
time we left Kussowrah continued well in spite 
of the exposure,) began to droop and grow daily 
weaker. There was no sustenance for him but 
buffalo's milk, which he was unable to retain: 
and although Probyn had left some milk-goats 



OUH ISOLATED POSITION. 125 

belonging to himself behind at Kussowrah, he 
could not induce the people to send them to him 
for the sustenance of his dying child. 

Our position was becoming daily more deplor- 
able, and we were prohibited from sending any of 
our own servants out of the village. The only 
person who still remained kind and visited was, 
the Brahmin Seetah Ram. We sent constantly 
messages by this man to the Thakoors ; but they 
never took any notice of them. He had lately gone 
into Futtehghur for us, on one or two occasions, 
for intelligence. This was discovered, and the 
Thakoors being much displeased, prohibited 
him from visiting us any more. The only inci- 
dent which marked these weary days, was 
Probyn and myself, one morning, hearing dis- 
tinctly a military band playing English airs in 
Futtehghur ; the wind carrying the sound across 
the water, and reminding us of the near proximity 
of those who were, we knew, thirsting for our 
blood. 

Early one morning, I think Thursday, the 23rd 
of July, when I was sitting on the roof of the 
house, and much depressed, my attention was 
attracted by seeing a person wading and swimming 
towards the village, and evidently desuring, by the 



126 WSU^MS TOOKOS. 

agns he maAe, to catek my eye. After wfttching 
lam &a nosoe ^ame^ I recc^niaed Seetak Bam: 
from his maimer I inferred there was something 
nxnisiiaL I went down to meet him as he came 
adiore, and foimd him in a great state of excite- 
neut^ with the good news that our troops had at 
last beea heard of; that thqr had adyaoeed as far 
as Cawnpore^ and had utterly de£eid;ed the Hana's 
tnx^ widk great slaughter at Pandoo Nnddee. 
The %]ng trocffs had, Seetah Bam asserted^ 
andyed m great nvmbera in Furraekabad^ patting 
the Hawab and his peo{^ in the greatoit alarm 
liuii they will sooa meet with the same fiite; as I 
earoesttytntst they BUKy. I sashed np to Prebyn, 
aocompMued by Seetak Bam, to gi^e ham the 
w^ome news i wUch put us in high qiritSy and 
gave xa suae hopes of nltiiaate rdease. 

Bemgy <^ coarse^ moat auziocta to ascertain the 
real state of the case^ we indnced Seetah Bam to 
go across to Futtel^nir^ to procure h^Higence* 
He started, promising to be back the next night. 
On the mcMcning of the 23rd of July, we were 
startled by the firing (^ heavy gnns in Forrock- 
alHKL We were full of hi^e, that it was the 
fire of our own Izoops ^ whoj, we thonghty mi^it 
hare by this time reached Futtehgfaar, in puxauit 



HASSAGEK 01 LADIES AND CHILDREN. 127 

of the Naita's retreating forces. The firing con- 
tinaed at irr^olar intervals &r aboat an hour^ 
when it entirely ceased. We remained during 
the da J in a state of the greatest excitement, and 
sangnine of speedy deliyerance^ The day passed 
without Seelah Ram's return, and no tidings from 
any quarter readied us. 

On the morning of the 24tb, Seetah Ram 
arriyed, and in rqply to our eager inquiry, " Have 
oar troops aniyed? What was the firing?" he 
cast down our hopes by the terrible intellig^ice 
&at tl^ firing we heard the previous morning, 
had been caused by the blowing afway from 
guns, and the idbootbag down with grape, under 
1^ orders^ of the Nawab, of the poor ladies already 
mentiimed as having been saved from dae boat, 
and brought back to Futtdighur, and of many 
native Chrktains, in all some sixty-five or sev^oty 
persons. The Nana's scjdiers, ii^foriated by their 
defeat, had, in coi^unctioQ with the Nawab, 
revenged themselves by &e deliberate murder of 
these poor martyrs. Mrs. Jones's little daughtCT* 
of about mne years dd, Seeti^ Ram informed 
us, had remained untouched after several dis- 
charges of grape, and a sepoy rushed up and cut 
her in j«eces wi A his sword. 



128 PANIC-6TBICKEN SBPOTS. 

Seetah Ram had spoken with several of the 
fugitive soldiers; many of them were wounded, 
and all were in a miserable state, from fatigue, 
terror, and want of food. They had with them 
one gun, and two or three elephants. They were 
completely panic-stricken, and had communicated 
their fears to the Nawab, and his followers. They 
told Seetah Ram, that the action in which they 
were beaten had been fought in a Nuddee between 
Futtehpore and Cawnpore; that the Europeans 
had killed numbers of them, and taken all their 
guns excepting the one they had with them ; that it 
was quite in vain for them to think of contending 
with our troops, who used muskets (of course the 
Mini^), ** which carried so far that they were 
killed before they heard the noise of the dis- 
charge." Seetah Ram also said, that such was the 
panic in Furruckabad, that a few persons shout- 
ing out that the Europeans were coming, had 
the day before nearly cleared the city; the 
Nawab's troops and the inhabitants all taking 
to flight 

The news of the success and advance of our 
troops caused au immediate change in the 
demeanour of the people towards ourselves. We 
received congratulatory visits from the Thakoors ; 



AGREEABLE CHANGE OF TKEATMENT. 129 

old Kussuree also, whom we had not seen since 
we left Kussowrah, came to visit ns in state on an 
elephant, and brought us sweet cakes, which were 
most JlCceptable. Hurdeo Buksh sent his brother- 
in-law to inquire after our welfare; Probyn's 
goats were sent to him; and the poor woman 
allowed to resume her attendance on Mrs. Pro- 
byn's children. In short, our position was much 
improved. It was not, however, quite clear, 
that our visitors were altogether pleased at the 
news of the Nana's defeat. We took advantage 
of this turn of feeling in our favour to entreat 
Hurdeo Buksh's brother-in-law, to procure from 
him permission for us to return to Kussowrah. 
This request, the brother-in-law assured us, would 
be immediately granted, as there was now nothing 
to fear from the terror-stricken sepoys in Futteh- 
ghur. 

We were particularly desirous to return, in 
consequence of the state of the poor little baby, 
who was rapidly sinking in consequence of all his 
hardships and exposure ; and we feared that if he 
died in Runjepoorah, it would be impossible to get 
a dry spot in which to bury him ; all the country 
around the village being flooded to a considerable 
depth, except the sites of the houses. 



130 BETUim TO KUSaOWBAH. 

On Saturday the 26tli we heard that we might 
jretum at nightfall to KnasowraL A boat was 
in the afternoon sent to take off Mrs. Probyn 
and the dnldren; for the waters were now deep 
enough between Dhttrnnq)ore and Sunjepoorah. 
4n dephant was also jsent to assist in carrying ns 
off. The Probyns Yfent in the boat, and I and 
Wnzeer Singh on the elephant This was the 
£rBt time I had oyer ridd^oi one of these animals 
4Eistride and bare-backed^ and as we had to go 
through deep water and mud, half-wading luQf- 
Bwimming, it was no easy task to stick on. We 
felt it a most blessed deliveranoe getting away 
from Bunjepoorah^ and wiere really in a state id 
cheerful excitement on j^eaohing, about 9 P.H., 
our old quarters, where we were received by 
JECussuree. The place Jiad immediately on our 
departure, and until within a few hours before 
4)ur return, been occupied by the cattle, so our 
quarters were as filthy and disagreesJDle as when 
we first came to them £*om Dhurampore; but 
£}thy as ihey werc^ we looked upon (them as jnost 
comfortable and commodious, after our sufferings 
4urii^ the previous fortnight at Bnnjepoorah. 

The poor liUle baby was by this time .much 
exhausted, and breathing very hard. His naother 



DEATH OF UBS. PBOBYK's jGHILD. 131 

whofe xmoBftsing care and deyetion had been the 
iBfiane of keeping him ^ye Uthes^to, prectired aft^ 
imndi difficulty jome hot water £ot a "warm hath 
&r Jmn^ :which s&eimed lo xestore him; die then 
ilaid him .down ^on & charpoj and lay dcywn 
heside him. She was perfectly exhausted^ havii^ 
had no Test for aoeveral mghts ^eyionsly^ daring 
which she had to ke^ him in her arms^ and die 
«oon fell asleep. I was fying down at BCHne 
litlle difrtanflRg and suddenly misdng the heavy 
faveathingj Tv^esttTop to thehed to look at the child: 
4ill was still9;aiidlhe little spirit had fled. I woke 
lip the parents^ who^ altlH>ug^ in *deep grief at 
Icsing ^eir «weet child^ felt thankfiil that its 
deatth hafl be^i natural, imd Jiot by the hands of 
^Eosaosfims. We all knelt down, .and prayed beside 
the little body; and then I went out with Wozeer 
Sii^b, about 2 o'clock in the morning, to look for 
a drjr spot where we mi^t dig a grave for him. 
This was A matter of some difficulty, but at last 
we found a «pot under some trees, which was not 
inundated, nor IScely to be od. When all was 
prepared, the poor isJh&t took the little body 
wiT^pped in a sheet m hk arms, jmd Mrs. Probyn 
&U0wed leaning on my arm. 

Welmd some difficulty in getting through tthe 



132 jy? ESCAPED FUGIin^E. 

cattle which were penned in the enclosure. I 
read a few sentences of the burial service over 
him. There was no time for more, as day was 
fast breaking and we dare not be seen beyond 
the village in the day-light; so we laid him in 
his little resting place, *^dust to dust, ashes to 
ashes, in sure and certain hope," and hastily 
covered him in. I almost envied his quiet rest 

Sunday y August 2nd. — ^I was roused this morn- 
ing before dinner by a noise in the enclosure, and 
on looking up saw a tall spectral-looking figure 
standing before me, naked except a piece of cloth 
wrapped round his waist, much emaciated, and 
dripping with water. I recognised him as young 
Mr. Jones, who Hurdeo Buksh had informed us 
had been saved from the boat captured by the 
Sepoys. He had until then been hidden in one 
of Hurdeo Buksh's villages, and, in consequence 
of the good news of the successfiil advance of 
our troops, had been permitted to join us. He was 
very weak, and when I recognised and spoke to him, 
burst into tears at hearing his own language again, 
and seeing one of his own countrymen. 

The account he gave of his escape and adven- 
tures, since he left Dhurumpore with the rest of 
the Europeans to return to Futtehghur, was most 



THE EUKOPEANS AT FUTTEHGKUR, 133 

wonderful. They had continued to defend the 
fort as long as it was possible to do so; until 
their ammunition was almost exhausted^ and the 
enemy's mines had rendered the place untenable. 
They then determined to escape in the three boats, 
which were held ready under the walls of the 
fort in case of being required. Jones happened 
to be in the third boat, which grounded soon after 
they left the fort and had to be abandoned ; when 
he and the others on board were taken into the 
second boat, as already described. During the 
time this transfer was going on, the sepoys kept 
up a continual fire on the boats from their guns 
placed on the banks, but without doing any 
damage ; the shot passing clear over them. 

After abandoning their first boat, they managed, 
without loss or interruption, to get as far as 
the village of Singheerampore ; but there their 
boat grounded, the villagers attacked them with 
matchlocks, and two guns were brought to bear 
on them from the bank. Jones, with the other 
gentlemen on board, jumped into the water to try 
to shove the boat off, but without any effect. 
While in this position, they saw a boat coming 
down the stream upon them ; Jones jumped back 
into the boat to seize his rifle, which happened 



134 THE PARTY TAKE TD THE GANGES. 

to be in the stern. Just as he recovered? it, he 
SSLW a sepoy slowly raise the chappur (roof) of the' 
boat and look out. Jones shot hfm iessi; and 
immediately a heavy fire was opened upon them 
firom the boat^ by which Mr. Chnrcher, senior, a 
merchant, was mortally wonnded. The sepoys 
then commenced boarding, and Jones, with most of 
the ladies and gentlemen, jumped into the Granges. 
The last thing he saw as he quitted the boat, was 
poor Mr. Churcher writhing about in his blood in 
the agonies of death, and Captain Fitzgerald sup- 
porting his wife on his knee, while he held a 
musket in his disengaged hand. 

