THE news of the liberation of Delhi travelled with lightning rapidity, and by its suddenness absolutely straggered for a moment Indians as well as the foreigners. Englishmen could not even grasp for a time the meaning of what had come to their ears. Lord Canning was fast asleep there in Calcutta, in the certainty that peace was reigning all over India, and Commander-in-Chief Anson was preparing to go to the cool heights of Simla. When first Canning got a scrappy telegram to the effect that Delhi was free, he could hardly believe his eyes. The Indians were in a consternation quite as much as the Englishmen, because this unthought-of rising at Delhi spoiled all the preconcerted plans of the Secret Revolutionary Organisation. And the Englishmen were not, now, likely to repeat the tactical mistakes which they committed while confused at the sudden rising in Delhi. They got an opportunity to retrieve their mistakes, being forewarned of the future great danger by this sudden shock. The throne of Delhi could now be wrested from the Emperor in a couple of days by a sudden onslaught. Whereas, if the rising had taken place simultaneously in all placed on the 31st, as arranged previously, the complete success of the Revolution would have been assured in the course of a single day. Though that plan failed on account of the sudden rising at Meerut, the taking of Delhi at once openly gave the Revolution a national character, and the sudden news had brought about an extraordinary awakening in the whole of Hindusthan. Now, the question was whether to take advantage of this awakening and rise at once, or wait till 31st as arranged before. What were the plans adopted by the Centres? Would not a rising without consultation of the rest produce confusion similar to that of the rising at Meerut? Such were the questions which the Revolutionary leaders in other places put to themselves and wasted their time with. There is no other life-killing poison to a revolution than indecision. The sooner and the more sudden the spreading of a revolution the greater are its chances of success. If a delay is made after the first start and breathing time is
given, the enemy gets time to guard himself; those who rise prematurely lose confidence, when they see no one joining them; and a clever enemy, profiting by the past, puts obstacles in the way of those who want to rise later. Therefore, to give the enemy time between the first rising and the spreading of a revolution is always harmful to the Revolution. But that is exactly what happened. This sudden rising in opposition to their previous plans confused the Revolutionary leaders in various places and they could, for the time being, neither hold back nor rise.
The inevitable idleness of the Revolutionary party was of the highest advantage to the English. They never had occasion to hear such terrible news since fist they set foot on the soil of Hindusthan. The swords of the very Sepoys who so long maintained and extended their power were now turned against them. English Sovereignty fled from this spectacle at Meerut to Delhi, only to find the old Emperor, who strangled her with the left hand and wrested her crown away with the right! This English Sovereignty full of gory wounds, spat upon even by the women at Meerut, with hair dripped in English blood, with necklaces of bones, with all her ornaments including the crown snatched away by the people - this English Sovereignty now tried to enter Calcutta with a terrible moan! The English dominion in India has not the slightest natural strength! In this month of May, there was only one white regiment, right from, Barrackpore to Agra, a distance of 750 miles. Under such circumstances, if the whole of this region had risen according to the plan of the Revolutionary party, not one but even ten Englands put together could not have been able to hold Hindusthan! This white regiment was stationed at Danapur. There was a considerable number of white troops in the Punjab on the frontier, but it was necessary to maintain them there. Under these circumstances, the first effort of Lord Canning was to bring as many white troops together as possible. Just at the time, fortunately for the English, the war with Persia had come to an end and orders were sent to that army to return at once to India. At the end of the war with Persia, the English had picked up a quarrel with China and had ordered troops thither; but when this storm arose in India, Canning determined to stop the army on its way to China. Besides these two, the English regiments which
were to have gone to Rangoon were detained at Calcutta, and orders were issued to the Governor of Madras to hold in readiness the 43rfd infantry and the Madras fusiliers. While this white army was marching towards Calcutta from all directions, Canning made one more attempt to pacify the Sepoys. He issued a proclamation and ordered it to be posted in every town and village. It was worded in the usual manner and contained the usual stuff. It said, “We had no intention to interfere with your religious and caste affairs. We have not the least intention of insulting your religion. If you like it, you can make cartridges with your own hands. It is a sin on your part who have eaten the salt of the Company to rise against it.” But who was now going to pay attention to such empty proclamations? Where the question at issue was whether the English ought to have, at all, the right of issuing proclamations in India or not, to issue a new proclamation was not to pacify but to exasperate the people. Hindusthan had no time to read these proclamations, for all eyes were turned to the magnificent Proclamation that went forth from Delhi! It was a strange sight, two proclamations at once, one of freedom at Delhi, the other of slavery at Calcutta. Hindusthan at that time welcomed the Proclamation of Delhi. And, therefore, Canning laid aside his pen and ordered the Commander-in- Chief to direct his guns immediately towards Delhi.
Commander-in-Chief Anson was at Simla when he got the telegram announcing that Delhi had become free. When he was thinking what he was to do, he got Canning’s order to take Delhi at once. The ignorance of the English about the plans and the strength of the Revolution was so extraordinary, that they perfectly believed that they could take Delhi in a week and could quell the rising before a month was over. Sir John Lawrence, Chief Officer in the Punjab, also sent urgent message to Anson to Capture Delhi. But Anson knew better than either Canning or Lawrence what it meant to take Delhi and he determined to wait until sufficient preparations were made. Hardly had Anson left the heights of Simla and arrived at the army headquarters at Umballa, when there was a tremendous uproar at Simla! A rumour was abroad that the Gurkha Naziri battalion had also risen, and at that the English at Simla lost all courage. In that year the head was unsufferable to the English even at Simla! It appeared that the English would now have to pay a
very heavy price for the royal pleasures, which they had so long enjoyed in cool bungalows and beautiful pleasure-gardens. There was a general uproar that the Gurkha regiment was coming, and women and children ran wherever they would get away. In this race, the men, naturally, even with loads on their backs, left the women and children far behind! This exhibition of English courage was open for two days, but it was closed afterwards as no Gurkhas were to be seen, About this time, similar scenes were being enacted, also, at Calcutta. Often the rumour would get about that the regiment at Barrackpore was in arms against the English; and English men, women, and children would be seen running towards the fort. Some booked passages to England, some prepared all their luggage in readiness to run away to the fort, and some would hide in corners in their offices and leave their work aside! Such was the panic created by Meerut and by Delhi - and yet Cawnpore was still to come.
