Gradually, however, all became more and more indifferent to these
discomforts, and the few days which passed in the barracks, previous to
their second embarkation, were as fully occupied as soldiers’ time
usually is when preparations for service, and that too of an active and
spirit-stirring kind, are undertaken.
The close of the year 1782 had brought with it an event of the most
important magnitude to the British interests in India. When Madras was
in a state of famine, its treasury exhausted, and its means even of
defence at the lowest ebb, Hyder Ali, the most formidable and untiring
foe the English had ever known, constantly victorious over the
ill-commanded armies of the southern Presidency, and holding a position
which, in case of a successful blow early in the next campaign, would
render him master of the field, died at Chittoor.
The relief which this event gave to the minds of the public
functionaries in the south was great; and a blow upon the army which had
obeyed Hyder, might have been struck with advantage in the absence of
any leader on whom it could have relied: that opportunity, however, was
allowed to pass. Tippoo, the enterprising son of the deceased chief, was
enabled to join it; and he assumed the command, and inheritance of his
father’s dominions, without opposition—nay, amidst the rejoicings of his
future subjects. He had been employed in directing a successful
opposition to the British invasion of his dominions from the westward,
which had made much progress; and he had nearly succeeded in his object,
when the news of his father’s death was secretly conveyed to him. In
order now to establish his authority, it was absolutely necessary that
he should cross the peninsula, and proceed at once to Chittoor, where
his father had died, and where the army lay. This absence from his
command, which was longer protracted than the invaders had calculated
upon, gave them renewed courage, and the war against the Mysore
dominions was prosecuted by the Bombay force with a vigour and success
which had long been strangers to the operations of the English.
During the time which Tippoo necessarily consumed in consolidating his
authority in the eastern part of his dominions, and providing for the
invasion there menaced by the force of the Madras Presidency, the Bombay
army, which had been driven by him into the fort of Paniané, had
received reinforcements, and in return was enabled to beat back its
assailants, and to advance with some success once more into the enemy’s
country, though from a more northern position, whither it had proceeded
by sea. Before, however, any expedition of magnitude, or that promised a
permanent occupation of the country, could be undertaken from Merjee
(now the position of the Bombay force) it was necessary that it should
be reinforced largely—in fact reconstituted; and the opportune arrival
of the large body of European troops, to which Herbert Compton and his
companions belonged, enabled the Government to effect this in an
efficient manner.
There were two ways also in which the dominions of Mysore could be
assaulted; the one through the natural road, or gap, eastward from the
town of Calicut, in the midst of which was situated the strong fort of
Palghatcherry, and which led immediately into the rich provinces of
Coimbatoor and Barah Mahal, bordering on the English possessions to the
eastward; and another, by any one of the passes which led upwards from
the level country between the Ghats and the sea, into the kingdom of
Mysore. The southern route had been often attempted; but from the
difficulty of the road, the dense jungles, and the facility with which
the invading forces could be met by the Mysore armies, attacks had never
more than partially succeeded. It was hoped that, when once the army
reached the table-land above the mountains, it would not only hold a
superior and commanding position for further operations towards the
capital, in case of previous success, but it would possess the
incalculable advantage of a cool and salubrious climate, of so much
importance to the health—nay, existence—of the European troops.
Accordingly, when it was known at Bombay that the force had been enabled
to escape from the fort of Paniané, where, as we have mentioned, it had
been beleagured by Tippoo in person—that it had sailed—re-landed at
Merjee, and was in condition to resume operations—it was determined that
the whole of the disposable force, including the newly-arrived troops,
should be sent to join it, and that operations should be commenced
without delay.
Already prepared for active service, Herbert’s regiment was one of the
first which sailed again from the island: its complete equipment, and
the health and spirit of the officers and men, led the Government to
place every dependence on its exertions in the coming arduous contest.
It was followed on the same day by others; and three or four days of
delightful sailing down the beautiful coast brought the armament to its
desired haven, and the troops landed amidst the cheers and hearty
welcome of their future brethren in arms.
A very few days served to make preparations for the campaign: bullocks
and stores had already been collected, with a few elephants to assist
the guns in their ascent of the passes; and, after the plans for the
campaign had been determined by the leaders—Mathews, Macleod,
Humberstone, and Shaw—the army moved from its camp toward its
destination.