The water was up to their waists and the 
current running very strong: the bottom was 
shifting sand, which made it most difficult ta 
maintain a footing, and several of those who 
took to the river were at once swept off and 
drowned. Jones himself had scarcely got into the 
water when he was hit by a musket ball, which 
grazed the right shoulder, without damaging the 
bone. At the same moment he saw Major Robert- 
son^ who was standing in the stream suppxjrting 
his wife with one arm and carrying his little child 
in the other, wounded hj a musket ball in the 
thigh. Mrs. Robertson was washed out of her bus* 



ESCAPK OF lUU JONES. 135 

band's grasp and immediately drowned. Robert- 
son then put the child on his shoulder, and awam 
away down the stream. Jones finding that: he 
could do no more good^ wounded as he was, 
determined to try to save his own life by swim- 
ming down the river ; hoping to reach the leading 
boat As he struck out from the boat^ he saw 
poor_ ^. Fisher^ the chapla in, almost in lie same 
position as Robertson, holding his litt le son, a 
beautifurboy eight or nine jf ears old, in one jurm, 
while with the otber he supported his wife. U&sT" 
Fiaher was swaying about in the stream almost 
inaenmUe, and her husband could with great 

difficulty retain his footing. ,^ . . — - 

When Jones had got clear of the boat, he 
continued alternately swimming and floating for 
five or six miles, when just ss it was growing 
dusk, he saw the leading boat anchored for the 
night He reached it, much exhausted by swim- 
ming, and by the pain of his wound arid of hi& 
back ; which, as he was naked to the waist, had 
been blistered and made raw by the scorching 
sun. On being taken on board he found that 
the only casualty which had occurred to this party 
since leaving Futtehgjiur, was the death of one oS 
the Miss Goldies,, who had been killed by a grape- 



136 MB. FISHER RESCITED, 

shot from one of the guns on the bank near 
Singheerampore, 

Mrs. Lewis — ^who had mamtained her fortitude 
throughout, and was indefatigable during the 
siege in preparing tea and refreshment for the 
men — ^immediately got him some brandy and 
water and food, and he was then able to acquaint 
them with the miserable fate of his own party ; of 
whom he supposed himself to be the sole survivor. 
The boat remained anchored in the same spot all 
night Towards morning a voice was heard from 
the bank hailing the boat. It proved to be that 
of Mr. Fisher; who, though badly wounded in 
the tEgET^ad managed by swimming a portion 
of the way, then landing and walking along the 
bank, to overtake the boat He was helped on 
board more dead than alive, and raved about his 
poor wife and son ; both of whom were drowned. 

At dawn they weighed anchor and proceeded 
down the stream ; but very slowly, as there was no 
pilot or skilful steersman on board, and only the 
exhausted officers as rowers. Towards evening 
they became so exhausted that they made for a 
village on the Oude side of the Ganges, in hopes of 
being able to procure some milk for the children 
and food for themselves. The villagers brought 



JONES FBOTECTED BT A BRAHBflN. 137 

supplies, and did not show any illwill or attempt 
to attack the party. 

The boat was so crowded with its freight of from 
seventy to eighty human beings, that Jones could 
find no space to lie down and sleep ;',he, therefore, 
determined, as he was quite exhausted, to go on 
shore and endeavour to get some rest A villager 
brought him a charpoy, on which he lay down 
and fell fast asleep. He was roused by a summons 
from Colonel Smith to rejoin the boat, as they 
were on the point of starting ; but finding him- 
self very stiff and scarcely able to move, he 
determined to remain where he was, as he 
thought he might as well die on shore as in 
the boat: in either case he regarded death as 
inevitable. He, therefore, sent back a message 
that he could not come, and begged to be left 
behind. Colonel Smith after this sent him two 
more urgent requests to join the boat ; which at 
length departed without hfm. He slept till morn- 
ing, when a poor Brahmin took pity on him and 
permitted him to remain in a little shed, where 
he was partially sheltered from the sun. There 
he remained unmolested by the villagers, and pro- 
tected by the Brahmin, Tintil he was permitted to 
join us. 



138 CUBE FOB ▲ WOUND* 

His sufferings had been very great, hoia 
exposure and from his wound, which threatened 
mortification; this would probably have hilled 
him had he not hit upon, the following singular 
remedy. A litde puppy came frequwitly to the 
shed when he was at his meals, to pick up any 
crumbs Ihat might fall: he thought that if he 
could get this animal to lick the wound it might 
have a good effect; accordingly he made the 
attempt, and with the most fortunate result. The 
puppy licked the wound morning and evening ; it 
at once began to io^rove, and was well advanced 
towards healing when Jones joined us. 

He had left the village where he had been 
concealed yesterday afternoon^ and by traveling 
all night, swimming and wading (for the whole 
country was under water), had reached Kus- 
sowrah just at dawn, with nmch difficulty. Major 
Robertson, he told us, was ia a village about four 
miles from that in which he had been living, and 
was kindly treated. Mr. Churcher, junior, was in 
an Aheer village at a considerable distance from 
either his or Robertson's place of hiding. None 
of theni had been permitted to see or communicate 
with one another* 

Such was Jones's account of himself. Of the 



BBIIGIOUS CONSOLATION. 139 

boat he had quitted and those in it he had 
no certain information. Reports had reached 
him similar to those we had heard, that the 
boat had succeeded in passing Cawnpore and 
reaching Allahabad in safety ; again, tiiat it had 
been seized near Bithoor arid all on board 
murdered. This he, as weH as we ourselves, 
feared was the most probable story: we strove, 
however, to hope for the best, and to believe that 
nothing so terrible could have happened. 

Our morning service to-day was one of peculiar 
solemnity ; for we knew not how soon our own 
fete might be the same as that of those dear friends 
and acquaintances so lately with, us in health and 
vigour, and who we had too much reason to foar 
had all been massacred- In t^e midst of this 
depression, the reflection came upoa me with a 
peculiar soothing and strengthening power,, that the 
petition in the Litany — ^^^That it might please God 
to succour help and comfort all that are in danger, 
necessity; and tribulation," which we knew would 
be oflfered in earnestness on this day for us- by 
our beloved relations and friends whiM^ever they 
were, and by thousands of Grod^s servants through*- 
out the eartli — would no doubt go up with accept- 
ance, and that we would yet be saved and be 



140 BETURN OF HY M£SS£Ka£B. 

reunited to our people. The intimation also in 
the 11th of Hebrews, that some of God's people 
through faith had escaped the edge of the sword, 
seemed to be lit up, as it were, with a gleam 
of light as I read it. If they had been thus 
saved, why might not we hope to be so also? 
The arm that saved them was not shortened that 
it could not save us, and the ear that heard and 
answered their prayers was equally open and 
ready to receive ours, offered as they were in 
the name and for the sake of the same Saviour 
and all-powerful Advocate. Already has the pro- 
mise, "I will be with him in trouble and will 
deliver him," been fulfilled so singularly in my 
own case, that surely it does not now become me 
to doubt My heart was thus raised from the 
borders of despair to nearly an assured hope and 
almost to cheerfulness. 

In the^ afternoon the man arrived whom I had 
sent off on the 20th of June to endeavour to take 
a note through Budaon to my wife at Nynee 
Tal. He was in a miserable plight, and told us 
that he had been seized at Budaon by one of 
my own chuprassees, Hasseinee, to whom he 
thought he might safely commimicate the object 
of his journey. His confidence was sadly mi^- 



HIS SUFFEBIKGS AND TIDINGS. I4l 

placed, for he was instantly seized and conveyed 
before the Nawab who was governing the district 
for Khan Bahadoor Khan- My letter was taken 
from him; he was beaten and imprisoned; for 
twelve days he was kept in confinement and 
treated with great severity ; and at last allowed 
to depart only on his pledging himself never again 
to act as a messenger for any European, Being 
released, he determined to come back to me ; he 
had arrived within abont twenty miles of Furruck- 
abad, when he was arrested by a guard of the 
NawaVs troops as a spy of the English, and 
sent into Furruckabad, where he was detained in 
prison, with several others, for three weeks. On 
the afternoon of yesterday he was released by the 
man in charge of the prison; whom he bribed 
with eight annas, all he had in the world. 

Just before he left Futtehghur, he had seen 
three persons who had been seized with English 
letters on them, which they were conveying from 
Agra down the country, blown away from guns on 
the parade ground, by order of the Nawab. He 
described the state of the town and district of 
Budaon, and of all the other British districts he 
had passed through, as deplorable in the extreme. 
Villages were being burnt and plundered daily; 



142 TBANQUIL STATE OF OUBE, 

the roacU deseitted^ and no man's life or pmpeity 
was safe &r a moment In Boidaon itself there 
had been some fighting between i;he Mahom* 
medans and Eondoes^ and he saw a number of 
heads of persons of the latter exposed on pc4es 
at the entrance of the town. 

AH my police and native Amlah were in the 
seryice jof JCban Bahadoor Elian ; my old Fouj- 
darry Serishtadar (head derk in the criminal 
department) was Magistrate of Boidaon^ and my 
Kotwal Jaeld the :8ame appomtment under the- 
jrebels. I am mEnch surprised at the ddGec^on 
xtf these two meli; both excellent officea% who 
Icme ^served the Bo^itish Government for at 1^6^ 
forty years with credit to themselves Andiidvan- 
tage to the state, and were about to retire on 
handsome pensions. My messenger said that 
while our districts were thus sul)}ect to fire 
and swordy those in Oude under the ialoc^daxs 
and powerful zemindars were calm and peaceful 
as a lake. This is certainly tl^ case with the 
eslensive talooqua of Hurdeo JBuksh, and those 
of powerful chie& immediately around us. The 
rebellioxi has not as yet extended to these ^estates;; 
the tpeople ^ about their xtsual avocations, and aU 
is quiet ffiid peaoefol within their limits. Lodbiow^ 



JL liETTEB TROM MY "WIFE. 148 

we hear J is still iiolding out, and some of our troops 
iirom Cawnpore have, it is said^ advanced "to the 
^relief of ihe garrison. May God grant ihem success. 
Ttfeadea/y August 4tA. — I was walking up and 
down the little space in &ont of our room to-daj, 
when I was rejoiced by the arrival of my mes- 
senger Rohna from Ifynee Tal, with a letter from 
my wife of the 27th July ; the first I have had 
from ier since the 216th of May. Rohna had 
seen both her and Graoey quite well. He told 
me that she was dressed in black when he reached 
the house, imd that when rfie received my letter 
she had gone :ftway jmd put on a white dress. 

Before opening the note, which -was, of course, 
of the smalllest dimensions, I went into my little 
room to hless God for his great goodness in grant- 
ingme thk great comfort On <ipening the letter I 
read, wilh deep thankftdness, not only of her own 
And my child's safely, but also of th^ of my brother 
Roderick and his wife at Mozu£femugger ; of which 
he had been appointed collector immediately after 
the Meerut outbreak. He has been able to hold 
his own, and maintain to some extoit the peace of 
the iiistrict, by n^ans of a -force of 00 Gorkhas 
and some Affghan Horse ^placed at his disposal. 
Her xiote confirms tte laews ^Mch had reached 



144 DEVICE FOR CONVETINa A LETTER. 

me before^ but I hoped was not trae^ of the murder 
of poor Hay, Robertson, and Raikes at Bareilly, 
and of the Shahjehanpore massacre. By her accomit 
Nynee Tal is quite safe, also Agra ; and Delhi 
though not taken, is likely to fall. The Funjaub* 
and all down to Meerut quite quiet. This was the 
first authentic intelligence we had received of the 
real state of affairs in the North- West since the 13th 
of June, and we were much com&rted by finding 
that matters were not quite so bad as the Thakoors 
had made us believe. 

Rohna told us that he had experienced the 
greatest difficulty in getting through Bareilly and 
on to the hills, as all travellers were strictly 
searched for letters at different posts of the rebels 
along the road. He had concealed mine to my 
wife in the interior of a bamboo walking stick, 
and knowing that this would be most likely seized 
and examined, he cracked it across half-way up, 
so that if taken from him and broken, it might 
give way at that exact part, and the portion in 
which the letter was concealed remain sound and 
escape detection. 

