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Usurpation of the Mugul power.

command of some extensive countries, on the left bank of the Indus, with a revenue of near two millions sterling. At this period, indeed, there were still a few British officers in the service of Scindiah; but it was well known that Perron only waited the arrival of some more of his countrymen, in order to dismiss the whole of them. In fact, Perron at that moment held both the person and nominal authority of the unfortunate Shah Aullum, the deposed Moghul emperor, in the most abject and degraded subjection, for the office of Vakeel, or Viceroy, being held by the Peishwa, Scindiah as his deputy nominally, and real master, administered the affairs of the Moghul empire, whilst the fiction was carried to such a length that Perron called his army the "Imperial army," and himself a servant and subject of the Great Moghul,

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travelled into the upper provinces, he enterred into the service of the Rana of Gohud, under the orders of a Mr. Sangster. While in this service, on a very small salary, he married Mademoiselle Deridan, sister of an officer, whose family resided at Pondicherry. After the destruction of the Gohud Rana, he entered into the service of Scindiah, as a quarter-master serjeant, on the pay of sixty rupees a month, and in a corps commanded by M. Lostoneaux. When Gholah Cadir was taken in attempting to escape from Mearut, where he was besieged during some of the intestine disturbances, Lostoneaux is supposed to have got possession of the saddle, in which that Rohilla chief had concealed all the valuable jewels which he had plundered from the palace at Delhi. With this booty he made his escape to Europe; and having also carried off the money assigned him for the payment of his corps, M. Pillet, whom he had left in charge of them, being unable to satisfy the demands of the soldiery, had nearly lost his life.

After the escape of Lostoneaux, Perron received the command of a battalion from Rana Khan, Scindiah's general; but being reduced on the return of the army into cantonments, he was left without employ until the arrival of General de Boigne, who, forming a brigade in Scidiah's service, gave Perron the command of the Burhampoor battalion. Shortly after this he lost a hand by the bursting of a hand grenade, whilst trying some experiments; but his skill was such that he succeeded General de Boigne in the command of his brigade, and signalized himself much in the various operations of Scindiah's army protious to the commencement of hostilities with Great Britain.

Anecdotes of Holkar.

By all these means, it is well known that the French government intended to make the unfortunate emperor the principal instrument of their plans against British India, and to avail themselves of the authority of his name to re-establish their influeuce and power.

All the attempts on the part of the Governor-General, to re-establish the independence of the Peishwah, were now found impracticable; yet notwithstanding this, even as far down as 1802, the Marquis determined to renew his negociations for the conclusion of an improved system of alliance with the court of Poonah, as the increased distractions of that state seemed favourable to British interests, in consequence of the recent successes of Holkar against Scindiah.

Holkar, however, was a mere adventurer, an illegitimate son of a late chief; and the only boon which could be held out to him was that of a secure and permanent establishment under British protection, instead of his risking his all for the mere chance of acquiring power and plunder at Poonah.*

But

* Holkar was the son of a native of the Dekan, a man so poor that it was with the greatest labour and difficulty he was able to maintain his family. Milhar Rao Holkar, the son, becoming an orphan at six years of age, went to his uncle, who, with six looty or irregular horsemen, was in the service of Rajah Sehuba, of the Saho family. On entering his ninth year, his uncle, who had a large flock of sheep and goats, consigned them to him for pasturage; in consequence of which, early every morning, he took them out to graze, returning again with them in the evening. One day, whilst carrying him his victuals, the uncle perceived his nephew asleep, whilst a large black snake had exhalted and spread his head over him like an umbrella to shade him from the rays of the son. The snake retired to its hole on the uncle's approach who was in the utmost astonishment, but from thenceforward firmly believed, that his nephew would become a very great man.

In consequence of this he awoke him, carried him home, dispensed with his further attendance on the sheep; and taking from him a written promise that he would befriend him whenever he rose to eminence, be

Military force assembled.

But Scindiah still maintained his power over the Peishwah, and his troops were actually engaged with those of that chief, in opposition to Holkar on the 25th of October 1802, when Holkar was victorious.

In consequence of this defeat, the Peishwah was anxious to avail himself of British protection, and scon after fled from his dominions, under the patronage of the government of Bombay, being conveyed in an English ship from one of his own ports to the strong fortress of Severn Droog on the coast of Malabar.