There was necessarily much of romance in the early campaigns in India:
the country was unknown, and imagination peopled it with warlike races
far different from the peaceable inhabitants of the coasts—men in whom
the pride of possession, of high rank, of wealth, of fierce bigotry and
hatred of the Christians, uniting, made them no less the objects of
curiosity, than worthy enemies of the gallant bands which sought them in
war. Those who were new to the country, and who, in the close atmosphere
and thick jungles of the coast, saw little to realise their dreams of
eastern beauty, looked to the wall of mountains spread out before them,
with the utmost ardour of impatience to surmount them. Beyond them, they
should see the splendour of Asiatic pomp, the palaces, the gardens, the
luxuries of which they had heard; beyond them, they should meet the foes
they sought in the fair field; there, there was not only honour to be
won, but riches—wealth unbounded, the sack of towns, the spoil of
treasuries, which, if they might believe the reports diligently
circulated throughout the army, only waited their coming to fall into
their possession; above all, they burned to revenge the defeat and
destruction of Bailie’s detachment in the west, which was vaunted of by
their enemies, and to retrieve the dishonour with which that defeat had
tarnished the hitherto unsullied reputation of the British.
The spies brought them word that the passes were ill-defended, that the
rich city of Bednore, with its surrounding territory, was unprotected,
that its governor, an officer of Tippoo’s, and a forcibly-converted
Hindoo, sought earnestly an opportunity to revenge his own dishonour, in
surrendering this the key of his master’s dominions into the hands of
his enemies. It is no wonder then, that, urged on by cupidity, and
inflamed by an ardent zeal to carry the instructions he had received
into effect, the commander, Mathews, looked to the realisation of his
hopes with a certainty which shut out the necessity of securing himself
against reverses, and hurried blindly on to what at first looked so
brightly, but which soon clouded over, and led to the miserable fate of
many.
It was a subject of painful anxiety to Herbert and his companions, so
long as the destination of their regiment was unknown; for the army had
to separate—part of it to reduce the forts and hold the country below
the passes (a service which none of them liked in anticipation), and the
other to press on through the open country to Bednore, the present
object of their most ardent hopes. The strong fort of Honoor, however,
which lay not far from their place of rendezvous, could not be passed;
and to try the temper of the troops, and to strike terror into the
country, it was assaulted and carried by storm, with the spirit of men
whom no common danger could appal, and who, in this their first
enterprise, showed that they had only to be led with determination in
order to perform prodigies of valour. Nor was there any check given to
their rapacity; the place was plundered, and thus their appetites were
whetted both with blood and spoil for their ensuing service.
Now, indeed, shone out the true spirit of many an one whom Herbert and
his companions had even respected hitherto; and they saw rapacity and
lust possessing them, to the extinction of every moral feeling; while
unbridled revelry, habitual disregard of temperance, and indulgence in
excesses, hurried many to the grave whom even the bullet and the sword
spared. They were thankful to be thus knit in those bonds of friendship
which the conduct of their associates only drew the closer. They lived
in the same tents, marched together, fought together, and found that
many of their duties were lighter, and their marches and watches the
shorter, for the companionship they had made for themselves.
The commander, Mathews, a man of deep religious feeling, quite amounting
to superstition, had early remarked the appearance of Philip Dalton; his
high bearing, his steady conduct, the grave expression of his face,
impressed him with a sense of his assimilation to himself in thought;
and the excellent appearance of his men, and his attention to their
comforts, with a high estimate of him as a soldier. Nor did Herbert
escape his observation, nor the evident friendship which existed between
them. On inquiry he found that both bore the highest character, though
their habits of exclusiveness and hauteur were sneered at; yet,
perceiving the cause, they rose the higher in his opinion on that
account. For some time he weighed between the two; but gradually leaning
to the side of Dalton, he at last determined to offer to him the post of
aide-de-camp and secretary, which he accepted; and this, though
productive of temporary separations between the friends, still gave them
ample opportunities of association.
A few days after the storm and capture of Honoor, in which Herbert’s
regiment had borne a conspicuous part, and he, as commander of the light
company, had been noticed by the general in orders, the army reached the
foot of the pass, above which the fort of Hussainghurry reared its head,
and from which it took its name. Of the defences of the pass all were in
fact ignorant, but the native spies had represented them as weak and
easily to be surmounted, and they were implicitly believed. A few
straggling parties of the enemy had been met with during the day, and
driven up the pass, without any prisoners having been made from whom an
idea of the opposition to be encountered could be gained or extorted.
