At the Point of the Bayonet

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Abdool had at once been sent into the village, and had there
succeeded in buying some brown dye, used in colouring the clothes;
and with this Harry stained his face and hands and, two hours after
receiving the order, rode out from camp, followed by Abdool and the
four troopers.

He considered that there was but little danger in the journey as,
for the greater portion of the distance, he would ride through the
dominions of the young Nizam. He would, however, have to pass
through the territory of the Rajah of Berar; beyond this, he would
enter the country in which the British were already supreme. While
in the Nizam's dominions, he experienced no difficulties; the news
of the victory of Assaye had already spread, and the inhabitants
were relieved of the fears they had been entertaining of a great
raid, by Holkar. The passage, therefore, of a petty chief with four
followers was regarded with indifference; and indeed, he was
generally supposed to be one of the Nizam's irregular cavalry, on
his way with some message to Hyderabad.

Still less attention was paid to him in the villages of Berar. Many
bodies of the rajah's troops had already passed through, on their
way to Nagpore, and they were naturally taken to be some of the
fugitives.

They travelled as rapidly as possible. The horses were all inured
to long journeys, and they had made from fifty to sixty miles a
day. They halted at a village, twenty miles east of Nagpore.
Nothing unusual had happened, and Harry had just lain down to
sleep, when there was a sound as of people gathering in front of
his hut.

He was about to rise, to see what was going on; when the door was
opened, and a number of armed villagers at once poured into the
room, and he was seized before he had time to leap to his feet. He
made no attempt at resistance but, believing that some mistake had
been committed, he angrily demanded the reason of this assault.

He was dragged out into the street. As this happened he heard
pistol shots and, a moment later, the four troopers rode up.

One of them had remained at the door of the hut, while the others
had lain down. Seeing a number of people moving about, he had
roused his companions. They had got out of the window at the back
of the hut. Here their horses had been picketed and, mounting at
once, they rode out, just as a body of men made a rush at the door
of their hut. By the use of their pistols and swords they had
broken through these and, seeing the crowd in front of the hut that
Harry had occupied, they charged without hesitation.

The villagers, unprepared for such an attack, fell back; losing
their hold of Harry, and Abdool, whom they had also captured. The
latter darted away and, in a few seconds, returned leading the two
horses.

"Shall we set the houses alight, before we start, sahib?" one of
the troopers asked.

"No; they may rally in a minute or two, and the sooner we are out
of it, the better."

He turned and started at once and, as he did so, a dropping fire
from matchlocks and guns was opened upon them. The villagers' arms
were, however, wholly untrustworthy, and the powder bad. One of the
troopers was hit in the arm but, with that exception, they rode out
unharmed.

"What does it all mean, Abdool?" Harry asked as, after riding fast
for a quarter of a mile, they broke into a slower pace. "Of course,
they must in some way have recognized me, for I heard some of them
saying, 'Death to the English infidel!'"

"It was through me that they recognized you, sahib," Abdool said.
"They seized me before they entered your hut, and tied a bandage
round my mouth, to prevent my giving any alarm. As they took me out
into the road, one of them said:

"'Son of Sheitan, I knew you directly I saw you. You were with that
English officer, in Nagpore. Then, when I looked at the head of
your party I saw that, though he had changed his dress, and stained
his face to the colour of ours, it was the same man who came as an
envoy to our rajah, and whose house we attacked.

"'We shall hear what the rajah says to him when we take him to
Nagpore.'"

"I understand now, Abdool. I have thought of my own disguise, and
that of the troopers; but as you always, except when riding behind
me, dress in your native clothes, it seemed to me a matter of
course that you would pass without difficulty; and it never
occurred to me that you must, during our three months' stay at
Nagpore, have become known by sight to most of the people there. It
is a bad blunder, and it will be a lesson to me, in future."

Then he turned, and spoke to the troopers.