This actually occurred. He was stopped at a 
post between Bareilly and Rampore by a soldier, 
who took the stick from him, struck one end on the 



FAYOUBABLE INTELLIGENCE. 145 

ground, breaking it in half as was intended, and 
then, thinking it contained nothing, threw the 
pieces away ; Bohna picked them up again, and 
proceeded on his way without further notice. 
My wife's letter for me he had sewn up in the 
lining of his skull-cap, which had more than once 
on the road been taken firom his head by sepoys ; 
but without the note being discovered. I sent 
Wuzeer Singh to tell Hurdeo Buksh that I had 
good news from my wife, who gave favourable 
intelligence of the state of things in the country to 
the North of us. He sent back many congratula- 
tions and kind messages, with the news which had 
just reached that the boat full of Futtehghur 
refugees had reached Allahabad in safety, and that 
Agra had been reinforced by three European and 
two Sikh'regiments. If this be true, we may hope 
that Delhi has fallen ; for from no other quarter 
could the reinforcements come. The heat to-day 
was terrible. 

Wednesday Augv^t 5th. — ^Last evening, for the 
first time since our first arrival at Kussowrah, we 
have been allowed to go out to take a walk ; as the 
waters completely surround the village, and there 
is no danger of any spies or strangers arriving and 
seeing us. The change was most refreshing, froni 

10 



146 LETTEB OONTAIlfE]) IN A QUILL. 

0iir Hiiserable little pent-ap quarters to the open 
eonntrj. Eyerjthing looked peaceful ; tiie people 
were at tiieir usual occupations ; there were no 
external signs that war and rebellion were ragii^ 
all around us, and that we ourselves were as ** the 
hunted partridge on the mountains,'* with but astep 
between us and death, and that in a fearful fomu 

To-day I sent off a man of Byjenath's, who 
had accomptoied Bohna from Bareilly, with 
another letter for my wife. He made strong 
objections to taking any, on account of tiie great 
risk of detection; which would result in certain 
death. He could only be induced to do so when 
I put my note into a piece of quill about this size 
( ) sealed at each end, which he could 

carry in his mouthy and swallow in the event 
of being stopped. 

I learnt from this man that the Mahomedans 
had begun persecuting the Hindoos in Rohfl- 
cund, slaying cows in the temples and prohibiting 
theiy sounding their ^Sonks* (horns). The 
Thakoors had, in consequence, summoned the 
people to assemble and attack their persecutors* 
If they answer the summons, the Hindoos, from 
iheir superior numbers, may expel the other sect » 
and in that event the Europeans may have 



C0M70BT DEBIYED PBOM THE PSAXOfS. 147 

an opportunity of returning to BohilconiL Heard 
from the Thakoors that the reinforcements from 
Cawnpore had reached Lucknow. They had 
a fight en route, in which the enemy suffered 
most severely ; a chief called Jessah Singh wajs 
wounded^ and one of his sons killed* The result 
of this success to us was a great increase of polite^ 
nessj and the permission granted to take a walk 
last night 

How true do I now find the remaxk I remem^ 
her once reading of Arnold's, that " the Psalms 
have been a storehouse of nev^ failing comforts 
to believers in every age." Since our return fronji 
Rtmjpoorah, Mrs. Frobyn has received a box of 
her things, which had been in Hurdeo Buksh's 
keeping at Dhurumpore. Among the contents was 
her Bible; and, oh! what a comfort has it been/ 
to us since, as we are thereby enabled to read the 
Psalms. There is not a d^y on which we do not 
find something that appears as if written especially 
for persons in our imhappy circumstances, to meet 
the feelings and wants of the day. This morning,, 
for instance, I derived unspeakable' comfort from 
the 13th and 26th verses of the 25th Psalm, and 
in the evening from the 14th, 15th, and 16th 
verses of the 27th. 



148 



PLAN OF OUR PLAGE OF ABODE. 



Thursday^ August 6ih, — No news yet to-day 
We shall probably now have evil reports ; as of 
late, they have been nnusually favourable. This 
has been a day of much depression and faintness 
of heart Help seems so far off, and rescue so 
improbable, that fears constantly arise that I shall 
one day perish in my affliction, and never again 
on earth see those so dear to me* If this be 
God's will, and if this little journal ever reaches 
my beloved wife, children, and all at home, it may 
interest thein to see how I spent my day, and 
where we live, so I shall endeavour to draw 
a plan of the place. 



High wall. 



Village. 



I 
1 



Bath. 


Cooking place. 


5t 


5 


Jones. 






* 2 

Probyn. 

* 


1 

Cattle penned in 

open Bpace. 


Mrs. P. 

* 


W.E. 

* 






Mtb. P.*b room. 
4 


W.E. 
3 



High wall. 



* Verandah where we slept and dined. 



OCCUPATIONS OF THE DAT. 149 

I wake at the first sign of dawn^ about 4 A.M.^ 
at once get up; and, after prayer, go out to walk 
in the space marked 1, as soon as the cattle 
who occupy it all night are let out. It is an open 
space about thirty or forty yards long, where 
we are allowed to walk morning and evening. 
I thus try and get a little exercise; or sit down 
upon a log and read the Morning Psalms until 
the sun gets too hot. I am then driven into my 
little den marked 3, where Wuzeer Singh always 
places my charpoy as soon as I get up. 

Thus the time passes until we judge by the 
sun that it is about 10 o'clock, when we read the 
Scriptures and have prayers together. We then 
have breakfast, which consists of chupatties and 
tea ; of which, fortimately for us, we have a large 
supply. The box containing it belonged to poor 
Robert Thomhill, and was left behind at Dhurum- 
pore when he returned to Futtehghur. 

The heat, glare, and flies, which come around 
us now in myriads, are most distressing and well 
nigh mtolerable. To escape the two last plagues, 
I generally resort to my little room, which I 
darken by hanging my blanket across the open- 
ing, as there is no door. The atmosphere within 
is quite stifling, but I prefer breathing it to re- 



150 BEADnra th£ scbiptubss. 

maining outside^ as the glare hurts my eyes. I 
tben emfloy myself in readii^ the Scriptures and 
that exceUeut book Biydges on the 119th Psalm ; 
of whidi IV&s. Frobyn had a copy in her box^ 
lately received from Dhurumpore^ as well as her 
Bible. Up to my return to Kussowrali from 
Bunjpoorah} I had (mly my little Testament ; but 
Mrs. 'PrcAyjn now lends me her Bible for some 
hours daily^ when not requiring it herself. What 
a blessing it is to us having the Scriptures with 
us ! I have no books and no other employmait 
than studying them ; and what a source of real 
substantial cohort and su[^rt they are! Butj 
alas! tile bitter thought constantly occurs ''For 
you these lessons how to lead a Christian life 
are no longer applicable ; you have now but to 
ntudy how to meet death like a Christian.'' About 
3 o'clock Wuzeer Sin^ comes in daily^ and I 
read a portion of Scipture and pray widi him in 
EindustanL 

Some weeks since, before we left for Rung-* 
poorah, I inquired of the Thakoors if they had 
any books in Hindee, as I wished to amuse 
myself by reading them ; the only one in their 
possession was a coj^ of St Luke's Gospel, which 
^ne ^ them had received some years before from a 



FOOD AND SLEEP. 151 

missionarj at a festival, and had treasured car^ 
folly ever since. He lent this copy to us, and I read 
portions ol it daily with Wozeer Singh. Ahout 
5 o'clock I manage to get a hathe in the cattle- 
sh^ just heyond our dwelling. By the time we 
are dressed the shadows of evening are lengthen-* 
ingy and we have our dinner in tiie verandah ; the 
charpoys (our beds) being our only tables as well 
as seats. This meal generally consists of a little 
rice, chupattiesy and a watery kind of native 
vegetable something like cucumber^ stewed; some- 
times we are fortunate enon^ to purchase a kid 
or Iambi and tiien have a sumptuous dinner on 
<^ops5 but this is rare. At Runjpoorah we could 
procure no meat or rice, and lived on a kind of 
€hupatties called poorees^ and tea or buffalo's 
milk. This poor food made us all, especially the 
children, thin and weak. Our meal is soon dis- 
cussed, and then we sit and talk together, or go 
out and have a chat with the Thakoors while 
the cattle are being milked. As soon as it grows 
-dark we have prayers and go to bed, as we have 
no lights, and cannot better employ ourselves. 

Our sleep is of course much broken, for our 
i»nses have become so acute from constant watch- 
fulness, that the slightest imusual noise, ev^a the 



152 ALABHINa BUMOUBS. 

-movement of a bird on the trees close to us, is 
sufficient to awake and m^ke us start up. At 
present scarcely a night passes that we do not 
hear the sound of heavy guns at a great distance 
in the Lucknow direction, which we suppose to 
be the fire of the besiegers on the Residency. 

Thus our days pass, sometimes diversified by 
the receipt of favourable, at others, and indeed 
for the most part, of very dreadful and alarming 
rumours, most trying and distressing to persons 
•n our position. The inactivity is so hard to 
bear: we can do nothing to improve our position, 
but merely await the progress of events as pa- 
tiently as we can. In the morning we feel 
inclined to say, would God it were evening; and 
in the evening, would God it were morning. 

Saturday^ August 8th. — ^Just as I supposed, we 
have unpleasing accounts this morning, to counter- 
balance the favourable ones that have reached us 
for the past few days. Lucknow is said tp have 
fallen: "to be empty," as the Thakoors' expression 
is. May God forbid ! I don't think it is 
probable. 

Another report, is that two regiments of our 
Irregular Cavalry, who had joined the Nana and 
were among his ^defeated troops which had 



PLAN FOR MT ESCAPE, 153 

arrived at Futtehghur, had gone off to Cawnpore 
to endeavour to be »e-employed by us; being 
enraged by the conduct towards them of the 
Furruckabad Nawab, who caused them to be 
plundered of two elephants and other property, 
and telling them he did not require their services, 
would have nothing to do with them. 

The Thakoors made a proposal to me this morn- 
ing to convey me to Nynee Tal, via Phillibheet 
Kussuree had a daughter married to a powerful 
Thakoor, near Phillibheet; she died leaving a 
little daughter, who has been living for some 
time with her grandfather, and is now about to 
return to her father. She is to be conveyed in 
a covered palanquin, and it is proposed that I am 
to be concealed within, travelling all night with 
this child, and halting during the day in the 
houses of friends, where I would be safe from 
detection. In the event of being stopped on the 
march, the child was immediately to be shown; 
which it was expected would at once remove 
suspicion and allow of our passing unmolested. 
From the Thakoors' house I was to be sent on by 
Kussuree to the foot of the hills, what they call 
" Teehun Teehun ; " that is, from friend's house to 
friend's house, all pledged to secresy. The plan 



154 Jl LTIK0 MESSKVaZB. 



; possible. May Gtxl prosper it» if it is likely 
to be fin* good; or if not» defeat it Frobjn's 
optnioQ is most strong against all attempt to escape 
by any other course than down the Ganges. 

Sunday^ August 9th. — Not so peaceful a Sunday 
as we could wish; our minds are cast down and 
distracted by many rumours of our want of 
raccees at Cawnpore, and of weakness everywhere. 

Probyn had some days ago> by the advance of 
^sweaty rupees^ induced a man (a relation of Seeta 
Ram) to try and reach Cawnpore, and luring us 
news from thence; giving him a letter to the 
commanding o£Scer^ whoev^ he might be. This 
man returned to-day saying that the place was so 
closely beleaguered by the Nana's troc^s all around 
it^ that he could not get nearer cantonments than 
nine miles ; and that he had been so hard pressed 
thaty to escape detection; he had hidden the letter 
be carried under the root of a tree^ where he had 
hit it Lucknow> he reported, had been taken and 
the garrison put to the sword ; and that Cawnpore 
must soon, from the numbers investing it, be 
destroyed in like manner. To prove that he had 
ac^ally been as far as he stated, he brought us. a 
piece of Ae telegraj^ wire. By a little cross- 
examination, however, we discovered that he had 



GOOD NSW& 155 

nerer attempted the joamey, but had remained all 
the time of his supposed absence quietly in his 
house, in his village about fifteen miles o£ Seeta 
Bam was so exasperated at the conduct of his 
relation, whom he had recommended to us, that he 
Tolunteered to conyey a note £or us himself to 
Cawnpore, wheneyer we might wish to send him. 