As soon as Anson arrived at Umballa, he began to prepare the siege- trains to besiege Delhi. There was never such a danger to the English in India before; but, now that it appeared, their real weakness came forth into prominence. Their state was absolutely deplorable. It became impossible for Anson to expedite matters. The English officers ordered about Indian soldiers just as they liked, but they could not do the same to their own soldiers! How could the English soldier give up in a day his haughtiness and his luxurious habits? And it was now out of the question to get an Indian to help in everything. Carriages, labourers, provisions, even stretchers and ambulances for the wounded could not be got! Adjutants, quarter-masters, commissaries, medical chiefs- none could get his department ready and every one was in a fix. What a shadowy thing is English Power in India, without the help of the Iondians themselves! When once the Indians were roused, the English found it extremely difficult even to march from Umballa to Delhi, because “natives of all classes held aloof, waiting and watching the issues of events. From the capitalists to the coolies, all shrank alike from rendering assistance to those who power might be swept away in a day.“1 If the Indians had always kept aloof like this, then, indeed, as the above writer says, English power might have been swept away in a day. But such a brilliant day had not yet arisen in
1857! The year, 1857, was the dawn after a long night’s sleep. Those who saw the vision of the brilliant day to come woke up and left their beds, but others, who thought it was still night, clung to their covers of slavery and went again to sleep. Amongst these sleepy heads, the honour of Rip Van Winkle was very keenly contested between the states of Patiala, Nabha, and Jhind. These states had it in their hand either to establish the Revolution firmly or kill it. These states lay between Umballa and Delhi and without their support the English rear was quite defenceless. Even if these states had remained passive like the others, the Revolution had a great chance of success. But when Patiala, Nabha, and Jhind began to deal blows at the Revolution even more cruel than those of the English, the chain between Delhi and the Punjab was suddenly snapped. These states despised the invitation sent to them by the Emperor of Delhi, killed the Sowars that brought the message, showered money on the English from their own treasuries, mustered their armies, and protected the regions through which the English armies were to pass, and attacked Delhi along with the English; and when the Punjab Revolutionaries left their hearths and homes to defend the national flag at Delhi, these Sikh states, these disciples of Guru Govind Singh, cruelly tortured and murdered them! When the English were sure of the help of Patiala, Nabha, and Jhind, they mustered up courage. The Raja of Patiala sent his brother with sepoys and artillery and ordered him to guard the Thaneswar Road, and the Raja of Jhind took up the strong position of Panipat. When these two most important stations were thus guarded, the roads from Delhi to Umballa and uninterrupted communication with the Punjab were perfectly secure; and the Commander-in-Chief left Umballa on the 25th of May and marched towards Delhi. But Anson had become quite disheartened since the news of the freedom of Delhi. He had now, besides, to be roasted in the terrible heat of the plains, of which he had a great terror having passed his time hitherto amid the cool shadeds of Simla. Emaciated by these mental and bodily wories, the Commander-in-Chief succumbed to cholera on the 27th of May, just as he arrived at Karnal. On the same day, Sir Henry Barnard took charge of his office. In This manner, the English army, after burying the old
Commander-in-Chief, was marching under the new one towards Delhi. At that time, the English were so hopeful of victory that they were openly boasting that they would fight in the morning and brink the blood of the enemy in the evening at Delhi! While this army was marching from Umballa, the world saw the secreted poison in the black hearts of these white Sepoys!
The army at Meerut was composed of “heathens!” It is, of course, an example of the savage nature of Indian country and religion that they massacred “harmless” Englishmen at Meerut and Delhi, relying on the “rumours” about cartridges! But let not what is concealed be laid open before the world! Otherwise God will despise truth more than false rumours and civilisation more than barbarity! Ah, it will require pools of blood to wash these blasphemies away!
On the way from Umballa to Delhi, in thousands of villages, all those that could be easily caught were immediately put before a court-martial in rows after rows, and were condemned to be hanged and killed in a brutal and barbarous manner! At Meerut, the Indians no doubt killed the alien English but it was not done savagely enough. They simply cut off their heads with a blow of the sword. But the English, be it said to their credit, corrected this mistake. Hundreds of Indians were condemned to be hanged before a court-martial in a short time, and they were most brutally and inhumanly tortured, while scaffolds were being erected for them. The hair on their heads were pulled bunches by bunches, their bodies were pierced by bayonets, and then they were made to do that, to avoid which they would think nothing of death or torture - cows’ flesh was forced by spears and bayonets in the months of the poor and harmless Hindu villagers!12
Ah! But it still remains to be told to my “barbarous” readers what this court-martial was and is. Hundreds of innocent villagers were herded together, and then they were given “justice”. When there was a revolution in the Netherlands, Alva had established a similar court. The inquiry before this court was so thorough that sometimes the judge would go to sleep. When the time of sentence came, he would be awakened, and with a grave look at all the prisoners before me, he would
12 History of the Siege of Delhi.
say, “Let these be hanged!” This historical death-chamber of the Netherlands was doubtless reformed and improved upon by the English! For, their judges never went to sleep. Not only so, but, before their appointment, they had to take an oath that they would give the death sentence, without thinking of guilt or innocence!13 The place, where, after such a holy oath, English officers sit down in order to condemn all “natives”, guilty or innocent, to be hanged, is known in the English language as a court-martial!