The way, however, lay before them; the army was in the highest spirits;
and, though the only road discernible was a rugged path, almost
perpendicular, up the side of the immense mountain, yet to them there
was nought to be dreaded—the morrow would see them on the head of the
ascent, breathing a purer air, with the broad plains of India before
them, to march whither they listed.
It was night ere the army was safely encamped at the foot of the pass;
the regiments had taken up their ground in the order they were to
ascend, and Herbert’s company was in the van; upon it would rest, if not
the fate of the day, at least the brunt of the ascent. Philip Dalton
sought him after his duties were over, the final orders had been given,
and the various officers had been warned for the performance of their
several parts in the coming struggle.
‘I am afraid you will have hot work to-morrow, Herbert,’ he said, as he
entered his little tent, where sat his friend writing very earnestly. ‘I
tried all I could to get the regiment another place, or at least to have
the force march right in front, but it could not be done. Somehow or
other the general had more than ordinary confidence in the light company
of the —th, and was pleased to express a very flattering opinion of my
friend; so—’
‘Make no apologies, dear Philip; all is as it should be—as I wish it; I
would not have it otherwise for the world. My gallant fellows are ready
for the fray, and you know they are not easily daunted; besides, what is
there to be afraid of? The people we have seen as yet have fled before
us, panic-stricken, ever since the affair of Honoor, and I for one
anticipate nothing but a pleasant walk up the mountain, or a scramble
rather, for the road does not look over smooth.’
‘There will be hot work, nevertheless, Herbert; we have the best
information as to the defences of the pass; they are insignificant, it
is true, but every rock is a defence, and a shelter from whence the
steady fire of these fellows may be fatal; and we hear of a scarped wall
or something of the kind at the top, which we cannot very clearly make
out. Would that I understood the language of the country, and could make
inquiries myself; it appears to me that those who pretend to know it
make but a lamentable hand of it, and guess at half they ought to know.’
‘It matters not, Philip—there is the road; we are to get to the top if
we can. I presume no other orders will be necessary.’
‘None.’
‘Then trust me for the rest. I have a little memorandum here, which I
was writing, and which, if you will wait with me for a while, I will
finish. It is only in case anything happens, you know,’ he added gaily,
‘there are a few things I would wish to be done.’
‘I will not disturb you, so write on; I too had a similar errand,—ours
is but an interchange of commissions.’
‘There, my few words are soon finished,’ said Herbert; ‘these are
addressed to you, Philip, but they are to be opened in case only of
accident. Here are a few letters that I have written in my desk, which,
with all my sketches, you must send home for me, or take with you if you
go; for the rest, this will tell you fully all I wish to have done.’
‘It is safe with me, Herbert, if I am safe myself, of which I have small
hope.’
‘Ah, so you said at Honoor; yet who exposed himself more, or fought
better, nay hand to hand with some of the natives, than yourself? I
shall use your own word destiny, and argue against you.’
‘Nevertheless, I am more impressed than ever with the certainty that I
stand before you for the last time, Herbert. I shall not seek danger,
however; indeed, my post near the general precludes my doing so of my
own accord; but in case of accident, here are my few memorandums; put
them in your desk, where they can remain safely.’
‘And so now, having deposited our mutual last commands with each other,
let us not think on the morrow, Philip, but as one in which we may win
honour. If God wills it, we may meet when all is over, and we are
quietly encamped upon the top, and fight all our battles over again. I
am glad, at all events, that I shall have Charles Balfour with me.’
‘Ah! how is that?’
‘Why, the picquets are ordered to join the advance guard, which is my
company; he commands them to-day, and is yonder bivouacking under a
tree, I believe; I was going to him when you came. Poor boy, I believe
he is alone; will you come?’
‘With all my heart.’
They took their way through the busy camp, where numerous watch-fires
were gleaming, and groups of native soldiery gathered round them,
warming themselves from the cold night air and dew which was fast
falling. The spot on which the army rested was an open space at the very
foot of the pass, surrounded by dense jungle, and mountains whose bulk
appeared magnified by the dusk. Although the stars shone brightly, the
fires which blazed around caused everything to appear dark, except in
their immediate vicinity, where the light fell on many a swarthy group,
among whom the rude hooka went its busy round, as they sat and discussed
the chances of plunder on the morrow, or the events of the past day.
