E ngli/Zz Interefisin India;AND AN ACCOUNT OF TH E

M IL ITA R Y O P E R AT IONS

I N T H E

Southern Partsof the Peninfula,during the Campaignsof 1782, 1783, and1784 .

IN‘

T W O L E T T E R S ;

Addrefl’

edto the Right Honourable the Earl ofandto LordMACA R T N E Y andthe S z t nc

Cou u r'

r'

rxe of Fort St . George. 9f ~

B Y

WILLIAM FULLARTON of FULLARTON,M .P.

F.R .SS . of Landon andEdinburgh, andlate Commanderof the Sou thern Army on the (foal! of Coromandel .

L O N D O N

PRINTED FOR T . CAD ELL IN THE STRAND ; Ashw . can es, ED INBURGH .

M DCCLXXXVII.

THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

T H E M E‘

M B E R 3

O F T H E

BOARD of CONTROUL .

M Y LORD S AND G E NTLEMEN,

S your Righ t Honourable Boardis. invefiedwith th e controlling

power of th iscountry in all mattersof Hafiern regulation. I take th e liberty

of infcribing to you the following

Account of the Operations'

of th e

Sou th ern Forceson.

th e Coat of Co

romandel, andaView of th e Englifh

Interefisin that quarter of th e Globe.

The

V I E W

Interef’tsin

L E T T E R I.*

M Y L O R D ,

T wouldafi'

ordme the greateft fatisfaction, if the tranfaf’tionswh ich have

occurredfince my departure from England,

enabledme to lay before you any informa

t ion that m ight prove interel’ting, andthat

m igh t tend to evince the fentimentsof‘f Thisletterwaswrittenon the pafi

’

age from lndia toEurope, fubfequent to the Letteraddrefl

‘

edto LordMac

rtney andthe SeleaCommittee of Fort S t. George.

B refpeCl:

A V I EW OF TH E

refpefl:andveneration wh ich imprefsmewhen I venture to addrefsyour Lordfh ip.

If the expedition in wh ich my regiment

embarkedhadbeen fufi'

eredto purfue itsoriginal objea, the tenour of ouroperationsm igh t have affordeda narrative not unde

ferving your attention ; but our after-deiti

nation againft the Cape of GoodHope,

our progrefsfrom thence to India, andour

fubfequent proceedingsthere, furniIh fo

inferior a fubjeét of communication, that

I Ihouldhave been unw illing to intrude

upon your ferionsengagements, hadnot

the fiate of our Eaft India pofiefiionsbecome an object of general importance to

th iscountry.

Although thefe confiderationsandyourLordlh ip

’sgoodnefsmay incline you to

receive indulgently fuch obfervationsasmyrecent opportunitiesfuggefi on th isfubjeét,it isfarfrom my intention however to tref

7 pafs

ENGLISH INTERE ST S IN IND IA . 3

pafsupon your patience, with any detailof particularsrelating to myfelf, or to the

eventsthat precededmy arrival in the Eaft,farther

o

than to requeil your perufal of the

papersinferredin the Appendix . My chief

object isto lay before you an unbiaffed

fiatement of recent occurrencesin India,

andof our actual fituation there.

The principal exertionsduring the con

eluding periodof the war w ith Tippoo

Sultanu, were made by the forcesfouth of

th e river Coleroon, wh ich I hadthe ho

nour to command; andour Operationswerefo intimately connefi ednot only w ith thofe

on the Malabar w all, but with all the

tranfaé’tionsthat occurredwithin the range

of hol’tility, that no jul

’t v iew couldbe

given of the one, without a correfpondingfiatement of the other.

In my addrefsto the Government of

Fort St. George, the difirefsful condition inwh ich

A V I EW O F T H E

wh ich I found thofe countrieswhen ap

pointedto the fouthern command, isfaithfully related th e rife andprogrefsof m ilitary meafuresin the fouthern countries, aswell astheir interruption by a pacification

w ith Tippoo Sultanu, are likew ife recapi

tulated; the local m ifmanagement and

inherent grievancesthat have reducedour

affairsupon the Coafl to the lafl fymptomsof decay, are afterwardsex plained; and

m y obfervationsconclude w ith fuggefiing

fuch meafuresof reform asappear indifpenA

copy of that narrative accompaniesth isfable to th e prefervation of India.

Letter, together w ith feveral authentic

communicationsneceifary to elucidate the

You have heardmuch, my Lord, and

readmore, of the m ifgovernment in India.

There have been declamationsw ithout end

on the peculationsof th e Company’sfer

vants, - andaé‘tswithout number to re

trieve,

ENGLISH'

INTER E STS IN IND IA. 5

trieve, if poflible, the Company’saffairs

but thefe declamationshave only tendedto

afcertain the rhetorical efiimation due to

the perfonswhodeliveredthem,— andthofe

aClshave ‘

too frequently confirmedthe evilsthey were meant to remedy.

In treating of th isfubjeé’t it never ih ouldbe forgotten, that the leading principle of

all Eafiern inflitutionsispermanency ; butthe principle, or at leadthe practice, of all

Englifh politicsin India, hasbeen productive of the mofl:perniciousinflability . By

the firfl, laws, manners, ritesandregula

tionsare handeddown from age to age

undim inifhed’

andunaltered - by the fe

cond, the general order andarrangementsof the country are torn afunder w ith capri

cionsinnovation andto enforce a fyfiem

fo defirué’tive of the dearefl tenetsof the

natives,o the continuedoperation of violence

isrequired.

6 A V IEW OF TH E

The dii’tribution of the GentoosintoTalyngas, Malabars, Marattas, Ganaras,andMalleallums, aswell asinto thedifferent feelsof Bram ins, Rajahpoots,Nyars,and into many inferior fubdivifionsof

merchants, labourers,and artificers, hasremainedinviolate fince the promulgation

of the lawsof Brimha, whofe Shaffer con

tainsthe ordinancesof their faith, andthepandeélsof theirjurifprudence. Thefe in

Ptituteshave withftoodthe ravagesof time,the irruptionsof invaders, andthe revolu

tionsto wh ich, in all recorded periods,thofe countrieshave been expofed.

The w ifdom of the Moorifh conquerorsof Indoflan failednot to preferve th isnutient fabric of Indian a

‘doration. In fail,

the Mahometan governmentsapparentlyreverence the ritesof the Gentoos, whofiill conflitute the mafsof fubjeélson the

peninfula. Under the Moors, they are

liable to oppreflionsincident to all arbitrarygovern

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A V I E W O F TH E

in war, anda vigorousadminif’tration inpeace, the Moorshave ex tendedt heir do

m inionsover the t icheli partsof the peninfula.

The Portuguefe,on the other hand,

whofe armsand enterprife obtained a

geographical ex tent of territory greater

than the circuit of the Roman empire in

the daysof Augufius, blindly z ealoustopropagate the Chriltian faith, found it

eafier to conquer kingdomsthan to fuhvert

eflablifhed doétrines. By violating the

tenetsof their fubjet‘ls, they have ceafedto

be accountedamong the powersof India.

H appily for the Englifh interefis, intolerance in mattersof religion hasnot

m ingledw ith our Indian policy. But in

our civil andm ilitary conduct, intolerance

hasunitedw ith infiability, to v iolate the

m ol’t reveredinfiitutions, andto force pa

cific powersinto meafuresfor our ex ter

m ination.

ENG LISH INTEREST S IN IND IA. 9

mination. So fully are thefe affertionsverihedby every circum l’tance attending the

origin andgrowth of our pow er in India,

that on a conviaion of our rel’defsandnuflable views, wasfoundedthe policy of the

Mogul, the Niz am, the Marattas,andotherRatesof India, who lately aflociatedto accomplifh ourdefiruCtion.

It isnot necelfary for me at prefent to

enumerate the varioustransformationsbywhich the private merchant grew into a

powerful fovereign,with form idable arm ies, '

large revenues, rich manufac’l ures, indufiriousfubjeéts, andterritoriesm ore ex tenfive,

populous, andproduCtive - than the moft

flourifh ingkingdomsofEurope. My inten

tion is, to convince yourLordfh ip that, not

withflanding the enterprife andtalentsbywh ich variousfubjeétsof thiscountry havefignalifedthemfelvesduring the courfe of

Indian operations, no individual effortscan

A V I EW OF TH E

can prevent the fuperi’trué

’ture from

ing, while the groundwork isfo infecure,

In the earliefi periodsof our aggran~

difement LordClive exertedhisutmofi ef

fortsto correét the vicesof our Eaf’tern

fyI’tem . H islettersto the Court of Dirce

torsrecommendedan oeconomical detail

in thedepartmentsof public expenditure,a regulated watchfulnefsover the defen

five preparationsof the country they had

acquired, a confiant attention to the com

mercial purpofesof their infiitution,a rigid

jufiice andia-violable fecurity to their fub

jeéts,anda liberal encouragement of induftry andcultivation. Above all, fayshe,you mull fupport a permanent fyfiem of

conciliatory meafurestowardsthe country

powers:for wh ile a doubt ex iflsrefpeéting your pacific inclinations, their fearsw ill incite them to form machinationstoefi

'

eél your ruin.

Although

ENG LISH INTERES T S IN IND IA . i t

Although the current inflruél ionsfromh ome to thedifferent Prefidencieshavebeenin unifon with thefe admonitions, ourEati

ern governorsavowedly have difobeyedallorders they have commenced hoflility,negotiated' for peace, andrenewedthe war,

juft asfuitedtheir convenience.

I w ill not cirry you farther back, myLord, than I767, when the Government

of Madras, after flagrantly offending the

Nizam, by occupying the Circarsunder thepretence of afirmaun or charter from their

thendependant the Mogul, fent adeputa

t ion, to fubmit their claim to thedifcuflion

of the very Niz am who wasthe injuredparty in the quefiion ; and, w ithout fa

tisfying him for the violation, farther than

by a huddledcompromife to pay h im a tri

bute for theNorthern Circars, enteredinto

engagementswith him to a& conjuné'

tly

againft Hyder Ally, then invadedby the

Marattas. No fooner wasthisunion

formed,

A V I E W O F T H E

formed, than it wasdifi'

olved; and the

Niz am feparating from the Englifh army

underGeneral Smith immediately joined

Hyder, andcontinuedin ho'

Ptility againfl:us; but after feveral unfuccefsful engage

ments, he became weary of the contefi,

andreturnedw ith h isarmy to Hyder~

abad.

The after- narrative of that difgraceful

warfare, asexpreffed in General Smith’s

letter to Lord Clive, exh ibitsthe mofl:firiking picture of our Eaflern councils.There we may learn, by what inverted

policy it ispoflible to defeat the heft- founded expet

‘l ations; to render abortive the

exertionsof the ablef’t general, andbraveftarmy

- how an enemy may be reduced, byrepeatedlofsin battle, to pr0pofe the melt

favourable termsof accommodation ; and

yet, thusweakenedandexhaufled, how he

fi See General Smith’sLetter to LordClive.

ENG LISH INTERESTS IN IND IA. 3 3

may be enabledto triumph over every dif

after.

My reference to thefe faélsisonly

meant to evince, that the contempt which

Hyder Ally entertainedfor our councils:andh isenm ity towardsour eflablifhment,

however w idensto our interefts, originatedin our aggreflions. We hadhardly breath - a

edafter the war with H yder, when the

public conflernation wasex citedby unpro

voked hoflility w ith the Maratta fiates,againft whom, whatever migh t be the

ol’tenfible pretex t, I know not of any fub

jetl of complaint, ex cepting that they held

pofl'

eflionson the Malabar coaft, ex tendingfrom the northwardof Surat to the vicinity

of Goa ; wh ile our Prefidenc'

y of Bombay,

exclufive of their ifland, were circumfcribedw ith in the narrow lim itsof a faétory at Suerat,andanotherat Telicherry . YourLordih ip hasno doubt obfervedin the printed

and

14 . A VI EW OF TH E

andofficial communicationsrefpeéting thatcontell, amafsof incidents, comparedwithwh ich, the indignitiesincurred by the

MadrasGovernment in the preceding war

of 1767with H yder, almofi:ecafe to ap

peardifreputable

I-Iofiilitiesat lafi:commencing betweenthe Englifh andFrench , the Englilh were

again involvedin war w ith Hyder Ally.

Under thefe circumflances, it became neceffary to confider of a pacification w ith the

Marattas. Negociationswere Opened; butaswe hadfought w ithout concert, fO we

treatedwithout communication. The Ge

neral negotiates, the Government of Bom

bay negotiates, the fupreme Boardnegoti

ates, the Reprefentativc of a higher Power

negotiates— all differ, all counteraét each

other ; andthe Maratta Government found

it fo impofiible to reconcile their contradic

See Pechell’saccount of" military afi-

‘

airsat Bombay.

tory

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16 A

‘

vrrw OF THE

have forgotten that h e ever h adinvadedthem, or rather that he ever could in

vade them again. T he fuperior gehiusof Hyder perceived, that the territoriesa nd pofition of the Englilh , asw ell

astheir proficiency in military fcience,

would render them'

defirable allies, and

give unequivocal fuperiority to h isforceswhenconjoined. w ith theirs; but experienceproved, that he couldnet rely

“On men fo

difunitedarid unprincipled. To adopt a

neutral fyfiem, neither promifedfecurity,nor fuitedh isdecifive character. What then

remained but hofiile meafures, again& a

nationw ith whom alliance or neutrality

appeared”

alike unfafe i’— I—Iiscampaignsduring the

’

preceding war expofedtheir

vulnerable parts—their -difregardof m ili

tary preparation markedout the Carnatic

asan inv iting fieldof new acquirement

andthe growingprofligacy of each fucceed

ing Government, improving on the rapal

city

ENGLISH INTE RE STS IN IND IA. 17

rapacity of that which precededit, con

firmed the hatred which our previousconduét jufiified Hyder

’senmity wasI‘Ouféd to indignation by

' our attack on

Mahee,aFrench fettlement under h isproteé

'

tion:Ilill more washe inccnfedat

the negotiation with Ba'

z alet Jung, brother

of the Niz am,andproprietorof Adoni,bywhich that prince cededto the Englifh the

Guntoor Gitez r, upon condition that a

force fhouldbe employedin hisdefence.Thisflipulatedforce aé

’tually marched

under Colonel Harper to Inikonda, in itsway to Adoni but in confequence of va

riousprocrafiinations{0 many monthswere walled, that Hyder hadfull leifure

to poll a firong party at the entrance of

the pafsnear Inikonda. TheColonel,finding the enemy in great Ilrength, andthat

their orderswere to attack the Englilh if

0 Thiswasthe cafe, until the un ites-able reaitude of

LordMacartney checkedthe progrefsof venality.

C

I! A V IEW O F TH E

they~ fhouldattempt tomarch netofaHyder

’

c .r

territory; recededfrom the eritcrprife.

Bazalet Jung, on th isoccafion, osmriencedthe treachery of Europeans; for,relying on our goodfaith, he hadceded

the GuntoorCircar, andafterwardsdifoofveredthat the movement of the troopstowardsh im wasdelufive, andthat the delayswhich enabledHyder to prevent thein

march toAdoni,were fraudulently contrived

by theMadrasGovernment,in order todefeat the performance of their Ilipulations.On the other hand,

’

hadwefulfilledour

engagementsw ith Baz alet Jung- hadwe

marchedarefpeétable army to Adoni, fuch

were the advantagesof that fituation, thatwhilewe couldhavemaintainedit,no power

in Indiawouldhave venturedan invafion of

the Carnatic ; forAdoni“ menacesMyfore,Beddanore, the countriesof the Marattas,

It isfuperior. in a topographical point of View, to

any interiorpetitionin the peninfula.

ENG L ISH INTEREST S IN IND IA. 19

andthe Decan, wh ile the natural firength

of that fortrefs, andthe refourcesit ‘

com

mands, fecure it, if well garrifoned, againl’cany danger from a native power:but all

thefe confiderationswere ‘

facrificed— Baz alet

Jung wasdifpleafed— the Niz am Offend

cd— andH yder exafperated.

Every power in India faw the danger

that threatenedthe Prefidency Of Madras;andthe Carnatic wasactually over- run by

H yder w ith an army of men, at

the very moment when that Government

boaf’tedthat he .durl’t not meditate hoflility .

Thémelancholy anddifgraceful eventsthatfollowed, are too unpleafing to adm it of

obfervation. The fate of Colonel Baillie’s

detachment, andthe fubfequent retreat of

the army to Madras, are frefh in every me.

mory . After the furrender of Arcot and

the ch ief fortsto H yder, he appointed

renterscolleéted the revenuescoined

money— and ex ercifed all aélsof fove

reignty, being defacto Nabob of the Car

C 2 natie.

20 A V I EW O F T H E

natic. It isunneceffary to enlarge on the

fubfequent tranfaaions:the arrival of Sir

EyreCoote from Bengal- the juné

’tion of a

detachment from thence withColonel Pearfe

—the battlesof Porto Novo, ~

Pulaloor,

andShul'

engur, andthe other operationsofthe Carnatic army ; or to recapitulate the

fucceffcsof the fquadron under Sir Edward

Hughes*, againfl:Negapatam andTrinco

maley, which formedthe concluding inci

dentsof the year 178 1 It isonly meant to

offer fome remarkson ourpolitical fituationin thofe countries, in order to prove the

errorsof our paft condu it, andto fuggelt

what appearsto be the leaft objeétionable

m ode of permanent reform .

That diftinguith edAdmiral exhibited, in the reduetion of thofe important places, the fame fuperior coudoft

which he afterwardsdtfp layedIn h isnaval aélionswith theFrench .

Having hadthe goodfortune to ferve with my regiment

on boardthe fquadronduring the courfe of thofe engage

ments, I cannot mention the name of SirEdwardH ughes,without exprefiing the warmefi fentimentsof attachment

andrefpetl ,due to fuch profellional meritsandineliimableprivate worth .

ENGL ISH INTERES T S IN IND IA. 2 1

In thisfiage orour difafiers, the fragmentsof the Cape expedition arrivedat

Madras It isimpoflible to imprefsyourLordfh ip

’smindwith any adequate repro

fentation of the deplorable condition of

that Prefidency ; nor wouldit be an agree

able talk to expatiate on fuch ex tremesofhuman wretchednefsaswere there expe

rienced. If any fcene of danger anddif

trefscouldinfure concordandco- operation

among m en,the full difplay of th'

ofe virtuesm igh t have been expeéledat Madras.Hyderwasin pofi

'

efiion of the countryTippoo about th istime cut off our fouth

ern detachm ent w ith Colonel Braithwaitef- the French were landing a body, appa

rently of fufiicient force to decide the con

teil . In th isfituation, our appfehenfionsof the enemy, aswell asth e defire of reco

y ering the reputation we had loft, {h ouldh ave excitedusto aél:w ith cordial effort ;indeed, no profpeét of defence remained

,

but in the unitedenergy of every individual conneflzedw ith our caufe.

1February 1782 .

C 3 Under

2 2 A V I E W O F T H E

Under fuch circumfiances, yourLordfh ipw ill hardly credit theaffertion,that the buli

nefsof the war wasby no m eansthe mainObject of atfention, Councils— generalsfeamen— foldiers— andcivilians— fervantsofthe King, Company, andNabob, feem ed

almol’t to have forgotten that the enem y

w ere at their gates, andthat th ey hadanyadverfariesto contendw ith but each other.

Such perniciouscounteraé’tions, at a mo

ment too when the public difirelfesough tto have precludedall private contention,

ex citedmy furprife. On tracing the fource

of thefe diforders, it appeared that they

did not originate in any blameable dif

pofition of the parties; on the contrary,

the leading charaé’terswere dillinguifhedbyfuperior talents, andem inent in the dif

ferent walksof life to wh ich they belonged.

From a difcordant principle in the politi

cal part of our Indian fyllem afofe thofe

evils, wh ich were too inveterate to yield

to any palliative expedient. Individuals5 are

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24 A V IEW OF TH !

ment of a country (0 overwhelmedbyevery fpecies‘of calamity, that fuch forti

tude, integrity, andperfeverance ashepolfefl

'

ed, couldalone have preventeditscondition frombecoming irretrievable

but to a mindlike his, when once ens

gagedin an important public objeél , no

difficulty couldappear unfurmountable, no

combination of embarrafi'

mcntsexceedthereach of hisexertions,

In aibort time he concludedanarrange

ment with theNabob of Arcot, by which

the revenuesof the countriesunder hisHighnefs’sauthority were refcuedfrom

mifmanagemcnt,andalligoodto the Com

pany, in order to fupport the ex igenciesof x the war. —The fecurity of Madras,wh ich he foundaé’tually experiencing the

feveritiesof famine, wasprovided forw ith the utmoft w ifdorn anddifpatch .

—The inefficientdefcnfive fyftem onwhich

thewar hadbeenconductedin the Carnaatic,

ENGLISH INTERESTS IN IND IA. z,

ft , h e endeavoured to ex tendinto of.

fenfive operations, and every effort wasmade by the Civil Government to enable

the Carnatic army to advance into the

enemy’spofl

'

eflionsof Myfore.—The

hege of Negapatam wasundertaken by

the direélion of the Governor, and

provedfuccefsfial, notwithfianding the 0p

pofition againlt that meafure by the

Commander in Chiefi—Troopswere alf’

o

{but to enable the fquadron to reduceand garrilbn Trincomaley . The previ

ousextravagance by wh ich the financesof the country had been waited and

public credit overthrown, wasrefirain

edby afirm andrigidhand. The moll:anxiousretrenchm ent wasenforced in

every department not a fingle malven

fation, negligence, or abufe, feemed to

cfcape the penetrating obfervation of the

Governor; who,ata crifisthemoltdifirelfIn] and alarming that the Englifli

~

hm!

CYCI'

36 A VIEW O F T H E

ever experiencedfince their efiablifliment

in India, exh ibited an alfernblagef

of

talents, energy, andrefi itude, of w h ich

few examplescan be tracedin any coun

try

In order to account for the rife and

p rogrefsof thefe diffenfions, andof that

difcordant principle in wh ich they origi

nated, your Lordfhip will be pleafedto te

colle&, that the fpirit of our primary efia

blilhment in India knew no powerfuperior

to the Company’sGovernment. Thisau

;thority,perplexedan’dwavering asit migh t

.be renderedby the politicsof the difl'

erent

Prefidenciescounteradting each other, had.

Howeverfirongmy inclination istodo jallice to the

meritof LordMacartney’sGovernment, it wouldill be

come me to attempt adetail of the great andcomplicatedtranfafiionsin which he wasengaged. D ellituu of ma

terials, andunequal to fuch an undertaking, it onlyremainsforme to exprefsmy hopesthat hisLordlh ip will

'

be inducedto give the Public a hifiory of the important

dairiwhich he conduaedwith fuch difiinguilhedability .

yet

at A VIEW T HE

parliament afl'

umedan executive interfe

rence in thofe very powersof fovereignty,by the appointment, recommendation, or

confirmation of certain officersof jufiice,andothersto be eliablilhedin India. The

power anddignity of the Crown had, at

an earlier period, been brough t into direfl:competition, though not on equal terms,w ith the power andfovercign authority of

the Company . An embafi'

y hadbeen fent

immediately from the Crown to the Nabob

ofArcot, unavoidably in oppofition to the

power of the Company . Vehement dili

putesarofe between theAmbafl'

adorandthe

Prefidency of Fort St. George. The Go

vernor andCouncil confiitutedthe regular

authority of the fettlement, andpoflefl'

ed

the powersof adminil’tration ; while the

otherclaimedfuperiority asreprefentative ofthe Sovereign. TheNabob andall the other

native princeswere perplexed. They had

beentaught,that in theCompany wasvefledthe fupreme

'

authority ofEngland, asfarasrefpeCted

ane t rsn INTERESTS IN IND IA. 39

refpefledIndia—that no other power had

any right of interference there. Now

they are told, the Company isnoth ingmore than a private body of merchants,w ithout corifequence or confideration in

th eir own country, andwho are foon to

lofe all power andconfequence In India.

In thisfituation of affairs,what {hall theunfortunate Naboh believe l— how lhall he

aél l - A hofi of needy adventurerspofl'

efsth emfelvesof hisconfidence, impofo uponh iscredulity, andtaint h ismindwith opi

nionsthat havefince provedhisdefiruétion.Your Highnefs(fay thefe adventurers)mull:{bake of? your conneétionswiththofe traders-

you mull now adhere to

the fovereignpowerandmajeliy of Eng

land: You, Sir, are an independent

prince you are guaranteedin your

territory of theCarnatic by the treaty

of Paris; - the kingsof France andSpain have ratifiedthat treaty, andthe

a king

30 A v I Ew or T II II

king of Englandisyour protefior.Throw off, therefore, all dependence on

the mercantile afibciation.

”

You will not be furprifed, my Lord,that an Afiatic Prince, who cannot recon

cile the contradiCtionof a body of mer

chantspofi’

efling fovereignty, lh ouldhave

been deceivedby language fo congenial to

h isnatural propenfitiesefpecially when

confirmedby the folemnity of public letters,andan embafl

'

y from the Sovereign.

From that moment, h isattachment to

the Company wasIh aken z— he [poke light

ly of their power, difregardedtheir fer

vants, andcounterat dtheIr Intentions.The Government of Madrasrefented

thisdefeCtion, andforcedhim to confefsthat hisnew ‘

allieswere either negligent of

their promifes,orunequal to refill theComa

pany, in whole handsthe executive con

trol fiill remained.

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3: A VIEW or TH E

by the Company’sconfiitution, are thede

legatesof their authority, it feemedne

osfl'

ary that the Boardof Madras{houldhave fome control over operationsfor thecond andrcfult of wh ich they floodresfponlible to their fuperiors. —They repre

fentedthefe circumflancesto the SuPreme

Board,but fentence waspronouncedagainfithem,andtheGeneral wasconfirmedin theunpurticipateddirection of the war. The

movementsof the army however didnot

profperz- the fame narrow limitsmarked

their progrefs. —the fame deficienciesofdraugh t, carriage,andconveyance,aswell asof grain andmoney,iiill frufiratedall h0pesof profiting by fuccefs, anddefeatedeveryfuggefiion of vigorousendeavour.

The Supreme Board, after much acri

moniousdifcuflion, revokedtheir fentence,

andreplacedthe controlling power in the

M of the Madrasgovernment:butanother

34 A VIEW OF T H E

thofe between the Civil Government and

Sir Eyre Coote. The campaign under that

General againfl:Cuddalore, wasinterruptedby acelfation of hofiility between the Eng

Iilh andFrench . Thofe dangerousneighbourswere thusleft in pofi

'

eflion of a pofi,

the lofsof which would probably have

obliged them to abandon India, hadnot

the difunion of the ruling andexecutive

powersdifiraCtedourmeafures,andaddedafartherproof, that under the influence ofdifcordant principles, neither time normeans

,

circumfiance nor opportunity, can enfure

fuccefs. The General wasfuperfeded in

the commandof the army, calledto theprefidency, andafterwardsremandedto Eu

1‘0pe.

Sir John Burgoyne'

fucceededasCommandcr inChief of the King

’stroops.H e afl

'

erted'

powersandprivilegesthat theGovernment declaredto be incompatible

with

fiNGL lS Ii INTERESTS IN INDIA.

With the confiitution of theCompany. He‘

perfified, andwasfuperfededby a Cold- 5

nel on the Company’sef’tablifhment, Who,

on th isoccafIOn, Wasraifedtothe rank of

Lieutenant General, and’

Commander in

Ch ief upon theCoafi. SirJohn Burgoyne,ln confequence of th ispromotion, claimed“

the ex c’

lufive command at leal’t of the

King’str00ps,— andWasarref’ted.

Another General became fenior of the

King’sfervice,andfubm itted. The remain-flb

ing Generalshadfigned a remonfirance

againft the violation offeredto the royal

fervice by the a ndof theirCommanderstSome of them adhered to their declara

tions, andleft the country ; others, pliantto the times, enjoyedthe benefitsof unferviceable, but not unprofitable, fiations.After th isdetail, your Lordlh ip w ill not befurprifedat any difiurbance that hasfinseoccurredin thofe polfeflions.

D 2

36 A V IEW O F T H E

It isnot with in the limitsof my purpofeto enlarge upon the actsof the legiflaturenow

!

ex ifiing, on thofe that have been pro

pofedrefpefi ing India, or on the proceed

ingsof Parliament in their late capacity asa Court of Inquef

’t The pretenfions

of Governor andCommander fiill remain

in collifion with each other,- flthe Kingand.

Company flill continue in that country to

be contendingpowers,— wh ile theCompany

and Nabob are boundover to perpetual

variance. Between the civil andm ilitaryno line istraced; no redrefsfor the latter,no mode of coercion for the former, and

the warfare of the Prefidenciesisex tendedandconfirmed.

