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20 Jan 58 Julius on board 'Nubia' Mother Hyde Park Place ______________________________________________________________________________________________
‘Nubia’ off Galle
20th January 1858
My dear Mother
We expect to get into ‘Galle’* this evening & as I was not at all decided in my last as to whether we were going on or stopping at Aden, I will now proceed to enlighten you.
Upon getting into Aden, our first information was that the ship which had taken on our mails from Suez, namely ‘Ajdaha’,* a steam man-of-war belonging to the EIC & had broken down & returned to the harbour there. She was so rotten that the Captain when at Suez had refused to take on any of us who had been detained by the breaking down of the Alma & it is said that had they had the space on board [for] £500,000 [in gold], the bottom would have fallen out.
We are still on board the Nubia & the Gentlemen have to stop on deck as I told you before. I am getting quite accustomed to it & do not mind it in the least. The Agent of the P&O Company offered to anyone who chose to accept, to go on board the Alma which is there & to be kept at the Company’s expense until the arrival of the ‘Candia’ which would have been a fortnight, but no one on board would accept. So we are in ‘status quo’. We drop 40 Passengers at ‘Galle’ & all the Engineers’ 120, so that we shall have more room. There are only about 10 fresh passengers coming on there.
At Aden we got some bad news of my Regiment. Poor little Jordan* & Grier killed. Two very nice fellows I am very sorry to hear of their deaths. The other, Applegate, was the Ensign who was with me at Queenlaw. There seem to be a great lot wounded, however you will have seen it all long ago.
I see an account in the paper called the Calcutta Englishman, which I think reflects great credit according to the following effusion in case you have not seen it. ‘A detachment of the 34th was ordered to follow up the fugitives & upon their coming up with them a party of horse turned & charged. The 34th quickly formed square & withstood the charge with such well directed volleys that out of 60, only 1 man & one horse returned to tell the tale.’
They seem to have been very hardly used a couple of days later, but I expect Windham* will have to answer for that. In consequence of poor Jordan’s death, I am now the last but one from the stakes. Leeson the Adjutant is under me.
I do not know what news we shall have at ‘Galle’ but I hope good. In eight days we hope to be in Calcutta. I shall then try what can be got from the P&O Company & see to Peter & deliver my letters & I hear they only give one 3 days before starting up the country. So I hope soon to be with the members of the Regt.
I have not yet heard of the numbers of men we lost in the affair but I should think a large number. I expect to find them very different to what they would be last time I saw them, when they were marching through Portsmouth with all the glory of going to fight the Sepoys.
We have found it fearfully hot already but nothing to what we shall probably go through during the marches &c. of a campaign.
I do not think I told you that W.H.Russell, the Times Correspondent is on board. He, I suppose will come out very strong again.
I shall leave this open to tell you any news from Galle.
Jany. 22nd –
We have been here now since Wednesday afternoon (20th). Unfortunately we have been detained by the Post Office Authorities or we should have been off yesterday evening.
There is no fresh news here at all. Ceylon seems a beautiful place. It is about the size of Ireland. There are some beautiful views but principally up the country about Candy. We started off yesterday to a place called Wakwella, about 4 miles from Galle & we were very much pleased by the view. The country seems hilly, covered with trees, principally coconuts. There is not very much fruit about just now as it is not in season but we got some splendid pears for 6 pence & now small things called plantains which I did not much care about. They seemed as though they would be beautiful iced.
It is dreadfully hot here. It seems very wonderful that this should be January. I suppose you are in the middle of ice & snow.
I hear this will not reach you sooner than if written from Madras but as it is done it shall be sent.
I shall call at the Post Office at Calcutta for letters & when I go, order them to be redirected on to my Regt. I shall now try to send this ashore so must come to an end.
I hope you are all well & enjoying your selves. The Rileys have returned, I suppose. Remember me to them & ask them to give me a letter occasionally. Tell Mary she is still my debtor for one.
Love to all, Helen included
I remain yr. affect. Son
J D Laurie
When does Arthur come out. –
* Galle - A port in South West Ceylon, now Sri Lanka
* Ajdaha – A steamer of between 1,400 and 1,500 tons and 500 h.p. Her poor condition was the subject of an exchange between Viscount Dungannon and Lord Panmure in the House of Lords on 19th February 1858
* Jordan - Lt. Edward Jordan, killed in action, Cawnpore
* Windham – Major General Sir Charles Ash Windham KCB (1810-1870) had been left to defend Cawnpore with a small force while Sir Colin Campbell marched most of its garrison to Lucknow. Tantia Topee’s attacks were barely held when Campbell returned and relieved the city, driving off the rebels