soldiers.  One of them was sworn to by the wounded 17th man as being one of the murderers, and we were all in great hopes of seeing the blackguards dancing the tight rope; but, instead of that, they were all brought on (except one, who being badly wounded, died on the road) to Dadur, where they were given up to one of the political diplomatic gentlemen, who, it is said, actually let them go with five rupees to carry them home.  Fancy a Beloochee’s home! This was carrying the conciliation principle far with a vengeance!

We started again at half-past twelve, on the night of the 3rd—­another night-march of nineteen miles.  Both the nights we were at this place we were alarmed by a supposed attack of Beloochees; but they turned out to be nothing more than a loose horse or two of the dragoons, for which one of their camp-followers suffered, being taken for a Beloochee, while running after one of the horses, and therefore cut down by a dragoon on sentry.  The night we left this place was one of the most fearful I ever remember; it had been threatening all the afternoon, and about eight the simoom came on with dreadful violence, blowing for five minutes at a time, at intervals of twenty minutes or so, until we got under weigh, at half-past twelve.  The wind, hot and scorching, like a blast from a furnace, rushed over the country with the violence of a hurricane, bringing with it perfect clouds of dust and sand, so that it was totally impossible to face it, except at the risk of being actually blinded or stifled.  The baggage was to have gone on before us at nine o’clock, as the moon was expected to be up, but the clouds of dust, &c., completely hid her from us, and she did not shew her nose the whole night.  During the blasts it was the most perfect “darkness visible” that you can imagine, and at the intervals when it ceased, the sensation of the atmosphere was more like standing before a hot fire than anything else.  I had read of these things before in novels, travels, &c; I now, for the first time, experienced the reality.  Add to all these little annoyances, we were every moment expecting a rush of Beloochees; and if they had had the pluck of a hare, they might have considerably crippled our proceedings, by rushing in and ham-stringing our camels.  The darkness, the unavoidable confusion, the awkwardness of the camels themselves, all favoured them, and I expected nothing less; if they had been Cossacks instead, they would have played the very devil with us altogether.  At length, at half-past eleven, the baggage got off, and now for the first time with a baggage guard, consisting of a troop, or company, from each of the three regiments, together with all the irregular horse we possessed, with strict orders that any Beloochees shewing themselves at all near the baggage were instantly to be cut down or bayoneted.  The main body followed in another hour, with a strong rear-guard, to pick up stragglers, &c.  These precautions ought to have been taken