1 52 SECRET HISTORY OF THE LAHORE DURBAR.
2 About four in the morning a tremendous cannonade wag
3 opened from the concealed batteries. The garrison were unable
4 to return this fire with any effect, from the fact that the fort
5 had no embrasures through which they could point their guns.
6 The place, built originally by the Emperor Akbar merely as a
7 temporary residence for himself and his family, was never fur-
8 nished with the means of defence by the aid of artillery, and
9 possessed nothing more than loop-holes for musketry. The gar-
10 rison now, however, endeavoured to overcome this defect by
11 breaking out embrasures in the ramparts ; but they soon found
12 that this was impracticable, and the attempt dangerous from
13 the frail nature of the masonry, which, old and decayed, came
14 down in masses from the shock of their own guns. In two
15 instances not only were guns thus buried under heaps of ruins,
16 but some lives were lost. They then resorted to the expedient
17 of erecting batteries of wood and earth within the fort, and
18 knocking down the wall in front of them — a process in which
19 they were much aided by the fire of the besiegers ; and thus
20 they were enabled to return the fire of the Seiks with consider-
21 able effect.
22 All this time four guns and a part of the garrison was em-
23 ployed in the indispensible task of keeping quiet the twelve
24 hundred Seik troops that had been found in the fort, and who,
25 had they not been thus overawed, would have glady created
26 a diversion in favour of their friends and comrades outside by
27 falling on the strangers within. But they were kept from doing
28 injury, and confined to the area of the building called the
29 Thuckt or Throne, where they sat silent and sad like so many
30 prisoners of war.
31 Thus for three successive days and nights was a heavy and
32 incessant cannonade kept up by the Seiks upon the place, and
33 returned by the garrison to the best of their power. Several
34 large breaches were formed, and so perfect were they that
35 many of the Dogras of the garrison, during the night, found easy