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Twelve poor fellows were killed, and seven wounded; among the former were five principal Goorkha officers. The Balla Hissar was promptly evacuated. Occasional explosions occurred for several days, the heaviest of those on the afternoon of the 16th, which threw on the city a great shower of stones, beams, and bullets.
On the 9th, owing to the mental and physical weakness of poor General Elphinstone, Brigadier Shelton was summoned into cantonments from the Balla Hissar, bringing with him part of the garrison with which he had been holding the latter post. The hopes entertained that Shelton would display vigour, and restore the confidence of the troops, were not realised.
What say you to all this, Francisco the Honest?" "That I wish you joy of your prosperity, and hope you may enjoy it long and well." "Well, no doubt of that. Everyone who has it enjoys it WELL. He always dances well to whom fortune pipes." * * Assai ben balla a chi fortuna suona.
"Very well," said their mother; "I don't care to know where it is until after to-morrow, anyhow. I know I can trust you," she added, addressing Balla. "Yes'm, you know dat," said he, simply. "I'll jes' go an' git my hoe." "The garden hasn't got a roof to it, has it, Unc' Balla?" asked Willy, quietly. "Go 'way from here, boy," said the old man, making a sweep at him with his hand.
"Do you think it will do, Balla?" their mother asked. "Oh, yes, madam; it's far enough, an' they got mighty comical ways to get dyah, wadin' in ditch an' things it will do. I ain' sho' I kin fin' it ag'in myself." He was not particularly enthusiastic. Now, however, he shouldered the box, with a grunt at its weight, and the party went slowly out through the back door into the dark.
He had more than 2000 troops in the Balla Hissar, still at least nominally loyal; he had guaranteed the protection of the mission, and it behoved him to do what in him lay to fulfil his pledge. But the Ameer sat supine in his palace, doing no more than send his General-in-Chief Daoud Shah to remonstrate with the insurgents.
Captain Shafto of the ordnance was conducting an examination into the contents of the arsenal in the upper Balla Hissar, and had already discovered millions of cartridges, and about 150,000 lbs. of gunpowder. Daoud Shah, however, expressed his belief that at least a million pounds were in store.
As Baker was returning to Sherpur in the evening he had been fired upon from the Balla Hissar, and his flanking parties had found ambushes of armed Afghans among the willows between the city and the cantonment. But for the skill and courage of the non-commissioned officer in charge a convoy of wounded on its way to Sherpur would certainly have been destroyed.
"Nor, he's dead-drunk," said Balla, picking up an empty flask. "Come on out. Let me see what I gwi' do wid you?" he said, scratching his head. "I know what I gwi' do wid you. I gwi' lock you up right whar you is." "Uncle Balla, s'pose he gets well, won't he get out?" "Ain' I gwi' lock him up? Dat's good from you, who was jes' gwi' let 'im out ef me an' Frank hadn't come up when we did."
Instead of doing so, they found Uncle Balla standing by the hen-house with a comical look of mystification and chagrin; the roof had been lifted off at one end and not only the prisoner, but every chicken was gone! The boys were half inclined to cry; Balla's look, however, set them to laughing. "Unc' Balla, you got to give me every chicken you got, 'cause you said you would," said Willy.
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