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No. 441, September 4, 1858.] T EL E L E ...
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ICifenrtar*
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Critics are not the legislators, but the...
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THE. MUTINIES-IN OUDH. An Account of the...
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Transcript
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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No. 441, September 4, 1858.] T El E L E ...
No . 441 , September 4 , 1858 . ] T EL E L E A D E R . 905
Icifenrtar*
Wmmxi .
Critics Are Not The Legislators, But The...
Critics are not the legislators , but the judges and police of literature . They do not make laws— -they interpret ' and try to enforce them . —Edinburgh Review ; « . :
The. Mutinies-In Oudh. An Account Of The...
THE . MUTINIES-IN OUDH . An Account of the Mutinies in Oudh , and of Hie Siege of ihe lyucknow Residency ; with some Observations on the Condition of the Province of Oudh , and on the Causes of the Mutiny of the Bengal Army . By Martin Richard Gubbins , of the Bengal Civil Service , Financial Commissioner for Oudh . Richard Bentley . On the causes of the mutiny and the condition of Oudh " -enerally we may look for no better informed writer than-Mr . Gubbins , who entered the province on its annexation as a member of the British Commission , and was for fourteen months previous to
the outbreak in daily communication , with all classes of natives , making during 1 S 5 G-57 an official tour through the jurisdiction to review , and where necessary revise , the summary settlement of the land revenue . As manager of the intelligence department under Sir Henry Lawrence and his successor Brigadier-General Inglis ,. during the investment of the ltesidency by the mutineers , he was as perfectly informed as could be any one under the circumstances of all that transpired without the walls during that period of unparalleled anxiety and suffering ; and as joint defender , with military the and
officers , of a prominent post during siege , member of the council of war , he was evidently one of those best qualified to record the fluctuating . fortunes , hopes , and-fears of the whole beleaguered community as well as those of his own proper garrison . There may doubtless be some carping objections to the prominence given by the author to all transactions at " Gubbins ' s garrison , " but no kindly render will fail to sympathise with the civilian who after a long Oriental residence found physical and mental " stuff" in him to alternate with such dashing avidity the use of pen and sword , or . with his proper pride , who . after , struggling shoulder to shoulder with trained warriors like Forbes ,. Hawes , Apthorp , Banks , and Fulton , still lives to fight his battle o ' er again in happy consciousness that though
¦ a few pillars mark the wasted sight of his Luckuow home , his heart ' s treasure wa ? , ' in the fulness of time , delivered safely , not merely from the peril of the crashing shot and bursting shell , but from the more dreadful fate that sad experience told him might wait upon capitulation . They must indeed be poor in spirit who would protest against the reflection on the commissioner ' s page of the proper pride wherewith , he must review his own share in that glorious transaction . ' At the beginning of May , 1 S 57 , the condition of Oudh ( for ' such is Mr . ' Gubbins ' s orthography ) seemed tranquil , but it was known to the high officials that even deeper disaffection' prevailed among the Sepoys than had been made manifest ; and Sir II . Lawrence , the Chief Commissioner ,
applied himself to concentrate the military resources of liis command , which were distributed in a careless aud unscientific manner . He was scarcely in time , for , on the 7 th of May , mutiny burst out in Lucknow on . the refusal of a part of the 7 th Oudh Irregular Infantry to use the cartridges served out to them . On the 11 th , news was received of the seizure of the Delhi treasury and magazine , and after some hesitation Captain Fletcher Hayes and Mr . Gubbins persuaded Sir Henry Lawrence to take mcasiiro 3 to protect the Lucknow ' Residency , its inhabitants , and its treasury .
