ere fast
closing in upon the party, and might have destroyed it, when Girwur
Sing, tomandar, came up with a detachment of the Special Police of
the Thuggee and Dacoitee Department. At this time the three companies
were altogether disorganized and disheartened, as the firing and
pursuit had lasted from midnight to daybreak; but on seeing the
Special Police come up and join with spirit in the defence, they
rallied, and the assailants, thinking the reinforcement more
formidable than it really was, lost confidence and held back. Captain
Hollings mounted the fresh horse of the tomandar, and led his
detachment without further loss or molestation back to Neemkar. His
loss had been one subadar, one havildar, and three sipahees killed;
one subadar, two havildars, one naik, and fourteen sipahees wounded
and missing. Captain Hollings' groom was shot dead, and one of his
palankeen-bearers was wounded. His horse, palankeen, desk, clothes,
and all the superfluous clothing and utensils, which the sipahees had
thrown off preparatory to the attack fell into the hands of the
assailants. Attempts were made to take up and carry off the killed
and wounded; but the detachment was so sorely pressed that they were
obliged to leave both on the ground. The loss would have been much
greater than it was, but for the darkness of the night, which
prevented the assailants from taking good aim; and the detachment
would, in all probability, have been cut to pieces, but for the
timely arrival of the Special Police under Girwur Sing.

Such attacks are usually made upon robber bands about the first dawn
of day; and this attack at midnight was a great error. Had they not
been assailed by the auxiliaries, they could not, in the darkness,
have secured one of the gang. It was known, that at the first shot
from either the assailing or defending party in that district, all
the villages around concentrate their quotas upon the spot, to fight
to the death against the King's troops, whatever might be their
object; and the detachment ought to have been prepared for such
concentration when the firing began, and returned as quickly as
possible from the place when they saw that by staying they could not
succeed in the object.

Four months after, in November, Punchum Sing, of Ahroree, himself cut
off the head of the robber, Bhugwunt Sing, with his own hand, and
sent it to the governor, Furreed-od Deen, with an apology for having
_by mistake_ attacked Captain Holling