ped
into the arena, and said he would take a turn at it before it was cut;
he put the huge caber on his shoulders, balanced it, and tossed it clean
over. While the caber was being cut for the others, Bell ran in a
hundred yards' race, which he also won; but he came in with his mouth
full of blood. He had, through over-exertion, burst a blood-vessel in
his lungs. He slowly bled to death and died about a fortnight after we
left Bareilly, and lies buried under a large tree in the jungles of Oude
between Fort Mithowlie and the banks of the Gogra. Bell was considered
an ornament to, and the pride of, the regiment, and his death was
mourned by every officer and man in it, and by none more than by our
popular doctor, Billy Munro, who did everything that a physician could
do to try and stop the bleeding; but without success. Bell gradually
sank till he died.

We left Bareilly on the 10th of October, and marched to Shahjehanpore,
where we were joined by a battalion of the Sixtieth Rifles, the
Sixty-Sixth Goorkhas, some of the Sixth Carabineers, Tomb's troop of
horse-artillery, and a small train of heavy guns and mortars. On the
17th of October we had our first brush with the enemy at the village of
Posgaon, about twenty miles from Shahjehanpore. Here they were strong in
cavalry, and tried the Bareilly game of getting round the flanks and
cutting up our camp-followers. But a number of them got hemmed in
between the ammunition-guard and the main line, and Cureton's Mooltanee
cavalry, coming round on them from both flanks, cut down about fifty of
them, capturing their horses. In the midst of this scrimmage two of the
enemy, getting among the baggage-guard, were taken for two of our native
cavalry, till at length they separated from the main body and got
alongside of a man who was some distance away. One of them called to the
poor fellow to look in another direction, when the second one cut his
head clean off, leaped from his horse, and, lifting the head, sprang
into his saddle and was off like the wind! Many rifle-bullets were sent
after him, but he got clear away, carrying the head with him.

The next encounter we had was at Russoolpore, and then at Nowrungabad,
where the Queen's proclamation, transferring the government from the
Company to the Crown, was read. After this all our tents were sent into
Mahomdee, and we took to the jungles without tents or baggage, merely a
greatcoat and a blanket; and thus we remained till after th