Monday, August lOih. — Despatched Bobna with 
a little note in a quill &r my wife. He is to go 
to PhiUibheet, and endeavour to arrange for my 
journey from thence to Njmee Tal ; and to bring 
back news to me whether the road Is practicaUe. 

He bad scarcely been gone two hours when 
Misaer Byjenath's man. Khan Singh, who had 
previously visited me, arrived* I immediately 
sent for him, coaifident that he had brought me a 
letter from Nynee TaL Much, however, was I 
disappointed to find that he had not been there, 
and only came from Bareilly, charged by his 
mast^to seehow I wasgettii^ on, and to ascertain 
the exact posture of affairs at Cawnpore. I was 
so vexed at getting no letter, that I could hardly 
speak to him or listen to his news; which, how- 
ever, was rather satisfieustory. Our troops before 
Delhi were, he states, most successfuL Meerut 
and Saharuiqpor^ and the Hill stations, were quite 



156 A TIMELY BEMITTANCB. 

safe. Khan Bahadoor Khan's army, he describes 
as most contemptible, unarmed and ill-disciplined, 
and having only six gons of small calibre. The 
report of troops reaching Futtehghur would be 
quite enough, he assured^us, to clear Rohilcund 
of rebels, and restore it to the British; as the 
Hindoos were on our side, and were burning to 
revenge themselves on the Mahomedans. 

We had all, as well as the Thakoors, been present 
at this conference with Eliap Singh. At its close I 
dismissed Khan Singh, saying I would let him go 
the next day with a letter for Byjenath, and one 
for Nynee Tal. As he was rising to go away, 
he made a secret sign to me, unobserved by 
the others, showing that he wished to say some- 
thing to me in private. I took the hint, and half 
an hour after, and when I was alone in my own 
room, I sent Wuzeer Singh to bring him back. 

He then told me that his master, thinking, that 
f I was alive, I must be hard pressed for money, 
had sent me 500 rupees (50Z.) for my expenses. 
It was contained in two ** hoondees," bills drawn 
ion a banker at Goorsehain Ghinj, near Cawnpore ; 
nominally, in order to deceive any parties who 
might seize him and take them from him, but 
really payable, through a secret cipher, by a 



DIFFICULTY OF PROCUKINa CASH. 157 

banker in Furruckabad. Khan Singh said he 
could easily make his way into that place. The 
story he had told along the road, and which 
he intended to repeat to the sepoys if seized 
by them there, was this: that before the dis- 
turbances, his master had sent off a boat laden 
with indigo seed under care of his own people to 
Cawnpore; that this boat had not been heard of for 
three months, and as the people must be in great 
want of money, his master had sent him with these 
hoondees to cash at Goorsehain Gunj, and provide 
for iheir expenses, if he could hear of and find them. 
All this is easy enough. Khan Singh said: 
the sepoys would not interfere with him, so long 
as he had only hoondees ; which would be useless 
to them. The real difficulty would be, to get the 
money back safe after the bills were cashed; 
how to accomplish this, he knew not. Wuzeer 
Singh suggested that we should consult with old 
Kussuree on the subject; who, he was certain, 
could be trusted, and was a shrewd safe man: 
none of the others he assured us could be confided 
in. K they once knew that I had 600 rupees, they 
might get rid of me in order to possess themselves 
of the money; the whole matter must therefore 
be kept a profound secret from all but Kussuree. 



158 wELccms mriXLiGxiiCB. 

I told him that> when it was diirk, and Kussnree 
had gone to rest, he had better speak to him, and 
try to arrange some plan. The old man alwaja 
sl^t in a place by himself^ beside a favonrite mare 
and foal of his; so the confer^ice was sure to be 
secret 

We had gone to bed early, as it was a dark 
rainy t^npestnous night, when I was awoke 
by Mrs. Frobyn starting up from her charpoy 
exclaiming, ** There is the Bheestie !'' I started up 
and saw a man just enteni:^ the ^idosure. This 
was Probyn's water-carri^, whom a fortnight or 
three we^s before he had despatdiied to Agra 
with a letter to Reade, his uncle, telling him 
of our position, and requesting information and 
advice. We all then jumped up, and eag^ly 
demanded his news, and if he had got a letter 
for us. He said he had, enclosed in his stick, a 
heavy bamboo. The note was so ingeniously 
and securely secreted, and the stick so hard, that 
it took us more than half an ^hour to get at it» 
It was in the Greek character, and gave us most 
welcome news : that all was well at Agra^ since an 
action they had fought in July, when they had to 
retire into the fort ; that our troops were pretty 
successftil at Delhi, beating back with ease all 



BISAISTBOUS NATIVE BEPOBTS. 159 

sallies of the imLtine^*s; that the China troops 
had reached Cakutta ; and that General Haydock 
was coming up to relieve Lucknow^ and had 
probably done so by that time. Fcnt onrselyes 
he recommaided us to remain where we were, 
tmtil a safe opportunity offered of onr getting 
into the Britbh camp at Gawnpore. 

He did not anticipate that onr forces would re- 
capture Futtehghur for a long time to come. 
The only unsatisfactory part of Reade's informa- 
tion was that the Gwalior Contingent had mutinied 
and was threatening Agra ; but as the Chumbul 
river was in fall flood they could not cross it for 
some time^ and in the meantime Agra was safe. 

Tuesday y AiiguH lliJu — Notwithstanding the 
news of last night this was a day of unusual 
gloom and depression. Reports reached us which 
were folly believed by the Thakoors — ^who are, of 
course, always ready to give credit to sinist^ 
Tumours, and never to any in our favour — 
that Cawnpore is completely surrounded by the 
rebels; that our troops have been beat^a and 
obliged to raise the siege of Delhi; that General 
Havelock's force had failed to relieve the Luck- 
now garrison and had been driven back to 
Cawnpore ; also that a proclamation had arrived 



160 OUB POSITION KOBE CBITICAL. 

from the Begum at Lucknow^ offering a reward 
of a thousand rupees for each of our heads^ to 
any one who would bring them in. 

The Thakoors plainly told us that the arrival of 
this proclamation had greatly increased the danger 
of our position ; for that now it would be an object 
for any of the villagers to take our lives, as the 
party would be worth to them 4,000 or 5,000 
rupees. They urged us never to show ourselves in 
daylight in the little enclosure outside our rooms, 
and to keep a strict watch at night ; to be careful to 
close the entrance, and have our guns and pistols 
always ready beside us. Things certainly looked 
veiy gloomy. 

In the evening Hurdeo Buksh visited us, and 
plainly told us, he feared he could keep us no 
longer ; that I ought at once to start for Nynee 
Tal, or go with the Probyns, whom he intended 
to send down by land to Cawnpore. He had, 
he said, sent down some of his people to endea- 
vour to arrange for our safe conduct through 
Oude, by passing us on from one friend's house 
to another friend's house, into General Havelock's 
Camp. He had received favourable replies from 
several of his friends on the line, and only awaited 
answers from one or two others. Jussah Singh, 



VTE ARE COMPELLED TO DEPART. 161 

he said, had professed his willingness to receive 
us, and pass us on safe into the British Camp. 

Frobyn expressed his great dissatisfaction at this 
part of the proposal; saying it was well known 
that Jussah Singh was a confederate of Nana 
Sahib, who was in hiding at his place of Futteh- 
pore Chowrassee ; and that besides, Jussah Singh 
had been wounded when fighting against us. 
Hurdeo Buksh allowed that this was the case, but 
said that there was no fear, as Jussah Singh had 
pledged his honour for our safety to him, and a 
Rajpoot was never known to break his pledged 
word to a fellow chief. Go, however, he said, we 
must, whatever objection we had ; for as soon as the 
Lucknow garrison fell (an event which probably 
had already taken place) the Aumils would be sent 
all over the country with troops, and every avenue 
of escape would be closed to us«. He then left us^ 
saying he would let us l^now as soon as final 
arrangements had been made for our land journey, 
. This determination of Hurdeo Buksh to send us 
off^ and the opinion expressed by Reade, that it 
was by no means probable that Futtehghur would 
soon be retaken by our troops, and that conse- 
quently our only chance of escape was to get into 
the British camp at Cawnpore, made us most 

11 



162 SCHElfE FOB PSOCUBma CASH. 

anxious to commtmlcate with G^ieral Haydock ; 
wlio^ we learnt for the first time from Readers com- 
munication^ was commanding there. We th^e- 
fore determined to avail ourselyes of Se^ah Ram's 
offer to go to Cawnpore^ and to send him with a 
letter, which Probyn wrote in Greek chara^t^rs^ 
to Havelock, and enclosed in a quill, telling the 
General of our desperate situation, and asking 
his advice'how best to attempt our escape to join 
his camp. 

Seetah Ram is to start on his mission early 
to-morrow morning, and we hope may return in 
eight or ten days ; the inundation, however, is so 
wide spread, that he does not expect to cross the 
Ganges until to-morrow night This momii^ 
Wuzeer Singh informed me, that he had in the 
night sounded Kussuree about the best wiqr 
of conveying the money from Furruckabad, and 
that he and Khan Singh would come in the 
evening and talk it over — which they did alxmt 
5 o'clock in the afternoon. Kussuree proposed that 
two ponies should be hired from a neighbouring 
village beyond Hurdeo Buksh's domain; as any 
from one of his villages would be liable to be 
stopped, and seized at the Ghauts on the Grai^es 
by the Nawab's people. These ponies were to be 



COKFLICTIHa BBF0BT6. 163 

T)roiigIit to Eussowrah, there laden with graiu^ and 
taken into Forruckabad^ as if to dispose of their 
loads* The Nawab's people and the sepoys were 
amdoos to encourage supplies being brought into 
the city, and would not mterfere with them* 
When the loads were sold, the ponies were to be 
taken at night£sJl to the house of the banker yrh^ 
was to cash the bills, and the money would then 
be sewn into thdr pack saddles. Next morning 
the animals would be taken across die river, and 
being apparently merely on their return home un- 
laden would not probably be suspected or topped* 
This appeared to me as good a plan as could 
be adopted ; and Wuzeer and Khan Singh are to- 
go in the morning to some -villages about e^bt 
miles off to hire the ponies : being strangers and 
not known to the people, they will not be sos^ 
pected. 

Thursday^ August UiJu — Last mght we were 
made happy, by hearing that Cawnpore had been 
reinforced by eight regunents: of course this is^ 
the China force just arrived, and in Ae very nick 
of time. All may now be repaired. Soon after, 
we were depressed by the report, given by a s^oy 
returning to his home, who halted for a short time 
in the village, that fifteen mutinous regiments 



164 A MISEIIABLE NIGHT. 

rom Bombay had arrived at Gwalior. Of these, 
eight had crossed the Chnmbul to reinforce the 
rebels at Delhi, and the rest had remained in 
Gwalior, to join in the attack on Agra with 
Scindiah's Contingent as soon as the season 
permits. Another rq>ort has reached us, that 
Pude has been restored to its King. I would 
rejoice in such an equitable measure at another 
time ; but at present, if it be true, which I cannot 
believe, it is a sign of a falling cause, and of great 
and deplorable weakness Heard also that Delhi 
had been without doubt abandoned by our troops, 
who were forced to retreat and are probably 
besieged themselves in turn. All these reports, 
added to great heat and swarms of mosquitoes, 
made me pass a miserable, almost a tennfic 
night; fancying that, if Delhi had been aban- 
doned, the Gorkhas must have deserted us, and 
Nynee Tal, in that case, be in extreme danger, 
if it had not already fallen, and all Europeans in 
it massacred. 

Our general defence against mosquitoes is 
to' light each night some dried cow^ung in 
the comer of the place where we sleep, to 
windward; and the thick smoke being carried 
over our beds during the night, drains off these 



THE PSALMS A SOUBGE OF COMFOBT. 165 

insects. Last nighty however^ this resource failed 
us^ for there was not a breath of air, and 
the smoke from the burning fuel hung so thick 
and heavy about us, that we could not breathe, 
and had to extinguish the fire. The mosquitoes^ 
of course, taking advantage of the opportunity, 
fell upon us in myriads, and rendered sleep or rest 
nearly impracticable. 

