"It certainly seems to me," Stanley said, when he heard the
Burman's account of the state of things below, "that it will not be
possible for us to go any further, by water."
"It would be very dangerous," Meinik said. "It is certain that all
the men in this part of the country have been obliged to go with
the army and, even were we both natives, and had no special reason
for avoiding being questioned, we should be liable to be seized and
executed at once, for having disregarded the orders to join the
army. Assuredly we cannot pass down farther in our boat, but must
take to the land. I should say that we had best get spears and
shields, and join some newly-arrived party."
"But you forget that, though my disguise as a native is good enough
to mislead anyone passing us on the road, or in the dusk after
sunset, I should certainly attract attention if travelling with
them, by day."
"I forgot that. I have grown so accustomed to seeing you that I
forget that, to other people, your face would seem strange; as it
at first did to me, in the forest. Indeed you look to me now like
one of ourselves; but were we to join a band, someone would be sure
to ask questions concerning you, ere long. What, then, do you think
we had best do?"
"From what I heard of the country from one of your comrades, who is
a native of this province, it would be impossible for us, after
crossing the river, to make our way down on the opposite side,
since the whole country is swampy and cut up by branches of the
Irrawaddy. On this side there are few obstacles of that kind but,
on the other hand, we shall find the country full of troops going
down towards Rangoon. Your comrade told me that the hills that we
saw to the east, from the forest at Ava, extended right down into
Tenasserim; and were very high, and could not be traversed, for
that no food could be obtained, and that tigers and wild animals
and other beasts abounded. But he said that the smaller hills that
we crossed on the way to your village--which he called the Pegu
Yoma hills--some of whose swells come down to the bank, extend all
the way down to the sea between the Irrawaddy and the Sittang
rivers; and that, from them, streams flowed to one river or the
other. Therefore, if we could gain that range, we should avoid the
swamp country, altogether.
"A few miles back we passed a river coming in from the east and, if
we follow that up as far as there is water, we shall be among the
hills. He said that there were no mountains at all, there; but just
rounded hills, with many villages and much cultivated ground, so
there ought to be no difficulty in making our way along. We shall
be able to gather food in the fields; or can go into villages and
purchase some, for the men will all be away. Besides, we can get
spears and shields, and can say that having been away from home on
a journey--when the men were all ordered to war, we returned too
late to go with the rest of the villagers, and are making our way
down to join them. Many others must be doing the same, and the
story will be likely enough.
"In that way we can get down till we are close to the troops round
Rangoon, and must then take our chance of getting through them."
"That seems better than the other way," Meinik said. "There is such
a river as you speak of, above Sarawa. We can paddle back tonight,
and hide near the town; then I can go there in the morning, and buy
a couple of spears and shields, and get some more rice and other
things. We have plenty of ammunition for our guns; which we may
want, if we meet any wild beasts."
"You don't think that there will be any danger in your going in
there, Meinik? Of course, there is no absolute occasion for us to
have spears and shields, as we have guns."
"We ought to have shields," Meinik replied, "and it were better to
have spears too, and also for us to carry axes--everyone carries an
axe in war time, for we always erect stockades and, though a very
poor man may only have his knife, everyone who can afford it takes
an axe. Most people have such a thing, for it is wanted for cutting
firewood, for clearing the ground, for building houses, and for
many other things; and a Burman must be poor, indeed, who does not
own one."
"By all means, then, get them for us, Meinik; besides, we may find
them useful for ourselves."
They now lay down and slept until evening; and then started up the
river again, keeping close in under shadow of the bank and, two
hours before daylight, concealed the canoe as usual, at a spot two
miles above Sarawa. Meinik started at daybreak, and returned three
hours later with two axes, spears, and shields.
That night they turned into the river running to the east and, for
four nights, paddled up it. The country was now assuming a
different character, and the stream was running in a valley with
rising ground--from a hundred to a hundred and fifty feet high--on
each side, and was narrowing very fast. Towards morning on the
fifth day the river had become a small stream, of but two or three
feet deep; and they decided to leave the boat, as it was evident
that they would be able to go but a short distance further.
"We may as well hide her carefully," Stanley said. "It is certainly
not likely that we shall want her again, but there is never any
saying and, at any rate, there is no great trouble in doing it."
