१८५७ का स्वातन्त्र्य समर (वीर विनायक दामोदर सावरकर - अंग्रेजों द्वारा छपने से पूर्व प्रतिबन्धित महाग्रन्थ)

THE ERUPTION
drive out the few Sepoys that had found their way inside.
The English express even now a sense of astonishment as
to how the Sikhs stuck to them at that juncture. In half
an hour, the extensive fort of Allahabad would have fallen
into the hands of the Revolutionaries. That is to say,
in half an hour, the backbone of English rule would have
been smashed ! But the Sikhs spent that half an hour in
hacking their own countrymen and their mother country!
Though the Sepoys in the fort rose again and again, the
Sikhs, instead of joining them, disarmed them and drove
them out at the orders of the English. And thus, the fort
continued to be in English hands.
But Allahabad did not fortunately consist of these four
hundred Sikh traitors alone ! As the time for the Sepoy
rising in the fort approached, the city of Allahabad rose
also. The terrible shouts on the parade-ground were
echoed from the town itself. At first, the houses of Eng-
lishmen were destroyed ; then, Sepoys and the people
together broke the prison. No hearts could be more full
of hatred against the English than those of the hundreds
of prisoners there. So, as soon as they were released, they
shouted hoarse cries and ran first to the quarters where
the English resided ! The Revolutionaries had a special
eye on railways and telegraphs ! The railway officers,
the lines, the telegraph poles and wires, engines, were all
crushed to pieces ! In spite of all the precautions taken
by the English, some Englishmen fell into the hands of
the Revolutionaries. They despatched them quickly !
Then, the half Feringhis, who, relying on the protection
of the English, used to treat the “ natives ” with insolence,
came in for their turn. Those who had been against the
Revolution had their houses attacked. The lives of only
those were saved who took oaths, “ We will fight against
the English ! ” On the morning of the 17th, the Revolu-
tionaries captured the treasury containing nearly thirty
lakhs of Rupees. Then, in the afternoon, a great Revolu-
tionary flag was taken in procession and hoisted on the
Published by Asian Educational Services, New Delhi, 2014.
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