BOOKS.

STOCQUELER'S MEMOIRS OF GENERAL NOTT.a THERE is less of biography than of secret history in these volumes; meaning by the term "secret history," not only those things which are carefully kept out of the public archives, but which the wisdom that governs this world had rather suppress altogether. Apart from the Affghan war, the life of William Nott had little that was eventful. In fact, it differed not from that of very many re- spectable Indian officers, save in a close attention to study, espe-

cially of those studies which form and finish the soldier. It was the fashion in the heyday of his success to represent Ge-

neral Nott as an example of how merit could make its way in this country from the humblest position, and the General himself fell into it. To some extent the statement is true ; but his family was of the middle class, his father being a farmer, with which vocation he afterwards combined the business of an innkeeper and mail- contractor at Caermarthen. The future General was born in 1783; educated at a common Welsh school, where he learned but little ; and afterwards assisted his father in one of his farms. When the Volunteer enthusiasm burst forth, William Nott enrolled himself in the Caermarthen corps ; and his taste of " marching and counter- marching," after the mode of Major Sturgeon, developed the heroic germ within him. Nothing would satisfy him but a com- mission; and his father had interest enough to procure William the choice of a military cadetship or a civil appointment in the Company's service, while a younger brother got a commission in the Royal Army. Mr. Stocqueler observes, that commissions were then obtained much more easily than in the present day : which is true, our population and our gentility having both vastly increased without a corresponding increase of the field for their employment. Still, three such appointments were hardly obtain- able even in 1799 without good family interest, probably of a votingkind.

William Nott embarked for India in 1800 ; and with the excep- tion of three years' furlough in 1822-1825, in that country he re- mained till he left it at the close of 1843, to return home and die. In India he married, in 1805; in India his children were born, and his wife was buried. There his promotion came to him, at first quickly and afterwards slowly,—Ensign, 1800 ; Lieutenant, 1801 ; Superintendent of Native Pensions and Paymaster of Family Pensions, 1811; Captain, 1814; Major, 1822; Lieutenant- Colonel, 1825. Till the Affghan war, when he was promoted first to be Brigadier and then to be Major-General, Nott saw little active service. But he steadily occupied himself with the duties of his position ; and became so well known as an efficient officer and thorough disciplinarian without undue strictness, that he was oftener than once placed over a regiment that had become demoral- ized, in order to restore its condition. He also applied himself to remedy his neglected education ; reading the British and (in trans- lations) the ancient classics, together with professional works. He was a thorough student of the Wellington Despatches; and the result was seen at Candahar, not merely in the style of his best orders and papers, and his thorough attention to the minutest matter connected with the army or the enemy, but in an almost audacious reliance on the capability of the troops. General Nott finally arrived in England in the summer of 1844, and died on the 1st of January 1845, of disease of the heart.

The biography is not animated by many traits of personal charac- ter, though the compiler has been assisted by all the information the family could impart. The great event in General Nott's life was the Affghan war ; and that, as regards these volumes, less in reference to hispublic conduct, which is matter of history—though his foresight and sturdy resolution are well brought out by Mr. Stocqueler—than for his private opinions, feelings, and criticisms, as displayed in his confidential correspondence. The burden of much of it is the vete- ran's complaint ever since armies were, and which form the ground- work of Iago's hatred to his commander—the preference of fa- vourites to desert, the neglect of experience for " prattle without practice," and the postponement of grey-haired veterans to "boys." In India, additional grievances were added to the regular bill of fare, first, by the preference of the Horse Guards authorities for the Queen's service, and the injustice which their regulations inflicted on officers in the Company's service; next, by the existence and power of the " Politicals,"—mostly young men wbo were raised by showy qualities, arts of diplomacy, possibly,of intrigue, and probably actual favouritism, to control the opinions of veteran commanders, and often to interfere with mili- tary operations. The exact value to be attached to the judgments, censures, or complaints our General threw off on the heat of the moment, it is not quite safe to say. No censure upon the wicked- ness of the war, or the weak rashness of the men who promoted and managed it, can be exaggerated ; the forebodings of Gene- ral Nott were more than justified by the result : as soon as he

was left free to act, he carried his business to a triumphant conclusion,—although we may not, as Mr. Stocqueler does, alto- gether overlook General Pollock. It is evident, however, that General Nott was scarcely satisfied unless he had everything his own way; that his mood was rarely conciliatory; that he generally used strong words to express hard thoughts ; and that he some-