They cooked a meal and then started at once, so as to do a few
hours' walking before the sun became high. They determined to keep
on eastward, until they reached the highest point of the dividing
ridge between the two main rivers, and then to follow it southward.
The country was now well cultivated, and they had some trouble in
avoiding the small villages dotted thickly about, as the course
they were following was not the one they would take if making
straight to join the army. They slept for three or four hours in
the heat of the day; and then, pushing on, found themselves before
sunset on what seemed to them the highest point of the divide. To
the right they could see the flat country stretching towards the
Irrawaddy, to the left the ground was more sharply undulating. Two
miles away was a stream of fair size, which they judged to be the
river that runs down to Pegu, and afterwards joins the Rangoon
river below the town.
Stanley thought that the hill on which they stood was some five
hundred feet above the low country they had left. A great part of
the hills was covered with trees although, at the point where they
had made their way up, the hillside was bare. They went on until
they entered the forest, and there set to work to chop firewood.
Meinik carried a tinderbox, and soon had a fire blazing, and by its
side they piled a great stock of wood.
"I do not know that there are any leopards so far south as this,"
he said, "but at any rate it will be safer to keep a big fire
blazing. I never used to think much about leopards but, ever since
I had that great beast's foot upon my back, I have had a horror of
them."
The next morning they continued their journey south, going along
boldly and passing through several villages.
"You are late for the war," an old man said, as they went through
one of them.
"I know we are," Meinik replied, "but we were away with a caravan
of traders when the order came; and so, instead of going down the
river, we have had to journey on foot. But we shall be there in
time. From what we have heard, there has not been much fighting,
yet."
"No; the white barbarians are all shut up in Rangoon. We have not
attacked them in earnest, but we shall soon do so and, moreover,
they will soon be all starved, for the country has been swept clear
of all cattle for twenty miles round, the villages deserted, and
everything laid waste; and we hear that half their number are laid
up with sickness, and that a great number have died. I wish that I
were younger, that I, too, could help to destroy the insolent foes
who have dared to set foot on our sacred soil."
There was no need for haste, now, and they travelled by easy stages
until, by the smoke rising from different parts of the forest, they
knew that they were approaching the spot where the Burmese forces
lay around Rangoon and, indeed, could see the great pagoda rising
above the surrounding country. They had heard, at the last villages
through which they had passed, that there had been an attack made
upon the pagoda on the 1st of July. On that day the Burmese, in
great force, had moved down in a line parallel to the road between
the pagoda and the town, along which a considerable number of our
troops were encamped. They had advanced until within half a mile of
Rangoon, then had changed front and attacked the British position
near the town. They occupied a hill near our line, and opened fire
from there with jingals and small cannon; but two British guns
firing grape soon silenced their guns, and a Madras regiment
charged the hill and recaptured it.
This entirely upset the plan of the Wongee in command of the
Burmese. The signal for the whole of the army to attack was to have
been given, as soon as their left had broken through the British
line, and had thus cut off all the troops on the road leading to
the pagoda from the town. Seeing that this movement had failed, the
general did not give the signal for the general attack, but ordered
the troops to fall back. He had been recalled in disgrace to Ava;
and a senior officer, who arrived just after the battle, assumed
the command. He at once set to work to make a very strong stockade
at Kummeroot, five miles from the great pagoda; and also fortified
a point on the river above Kemmendine--the stockade that had been
captured by the British--and intended from this point to send down
fire rafts to destroy the British shipping and, at the same time,
made continuous attacks at night on the British lines.
The rains at this time were falling incessantly, and the Burmese
did not think that the British would be able to move out against
them. The position on the river was connected with that at
Kummeroot by strong stockades; and the Burmese general was
convinced that, if an attack was made, it could be easily defeated.
However, eight days after the repulse of the Burmese first attack,
the vessels came up the river, while a land column moved against
Kummeroot.
The position was a strong one. The river was here divided into two
branches and, on the point of land between these, the principal
stockade was erected and was well provided with artillery; while on
the opposite banks of both rivers other stockades with guns were
erected, so that any attack by water would be met by the direct
fire from the great stockade, and a cross fire from those on the
banks.