My Letter to the SeleCt Committee

of Fort St. George containsevery other

Since thispaper waswritten, the powersof Governor andCommander in Chief have been united in

the perfon of LordCornwallis, andother important ar

rangementshave taken place for the correction of our In

dian fyficm.

material

33 A‘

V I EW O F T H E

But before we enter on a particular view of

th ismelancholy fubjeéi, it may be necefw '

fary to Rate the ex tent andlocal circumvx

fiancesof our podeflionsin that quarter

The provincesofBengal,BaharandOt lffa,aspofl

’

effedby the Britifh,andincluding'

Benares contain an area of

fquare m iles; their annual revenuesarefuppofed to have amounted

,in

“

happier

times,to fierling, andtheir

.

population to I I,0 0 0,00 0:the provinceof Oude and itsdependenciescomprehendan area of 53,a86 fquare m iles,yieldeda revenue of andmain- y

rainedg0 ,0 0 0,0 0 0 of people,

It mufi be obferved,that theMogul Gog

vernment in Indiawasa foreign andOpprefq{Ive government ; andconfequently,that the

gountriesunder itsauthority were far from

havmg attainedtheir h ighefi periodof im

provement. It islikewife demonflrable,

0§eeMajorKennell

’sMemoirs,

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46 A V I EW O F T H E

dominion nearly equal in toy enue, andfan

{bperior in p0ptulat'ion

‘

aswell asin ex tent,

to Great Britain,t the richeft andinnit:productive kingdom ,

in'

proportion to itsarea,that everexii

’tedinthe temperate z ones,

In former timestheBengal 'countr‘leswereth e granary of nations, andthe repofitory

of commerce,wealth andmanufafi ure in the

Bali . Vefi’

elsfrom all quarterspouredoutth eir treafureson th e banksof the Ganges,"

andthe numberlefsnationsth at people thenorthern regionsof Indof’can, asfar asCafhm ire, Lahore

‘

andThibet, including a

range of feveral thoufandm iles, ufedto de-e

pofit their richesth ere, asthe great martandcentre of their trafiick. But

-

fuch hasbeen the refilefsenergy of our mifgovcrn

m ent, that with in the (hon (pace of twenty

yearsmany partsof thofe countrieshavebeen reducedto th e appearance of adefert

The fieldsare no longer cultivated,—ex tenfive tractsare already overgrown w ith

thickets,

ENG L I SH IN TERE STS IN IND IA. 4 ;

thickets, the hufbandman isplundered,the manufacturer Opprcfl

'

ed, - fam ine hasbeen'

repeatedly endured, - anddepopula

tion hasenfueda The difi'

rifisare fannedout to Renters, or Zemindars, -andthe

collections, aswell asall other bufinefsrelating to finance, are committedto a

Provincial Chief,who reportsto the Coma.

mittee of Revenue. Th e Renterholdsbya preca

rioustenure, wh ile it coiishimfo much to procure andmaintain h islituation, that if h isexaétionsbear proportionto h isrifk and‘

advance of money, they

mutt be ex tremely fevere indeed. Neither

Wouldit fuit the viewsof a Chief to he

letsindui’triousin the bufinefsof ex tortion.

They mufif therefore be unufually inexpert

if they do not between them contrive to

difirefsthe inhabitants, to ruin agriculture,

andto defraudthe Government of at leafi

th irty or forty per cent. of the fiipulated

payments. Thisthey manage by Ratemeritsof approaching want, which they

4: A V I EW o r T H E

themfelveshave occafloned; by accountsof provincial works, which are never per

formed by unjufiifiabledeductions,andbyconnivance at thedefalcationsof the ma

nagers.

The hufbandmen andRyotsdependenton thefe depredators(comparedw ith whomthe feudal Serfswere in a liate of freedom )are in their turn happy mortals, when con

trafiedwith the weaversandmanufaéiurers.If the former be plunderedof their grain.

the chafi'

at leafi isleft for their fubfilience ;but fuch isthe fyl’tem of commercial reguq

lation that thewretchedmanufafi urershavehardly a refource. The CommercialChief,

to whom they are fubjeét, andwho,under

theCommittee of Trade andManufaaure,

ischargedwith the bufinefsof inveliment,aflignsto all the portionof their labour, - by

a fmall advance pretendsto an appropriationof their inddfiry,— deniestheir right to ufe

their ingenuity for their own advantage,cf

’tablilhes

E NGLISH INTERESTS IN IND IA.

diab lifhesa ruinousmonopoly, by the

ah u fe/

of power, andtreatsthem asboudilm en toiling for h isbenefit. The confe

quence is, defertion among the weavers, adecreafing invefiment for the Company,

enormousacquifition for h imfelf, anda

fatal flagnation of all tradeandmanufacture

th roughout h isdifirifl.

In Oude, Rohilcund, andall th e upper

countriesw ithin our influence, the nativesare, if pofiible, {till more difirelied. Va

rioushordeshave beendriven todefpair byhardlh ip andexaéi ion. They have afl

'

em

bledin formidable force, andmenacedthe

whole country the hufbandman goesto the plough with

‘

a firelock over h isflioulder, wh ile the Government istoofeeble to refirain there outrages, andtoo

much depreflcdto affordrelief.

If we truli to ourmilitary on the Bengal

cfiablifllment for proteétion againfi thefe

alarming

A V IEW OF TH E

alarmingenormities,we{hallfind", that entirecorpshave ex ifiedon paper,.who, exclufive

of the Commandant and Staff, never

had'

any ex ifience but on paper ; and

it will fartherappear, that thofl:Sepoyswho have a real ex ifience, are neither well

'

difciplined, nor regularly paid. The de

creafing produce of the country isconfumedby the utmoi’t contrivance of profa

lion ; andfo walieful Isth e modeof contri

hution, that the country of Oude, period

after period, hasfallen into arrears, leavingthe exhaul

’tedprince w ithout meansof fup .

porting hisgovernment, orofmaintaininghisfamily.When LordClive, by h istreaty with

Sujah Dowla, refioredthat great,country to

itsrightful owner, fiipulating only in be

half of the . Company forty- fix lacksdf

rupeesfor itsm ilitary defence he meant

to proclaim aloudthroughout Indofian, the

i' To pay abrigade which the Company fiationsin theprovince!

juflice andmoderationofEnglilh policy,and

to convince the country powers, that theCompany ratherchofe to be friendsandpro-e

teaors, than tyrantsandufurpersover thofeth ey conquered. Littledidthat fuperiorguesniusforefee, that by hisboaftedtreaty thetreafuresof1a powerful prince were indierefily to be transferredinto a linking—fund,and hiswhole dominionsconvertedintoan afylum for the fole ufe andbenefit of

prodigalsandincorrigibles.

It wouldbe a trefpafson your patience,my Lord, to expatiate farther on the im

policy by which a country, fuperior in

wealth andmeansto the whole kingdomof England, hasbeen fo fpcedily precipi

tated, without convulfion or internal war,into aRateof actual infolvency neithercar;

1, without impertincnce to yourLordfh ip’

e

ready apprehenfion,enlarge upon the firong

fuggeftionsthat imprefsmy mindwith theimpending catafirophe, about to clofe thisfcene of unexampleddepravity.

But

But the indufiry of the Supreme Boardisby no meansconfinedto Bengal anditsadjacent provincesthey haVe an extendedlatitude of power every other boardandprefidency isfubjeétto their fway, andtheir controlling influence pervadesth e

whole politicsof India. Without difcuf-s

fing the meritsof th isunboundedinter- b

ference, experience hasevinced, that in

itsprefent modification, it hasdifconcert-sed every meafure of the other Govern-i

ments, andfunk them in the efiimation

of all neighbouring Rates; while the Su~

preme Boardfiationary in Calcutta haslamboured under fuch impedimentsof dif-atance, local ignorance andendlelsavoca-a

tion, that in every infiance where they

have defcendedto fuch interference, they

have expofedthemfelvesto public ridicule ;andafter marring the bufinefsbeyondallchance of remedy, have been forcedat lafl:to throw it from themfelvesUpon the preafidency, to which from habit, vicinity, and

connection it didof right belong.

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4 3 A V I EW o r TH E

latitude of itscontrol, yet afl'

uredly it isenabledto defeat all ufeful victim of every

‘

Other Board, to thwart or over- rule all

plansof public fervice, and, in a paroxyfrn

of political phrenfy, to make away w ith

half the peninfula.

If it be judgedexpedient to have a Su

preme Boardof India, in whom all the

Controlling powersof Government {hall

ultimately concentrate, in the name of com-r

mon fenfe let it be a Boardof Circuit

let it be a Boardof infpecftion, aswell asofcontrol,compofedofmembersfrom each pre

lidency, detachedfrom the embarraifmentsandcorruption of provincial regulation

let it beaBoardthat can obfervewith impar-s

tiality, judge w ith accuracy, andact with

vigour- that can move to any fpot in

India, where public emergenciesare molt

urgent, andcall more immediately for itsprefence. Thus, andthusonly, can it be

come a Boardof extendedefliciency either

to

ENGL ISH INTER EST S IN IND IA. 4 9

to enforce obedience, refirain fubordinate

mifconduét, or unite in one connected

feriesthe valt andcomplicatedmafsof Indian afi

'

airs*

Leaving thisgloomy retrofpeé’t, let us

confidcr how wearefituatedwith regardto

other powers, andwhat we are likely to

become on the peninfula. The territoriesof hither India, or what hasinaccuratelybeen calledthe empire of the Great Mogul,

extends1680 milesin length, 14 4 0 in

breadth, containsan area of

fquare miles, andmaintainsIof inhabitants. Taking the area of Great

Britain and Ireland at Major Reynell’s

eliimate of I 31,80 0 fquare miles, andof inhabitants, it isnearly nine

The preceding remarkson the condition of Bengalanditsadjacent territoriesare not the refult of perfonal

obfervation, andtherefore may be eonfideredaslefsdeferving attention than thofe which I have venturedto

oli'

er on the “PairsofCoromandel. There islittle doubthowever, confidering the natural fertility of thore coun

tries, that a mildandpermanent adminiliration might

foon reliore them to profperity.

E

go A V I EW o r TH E

timesasex tenlive, and containseleventimesasmany people asthe three king

doms.

I will not haz ardany calculation of the

grofsproduce andrevenue of that empire,

but they bearmore than adue proportion to

th isfuperiorpopulationandex tent. Itsfoilaffordsevery article for the fubfilience or

conveniency of man that can be cultivated

in the lower latitudes. It hasfor agesbeenthe feat of manufaél ure, indufiry,andcom

merce. Itsinhabitantsare civilifed, inge

nionsandrefined, accuf’tomedto war, and

proficientsin the arts, fciences, andembel

lilhmentsof peace. With fuch fuperlativeadvantages,no fiate recordedin theannalsofEurope couldfiandin competition w ith the

Mogul Empire, if fuch an empire did in

faCt include under one gov ernment the

territoriesto which it givesa name ;

but the vall:tract comprehendedunder thatvaguedefcription isparcelledout among a

multiplicity ofdifcordant powers, andpeopied

ENGLISH INTEREST S IN IND IA. g:

piedby numberlefstribes, diflimilar inmanners, language,andreligions

If wedivide the whole region into I I4

geographical parts, we {hall find, that of

thefe, fomething lefsthanone part belongsto the Mogul andh isimmediate adherents;to the Afl

'

gans, Kafhmirians,Pitans, Candahars, Seets, Abdallas, andvariousothernorthernHordes, twenty - five parts; to theMaratta States, including Berar, forty

eight ; to theNizam, includingAdoni,five‘

andan half ; to the Circar of Tippoo Sulf

taun, includingCudapah, eight andan half

to the Rajah of Travancore, One ; to the

Englifh, andtheir adherents, twenty - eight

andan half:the remainder may be afiignedto the petty Rajahs, Polygars, andother

'

clafl'

esof aboriginal Gentoos, who have

hitherto defiedthe powersof the crefcent

andthe crofs, and, under Cover of woods,mountains, and inaccefiible retreats

, have

all'

ertedindependence.

E 2

5 3 A V IEW OF Tfi B

Of cthefe, the Travalmore Rajah, the

Malabar Rajahs, andfuch of th e interior

Chiefsas,never hadthe m isfortune of our

intercourfe, have, I believe, no reafon to

complain of us; but every other individual

fiate hasbeen (0 deeply injuredandinfultedby the Englilh , that if their refentmentshepreportioned to th eir wrongs, they can

fcarcely ever be cfl'

aced.

When the Bengal Government withdrewtheir covenantedflipend from the Mogul,

andforcedhim, by their ufage, to fly from

hisrefidence at Ilhahad, andto throw h imfelf upon the mercy of the contendingCh iefsandH ordeswho infel’t the environsof Delhi, they fhouldhave recolleétedthat,fallen ashe is, anddiminifhedin h isfplendor, he isflill of material confequence in

the affairsof India, being the acknowledgedparamount of all the Mahometan powersin thofe countries

H IS late minilier Nidz ifi'

Cawn had horfe

under hiscommand.

ENGLISH INTERES T S IN IND IA. 53

The Afgans, Pitans, Db r’

anies, Abdallahs, Condahars, Kafhmirians, andother

hordesof Mufl'

ulmen wh y people the nor~

’

them territoriesof Indoltan, are brave andwarlike, impatient of peace, andeagerfor

adventure. 80 unfettledisthe prefent Rateof all thofe northern countriesadjoining toBengal, that any refolute leader, black or

White,of military reputation,might, on the

fi erteli notice, taife an‘

army of

men, ready to follow him aslong ashee

‘

ouldfeedandpay them . Even in Oude,near r50 lacksof the revenue cannot be

colleéited, but by the aidof a leader, who

confiantly maintains troopsandfiftypiecesof cannon ready for emergencies.

The Dual)“ hasbeen twice farmedout

to Englith gentlemen, on condition t hat

they {houldraife oremploy a force fuflicient

to collect the revenuesof it, with permiffion, after paying the flipulatedfum into

A province near Oude.

54 A V I EW or T HE

the Nabob of Oude’streafury, to plunderandranfack the diflriClsfor their own ad

vantage:but of late it hasbecome the

receptacle of the rich anddifaffeétedleadersthroughout the country, who fortify them

{elvesthere, maintain confiderable force,0

andalert a Rate of open IndependenceThe followersofNidz ifi'

Cawn,andof other

great Ch iefs, have h itherto been maintain;edby quartering difi

'

ercnt bodiesof them.

on particular difiriéts, with ordersto theCommander of each body to collect the

revenuesof the country, andto fubfil’t his

troopsby force of arms. But by thisout,rageousfyfiem, thofe countries

,are already

exhauf’ted, and thefe defiroyers, like the

Hunsandthe Vifigoths, muft feel:for fubqfifience andplunder in new acauifitions,

if they direCt their progrefstowardsBengap“, they will findthat country asOpento in

'

x'

afion asit wason the day when we

Bengal is, however, naturally afirqng country .

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56 A VI EW or Tn'

r

rationsof hofiile cavalry. If they fhouldfail in driving usfrom the provinces, theyare at leali fure to enrich themfelvesWill!fpoil, and to render them, like the Car

natie,a polleflion fearcely worth contendingfor.

The fame obfervat ionsapply with equal

truth to the Maratta fiates. Their. (enti

mentstowardsusare not lefsjufily markedwith imprefiionsof refentmene

have repeatedly afiefl edthe claim of Client

or tribute from Bengal, which, in; their

idiom , isnearly fynonymouswith impendning invafion. Their numbersandco—Ope~ration, in contrafi w ith our difcordentweaknefs, enfure them an ample crop of

laurels, asfoon asthey {hall refolve to pal'sthe Jumna. With regardto the Niz am,

our momentary fecurity isfoundedon! hispacific charaél er. Pofiefiedashe isof agreat andfertile fovereignty, ample reve

nues,andan army’

of troops,whichhe

ENGL ISH INTERESTS {N IND IA . 51

he coulddouble with facility on a few

monthsnonce, nothing waswanting butdetermination to have gratifiedto the full

hisenmity againfi thea Englifh . WhenHyder invadedthe Carnatic, the Niz am

hadonly to march a force into the Northern

Circars, andthofe enviable territoriesmull:infallibly have revertedto their rightful

owner:But thefe are inferior dangers, When

Comparedwith the flrength andmenacingconditionofMyfore. The recent growth andwarlike advancement of that {tare exh ibit a

phenomenon unparalleledinhifiory. Inthe

earlier part of thiscentury,when theDela

way or Regent of Myfore marchedagainfi

Tritchinopoly with a great body of horfe,

their troopswere in the lowell Rage of

military ignorance ; andtheir unfkilfulnel's

wasonly equalledby their pufillanimity .

The country wasthengovernedby a nativeRajah, the lineal heir of theMufnud. He

7 was

58 A V IEW OF TH E

wasof the Canara call, andthe great

body of hispeople were likewife of Ca

tiara orGentoo defcent. They were hap

py under h isgovernment ; but they wereneitherrich norrefpeétahle.

By t he ghautsor mountains, on which

the t able landof Myfore iselevated, if isfeparatedfrom the Carnatic on the call,

from the great plainsofCoimbatore on thefond), from the

,

Malabar territorieson

the well, andfrom the countriesof Bed,danore andGhutty on the north —“ eff:ghautsare only accefiible at

.

p articular

places, andOppofe no inconfiderable obfia- z

clesto the progrefsof invaders. The

fituation of Myfore isremote from habi

tual interference with, adjacent powers;itsfoil islefsfertile than the lower coun.

triesthat furroundit, anditsinhabitantswere not enrichedby commerce andmanu

faéture,norby thefe meansexpofedto their,more powerful and indullriousneighs

hours.

ENGLISH INTER EST S IN IND IA. 59I

bouts. Underfuch circumfiances, it mighth ave enjoyed itsprimeval tranquility, hadnot a fuperior geniuse ffecteda fignal re.

volution in the afi'

airsof that country.

H yderNaick, or Hyder Ally, the fon

of a Killidar who commandeda fort of

fome firength on the confinesof Myfore,{eon rendered himfelf fuperior to all the

other commandersin the Myfore ferv'ice

.

At the attack of the bloody Choultry on

Seringham ifland, mentionedinMr. Orme’s

invaluable h ifiory, be particularly difiin

guifhedhimfelf, aswell ason every other

occafion inwh ich he either actedoradvifed.

Without dwelling on the gradationsofhisconduct, in attaining confidence and

elevation, it isenough to fay that he rofe

to be the prime general andch ief m inif

ter of'

hismatter. Clothed with the au

thority of thefe employments, and (up

ported by h isafpiring talents, he foon

left hisfovcreign nothing but the name,

and

60 A V I EW OF TH E

andat laftdooauedhim'andhiswhole familyto bonfincmcnt, exhibiting them from tim e

to time in great Rate, to foothc and111a

the people, while he in fafl:transferred(h tfceptre to hisown hands. - H e trainedh ispeaceful lhbjeétsto the ufe of arms, bynew modelling themifitary fyftem ; by in:witing all ranksof Moormen, Rajapoots,andother Warlike caits, to join hish andan]; by encouraging or rather alluringFrench andother Europeansto enter into

h isfervice andabove all‘

, by a courfe of

Tevere andunremitting duty in the field.

He attacked, andfucceflively fubduedthe

numerousPolygars, Chiefs,andpetty R‘

a

jahs, Whofe polieffionslay with in hisreach" .He extendedh isviewsagainlt the coun

triesfouth of the Ghauts, asfar asth econfinesof Tritch inOpoly and Madam ,

on the Malabar coai’t. He reduced the

Zamorin or Sovereign of Calicut, the Ra

jah of Paligat, the other Malabar Rajahs,andrenderedthe Rajah of Cochin tribu

tary

ENGLIS H TNTERESTIS '

IN IND IA . 64

tary to h is(linear. He conqueredTHedda.

nore, Goutty, and Chitelldroog ; the

countriesof Cudapah , Kanonl, andSavanore ; thusex tending hisdom inionsasfar north asGoa on the Malabar fea,

andacrofsthe peninfula to the countryofPalnaudandGanjam, on the w ait of Co

With thofe, andother interior acquifi

tions, th e Rajahfh ip of Myfore grew into

apowerful (late, m ilesin length from

north to fouth, andnear 30 0 milesinbreadth from call:to weft, with a popu

lation of many millions3 an army of

men, and of annual

revenue. Thefe atchievementswere the

rcfult of intrepidperfeverance. He nex t

venturedto try hisfirength with the Ma

rattusandwith the Englilh,— though he

couldnot vanquifh them, yet he increafedin (elf- confidence, and public efiimation.

Hisvery failureshe turned to account,

and,

62 A VIEW OF TH E

and, likeCz ar Peter, fubmittedto be worll-t

ed, that he might learn to be fuperior.

During the long interval of peace with

the Englifh , from 1769 to 1780, the ima

provement of hiscountry, andthe firiéta

ell:executive adminifiration, formed the

confiant objeétsof h iscare. Under h ismafierly control, they attaineda perfec

- a

tion never heardof under any other In

dian Sovereign ; the h trlbandman, the mar

nufaéturer and the merchant profpered

in every part of h isdom inions; culti-s

vation increafed, new manufaétureswereei

’tabliih ed, andwealth flowed into the

kingdom But againft negligence or mala

verfation he wasinex orable. The Renters,the Tax -

gatherers, and other officersof

revenue, fulfilledtheir duty with fear and

trembling ; for the fligh tefi defalcation

waspunifhedwith the chaubuck or with

The chaubuck isan infirument for fcourging crimia

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64 , A VIEW O F TH E

to each he diétatedin few wordsthe fubfinnce of the anfwer to be given ; wh ich

wasimmediately written, readto him, and

difpatohed.

On h isright and left hand, duringthefe hours, were placedbagsof goldandhiver ; out of which, thofe who brough t

h im intelligence were, rewarded by one

or more handfulsof coin; proportioned

to their deferts; he wasaccefiible to all

every horfeman or fepoy, that wantedto

enter h isfervice, wasinfpeétedby h imfelf ; every jemidar, orofficer of any note,

wasintimately known to h im . H istr0 0pswere amply paid, but not a fraction wasloft. Thofe who fuppliedhiscamps,garrifonsandcantonments, were all under fuchcontribution, that almofi the whole military

difburfementsreverted to histreafury.

There wasno contraCtor boldenough

i

to

haz arda public impofition. There wasnocommander ingeniousenough to fcreen

inability

ENG LISH INTERE ST S IN IND IA. , 65‘

inability or difobedience, nor a defaulter

that couldelude deteétion H e pofi’

effed

th e happy fecret of'

unItmg m inutenefs' of

detail w ith the utmoft latitude of thought

and enterprife. Ashisperfeverance ’

and

difpatch in ,bufinefswere only equalled

by h ispointednefsof information, fo h is,concifenefsanddecifion in the executive

departmentsof agreat government,are pro

bably unprecedentedin the annalsof men.

Confciousfrom experience of h isown

ability, andof the weaknefsanddifirafi ionof the Engliih , he plannedtheir ex tirpation

from India.‘He fummonedall the native

powersto join h iscaufe z— they hefitated.

He determ ined to aCt alone— and con.

queredthe Carnatic.

H isdeath, in December 178 2, left the

accomplifhment of hisfarther defignstohisfon andfuccefi

‘

or, Tippoo Sultaun, to

whom he bequeath edan overflowing tread

F fury,

66 Ar V'I EW OF T H E

fury, which he hadfilled, —a. powerfu l

empire, wh ich he ,had created,—andan

army of men, whom he had

formed, difciplined, andemgred to con

quefi.

In my annex edletter to the Boardof

Madras, the perfpefi ive of eventsin th e

concluding periodof the war, aswell asthe circumfiancesunder wh ich the peace

with Tippoo Sultaun wasconcluded, are

faithfully pourtrayed The fubfequent pro

ceedingsofouradverfary have confirmedthe

prevalent belief, that the prefent ceffation

isonly a {hort refpite w ith a view of

afierwardsrenew ing the m uted, when“

through our negligence and h isex er

tion, he may be enabled to attack uswith fuperior advantage. H isconduCt hasnot

'

been equivocal z— h iscontempt of theEnglifh incitesh im to dildain evafion, and”

h isenmity is’a confiant fiimulusto h ishofti le preparations. ‘

In order more efl'

eé’

tu

ally

ENGLI SH INTER E ST S IN IND I A . 67

ally to complete hisarrangementsfordrivingthe Chrif

’tiansout of India, he hadhardly

figned the treaty w ith ourCommiflioners,when he,

folicitedall the great Mahometan

pow ers, the Grand Signio; h imfelfi

not

excepted, to,contribute their aflifiance in

fiores, armsandartificers. H e eftabliih ed

forges, founderiesandarmoriesthroughouth isdom inions,— replenifhedh ismagaz ines,which hadbeen exhaufiedduring the war,w andnew- modelledhisarmy on the mefi

efi cient footing.

While théfe arrangementsare fo form idable asto excite wello grounded

lions,h ispublic actsanddeclarationsalreadyafcertain i heir objeét anddireétion. He:hasclaimedandmenacedtheGuntoorCir

car, adjoining to the country of Cudapah .

If he Ihouldbe fufi'

eredto take pofleflion

of that diftriét,°

the whole northern Circarswill unavo idably be feveredfrom them i

deney, andhisdom inion be extendedoverF 2 all

68 A . V I EW O F TH E

all thofe valuable provinces. On the other

hand, if we refill hisafiumptions, he hoil’tsAnd,

under fome pretence or other, a renewal of

h isjunda’l‘, andrenews.thewar.

the war isunavoidable z— he has‘

fworn to

it .—While we, on our part, muft with for

that event, if we mean to regain our cha

‘raCter, or ever to be numberedamong the

powersof India.

There wasa periodwhen peace andforbearance formedthe principle, though they

never were the prafi' ice, of our Indian po

licy . In thofe days, invefiment only wasour objefi, andthe increafe of territorial

t uifition wasreprobatedby every faithful

andenligh tenedfervant of the public.

Prove yourfelvesjuft, —prove yourfelves

moderate, -evince to all India that you are

determinedto refrain from conquefi,—was

the foundand earnefi doétrine of Lord

Clive to the D ireétors. Hadthefe tenetsThe bannersunderwhich Indian armiesfight.

ENG LI SH INTERESTS IN IND IA . 69

been adheredto from the firfl, our efia

blifhmentsin India wouldhave continued’

peaceful factories- ~we fhould have re

mainedexpert, fuccefsful tradtrs,andneverhave expofed ourfelvesasunprincipled

ufurpers. But, before LordClive urged

thofe refirié'

tive fentiments, they were no

longer appofite:the pacific malk wasthrown afide, andwe floodconfefl

'

edan

infidious,warlike andambitiousrace. Fromthat moment the name of Englilhman

impreli'

ed the m ind of every Indian

power w ith jealoufy and apprehenfion.

Our fubfequent m ifconduét anddifafierswouldalready have difarmed their refcnt

ments, if they couldbe pacifiedwith lefsthan our def’truétion. Till of late they

hated, but they dreadedandrefpeéied,us.

To judge by our conduét, the oderz'

nt dam

metuant wasour favourite motto but

now they have m ingledhatredw ith con

tempt. We gainedan empire by violence

and injul’tice, it istrue ; but we main

F 3.

tained

70 A V I EW O F TH E

tainedit by courage and exploit. We

eliablilhed over the Afiaticsan afcenl

dency founded on fuperior energy and

{kill in every mental andbodily exer~

tion.

Whetherit be for the intereli of England,every circum l

’tance confidered, to retain

her Indian pofi'

efiions, isa quefiion too

intricate andimportant forme todeterm ine,

but it appearsan irrefragable truth ,

that if we are to ex ifl:at all in India,

it muft be in the charaé’ter of a great,

warlike andterritorial power a power

at all timesable to exalt our allies, and

to deprefsour enem ies. We may farther

venture to afi’

ert, that if any other fyi’tem be

adopted, it will in fact prove an abfolute

furrender of that country .

The meansby which it isyet conceivedpraéticable to reform our civil andm ilitaryefiablilhmentshavingbeen exprefl

'

edat large

in'

my annexedcorrefpondence w ith the

Board,

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72 A V I EW o r T H E

tive beyondall aggregate refourcesin the

Britilh empire. The countriesfubjeé't to ourinfluence underany adminiltration that did

not openly cherilh difcord,andexult inmal

verfation, wouldyieldan annual revenue

of 1. flerling,andwouldincreafe

in value w ith every fubfequent improve

m ent. The manufaéturesof thofe countries,if at all encouraged, wouldaffordemploy

ment for the whole commercial flock of

England. The fhipping“engagedin that

trade wouldfwell into aformidable arma

At prefent the India {h ipsare mere trading vefl'

els,without force, difcipline, ordefence ; andin time of war

are indangeroffallingaprey to every well- armedprivateer.

