urt with a
modest establishment of two judges in 1865 took the place of the
Judicial Commissioner. In the same year a Settlement Commissioner was
appointed to help the Financial Commissioner in the control of land
revenue settlements. Two severe famines marked the beginning and the
close of this period. Omitting the usual little frontier excitements, it
is necessary to mention the troublesome Ambela campaign in 1863 in the
country north of Peshawar, which had for its object the breaking up of
the power of a nest of Hindustani fanatics, and the Black Mountain
expedition, in 1868, on the Hazara border, in which no fewer than 15,000
men were employed. Sir Henry Durand, who succeeded Sir Donald Macleod,
after seven months of office lost his life by an accident in the
beginning of 1871.

~Administration, 1871-1882.~--The next eleven years divided between the
administrations of Sir Henry Davies (1871-1877) and Sir Robert Egerton
(1877-1882) produced more striking events. In 1872 a small body of
fanatics belonging to a Sikh sect known as Kukas or Shouters marched
from the Ludhiana district and attacked the headquarters of the little
Muhammadan State of Malerkotla. They were repulsed and 68 men
surrendered to the Patiala authorities. The Deputy Commissioner of
Ludhiana blew 49 of them from the guns, and the rest were executed after
summary trial by the Commissioner. Such strong measures were not
approved by the Government, but it must be remembered that these madmen
had killed ten and wounded seventeen men, and that their lives were
justly forfeit. On the 1st of January, 1877, Queen Victoria's
assumption of the title of Empress of India (_Kaisar-i-Hind_) was
announced at a great _Darbar_ at Delhi. In 1877 Kashmir, hitherto
controlled by the Lieutenant-Governor, was put directly under the
Government of India. The same year and the next the province was tried
by famine, and in 1878-80 it was the base from which our armies marched
on Kabul and Kandahar, while its resources in camels were strained to
supply transport. Apart from this its interest in the war was very great
because it is the chief recruiting ground of the Indian army and its
chiefs sent contingents to help their suzerain. The first stage of the
war was closed by the treaty of Gandamak in May, 1879, by which Yakub
Khan surrendered any rights he possessed over Khaibar and the Kurram as
far as Shutargardan.

[Illustration: Fig. 69. Panjab Camels--Lahore.]

[Illustra