pressed the siege with musketry from the housetops, while a bombardment from four mortars was incessant. Many of our people were killed, and more wounded, and Clive had many escapes, three orderly sergeants who attended him singly, when visiting the works, being killed by his side.

On the 24th of October there came in from Pondicherry two eighteen-pounders and seven smaller pieces, which were at once got into position; and in six days these had beaten down all the wall between two of the towers, making a practicable breach fifty feet wide; but while this was in process, Clive was cutting a deep trench, erecting palisades and an earthwork in rear of it, and to enfilade the approach he planted a fieldpiece on one of the towers, with muzzle depressed, and two other guns on the flat roof of a building within the fort and facing the breach; but the besiegers, aware of these skilful preparations, declined to attempt an escalade until another breach was effected at the back of the fort.

Within that precinct Clive had found one of those enormous bombards, or cannon, for the manufacture of which the Orientals have always been celebrated. Local tradition averred that this gigantic gun had been sent from Delhi by the Emperor Aurungzebe, and that it had been drawn to Arcot by 1,000 bullocks. Though in Dow's translation of "Ferishta," guns are mentioned, it has been supposed that the proper term should have been naphtha, as no cannon were used in India before the time of the invasion of Baber (the founder of a line of kings under whom India rose to the greatest prosperity) in 1537, but mention is made of arrows tipped with naphtha and shot against opposing troops, so early as the ninth century. Clive raised a mound of earth high enough to command the palace of the rajah, and on that mound he placed the monster cannon. He found some of the iron balls belonging to it, each weighing seventy-six pounds, and requiring a charge of thirty pounds of powder. The first of these tore like a whirlwind through the palace, making a clean breach in the walls on both sides, to the terror of the rajah and his attendants. Clive ordered it to be fired once daily, but on the fourth discharge it burst with a terrible crash.

The perilous condition of the little band in Arcot being known at the presidency, there were sent from Madras 100 Europeans and 200 sepoys, under Lieutenant Innes, to assist Clive; but after a considerable portion of the route was accomplished, they were nearly surrounded by 2,000 native troops with some French artillery, and

compelled to fall back on Fort Ponamalee, fifteen miles from Madras. Clive and his "handful ” were thus left to their fate; but the valour of their defence produced a deep moral impression on the native mind.

Clive now opened a communication with Morari Rao, a Mahratta chief who lay encamped with 6,000 men among the mountains thirty miles westward of Arcot. He had come there as hired ally of Mohammed Ali, but on seeing the desperation of his affairs remained aloof. The charm of Clive's name was being felt now, so Morari replied that he "would not lose a moment in coming to the assistance of such valiant men as the defenders of Arcot, whose behaviour had now convinced him that the English could fight."

Tidings of this unexpected alliance alarmed Rajah Sahib, who suddenly sent a flag of truce, offering honourable terms to the survivors of the garrison and a large sum of money to Clive, threatening, if his offers were not accepted, to put every man in the fort to the sword; but Clive disdained the proffered bribe, and laughed the threat to scorn. Yet all the Mahrattas did was to plunder the town and gallop away.

The French guns had effected a new breach, which Clive had counterworked as he did the first ; but on the 14th of November, the great religious festival held in commemoration of the murder of the holy brothers, Hassan and Hussein, when the Moslems of Hindostan inflame their fanaticism by the belief that all who fall in battle on that day, go straight to the joys of Paradise, and resort to the maddening use of bhang and hempseed to deaden. their sense of danger, Rajah Sahib's forces assailed both breaches with the utmost fury. Elephants with large plates of iron fixed to their heads were driven against the gates at other points; and in rear of these enormous living battering-rams scrambled a yelling multitude, their eyes flashing like their swords, with the drugs they had swallowed and the wild devotion of the hour.

Wounded by musketry, the elephants rushed madly to and fro, and after trampling many of the rabble-rout to death, trotted away, trumpeting, with their probosces in the air. The work at the breaches was more serious; but the enemy were repulsed at both, by two o'clock in the afternoon, with the loss of 400 men, whom Clive gave them two hours' leave to carry away. So many were disabled now by wounds and sickness, that the strength of the garrison now was no more than eighty British, officers included, and 120 sepoys; and these served five pieces of cannon and expended 12,000 cartridges in repelling the attack,

horse, who failed in many attempts upon the baggage, were kept completely at bay.

So many of Clive's gunners were killed and wounded, that he found the fire of his three fieldpieces overborne by the French now, and no alternative was left him but to storm the battery, or retreat. He chose the former, and on an intelligent sergeant, whom he had sent forward to reconnoitre, reporting that the enemy's rear was quite uncovered, he dispatched a strong party to approach it, unseen, by a détour. He accompanied this party half-way, and returned only in time to find his front about to fall back.

