A few days later, the news was received that seven of Scindia's
regular battalions had just arrived, from the Deccan, under the
command of a French officer; and had been joined by five others,
the whole amounting to nine thousand well-trained infantry, with
five thousand cavalry and seventy-five guns. As it was understood
that they were intending the recapture of Delhi, General Lake
marched against them on the 27th of October and, pressing forward
with all speed, came up with them on the morning of the 1st of
November. They at once retreated; and General Lake, whose infantry
was still some distance in the rear, determined to attack them, at
once. As they retired, the enemy cut the bank of a large tank and
flooded the ground, thereby impeding the advance of the cavalry,
and giving time to Scindia's men to take up a strong position
between the villages of Laswaree and Mohaulpore.
[Illustration: Plan of the Battle of Laswaree.]
Their right was protected by a deep ravine; their rear by a
rivulet; their front was lined with their seventy-five guns,
chained together so as to protect the artillerymen from a charge of
horse. The ground in front of them was covered with deep grass,
which partially concealed their disposition.
The three brigades of cavalry charged boldly up, but were received
with a terrible fire, and fell back with much loss and, seeing the
impossibility of carrying the enemy's position without infantry,
General Lake deferred making another attack until they came up. As
soon as these and the artillery reached the spot, he prepared for
an assault.
The Mahrattas had, in the meantime, changed their position; and
drawn up one line in front and one in rear of the village of
Mohaulpore. The French officer who had been in command of their
army had, two days before, left their camp and ridden to meet
General Lake's army; and had there surrendered, and a Mahratta
officer had succeeded him in command. Shaken by the repeated
successes of the British, he now offered to surrender his guns. An
hour was given him to do so but, as no movement was made at the end
of that time, orders were given for the advance.
The infantry consisted of the 76th Regiment and six battalions of
Sepoys. One of the three brigades of cavalry was directed to
support them; another was sent to the right to watch the enemy, and
to take advantage of any confusion that might appear among them;
the third brigade formed the reserve. The four batteries of
artillery were to support the attack. General Lake's plan was to
turn the enemy's right flank, and he moved off his infantry along
the bank of a rivulet which ran round near the right angle of the
enemy's new position. The high grass, for a time, concealed the
movement but, as soon as the Mahrattas perceived it they threw back
their right flank, and opened a tremendous fire upon the village.
The British artillery now opened, but the enemy's cannon were far
superior in number, and were well served; and the ranks of the
76th, who were in front of the advance, were terribly thinned. The
general was with them and, as soon as a battalion and a half of
Sepoys had come up, led them against the enemy's position.
The latter now opened with canister and, the ground being of a
broken character, the formation of the assailants' line was to some
extent disordered and the Mahratta cavalry charged. They were
repulsed by heavy volleys from the infantry, but they rallied and,
being reinforced, were about to resume the attack, when the general
ordered the 29th Dragoons to charge. They burst through both lines
of the enemy's infantry, wheeled round and charged the cavalry, and
drove them from the field; and then turning again, fell on the rear
of the second line, which was now hotly engaged with the British
infantry who, following the Dragoons at the double, had rushed
forward on the guns, captured them, and driven the first line back
on the second.
The rest of the British infantry had now come up; but Perron's
regular infantry, who were all drawn from hill districts, and had
been victorious in many a fight, resisted to the last. Two thousand
were surrounded and made prisoners, but the rest all fought until
they fell.
The victory of Laswaree cost the British eight hundred and
twenty-four men, killed and wounded; but it completed the overthrow
of the whole of the regiments trained by Perron and de Boigne, and
laid the tract of country watered by the Jumna under the power of
the British.
Harry, who had accompanied the general, having carried the order to
the Dragoons to charge, rode with them and came unhurt out of the
desperate fight.
A few days later the army quitted Laswaree and moved towards Agra,
resting for a fortnight at Besawur. The great successes gained by
both the British armies had had their effect, and a number of
rajahs came in to make a treaty of alliance. General Lake's force,
after a short rest, then marched southward, and took up a position
at Biana.