But the fligh telt obfervation mull fuggell, that they ough t

to be all confiruéiedon the principle of two-deckers,asthe

D utch Indialhipsare and, improvingon that model, thatthey lhouldbe well armed, completely manned, andfub

jeato naval oflicersunder thearticlesofwar. In that event,whenever they hadtheirwar complementsandinfiruéiionson board, they wouldform afleet fuperior to any probable

attack . If it lhouldever be judgedexpedient to build

lh ipsof force in India, a whole navy migh t be confiruéted

at Bombay, andat other placeson the Malabar coaft,

where Teek timberabounds.

ment

ENG LISH INTERESTS IN IND IA. 73

ment for the national defence. The re

fourcesor finance of thofe eftablifhments,where 10 0 01. can hardly be raifedat thismoment, m igh t be fixed on fo fecure a

bafisasto fupport a pile of public credit,more wonderful than that of London or

of Amfierdam, andenrichedby a circula.

tion more ex tenfive than the whole . ex

change of Europe.

To crown the feries; were it pofiible

for usever to be confifient, ever to be

uprigh t, ever to be trulied, or ever to be

trufi- worthy in the Eafi I may venture

to afi‘

ert, that the idea fuggef’ted in my

annex edletter to the Board, of granting

permanent fupport to thc Gentoo intereft

throughout the Peninfula, in oppofition to

their invadersandopprefl'

ors, wouldunalterably attach the great mafsof the inhabitantsto our caufe, and leaving their

native Rajahsin the full interiordireétion

of their diftriéis, wouldaffordusa voluntary

74' A VI EW O F TH E

tary contribution more than fufiicient to

defray the wlrole ordinary andcontingent

chargesof our Indian eftablifltments.An efiicient re- efpoufal of the ennfe and

interefisof the great Mogul, and of the

Mufi'

ulmen who predominate north of the

Peninfula, isby no meansincompatiblewith that fyf

’tem , andin the prefent Rate

of the northern countries, would render

usthe immediate Paramountsof Indofian.

Thus, my Lord, I have prefumedto laybefore you a fort of Mofaic tablet of our

pail proceedingsandprefent Rate in India. ’

The component partsare not fittedand

difpofed w ith the {kill andingenuity of

a profeffedattifi ; they are only palling

fketches, whofe utmofl:effeét w ill be produced, if they ex h ibit to your nice difcern

m ent, any juflnefsof perfpeé’tive or accu

racy of delineation. In the whole courfe

of my obfervationsI have endeavouredto

reprefent men andthingsin their true pro

portions,

ENGLI SH INTEREST S IN IND IA. 7;

portions, andto place them in their relative

pofitions. Having freely expreffedmy fen

timentspn pointsof fuch importance to

the Britifh Empire, I fhouldnot take the li

berty of fubm itting them to yourLordfh ip’s

infpefi ion, were I not perfuadedthat theyconvey a faithful portraiture of the fubjeé

’

t

in itsreal afpeéi andthat they tendto

confute the fallaciesof fome former pro

duéi ions, wh ich feem pencilled by a

biaffedhand, to m ifleadthe national judgment, anddeceive the public eye.

With every fentiment of attachment andrefpeét, I have the honour to be, Esta.

L E T T E R II.‘

To LordMACARTNEY and the SELECT

COMM ITTEE qf’

Fort St. GEORGE.

MY L OR D, AND G ENT L EM EN,

EFORE I embark for Europe, allow

me to exprefsmy belt acknowledgementsfor the “

approbation with wh ich you

have diiiinguilhedme, fince I have had

the

ThisLetterwasbegun in India, andit wasmy withU havedeliveredit asa fort of tempt:ready to the BoardofMadras, beforemydeparture from that country . Having

been prevented however by unavoidable bufinefsandfeversillnefs, from fitlfillingmy intention, I left a copy

of l t at the Cape of GoodHape, to be forwardedfrom

thence to Fort St. George ; but thatcopy o

hadnot reachedMadras

73 A V I EW o r TH E

the honour to command the tr00psandgarrifonsfouth of the Colema n— Perm it

m e farther to obtrude on your Lordlh ipand the Board, a brief relation of my

proceedingsin the commandof the fouthern

forces, and of other incidentsmaterial tothe welfare If your fouthern territories

,

Independently of an impulfe to Rate the

particularsof ~my condufi while entrpfted

with apublic charge,I. cannot th ink of leav

ing India, without prefenting to you in

one view the meritsof the fouthern army

the difficulties. under which (it laboured,andthe ferviqesit hasperformed— I fiat

Madras;a LordMacartney failedfrom thence. Since

that'

time I have mademany alterationsandadditions, liillprewving the form of addrefsin which the Letter wasM all) written. Thiscircumltance hasbeurayednuinto feveral violationsof official propriety, in explaining

tt he Boardvariousincidentsandlocal particulars, withwhich they were previoully acqpainted; but wit hout

'ade

tail of thisnature, the work couldhardly have been reg;

deredintelligible to the generality of European readers.In itsprefent form, a cow hasbeen fent m the Court of

D ireftgrs, that It may be forwardedto Fort S t. George,

inorder tobe enteredon the recordsof that prefidency.

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80 A V IEW on T H E

tuneswhich prev ioufly to your Prefident’s

arrival inIndiahadalmofi entirely exhaufted

the refourcesandruinedthe inhabitantsofeverydiftrift fouth of theColeroon.

-Your

poffefiionsin that quarter are of fuflicient

magnitude andvalue to call forth the molt

v igorousendeavoursfor their protection ;

but fuch wastheir condition when you af

fumedthe government, that, w ithout your

opportune attentions, they mufi inevitably

have been feveredfrom the Englifh domi

nions.

Thole tet ritories, in my opinion, hadnot

obtained their due {hare of efiimation

under any former Government:dividedinto variousdiflrié’ts, held by different

tenures,andoccupiedby tribesat variance

with each other, many partsof them

remaineduncultivated, andalmolt unex

plored. Nor wasit praCticable for the

molt enlightenedof your fervants, to forma jufi appretiation of the benefitsthey

afford,

ENG L I SH INTERE ST S IN IND IA . 8 !

afford,‘

until,by the afli'

gnment of theNabob

of Arcot’srevenuesto the Company, you

were invefledw ith the internal manage-b

ment of thofe countries

From the riverColeroon, their northern

boundary, wh ich dividesthem from the

Naboblh ip of Arcot, to Cape Comorin,

th e fouthern ex tremity of the Peninfulasisnot lefsthan 30 0 m iles; andfrom the

fea wh ich formstheir limitson the eaf’t,

to the countriesof Caroor andD indigul,belonging to Tippoo Sultaun, andthe Raa

jahfh ip of Travancore, upon the welt, ison an average at h alf I5 0 m ilest Imme

morial mifmanagcment, and late difal’cer,

have h itherto renderedth‘ofe countriesnu

produé’

tive ; chut under a fyftem in any

The aflignment wasconcludedin the endof the year

178 1, between MahomedAlly andLordMacartney’sgovernment. Previoufly to that arrangement, the Com

pany’afervantswere not allowedto interfere in the territo

rial affairsof theNabob.

8 2 A V I E W O F T H E

degree permanent, and founded on the

equitable principlesthat . have h itherto

directedthe condutjt of your Lordlh ip and

the Board, they wouldundoubtedly yield

an annual revenue of 1. fierling.

Of thofe territories, the Rajah fh ip of

Tanjore isthe molt fertile* — it iswateredby a multiplicity of fireams,wh ich by meansof embanktnentsandrcfervoirs,aredivertedinto every field - it annually affordstwoor three lux uriant cropsof rice —the foreftsaboundwith valuable trees- the coun

try isoverfiockedw ith {heep andcattleandformerly teemedwith an indul’trionsrace:who were expert in agriculture, andhabituated to manufacture - while fuch

are the natural benefitsit enjoys, that nofpot upon the globe isfuperior in productionsfor the ufe of man.

The following geographical remarks, which have

been inferredfince the Letter wasoriginally written,

wouldhave been fuperfluous, if meant only for the Board.

You

ENGLISH INTERESTS IN IN D IA . a,

You are well appriz ed, however, thatfrom the efiablilhment of the reigning

fam ily of the Maratta race in 1765*to

the prelient period, there hasbeen fuch a

progreflive diminution of cultivation, that

the annual produce of late y earsislcfsbyfifty per cent. than it wasa century

AsEuropeansnever interferedin the may

nagement of that country, andasit hasbeen feldom ravagedor invaded, itsdeclinemufi be attributed to the malverfation

of itsMaratta or Gentoo adminifiration

but even in itsimpoverilhed RateT, it

ufedto produce, before the late war, about

feventy- five lacksof cullumsof rice, worth

about eleven lacksof pagodas, or

fierling z- of this, waspaidas

tribute for your proteCtion, agreeably to

the f’tipulation of 1776, after the lafi ficge

The country of Tanjore contained5753 townsandvillagesat the time when the Maratta government wascllabltlh ed.

1 See the annual fiatement of Tanjore produce, in the

Appcadixs

a, A V I EW or T H E

of Tanjore, when the Rajah became a tri

butary of the Company — The difficultiesthat occurredin reducing that capital, the

firength of the works, andobf’tinacy of

the defenders, evince itsimportance in a

m ilitary view * —neither do the inferior

forts,andthe rivers, rice fieldsandembankmentsthat interfeG:the country, affordlefsem inent advantagesin the moment of

invafion.

The Rate of Tritch inOpoly, ex tendingfrom the wefiern limitsof Tanjore alongthe Coleroon, which dividesit from the

Carnatic on the north, till it reachesTippoo

’sdominionson the weft, near Caroor

andD indigul, including a. range of fifty

m ilesby forty, iscircuml'

cribed on the

- fouth by the country of Tondiman, and

by the woodsof Nattam inhabitedby C01‘I' Tanjore wasfuppofedto contain inhabitants

previoully to the defiruaion that followedR yder’sir

ruption.

ENGL I SH IN TERE ST S IN IND I A . s;leries. -Though lefsvaluable than the country of Tanjore, the y icinity of the Cole

roon'

Frill renders' it "

extremely productive

of rice. Under the NabobMahomedAlly’s

management, the expencesof collection

abforbedthe greater part of the revenue

arifing from thisterritory, wh ich isat prey{ent let to a renter under the allignment of

the Nabob’srevenuesto the Company for

about ten lacksof rupees,In profperoustimes, however, it pofleflesthe means'of ex tendedcultivation, andconefequent increafe of revenue. The fiz e and

fituation of the city, the abundance of fub

fiftence in th e difiriCt,andthe long refidence

of the Nabob MahomedAlly’sfccondfon

the Ameer U1Omrah at that place, have

rendered it the favourite efiablifhment of

the Muffulmen to the fouthwardof the

Coleroon. The two great Pagodasof Jumbakil’tna and

'

Seringham , on the adjacent

iflandof Seringham , commandthe venera

tion of Gentooswh ile every fpot on that

(3's ifland

88 A V IEW”

O F T H E

iflandon theoppofire ornorthern fide of the

Coleroon, about Semiaveram. andVolkonq‘dah ,aswell ason the plainsof Tritch inopoly,are reoorded

'

fior the bloody contefisofChundaSaheb,Afiruc,Cli'vé,andLawrence ;andmark w ith claflical reverence the fcene

of thofe atchievements. But above all, it

becomesimportant in. a; pnlitical andmili;

tary view, asthe firongeli andmolt ad

vancedgarrilbnupon your frontierstowardsthe territoriesof Myfore, andthe befi pofition for cantoning your army, in order to

menace that power

The country of the Colleries, includingthe territoriesof Tondiman, Mellore, and

Nattam, ex tendsfrom the fea- coafi to the

confinesof Madura in a range of fix tymilesby furry - five With theex ception of

foam

See my Letterto the Board,datedthe 26th of April

378 4 .

r Tondiman isleft uncultivatedthan hisneighbours,andhasat all timesprovedhimfslf the molt faithful ad.

herent

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88 A V I E W O F T H E

Upon the north, to the territoriesof theGreat Marawa on the fouth containing

about fifty milesin length and forty

in breadth . The foil in general isunfriendly to the growth of

‘

corn, though not

quite deftilute of running fireamsor arfi

ficial refervoirs; but the country isovergrown w ith thornsand bufhes. The

woodsof Calicoil ex tend nearly forty

m ilesin circumference. They are fe~

curedw ith barriers, and other defencesaroundthe fort ofCalicoil,wh ich islituatedin the centre of the th ickets,andconfideredasa refuge from exaélion or invafion.

Thefewoods, andthe furroundingcountry,aboundw ith fheep andcattle the inha

bitantsare numerous, and can bringfighting

‘

men into the field, armedw ith fwords, pikes, fpears, andfirelocks.Though lefsbarbarousthan the Colleriesth eir neighbours, yet artsandindufiry havemade little progrefsamong them. The

country

ENG L ISH INT ERE S TS IN IND IA . 39

country iscapable of great Improvement,

but at prefent hardly y ieldsmore than five.

lacksof rupeesto the Rajah, who paysone lack and rupeesto the Nabbb

of Arcot‘“ The Rajah isof the Taver

fam ily, anda defcendant of the fovereignsof the Great Marawa, from wh ich Shevi

gungawasfeparatedat noverydiltant'

period.

At the reduct ion of th isterritory in 1773

by General Jofeph Smith,the Rajah havingbeen killed, h isw idow, then w ith child,

and fome of the leading people of the

country, efcaped into the Myfore dom i

nions, andthere livedunder the protectionof H yder Ally,

”

until the commencement

of the late war. During that period, the’

country wasmanagedby a renter ; and, in‘

quiet tim es,the people acknow ledgedthemfelvesto be tributariesof theNabob Maho

medAlly. But wh ile their woodsandbarriersare fufferedto remain, their difaf

e MahomedAlly.

feé’tion

9a“

A V i E w on T H E

fefi ion may be dreadedon the firfi profpe&

of their profiting by‘

dil’turbance.

The Great Marawa, or Rajah of Ram

nad, occupiesa country fifty milesinlength, andthirty in breadth, ex tending

from the boundariesof Shevigunga andMellore upon the north, to the fea upon

th e call:andfouth, andto the confinesOfTinivelly or:the weft—Nature hasbeenlittle more propitiousto th isprincipality,than to that of Shevigunga yet artsandindufiry e have made fuperior progrefs.“The country iswell peopled, the inhabit.antsare civilifed, andthe villagesfull ofweavers, who manufacture the cottonspro-r

(lacedby the adjacent lands. The city of

Ramnad, where the Rajah ufually refides,islarge, andrefpeftably fortified. The

fea—‘

icoafi is{kit tedWith a track of open

woodland, that iheltersinnumerable herdsof cattle. The revenuesare equal to five

lacksof rupeesa year, andthe tribute tothe

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9: A V I EW O F T H E

great, andthe monumentsof magnificenceleft by him,

which are hardly furpafl'

edin

any age or country, ftill remain a melan

choly contralt with prefent poverty andde

population. The gallant refifiance made byMahomedIffoof, when he difclaimedal

legiance to the Nabob MahomedAlly, isafuflieient proof that when the worksare inrepair, thisplace may be defendedagainlt

the moft powerful Indian enemy ; wh ile itsvicinity to the country of Dindigul, belonging to Tippoo Sultanu,rendersit a pofitionof capital importance in the event of any

fitture operationsagaioh that power.

The lafi but not the lcaft confiderable

of your fouth ern territoriesisTinivelly ,which isdividedby a ridge of inacceflible

mountainson the north {Tom the w ildval

leysofWaru p andOutumpollam belonging

to Tippoo Sultaun It firetchee to the com.

t'

inee ofMadam andRzmrndon the north

u fi mdamreachesto the fea upon thg

9 fouth,

ENGLI SH INTERE STS IN IND IA . 93

fouth, andborderson the weft w ith the

Rajah th ip of Travancore, both term inating

nearCapeComorin. Itsfurface isgenerallyflat from the fea coal

’t, till it approaches

the mountainson itsnorthern boundary .

Nature hasbeen peculiarly bountiful tothisprovince - The riversby which it isinterfeéted, enfure luxuriant cropsof rice,andthe drief’t partsyieldcotton in hbun

dance. The productionsthat enrich the

neighbouringillandofCeylonwouldflourilh

here, andm ight render usthe rivalsof theDutch in the cinnamon trade:but the

particular tenure under which Tinivelly

hasbeen held, the convulfionsit hasendured from the firlt intrufionsof the

Mufl'

ulmen in the courfe of thiscentury,and the depravity of itsrulers, have

counteraétedthe benefitsof nature. Even

when a native Rajah governedthisprovince, the flat and Open country only

wasreduced, andwaslet for fpecific

(mm to great renters, who were in'veftedwith

9; A VIEW O F TH E

with defpotic powers, and haraflhd the

peaceful fubjeét ; while variousleaders,pofi

'

efling confiderable territory, maintained

armedforce, andwithheld their ftipulated

tribute on the firit appearance ofdifiurb

ance. Thefe chiefs,who at prefent amountin number to thirty

- two, are capable of

bringing brave though undifciplined

troopsinto the field; they have alfo for

tifiedtownsandfirong- holdsin the mounq

tains, whither they retire in cafesof emer

gency.

Befide the territory that thefe chiefs,whoaswell astheir fnbjeéisare calledPolygars,polfefsunder the range of h illsthat formsthe northern boundary of Tinivelly, many

of them holdample tracksin the flat and

cultivatedcountry . Adverfe to indufiry,

they fufi'

er their own pofl'

efiionsto remain

wafie, wh ile they invade each other, and

plunder their indufiriousneighbours. Such

isthe dreadof thofe ravagers, that every

diltriCt

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96 A V I EW o r T H E

under that ravager poureddown from the

mountainsof Myfore, than defolation ex.

tendedacrofsthe Coleroon. Thoufandsof h isplunderersoverran the countriesof Kivelore, Tanjore, Tritch inOpoly, and

Madurai A mol’t luxuriant crop, w ith

wh ich the groundwasat that time co

vered, wasinfiantly fwept GE, andevery

water- dyke and embankment totally de

ftroyed. The inhabitantswho efcapedthe

fword, fough t Ihelter in the forts; where,adding m ifery to difirefs, they perilh ed

in the fireets; wh ile the whole country,

laid waftc by

‘

fire and' fword, ex h ibited

the fadreality of a general conflagration.

At length Hyder, hav ing left noth ing

to defiroy in the Carnatic, andregardlefsof our force, wh ich from the time ofColo

nel Baillie’sdefeat had never ventured

from itsencampment near Madras, re

folvedto leadin perfon h isviétoriousarmyto the fouthward. After remaining fome

weeksencamped within random that of

Tanjore,

ENGL ISH INTERESTS IN IND I A . 97

Tanjore, he proceededtoi nvef’t Tritchino;

,p oly, andthreatenedto ~ fill up the ditch

w ith h isMoormen’sflippers. The repeated

Checksfuftainedby the Company’stroopsin that quarter, the corpsthat Hyder hadcut off,andthe fortshe hadreduced, fpreadfo general a confiernation, that the im

portant anddefencelefsgarrifon of Tritch i

nopoly feemedready to furrender. In that

event the fouthern countriesmufi have

fubm ittedto h ispower, had‘

not the repulfe

of Sir Eyre Cocte’sarmy againl’t Chilum

brum elated~Hyder with the hopesofdefeating the only force that couldéndan

ger h isconquefi. Thisinducedhim to

renounce‘

more folid, though lefsbrilliantprofpefis, and to figh t the battle of the

l it July 1731at Portoi

Novo.

Notwithfianding h isill fuccefsin that

engagement, andhisperfonal abfence fromthe fouthward,

‘our affairsin that quarter

{till remainedin great cdnfufion. TheTan

H jore

98, A V IEW GK THE

jorecountry wasoccupiedby the enemy,who fecureditscrapsandcattle, repulfedtheCompany

’stroopsat Tricatapooly, Putticottah, andTrivelore, andconfinedthem

withinthe fort of Tanjore. There; the

granarieswere empty, the Rajah’sfubjeéts

difafi'

ected, andhe himfelf accufedofnego

tiating with Hyder, and of introducingarmsclandeflinely into h ispalace. H e

likewife fnfl'

eredthe whole cropsof h iscountry to be collectedby the enemy,

wh ile he refilledevery folicitation to fill

h ismagaz ines, andprovide for impendingevents.

The defeat of Colonel Braithwaite in

February 178 2, andthe lofsof h isdetachment (attackedby a powerful army under

Tippoo Sultanu), wouldhave proved a

deadly blow, hadit not beenwardedofl'

bythe afi ive abilItIesandconciliating manners,ofMr. Sulivan, towhom the fafety of Tan-q

jore andof all the fouthern provinceswasthen

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100 A VIEW OF TH E

The dillrié’tsof Madura, Mellore, andPalemery, were fo haralledw ith Colleries,Polygars, andthe enemy, that your troopsand lubjeé

’tswere often attackedw ithin

range of the'

forts, andthe fentriesfiredaton the works. All the Polygarsof Tinivelly were in rebellion, andclofely con

nected with the Dutch government at

Colombo, from whence attemptswere me

ditated, in conjunCtion w ith them and

with Maupely Taver, o to reduce thofe

countriesand the Marawa dominions.Near PolygarsoandCollerieswerein armsthroughout the fouthern provinces,and, being hollile to Government, confi

deredpublic confufion asthe only fafeguardagainlt punilhment. To reprefsthefe outrages, andto retrieve your affairsin the

prefent ex igency , your fouthern force wasinadequate. The treafury wasdrained,the country depopulated,

- the revenuesexafi edby the enemy,

—andthe tr00psundifciplined,

ENGL ISH INTERESTS TN J ND IA. 161i

ciplined,poorly fed,andunfuccefsfully commanded

The complicateddangersarifing from

thisfituation of the country inducedyou,in September 1782, to fend

'

a reinforce?

ment of EuropeansandArtillery to the

Southward, under the commandof Colonel

Lang. You were ledto hope that thisdetachment, when reinforcedby the troopstobe colleé

’ted from every quarter of the

South, m igh t have materially promotedthe

viewsof Colonel Humberfione, who wasthen at Paniani,preparing to proceedagainl

’t

Palacatcherry, andto penetrate into Coim

batour, according to the plan fuggelledbyMr. Sulivan,approvedof by your Lordlh ipandtheBoard, andafterwardscarriedinto

Such wasthe fiate of aflh irst o the Southwardwhen

Lord Macartney’sGovernment commenced, and for

fame time afterwardsauthori ty in m ilitary matterswasvelted in Sir Eyre Coote by the Supreme Board; butasfoon asthat authority wasrelictedto the Governor

andSeleCt Committee, they made the molt meritoripgseffortstmprovide for the {afety of the fouthern countries.

H 3 execution

m; A V I E W O F TH E

execution by myfelf. But flour a variety

of circumfiancesit happened, . that th e

Operationsof Colonel Lang were confined

to the reduction of Caroor, Aravarcour

chy, andD indigul. Being limitedin h ismovementsto thofedifiriCtsof the enemy ,

andto the track betweenNegapatam, Tan

jore, andTritch inOpoly,the fouthern (3011111

triescontinuednearly in their former fiate

ofdefolation. Many asthe reprefentationswere that reachedyour Boardon th isfubsjeét, it wouldhave been defirable for you.

in perfon to have beheldthe malverfationsthat hadbeen committed, the miferiesthatwere endured, and the patience of your

fubjeétsunder unfupportable grievances.

The ravagesof the enemy, however,

were by no meansthe greatefi evilsthatthofe dil’triétshadfufiained. There were

inherent andincreafing caufesof declinecultivation wasnegleéted, - the bulband

men were killedor driven ofi'

,— the cattle

were

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104 A V IEW OF T H E

troops, andother grievances, renderedit

impraCticable for officersto maintain firiétdifcipline in

.

their corps; asit requiredtheutmoft effortsto prevent mutiny

‘

among

men, who, brave andfaithful asthey un-

g

doubtedly were, couldhardly be blamed

for clamourandcomplaint when reducedto

procure fubfif’tence by felling their own

children !

The difcordant powersof the civil fer;

vantsin thedifferent departmentsincreafedthe evilsalready enumerated. Such wasthe ex tent of thofe evils, that the ablefl;

perfonsat one time defpairedof retrieving

your affairsin that quarter ; nor wasit heldpracticable to maintain the fouthern army

in the,

field, difpirited by defeat, and

defiitute of refources" .

No circumfiance couldtendmore clearly to evince

themeritoriouseffortsof LordMacartney, than h ishavingbeen able to retrieve the fouthern provincesfrom the

wretchedcondition towhich he foundthem reducedon h isacceflion to the Government.

ENGLISH mraassrsIN IND IA. m ;

S om e preceding incidents,however,provedthe inefficiency of that defenfive fyl

’tem

under which the Carnatic war hadbeen

conduC’ted, indicated ofi'

enfive operation,

asthe only meansof future profperity,andconfirmedthe merit of thofe endea

voursmade by your Lordlh ip andthe

Boardto attack the enemy in h isown pol:feflions" . On th isprincipleColonel H um

berfione hadactedon the Malabar coafi.

He obligedTippoo Saib to march acrofsthe peninfula, andto retire with lofsfrom

LordMacartney’sfyllem of promoting oil'

enfive ope

rationsagainli Tippoo Sultaundoeshim peculiar honour;not only onaccount of the judgment that fuggefiedthere

ideas, andthe vigour with which they were carriedinto

execution in momentsof great difficulty, andagainft theOpinionsof powerful opponents, but all

'

o from the emi

nent fuccefswith which they were attended. B efideedirecting the fouthern army to penetrate into the richea

pofl'

efiionsofTippoo S ultaun, h isLordth ip reinforcedthe

Malabar army underColonelsMacleodandH umberlione,

andformeda. confiderahle force in the NorthernCircars,underGeneral jonesthusdittraéting the enemy’sattention, and enabling the Englilb armsto regain their

“undenCYO

J I6 A VI EW OF THE

the engagement inNovember 1782 at Pac

niani The fubfequent fuccefsof ‘

Gene-o

rel Matthewsagainfi Mangalore, Bedda

more, andthe principal fortsof the adjacentcountries, l’till farther evincedthe wifdotnofMr. Sulivan

’sopinions, andof ColonelH umberitone

’soperations. Tippoo wasforcedto march from Arcot to Bedda

nore ; hisfather’sdeath in D ecember I78 2

havingmade him crofsthe peninfula fromPaniani to Arcot. Thisevent relievedtheCarnatic, andwasthe firfl:circumftanceduring the war that gave a turn to our

nfl'

airs. For the movementsandcounter

movementsof the Carnatic army, and

even the repeateddefeatsfufiained by

H yder, hadprovedof little ultimate avail

in thedecifion of the contell,

It isimpoflible for me todo jullice toColonel Hum

berfione asa manandasan ofiicer. A narrative of the

{enticeshe performedin commandof the forceson the

Malabar coafi, wouldaflfordconvincing proof of h isdiftinguilhedmilitary talents, andaddto the regret which

h isuntimely lofsoccafionedin themindsof all whoknewhismeritsandhischaraéter.

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ms A VI EW b e TH E'

with the fpirit of Mr. Sulivan’snegotia

tions, andwasrequifite to give efi'

eCt to

h isenlightenedviews. In fupport of thefe

ideas, the abilitiesaswell asinfluenceofthe Braminsrenderedit elfential to treat

them with particular indulgence ; andbyfimilar attentionsthe numerousPolygarsof Dindigul were reconciledto ,our inte~

rails, ashasbeen fully evincedby the

fuppliesderivedfrom thofe pofl'

efiionswhileunder ourGovernment.

The dependentsof hish ighnefsthe Na:bob “ felt th emfelvesex tremely humbled

by the allignment of histerri tory to the

Company . Forhowevereligible andindifq

penfable th ismeafure m igh t appear on

principlesof public neceflity, it could.

not fail to deprive hisadherentsof theirpower andfituation. Asfar asdepended0 Asthedependentsof theNabob are in general Ma

hometans, thisobfervation doesnot apply to the Gen

toos, who form the great body of inhabitantsin the Na,hob

’scountry.

ENGL ISH INTERE STS IN IND IA. toy

upon me I endeavouredto convince them

all, that their wantsfhouldbe relieved, their

rightsprotected, and their confequence

maintained. They were pleafedto credit

my declarations, andby thefe meanswerefirainedthe difi

'

atisfac’i ion of the inhabit

antsandnative foldiery, many of whom

are warmly attachedto theNabob,andwere

ready to bur-li forth in the molt alarming

diforders. The fame principle formedthe

rule of my conduct towardsthe Rajah of

Tanjore andtheother ch iefswhofe countriesfell within the lim itsof my command

confcious, that all our meafuresrefpefi ingthe native Princesandtheir fubjefts, fhouldbe directedby liberal conceflion andanbi

airedjul’tice.

