669 Pte M. Cousins 90th Foot) (Perthshire light Inf. Later Cameronians, - the Scottish Rifles)

669 Pte M. Cousins 90th Foot) (Perthshire light Inf. Later Cameronians, - the Scottish Rifles)
A bricklayer from Kilkenny, he enlisted in the 90th on 28th Sept. 1875 for a bounty of £1 and 6 shillings. He deserted in Dublin on 1st March 1876, however he was quickly apprehended and spent 18 days in a military prison. This seems to have reformed him, as by Sept. 1879 he was in receipt of Good Conduct Pay. On release from prison, he remained in Ireland until March 1877, then at Aldershot until Sept. 1878 when he sailed for the Cape of Good Hope to bolster the local forces as the Kaffir War had erupted on the frontier. Several companies were sent to the Transvaal to bolster forces keeping an eye on the Zulu nation. Following the defeat at Isandhlwana, the regiment joined the offensive against the Zulu. They took part in the repulse of the Zulu attack on the British laager at Khambula, and the final defeat of Cetshewayo at the battle of Ulundi. The regiment served in Zululand from Oct. 1878 to Oct. 1879, when it sailed for Calcutta, where it remained until June 1881. Cousins returned home and transferred to the Army Hospital Corps stationed in Liverpool.