While these events had been going on, a detachment from the army
had entered Bundelcund. This had been under the control of the
Peishwa but, by an agreement made with him in August, it was ceded
to the Company; he receiving, in exchange, grants in the southern
Mahratta country, and near Surat. He sent orders to this effect to
his officers.
Shamsheer, a descendant of the first Peishwa, refused to obey him;
and the British force entered Bundelcund and, being joined by a
powerful chief--with eight thousand irregular infantry, four
thousand horse, and three regular battalions of infantry, commanded
by a European officer--captured several strongholds. Shamsheer then
treated for peace but, after having delayed the advance for two
months, finally broke off negotiations, suddenly; and the British
at once laid siege to Calpee, which capitulated on the 4th of
December. Finding himself unable to resist the farther advance of
the British, Shamsheer then surrendered.
In October, Ambajee Inglia, who had acted as Scindia's
representative and held, under him, extensive territories, had
offered to renounce his dependence on Scindia, and become a
tributary of the British. Negotiations were, as usual, spun out to
a great length; but a treaty was concluded with him, on the 16th of
December, by which he agreed to surrender Gwalior and the lands to
the north of it, and to remain as an independent sovereign of the
other territories in his possession.
A corps, under Colonel White, was sent to take possession of the
fortress. The commandant refused to recognize the arrangement but,
upon batteries being erected, a breach was soon effected, and the
garrison surrendered.
The news came that Scindia had broken his treaty, and had been
defeated with great slaughter by General Wellesley, who afterwards
besieged the strong fortress of Gawilghur. Guns were brought up,
with great difficulty, over thirty miles of mountains and ravines.
They opened fire on the 13th of December and, as soon as a breach
was practicable, the place was carried by storm, and a large
quantity of guns and ammunition fell into the hands of the British.
The Rajah of Berar, terrified at the defeat of Scindia, now sent to
ask for peace, and ceded the district of Cuttack; thereby placing
the whole of the maritime provinces, between Madras and Calcutta,
in the hands of the British. Scindia, finding himself forsaken by
his ally, also made peace, surrendering a considerable portion of
his territories.
1804 opened quietly, but peace was not long maintained. Holkar had,
after his expulsion from Poona, made peace with Scindia and, when
hostilities commenced, had waited to see the result before
committing himself. At first he viewed with satisfaction the
misfortunes that had befallen Scindia and the Rajah of Berar but,
when he saw that they were threatened with annihilation, he
prepared to aid them. He had, however, delayed too long and, when
Scindia and the Rajah of Berar had been obliged to crave for peace,
he kept his army on the frontier of the Rajah of Jaipore, now a
British ally.
General Lake addressed a letter to him, saying that the British
Government were willing to leave him unmolested; but requiring, as
a pledge of his good intentions, that he should withdraw into his
own territory. Holkar sent back a long list of demands, which were
impossible to satisfy; and also addressed a letter to General--now
Sir Arthur--Wellesley, threatening to overrun the whole country,
unless some of the districts in the Deccan were ceded to him and,
after sending off this letter, he began raiding the territory of
Jaipore. Colonel Murray was therefore sent to aid the rajah, and to
march in the direction of Holkar's capital; while Lord Lake marched
westward, until he neared Jaipore.
On the 15th of May a detachment captured the strong fort of
Rampoora, the sole fortress which Holkar possessed north of the
Chumbul river; and Holkar immediately fell back. The heat being now
intense, the general left Colonel Monson, with five battalions of
Sepoys and three thousand irregular horse, sent by Rajpoot allies,
and returned to Agra, losing numbers of his men on the march, by
sunstroke.
Harry had been left with Colonel Monson. The latter, intending to
cooperate with Colonel Murray, entered Holkar's territory and, on
the way, captured a strong hill fort. He afterwards advanced fifty
miles beyond the range of mountains that formed the frontier.
