VETERAN OF CHILIANWALIA.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1989, 20 February 1914, Page 7

VETERAN OF CHILIANWALIA.

HON. OOLOXBfc BAILLiE, M.L.O.'

SomcWhat recently there Was a. paragraph in ah .English .papfij- ,(tlie "tfaiiy Telegraph") stating that it was a remarkablo fact that 1 "there' still'is surviving a British ojlicer who i'cju'glit in Uifi historic batt.lo of L'hiliaiifrnlla',. over Co years ago—namely, oil January 13., 1840. The paragraph referred, to' General do Berry, then a lieutenant, who is now in his.Slstryear. But there is another survivor of. that fierce battle stifl with us-,'-i.ii the"-person* of the Hon. t/'oloHo-l \t, D. H, Baillic, M.J/.0,,' who lias at- ' tended awry ...session, far.tl.ie last S3 • years.. He wilt be Bt-on February '22, Both Bai'il'ig and -,do Berry belonged to tiie 24-th Regiment, ' The JJa-ttlo of Cliiliiinwallßi is one of the groat Oveuts in. tho history of British intlia-. It was .part of the strugglo with the Sikh-Sj and, final :ave'r-j thj-'ow', ie.d to the annexation -of the gr'eal' territory of t-Jio Pim-ja-b. There were tivo Sikh first in 1K.4-545, the .seeoinl in 184S-J). f?.ii; Hugh ('afterwai'ds ■Lord) G-oti'gh was" in coiiilniind. Tho . enemy was repel-icd, but our Ifls-ses wero cnoriiiiiUs, and especially in'the :'24t : k 'fte.giwii?MK So disheartened wiffc- the East India Company, (ben the rulers of imifrt, that they ,t{ipoiiited Sir Cl'iarfes .Napier to supersede Cough, lint, long before Ktipier ■•mild a-yrh-e, the Battla of Goojerut was fought, on 2t For the first- time Lord -Gough ha:<( .s.!'i:lfii',ioi.it European t.»o|).s ;n\i\ arfci]je,r,v.( more than eqiial to i'bat ol tho fiiklis, (Jccvjc-rut- was lii'tal, mil t'ho.Punjab- was ours. ' ' A

T.IIO two veterans Bccasipiiafty eoi'res* pf/nd. Wlieii latticing hack over those (io years, they recall most vividly. to. mind tiro sad task they 'had on the flay ditor the Battle of .Clllll.Wa.lla, Irrinjfriug in tho bodies of their comrades ivli'o had fallen in tho figl.it. lii the 24'tli lkgi-mont iifono there .were. 13 officers ■and 241 .lioii-cMivmissioircd officers aiid ■mc'ii hilled. Tim C3:ii.sc of the heavy British, loss was that thoSiUii. army was drawn up, and almost invisible, iii the* thick juiifjte, ill which the guns worn hidden'. The strength of the Sikh army "was 30,000 men: a'.iid -T0 'ftnns; ai.rd tho. British Army was 20,000 men and 60 guns, under Lord Goiifih.