Wreaking all along the line of his march such a demoniacal vengeance on thousands of innocent men for the handful of Englishmen killed at Delhi and Meerut, Commander Barnard sought to join the white troops at Meerut before marching right up to Delhi. It has already been noted that the English had a considerable force at Meerut. This force was coming down from Meerut to join the army from Umballa. But the national army of Delhi came forth to fight with the Meerut army before the junction could be effected. On the 30th of May, the opposing armies met on the banks of the river Hindan. The right of the Indian army was safe on account of powerful guns, and the English could to nothing against it. While the fight was raging on this side, the left of the Indian army could not stand before the English onslaught. There was confusion in their ranks, and they retreated to Delhi, after leaving five guns in the field. But before the English could take possession of the guns one brave Sepoy of the 11th regiment, rather than leave his place, chose death instead. Others might do their duty or not, but he was determined to do something for his country before he lost his life. With this noble inspiration, this Sepoy of the 11th regiment, seeing that the guns would otherwise fall into the hands of the English, purposely fired into the arsenal, when the English crowded round the captured guns. There was a tremendous explosion and Captain Andrews and his followers were burnt down, and several Englishmen were
13 “Officers as they went to sit on the court-martial swore that they would hand their prisoners, guilty or innocent and, if any dared to lift up his voice against such indiscriminate vengeance, he was instantly silenced by the clamours of his angry comrades. Prisoners condemned to death after a hasty trial were mocked at and tortured by ignorant privates before their execution, while educated officers looked on and approved.”- Holfes’s History of the Sepoy War, page 124. injured. After placing so many heads of the enemy before his Motherland, he then placed before her his own martyr’s head! Just as the
English historians are always singing the praises of Captain Willoughby who blew up the arsenal at Delhi, we shall also sing the praises of this brave Sepoy, this martyr for the cause of his Motherland. But, alas, even his name is not known to history! About this hero, Kaye says: “It taught us that, among the mutineers, there were brave and desperate men who were ready to court instant death for the sake of the national cause!14
As the English were, thus, completely successful in this first battle, they expected Delhi to fall in a day or two, and used to enquire every time, by post, for news of the fall! But how different were matters in reality! Though, when this unprecedented and sudden revolution first burst out into flames, Delhi had not yet the tact and boldness to lead and guide it, yet every heart in Delhi was full with the intense desire not to rest until the mother-country was free, so long as God gave them life. So, the Depoys, despised by the populace all night on the 30th on account of the defeat they had sustained, came out to fight again on the 31st. When the guns of the Revolutionaries started their havoc, the English also replied with their artillery. Since the guns of the Revolutionaries were directed on this day with good aim and the Sepoys fought with stubborn courage, the loss of life on the English side was considerable. The hot sun of May, also, became unbearable to the English. The English tried the tactics of the previous day, but that would not succeed. The Ednglish prepared for a general assault towards the evening. But the Revolutionaries rained a perfect shower of cannon balls on the advancing English and, before the broken ranks of the English could reform to advance, they retired from the field in good order. Never mind, Sepoys, in one day you have shown great improvement. Even if you are so defeated again tomorrow, even then, the English are done for. For now they have not enough strength left even for petty skirmishes. On the first day of June, an army was seen marching towards the rear of the already straitened English camp. The English were utterly confounded when they found this army to be composed of brown soldiers! They were preparing, with
14 Kaye’s History of the Indian Mutiny, Vol. II, page 138.
despair in their hearts, to defend themselves, when they soon discovered that this army was not the army of the Revolutionaries, but only the Gurkhas under Major Reid coming to help them. The English army from Umballa was helped by the Sikhs, the army from Meerut was helped by the Gurkhas! Under these circumstances, what were the poor Revolutionaries of Delhi to do? The two English armies, effected a junction on the 7th of June. At the same time, the seige- train prepared with the help of the Raja of Nabha also arrived safely. The Sepoys of the 5th regiment were entreating the Gurkhas to revolt and capture the siege- train as soon as it arrived at Umballa. But the Gurkhas flatly refused to serve their country and their religion, and the siege-train arrived at Delhi. And the united army of the English arrived scatheless right up to Alipur, near Delhi.
Hearing that the English army had arrived at Alipur, the Revolutionaries again came out of Delhi and met the English army near Bundel-ki-Sarai. At this moment, the English army was in a most efficient condition, with all the necessary complement of artillery and other engines of war, good commanders, fresh and numerous soldiers, and an advantageous position. The Revolutionaries had nothing but the goodness of their cause to support them. Their leader was a prince who had never seen a battlefield in his life. Their number was swelled by more camp followers than regular soldiers. And besides, they had become disheartened at seeing their countrymen, the Sikhs and the Gurkhas, helping the enemy. The English on the other hand assured themselves that the battle would only be a great Tamasha (a show). But the glorious ideal of Swaraj had filled the hearts of the Sepoys with a new inspiration and a new courage which discounted all odds. Such was the valour they showed that the English were soon convinced that it was not a Tamasha, but a real, grim, life-and-death struggle. The Delhi artillery was so powerful that the English artillery could to nothing against it. While the artillerymen and officers of the English were falling, theDelhi artillery became more and more fierce. At this, the English ordered their infantry to rush the artillery of the Revolutionaries. The English soldiers came right up to the artillery and the field-arsenal, and still the Revolutionaries would not budge an inch! In the fight for Swadharma and Swaraj, these Sepoys behaved like true heroes and did
not leave their posts till English bayonets pierced them through! But these brave heroes had not, at that time, a proper leader, or one who would, at least stand by them to the end, if not lead and encourage them. For, while they were dying for their country and religion, pierced by English bayonets but still sticking to their posts, their Commander-in-Chief had run away towards Delhi at the first roar of cannon! Just then, the English cavalry charged the left, and Hope Grant with his horse artillery charged the rear of this unfortunate army. The field was lost and this army, harassed by compatriots and foreigners alike, after fighting all day, was routed, and retreated to Delhi. General Barnard in order to follow up the victory ordered the English army to push forward, and it arrived at the walls of Delhi towards evening. The result of this day’s fight was that the Revolutionaries lost the control of the territory surrounding Delhi, and the English got an advantageous position to attack the fort itself. It is necessary to record here that English historians applaud the Gurkha regiment under Seymour for conspicuous bravery in this battle. In English eyes, the names of these Gurkhas have become favoured and honoured, for this extraordinary eagerness and unparalleled bravery in cutting the throads of their mother’s sons!
The English won the battle of Bundel-ki-Sarai with the help of the Gurkhas, but the battle destroyed all the fancies of their imagination; for, it killed the vain hope of the English soldiers that they would spend the night in Delhi and spill the arch-enemy’s blood. The unpleasant truth, that there were not only disorderly camp followers in the Revolutionary army, but that here, on the walls of Delhi, swords flashing wit the fire of righteousness were now unsheathed for the protection of Swadharma and Swaraj, was forced upon the notice of the English by this stubborn battle! In this battle, the English lost four officers and forty- seven men, besides one hundred and thirty wounded. But the thing which spread more sorrow and despair in the English army than all these losses, was the death, in the thick of the battle, of Adjutant-General Colonel Chester. It will be seen, later on, how English historians surpass English novelists when they given thelosses of the Revolutionaries. But even in this din of the first battle, it is necessary to say that, as regards the number of cannon which the English captured on that day, one gives
thirteen, and the other says they were exactly twenty-six! We should also note that both these were military officers present in the fight!
