OUDII 493 estate of Atwa Pipária, had been for some time in rebellion against his sovercign, and he had committed inany murders and robberies, and lifted many herds of cattle within our bordering District of Shahjahanpur, and he had given shelter on his own estate to a good many atrocious criminals from that and others of our bordering Districts. He had, too, aided and screened many gangs of bandhaks or lakrits by hereditary profession. The Resident, Colonel Low, in 1841 directed every possible effort to be made for the arrest of this formidable offender, and Captain Hollings, the second in command of the second battalion of Oudh Local Infantry, sent intelligencers to trace him. “They ascertained that he had, with a few followers, taken up a position 200 yards to the north of the village of Alrori, in a jungle of palás trees and brushwood in the Bangar district, about 28 miles to the south-west of Sítápur, where that battalion was cantoned, and about 1.4 miles west from Ninkhar. Captain Hollings niade his arrangements to surprise this party; and, on the evening of the 3rd of July 1841, he marched from Nímkhar at the head of three companies of that battalior, and a little before midnight he came within three-quarters of a mile of the rebel's post. After halting his party for a short time, to enable the officers and sipilis to throw off all superfluous clothing and utensils, Captain Hollings moved on to the attack. When the advanced guard reached the outskirts of the robbers' position about midnight, they were first challenged and then fired upon by the sentries. The subahdár in command of this advance guard fell dead, and a non-commissioned officer and a si pihi were severely wounded. The whole party now fired in upon the gang and rushed on. One of the robbers was shot, and the rest all escaped out on the opposite side of the jungle. The sipulis believing, since the surprise had been complete, that the robbers must have left all their wealth behind them, dispersed as soon as the firing ceased and the robbers disappeared, to get every man as much as he could. While thus engaged, they were surrounded by the Gohárs (or body auxiliaries which these landholders send to each other's aid on the concerted signal), and fired in upon from the front and both right and left flanks. Taken by surprise, they collected together in disorder, while the assailants froin the front and sides continued to pour in their fire upon them, and they were obliged to retire in haste and confusion, closely followed by the auxiliaries, who gained confidence, and pressed closer as their number increased by the quotas they received from the villages the detachment had to pass in their retreat.
- All efforts on the part of Captain Hollings to preserve order in the ranks were vain. His men returned the fire of their pursuers, but without aim or effect. At the head of the auxiliaries were Panchan
