Meanwhile, the Guides, at six hours' notice, fully equipped, horse and
foot, had started on their historic march to Delhi. They left Mardan at
six in the evening of May 13th, and joined the British force at the
siege of Delhi early on June 9th. The distance is five hundred and
eighty miles, and the time taken was twenty-six days and fourteen hours;
but from this must be deducted five days and nine hours made up as
follows: detained forty-two hours at Attock, holding the fort pending
the arrival of a reliable garrison; detained forty-one hours at Rawul
Pindi, pending the question as to whether the Guides were to be employed
to disarm the native artillery; detained forty-six hours at Karnal by
the magistrate, in order to attack, capture, and burn a hostile village
lying twelve miles off the road. If, therefore, these halts "by order"
are deducted, it will be found that the Guides took actually twenty-one
days and five hours to march five hundred and eighty miles. This works
out to an average of over twenty-seven miles a day. As a contemporary
historian remarks, such a feat would be highly creditable to mounted
troops, and was doubly so to the infantry portion of the corps. To add
to the credit of this high achievement, it may be added that the march
took place at the hottest season of the year through the hottest region
on earth.
The record of a march along the Grand Trunk Road of India does not lend
itself to much picturesque description, but perhaps it may be in this
case of some interest to follow the stern resolve and steady endurance
which carried the stout-hearted regiment through those never-ending
miles along the straight and scorching road to Delhi.
Pages:
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79