In this manner, on the evening of the 8th June, the English army encamped outside the walls of Delhi. The work of bringing the armies from Umballa and Meerut safely to Delhi depended solely on the movements in the Punjab. It is, therefore, here necessary to see what were the effects of the Meerut rising in this important province, what the Swadeshi men did there, and how far the plots of the English against them were successful. When the Sikh Edmpire was broken, and the Punjab fell, finally, into the hands of the English, Lord
Dalhousie pursued an administrative policy in that province which was calculated to destroy the twovirtues of love of freedom and martial spirit among the Sikhs. When the administration of this newly-acquired province came into the hands of the two officers Sir Henry Lawrence and Sir John Lawrence, they completely disarmed the people, enlisted most of the Sikh Sepoys in the English army, brought the larger portion of the European army in Northern India into the Punjab, and directed everything in such a manner that the mass of the people should attend only to agriculture as the chief means of their subsistence and do nothing else. When people become mere peasants, they lose their martial qualities; they become hungry for “peace” and do not easily give their consent to revolutionary projects which might interfere with their agriculture. This deep and profound statesmanship of the English proved successful in the Punjab and, within ten years of the destruction of the Sikh Empire in the Punjab, the majority of the Sikhs began to take to the plough and left their swords altogether, and those that still retained the sword put it into the hands of the English in order to put down their own countrymen! In these circumstances, the chief officer in the Punjab, Sir John Lawrence, was sure that there would be no trouble there. Like other English officers he had no adequate idea about the impending danger till the beginning of May, and he too had intended to leave Lahore for summer and go to the cool air of the Murree Hills. Just then, the news of Meerut and Delhi electrified the Punjab. The clever Chief Commissioner grasped the grave import of the news and stayed where he was, in order to fight those who were preparing to overthrow the English
empire. At this time, the greater part of the Punjab army was at Mian Mir. As the camp of Mian Mir was very near Lahore, the Lahore fort was allowed to be garrisoned purely by Sepoys. In the camp at Mian Mir, though the Sepoys outnumbered te English soldiers by four to one, the English officers had no suspicion about them until the new from Meerut arrived, and when the news did arrive they found it difficult to ascertain whether they were or were not secretly in communication with the Meerut Sepoys. At this time, the chief officer of the army of Lahore was one Robert Montgomery. This Robert Mortgomery and Sir John Lawrence were both trained in the school of Dalhousie. They were gifted with rare coolness and courage and could preserve their presence of mind in the midst of the most unexpected difficulties. It was necessary to find out how far the spirit of national freedom had awakened among the Punjab Sepoys. A Brahmin detective was employed to ascertain the state of mind of the Sepoys. This Brahmin did the work of treachery exceedingly well and reported to Montgomery, “Sahib, they are steeped in revolt- they are so far steeped in revolt”- and so saying he put his hand to his neck. This account of the Brahmin removed the veil from the eyes of Lawrence and Montgomery. They saw clearly that the Revolution was well organised not only innorthern India but that the fire was smouldering also in the Punjab, only waiting for the right moment to burst into flames. Thanking the premature rising at Meerut for having enabled him to discover this terrible secret, Montgomery immediately ordered the Sepoys to be disarmed. On the 13th of May, in the morning, a general parade was called out at Mian Mir. To keep the Sepoys confident in their sense of security, a grant ball was given to the English residents. Before the Revolutionaries guessed the secret of this apparent hunting after pleasure, in these conditions, they were suddenly surrounded by English cavalry and artillery. It was impossible for the Sepoys to see through this deceit and, when the usual parade movements were going on, the artillery were ordered to be in readiness to fire, and the confused Indian regiments were peremptorily ordered to give up their arms! The thousand Sepoys, indignant with rage but overawed by the strong force of artillery, threw down their arms and, without a word, walked away to their lines.
While this ceremony of disarming the soldiers, who by their valour, had saved the lives of Englishmen, in Afghanistan, was going on, a battalion of the English force was sent to the fort of Lahore. This battalion, with the help of the English artillery in the forst, disarmed the Sepoys there and turned them out of the fort and occupied it. If there has been the slightest delay or slackness in this manoeuvre, within a fortnight, the whole of the Punjab would have been burning with Revolution; for, the different regiments of Peshawar, Amritsar, Pilhur, and Jullunder were anxiously waiting for the moment when the Sepoys of Mian Mir would attack the Lahore fort. When the news spread that the English had disarmed the Mian Mir Sepoys and taken the Lahore fort, English prestige gained a great deal of ground in the Panjab.15
But a position of even greater importance than the Lahore fort was the Govindgurh of Amritsar. This latter, being a holy place of Sikhs and there being a probability of the Sikhs being aroused if anything happened there, the Sepoys had their eye on it. The rumour arose that the Sepoys, disarmed at Mian Mir, were going towards Amritsar to take Govindgur. The English perceived the danger and requested the Jat and Sikh peasants to protect Amritsar! This request was acceded to by these loyal traitors, and the fort of Amritsar. Like that of Lahore, fell into English hands. Before the 15th of May, the two towns of Lahore and Amritsar were kept, at least for the time being, from joining the Revolution.
After completing all these measures for the security of the Panjab, Sir. J. Lawrence began to extend his labours to places outside his own province. When the news from Delhi reached him, he said it was not a rebellion but a national
15 “Had the Punjab gone, we must have been ruined. Long before reinforcement could have
reached the upper provinces, the bones of all Englishmen would have been bleaching in the
sun. England could never have recovered the calamity and retrieved her power in the East.” -
Life of Lord Lawrence, Vol. II, page 335.
revolution. Still he nursed the fond hope that if Delhi could be taken within a short time there would be no rising anywhere else. With this idea, he sent letter after letter to General Anson to take Delhi before June. Not only this, but he began to send contingents from the Punjab to make up the complement of the army of
Ambala, while taking upon himself the responsibility of keeping the Punjab at peace. The first instalment of this assistance was the Guide Corps Regiment under Daly. John Lawrence had great confidence in Daly’s bravery, and therefore selected him to lead the Guide Corps and march towards Delhi. Daly marched towards Delhi by vorced marches and joined the English army at Bundel- ki-Sarai the day after the battle. In the siege of Delhi were now two traitor regiments – the Gurkhas were exceedingly fond of these two regiments. And who can say that this love was undeserved? The regiuments deserved it fully, considering the measure of their treachery!
