Brace and the infantry officers passed between the guns, and took a few
steps forward to meet the bearer of the flag of truce, who came forward
alone and saluted them, but with a haughty, contemptuous look.
"Well, sir," said the colonel, "have you a despatch or message?"
As the colonel spoke, I saw that a larger party of cavalry had collected
behind the little group which accompanied the officer, and one of the
infantry men at a window above my head whispered down to me that there
were more behind.
This put me on the watch; and I spoke to my men not to make the
slightest movement, but to be ready.
All this was almost momentary, and the next instant, as I kept a keen
eye on the enemy, I was listening to the sowar officer speaking.
"His Highness the Maharajah Ny Deen, who has with him now an army, many
as the sands of the holy river, surrounding you on all sides, bids you
lay down your arms and surrender."
"Yes; and what then?"
"His highness will treat you as prisoners, but kindly; and your lives
will be spared. But you must lay down your arms at once, and march
out."
"For his bloodthirsty band of cut-throats to fall upon us, and treat us
as they do all unarmed men."
"His Highness the Maharajah gives you his word that your lives will be
spared."
"And if we refuse to surrender, what then?"
"Your bodies will be given to the crows and vultures," said the officer.
"For by sundown nothing of you will be left alive."
"Look here, sir," said the colonel; "have you ever read the Bible?"
"No; I read the Koran," said the native officer, whose haughty,
overbearing way seemed to be humbled before the stern Englishman who
addressed him.
"Read in the Bible, too, and you will find there about how one Rabshakeh
came summoning a people to surrender. He boasted, and so do you."
"Do you surrender?" said the officer, with an attempt to resume his
haughty tone of supremacy.
"No. Go and tell your mutinous master that we are ready to meet and
punish him and his treacherous following of traitors, who are false to
the queen they swore to serve. Tell him that if he will lay down his
arms, and surrender to her Majesty's and the great Company's troops, he
will have justice done, and to send no more messages here. They are
insults to honourable gentlemen and their followers."
"Then you refuse his highness's mercy?" said the officer, haughtily.
"Back, sir, and deliver your message," cried the colonel; "and tell his
highness that if he dares to send any of his insolent mutinous
scoundrels here again, I shall fire upon them. A flag of truce is not
to protect traitors."
The man scowled, and seemed to writhe at the contemptuous manner in
which he had been treated. Then, in obedience to long habit, he saluted
and rode back with his men.
"Yes, we must act at once," said the colonel; "and take the initiative."
"In, quick!" I shouted, as I caught sight of a movement in front; and
so cleverly and quickly was the manoeuvre carried out, that as the three
officers passed between the guns, a column of mounted men came tearing
along the street.
But I was ready, and one gun thundered out its defiance, the shot
sending the column into confusion; but they dashed on, and were within
forty yards of us when the second gun bellowed with such dire effect
that the foremost men turned and fled, throwing those who still advanced
into confusion, and giving our men time to reload; while the infantry
commenced firing from the windows on either side, and a company waiting
a hundred yards away in reserve came up at the double, and, with fixed
bayonets, took up their position, ready to protect the guns.
It was my first responsible piece of action, in charge of the guns
alone, and as I saw the dire havoc my orders had caused, a curious
sickening sensation attacked me, and for a few moments all seemed dim.
Just then our Irish gunner Brian exclaimed, forgetful of discipline in
his excitement--
"Look at that now! Murther! what would my poor ould mother say, if she
saw what I've done?"
He had fired the second gun, and he stood scratching his ear with a
curiously perplexed look on his droll countenance. Then he brightened
up, and shook his head at the poor wretches who were crawling from among
the injured horses to get into shelter of the houses to right and left.
"Bedad!" he cried, fiercely, "I don't moind a bit. Come on, and I'll do
it again. I'd forgotten about the summer-house and the fire."
"'Tention!"
"Yis, sor. I beg pardon. It was me excitement."
But the enemy did not come on again; the lesson had been too terrible,
and we all stood there, hot with excitement and fretting against the
inaction; while preparations were being rapidly made behind us for
evacuating the residency, the infantry now manned the roof, keeping down
observations by a shot or two now and then at any of the enemy who
appeared at the windows of the houses near.
But I knew that before long they must know of our intention to retreat,
and I stood there with my men on the strain, and watching the people who
came to the help of the wounded and carried them away.
"Oh, murther!" muttered Brian, at last, as if his tongue would not rest
without speaking; "if Oi were a fut-artilleryman, I should desart. I
couldn't stand much of this."
"Will you be silent, sir!" I cried sternly.
"Sure, sor, it isn't me; it's me tongue, bad luck to it. But, beggin'
your hanner's pardon, would ye order one of the naygers to bring round a
dhrink o' wather."
I ordered a bucketful to be fetched, for we were all suffering from
thirst and from the unnecessary heat produced by our clothes, which,
like those provided for the British soldier, were utterly unsuited for
our work, everything being sacrificed for show.
The men drank the cool water with avidity, Brian looking at me with
twinkling eyes as he helped himself to a second pannikin.