My nex t endeavourwas, in conjunélion

with Mr. Sulivan, to unite all defcriptiofisof men in cordial ex ertionsto retrieve the

public interefts, andto enure the tr00pstodifcipline and enterprife ; without which

they

no A VIEW OF'

1‘l

they neither couldbe fubfiaed, nbr coulci ’

we hope forany reputable termination of

our ill- fatedcontel’t. That thefe attemptshave not provedentirely unproduétive of

important public benefits, hasbee'

h repeat

edlytef’tifiedby your Boardin termsmoltflattering to myfelfi

By the 2 5th ofMay, the army marchedfrom Dindigul towardsDaraporam, wh ich

fell to 1m on the 2d of That

valuable place affordsample fuppliesofgrain

The particularsof the attack andfurrender of thisplace are exprefl

'

edin my Letter of the adof june,addrefl

‘

edto the Governor andSelcét Committee. One

circumfiancedefervesto bementioned, inorder to prove theingenuity of intelligencersin lndia. When the army en

campedbefore Daraporam, it wasnot practicable to ap.

proach fo near the fort asto determine with precilion themodadvantageouspoint of attack ; but a Braman Harcarrah explainedetrery particularrefpeéting the pofition of

the works, andthe nature of the groundadjoining to the

p lace, in foch termsasenabledme todraw a plan from hisdefcription. TheAdjutant General Captain Gram didthe fame, from the accountsof another intelligencer.

On comparing the two plans, thusdrawn from verbal

informs.

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a vraw or TH E

mountainsof Myfore*, which wouldprofbably have forcedTippoo Suliaun to raife

th e liege ofMangalore, andmarch h ismain

body againf’t us; or if Tippoo hadperfified

againfi Mangalore, we {houldhave amply

fubfif’tedthe army, have reduceda valuable

territory, andprepared'

for more important

conquef’ts.

General Stuart’sorder on the 3 1ft of

May, to march , towardshim at Cuddelore

{With the utmqfi expedition, obliged me

to relinquifh'

thofe advantages. You

were pleafed to think favourably of my

precautionsfor the defence of Dindigul,wh ich wasgarrifonedwith the fix th Car

i f Extending from Caroor to Combatour, andfromthe bottom of the hillsto the confinesof Madura and

TritchinOpoly. A country abounding in eVery kindof

production for the fupport of armies, andwh ich may beConfideredasarchain of magaz inesefiabl ilhedby TippooSultanu for the invaiion of the Southern Provinces, inthe fame manner asthe Burmaul country may be con

fidered asaffording h im the meansof invafion on ihe

natic

ENGL ISH INTERESTS IN IND IA. u ;

natlc battalion, anda body of the Nabob’s

independentsi‘fl Some heavy gunsandmidlitary floreswere likewife thrown into the

place, anddireéfionsgiven that grain migh t

be collected,woodprepared, andevery ef"

fort made to enfure a defperate refifiance

The fort of Aravarcourchy ,1'

hadbeen de

firoyedfoonafter itsreduction ; and,in obe

dienesto yourordersrefpeéting the demolition ofCarnorjl,m ineswereconfirufi ed, and

the worksblown up . My inftrufl ionsto thefouthern commandantsrefpeaing thedil’tribution of their troops, andpreparationsfordefence, likewife receivedyour commend

ation.

D indigul isfituatedin arich valley of'

the fame name,about fifty miles{oat h - welt from Carcer. The town islarge, andwell fortified; itsprincipal firength confiltsinaVery high andalmolt inaccefiible rock, on which there isafortrefsthat m igh t be renderedimpregnable:but thefouthern army took the place by llorm in May 178 3.1' Aravarcourchy wastaken by “fault in April 1783 .

About 500 people were killedin the attack .

I Caroor isa place of very confiderable firength, fiftymilesfrom Tritchinopoly, on the

’

frontiersof the Myforadominions; wasreducedby the fouthern army in April1783, after feveral weeksof open trenches, andcontainedgreat quantitiesof provilions, fiores, and

'

ammunition.

I

On ourarrival at Tritchin0poly in June,the troopswere fuppliedwith grain, the

gun- carriagesrepaired, cattle collectedfor

the army, at Cuddelore, andboatsprovidedfor crofling the Cavery andColeroon,wh ich w ith two intermediate fireamswerethen unfordable. At Munfurpet on the

northern bank of the Coleroon, I received

farther infiruétionsfrom General Stu‘art

to march without delay to Cuddelore.

The injunctionsof your Board no lefspointedly direCtedme to recrofsthe river,

andcontinue to the fouthward. But you

hadbeen pleafedto invefi me with adif

cretional latitude of acting asex igenciesmigh t require ; andintelligence hadreach ed

me that Suffrein’sfquadron hadanchored

at Cuddelore, that a difembarkation of

many thoufandmen wasintended, and

that the Englilh army washarafl'

edwith

the duty of the trenches. It appeared

therefore to be molt congenial w ith the

general tenor of your intentions, that we

lhouldmarch towardsGeneral Stuart, being3 confcious

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116 A V I EW O F TH E

the part of General Bruce, but to fenda.

force fuflicient '

to garrifon the place, until

he couldmove thitherwith the troopsfromCuddelore. The General finding it necef-a

fary to reject thispropofal, we left him to

firuggle with hisdifficulties, andproceededto Munfurpet.

My intention wasto move nex t day byTarriore to reinfiate your tributary the

Rheddey in h ispaternal inheritance, andto advance againft the fortsandmagaz inesof Settimungulum,Nameul,andSankerrydurgum on the north of theColeroon from

thence to brofsthe river andbefiege Erode,w ith a view of el’tablifh ingafirong garrifon

at that place, andin order to prepare fup

pliesfor moving, when fufficiently rein

forced, againlt Seringapatam. But our

expectationswere difappointed by your

intimationsof an armifiice with Tippoo

Sultaun.

During the courfe of thefe proceedings,it wasfound'

impracticable to carry into

exe

ENG L ISH INTEREST S IN IND IA . an

execution the falutary meafuresintendedby your Board, for the re- el’tabliihment of

public authority in your fouthernprovinces,wh ich unavoidably remainedin their for

mer confufion. The Polygars, Colleries,andother tributaries, ever huée the com

mencement of the war, hadthrown off

all appearance of allegiance. No civil ar

rangement couldbe attemptedwithout a

military force, andnoth ing lefsthan the

whole army feemedadequate to their re

duction. While fuch a confiderable portion

of the fouthern provincesremained in

defiance of the Company’sgovernment,

it wasvain to think of fupporting the cur

rent chargesof the eftablilhment ; far let's

couldwe h0pe to reduce the arrears, andto prepare for important operations, in theprobable event of a recommencement of

hofiility . It became indifpenfable there

fore, to refiore the tranquillity of thofe

provincesby vigorousmilitary meafures,13

118 A V I EW O F T H E

asthe only meansthat couldrender them

productive of revenue ; andin th isview,

your wife arrangementsfor augmenting

the fouthern force, provednot lefsbeneficial, than in their influence on the Opera

tionsagainft the enemy .

You hadbeen pleafed to reinforce uswith , goo Europeansandtwo battalionsofSepoysunder Colonel Stuart, immediatelyafter the fiege of Cuddelore ; anotherde

tachment of equal {trength marched to

wardsusunder Colonel Elph infton. It

wasmy intention to have joined thbfe

corpsat Dindigul, in order to act againfl:Tippoo, in cafe he fhouldnot accede to

the termspr0pofed; but finding that the

detachment couldnot reach Dindigul for

many weeks, it appearedeligible to em

ploy the intermediate fpace in fulfilling

the objectsalready fiated. In concurrence

therefore with the requifitionsof Mr.

Sulivan,

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n o A V I EW O F T H E

fort, anddrive them from the country .

Notwithl’tanding the procrafiinating fpirit

ofGentoos, they paidnear rupees,andgave fecurity for their remainingdebt.

The lenity anddifpatch of th istranfaction (for it wasconcluded in four days)affordeda cordial fatisfafi ion when con

traf’tedw ith the circumftancesof the expe

-J

dition in 1773, againfi th isvery place.

On that occafion the Rajah, trulting to the

woodsandbarriersthat furroundthe fort.of Calicoil, andexpecting to conclude thebufinefsby negotiation, conceivedh imfelf

in fecurity when the place wasfurprifed,andhe waskilledon theattack. I rejoiced

to mitigate the rigoroustreatment wh ich

thedelinquency of the fuccefi'

or, or rather

of hism inifters, merited, in confideration

of the feveritieswh ich the predecelfor hadexperienced.

There next remaineda more important

undertaking. The numerousPolygarsof

l

ENGLI SH INTEREST S IN IND IA. m.

Tinivelly, who hadrebelledon the com

mencement of the war, committeddailyravagesfrom Madura to Cape Comorin.

They fubduedforts, andoccupieddiftriétsbelonging to the Circar“, or heldby a

tenure different from their own. Mr.

Irw in, fuperintendant of Madura and

Tinivelly, had repeatedly urged me to

proceedagainft the Polygars, in order to

refiore tranquillity andrecover the reve

nues. , It wasnow for the firl’t time in

my power to direct my Operationstowardsthat quarter, at a moment when the molt

powerful of the Polygarsin confederacyagainlt your Government, andin alliance

with the Dutch, hadali'

embled 12 or

men, andwere aftually befieging

the fort of Chocumpetty, a Polygar place

of fome firength, below the hillsthatform the north - weft boundary of the pro

vince.

Circarmeansthe ruling power of the country. andthedetail of itsrevenue.

In A VIEW OF TH E

When it wasdeterm inedthat we fhould

march into Tinivelly, during the interval

requifite for ColonelsStuart andElph in

Ron’sdetachmentsto reach Dindigul, my

object wasto firike an unexpeél edblow,

andto intim idate the Polygarsinto fubm if.fion. Of all the Tinivelly chiefs, the principal in power anddelinquency, ex cepting

Shevigherry, wasCatabom inaigue:he wasperfonally engagedat the liege of Chocum

petty, from whence h isfort of Pandalam

eonrchy,on the fouth- caft quarter of

veily, isdif’tant more than feventy ,m iles.

The ufual route to Tinivelly paflesby Ma

dura ; and the Polygars, hearing of our

movement towardsShevigunga, expeded

usin that direction. To favour th isOpinion, provifionsfor the army were ordered

to be preparedat Madura; my real inten

tion wasperfeétly concealed; and we

movedOHw ith the force from Shevigunga,

in the evening of the 8th ofAnguft, to Tri

pechetty, a place twenty milesdiftant on

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A V I EW O F TH E

ance. It wasmaterial to fiorm w ithout

delay, in order to {trike terror by difpatch,andalfo left Catabominaigue with h isconfederate chiefsm igh t hafien to obltrué

'

t our

operations. We openedbn the bafiion ;

but finding ourfelvesretardedby itsthicknefs, we refolvedto breach the adjoiningcurtain, andto render the defencesof thebafiion untenable by the befieged. ,

They

kept up a confiant andwell- direétedfire,

andnotwithftanding our utmoft efforts, itwasdark before a practicable breach wasefl

'

eCted. The attack wastherefore deferreduntil the moon {houldrife. Th e ltorm ing

party confiftedof twocompaniesof Europeans, fupportedby the thirteenth and

twenty- fourth Carnatic battalions,andconti

nuedin the rearof the battery the cavalry,

the firft, andligh t infantry battalions,werepolledat right anglesw ith the other three

falient anglesof the fort, w ith detachmentsfronting each gateway, inorder to prevent

the befiegedfrom recetvmg fupplies, or

making

ENGLISH INTERE STS IN IND IA. usmaking their efcape,wh ile the other troopl .

remainedto defendthe camp, which wasw ithin random - {hon

Our nex t object wasto remove a flrong

liedge fronting the breach andfurroundingthe whole fort, asisthe praétice in the

Polygar fyftem of defence. Thisdangerousfervice wasefi'

eétedwith unufual fkill,

by Enfign Cunningham, commanding the

p ioneers; andabout ten at night, with .

the advantage of bright moon-mine, the

fiorm commenced. Our troops, after theygainedthe fumm it of thebreach, foundno

fulficient fpace to lodge themfelves; andtheinteriorwall having no flope or talus, theycouldnot pufh forwardfrom the fummit asthey advanced:The defenderswere nu

merous, andoppofedusfo vigoroufly with

pikesandmufquetry, that we were obliged

at lait to retire andreach the battery, with

confiderable flaughter on both fides. Im

mediate meafureswere taken to renew the

charge

us ”

A V I EW o r T H E

diarge ; bIIt the Polygars, difpiritedw ith

their lofs, abandonedthe place, and{alliedforth at the ealtern gate.

The corpspottedroundthe worksWerefo exhaufted by the preceding marches,that many of the fugitiveseffectedtheIr

efcape the ref’t were taken prifoners. Th e

breach wascoveredwith deadbodies, andthe place containeda large affortment of

guns, powder, ih ot, arms, andother m ili

tary fiores, wh ich were of courfe appliedto

the p ublic fervice: pagodaswerealfo found, andimm ediately diftributedto

the troops. Your Boardwere pleafed to

confirm the difiribution, on the footing of

priz e- money thanwhich no meafure could

more effeéiually tendto animate the army

in our after- operations. Some other factsrefpeé

’ting thefe tranfaétions, andthe treaty

between the Dutch Government of Co

lombo andCatabominaigue (of which the

originalwastaken inhisfort),werereferredto

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gas A V I EW o r THE

undercommandof that officer. On former

occalions, he had beat off confiderable

detachments, andavowedly protectedyourenemies, who though t themfelvesfec‘urein the fort of Shevigerry . H e hadcola

let‘l edmagaz inesfuflicient to fupply th e

D utch force that wasexped’cedfrom Con

lombo, aswell asto refill:the molt tediousblockade ; for hedidnot conceive hisfortcouldbe l’tormed, andevery circum ltance

in h iscondué]:marked, that he heldh imfelf beyondthe

‘reach of military power.

On our arrival before the town of She

y igerry he retired to the th icketsnearfour m ilesdeep in front of h isCombywh ich it coversanddefends. H e manned

the whole ex tent of a lirong embankment,

that feparatesthe woodandopen country ;

wasjoinedby Catabominaigue, w ith other

all'

ociatedPolygars,andmullered8 ormen inarms.

A lirong- holdin themountains.

ENGL ISH INTER EST S IN IND I A .

In the prefent inltance lenity wouldhave

been accounted imbecility ; but the ap

proach of ColonelsStuart andElphinlton

to Dindigul, andTippoo Sultaun’srefufal

of the propofedaccommodation, rendered

m e ex tremely anx iousto finilh th isPolygar warfare, in order to proceedtowardsthe enemy

’sfrontiers. The Shevigerry

ch ief and hisalfociateswere therefore

informed, that we meant immediately to

attack the place, unlefsthey would con

vene th e H ead Polygarsof Tinivelly,

amounting to th irty- two ch iefs, liquidate

all arrears, andrefundthe amount of de

predationscommittedlinesthe commence

ment of the war, agreeably to authenti

cated vouchersin the different diltriéts.It wasfarther intimated, that if they, on

the part of the confederacy,wouldengage

to pay in lieu of all demands,th eir propofal lhouldbe forwardedto the

‘

fuperintendant of revenue (Mr. Irwin),and on h isacceptance, that the troops

K would

130 A V I EW O F T H E

wouldbe w ithdrawn, andthat they wouldbe recommended to forgivenefs. They

w ilhedto confer w ith me, but refufedto

vilit me in camp. Astheir diltrult arofe

from variousoutragescommitted againlt

them by former commanders, inl’tead of

increafmg their apprehenfionsby refcnt

ment, I propofedto meet them alone and

unattendedat their own barrier ; addingthat if any accident befel me, it wouldnot

pafsunrefented. The Shevigerry ch ief,

Catabominaigue, andthe depofedPolygar

of Chocumpetty, with a large retinue, m et

me in front of their embankment. Before

they finilh ed their explanations, it wasdark, anda mulket inadvertently fired in

the rear alarmedour advancedpicket, who

though t it wasaimedat me. To prevent

the ill confequencesof that miltake, I tookleave of the Polygars, exprefiing my w ill)

to hear of their acceding to the termspropofed. We refrained from

.

hol'

tility

nex tday, but finding that they triflcdw ith

our

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m A V I E W o r T H E

~

After reconnoitring, we foundthat th e

Com-by couldnot be approached in front .

We proceeded therefore to cut a road

through impenetrable th icketsfor three

miles, to the bafe of the h ill that boundsthe Comby on the w ell. The pioneersunder Enfign Cunningham labouredw ith

indefatigable induliry ; Cap tain Gardiner

of the l oad fupported them w ith the

Europeans, andCaptain Blacker with the

th irdandtwenty - fourth Carnatic battalions,advanced their field-

piecesasfall astheroadwascleared. Thefe were lirength

cuedby troopsin their rear, form ing a

communication w ith thofe in front ; for

thispurpofe two other battalionswerepolledwith in the wood, and asfoon aswe gained the embankment, the camp

movednear it,andconcentratedour force.

We continuedto cut' our way under an

unabating fire from Polygars, whoconfiantly prell

'

edupon our advancedparty,2 tulhed

E NG L ISH INTERE STS IN INDIA. 13;

rulh ed upon the line of attack, piked

the bullocksthat were dragging the guns,andkilledmany of our people. But thele

attemptswere repulfed by perfeverance,

andbefore funfet we hadOpeneda pall'

age

entirely to the mountain ; it isex tremelyh igh, rocky, and in many placesalmoll'.perpendicular. Having refolvedto attack

from th isunexped‘ed quarter, the troops

undertook the fervice and attained the

fumm it . The Polygar partiespolled to

guard that'

eminence, being routed, after

much firing on all hands, we dbfcendedon the other fide andflankedthe Comby.

The enemy feeing gsmaliersof the moun

tain, retreatedunder cover of the night,

by pathsinaccefiible to regular troops, andwe took polfeliion of the wonderful recefs.The particuh rsrelpefi ing ordnance, ltoresand provilions, found in the place, are

listedin my letter of the thirdof September" . We left the th irdandninth bat

See Letter of the thirdof September, in the Appendix.

K 3 talions

134 A V I EW o r T H E

talionsto fecure the magaz ines, andmovedthe army to Shevlepatore w ith in four

marchesof Madura, in order to awe the

northern PolygarsofTinivelly.

It waslittle more than a month lince

we hadleft Tritchinopoly . Your autho

rity wasre- eliablilhedthroughout thewhole

track that we hadtraverfed,ex tendingmore

than 30 0 m iles:andbelidesthe arrange,ment w ith the Shevigunga Rajah, we were

maliersof the two ltrongelt placesbelonging to the Polygars. We remainedfome

time in expeé‘tation of their propoling a

general accommodation, but they knew

that Tippoo fiill invel’tedMangalore, and

that we mull quickly join the force at

D indigul. Thisintelligence corroboratedtheir fpirit of procrali ination I therefore

convenedthe Vakeels*, whom the ch ief

Polygarshadlent to treat with me in

camp, anddireétedthem to inform their

Vakeelsaredeputies,agents,oramball'adors.refpeétive

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136 A VI EW O F T H E

lieu of all preceding claims. They like- a

w ife gave their bondsfor fifteen thoufand

pag‘

odas, or each, in confideration

of the rcl’dtution of theirforts. Obligationswere farther exaéted, that the defencesofPandalamcourchy lhould be derriolilhc

'

d,

that the guns, ltores, and ammunition

lhouldbe removed to Palamcottah ; that

the roadwh ich we clearedto the Comby

of Shevigerry lhouldcontinue Open ; that

the meansof defence lhouldbe removed

from the place, and that the fouthern

commanders, andthe Company’stroops,

lhouldat all timesbe admittedw ithin their

fortsandbarriers:I concludedw ith in

junctionsto obferve a more fubm illivc

conduct, if they valuedtheir lives, property, or polierity . Asfoon asthe reliitutionof the fortsandpril'on

'

ersl‘ couldpofiiblytake place, the thirdandninth battalions

Among the prifonersthere wasadaughter of Catabominaigue, who, aswell asall the Others, amountingtomany hundreds, were treatedwith the utmoll attention.

under

ENGL ISH INTERE ST S IN IND IA. 137

u nder Captain Mackinnon, were direéted

to march from Shevigerry, andto join

the force at Dindigul, wh ither the army

proceededby the route of Madura.

Your Lordlh ip and the Boardare not

unacquaintedwith the unworthy prac’tices

by wh ich the fertile"

province of Tinivelly

hasfufi'

eredlince the difreputable expedi

tion thither'

under Maphuz e Cawn andColonel H eron. Their defeat by the Nat

Coleriesnear Madura wasnot more difgraceful, thantheprinciplesuponwhich thatandfubfequent armamentsagainll the Polygarshave been conducted. Though clear

fiatementsandfpecific charges, leaving no

retrofpeét ofexaéi ion, together with fimpli;

city of arrangement,anddifpatch in ox een

tion, are the great barriersagainll malverfation, the Oppofite'offuch conduEt confiantly

prevailed until your Lordlh ip and the

Boardalfumedthe management of thofe ter

ritories,nothing wasdefinite- nothing was

, 138 A V I EW O F T H E

concluded partial paymentswere received

pall claimswere left for future fettlement ;

many monthswere walledin ~ fitting out an

expedition, andlllll more in perform ing

fligh t fervices. During thewhole periodof

protmfi ion, the Renter, the Amuldar, the

Phouzdar, andthe European commander,were reaping the harvell of corruption, and

lowing for an after-

growth of peculation.

The Polygarsare fubtle andacute - they

took advantageof lo corrupt afyllem ; - and,

notwithllanding their internal feuds, theyunitedagainll a common invader. They

adminillered to the avarice of their Oppo

nent by bribes, andto hispallion for commandby procrallination. Thusthe province wasimpaired, —itscultivation failed,

- itsmanufacturesdiminilh ed —every new

ColleCtor and Commander entailednew

evils, andtaught the Polygarsto cOnfider

theirpelhculh“not asajull tribute to their

‘0 Pelhculh isthe{urnpaidby thole who holdof a fu

perior.

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14 0 A V I E W o r T H E

then they {hall be cherilh ed:but whiletheir habit isidlenefs, andtheir bufinefsdevafiation, I w ill treat every one asa.

public enemy, who.

wieldsa pike, or

wearsthe turban of a Polygar.

”On

comparing the fiate of that country with

h isconduCt andremarks, I foundthat wif

dom, vigour, andintegrity were nevermore

confpicuousin any perfon of whatever cli

mate or complex ion.

On my arrival at Dindigul, an order of

encampment wastranfmittedto your Boardin two lines containing one European

andthree Sepoy brigades, befidesfourflankbattalionsthat actedasa fifth brigade. Our

artillery confrfiedof fix ty- five piecesof

cannon with field- ammunition, and

battering fhot ; the engineers’ departmentwasfioredwith befieging toolsandother

implementsthe pioneer corpswasfirengthened; the cavalry, ex cepting three tr00ps,werenativesandirregulars; they amounted

’0 See the annexedPlate.

ENG LISH INTERE STS IN IND IA.

to 10 0 0 men, andfervedto flank the bag

gage on the line of march. The Commif.

fary of Storesdepartment, including the

conveyance of artillery, requireda nume

rousretinue of draught andcarriage cattle

thefe we hadfor feveral monthsufedunte.mitting efi

'

ortsto procure andby the at;

fifiance of Mr. Sulivan,Mr. Irwin,andMr.

Johnfion, in addition to our own exertions,we afl

'

embleda greater number of bullocksthan ever were attached to any Englifh

force in India.

TheAgentViétuallerwasobligedto convey arrack andprovifionsfor 2 000 Euro

peans. But'the bufinefsof the Grain- keeper

wasfiill more embarrafiing ; wherefigh ting men andmany thoufandpublicfollowers" were to be fubfified, without

money or other meansof fupply, exceptThe public followersconfitt of Lafcarsfor the tents,

driversof bullocks, artificers, anddoolymen to carry the

felt andwounded.

14 3 A V IEW O F T H E

fuch magaz inesof the enemy aswe wereenabledto reduce. It hadbeen the ufagc

of Indian commandersto levy dutieson all‘articlesbought or foldin the baz ar or mar

ket of the army . Underwhatever‘

fané’tion

thiscufiom took its' rife, it isanddioustaxupon the foldier for the benefit of h isfuperior. I perm itted

’

no fuch pract ice.

Another material objeét wasthe modeandorderofmarching—Theprafi ice onthecoafl:hasbeen to form theSepoy corp

'sthreedeep,andtheEurop eanstwodeep,andthentomoveby filesw ith afirongadvanceguard,anda Ptill fironger rear guard, in order to

cover the cartsandother wheeledconveyaucesthatfollow the line thebaggage isthendifpofedof on the right or left flank, ac

cording to the nature of the groundover

wh ich the army isto pars, andcoveredbya {trong force, to repel the rapidchargesofthe enemy

’scavalry.

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14 4 . A V IEW O F THfl

To remedy thefe evilsI pr0p0fed to

form the army into five divifions, andtodifpofe them in fhape of what in another

fcience iscalleda quincunx . The European

brigade beingufually placedin the centre of

the line, lhouldform the centredivifion of

th e quincunx , w ith a Sepoy brigade in

front, another in the rear, andone On each

flank:the battering train andbaggage to

move undercover of the divifion leafl:likely“

to be charged andthe brigadesto move,not by files, but in columns, andat fuch‘difiances, that whenever it may be necefl'

ary

to form the line to the front,flank, or rear,

cthe centre brigade, and that which isto‘becom e the right andleft w ings, may oc

c upy the whole intermediate fpace. Thus,

if the line he attackedin front, the centre

‘

brigade andthe two flank brigadesimmediately form a line to the front, andthe ad

vance andrear brigadestake their fiationseither asa fecondline, asa baggage- guard

and

ENGL ISH INTERE STS IN IND IA.

andareferve,or to extendthe main line. If

the line be attacked,or if it hemeant to at

tack on the right or left flanks, the centre

brigades, with the front andrear brigades,face to the righ t andleft,andform the line,

while the two brigadesthat were the flankdivifionson the line of march are pottedascircumfiancesmay require. Thus, in everypollible point of attack, the line isquicklyformed, the baggage protected, and the

army preparedfor afiion.

Your infirué’tionsof the 18th of Augufl:direfiedme to remain on the frontiers,ready to aft offenfively, in cafe of an infrac

tion on the part ofTippoo Sultaun ; andfor

th ispurpofe, the army movedto re- oc

cupy D araporam. We foundthat the ma

gaz ineswhich we left there in June had

been greatly confumed; but there fiill

remaineda fortnight’sfubfifience for the

troops.

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14 8 A V I EW o r TH E

native troopswere twelve monthsin arrearsour ordnance, though numerous,wasof inconvenient calibers:the carriageshadfuffetedby our continuedmarching gunney

bagsfor carrying rice, copper h00psforpowder- barrels, cordage for dragging the

gunsacrofsa country unexploredby ar

mies, andvariousother articlesin the Commilfary of Stores’ department, were deficient indeed, when comparedwith the fup

pliesthat the Carnatic army daily received

fi'

om the Prefidency . Above all, the want

of money renderedit impoflible to pay the

H eadBlack Men, who hademployedbul

locksin the fervice for fush a. length of

time,that theirprivate fundswere exhaufied,andtheir faith in the Company impaired.

D uring formerwarsthere ever hadbeenfrequent paymentsto the troops, which ehabledthem to procure fuppliesfrom . the

tradersandinhabitants, even in the enemy 'scountry . Under thefe circuml’tances, the

con

ENGL ISH INTEREST S IN'

IND IA. 149

conveyance of many daysprovifionwasnotindifpenfably required:whereasthe want

of magaz inesandmoney left usno fecurityof fubfiflence, except the grain we could

carry w ith us, or feiz e aswe advanced for

th ispurpofe {tatementswere procuredof

the grain depofitedwith in two hundred

m ilesof our front andflank ; andfeveral

hundredpeople w ere employedon that and

Other bnfmefsof intelligence.

It wasfarther necefl'

ary, not only to“

con

ceal our own intentions, but to difcoverthofe of the enemy ; for want of fimilar

precautions, three Englifh armieshadbeencut off or taken prifonersin India.

