I should at Futty-Ghur, affords me great pleasure. have been extremely sorry if you had permitted any feeling of delicacy towards me to interfere with an important point of military discipline. I should look even upon the conquest of Mysore as a calamity if it were made the instrument of sanctioning any irregularity in the army; and I think a better occasion could not have been selected than that which you have so judiciously chosen, for discountenancing the practice of military addresses. With these sentiments, I wish it to be understood that I highly applaud the motives which dictated the address in question, and Lordship, and our admiration of the conduct and gallantry which so ably followed up and ultimately crowned your Lordship's plans with success unparalleledly splendid; though unenvious of the lustre of others' merits so nobly displayed, we cannot help regretting that fortune has not placed us in a situation to pay our tribute of filial gratitude to our country by a willing and faithful exertion of our endeavours to contribute to her matchless glory, under the auspices of the same distinguished protection. “We have the honour to remain, with most perfect respect and attachment, your Lordship's most faithfully devoted humble servants,` "JAMES DICKSON, Lieut.-Col. "C. WARE, Major-Gen. “SIR, GEO. RUSSELL, Lieut.-Col. J. COLLINS, Lieut.-Col. R. Corts, Deputy-Commanding,' &c. &c. &c." FROM THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF TO MAJOR-GENERAL R. STUART. "Calcutta, 25th June, 1799. "I have been honoured with your letter of the 12th inst., covering a congratulatory address from near eighty officers of the Futty Ghur station, under your immediate command, to the Governor-General, on the late glorious success of the British arms at Seringapatam, which you request may be forwarded to him, and it is not without great regret that I find myself restrained from complying with your wish. But much as I must, in common with yourselves and every other well-wisher of our country, feel and approve the sentiments it contains, I see so much objection, in a military point of view, to associating large numbers of officers that I was particularly gratified by the expressions which it contains of personal esteem for me. "I cannot express to you the anxiety and alarm which I felt for Sir John Anstruther during his illness. He would have been a great public loss, and I should have lamented in him a very valuable and affectionate friend. "I entirely approve your appointment of Mr. Muir, and I shall not fail to attend to the considerations by which it was accompanied. "Mr. Edminstone's letters to Mr. Barlow will have communicated to you my ideas respecting the Rajah Teynagur. "You will observe from the late letters of the Resident that the temper of the Court of Hyderabad is much improved, even without the application of the remedy which occurred to me. 66 "I have desired General Harris to carry into exe together for the purpose of drawing up and signing papers on almost any subject, that I cannot help thinking it my duty, as Commander-in-Chief, instead of becoming the channel for conveyance of such, where no previous consent has been asked or obtained, to discountenance it; and in the present instance, under the existing arrangement of the army in the field, there is a material additional obstacle to my interference, from the want of the usual form of its passing to me through the hands of MajorGeneral Sir James Craig, who commands all the troops in Oude. I therefore return the letter as you sent it, and in doing so I must beg leave to add, that the public reasons assigned are those alone which have actuated my conduct upon this occasion, as I have every reason to believe that nothing was intended but what was thought perfectly right and proper on your parts; and I feel a degree of repugnance at being compelled, by considerations of duty, to obstruct that in its passage to Lord Mornington which could not, abstractedly considered, but have been gratifying to him. I have the honour to be, with great regard, Sir, your most obedient humble servant, cution, as speedily as possible, the capitulation for De Meuron's regiment. Believe me, my dear Sir, &c. "MORNINGTON." THE EARL OF MORNINGTON TO THE HON. T. NORTH, &c. "MY DEAR NORTH, (Private.) "Fort William, January 20th, 1800. "When you are apprised that since my arrival here I have framed the entire foundation of a code of Lord Clive's subjects and, indeed, of an entirely new constitution for his government, and that I have also immersed myself