Rallying them, sword in hand, he was renewing the fight, when, all at once, the enemy's cannon ceased firing; then he knew that the rear attack had proved completely successful. Reaching the bank unperceived, the detachment poured in their fire at thirty yards, thus turning the position and taking the guns. Instantaneous was the panic, and, without firing another shot, the foe fled, leaving fifty French and 300 sepoys dead upon the field. Many of the French, who had crowded into a choultry, surrendered as prisoners. Nine field pieces, and three cohorns were taken. The fort of Cauverypauk at once surrendered. Clive's loss in killed was forty British soldiers and thirty sepoys.

The surviving Frenchmen made a rush to the usual place of shelter, Pondicherry, while Chunda Sahib's troops dispersed and fled to their homes in all directions.

Just when the presidency at Fort St. David were about to dispatch Clive to Trichinopoly, Major Lawrence returned from England, and took the command as superior officer. From that impetuosity and impatience of control which characterised Clive in the camp, as of old at school and in the counting-house, it might have been expected that after such brilliant achievements, he might dislike to act with zeal in a subordinate capacity; but it was not so with the self-taught soldier of India.

"He cheerfully placed himself under the orders of his old friend," says Macaulay, "and exerted himself as strenuously in the second part, as he could have done in the first. Lawrence well knew the value of such assistance. Though himself gifted with no intellectual faculty higher than plain. good sense, he fully appreciated the powers of his brilliant coadjutor. Though he made a methodical study of military tactics, and, like all men thoroughly bred to a profession, was disposed to look with disdain on interlopers, he had yet liberality enough to acknowledge that Clive was an exception to common rules."*

Essays.

Taking Clive with him, the major set out for Trichinopoly, with 400 British, 1,100 sepoys, and eight guns. As now 20,000 Mysoreans, and 6,000 of the warlike Mahrattas were ready to co-operate with him, the troops of Chunda Sahib, and the French who had mustered in and about Trichinopoly, broke up in something more than despair. The latter retired to the isle of Seringham, which is formed by the junction of the Coleroon and Cauvery.

There they took possession of the most celebrated of its Hindoo temples, the great pagoda near its western extremity, an edifice surrounded by seven enclosures of massive brick, at the distance of 350 feet from each other, the outer being nearly four miles in circumference. Dupleix sent M. d'Auteuil to reinforce them here, but he was driven into an old fort on the way, and compelled to capitulate. This was followed by the surrender of those in the great pagoda on the isle, as they were in a state of starvation; so Chunda Sahib, finding himself deserted by the last of his forces, surrendered to the leader of the Tanjore army, who promised him protection, but put him in chains.

This ended, for a time, the operations in and about Trichinopoly, the sieges and blockades of which lasted fully a year, and the most ample details of them will be found in the thick quarto volumes of Orme; but now a violent dispute ensued between Mohammed Ali, the Mahratta chiefs, the Rajah of Mysore, and the Tanjoreans, who each and all claimed the person of the prisoner Chunda Sahib. To end the growing quarrel, Major Lawrence proposed that the fallen prince should be surrendered to Britain; but the Tanjoreans solved the difficulty in true Indian fashion, by cutting off Chunda's head and sending it to his now fortunate rival, Mohammed Ali, who, with savage exultation displayed it on a spear before his army. "Lawrence and Clive have both been blamed for suffering this foul assassination; but it will appear on candid examination of the facts, that neither they nor their allies had any foreknowledge or anticipations of the deed, which sprung from the jealousy and ferocity of the Tanjore chief, over whom they had no control."

In detailing these affairs, the London Gazette of the 6th January, 1753, has the following:"M. Dupleix at the desire of Salabad Jing, has solicited for a peace, which the nabob is willing to consent to, provided it is made to our satisfaction, as he owns himself much obliged to us."

Then we have a report of Major Lawrence, dated Trichinopoly, 12th June, 1752, detailing certain operations :

1753.]

ten mortars.

"We have killed and taken prisoners an army much more numerous than our own, with all their artillery, which amounts to about forty pieces, and We found among the prisoners about thirty French officers, about six killed, and about 800 private men. They were acting as allies to the rebels, that have almost destroyed this country, and we gave our assistance to the lawful prince, who is so sensible of his obligation to the English that I have great hopes our Company will be able to carry on their trade here to more advantage than any other European nation. I am going to begin my march through the Arcot country, to settle the tranquillity of it, and am above 100 miles from the seaside."

