'History of the Indian Navy. (1613-1863).' [‎524] (565/590)

524
HISTORY OF THE INDIAN NAYY.
of November, in eighteen days from London, earlier by seven
days than Mr. Waghorn. He departed from Alexandria on the
28th of November, and reached Suez in nine days ; that is, five
days quicker than Mr. Waghorn performed the journey. The
whole time actually consumed in travelling from London to
Suez, was thus only twenty-seven days. He quitted Suez on
the 9th ^ of December, and also arrived at Bomba}^, in the
'lhetis,'on the 21st of March, performing the journey from
London to Bombay (exclusive of stoppages) in forty-six
days.
Mr. Taylor—who, unlike Mr. Waghorn, was a consistent sup
porter of the Red Sea route, in preference to that by the Cape,
though his plan of combining steam tugs with sailing vessels
was impracticable—left Bombay for England, via Bagdad, on
the 2nd of May, 1830, in the Hon. Company's ship 'Amherst,'
w^hich conveyed him to Bussorah. Taking with him some
packets of letters from India, he quitted Bagdad about Sep
tember, 1830, being accompanied by some Englishmen, including
Lieutenant Bo water, who had lately been dismissed from the
Service for disobedience of orders. The intention was to
survey the course of the Euphrates from Bir to Hillah, with a
view to the establishment of steam navigation, and the party
proceeded in safety as far as Mosul ; but, within three marches
after leaving it, they were attacked by a large body of Yezedis.
At the first attack their guards fled, but the Englishmen stood
their ground, and killed some of the robbers, who, exasperated
at this loss, made a desperate onslaught, when Messrs. Taylor,
Bo water, and Aspinall were slain, and the three remaining
Englishmen succeeded with difficulty in escaping with their
lives. ] hus untimely fell the first projectors of the Euphrates
Valley route of steam communication with the East, a line by
which many competent persons, including Mr. W. P. Andrew,
its veteran and able supporter, and Captain Felix Jones, of
the Service, are of opinion railway communication is destined
to be accomplished at no distant date.
Lord Wellesley, that greatest of Indian Viceroys, fully
appreciated the advantages of speedy postal communication
between England and India, and, so early as the last years of
the eighteenth century, established a fortnightly communication
between Bombay and Bussorah, by means of the cruisers of the
Bombay Marine The navy of the East India Company. . From Bussorah, under the supervision of the
Company's Resident, Arab carriers, mounted on dromedaries,
kept up a regular communication with Aleppo, from whence
lartars—called, says Colonel Chesney, " life and death
Tartars"—carried despatches to and from Constantinople. In
1837,^ Colonel Chesney, after making his successful descent of
the ligris and Euphrates in the little steamer 'Euphrates,'
tried to induce the Indian Government to reopen this " drome-