This was a turning point in Roberts' career. It was to be his first
stepping stone upward, and it illustrates the point that even though
Opportunity may knock at the door--one must be ready for her. That
Roberts finally won his larger success was due not so much to his genius
as to his industry. Edison says that genius is made up of two per cent
inspiration and ninety-eight per cent perspiration.
The great Mutiny, in which Roberts and many another British soldier was
to be plunged, had its immediate cause in a strange thing--greased
cartridges! How so insignificant a thing could have started so great a
trouble is one of the strange, true stories of history. There were, of
course, other contributory factors, but this was the match that touched
off the magazine.
At this time England employed a great many native troops. To be exact,
there were about 257,000; while the British regulars numbered only
36,000. The latter were outnumbered seven to one.
The Ordnance Department adopted a new rifle, the Enfield, at this
juncture, and sent a consignment to India. The cartridges for the rifle
were greased, for easy loading, and were to be bitten by the soldiers.
This last act at once set the sepoy soldiers in an uproar. It was
against their religious scruples to touch meat of any kind, and they
heard it stated that the objectionable cartridges were greased with pig's
and cow's fat.
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