On the 7th of July he heard that Holkar was advancing, with his
whole army, to meet him. Monson's force was much weakened by the
absence of two detachments, one of which had garrisoned the hill
fort that had been captured, and another had gone to fetch a supply
of grain. Almost at the same time he heard a report that Colonel
Murray intended to fall back.
After consulting with Harry, who, as one of Lord Lake's staff, was
considered as his special representative, it was agreed that it
would be madness, with so small a force, to give battle to Holkar
and, at four in the morning on the following day, Monson sent off
his baggage and stores; and remained, with his troops drawn up in
order of battle, until nine o'clock; leaving the irregular cavalry,
under Lieutenant Lucan, to follow in half an hour, and bring him
intelligence of Holkar's movements.
Monson marched twelve miles when a trooper of the irregular cavalry
overtook him, with the news that they had been completely defeated
by Holkar's army, and that Lucan had been made prisoner. The
retreat was continued, and the force reached the pass across the
mountains on the evening of the following day, and took up a
position there. Holkar's cavalry appeared next morning and, on the
11th, Holkar himself arrived and sent in a demand for the surrender
of the cannon and muskets. This was refused, and Holkar, dividing
his horse into three bodies, charged the detachment vigorously in
front and both flanks; but the defenders again and again repulsed
the attack. Holkar then drew off about four miles, and was joined
by the artillery and infantry.
"What is your opinion, Captain Lindsay?" Colonel Monson said.
"If we had a regiment of British infantry with us, sir, I should
say that we might attack them, with success; but with only four
battalions of Sepoys, it seems to me that a retreat would be the
better choice of two evils. We shall undoubtedly suffer heavily.
The rain is pouring down unceasingly, and I doubt whether we shall
be able to get the guns along; but we ought to be able to march as
fast as Holkar's infantry and, as to his cavalry, we can certainly
beat them off."
Two long marches were made. The enemy's cavalry swarmed round them,
but dared not attack; and the force arrived safely at Kotah, where
they expected to find food and shelter. The rajah, however, closed
the gates and refused to admit them; and the force pressed on
towards a ford on the Chumbul. The distance was only seven miles
but, from the incessant rain and the state of the road, a whole day
was spent in accomplishing it.
The ford was impassable, but during the night it subsided a little,
and they were able to cross. A day's halt was necessary, in order
to procure some grain; and on the 15th, when the march was
continued, the guns sank so deep in the mud that they could not be
extricated, and they were therefore spiked and abandoned.
Two days later the force reached another river, but it was so
swollen that it was unfordable. The artillerymen were sent across,
on elephants; but ten days were spent in carrying the rest of the
troops over, partly on elephants and partly on rafts. Terrible
privation was suffered, and many men were drowned in crossing;
while the wives and children of the Sepoys who, by some gross
mismanagement, were left to the last, were slaughtered by the enemy
under the eyes of their husbands and fathers.
On the 29th the corps reached Rampoora; where a reinforcement of
two battalions of Sepoys, six guns, and a body of cavalry, together
with a supply of grain forwarded by Lord Lake from Agra, awaited
them. Notwithstanding this reinforcement, Colonel Monson considered
it his duty to continue his retreat and, on the 22nd of August,
reached the Banass, which was also in flood. Some boats, however,
were found, and a portion of the troops were carried across.
Early the next morning Holkar's cavalry appeared, and encamped at a
distance of four miles. The next day the river was fordable, and
most of the baggage and four battalions crossed. The enemy's
cavalry also crossed in great numbers, both to the right and left
of the British position.
Their artillery and infantry arrived in the afternoon, and opened
fire on the battalions still left on the bank. Harry was with
these. Seeing that they were being decimated by the guns, he called
upon the Sepoys to charge. This they did with great spirit, drove
back the enemy, and captured some of the guns; but the Mahrattas
soon rallied and, led by Holkar himself, charged in such
overwhelming numbers that the handful of troops was nearly
annihilated. Harry, seeing that all was lost, cut his way through
the enemy's horse and succeeded in crossing the river.
