1778 with the Indian nations, and, without any idea of oppressing them by monopolies, encouraged their industry by a fair purchase of their products and manufactures. Such reflections, however, though they must naturally have arisen in the minds of those who were friends to peace, could no longer be considered as applicable to practice, now that the nature of the establishment was entirely changed by its vast territorial acquisitions.-The question at present was in what manner our interests, as one of the greatest powers in India, could be best promoted—whether by taking part in the broils of the different governments on the peninsula, and, regardless of our commercial interests, to avail ourselves of every specious plea for engaging in hostilities with them, in order to enlarge our territories; or, by meriting the respect and attachment of the native powers by a uniform observance of moderate councils and a strict compliance with the obligations of justice and good faith, without aspiring to further acquisitions.— Upon which of these principles the supreme council acted at the present most interesting crisis will be most satisfactorily evinced by facts. 66 66 When Mr. Hastings submitted the late communication of the Bombay presidency to the supreme board, we find him insisting on the alarming tendency of the treaty negotiating by monsieur de St. Lubin. Although the Maratta "" power, unallied with other states, was unable," said he, "to cope with the company, yet sustained by the French, they are qualified to refuse acquiescence with our demands, which demands the island of Basseen offers as the only prospect of a security: that no obligation precludes us from demanding it, nor can any blame be imputed to us, if, as the superior power we prescribe the terms of accommodation."-Agreeably with these maxims of policy which the governor so ingenuously avows, he, in the plan afterwards submitted to the board, required, "that the Maratta government should "give such security for the personal safety of Ragonaut as he himself shall require. That they shall pay a specific sum to reimburse the company "those military charges which might be incurred by the interposition in "his favour-that they should cede the fortress and isle of Basseen in perpetuity to the company-and that no European settlement be allowed "on any of the coasts of the Maratta dominions, without the consent of "the supreme council previously obtained."-Leaving the reader to form 66 his 2 Belsham. 3. 101. b Idem. and Ann. Regist. 1782. 13. his own judgment of the probable effects of such arbitrary demands, which threatened destruction to the independency of every state in India, we shall now attend to the proceedings of the supreme council and the events which ensued from them. The governor's plan being sanctioned by a majority of the board, after a strenuous opposition from the minority, instructions correspondent with it were dispatched to the Bombay presidency, to direct it in its negotiations. with the court of Poonah; and it was empowered to declare that a refusal to comply with any one of them would be considered as a violation of the Poorunder treaty.-The Maratta government testified its desire of preserving peace by giving up the point of Ragonaut's residence within their territories, conditionally that he would reside at Benares, with an annuity of five lacks of rupees, about £.60,000, assigned him for his maintenance.--But the warlike majority were not to be softened by concessions: the Marattas were to be humbled; they were to be subjected to the paramount power of the company. It was determined in the supreme council to send a strong body of forces to co-operate with those of Bombay in the intended invasion of the Maratta dominions: and colonel Leslie began his march of eleven hundred miles across the peninsula, with 7000 men and a train of artillery.—A narrative of his movements would be uninteresting: one circumstance, however, deserves to be noticed, as it exemplifies the additional horrors of war in this climate, "that, on the first day's march from Calpy, they are said to have lost between two and three hundred men, who, died raving mad under the pressure of excessive heat and the want of water.' -How totally must avarice and ambition have divested those persons of the feelings of humanity who recommended offensive war under such circumstances as these!-Their progress was very slow: and the whole summer had passed over without any memorable action, when, colonel Leslie dying, the chief command was given to general Goddard. †-The Bombay army, in the mean-time, consisting of about 5000 men, under captain Stuart, had advanced to the Maratta frontier, and taken possession of the Bour Ghaut, within fifty miles of Poonah. с " d Affairs were in this state when the grand design planned by the advocates of 1778 1778 of war was at length developed; which was nothing less than to prevail on Moodajee Boosla, rajah of Berar, to assert his pretensions to the throne of the ram rajah, and to support him with our whole force in the maintenance of them, and also in his claims on the nizam of the Decan. Nothing could be more awful than the contemplation of the present crisis of the company's affairs; when it was rendering two of the greatest powers of India its mortal enemies, and making resistance to it a common cause among them all.