M Lagan & Cumming Edin'

and Medal Ribbons.

OMIA OL

DELAY AND SUSPENSE.

275 operation, and finishing the rest of the work that there is to be done.

You will be very anxious to hear of the final attack, but things have progressed so much more slowly lately than was anticipated, that one cannot reckon with any certainty when the assault will be. Give us till the 15th, and I think by or before that date we shall be able to send you something satisfactory. God grant that it be so, may for all away from the actual scene of warfare must be in a painfully nervous state of excitement and suspense. We who are here, and know how satisfactorily things are going on, can easily learn the cause of what may appear to you, at a distance, some unaccountable delay; and with such people as some you have at Simla, I can easily imagine all sorts of absurd stories being in circulation. For instance, the battery catching fire yesterday; I dare say it has been made out a sad disaster, though, on the whole, I believe it to have been rather a fortunate occurrence, as the guns had pretty well finished the work required of them, and the fire making it necessary to remove them, they were sent down to the Ludlow Castle battery to take their place there; and besides, the fire has made all the officers in other batteries doubly careful, and they are now covered in the most exposed parts with hides, and water is kept close at hand in case of fire again.

The Engineers are very much blamed for misleading the General as to the time it would take to erect all these batteries. They talked of doing everything in one night, but none but themselves expected this, thinking that they might take two or three; but the fourth has already passed. They are very fine fellows the Engineers, there is not a doubt about that, but they wanted to make themselves out able to do impossibilities. Greathed, brother of the Colonel, has charge of the battery still unfinished; he is a very gallant and clever young fellow.

I am sorry to hear from Major Brooke, whom I met at the Flagstaff this morning, that poor Mrs Greathed is still very unwell; from what Mrs Brooke writes to him, he appears to think her in a very precarious state. I haven't seen Colonel Greathed for some time; he has been constantly on duty lately. Robertson, who lives with him, I got a note from just now, saying he was going to leave this evening for Kurnaul, and eventually Mussoorie. I fancy he is much vexed at having to go, but there is no help for

276 MOVEMENTS OF LUCKNOW AND CAWNPORE TROOPS.

it. He has had a very sharp attack of fever, and is dreadfully pulled down, and no chance of regaining his strength here.

Letters in from Agra this morning of the 6th and 7th; all well there then, and at Cawnpore and Lucknow by the last accounts. General Outram was pushing up to Cawnpore with all available troops, having abandoned the intention, at one time entertained, of marching via Fyzabad on Lucknow. The Goorkha troops were at Azimghur, so it is hoped some of them will march up to Cawnpore. The Indore portion of the Gwalior mutineers had left Gwalior and reached Dholpore, but without guns, and they were trying to get some from the Dholpore Raja. Colonel Cotton writes that he was on the lookout for them, if they were in the Agra direction. Mr Colvin was very ill again; we should not be surprised to hear of his death.

I got letters to-day from Captain Eden. He gives me an account of the Joudhpore Legion mutiny much the same as Arthur's, but talks of their having mutinied also at Erinpoorah, and says they made prisoners of the sergeants and their families, and the adjutant, but afterwards released them. I trust this is true; and it does not seem clear that they had plundered the station, and I hope not for Arthur's sake. George Lawrence was after the mutineers with some Europeans and Lancers, and, I hope, will come up with them. At Jeypore all was quiet, and the Raja exerting himself to the utmost in our favour.

Fortunately this has been such a nice, cool, cloudy day for our men, who have had sad hard work of it lately, poor fellows; but they are much better, the doctors say, since the work began again.

It was a mistake, it seems, about Lieutenant Murray having been wounded, though so reported by half-a-dozen. Lieutenant Lockhart of the Goorkhas, and Lieutenant Gillespie, Artillery, have been wounded, I am sorry to say; no other that I hear of. Near four o'clock P.M., and all right here, none of the enemy's guns firing,

(Diary) 11th September.-Up very early to see the heavy batteries open, as arranged last night; but, after an hour's stay at the Flagstaff, find they are not ready. They partially open about nine, and heavy firing has been going on all day. Rode round by the Flagstaff in the evening just as usual. Some cavalry got