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A Soldier of the Indian Mutiny.

Major General William Roberts Farmar is the second and only surviving son of Hugh Hovell Farmar, J.P., of Dunsinane; co Wexford, and was educated at Bruton School and Elizabeth College, Guernsey, and is now since the death of the Earl of Pomfret, in 1867, the present representative of the Farmar and Farmer family.

Mr. Farmar was gazetted as ensign in the 50th, the Queen's Own Regiment, on the 25th February, 1845, in which members of his family had served for a hundred years and after being presented at the Queen's Levée on the 23rd April, 1845, by his uncle Mr. Mynors Baskerville, M.P., for Herefordshire, En sign Farmar sailed on the 3rd June of that year with a detachment of his regiment in the Lady McNaughten, of about 500 tons, and on the 23rd September landed in Calcutta.

On the 20th October he left Chinsura by boat for Allahabad and the Upper Provinces with various page 27 detachments under the command of Captain Matthias, 62nd Regiment. After marching through Cawnpore, Allyghur, Delhi, and Jugraon, on the 19th January, 1840, the detachments marched into Bussean and were there inspected by Sir Harry Smith, who, in inspecting the 50th detachment told them that if they were like his other old 50th fellows£ they would be worth their weight in gold, and all sternly resolved to merit the praise, and here all had their last dinner for some days. Sir Harry's object was to relieve Loodiana, and, at midnight on the 20th January, the column started for a forced march of thirty-five miles, and at Budawal were met by the enemy in force with forty guns. In advancing and turning to the right for Loodiana the column was all the time under the fire of the enemy marching in the most perfect order as if on parade, till at last our artillery poured in some twelve or fourteen rounds with effect, and the 31st regiment executed the remarkable movement under such a fire of changing front to the rear on the centre, with a view to check the enemy and to cover the advance of the remainder of the force. Without water, and after a most harassing march through deep sand for the last six miles from Budawal, they reached Loodiana only to find the horses had been either taken by the Sikhs or led away by the Syees into the jungle for safety. There were no tents or any kind of baggage, but fortunately Mr. Farmar's Syee came up with his horse, bringing a very precious page 28 bottle of brandy to moisten many feverish lips. Without anything to eat, happily one of the men's tents was obtained and some sixteen officers took advantage of it, and were as comfortable as could be expected, where beds, blankets, and all warm clothing were unknown. One or two were fortunate enough to have their cloaks, Mr. Farmar among the number, and what with a little straw to lie on, and his saddle for a pillow, he got on tolerably, and it was not till the 25th the baggage came up.

He joined the head-quarters of his regiment on the 26th, and on the 28th Mr. Farmar marched at daylight with his regiment to attack the Sihks at Aliwal. The British force amounted to about l0,000 men, with 32 guns, and about 10 o'clock they came in sight of the Sihk army of 25,000 men. Marching slowly in line, suddenly the fire of 70 guns opened upon our army, but the line extending for two miles marched on in the steadiest manner possible, occasionally lying down. Mr. Farmar had the honour of carrying the Queen's colours of his regiment, and just as he came close to their guns he was severely wounded by a grape shot in the thigh, fired from a gun mounted on a camel, and was compelled to resign it to the next ensign, and here a curious circumstance may be recorded that several officers were either killed or wounded carrying the Queen's colours in this battle, when the officer carrying the regimental colours escaped untouched.

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Mr. Farmar lay where he fell till discovered by a medical officer roaming about the field in his work of mercy to the wounded, who bound a bandage round his leg above the wound to stop the bleeding, and passed on to attend to others. Ultimately he was picked up, put into a dhoolie, and carried to the field hospital some distance in the rear. There he found already several brother officers, Lieutenant Grimes 50th regiment, lying dead in the corner of the tent; next to him. Captain Knowles, 50th, whose leg was amputated; then Lieutenant Frampton, 50th, arm amputated; then came Colonel Rowland Smyth and Captain Fyler, 16th Lancers, both severely wounded in the glorious charge of the 16th Lancers in this battle, and besides between 20 and 30 officers and men more or less wounded.

