266 MAJOR \V. HODSON. 



For the greater portion of the way his party was 

 followed by a crowd of armed and angry retainers, 

 eager, but yet afraid, to strike a blow on behalf of 

 their captive lord ; for they knew that the one Eng- 

 lishman riding there by his side would prove as good 

 as his word on the first sign of an attempted rescue. 

 The English guard at the Lahore gate of the city 

 were only prevented from raising a lusty cheer for 

 the daring Englishman by Hodson's assurance that 

 the old king would regard the honour as intended 

 for himself. 



Passing onward through the broad but now de- 

 serted Chandni Chauk — the Street of Silversmiths — 

 the party halted at the palace gate, where Hodson 

 made over his royal charge to the new Commissioner, 

 Mr Charles Saunders, for safe lodgment in their 

 former home. " By Jove ! Hodson," exclaimed the 

 admiring Saunders, ' ' they ought to make you com- 

 mander-in-chief for this." On arriving at Wilson's 

 quarters to report his success, and to deliver up the 

 royal arms, he was greeted by his general with the 

 grujff remark, " Well, I am glad you have got him, 

 but I never expected to see either him or you 

 again ! " 



The successful capture of Bahadur Shah, the osten- 

 sible head of the great rebellion, proved the fitting 

 sequel to the heroic struggle in which Nicholson's 

 stormers, seven days earlier, had led the way. Not 

 content even with this brilliant exploit, Hodson 

 urged the general to let him go forth in quest of 

 " the villain princes," who had taken a leading part 

 in the massacres of May. Not until the dying 

 Nicholson had roused himself to urge the need for 

 swift and stern action did Wilson bring himself to 



