Our Sailors: Gallant Deeds of the British Navy during Victoria's Reign. William Henry Giles Kingston
they might keep up their fire as they retreated to the Teazer, some of the kroomen on board Mr. Beecroft’s Victoria let go her anchor, and there she lay exposed entirely to the fire of the blacks. On seeing this, Captain Lyster pulled back to her to learn what was the matter. “What has occurred now?” he asked of Mr. Blight, the boatswain. “The kroomen let go the anchor without orders,” he replied. “Then slip your cable, and get out of this,” exclaimed Captain Lyster. “It’s a chain cable, clenched to the bottom, and we can’t unshackle it,” replied Mr. Blight. On hearing this disheartening intelligence, Captain Lyster jumped on board to see what assistance he could render. Just then Lieutenant Corbett staggered up towards the stern, exclaiming, “I have done it, and am alive!” In truth, he had cut the chain cable with a cold chisel, and in so doing, while leaning over the bows of the boat, had received five different wounds, which, with the addition of a severe one received on shore, rendered him almost helpless. His right arm was hanging to his side, but he still with his left worked away, and assisted in getting the Victoria off to the Teazer.
While Captain Lyster was leaving the Victoria to get into his own boat, he was shot in the back with a musket-ball. On account of the hot fire to which they were still exposed, and the number of men already killed and wounded, he judged that he should not be justified in attempting to recover the lifeboat on that occasion. Leaving her, therefore, on the beach, the party returned to the Teazer. The people who had at first got possession of the lifeboat had afterwards abandoned her; but they now returned, and some forty or fifty got into her, intending to carry her off. Seeing this, Mr. Balfour, acting mate, assisted by Mr. Dewar, gunner, pulling back to the shore in the first cutter, threw a rocket towards her, and so well-directed was it that it entered her magazine and blew it up. As soon as the party got back to the Teazer (having now pretty well silenced the fire of the enemy), they set to work to get all the provisions out of her, and then, having thrown overboard all her coals with the exception of ten tons, they contrived to shore her up, to await the rising of the tide. At length their exertions were crowned with success, and at sunset they succeeded in heaving her off. Then, getting up the steam, they anchored out of gunshot for the night.
On this unfortunate occasion there were no less than thirteen men killed belonging to HMS Penelope, besides Mr. Fletcher and Mr. H.M. Gillham, master’s assistant, who afterwards died of his wounds; while Captain Lyster, Commander Hillyar, Lieutenant Corbett, and First Lieutenant of Marines J.W.C. Williams were wounded severely, together with fifty-seven men of the Penelope and two of the Teazer, most of them also very severely wounded. Crowded together in so small a vessel during the night, the poor fellows suffered greatly, though the medical officers of the expedition, Mr. R. Carpenter, senior surgeon, Mr. Walling, assistant surgeon of the Penelope, Dr. Barclay, acting surgeon, and Dr. Sproule, assistant surgeon, exerted themselves to their very utmost in the performance of their duty to the wounded. During the day they had never flinched from exposing their own lives, as, in the midst of the fire, they stepped from boat to boat to alleviate the sufferings of the wounded and dying.
Soon after seven o’clock in the morning the Teazer was got under weigh, and, finding the right channel, steamed up towards the Bloodhound, with the squadron of boats in her company. As soon as she was seen from the Bloodhound, Captain Jones ordered that the guns of the Bloodhound’s gunboats should open a deliberate flanking fire on the west part of the enemy’s defences; and he then sent a boat under Mr. Bullen, his clerk, who was acting as his aide-de-camp, to point out to Captain Lyster the position in which he wished the Teazer to be anchored. At ten minutes past eight, the Teazer having anchored, Captain Jones pulled on board her, to consult further with Captain Lyster on the plan of proceeding. The rocket-boats were then ordered to take up a position to the northward of the Bloodhound. This was quickly done, and Lieutenant Marshall threw some rockets with beautiful effect, setting fire to several houses, among which, to the satisfaction of all, was that of the Prime Minister Tappis. When this was seen, a hearty and spontaneous cheer ran through the whole squadron for the crew of the rocket-boat, who had thus punished the chief instigator of the former attack on the British boats.
After this, the rocket-boat shifted her position ahead of the Teazer, and a general but deliberate fire was opened from the whole force. At forty-five minutes past ten, Lieutenant Marshall threw a rocket, which struck the battery below Tappis’ house, and at the same time a shot from the Teazer capsized the gun. The firing became still more rapid; an awful explosion ensued; a magazine of the enemy’s had blown up. And from this moment the fate of Lagos was decided; house after house caught fire, and the whole town was shortly in a general blaze. More ships-of-war now came in, and Kosoko, finding his case hopeless, took to flight, and Akitoye was reinstated.
The only portion of the British forces landed was a small body under Commander Coote, who went on shore to spike guns.
The next morning he and Commander Gardner, with the boats’ crews of the Sampson and Penelope, were employed in a similar way. They returned in the afternoon, having by extraordinary exertions embarked or destroyed fifty-two pieces of ordnance.
Lagos has now become a British province.
Chapter Nine.
The Burmese War—1851–1852.
By the treaty of Yandaboo in 1824 the Burmese granted security to English merchants and English commerce. It seemed then as if the first Burmese war had really had some good results, and as if civilisation had taken an immense stride in the country.
But, twenty-six years after this treaty had been signed, numerous complaints reached the supreme government of Calcutta of the oppressive tyranny of the governor of Rangoon, which, it appeared, was directed chiefly against traders in Rangoon.
One of the immediate causes of British interference was the conduct of the governor towards certain captains of British trading vessels; one of whom, on the false representations of a Burmese pilot, was placed in the stocks and fined nine hundred rupees. A representative at Ava was placed on an island on the Irrawaddy without provisions, and left there till the river rose and nearly swamped him. Sooner than irritate the court, the representative was withdrawn. Insult after insult was heaped upon the British, and though every means was taken to ensure peace and conciliate the Burmese, it was soon seen that sterner measures must be taken with them.
On 7th January the governor of Rangoon ordered a merchant, Mr. Birrell, to take down a flagstaff he had erected, and to remove a gun placed on his landing-stage.
Mr. Birrell refused to comply with this order, as the flagstaff had been placed there by consent of the commodore, as a means of communication between the Europeans on shore and the men-of-war.
The governor, enraged at this refusal, ordered all communication with the shipping to be stopped. Commodore Lambert, sooner than give the Burmese any cause of offence, directed the flagstaff to be removed, and for the time trade was resumed.
Not long after this a deputation from the British to the governor was treated with the utmost incivility and contempt, and was even refused admission to his presence.
The commodore now resolved to take action. He ordered the King of Burmah’s ship, which was lying in the harbour, to be seized, and sent a message to all the British residents in Rangoon to come on board the frigate, and at the same time informed the governor that as the British flag and Government had been grossly insulted, he intended to place the town under blockade.
By the same evening all the British subjects had embarked, and the men-of-war moved down the river.
Some of the Burmese officers now came to the flagship to offer apologies for their rudeness; but as the viceroy himself refused to apologise, none of these were accepted. The Burmese, seeing that the British were in earnest, tried to avert the war for a time; and the commodore, also anxious to avoid hostilities, allowed twenty-four hours’ grace to give the viceroy time to change his mind. Instead