Four ships came up, and the Burmese guns opened upon them, but the
heavy fire from the men-of-war was not long in silencing them; and
then a number of boats full of troops had landed, and stormed the
stockade, and driven out the Burmese. The land column had been
unable to take guns with them, owing to the impossibility of
dragging them along the rain-sodden paths; and the Burmese chiefs,
confident in the strength of their principal post--which was
defended by three lines of strong stockades, one above another--and
in their immensely superior force, treated with absolute contempt
the advance of the little British column--of which they were
informed, as soon as it started, by their scouts thickly scattered
through the woods.
The general, Soomba Wongee, was just sitting down to dinner when he
was told that the column had nearly reached the first stockade. He
directed his chiefs to proceed to their posts and "drive the
audacious strangers away," and continued his meal until the heavy
and rapid musketry of the assailants convinced him that the matter
was more serious than he had expected. As a rule, the Burmese
generals do not take any active part in their battles; but Soomba
Wongee left his tent and at once went towards the point attacked.
He found his troops already retreating, and that the two outer
stockades had been carried by the enemy. He rallied his men, and
himself led the way to the attack; but the steady and continuous
fire of the British rendered it impossible for him to restore
order, and the Burmese remained crowded together, in hopeless
confusion. However, he managed to gather together a body of
officers and troops and, with them, charged desperately upon the
British soldiers. He, with several other leaders of rank, was
killed; and the Burmese were scattered through the jungle, leaving
eight hundred dead behind them.
The fact that ten stockades, provided with thirty pieces of artillery,
should have been captured in one day by the British, had created a
deep impression among the villagers of the neighbourhood--from whom
the truth could not be concealed--and indeed, all the villages, for
many miles round the scene of action, were crowded with wounded. They
told Meinik that the army was, for a time, profoundly depressed. Many
had deserted, and the fact that stockades they had thought impregnable
were of no avail, whatever, against the enemy, whose regular and
combined action was irresistible, as against their own isolated and
individual method of fighting, had shaken their hitherto profound
belief in their own superiority to any people with whom they might
come in contact.
Since that time no serious fighting had taken place. Occasional
night attacks had been made, and all efforts on the part of the
invaders to obtain food, by foraging parties, had proved
unsuccessful. The boats of the fleet had gone up the Puzendown
river, that joined the Rangoon river some distance below the town,
and had captured a large number of boats that had been lying there,
waiting until Rangoon was taken before going up the river with
their cargoes of rice and salt fish; but they had gained no other
advantage for, although the villages were crowded with fugitives
from the town, these were driven into the jungle by the troops
stationed there for the purpose, as soon as the boats were seen
coming up the river.
In some cases, however, the boats had arrived so suddenly that
there had not been time to do this; and the fugitives had been
taken to Rangoon, where it was said they had been very well
treated.
Great reinforcements had now come down from the upper provinces.
Two of the king's brothers had arrived, to take command of the
army; one had established himself at Donabew, the other at Pegu.
They had brought with them numbers of astrologers, to fix upon a
propitious time for an attack; and the king's Invulnerables,
several thousands strong--a special corps, whom neither shot nor
steel could injure--were with them.
About the 6th of August a strong position that had been taken up,
by a force sent by the prince at Pegu, in the old Portuguese fort
of Syriam had been attacked; with orders that the channel of the
Rangoon river should be blocked, so that none of the strangers
should escape the fate that awaited them. The position was a very
strong one. The trees and brushwood round the fort had been cleared
away; wherever there were gaps in the old wall stockades had been
erected; and great beams suspended from the parapet in order that,
if an attack was made, the ropes could be cut and the beams fall
upon the heads of the assailants.
The British had, however, thrown a bridge across a deep creek,
pushed on against the place, and carried it in a few minutes; the
garrison flying, as soon as the assailants gained the ramparts, to
a pagoda standing on a very steep hill, defended by guns, and
assailable only by a very steep flight of steps. The troops,
however, pressed up these fearlessly; and the garrison, discouraged
and shaken by the reports of the fugitives from the lower fort, had
fled as soon as the British arrived at the top of the steps.
Notwithstanding this and other, as successful, attacks upon their
stockades, the Burmese troops now felt confident that, with their
numerous forces, they would be victorious whenever the astrologers
decided that the favourable moment had arrived.
