The next day the troops paraded for the last time. The colonel made them a little speech, thanking them for the fidelity they had shown, and expressing his deep regret at leaving them. He told them that if a force should be raised by the British for service on the frontier, his nephew would endeavour to procure enrolment in its ranks for such of them as desired it; that he had set aside a tract of land for them, and that Nand Chund had his authority to divide it fairly among them; and that he himself, as a token of his appreciation of their faithful services, had directed fifty rupees to be given to each man in addition to the pay due to him, and that his vakeel was writing for each a paper testifying to his services, which he himself would sign, and which they would find useful in their dealings with British officials.
When he had finished the men broke their ranks and crowded round him, tears flowing down most of their faces, calling down blessings upon him, and pouring out their regret at leaving the service of so good and kind a master. It was with some difficulty that the colonel, who was himself deeply affected, extricated himself from them and returned to his residence. The next morning he and Percy started. The colonel had made a very handsome present to Bhop Lal and Akram Chunder, and they of course accompanied them; but in addition the whole of the cavalry mounted and formed a voluntary escort to them as far as Rawal-Pindee.
Travelling quietly they reached head-quarters on the day when the proclamation was read to the troops, amid the booming of cannon, announcing to the Punjaub that it was now an integral portion of British India. Percy introduced his uncle to Mr. Fullarton, and the latter took him to Sir Henry Lawrence, with whom, during a stay of a week in the British camp, he had several long conversations, the chief-commissioner being desirous of ascertaining the views of one of such long experience in the country.
Colonel Groves was strongly of opinion that henceforth there would be no more trouble in the Punjaub. "The Sikh power is altogether broken," he said; "the former danger to India existed in the fact that hitherto they had been so successful in war that they had come to consider themselves almost invincible, and that the great army Runjeet had got together was demoralized by inactivity, and each man thirsted for an opportunity to distinguish himself, and dreamt of a share in the plunder of India. The population in general were, in his opinion, peace-loving and industrious; they had suffered terribly under the exactions of the grasping sirdars, who amassed fortunes out of their toil, and of the tax-gatherers, who had to collect vast sums for the maintenance of the army. That army had ceased to exist—Gujerat and Chillianwalla had accounted for the greater part of those who had escaped Ferozeshah and Sobraon. I believe," he said, "that in the course of a generation there will be no more orderly or loyal province than the Punjaub. There will be always a certain number of restless and adventurous spirits, but for these there will in time, I presume, be an opening in the regiments which, when you feel that you can trust them, will be raised here as in other parts of India. There is no finer fighting material to be found than among the Sikhs, and the fidelity with which they have fought to the last for their country is an earnest of that which they will show to our colours when they once take a pride in them."
He then instanced the conduct of his own men, who had proved faithful to him throughout, and had fought as bravely against the Sikh forces as they had formerly done under the Sikh flag. "They were for the most part," he said, "men of hill tribes, and Pathan rather than Sikh by blood, and should you be raising a force for the defence of the frontier against Afghans or hill men, you would find them admirably suited to the service. They are already well drilled and accustomed to discipline, and I promised them, when I disbanded them the other day, that I would speak to you in their favour, and would guarantee their fidelity should they be admitted into the Company's service."
"I will think the matter over," Sir Henry Lawrence said; "a force of that kind, if it could be relied upon, would be of immense service."
"Well, Sir Henry, there is one ready at hand. If I might venture to suggest, I should say, if my nephew happens to have an appointment in the Punjaub, it would be useful he should go for a week or two to the district with the officer charged to raise the force; in a few days he would produce a squadron two hundred strong of well-drilled cavalry, and four or five hundred infantry, with a complement of native officers thoroughly up to their work."
"Your nephew will certainly have an appointment in the Punjaub, Colonel Groves. He has proved himself a most efficient and zealous officer, and his knowledge of Punjaubi and Pathan, and of the country, would be thrown away in any other province. I had his early record in my hands when I was Resident at Lahore. Major Edwardes has written very strongly of the valuable assistance Mr. Groves rendered him, and he has been very useful during the late campaign. I can promise you that his appointment will show that his services have been thoroughly appreciated. I consider him an exceedingly promising young officer, and shall be glad to have an assistant on whom I can so thoroughly rely in any emergency."
"There is one thing I want to say to you, sir, and that is, that, when I disbanded my regiments, I gave to each man a grant of an acre or two of land in a valley so far untilled, but good land, and capable of irrigation. I had previously planted a thousand of them in two similar colonies, both of which are doing well. I hope that the grants may be confirmed."
"That they certainly would in any case, Colonel Groves; it is a great thing to have so many men, who might otherwise be troublesome, settled on the land; but, indeed, as your grants were made previous to the formal annexation, they would in any case remain good."