Chapter 27: Officer's Call

Date: 29 September 1899
Location: Rajah's Palace, Bebara Village
Situation: Officer's Call
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When last we met, The Khyber Field Force had retaken Bebara Village, the Thugee Army retreated in the direction of "The Pass" and the Imperials entered Bebara. We return now for Officer's Call within General Pettygree's private room ....

Officer Of The Day Major Trevelyan, 10th Hussars (left) and General Pettygree (right).

Trevelyan: "Good morning General."
Pettygree: "Yes it is Trev. How IS the arm?
Trevelyan: "Still works General, though a bit stiff at times. Back to duty the Doctor says. Best thing."
Pettygree: "Aye."
[Major Trevelyan was wounded at the Battle of Bebara.]

Trevelyan: "Sir, I came in ahead of the doctor for Officer's Call."
Pettygree: "Very good. Let's start, shall we?"

Dr. James Watson, Khyber Field Force Chief Medical Officer, Berkshire Regiment enters the room.

Trevelyan/Pettygree: "Welcome Doctor."
Dr. Watson: "Thank you Sirs."
Trevelyan: "Your report Doctor, if you please."

Dr. Watson: "Yes Sir. From the battle two weeks ago, we've made less progress than hoped for regarding the wounded. Still, there is singular good news and I am hopeful for more in the days ahead.
Trevelyan: "Quite so. Pray continue."

Dr. Watson: "Specifically Sir, my report shows...General Pettygree has the report in hand...there General..., the following remaining in hospital. Ninth Bengal Lancers 1, Tenth Hussars 4, First Sikhs 6, Seaforths 7 and the Berkshires 16. Died of wounds: First Sikhs 7, Seaforths 1, Berkshires 4, Royal Artillery 1, First Indian Mountain Battery 1.

Pettygree: "And returning to duty?"
Dr. Watson: "First Sikhs 6, Seaforths 2 and Berkshires 12. Twenty all told."
Pettygree: "Well done Doctor, considering.... Give my compliments to your staff and do let me know if there is more we can do for the wounded."
Dr. Watson: "Thank you Sir."
Trevelyan: "That will be all Jim."
 

Sergeant Cutter, Royal Engineers, Khyber Field Force is next.

Pettygree: "A souvenir Sergeant?"

Cutter: "Yes Sirh, one of them Tug pickaxes for digging graves an' such."

Trevelyan: "Deadly too I imagine.

Pettygree: "Actually not if we observe Major Sleeman's writings. The 'kusee' was used solely for digging the graves of their unsuspecting victims.

Trevelyan: "Sleeman knocked the Thugee Movement badly on the head more than a half century ago. I thought they were eradicated."

Pettygree: "The Court hanged a great many,  others were transported, some turned informant on the cult, a few died awaiting trial, all these years later a few remain jailed and some, the youngest and not deeply trained were rehabilitated.

Cutter: " Beggn' yer pardon Sir but I'd guess dem Tug youngn's went back to the ways of their fathers."

Trevelyan: "And the sons of sons have restored the cult in a newer way forming a mass army."

Pettygree: "Aye and that's their mistake. We can find an army and defeat it in one or two campaigns. Since the Thuggee operated secretly in near invisible gangs across most of India., it took Sleeman years to produce informants, catch cult members and bring them to trial. Thank you Sergeant. That will be all." 

Senior Captain Khambatta, First Sikhs, Khyber Field Force.

Trevelyan: "Captain Khambatta. Report.

Khambatta: "Sahib Trevelyan, General, I beg to report a new devil up ment. The villagers are disturbing the men with troubling stories.

Trevelyan: "Stories? What stories?"

Khambatta: "A night creature S'hib. People disappear without a trace."

Trevelyan: "But Captain, surely this is the method of The Thugee Sect! Disappearances I mean."

Khambatta: "No S'hib."

Pettygree: "Alright Captain. We'll bring in some villagers for questioning."

Captain Harcourt, Berkshires, Khyber Field Force.

Harcourt: "Please to report Sirs, the regiment is doing well and with the men being released from hospital today by the MO, our marching strength will be as shown on my report there Sir."

Alone now, the general has decided the next move. Return next time to learn his decision.  

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Closing Remarks:

1.George Bruce's. The Stranglers, The Cult of Thuggee and Its Overthrow in British India proved to be of value in understanding the gruesome historical nature of Thuggee and its suppression.

2. The "Miniature Oriental Carpet" was woven in Istanbul. Truly! I found it on a rack in a grocery store. There were several sizes, patterns and color variations. See http://www.orientalcarpetcreations.com/ for information.

3. Some of the furniture comes from model railroading, O Scale. See Walther's Catalog, product 653 1452 Living Room set. There is also a bedroom and kitchen set. The lamp is product code 164 539. Each item is in the $4.00-$5.00 range.

4. From November till now the blog was essentially in hiatus. An intermission one might say. There were Seven Years' War historical miniatures battles to organize and game along with a few forays with 15mm Flames of War. Naturally there was Thanksgiving, Christmas and the turn of the year as well. Finally we are undergoing a satisfying learning curve with the new Blitzkrieg Commander II tabletop rules. We are gaming 1941 Libya and I've been painting trucks, trucks and more trucks for our collection of the 7th Armoured and 21st Panzer Division battle groups.

5. Your remarks are welcome below. We are back!

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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Dear Viewers,
You may find this hepful.
Blessings to you all,
Bill

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From CBS Sunday Morning
Remarks from CBS Sunday Morning

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees.. I don't feel threatened.. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are: Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto.. In fact, I kind of like it It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too.

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The following was not written by Ben Stein but it ,makes sense to me.
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In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Katrina) Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.
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