[Illustration: Harry succeeded in crossing the river.]
Colonel Monson continued his retreat, and reached Kooshalpur on the
night of the 25th. He found that the native officer in command
there had declared for Holkar; but that the fort, which contained
the elephants and baggage, still held out. That evening Monson
learnt that some of his Sepoy officers were in communication with
Holkar; and two companies, and a large portion of the native
cavalry deserted.
The whole of the enemy's cavalry now encamped round the detachment.
At seven in the evening Colonel Monson continued his march, forming
his troops into an oblong, which the enemy in vain attempted to
break. On the night of the 27th, after halting for a few hours, he
moved again, at one in the morning; but had no sooner cleared the
broken ground than the enemy's cavalry made a desperate charge.
This was repulsed with great coolness, the Sepoys reserving their
fire till the enemy were within bayonet reach.
At sunset the troops, worn out by fatigue and hunger, arrived at
the Biana pass; but the enemy brought up their guns, and the
retreat was continued. The confusion in the ranks, which had been
increasing all day, now extended; and the troops broke and fled to
Agra, pursued by straggling parties of the enemy for the greater
portion of the distance.
In consequence of this disastrous affair, it was decided that Lord
Lake should immediately take the field; although the wet weather
still continued, and a large tract of country was under water. Four
weeks after the arrival of Monson, with his fugitives, the army
marched out of their cantonment, and encamped on the right bank of
the river.
The situation was critical. Holkar's army numbered ninety-two
thousand men, of whom sixty-six thousand were cavalry, and he had
with him ninety-two cannon. He had advanced to Muttra, which had
been abandoned at his approach.
Lord Lake sent for Harry.
"I have another dangerous mission for you, Captain Lindsay. I
consider it more than possible that Holkar will make an attempt to
recapture Delhi. Colonel Ochterlony, in command there, must be
warned of the probability of an attack. He may be in ignorance of
what is passing here. You will bear this despatch, urging on him to
do all that he can to place the town in a state of defence, and to
summon to his assistance as many irregulars as possible from the
neighbouring chiefs. The distance is a hundred and twenty miles. I
leave it to you whether to go in uniform, or in disguise."
"I think, sir, that I had better disguise myself as, doubtless,
Holkar's cavalry are spread all over the country intent on
plundering and, should I fall in with them, I ought to have no
difficulty in passing myself off as one of themselves. I will leave
my uniform here, to be brought on with the baggage. They might take
it into their heads to search my saddlebags."
"I think that would be the wisest plan," the general said. "You
will, of course, remain at Delhi till reinforcements arrive there.
The despatches will be ready for you, in an hour's time."
There was no difficulty in obtaining dye at Agra, and Harry stained
himself from head to foot, put on the disguise in which he had
ridden with the news of Assaye and, after receiving the despatch,
started at once. The direct road lay through Muttra but, as
Holkar's main body was at this town, he rode to the northeast as
far as Secundara. There was no occasion for any great haste, for it
was certain that some little time must elapse before Holkar could
march from Muttra; and he accordingly stopped for the night at
Coringunga, having ridden about fifty miles. He speedily secured a
room, and Abdool at once set to, to prepare a meal. While it was
being cooked, there was a sound of a body of horse entering the
village.
"It is unfortunate that we have stopped here, Abdool," he said. "We
are sure to be questioned."
Ten minutes later the door opened, and an officer of Holkar's
irregular horse entered.
"I hear that you have just arrived," he said.
"Yes; I rode in but half an hour ago."
"Where are you going?"
"To Sambol. There seems no chance of fighting, at present; and I
therefore left the army to pay a visit, for a day or two, to some
friends. My man has just prepared a meal. Will you share it with
me?"
"I will, with pleasure," the officer said, "for I have ridden from
Muttra, and may have to wait an hour before my supper is ready for
me. What may be your name?"