It is impossible to describe the depression of 
mind and body which follows nights of this kind. 
It is at such times I feel the real blessing the 
Psalms are. They nevCT fail to give peace and 
refreshment, when all is dark and gloomy within 
and without. The circumstances under which 
many of them were written, seasons of danger 
and almost despair — David fleeing and hiding 
from bloodthirsty enemies, as we are — render 
them peculiarly suitable to our case. This mofn- 
ing I felt the 5th verse of the 68th Psalm most 
soothing, in the assurance it gives me that if I am 
cut ofl^, my God will be with my widow and 
fatherless children. Again, the fact asserted in the 
following verse, that God ** setteth the solitary in 
families," is most comforting. Unto Him belong 
the issues of life and death, and He may be 
pleased to show forth His power even for me, the 



166 HATITX BUM0UB8 AltD C<>1IPUJN1». 

most unworthy of His servants, and restore me to 
my fiunily* 

Friday, Augu$t 14<A. — Strange romonrs to-day 
tkat the Oovemor-(}eneral with the Bang of Onde 
will r^ach Cawn pcire this day, and that on their 
arrival Onde is to be f<ninaUy made over to its 
ancient mler. The Thakoors seem quite delighted 
at the prospect, and say the orders have come 
from the ^' English council at home," meaning the 
courtof Directors,** who always do justice." They 
often qpeak to me about the annexation, and ask 
me why the Govfemor-General acted on ** Sulli- 
van Sahib's" advice, as they call Sleeman ; who, 
they assert, was the man who ruined their ** raj." 

They speak with the greatest respect and 
affectbn of some of oar o£Scers, especially of 
Christian, late Commissioner at Seetapore, and 
swear vengeance against the Dobusiees (the 41st) 
who murdered him and his family at that place. 
If they could always have got access to him, they 
say, they would have had no reason to complain 
of our administration; but he had too much to do, 
and was seldom visible. The native officials tl^y 
describe as regular harpies, and a native deputy- 
collector who had been stationed at Sandee, they 
frequently mention to me with expressions of the 



A PKnnOM TO THE KiKa OF OUBI. 167 

deepest hatred. This f^ow, they assert^ had a 
pair of slippers of extra size made^ on purpose for 
^ shoe beating^ (the most disgraceful punishment 
that can be inflicted on a native) in open Eutcherrj 
any one who refused to pay him what he demanded 
intheshape <^bribes> or to sign any agreements 
respecting the disposal of their villages or land 
that he chose to fix upcm^ however imjast and 
ruinous to thar interests these might be. Old 
Kussuree told me that he had paid a thousand 
rupees in petitions alone> not one of which ever 
reached Christian, and more than 6,000 rupees in 
bribes; notwithstanding which he had lost the 
villages £uined by him and his ancestors {or many 
generations, and had been assessed so highly 
for those he had left, ihat he had only been able to 
pay his rent the preceding year by the sale of 
some of his family jewels and a mare he highly 
valued; and this year he said he would no doubt 
have been a deSiiulter, and been sold up, had not 
the bulwah (rebellion) fortunately occurred. 

I asked him why he did not go to Lucknow and 
complain in person to the Chief Commissioner. He 
replied that he had made one journey to Lucknow 
in the King's time, with some petition about his 
villages, and it so nearly cost him his life ; that he 



168 HABBOW ESCAPE OF A PETHIONSB. 

vroiild never enter that city again. "I was then,** 
he said, " a fine powerfiil man, * khoob inwan,' and 
passed my way into the King's presence in open 
durbar, armed in the usual way, and as we all are 
in these parts, with my sword, shield, and match- 
lock. I was unaware of the rules of the Court, 
which forbid armed men to enter the durbar 
and had left the match of my matchlock bumifkg. 
The King caught sight of it alight, and rushed 
out of durbar, crying out, * Seize and kill 
him : he wants to assassinate me ! ' I was instantly 
pinioned, and carried off to be blown from a 
gun. No one would listen to my expostulations, 
as I was a stranger ; and it was believed that I had 
been caught in the act of attempting to murder 
the King. Most fortunately for me, as I was 
being carried off, an officer met the party, and 
stopped it to look at the prisoner. He was 
from these parts and an old friend of mine. He 
recognised me and cried out, ^Kussuree Singh 
is no traitor but an honest zemindar of high 
character ; there must be some mistake.' I then 
told him how by my allowing the match of my 
gun to remain alight I had got into this trouble, 
which was likely to cost me my life. He had 
influence enough to stop my execution until he 



NATIVE COLLECTOBS 'OF BEYEinJE. 169 

could communicate with the authorities^ and on his 
explanation I was ordered to be released* I left 
Lucktiow that night, have never seen it since, 
and never will again, with my will." 

In the conversations I have had with Hurdeo 
Buksh, who is a very superior intelligent man, 
he has given me to understand that the native 
Omlahs,* who were , introduced in such shoals 
into Oude immediately after the annexation, were 
the curse of the coimtry, and in his plain-spoken 
phrase, " made our rule to stink in the nostrils of 
the people." Of Christian and many other o£Scers 
he spoke in terms of high commendation and 
respect He never hesitated, he said, to go to 
Christian, who always treated him (as Probyn had 
invariably, at Futtehghur) as a gentleman, gave 
him a seat, and conversed with him with affability ; 
but to any native official imder Government he 
declared he would as soon lose his life as go. 

Tuesday, August 18th. — This evening Ehan 
Singh returned with the money all safe from 
Furruckabad. The ponies which had been hired 
by Wuzeer Singh and him, were duly laden at 
Kussowrah, and driven to a ghaut on the Ganges, 
where they crossed. Ehan Singh went in the 

"^ Civil officers of Goyernment employed in collecting revenue 



170 8HCCB6S OF KOAK SINGH's SGHEMl. 

same boat^ but did not ostensibly have any con* 
nection with them. The ponies were allowed to 
pass with their loads, as soon as the guard at the 
ghaut ascertained that they did not belong to any 
of Hurdeo Buksh's villages. Ehan Singh was^ on 
landing, seized and brought before the Subahdar 
in command. He exhibited his hoondees, told 
the story he had prepared beforehand — ^that he had 
been sent by his master to make advances to the 
boat's crew belonging to him — and expressed his 
confidence diat, as it was the object of the sepoys 
not to hurt but to foster honest traders, they 
would not interfere with, or detain him. The 
Subahdar believed his story, wished him success, 
and dismissed him. The ponies' loads were dis- 
posed of in the Bazaar, and the animals themselves 
taken at nightfall secretly to the bankers, where 
the money was sewn into their pack-saddles. 
Next morning at dawn, their drivers drove them 
back across the ghaut unquestioned ; Khan 
Singh, to avoid recognition, recrossing himself, at 
a ghaut some miles higher up the Ganges. 
He rejoined them on this side, and they all 
arrived safely at Kussowrah. And now, through 
the noble conduct of Missur Byjenath — ^who, 
without any solicitation of mine has of his own 



0BKXBO8ITT OW NATITS FBIBKDS. 171 

accord advanced me money, at a time when mj 
life is bj no means secure and repayment is 
most uncertain — and the cool intrej^dity and 
intdligence of his servant, I am supplied with as 
much cash as I can possibly require, and placed 
above want 

On receiving the money, my first desire was to 
pay Wuzeer Singh some wages, as he had received 
no pay since leaving his regiment in February. 
He refused to receive one cowrie, saying, ** When 
I see you seated in kutcherry again, I will take 
pay: until then I can support myself well 
enough with the balance of my l)ay.*' Nothing 
could move him from this determination. I was 
afraid to ke^ the money myself, so I made it over 
to Eussuree to retain for me. 

Thursday, August 20iJu — ^Nothing has occurred 
since last entry worthy of note. To-day a 
messenger was sent to us from Hurdeo Buksh, to 
say that a man had arrived at Dhurumpore asking 
for Probyn, and that he had him detained as a 
spy. Probyn begged that the man might be sent 
on to us. He soon after arrived, and turned out 
to be a messenger from Deighton Probyn from 
Delhi, which place he had only left nine days 
before. The letter was sewn up in the sole of the 



172 TIDINGS FBOH DELHI AND CAWNPOBE. 

man's shoe, and had to be cut out It was of 
course much soiled, but quite legible, and informed 
us that all was going on favourably at Delhi, 
and the insurgents were losing heart from con- 
tinual defeats* The messenger informs us that he 
had seen numbers of sepoys on the road, return- 
ing to their homes with their plunder. He had 
met one man on a camel, who gave out in the 
villages as he came along, that the British army 
had been cut to pieces in his presence, and the 
Emperor had sent him down express to announce 
the happy tidings to the Nawab of Furruckabad. 
Probjm's messenger inquired of this man when 
he had left Delhi ; and on hearing that he had 
started two days before himself, knew that his 
statement was quite false, and remonstrated with 
him for propagating such falsehoods. The man 
replied that he was carrying home plenty of plun- 
der and gave himself out to be an imperial 
messenger to save himself from being stopped and 
plundered by the villagers. 

Seetah Ram returned this evening from Cawn- 
pore; but, to our bitter mortification, without any 
note from General Havelock in reply to Probyn's. 
Seetah Ram had safely reached the British camp, 
and falling in with some Sikhs, was conducted 



NO BEPLT FBOM GENERAL HAYELOC£. l73 

by them to General Havelock's tent; when he 
delivered his letter, and was told to wait for an 
answer. This he did for the whole of the next 
day, but received none* The second morning the 
force moved out towards Bithoor, and Seetah 
Ram accompanied General Havelock's servants 
with the force. A battle was fought about 
midday, in which the insurgents were beaten 
with much slaughter. Seetah Ram was present 
throughout, and states that the fire of our 
artillery was so terrific, that it was impossible for 
the enemy to stand against it for a moment. After 
the action he tried to get speech of the General, 
but he was too busy to attend to him. Next 
day. General Havelock moved to attack a body of 
the enemy which had retreated to some place near 
Sheorajpore, where he beat them again soundly. 
The order was then given to return to Cawnpore, 
and Seetah Ram, fearing we might be much dis- 
appointed by the delay in his return, and thinking 
there was no hope of getting any reply from the 
General, started on his return, and reached us in 
due course. His news was good and most cheer- 
ing; but his mission, as we told him, had been 
useless, as he had brought us no reply from the 
General. As Havelock is an old friend of mine. 



174 DEATH or THS FBOBTHS* PAUOHXBS. 

I have thought it best to write to him myself, and 
entreat of him to send ns some reply. Seetah 
Bam is to start with this letter to-morrow. 

Fridayy August 2\sL — ^Poor Probyn*s little ^rl 
died this morning: she had drooped ev^ since 
the exposure and privations of Rnnjpoorah, and 
ever since our return had gradually grown 
weaker, notwithstanding her mother's increasing 
care and watchfulness: another victim to these 
sad troubles; as, in all human probability, had the 
child not been subjected to such hardships, or 
even if medical aid or medicines had been 
available, she would have lived. When I jdned 
the party at Dhurumpore, she was a fine healthy 
and very pretty child, with beautiM hair thickly 
curling over her head. As soon as it was dusk^ 
we went out and dug a grave, and at midnight 
carried out the little body wrapped in a sheet, and 
buried her by her little brother. I can never 
forget her parents' agony. She had been a 
favourite child, and to see her wasting away daily 
and suffering from disease, without being able to 
administer anything for her relief, was almost too 
distressing to bear. But it is God's will, and what 
we know not now we shall know hereafter. 