Meinik had ascertained, from the villagers, the name of the leader
and the locality to which the corps belonged that was posted
nearest to Rangoon. As soon as it was dark, he and Stanley entered
the forest. The smoke had served as a guide, to them, as to the
position of the different corps; and they were able to make their
way between these without being questioned. Presently, however,
they came upon a strong picket.
"Where are you going?" the officer in command asked.
"To join the corps of the Woondock Snodee," Meinik replied. "We
were away at Bhanno when the order came, and the rest had gone down
the river before we got to Mew; so we came on by ourselves, not
wishing to fail in our duty."
"You are just in time," the officer said. "The Woondock is a
quarter of a mile away, on the left."
They moved off in that direction; but soon left the track and,
avoiding the camp, kept away until they reached the edge of the
forest. Then they crept forward through the jungle and brushwood,
pausing to listen from time to time and, three times, changing
their course to avoid parties of the Burmese acting as outposts.
On issuing from the jungle they crawled forward for three or four
hundred yards, so as to be beyond musket shot of the outposts; and
then remained quiet until morning broke. Then they could perceive
red coats moving about, in a small village before which a
breastwork had been thrown up, some four hundred yards away from
them and, getting up to their feet, ran towards it. Several shots
were fired at them, from the jungle behind; and some soldiers at
once appeared at the breastwork. Supposing that the two figures
approaching were Burmese deserters, they did not fire; and Stanley
and his companion were soon among them.
They were soldiers of one of the Bengal regiments; and Stanley, to
their surprise, addressed them in their own language.
"I am an Englishman," he said. "I am one of the prisoners whom they
took, at Ramoo, and have escaped from their hands. Are there any of
your officers in the village?"
"I will take you to them," a native sub-officer said; and Stanley,
in a minute or two, entered a cottage in which four English
officers were just taking their early breakfast, preparatory to
turning out on duty.
"Whom have you got here, jemadar?" one of them asked, in Bengalee.
Stanley answered for himself.
"I am an Englishman, sir, and have just escaped from Ava."
The officer uttered an exclamation of surprise.
"Well, sir," the senior of them said, as he held out his hand to
Stanley, "I congratulate you on having got away, whoever you are;
but I am bound to say that, if it were not for your speech, I
should not have believed you; for I have never seen anyone look
less like an Englishman than you do."
"My name is Stanley Brooke, sir. I am the son of the late Captain
Brooke, of the 15th Native Regiment."
"Then I should know you," one of the other officers said, "for I
knew your father; and I remember seeing your name in the list of
officers killed, at Ramoo, and wondered if it could be the lad I
knew five or six years ago."
"I recollect you, Captain Cooke," Stanley said. "Your regiment was
at Agra, when we were there."
"Right you are; and I am heartily glad that the news of your death
was false," and he shook hands cordially with Stanley.
"And who is your companion?" the major asked. "Is he an Englishman,
also?"
"No, sir; he is a native. He is a most faithful fellow. He has
acted as my guide, all the way down from the point we started from,
twenty miles from Ava. I could never have accomplished it without
his aid for, although I speak Burmese well enough to pass anywhere,
my face is so different in shape from theirs that, if I were looked
at closely in the daylight, I should be suspected at once. I could
never have got here without his aid."
"How was it that he came to help you, sir?" Major Pemberton asked.
"As far as we can see, the Burmese hate us like poison. Even when
they are wounded to death, they will take a last shot at any
soldiers marching past them."
"I happened to save his life from a leopard," Stanley said, "and,
truly, he has shown his gratitude."
"Jemadar," the major said, "take that man away with you. See that
he is well treated. Give him some food, of course. He will
presently go with this officer to the general."
Stanley said a few words in Burmese to Meinik, telling him that he
was to have food, and would afterwards go with him to the general;
and he then, at the invitation of the officers, sat down with them
to breakfast. While eating it, Stanley told them something of his
adventures. After the meal was over, the major said:
"You had better go with Mr. Brooke to the general, Captain Cooke. I
cannot well leave the regiment.
"We can let you have an outfit, Mr. Brooke; though we are, most of
us, reduced pretty well to our last garments. What with the jungle
and what with the damp, we have nearly all arrived at the last
state of dilapidation; but I am sure the general would like to see
you in your present disguise."