"Puntojee. And yours?"
"Wisnas."
The officer unbuckled his sword, and seated himself on the ground,
the room being entirely unfurnished.
"Were you in that affair, when we chased the English dogs from
beyond the mountains to Agra?"
"Yes, I was in it; and never wish to campaign in such weather
again. I was wet through for three weeks; and hardly feel that I
have got dry, yet."
"They are brave fellows, those Sepoys in the English service."
"They are, indeed," Harry agreed. "It seemed that we must destroy
them; and yet they withstood our attacks, weary and exhausted as
they must have been. The worst of it was that, after all our
exertions, there was no booty to be obtained."
"Yes, that was bad. One doesn't feel so disposed to risk one's
life, when there is nothing to be gained. We did not even succeed
in capturing their treasure chest. If we could have brought our
infantry up, we should have destroyed them; but they had to march
at the same rate as the guns; and in such weather they could get
along but slowly, for it often required the bullocks of four guns
to drag one through those quagmires.
"That was where the English had the advantage over us. The road
was, no doubt, bad enough for them; it was infinitely worse for us,
after they had cut it up in passing.
"It was a mistake when Scindia began to form regiments of infantry,
and Holkar and the Peishwa imitated him. Before that, we had India
at our mercy. What power could withstand a hundred thousand
horsemen, here today, there tomorrow? Then, we had it in our power
to waste all the country, and to starve out the fortresses from
Cuttack to the north. Our territory extended from the great
mountains on the east, to the sea in the west.
"Now we can only move at the pace of footmen; and while, formerly,
no infantry would venture to withstand our charge; now, as you see,
a handful of Sepoys set us at defiance, repulsed our charges, and
gained Agra simply because our guns and infantry could not arrive
to help us."
"There can be no doubt that you are right," Harry agreed; "but I
cannot blame Scindia and Holkar for forming regiments of infantry,
trained by foreign officers. They had seen how the regiments so
raised, by the English, had won great victories in the Carnatic and
Bengal; and they did not think at that time that, ere long, they
might become formidable to the Mahrattas. Scindia and Holkar raised
their regiments, not to fight against the strangers, but against
each other. It was their mutual hostility that so diminished the
strength of the Mahrattas. When dogs fight dogs, the wild boar
ravages the land."
"It is true enough," the other said. "As a nation we might have
ruled Asia but, divided among ourselves, wasting our forces against
each other, we have allowed the stranger to wrest province after
province from us.
"Now, I will go out and see that the men have all got quarters, and
that the people of the village are feeding them, as they should. In
truth, we have been having a bad time, lately."
"Yes, indeed; I thought myself lucky, sometimes, to get a handful
of grain after twenty hours in the saddle.
"It cannot be helped, comrade. We must drive the strangers back
towards Allahabad; recover Benares, Agra, and Delhi; and then we
shall be able to rest in peace, for a time, before we settle
accounts with Scindia, and the others who have made a disgraceful
peace with the English. We shall never have peace in the Deccan
till we sack and destroy Bombay, and force the last Englishman to
take to his ships."
Harry started with Abdool before daybreak the next morning and,
riding all day, reached Delhi late in the evening. Putting up the
horses, he proceeded to the house occupied by Colonel Ochterlony,
the Resident.
"Will you tell the colonel," he said, "that I am an officer with
despatches from General Lake?"
He was at once shown in. Colonel Burns, the commander of the
garrison, was with the Resident. Neither was surprised that the
messenger should be a native, for they knew the difficulties a
British officer would encounter in travelling from Agra.
"I have ridden with a despatch for you, Colonel, from General Lake.
I am Captain Lindsay, and have the honour of serving on the
general's staff."
"I am glad to see you, sir," Ochterlony said, kindly. "Your name is
pretty well known, to all of us, as that of an officer who has
successfully carried out several dangerous enterprises; and this
cannot have been one of the most dangerous of them, for indeed, in
that disguise I do not think that anyone would entertain the
slightest suspicion that you are not what you appear to be.