"You have done well, indeed, tonight," he said, "and I owe it to
you that I have escaped, if not death, an imprisonment of months.
If I had been taken to Nagpore, and handed over to the rajah, he
would doubtless have imprisoned me; but would not have ventured to
take my life, for he would have known that the part that he had
taken against us would be more readily forgiven, than the murder of
a British officer. But I do not think I should have reached the
palace. Furious as the people must be at their crushing defeat at
Assaye, they would have torn me to pieces, the moment they heard
from my captors that I was an Englishman; therefore I feel that you
have saved my life.

"How was it that you were not also surprised?"

When he heard how the alarm had been given, and how they had at
once mounted and ridden out, just as a party were about to enter
the hut, he said:

"It was well done, and shows that you are quick fellows, as well as
brave. I shall report your conduct when we join the army, and shall
myself give you a batta of six months' pay.

"Now, we will ride on for a few miles, and then leave the road and
take shelter, till morning, in a wood. The horses have had five
hours' rest at the village, and there will be time for them to have
as much more, before we mount again.

"It is lucky that you bought some grain for them, this evening,
instead of waiting till the morning, so they can have a good feed
before starting."

Henceforth they avoided the villages as much as possible, and
passed unquestioned until they reached the Hustoo river which, at
this point, formed the eastern boundary of Berar. They swam the
horses across and, after stopping for a few hours at Dundava, rode
on; and continued their journey due north, and crossed the Sone
river at Maunpoor, having accomplished a journey of nearly a
thousand miles in twenty days.

On arriving there Harry found that General Lake had left, six weeks
before, and had encamped at Secundara where, on the 26th of August,
despatches had been received from the Governor General, authorizing
active operations against Scindia and his allies; and two days
later the force halted on the Mahratta frontier, within sight of
the mosque at Coel, where Perron was encamped.

Perron, a French officer in Scindia's service, commanded no less
than forty-three thousand men, and four hundred and sixty-four
guns. About half of these were with Scindia in the Deccan, and the
force encamped at Coel numbered about twenty thousand.

Perron, an active and ambitious man, had assumed an almost
independent position. A large grant of territory had been given him
by Scindia, and in this he ruled with absolute authority and, had
it not been for the interposition of the British, it is probable
that he would, ere long, have assumed the position of an
independent prince. Indeed, his army of partially disciplined men
was more than a match for the whole force of Scindia.

At a short distance from Coel was the fortress of Alighur, which
was considered to be almost impregnable. It was defended by a
triple line of walls and fortifications, so that an enemy entering
it would have to advance by a devious route from one gate to
another, exposed all the time to a terrible artillery fire. It was
almost surrounded by a swamp, and the only approach was along a
narrow strip of firm ground, leading to the gate.

Early on the morning of the 29th, the British troops advanced to
attack Perron's force; but it at once drew off, although the
infantry were supported by twenty thousand horse. Believing that
Alighur was impregnable, Perron left a strong force there under one
of his officers, named Pedron, and marched with his army towards
Agra.

On the 4th of September a storming party, commanded by Colonel
Monson, left the British camp; and was accompanied by two
batteries, each consisting of four eighteen-pounders. A portion of
the defenders was posted on the strip of dry ground, outside the
gate, where a battery with three guns had been mounted. Before
daybreak, Colonel Monson moved forward, with two companies of the
76th Regiment. The enemy took the alarm before he reached their
battery, and fled towards the gate, without waiting to discharge
their guns.

Monson pressed after them, in the hope of being able to enter
before the gate was shut; but he was too late. The entrance was
raked by the guns on the walls, which opened with a destructive
fire of grape. Ladders were applied to the walls, but these were
manned by so strong a body of pikemen that it was found impossible
to gain a footing. So bold were the defenders that, as the soldiers
fell back, they ran down the ladders and pursued them hotly; but
were soon beaten off.

A six pounder was brought up to burst open the gate, but its fire
did but little damage; and a twelve pounder was then employed. The
gates yielded, and the storming party rushed in. But during the
twenty minutes that had elapsed, between the guns opening fire and
the time at which the gate yielded, the troops had been exposed to
a terrible fire, both of grape and musketry. Colonel Monson was
wounded, and the loss was heavy.

