A HERIOC DEFENCE.

Te Aroha News, Volume XI, Issue 1744, 22 June 1895, Page 2

A HERIOC DEFENCE.

Dr RouiißTsox’s diary of the siege affords strong testimony to the extraordinary testimony to the extraordinary energy and perseverance of -the enemy. But the same language may be applied to the defenders, who were, n addition, hampered by the fear that their ammunition would not hold out and weakened by the poor food and the constant strain inposed upon them by the never ceasing assults. Dr Robertson showed himself a master of resource. Every fresh move on the part of the enemy was met by some device which either completely frust rated it or else took the sting out of it: At night, says the correspondent, the besieged would throw out fireball and light fires on platforms all along the walls. They also built walls to protect those inside the fort from the fire of the tribesmen on the surrounding hills'; ‘ Countermines were started to surround the gun tower, so that the enemy’s mines might be discovered. ‘ Waterspouts’ (ammunition boxes full of water) and other devices for putting out fire were also prepared, fire being the great danger ta which the besieged were liable. The walls of the fort, although 25ft high and Bft thick, are made of stones filled in between a framework of wood, so that if fire could have been applied to that the whole wall would have come down.’ On April 17th ths position was most critical. The enemy was strongly entrenched within forty yards of the main gate of the fort, their mines were within a few feet of the wall, and they harrasfed the garrison conlinuously with a galling fire. It was imperath o that they should, if possible, be dislodged from their position, and a brilliant sortie was therefore made by Lieutenaet Harley and a company of Sikhs. Making a sudden and well timed onslaught, they drove the enemy from their mining works at th e point of the bayonet, blew up the mine, and retired with a loss of twenty killed and wounded, seventy tribesmen having been killed. Dr Robertson, when afterwards speaking of the devotion and fortitude of all ranks in the garrison, emphasised the conduct of these Sikha through the whole siege. As the others grew depressed they only became more enthusiastic and determined The officers spoke of them as the sheet-anchor of the defence, and Simla the defence of the Chitral Eort was compared in a manner with that of the Residency of Lucknow, when the same devotion was shown by the native troops under British officers. *