"I am told you speak Mahratta perfectly."
"I was brought up among the Mahrattas, sir. I have got through
easily, and only once came upon a body of Holkar's cavalry."
"You have just arrived, Captain Lindsay?"
"Yes, not ten minutes ago."
The colonel rang the bell, and directed a servant who came in to
bring in wine and refreshments. He then opened the despatches
which, after reading, he passed across to Colonel Burns.
"Of course, we have heard reports of the disaster to Monson's
force. Was it as serious as they say?"
"It was very serious, sir. I was with them, and they suffered
terribly. They lost their guns and baggage, and at least a third of
their infantry."
"It is unfortunate, very unfortunate, Captain Lindsay. We have had
so many victories, of late, that the natives must have almost
concluded that we were invincible; but this check will encourage
them, and will doubtless bring many waverers over to their side."
"I don't think that it was, in any way, Colonel Monson's fault. His
column was to join that of Colonel Murray--who, however, doubtless
learning the great strength Holkar had with him, fell back--and
with only five battalions of Sepoys, and a dozen guns, it was
practically impossible that Monson could, single handed, resist the
attack of ninety thousand men. If he had had with him a couple of
British battalions, and a regiment or two of our cavalry, he might
have held the passes but, alone, it did not seem to me possible
that he could do so; especially when the enemy's cavalry could have
crossed the hills at other points, and taken them in the rear. Even
if he had resisted all attacks, he must have been starved out.
"As being, in a sort of way, representative of General Lake,
Colonel Monson was good enough to ask my opinion; and I quite
agreed with him that the best plan was to fall back. We believed,
of course, that we should find shelter at Kotah, but two days'
march in the rear and, had not the rajah declared for Holkar, and
shut his gates, all would have been well; for we beat off all
attacks, on our way there. It was his treachery, and that of the
commandant of Kooshalpur, that caused the disaster."
"Holkar is at Muttra, and Lake is about to march against him?"
"Yes, sir. If Holkar gives battle there he will, no doubt, be
defeated but, as this despatch will have informed you, General Lake
feared much that, as he advances, Holkar will content himself with
harassing him on the march with a cloud of horsemen while, with the
main body of his army, he marches rapidly north, to endeavour to
recapture Delhi and obtain possession of the Emperor's person. It
is to warn you of that danger that I have ridden here."
"The danger is, no doubt, serious," the Resident said; "and the
town is certainly in no position for defence. The walls are in a
most dilapidated condition, and would crumble after a few hours'
cannonade. Colonel Burns's force is wholly inadequate to defend a
city of some ten miles in circumference. The irregular troops
cannot be relied upon, in case of need. However, we must do what we
can and, as we may be sure that General Lake will hasten on with
all speed, we shall not have to hold out for many days.
"Now, Captain Lindsay, as you say that you only left Agra yesterday
morning, and have ridden some eighty miles, today, I am sure you
have need of rest. The general has told me to employ you on any
duty that I may think requisite; therefore, if you will come here
at eight o'clock tomorrow morning, I shall be glad, indeed, of your
services. Where did you leave your horses?"
"I left them at a khan, a few minutes' walk from here."
"Then if you will go down, and tell your man to bring them up, they
can be put up in the stables here. I have already ordered a room to
be prepared for you. My servants will give your man some food."
The next morning Harry, after taking the early breakfast a servant
brought to his room, went down to Colonel Ochterlony's office.
"I have not brought my uniform with me, Colonel," he said, "for I
might have been searched."
"That does not matter. Two of my escort shall ride with you, which
will be sufficient to show that you represent me. Here is a list of
the zemindars within fifteen miles of the city. You will, today,
visit as many of them as possible, and request them to ride in to
see me, tomorrow morning. I have directed that you are to have one
of my horses for, after the work yours has just had, it will need
two or three days' rest.
