3.4 Massacre at Nongkhlao

3.4      Massacre at Nongkhlao

About 400-500 Cassyahs and Garrows surrounded the house and Lieutenant Bedingfield went out amongst them unarmed to see what they wanted. They immediately seized him and after tying his hands behind his back and cutting the tendons of his legs, commenced shooting at him with their arrows.
He told them, if it was his life they wanted, they should kill him at once, which they accordingly did, and cutting of his head planted it on a rock where a bungalow formerly stood.

Lieutenant Burlton on seeing his friend’s fate, defended the house, assisted by a few sepoys of the Assam Light Infantry and his servants, and held out gallantly for a day and a night, until the house was set on fire when they made a retreat of about 10 miles towards Gowhattie, and by keeping up a constant fire kept the mountaineers off, until a dreadful shower of rain came on and drenched their ammunition and rendered their firearms useless.

The small party then dispersed, a few of those who took shelter in the jungle escaped, but Lieutenant Burlton and an European writer (clerk), Bowman, having both kept to the pathway were immediately massacred. Lieutenant Burlton was in the act of extracting an arrow from his wrist, when he was cut down, being in an exhausted state from the immense exertions he had made and his previous ill health.