Asno one Harcarrah can poffibly keep

pace with the rapidmovementsof the Myfore cavalry, confidential intelligencerswereeflablifh edat every confiderable town in the

Myforedominions, aswell asin the ene

my’scamp, andin the D urbarsof the Ra

jabs

150 A V I EW O F TH E

jahsinimical to Tippoo Sultanu. On the}

firft notice of any material incident, thefe

intelligencersdifpatched fmall cadjeans*,which were m ore rapidly conveyedto me

,

than any botfa couldtravel, by Tappalsorrelaysof Colleries, fiationedat moderate

dif’tances, andunfufpefiedby the enemy .

Harcarrahs, Peons, lubby - merchants, andSepoyswere alfo conftantly traverfing all

partsof the enemy’scountry ; others,carrying difpatchesto Madrasandthe fouthernprovinces, to Travancore, to Coch in, to theMalabarRajahs, toGeneralMacleodatCan

nanore, to ColonelCampbell atMangalore,

andto the Refidency at Telicherry. The in:telligence of every individual wascarefullyregiflered, andtendedto confirm or to

refute the various1nt1mationsconfiantly arriving. By thefe means, during manymonthsof continuedmarch ing through a

country almoll unexplored, we never once

Cadjeansare thick leaves, refembling the papyrus,onwhich the Gentoo:write.

8

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15: A V IEW OF TH E

fefl'

ed, theirmagaz inesandrevenuesrenderedproduétive andthat wemuft proceedbyunexpeétedfirides,to fuch pofitionsasmightpreferve a communication with our own

0 o

provmces, formmg at the fame tIme regular

Ragestowardsthe capital ofMyfore. Thisimpliedthat we were to act on the principlesof a befieging army, to make lodgmentsaswe advanced, and[till to prefsforward;to diminifh the refourcesof the enemy,

wh ilewe increafedourown to oblige h im,

either to fufl'

er usto proceedunmoleftedinthe profecution of operations, of which

the ultimate objeét wasthe overthrow of

h isgovernment, or elfe to compel h im,in

the obftruéi ion of thefe proceedings, to

affordusthe w iIhed- for Opportunity of a

clofe engagement in the field.’

Such wasthe fyflem on which I propofedto aét,

truf’ting that the inefficiency of the oppofite

or fieldfyfiem, asevincedin the condufi:of thewarof 1767, andin the late Carnatic

war, wouldbe heldfufiicient to induce a

change

ENGL ISH INTEREST S IN IND IA. 153

change of meafures; foran army confiitutedasHyder's, w ith a fuperabundance of

elephants, camels, bullocks, andcavalry,

m ufi out -march an army formedof infantrylike ours,— unqualified by principle and

formation to comm it the devafiatiOn of a

Maratta or Myforean army. Our field

Operationsare neither alarm ing to the

enemy, nor productive of advantage to our

own caufe ; andour forces, when coufli

tutedforfieldoperationsonly, pafsthrougha country, and leave no vefiige of their

fervices.

On the fourth of Oc’tober I reprefented

our alarm ing fituation, in cafe Tippoo

Sultaun lhouldleave uslong in a Rate of

uncertainty ; and added, that to remain

upon the frontiers, in expedtation of events,wouldbe impoflible, forwe couldnot hope

to procure more than a month’sprovifion

with in the diflria z that to fall back upon

the Company’sfouthern poflelfions, would

frnfirate

m; A V IEW or TH E

fiu ltrate your intentions, andexhault th e

produce of thofe countries. Befides, fo largean army unpaidandunemployed, isever atthe mercy of the firi’t incident that may

occafion difcontent. Thefe confiderati0n§

inducedme to folicit from your Lordfh ipand the Board, a latitude of purveyance,

even in the enemy’scountry, in cafe h is.

protractionsIh ouldendangerthe fafety of

the troops, fo critically fituated,

On the fix teenth of October the army

marched towardsPylny, about thirty

m ilesfouth of D araporam, in order to put

the renter of D indigul'sfamily in pofl

'

eflion

of their inheritance, or petty Rajahlh ip of

Pylny . They all'

ured me of grain andcattle at that place ; andthiswasthe lafl;refource we had to expect, w ithout

advancing into the enemy’scountry, or

falling back on the fouthern provinces,Mofi fortunately, while imprefl

'

ed,w ith the

approach of thefe impending’difficulties, an

official

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$ 56 A VI EW O F TH E

appearedbut two practicable movementsoffufficient moment to make Tippoo raife

the liege of Mangalore:the one was, tomove by Coimbatour, Settimungulum,

andthe pafsof Gudjereddy, wh ich leadsup the ghautsor mountainson wh ich thekingdom of Myfore iselevated, direétlyto Myfore fort and Seringapatam:theotherwas,to moveagainfl:Palagatcherry.

The defign I hadformed of moving

to Tippoo’scapital, w ith a view of form

ing a permanent efiablilhment, hasbeenalready fiated. For thispurpofe, an inter

mediate place of firength andrefourceswasrequired, to ferve asa magaz ine of Iioresandprovifionsfor the profecution of our

undertakings, or to fecurea retreat if necef

fary. NeitherCoimbatour,though the capi

tal ofarich Rajahlh ip, norSettimungulum,

nor Ardenelli, which are the principal fortsIn thedirect roadfrom D araporam to the

city of Seringapatam, were of fuflicient

firength

ENGLISH INTER E STS IN IND IA. 157

firength to jultify our trullingany of them

asour maindepofit. For the unexpeaed

lofsof fuch a magaz ine, while the army

m ight be feveral hundredmilesadvancedin an enemy

’scountry, furroundedby a

formidable force, m igh t have fubjeétedusto difafters, of wh ich the Englifh ar

mies, defeated and taken prifonersduring the war, were melancholy remem.

brancere.

Palagatcherr'

y heldforth every advantage,being a place of the firfi firength in India,wh ile itsterritory affordedafupcrabundanceof provifion The mountainsthat boundthe pafawhich it commands,are firengthen.

edby th ick foreftsandfurrounding woods;andthe interfeé’cionsof the Paniani river

,

through deep rice grounds, concurred to

enable a fmall body of infantry to defend

Palagatcherry wascompletely rebuilt by Hyder nucethe warof”67with the Englilh, andwasfurnilhedwithall the advantagesof European confiruétion anddefence

m A VI EW OF TH E

the territory againfi any number of horfesIt f arther commanded the only pmaia

cable communication between the coafisbfCoromandel andiMalabar, andproniifed

usp oll'efiion of all the countriesfrom Trit

chih0poly by Daraporam, in a track of

more than 2 00 miles— It opened the

meansof fupply from Travancore, Coa

ch in, and other placeson the Malabar

w aft—alt afl’

ordedconfidence to theZamorin, andother difafi

'

eétedRajahs, fromCochin toGoa, who were Muggling to

{bake 03 the yoke of H yder. - It left usat .

liberty to difguife our movements, andtoproceedeither by the route of Coimbatom'

and Gudjereddy, or by Calicut on the

Malabar fea, andthe pafsof Damalchcrry,to the liege of Seringapatam.

- It washe .

fidesof fuch intrinfic confequence to the

Myfore Government, that the redué'

tion of

it couldnot fail to weigh elfentially in the

negotiationsfor peace then faidto be in

agitation, andpromifed to make Tippoo

Sultanu

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use A V I EW o r T rislagat. Ourobjcit wasto reachColingoody ;a pol

’c on the wefiern fide of the foreft,

w ithinfifteen m ilesof Palagatcherry . Th e

frequent ravinesrequired to be filledup

before it Waspollible to drag the gunsacrofsthem,

- innumerable large treeswh ich oh

firUCted the paEage, required to be cut

down anddrawnout of the intendedtrack,

andthentheWhole roadwasto be formed,

before the carriagescouldpals. The bri

gadesweredifiributedto fucceedeach other

at intervals, precededby pioneers, in order.

to clearwhatgtheadvancedbody, hadopened

for the gunsand‘

fioresthat jwereto moveunder cover of the reardivifion.

While we were thusengaged, an unre

mitting rain, ex tremely unufual at that

feafon, commenced. The ravineswere

filledwith water, - the pathsbecame flip.

pery,- the bullockslolt theirfooting, and

the tr00pswere obligedto drag the gunsandcarriagesacrofsthe whole forefit. I

6

ENG LI SH INTERE STS IN IND IA. 16:forcedon with the advance to Colingoody,

in order to make the necelfary arrangements‘w ith the people of the Zamorin‘, who had

preparedfor the future fubfillence of the

army . The difpofitionsof the inhabitantstowardsus, andtheir meansof fupply,,exceeded our molt fanguine expeétations.TheZamorin’sVakeel informedthe liramins, that we Were friendsto their caufe,

andearnel’t todeliver them from the yoke

of Hyder ; that we only w ilhedto receive

the public proportion of the grain, but none

from individuals; andthat any perfon be

longing to the camp who fhouldattempt

to plunder, wouldbe hangedin front of the

lines. On hearing thefe declarations, theytefiifiedthe {trongefi fatisfaftion andtheir

confidence increafedwhen they foundthat

the firfl:oflenderswere executed. The

rainscontinuing fourteen dayswithoutintermifiion, the palfage through the fo

reft became daily more diltrefsful, andthetroopswere expofedin their whole pro

M grels,

163 A V I EW OF T H E

grefs, w ithout the polfibility of pitchingtents, or of procuringfor them either~ cover

or convenience.

Colingoody isfifteen milesfrom Pala

gatcherry, andthe roadliesentirely throughrice grounds, w ith interfefi ing ridgescoatreredw ith cocoa

\

and Other trees. The

water andembankmentsnecefl'

ary for the

cultivation of rice, render it difficult for

gunsto pafs, andimpraéticable for cavalryto aét. Asfoon asa fuflicient force gotthrough the wood, the advanced corpsm ovedto the bank* of the Paniani river,‘

w ith in random {hot of the worksof Palagatcherry, where we took a fecure pofition,

and prepared to invefi the place. MyBra

’

miu Harcarrahsf hadexecuteda modelof the fort in clay, a work at wh ich they

are ex tremely dex terousandon all handswe hadreceivedaccountsof it that appeared

November 2d.

1Harcarrahsare people who give intelligence, {howroads, 8tc.

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164 Ai

v raw b e TH E

working parties. are battering train andflares, however, under cover of the fourth

brigade, reachedout encampment on the

9th, after a fucceflion of toil that would

appear incredible if recitedindetail.

Apprehendirrg mirch delay from the

{trength of the works, andthe obfiinacy of

thedefenders, efpecially if they lhouldforceusto approach by fap to the crefi of the

glacis, andto proceedfrom thenceby regu

largradationsacrofsthe ditch, we refolved

at a feafonah‘e opportunity to attempt th e

gateway . We foundit fo firongly flanked

andfortified, that it appearedalmolt fecure

from any attack ; however,havingnodraw

bridge,we foundedourhopesofacceleratingth e liege on thiscircumftance. Wedidnot

therefore perm it any heavy metal whatever

to be fireditill the th irteenth,when! we open- 1

edw ith twelve gunsandfour howitz ersfrom two batteriesat 4 0 0 yardsdiltancefrom the call andnorth facesof the fort,

and

ENGLIsH INTEREST S IN IND IA. £6;

and before funfet the defenceswere fo

much damaged, that the fire of the befieged

confiderably abated

The particularspf our attack, and the

furrender of the place during the nigh t,

wh ich are explainedat full length in my

letter of the I5 th of November, were not

more fortunate than unexpeé’ted, \Ve

foundthe fort coveredby a refpeétable gla-

r

cis, with a goodcovertway ; a very broad

anddeep ditch , completely reveted a large

berme, and a very firong commandingrampart. The figure of the fort wasnearlyquadrangular:the dimenfionsof itsfaceswere 5 2 8 feet by each angle wasdefendedby a capaciousroundbafiion withnine embrafures, anda baflion of a fimilar

confirufi ion on the centre of each curtain.

It hadonly one entrance, pafling through

three gateways,mounteda great number ofgunsupon the works, andcontainedagarrife!) of 4 009 men

‘

165 A V I EW OF TH E

On the night of the th irteenth, Captain

Maitland, w ith apart of the four flank

battalions, took the advantage of a heavy

rain to drive the befiegedfrom the covert

way . Being fofortunate asto fucceed, h epurfuedthem with in the firfl:andasfar asthe fecondgateway, wh ere h e wasflopped,but maintainedhisgroundwith great fpiritandability until a reinforcement arrived.

Thismdde of attack fo much alarmedthe

enemy, that they called out for quarter,andput usin pofl

'

efiion of a‘ fort capable of

making a long anddefperate refiftance.

We found pagodasin '

the place, be

fidesa very large fupply of grain, guns,powder, lhot, andmilitary fiores.

In my lettersto your Lordlh ip andthe

Board on thisfubjeét, it appeared ne

celfary for me to'

be m inute in. a defcrrption of the place, becaufe itsconfequenceand local fituation were not accurately

known to Europeans. Thisfortrefscommand:

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168 A V I EW O F T H E

battalion, w ith a few Europeansandfomeirregularsunder Captain Dewar, one of

your ablelt oflicers. The heir apparent of

theZamorinleft hisretirement in the woods,andremainedwith m e during the liege

In anfwer to h isurgent folicitations, that welhouldreltore h im to the dom inionsof

which H yder haddeprived hisfam ily, Ideclared, that in the event of ourmoving

by Calicut, we m igh t hope to efl'

eél:h ist e- efiablilhment there ; and that in the

mean wh ile he lhouldbe reinfiatedin the

territory of Palagat, an ancient dependencyof theZamorinS, - requiring only from him,

that he lhouldfurnilh grain for the army

wh ile in that vicinity, w ithout any other

obligation, until the conclulion of the war,

or until your Government lhouldmake

fome regular agreement w ith him.

To eltablilh more fully the Zamoun S

authority, andto afford h im the necef

fary fupport in hisprefent fituatidn, a

large

ENGLISH INTERE ST S IN IND IA. 169

large body of Bramiu Harcarrahs,. whohadoonltantly remainedwith me in camp,

were employed, andprovednot only of

great fervice in the bufinefsof intelligence,but of material influence in conciliating the

Gentoos. Accompaniedby them,,we fre

quently rode through the adjacent villages,afi

'

embledthe headpeople,andafl'

uredthem

of protefi ion. D uring thefe proceedingsImaintaineda correfpondence with Brigadier

General Macleod, Colonel Campbell, and

the Relidency of Telicherry, intimating

my intention of approach ing their coal’t,and

alluringGeneralMacleodofmy earnedwithto co- operate with h im in every meafure

that couldtendto advance usin full forceagainl

’t Seringapatam . Having heardthat

there wasabundance of battering gunsandmilitary Proresat Telicherry, I wrote forfuch fuppliesascouldbe fpared, offering to

move down to Paniani or Calicut, andto

proceedto Seringapatam, either by the pafsof Damalcherry, through the country of

our

no A V IE W OF T H E

ourfriendstheNyars,or elfe to return from

Paniani or Calicut to Palagatcherry, and

from thence by Coimbatour, ashe m ightjudge molt eligible.

The Admiral Sir EdwardH ughesbeingt hen at Telicherry with the fquadron, I

entreatedhim to fenda velfel w ith fibresto Paniani, and, in order to guardagainlt

difappointment, difpatched mell'

engerstoCochin, to lecore an ample fupply at that

place. General Macleodw ith h isdiltinguilh edliberality of charaéter all

'

ured'

me,

that in the event of my moving towardsh iln, he wouldunite in profecuting the

movement to Seringapatam,w ithout taking

any advantage of h isfeniority,andw ithouti nterfering in the commandof the

,

fouthern

army . Finding, however, that h isarmycouldnot be put in motion in lefsthan twomonths, for want of bullocksandconveyance ; that no fuhltantial frock of m ilitary

liorescouldbe expectedat Telicherry ;

8 and

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17: A V I EW or T H E

veredv ith abundant crops. The poll'

ellionof thistown,‘ being the capital of the

greatell:antient Rajahlh ip in the country,

prom ifedem inent advantage ; for althoughnot remarkable on account of itsmilitaryfirength, it isheld in h igher eltimation

than any other place belonging to the Myforeansin the Payen Ghaut, or country

below the mountains.~We now arrive at the molt intere

‘

fiing

moment of thewar. The garrifon ofMan

galore, under ItsInefiimable commanderColonel Campbell, hadmade a defence

thht hasbeen feldom equalledandnever

fu’

rpalfed. With a handful of men worn

out by fatigue and famine, he refilledfor many monthsa formidable army

underTippoo Sultanu The whole powerof that prince,allil

’tedby the fcience of his

French auxiliaries, couldnot force a breachthat hadlong lain open, andhe wasre!pulledin eve

ryattempt to carry it by ftorm.

Tippoo’s

ENGLI SH INTERE ST S IN IND IA. 17;

Tlppoo’sarmy, particularly the cavalry,

h adfufferedgreatly by a perfeverance in the

liege during thewhole periodof the rainy

feafon. The interior affairsof hisdom i- fnions, being unfettledlince h isrecent accefiion, were in extreme confulion.

’

H isfailure againlt Mangalore hadencouraged

the Corga Rajah, a powerful Chief under

the mountainsthat feparate x the Malabar

country from Myfore, to alfert independ

ency by armswh ile every other ancient

Rajah on theMalabarfide of Indiafrom Goa

to Cochin, waseager to repel the tyranny

of the Myfore Government, to which the

whole of that ex tenfive coalt no longer

ownedfubjeCtion.

G eneral Macleodat the head of the

Malabarforces, ltrong in Europeans, artillery, andnative corps, fupportedthefe Rajahs, andlabouredw ith h isufual energy tocomplete the fyltem that he hadmaterially

promoted. There waslikewife a force

afi ing

174 . A VI EW OF TH E

acting under General Jones, againlt the

Cudapah country, ornorthern poffellionsofTippoo Sultanu, where h ispower wasillefiablifhed; andthe army undermy direc

tion wasperhapsthe firongef’c force be

longing to Europeansthat hadever been

employedin India. The countriesWe hadreducedex tended2 0 0 milesin length, fromthe dif’trié’t of Tritchinopoly on the call, to

Ramgarry, thirty mileswell of Palagat

cherry, afl'

orded provifionsformen, andyieldedan annual revenue of

wh ile every neccfl'

ary arrange

ment hadbeen made for the regular col

leition of there refources.

The fort and pafsof Palagatcherry fecuredourwefiern Hank, and the interme

diate pofition of General Macleod’sarmybetween that place andTippoo

’smain armyat Mangalore, together with the fingular

combination of ravines, riversand em

bankmentsthat interfeCt the Malabar coun

tries,

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176 A V I EW o r TH E

cal cirCUmftancesof a country, it wouldenable usto fech te thofe territoriesfromany confiderable irruptions. At th isperiodtoo, the chumba 'or great cr0p throughout

the country wasupon the ground, and,independently of the magaz inesin our

front, promifedample provifion.

TheCorgaRajah hadrepeatedly prom ifed

usfuppliesItom h iscountry, ex tendingw ithin thirty milesof Seringapatam . Thefe

prom ifeswere confirmed- by the Zamorin,

who had abundantly furnilh ed usw ithgrain at Palagatcherry . Th isPrince likewifeengagedforthe aflifiance of all the Malabar

Chiefs, commanding the ghautsor moun

tainsthat boundMyfore upon the weft ;

andconvincedusthat they were not only

w illing to provide for usduring the e ge,

but to form magaz inesin i’trong pofitionsamong themountains, andto join usw ith2 0 or Nyarsif required.

Mahomed

ENGLI SH INTERESTS IN’

IND IA. 17,

MahomedAlly, andother difiinguifh

ed leaders, had been executed in the

camp of Tippoo, for exciting difafi'

eé'

tion.

A recent confpiracy hadoccurredin Serin

gapatam, menacing the releafement of the

Englifh prifoners, the ex clufion of Tip

poo’sfamily, andthe te- efiablithment of

the antient Rana, or Gentoo fovereign of

Myfore. In addition to thisenumerationof advantages, we hadevery reafon to rely

on the Gentoo or Canara race forming the

great mafsof inhabitantsin Myfore,whohadunequivocal proofsof my earnefl:z ealto fupport their intereftsand favourite

family ; while every circumftance of prefent

fituation or of future profpeél:feemedto

mark th isinterefiing moment asthe crifisof the war.

The troopswere immediately providedw ith tendaysgrain, the carriagesrepaired,the departmentsarranged, andthe army

preparedto march . My delign againft theN

Q

373 A V IEW o r T H E

fortsandmagaz inesof Settimungulum and

Ardenelli wascommunicated to your

Board; andfrom thence it wasmy intentionto pulh forwardto the city of Seringapa

mm with the utmoft rapidity that couldbe

unitedw ith precaution. Exulting in the

brigh t perfpeftive that lay before us, wefelt a painful eagernefsfor the moment ofdeparture ; our expe&ations, however, of

refiorIng the Englifh name and confe

quence in Indiawere of thort duration.

Your Lordfh ip andthe Boardhadjudged

it expedient to delegate your powersofnegotiation to commiflioners, who were to

treat of peace at the Durbarof Tippoo Sul

taun. lnveftedwith full authority by your

Boardto give what inflruétionsthey thoughtproper to all tr00psof the Englifh cm

i" Settimungulum isfituatedon the banksof the Caveri, below the pafsof G udjerreddy . Ardenelli {landsonthe top of the ghauts, on the elevatedflat or table landofMyfore.

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3 80 A V I E W O F TH E

listedto them the benefitsof our pofition,andthe menacing appearance on the Ma

labar coali ; tranfmitting at the fame time

fimilar communicationsto your Board, andintimating

‘

my intention of remaining at

Coimbatour until I fhould be farther

infirufted. My Aidde Camp, CaptainMoody, w ith the fame view, proceededto

Madrasandwasfully qualifiedby knowledge andability to explain our firm

tion, andto prove that a movement to See

ringapatam wouldendanger the throne of

Hyder.

During the fucceeding interval, every

moment wasemployedin addingto the fulnefsof our equipment. Roch in Cawn, the

commander of Tippoo’sarmy in the coun

”

try ofCoimbatour, wasinformed, that wewouldobferve th e ceffation till further

orders*. CaptainMaitland, w ith theflank

Q Habitsof intercourl'e took place between Rochin

Cawn’scamp andours, of which there hadbeen no ex

ample between contending armiesin India.

brigade,

ENGLISH TNTERE STS IN IND IA. 13:brigade, proceededto D indigul andTan

jore, in order to bring fuppliesof {tonesfrom the fouth ern garrifons. Mr. D igby

'

,

Paymafier in camp, wh ofe z eal andpublic

talentshave on all occar nsbeen confpi

cuous,went to procure money at Tinivelly,andto concert with

“

Mr. Irwin, Superim

tendant there, apermanent mode of remit- ftance andfupply

’:andasfoon asthisreinforcement lhouldbe ready tomove towardsus,itwasmy intention to fall back andcoverthe junCtion. In the mean time the third

brigade wasdetachedby Palagatcherry to'

Coch in, where the Governor hadpreparedfor usa confiderable Rock of arrack,flares,andammunition ; while the main body of

the army remainedat Coimbatour, ready to

oppofe the enemy. But thefe andall fimilar

arrangementswererenderedabortive by yourm inutesof confultation datedthe fifth of

D ecember, directing me to fulfil the order

of unqualifiedrefiimtion enjoinedby your

Deputies,.asthepreliminariesofnegotiationN 3 with

In A VI EW 0 ? TH !

“ about the mithlle dDecem'

her, anda

fewdaysafterwards“I received from the

Coulmiflionersanotherletter,repeating theirhith er-tions.

We hadentirely continuedthe ,grain in

Coimbatour,andall thatwasripe in the adjacent fields. Wewere not at liberty tomoveinour intendedcourfe, nor to look for new

(applies,wh ich wouldhave been confidered.

beeninfraé’tionof tb sedation ; it therefore

became month ly toreturntoPavlagateherry,

where the troopsreceivedgrain to fubfifl

themasfarasTr itchinOpoly andMadura,a

difiane'

eof two hundredmiles. Onthe twenty

aeighth of December, the army advanced

towardsthe fouthern countries; andat thefame

”

time three battalionsunder CaptainYWhed

‘

erwercdetachedto efcort the flaresfrom Cochin, wi th direaions' to evacuate‘P-alagat-

‘

clierry, and to join usby the

route oi ' Annamalley and. Pylny, clefstothe

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334 e V I EW o r TH E

The army hadnow been fedfor manymonthsentirely at the expence of the

enemy ; anddireétionswere given, that

all grain found in the country lhouldbe fervedout to the troopsin lieu of

batta thereby faving to the Company an

advance of nearly 50 01. per day for the

whole time thearmy wasfo fubfii’ted, andleaving the troopsto make their after

claims, in cafe they lhouldexpeét to re

peive that grain on the footing of cap

ture

On the fourth of January 1784 , the

army arrivedat Ayryacetta. Colonel Stuv

art with’

the main divifion proceeded to

I Batta isthe extra (um allowedto troopsover and

above theirpay, in lieu of fubfiltence while in the field.

1 Some other armieshadchargedthe Company withthe battadue to every foldier in the field, notwithltandingthat a fufliciency of grain hadbeen feieedfor the mainte

nance of the troops. Thusthe amount of the grain foundwasdivertedfrom public raving to the benefit of indivi

duals. If I hado

permi tted th ispraétice, the Companywouldhave loll I.

Caroor,

ENG L ISH INTERE STS IN IND IA . as;Caroor, on t he bordersof the Tritchino-

x

poly country ; Colonel Forbeswith'

a firdngforce, remainedin thediltriétsof D araporam andDindigul ; while Colonel Kelly,

with another divifion, advancedto Cova

nore on the bordersof Madura andthe

Marawas. Thisdiflribution wasintendedto relieve your provincesfrom the burden

of fubftfiing too large a proportion of

troops. At the fame time the divifionswere fo ftationed, asto overawe every

dilh 'iél:to the fouthward, andto form the

army on the {horteft notice, in the event

of a renewal of the war againit Tippoo

Sultanu.

Having proceededwith the Cavanore

divifion, asthe molt central fituation, to

the fouthward, thefe arrangementswerehardly finiihed w hen i received your

ordersto realfemble the army, andto pre

On the twenty- fourth of january I784

f

no a V I EW o r T H E

pare"for a recommencement ,of hofi

'

tlifiy,

You likewife direétedme to {retain podef- v

tion of Palagatcherry, in cafe by any ,aceifi

dent‘

it {houldhave been refiored. I in.

fiantly ifl'

uedordersto all the garrifonsandRationsto augment our equipment ; wroteto Mr. Sulivan, Mr. H ippifley, .and the

other G entlemen in the civil:department“intreating them Lto procure bullocks,gunsney b ags, and money

~ feti‘

the peeling

ex igenciesof the‘army andfarthermade

a c ircuit of the fouthern countriesto accent

len to thefe preparations. From RemandI went to Tinivelly to forwardthe bufineffiof money and conveyance, collecting for

usthere by Mr. Irw in ; andfrom thence

wrote to the Zamorin,et ting him tore

tainPalagatcherry, -wh ich he .hadoccupied

after it wasabandonedby CaptainWheelser. Captain Agnew wasfoon afterwardsdifp tehedw ith

'

a.party of Sepoys,. to folicit

four battalionsfrom the Rajah of Travan

core,

'

who‘

very gracioufly compliedwith

my

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138 A V I EW O F T H E

Caroor, andwe matchedthe fame nigh t

to Madura.

On my arrival at Covanore I found

that fanamsamounting to a lack of pa

godas, hadreachedthe camp from Tanjore.

The impauence of the troopsfor th isTupply

'

wasproportioned to the feverity of

theirdif’trefsexcepting the priz e-money at

Palagatcherry, andthe workingm oney ;to

the partiesemployedon extra labour, no

fume hadbeen ifi'

uedto the army duringour whole progrel

's, in crofling andt e

crofl‘mg India. Unfortunately thegeoin

in wh ich thispayment wasreceived,s

he

came a morecopiousfource of

.difcontent,

than all the hardfhipsthey hadendured-r

The {tar pagodat isunderfloodto be theonly legal tender. of your Prelidency it

Colonel Kelly’sdivifionwasfiationedthere:it ironthe confinesof theMarawacountry, lefathan twenty milesfrom Madura.

1Fanamsare a {mall coin ofdifferent value, compofed

of filverandcopper.

3 The h rpagoda isworth eightmilling .

ENGLISH m ranas'rsm m om . is,isnot coinedto the fouthward, but itsplacehadufually been fuppliedby the PortoNovo

pagoda, which islefsvaluable by ten percent. The Rajah of Tanjore hasnotexercifed the right of coining pagodas,andof late haspaidhistribute“ in fanams.The Dutch coinage at Negapatam formerly

amountedto four or five lacksof pagodasannually, but thishasbeen difcontinuedfince we got poll

'

eflion of that city. A;

there isno goldcoinage in any otherplace

to the fouthward, nor any regular circula

tion of rupees, the whole currency of

thofe provinces, exceeding the pagodasthat happen to be in ul

'

e, confifis, of

fanams; of thele every diliriét coinsadifl

'

erent fort, and no comparative rate

having ever been efiablilh edbetween the

Rat pagodasand thofe inferior coins,their value fluctuatesaccording to the

The tribute amountsto four lack:of pagodas; 0!