Whil Daly’s regiment was marching towards Delhi, John Lawrence took a minute survey of the political situatiuon of the Punjab. In that territory, Hindus, Mahomedans, and Sikhs were often at daggers drawn. The Punjabees had not yet felt the common national awakening of the Hindus and Mahomedans as the people of Northern India had. As a matter of fact, it was hardly ten years since they had lost their freedom. But the very Sikhs, who in 1849 fought furiously with the English, were now in 1857, embracing them. The key to this extraordinary historical mystery is to be found in the fact that the Revolution of 1857 came so soon after the loss of their independence. Those brave, illustratious, spirited followers of the Khalsa, who so hated Mahomedan slavery that they fought continuously for one hundred years and made the Punjab free, would certainly not have tolerated the slavery under the Engolish if they had realised the nature of English rule. But before the ignorant Sepoys realised the fact that English rule was nothing short of slavery, before they had time enough to understand it fully, the Revolution of 1857 broke out. The English domination came into India at a time when a revolution was taking place in Indian politics. Various small groups of accumulated waters, divided for centuries, were trying to break the dams that separated each from the rest and unite into a vast river. The vast river is the United Nationality of India. The great united and
compact nations of the world of to-day passed before their unity, or even for the sake of their unity, through an intermediate stage of disorganisation, internal strife, and disorder. If we look at the strife in Italy, in Germany, or even in England under the Romans and the Saxons and the Normans,. If we see the mortal enmity between different races, provinces, and religions, and the inhuman persecutions in the coursed of mutual vengeance, we shall realise that the strife in India was a very small matter. But who can deny that the above countries have now united their several peoples into strong and powerful nations to-day, because they had been melted in the furnace of internal strife and the fire of foreign despotism?
By a similar process of historical evolution, Bharatabhumi was in the course of creating a great nation out of the heterogenous elements that inhabited it. The streamroller of English slavery was strong enough to crush out all the differences among the peoples of Northern India and make them unite together to throw it off; but in the Panja, ten years were not enough to make them realise the nature and effect of that slavery, in those days. And, therefore, the Sikhs and the Jats could not conceive the idea and help in the realisation of a United Indian Nation.16
The men who represented the Ednglish Government in the Punjab understood this weak link in the chain of the Revolution and turned it to their advantage. They began the policy of increasing the hatred of the Sikhs and the Jats for the Mahomedans. They were reminded of an ancient prophecy which was current among the Sikhs, that the Khalsa would one day march on Delhi - the spot where the Mogul Emperor formerly killed their Guru -and raze it to the ground. Now the time had come for the prophecy to be fulfilled! But if, according to this prophecy, only the Khalsa Sahib were to march on Delhi and conquer, what would be the gain to the English? Instead of Bahadur Shah, a Ranjit Singh might rule at Delhi. It is natural that those whose interests lay in ousting both Bahadur and
16 Sir John Lawrence in a letter wrote :- “Had the Sikhs joined against us, nothing,
humanly speaking, could have saved us. No man could have hoped, much less foreseen, that
these people would have withstood the temptation to avenge their loss of national
independence.” - October,21st, 1857.
Ranjit from the throne of India should think it advisable to change this one-sided prophecy a litle! In this revised and enlarged edition of the prophecy it was so written that Delhi would be razed only when the Khalsa and the Company would join hands! What a prophecy! But the pity is that it turned out true! The English took every unscrupulous advantage of the situation. To fan still further the hatred of the Sikhs for Delhi, a false proclamation was posted that the first order of the Emperor was to massacre all the Sikhs! Poor old Emperor! What an irony! At that very moment, he was every day going about the streets of Delhi and saying that this war was only against the Feringhi and no damage should evermore be done even to the hair of any Indian.17 Though the Revolutionary party tried their utmost, the Sikhs turned to the side of the English.
But in the Punjab, many regiments were composed of the non- Punjabee Hindustanee people and all of them had prepared their minds to fight against the Engloish, and were waiting for the appointed signal. It was not only Sepoys that vowed for freedom, but some patriotic sections of people outside the camp also were sowing the seeds of revolution everywhere. The English soon discovered that even after the disarming of the Mian Mir Sepoys the solid ground on which they were so confidently relying was being undermined. Though the forts of Lahore and Amritsar were secure, the arsenal at Ferozepose was undefended. On the 13th of May, a parade was ordered to ascertain if the Sepoys there showed any signs of mutinying by endeavouring to take the undefended arsenal. But the Sepoys behaved so coolly at parade as not to give the slightese room for suspicion of the passions that were tearing their hearts. Therefore, their disarming was not thought of; but only the two regiments were stationed apart from each other. One of the regiments was made to march through bazaar in the town. How little the English knew what was being exchanged at their bazaar! The spirit of independence was strengthened among the Sepoys there, if that were possible, by the pleadings of the shopkeepers and the customers and, before the regiment came
17 Metcalfe.
out of the bazaar, they laiod aside their doubts and hesitations and made a firm resolve. In the moment, there was raised a war-crfy and the English could only blow up the arsenal as they thought it was difficult to save it. The Sepoys then, hurried towards the walls of Delhi, from where the National Flag was calling out to all Indians to rally round it! At the same moment, the town of Ferozepore also rose and burnt to the ground the bungalows, tenants, hotels, and churches of the English. Add the people began to roam about hunting for Englishment. But the latter had been warned by telegrams from Meerut and were, already, hiding in the barracks. The English army which came to pursue the Sepoys, killed everyone they came across, and, after following them for some distance, returned, boasting of their indiscriminate massacres and inhuman cruelties.
The English were as much afraid of the Afghan tribes beyond the border as of the armies of the Indian Revolutionary party. When the secret propagation of the revolution of 1857 was still in progress, the Secret Society of Lucknow had asked the help of the Amir of Kabul. From a letter which fell into the hands of Mr.Forsyth in August 1955, it is abundantly cledar that Mussulmans of Lucknow were intriguing with Amir Dost Mahomed. It said, “Ayodhya is now annexed, and when Hyderabad is also swallowed up, even the name of Mahomedan rule will not be heard of! Some remedy must be found to prevent this in time. If the people of Lucknow rise for the sake of Swaraj, Sire, to what extent can we rely upon your help?” To this question of Lucknow, the displomatic Amir replied enigmatically, “We will see to it.” But the Amir of Kabul having recently concluded a treaty with England, the English were afraid of the Mahomedan tribes on the frontier near Peshawar rather than of the Amir himself. Some Mullahs were sent to preach among these tribes and exhort them not to rise against the English. The English officers at that time near Peshawar were all bold, diplomatic, and clever in war. The danger on the side of Peshawar was avoided, though with very great difficulty, by the promptness of men like Nicholson, Edwardes and Chamberlain who were heartily supported by such an able officer as John Lawrence. They found out at the very first stroke how to enlist these Mahomedan tribes on their own side. Their greed for money was exploited and they were bribed to enlist in the English army. After buying these mountaineers with money, Sir John formed a moving army to put down the unrest smouldering everywhere in the Punjab. In this army were English soldiers and experienced and tested Sepoys in whose disloyalty to the country the English could put implicit faith. Hardly was this corps formed when it found important work to do; for, the news of the disarming at Mian Mir had created a tremendous agitation in the Indian Sepoys stationed at Peshawar.