"Say nothing about the possibility of Holkar's coming here. They
might hang back, if you did so. I would rather meet them as a body,
and open the matter to them, myself. You will be able to see, by
their manner, if any of them have thought of the possibility of the
city being besieged. If they have, some of them will possibly
excuse themselves coming; though I think that the great majority
will come, for they must know well enough that, if Holkar took the
city, his troops would ravage the country, as they have done all
the villages through which they have passed; and that, therefore,
it is to their interest to aid in its defence.
"I am going now to see the Emperor, and to obtain from him an order
for all the able-bodied men of the city to set to work, under my
orders and those of Colonel Burns, to repair the fortifications at
the points where an enemy would naturally attack them.
"In any case, where you see that those you call upon make excuses
for not coming in, you have my full authority for telling them that
all who do not do so will be regarded as our enemies, and will be
severely punished, and their estates forfeited. No excuse,
whatever, will be accepted unless, on your arrival, you find that a
man is seriously ill; in which case you will order that his son, or
some near relation, be sent to represent him."
For the next three days, Harry spent his whole time on horseback
and, although it was evident to him that several of those he
visited were averse to going into Delhi, none of them ventured to
incur the displeasure of the English Resident by an absolute
refusal. Each morning, therefore, Colonel Ochterlony received those
Harry had visited on the previous day. He told them, frankly, that
it was possible that Holkar might appear before the walls; but
assured them that he had no doubt of being able to resist all
attacks, until General Lake arrived, which he would be sure to do
in a few days.
In the meantime, great numbers of men laboured at the walls. The
battlements had in some cases fallen, and the gaps were filled up
with sandbags. The moat, which had been neglected for many years,
was cleared out; and the side made steeper, so that an attacking
party would have to use ladders, both for descending into it and
climbing out. The bastions were repaired, as far as could be done;
and the houses in the lane that ran round, inside the wall, were
all loopholed for musketry.
Many of the irregular cavalry had deserted; but the Sepoys stood
firm, knowing how terrible were the cruelties perpetrated, by
Holkar, on all who fell into his hands. Their number was small; but
they were, to some extent, strengthened by the levies brought in by
the zemindars.
There was no time to be lost for, on the 2nd of September, General
Lake had approached to within a mile of Muttra; which had already
been abandoned by Holkar, whose horsemen made their appearance
before Delhi on the 7th. The irregular cavalry and those of the
zemindars were ordered to attack them but, as soon as they left the
town, they dispersed and rode away.
The next day the enemy's infantry and artillery came up, and a
heavy fire was immediately opened on the southeast angle of the
city wall. In twenty-four hours the whole of the parapet was
demolished, and some partial breaches made in the wall itself. The
Sepoys, encouraged by the presence and efforts of Ochterlony and
Burns, stood their ground with great courage and, at nightfall,
laboured incessantly at repairing the breaches, and in making a new
parapet with sandbags.
Towards morning they formed up; passed out through one of the
breaches, led by their officers; made a rush at the battery that
had been doing so much damage, bayoneted or drove off the enemy
stationed there, and spiked the guns.
In the meantime, some guns had been playing against the southern
walls. Here they were able to approach, through gardens and the
ruins of a village, until near the defences and, establishing a
powerful battery, opened fire, and soon made a breach in the walls
between the Turkoman and Ajmere gates.
Unable to hinder them the Sepoys, aided by a portion of the
population, worked from the morning of the 10th until that of the
12th to form an inner defence. The houses near the breach were
pulled down, and the materials used for forming strong barricades
at the mouths of the streets leading from it. The houses themselves
were loopholed, and everything was prepared for a desperate
defence. During that day the guns continued to enlarge the breach;
and the Sepoys, who had laboured almost incessantly for four nights
and days, were able to lie down for some hours.
That night passed quietly. Holkar had probably heard, from
adherents in the town, of the retrenchment that had been formed;
and Colonel Ochterlony believed that the absence of any movement
towards the breach was a sign that he was making preparations for a
sudden attack at some other point. Sentries were placed along the
walls facing the encampment of his army and, just before dawn, the
discharge of a musket, at the Lahore gate, showed that it was
against it that the enemy's attack was directed.