Saturday J Jiugmt 22nd. — I sent off Seetah Ram 



PBOCULMATION OF THE MUHNEEBS. 176 

iJiis morning with my note to General Havelock, 
desiring him to make all speed in returning, as the 
good effects of the late success in opening the roads 
might soon wear away. Hurdeo Buksh called 
upon us in the forenoon of to-day, for the firat 
time at this hour since we have been in this 
place: he generally chose the dead of night far 
his visits. He was in high spirits, in conae*- 
quence of Havelock's successful advance and the 
intelligence which had reached him of reinforce- 
ments pouring into Cawnpore. Not one of the 
Talookdars or men of influence in Oud^, he 
asserted, had yet joined the rebels, with the excep* 
tion of Jussah Singh; who has been reported dead 
of his wounds. Hurdeo Buksh tells us that he 
has received a copy of a proclamation, issued by 
the Subahdars in command of the mutineers at 
Delhi and Lucknow, to all the chief landowners in 
Oude. In this document they express their 
surprise and sorrow that, although the army had 
risen in defence of their religion and for the 
common good, the landowners had not co-operated 
with the soldi^^, or given them the aid they 
counted upon, when they rose. In consequence 
of their backwardness, the army now found them- 
selves tmable to contend successfully against the 



176 ILL-FEELIKG AGAINST THE ENGLISH. 

British; the Subahdars^ therefore, thought it 
right to warn all the chief men of influence and 
rank in Oude that it was the intention of the 
British, as soon as thej had destroyed the army, 
to collect all the high-caste men and sweepers 
in the province at one enormous feast, and 
make them all eat together. The Subahdars 
therefore thought it their duty to give the chiefs 
fair warning of the intentions of the British 
Government, and to entreat them, for the sake of 
their common faith, to aid the army with their 
forces, and to rise and exterminate the infidels, 
and avoid so feariul a catastrophe as the loss 
of their caste. 

Hurdeo Buksh said, "You and I know that 
this is all nonsense and folly; but the proclama- 
tion is a highly dangerous and inflammable 
document, for its contents are implicitly believed 
by the common people, who are consequently 
much exasperated against the English." 

His own relations and tenantry, he says, have 
become in consequence highly displeased with him 
for harbouring us; and this ill-feeling has been 
much aggravated by the Nawab and Subahdar 
in Futtehghur having issued orders to prevent 
any people from hb villages crossing the Ganges, 



WE ABE BECOMUENDED IQ ESCAPE. 17 1 

or getting any supplies from Furruckabaxl of salt, 
sugar, and other necessaries hitherto procured &om 
thence^ The result of this deprivation is that the 
people are becoming excited to a degree highly 
dangerous to us, and Hurdeo Buksh fears he 
cannot much longer restrain them. Besides 
all this, the inundation was, he observed, daily ^ 
diminishing, and he had always told us that 
the moment the waters subsided his power to 
protect' us would be at an end. He therefore 
thought we should, with reference to all these 
circumstances, make up our minds to endeavour 
to escape by the river to Cawnpore ; and to start 
without loss of time, while the recent successes of 
our troops were fresh in the minds of the people, 
and the route was comparatively safe. He had 
ordered a boat to be prepared for us, and as soon 
as it was ready he should start us off. We told 
him that we quite coincided in his opinion, that it 
was now high time to attempt to escape by the 
river ; and that we would be ready to start on the 
return of the messenger we had sent to CaAvnpore, 
who might be expected in a few days with a 
reply from General Havelock. Hurdeo Buksh 
was satisfied with this, and left us. 

Sunday^ August 23rd. — We had for some days 

12 



178 fiDOixu nposxflu 

xaade our pro^cted MUeasft to escape by the 
Ganges the repeated subject of jirtLjer, iogti^^eat 
and hj owndvcA, ior gcddaiice bm to what coiine 
we idioitld pnrsoe^and diat God would iu metcj be 
pfeaaed to open ft waj ai escape jEbr us. I wesat 
into mf room this moacBing to look up the Ic^^ous 
tor the daj before meetiiig &r prajers^ when 
taming over the 'BSbl^ 1 was much atrudk by 
comiiig upon the 8ik idiapter, yerses 21, 22, 23, 
and 31, of the book of Ezra; whidL seemed so 
peculiadj mitahle to our circumstaaces as to be 
quite startling. I read the passage to the Pro* 
bjrns^ and we were by this little incident so aoudi 
strei^thened and enc<Miniged that we feel now 
iittlo or no hesitation in u^ertakiug our perilous 
Journey* 

Momdag, 24tth. — Sinister rumours are rife to- 
day in the village, and of course are duly 
communicated to us, diat the insui^ents are agiun 
re<*a»umfoling in the neighbourhood of Cawnpore, 
and hare attacked and expdled the police from 
Ihe re-^staMished stations, it is also rqK>rted that 
Banee Chunda Eocmwur, mother of Dhuleep 
Singh^ has effected her escape from N^mul, and 
has arrived at Futtehghur, en rottie to the Pui^gaub. 
If this be true, and she succeeds in reachnig her 



UNFAILING SOURCE OF COKSOLATION. 179 

ckifrf.fn»ta*QB, the ciHiseqiieiices may be most froiiUe* 
som^if asQt disftsiroas. 

Finished to-daj, ior the second tiiii% &at 
eKceUent w{»:k Brydges im lldtb Psaim; &e 
mh book in my liaxids, exc^t the Bible5 for 
die past two months: and feiti&nate bare I been 
to bare had these sources of oonsdatioo. I found 
great oomfort and cncoon^aokent to-day in read* 
ing fais remarks oaa £Eiith, in bis commentary on 
the 116lh Teiss ; whidi contains^ I tihink^ the real 
scriptural doctrine. Howerer our own firames may 
change^ or ots power of comprehension vary^ He 
remmini the same, yesterday, to^ay, and for 
ever: we eaa neither add to nor detract any- 
thing &om the oompletenesB of His fimshed work* 

Jvat as we were &lUng off asleep last mght we 
were ronaed by the anival of a m^senger from 
Oenecal Hsrelock. We Jmnped up, eager to get 
his eiqpeoted commanicati<m; but, to our Utter 
disappointment, found that he had only brought 
a letter from the Grea»:al to Hurdeo Buksh, 
commending him for his humanity and loyalty 
in having protected as hitherto, and assuring him 
df high rewards if he would send us safo into the 
British Camp, as soon as it reached Futtehghun 

The messenger quite raised our spirits by in- 



180 CHEEBINa TIBU^GS. 

forming us that below Cawnpore all was tranquil 
— daks running and telegraph communication with 
Calcutta open, just as before the mutiny, and that 
Lucknow was quite safe ; so much so that the army 
was to move on Futtehghur before making any 
fresh attempt for its relief. The messenger, how- 
ever, strongly urged us not to attempt to escape 
down the Ganges, as we should certainly be seized 
and killed by the rebels along the banks; but 
to remain quietly where we were imtil Havelock's 
army advanced and captured Futtehghur. 

Tuesday, 25ih. — My messenger, Rohna, arrived 
to-day from Nynee Tal with a welcome letter 
from my wife, giving good accounts of herself 
and Gracey. They, with the other ladies, had 
been removed as a matter of precaution to Al- 
morah, as Khan Bahadur Khan's troops were 
threatening Nynee Tal. Rohna brought me also 
a little note from Ramsay, entreating me not to 
attempt to reach the hills by Pillibheet, as the 
country is much disturbed and full of rebels; so that 
this route is quite impracticable. These letters 
gave us a good account of affairs generally. Rein- 
forcements had reached Delhi; which, it was hoped, 
might fall by the end of the month, and twenty 
thousand men are announced on their way from 



COMMUNICATION KEPORTED OPEN. 181 

England. It appears that communication is open 
between Nynee Tal, Mussoorie, and other parts, 
as accounts up to the 18th June have reached my 
wife of all the dear ones at home, who were quite 
well, and in happy ignorance of our desperate 
situation. 

Late in the evening, one of Hurdeo Buksh's 
people came from Dhurumpore to tell us that a 
messenger, sent by his master to ascertain the 
state of the river, > had returned and reported 
all clear and safe as far as Cawnpore. As it is 
now pretty certain that we shall make the attempt 
ere many days elapse, we deemed it right to 
intimate our intention to Major Robertson and 
Mr. Churcher, in order that they might accompany 
us. Probyn accordingly sent a Tiote to Robertson 
to warn him, but enjoining him to maintain entire 
secresy, as upon this mainly depends our safety 
and the success of our enterprise. 

Wednesday^ August 26<A. — General HavelocVs 
messenger again advised us strongly against 
attempting the river route; maintaining that at 
several points on the banks on both sides, to his 
certain knowledge, the enemy were posted in force 
with guns, which of course we could never pass. 
We sent Wuzeer Singh to tell Hurdeo Buksh 



182 GOOD ȣwa noM delhl 

what the hnrkarah had told ns. On his return he 
said that in&rmaticm to the same effect had aki» 
reached Hordeo Boksh, who had in conaeqn^ce 
sent off fresh messengers to procture accurate 
intelligences as to the state of tt^ river aod &» 
position of the rebels between us and Cawnpcnre. 
We are not to start until they return. All this 
is rerj depressing : we oeem to be raixovnded 
bj a circle of fire, which it is impossible to pua 
through* All that we can do is, like Ezra, with 
earnest prayer to se^ of our Grod ^^ a right way 
&r us and the little ones." 

A messengw arrived to-day bringing a letter 
from Delhi, which was, as usual, concealed in ^ 
sole of his shoe. On opening it, we found to our 
great disappointment that it was not addressed 
to either of us; but was from Yule (of the &th 
Lancers^ we suppose) to an officer of the name of 
Beatson at Cawnpore. The messenger said he left 
Ddhi on the ISdi, when all was going (A well. 
On the 12th an outwork waa carried by onr troops 
without much loss, the enemy lodng five hundred 
killed: they daily sally out aikt attack oar siege 
operations, but do little mischief, and cai^e «s no 
loss. Reinforcements from Bombay, the messen* 
ger said, had arrived, and a siege train from 



* A FBESH FLAN 09 BSCAnS. 183 

Ferozepore was close at hand^ wliicli it was boped 
would at oi»:6 settle the buanesB* 

I%ur8daff, 27tk Auffutt — ^Nothing new settled 
about our plans, and we are much harassed. 
Heavy guns firing in Furruckabod to-day, we 
know not from what cause; but thejr reminded 
us painfully of our fearful proximity to that place 
idiere are so many thnrstii^ tox ouar lives. Amidst 
, it all, to-day's Psalms most omsoling, and woiidcr- 
ftilly suited to our case, esqpecially the cxust 

A Brahmin in the employ of Mr. Churcher, and 
said to be much in his confidence, came to us to- 
day bringing a letter from Major Robertson, teUing 
us that although so weak that he faints whenever 
he is moved in order to have his woimd dressed, 
he thou^it it his duty to avail himself of this 
opportunity, which God has put in his way, to try 
to escape from these awful dangers which threat^i 
us on every side. Although he considers oor chance 
of escape very slender, and the attempt a desperate 
cme, he will hold hims^ in readiness to start to 
join our boat whenever he receives instructions of 
the time fixed for departure. The Brahmixk did 
hit best to dlssimde us from the attempt; assuring 
us it must end in our de^ructioii, unless Huirdeo 
Bnksfa would send down with, us at least four 



184 OBNERAL HAYJ^LOCK's ADVICE. 

hundred matchlockmen in separate boats. Mr. 
Churcher, he told us, would certainly not run 
the risk, but preferred remaining where he was, 
in hiding with the Aheers. We dismissed the 
messenger, telling him to inform his master that we 
are quite determined to start as soon as the boat 
is ready. 

Saturday, 29th August. — ^Late last night, after 
we were all in bed, but none of us asleep, and while 
pondering over our gloomy circumstances, Jones, 
who has a very fine voice, suddenly commenced 
singing the " Old Folks at Home." I never felt 
more deeply affected in my life ; and indeed this 
was the case with all of us while listening to the 
song. 

Seetah Ram soon after arrived, bringing a note- 
to me from General Havelock, and another to 
Hurdeo Buksh's address ; both enclosed in quills, 
and of course very brief. The General strongly 
recommended us to remain where we were and 
watch events ; as the rebels infested all the roads 
and rendered travelling most dangerous — almost 
impossible. We were much cast down, and con- 
sulted together whether to follow tiie General's 
advice and remain where we were, or risk 
the river journey. It was, after all, but a choice 



WB DETERMINE TO TBY THE RITEK. 185 

of dangers : to remain where we were much longer 
was almost certain destruction; to go^ although 
hazardous in the extreme, offered at least a 
chance of safety and escape, so we all three deter- 
mined to try the river. There was no time to 
lose, as*Seetah Ram reported that the rebels were 
again collecting, but that as yet there were no 
bodies of men and no guns on the river banks. 

