THE INDIAN TROOPS

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2345, 30 December 1914, Page 6

THE INDIAN TROOPS

THEIR STOICAL BRAVERY DEVOTION TO OFFICERS [By a-Fkenoh Officer.] It was a curious sight to all of us, l'ronch or English, the day when the Indians arrivod in'a dreary little town ,ol Northern Frame, which had boen recaptured from tho enemy a few days before. Suddenly tlio Indian. Lancers nitpwtrtd, and tlio pavement on both sides of tho streot was at once filled by a crowd of soldiers "and civilians watching the procossion, as a London crowd will do in Whitehall on tho day of tho oponing of Parliament. ' In fact, thoso Indians looked all like kings. The Lancors sat proudly in tbeir saddles, with ' their heads upright under tho Oriental crowns; tlion came a. regiment of Sikhs, walking at a brisk pace, all big and strong men, with curled boards and tho wido "pagri" round the ears; tho Pnthans followed, carrying on their heads that queor pointed bonnit, the. "kuljali," which rominds ono of the warriors soen on old'Poriian tapestries —a more slondor typo of men, but equally dotorminod, and with facos at the same timo smiling and .resolute, Tho Indians did not wait long to piove that that flattering' impression was fully justified. On tho very day they arrived lioro some regiments were at once sent to the trenchcs. The day' after we hard that_ during tho night*one of the Sikhs regiments had had to recapture a trench which tho Germans had takon by surprise, and that their bayonet charge was so tremendous that tlio enemy did not dare to counter-attack. Almost immediately after that feat an order came not to allow the Indians uselessly to expose their lives by walking out of the trenches. Tho fact was that in order" to show their contempt for death some of the Sikhs had refused to hide' themselves in the trenches and had immediately drawn a fierce fire on their regiment; Fortunately, they did not insist on playing that ; sort of game;.otherwise the Indian Army Corps would have disappeared in one week's time out of sheer" bravery.

- Acts of Gallantry. A few days ago a company of native sappers and gunners fouud itself in a very critical, position, the main attack of the enemy' .being directed against it. A "Black Maria" fell quito near a sapper, 'while': he'was lying on. the ground and • steadily' firing .on the advancing It .'.did not hurt him, but dug a hole'six feet deep at his side. The sapper—a Sikh, I believe —waited until the'smoke had gone, ai}d then jumped into the hole. He soon found that the position was a comfortable one, and started firing from the cover the Germans had. dug for him; according to officers who were standing by he managed to kill some fifteen or twenty Germans by himself, and would have remained there for ever if ho had not been eventually ordered to retreat. He was warmly congratulated afterwards, but did not appear to think.he had done anything remarkable: The same'spirit is noticeable throughout the Indian -corps.''. A '-staff- .officer two or three days ago visited a battalion which, had suffered some.rather severe losses in a recent engagement. Ho found the men quite cheerful'and eager to return to the firing line. The officer thought it necessary to say a few kind words about their losses. "Never mind the number of killed," said one of the' men, "as long as the regiment's honour is safe." Another man was almost moved to tears when tho Sahib shook his hand and . said "Shabash!" (Well done!)

Curiously enough, 'the.same men,had refused to touch any_ biscuit and break their caste vow , tho night before the battle,-so that they had- been fighting on an dmptly stomach. They did not complain-, however, for they had taken, the oath before leaving India not to abide by their caste regulations in cases of emergency, and knew that the British transport service could not at that: special moment supply them" with their ordinary food, so the responsibility rested with themselves, and they bore it in a stoicalVway. v '■ ' What They Thinli, It would, be , interesting enough to know what they think of the' war and the country they are in. I have tried my best to find out' from every .side what they were saying.' "It was not always an easy matter, for they are Usually a reticent sort of men,- even with their own British officers. They apparently never . want to look as if they might be startled by anything. Our French "Turcos" are muchi the Bame. Their main ambition is to make people believe that thoy. fear nothing, "and also that no device, however' in-' genious, of our Western civilisation can evoko among them- the slightest astonishment. They carefully conceal, for instance, their bewilderment at seeing our- flying machines.. The Indians are still more proud. If a British officer asks'them on a rainy day if they do not feel cold they at once "assert that they' do not' mind, and that thoy. are prepared for worse. "We will go,'' they say,. "where the 'Sirkhar' wants us to go.'' They make a point of being not impressed by the noisy'display, of German artillery fire, and speak of -the enemy in a scornful way. "They came like dogs," said a Sikh the other day; "we received them like dogs." I have no doubt, after what I'have already seen,.'that .most of the Indians are quito devoted to their British officers. A nice little instance occurred the other day in a village where I happened to be with a British .colonel who had long been in command of a regiment of Sikhs. By a fortunate coincidence this very regiment 'marched through the village while we were there. The men' recognised at once thein former chief and (juito spontaneously started cheering him, rank: after rank, and asking the God of the Sikhs to give them victory.. The colonel waved his hand, .and it was clear that he and the Sikhs were equally pleased .to see each other again. That little scene is one of those one is not likelv to forget. V, r ; i