The bold English officers at Peshawar decided to strike the first blow and they prepared to disarm the Sepoys. But the English commander and other officers felt very much grieved at the impending insult to the Sepoys of their regiments. These English officers, on account of the marvellous secrecy of 1857, would not believe that their Sepoys had secretly joined the Revolution. However, Cotton and Nicholson surrounded them with European troops on the 21st of May and gave the order to disarm. Seeing that it was impossible to escape from this sudden situation, all the Sepoys laid down their arms. And their officers also, unable to look on calmly at that insult threw down their arms and decorations and joined the Sepoys in hurling curses on the Company! When the troops at Peshawar were disarmed, the English found an opportunity to turn their attention to the 55th regiment stationed at Hotimardan. The Government of Panjab was perfectly certain that this regiment was also revolutionary; but the chief officer of the Sepoys there, Colonel Spottiswoode, did not share the Government’s suspicions. He was continually insisting that his Sepoys would never rise against the English; still the Government persisted in its order to disarm them. Colonel Spottiswoode felt very much chagrined; and when, on the 24th of May, the Sepoy leaders came to him and asked him mif the rumour that the English army was marching against them from Peshawar was true, he gave an evasive reply and the Sepoys went back dissatisfied. The English were really marching from Peshawar to destroy this regiment, as they did at Peshawar. Rather than see the wicked and disgusting affair, Colonel Spottiswoode retired to his room and committed suicide! At this news, the 55th regiment attacked the treasury, took up their arms and flags, looted the treasure, broke the chains of the slavery to the foreigners, and marched on towards Delhi!
But Delhi was not near. The whole of the Panjab, full of English soldiers, had to be crossed and, besides, an English army was pursuing them. Under these circumstances, success was so difficult that they questioned within themselves as to whether it would not be wiser for them to lay down their arms like their comrades at Peshawar and surrender to the English. But the heroes decided that it was better to have the noose of death round their becks than the chains of slavery round their feet, and they made it known by shouts to the English army following them, “We will die fighting!” And, in truth, did the heroes of this 55th regiment lay down their lives on the battlefield fighting for the freedom of their country! The story of this 55th regiment is simply heart-rending. The pursuit had been so hot that Nicholson was often on horse back for 24 hours without dismounting. Hundreds of them dies in the fight and others escaped beyond the frontier, fighting as they went. But who would give shelterto the Hindus there? The Mussulman hordes began to receive them in a terrible manner. Isolated Sepoys were forced to become Mahomedans there. Thus these unfortunate Sepoys fighting in defence of their religion turned towards Kashmir for shelter, thinking that Gulab Singh, the Maharaja of Kashmir, would be able to protect them. When hundreds of these Hindu Sepoys were talking through the stony regions, without food, without clothes, without a fire to warm them, towards Kashmir, weeping that there should be no one on earth who would protect their sacred religion, the English organised massacres of these Sepoys at various places, and they were killed like wild beasts! But, still, some of the Sepoys escaped towards Kashmir, in the fond hope of finding a protector of Hinduism. Protector of Hindus! Alas! Sepoys, you will soon be undeceived. When the Rajpur-born Gulab Singh of Kashmir heard that these helpless Sepoys who were ready to jump into the jaws of Death to save the honour of their Hindu religion were coming towards him, he prohibited them from entering his country! Nay more, after giving orders that any of these Hindus found in his territory should be instantly killed, he very proudly let the English Durbar know of his valiant deeds! Now, Sepoys, either you change your religion and surrender to slavery or embrace death! Of these, Martyrs, you have done well in choosing death! The English were so cruelly slaughtering them wherever they
found them that the permanent scaffolds on the maidans began to rot by the flow of constant streams of Hindu blood! Still the English were not satisfied. Scaffolds- permanent scaffolds - were tired ot performing executions, and, then, the mouths of guns were opened. And of the 55th regiment which had not spilt a single drop of English blood, every one of the men who had not been hanged was blown from the mouth of the gun! A thousand Hindus were, thus, slaughtered in no time. But, even at this last moment, (says Kaye a little ashamed at this terrible bloodshed), “Brave and sullen they went to their doom, asking only to die likle soldiers at the cannon’s mouth, not as dogs in the noose of the gibbet.”
As regards the massacre of these brave people, in a manner which would bring shame upon even savages, English historians generally say that, though this was undoubtedly cruel, “the severity of the hour would be the humanity of all time!” The cruelty was desired in the interests of humanity! English historians, remember this your own sente4nce, “The severity of the hour would be the humanity of all time!” As you now know the meaning of this sentence, you will also remember it exactly on a future occasion. It is well that you perpetrate this cruelty for the sake of humanity, but do not forget that the Hindu Nana is there at Cawnpore!
One more thing must be told here. Those English historians who vie with each other in dramatic descriptions of the massacres committed by the Revolutionaries, attempt at the same time to suppress purposely and consciously the inexcusable, unprecedented, and inhuman atrocities committed by their own countrymen. Before the massacre of this unfortunate but patriotic regiment, Heaven alone knows what brutal tortures they were subjected to by the demoniacal English! For English historians have clean wiped off from history this incident and left no trace of it at all. Kaye himself says, “Though I have plenty of letters with me describing the terrible and cruel tortures committed by our officers, I do not write a word about it, so that this subject sould be no longer before the world!” Here is a historian, indeed! What proof have we that the ruffians, who stuffed cow’s flesh in the mouths of harmless inoffensive peasants on the road to Delhi, did
not also cram the throats of these brave Hindu Sepoys of the 55th regiment in the same manner before blowing them from guns!