Everywhere arose the busy hum of men, the careless laugh, the shout for
a friend or comrade, many a profane oath and jest, and often the burden
of a song to which a rude chorus was sung by others. The large mess-tent
of the regiment, with its doors wide open, displayed by the glare within
a group of choice spirits, who, over the bottle they could not forsake,
fought their battles over again, coolly discussed the chances of
promotion, and openly boasted of the plunder they had acquired, and
their thirst for more. Herbert and his friend could almost guess from
the gesticulations the nature of the conversation, and could see that
the men who held those orgies were drowning in wine the cares and
thoughts which the events of the coming day might otherwise press on
them. They turned away to where the watchful sentinels, placed double,
native and European, paced upon their narrow walk, and where, around the
embers of fires which had been lighted, the picquets lay wrapped in
their coats, taking the rest which should fit them for the morrow’s
arduous strife.
‘Who comes there?’ challenged the nearest sentry, one of his own
company.
‘A friend—Captain Compton; do you know where Mr. Balfour is?’
‘Yonder, sir; the officer of the native regiment is with him; they are
sitting under the tree near yon fire.’
Thither they proceeded—it was but a few steps off.
‘Ah! this is kind of you, Herbert and Philip, to come to cheer my watch;
not that it is lonely, for Mr. Wheeler here, who shares it with me, has
a store of coffee and other matters very agreeable to discuss; but it
was kind of you to come to me. Now be seated, camp fashion, upon the
ground, and let us talk over the affairs of to-morrow; we are likely, it
appears, to have some work.’
‘How do you know? have you any late news?’ asked Philip.
‘Mr. Wheeler can tell you better than I; but a short time ago the sentry
yonder challenged in the direction of the pass, and, no answer being
returned, I took a corporal’s guard and made a little expedition, which
was in some degree successful; for we caught two fellows who looked
marvellously like spies, but who, on being interrogated by my friend
here, swore lustily they were deserters, who had come to give
information. From them we learned that at least twenty thousand of
Tippoo’s valiant troops were prepared to make this a second Thermopylæ,
that we should have to storm entrenchments, and perform prodigies of
valour, and that we might possibly get near the top; but as to
surmounting it, that was out of the question: was it not so, Mr.
Wheeler?’
‘It was as you have said: these fellows were very likely put forward to
give this news, in order that we might be deterred from our attack, and
thereby give them time to throw up some breastworks or stockades, at
which they are expert enough. I fancy, however, the intelligence will
have but little effect upon the general.’
‘What have you done with the prisoners? Sent them to headquarters, of
course, Philip? I thought you must have seen them ere this.’
‘No, indeed, I have not; but it is time I should. I may be wanted, too,
and I must bid you farewell. If I can, I will be with you early; if not,
and we are spared, we shall meet to-morrow on the summit. So once more,
God bless you both!’
‘God bless you! God bless you!’ both repeated sincerely and
affectionately, as they wrung his hand. It might be they should never
meet again; but they were young, and soldiers, among whom such thoughts
are seldom expressed, though they are often felt.
Herbert as yet had formed no acquaintance with the officers of the
native army. Taught by the tone prevalent among those of his own at that
period, to consider them of a lower grade, he was both surprised and
gratified to find Mr. Wheeler a man of very general information. In
particular he found him to be excellent authority on many matters
connected with the usages and customs of the native troops, which to
Herbert’s military eye had appeared quite out of rule; and the sensible
explanations he gave of these and many other circumstances, not only
amused Herbert and his companion during their watch, but threw much
light on the objects and chances of success in their undertaking.
‘Then you think the general has considered the end without the means to
accomplish what he has in view?’ said Herbert, questioning him upon a
remark he hazarded.
‘I do; I think too (and the thought is not original, but one of high
authority that I could mention, only it is discreet not to do so) that
the Government is wrong in the precipitancy with which they have urged
this on, and are injuring it daily. Our force is not sufficient to keep
any country against Tippoo’s whole army, which, whatever others may say
of it, is in a very respectable state of discipline; and if we succeed
in reaching Bednore, we shall hardly get out of it with whole bones.
Have we men to occupy the passes, to take forts, to secure the country,
and to fight Tippoo besides?’
‘We have little force enough certainly,’ said Herbert; ‘but then most
are Europeans.’
‘Ay, but they are difficult to support, and helpless if not supported.