190 A V IE W O F T H E

relative demand, and the coinage of one

province is‘ feldom or never at par in

another.

Whenever it isknown that a large illu

ing of fanamsisat hand, the Shrofl's, Soucars, and purchafe all the pa

godasthey can procure. Thusthe fanamaare kept at a high price, till the difburfe

ment hastaken place, andthe rate isfix edat the current exchange for the day . But

no fooner hasth isfluctuating coin been

circulated, than the pagodascome forth,and in forty

- eigh t hoursthe holdersoffanams(offer adepreciation of fur, eight,

or ten per cent. Still more oppreflive isthismedium of public payment, when the

fanamsare ifi'

ued in a province to which

they do not properly belong:for the Tanv

jore fanam hasno regularcurrency inany

Shroff‘s, Soucars, andD ubalhes, are money changers,

bankers, andblack agentsof the Europeans.

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393 A V IEW OF TH E

To prevent asmuch aspoflible th e

troopsfrom fufl'

ering by a lofsuponchange, wh ich in common jufiice lhould

fall upon the public, it waspropofedto

Mr. Sulivan, andimmediately accededto

by him, that the paymafierlhouldcarry the

difi'

erence to the account of the Company .

It wastherefore directed, that the officerscommanding divilionsof the army, lh ouldform a Boardto afcertajn the lofsfufiainedby each battalion, andMr. Digby,paymaf

ter in camp, wasinfiruétedto give credit tothe corpsfor the amount of lofsincurred,agreeably to the general fiatement trauf

wittedto me by the abovementionedBoard.

It appearedrequifite to be minute in thisrecapitulation, in order to imprefsthe needfity of reform in the fouthern .payments.Thiswill be efl

'

ec’

l ed, by ordering a large

coinage of pagodas, andby eftablilhing a

tarif or proportional value between the. pa

godasandfanams, in the fame manner asm

ENGL ISH m '

rsnss'rsIN IND IA. 193

in linglandtwent'

y- oné {billingsare at all

timesequivalent to‘

a guinea.

My neitt objeCt wasto concert meafuresw ith Mr. Sulivan for the fafety of the

fouthern countries, wh ile the army lh ould,for the thirdtime, advance into the enemy

'sdom inions. With th isview Iproceededto

Tanjore, and.from thence by Tritchino

poly joined the nnain divifion at Ostnor.You had'

been pleafedto reinforce usfromthe Prefidency

i

fivith the ninety- eighth regi

ment, ,a patty , of Etnopean artillerymen,

andfome heavy ordnance.“

Othergunswerereceivedfrom Tanjore, andthe exertionsofMr. Sulivan'

procuredusmany articlesinwh ich we hadbeen beforedeficient.

D uringmy late progrefsthrough the

fouthern countries, Mr. Digby calledforth

every exertion of h isperfonal credit,andinaddition to conveyance fur the whole ord

nance,ammunition,andlioresof thearmy,he0 had

194: A V I EW O F T H E

hadactually providedcarriage complete forl

fearsof rice ; which at the rate of

one fearperday for I'

men,amounted

to twenty daysprovifion, exclufive of

éther conveyance, amounting to ten daysmore. The main

'

body of the army wasaffembledat Caroor, excepting thedivifion

with Colonel Forbes,which remained in

forceat D araporam, ready to join at the

{horteii notice. t hing fartherwaswanting but fpecific ord€rsfrom your Lordih ipandth e Board, or fromthe Cominiflioners,to ré- co

‘mmence hofiility; andI had{till a

planof operatiodsin view,

"

that prorr’

lifedto

leadusto th e capital b fMylbreby a route

not lefsfavourable than that wh ich We hadbeen directedtor

‘

clrn’

quilh , in cal'

e'

it thoold

have been judgednecefl’

ary to renew the

war. ThiseventT

became.

extremely pro

bable from therecent condud’t (if our adver

farIes. Previoully to my arrival at Caroor

a foraging party hadbeen attacked, andan

European oliicer, who fell into the enemy’s

hands,

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196 A V I EW O F TH E

taun*

.

i

The treaty fpecifiedthe enlargement

of the Bulhwanna or Amuldar of Palagat

cherry, whom we haddetainedin order to

give evidence concerning the murder of a

party of Europeanstaken prifonersnearPalagat, at the time that Colonel H umber

fione’sarmy wasbefore that placein He

wasfent with an cfcort to the camp of

NawasBegg, andfrom thence'

returnedme

h isthanksfor the goodtreatment he expe

rienced. Thiswastheonly fubjeél ofTipAsI have listedat foine length the eircumllancesthat

ledme to confidera continuation of the war aseligible,it migh t be expefledthat I .fl1t>uld.alfo have explainedt hemany andperhapsunanfwerable argumentsthat inducedthe government of Madrasto adopt a contrary conduitIn addrefling that Board, an enumeration of thofe argu

mentswouldhave been fuperfiuousandimpertinent ; butit wouldbe an injullice

’

to the merit of their determiha

tion,if I omittedhere to remark, that the tenor of Ia

firué’

tions(tom home, the llate of negoeiationsin Europeandthe impoverilhedcondition of the Company

’3 terria

tories, concurredto imprel'sthe ableli men in Indiawith

the propriety ar‘

Idnecélli'

ty of that meafure,“

which pro

curedto LordMacartney’sGovernment the warmedacknowledgmentsandapprobation of their fuperiors.1Thisparty wasput todeath by ~

the exprefsorder ofTippoo Sultanu.

ENG L ISH INTEREST S IN IND IA . 197

poo who hadnot been immediatelyreleafed,although nearly prifonershadbeentaken by usduring the operationsof thefouthern army. The Commiflionersalfodireétedme to reftore the fortsandcountriesof CaroorandD araporam,but to retain

pofl'

eflion of Dindigul, and to fiation a

firong force there until theEnglilh prifonersIhouldbe aCtually enlarged.

No time was1011in evacuating the (pea

cifiedcountries; andon the firfi of April

Colonel Forbes’sdivifion movedto D indigul, andColonel Stuart fell back from

Caroor upon the province of Tritchinopoly,

with infiruf’tionsto depofit all the fioresand

heavy ordnance of the army in that gar

rifon. While We remainedat Dindigul,the tr00psin that quarter fufl

‘

ereda contis

nuation of fatigue, andwere obliged to

march feventy m ilesto the headof the

Odtumpollum valley, to receive the grain

necefi'

ary for their current fubfiflence.

’

0 3

198 A V I EW O F TH E

In obedience to your ordersdefiring myopinion on the mol’t advantageousmode of

reformingandarranging the fouthern forces,I hadthe honour, on the twenty

~ fix th of

April, to exprefsmy fentimentson that

important andRatedthat the vi

cinity of Tritch in0poly wasthe molt eli.

gible pofition for a cantonment, Where a

firong force, complete in every circum

fiance of fieldequipment, lhouldat all tim esbe fiationed— that the great depofit of

military fioresand provifions{hould be

formedthere, w ith,

the fieldandbatteringtrain, pioneers, and main body of the

fouthern artillery— that the Commandants

of corpsfhouldbe chargedwith the carriageof their battalion- tents, ftores, andammu

nition, aswell asrice, if requifite, at the

ufual ratesfpecifiedin the Company ’sregulations. It wasalfo fuggefied, that whenevermilitary aidIhouldbe foundnecefl

'

ary

See that Letter in theAppendix .

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n o A V I E W G F T H E

hofiility in that part of India, they would

have addedfuch v igour to youroperationsasw ouldhave precludeda renewal of thofe

calam itieswh ich occurredduring the Car

natic war.

By the endof.

May, it became lmpraCt

cable to fubfift fo large a force in the D in

digul country . A firong garrifon wastherefore left in that fortrefs, andthe di

vifion wasw ithdrawn towardsMadura,where the Europeansandfome native corpsw ere cantoned. Asfoon asthe review of

the battalionswasfinifhed, wh ich hadengagedme for feveral months,three battalionsweredetachedunderCaptainWheelerto theTinivelly country ; and,at the fame time, it

became necelfary forme to move thither in

perfon in order to arrange a permanency of

payment andfupply for the troopsin thatprovince. Some occurrenceswhich happenedthere refpeé

’ting the Polygars, Cata

bominaigue, andShevigherry, were imme

diately

ENGLISH INT ER ES T S IN IND IA. z or

diately communicated to your Prefident

andevincedthe refractory difpofitionp f that

race. From Tinivelly I proceededby Ne

gapatam andTanjore to Tritch inopoly, in

order to provide by perfonai endeavoursforthedifirefl

’

esof the troops.

It now remainedfor me to undergo a

duty more painful than all the embarrafil

m entsh itherto experienced. Your Lord

ih ip and the Boardfoundit requifite to

order a reduction of many thoufandinde~

pendents, and other fouthern irregulars,who hadbeen raifedby hisH ighnefstheNabobMahomedAlly . During the whole

periodof m isfortunesto the fouthwar'

d,they {till bore the rigour of dii’trefswitha refignation unknown to Europeans.Among theic

'

men, there were the molt

refpeCtable foldiersof the call ; fome of

them had followedtheir fathersinto the

Carnatic, in the daysof D ooit Ally, andAnwaradeenCawn othershadremainedin,

the

no: A V I EW O F TH E

the fervice fince thedaysofChunda Saheb,andthe depofedRana or Gentoo queen of

Tritchinopoly. Many ,of them hadcon

tinuedfince the campaignsof Lawrence,Clive, andIfoof Gawn, in a cpni

’tant feries

of m ilitary duty. To thefe wretchedad

h erents, an average of twelve monthspaywasdue. The m isfortunesof the timesrenderedit impoiiible to difcharge thofe

claims, for the regular corpsof the army

were not lefsin arrears:under fuch cir

cum itances, to turn them loofe to m ifery,

wh ile the country wasin a fiate that couldaffordthem no relief, wouldhave diftrefll

edthe molt unfeeling m ind. They aii'

ailed

me daily w ith their fufl'

erings,l

and the

only expedient wasadopted, that prom ifedto combine the dutiesof obedience w ith

the obligationsof humanity, by directingth e officerscommanding the corpsof thofeirregulars, to furniih me with rolls, con

taining the namesof each black officer

andSepoy under their command, fpecify1ng

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0 4 A V I EW o r TH E

didmy endeavoursprove efi'

efi'

ual. The

latter elafe of venerable veteransremainsunprovidedfor ; andthe monthly iii

'

uing

of grain depending on your rentersandcivil fervants, it wasnot w ithin the lim itsof my power to enforce performance. So

'

much wasit neglected by the renter of

Tritchinopoly, that after my departure

from the fouthward, thefe unfortunate vie

tims, impelledby h unger, were driven to

fuch excefsin th eir endeavoursto procurerelief, asobligedthe military command

ant to reprefsthem by force of arms.

To thefe painful incidentswere added,

the claimsanddiftreifesof the army en.

campednear Tritchin0poly . The troopswere accuftomedto endure twelve or four

teen monthsarrearsw ith unexampledfor.

bearance, and the public followers, ar

tendantson th e army, had long been

firangersto any coin ; when to th iswasadded, a failure of theirdaily allowance of

grain

ENGL I SH INTEREST S IN IND IA . 205

grain inlieu of batta, their cafe wouldhave

been truly defperate, hadnot Tondiman

advancedambnth ’sprovifion for theirrelief.Such were the abufesof the renter at

TritchinOpoly, that in a favourable feafon

the place wasmenaced by famine. H isdifinclination to have adivifion fiationedin

thedii’triét,fuggeitedfo firangeamodeofef-J

fefi ing theirremoval. But by thismach ination any troopslefe patient than ourswouldhave been ex citedto revolt ; andthe fort

of Tritch inOpoly wouldhave fallen to Tip

poo, if he hadthought proper to inveit it

at the moment.

So urgent wasour diftrefsthat I foundmyfelf obliged, without any previouscommunication, to difperfe the t roopsin quell:of fubfiftence ; the 78th to Tanjore, the

HanoverianstowardsTripatore, a large

body of SepoystowardsMadura, andother

battalionsto Mellore andthe Marawas.At the fame time the w rit

, andfoon after

the

206 A V I EW OF. TH E

the 98th, were orderedto the Prefidency,to embark from thence for Bengal in their

Way to Europe.

YourLordih ip andthe Boardwere fullyImprefl

'

edwith the neceflity of reducing the

public followersandfieldeitabliihment of

the army, in order to ligh ten the burden

of expenditure, and to liquidate part of

thofe arrearsalready incurred; but the

protraCtion of the treaty with Tippoo un

avoidably inducedyou to defer that meas

fure,until the mutual reititution of Amboor

andDindigul Ihould be eifeéted. That

event at lafl:took place, wh ile h iscruelmafl

'

acre wasfirong in every memory,

While h isinfulting treatment of thofewhomhe releafedexcitedgeneral indignation,andWhile h isdetention of 2 0 0 Engliih

He hadmade them be circumcii‘

edandenrolledinhisfervice.

prifoners

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2 08 A V I EW OF TH E

intention from thence to have embarkedwith my own regiment for Bengal, where

I lhould have been fenior officer of the

King’sfervic'

e,

’

andfecondin commandon

that ef’tabliihment ; but I couldnot th ink

of w ithdrawing‘from the fouthern fiation

while any thing remainedfor me to red

prefent in behalf of your fouthern forces.

Permit me now , My LordandGentled

men, to offer my beit apologiesfor . the

tedioufnefsof th isrecapitulationw b it ex

h ibitsvariousincidents, in their rife, pro

grefs, and completion. In thisview, it“

may prove not altogether uninterefiing .to

that clafsof public ferva‘nts'

who w ifh to

derive after information from pait tranfac.

tions—At all events, I prefume, it hasfnfficiently evincedthat our endeavourshavingprovedlefspermanently advantageousthanm ight have been expeéted, .arofe from the

circumftancesunder which We afted, and

can

EnGLIsH INTERE ST S IN INDIA. 3 09

can neither be attributedto me, nor to the

army I commanded.

It isfully known to your Board,that thefyfiem of conciliation to wh ich Mr. Sulivan,

andmyfelf hadrigidly adhered doesnotaccordwith the Opinionsof any confiden

able portion of either fervice. Variouscircumitancesof contention hadfor many

yearsexcitedenmity between the civil and

military .- Thefe habitsof difunion w ere

greatly firengthenedduring thegovernmentof Sir ThomasRumbold, when the pre

tenfionsof your fubordinate Chiefswereeither ei’tablifhed or confirmed. By the

regulationsalludedto, the commandant of

a garrifon or province came under the

detail command of the civil Chief. The

Ch ief receivedreportsandparoles, kept thehiatwithiianding thediii

'

eniionsthat ragedamong all

ranksof Europeansin India, I hadthe goodfortune to

avoidevery fpeciesofdifcuflion having neither exhibrted

a charge, nor been the fubjeét of complaint from any per

fon in the country .

keys

2 10 A VIEW OF TH E

keysof the garrifon, andhaddirefiion of

fiores, magaz ines,anddefencesin the fort.

H ence it happenedduring the late war,

that the commandwasnot delegatedto themilitary oflicer until the enemy were in

motIon againft the place. Then it wasonly£0 delegated, that the Chief might provide

forh isown fafety, andthrow the odium of

furrender on the Commander. Thus, iafieadof a regular military control, a fyf~

remarie animofity prevailed:the magaz ineswere left without grain, the garrifonswith.out fiores,andthe country fodefiitute ofpreparation

*,that on the irruption of Hyder

Ally, the fortsin the Carnatic fell an eafy

prey to the invader. Thefc irritationsweretoo frequently increafedby military vehe

mence on the one hand,andby afi'

umptionsof the civil fervice on the other.

Asthe nativesof Indoitan have little te

fpefl:for any but the military charadter,Before the commencement of the war, the forts

throughout the Carnatic were ingeneral under the ordersof the Nabob

’sgovernment.

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A V IE W OR THE

During the late war'

, many officerswereobligedto fell their furniture andwearingapparel, in order to procure a fcanty fub

fiftence while otherscouldn0t poilibly findmeansof appearing asbecame their Ration

If a pittance of theirarrearswasto be advenced, it often came attendedwith cir

cum itancesfo fingularly difreputable, that

noth ing ih ort of penury couldjuitify the

offer oracceptance if inCompany’sbonds,

they were hardly negotiable ; if in Bengal

bills, the holdersof them loft th irty,- rforty,

or fifty per cent ; and if the payment

took place in an out- garrifon, thedifcretion

or caprice of‘the paymafter alone deter

m inedthe mode of payment. Needy ofli

cers, at the mercy of fuch afuperior, have

frequently fubmittedto receive a month’s

arrearsin rice, teas, wines, andother mer

chandiz e*. When thefe andfimilar inci

dentsThe diftreli

'

esof the country, thewant of money, andthe calamitiesof war, renderedit impraéticable for the

Board

ENGL I SH INTERE ST S IN IND IA.

dentsrecur to your remembrance ; when

you recollect how patiently your troopshave fuii

'

ered, andhow bravely they have

fough t ; you w ill undoubtedly admit, that

their prefentdifcontentsare not ill founded,and that their grievancescall loudly forredrefs.

It isby the goodorder andefliciency of

the m ilitary confiitution alone, that the

Englifh dom inionsin the Bali can be pre

ferved. ThisisrequifIte, not merely to

repel invafion, but for the current bufi

nefsof your poffefiions, wh ich you have

never yet been able to conduct w ithout

m ilitary . power. If therefore, an habitual

intervention of the military in detail Of

civil management, jufiifiesthe appellation

ofmilitary government, there isno country

Boardof Madrasto prevent thefe evils; on the contrary,the important Operationsefi'

eétedby that Government,

under the preii‘

ure of fuch embarraii'

ments, isone of thefirongeft teltimoniesthat can be adducedin proof of theirtalents, fortitude, andexertion

2 14 . A V I EW OF T H E

on earth fo peculiarly entitledto that defigq

nation asthe Engliih fettlementsin India.Befides, asno country can be more habig

tuated to convulfions, wars, andrevolue

tions, it followsthat the public endeavours(houldbe firenuoufly direCtedtoobtainpen.

fcction in the m ilitary fyftem.

When we compare thedifcipline of your

troops, andthe conflitution of your armies,with thofe of other European powersinIndia, the fuperiority isevidently with the

Engliih:but when we look back to the

daysof Clive andLawrence, to the fmail

nefsof their force, andthe magnitude of

their atchievements, we mul’t confefsthatmore recent occurrenceshave exhibiteda

mortifying contraf’t. The hii’tory of many

yearspreceding ihe periodOf your Govern

ment, isfilledwith the detail of our impolicy . The belt regimentsof cavalry

Upon the Coai’t were driven from the

Nabob’

e fervrce to the enemy. GarrifonsWGIQ

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2 16 A V I EW OF TH E

fallen, the Moorshave degenerated, tho

Portuguefe have decayed, the Dutch havedwindled, the French are bereft of terri

tory:all of them have been great and

powerful, andconquerorsin India ; all ofthem have paidthe forfeit of

,

mifcondua,

The Englifh having attaineda loftinefsoffituation in the Eafi beyondthemolt afpir

-v

ing fancy of their rivals, are now prec1p1

tating from their elevation ; andthustheyare leaving a monitory example to all fu

ture innovators, that no energy of former‘

atch ievement or ex tent of actual power

can fupport a Government wh ile waitingwith internal principlesofdiffolution,

~If we are to look for a renovation of the

Englilh interefisin India, it muft arife from

fuch ex ertionsasthofe of your Righ t H o

nourable Prefident. The difficultiesw ithwhich you have fuccefsfully contended, the

counteraction you ,have experienced, and

your ability under mol’t perplex ing circum

fiances,

ENGLISH INTERE STS IN INDIA. m

fiances, yieldawell- groundedexpectation,

that in the profecution of a general and

digeftedreform, your labourswould becrowned with the utmofl:brilliancy of

fuccefs.

Of all the objectswithin your Prefi~

dency, the improvement of your m ilitary

fyfiem isthe mof’t urgent andthe leaf’t difheult. The difcipline andmanoeuvresofthe European andSepoy infantry, aswellasof your artillery andthe few cavalry in

your fervice, are formedon the befl:modelsof Europe ; andit isa’

fl'

ertedthat, before

the war, their appearance wouldhavedone

credit,

to any fervice, wh ile their gallantry

andendurance form a fubjeét of hil’torical

applaufe,

The officersupon the coafi are habituated

to act in emergencieswith a facility that

few fubordinate officersin Europe ever

have

219 A VI EW O F“

TH E

have a profpeél:of acquiring. Before an

oflicerattainsthe rank of Captain, he mu tt

unavoidably have been often chargedwith

the commandof partiesondifiant marches,in the conveyance of fiores, in the *

guard

of poftsandfirongholds, in the bufinefsofcolleftion, andin menacing of refractory

Polygars, togetherwith every other feriesof duty which can occur. From hence it

will be found, that there are few fervicesindeedwhere fo many men pofl

'

efsthepractical requifitesof an officer. H ow

flrongly have z eal, knowledge, andabilitybeen exemplifiedduring the late contelt,

by thofe who comm andyour Sepoy batta

lions- With what addrefsdidthey foothethe fufl

'

eringsof their foldiers, relieve their

wants, and refirain the well- grounded

clamoursof men, whom the public necef

fitieshad left in ex tremity of difirefs!Thefe confiderationsfuggeft the benefit ofref

’t'

raining indifctiminateadmifiion into the

fervice,

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n o A V I EW O F TH E

May not the condition of ancient officersbe relievedby the eltablilhment of half

pay, and the perm iflion of felling their

commifiions? By thefe means, thofe whoare difqualified for z ealousexecution of

theirduty,m ight retirewith aprovifion for

their after- days, andgive opportunitiesofadvancement to othersmore carnell in purfuit of military reputation.

The growing firength anddifcipline of

your enemies, andour late difafiers, pointout the w ifdom of Sir Eyre Coote

’srequifitionsfor an increafe of Europeansto formthe central firength of your armies. H e

maintainedthat at leali t o,ooo Europeanslhouldbe conftantly complete for fervice in

the three Prefidencies. An objec’tion has

atifen from the quick mortality occafioning

a burdenfome demandfor new fuppliesoftmen but thismay be in a great m eafure

remedied, by falutary preparationsfor thereception of the recruitsfrom Europe,— by

Rationing

ENGLISH INTEREST S IN IND IA. 2 2 !

fiationing them in healthy quarters, enfor-b

cing regularity, andref’training the fale of

arrack andother perniciousliquors.

With regardto your Sepoys, the publiclhouldbe watchful of theirdifcipline, and

liberal to confirm their attachment. It isby their goodconduct that yourfettlementshave h itherto been preferved, andto them

you are to truft for after- fiability. That

they are partial to your fervice, isevincedby recent experience. Let them receive

the common jiifiice due to every foldier ;let them be regularly paidandenabledto

’

fubfifl:their families— let the wife inftitution of admitting the ch ildren of wounded

ordeferving Sepoys, to be enrolledandto

draw pay from the battalions, be conti

nued; andtheBlack officersbe treated‘

with

indulgence andrefpeCt. It isfartherrequifite that the mode of ifi

’

uing pay be fo

amendedasto remove any poflible imputa

tion of fraudulent . exaétionscommitted

againll;

m A v:Ew oF THE

againfi the Sepoys, by ufuriousadvancesofmoney in the momentsof diftrefs, byundue ft0ppagesfor articleswh ich either

have not been furnifhedorare overcharged,and by other unjuftifiable praCtices. In

that cafe we may venture to pronounce,

that wh ile their eXpertnefsin mane uvre,the interior (economy of the battalions,andthe conduct of their officers, continue to

infpire them with a fanfe of fuperiority, no

probable eventscan {hake their adherence.

Asthe European officerson the Goafi are

not generally converfant with the country

languages, it may be farther proper to

direfi , that every one afpiring to the com

mandor adjutancy of aSepoy corps, lh ouldhrf’t learn the Moorifh orMalabardialect.

Although I cannot perfuade myfelf, that

it isjudiciousto adm it Pariasinto bat

talionswith men of reputable calls yet

Pariasare the outcafisof the country, andare heldtobe impure by the Gentoos.1Cafismean thedifferent clall'esor feétstowhich Gen

toosbelong.

all'

uredly

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ENG L ISH INTER E ST S IN.

'

1ND IA. z z ;

the horfesto b e fedat a very reducedal

lowance, w ithout any farther contraCt, con

tingency, or ex tra charge.-Thusthe ex

pence of a cavalry eliablilhment wouldbe

brought within the lim itsof the Coafi

finances. Neither wouldany engagementson the part of Government be required;ex cept that the officer charged

i

with the ex

ecution lh ouldb’

e eltablilh edin one of the

great northern fiations,andthat the Niz am,

aswell asother Eountry Powers, lhouldadmit h isagentsto purchafe horl

'

esfreelyth roughout their territories. Laftly, that

Government fhouldorder all rentersandcolleétorsof revenue in the poffeflionsofthe Company andof the Nabob not to

clfarge more than eigh t lh illings, or one

pagodaper ioom eafures, for all the grant "furnilh édto the

'

céi 'valry, wh ich, at the rate

of one pagoda’

fer month, wouldbe an

allowance to each horfe of more than three

meafuresper day.’

A,ltindof pulfe on which horfesare fedin India

(L

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2 28 A V IEW OF T H E

to move on rthe {hortelt notice, without

reference to the ltore- keepersof garrifons,who are not fulficiently under m ilitary

,

control to be entruftedwith m ilitary pre

paration.

It isfarther ex tremely requifite, that

your corpsof Pioneerslhouldbe encreafed,not only for the fake of expertnefsanddifpatch in the preparationsof a liege, butto facilitate the rapidmovementsof yourarmies. So attentive wasHyder to thisbranch of h iseftablifhment, that he feldommaintainedfewer than Commooty

men, or Pioneers, who precededhisline,clearedthe roads,andenabledhim to move

with acelerity feldom equalledby Europeans.

The abufesale anddeficienciesin yourbullock department, have long been the

fubjeét of complaint. When Sir Eyre

The great mali of army conveyance in India, isperformedby bullocks.

ENG L ISH INTERE ST S IN IND IA . 2 29

Coote in 1782 required bullocks,to enable the Carnatic army to move w ith

cfi’

eé’

t, the total number aétually ferving

w ith it didnot, I believe, .ex ceed

nor hasthat army ever been able to pro

cure a complement for dif’tant Operations

To th iscaufe hasbeen ch iefly attributed

the failure of the Carnatic war, andindeed

the evil i n quef’tion feemsalmofi beyond

a remedy for theprincipal black men, who

ufed to engage their bullocks in your

fervice, have been fufi'

eredto run mufier

upon mufier in arrears, after {pending theirflock, andfiraimng their credit on the pub

lic faith:andat laft, fuch have been the

difireffesof the times,w ith more than twelve

monthsof unliquidatedbalancedue to them,

andafterhaving loft many hundredsof theircattle through fatigue and ficknefs, they

The rate at which bullocksare hiredfor the public

fervice istwo andahalf pagodaspermonth for adraugh t

bullock, andtwo pagodasfor a carriage bullock. The

fouthern army hired them for let'sby a half pagoda per

month, or twenty- five per cent

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3 33‘

A V I E W O F T H E '

returnedfrom the enemy’scountry, Cap

tain Byres‘le wasrequefledby me to under

take a furvey of Tanjore, Tritchin0poly,Madura, Pallamcottah,andRamnad. Thishedxecutedw ith the utmol’t ability, and

alfo tranfmittedto your Prefidency a {tate

rfient of every particular refpeéting thofe

garrifons, exprefl'

edin accurate andcom

prehenfive terms:there remainslittle farther therefore, except to beftow a fim ilar

attention on the other forts, andabove all,

moft rigidly to enforce obedience to fuch

orders, for replenifh ing the magaz ines, andaugmenting the

,complement of fiores, as

yourEngineersandaCommittee of lnfpection may fuggeft. But vain will thefe

meafuresprove, unlefsthe fiores,magaz ines,andfortifications,be fubjeé’tedto fevere andperiodical examinations,andunlefstheCommandant of the place be enabledto enforce

your infiruétions. On the other hand, if

the military {tore- keepersandcivilmanagers

O Chief Engineer to the fouthward.