It was now determined to resort to warlike measures, to restrain the power of the hostile chiefs, to re-establish the Peishwah, and to restore order and tranquillity throughout the north of India; measures as necessary for the happiness of the distressed natives, as for the welfore of British interests; and, accordingly, a considerable force was collected from the different presidencies, and assembled at Hurryhur, on the north-west frontier of the Mysore, under the command of Lieutenant-General Stewart, amounting to 3581 European and native cavalry, 390 artillery, 2845 European infantry, including the 33rd, and 1212 native infantry, together with 40 field-pieces, besides smaller guns and a battering train.

On the 27th February 1803, Lieutenant-General Stewart was ordered to adopt the necessary measures for the march of the British troops, into the Mahratta territory, and to detach such a force as he thought sufficient for that purpose.

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he procured his admission into the service of the Sehuba Rajah, as a kind of porter!

The young Holkar, in the course of a short time, rendered himself capable and useful; and was among others, allowed to approach his master; after which he obtained a command; and, as the oriental bistorians say, being born under a fortunate planet, rose to dignity and

power.

His wife, Thelia Bai, among other sons, brought him one of such a vicious disposition, and such a great debauchee, that she had him trampled to death by an elephant, and his only daughter burat herself at the tomb of her husband.

Advance of the army.

The high opinion formed of Major-General Wellesley by his brother now displayed itself; for we are told in the memoir drawn by the Marquis himself, that the command of this advanced detachment necessarily required the united exertion of considerable military talent, and of great political experience and discretion. Indeed this high opinion was not confined to the Marquis; for Lord Clive also, (then Governor of the Madras Presidency, and within those limits of government the army was formed,) was convinced that the trust could not be confided, with equal prospects of advantage, to any other person than the subject of our biography, whose extensive local knowledge, and personal influence among the Mahratta chieftains, (acquired by his conduct in the command of the Mysore, and by his subsequent victories over Dhoondia, and the other refractory chiefs,) appeared best calculated to ensure success to the future important operations.

Lord Clive, therefore, gave instructions to Lieutenant-General Stewart to that purpose; and the General having directed a detachment from the main army to be assembled ready for action, consisting of one regiment of European, and three regiments of native cavalry, two regiments of European and six battalions of native infantry, with a due proportion of artillery, amounting all together to about 9707 men, together with 2500 of the Rajah of Mysore's cavalry, the command was given to the Hon. Major-General Wellesley, for the purpose of advancing into the Mahratta territory.

The Major-General advanced from Hurryhur on the 3rd of March 1803, and arrived at the Tumbudra river on the 12th, which he then crossed, his march through the whole of the Mahratta territory being most successful: for the British troops were every where received as friends, and almost all the chiefs in the vicinity of the route of the detachment, joined with

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Retreat of Holkar.

with their forces, and accompanied the British army to Poonah.

This long march at a season of the year very unfavourable, and performed without loss or distress, must be considered as highly honourable to the commanding officer, though certainly much aided by the amiable conduct of the Jaghedars and of the inhabitants, which must however be considered as principally attributable to the fame which the British army had acquired in the campaign under his command against Dhoondiah Waugh. The principal causes of success, indeed, were the ability, temper, activity, and skill, of the general, which were most eminently displayed in directing the system of the supply and movements in the troops, in his prevention of plunder and of all excesses, and in his conciliating the inhabitants of the various districts through which his route was pursued.

On the 15th of April, Holkar, now the principal chief of the rebellious party, had reached Chandore (about one hundred and thirty miles N. N. E. from Poonah) whilst Amrut Rao alone remained in that city with a force of about 1500 men. At the same time, a subsidiary force under Colonel Stevenson, sent by the Nizam, had arrived at Akloos, a town only eight miles from the Neera river, and but a short distance from the army of General Wellesley, who immediately reinforced the Colonel with the Scotch Brigade.

As Holkar's position was now taken up during the retreat from Poonah, it appeared unnecessary to the general to advance all his troops to that city; for the purpose of effecting the restoration of the Peishwah; and as the country was already much exhausted, and there prevailed a great deficiency of forage, he determined to dispose of a great portion of his army in such cantonments, that the whole might procure forage and subsistence, and at the same time be ready to form a junction with facility, whenever that

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