It is the fashion for you gentlemen of the royal army to cry down our
poor fellows, who after all fight well and do all the drudgery. We may
never meet again, Captain Herbert, but you will remember the words of a
poor Sub of native infantry, who, because he knows more of the native
character than your general, and more of the country, is very much
disposed to prophesy a disastrous end to what is just now very
brilliant.’
‘I hope you are wrong; nevertheless, what is chalked out for us we must
do; we ought to have no opinions but those of our superiors.’
‘Ah, well! that is the acmé of discipline to which I fear we shall never
attain,’ said the lieutenant, laughing. ‘I, for one, am willing to play
my part in what is before us; for I am too inured by this time to hard
blows and desultory fighting to care much for the passage of a ghat,
where, after all, the resistance to be apprehended may only be from a
few fellows behind a wall with rusty matchlocks.’
‘You are right, Mr. Wheeler,’ said young Balfour; ‘I want to see my good
fellows show the army the way to get up a hill; you, Herbert, will
answer for their doing the thing in style.’
‘I can, Charles; but remember you are not to be rash. As your superior
officer, I shall beg of you to use discretion with your valour. Do I not
advise well, Mr. Wheeler?’
‘You do indeed, sir; I wish many higher than you in rank could think as
calmly while they act as bravely. But here comes the field-officer of
the night; we must be on the alert, Mr. Balfour. Good night, Captain
Compton! we may renew this acquaintance.’
‘I shall be delighted to do so whenever you please; you know where to
find me, in the lines of the —th; I am seldom absent. And now, dear
Charles, tell me before you go if I can do anything for you, in case of
accident to-morrow? Dalton and I have exchanged little memorandums,
which I felt to be necessary, as we are to bear the brunt of the
business.’
‘Ah, there is really no danger, Herbert: you see Mr. Wheeler says there
is none; besides—’
‘Do not say so, Charles; wherever bullets are flying, there is danger. I
do not mean—God forbid I should think of any danger to you—but it is our
duty to consider such matters, that we may be able to meet them calmly.’
‘You are right, you are right, dear Herbert; I am glad you have spoken
to me, for I dared not have mentioned it to you or Dalton. But in case I
am—in case, you know, of any accident—you will write home about me,
Herbert. You will find the direction pasted inside my desk—to
my—my—mother—’
Poor boy! the sudden thought of her, linked with that of his own
possible death, was too much for a heart overflowing with affection for
his only parent. He struggled for a while with his feelings, and then,
able to control them no longer, burst into tears.
Herbert did not check them. It was but for a moment, however; he quickly
rallied. ‘This is a weakness which I little thought to have displayed,
Herbert; but just then my thoughts were too much for me. Will you do
what I asked?’
‘That will I, most cheerfully, if I live, Charles.’
‘And just tell them,’ he continued gaily, ‘what sort of a fellow I have
been. It will be a comfort for them to know perhaps that—but enough!—you
know all. Wheeler has got his men ready, and yonder are the rounds: so
good night! to-morrow we spend for a time, at all events, in company. I
am glad you spoke to me—I feel all the lighter for it already.’
‘Good night, Charles! get some rest if you can after the rounds are
past, you will need it; and all appears safe and quiet now around us.’
Herbert slowly returned towards his tent, picking his way amidst the
prostrate forms of the native followers, which everywhere covered the
ground, wrapped in deep sleep. All was now still, except the spot he had
left, where the usual words of the guards challenging the rounds arose
shrill and clear upon the night air; and the ‘Pass Grand Round—all is
well!’ gave a sense of security, which, in the midst of a watchful
enemy’s country, was doubly acceptable. Once he thought, as he listened,
that the challenge was answered from the pass by the shrill and
quivering blast of the brass horn of the country; and he looked, lest
there should be any stir discernible. But all was still; the giant form
of the mountain apparently slept in the calm night air; a few mists were
wreathing themselves about its summit, which was sharply defined against
the deep blue sky glistening with stars; and here and there the bright
twinkle of a distant watch-fire far above him showed that the enemy kept
their watch too as carefully as their assailants.
The camp was quite hushed; here and there the sharp bark of a dog arose,
but was as instantly silenced; or the screams and howlings of a pack of
jackals, as they prowled about the outskirts of the camp in search of
offal, awoke the echoes of the mountains. The drowsy tinklings of the
cattle-bells, with their varied tones, and the shrill chirrupings of
innumerable grasshoppers, were sounds which never ceased: but they were
peaceful, and invited that repose which all needed and were enjoying.
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