THE INDIAN MUTINY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13484, 10 May 1907, Page 6

THE INDIAN MUTINY.

FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY TO-DAY. .

VETERANS IN AUCKLAND. .. Fifty years ago to-day the Indian Mutiny, broke out. Scarcely had the guns in the Crimea been silenced, ere' the ; whole of the Ganges Valley, from Patna to Delhi, was aflame. ; Then, as now, there had been "unrest• in , India" reported from' time to time;-but India is an Eastern -country, 1 and, notwithstanding that hi "the East it is always the unexpected that happens, not nearly so much importance was attached to rumours of pending trouble by those in authority as probably would have. been the case with persons not greatly experienced in the workings of the Oriental mind. Lord Canning, however, on the eve of his departure for India, in 1856, said at a dinner in London, "I wish for a peaceful term of office. But I cannot forget that in the - sky of India, serene as it is, a small cloud may arise, no larger than \ a man's hand, | but which, growing larger and larger, may j at. last .threaten to burst and overwhelm us ..-.with ruin." ! That cloud did burston Sunday, May 10, 1857, at Meerut—and incidentally, at that time an honoured Auckland lady, wife of Sir John Logan Campbell, as she subsequently became, was in the centre of disturbance, Sir John himself leaving England immediately the Mutiny broke out to be with his bride that was to be in the hour of fiery trial. Kipling makes : '"a Soudanese ; say': '■;.-'• .-„•:.. ~ - "' Allah created : the - English . mad—the' maddest of all mankind." And that is ■ how the Oriental ■ looks at the English, although he is not loth to admit that even if ' ' '■''*..' They do not consider the Meaning of Things, They consult not creed nor clan. Behold! they clap the slave on the back. And behold! be ariseth a man. "~, Lord Dalhousie's annexation policy, the extensive introduction of the steam engine, the. rapid expansion cof industrial: enterprise on modern lines, all tended to "unsettle the native mind; and finally, the issue of cartridges greased with cow-tallow —the : natives . believed they,, were coated with lard, the pig being an abomination to Hindoos and Mahommedans alike—was the last provocation, the one spark, but to the cow-worshipping Hindoos, a■' very torch, that set India. on fire. , The Sepoys in Meerut revolted, killed a few Europeans, broke open the gaols, and then marched to Delhi. Even then there were time and sufficient force in Meerut to; have scotched the Mutiny at its outbreak; . but there was noone ,with .sufficient, initiatives resource to s take the hecessavy - measures. ' -A " tele-" gram was, indeed, sent to Delhi, but no move was made until the next morning, Monday. By that time the Mutiny was roaring like fa, haystack afire in a- gale of wind. It was then too late to avert a long,-difficult, and, as it proved", a terribly costly campaign in lives and money. It cost £40,000,000 before it was finished,, with an . .annual charge of £10,000,000. Cawhpore, with its horrors ; Delhi with " its ; British , persistency ; and Lucknow, with ■ its .< indomitable bravery, \ followed, but at what a terrible cost! • One consolation for thra great calamity is to be seen'; in the fact that it brought out the very best in the British race, and graven on the tablets of British history in deep letters of gold' are the names of Havelock, Outram, Lawrence and Nicholson, and the long roll of the rank and file who served under them. Thanks to Lord Ranfurly, a list was prepared of those : soldiers who : served: in the Mutiny • and subsequently ; fought -in New Zealand, - and settled down to the happy days of peace following the Maori wars. Lord Ranfurly, speaking in 1903, said that no.-less than 180 Mutiny medals were held in New Zealand, and in his Roll of Honour he gives the names of 140 of the Indian veterans. > Several of them have died since the roll was prepared, and" among them the Right Rev. Dr. ■:, Cbwie, D.D., i Primate of New Zealand..;.: Some of , the old soldiers who fought 'in the Mutiny also took part in the -Persian campaign, and ; a larger number of them took ; part in the various engagements with the Maoris.X A few 'of the Mutiny men are to-day in the Veterans' Home, where they .are spending their days in peace and living no more in j' fear cof want ; -.'.or • neglect. Captain Goodwyn Archer, who is in charge of the Home, jjindly.- supplied some details of them. They are: —George Clampett, Ist Bengal Fusiliers ; served in Burma, 1851, and awarded distinguished conduct medal; served in New Zealand!. David Dunlop, 42nd Regiment (Black Watch) ; Charles Nelson, 3rd Madras Fusiliers; John Ermon, 86th Regiment; Johnstone Caldwell, 1 7th Hussars; Daniel Theobald, 70th Regiment, under fire and wounded, Michael o'Don- : nell, 87th Regiment ; George Vincent, Bengal Artillery; William Wiggins, Bengal Artillery, wounded under fire ; John Purely, 80tb Regiment, wounded under fire. It is difficult to refrain from again quoting Lord Ranfiirly,.: when recalling the Mutiny and the men who fought in it: "New Zealand," he said, "may well be proud of the deeds of her veterans. May it be to her:honour and credit that everything is done that can be done by private individuals to make their last years happy."