* The Major certainly offered to leave an old snuff-box at
Mr. Cunningham's office; but it contained no extract from a
newspaper, and does not QUITE prove that he killed a
rhinoceros and stormed fourteen intrenchments at the siege
of Allyghur.
Well, immediately after the capture of this important fortress, Perron,
who had been the life and soul of Scindiah's army, came in to us, with
his family and treasure, and was passed over to the French settlements
at Chandernagur. Bourquien took his command, and against him we now
moved. The morning of the 11th of September found us upon the plains of
Delhi.
It was a burning hot day, and we were all refreshing ourselves after
the morning's march, when I, who was on the advanced piquet along
with O'Gawler of the King's Dragoons, was made aware of the enemy's
neighborhood in a very singular manner. O'Gawler and I were seated under
a little canopy of horse-cloths, which we had formed to shelter us from
the intolerable heat of the sun, and were discussing with great delight
a few Manilla cheroots, and a stone jar of the most exquisite, cool,
weak, refreshing sangaree. We had been playing cards the night before,
and O'Gawler had lost to me seven hundred rupees. I emptied the last of
the sangaree into the two pint tumblers out of which we were drinking,
and holding mine up, said, "Here's better luck to you next time,
O'Gawler!"
As I spoke the words--whish!--a cannon-ball cut the tumbler clean out
of my hand, and plumped into poor O'Gawler's stomach.
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