up to the neck in a question of radical reform for Oude, you will excuse my long silence; and you will further pardon me if I now merely assure you that I most cordially approve all your proceedings, and will strenuously support you and them, though I expect no opposition, particularly from Fort St. George, where I really believe Lord Clive's administration to be most able and honest. I must reserve the question of General M'Dowall's allowance, with all others, for a few days; only premising that I have the highest opinion of General M'Dowall, and that I entertain the most just sense of his late conduct in Ceylon. Your engineer and artillerymen shall be sent to you soon, but I do not know whether we can The alarm of the give you him whom you name. * * The following letter explains the rumour here referred to : "I have the honour to enclose, for your Excellency's information, the copy of the report made by the commander of an American ship just French fleet was false, but it has served to manifest your activity as well as the security of the island, and you may rely on receiving a public testimony of my applause on that subject. "The news of our Easter triumphs reached England on the 13th of September. The sensation far exceeded my expectation; it was universal and high to a degree of exultation: all is glorious in Europe; and if we live two or three years, we shall see Great Britain arbitress of the world. Ever yours most affectionately, "To the Hon. Frederick North,* "Governor of Ceylon." (Signed) "MORNINGTON." arrived at this port, relative to a large fleet which he fell in with on the 7th of July last, in latitude 5o 28′ north, and 16° west of London. "I judge it proper to annex to this report the copy of an article of news which appears in the Frankfort Journal of the 22nd June last. "Having personally examined the American commander, I have every reason to rely on the fidelity of his communication. I have the honour to be, &c. "MORNINGTON." The above letter was forwarded, on the 27th of October, to Mr. Uhthoff, to the Commissioners in Malabar, to the Commanding Officer in Mysore, and to the Commanding Officer in Malabar." * Mr. North, afterwards Earl of Guilford, was the third son of the celebrated Lord North, the minister so familiar to the readers of Junius. He was born in 1764, and was, at an early age, one of the chamberlains in the Tally Court of the Exchequer. After the capture of Ceylon from the Dutch, Mr. North was appointed Governor, greatly to the satisfaction of Lord Mornington, by whom he was highly esteemed. In 1829, Mr. North, then Earl Guilford, died without leaving issue, and was succeeded by the Rev. Francis North, whose father had been Bishop of Winchester. The Hon. Frederick North is frequently referred to in the course of Lord Wellesley's private letters and official communications. CHAPTER XVII. The State Sword of Tippoo Sultaun presented to General Baird.-The Army forward for Presentation to Lord Mornington a Star and Badge of the Order of St. Patrick, composed of Tippoo's Jewels. - Lord Mornington declines to accept them.-Private Letter of Hon. Henry Wellesley (Lord Cowley) to Mr. Canning, respecting these Jewels.— They are presented to Lord Wellesley by the East India Company.— Lord Wellesley declines to accept One Hundred Thousand Pounds from the Booty offered to him by his Majesty's Government and the Court of Directors.-Division of the Spoil of Seringa patam.—Unfair Distribution.-Conduct of General, afterwards Lord Harris, open to Censure.-Letter of Lord Castlereagh to Lord Wellesley.-Statement of the East India Company as to the Over-Payment.-—Written Opinion of the Attorney-General (Mr. Spencer Perceval), the SolicitorGeneral (Sir T. Manners Sutton), and Mr. Wm. Adam, on this Question. -Opinion of the King's Advocate (J. Nicholl).—Memorandum on the Amount of Booty in Seringapatam.-Memorandum on the French Corps in the Deccan. Ar the suggestion of Colonel Wellesley, and by the directions of the Prize Committee, the state sword of Tippoo Sultaun, which had been found in his bedchamber, was presented to General Baird in the name of the army, as a testimonial of their high admiration of his courage and conduct in the assault. The army also expressed their desire to present to the Governor-General a star and badge of the order of St. Patrick, composed of Tippoo's jewels: but Lord Wellesley, from motives of delicacy, declined to accept * The star and badge had been prepared, and was forwarded by the Prize Committee to the Commander-in-chief in a gold box. |