We all thought it best that Probyn should go 
at once to Hurdeo Buksh, deliver to him General 
Havelock's letter, and intimate that we were ready 
to start as soon as he pleased. He accordingly 
set off, and returned in about two hours, stating 
that Hurdeo Buksh has determined to send us off 
by boat to-morrow morning. May God in his 
infinite mercy go forth with us, and protect us, 
and bring us to our desired haven I We sent 
off a messenger to Robertson to inform him and 
Churcher, and also bearers to convey the former, as 
he could not walk to the boat to-morrow morning. 

Tuesdayy September laU — On Sunday, August 
30th, I awoke very early, and roused up the 
others. The morning was dull and rainy, just 
fit for our expedition. We all in that little shed 
joined, for the last time, in earnest prayer to- 
gether for a blessing on our undertaking, and 



186 HAnxjua to embaiul 

in AmDkBgtf'mg for the many mereies we Itad 
rec^red^ and for our wcmderfnl preserralioii 
Utberto in this |dace. At 7 JL.iLy Hnrdeo Buksli 
eame ^ himself to conduct ns to the boat The 
lliakoorSy and other kading men of the vSIag^ 
who had been in the habit of coming anct sittiBg 
with US and giving ns the news during the past 
wearj weeks, accompanied ns to the boats ; whi(^ 
we fbnnd moored on the Ramgtmga, opposite 
Dfaummporej and all readj for i«. • 

Otn* party consisted <^ eleven matchlockmen, as 
a guard, eight rowers, all under the command of 
Hnrdeo Bnksh^s brother-in-law Thakoor Rrthee 
Pal. Seeta Ram also acccnn^Mmied ns, as he 
knew where our troops were located at Cawnpore, 
and might be usefnl to tts ^ rcute^ and also 
Rohna, who was to return at once if we reached 
Cawnpore in safety, with a note to Hnrdeo Buksh^ 
and one for my wife, to take on to Nynce TaL 
One of the Enssowrah Tbakoers, of Poontn, also 
went with iis» 

We remained for more than twtv hours at tiie 
boat, waiting lor Ma^ Robertson and Mr. 
Charcher, and at the immineiit peril of <mr own 
Kres; oar safe^ mainly depes^g cm expedidon 
and aecrei^. H intelKgeiKe of our projected 



A PBBIL0D8 BELAT» 187 

attempt reached die Nawab and Subafadars in Txd^ 
tdighor nothing was easier than fer them to detadi 
some sepoys down the Granges^ to the point where 
ti^ Ramgunga &31s into it, and mterc^t tts there. 
Thej conld reach that point in less than two 
honrs with ease from the time of starthig ; wl^reas 
it woold occupy nearly from mom till ev^Eiingy 
owing to the winding course of the Ramgunga, 
b^ore we could hope to enteir the Ganges. 

Hurdeo Buksh had haj^ily taken the precau- 
tion^ the night before^ of seizing all the boats at the 
fiBxries on both riverSy within the limits of his 
domain, thus cutting gS all communicatic»i with 
Furruckabad. Any lengthened interruption of 
the passages across the Gaines would not fail, 
however, to attract notice and excite snspkion ; 
and it was in his opinion very essential for our 
safety that we should embark and start without 
further loss of time. We were in a most painful 
position. We could not bear the idea of leaving 
our pocnr countrymen behind, and yet if we 
delayed any longer, we m^|ht lose our own lives 
without ben^tmg them* At last, just as our 
patience was exhaiusted, a messeng^ arrived from 
Msyor Sobertscm to si^ that neither he nor Mr. 
Churcher would ri^ the attempt Th^ were 



188 OUB ESCOBT AND FLAN OF ESCAPE. 

doubtless dissuaded by the Bralimin servant of 
Mr. Churcher, who had used his best arguments 
to deter us from the journey. 

There was nothing now to detain us^ so about 
eleven, as far as we could judge, we started. 
Hurdeo Buksh rode with us for some miles 
along the banks of the stream and then left 
us; enjoining us to be careful to remain under 
the covered part of the boat, and on no 
account to show ourselves, as that would lead 
to our discovery, and in such an event to our 
destruction. To secure the fidelity of the boat- 
men, he had, he informed us, seized their families, 
who would only be released on the news reach- 
ing him of our safe arrival at Cawnpore. The 
matchlockmen were his own immediate retainers, 
and fully trustworthy. I, however, doubted them 
much more than the boatmen, for whose fidelity, 
we have a substantial guarantee ; for I believed 
they would take to the river, in which they can 
swun like fish, on the very first approach of danger. 

The boat was nominally conveying the female 
portion of the family of a relative of Hurdeo 
Buksh, on a visit to their relations at a lonely 
place on the Oude side of the Ganges called Tir- 
rowah Pulleeah, belonging to a Talookdar named 



OUR BOAT NEARLr WBBCKED. 189 

Dhunna Singh. This man is a great friend of 
Hurdeo Buksh, and possessed of considerable inr 
fluence on both sides of the river, as far as Cawnr 
pore. If he considered the road safe, he was 
to accompany us to that place ; if he did not, he 
was to give us shelter and protect us for the time 
being, and imtil something was determined upon 
for our disposal. 

For the first twenty miles of our course down 
the Ramgunga, we ran little risk, as Hurdeo 
Buksh's influence sufficed to protect as« For the 
last thirty, until the river joins the Ganges, 
the danger was great Messengers, however, 
met us at different points along the bank to warn 
us whether we might safely proceed or not At 
one point we were in considerable danger of being 
wrecked. The boatmen tried a new channel 
and came upon a rapid, with an abrupt fall of, 
I should think, nearly four feet The stream 
was rtmning with great rapidity; but from its 
shallowness, the boat stuck in the middle, and for 
ten minutes could not be extricated. We dared 
not show ourselves outside, and it was most 
tying to sit still, crowded as we were in the 
close covered space allotted to us, while the 
boat himg as it were on an inclined plane, the 



190 AH IlOiaCAL TILLAGE. 

water loaiing and smgiiig round us. At last 
tbey nuuiaged to get lier clear, and we floAted 
down, without fiirther interruptiiui, till we 
reached within two or three miles of the mouth 
of the Ramgonga. 

The river had so materiallj changed its chaimel 
this year, that for several reaches, we found our- 
selves directly opposite the village of EassimKore^ 
situated on the right hank of the €huiges, and 
which we supposed lay some four miles higher 
up the stream. This village bore ^ woat 
diaraeter; its inhabitants had, we were aware, 
taken an active part in the massacre of the 
Fottehghur Aigitives and the plunder of thdr 
boat; that fearful tri^edy having occurred in its 
immediate neighbourhood. 

It was with breathless anxiety, therefore, that 
we watched this village. From the great heig^ 
of the bank on which it was placed the people 
must have seen us, as we came winding dowiEi 
the stream and rounded the reaches; and the 
unusual sight of a boat could not, we feared, £eu1 
to attract attention, and lead parties of them to 
come off in boats to intercept us. The sun was 
setting as we floated out into the Ganges, here 
about a mile broad, and only about a quarter 



OVM BOAT CBALLSMffiB. 191 

ei m mile bdow Kasdm Kore. It was wilJi 
a Mdffiiiiiig Bori of anxietf we ocmtiimed to wati^ 
tins place ; but it was like a village of the dead : 
not a human being could we discern numog 
abouty and deeply tfaankfal did we hd. when we 
found that we were passing lumotioed. But we 
scarodj ventured to consid^ oorselTes seemly 
until we lost sight of the hatefbl spot in the 
di^ance. 

The Ganges was still in flood, and we floid)ed 
down very rapidlj, keeping, as &r as it was 
possible, the middle of the stream. At one point 
where the stream narrowed considarably, there 
was a (errj close to a lai^ village, with several 
boats close to the bank, and a number of people 
collected and about to cross. Except the boat at 
these^and other ferries, there was nothing floating 
on the Ganges. Instead of ihe fleets which for 
iiiB last flfty years had been passing up and down 
without intermission, not a single boat had been 
se^i <Hi its waters since that <Mie which had 
escaped from Futtehghur, and of whose &te we 
were in the utmost ignorance. The unusual sight of 
a boat rowed rapidly down stream, with a number 
of armed men on the roof and deck, attracted im- 
mediate attention, and we hardly dared to hope that 



192 WE auchor at nightfall. 

we could safely pass this ferry. As we approached 
the place^ our guards got their cartridge boxes 
handy^ and their powder horns by them, all ready 
if required. 

We were, as we expected, challenged and 
asked who we were, and told to stop and pull in 
shore. The Thakoor replied that he was taking 
his family down to Tirrowah PuUeeah, and could 
not stop. . A voice called out " You have Ferin- 
gees (English) concealed in that boat ; come ashore 
at once." ** Feringees" on board," was the ready 
answer of the Thakoor, Pirthee Pal, "I wish 
we had, and we should soon dispose of them 
and get their plunder." — " Stop and come 
ashore," was repeated ; but by this time, owing 
to the rapidity of the stream, we had floated past 

The river widened, and we bore out into the 
centre of the stream ; the distance thus put be- 
tween us, and the sight of the guard all ready 
with their matchlocks, no doubt deterred any of 
those on shore from putting off and following 
us. After this we passed on without challenge 
until 'iiightfall, when the boat was stopped ; 
we anchored at a most solitary, desolate place 
covered with long grass, and left half-dry by 
the receding waters of the river. This place, we 



A DBEABT AND DISMAL SCENE. 19S 

heard, was only a mile and a half from Tirrowah 
Pulleeah, Dhunna Singh's stronghold. Our crew 
and guards immediately went on shore, and com- 
menced cooking. 

It was of course essential for us to commu- 
nicate with Dhunna Singh, as he was to accom- 
pany us on, and it would be hopeless for us to 
attempt to proceed without him. Only one of 
our party, a boatman, knew the way to his Fort, 
which lay directly^ across the waste, alongside 
of which we were anchored; with, as he told 
us, a deep creek intervening, and he declared he 
would not go alone at this time of night. Some 
of the guard and boatmen were in vain ordered 
to accompany this man; not one would Jeave 
his cooking. At last the Thakoor seized one of 
the boatmen, gave him a sound thrashing, and 
frightened him into accompanying them. 

They followed a small path, and were soon lost 
in the long grass. Probyn and I got out of the 
boat and walked up and down the bank, anxiously 
discussing the probability of the messengers fail- 
ing us, or in event even of their reaching the 
place, of Dhunna Singh's answering our summons 
or not. It was the wildest and most dismal scene 
I have ever witnessed; the boatmen and guard 

13 



194 ABBIYAL OF OUR GUIDE. 

even seemed depressed, and sat cooking in silence: 
not a sound was heard, but the croaking of innu- 
merable frogs in the pools, and crabs in the 
swamp. Nearly two hours passed away without 
any sign of our messengers : not a soul came near 
us. At last Probyn determined that we had 
better go on at all hazards, as the night was 
slipping away ; and as the most dangerous part of' 
the river was before us, it was necessary to pass it 
under cover of the darkness. Desolate as the 
place was, it would not do to remain there for the 
night ; as the herdsmen grazing their cattle would 
no doilbt discover us as soon as it was light, and 
most likely give information to the villagers, who 
wouU come down and destroy us. My opinion 
was strongly against starting without Dhunna 
Singh. It had been part of Hurdeo Buksh's 
arrangement that he should accompany us, and if 
once we deviated from it, in so important a point, 
the crew might not consider themselves any longer 
responsible for our safety, and might desert us. 
Probyn agreed to remain for another half-hour : 
one of terrible anxiety and suspense it was. 

I was pacing up and down, and almost in 
despair, when I heard the sou;nd of voices approach- 
ing, and Dhunna Singh almost immediately came 



INFLT7EN0E OF DHUNKA SINOH. 195 

up, with our messengers and a few followers ; he 
was an old man with a white head, but very wiry 
and athletic^ and from his frank and self-possessed 
manner, I saw at once that he was the right sort 
of man for this kind of work. He said we must 
go on at once, and lamented that so much time 
had already been lost; as it was most desirable to 
be beyond a part of the river near Sheorajpore 
by the morning. The only thing suspicious about 
Dhunna Singh was his desiring to accompany us 
in a small boat to be towed astern, instead of on 
board ours. I told him we expected him to come 
into our boat ; and this he did, after some hesitation. 
We started about ten o'clock, so far as we could 
judge, and floated rapidly down the river, keeping 
as much as we could in the centre of the stream. 
We were challenged repeatedly from either bank 
and ordered to stop and come ashore; but on 
starting, Dhunna Singh had instructed two 
of his men, whom he had brought on board 
with him, to reply in answer to any challenge, 
that the boat belonged to Dhunna Singh of 
Tirowah Pulleeah, who was taking his family 
down to bathe at a celebrated bathing ghaut 
near Cawnpore. If this explanation failed to 
satisfy, the men in repeating it were instructed 



196 DHI7NNA singe's fiSADT TACT.: 

to say that Dhunna Singh was himself on 
board ; and if even this did not suffice^ he would 
himself come forward and answer the chal- 
lenge. 

