* One lady, who met the survivors from Lucknow during their brief stay at Allahabad Fort, was surprised by their demeanour. ‘They were all a most cheerful party,’ she wrote, ‘and with few exceptions you would hardly find out the widows and childless. We must not blame the poor creatures for their apparent heartlessness, for perhaps continued exposure to such fearful scenes caused their feelings to be blunted.’ (Spry Letters, OIOC, MSS Eur/B219.)