The troops of Mysore and some of the Mahrattas occupied Trichinopoly; those of Tanjore marched home, so the British with their sepoys marched against Gingee, a strong place which was held by a brave French garrison. The attacking force consisted of 200 Europeans, 1,500 sepoys, and 600 black cavalry, all under Major Kinnear, an officer just arrived from home, who was repulsed, and had to fall back with considerable loss. Elated by this success, Dupleix reinforced the victors, who were mustering 450 French, 1,500 sepoys, and 500 native horse, and took post near the northern boundary of Fort St. David, while the Company's troops held a position at a redoubt in the boundary hedge three miles westward of the fort.

There they remained inactive, awaiting the coming of 200 Swiss, who had arrived at Madras from England. To avoid delay, 100 of them were embarked in the light boats of the country, and sailed for Fort St. David. It was assumed that on the sea Dupleix would not venture to violate the British flag; but as soon as they were seen from Pondicherry, a ship was sent out to make them all prisoners. "The capture was loudly complained of, as a violation of the peace subsisting between Great Britain and France; but Dupleix thought he had a sufficient precedent in the capture of French troops at Seringham."

The other Swiss company reached Fort St. David safely, and on the 7th August, 1752, Major Lawrence took command of the whole force, consisting of 400 Europeans, 1,700 sepoys, and 4,000 of the nabob's troops. The enemy now took post at Bahoor, where Lawrence attacked with equal skill and vigour. The French and British met in a charge, and the clash of

35 steel was heard as the bayonets crossed; but short was the struggle. Two platoons of our grenadiers, by main strength of arm, broke the enemy's centre, on which their whole line gave way, and had the nabob's horse, instead of turning their energies to plunder, used lance and sabre well, not a man should have escaped. Morari Rao, who had been won over by Dupleix, was on his way to join the French with 3,000 Mahrattas, when he met some of the fugitives. So, with that treachery which is so perfectly Oriental, he made his appearance in the camp of the nabob, "complimenting him on the victory, and lamenting his misfortune in not having been able to join him in sufficient time to share it."

Clive was now detached to Coulong, a town of the Carnatic, twenty-four miles from Madras. The forces he took with him are represented as being 500 newly-raised sepoys, and 200 recruits who had come from London, and who are represented as being gaol-birds, "and the worst and lowest wretches that the Company's crimps could pick up in the flash houses." Yet Clive made soldiers of this singular rabble, though they fled at the first shot, and one hid himself at the bottom of a well; but Clive kept them to their duty, "and by the time the fort surrendered, they were heroes." Cutting up, or taking prisoners, some detachments that were marching from Chingleput (a day too late) to relieve Coulong, Clive, by a rapid march of forty miles to the former place, compelled the French commander to surrender it on the 31st of October, permitting him to march out with the honours of war, and proceed to Pondicherry.

Chingleput was a strong fort, 400 yards long by 320 broad, situated at the base of two mountains, close to the left bank of the Faliar.

Clive now returned to Madras, and finding his health, which had never been very robust, greatly impaired by all he had undergone, he returned on leave to England, where he was greatly fêted after his landing at Plymouth, on the 10th of September, 1753,* and was presented with a diamond-hilted sword by the East India Company, which, with rare delicacy, he declined to receive unless a similar gift was presented to his brother-officer, Lawrence.

His departure was deplored by the army, and his absence was soon felt along the whole coast of Coromandel.

*Gentleman's Magazine.

of the East India Company." The first sepoys seen in India were a body of 200 natives, mingled with a few Portuguese soldiers, in 1594, under the Moguls.

The French had raised a body of them before we began the practice, and it would appear that our first sepoys were trained in 1746, during La Bourdonnais' siege of Madras. Some British officers were then attached to certain irregular native infantry, whom they began to drill and discipline. The system was first introduced into the Madras army by Lieutenant Haliburton, a Scotsman, who, like Clive, had quitted the civil for the military service, but was shot, in 1748, by a

"The aborigines of the Carnatic," says General Briggs, "were the sepoys of Clive and Coote. A few companies of the same stock joined the former great captain from Bombay, and fought the battle of Plassey in Bengal, which laid the foundation of our Indian empire. They have since distinguished themselves in the corps of pioneers and engineers, not only in India but in Ava, Afghanistan, and the celebrated siege of Jelalabad. An unjust prejudice against them has grown up in the armies of Madras and Bombay, produced by the feeling of contempt for them existing among the Hindoo and Mohammedan sepoys. They have no prejudices themselves, are always ready to serve abroad, and