The Generals r-2

by Simon Scarrow

  ‘I understand.’ Arthur nodded, rising to his feet. ‘And I thank you for bringing this to my attention.You have my word that it will be dealt with at once.’

  His guests stood up and Purneah spoke softly to the woman. She nodded and bowed to Arthur and turned and walked out of the office. When the door had closed behind her Purneah fixed Arthur with a penetrating stare. ‘Sahib, this is a most serious situation.Word of this killing has filled the markets and streets of the city. The people are watching and waiting to see how much weight the promises of Wellesley sahib carry.’

  ‘I am aware of the gravity of the offence,’ Arthur replied formally. ‘And it will be dealt with according to the law.’

  Purneah gazed at him a moment, before bowing and leaving the office.

  Arthur turned to his aide. ‘Find out which battalion Dodd is in, and then I want to see both him and his colonel, at once.’

  It was late in the evening before Fitzroy returned to the Dowlut Baugh with the two Company officers. Arthur was watching the gravel drive from his office window and saw them approaching the palace. Several hours had passed since he summoned them and the initial anger he had felt had given way to a cold, calm determination to make this man Dodd pay for his crime. He returned to his desk and waited until the sound of boots echoed down the corridor outside his office. They stopped and at once there was a rap on the door.

  ‘Come!’

  Fitzroy led the way, stood aside to let the officers pass, closed the door behind them, and then took his place at the smaller desk to the side of the office to take notes. Arthur did not speak for a moment as he stared at the two Company officers. The colonel he already knew: Sanderson, who had served over two decades in India, and had eight years of service as a regular back in Britain before that. He was heavily built, with a bright red complexion that told of a fondness for spirits. Beside him stood a younger man, of approximately the same age as Arthur, he guessed. Dodd was tall and slender, with cropped blond hair and brilliant blue eyes. Handsome would be the word for him, Arthur mused. It was clear that he had been drinking as well, and that he was one of those men for whom the only effect of alcohol was to render them bitter and cruel.

  ‘Fitzroy, where did you find them?’

  ‘At the Company’s officers’ mess, sir.’

  ‘So I can see.’Arthur interlaced his fingers on the desk in front of him. ‘Now then, gentlemen, it seems you are both at the heart of a miscarriage of justice.’

  ‘Miscarriage of justice?’ Sanderson feigned surprise. ‘Sir, I don’t know—’

  ‘Quiet!’Arthur snapped.‘You will be silent, sir, until I give you leave to speak.’

  Sanderson opened his mouth with an angry expression, thought better of it and clamped it shut. Dodd just gave a small bitter smile, that quickly vanished like a wisp of smoke.

  ‘I was visited today by the dewan, in the company of a woman. She claims that Dodd killed her husband, and that when you were asked to investigate the matter you merely suspended the lieutenant’s pay for six months. Is that true?’

  Sanderson shrugged. ‘Yes, sir.’

  ‘In which case was that suspension based upon finding the lieutenant guilty of the charge?’

  Sanderson glanced sidelong at his subordinate. Arthur slapped his hand down on the desk. ‘Don’t look at him! Answer me!’

  Sanderson’s eyes steadied on the wall behind Arthur’s head and he shuffled to attention.‘I decided on the evidence presented to me that Dodd was guilty of a serious misdemeanour that might bring disrepute to the reputation of the Company, sir.’

  ‘A serious misdemeanour,’Arthur repeated coldly.‘Is that what a brutal, cold-blooded murder is?’

  ‘Murder, sir?’ Sanderson shook his head. ‘He simply beat a fellow for failing to provide a service. Hardly an uncommon event, given the laziness and dishonesty of the natives we have to deal with. Of course, it was unfortunate that the man died. An accident was what it was, sir. Nothing more.’

  ‘An accident is what happens when you barge into someone, or drop a plate on their foot. What an accident is not is a systematic and cold-blooded beating with a mallet. Do you deny that is what happened, Dodd?’

  ‘It wasn’t like that, sir,’ Dodd said evenly. ‘It was, as my colonel says, a mishap. The man had wronged me. I had been drinking. He refused to repay me and there was an argument. I lost my temper. I reached for the nearest thing to hand. It happened to be a mallet. After that, things were something of a blur. I had no idea the man was badly injured when I left his shop.’ Dodd shrugged. ‘That’s all there is to it, sir. Naturally I regret that the man died.’

