the house of an old invalid subadar-major of the Honourable Company’s service, (fifty-seventh Native Infantry,) on the 21st of December, 1849, robbed him of all he had, and confined him and all his family, till he promised, under good security, to pay, within twenty days, a ransom of one thousand two hundred rupees more.  He had demanded a good deal more, but hearing that the Resident’s camp was approaching, he consented to take this sum four days ago, and released all his prisoners.  The subadar presented a petition to me, and, after taking the depositions of the old zumeendars and other witnesses, I requested the king’s wakeel, to send off a company of Soubha Sing’s Regiment, to arrest him and his gang.

They went off from Rae Bareilly on the night of the 1st instant; but, finding that the subadar-major and his family had been released the day before, and that the village was full of armed men, ready to resist, they returned on the evening of the 2nd.  On the 3rd, the whole regiment, with its artillery, and three hundred auxiliaries, under Rajah Seodursun Sing, left my camp, at Onae, at midnight, and before daylight surrounded the village.  There were about one hundred and fifty armed men in it; and, after a little bravado, they all surrendered, and were brought to me.  Mohiboollah had, however, gone off, on the pretence of collecting his rents, two days before; but his father and brother were among the prisoners.  All who were recognised as having been engaged in the robbery, were sent off prisoners to Lucknow, and the rest were disarmed and released.

Among those detained were some notorious robbers, and the gang would soon have become very formidable but for the accident of my passing near.  He had got the lease of the estate through the influence of Akber-od Dowlah, one of the Court favourites, for the sole purpose of converting it into a den of robbers; and, the better to secure this object, he had got it transferred from the jurisdiction of the Nazim to the Hozoor Tehseel, over the manager of which the Court favourite had paramount influence.  He was to share with his client the fruits of his depredations, and, in return, to secure him impunity for his crimes.  Many of his retainers were among the prisoners brought in to me, having been present at the distribution of the large booty acquired from the old subadar, some thirty or forty thousand rupees.  The subadar had resided upon the estate of Seodursun Sing; but having, seven years ago complained through the Resident of over-exactions for the small patch of land he held, and got back the grain which had been attacked for the rent, he was obliged to give it up and reside in the hamlet he afterwards occupied near Bulla, whose zumeendars assured him of protection.* He had a large family, and a great deal of property in money and other valuables concealed under ground.  Mohiboollah first seized and sent off the subadar, and then had ramrods made red-hot and applied to the bodies of the children till the females gave him all their ornaments, and pointed out to him all the hidden treasures:  they were then all taken to Bulla and confined till the subadar had pledged himself to pay the ransom demanded.