1 THE WAR WITH THE BRITISH. 175
2 the enemy opened a murderous fire upon them, and imme-
3 diately bore down upon and broke the French squares, the
4 Ventura division being- on the right, and unsupported by
5 their comrades. The Gorechars were on the left, and were
6 furiously attacked by the British cavalry, which turned their
7 flank and completely routed them. The artillery was thus
8 left unprotected, and such of the artillerymen as had not
9 sought safety in flight were cut down at their guns. Soon
10 after this the divisions of Mathaub Sing and the Misser
11 retreated, and thus only the French division, which had re-
12 formed, was left to keep up a desultory fire, which continued
13 throughout a great part of the night.
14 Before daylight however, even this division, finding itself
15 unsupported, and in fact deserted, deemed it best to retire after
16 the others, so that by sunrise not a man that could get away
17 was to be seen in the Seik camp. The British, who it was
18 said, had also retreated during the night, now, hearing
19 that the Seiks had fled to the river, advanced and took
20 possession of their camp and artillery. At this moment
21 Sirdar Teja Sing, with some twenty-five or thirty thousand
22 fresh troops, arrived from the camp at Ferozepore, and
23 presented himself before the British force, which, tired and
24 exhausted with its previous exertions, was unable to attack
25 him, and would, in all likelihood, have been found unable
26 to repel a vigorous assault from an army of fresh men,
27 in overpowering numbers, like that led by him. The usual
28 good fortune of the British prevailed however, and in-
29 stead of seeing the Seik reserve advance to the attack, they
30 had the satisfaction of beholding them turn back without
31 firing1 a shot and follow their defeated comrades towards
32 the Sutlej.'" The British force was thus left in undisputed
33 possession of the field of Ferozeshuhur, with the entrenched
34 camp of the Seiks and all their artillery.
35 That portion of the Seik army which had advanced under