  ‘Naturally,’ Arthur repeated with heavy irony. ‘Murder is murder, Lieutenant Dodd.’

  ‘But he was only a native, sir,’ Dodd protested.

  ‘What of it? He was a man, and you were responsible for his death by your own admission. And you will face the consequences.’

  ‘Sir?’ Colonel Sanderson interrupted. ‘You go too far! This is not the first incident of its kind.With good reason.These natives need to be ruled with a firm hand. Once in a while it is a useful thing to set an example.’

  Arthur stared at him with open contempt before he continued. ‘That is precisely the kind of example that can only win us the eternal emnity of the people of this continent. That is the kind of example set by the very tyrants with whom we are at war. That is why we have to set a better example. One that will win the respect and loyalty of these people. There are too few Europeans in India to rule by coercion. So we must rule by consent. And that means setting the right example. You, Lieutenant Dodd, will be made an example of.’ Arthur leaned back in his chair and gestured to Fitzroy to take dictation as he concluded in a formal tone. ‘It is the decision of the military governor to overrule the disciplinary process of Colonel Sanderson with respect to the case of Lieutenant Dodd. With immediate effect, Lieutenant Dodd is dishonourably dismissed from the service of the Honourable East India Company. Subsequent to his dismissal, proceedings will commence to try William Dodd for murder in a civil court. By order of the Governor.’

  As he finished Arthur turned back to the two Company officers whose faces expressed anger and disbelief. Sanderson recovered first.

  ‘This is an outrage, sir!’

  ‘I’m aware of that,’ Arthur replied coolly. ‘Which was why I had to act.’

  ‘Sir, I pray you, do not dissemble.You know what I mean. It is not justice to weigh the life of a native against the life of a Company officer, not to mention a British subject. I shall of course be forced to appeal to a higher authority.’

  ‘As military governor, I am the highest authority. My decision stands, and you two gentlemen are dismissed.’

  Arthur ensured that a proclamation about his decision was posted in every quarter of Seringapatam to serve notice to all Europeans and the people of Mysore that no man was above the law. Dodd was duly stripped of his rank and forced to undergo a ceremonial drumming out of his battalion. A large crowd had gathered outside the Dowlut Baugh to witness the event, and as he emerged from the gates Dodd was pelted with rotten fruit and ordure before he could escape into the city. Then, a week before his civil trial was due to begin, Arthur received news that he had fled the city. Sanderson claimed not to know anything about his flight, but Arthur knew that Dodd’s options were limited. Since he was denied access to any British settlement, he would end up having to sell his services to one of the rulers of the Mahratta states, for ever exiled from his countrymen.

  And good riddance, Arthur concluded, although he would have preferred that the man had stood trial and been convicted. Still, the lesson had been delivered and none of the British soldiers and officers under his command could be in any doubt about the consequences of their mistreatment of the local people from now on.

  Throughout the summer Dhoondiah Waugh continued to attract brigands and the remnants of Tipoo’s army to his side, and the number of raids on the outlying towns and trade routes of Mysore continued
to increase. When Arthur sent columns after the raiders, they arrived in the area long after Dhoondiah Waugh’s men had left. It became clear to Arthur that a more systematic approach was needed to remove the threat and he began to make his preparations for fresh campaigns. A breeding programme was set up to provide a stock of the white bullocks that had proved so useful in carrying supplies and hauling guns during the campaign against Tipoo.

  The officer Arthur selected to track down and destroy Dhoondiah Waugh was Colonel Stevenson, a Company officer of long experience who proved adept at responding quickly to the enemy’s raids. However, as soon as the enemy became aware of the columns closing in on him, Dhoondiah Waugh simply crossed the border into Mahratta territory where Stevenson was not permitted to follow.

  ‘It’s no good, sir,’ Stevenson complained after returning from his latest attempt to catch the rebel leader. ‘He can outmarch my men, and the moment he crosses the border he’s away scot-free. You have to give me permission to pursue him into Mahratta territory.’

