Away to the northeast,
the governor pointed out the pagodas of Bangalore, twenty-two miles
away; the distance, in the clear air, seeming comparatively trifling.
"Are there many troops there?" Dick asked.
"There are about five battalions of the regular troops, and three
Chelah battalions. These can hardly be counted as troops. They have
never been of the slightest use. In the last war they ran like sheep.
It is a fancy of the sultan's. But, indeed, he can hardly expect men
to fight who have been forced into the ranks, and made to accept
Mohammedanism against their will. Naturally they regard an invader,
not as an enemy, but as a deliverer.
"Of course the sultan's idea was, that since the native troops,
drilled and led by Englishmen, fought so well; the Chelahs, who were
also drilled and led by Englishmen, would do the same. But the
Company's troops are willing soldiers, and it is the English leading,
more than the English drill, that makes them fight. If the Chelahs
were divided among the hill fortresses they might do good service; and
I could, as far as fighting goes, do with a battalion of them here;
for, mixed up with my men, they would have to do their duty. But, of
course, they will never be placed in the hill forts, for one would
never be safe from treachery.
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