A FIGHTING RACE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LXXVI, Issue 9489, 11 August 1891, Page 2

A FIGHTING RACE.

[by colonel n. a. ltttelton.] (Nm Review.) As is well known, the Gurkhas inhabit the hill districts o£ Nepaul which separate that kingdom from our northern territory. They are a mixed race (except the western tribes, who are the best fighting men), and are supposed to be the .descendants of Hindu refugees who fled from before the Mussulman invasion and the Mongol tribes inhabiting the Nepanlese hills. Be that ; , as it may, their physiognomy is of an unmistakably Chinese or Tartar character, with small eyes, flat noses, and meagre whiskers. They are eturdily built, but in stature are very short; the average height of a Gurkha soldier cannot be much over sft Sin. It is true that in England a diminutive stature is apt to be accompanied by a diminutive chest, but still I am not sure that too much importance is not attaohedin these days to the height standard. I remember a Crimean veteran telling mebis experience. He was only sft 4in, and had great difficulty in being accepted.as a recruit, but as he was of sturdy build an exception was made in his favour. I quota his own picturesque language: "While it was peace I was always 'id away in the centre of the rear rank and kep' out of sight as much as possible, but when we come to the Crimea I never missed a hour's duty the'ole time, and did the work of many a tall man dead or sick, and at Infcerman a bullet went through the 'air of my 'ead, which if I 'ad been a inch 'igher it would _ have gone through my 'ead." Whether it is FIGHTING -HAND TO HAND with the bayonet or with hla national weapon, the kukri, a murderous-looking carved knife with the sharp edge on the inside like a sickle, or at long, range with the modern arms of precision, it is all one to the Gurkha, arid ho thoroughly enjoys himself either charging or skirmishing. These kukris in their hands are formidable weapons; with them they can bisect goats or decapitate a bullock, and, of course, can use them on the human body with equal effect. In one of our frontier expeditious the Pathans were retreating up the hill side, pursued by some Gurkhas. One of them, the smallest man in his regiment, got above the track by which the enemy were retreating, crouched behind a rock, and on a tall Pathau stopping just below him to fire, sprang out at him, and, as related to me by an eye-witnesa, cut hia head in two like a pumpkin. Another eyewitnesa told me that in the Mutiny he saw some Sepoys take refuge in a house, and a little Gurkha crouch down by a window, watching for his opportunity like a cat by a mouse hole. After some waiting a Pandy put his head cautiously out to reconnoitre, but he never drew it in again, the Gurkha having cub it off with a single blow. It must bo confessed that there is something of the savage in the Gurkha, and his employment against a European enemy might be objected to by some oversensitive philanthropists; but, after all, if you are to be killed in action, ib does not matter much whether your head is sliced iu two by a kukri or-pierced by a bullet from a Mark 11. magazine rifle, which, I suppose, may be taken as THE MOST CIVILISED LETHAL WEAPON now before the public. The Gurkhas ate Hindus in religion, but they are nob always averse to alcoholic indulgence or bo hobnobbing with their English comrades, and in more than one instance very close bonds of union exist between British and Gurkha regiments. The first experience we had of the fighting qualities of the Gurkhas was in the Nepaulese war of 1814-16, when our troops met them as enemies for the only time in their history. This war was not one that added much to the laurels of our army. Though we put in the field the very considerable force of over 20,000 regular troops, and some 10,000 irregulars, while it is doubtful if the Gurkhas had half that number, it took two years’ tough fighting to bring them to terms. The first year’s campaigning was almost entirely in their favour, but it must be added that the incapacity of most of the brigadiers employed contributed greatly to the unfortunate results. In this war the Gurkhas displayed against us all the SPLENDID MARTIAL QUALITIES, which have been conspicuous on a hundred battlefields since, when they have been fighting shoulder to shoulder with British troops against Jats, Marathas, Sikhs, Sepoy mutineers, Afghans, Pathans, Malays and Burmans. The war opened most inauspioiously for us with the siege of Kalunga, where 600 Gurkhas, entrenched in a stockaded fort, repulsed five assaults of British and native troops, in one of which the General commanding fell. Though they were compelled to evacuate the fort eventually, it was not until they had only seventy unwounded men left, and they had inflicted on their assailants the heavy loss of thirty-one officers and 710 men, many more than their own original number. Nor were they less formidable in attack than in defence. At Jythuk they charged our position nine times, and forced our troops to beat a disastrous retreat. In the art of skirmishing they taught us many salutary lessons. We are told that " their mode of attack was peculiarly harassing: entrenching themselves behind jutting points of rock, and other situations affording shelter, they kept up an irregular fire, charging occasionally, and then retiring to their coverts.” This rude awakening staggered cur Generals, and whereas the opening operations were characterised by inconsiderate rashness, this soon disappeared, and was replaced by extreme caution, not to say timidity. If the Viceroy, Lord Hastings, had wished to follow the example of the Nepanlese Government, who paraded one of their Generals in female attire at a public durbar for incapacity and hesitation, he would have found more than one eligible candidate for such a distinction amongst his brigadiers. General Ochterlony had the credit of changing the aspect of affairs. He was not