  ‘I have written to the Governor General to explain the situation,’ Arthur replied. ‘I am waiting for his reply. Meanwhile, I have decided to take the field against him. The situation in Seringapatam is stable enough to bear my absence for a while. It’s time we put every available man and gun into the effort against Dhoondiah Waugh, if that’s what it takes to destroy him.’

  ‘Yes, sir.’ Stevenson nodded in satisfaction. ‘I had hoped for your involvement.’

  ‘Oh?’

  ‘Well, sir, I doubt that there are more than a handful of officers in India who fully appreciate the difficulties of campaigning here. You’re one of them. If anyone can put an end to Dhoondiah Waugh, it is you, sir.’

  Arthur felt the pride swell in his breast, and indulged the sensation for a moment - after all, it was his due after the success of the campaign against Tipoo. Then he fought down the emotion and hardened his expression. It would not do to let others see him respond to praise, let alone flattery. That would surely lead to his undoing. He needed honesty and objectivity from his subordinates. Anything else was superfluous. He cleared his throat and addressed Stevenson. ‘Yes, well, I shall do my best. But before we can be sure of defeating him, we need permission to pursue him across the border. Until then, the initiative is his, and there is nothing we can do to stop his raids on Mysore.’

  Chapter 57

  ‘At last,’ Arthur muttered as he finished reading the dispatch from Richard. He laid it down and looked up at the small team of officials he had gathered in his office to discuss the coming campaign. In addition to Fitzroy, there was Stevenson, Close and Purneah. ‘The Governor General has concluded a treaty with Goklah, the Mahratta warlord whose territory borders Mysore. It seems that Dhoondiah Waugh has been carelessly indiscriminate about whose lands he preys on. Now he has another enemy, and we shall crush him between our forces and those of Goklah.The Governor General’s final instruction is that when we take Dhoondiah Waugh he is to be hanged from the nearest tree.’

  ‘Good!’ Stevenson exclaimed heartily. ‘Now we surely have the man caught between the beaters and the hunters. All that remains is to stick him.’

  ‘Quite,’ Arthur responded with an amused smile. ‘Now then, gentlemen, let’s turn our minds to the plan. We’ve seen that Dhoondiah Waugh cannot be stopped by defending the trade routes that pass through Mysore.We simply have not got enough men for that. So what I propose is the offensive control of those routes.We’ll send a strong column against him, consolidating our gains as we push on, driving him up towards Goklah.We’ll do all we can to deny him access to men, arms and supplies. My hircarrah scouts report that Dhoondiah Waugh has a number of strong forts in the border areas. To start with we will ignore his raiding columns and concentrate on reducing those forts. Without them, he’ll be forced to keep on the move. Without supplies, I suspect that his followers will begin to melt away. Eventually, he will be cornered and finished off. And then we’ll have peace in Mysore.’

  The Company’s resident in Seringapatam, Barry Close, leaned forward as he responded. ‘That’s fine in principle, sir, but as long as Dhoondiah Waugh has gold and silver to pay for supplies, then we can be sure that the brinjarris will sell him grain, and other goods, even weapons.’

  ‘I have thought of that,’ said Arthur. ‘I think it’s time we made the merchants aware of the dangers of dealing with Dhoondiah Waugh.’ He turned to Purneah. ‘A hint might be given to them that I am in the habit of hanging those whom I find living under the protection of British and Company forces and dealing treacherously towards our interests. I shall spare neither rank nor riches in this respect.’

  Purneah nodded. ‘I shall see to it, sahib.’

  ‘Very well.’ Arthur indicated the bottle of arrack on the table. ‘Fitzroy, if you would do the honours?’

  When every man had a full glass,Arthur raised his to make the toast. ‘Gentlemen, the hunt is on. To the day’s fox.’

  Early in June Arthur led the small army he had formed into the northern region of Mysore, the stronghold of Dhoondiah Waugh. In addition to two King’s battalions there were five Company battalions. Each unit had been allocated two small field guns, since grapeshot had proved to have a profoundly demoralising effect on enemy warriors more used to small arms fire and hand to hand fighting. In order to move swiftly enough to counter the enemy’s moves, Arthur also took along two King’s regiments of cavalry and three of the Company’s mounted units.