ENGLISH INTER E ST S IN IND IA. 23,

be fufferedto difregardall ordersof the

Commandant, in the direction of the ma

gaz ines, andpreparationsfor defence, af

furedly the refponfibility in momentsof

attack {hould likew ife be transferred to

them , that there m igh t be forne refiraint, at

leaft, on their negligence or indifcretion.

The late degrading fcenesof furrender‘

vvithout re

'

liftance at Arcot, Cuddelore,Permacoil, andalmoli at every other place

"E

where the enemy made any vigorousattack,have fuggef

’tedan oeconomical expedient

of defiroying many inferior garrifonsthroughout the country . But your Board

will recollect, that every th ing was“

venal

on the Goafi for yearsbefore H yder ven

turedan invaiion - that he hadfecretly

purchafed the Killidarlh ips“

l"

of Arnee,

Gingee, Carnatic Gur,Thiagar, andvari

ousother pofisof firength . Thefe he fill

edwith em iffariesof hisown, who, on

Vellore andWandivafh were the only exceptions.1' Killidar istheMoorilh Cbmmandant of aplace

3 34 A V I EW o r T H E

h isfitii approach, fecured the Eur0pean

cflicer, if there wasone, and’

furrendered

for thofe important placeswere entirely

garrifonedby undifciplineddependentsofthe Nabob. But unlefsthefe or fimilar

pollsare re- occupied, filledwith fupplies,anddefendedby regulars, there can be no

fecurity of communication andfubfiftence

much lefacan ofi'

enfive meafuresbe efl'

eéted

from theCarnatic into the enemy’scountry.

It will farther be foundalmofl; impraéticable

to repeople the Carnatic, without fortsandfit ting holds; for the inhabitantsfly fromfituationsthat affordnot protefiion againftpredatory cavalry

Befidesreplenith ing thefe inferior forts,th e country cannot be fecurewithout better

regulation in your confiderable garrifons,On thisqueltipn it isbutjudice toremark that the bell

military Opinionsare divided; andat any rate there islittledoubt, that if there were a refpeasble body of ca

valry on the Coal! etiablilhment, the neceflity of main

taining the inferiorfortswouldinagreat meafure ecafe.

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2 36 A V IE W O F T H E

of m ilitary command - while the power

that fhoulddireé’t andthe power that {hould

obey are at variance,wh ile the fubofdinatesare at the mercy of contradictory ordersfrom contending authorities, —noth ing but

counteraé’tion can enfue. The inferior

Officer looksnot to h iscommander for preferment, nor caresfor hisdifpleafure, providedh isacquiefcence with the civil intereftcan procure him an appointment. The con

dition of theCommanderisfiillmore hum i

liating z—w ithout weight to refifl:the en

croachmentsof the civil fervice, hisOppofition only expofesh isw eaknefs, andh iscompliance infallibly forfeitsthe confidence

of the army- involved in odiousdif

cufiions, and being overwhelmed with

committee bufinefs,a very fmall portion of

h isthoughtsisbeitowedupon the dutiesofh isfiation. H ence, for yearspaft, there

havebeen no regularreviews,no infpeétionof the troopson the part of the Com

mander inchief,— no enforcement of the

’

eflablifhed

E NGL ISH INTERE ST S IN IND IA . 2 37

efiabliihedregulationsof the Goaf’t fervice,andlb little encouragement of paradeduty,that thedifcipline of the army dependsfolelyat

“th istime on themeritoriousattention of

fubordinate officers.

There appearsbut one remedy for thefe

inveterate evils. Wh ile the power of a

Governor refisupon a different bafisfromthat of a Commander in chief, the paflion

for fuperiority will occafion Violent and

dangerouscollifion. The mafsof the civil

fervice efpoufe the caufe of theirG overnor

the body of the army~range under the ban

netsof their General. The firfl:are‘

able

andunited - the othersare fuperior in ve

hemence andnumber. The difcontented

of the civil fervice make common caufe

w ith the military- the obfequiousof the

m ilitary take fhelter under the w ing of

civil patronage. H ence a general ferment

isex cited -The civil fervice profecute

.theirmeafureswith methodical afliduity

Ige A VIEW or THE

the military indulge in clamorousexcels.The groundsof difcontent are communi

catedto the numerousattendantswho furround all EumpeansI—from thefe theyfpreadthrough other claffesof the natives,and ex tending over the peninfula in

volve every Engliihman in the hatredand

contempt of all India. The Afiatiescan .

not enter into European difiintiionsof par.ticipated, power -while they beholdGe

neralsfeiz ing Governors, andGovernorsarrefiing Generals, they neceffitrily think

ill of eitherfituation.

So indifpenfable in all Eaftern Govern

ment ispower undifputcdandcontrol w ith!out counterafi ion, that we cannot hope to

fee a periodput to thefe calamitiesuntil au.thority {hall iil

'

ue from one fource,andflow

in one equal undividedfiream. Were thisthe cafe, —were the powersof Governor

andCommander in ch ief unitedin the fame

perfon, fiill fubjeétiog all public 4 618 of

Govern

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3 4 0 A v rsw ‘o r TH E

commandof a great m ilitary efiablifhment.

Thusthe ungovernable feudsof party .

would be checked, andthere would be

fome profpeCt that the public welfare m ight

engage the undii’traétedattention of .thofe

to whom it wasentrul’ted.

With regardto your civil fervice, it pof

feifesmany advantages. The young gen

tlemen fent out. in that capacity are, in

general, well educated; and,ort

‘their arri

val at the Prefidency, are adm ittedto afiiit

in the buiinefsof the different oflices, in- i

eluding nearly the whole detail of public

proceedingsthat can occur in any go'vern

ment. In fa6t, fuch hasbeen the falutary‘Operation of thefe initiations, that your

Prefidency alone hasproducedmore men ofex tendedcapacity in bufinefs; than‘

could

probably be foundin all the public ofs

heesof London. Thefe acquirementsareex tended, asthe ‘ individual advancesinthe fervice. H e isfucceflively employed

as

ENGLISH INTERE STS IN IND IA. usasPaymaiter andStore- keeper of a garri

fon, Paymai’cer and Com tniifary of an

army, RefIdent with a country prince, Sm

perintendant andColleétor of a province,

orChief of a fubordinate fettlement in the

regulargradation towardsCouncilandCom-m

m ittee. In each of thefe employments,thecurrent tranfafi ionsare more weighty, the

refponfibility,more immediately perfonal,and

the duty m ore comprehenfive than ufually

fall to the lot of any unexaltedindividual in

England. It isin your powerto direCt towardsimportant public purpofesthofe ufe

ful qualifications, andto do away any exa

il’ting imperfeé’cions.

Once more allow me to repeat the

affertion, that no fervant in the civil de

partment, entruiiedw ith the charge of

m ilitary {toresin a garrifon, nor any one

holding an'

appointment with an army,

lhould be fufferedto confider himfelf asindependent of the Commandant. Wh ile

R fanaion

04: A V IEW OF TH E

fanétion isgiven to fo unwarrantable an af

fumption, noth ing but negligence anddif

cordcan take place. For experience afcer

tains, that the main contentionsin India

have arifen from the collifion of interfering

pretentious. Thefe cannot cxift,where the

mutual relationsof obedienceandcommandare accuratelydefined. Every oflicer obeys,with fatisfaétion, the ordersof your Boardasthe ruling power of the country ; but

very few fubmit without reluctance to

the mandatesof fubordinates. Whenmilitary men, therefore, have hadtranfac

tionsonly with the Board, your intentionshave been cheerfully fulfilled:whereas, inall infiancesof inferior interference,ruinousdifl

'

entionshave been generated. Let me

add, that the firong enforcement of obea .

dience by military trial, rendersthem more

prompt andufeful infirumentsof publicduty, than thofe of the other fervice,

!

who

are under nocontrol, andwho, by haz ard

ing an eventual but improbable difmifiion,may

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14 4. A V I EW OF TH E

apathy to the wilddogsandvu lturesthatwaitedto devour their carcafes:you havefeen, for monthstogether, a hundredbodiesdaily covering your fireets, w ith cir

cumfiancesof horror too {h ocking to enu

‘

m erate* Nor isit within the boundhedgeof Madrasonly, that the internal waftingof the country can be traced:during twen

ty- feven monthsof continuedmovement

through a large extent of yourdominions,the dutiesof my Ration familiariz edmew ith the whole gradation of territorial

abufes, neither lefspalpablenor diftrefsfulthan thofe with wh ich you yourfelvesareperfonally acquainted.

Every practicable effort wasmade by Governmentandby individualsto relieve thedifirefi

'

esof the wretchednatives, who flew from all quartersof the Carnatic totake lhelter under the wallsof Madras. Thoufandsofthem receiveddaily diliributionsof rice, andmany morewere conduaed, at the public expence, to the northern

provinces, which hadfufl’eredlefa than theCarnatic bythe calamitiesof war.

ENG LISH INTERESTS IN IND IA. 3 4,

It hasbeenalready Rated,that the ravagesof the enemy are by no meansthe greateftevilsof wh ich thofe countrieshave com.

plained. While the territorial managementof the countriesnow afiignedto theCompa

ny,remainedwith theNabob,theopprefiive

praéticesundoubtedly prevailedthat mul

tiply exac’

tion through every Eaitern Go

vernment. Indefinite claimsandarbitraryimpofitionsfell heavy upon the Polygars,andother tributaries. The H eadRentersandAmuldarsof difiriéts, aswell asall inferior infirumentsof colleCtion, were im

pelledto harafsthe ~inhabitants, not only tofatisfy their own rapacioufnefs, but to feedthe avarice of their i iperiors; for they

knew that the only tenure by which they.

heldth eir appointments, wasthe frequentrepetition of a bribe. The financesof theD urbar were involvedby an unmethodiz edexpenditure,andwaitedon worthlefsEuropeansat home andabroad. At length the

difburfemcntsefi'

ential to the current bufi

R 3 ncfs

us A VI EW o r TH E

nefsof the country were totally obftruaaed,andthe urgent claimsof powerful individualsintroducedthe deftruaive praaice of

grantingTunkawsor afiignmentson partionlardifiriéts. In confquence of which, the

holder of the Tunkaw isveiledwith the

power of colleCting the amount of hisaf-vfignment within a certain fpace andperiod

by the moi’t outrageousmeans,

A bandof ill- regulatedfoldiery andbut

denfome retainerscon‘

fumedthe produce

of the country, anddifiurbedthe laboursof the farmer andmanufacturer. Theft:caufesof defalcation in the Nabob

’sfources,at amomentwhen the ex igenciesof‘the late war demandedthe utmofl energy,

affordedthe firongargument of urgent ne-v

ceflity for transferring histerritory andtevenuesto the ufesanddireftion of the

Gompany. The truth andjuftice of theft:argumentsmufi of courfe remain, aslong asthe neceflity on which they ,

reft.

A:

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2 4 8 A V IEW O F TH E.

tremely productive in molt unprofperoustimes. It wasnot however poflible forthem entirely andimmediately to reprefsthe mifconduél:of inferior infirumentswho are eager to perpetuate Opprefiion,and

to enforce unufual meafuresby unpre

cedentedmeans. Thefituationof the coun

try rendered it necefl'

ary to continue the

praétice of renting ex tenfivediftrié’tsto theh ighefi:bidder:although every precaution

wasadoptedto prevent the abufe of power,

fiill the colleétionscouldnot be enforced,

unlefsan unreftrainedauthority were veiled

in the Renter. H isobjeét too frequently is,to take advantage of the prefent moment,

and, doubtful of futurity in a country at all

timesliable to fluctuation, to ranfack and

em lnz z le, that he may go off at laft enrich

edw ith the fpoilsof h isprovince. The

fact is, that in every part of the peninfula

where the Rentersare efiabliihed, not only

The Black agents, who manage the wholedetail ofcollection in thedifferentdiitrifis.

ENGLI‘

SH INTERE ST S IN IND IA. 2 49

th e Ryot and the huibandman, but the

manufacturer, the artificer, andevery other

Indian inhabitant, isat the mercy of thofe

miniftersof public exaétion

The efiablifhedprac’

tice throughout thispart of the peninfula hasfor agesbeen, toallow the farmer one half, of the produce

of hiscrop, for the maintenance of hisfam ily andthe recultivation of the land,wh ile the other isappropriatedto the Cir

car. In the richei’t foilsunderthe Cowle of

Hyder, producing three annual crops, it ishardly known that lefsthan forty per cent.

of the crop producedhasbeen allottedto

the hufbandman:yet Renterson the m ail:have not fcrupled to imprifon reputable

farmers, andto infliét on them ex trenusfeverity of puniihment, for refufing to accept

of fix teen in the hundredasthe portion out

of which they were to maintain a family,

‘l‘WhileTinivelly remainedunder the fuperintendance

ofMr. Irwin, that province formedan exception not lefa

pleafing th e exemplary from thofegeneral obfervations.to

ago A VI EW OF TH E

to furnifh flock andimplementsof hufbandry, cattle, feed, andall expencesincident to the cultivation of their lands. But

lhouldthe unfortunate Ryot be forcedtofubmit on fuch conditions, he hasfiill along lift of cruel impofitionsto endure

he n afl:labour w eeksafter weeksat therepair of

~

water -c0urfes,tanks,andembankment:of rivers- hiscattle, ih eep, and

every other portion of hisproperty isat thedifpofal of the Renter, andhislife migh tpay the forfeit of refufal. Shouldhe pre

fume to reap h ishatveit when ripe, With.

"

out a mandate from the Renter, whofe

Peons, Conicoplys, andRetainersattendon the occafion, noth ing ibort of bodilytorture anda confifcation of the little that

isldt him couldexpiate the offence

Wouldhe ' fell any part of hisfcanty portion, he cannot be permittedwhile the

Ci'

rcar hasany to difpofe of —Wouldhe

convey any thing to adifizant market, he is{toppedat every village by the Colleé

’tors

of Sunkum or’

Gabelles,who exact adutyfor

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ENG LISH INTEREST S IN IND IA. 3 5;

At the fame time it isbut jufiice to

remark, that thefe obfervationscannot bewith truth confinedto the countriesunderRentersappointedin the countriesbelonging to the Nabob. The interior manage

ment andoeconomy of Tanjore, in defpite

of the reprefentationsof Mr. Sulivan and

the exhortationsof Mr. Swartz are (till

morewretched. So wanton andiniquitousisthe fway of defpotifm there, that the

goodsof th e merchant or carrier are fre

quently feiz edby order of the Durbar.

If an individual native isincautiousenoughto difplay h iswealth, the Rajah ’sminifiersfeldom reft till he iscaugh t andplundered:wh ips, fcourges, thumb- ferews, and

.other infirumentsof Indian torture, are

daily applied to the unhappy fubjeélsinevery Cutcherry, or court of juf

’tice,

t hroughout the country . Every one there

fore who poffefl'

eseither goldor. jewels,buriesthem in fome fecure fpot, anden

trul’tsthe feerst only to the molt confiden

tial

3 54 A V I EW O F T H E

tial of hisfamily . Hence almoft the whole

fpecie of the country isdivertedfrom the

purpofesof circulation ; andan enormousannual Iofsof treafure isthusoccafionedby the frequent removal andex tinétion of

familiesin that diftraé’ted territory. Bythefe meansthe molt fertile andonce the

molt populousfpot upon the globe, isalready marked with the difiinguifhingfeaturesof adefart.’

If my information be not incorreCt, a

furvey of theCircars, or northern territory

ofCoromandel, wouldalfo exhibit a me

lancholy picture. Neither war nor con

vulfionshave afflicted thofe difiriétsformany yearsthat they have been under the

territorial adminiltration of the Company,

or of Zemindarsdependant upon that

authority . Their defolation mull:therefore be iiill more unequivocally imputed

to internal mifmanagement.

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256 A V I EW O F TH E

tion of the Coalt admit of any ,

immediate

meansof re—eltablifhment from commer.

cisl exertions; for the ftaple articlesofyour commerce are the produce of your

lands, andthe laboursof the manufacturerthe decay andapproaching ex tirpation of

that ufeful olafsof fubjeétshasbeenalready traced. What then isto confiitute

the object of exportation ? what isto y ieldthe m eansof circulation, credit, and re

fource ? From the fouthwardyou have at

prefent no inveftment l“ in the Carnatic

you have hardly the remainsof former

indultry in the Circars, h itherto undifiurbedby any foreign enemy, you findit dif

ficult to loadone annual {h ip for Europe.

If the train of th isinduétion be not falfe,

Thefe obfervationsconcerning the decline of trade

andthe extirpation of manufaéturers, mult not be con'

fideredasentirely applicable to every (pet upon the

Coaft. There are many villagesto the fouthward, and

alfo to the northward, where there ltill remainsa fuf

fideli ty of weaversto form an invel‘tment if properly

managed; and the French , aswell asthe Danes, havelately contrived to export confiderable cargoesof Coal!goods.

ENGL ISH INTEREST S IN IND IA . 257

What hopescan you entertain of lightening

the public embarraffments, while every

refource in your Government iswaited

Your predecelforsleft the country ex

piring under a complication of calamities.That your wifdom andex ertionslhouldh ave foundmeansto prolong itsex iftenceunder fuch a crifis, ex ceededthe expecta

tionsof your molt fanguine friends, andexcitesthe admiration of your bittereft 0p

ponents. You have already applied the

firm handof undeviating retrenchment to

every branch of public expenditure, and

labouring under unparalleledimpediments,you have perfeveredw ith a vigor andinte

grity of which there wasno example in the

Eaft. By thisconduct you may juftlyafiume the merit of preferving theCarnatic,

°

0pprelfedw ith the formidable invafion of

nat ive andEuropean powers, andthe more

mortal woundsinflifted by the govern

S ments

2 58 A V IEW OF T H E

mentsthat precededyours. But merito

riousasretrenchment undoubtedly is, youfeel the inefficiency of that alone to reitore

the public vigour. Fifty lacksof pagodasremaindue by yourPrefidency,for fervicesactually performed, or value received

from that fum, when audited, you cannot

pofiibly make any diminution — to attempt

fuch a meafure wouldforfeit the whole

charaéter of Government, or at lena:wouldbe declaring the Indian Public infolvent, andcompelling their lawful cre

ditore into a difreputable compofition.

You have already heardthe clamoursexcitedby fuppofedinjuflice in the profecution of oeconomical reform . Too fevere a

retrofpeét isnot alwaysbeneficial, andinthe prefent infiance wouldprovedeftruétive

of equity andpublic faith . Perhapsit maybe better to look forward andinfieadof

invalidating eltablilh edclaImS for pafi:fervices, totake care that every future charge

7 the" .

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250 A VIEW o r TH E

Artificers, Camp - followers, andalldefcriptionsof men conneCtedwith the peace or

war eltablifhment. If the unfortunate in

dividual, urged'

by fevere neceffity, though

he muft not hOpe for money, lh ouldde

manda‘

certifiedftatement, he isharafi'

cd

with a long andfruitlefsattendance - the

auditordifputesh isvouchers, andcontel’tsIf at length the certificate

{houldbe granted, it remains- an ufelefsdocket ; on the credit of which he can

neither purchafe nor procure one fingle

article of life. Your government hasex .

h isclaims.

‘

h ibiteda political phenomenon, unprece

dentedin the annalsof mankind aRate

or public indebtedalmoft to every per

fon in itsfervice, andyet the functionsof authority continuing unimpededby any

ferionscommotion. Several circum ltanceshowever have fufiiciently denotedthe ha

.z andof fuch a fituation. When the em

barrafi'

mentsrefulting from a treafury ex

hauitéd, a country'

defolate, anda credit

ruined

ENGL ISH INTER E STS IN IND IA. 26:

ruinedin the profecution of a defiruétive

war, impelledyou to direct that all allow

ancesof batta lhould ecafe, at a period

when the arrearsof the army anddiltrefi'

esof the country rendered that indulgence

peculiarly indifpenfable, the remonltrancesandvigorousmeafuresadoptedby the military evincedthe public danger of uniting

the individualsof a community againf’t the

Government. There isbut one alterna

tive -

you muft either liquidate the arrearsdue to your eftablifhment, oryou Inuit rill:the lofsof India. If Europe andBengal

unwifely fhouldwithholdtheir aid, that

liquidation cannot poflibly take place but by

the t e- eftablilh ment of yourown credit andfinance thefe,aswell ascommerce,are theoffspringof cultivation andmanufaéture,

wh ich can cx iii only by indultry andpopu

lation. Your endeavoursto rs- eltablilh thatnatural relation of thingshave alreadycrownedthe meafuresof your adminiltration andwhen carriedto theirfull comple

S 3 tion,

26) A V IEW 0 ? THE

tion, will add, to the merit of having pre-fl

fervedthe Carnatic from deltruCtion, the

diltinguiih edcharaéter of having reitored

it to profperity .

It wouldill become me in addrefling theGovernment of an ex tenfive country, to

enlarge on th e detail of meansby wh ichth isreitoration may be effeéted. Permit

me, however, to fuggeft, that the legiflative,

judicial andexecutive regulationsneceii'aryto the profperity of an Indian Government

are neither complicatednor refined. There

isone max im peculiarly applicable to that

country,-that there isno evilmoredreaded

than innovation, nor any duty more facrcd

with the nativesthan cullom . Let th istruth then be the unalterable beacon and

fldireétory in all plansof renovation refpeét

ing India, where the continuedrepealsandfluctuationsincident to European cita

bliihmentsex cite the utmolt dreadandde

teftation.

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364 A V I EW o r TH E

tan, to take {helter under agovernment that

refpeéiedthe facredrightsandefiabliih ed

infiitutionsof their ancefiors, wh ile it

affordedperfonal fecurity andindependence,the ofi

'spring of an Englifh polity

The country {till aboundsfom uch with

ih eep and cattle, that the full complement

for all the purpofesof labour and fub - u

fiftence would foon.be procured; the

townsandvillageswouldbe repeopled, andthe fieldsrecultivatedwith a rapidity nu-sknown in other climates. Such isthe

natural fertility of thofe countries, andfO.

firong their propenfity to reproduétion,that the quick renewal of abundance, induf

try, andcommerce, isthe necefi’

ary con

fequence of fecurity ; which impliestheproteCtion of every one in the pofi

'

efiion of

h isown, by refiraining all from the forcible

or fraudulent appropriation of that wh ich

belongsnot to themfelves. Neither isthecelebratedD r. Smith

’sremark lefsworthy of

obferv

ENGLISH INTER EST S IN IND IA. 26;

obfervance, that it isthe height of impertinence, even forany public body, to inter

fere in th e private concernsof individuals.How much more perniciousmuft the preffure of that fyfiem be, which delegatestoevery fubordinate infirument of public au

thority, that privilege of individual inter

ference, not for public welfare, but for

felfifh purpofesat the expence of the pro

petty andindufiry of the fubjeét l

While the company holdsthe territorial

management of the country, it isto bedreadedthat thishappy renovation cannot

be accomplilh ed; becaufe your civil fer

vants, by the confiitution of yourefiablifh

ment,are underno refiraint,excepting thofe

of their own fentiments. Every one knowsthat ordersare nugatory where there isno punifhment for difobedience, and the

fcverefi:denunciation of your difpleafure

againf’t a civil fervant, only difmiffesh im

from a fervice, which the very at}:thatincurs

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268 A V I E W O F TH E

itsrightful owner the Nabob* - eman

cipate the Rajah of Tanjore, andall other

Rajahs, Princes, andZemindars, belonging to yourCoaft, from the vex

\

atiousinterference of the civil

,andfrom the ~ rough

afi'

umptionsof the military‘

powers— em

ploy the former in the proper dutiesoftheir fiation, In the bufinefsof office andinvef

’tment ; andin purfuance of\ your fa

~

vourite fyfiem of retrenchment, reduce

their numbersto the proportionaldimina

tion ofdemandfor their fervices. Wouldthey acquire fortune, let them afpire to it,

not in the fpoilsofdifirié’ts, but in the profecution of commercial operation:asforthe latter, confine them to their garrifons,fiations, andcantonmentsfufl

'

er them not

to be fcattered through the country, and

remindthem that their bufinefsisnot ufuryandexaé

‘rion, but difcipline andwar. In

Thiscannot be fuppofedto take place until the pe

riodforwhich the Nabob’srevenueswere allignedto the

Company be elapfed, anduntil the object of that alliga.

ment be fulfilled.

order

ENG LISH INTERE STS ININD IA . 269

order that th isfalutary alteration may be

attendedw ith popularity andeffect, their

profefiional emolumentsough t -‘to be fuf

ficient, w ithout any aid from indircéi:acquirement“

Should the Nabob, the Rajahs, or theZem indars, take advantageof your indul

gencies, and endeavour to w ithholdtheir

flipulatedpayments{h ew them that lenity

andjufiice are neIther the offspring of

indolence nor weaknefs:but, on the firfl:fymptomsof their p

'

erfif’tanee in fuch delays, march a body of tr00psto enforce

your orders, make them pay the exPencesof th e expedition, andteach them that you

w ill not fufferintentIonal m ifcondué’c to pafsunpunilhed. You have likewife to refirain

every clafsof Europeans, the merchant

only excepted, from mingling with the‘natives; forwhen they are familiarifed'

with

our practices, they ceafe to refpeCt our

v irtuesin the jufi abhorrence of ourcrimes.Above

,570 1 V IEW OF TH E

Above all, let it never be forgotten, thatinthe prefent fiate

of national depravity,wherever a latitude of power islodged,whether in civil or military hands, the

eye ofjuftice mufl:be more piercing, andher {wordmore feverely pointed againlt

delinquency, before you can hope to .t e

firain the repetition of abufe.

The refiitution of the revenuesandfovereignty to the Nabob, will no doubt

be oppofed, on the former groundsofunwife andprodigal adminifiration af

furedly,however, thisevilmay be remedied.

You will alfo recollect, that the walie

andprodigality of the D urbar arofe from

the rapacioufnefsof Europeans, whoneverceafedto prey upon the Nabob ; but mif

fortunehasfallen heavy on the hoary head

of MahomedAlly ; the picture of Euro

pean treachery isdrawn in colourstoo.firong to be cfi

'

aced from h isremembrance. At any rate let h im be removed

from

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27: A VI EW OF THE

to bepaidto the Circar, andgrofsproduceof every village,orMuganum on theCoafi',have been accurately recordedfor agesinthe Cutcherries, or public Courtsof the

diflriéis. Should a Manager or Renter

exact more than that fiipulatedor wontedfum, refer to thefe

'

recordsas. the common

andfiatute laW '

of the country, in all cafesof revenue if the meansof private admosnition to the Durbar lhouldfail, let your

Board or Government be the tribunal

before which the caufe isc0gnifable inthelat):refort for it isprefumedthat no infea

rior jurifdié’tion could give fentence be~

tween the Nabob andhisfubjeé’ts. Should

any fervant of the Circar attempt to feiz e

the property, or refirain the perfon of an

inhabitant, let the injured party, if all

inferiormeansof .jufiice fail, have ultimate

recourfe to the fame fUperiorandcontrol

ling‘

power:let the rulersandthe m indfeel, that under the fanétion of an Engliflt

Government, the poor aswell asthe rich

are

ENGL I SH INTERE ST S IN IND IA. 27;

are entitled to protection. It will leave

nothing to be addedto the meritsof yourGovernment, if you curb oppreflion, and

caufe the pure fireamsof Englilh jufiice tounite with Indian jurifprudence, andboth

to flow in the channelsof facred,immemo

rial ufage.

It muli:be confelfed, that the power torefirain, impliesalfo the power to commit

abufe ; and if fuch m inif’tersof publicvengeance asinvolvedthe Carnatic in the

warw ith Hyder, were again‘

to confiitute

the Government, it wouldbe fruitlefstofuggeit a though t of reformation. But thisletter isaddrefi'

edto a Boarddif’tinguifhed

by rigorousandperfevering integrity:weall know, that your m indscannot be

fwayedby any improper confideration ; and

that the animofity of party, though it may

difiraét, hasnot been able to prevent your

earnef’t endeavoursfor the public welfare.

It may fartherbe prefumed, that the atten

T tion

£74 A VIEW OF TH E'

tion of the nation isfo awake to the liate

of India, that the fuccefiion to the Govern

ment in the different Prefidencieswillhenceforth be cotnpofedof able anduprigh t

men ; or elfe, that all expectation of pre

ferv ing thefe fettlementsw ill“ for ever be

relinquilh ed.

