be judged from a sample of their public proclamations, issued from Delhi and Cawnpore to the whole Sepoy army, and the officials and people.
The first proclamation was issued in the name of the Emperor's army defending Delhi, which the little English army was then trying to besiege; and the Mogul Court desired to draw the whole Sepoy force in that direction to annihilate them. The glaring falsehoods in the following proclamation are manifest enough:
“To all Hindoos and Mussulmans, Citizens and Servants of
Hindustan, the Officers of the Army now at Delhi send greeting:
“It is well known that in these days all the English have
entertained these evil designs—first to destroy the religion of the whole
Hindustanee army, and then to make the people Christians by
compulsion. Therefore we, solely on account of our religion, have
combined with the people, and have not spared alive one infidel,
and have re-established the Delhi dynasty on these terms, and thus
act in obedience to orders, and receive double pay. Hundreds of
guns and a large amount of treasure have fallen into our hands;
therefore it is fitting that whoever of the soldiers and the people
dislike turning Christians should unite with one heart and act
courageously, not leaving the seed of these infidels remaining.
Whoever shall in these times exhibit cowardice or credulity by
believing the promises of those impostors, the English, shall very
shortly be put to shame for such a deed; and, rubbing the hands
of sorrow, shall receive for their fidelity the reward the ruler of
Lucknow got. It is further necessary that all Hindoos and
Mussulmans unite in this struggle, and that all, so far as it is possible,
copy this proclamation, and dispatch it every-where, so that all
true Hindoos and Mussulmans may be alive and watchful, and fix
it in some conspicuous place, (but prudently, to avoid detection,)
and strike a blow with a sword before giving circulation to it. The
first pay of the soldiers at Delhi will be thirty rupees per month
for a trooper, and ten rupees for a footman, [a large advance on
the English allowance.] Nearly one hundred thousand men are