' Memoirs and Correspondence of Major-General Sir William Nott, G.C.B., Com- mander of the Army of Candahar and Envoy at the Court of the King of Oude. Edited, at the request of Sir William Nott's Daughters, Letitia Nott and Charlotte Bower, from Documents in their exclusive possession, by J. H. Stocqueler, Esq., Author of the Handbook of British India," &c., &c. In two volumes. Published by Hurst and Blackett. times took offence on slight grounds or no grounds. General El- phinstone, for instance, had heard " that a staff-officer at Candahar had appeared in public with a Mussuiman woman, who had eloped from the house of a man of rank "; and he requested Nott to make private inquiries and report the result to him. It is true that the good old General might have found more scope for his inquiries at Cabul ; and, unless he was misunderstood by Nott, he contem- plated acting upon the private report, instead of using it as a ground for further investigation. There seems, however, no rea- son for assailing General Elphinstone as Nott does. All prelimi- nary inquiries into doubtful conduct must be private, unless the world is to become, and needlessly, a scene of greater strife, bad feeling, and scandal, than it is ; and there can be no private con- duct of public men, in an enemy's country, if the conduct may lead to public results. The vice to which Elphinstone directed at- tention is said to have been the main cause of the disasters at Ca- bul. However, thus writes Nott to his family at Calcutta, some time after the application, when he might have had ample leisure to grow cool.

" As I have no news to give you, I will relate a little anecdote, which will prove that I am not fit to act in the world in its present state, and that the sooner I retire to my cottage the better. I have had a letter from Gene- ral Elphinstone, headed private and confidential,' intimating that it had been represented to him that a certain officer at Candahar had been guilty of grossly improper conduct. He directed me to go privately to work, and thus privately to ascertain whether it was true, and if so, to send the officer forth- with to Hindostan ! Thus I, a general officer, was expected to go about among the idlers of Candahar, to pry into the private affairs of an officer under my command, and if any man, his enemy perhaps, told me yes, such was the case,' I was instantly, without any public investigation, to blast the said officer's character and prospects by ordering him in disgrace to the pro- vinces ! It now turns out that General Elphinstone was directed by Govern- ment to get the information: they, I suppose, must have received the report from one of the many sycophants seeking for patronage. I am sorry to say that these kind of animals appear to have increased in the army of late years. I know not, nor do I care, what the Government will say to my letter ; but if they were the governors of the whole of mighty Europe, they could never make me mean enough to go prying into the private life of any officer ; it is sufficient for me to notice what may publicly and officially come before me. I hate the words ' privately inquire. I thought that great people knew me better. But General Elphinstone is a new man, and perhaps he thought he was doing me honour in allowing me to join him in his private inquiries."

There are similar outbreaks of temper, and some where the spirit is the same but the mode a little and only a little more mea- sured, in consequence of directly addressing superior authority. These are always pungent, and curious for their display of cha- racter, as well as for letting the reader behind the scenes to the penetralia of great men. A large part of the correspondence is pregnant with matter of grave consideration in reference to the conduct of war. Almost every step in the campaign shows the evils of divided authority, not only as regards the so-called " ticals " who in fact were often commanders over the commander, but the injury flowing from the separation of departments. It may be said that the real root of the evil was the incompetency of the leading commanders ; but, with the exception of Elphinstone, broken down by age and disease, they accomplished all they were sent to do. A mere average man is not improved by being thwarted in his plans and rendered dependent upon the manage- ment of other people who are probably below the average; while undivided responsibility is at least a stimulus. It must be re- membered that the commissariat and the transport are as im- portant in war as soldiers themselves. This is General Nott's picture of the march to Candahar.

"By Heavens! two thousand disciplined troops would have sent this army back in disgrace ; but good fortune, backed by many hies of Jack Com- pany's rupees, paves the way, and puts down opposition. During a long life I have read much, and have observed much, but I have never seen, heard, or read of such a shameful and entirely unnecessary waste of public money. As to the commissariat, no language can describe it, nor give any idea of the rascality of its native agents. This department has moreover proved itself to be totally inefficient : there is not a native understrapper attached to it who has not plundered a fortune on this expedition, while the poor subaltern officer has been involved in debt, and half starved into the bargain. When the accounts come under the observation of our wise Go- vernment, will that Government resort to another half-batty measure to re- place the sums thus rascally plundered ?"

The General shows better in the more purely biographical matter. His family affections were strong,. his circumstances narrow; and probably part of his caustic severity and temper might arise from disappointment, although, doubtless, to some extent he brought his disappointments upon himself. He buried his first wife just as he was appointed to active service ; and his first march was from her grave.