Having seen the operations on his brother officers and on others around him, naturally he felt rather anxious about his own fete, but happily it was found only necessary to cut out the grape shot. All the wounded were as soon as possible sent into Loodiana, and when Mr. Farmar could be moved he was sent up to the hills to Simla for six months for change of air. The Sihks were utterly routed, great numbers were drowned in the river Sutlej, and some 5,000 men were killed.

The effect of this victory of Aliwal was great on the army opposite to the Governor-General's camp, and the number of dead bodies floating down the river page 30 quite astounded them. This army just conquered also intended spreading all over the country, plundering in all directions, but this victory checked further advance.

It may be of interest to record that the 50th, the Queen's Own Regiment, in the battle of Punuiar, and in this campaign of two months against the Sinks, had in killed and wounded 40 officers, 15 sergeants, 4 drummers, and 695 rank and file.

Ensign Farmar gained his promotion to a lieutenantcy in the field. He returned home with his regiment, and landed in England on the 20th April, 1848, and being one of the supernumerary lieutenants, he was placed on half pay for a few months, but was gazetted to the 82nd Regiment on the 22nd December, 1848, which regiment he joined at Plymouth on the 28th March, 1849, After being quartered at Plymouth, Exeter, Weymouth, Portsmouth, Pembroke, Manchester, Glasgow, Stirling, Dundee and Edinburgh, the regiment was ordered in January, 1855, to Corfu, and Captain Farmar was sent in command of his depot to Clonmet in September, The 82nd arrived in the Crimea on the 4th September, and Captain Farmar being very anxious to join his regiment before Sebastopol, in January was sent with a detachment to Malta.

The Governor, Sir J. Pennefather, gave him a month's leave to go to the Crimea in February, at the same time informing him that if his Colonel wished to page 31 retain him, he would offer no objection. And so it was arranged, and he remained with his regiment until it embarked for England on the 10th July, 1856, in the Royal George, a three decker, which brought home, curiously enough, a wing of his old regiment, the 50th. In the following year, on the 20th May, Captain Farmar embarked with his regiment, expecting to be engaged in a war with China, but in the meantime news reached England of the Indian Mutinies, so on arriving at Singapore the regiment was ordered to proceed with the greatest despatch to Calcutta, where they arrived on the 12th of October, and on the 28th he marched by bullock waggons, travelling at night, for Cawnpore, and arrived there on the 16th November. On the 26th General Windham moved out with his small force to check the advance of the Gwalior contingent of 20,000 men of all arms with 50 guns and 5,000 Sepoys. On the 27th the enemy crossed the canal in force to attack our camp, and after many hours' fighting against overwhelming numbers the General ordered his whole force to fall back on the fort with a view to protect Sir Colin Campbell's line of retreat from Lucknow over the bridge of boats, In action, on the 28th, Captain Farmar had a rare opportunity offered him, and he captured two 18-pounder guns from the enemy under circumstances which elicited the commendation of his commanding officer, who wrote that "he had much pleasure in bearing testimony to his conduct on the 28th Nov- page 32 ember, 1857, on the occasion of two 18-pounder guns being taken from the enemy, that he was the first officer up at them and had a most narrow escape, and that it was, as General Windham said, a most gallant and daring affair," and he added, "that many a man had got the Victoria Cross for much less," The capture of the two guns was also reported in General Windham's despatch as follows; "On the left advance Colonel Walpole with the Rifles, supported by Captain Greene's battery, and part of the 82nd Regiment achieved a complete victory over the enemy, and captured two 18-pounder guns. The glory of this well-contested fight belongs entirely to the abovenamed companies and artillery."

