as it was at the inftant, without time for deliberation or council, and against charges of the moft alarming nature, was confidered by him as an infult of the highest and moft offenfive kind. He fays, it was lefs a vindication of the Kajah, than a recrimination on himfelf; and holds it as an anfwer nearly couched in terms of defi. ance. He observes that the Rajah, in his reply, infifted much upon the many letters which he had written to him, praying to be difpenfed from obeying the orders of government, and of his receiving no anfwer to them. He feems to think this might be true; but he obferves, in a high tone of authority, that it was the Rajah's duty to obey the pofitive and repeated orders which he had received," and not to wafte "his time with letters of excufe, "to cavil with his anfwers for eva"fions, or with his filence for delays." ―The Rajah's pleas of want of money, or inability to perform whatever was required, were held, upon all occafions, prefent or paft, as dire& and absolute infult. The governor general feems to have had fome doubts, on the ground of policy and public opinion, with respect to the extent and rigour of the measures which it might be proper to purfue, for the reformation of the Rajah's conduct, and the prefervation of the company's rights and interefts. He obferves, that, to have left him in the full exercife of powers which he had notorioufly abufed, and which it was to be apprehended he would employ to the moft dangerous purposes, would be totally inconfiftent with the maxims of justice and prudence.-— On the other hand, that to divest him entirely of the zemindary, tho juftifiable on the grounds which he had stated, would have carried an appearance of feverity, and might have furnished an opportunity for conftructions, unfavourable to the credit of the company's government, and to his own reputation, from that natural influence, which, he obferves, every act of rigour exercifed upon the perfons of men in elevated ftations, is apt to impress on the minds of those, who are too remote from the fcene of action to judge, by any other evidence than that of the direct facts themselves, of their motives or propriety. He accordingly adopted, as a middle courfe, which might bring the Rajah to the terms, and into that ftate of dependence which he intended, without proceeding to the abfolute extreme of feverity, the measure of laying his perfon under an arreft. Mr. Markham, the refident, was commiffioned to execute this bufinefs; being inftructed to proceed early in the morning, with only his customary guard, as if it had been merely a common vifit, to the villa or palace where the Rajah then refided, which lay on the banks of the Ganges, being on the fame fide of the river with the city of Benares, and at about two miles diftance; he was there to put him under arreft; to require his immediate fubmiffion in the governor general's name; and to keep him in his cuftody until he received further orders. Two companies of fepoys, belonging to Major Popham's detachment, were ordered 'ordered to follow and fupport Mr. Markham in the execution of this fervice. The Rajah refigned himself with the greateft fubmiffion to the arreft, and affured the refident, that whatever the governor general's orders might be, he would implicitly obey them. He hoped, be faid, that he would allow him a fubfiftence; but as for his zemindary, his forts, and his treasure, he was ready to lay them at his feet, and his life itself, if it was required. He lamented much, and feemed exceedingly to feel, the ignimony to to which he was expofed by this public difgrace; and intreated Mr. Markham that he would return to the governor general, and give him an account of the full and ready obedience which he paid to his orders; hoping that he would make allowances for his youth and inexperience, and, in confideration of his father's name, release him from his confinement, as foon as he fhould prove the fincerity of his offers, and that he was deferving of compaffion and forgiveness. To confirm his verbal fubmiffions, he repeated them in a letter, which he fent by the refident, the concluding fentences being,-"Whatever may be your pleasure, do it with your own "hands. I am your flave. What "occafion can there be for a "guard?" Succeeding letters foon followed Mr. Markham. These were couched in terms of fuch extreme defpondency, that the governor general thought it neceffary to prevent his apprehenfions from operating in too great a degree, by informing him in a fhort note, that Mr. Markham would explain particulars to him in the afternoon, and defiring him to let his mind be at reft, and not to conceive any terror or apprehenfion.