"For three weeks they held out against the overwhelming force that was
thirsting for their blood. Their chief had anticipated no such resistance,
and he was impatient at the delay in finishing the butchery. He resorted to
an infamous stratagem, proposing to General Wheeler, who was in command of
the British troops, to grant him all the honors of war if he would
surrender, with boats and abundant provisions to enable him and all his
people to reach Allahabad.
"The proposition was received with considerable distrust by the besieged;
but Nana swore before the general that he would faithfully observe all the
terms of the capitulation, and it was finally accepted. The garrison
marched out with their arms and baggage, and passed through the hordes of
the besiegers to the river. The wounded, with the women and children, were
sent to the Ganges on elephants. Now, if you take your seats in the
carriages, we will proceed to the scene of the massacre."
The company were conveyed to a Hindu temple on the shore, where the suttee
had formerly been performed, and which was provided with a broad staircase
leading down to the water. The place had a funereal aspect, to which the
terrible tragedy lent an additional melancholy.
"The treacherous commander of the rebels had provided about twenty boats of
all sizes, and supplied them with provisions, in order to complete the
deception," continued Captain Chesly when the party had alighted.
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