"It makes no difference to me, sir," Stanley said, with a laugh. "I
am so accustomed to this black petticoat, now, that I should almost
feel strange in anything else. I am afraid this dye will be a long
time before it wears itself out. It is nearly three weeks since I
was dyed last, and it has faded very little, yet."
"You need not take your arms, anyhow," Captain Cooke said. "You
will attract less attention going without them, for it will only be
supposed that you are one of the natives who have been brought in
by the boats."
Meinik was sitting on the ground, contentedly, outside the cottage,
the jemadar standing beside him.
"Have you had any food, Meinik?" Stanley asked.
The man nodded.
"Good food," he said.
"That is all right. Now, come along with us. You can leave your
weapons here--they won't be wanted."
Meinik rose and followed Stanley and Captain Cooke. There were
houses scattered all along the roadside. These were now all
occupied by officers and troops, and there were so many of them
that it had not been necessary to place any of the men under
canvas--an important consideration, during the almost continuous
rain of the last three months.
"Why, Cooke, I did not know that you talked Burmese," an officer
standing at one of the doors remarked, as the officer came along,
chatting with Stanley.
"You don't know all my accomplishments, Phillipson," the captain
laughed, for the idea that there existed such a thing as a Burmese
peasant who could talk English had not occurred to the other. "I am
taking him to the chief, to show off my powers;" and passed on,
leaving the officer looking after him, with a puzzled expression on
his face.
On their arrival at Sir Archibald Campbell's headquarters, Captain
Cooke sent in his name and, as the general was not at the moment
engaged, he was at once shown in; followed by Stanley, Meinik
remaining without.
"Good morning, sir. I see you have brought in a deserter," the
general said.
"He is not a deserter, sir. He is an escaped prisoner, who has made
his way down from Ava through the enemy's lines.
"This is Mr. Brooke. He was serving as an officer with the native
levy, at Ramoo, and was reported as killed. However, he was
fortunately only stunned and, being the only officer found alive,
was sent by Bandoola as a prisoner to Ava. I may say that he is a
son of the late Captain Brooke, of the 15th Native Infantry."
"You are certainly wonderfully disguised," the general said; "and I
congratulate you heartily on your escape. I should have passed you
by as a native without a second glance though, now that I am told
that you are an Englishman, I can see that you have not the wide
cheekbones and flat face of a Burman. How did you manage to make
your way down?"
"I travelled almost entirely by night, sir; and I had with me a
faithful guide. He is outside. I don't think that I should ever
have got down without him, though I speak Burmese well enough to
pass--especially as the language differs so much, in the different
districts."
"Is he a Burman?"
"Yes, general."
"Have you arranged with him for any particular sum for his
services? If so, it will of course be paid."
"No, sir; he came down simply in gratitude for a service I rendered
him. I do not know whether he intends to go back; but I hope that
he will remain here, with me."
"I have brought Mr. Brooke here, sir," Captain Cooke said, "at the
request of the major; thinking that you might like to ask him some
questions as to the state of things in the interior."
"I should like to have a long talk with Mr. Brooke," the general
said; "but unless he has any certain news of the date they intend
to attack us, I will not detain him now. The first thing will be
for him to get into civilized clothes again.
"By the way, poor young Hitchcock's effects are to be sold this
morning. I should think that they would fit Mr. Brooke very well.
"Let me see. Of course, your pay has been running on, since you
were taken prisoner, Mr. Brooke."
"I am afraid, sir, that there is no pay due," Stanley said. "I
happened to be at Ramoo at the time, looking after some goods of my
uncle, who carries on a considerable trade on the coast; and as I
talk the language, and there were very few who did so, I
volunteered to act as an officer with the native levy. I preferred
to act as a volunteer, in order that I might be free to leave, at
any time, if I received an order from my uncle to join him at
Chittagong.
"I could give an order on him, but I do not know where he is to be
found. I have with me some uncut rubies; though I have no idea what
they are worth, for I have not even looked at them yet; but they
should certainly be good security for 50 pounds."
"We can settle that presently, Mr. Brooke. I will write an order on
the paymaster for 500 rupees; and we can talk the matter over,
afterwards. I am afraid that you will have to pay rather high for
the clothes, for almost everyone here has worn out his kit; and Mr.
Hitchcock only joined us a fortnight before his death, so that his
are in very good condition. Of course, they are all uniform--he was
on my staff--but that will not matter. You could hardly be going
about in civilian clothes, here.
