“Humph!” he muttered to himself.
“A bad attack of calf love all round. Well,”
as he looked at the manly figures of his sons, and
thought of the qualities they had shown, “I
should not be surprised if the boys stick to it; but
whether those pretty little things will give the matter
a thought when they have once come out at home remains
to be seen. It would not be a bad thing, for
Hargreaves was, I know, a very wealthy man, and there
are only these two girls.”
THE LAST CAPTURE OF LUCKNOW.
The women and children brought from Lucknow once sent
off from the British camp, the commander-in-chief
was able to direct his attention to the work before
him—of clearing out of Cawnpore the rebel
army, composed of the Gwalior contingent and the troops
of Koer Sing and Nana Sahib, in all twenty-five thousand
men. Against this large force he could only bring
seventy-five hundred men; but these, well led, were
ample for the purpose.
The position on the night of the 5th of December was
as follows. The British camp was separated from
the city by a canal running east and west. The
enemy were entirely on the north of this canal, their
center occupying the town. Outside the city walls
lay the right of the rebel army, while his left occupied
the space between the walls and the river. In
the rear of the enemy’s left was a position
known as the Subadar’s Tank. The British
occupied as an advanced post a large bazaar on the
city side of the river.
The operations of the 6th of December were simple.
A demonstration was made against the city from the
bazaar, which occupied the attention of the large
force holding the town. The main body of the British
were quietly massed on its left, and, crossing three
bridges over the canal, attacked the enemy’s
right with impetuosity. These, cut off by the
city wall from their comrades within, were unable
to stand the British onslaught and the thunder of
Peel’s guns, and fled precipitately, pursued
by the British for fourteen miles along the Calpee
Road. Every gun and ammunition wagon of the mutineers
on this side fell into the hands of the victors.
As the victorious British force swept along past the
city, Sir Colin Campbell detached a force under General
Mansfield to attack and occupy the position of the
Subadar’s Tank—which was captured
after some hard fighting. Thus the British were
in a position in rear of the enemy’s left.
The mutineers, seeing that their right was utterly
defeated, and the retreat of their left threatened,
lost all heart, and as soon as darkness came on, fled,
a disorganized rabble, from the city they had entered
as conquerors only six days before. The cavalry
started next day in pursuit, cut up large numbers,
and captured the greater part of their guns.
The threatening army of Gwalior thus beaten and scattered,
and Cawnpore in our hands, Sir Colin Campbell was
able to devote his whole attention to clearing the
country in his rear, and in preparing for the great
final campaign against Lucknow, which, now that Delhi
had fallen, was the headquarters of the mutiny.
