corps, the 85th Light Infantry, recall pleasant memories of a soldier's life. The following records relate only to the Kandahar episode of the war, in which I was particularly interested, having many old friends in the 66th and other regiments therein engaged, whose picturesque letters were, as I received them, by their permission, transcribed by me, as nearly as possible without curtailment or alteration, and handed for publication to my friend, the Editor of a leading London paper, while I retained the originals to assist me, as an aide mémoire towards my forthcoming Afghan History. Many of these letters were not only quoted but copied in extenso in various London, provincial, Irish, Scotch, and even Indian journals. As I had merely to arrange them, and, with care, place them in due order of date and locality, I can claim no merit save that which a military experience of twenty years may give; but I may be perhaps excused in believing that, in completeness of detail, graphic and picturesque description, and technical professional knowledge, they were not excelled by any contemporaneous correspondence from the seat of war; and such, I am glad to know, was the expressed opinions of English and foreign officers of high rank, whose letters to me were most gratifying. The letters dated Kandahar, July 30-31, if compared with the official despatches published months after, will be found to be singularly minute and correct in all matters of detail. Vide the description of the defence at the walled enclosure at Maiwand, and other episodes of the battle. Certain critics, however, who carefully concealed their identity, chose to question the validity of the letters in question, on the grounds, firstly, that the letters dated Kandahar, July 30-31, could not have arrived in London (from Kandahar) at the date of their publication; and, secondly, that the battles therein described were not like any battles seen by the critic! To the first of these objections I have to say, that the battle of Maiwand was fought on the 27th July, and the British army was routed and flying on the afternoon of that day. Survivors of that engagement-Major Oliver and others, to wit- reached Kandahar on the morning of the 28th, and sent despatches to England on the 30th, which despatches, making every allowance for disturbed roads, &c., could find no difficulty in reaching London on 29th August; while the letter I received first was not published till 7th September, and the same mail brought me Indian newspapers of a much later date than my letters. To the anonymous Moltke,' who finds fault with my friend's descriptions of battles, I can only say, that the account was penned by spectators, or rather, I should say, actors in the scenes described; and written by officers whose services and professional knowledge are justly appreciated by the military authorities, although they, unfortunately, failed in writing to the taste of their anonymous critic, and have not described the fight at, and retreat from, Kushk-i-Nakhud, as the critic would have done! The moment I read the letter of the masked slanderer who questioned the authorship of the letters I had received and sent for publication, I wrote to the journals which had inserted his communications, giving my name, army rank, address, and vouchers for my correspondence, and demanded the name and rank of the person who signed himself 'Soldier,' and who, under that disguise, assailed me and my friends. I stated my willingness to place the original letters I had received in the hands of any responsible gentleman, on condition that 'Soldier' would unmask. As my challenge remains unaccepted, I conclude that 'Soldier' possesses no right to that honourable title, but has his own reasons for 'keeping dark,' while I may justly, I believe, apply to him the fable of the ass who assumed the lion's skin, but was discovered by his bray. WALLER ASHE, BALNACREE HOUSE, TIPPERARY, March 1881. MAJOR (late K.D.G.). |