Of the city itself, its magnificent bazaar, filled with the richest manufactures of the East, its gardens abounding with the finest fruits in the world, and the fertile country that surrounds it, his description is the same as that which will be found much more at length in the Travels of Lieut.  Burnes, in 1832.

Cricket and horse-racing appeared to be the chief recreation of the army during the time it remained inactive; and the two divisions having fortunately come from different Presidencies, the same spirit of rivalry amongst the officers, in the sports of the camp, was as naturally excited at Cabool as in any of the counties or garrisons of their native land.

The evening before they left their ground, two miles from Cabool, he was sent with a subaltern’s party to search through all the worst parts of the city for men who were missing from the camp, but after spending many hours, he returned without finding any.  They had been paid the day before, and had got away to the liquor-shops; but all turned up in the morning except one, whose body was found murdered, near the camp.

  A.H.  HOLDSWORTH.

LETTER X.

  Camp at Kotree, in Cutch Gundava,
    December 8th, 1839.

MY DEAR FATHER—­As I am now tolerably recovered and my wounds nearly healed, I take the first opportunity (as my arm is losing its stiffness) of writing to you, as I have no doubt you will be very anxious to hear how I am going on.  I desired Stisted, the day after the taking of Kelat, to write, as I was myself then unable.  I have no doubt but that he did so; yet I know you must have been anxious before you heard the final result; and I am now happy to inform you that I am getting rapidly well, and expect in a short time to be out of the “sick list.”  My wound was esteemed a rather ugly one at first; and I must consider it one of the most fortunate cases of Providence that the bullet took the direction it did, as had it swerved in the least degree it must have gone through my lungs, or downward through my liver; and in either case would most likely have done my business completely.  As the man who fired at me was so very close, the ball went clear through, and so saved me from the unpleasant process of having it extracted by the doctor, &c.  I had my right flank exposed to the man who pinked me, and so the ball passed through my right arm into my right side, and passing downwards to the rear, came out at my back, about an inch from the back-bone.  Had it passed to the front instead of to the rear, I should have most assuredly left my bones at Kelat:  as it was, from my coughing up a tolerable quantity of blood when I was first hit, the doctor imagined that my lungs had been affected, and for a couple of days, as I have since heard, was very doubtful as to my eventual recovery.  However I may now, I believe, consider myself completely out of the wood.