While these inhuman atrocities were going on in the direction of Peshawar, here, in Jullunder, the smouldering fire of the Revolution was bursting into flame. John Lawrence had started the policy of disarming Sepoys wholesale in the Panjab; and Jullunder and Pilhur would have been so treated long ago but for the admirable selfrestraint and organising power of the Pilhur Sepoys. The Sepoys in the Jullunder Doab, like their comrades all over the Punjab, had made preparations for a rising. It was clearly given out by a patriotic Hawaldar, taken prisoner in the assault on Delhi, and the Government reports have recorded the same, that, all over the Jullunder Doab, it has been decided to rise simultaneously. The plan was that when the Jullunder army should send a corps to Hoshiarpur, the 31st infantry should rise and march to Pilhur; on their arrival, the 3rd regiment at Pilhur was to rise and all together were to march to Delhi. Similar plans had also been made in other places; but, before the time of putting them into execution, the secret leaked out and the English were forewarned. The Pilhur regiment, however, observed great secretary till the last moment. When the siege-train was being taken to Delhi, they could easily have broken it up, but not to spoil the general plan, this regiment kept outward peace till the right moment. At last, on the 9th of June, the signal agreed upon was made at Jullunder - the bungalow of the colonel of the Queen’s Regiment was set o fire. At this signal, the Jullunder Sepoys rose in revolt at midnight. As a matter of fact, the English had European soldiers and artillery there, but the rising of the Sepoys was so unanimous and sudden that, at their terrible war-cries, the English lost their nerve. English men, women, and children began to run away to places of safety. But the Jullunder Sepoys had no time to waste in massacres. Since the English guns were aimed at the flag of freedom in Delhi, every heart was drawn towards that place. When Adjutant Bagshwe began to interfere unnecessarily, one horseman galloped towards him and shot him dead. The English military officers of the place had, to the end, confidence in the Sepoys and informed the higher authorities that they need not be disarmed; and they really did trust the Sepoys. For this, the Sepoys not only refrained from massacring them
wholesale but spared the life of those also that had not yet left the place. Thus, the Jullunder army kept its plan well and the officers who trusted them were spared their life. In this, the Sepoys showed great magnanimity.18 And yet, although the perpetrator himself has confessed to. “In the Panjab, near Ajnala, in a small island, many a Sepoy who had simply fled away from a regiment, which was working under the reasonable fear of being disarmed and shot by the Government for suspicion, was hiding himself. Cooper with a loyal body of troops took them prisoner. ‘The entire number,amounting to two hundred and eighty-two, were then conveyed by Cooper to Ajnala. Then came the question what was to be done with them! There was no means of tranporting them to a place where they could be tried formally. On the other hand, if they were summarily executed, other regiments and intending rebels might take warning of their fate, and thus, further bloodshed might be prevented. For these reasons, Cooper, fully conscious as he was of the enormous responsibility which he was undertaking, resolved to put them all to death. Next morning, Government and their officers had treated them kindly and they were thankful to them for their trust, they did not allow these private relations
18 The English have circulated a myth and have called it the Back Hole of
Calcutta and the whole world is execrating the memory of Siraj-ud-daulah for this wild
invention of an English forger’s brain. Here is a blood curdling story of a real black hole which
the accordingly, he brought them out in tens and made some Sikhs shoot them. In this way, two
hundred and sixteen perished. But, there still remained sixty-six others who had been confined
in one of the bastions of the Tahsil. Expecting resistance, Cooper ordered the door to be
oepned. But not a sound issued from the room; forty-five of them were dead bodies lying on the
floor. For, unknown to Cooper, the windows had been closely shut and the wretched prisoners
had found in the bastion a second Black-Hole. The remaining twenty-one were shot, like their
comrades. 1-8-‘57. For this splendid assumption of responsibility, Cooper was assailed by the
hysterical cries of ignorant humanitarians. But Robert Montgomery unanswerably vindicated
his character by proving that he had saved the Lahore division.”- Holmes’s History of the
Indian Mutiny, page 363.
to come in the way of the national cause, and they gave up their body and soul to the cause, when the war-bugle for country and freedom sounded.
Before beginning the revolt at midnight, they had despatched a horseman to inform their Pilhur comrades. As soon as this messener of freedom from Jullunder arrived, the Pilhur regiment also rose. Now it only remained for the Jullunder men to march to Pilhur! It was not an easy talk, for it was necessary to avoid the English artillery and cavalry; but such was the tumult and confusion among the English and so clear was the map drawn by the Revolutionaries that, at last, all the Jullunder Sepoys arrived at Pilhur in perfect order. Seeing thousands of their comrades coming to meet them, the Sepoys of Pilhur marched in a body to receive them. The comrades heartily embraced each other, and the vast army under the leadership of Swadeshi Jamadars and Subahdars marched towards Delhi. On the way was a river and beyond the river was the city of Ludhiana awaiting to kiss the dust of these heroes’ feet. The very morning, the English officers of Ludhiana had received a telegram announcing the rising at Jullunder. But it was too late. The officers had no hope of keeping the Sepoys there under control. For, before the Government telegram arrived, the Sepoys had got the information that their comrades had already left Jullunder! The English officers at Ludhiana resolved to bar the way of the army coming from Pilhur on the river Sutlij which flows between the two towns. The bridge of boats on the river was destroyed and the English, the Sikhs, and the auxiliary troops of the Raja of Nabha were protecting the bank of the river.
When the Revolutionaries got this information they began to cross the river at night, four miles up the river. Some of their number had just crossed the river in boats, some were still crossing, while some were yet on the other bank. In this state, the English and the Sikhs began their artillery-fire on them. It was about ten at night and the Revolutionaries could not find the whereabouts of the English army. Besides, their guns had not yet crossed the river. In this difficult situation, the English and the Sikhs, with their artillery, fell upon them. But when the shock of the first attack was passed, the Sepoys, without moving an inch, kept up a steady fire on the enemy. The ranks of the Sepoys, though disordered for a moment on
account of the sudden attack of the enemy defended their position for about two hours. Just then, a Sepoy’s bullet went right into the chest of the English commander, Williams, and he fell dead on the field. Now, the moon had arisen to dispel the midnight darnkess and to throw her cool rays on the heads of the devotees of freedom. In this moonlight, the Revolutionaries saw the whole strategy of the English, and they left their position and attacked the English boldly. Not being able to hold out before this attack, the English army as well as the loyal Sikhs took to their heels!
Proud of victory that they had just won against the combined forces of the English and the Sikhs, the Sepoys entered the town of Ludhiana about midday. In the city, there was a cedrtain Moulvie who always used to breach to the people to break away from English slavery and establish Swaraj. On account of the Moulvie’s lectures, this town had become a powerful centre of the Revolutionary part in the Panjab. When the sign came that the time had come to deal the last blows at the chains of slavery, the whole town rose. The Government stores were looted and burnt. Churches, the houses of Englishmen, the presses of English newspapers, all were burnt. There was rivalry among the citizens to accompany the Sepoys and show them the stations of Engloishmen and especially the houses of “native dogs” who used to wag their tails under the protection of the Englishmen! Prisons were broken. Whatever belonged to the Government and whatever was English was burnt down. That which could not be burnt down was razed to the ground. In this manner, Ludhiana also began to glow with the Revolutionary fire.