" October 24th, 1838.—Marched from Delhi, after going to the ghaut to see my beloved daughters off for Calcutta. May Heaven watch over and protect them, and restore them to me the same dear affectionate children I now feel them to be. On my way from the city to the camp at Arcepore I turned into the burying-ground, and stood for some time over the grave of my beloved and lamented Letitia. Strange to say, I think my mind was in some degree relieved by the visit."

Again, a little while after, he thus writes to his daughters.

"I every moment expect my Brigade-Major with a thousand papers. Two days ago I got a very kind note from Captain Graham, in answer to mine from Delhi. I am sure he will be very kind to you. Yesterday even- ing I received your dear letters from Muttra, also a letter from E---, and one from Buttenshaw : these letters unfitted me for Cotton's dinner, but I was obliged to go, with a bursting heart and a lying face. Should you not get letters from me, don't be alarmed; I will write regularly, but letters may miscarry. The Thirty-eighth, it is said has been ordered to Same. I have written to General Fast about a monument over your dear mother : I have not an answer yet. God bless you, my dear girls ! I will take all the care I can of myself for your sakes ; otherwise, all would be blank to me. I would turn back tomorrow if I could. I once anticipated pleasure from this expedition—now all is exquisite misery."

Apprehension of Russia, it may be recollected, was at the bot- tom of the whole affair, and General Nott on that point agreed with the Politicals. The following exhibits some of his specula- tions on the practicability of their march through Central Asia. At that time the Russian army failed to reach Khiva. Now, it is said, they hold it.

" I should suppose that any advance of the Russians beyond Khiva will depend entirely on European politics, unless, indeed, they make the slave case a pretext for sending half their large force to Bokhara: at any rate, should Russia differ with England in Europe, their army at Khiva will have reached a fair starting-post to annoy us. No man can be so blind as to be- lieve for one moment that Russia would send such an overwhelming force merely to recover some two hundred slaves from the petty state of Khiva, when four thousand or five thousand would have easily accomplished such an object. Should the state of Europe be such as to induce the Russian army to advance, I think Herat will be the first and chief object : their game will probably be to advance two columns, the one upon Caubul, ac- companied by Host Mahomed, and the other upon Herat, accompanied by the late chiefs of Candahar. I really can see no great difficulty in a march from Khiva or Bokhara to Herat : water, certainly, would at times be rather scarce, but there is no impediment but what may easily be overcome, and in the present state of our information they will have accomplished more than a third of their march before we can hear of their move. If they gain Herat, the safety of Affghanistan must be precarious indeed, and the moral influence would be instantly felt throughout Hindostan, Nepaul, and Bur- mah ; the whole of Asia would be in an agitated state, and the dormant enmity of every petty chief would be roused and be brought into full ac-

tivity. •

"It must not, it cannot be doubted, but that the Russian Government have large reserves ready to reinforce and support their Khiva army, already so far advanced. They have followed the trade of war too long not to know the necessity of a strong base and good communications. I am, of course, in the dark regarding the political wishes or intentions of the British Govern- ment. but I should think, that if they advance any considerable force be- yond Bamean, it would immediately afford a plausible excuse for the Rus- sians, in connexion with the King of Bokhara, (and that these powers are in close alliance I have no doubt,) to advance a column as far as Balk at least : and this is the game they 'wished to play, feeling their way by degrees, and intriguing with the restless and marauding disposition of the people of these countries, and keeping the whole of Asia in a state of agitation, until some favourable moment for striking a decisive blow at our power. And, indeed, under this view of the subject, if we had a larger force, it would be better that they should be induced to advance immediately ; but our force on this side of the Indus is not sufficient, nor could you depend upon any portion of the Shah's subjects, whereas the love of change, the hope of plunder, and the deadly hatred against certain princes, would give the Russian army 60,000 horsemen to cover their advance upon the Indus."

. The selections from the documents in possession of the family appear to have been made with judgment, and the life is cleverly put together ; but the volumes are a sad specimen of bookmaking. The history of the war so far as General Nott was directly engaged in it, is very proper; but we have the story of numerous little af- fairs told at large either in the text or the notes. The pages are swelled by extracts from public documents and formal letters, as well as by private correspondence of compliment, and the appen- dix is encumbered by matter of a similar character. In short, one volume would have been amply sufficient for all that the editor has to tell of a characteristic kind.