The Seven Cities of Delhi
to halt; the mutineers had not the enterprise to go to meet it, or even to retain their position, but returned to Delhi on the following morning,meeting with some punishment on the way. Had
there been a good general among the rebels in Delhi, and had he been allowed his way without interference, the result might have been very different indeed.
On the 5th of July Sir Henry Barnard died of cholera, the second commander of the Delhi field force to succumb to that dread disease. He was not in supreme command before Delhi, for General Anson had been succeeded, as provincial commander - in - chief, by Major- General T. Reed, C.B., H.M. Service, who, however, although he had arrived at Alipur on the night before the advance to Delhi, had left all arrangements, then and afterwards, in Sir H.Barnard's hands. He now assumed command of the field force, but the real commander was Colonel Neville Chamberlain, the adjutant-general.
On the 8th of July a series of operations for the destruction of the bridges over the canal and the Najafgarh drain was completed by the blowing up of the Bassi bridge over the latter, some three miles distant from the camp. A strong escort of all arms accompanied the engineers, but did not see the enemy ; while they were away276
