54 G Notes upon a Tour through the Rdjmahal Hills. [No. 7. 



tried the same plan, but failed ; the hill-men from their thick jungle 

 cover, invariably shooting down with their poisoned arrows the accou- 

 tred and hampered soldiers, who had quite enough to do in threading 

 their way over the narrow, steep and stony footpaths, and as every 

 wound inflicted by their terrible arrows was fatal, both the MuAamma- 

 dan kings and the British Generals found it a hopeless case attempt- 

 ing to coerce these people. 



The Mu^ammadans after several failures in the hills, left the hill- 

 men to themselves, punishing them only when caught in the plains ; 

 but the English tried another and a more effectual plan ; a plan that 

 seldom fails to win the most savage heart, and that plan was kindness. 

 Captains Brooke and Browne who had hitherto been their destroyers 

 now tried what kindness would effect ; the hill-men had by this time 

 seen how useless it was trying to carry on their old system of plunder- 

 ing the lowlanders, for whenever they were seen in the plains they 

 were immediately chased and shot by our troops. These two officers 

 invited the chiefs and their dependents male and female to descend 

 from their hills ; whoever attended was feasted, presented with a tur- 

 ban, money, beads or some trifling gifts ; when the hill-men were by 

 these acts of kindness in a measure tamed, a Mr. Cleveland, a young 

 man in the Civil Service, then stationed at Bhagalpur, was deputed 

 to try what he could do with these turbulent and troublesome people. 

 After a few years' intercourse with these people, amongst whom Mr. 

 Cleveland went unarmed and almost unattended, and after much 

 patience and by distributing presents and giving feasts to hundreds of 

 the hill-men at a time, and by settling small yearly pensions on all the 

 principal chiefs, they relented, gradually gave up their thieving habits, 

 and eventually became the honorary guides of the post and road lying 

 at the foot of the hills ; friends with neighbouring zemindars, and well- 

 wishers of a Government that had treated them with so much kindness. 

 Mr. Cleveland subsequently raised a regiment of archers from 

 amongst their numbers who were eventually entrusted with fire-arms 

 and are now in 1851, as fine a body of soldiers as any in the regular 

 army ; thus Mr. Cleveland, as the Epitaph on his tomb records — 



" Without bloodshed or the terrors of authority, employing only 

 the means of conciliation, confidence, and benevolence, attempted and 

 accomplished, the entire subjection of the lawless and savage inhabi- 