The Sepoys had been bivouacked in an open space, in the centre of
the city, and they at once proceeded to the point threatened. In
the dim early morning light, a great mass of men could be made out
approaching and, at the same moment, fifty guns opened fire on the
gate, to cover their advance. The cannon on the bastion by the gate
replied, directing their fire on the infantry column. These,
however, pushed forward with loud shouts. Many of them carried
ladders and, although suffering heavily from the musketry
fire--opened as soon as they came within easy range--they placed
the ladders against the wall, and strove to climb them. The face of
the wall was flanked by the bastion and, from this, an incessant
fire of musketry was maintained by a strong force of Sepoys; while
others repulsed, with the bayonet, the efforts of their assailants
to gain a footing, and hurled backwards many of the ladders.
Holkar's men, who had expected to effect a surprise, and carry the
wall before its defenders could arrive there, soon lost heart and
in a short time fled, leaving most of their ladders behind them.
The little garrison remained under arms all that day and the next
night, expecting another assault. But, on the morning of the 15th,
Holkar and his army were seen marching away in the distance and, on
the 18th, Lord Lake arrived.
Harry had not taken part in the defence of Delhi. He had, on the
day before Holkar's army arrived before the city, ridden out to
Sekerah, some five-and-twenty miles away. It was some distance
beyond any point he had hitherto reached; but the petty rajah, who
held a wide jagheer, could put five hundred men in the field. A
small British force had been stationed there; but it had been
recalled, at once, when Harry brought the news of the probable
approach of Holkar. The rajah then promised to send three hundred
of his troops, to aid in the defence of the city; but none had
arrived, and Harry's mission was to urge him to send them off,
instantly.
The rajah had, however, heard that Holkar's force was within a
day's march of the capital and, entertaining no doubt that he would
carry the feeble defences without difficulty, had resolved to throw
in his lot with him. Harry was now riding in uniform, having
obtained the loan of a jacket, trousers, and cap from one of the
British officers of the garrison. The rajah received him in his
palace; and Harry saw at once, by the scowling faces of the men who
gathered round him, that he had only waited for the news that
Holkar's army was near Delhi before throwing off the mask of
friendship.
"I have come over, Rajah," he said, "to tell you that Colonel
Ochterlony requests that you will send every available fighting man
to Delhi, at once. He prays you to despatch as many as you can
possibly gather together."
The rajah replied coldly:
"Why should I do so? By tomorrow night Holkar, with his great army,
will have captured the town. Why should I send my men there to die,
fighting for strangers? I take no orders from them. I have received
the Emperor's, it is true; but he is old and infirm, and is a
prisoner in your hands."
"I deny that he is a prisoner, Rajah. He is treated with all
honour, and is in a very different position from that which he
occupied when he was imprisoned by the Mahrattas."
"The Mahrattas are a great people," the rajah answered, angrily.
"Has not Holkar driven a force of the infidels into Agra? And soon,
when he has captured Delhi, he will defeat the rest of them, and
carry his arms to Benares."
"In that case," Harry said quietly, "it is a pity that he did not
first crush the English army, and then march to Benares, and finish
with Delhi at his leisure. Instead of so doing he has avoided a
battle, and is retiring north with his army."
"It is not true!" the rajah shouted. "He wishes first to gain
possession of the capital, to liberate the Emperor and, after that,
he will soon make an end of your people."
He made a sign to those standing round him, who immediately threw
themselves upon Harry. The latter offered no resistance, seeing
that it would only lead to his being killed, on the spot.
He was at once dragged out from the audience chamber to the
courtyard beyond. He saw the bodies of the two native troopers who
had accompanied him. Abdool, who had also been with him, was
missing and, knowing how watchful and active he was, he hoped that
he might have mounted and ridden off, before he could be attacked.