Another circum llance isparticularly deferving of confideration. It isa truth palpable to every m indat all acquaintedw ith

political oeconomy, that no country what

ever ismore favourably fituatedfor the fnpa

port of public credit, andex tenfive circula

tion, than India. The mafsof treafure hasbeen fo w idely difl

'

ufed, the avowedpoifef

lion of private property isfo infecure, andthe mode of pecuniary tranfaé

’tionsfo dif

advantageous, that any Government on

whofe integrity andliability the nativesdurlirely,m igh t form thegreatefi:bank ofdepofiton the globe. To the influencederivable

from fuch an inf’titution, wouldbe added

the

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276 A V IEW OF TH E

.ofdegradationwh ich it hasexperienced; nor‘

wouldit have been opprefiedwith a mafsofpaltry debts,whofe amount on theirprefent

footingmay poflibly overthrow the Govern

ment ; butwh ich,with theaidof fuch abank,couldnot for amoment have oblirufi edthe

career of public fervice. In that event,Hy

der, fo far from ravaging yourcountry, and

menacing you within the wallsof Madras,wouldhave been quickly driven from the

Carnatic andfrom h isowndominions.

Such an eftablilhment wouldattach all

clafi'

esby the tiesof private benefit ; it

would fubjeé‘:to your influence every

p rince in India, by enabling you to fupply

h iswants, or to fupport h isadverfaries,according ash isconduct merited your

friendlh ip or ex citedyour refentment. If

fimilar proceedingshave exalted the Sectsandother private Soucarsthroughout Indofian, to aw eight andinfluence little lbort

of princely power, what might we not

I expeét

ENGL ISH INTEREST S IN IND IA . 277

expect from the operation of fuch a ma

chine, in the handsof a Government

whofe w ifdom, juliice, andliability, lhould

entitle it to public confidence*?

“

If we m igh t venture to fuppofe that

thefe fuggeliionslhould ever grow into

efi'

efi , we lhouldno longer have occafion

to dreadthe courtsof India meditating our

expulfion ; for the adoption of a fyllem

formed on th efe principlesimpliesfuchvigour of interior management, fuch en

creafing opulence, luch firié’tnefsin the

detail of expenditure, fuch refpeé’tability of

warlike preparation, andfo direét a courfe

of liberal policy towardsall the country

powers, aswouldeither remove their en

mity, or elfe evince their incapacity to fub

vert a fabric built upon fo fure a bafis.Nodegree of energy andreflitude in any individual

Governor can poflibly produce the benefitsin quellionit isthe energy andrcélitudc of long eliablith edly llcm

alone, from whence they can bederived.

T 3 I have

278 A VI EW O F T H E

I have now, my LordandGentlemen,

laidbefore you the condition of your

fouthern provinces, andthe tenor of publicproceedi

’ngsfince you honouredme w ith

that command. After having liatedfairlythe embarralfmentsunder which we la

boured, andthe meansemployedto over

come them, I have dwelt w ith no lefa

pleafure than acknowledgment on the ex

crtionsof ,Mr. Sulivan andMr. Irwin at

the headof your fouthern revenues, ofMr.

D igby, Mr. H ippilley, andMr. Orpin, in

other departmentsof civil fervice ; I haverepeatedthe fentimentsof obligation due toColonel Stuart, Colonel Forbes, and the

other lenior officersof the army , for the

lirenuousfupport receivedfrom them . It

hasalfo been my particular endeavour to

imprefsyour mindswith a firong andlalt

ing fenfe of the meritsof your foutherntroops, andI lball feel the h ighcli fatisfaction if my reprefentationslhall procure for

them

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3 80 A V I EW, dms

dice nor partiality . It only remainsthatI lhouldapologiz e for the tedioufnefsof thisaddrefs, andrepeat my warmelt acknow

ledgmentsfor the very flattering marksofpublic confidence which you were pleafed

to repofe in me. Molt cordiallydo I wilh,asthe belt expreflion of my gratitude, that

the vigour, ability, andintegrity of con

duet by wh ich your Prefident hasbeenenabled to preferve the countriesunder

your direction,may procure to you the

difiinguilhedhonourof retrieving the Englilh interel

’tsin the Bali,

I fhall now take my leave of your Lordlh ip andthe Board

, andbidadieu to the

fubjeét of India.

I have the honour to be, 89’s,

D araporam, Ill June 1783 .

MY L OR D , AND G E NT L EM EN,

Have the honour to inform your

Lordlhip andthe Boardthat the army

encampedbefore thisplace on the thirtieth(afternoon), having made a march of

twelve hours. We immediately infpecied

the groundadjoining to the fort, andat

three in.

the morning proceededwith fome

Euro

2 8 2 A P P E N D I X.

Europeansandtwo battalionsof Sepoystotake poli

'

ellion of a very lirong poll on the

w efiern lide of the river, within three hun

,dredyardsof the fort. The men were undercover before dayligh t ; we openeda fmail

mortar battery at eight in the morning, a

three gun battery before three in the after

noon, and cfleéted a breach about fix

o'

clock. Partieswere fent roundthe fort

andpettah to prevent the efcape of the

enemy, who didnot venture to flanda

fiorm, andthe grenadiersenteredat daysbreak thismorning.

We have fparedthe life of every perfon

in the place, andhave turnedout all the

lower clafsof people ; but have though t itnecelfary to detain fome of the principal

inhabitants, in hopesof intelligence fromthem. It isa very ex tenlive place, and

capable of much defence. I am happy to

inform you, my LordandGentlemen, that

there isa very confiderable magaz ine of

grain

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284 . A P P E N D I X.

honourable:but in the prefent fiate of thisforce, I cannot prefume to promife any

I have, 8 0.

(Signed) W. FULLARTON.

TheRight Hon. LORD MACARTNEY,

andthe Seleét Committee, Fort St. George;

A P P E N D I X. 28;

N°

II.

Pandalamcourchy, 13th Aug. 1783.

MY L ORD , AND G ENTL EM EN,

N anfwer to your Letter of the eighth

of July, I hadthe honour on the nine

teenth of July to inform your Lordfh ipandthe Honourable Boardof my intention

to proceed to Dindigul, in order to wait

your farther commandsin that place ; and

on the twenty- fifth andtwenty- feventh of

July the army marchedin divifionsfromTritch inopoly by the route of Touracour- i

chy ; for there wasnot a fufliciency of

water by the Ihorter road'

ofManapar.

At Touracourchy I receiveda public

letter from Mr. Sulivan, containing a for

mal requifition that I fhouldmove the armyinto theMelloredifiriéts, andfrom thence

proceed

proceedmyfelf w ith the detachment to

Shevigunga,. in order to enforce the pay

ment of the tributedue in that country .

Your Lordlh ip and the Honourable

Board, in your Letter of the eigh th of

July, were pleafedto give me adifcretion

ary power of proceeding either to D indi

gul or to any o ther place that might tend

mofi effectually to enable th isarmy to carryofienfive operationsinto execution, in the

event fof Tippoo’srefuting to accede to the

termsof accommodation that . have been

o fferedto h im. In addition therefore to theweight of Mr. Sulivan

’sargumentson thisoccafion,andto the refpeét at all timesdueto h isopinio n, I conceivedit to be my dutyto comply with the requifition in quefiion,

asit didn0t interfere with any ordersI hadreceived, but on the contrary tended to

promote every objeét of fervice that thisarmy couldhave in view.

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2 88 A P P E N D I X.

informedthat the m ilitary fiorespreparingat Tanjore, and the detachment unde‘r

Colonel Stuart, couldnot reach Dindigu l

fooner than the twenty- fifth of Auguft. I

therefore, with the advice of Mr. Sulivan,

determ ined, to comply w ith Mr. Irwin’s

requifition, andto employ the interval in

procuring fuch fuppliesfor the army asm ight enable me to carry into ex ecution

any ordersyou may be pleafedto give m e.

I withdrew the troopsfrom Shevigungaon the eigh teenth, andjoinedthe army at

Trepatchetty . A battalion wasleft in Mel

lore, for the purpofe of collection, and

the remaining force marchedby Pallamerry

andNaiglapour to Pandalamcourchy,where

we arrivedyefierday at two o’

clock‘

P. M .

after march ing eigh ty m ilesin fourdays*.

The quicknefsof thefe marcheshadnot

givenCatabomanaig time to return from

Thedetachment from Shevigungamarchedabove one

hundredmilesin fourdays.

A P P E N D I X. 2 89

the liege of Chocumpetty ; but we found

in h isfort about two thoufand armed

men, who {h ut their gates, andmanned

theirwallsagainfi us. I therefore refolved

to attack them immediately ; for Gatabo

manaig wasvery foon expected h imfelf,w ith eight thoufandmen. We openeda

four gun battery at four o’

clock P. M .

breachedbefore feven, and, after a fevere

conteft, took pofi'

effion during the nigh t.

Notwithfianding the precautionsthat weretaken,andthe corpsthatwe hadfiationedonthedifferent facesof the fort, the troopswerefo fatiguedthat many of the enemy effeéted

their efcape. We have foundabout fourteen

gunsanda quantity of powder in the place,asw ell asfome money,grain,andbullocks.The m ilitary fiores{hall be appropriatedto

the public fervice, andthe other articlesdith ibutedto the troops,ordef’troyed.

During the ibort timewe have to remain

in thisprov ince, I ih all ufe every effort to

ex ecute fuck objectsof fervice asMr. Irw in

{hall

zgs A P P E N D I X.

fhall pom t out for by doing fo I have no

doubt that the arrangementsof the country

w ill very foon be completedby h isz ealandabilities, andthat the army, wh ich isalready largely indebtedto hisexertions,will be amply fuppliedwith money and

meansof conveyance, andenabledto reach

D indigul, asfoon asthe military fioresatTanjore andthe detachment tinder Co-

“

i

lonel Stuart,can arrive at that place.

I have now, my LordandGentlemen,

laidbefore you the proceedingsin which

th e army hasbeen engagedfince I hadthe’

h onour of addrefling you laft. It w ill

affordme the mofi fincere fatisfaétion, if inth efe particularsmy condivfit {hall merit

yourapprobation,andin any degree tendto

give cfl'

eét to your intentionsrefpefi ing the'

future operationsof the fouthern troops.I have, 85 0:

(Signed) W. FULLARTONJ

To the Right Hon. the GovernorandPrefident;andthe SeleétCommittee,Fort St. George

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where the Shevigerry- ch ief wasjoinedby

Catabomapaig andtwo other Polygars, andhadall together not lefsthan fix thoufand

people. On the approach of the army theyretiredfrom the town of Shevigerry to the

Comby ; a firong holdin the mountains,w h ich never hadbeen attacked, andwh ich

they conceivedto be impregnable.

Mr. Irw in concurredw ith me in think

ing that a reafonable accommodation would

be more for the Company’sinteref’t than

to reduce the place by florm . On th isprinciple I remainedfour daysin fruitlefsnegotiation w ith thefe refraCtory Polygars,andeven fubm ittedto trufi myfelf alone

among them, in hopesof bringing their

bufinefsto an am icable termination. But

finding all m y effortsinefl'

efi ual, I wasunder the necef fity of ufing force.

The Comby isfituatedin the recefsofanamphitheatre of very h igh rocksandmoun

tains,

A P P E N D I X. 293

tains, anddefendedin front by a very

{trong work, mounting eigh t guns, and

coveredby four m ilesof th ick jungle, interfec

’

l edwith barriersandravines; the

whole being inclofedfrom the country with

a h igh embankment.

Theattack commencedyefterday morn

ing at feven o’

clock We were fo fortu

nate asto carry the bank, wh ich the

enemy hadlinedw ith many thoufandmen,

andto drive them into the woods:wethen proceededto cut a roadthrough the

jungle, andefi‘

eé’tedth isfervice in (even

hours, under a continual fire of m ufketry

andrepeated falliesof the enemy, who

were feldom farther from our

,

front than

thirty or forty yards, and feveral timesrufhedupon our , people w ith their pikes,but were asoften repulfed. Asfoonaswe had forced our way to the foot

of the high mountain that commandstheComby to the fouthward, we advancedto

U 3 gain

294 A P P E N D I X.

gain the fummit, andby fix o’

clock we

h addriven the enemy from their poftsUpon the eminence ; andfrom thence we

kept up fuch a fire upon the Comby that

they were forcedto abandon the place, andto retreat through rocksand thickets,where it wasimpoflible for usto purfue

them w ith any elfeit:we have foundeight

guns, three elephants, anda large quan

tity of grain. I cannot fay too much in

commendation of the officersandmen in

th isbufinefs; andam happy to add, that

if we‘

confider the firength of the place,

our lofsisex tremely inconfiderable, asw illappear from the enclofed copy of the

killedandwounded.

I am in hepes,my LordandGentlemen,that this. fuccefsw ill bring all the Poly

garsinto an immediate arrangement w ithMr. Irwin ; for the letter of the eigh th

ofAuguft which I have juil receivedfrom

yourLordfhip andthe Honourable Board,and

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296 A P P E N D I X

N IV.

Fort of Palagatcherry, 15 th Nov. 178 3.

M Y LORD, AND G E NTL EM EN,

Hadthe honour on the eigh teenth of

October to inform your Lordfh ip and

the H onourable Board, that I hadreceived

official information from Tellicherry of a

breach of faith , anda recommencement of

hoftility on the part of Tippoo Saib,againf’t

Mangalore. The critical fituation of that

important place, andthe tenor of my in

firué’tions, inducedme to move towards

Palagatcherry, in order to reduce a fort of

fuch effential confequence to the Englifh

intereftsin India, andat th e fame time to

produce, if poflible, a diverfion in favour

ofMangalore.

After variousdifficultiesin cutting our

way near twenty milesthrough the foreli

of

A P P E N D I X. 297

o f Annamally (ajungle till then confidered

asimpenetrable for an army), the advance

of the line reachedthisplace on the fecond

of November but the badnefsof the

roadsandinceffant rainspreventedthe rear

of the army w ith the battering gunsfromarriving till the ninth . I foundthe fort

coveredby a refpectable glacisw ith a goodcovert way, a very broadanddeep ditch

completely reveted, a large berme, anda

very f’trong commanding rampart. The

figure of th isfort isnearly quadrangular,thedimenfi

'

onsof itsfacesare 5 28 feet by4 32 ; each angle isdefendedby a capaciousroundbaftion w ith feven or nine embra

fures, anda baftion of a fim ilar confiruc

tion on the ,centre of each curtain ; it has

only .one entrance, paffing through three

gateways,mountstwenty - nine gunson the

works, and containeda garrifon of near

four thoufandmen.

p

3 93 A P P E N D I X.

On the th irteenth,we openedtwo bate

terice of fix heavy gunseach, one on the

calt andthe other on the north face ;fi -sthe

enemy’sfire wasfoon filenced, andtheir

defencesdeftroyed. At night, Captain

Maitland, with a part of the four flank

battalionsunder hiscommand, took advantage of a heavy rain to drive the befiegedfrom the covert way . He wasfo forg

tunate asto fucceed, andpurfued them

with in the firft andasfar asthe fecondgateway ; there he wasftopped; but:main-l

,

tainedh isgroundwith great fpirit andabi.tity, until an addition of tr00psarrived.The enemy was

'

fo much alarmedwith thismode of attack, that they called out for

quarter, andput usin poffeffi on of a fort

capable of making a long anddefperate

rcfiftance.

We have found pagodasin the

place, befidesa confiderable flock of grain,

powder, thot, andm ilitary ftores:returnsof

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3 00 A P P E N D I X.

Or fubfiltence, except what we procuredon

our progrefs, afford fuflicient proof that

magaz inesof grain eltablifhedhere wouldenable arm iesto march w ith confidence and

fecurity from the coaft of Coromandel to

that of Malabar, andthusbring the m ili

tary refourcesof MadrasandBombay intoone point of union andeffeC

’t.

I have fet the Killidar andthe garrifon

at liberty, w ith their fide armsandprivatebaggage, andam ufing every eEort to put

the place into the belt {late of defence, aswell asto prepare every department of the

army for more important operationsasIam very lately informedby Brigadier Cc

neral Macleod, that Tippoo Saib isftillblockading Mangalore, andisdeterm inedif pofiible to reduce it. Thishasinducedthe Prefidency of Bombay to give ordersthat General Macleod{hall ufe every effort

to fave that important fortrefs. I have

the honour to forwarda letter from Ge

neral

neral Macleod to the Right Honourable

the Prefident on th isfubjeét.

The Rajah of Calicut, or reprefentative

of the ancientZamorins, isnow with me,

andwe receive much afIiftance from theBra

m insandother inhabitantsof th iscountry,on whom I bellow every mark of favour

andprotefl ion, in order asmuch asin mypower to preferve the Englilh name from

the ftain too often incurredby violence and

opprefiion:I have likew ife received the

ftrongel’t affurance of friendfh ip andfupport.

from the different Rajahson the Malabar

w ait. I have written to Sir Edward

H ughes, to Brigadier General Macleod,andto the Ch ief of Tellicherry, foliciting

m olt earneftly a f upply of battering guns,powder, fhot, and other military fiores,which couldeafily be fent to me by the

route of Calicut. Shouldthefe requifitionsbe compliedwith, andthe war with Tip

poo

302 A P P E N D I X.

poo be continued, I have little doubt of

being able to march to Seringapatam in‘

hopesofdeciding thisdeftrué’tive contef’t at

the gatesof h iscapital. But fhouldyour

Lordfh ip and the H onourable Boardde

cide on meafuresof immediate pacification,andw ith to preferve poffeflion of the coun

try between th isplace andTritch inopoly,it iseafily w ith in my power to fulfil thefeviews, by falling back to Coimbatour and

Erode ; for th efe places, in addition to the

country already reduced, wouldadda re

venue of per annum,andex tend

the Englifh territory almoft entirely acrofsthe peninfula.

The very prefling necefii tiesof the offi

cersandtroopshave obligedme to take'

upon myfelf to order a diftribution of the

money foundin the fort, wh ich Iam aware

isa meafure that may pollibly involve me

in perfonal inconvenience ; but which I

prefume no perfon w ill venture to attribute

to

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304 . A P P E N D I X.

Captain Byresthe chief engineer isenatitledto my heft thanksfor h islaboursandability .

(Signed) W. FULLARTON.

To the Right Hon. the'

Prefident andGovernor,

andSeleft Committee, Fort St. George.

Camp at Dindigul,April a6th, 178 4 .

MY LORD, AND GENTLEMEN,

N Obedience to yot1r ordersof th eteenth of April, I have confideredwith

the utmof’t attention the important objects

held forth by your Lordfh ip and the

Board andIbeg leave to affure you of my

heft effortsto fuggeft andto‘

promote fuch

meafuresandarrangementsasmay tend

molt effectually to eftablifh a permanent

fyftem of proteétion anddefence through

out the fouthern countries, to reduce asmuch asmay be prafi icable the military

expencesof the fouthern eftablifhment,and

to‘enable the army to affemble andto move

with efl'

eCt on any emergency . Thefe I

conceive to be the effential pointson whichX you

306 A P P E N D I X.

you direCt me to lay my fentinfentsbeforeyou.

With refpeé’

t to the allotment of troopsfor the different garrifonsto the fouthward,I prefume that two complete battalionsinTanjore, andone in each of the fortsofTritch in0poly,Madura,Palamcottah,Ram

nad, and Kalicoil, including Tripatore,

w ill be fufficient for the ordinary dutiesofthe place.

It isnot in my power at prefent to con

fult with Mr. Sulivan andMr. Irwin on the .

proportion of troopsthat they may judgeneceffary for the colleCtion of revenue in

the different diftriéts; In tuit therefore beg

leave to refer in th isparticular to the Opi

nionswh ich , they, may tranfmit to. yom:Lordfh ip andthe Board, ShouldMr. Suli

van ftate that the four or five battalionsofTanjore Sebbendiesare adequate to the

,

purpofe of collectionIn that country ; and

lhould

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368 A P P E N D I X.

In conjuntftion w ith th isprimary meafure of fecurity, I have no doubt that fix

battalionsof Sepoys, can'

tonedwith an ef

ficient force of Europeansnear Tritch inopoly, andready to be detachedasoccafionm ight require, would fulfil every public

purpofe that couldoccurwith in the pro

vinces. H ere I mutt obferve, that many

em inent advantagesw ill arife to the fervicefrom th ispropofedmode of anfwering all

requifitionsfor troopsby detachmentsfrom the cantonments, infieadof appointingbattalionsto permanent ftations, which impairstheirdifcipline, andisprodufl ive of

variousinconveniencies.

Confidering thepublic intereftsno fartherthan asinternal anddefenftve arrangementsare in queftion, it w ill appear toyour

Lordfh ip andthe Boardby th isfiatement,together w ith the enclofedreturn of regular

and irregular corpsferving fouth'

Of the

Coleroon, that four battalions,including thedetach

A P P E N D I X. 309

detachmentsof the twelfth andeighteenth,can be w ithdrawn from hence, andthat a

body of Mogulleys, Independents, Irregulars, and troopsbelonging to H isH ighnefsthe Nabob,amounting to ten thoufandmen, may be immediately reduced:fuchhorfesof the Mogulleysasare fit fordutym igh t be purchafedfor the regularcavalry,andthe horfemen,who are in general men

of h igh caftsandlong fervice, may be providedfor in fuch manner asmay feem beft

to your Lordfh ip andthe Board.

A proportion Of the Independents, Irregulars, andNabob’stroops, m igh t be eulifted, ordraugh tedinto the regular batta

lions, andtheir black officerspermittedto

remain asfupernumerarieson the firength

of thefe corps. Thusthe hardfh ipsthatwouldbefal the individualsby reduétion

may be obviated, andthe regularbattalionswhich have fufferedfo feverely during the

X 3 late

310 A P P E N D I X.

late conteft may be effeél ually recruited,even to the prefent wareftablilhment Of one

thoufandmen for each battalion:from thisreduction alone, ex cluflve of the retrench -e

ment of all field- allowances, an expendi-e

ture of more than twenty- five 01

'

thirty.

thoufandpagodaspermonth may be favedto the Company .

Were thefe arrangementsto take place,

arigidfyl’tem ofdifcipline to bemaintained

among the troops, thedecayedpartsOf theprincipal fortsto be repaired, andparticu

larly a coudant andfcrupulousattention tohe paidto the {fate ofgrain,ftores,ordnance,andammunition in the difl

'

erent garrifons,I fhouldprefur

’

ne that little would feem

wanting to thew ell—being Of the provinces,asfarasthem ilitary are concerned,provideda fufficient fundwasappropriatedto the

fpeedy difcharge of the large arrearsfo longdue to the troops, who have fough t pas

tiently

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312 A P P E N D I X.

from whence an army could commence

itsoperationswith .more advantage againfi

the Myforeans, or indeed againf’t the

French at Pondicherry, than from Tritchi

n0poly, that garrifon will naturally become

the repofItory of all the fieldandbatteringtrain, ammunition, andfioresof every denomination,necefl

'

ary to equip an army for

the field:and, for the fame reafon, aswellasfor the convenience of the troopsto becantonedin itsvicinity, a very ample ma

gaz ine of grain andother provifionslhouldbe formedthere ; but thedetermination of

the Renter to counteract any tneafure of

thisnature w ill require the mofl pofitive

ordersfrom your Lordfh ip and- the Board

to give it effeét.

In order that the troopsin cantonment

may‘

at all timesbe ready to move, I con

ceive that every Captain commandingabat

talioh l houldbe direé’ted to entertain, at

the ufual allowances, a number of draught

and

A P P E N D I X. 31;

andcarriage bullocks, complete with ma

firies,drivers, gunney - bags,nofe- ropesandfaddles, agreeably to the proportionsfpecihedin the regulationsfor the conveyance

of the brigade Of guns, andtheir tumbrils,the tents, ftores, andammunition belonging to hiscorps; fome gun andtent Laf

carsandartificersought alfo to be attachedto the battalions; anda fum m ight be al

lowedto the officersfor furnifh ing and

repairing their own tents, wh ich would

greatly relieve the embarraffmentsof publicconveyance in the army:but lhouldanyofficer ever abufe thefe indulgencies, a

court martial anddifm iffion from the fer

vice wouldfoon remedy the evil. A corpsof artillery, complete in Europeans, Cu

landars,andLafcars, under the feniorofficerof artillery to the fouthward, anda propor

tion of draugh t andcarriage bullocksforthe fieldandbattering train

, artificersbelonging to the Commiffary of Storesdepartment, Dooly Coolies, andpublic fol

lowers

3 34 . A P P E N D I X.

lowersof alldefcriptions, fuflicient to equipthe army, according to the ftrength you

intendit to confift of, lhouldconfiantly be

complete In the cantonments:andaswellasthe bullocksthuspropofedto be mainrainedupon the peace eftablifhment, thefe

followersmay be Occafionally employedin

the carriage of grain andother bufmefsofthe Circar, on requifition from the fcnior

civil fervant of the ftation, taking care al

waysthat the bullocksfhall be attendedbya guardof the corpsto which they are

attached. I alfo conceive, that a corpsofpioneers, under the ch ief engineer, isextremely neceffary to remain upon the efta

bliihment.

The expence attending cavalry, andthe

difficulty Of procuring an eflicient bodyof them, almoft preclude me from any

obfervationson that fubjea ; but if it

be your intention to complete that effentiai

confiituent of an army, I {hall be happy

tQ

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3 16 A P P E N D I X.

With thefe precautions, my Lordand

Gentlemen, I cannot think that any Indian

enemy couldevergain fuch advantagesoverusashave, on a late occafion, endangered

the exil’tence of the Englilh in the Rail:for it isevincedby fevere experience, that anumber of troopsalone isof little avail,

unlefsthe means, conveyance, anddepart

mentsthat confiitute the effentialsof an

army, are maintainedon fuch a footing of

efi'

eét asyourLordlh ip andthe Boardleemdeterminedto ellablilh .

I fendthisLetter to Mr. Sulivan, that he

may forwardit with h isremarksandemendations. I {hall only farther entreat your

indulgence for the tedioufnefsof thisdetail.

I have, £s’e.(Signed) W. FULLARTON

To the RightHon. LoanMacan'runv, K. B .

Governor,Prefident,andSeleétCommittee,Fort St. George.

A P P E N D I X.

N°

VI.

A particular Account of tbcTary'

ore

andof it:Produce.

H E Yacojcc Rajah wasthe firlt manwho took pofi

'

eflion of the fort and

country of Tanjore from a Gentoo king

thisevent happenedon the 7th day of Fe

bruary 1675, dated, in Gentoo, Rauchina

Nama Sum vacharum, Magah Sudda Septinee. It appears, from the bookswhichare kept in the palace, that there were

5753 villages, which faid villagesweredividedinto the five following fubahsordifiriélsviz .

Subah Trivady,

Subah Combeconum,

Subah Mayaveram,

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320 A P P E N D I X.

Pretab Sing’seldefi' fon Tul

jajce Maharaja’

h fucceededto

thethrone heemployedtheun

dermentionedmanagers; v iz .

Manojee Hufi'

ainGawn, Sure-a

row Balajee Sinda,D obeerGid

ligiliaha, Bachanna H ircar

Rangia; the country produced,under thefe managers, every

year, Paddy Collums

Some timeafter this, theNabob took pofi

'

efiion of the coun

try andfort of Tanjore ; he appointedthe D obeer to be the

fole manager, under whofe

management the country proa

duced 1

Asfoon asthe Rajah wasreftoredto hisfort andcountryhe appointed Bachana Saula

Vencataputty Tondamanapa,Annabochy Naick, Gillanapa,

H ircar Rangia; under thele

A P P E N D I X. 32 .

managersthecountry annually

yielded I

The two lalt years, I believe,it hasfallen aslow as

N. B . The foregoingaccount wasreceivedfrom an oldman, who wasa writer under

the D ubeer andManojee in the time of

Pretab Sing, father to the prefent Rajah of

Tanjore. It isgiven literally from the

MahrattaTranflation.

3 z z A P P E N D I X.

An Account of the Tary'

orc Rcvcrzucr, cx

trac'

t'

ca'

from tbc Circaf Booh iu tbc three

[a]?Year:of tbc Rujab’

r Father'sReign

viz .

In the year 1759 32 lack of Chuckrums.1760 33 D

°

1761 37 D°

In the twofirft yearsof the prefent Ra

jah’sadminifiration,

in the year 1762 2 8 D°

I763 33 U

1771, being the year of the firlt

fiege of Tanjore, 34 g. lack ofChuckrums.During the Nabob

’sgovernment

in the

year1773 33 D

°

1774—5 2 D

°

1775, being the yearofthe Ra

jah’srefioration, theNabob received,during

the

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E R R A T A.

Page 2 5. 9. for againll readto.

37. 9. forrenovation readreformation.

4 9. 3 . f or feriesreadfytlem .

5 2 . 1z .for by their ul'

age readby their ill ufage.

70 . 19.f or yet conceivedreadconceivedyet .

77. 4 ,Note ; af ter bufinefsaddof the fervice.14 9. 9. after feveral addhundred.

In it!:Plate of 117:Order of Battle, for C. Ebert readC. Everett .