The second gate was forced with comparatively little difficulty,
although a terrible fire of artillery and musketry was kept up,
from the walls on either side of the road, and from the bastion
commanding it. The assailants pressed so hotly, upon the defenders
of the second gate, that they gained the third before the enemy had
time to close it.

But another and stronger gate had still to be passed, and here a
desperate stand was made. The troops were obliged to take shelter,
close to the wall, until the twelve pounder was brought up. It was
of little avail, for the artillerymen were shot down as soon as
they endeavoured to work it. At length, two or three officers
gathered a party, and made a rush at the wicket gate. Half a dozen
muskets were discharged, together, at the lock; and the gate at
once gave way.

The whole party rushed forward into the interior of the fortress,
gained the ramparts, and opened fire on the enemy, who in vain
attempted to drive out the force gathered near the gate; and
Pedron, finding further resistance impossible, surrendered.

The loss of the victors, in killed and wounded, amounted to two
hundred and twenty-three; while that of the garrison, in killed
alone, exceeded two thousand. An enormous quantity of military
stores was found here, the French having made it their chief depot.
The number of guns captured was two hundred and eighty-one.

On the 7th of September, the army marched for Delhi. On the way,
General Lake received a letter from Monsieur Perron, saying that he
had quitted the service of Scindia, and requesting a free passage
to Lucknow. The easy capture of a fortress that he and his
engineers had rendered, as they believed, impregnable, and the loss
of all his military stores, sufficed to show him that he could not
hope to withstand the progress of the British; and that it was
better for him to resign, at once, than to continue a hopeless
struggle, especially as the loss of Alighur would excite the fury
of Scindia, and possibly lead to his arrest and execution. He had,
indeed, received information that he had already lost Scindia's
confidence; and that intrigues were being carried on, with some of
his officers, to deprive him of his jagheer and command.

His request was therefore granted and, escorted by a party of his
own bodyguard, and by some British dragoons, he proceeded to
Lucknow and, afterwards, settled in the neighbourhood of
Chandernagore.

The capture of Alighur had indeed made a tremendous impression upon
the native mind and, as the army advanced, several fortresses that
might have made a long defence were abandoned.

On the 11th, General Lake's army encamped within six miles of
Delhi; but the tents were but just pitched when intelligence was
received that a large force of the enemy was in position, two miles
distant. It consisted of sixteen battalions of regular infantry,
six thousand cavalry, and a large train of artillery; commanded by
Monsieur Bourquieu, Perron's second in command.

General Lake at once, with the whole of his cavalry, reconnoitred
the position that the enemy had taken up. It was two miles from the
camp, and consisted of a low hill, covered by broken ground on each
flank. Seeing that the enemy could only be attacked in front,
General Lake ordered the infantry and artillery to come up.

While waiting for their arrival, the cavalry suffered some loss
from the enemy's artillery fire. The general, seeing that it was
doubtful whether an attack on so strong a position would be
successful, determined to attempt to draw the enemy from it. The
cavalry advanced a short distance and then, as the fire upon them
redoubled, they were ordered to fall back. Their line had hidden
the approach of the infantry from the enemy; and the latter,
believing that the cavalry were retreating, left their entrenchments
and started in pursuit, with shouts of victory. The cavalry opened
right and left, and the enemy found themselves face to face with a
steady line of infantry; who at once advanced, the general himself
leading them, at the head of the 76th Regiment.

A tremendous fire was opened upon them by the Mahratta guns but,
when within a hundred paces of the enemy, the whole line fired a
volley, and then charged with the bayonet. The enemy did not stand
for a moment but, seized by a panic, fled in all directions,
pursued by the cavalry and the horse artillery battery. These
followed them as far as the banks of the Jumna, and great numbers
of the enemy lost their lives in endeavouring to cross the river.

The British loss, in killed and wounded, was nearly six hundred
men; while that of the enemy was estimated at two thousand.
Sixty-eight pieces of cannon, two waggons laden with treasure, and
thirty-seven with ammunition fell into the hands of the victors
who, on the 14th, crossed the Jumna, and took possession of the
city without opposition; being welcomed enthusiastically by the
population, who had long groaned under the terrible oppression of
their Mahratta masters.