  The villages the column marched through all bore evidence of Dhoondiah Waugh’s cruel regime: the blackened shells of burned buildings and the pinched faces of those who had lost all their animals and crops to the brigands. All that he saw made Arthur more determined than ever to crush Dhoondiah Waugh and give some peace and order to the desperate natives who stared at the passing soldiers and held out their hands as they begged for scraps of food.The hircarrah scouts soon found the first of the enemy’s strongholds on the border with the Mahratta federation. The defenders were offered terms, and when they contemptuously turned them down Arthur ordered his guns to blow the gates open with roundshot before his soldiers stormed the fort and killed every man under arms within. The rest were released, and Arthur had few doubts about their fate if they ever passed through the lands they had once preyed on.

  One by one the enemy’s strongholds fell to the British forces, and the stores of arms and food that could not be carried off were set on fire. As the summer heat beat down on the parched landscape the campaign assumed a steady rhythm of marching during the cool hours before dawn and into the morning, before lying up during the suffocating midday heat, and then resuming their progress into the early evening before making camp for the night. The only relief from marching came when they encountered each stronghold, which fell in less than a day, and then the column moved on.

  As July began with still no sighting of Dhoondiah Waugh and his army Arthur began to doubt that his campaign plan was working. The British were steadily whittling down the enemy’s supply bases and reducing his strongholds and yet Dhoondiah Waugh resolutely refused to give battle, even though he surely knew where Arthur’s column was from day to day, since his horsemen were nearly always in sight somewhere in the hazy distance, keeping a watch on the column’s progress.

  ‘The bloody man is going to retreat to the ends of the earth,’ Fitzroy grumbled one morning early in the month. He was riding at Arthur’s side, and squinting in the harsh glare of the sun. The dust kicked up from the column filled the air and settled on the jackets and crossbelts of the battalion marching beside them so that it seemed as if they had all passed through a pool of ochre dye.

  Arthur licked his lips and spat out the grit that had got caught in his saliva. ‘He can’t go too far. If Goklah is true to his word then even now he will be moving towards us with his army. Dhoondiah Waugh will have a battle on his hands whichever way he turns. There will be no escape.’

  ‘I pray so,’ Fitzroy muttered. ‘Before we all choke on this wretche
d dust. I imagine you’ll be looking forward to returning to the comforts of Seringapatam as much as the rest of us, sir?’

  ‘Yes. I suppose so,’ Arthur replied. His mind went back to one of the final communications he had received from Richard, shortly before setting off on the present campaign. Another attempt was to be made to take Java, to secure the trade routes from French privateers. Richard had asked him to consider taking command of the expedition once he had dealt with Dhoondiah Waugh. Although the idea attracted him, Arthur had been forced to set it aside while the present campaign was under way. His thoughts were interrupted by the sudden pounding of hooves as a rider came galloping down the column.

  ‘Wellesley, sahib?’ the man called out. ‘Colonel Wellesley?’

  ‘Here!’ Arthur raised his hat and waved it from side to side as he halted Diomed.

  The rider yanked his reins and veered his mount towards Arthur. It was the chief of the hircarrah scouts, a man whose reliability Arthur had come to trust. He had been sent ahead of the column to gain knowledge of Goklah’s movements and report back. Now he reined in and Arthur saw at once that both the man and his mount were exhausted from days of hard riding.

  ‘What is it?’ Arthur asked in Hindoostani. ‘What’s happened?’

  ‘Goklah has been defeated by Dhoondiah Waugh, sahib. Six days ago.’

  ‘Defeated?’ Arthur shook his head. It could not be true. Goklah had over fifteen thousand men and eight guns. He looked closely at the scout. ‘How did this happen?’

  ‘Sahib, I was not there,’ the scout replied carefully. ‘I met some survivors hiding in a nullah. They told me what had happened. They were ambushed as they camped for the night. I rode on to the battlefield to see with my own eyes, and it was true, sahib. A shallow valley filled with the dead.’

  ‘And Goklah? What of him?’

  ‘Dead, sahib. The men saw it, and they said that Dhoondiah Waugh himself dyed his beard in the blood of Goklah.’