ABOVE TAKING A HINT from an enemy he had never underrated, and recognised that the use of stockades might bo as valuable to an invading as to a defending army. Like the New Zealand Maoris, the Gurkhas were very skilful in their construction. Made of rough-hewn wood and stones, heaped together between an outer and an inner palisade, they often proved very tough nuts to crack. General Ochterlony adopted them for the defence of his posts and lines of communication, and this, with more attention to the ordinary rules of strategy and tactics, enabled him to bring the war to a more satisfactory conclusion than had at one time seemed probable. The Sutlej war of 1845-46 brought the Gurkhas into contact with the Sikhs, and their conduct at the obstinately contested battles of Aliwal and Sobraon elicited commendation from their Generals, Sir Harry Smith and Sir Hugh Gough, two most competent judges. In this campaign the Gurkhas came under the notice of the Viceroy, Sir Henry Hardinge. On one occasion, when he was inspecting them, he was told by an Irish officer that their small stature was due to the smallness of their pay. During the next few years there were several frontier expeditions, in some of which Gurkhas were engaged, bat I pass on to the crisis of 1857, when the Gurkhas were to be put to a severer test than any they had yet been subjected to, and nobly did the Sirmoor Gurkha Battalion AT THE MEMORABLE SIEGE OW DELHI justify the reputation won on the Sutlej. This battalion was marched down from Degra, their hill station, to form part of the force besieging Delhi, and was at first the only native regiment with it. Attempts were mr.de to seduce the men from their allegiance, but in vain. As one of them said: “ The regiment goes wherever it is ordered; wo obey the bugle call.” And the truth of this was soon demonstrated. At first they were looked upon with some distrust, but the first day's fighting removed this, and the loyalty and valour of the Sirmoories were fully recognised. To them—afterwards reinforced by the Guides, a splendid regiment in which there was a good sprinkling of Gurkhas and two companies of the 60bh Biflas, with two guns—was assigned the defence of Hindu Rao’s house, and the neighbouringpoatsontherightof the British Une,.and, jjidging'by.the repeated attacks

made by the mutineers on this part of thi position, it seems to have beenthp kpy o( the whole. On no less than different occasions did this small fore, sustain and repulse the onslaught of vastlj superior numbers, besides taking part il various offensive operations. For thret months and eight days it was under at almost continuous fire night and day, an< the losses of the Sirmoor Battalion during - the siegei amounting to 827 men killed and wounded out of a total of 4*lo, ant eight officers out of nine* sufficiently indt cate the severity ©!! the ordeal undergoni by them. Hindu Bao’s house was of solid coa struction, with stone walls three feettmefc and it was well it was so, as itwaa withlj easy range of the big guns mounted on th< city walls. It was a hospital as well as 4 barrack, a magazine and a fort, as tW Gurkhas had a great objection, whei; wounded or sick, to being taken away fronj their own pepple, and it was found oettej to keep them at the front in spite of tI H heavy fire which occasionally into' the wards. One advantage of thciij being thus on the spot was that whet their servioss were wanted to repel a sortia slightly wounded men could take theii places in the ranks, and were always quits ready to do so. On the day of the assault more than fifty men came out of hospital to take pact in it. This- being the spirit that animated them, ib is no wonder that

WAVE AFTER WAVS OP ASSAILANTS beat against their position in vain. In oat of the early/fights the. mutineers called out, "We will not fire on the come over and join us." "Oh yes," was the reply, "we are coming," and they did come, but it was with a volley and a charge On another occasion Major Said wai anxious to draw the enemy on, and accordingly, having previously warned his men of what he was going to do, sounded the retreat and fell back, halting his regiment under the brow of a hill. The enemy, who, of course, knew the bugle calls well, fell into the trap/ ana, pressing on with the_ alacrity that Orientals always display in pursuit oi a retiring foe, paid dearly for their mistake. None but staunch troops could have been safely withdrawn in this way under fire. Another time Major :Eeid, returning from the front after an engagement, saw ■ boy not more than thirteen years of age crouching behind a rock, and armed with a rifle. Suspecting it was one of hit line boys he went up to him and found that it was so. The hoy had accompanied his father into action, and when the latter was knocked over he took his rifle and ammunition and went on with the regiment. He displayed with great pride four distinct wounds made by one bullet which had gone through both his legs. Becognising that he was one of the right sort. Major Eeid at once admitted him into the ranks and then promoted him corporal. He served throughout the remainder of the siege, receiving two more wounds, and eventually became a native officer, and is, I believe still serving.