"Talk about yer port wines and champagnes, sor," he said; "there's ownly
two things fit to dhrink, and one's whiskey, and the other's wather."
"Why, you said the other day there was nothing like _tay_," cried one of
the men.
"Sure an' I did, for ould women," retorted Brian; "but even they put a
dhrop o' whiskey in it sometimes."
"Silence!" I cried, very much against my will; and the men were back in
their places as stiff as if on parade, till I heard orders given. There
was the clattering of hoofs; the horses came up, the guns were hooked on
to the limbers, and the next minute we were mounted, leaving the company
of foot holding the street.
I was not long kept in doubt as to the arrangements, for, as we were
moved into the square, there was the rest of our troop with the four
guns, and I saw that the ammunition and baggage-waggons, water-tubs, and
provender, were, along with the elephants, ready to come out with the
foot regiment, leaving us free to dash out and clear the way, acting as
cavalry or artillery as the need arose.
When all was quite ready, it had been arranged that we should make for
the open country down the street which Haynes had been holding, and
where a company of foot were now stationed to replace the two guns.
As I glanced up at the residency, I could see that about half a dozen
soldiers were still on the roof, otherwise the place was completely
evacuated, and the men waiting eagerly for the advance.
Then I heard the final arrangements made with the colonel, who was to
put his column in motion directly, and follow us with the elephants and
waggons, it being left to Brace to occupy the best position he could.
At this time a shot or two from a distance was being aimed by the
enemy's matchlock men, at the sentries on the residency roof, but no
harm was done, and, saving the dull distant hum of many people swarming
in the town, all was so still that our evacuation of the place promised
to be a very simple and easy affair.
And there we sat watching the various companies of the foot regiment
ranged up; that occupying the street Haynes had held being the advance;
that by us was the main body and baggage-guard; whilst the company who
had been with us was to form the rear.
Then orders were given, and a message brought back that the road we were
to take seemed clear; and we waited a few minutes more, while Brace sent
out an advance-guard of three of our mounted men, to go on by the
infantry picket straight for the plain.
These were anxious moments. There was a pause, and then we waited for
the order to advance.
How vividly it all comes back; the dazzling sunshine flashing from arms
and accoutrements; the stern, sun-browned, determined faces of the men;
and, with their shadows looking dwarfed and strange, there were the
three huge elephants nodding their heads and swinging them from side to
side, as they writhed and curled their trunks, lifting first one foot
and then the other, impatient to be on the move.
At last the word was given, and as the foot regiment stepped out toward
the opening in the main street, along which we were to pass, our advance
was on the way, in a quick walk, which, as we entered the street held by
the foot company, which opened and stood back on either side to let us
pass, became a trot with the horses' hoofs clattering and the guns and
limber wheels rattling loudly.
There was a disposition on the part of the men to give us a cheer as we
passed, but a stern command stayed them; and on we went, feeling that we
had, after all, an easy task to perform, for everything was so still.
I was with the two centre guns, and I glanced back to see that, as our
last man passed, the company of foot marched after us. Then Brace gave
a sharp order, the trumpet rang out, and we thundered on at a gallop,
for he had seen the meaning of the silence; the enemy had either
received a hint from one of the native followers, who must have
deserted, or have divined our probable course of action, for suddenly
men appeared on the tops of the houses on either side of the road, and
began firing, while right in front a body of sepoys, followed by a
squadron of horse, occupied the street from side turnings to block our
way.
I expected to hear the halt called for the guns to be unlimbered, so as
to clear the road before us, but Brace kept to the plans laid down for
his guidance. Passing almost unscathed among the bullets which pattered
around, we increased our pace, dashing straight at the natives in front
with such a roar of horse hoof and wheel, accompanied by so fierce a
cheer, that before we reached them the mutineers broke and fled into the
shelter of the side streets, and we thundered by, our advance cutting up
the stragglers who could not escape, and soon reaching the suburbs, and
then the open plain. Here Brace halted upon a mound, from which there
was a good view of the road by which we had come, while just behind was
a dense tope or patch of forest that would give our infantry a
tremendously strong position, and from which they were not easily to be
dislodged by an enemy not provided with guns.
The fight had begun, for, as we unlimbered, we could see quite a mob of
the enemy closing in from right and left to check the advance of the
foot regiment, which they knew could only come on slowly, while probably
they looked upon us as out of the engagement, having made good our
retreat.
As we loaded, the steady rattle of musketry began to increase, telling
us that our friends were having to fight their way, and ours was the
task to help them, and to undeceive the enemy, whose ranks thickened,
and about whom had hovered two large bodies of sowars, waiting their
turn to attack as soon as the foot regiment began to file into the open.
"Now is our time," said Brace, excitedly; and then, suddenly growing
calm, "Don't waste a shot, my lads. Good careful aim."
There was a few moments' pause while Brace examined the gathering groups
with his glass, and gave us a few final instructions. Then the guns
came into action with a steady, regular fire from right to left, shot
following shot, so that at the second round the effect had been almost
magical. One minute body after body of men were crowding up toward the
road, the next they were scattering and seeking the shelter of the
houses, while our attention was now directed toward the two columns of
cavalry.