-The following broken paffages in the Rajah's letter will ferve in fome degree to fhew the agitation of his mind, under the mixed effect of the various paffions of fhame, grief, and difmay, which then operated upon him." It depends on you alone "to take away or not to take " away the country out of my "hands. In cafe my honour is "not left me, how fhall I be equal to the bufinefs of the fir"car? Whoever, with his hands "in a fupplicating pofture is "ready with his life and pro perty, what neceffity can there "be for him to be dealt with in this way?" The refident had given him an early caution and charge, that he fhould order his people to behave in a quiet and orderly manner, for that any attempt towards his refcue would be attended with inevitable destruction to himself.Upon Mr. Markham's departure, he had left the Rajah in the cuftody of Lieutenant Stalker, who commanded his own guard, and of the Lieutenants Scott and Simes, who led the two grenadier companies of fepoys. The inftructions given to thefe officers were, that they should difarm every fervant of the Rajah's; that they fhould allow him any eight or ten of his domeftics, whom he might choose or approve of, for the attendance of his perfon; that to guard against any deception, thefe perfons, fo appointed, were to be particularly fhewn to the fepoy guard; guard; and that the officers might indulge the Rajah in any requeft which was confiftent with the fecurity of his perfon. It was probably highly fortunate to Mr. Markham, that the preparing of his inftructions (which were undoubtedly intended to be conclufive) took up fo much time, as confiderably to delay his return to the confined Rajah. It feemed indeed fcarcely well to be expeaed, that in the neighbourhood of a capital city, adjoining befides to a large town, and in a part of the world where the people are fo exceedingly attached to their native princes, fuch a matter could have hung in fufpence during the greater part of a day, while the multitude, ignorant of what was really paling, dreaded every moment to be that, which might prove fatal to their fovereign, without its producing fome violent popular commotion. It appears then upon the whole, that the governor general had placed too great a confidence in the effect to be produced by his name, and in the refpect or terror attached to his fituation and character, in venturing upon fo bold and extraordinary a measure, without having fuch a force immediately upon the fpot, as would be fufficient effectually to overawe the people, and if not entirely to prevent, to be at leaft able to check commotion in the very bud. Perhaps likewife he fell into that common European error, which neither reason nor experience have been able to eradicate, and built too much upon the fuppofed timidity of the people. The antient palace of Ramnagur, lay on the oppofite fide of VOL. XXVI.. the Ganges, and at no great diftance from that in which the Rajah was in cuftody. This was the ufual or principal refidence of the prince; and in the antique ftile, anfwered the double purpoles of a fortrefs and palace. It was accordingly, a vaft pile of irregular but maily buildings conftructed of fione, and partly lying on the banks, and partly built within the very bed of the river. Some fmall and ordinary outworks had of late years been formed as additions to its original ftrength; and by degrees, a closebuilt, large, and very populous town, had grown up round it. The cftablishment of a small tanding garrifon, and of a governor, who were appointed to the charge of this place, at all times, whe ther during the Rajah's prefence or abfence, feems to have been merely an object of state-fhew and magnificence. The refidence of the court, which had given birth to the town, may be fuppofed the caufe, that the inhabitants were peculiarly and violently attached to the perfon and interefts of the prince. Juft as Mr. Markham was fetting out with his final inftructions, intelligence was received, that large bodies of armed men had croffed the river from Ramnagur, and proceeded directly to the palace where the Rajah was in cuftody. The two companies of fepoy grenadiers who formed his guard, were ftationed in an enclofed fquare, which furrounded the apartment in which he was confined. It will appear not a little extraordinary, but fully fhews either the contempt in which the fpirit of the people was [B] held held, or the reliance that was placed on their inoffenfive cha racter, that these grenadiers were led by their officers, upon a fervice fo fingular and alarming, without ammunition. Major Pop ham, upon fome intelligence of this fatal error, and perhaps of the appearance we have mentioned, difpatched another conipany of fepoys, with ammunition, to fupply and reinforce the first party; but these found the place already fo entirely blocked up by armed men, and all the avenues fo choaked by multitudes of people, that they found it impoftible to make their way through fuch a crowd, determined as it was not to admit their paffage. the Rajah was nearly overwhelmed with terror, at the commencement of the tumult, expecting his life to be the immediate forfeit to the rafhnefs of the people. He was, however, carried off by his attendants during the confufion, through a wicket, on the garden fide, which led to the river; and the banks being there very fteep, he was let down into a boat that conveyed