Page:The Marquess of Dalhousie.djvu/83

Rh sappers and miners for the capture of Múltán — told me that the gallant young officer could not have comprehended the nature of the task. The fortifications were of an extent and a strength which demanded a very large force, if they were to be approached without disaster, quite apart from the question of taking them.

The events of the siege themselves furnish a commentary on this view of Lord Napier of Magdala. It was commenced immediately after the arrival of the heavy guns on the 4th of September, 1848. But even with the united British force from Lahore and Firozpur, together with the subsidiary Sikh troops supplied by the Regency under the Raja Sher Singh, it was found impracticable to attempt the place by storm. A trench had to be run to the south-western face of the fort, and scarcely was this accomplished than the defection of Raja Sher Singh and the Sikh subsidiary force which represented the last remnant of loyalty to the British among the Sikh Regency at Lahore, reversed the situation, and turned the besiegers into the besieged. The Sikh subsidiary force supplied to us by the native Regency threw in their lot with Múlráj and the rebels. A Council of War, held by the British General, came to the conclusion that the question before it was no longer the capture of Múltán, but the safety of our own camp.

On the 15th of September, 1848, the siege was