On several ocasions he had to do this; for 
the explanation of the men being not believed^ a 
second and more peremptory summons was given 
to stop and pull ashore. Dhunna Singh's own 
powerM and peculiarly harsh voice, however, 
never failed to satisfy inquirers ; who, on hearing 
his explanation, either remained silent, or said, 
** Go on, go on ! " At one village, however, much 
embarrassment was caused by the party challeng- 
ing being intimate with Dhunna Singh, expressing 
great satb&ction at his arrival, and begging him 
to come ashore and take them on board. Dhunna 
Singh showed great readiness and presence of 
mind in this difficulty. He answered their hail 
with great apparent cordiality, and telling the 
rowers to stop pulling, began asking questions 
about different persons and places ; he thus held 
the party in conversation till we had floated well 
past the village, when he called out that he could 
not stop just then, as he wanted his family to 
be at the ghaut in time to bathe before the morn- 
ing ; but that on bis return, in two or three days. 



A GBITICAL SITUATION. 197 

he would make a point of stopping in the village. 
On saying this, he ordered the men to give way 
as fast as possible, which they did; and as the 
river was running like a sluice, we passed down 
so rapidly, that any attempt to have pursued 
us by a boat from the village would have been 
quite vain. 

About one in the morning, we approached 
Mendee Ghaut, the chief ferry between Oude 
and the Futtehghur side of the river, and a great 
place of resort for mutineers or rebels. Dhunna 
Singh expressed great anxiety to pass this place 
in safety; assuring us that the risk of detection 
was very great Most providentially, as we 
approached within a mile of the place, a large 
bank of clouds came over the moon and it 
became partially dark. The rowers were told 
to ship their oars, and the whole party to keep 
profound silence. In this way we glided down 
the stream very rapidly, and silent as the grave ; 
owing to the darkness and perfect stillness we 
passed this critical point altogether unnoticed and 
unchallenged. About an hour after this we 
grounded twice : the first time, the boat was got 
off without much trouble; but on the second 
occasion she struck several times very heavDy, 



198 DANGBBS AYEBTID. 

and then nearly capsized. She, however, 6oon 
righted a little, but remained for more than an 
hour stuck fast on the sand-bank. I though 
then it surely was all up with us ; that we could 
not float her, and that we should be deserted by 
those on board and left to the mercy of the 
villagers, who could not fail to notice and come 
down on us as soon as it was light 

Nearly the whole of the guard, as well as the 
rowers, at our earnest entreaty, got into the water ; 
and, by thus lightening the boat, succeeded, after 
heavy labour, in getting her afloat The delay 
caused by this mishap was very serious; for day 
broke just as we were nearing a place on the 
right bank where a body of the enemy with guns 
were said to be posted, and which we had calcu- 
lated upon passii^ during the night 

As we approached this point, Dhunna Singh, as 
well as ourselves, felt most anxious. Great, how- 
ever, was our relief, and deep our thankfulness, 
when, upon rounding a reach of the river, we found 
this place silent and deserted. Had the enemy 
been here we must have fidlen into their hands ; 
fore scape would have been impossible. Dhunna 
Singh now told us that if we could only succeed 
in reaching Bithoor, some ten miles further down. 



DHUNNA Singh's fbesbnge of mind. 199 

which he supposed was occupied by our troops, 
we should be safe ; but until we arrived there, 
as it was now daylight, the risk of being stopped 
was great 

On we went without interruption for some miles, 
when the stream carrying us close in shore on the 
right bank, we came, on rounding a point sud*- 
denly, on a considerable body of people, some 
bathing and some sitting on the bank. On 
Dhunna Singh replying in the usual manner 
to their challenge, what was our delight 
and surprise to hear the party, who were com- 
pletely deceived about us, earnestly warn 
Dhunna Singh not to proceed much farther 
down the river, as he would in that case inevi- 
tably fall into the hands of the Gora log, 
(Europeans) who were in force in Bithoor, and, 
would kill all in the boat 

Dhunna Singh, with his usual presence of mind, 
affected great alarm at this intelligence, and wink- 
ing coolly at me as I lay inside the covering, 
eagerly inquired of those ashore where our troops 
were posted, and how far we could proceed down 
the stream with safety. He was told the exact spot, 
and then, saying he would avoid that point, and 
cross to the Oude aide of the stream, told the 



200 HAILEI) BY JUSSA SIKOh's SEPOT* 

rowers to give way. We shot rapidly away, and 
thus escaped a most imminent danger. So near 
were we to the party on shore, that Probyn and 
I each caught up one of the children and kept 
our hands on their mouths, lest they might speak 
or cry out; which would have betrayed us at 
once, and we must have been lost 

We met with no incident for the next few miles, 
and about 11 o'clock we reached Bithoor. We 
were now beginning to congratulate ourselves that 
at last we were in safety, and Dhunna Singh, as we 
approached the place, removed the curtain hang- 
ing in front of where we lay, and called out 
to us, **Tou are now in your own territory; 
come out and look about, for there is no more 
need of hiding." Jones was just on the point of 
availing himself of this permission, and going out 
from under cover (where he had been cramped 
up all night), into the open air, when, as he 
was stepping over me I caught his leg, and 
by some involuntary impulse begged of- him 
to stop, and not show himself for a little. 
He had scarcely done so, and the words had 
hardly left my lips, when the curtain was hastily 
replaced, and we were hailed by a man on the 
bank. Dhunna Singh inquired who he was; 



WE SAFELT PASS BITHOOR. 201 

he replied that he was a sepoy of Jussa Singh's 
son, and had come across from Futtehpore Chow- 
rassee with some of the Nana's people, to convey 
away some of the Nana's property which he ha4 
been forced to leave behind him, when he fled 
from our troops on their capture of the place. 

Dhunna Singh completely deceived this man 
by his xeady replies to all his questions, and so 
prevented his suspecting the real character of the 
boat, or giving the alamu Dhunna Singh ex- 
pressed great satisfaction on hearing that Bithoor 
was evacuated by our troops, and reoccupied by 
some of the Nana's, and of his ally Jussa Singh's 
son. Jussa Singh himself, who was the Nana's 
confederate in the Cawnpore tragedy, had about 
a fortnight previously died of his wounds, and 
been succeeded by his son; with whom the Nana 
was at this moment in hiding a few miles from us, 
at Futtehpore Chowrassee. 

Soon after passing this sepoy, and while float- 
ing past some high buildings, several shots were 
fired in rapid succession; and we saw several 
hundred armed men, congregated in and around 
the buildings. We, however, heard no whiz 
of buUets, and supposed that the firing was 
in honour of the great Mahomedan festival of the 



202 A FBISH DAKOEIU 

Mohurmin^ wWch is now being celebrated. It was 
truly miracnlous how we escaped being observed 
bj this large body of men^ all armed, and in the 
service of our deadliest enemies. We were the 
sole boat which had appeared for nearly two 
months on the river^ and the unusual sight could 
not fail to have drawn their attention to us, and 
yet no one molested us, or tried to stop us. 

An hour of most intense anxiety passed in 
getting clear of this dreadM place, Bithoor. 
When we had left it about two miles behind, 
Dhunna Singh, who as well as myself had not 
closed an eye all night, came in and lay down 
under the cover of the boat, and, assuring us that 
we were now all right, said he could take a 
sleep. Soon after we had the great joy of seeing 
Cawnpore in the distance. 

Owing to the frequent turns of. the river, and 
a high contrary wind which had sprung up, we 
were a weary long time in approaching the station. 

Just as our hopes of safety appeared on the 
verge of accomplishment, they suddenly seemed 
about to be entirely defeated; for the wind caught 
our boat, and in spite of the efforts of the rowers, 
who were by this time thoroughly worn out, drove 
us half -across to the Oude side of the river. We 



SAFB AT OAWNFOBB. 203 

then^ for the first tiine> became aware, that this 
bank was occupied by a body of the enemy watch- 
ing the Cawnpore force. Their tents became 
distinctly visible ; and, as we were being driven 
across, we heard their drums and bugles sounding 
the alarm ; as they, I fancy, took us for a recon* 
noitring party. We expected that they would 
fire at us ; but fortunately they did not, and the 
wind felling we were enabled, after much labour, 
to get back again to our own side. 

Soon after we came upon a picket of Sikhs 
posted near the old Magazine. This was the 
most joyful sight our eyes had seen for many 
a weary day and night The party, not imagin- 
ing that by any possibility the boat could contain 
friends, came down to oppose us, and were capping 
their muskets to fire, when Wuzeer Singh hailed 
them in their own dialect, informing them who 
we were. The native oflScer in command, and 
all the men, then came forward to congratulate 
us on our escape; at which they seemed as 
heartily rejoiced as if they had been our own 
countrymen. They told us to drop down the 
stream until we came to the camp where our 
troops were entrenched, which we should know 
by a steamer being moored below. We left them. 



204 HEABTT WELCOMES. 

and in aboat half an hour reached the landing. 
After some trouble, owing to the violence of 
the wind and strength of the current, we suc- 
ceeded in making our boat fast to another along* 
side the steamer. Then, indeed, with grateful 
and overflowing hearts, we stepped on shore, feel- 
ing that at last we were saved, and among our 
own countrymen. 

We landed about two P.M. of the 31st August, 
just twenty-seven hours after we started ; during 
which time we had run the gauntlet for more 
than 150 miles of river way, through the midst of 
the enemy's country. A picket of her Majesty's 
84th Regiment was on duty at the ghaut The 
men congregated round us, and even our own 
flesh and blood could not have more repeatedly 
or warmly congratulated us on our safety than 
they did: they were very tender of poor Mrs. 
Probyn, and insisted on carrying the children 
and our little baggage to wherever we wished 
to go. On learning that the magistrate's tent 
was a few yards off* at the top of the bank, 
I immediately went there, and found Sherer of 
our service. On announcing myself (for being in 
native dress he could not recognise me) he was 
as much surprised as if he had seen an apparition; 



SUKYIYOKS OF CAWNPORB W[ASSACRE. 205 

for I had long been reported among the killed 
at Futtehghur, I can never forget his hearty 
welcome. 

I was just able to tell him that the Probyns 
and their children were down at the boat and 
beg of him to go and bring them^ when, as he 
rushed off for that purpose, everything seemed 
to swim around me and I fell on the ground from 
excitement and exhaustion* Sherer soon after 
returned with the Probyns, and by that time I 
had recovered myself. When we had all collected 
in the tent, our first question was as to the fate of 
the party who had left Futtehghur, and of whom 
we hoped that some had escaped. Then for the 
first time we heard the truth, that they had really 
aU been murdered: that not one had survived. 
We also heard of the awful massacre at Cawn- 
pore, of which only vague rumours had hitherto 
reached us, too terrible to admit of credence. 
We could scarcely believe that we four persons 
and the two children are the sole survivors of 
that large body of our country-people, men, 
women and children. 

Sherer got rooms prepared for us in a house 
fitted up as an hotel, close to his tents, and just 
beyond the entrenchment occupied by our troops. 



206 ONCE MOBE IN A HOUSE. 

To get to this place we were obligedf to pass the 
house in which the slaughter had been perpe- 
trated, and the well where so many of those dear 
friends lie, whom we had so lately parted with in 
full strength and -vigdur. 

When we found ourselves in a house again, for 
the first time for three months, and in a position 
of comparative security, we felt quite awe-struck ; 
and, with hearts overflowing with thankfdlness, 
we knelt down together to bless our God who 
had so wonderfully ** delivered us from the hand 
of the enemy, and frcnn those who lay in wait for 
t;s by the way." 



THE END. 



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