"I shall be very glad if you will dine with me, at six o'clock this
evening. Have a talk with your man before that, and see what he
wants to do. If he is a sharp fellow, he might be very useful to
us."
The general wrote the order on the paymaster, and Captain Cooke
took Stanley across to the office and obtained the cash for it.
Making inquiry, he found that the sale was to come off in a quarter
of an hour.
"I will do the bidding for you, if you like, Brooke," Captain Cooke
said. "I dare say you would rather not be introduced, generally, in
your present rig."
"Much rather not, and I shall be much obliged by your doing it."
"All right. I will make your money go as far as I can. Of course,
the poor fellow brought no full-dress uniform with him, or anything
of that sort."
"You will find me here with my Burman," Stanley said. "We will
stroll round the place for half an hour, and then come back here
again."
There was very little to see in the town. Meinik was astonished,
when they mounted the river bank and had a view of the ships lying
at anchor. For a time he was too surprised to speak, never having
seen anything larger than the clumsy cargo boats which made a
voyage, once a year, up the river.
"It is wonderful!" he said at last. "Who would have thought of such
great ships? If the emperor could but see them, I think that he
would make peace. It is easy to see that you know many things more
than we do. Could one go on board of them?"
"Not as I am, at present, Meinik; but when I get English clothes on
again, and rid myself from some of this stain, I have no doubt I
shall be able to take you on board one of the ships-of-war.
"And now, will you let me know what you are thinking of doing? I
told the general what service you had rendered me, and he asked me
what you were going to do. I told him that, as yet, I did not know
whether you were going to stay here, or go back again."
"Are you going to stay here?"
"I think so--at any rate, for a time. I do not know where the uncle
I have told you about is, at present. At any rate, while this war
is going on he can do very little trade, and can manage very well
without me."
"As long as you stay here, I shall stay," the Burman said. "If I
went back, I should have to fight against your people; and I don't
want to do that. I have no quarrel with them and, from what I see,
I am not so sure as I was that we shall drive you into the sea. You
have beaten us, whenever you have fought; and I would rather stay
with you, than be obliged to fight against you.
"Not many men want to fight. We heard that in the villages, and
that those who have not got wives and children held, as hostages
for them, get away from the army and hide in the woods.
"You will be a great man now and, if you will let me stop, I will
be your servant."
"I will gladly keep you with me, Meinik, if you are willing to
stay; and I am sure that you will be better off, here, than out in
the woods, and a good deal safer. At any rate, stay until after
your people make their next attack. You will see then how useless
it is for them to fight against us. When we can attack them in
their stockades, although they are ten to one against us, and drive
them out after a quarter of an hour's fighting; you may be sure
that in the open ground, without defences, they will have no chance
whatever.
"I hope they will soon get tired of fighting, and that the court
will make peace. We did not want to fight with them--it was they
who attacked us but, now that we have had all the expense of coming
here, we shall go on fighting till the emperor agrees to make
peace; but I don't think that we shall ever go out of Rangoon,
again, and believe that we shall also hold the ports in Tenasserim
that we have captured."
"The emperor will never agree to that," Meinik said, shaking his
head positively.
"Then if he does not, he will see that we shall go up the river to
Ava and, in the end, if he goes on fighting we shall capture the
whole country; and rule over it, just as we have done the greater
part of India."
"I think that would be good for us," the man said philosophically.
"It would not matter much to us to whom we paid our taxes--and you
would not tax us more heavily than we are now--for as we came down
you saw many villages deserted, and the land uncultivated, because
the people could not pay the heavy exactions. It is not the
king--he does not get much of it--but he gives a province, or a
district, or a dozen villages to someone at court; and says, 'you
must pay me so much, and all that you can get out of it, besides,
is for yourself;' so they heap on the taxes, and the people are
always in great poverty and, when they find that they cannot pay
what is demanded and live, then they all go away to some other
place, where the lord is not so harsh."
"I am sure that it would be a good thing for them, Meinik. The
people of India are a great deal better off, under us, than they
were under their native rulers. There is a fixed tax, and no one is
allowed to charge more, or to oppress the people in any way.
"But now we must be going. I said that I would be back at the place
we started from, in half an hour."