Meanwhile the rattle of the musketry came fiercer and louder, telling
that our friends had not been checked, but were steadily advancing
through a terrible fire; but I knew that the heavy boom of our guns must
encourage them, and I looked on with a strange eagerness as my two guns
were sponged and loaded, giving directions to the men for their next
aims.
These were, as I have said, at the white squadron of native cavalry, the
men whom our people had so carefully trained, with the result that their
English officers were slain, and the native officers in command.
I could see for myself that there was very little of the guiding spirit
of our generals at work, each commander of a regiment acting according
to his own ideas, and I was thinking, young soldier as I was, that if I
had had command, I should have sent forward one of the native regiments
in skirmishing order to attack us while the two sowar regiments had been
sent off right and left to try and cut us off, the result being, I
thought, the almost certain routing and capture of our own troops.
But nothing of the kind was done; the officers in command of the cavalry
sat watching the sepoy ranks being ploughed up by our grape and
canister, till they scattered to shelter, and commenced a useless fire
upon us, and then seemed utterly astounded as round shot after round
shot plunged in among their squadrons, making terrible gaps, and
throwing them into utter confusion.
But they closed up again as well as they could, and sat fast in spite of
dozens of the men taking fright and galloping off with riderless horses
over the plain; but half a dozen more shots scattered them again, and
now for the first time the idea seemed to enter the brains of their
leaders that they must act in concert, and after a trooper had dashed
across the road from one side to the other, the new columns advanced,
and we directed our fire right at the thick masses in which they were
formed.
To my mind we had time for one shot, and then I expected the call to
limber up and gallop off, but it did not come; and as we loaded again,
then, with a roar like that of a tempest, the sowars came on till, as we
fired again, we could see their gleaming eyes and the savage rage and
hate in their countenances.
I knew that we should have no time to retreat after those six shots, and
felt that in a few seconds I should be in the midst of a terrible
_melee_.
But our men fired grape and canister now, and as gun after gun sent out
its puff of smoke, a perfect tempest of bullets surged through the
columns, while as I sat fast, panting and awaiting their charge, I found
that Brace knew the enemy better than I, for as the shot tore among them
they broke off to right and left, scattering as they went back toward
the spots from which they had started on their desperate charge, leaving
scores of their men about upon the plain.
"Risky," said Brace to me, as the men ceased firing, and waited for
fresh orders; "but I knew our lads would be steady, and that the
scoundrels would never hold together after those last charges of grape."
"And if they had kept together?"
"If," he said, smiling. "Well, then they would have cut us all down
with their tulwars; but they could not keep together--no sowars could
bear such a tempest as that. Some of them were sure to turn tail, and
then force of example upsets more, and the rest followed them in such a
retreat as you see."
"Look! they are gathering again on each side of the road. Round shot."
Two guns dispersed them this time, for they were evidently preparing to
revenge themselves upon our friends, who had by this time reached the
outskirts of the place, as we could see by the dotted puffs of smoke
rising whitely here and there among the houses.
Just then, though, we saw a fresh body of sepoys, many hundreds strong,
debouching from a road some fifty yards from that by which we had issued
from the place, evidently to intercept our friends. There was very
little order among them in spite of their being, as their uniform
showed, men of sepoy regiments, and their confusion was our opportunity.
There was a slight alteration of the guns, so that their fire might be
concentrated; and just as they were tearing along, and we saw the
skirmishers of our party issuing from among the houses, we opened a
terrible fire of grape.
The effect was wonderful. At the first shot, the sepoys halted; at the
second they wavered, and by the time the sixth had sent in its deadly
storm, their survivors were in full flight, while, cheering loudly, our
column marched out into sight, and now for the first time, and just as
the waggons and elephants came full in view, we heard, instead of the
rattle of scattered firing, the heavy roar of a volley in the rear.
Then the order was given to double, and the column came on with a couple
of companies in the rear now in sight, taking it in turns to halt,
kneel, and fire a volley before turning and doubling past their comrades
waiting to hold the enemy in check and fire a volley in turn.
For the enemy were in force behind them, and came pouring out in pursuit
till nearly a couple of thousand men must have rushed out of the wide
road, and as they opened out to right and left, firing on the retreating
regiment, the position of our friends was growing perilous in the
extreme. Men were dropping fast, and it was evident that the two rear
companies wanted support.
The support was coming, for our guns were run off to our right, took up
fresh position where we could fire clear of our own men, and rapidly as
they could be served, and the heated vents would permit, a terrific fire
was brought to bear upon the sepoys, crushing them so effectually that
ten minutes after, and only followed by a scattered fire, the infantry
regiment reached the patch of wood, the elephants, ammunition-waggons,
and native followers were placed in safety, and the colonel found time
to canter up to Brace and warmly wring his hand.
"Splendid!" he cried. "We have lost wonderfully few." Then aloud to
our troop, "Thank you, my lads, thank you."
"Oh, it's all right, colonel dear," I heard Brian say in a loud voice;
"we shall be wanting ye to hilp us before long."