The only European infantry at the stntion , the 32 nd , was so disposed , partly in the Residency / ns to be available ,, which it had not been previously . Our author , who seems , in the first instance , to have foreseen and prepared himself for the worst , began to fortify his own house , somewhat to the anntsomejit ot his more confiding neighbours ; while the Chief Commissioner gave orders for the repair of the
military position of the Muchec Bhowun , which , being too lar from the centre of operations to bo '" < lin i ;^^ ft % , hY .. i 1 rW . fl ] i ^ P ^ C ^ ^ f ^ MttL-a ^ b ^ c ^ ifucntly to bo abandoned . On the 30 th of May , Sir Henry was investod with the military command of Oudh . Within a few days tho first aot of the tragedy at . Cnwnporo took place ; and on tho 25 th , oftor unmistakable signs of approaching trouble , tho ladies of the Lucknow garrison were ordered into the Itosidcnoy . Tho Chief Commissioner leant towards ¦ couoilitttiou aud small demonstrations . It . was too
late . So , about the end of May ; defensive works were commenced , and treasure collected where possible from the outlying districts . On the 31 st of May the mutinous Sepoys in garrison were still undisarmed , though most of them had actually revolted , burnt the military cantonments , and were in march for Delhi . Mr . Gubbins , indeed , fully establishes—^ though he does so without trace of il l feeling towards the . -departed — that the conduct of Sir Henry Lawrence was vacillating and pernicious in the extreme , and leaves no other inference open to us than that , had it timely been otherwise , much subsequent loss , suffering , and bloodshed at Lucknow might have been averted . The disarmament of the 7 th Light Cavalry and of
the 9 th O . I . Infantry only took place on the 9 th and 11 th of June . On the 12 th , the 3 rd Military Police deserted in a body to Nana Sahib , and only on the ISth were defensive Operations commenced in earnest , under Captains Fulton and Anderson . Mr . Gubbins ' s account of these is _ as luminous as if drawn up by a professional engineer , and in our poor judgment his narrative of all that transpired within the scope of his observation during the siege of the position by the rebels will bear comparison , in point of style and precision , with many stirring passages of the historian Napier , while in painful interest it far surpasses any tales of wars both parties to which have been civilised enough to temper the horrors of strife with Occasional amenities of civilisation .
The strategical details are ; varied . by interesting references to the writer ' s other pursuits and duties . He had to dole but such portions of salary to the officials as were necessary to their sustenance , when brandy was worth from 1 / . 5 s . to 2 / . 10 s . a bottle , beer and sherry 12 s . a bottle , cigars 2 s . each , flannel shirts 3 / . 12 s . each , a tin of soup 2 L 5 s ., and a canister of gunpowder 11 . 12 s . lie was concerned in the maintenance , as long as that was practicable ,
of public credit . When it was impossible to make advances , to native bankers on Government bills , he purchased 20 , 000 / . worth for Sir Henry Lawrence at 75 per cent ., which , at a later period , he . might have had at 25 percent . As intelligencer-general , he received the passionate calls for aid from the Cawnpore garrison , and the sad refusals of those to whom he had himself appealed for it . A visit of his most faithful letter-carrier , Ungud , is thus described : —
Xor could any picture be more characteristic of the siege he presented than oue which should represent Ungud just after one of his midnight entrances , recounting to our eagerly listening ears the events which he had witnessed . The ) o \ v room on the ground floor , with a single light carefully screened on the outer side , lest it should attract the bullets of the enemy ; the anxious faces of the men who crowded round and listened with breathless attention to question and answer ; , the
excla-It has never fallen to iny lot to witness 6 uch a scene of sorrow . While we were clustered round Sir Henry ' s bed , the enemy were pouring a heavy musketry fire upon the place ; and bullets were striking the outside of the pillars of the verandah in which we were collected . Sir Henry ' s attenuated frame , and the severe nature of the injury , at once decided the medical men not to attempt amputation ; but it was necessary , to stay the bleeding by applying the tourniquet , and the agony which this caused was fearful to behold . It was impossible to avoid
sobbing like a child . Sir Henry alluded to his having nominated Major Banks to be his successor ; and then earnestly pointed out the worthlessness of all human distinction , recommending all to fix their thoughts on a better world . He referred to his own success in life , and asked what was it worth then ? He enjoined on us particularly to be careful of our ammunition , an # often repeated : — " Save the Iadie 3 . " He afterwards continued in much suffering , and lingered until the morning of the 4 th , when he expired .