But it was desirable for the Revolutionaries to go to Delhi. It would have been a great strategic and moral advantage if the Sepoys could have held Ludhiana fort, as it was the key to the Panjab; and if Ludhiana had also been a centre of the Revolution, like Delhi, it would have been a terrible shock to the English power. This was, no doubt, known to the Sepoys. But it was impossible for them to remain in Ludhiana under the circumstances. They were all more Sepoys, without a leader. They had no ammunition. If, at such a juncture, there has been at Ludhiana a Nana Sahib, or a Khan Bahadur Khan, or a Moulview Ahmad Shan, they would never have left Ludhiana. Now, they could do nothing but march
towards Delhi. And so they proceeded towards Delhi, crying that they would now decide, at the walls of Delhi itself, the question of slavery or Swaraj. The English were so much demoralised then that, though the Sepoys used to march in procession by day, yet no one dared to suggest pursuit!
But the enforced idleness of the Revolutionary party at other places for three weeks after the Meerut rising, was completely taken advantage of by the English in the Panjab. Because there were large forces of European troops in the Panjab, it became easy either to disarm the Sepoys, or compel them to revolt under odds of time and place, and then destroy them. Seeing that the Sikh princes and people were joining them instead of the Revolutionaries, the English expell all the Hindusthanees in the Panjab from the frontier up to the Sutlij and crushed the seeds of the Revolution in that part of the country. At this time, not only the Sepoys, but thousands of peaceful and well-to-do non-Punjabee Hindusthanees in towns and villages, were deported at the mere will be the authorities. And when the Punjab was, thus, completely in hand, the movement of European troops towards Delhi began on a large scale. There were two chief reasons why the Panjab remained in English hands. One was that the Sikhs sided with the English. If they had even been indifferent, the English could not have retained the Panjab for a single day. The Revolutionaries, naturally, spared no pains to bring over the Sikhs to their side. As soon as Delhi was free, a devoted servant of the Emperor sent him a long, detailed, and very interesting account of the state of feeling in the Panjab. In it, the faithful servant Taju Din says, “The Sikh Sirdars in the Panjab are all idle and cowardly, and unlikely to join the Revolutionaries. They have become the playthings of the Feringhis. I saw them personally in private, had convesations with them, and spoke to them most earnestly. I asked them, ‘Why do you join the Feringhis and become traitors to Swaraj? Won’t you be better off under Swaraj? Therefore, at lease for your own gain, you ought to join the Emperor of Delhi!’ To this they replied, ‘See, we are all waiting for the opportunity. As soon as we get the order of the Emperor, we will kill these Kaffirs in a day ’ But I believe they are thoroughly untrustworthy.” So when horsemen came, with the order from the Emperor to the Sikh kings, they were assassinated! This was the first and most
important reason why the English found it so easy to keep their hold on the Panjab; yet we cannot say that it was impossible to drive the English away from the Punjab, in spite of the opposition of the Sikhs. If advantage had been taken of the laxity of the English till the month of May, and if there has been a simultaneous rising according to the original plan, then, the Sikhs too would have been terrorised to joion a division among them; and, whatever else might have happened, the English could not possibly have taken hold of thousands of Sepoys separately and put them down. It cannot be maintained that in the Punjab there was no desire for Swaraj. The Brahmins of Thaneshwar and the Moulvies of Ludhiana, the shop- keepers of Ferozepore and the Mussalmans of Peshawar, were wandering about, preaching everywhere a holy war for the sake of Swadharma and Swaraj. The writer of the above-mentioned letter says, “If a Sirdar from the Emperor together with an army can be sent thither, the Panjab will be free in a moment. The Sepoys at different places will rise and rally round your banner. The English will have to leave in haste. And I am certain that all Hindus and Mahomedans will bow to your glorious throne. Besides, it is desirable that the rising should be made in this month of June, for English soldiers find it hard to fight in the sun. They die quickly even before fighting begins. As soon as you see this letter, you should send a Sirdar with an army into the Panjab,” etc. etc. Though popular sympathy in the Panjab was with Delhi, the Revolutionaries could not take advantage of it. The reason is that the wave of Revolution was inevitably cheked for three weeks after the freedom of Delhi. If, according to the prearranged plan, there had been universal and simultaneous risings, the English could not have moved anywhere; solitary and helpless regiments could not have been disarmed in the Panjab; the wave of Revolution would have daily gained in volume, and undecided and hesitating people like the Sikhs would have been carried away with it; and, seeing a glorious and successful beginning, those who sympathised but dared not throw in their lot with the Revolution would have become emboldened and,- India would have been free.
In short, on account of the treachery of the Sikhs and the premature rising at Meerut, the roots of the Revolution in the Panjab were all weeded out.
And the Panjab being the backbone of Delhi, the news was very discouraging to the Delhi patriots.
We have given, above, the movements of the Revolutionaries and of the English in Delhi and the Panjab during the three weeks. The English had been making all possible preparations during these three weeks and large contingents of European troops were constantly being sent from Calcutta to Allahabad. In Bombay and Madras, in Rajputana and Sind, a minute inquiry was made as to the sympathisers of the Revolutionary movement, and great efforts were being made to crush it in time, as was done in the Panjab. And, thanking God for this previous warning of the Revolution, they began to be confident that they had extinguished the flames in various places. While these preparations were going on during these weeks on the side of the English, on the side of the Revolutionaries all possible outward quiet was maintained in general, except for some small risings that took place here and there. This was the state of affairs, on both sides, on the 30th of May. We must now turn to the succeeding events- how this was immediately altered, how the growing confidence of the English was dashed to the ground, how the flames of the Revolution burst again with redoubled vigour in spite of the great losses it had sustained during these three weeks. Redvolutions are not regulated by fixed laws. They are not accurately working machines like clocks or watches. They have their own way of marching. They can only be regulated by a general principle; but they brush away minor rules by their very shock. Revolution has only one watchword- “Dash on!” All sorts ofnew and unthought of circumstances might arise during its progress, but one must stop; one must overcome them and press forward. Tell us now, O Must of History, how Nana Sahib the Moulvie of Lucknow, the Ranee
of Jhansi, and other grand heroes clung to this principle with such extraordinary persistence! And fail
not to tell, also, O History, how all Indians could not cling to it as these heroes did! Come and sing
the songs of glory and of raise with us in the first part, and, also come and weep with us later on!