him to the other fide, by a number of turbans tied together. The tumultuous crowd who effected his refcue, and who feemed to be equally deftitute of judgment and leaders, looked to nothing farther than his mere efcape, and followed him across the river, in the fame diforder that they had before paffed. Lieutenant Birrel, who led that company of fepoys, which brought up the ammunition, as the crowd decreafed, pushed on to the palace, where he had a smart scuffle, in which about 30 of his men were killed or wounded, in clearing it of a party of the rioters, who had loitered behind the main body. Major Popham arrived foon after with the remainder of bis detachment, which had been encamped at about two miles diftance: but he had only the mortification of beholding the mangled bodies of his dead and wounded foldiers, without its being in his power to take any vengeance of the authors of the maffacre. It seems probable that the appearance of this party, ferved greatly to increase the rage of the already inflamed multitude; who perhaps confider them as conveying, or being the intended executors of, the final doom of their prince; for the attack of the grenadiers in the fquare, inftantly commenced on their arrival. Thefe being deftitute of their ufual means of defence, were little capable of withstanding the weight and fury of the outrageous multitude, who burft in like a torrent on all fides upon them. The unfortunate party were almost in an instant cut to pieces; the wounded being left in a condition lefs enviable than the flain. The three British officers are faid to have fold their lives dearly; The Rajah, in his manifefto, as they were found covered with well as in feveral of his letters to wounds, and lying almost fide by the governor general, attributes fide. 82 fepoys were killed on the whole outrage and mifchief the fpot, and 92 defperately that happened, to the unparalWounded. leled infolence of an inferior ofwho It may be eafly conceived, that ficer belonging to the refident, who having been formerly in his own fervice, and being difcharged for fome mifdemeanor, owed him a grudge on that account, and feized this opportunity of his diftrefs, to treat him in the most contumelious manner. That the indignation of his people being excited to madnefs, at feeing their prince treated in fo fhameful a manner, and by fo contemptible and unworthy a wretch, a quarrel arose between them and the fepoys, in which, many being killed on both fides, the iffue was, at length, fuch as we have defcribed. Had any scheme of offence or refiftance been at all formed, or even in the contemplation of the Rajah, or without any fuch previous fcheme, had he only poffelfed common powers of political forefight and enterprize, he could not have miffed the opportunity which was then prefented, of striking an almost decifive blow to the British interefts in India. The governor general, with about 30 English gentlemen, and a large but defenceless train, were lodged in a fort of villa, which was enclosed in the fuburbs of Benares, and known by the name of Mahdoodafs's Gardens, their whole guard confifting in a handful of fepoys, not exceeding 50 or 60 in number; fo that it was not only in the power of the prince, but even without his appearance in it, or the aid of the military, of any tumultuous affembly of the people, to have cut them off without difficulty. It required no great facacity, nor much political obfervation to enable the Rajah to perceive, that the die was already irrevocably caft, that the means of accommodation were for ever done away, and that the moit apparently defperate, were then the only prudent measures. Whoever then reflects upon the defperate ftate of the Englith af. fairs at that time, will easily con. ceive that the immediate effects of fuch a blow, given at fuch a feafon, and scattered as their forces were throughout every part of that vaft continent, muft, in the nature of things, have been nearly irrecoverable. It is a matter of no fmall furprize, and was no less fortunate to the governor general, as well as to the company, that the armed multitude who had refcued Cheit Sing, and who were estimated at not lefs than 2,000 men, inflamed as they were by fuc efs, and fluthed in blood, had not, inftead of following the Rajah, without any object in view, across the river, proceeded directly to Mahdoodafs's gardens. Their not doing fo fufficiently indicates, that the outrage at the palace was the mere act of the moment, without any previous concert, and without their being under the guidance of any bold or violent leaders. The Rajab, inftead of vigorous council and bold refource, feemed entirely to fink under the late act, and his apprehenfion of the confequences. Wanting refolution to determine upon the courfe he fhould purfue, whether to place his truft in the hope of accommodation, or to commit all to the fortune of arms, he hefttated between both, and did no thing. In fuch a ftate of uncertainty and trepidation, it was natural to a weak mind, to place [B] 2 all |