160 Twelve Years’ Military Adventure. [ Fre. 
complaints of officers at not getting readily into society in India are 
wholly groundless, for he never met with any difficulty—(““ Such 
fellows,” as Cowslip says, “ would find room anywhere.” )—thought the 
ladies of India very charming, because they were the only ladies there, 
and says Mrs. Grahame ought to be ashamed of herself, for insinuating 
that they are given to tipple. We have all possible respect for our 
adventurer, and admire his gallantry of all things ; but we suspect that 
Mrs. Grahame is a better witness than he on this point, and, what is 
more to the purpose, she is not the only one. 
The author was attached as a subaltern of engineers to the army 
encamped near Vellore, and commanded by General Stewart. His 
description of an Anglo-Indian camp is curious and striking. A much 
greater space is occupied than in European camps, and the number of 
persons belonging to it, and the quantities of draught cattle accom- 
panying the army, give it a novel and picturesque appearance. 
: 
« Supposing the force encamped to consist of 10,000 fighting men, the front 
would be about two miles, and the depth about half a mile ; the greater part 
of this parallelogram, not taken up by the regular tents of the army, being — 
covered with the booths of the bazaar and the small tents of the camp- — 
followers. Imagine that over this space are scattered bipeds of all shades, . 
from the fair European down to the pariah, whose skin rivals the polish of 
Warren’s blacking, intermingled with quadrupeds of all sizes, from the 
elephant down to the dog, and you will have a tolerable idea of an Anglo- 
Indian camp. : 
“ The breaking up of such a camp is perhaps a more curious sight than the 
camp itself. Soon after the general has sounded the preparation to march, 
the tents disappear, and, in their place, an innumerable swarm of living crea- 
tures are seen busily moving about like a disturbed ant’s nest ; or, to a person 
taking a bird’s-eye view of the scene, it would seem as if an immense hatch 
of oviparous animals had just broken from their shells.” 
The adventurer beguiles the tediousness of the march, by telling some 
mess-room stories, which, to those who have not heard them before, may 
be amusing enough. The following is not bad :— 
3 
*. 
; 
«¢ An officer, whose stock of table-linen had been completely exhausted 
_during the campaign—whether by wear and tear or accident I cannot say— 
had a few friends to dine with him. The dinner being announced to the 
party, seated in the a/ fresco drawing-room of a camp, the table appeared 
spread with eatables, but without the usual covering of a cloth. The master 
who perhaps gave himself but little trouble about these matters, or who pro- 
bably relied upon his servant’s capacity in the art of borrowing, or, at all 
events, on his ingenuity in framing an excuse, inquired, with an angry voice, 
why there was no table-cloth? The answer was, ‘ Master not got ;’ with 
which reply, after apologizing to his guests, he was compelled, for the present, 
to put up. The next morning he called his servant, and rated him soundly, 
and perhaps beat him, (for I lament to say that this was too much the prac= 
tice with European masters in India,) for exposing his poverty to the com= — 
pany ; desiring him, another time, if similarly circumstanced, to say that all 
the table-cloths were gone to the wash. Another day, although the table — 
appeared clothed in the proper mamner, the spoons, which had probably found 
their way to the bazaar, perhaps to provide the very articles of which the | 
feast was composed, were absent, whether with or without leave is immaterial. 
«« Where are all the spoons?’ cried the apparently enraged master. — 
‘ Gone washerman, Sar!’ was the answer. Roars of laughter succeeded, and a 
tea-cup did duty for the soup-ladle.” 