Upon his death-bed Sir Henry referred to the disaster at Chinhut , and said that he had acted against his own judgment , from the fear of man . I have often inquired , but I have never learnt the name of any one who had counselled the step , which resulted in so severe a calamity . Thus passed from among us as noble a spirit as ever animated human clay . Unselfish , kind , frank , and affectionate , Sir Henry Lawrence possessed the art of attaching those with whom he came in contact . Ho was particularly beloved by the natives , and with good reason ., for few Europeans treated them with more kindly consideration , arid none made more just allowance for those
weak points in which they differ from Europeans . July was an awful month . Day by day shell-and musket ball thinned the ranks of the party : fever , dysentery , and bad air swept off ladies , and especially cnildreri ; Major Banks ,, -whom Sir Henry had appointed his civil successor , was shot ; and the military commandant objecting to the office being filled up , the civil authority was at an end , and Mir . Gubbins , on whom the post would , in common course , have devolved , remained a combatant only . The enemy were mining round the Residency in everv direction , aud an active subterranean warfare
was added to the labours of the besieged . Her Majesty ' s 32 nd , too—will it be believed—were still armed with indifferent percussion muskets , while the revolted Sepoys made excellent , practice with first-rate rifles . At the beginning of August the defence was becoming monotonous . Still the besiegers faltered not ; thoug h ^ thanks to the heroism of the garrison , they made slow progress . But on the 15 th of August the faithful Ungud brought word that Havelock was on the road . Colonel Tytler ' s letter to Gubbins , in which this information , was conveyed , caused sad uneasiness to all . It spoke of a weak relieving force , and proposed to the Lucknow garrison to cut its way out , a thing clearly impossible with 120 sick and wounded , 220 women , 230 children , 30 pieces of artillery , and
matioii of joy as pieces of good tidings were given out , and laughter at some of Ungud ' s jests upon the enemy . More retired would be shown the indistinct forms of the women in their night attire , who had been attracted from their rooms in hopes of catching early some part of the good news which had come iii . The animated and intelligent face of our messenger , as he assured us of the near approach of help , occupies the foreground , All these together form a scene which must live , as long as life remains , in the memory of us all .
230 , 000 / . of treasure . " In consequence of the news received , " was Brigadier Inglis ' s answer to Havelock , "I shall soon put the force on half rations unless I hear from you . Our provisions will last us then till about the 10 th of September . If you hope to save this force no time must be lost . . . . . The enemy are within a few yards of our defences . . . . their 18-pounders are within 150 yards , and we cannot reply to them . My strength now in Europeans is 350 , and about 300 natives . The men are dreadfully harassed , and many are without shelter . "
The mutinous army closed in upon Lucknow on the 291 h of June . A reeonnoissancc in force was attempted and failed lamentably , with the loss of an 8-i . nch howitzer . Next day the Residency was invested , and the outlying positions on tho southwest side , of the place were , aba . ndowqd . . . JFo , v . two rupeos a night , instead of ( he usual wages , an eighth of a rupee , natives were procured to build outworks , and strengthen the positions selected for defence—Gubbins ' s post among others—under a severe fire .
Mr . Gubbins thought much more hopefully of the commissariat than the military department , aud so fur objected to this despatch , as calculated unduly to precipitate attempts for their relief . But ho was overruled , and Havelock ' s answer to the above comniuhtcatibn—for the pleasure , indeed , of extracting which we have alluded to tho episodearrived as follows on the 29 th of August : — My dear Colonel , —I havo your letter of the 16 th instant . I can only say , do not negotiate , but rathor perteb . sword in hand . Sir Colin Campbell , who cumo out at a day ' a notice to command , upon the news arriviag of General Anson ' a death , promises me fresh troops , and you will be my first caro . The
reinforee-Whilo Lieutenants Ilutchinson , of the Engineers , and Charlton , of the 32 nd , with eight European soldiers , who were allotted to the commissioner ' s little garrison , directed tho civilians aud natives , tho ladies of Gubbins ' a family , and the strangers whom his hospitality had made welcome , watched , nursod , and supplied refreshments . There wore at this time 927 Europoans and 705 nutivca in tljio pli \ cc , of whom a & Q ^ U »& . fouuw ^( 4 uoludinfi ^^ oilloors , and 1 assistant chaplain ) and 13 . 'J of tho latter were killed during tho siego . Of the natives ,
monts may roach mo in from twenty to twenty-live days , and I will prepare everything for a march on Lucknow . Yours very uincerely , H . IlAVEr . ocic , Br .-Gon To Colonel Inglis , ILM . 82 nd Regiment . ^ Jitt ^ dtfa ^ atttiQn ^ o . UftllUtUc ^ rapidly under the entjmy ' s lire . The guard-houscs and Cawnporo battery wore in ruins , tho judicial garrison-house -untenable , the Residency a mere sieve , and Gubbius ' a house , for eonio roasou or other , 'the object of a concentrated flro under which it crumbled . This state of things , ncoompamed by tho daily loss of precious lives , daily desertions ot natives , and olorms of treason , wont on until Ungud brought word , ou tho 22 ml of { September ,
230 deserted ; and there wore found by Gcnoral Huvcloek , at tho first roliof , 577 Europeans aud 402 natives . . * . - On tho 2 nd of July , Sir Henry Lawrenoo was mortally wounded by a fragment of a shell . Tho author was summoned to his death-bod , and thus describes tho socno : —
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 4, 1858, page 17, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_04091858/page/17/
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