In the record of the 82nd Regiment it is stated: the two companies of the 82nd Regiment with Lieut. Colonel Watson were commanded respectively by Captains Farmar and Slater. Captain Farmar led his company to the capture of the two guns referred to in the General's despatch. He was the first man up to them, and had a hand to hand encounter with the native gunners who lay down under their guns and awaited the assault, rising up and rushing at their assailants when within a short distance.

Captain Farmar was immediately surrounded and would have been slain, but for the promptitude with which Ensign Waterford, a Cadet of the East India Company, temporarily attached to the 82nd, used his revolver, and the vigour with which Sergeant Godfrey page 33 of the 82nd, thrust his bayonet through a Sepoy in the act of cutting down his Captain.

This Sepoy held the bayonet firmly fixed in his body with his left hand, while with his right he gave the Serjeant a sword wound in the wrist which caused him to be invalided, and from its effects he subsequently died. The men of the company soon dispersed and bayonetted thirty-five of the enemy and took the guns. For this exploit Captain Farmar received the Brevet Rank of Major, and Ensign Waterfield was promoted soon afterwards.

It is farther stated in the Record that seven men of No. 6 Company were presented on a Public Parade at Subathoo, with Medals, obtained through the intervention of Sir Hugh Rose, the Commander-in-Chief, in commemoration of their gallantry on the 28th November, 1857, during the defence of Cawnpore by Major General Windham. These men were a portion of Lieutenant-Colonel Watson's party on that occasion and assisted Captain Farmar to capture the two 18 pounder guns.

Captain Farmar served throughout the Mutiny, including the defeat of the Gwalior Contingent by Sir Colin Campbell, the capture of Futtchgurh, action at Kunkur, capture of Shahjehanpore and Bareilly, relief of Shahjehanpore and actions around. From Futtchgurh a plan was ably conceived by Brigadier Sir Thomas Seaton to harass the enemy and gloriously executed.

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At 11 o'clock at night on 6th April, 1858 a force composed of 600 men of the 82nd Regiment, 100 Punjaub Infantry and 350 Horse, with a field battery marched with Brigadier Seaton on a secret expedition to surprise the enemy, and as day dawned the advanced guard came upon the enemy'. picquets at Kunkur, which were sharply driven in, and the attack commenced. The enemy lost about 250 men, and all their guns, stores, ammunition, tents, standards and baggage, fell into our hands, with the loss on our side of five men. The distance to Kunkur was 22 miles, and the heat at midnight was overpowering and the dust suffocating, but not a man fell out. Having burnt their village the column marched again for Futtchgurh at four o'clock, and did not arrive there till 11, but so fatigued were the men that many did not reach the fort till four in the morning. Captain Farmar was no doubt glad to get back again to the fort to eat, and to drink, and to sleep off the fatigue after the march of 44 miles in the 24 hours, and the excitement. During the hot weather he was employed in keeping open the communications on the Grand Trunk Road between Mynpoorie and Cawnpore, and in the end of 1858 he was invalided home from fever.

On the 21st September, 1860, he was appointed Captain of Cadets at the Royal Military College Sandhurst, which appointment he held for ten years, and in April, 1872, the Commander-in-Chief gave him the appointment of Assistant Commandant at the page 35 Royal Victoria Hospital, Netley, where he continued to do duty till March, 1884, when he was retired with the rank of Major-General.

General Farmar has the medal for the Sutlej campaign and for the Indian Mutiny, and has also been given the Reward for Distinguished Service.

His son, Hugh H. R. Farmar, was gazetted on the 29th October, 1890, as a second lieutenant in the 60th King's Royal Rifles, and sailed with the 1st Battalion in the following month for India, to be quartered at Rawul Pindi.

He has gained early experience by his good fortune in serving with his battalion in the Miranzai expedition in April and May, 1891, under Sir William Lockhart, for which the Queen has commanded that the Frontier Medal with a clasp inscribed "Samana" shall be granted to the troops. General Farmar's next son, George Jasper Farmar, has just passed out of Sandhurst, taking a high place with honours.