-Accordingly we find the advocates of pacific councils making another firm stand to avert the dangers apprehended from the war. They urged the general tenour of the instructions given them by the directory and its particular injunctions to a strict performance of the Poorunder treaty: they insisted on the extreme imprudence of involving themselves in a war of vast expence at a time when the company's finances required the greatest economy, and when the crown of Great Britain was on the point of a war with the house of Bourbon, in alliance with the revolted Americans. And they represented the bad policy of incurring the enmity of the nizam of the Decan at such a period; who would thus be driven to abandon our alliance, and to call our natural enemies to the aid of himself and other Indian powers who were disposed to maintain their independency. In reply to this the advocates of war adduced the vast benefit which the company would derive from the accomplishment of such a revolution in the Maratta government, and the facility of doing it in its present distracted state. This, they said, was the instant to free ourselves from danger on that side by placing a prince at the head of that state who should be attached to us by interest as well as by gratitude: and they recommended the measure as the most effectual means of frustrating the views of France, and preventing the annoyance which it would otherwise be enabled to give us by its influence with the present Maratta government.—The latter opinion prevailing, Mr. Elliot was dispatched to the Berar court at Naigpoor, with powers to negotiate a treaty with the rajah; and, on his death, colonel Goddard succeeded him in the embassy. -The council was, however, destined to experience a mortifying disappointment in this first and grand preparatory step in the execution of their July 18. design. design. The rajah, who valued himself on a strict adherence to the rules of justice and good faith, and did not choose to engage in the company's quarrels, absolutely refused to conclude an alliance with them, or to make any engagements which tended to hostility with the paishwa or the subah of the Decan. As a testimony of his good-will to them, mean-while, he proffered his mediation in settling the matters in dispute between them and the court of Poonah; endeavouring, at the same time, to draw them off from their connexions with Ragonaut, whose character he abhorred." During these transactions in the north, the Coromandel coast was become an interesting scene of action.-On intelligence that hostilities were commenced between Great Britain and France, the presidency of Madras, anticipating the designs which they expected to be formed against them, boldly provided for their own preservation by sending general Monroe, with all the forces that could be spared, to lay siege to Pondicherry.-The good behaviour of admiral Vernon was of signal service in the execution of this enterprise. That officer, who was stationed off the Coromandel coast with a squadron consisting of one 64 gun ship and five small vessels, being destined to co-operate in the siege, on information that admiral Tronjolly was approaching with with a somewhat superior force, immediately sailed in quest of him: and, giving him battle, he obliged him to quit the scene of action, after an engagement which lasted two hours.||-This was eventually decisive of the fate of Pondicherry. The garrison under monsieur de Bellecombe behaved with exemplary bravery in defence of the fortress. But being completely debarred of relief, he was constrained by necessity to capitulate after a siege of two months." 1778 GREAT f Annual Register. 1782. 24. 7. August 10. h Annual Register. 1779. 174. GREAT BRITAIN. 1779. 1779 THE principles on which the war had been commenced were now no longer matter of debate. Our operations having been carried on without making any advances towards the accomplishment of their primary object, and the difficulties which at first presented themselves daily increasing, the merits of the ministers under whose administration it was conducted became the subject of warm discussion on the re-assembling of parliament in the late autumn. Severe strictures were passed, as well on the conduct of the first lord of the admiralty, as that of the premier. A disapprobation of it in general, and especially of what related to the late engagement in the channel, deprived the state of the services of lord Howe, admirals Keppel and Harland, sir John Lindsay, and others, who were disgusted with the manner in which affairs were conducted.'-Whether their resignation was justifiable, whether they were actuated by a regard for their country's welfare, or by party spirit, is not our business to determine. The fact is, that it corresponded perfectly with the measures adopted, at this time, by the minority, and that their conduct afforded a sort of sanction to each other. Soon after the Christmas recess,† Mr. Fox, on the grounds of some letters which had been laid before the house, proposed the following resolution; intending, if successful, to move another for the removal of lord Sandwich from the office of first lord of the admiralty: "That it appears to + March 3. Annual Register. 121. "this |