Two days later, General Lake paid a visit to the unfortunate
emperor, who was now eighty-three years old. He had been blinded by
his brutal conquerors, and lived in a state of misery, and poverty,
greater than that of any of the tillers of the fields of the wide
empire over which he had once ruled. He lived for another three
years, and was succeeded by his son, Mirza Akbar.

Leaving a force at Delhi, General Lake marched southward, as the
strong town of Agra was still in the possession of Scindia's
troops. He arrived before the city on the 4th of October and, in
three days, had cut off their communication with the surrounding
country; his cavalry being assisted by five thousand horse, sent by
the Rajah of Bhurtpoor, who had, as soon as he heard of the fall of
Alighur, hastened to enter into an alliance with the British.

The garrison was strong, and seven battalions of Scindia's regular
infantry were encamped on the glacis, and held possession of the
town. The garrison, however, refused to admit them into the fort;
as they had determined to share, among themselves, the large amount
of treasure deposited there.

Inside the fort great confusion prevailed. The troops had been
commanded by English officers, in Scindia's service, and these had
been imprisoned as soon as the war broke out. No answer was,
therefore, made to the summons to surrender.

On the morning of the 10th, Scindia's infantry were attacked. They
fought stoutly, but were finally defeated, and their twenty-six
brass guns captured. Two days later, two thousand five hundred of
them, who had retired when defeated, and taken shelter under the
guns of the fort, came over in a body and took service with the
British.

Siege operations were at once commenced and, on the 17th, a battery
of eight eighteen-pounders opened fire, with such effect that a
breach was almost effected; when the garrison released the British
officers, and sent them to the camp to offer to surrender. They
were allowed to do so, and to leave the fort with their clothes,
but without arms. Six thousand then marched out under these
conditions.

One hundred and sixty-four pieces of cannon, with a vast quantity
of ammunition and stores, were found in the fort; together with
twenty-two lakhs of rupees, which were divided among the captors.

On the 20th, Harry, with his little party, joined the army. He and
his troopers had, at Benares, resumed their uniform. He at once
waited on General Lake, and handed him the despatch in which
General Wellesley had described the victory at Assaye.

"This is great news, indeed, sir," the general said, "but I cannot
understand how you have brought it here so speedily."

"I rode in disguise through Berar, sir, and of course the troopers
were also disguised. Except that I was attacked in one village--where
I was recognized by a peasant who had seen me, when I was staying as
the Governor General's envoy at Nagpore, before the capture of
Seringapatam--I got through without difficulty."

"Yes; I heard from the Marquis of Wellesley that the rajah had been
kept from declaring against us, by a young officer of great
ability, whom he had sent to Nagpore for the purpose, and who
narrowly escaped assassination there when the news of the fall of
Seringapatam was received. I think he said that you had a perfect
knowledge of Mahratti, and also of Hindustani; and that he had sent
you to accompany his brother, General Wellesley.

"Well, the news of Assaye is welcome, indeed, and Scindia will be
very chary of weakening his army in the Deccan by sending
reinforcements in this direction.

"I see, sir, that General Wellesley has begged me to temporarily
place you on my staff as, in the present troubled state of the
country, it would be dangerous to endeavour to make your way back
to him. Of course, I will gladly do so, for your knowledge of the
languages will be very useful to me, for none of my staff can speak
either of them well."

General Lake sent for the head of his staff, introduced Harry to
him, and informed him of the news that he had brought; and then
ordered a general salute to be fired, by all the available guns in
the fort and artillery batteries. It was not long before the roar
of cannon began, telling the army that a splendid victory had been
won in the west; and a short time later notices were affixed to the
gates of the forts, and other public places, relating how General
Wellesley, with but four thousand five hundred men, had routed the
army of Holkar and the Rajah of Berar--amounting in all to over
fifty thousand, of whom ten thousand five hundred were disciplined
troops, commanded by Frenchmen. The news excited the utmost
enthusiasm among the troops, as the disproportion of numbers was
far greater than it had been at the battle of Delhi.

Chapter 16: A Disastrous Retreat.

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.

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